Free Annie's Answer by Pam Andrews Hanson Page A

in love with Nathan Sawyer.
    “I’m sorry,”
she said. “I couldn’t possibly accept a live-in job.”
    “Of course
not. I shouldn’t have asked. It wouldn’t be much of a life for you, constantly
at my great aunt’s beck and call.”
    Was the
disappointment in his voice all about Mattie? For a brief instant, she thought
he might actually want her around because he liked her. But that kind of
thinking could only lead to disappointment and potential heartbreak.
    When her
mother came to put an end to their conversation, Annie wanted to hug her. She
knew how easily Nathan could’ve persuaded her to accept his offer, but she had
to avoid him as much as possible.
    Think flower
shop, she silently told herself. She wasn’t Cinderella, and this Prince Charming
had no intention of sweeping her into his arms and carrying her away on a white
horse.

Chapter 9
    “I thought we
could do something about the kitchen cupboards today,” Mattie said as soon as
Annie showed up for work Monday morning. “I can’t abide a spice drawer that
isn’t arranged in alphabetical order.”
    “Would Mrs.
Sawyer want us to change things?” Annie asked, a bit skeptical about Mattie’s
proposed project.
    “George’s wife
is lucky if she can locate the stove. She lives on rice cakes and lettuce. No
wonder my nephew eats out most of the time.”
    Annie couldn’t
help but notice Mattie never spoke of Nathan’s mother as Linda. Did the
Sawyers’ long trip to Europe have anything to do the arrival of his great aunt?
She hoped not. Families were a gift from God, and it distressed her to think
Nathan might be caught in the middle of a feud.
    Mattie
gingerly walked over to a drawer, using only one crutch and carefully putting
her weight on the injured ankle. Would her job her end when the older woman was
fully healed? Annie doubted it, but she still thought she’d made the right
decision in not accepting Nathan’s offer of a live-in job.
    Apparently
he’d left the house before she got there, although Mattie didn’t mention him.
Annie tried not to feel disappointed, but it was difficult. She was thinking
about him entirely too much for her own peace of mind.
    “Oh dear,”
Mattie said, peering into the broad drawer filled with spice containers. “The
paper lining needs to be replaced. I always line my cupboards with contact
paper. It can be washed. Of course, I don’t have drawers of my own anymore.”
    Mattie sounded
so sad Annie wanted to hug her, but she was leery of offering too much
sympathy. Nathan’s elderly aunt wasn’t a person who felt sorry for herself.
After a few moments, she sounded perky—and a bit bossy—again, but
Annie could imagine how traumatic it must be to have a long-time home
destroyed.
    “Oh, that’s
for me,” Mattie said, digging a cell phone out of the pocket of another of her
housedresses, this one a pretty patterned one in shades of bright pink, orange,
and lavender.
    “Ruth, it’s
good to hear from you. Hold on just a minute while I go sit down.” She held the
phone away and spoke to Annie. “It’s a dear friend from Iowa. You can go ahead
and wipe off the spice cans if they need it. I won’t be too long.”
    Annie had
never seen Mattie look so happy as she hurried as quickly as possible to talk
in the privacy of another room. It was nearly half an hour before she returned,
practically glowing from the conversation.
    “Ruth and I
went to high school together,” Mattie said, seemingly eager to share the
welcome phone call with Annie. “We’ve been in the same bridge club since we
were both newly married. Sometimes I can’t believe how old we’ve both gotten.”
    “It was nice
she called,” Mattie added, and  Annie heard the regret in the older
woman’s voice.
    Her
grandfather was so lively and engaged in the community, she hadn’t realized how
hard it must be to grow old among virtual strangers. She vowed to be patient
with Mattie, even when the woman’s demands made her