Read Online The Nanny's Little Matchmakers (Love Inspired Historical) by Danica Favorite - Free Book Online

chair, but not before she caught the reciprocal flash in Mitch’s eyes.
    “It couldn’t be helped,” he said, his voice quiet, yet with an undercurrent of tension that made Polly’s heart ache.
    She supposed he couldn’t be forthcoming with the children; after all, having their father be accused of killing their mother was a tragedy no child should have to experience. Losing their mother was bad enough, but to have to face the potential involvement of their father...
    Polly took a deep breath. She’d been judging Mitch harshly, when he’d simply been doing the best he could do.
    “Would you like some breakfast?” she said, straightening as she smiled at him. “Your brother thoughtfully provided a housekeeper to help with the cooking and such since apparently you hadn’t had time to engage one. Lucy has just gone down to get some more milk, but I think you’ll be pleased with her.”
    Mitch nodded slowly, then sat at the head of the table. “Thank you. I guess I hadn’t realized what a mess I’d left behind.”
    He spoke slowly, as though the remorse for the difficult position he’d left everyone in had finally dawned on him.
    “We made it through just fine,” Polly said, handing him a plate. “Now we need to move forward as best as we can.”
    She’d have liked to have told him that she was sorry for her accusations the previous night. The five accusing glances, even from little Isabella, must have weighed incredibly heavily on him. He didn’t need the additional pressure from her.
    The back door opened, and Lucy bustled in. “There’s a crowd gathered out front, and they were asking me all sorts of questions.”
    Mitch had just raised a forkful of eggs to his lips but hadn’t taken a bite yet. The fork clattered to the table as he jumped up and went to the front window.
    He muttered something indistinguishable as he turned back toward the kitchen area. “Reporters.”
    “Like when Mummy has a show?” Clara asked, her eyes lighting up momentarily, then dimming. “They don’t know she is gone?”
    “No, you dolt. It’s because Mummy is dead. They all want to know how we feel about losing her.” Louisa’s face darkened, but fire filled her eyes. “Why won’t they leave us alone?”
    Mitch looked over at Polly, his eyes locking with hers. A silent reminder that the children didn’t know the circumstances that hung over him.
    How were they supposed to carry on with their lives with the reporters hanging about? One ill-placed question, and Mitch would have a great deal of explaining to do.
    “Let’s forget about them and enjoy our breakfasts, shall we?” Polly tried to sound cheerful, but as the sullen children stared at their congealing eggs, she found she didn’t have much of an appetite either.
    Isabella, however, was too innocent to understand the darkness surrounding her family, and she devoured her meal. At least one of her charges was eating.
    Mitch made a show of finishing his breakfast. “It was delicious. Thank you, Lucy.”
    He acknowledged their housekeeper with a smile, but his eyes weren’t in it.
    How had Polly come to take such an interest in him? To notice his moods and his features? She shook her head. Just part of the job. Of course she had to be sensitive to Mitch’s moods—for the children’s sakes.
    “I suppose we could start our lessons.” Once again, Polly tried to sound cheerful, but she was met with dull expressions. Typically, the suggestion of lessons would have elicited a few groans, or some argument. But with the mention of their beloved mummy, their grief came back up again, swallowing them into a pit of mourning that left them incapable of feeling anything else.
    “Or, I was thinking, we could go to the parsonage and take our lessons with the children there today.”
    “Wif Nugget?” Isabella’s big dark eyes brightened as she hopped off her chair and bounded toward Polly.
    In the days Mitch had been gone, the children had spent a good deal of time