As Love Blooms (2 page)

Tessa held out the withered blossoms. “I believe these belong to you.” Mr. King extended his hand, and she deposited the blooms. “You really ought to be ashamed of yourself for not tending to those poor beleaguered pansies. Hadn’t you noticed them?”

Mr. King tossed the handful of flowers into a trash can. “Deadheading the pansies was on my list of things to do today, Miss . . .”

“Tessa Gregory.” She tugged on her gloves. “And thank you for your assistance. Now, if you’ll kindly direct me to the office of the park superintendent, I’ll be on my way.”

“I’m off to see Mr. Nussbaumer myself. You can walk with me.” He motioned toward the path, and the two of them fell in step together. Neither spoke for the first few minutes, but finally Mr. King broke the awkward silence. “Why do you want to speak to our park superintendent?”

“I’m seeking a position.”

“I don’t think you’ll find Mr. Nussbaumer in need of a stenographer. He does all the record keeping himself.”

Tessa glanced in the young man’s direction and saw he was serious. “An office girl? I realize we’ve only known each other a short time, but do I seem like the kind of person who’d be content filing papers?”

Mr. King chuckled. “Not really.”

“That’s certainly correct.” The wind whipped at the rolled-up garden prints she carried, and she tucked them under her arm. “I’m a horticulturist. I’ve spent the last two years at the University of Minnesota studying horticulture, and I’d like to secure a position as a gardener.”

His eyes widened. “From Fred Nussbaumer?”

“Yes, he has a stellar reputation.”

“Indeed, but do you know anything else about the man?” He slowed as they neared a brick building.

“Like?”

“He’s German, he’s brilliant, and he works harder than two men on any given day.”

“Are you trying to scare me off?”

Mr. King met her gaze and held it. “Not in the least, but I don’t want you to get your hopes up. He’s a great man—a great
opinionated
man.”

“Once he sees my ideas, I’m sure we’ll get along famously.”

“He may never look at your plans.” Mr. King held the door to the small building. “But I wish you Godspeed, Miss Gregory.”

After introducing herself, Tessa flashed Mr. Nussbaumer a broad smile and glanced around his office. Open volumes bearing sketches of plants littered one table in the corner. Another table bore several pots beneath a window, and she recognized the plants they held—milkwort, curled mallow, wild peppergrass, rock cress, and columbine.

Mr. Nussbaumer motioned her to a chair. “What can I do for you, Miss Gregory?”

“I’d like to speak to you about securing a position at one of Saint Paul’s parks.” She laid her rolled-up plans in her lap and took a steadying breath. “I would be happy to work at any of them, but I must admit a particular fondness for this one, Como
Park. It’s truly magnificent, and I could learn a great deal by working here.”

The man’s bushy eyebrows drew close. “Working here in what way?”

“As a gardener, of course. I studied horticulture in college, so I’m well qualified. I’ve had classes in fruit and vegetable growing, greenhouse practices, plant breeding, floriculture, systemic pomology, ornamental horticulture, and my favorite—landscape gardening.”

The man threw himself back in his chair and laughed. “You want to work in my gardens?” His mustache wiggled as he spoke. “The work here is man’s work. There is a great deal of lifting and digging in the dirt. You are a fine lady. You can’t be serious.”

“But I am serious.”

His eyes sparkled with merriment. “I wouldn’t have you here as a flower girl, Miss Gregory, let alone a gardener. Surely you can find things to keep you busy at one of the many ladies’ flower clubs.”

Disappointment pricked her heart and welled inside her. “Mr. Nussbaumer, I want to design gardens. If you’ll only take a look at my plans . . .” She held out her papers.

Mr. Nussbaumer waved them away. “I’m sure you are a lovely young woman. Go design your own garden in your backyard. Perhaps it will keep you entertained until you find a young man to marry you,
ja
?”

“Entertained?” Her voice rose. She had to make him understand. “Gardening is not a hobby for me. I take it very seriously. I want to work for you.”

“That is not going to happen, Miss Gregory.” Although his eyes were kind, his words were firm. She’d heard her father use the same tone. “Perhaps you can be of use to the parks in some other way. We are always in need of community support. Maybe you’d be willing to speak to your lady friends about becoming patrons. We can work together to make our city beautiful.”

The nerve of this man. First he wouldn’t take her seriously, and now he wanted her to help him secure funds?

Don’t say anything you’ll regret.

She forced a thin smile. “I’ll do what I can to help.”

“Now there’s a good girl.” He picked up his pencil and opened a ledger. “Good day, Miss Gregory.”

Reese leaned against the wall and waited for his turn to speak to Mr. Nussbaumer. If he was honest with himself, he was waiting for Miss Gregory. He’d overheard part of the conversation, and he worried about how the young woman would handle having her hopes dashed. There was something about her that made him want to help her.

Miss Gregory shut the office door with a solid bang, then glared at him. “Mr. King, have you been eavesdropping? Did you stay here so you could gloat?”

“N-n-no, of course not.”

“While I appreciate your assistance in that rather unfortunate exchange this afternoon, I do not see how it gives you the right to listen to my private conversations.” She marched toward the exit.

For all her bravado, Reese sensed the woman’s hurt and defeat. “I’m sorry Mr. Nussbaumer wouldn’t consider you.”

Her eyes glistened. Would she cry? Instead, she lifted her chin, drawing attention to the freckles dotting her nose, and squared her shoulders. “I don’t give up easily, Mr. King. I always find a way to get what I want.”

Reese smiled and watched her leave. “I bet you do, Miss Gregory. I bet you do.”

During the short walk from the streetcar up Summit Avenue to Aunt Sam’s mansion, Tessa rehearsed what she was going to tell her two older sisters. If she was going to make her dream come
true, she’d need their help. Aunt Sam, of course, would be willing to lend a hand as well.

The butler greeted her at the door. “Welcome home, miss.”

“Thank you, Geoffrey. Are my sisters still here?”

“They’re in the parlor.”

Perfect. She’d tell them all about her unfruitful morning. They’d understand. Both had fought to get where they were today. Her oldest sister, Hannah, was an attorney, and her other sister, Charlotte, was the chef in charge of City Hospital’s kitchen. Together the three of them would come up with a plan that Mr. Nussbaumer would never see coming.

Tessa scurried through the parlor’s double doors. Hannah, who sat in a winged chair with a tablet of paper in hand, looked up. “Oh, Tessa, we’re glad you’re home. Come join us. We want to tell you about the plan we’ve come up with.”

Tessa took a seat on the divan next to Charlotte and smiled when her three-year-old niece Ellie climbed up in her lap.

Hannah’s daughter held up her porcelain doll to Tessa’s lips. “Kiss my baby.”

Tessa obliged and gave the doll a peck before Ellie slid off her lap. “You’ll never guess what happened this morn—”

“What do you think about the three of us arranging an excursion to surprise Aunt Sam for her birthday?” Charlotte captured Tessa’s hand. “Wouldn’t it be fun?”

“Yes, of course, you know I love surprises. How can I help?”

Hannah waved her pencil in the air. “You don’t need to worry about the details. Charlotte and I can manage those. All you need to do is pitch in the day we tell her—and of course keep our secret. You can do that, can’t you?”

“Don’t treat me like a child. Of course I can keep a secret.”

Charlotte poured Tessa a cup of tea. “We simply don’t want her to find out, and with you living here in the house with her, it might be more difficult for you to keep our surprise under wraps.”

“I won’t let on to the trip.” Tessa dropped two lumps of sugar into her tea. “And why would we put you in charge of the details, Hannah? If you’d had your way, we’d have all been on the
Titanic
last year.”

“They said the ship was unsinkable.” Hannah jotted down a note on her tablet. “I hardly think that precludes me from deciding our next venture.”

Tessa shrugged. “Now, can I tell you about what happened to me this morning?”

“All right.” Hannah set the tablet down on the table.

Tessa relayed the experience with Mr. Nussbaumer, doing her best to reenact his German accent, and leaving out the part about almost being arrested. Neither of her sisters seemed to appreciate her dramatic interpretation of the events. Didn’t they realize how difficult it was to improvise a performance?

“You weren’t honestly expecting him to welcome you with open arms, were you?” Hannah hurried to still Ellie from pounding on the piano keys. “It’s like I warned you. There are women gardeners at private estates, but I doubt if there are many working in the city parks systems.”

“But a woman helped design the gardens at the Saint Louis World’s Fair, and there’s the City Beautiful Movement. Sure, everyone associates men with the effort to bring beauty to the cities, but we all know it’s women volunteers who’ve made the most difference. It’s simply not fair he dismissed me because I’m a woman.”

Charlotte patted Tessa’s hand. “I’m sure you’ll find something else to catch your fancy. After all, you’ve already passed through the journalist, photographer, librarian, and Pinkerton agent phases.”

“Horticulture is not a phase!” Tessa set her cup down so hard some tea swished out onto the saucer. First Mr. Nussbaumer and now her sisters? Didn’t anyone understand? “This is the profession I’ve chosen, and you both need to realize I’m not a child anymore.
I’m almost twenty years old, and in case you’ve forgotten, when Mother and Father passed away, we promised to help each other achieve our dreams.”

Hannah shared a knowing look with Charlotte, then came round the back of the divan and placed her hands on Tessa’s shoulders. “You’re right. We did. But is this
really
your heart’s true desire?”

“Yes, Hannah, it is.” She shrugged her sister’s hand away, stood, and squared her shoulders. “But I don’t need your help. I’ll make my own dreams come true—with or without you.”

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