Chapter 5

Eliza Jane stood next to Almanzo on the porch of Nellie's Restaurant waiting for the stage to come down the road. She pulled the collar of her coat up, but it did nothing to stop her shivering in fear when she saw the stage come around the bend. She smoothed her coat and fixed her hair one last time before the stage came into view.

The driver tugged on the reins and the horses stopped in front of Nellie's. Harv was the only passenger on board. He lit up when he saw Eliza Jane waiting to greet him. He stepped down, caught his bag that the driver threw at him, and strolled up the steps. Harv removed his hat and smiled the same kind smile Eliza Jane had seen when they first met.

"Howdy Eliza Jane," he said cheerfully. "Ya sure are a sight for poor eyes."

She covered her cheeks with her hands when she felt the warmth of her blush. "Why thank you," she replied.

Harv turned to Almanzo and extended his hand. "It's good to see ya again Manzo."

"Good to see ya too."

Harv noticed that his old buddy was a bit more reserved than normal. "So how's the new Papa?"

"Just fine. Laura and Rose are inside if ya wanna see um."

"Well I didn't travel all this way to see only you my friend," joked Harv.

The men chuckled and Almanzo opened the door to the restaurant. Laura stood up when she saw them and walked over to hug Harv. "Oh Harv, it's so nice to see you again."

He glanced up and down at her. "Ya look wonderful Laura. Can hardly believe ya just had a baby."

"Why thank you kind sir." She pulled him along by the arm and brought him over to the corner of the room where Rose was asleep in her carriage. "This is Rose," she whispered.

Harv touched Rose's hair and felt the silky softness of her cheek. "She's beautiful."

"We think so," her proud father replied from across the room.

Nellie brought out some coffee and pie and the four adults chatted while Rose slept. Harv noticed that Almanzo was friendly, but stayed reserved through the entire conversation. After Rose woke up, Laura and Almanzo packed her things and headed home. Eliza Jane and Harv were left to carry on the conversation.

"So…have ya enjoyed bein here?" he asked her.

"Yes indeed I have. I didn't realize how much I missed it until I came back."

"Yeah, it does feel nice to sit here talkin again. Makes me remember when I lived in town and we usta have supper every night."

Not wanting to stroll down memory lane Eliza Jane changed the subject. "How's Minneapolis?"

"Noisy and busy, real busy."

"I thought you liked living in the city."

"Maybe it's cuz I'm gettin older, but I just don't like the hustle and bustle as much as I usta."

Almost afraid to know, but too curious to not ask she said, "Are you thinking of moving again?"

Harv flashed a crooked smile. "Ya might say that." He paused for a moment, looking into his empty coffee cup. "I was wonderin what your plans are."

"My plans? What do you mean?" she asked, confused.

"Well, I know ya ain't happy in St. Louis. I thought maybe your comin here might mean you were thinkin of movin back to Walnut Grove."

She wondered if Mannie told Harv about her contemplating a move over the summer, but it didn't seem like something her brother would do so she played coy. "What makes you think I'm not happy in St. Louis?"

"I can hear it in your letters. Ya sound…I dunno…ya sound like your lookin for somethin better."

Eliza Jane had no idea Harv had bothered to read between the lines of her letters. She rarely spoke of St. Louis. Harv had written her once when she first moved there, encouraging her to tell Laura and Almanzo the truth, but she forbade him to speak about it again. "It would be her decision whether or not to tell them, not his," she had said.

She wasn't quite sure what to say. All she knew was that she was tired of talking to him and wanted to sneak up to her safe room where she didn't have to reveal anything. "It wasn't quite what I expected," she offered him, hoping he would leave it alone.

"So why don't ya move back here?" he asked.

"Because I have no way to support myself in Walnut Grove. There's only one school and Laura plans to go back to teaching in a few months."

"Oh, I thought she would be stayin home with Rose."

"Well I wish she would, but that's not my decision to make."

"So ya would move back here if ya had a job," he pushed further.

"I might. I haven't given it any thought." Eliza Jane didn't know what Harv was fishing for and she wasn't in the mood to reveal any more. She stood up and pushed in her chair. "I'm sorry Harv, but I'm very tired. I still have papers to grade and a lesson plan to prepare, so if you'll excuse me I'm going to head up to my room."

He stood up so that he could look her right in the eye. "I was hopin ya would join me for supper tomorrow night…since we're both stayin here."

Eliza Jane stared down at the floor. She really had no reason to refuse. She was planning on eating at the restaurant tomorrow night anyway. But she just couldn't bring herself to say yes. "I'll have to think about it. Can I let you know after school tomorrow?"

"Sure. I'll be right here waitin."

She nodded. "Goodnight Harv," she said and then walked towards the stairs without waiting for his response.

"Goodnight Eliza Jane," he called after her, making her turn around. "It sure is good to see ya again."

She nodded again before making her way up the stairs. She felt Harv's eyes on her and could feel the warm, nervousness she often experienced around men. When she finally made it to her room she was glad to be able to shut the door and breath normally again. That night, as she tried to sleep she thought about what Harv had said. Deep down she knew this was more than a friendly visit. She wondered if Laura had been right all along. Did Harv want her back? Was he actually interested in committing to her this time? Or was she desperately making it all up in her mind so that she didn't feel so pathetic? All these thoughts swarmed around in her head. And no matter how long she contemplated them, she found no answers.

Eliza Jane awoke just before daybreak, weary from the few hours sleep she managed to convince her body she needed. She got dressed and ready for school. On the walk over to the schoolhouse she caught sight of Harv standing on the porch of the Mercantile. He waved. She waved back and then picked up her step so that she could scoot inside the school building where she would be safe.

The day dragged on and the students noticed that Eliza Jane seemed distracted. She didn't even seem to care that Willie Oleson was up to his usual tricks. A typical day would have found him in the corner multiple times by now. By three o'clock everyone was ready to head home. Eliza Jane dismissed the class, reminding them of the big history test tomorrow. She stayed inside for at least twenty minutes, hoping to somehow avoid giving Harv an answer about supper tonight. But then she remembered the conversation she had with Laura the day she found out Harv was coming to Walnut Grove. Her sister-in-law had told her she needed to find out how Harv felt. "She's right," Eliza Jane said to herself, slapping her ruler on the desk. She collected her things and strode out of the schoolhouse, shutting the door firmly behind her. 'No more of this nonsense,' she thought. 'It's time to find out what Harv Miller is up to.'