Author's Note: The next installment is here, and I hope you enjoy it! I also wanted to offer my sincere thanks to naybaybay and gerrylynnr for taking the time to leave such kind reviews and feedback on the story. It is so appreciated!

CHAPTER THREE

"I've packed a carafe of lemonade with some apples from the garden, and I've wrapped up a few shortbread cookies from my mother's very own recipe," Mrs. Pugh said proudly, handing Grace a small wicker basket over the kitchen counter.

"Perfect as always, Evelyn," Grace said with a smile. "Thank you. The girls are a bit glum after Tessie's departure, so I hope a walk outside and some fresh air will do them both good."

"I'm sure it will," Mrs. Pugh said knowingly. Grace was turning to leave the kitchen when the older woman's voice spoke again, a new hint of a quaver in it. "Miss—wait just a moment, if I may?"

She turned back to face the portly woman. "Yes?"

Mrs. Pugh looked suddenly nervous and began twisting a kitchen towel between her hands. "Miss, it's just a matter of, um—I've got a bit of a question for you."

"Of course, what is it?" Grace set the picnic basket down on the counter between them and waited.

Mrs. Pugh was silent for a long moment, as if she couldn't bring herself to speak the words on her mind. "It's my son," she burst out finally. "I've had a call from him this morning."

"Is he all right?"

She sighed. "He's all right, yes, but he's had a difficult summer. They've done another round of layoffs at the electrical plant, and unfortunately last week his number was up."

Grace sighed. "Oh, dear. I'm so sorry to hear it, Evelyn. It seems there's no end in sight to all of this misery."

"Fortunately," she said, "he called this morning to say he found another position, doing maintenance for the newest model of those Pullman sleeper cars."

"Oh, that's wonderful!" Grace exclaimed. "How fortunate for him to find another job so quickly!"

"Well …" the older woman trailed off, looking toward the floor rather than meeting Grace's eyes. "I am happy for him, yes, and he'll still be able to make ends meet."

"Then what's the problem?" Grace asked. She studied the older woman curiously, now wondering why she still seemed upset.

"It's my grandson," Mrs. Pugh sighed finally. "Jack. Do you remember him? He's nine."

Grace smiled. "Of course I remember him. You brought him to the staff Christmas party last year. But what about him?"

"The route that Danny will be working runs from New York to St. Louis," Mrs. Pugh explained. "It's a two-day journey, and he's expected to do three back-and-forth trips in a row before he gets two days off. But there's no place on the train for a boy Jack's age who is too young to work."

Comprehension began to dawn in Grace's mind. "So, he's asked if the boy can stay with you while he's away?"

"Exactly," Mrs. Pugh said quietly. "My daughter's family haven't got the room to spare with their five little ones. And the boy's other grandparents aren't well suited to take care of Jack. Her health is too poor, and he—" She huffed. "Well, frankly, miss, he drinks too much to be responsible for himself, let alone a child."

Grace bit her lip. "And you live here."

As it was, Mrs. Pugh was one of the few of Oliver's staff who did live at the mansion on a permanent basis. Most of his employees, folks like the maids, gardeners, and kitchen staff, lived in the city with their families. Only a handful of the most critical staff who worked long or unusual hours and from whom Oliver might require something at a moment's notice, such as herself, Punjab and the Asp, Drake, head housekeeper Mrs. Greer, and Mrs. Pugh, actually boarded at the mansion on a permanent basis.

"Yes," Mrs. Pugh said, a worried expression on her face. "So, Miss, I had to ask: there's nowhere else suitable for Jack to go, and he really is the most wonderful boy. Have I completely lost my marbles to ask whether you think Mr. Warbucks might allow it? Before this summer, I would have dismissed the idea immediately. But he's been such a changed man these last few weeks! We even had a whole gaggle of orphans running around the place for a time!"

Grace didn't say anything for a long moment, studying Mrs. Pugh and mulling over her question silently.

"How long would this arrangement be for?" she asked finally. "Is Danny's new job expected to be permanent?"

"Here's hoping not!" Mrs. Pugh said quickly. "He doesn't want it to be permanent at all. Truth be told, he hates the whole situation. He loves the boy dearly, and the thought of being away from him is quite upsetting to him. He's going to keep looking for another job closer to home. But in the meantime …" She sighed. "Well, beggars can't be choosers these days, can they?"

"No," Grace mused. "They certainly can't."

She wasn't sure what to think. Would Oliver be willing to accept yet another new addition to the house, and a child at that? He had done surprisingly well tolerating the presence of Annie's orphan friends for the several weeks it took to identify appropriate new families for them and make the legal arrangements for their adoptions. In fact, he had bluntly refused Mr. Donatelli's demands that, as wards of the state, they should be returned to the orphanage as soon as the new orphanage supervisor replacing Miss Hannigan had been mustered in. But this was an entirely different matter. If he approved, who knew how long the boy would end up staying there before his father could find more suitable employment?

"I don't want to ask anything inappropriate, Miss," Mrs. Pugh said quickly. "I'm not asking for you to advocate on his behalf with Mr. Warbucks, not at all. I just wondered if you thought it was worth asking, or if I should forget the whole notion and stop being foolish."

Grace couldn't help but chuckle. "Well, Evelyn, I certainly felt foolish after I asked him to keep Annie rather than send her back to the orphanage." A small smile crept across her lips, remembering that fateful morning in the garden. Foolish was an understatement for how she had felt after Oliver at first refused to even consider the idea of keeping Annie. "But, in the end, he surprised me entirely."

"Surprised us all, I think," Mrs. Pugh agreed with a smile. "And in the most wonderful way."

Grace took the older woman's hands in her own. "I do think you should make the request. In my view, there's no harm in asking. But," she added quickly, "I'd prefer that you ask Drake to raise it for Mr. Warbucks' approval. It'll be his decision, and I don't want …" She felt her cheeks reddening. "Well, that is, I don't want him to feel as though I'm taking advantage of how things have changed between us recently." She squeezed Mrs. Pugh's hands. "But I will advocate for Jack if he asks my opinion."

Mrs. Pugh smiled broadly. "I'd be ever so grateful, Miss. I do think he would get along swimmingly with Annie and Molly. He's just the right age to be the perfect playmate for them."

"It would be nice for Annie and Molly to have another child around," Grace admitted. "Especially in the next few weeks. Oliver and I will be consumed with wrapping up these merger negotiations. We won't have as much time to spend with them as we have in the last month." She picked up the picnic basket. "Well, I don't want to keep the girls waiting any longer. But don't worry, Evelyn. I'm sure everything will turn out all right."

Grace's mind was still working through the conversation with Mrs. Pugh as she left the kitchens and walked back toward the entrance hall, a slight frown on her face.

This wasn't the first time in the last month that a member of the staff had asked her to intercede with Oliver on a personal matter. For as much as Mrs. Pugh had denied that was her intention, it was clear what the older woman hoped the outcome of the conversation would be. For years, Grace had been one of them: a fellow staffer in Oliver's employ. She had gone to movies and shows with the maids and other secretaries, had attended holiday parties and birthday parties in their homes. Over time, she had come to consider many of the other staff members her personal friends.

But in the weeks since Annie's arrival and since her relationship with Oliver had begun, she had sensed a definite change in how many of them interacted with her. Most of them did seem genuinely happy for her—Annette and Cecille had even assured her, much to her embarrassment, that the staff had suspected how she felt about Oliver for years! But she couldn't help but notice that they all now treated her with a touch of caution and a good deal more deference. Mrs. Pugh and Mrs. Greer used called her "Grace" in private conversation, but now she was always "Miss Farrell" or simply "Miss" to both of them without exception. And Drake—well, she still couldn't quite tell how Drake felt about it all. He liked her well enough on a personal level, but he was the traditional sort and she was certainly not a traditional match for a billionaire.

She sighed. It seemed that everyone in the household, including her most of all, was still acclimating to her new status. Whatever it was.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a "ping-ping-whiz" and bubbly peals of laughter as Annie and Molly—good heavens, as they played badminton indoors in the entrance hall! She suppressed a laugh of her own. If Oliver had any intention of making her Annie's mother one day, she would certainly have her work cut out for her.

Annie and Molly's badminton game was promptly relocated to a grassy lawn in Central Park, and the girls ran around joyfully chasing their birdies as the golden afternoon sun bathed the park in a warm light. Sandy barked at their heels and chased after each birdie, his leash dragging in the grass. Spreading their snack provisions on a blanket, Grace watched in amusement as Molly lobbed a birdie high into the branches of the tree above them, where it stuck fast.

"Molly!" Annie cried. "That was our last one!"

"I'm sorry!" Molly wailed. "I didn't mean to hit it so hard!"

Grace chuckled. "Well, Annie, you can't blame her entirely. We would have had a few more if you hadn't hit one into the pond on our way over here." She raised an eyebrow. "Or into the Chinese vase in the dining room at home."

Annie grinned as she and Molly tossed their racquets onto the grass and settled down next to Grace on the blanket.

"That's all right, it was real fun to come out here anyway," she said, picking up a shortbread cookie. "D'you think next time Daddy can come with us and we can rent one of those little boats at the boat house?"

Grace couldn't help but laugh aloud as the image of Oliver and Annie in a paddleboat floated across her mind's eye. The chance of a capsizing would be high, and she wasn't sure who might be more to blame. "I think you'd have to work all of your charms to convince him to step foot in one of those, Annie."

Molly whispered something in Annie's ear, and Annie laughed.

"What?" Grace asked in amusement.

"You've got some charms to work on him too," Annie winked.

"Annie!" Grace exclaimed, laughing as she pretended to swat at the girl's curly mop of red hair. "Good gracious, sometimes I can't believe the things you say."

"You're blushing!" Molly giggled.

"I am not," Grace said determinedly, knowing full well that she was.

"You are!" Annie teased. She fell silent for a moment as she bit into an apple and studied Grace thoughtfully. "I gotta ask, Grace—when are you and Daddy gonna get married? It's been practically forever. And I could tell from the first day I showed up here how much ya liked each other."

You have no idea, sweet girl, Grace thought to herself, stifling a smile. "Well, Annie, he has to ask me first."

"I know, I know. And I'm sure he will! But when he does ask, you're gonna say yes, right?" Annie pressed, her eyes wide.

"I think your father deserves to be the first to hear my answer, don't you?" she replied with a wink.

"Fine," Annie huffed. Then her voice became serious. "Ya know what I never asked? When did you know that you liked him? Well, not just that you liked him, in the same way you like a friend. But that you were in love with him?"

"On the radio shows that Miss Hannigan listened to, they always talked about love at first sight," Molly chimed in. "Like ya'd just look at someone and then fall in love for always! Does that really happen?"

Grace pondered her answer as she absently patted Sandy's head. "Well," she began, "perhaps it happens for some people, but I wouldn't say that it was love at first sight for either of us. You know, Annie, when I first began working for your father, I wasn't actually his private secretary. I was just one of the secretaries who work for his companies at the house. His private secretary at the time was a woman named Miss Burton."

"Gee," Annie said in amazement. "I didn't know that. It's hardto picture Daddy having anyone else as his secretary."

"Well, she wasn't in the role for very long. She left about a year after I started working for him, and that's when Oliver asked me to take over the position."

"Because he thought you were so beautiful?" Molly asked excitedly.

Grace laughed. "No, dear. Because I had the quickest shorthand on the secretarial staff."

"Oh," Molly said, wrinkling her nose. "So is that when you fell in love at first sight?"

"Well, it wasn't quite 'first sight' by that point! I enjoyed working for him, and of course I came to have the highest respect for his dedication, his work ethic, and his intellect. But I wouldn't say I was in love with him yet." She chuckled. "And I'm not sure if your father ever really gave me more than a passing glance. He was always so serious, so professional. He never really focused on anything except running his businesses."

"So what changed?" Annie asked, her expression puzzled.

"A few things, I suppose. When the stock market crashed a few years ago, you know, life became very difficult." Grace studied the ground, a frown on her face as she thought back. "You girls were too young to know what it was like outside the orphanage. People were losing their jobs, their homes, and their life savings left and right. Your father was under a tremendous amount of stress. Several of his companies collapsed entirely, and others barely survived. We were working nonstop, day and night, to try to keep his factories and warehouses open and keep those workers off the unemployment lines. I think Oliver barely slept at all in those early weeks." Her expression darkened and she felt a catch in her throat. "And, while all of that was happening, I was growing more and more concerned about my mother."

"Your mother?"

"Yes," she sighed. "She had been quite sick for some time. But she started to grow weaker right before the market crash, and she passed away just a few months afterward."

Molly snuggled up to Grace's side, and she wrapped an arm around the little girl. She still couldn't think back on that painful time without feeling a shot of pain sear her heart and tears sting her eyes. Although the depression had begun nearly four years ago, sometimes those horrible early days still felt as near and raw as if they were yesterday. "It was a very difficult time. But …" She couldn't help the slight smile that came to her face. "It's also when I realized my feelings for your father were changing, Annie."

"How d'you mean?" Annie asked.

"He came to my mother's funeral," Grace said. "I never dreamed he would take hours away from managing the economic crisis to come. But he did, and I was very grateful."

She left out a few key memories from the story, which were private to her and held closely in her heart. Oliver standing in a back pew of the church after the service, aloof from the other mourners. Oliver offering her a completely unprompted—and entirely unexpected—embrace and handkerchief when, after thanking him for coming, she had been overcome by a fresh wave of grief. Oliver confessing that he had not been able to attend his own mother's funeral, far off in England long after he had emigrated permanently to New York, and that he wanted to pay his respects to another much beloved mother as he had not been able to do for his own. Finding out afterward that he had sent his regrets to an emergency meeting with President Hoover's top economic advisers in order to attend and support her.

"In that moment, I realized that he wasn't just a billionaire who only cares about money," Grace said softly. "As much as he tries to hide it sometimes, he does care deeply about others. And once I saw that small hint of his true heart, I began to see others."

Other memories tugged at her mind, the times that had showed her brief glimpses of the true character he had kept hidden for so long behind walls built of iron and steel. The close relationship he had with his cousin Margaret, her husband Henry, and their daughter Emmeline, who were the only family he had left in the world. How he truly valued the household staff and felt keenly his responsibility to them; the reality was the mansion could function perfectly competently with half the people he employed, but he hadn't let go a single staff member since the depression had begun even as his own budgets had shrunk. The way he worked so hard to keep his factories open, even when some of them had been running at a loss for years, because he knew how many families depended on them.

She smiled. "So you see, it took a bit of time. But before I knew it, I was completely in love."

Annie and Molly both sighed dreamily.

Grace reached out and caressed Annie's cheek. "But it took your arrival in our lives, my dear, before he would finally give others the chance to see the heart he kept hidden for so long."

"Me, plus you finally listenin' to my advice and leavin' your hair down," Annie grinned.

"Perhaps that too," Grace admitted, smiling in spite of herself.

The three of them stayed at the park for a while longer before packing up the remnants of their picnic and taking a short stroll through the ramble of trees back to the lake, where the ducks enjoyed a few remaining crumbs of shortbread. Grace marveled at how quickly spending time with Annie, and now Molly, had become one of her very favorite ways to pass the time. Even a lazy afternoon spent enjoying the sunshine in the park was more enjoyable with them by her side, as if they were her own children whom she had known all their lives. It was a wonderful feeling.

Finally making their way back to the house as the afternoon sun began to dip slightly lower in the sky, Grace realized now was as good a time as any to relay one less happy piece of news.

"Girls," she began as they crossed out of the park and walked back up Fifth Avenue toward the mansion gates, "there's one thing that you should know. Unfortunately, Oliver and I are going to be quite busy over the next few weeks."

"What's new about that?" Annie asked. "You're always busy."

Grace chuckled. "That's true, but in a couple of days' time we'll be even more so. Annie, do you remember when you first arrived at the mansion how your father was just coming back from a long trip?" The redhead nodded. "Well, he spent a good portion of that trip in Chicago. He's been working for some time on a merger between his biggest steel company and another company based in the Midwest. Now the owners of that company—they're called the Thompsons—will be coming here to finish negotiating the deal."

"What's a merger?"

"It's when two separate companies decide to join forces and become one single company. It's quite a difficult thing to do, and it takes a lot of time and effort to work out the details."

Annie wrinkled her nose in confusion. "But why would Daddy want to join up with another company? I thought he ran all of his businesses by himself."

Grace sighed. "Well, dear, in this terrible economy sometimes it makes more sense for companies to work together to survive, rather than compete with one another. Does that make sense?"

"I guess so?"

"Sounds boring," Molly said. Grace laughed.

"I can't deny that, Molly," she said. "I just wanted to explain why things are about to get a bit hectic around the house. Please don't believe for a moment that he and I wouldn't rather be spending time with you. We'll certainly try our best, but with so many extra visitors and so much work to be done, we won't be able to do as much as we'd like."

Oliver was already back at the mansion when Grace, Annie, and Molly returned from the park and was waiting for them in the parlor. Grace immediately noticed a change in his bearing: he had been tense, stressed, and even anxious the whole day, and his temper had been shorter than usual. But something was different now. He seemed relaxed and much more at ease, and his eyes lit up when they walked in. He listened with rapt, amused attention as Annie and Molly regaled him with tales of their afternoon: feeding the ducks Mrs. Pugh's famous shortbread, Annie's eagerness to rent a paddleboat and sail around the lake at Central Park with her father in tow, and Molly's badminton birdie getting stuck in the tree. Conveniently no mention was made of the birdie now residing permanently at the bottom of the Chinese vase in the dining room, and Oliver expertly deflected prolonged discussion of the paddleboat idea.

"Girls," he suggested finally, "I believe Mrs. Pugh is aiming to have supper on the table in short order. Why don't you run upstairs and freshen up?"

Annie and Molly clambered out of the room, Sandy woofing after them as usual.

"Alone at last," he said with a smile, turning his full attention to Grace. She smiled as he cupped her face in his hands and kissed her. "Did you have a nice afternoon?"

"We did," she said softly, gazing into his eyes. "But we missed you. Did everything go all right with Mr. Whitehead?"

"Oh, it was mostly painless," he said, and she thought she saw a brief smile tilt the corners of his lips. But then a more serious look crossed his face as he took her hands in his. "Actually, I'm glad to have a moment alone to talk. I've been doing some thinking this afternoon since Tessie's departure, and there's something I want to run by you."

"What's that?"

He hesitated for a moment before he spoke. "Molly," he said finally. "I've been thinking about her situation. As you mentioned earlier today, we haven't found another family for her yet. And part of the reason for that is, well, I'm not sure I want to." He raised his eyebrows and looked into her eyes. "I wanted to see what you would think of adopting her, too."

For a long moment Grace was silent, and then she gasped as his words sank in.

"Oh, Oliver!" she exclaimed, a broad smile blossoming on her face. "That's a wonderful idea! Do you really mean it?"

"I do," he said, smiling himself and clearly relieved at her reaction. "It just seems right, don't you think? Annie adores her and already thinks of herself as Molly's older sister. And she's a sweet girl. I quite enjoy having her around."

"I do, too," Grace agreed. "Having her here will be perfect, for both her and Annie. They'll always have someone to play with, not just a friend but a real sister. I think they'll be thrilled."

"And you are, too?" he inquired, studying her closely.

"Very much," she affirmed.

She gazed deeply into his eyes, feeling as if she was positively bursting with happiness. She knew, without him needing to say it, why he had asked her first instead of simply announcing his decision to Annie and Molly. Although she had no doubts that he was serious about building a future with her, the affirmation still brought a warm glow to her heart.

"Who would have thought," she murmured, reaching up to stroke his cheek. "I never could have imagined I'd see the day when Oliver Warbucks would be the father of two little orphan girls."

Oliver threw his head back and laughed, a mirthful laugh full of joy that brought a boyish light to his face, before drawing her close for a long kiss.

It was some time later before Oliver reluctantly retreated up to his study to complete a few tasks before dinner. Grace, her head spinning with pleasure and heart still beating fast, sank onto the sofa and gazed out into the gardens.

Sometimes she still couldn't believe how much her life had changed in the span of just a few short weeks. Kissing Oliver, being kissed by Oliver, Oliver holding her in his arms so tightly … it still felt like a dream. Except it was so much better than any dream she had ever had, and she had certainly had her fair share of dreams about her employer over the years. But the Oliver of her dreams had always faded away right before his lips met hers, before his hands could clasp hers to pull her close. Not anymore.

Her mind wandered as the late afternoon light lit a pinkish hue across the cool marble floors and the heat of the day started to melt away. Suddenly she remembered, with a twinge of déjà vu, the last time she had sat on this exact spot in the parlor gazing unseeing into the garden.