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growing up. I guess we have to make some allowances for her.”
    Annie’s face lit up. “I have an idea. I think you should take a few weeks to think about what you want to do before you make any decisions. Why don’t you ask for Chloe’s job? She works in the kitchen -- that is, she did, but she quit this morning. You can stay at Rest Thy Head for a while, and when you feel ready you can go back home and find that job. You’d probably have to give up this room because it’s for paying guests, but there’s a nice maid’s room on the third floor that would be perfect.”
    Why not stay here? At the moment, going back home held little appeal. She liked Patrick and figured he’d be easy to work for too. “I believe I will. Maybe by the time I get my emotional house in order Mother will have forgiven me.”
    Annie smiled and rose from the wing chair. “Good. I’ll see you later.”
    She moved out the door with that peculiar, gliding motion, and Peyton went to find Patrick.
    She heard his voice in the dining room as she went downstairs and popped in to talk to him. Several people had already begun their lunch; it smelled good, like the fried chicken her mother used to cook. Evidently, Jake had learned his trade well.
    Patrick saw her and moved to her side with a smile. “Are you ready for lunch? I recommend the fried chicken.”
    “Actually, I’d like to talk to you when you have a minute.”
    “For you I have a minute anytime. Let’s go into the office.”
    Peyton liked the office, a pleasant space near the dining room. Bookshelves lined rustic, paneled walls, and the desk looked like an antique. Several old, oil portraits hung around the room. Patrick sat down on a small loveseat covered in denim that stood across the room from the desk. He patted the space beside him. “Sit down, Peyton, and tell me what I can do for you.”
    Peyton sat down and tucked her hair behind her ear. “I talked to my mother after our ride this morning. She isn’t…happy with me. In fact, she told me not to come home at all.”
    “I’m so sorry.” He gave her shoulder a quick pat.
    Peyton pursed her lips. “Well, that’s just Mother. I’m hoping she’ll get over it eventually. I planned to go back to Milford and get a job, but, I don’t want to go home just yet. I know you had a girl to quit this morning, and I wondered if I could interview for her job.”
    Patrick thought for a moment. “You’d be working for my brother. Would his face bother you?”
    “No, it wouldn’t. It surprised me this morning, but I don’t mind.”
    Patrick pursed his lips. “We don’t have a room for you. You’d have to find somewhere to live.”
    “How about the maid’s room on the third floor?”
    Patrick’s eyebrows shot straight up. “Who told you about that room?”
    “One of the maids.”
    “I don’t know what to tell you about that.” He ran his hand through his red hair and made it stand straight up. “We’ve had guests stay in the room before, but not for long. People say it’s haunted.”
    Peyton burst into laughter.
    “You laugh now, but if you see something you probably won’t laugh. The last guest who stayed there left in the middle of the night. He said some woman kept pushing him out of the bed.”
    Peyton laughed again. How could anyone really believe in ghosts? “Sounds like a vivid dream to me. I don’t believe in ghosts. I’m perfectly willing to live in that room if you hire me.”
    He still looked doubtful, but he gave in with good grace. “Okay. We’ll talk to Jake around two if that’s convenient for you.”
    “Fine by me.”
    They walked back to the dining room where Peyton ordered the fried chicken. As Patrick had promised, she loved it. She couldn’t identify exactly what spice Jake had put on it, but she hoped he’d share his recipe with her.
    It was a pity he had those burns on his face. If not for them he would have been handsome, much more so than Patrick. Jake was shorter and more muscular