Amish Second Loves

by Samantha Price

  Moira’s thoughts drifted to her oldest sister, Miriam, who was married to Mr. Stutzman’s oldest son, Adam. Moira wondered if Miriam had heard anything of the attraction between her father-in-law and Selma. “What a nightmare that would be,” she whispered to herself, rolling over and burying her face in her quilt.

  Selma stared at Mr. Stutzman, the corners of her lips each reaching for her earlobes. He looked back at her intently, his eyes filling her with a sense of warmth, which she found comforting. He tilted his head and smiled broadly and Selma could tell from the look in his eyes that he absolutely adored her. She’d never been looked at like that before.

  “So, about tomorrow; would you be interested in going somewhere with me? I can take you over my land and show you the sights. It isn’t anything out of this world, but it’s a beauty to behold, that is for sure,” he said.

  Selma’s stomach churned as it reacted to the question before her mind had a chance to form a response. She looked at Mr. Stutzman and nodded, “Of course, I’ll go with you. I would absolutely love that. I thought I said yes before.”

  Mr. Stutzman’s chuckled and his face lighted up. “Do you know how long you’ll be staying in town?”

  “I should be around for a good while, but I might have to make a quick trip home in a couple of weeks or so. My nephew, Jeremiah, is in charge of looking after my late schweschder’s cats, and that is a chore he’s not very fond of.” Selma laughed. “I can’t blame him, though. At least he’s been kind enough to watch them whenever I go away. And, I suppose I should stop referring to them as ‘my late schweschder’s cats,’ they’re my cats now.”

  “Changes like that take time,” Mr. Stutzman said. “Have you thought about bringing the cats with you next time?”

  As much as Selma wished that were possible, she knew that it wasn’t. “Unfortunately, I can’t. You see, one of the cats is not like the others. Fang is a hot-tempered, little thing and doesn’t get along with the other cats. That’s why Moira decided to take him to live with her away from the other cats.”

  “You’re saying if you brought them here they would fight with Fang?”

  Selma pushed her lips out and nodded.

  “I’m sure something could be done to remedy such a situation. How did the cats all get along when Millie was alive?” he asked.

  “You would probably have to ask her that question,” Selma said, a hint of laughter trying to escape her lips. “But even if we could keep them separated or something, I wouldn’t want to subject the cats to the long, two day journey all the way here and have them put up with Fang when they got here.”

  Mr. Stutzman frowned and turned away, shaking his head. “I’m sorry, I understand now. I just don’t know if I want to see you leave so soon, especially if it means I might not see you again for some time,” he explained.

  Selma smiled, her heart warming on hearing his words. “Well, have you ever considered traveling to Coulson County? I know it’s far from here, but you could stay at Bishop John’s haus. He lives at the half-way point. And when you get there you can stay at my bruder’s haus. He lives very close to me. I think it would be the next best thing to me coming back. What do you think?”

  “Hmm,” Mr. Stutzman said, looking back at her. “I’ll have to come up with a good excuse to give the boys, but I think that sounds a good idea. Your bruder won’t be opposed to the idea? I mean, I would be more than happy to help out with work on his property in return for his hospitality. I just don’t want to stir up any problems. I fear that I’ll have plenty of those already once word gets out about the two of us.”

  Selma sighed, looking down at her hands as they sat folded in her lap. “Well, I think we’re going to have to brace for that inevitable happening, but for the time being, perhaps our energy is better spent elsewhere. My bruder will welcome you with open arms, and if you feel so strong about working with him, I’m certain he wouldn’t turn your offer away.” Selma chortled.

  Mr. Stutzman stared at her and then his lips turned upward. He nodded slowly and reached his hand toward hers. Touching her softly with the gentlest care, he looked into her eyes and spoke. “I think that would be a trip worth taking. We might have to keep in touch when you go back to Coulson County so we can plan it out; I would love to visit you.” He placed both his hands around hers. “The other option is that you don’t go back there at all, you stay here with me.”

  At that moment, the world stood still for Selma. She couldn’t help feeling like she was drifting toward the clouds as her heart beat quickened. She hadn’t felt such a sensation since Bob had passed away, and even though it scared her somewhat, it was a feeling that she knew she’d missed. Selma smiled up at Michael. “You want to keep me here.”

  “Jah, I want you to stay here, Selma. When you left the last time, I was hoping the days would hurry by until you returned. I’m too old to wish my days would hurry by.”

  “I’m glad you feel that way. I have things that I’d need to finalize, I have the haus that I’d need to do something with if I were to leave. I’d love you to come to Coulson County and see it.”

  Mr. Stutzman nodded slowly. “I would go anywhere to see more of you.”

  Chapter 3

  Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God,

  which liveth and abideth for ever.

  1 Peter 1:23

  * * *

  Even though she knew it was wrong, Moira listened intently to the conversation of her two elderly friends. Not only had they agreed to go on a date, but Mr. Stutzman had even said that he’d go to Coulson County just to see Selma again. In Moira’s mind, the things that Michael had said to Selma were as good as admitting that they were a couple. Moira sat up in bed, shook her head, and sighed. Then she rolled over and grunted, her mind drifting off to thoughts of the Stutzman boys and how they would take the news that their father was interested in a woman.

  Moira felt pains in her stomach as she stressed about the old couple. Part of her felt like it wasn’t her business, but a larger part of her was furious that the old man would be willing to put his happiness before that of his family. She pulled the quilt over her face and closed her eyes. She was grateful that Millie was still sleeping and hoped that if she had a quick nap herself that it would put her in better spirits.

  Later that day, Moira woke to a gentle tapping against her bedroom door. Even though it was already open, it annoyed her that someone felt the need to tap and wake her from her sleep. She rubbed at her eyes and moaned as she rolled over in bed. Looking toward the door, she saw Tom standing there with a weary smile on his lips.

  “Good evening,” he greeted. “Is that baby still making you tired throughout the day?”

  “Millie?” Moira asked concerned about her toddler.

  “It’s okay,” Tom said. “Selma’s looking after her downstairs. Are you still feeling tired all through the day?”

  “Sometimes, but that’s not why I took a nap earlier today. I must have slept most of the day.”

  “Selma is cooking the midday meal. Do you want to get out of bed and come eat downstairs? Or, do you want me to bring some food up to you?”

  “I’ll come down in a minute,” Moira said.

  Tom smiled and went to walk out of the room.

  “Wait,” she called out, extending her hand to stop him. “Come in here, please. I need to talk to you about something; about why I came up here and ended up taking a nap.”

  Tom walked toward the bed and sat next to her. “Go ahead, tell me what it is that you need to get off your chest.”

  Moira looked deeply into his eyes. She didn’t know what his response would be or how he would react. Keeping the news to herself, however, would be an impossible burden. “It’s about Michael and Selma; I think they might be getting involved with one another.” Moira bit her lip wondering how Tom might react.

  Tom’s eyebrows drooped as his lips pressed together in a straight line. “What are you talking about? Invo
lved? As in dating each other?” he asked.

  “I think so,” she replied, nodding. “I don’t know the exact extent of their relationship yet, but I overheard them talking about seeing each other even after Selma goes back to Coulson County. Something is going on with them, but that’s all I can say for certain so far.”

  His eyebrows arched. “That’s great news! Both of them have faced such pain and heartbreak. I’m very happy for both of them.”

  Moira frowned at him. She wanted to yell at him for not seeing things as she saw them. Why were men so blind to common sense sometimes? “Nee, this is not great news. Do you have any idea how upset everyone is going to be?”

  A confused look twisted Tom’s face as she shook his head in disagreement. He leaned forward and touched her shoulder. “Who would be upset about two people finding happiness long after losing their first loves? I think it’s a wunderbaar and a delightful thing.” Then, with more emphasis he said, “A rare, and unique thing.”

  Moira sighed, looking down at her hands as they rested upon her lap. She slowly looked back up at her husband and frowned. “You only say that because you didn’t know Mrs. Stutzman the way I did. You wouldn’t think this is a good thing if you loved her in the way that I loved her.” Moira sniffed as tears threatened. Why couldn’t Tom just agree with her for once?

  Tom groaned. “I didn’t know her well enough? Did you forget that my family’s property was, and is still, right next to the Stutzman’s? Even though their property is large, we were still their closest neighbors besides your familye. The Shantzs were on one side, but my parents were on the other. I’ve known them almost my entire life.”

  “You just don’t understand,” Moira snapped. “Michael’s boys won’t like this one bit, and neither do I. If you want to support Michael and Selma, just do so without letting everyone know about it. I’m not going to eat now; I’ll have something later.”

  Tom looked as though he was about to say something, but he paused right before the words formed on his lips. Instead, he stood up and walked out of the room and then he closed the door gently behind him. Moira buried her face in the pillow and covered her ears. She wanted nothing more than for that night to hurry so she could sleep and not have to think.

  The next morning, Moira woke to the bright sun as it shone through her bedroom window illuminating the entire room. Tom always started before daybreak and was long gone. She wiped away the weariness from her eyelashes and sat up gazing outside to see the pale blue sky that painted a picture of beauty outside. Moira thought it would be a good day to see her sister, Hazel. If anyone understood her unhappiness about Mr. Stutzman’s fondness for Selma, it would be one of her sisters.

  Moira pulled herself out of bed and headed downstairs.

  As she walked by the living room, she heard Selma’s friendly voice calling for her. “Moira? I haven’t seen you since midday yesterday. Are you feeling okay?”

  Freezing in place, Moira knew she wouldn’t be able to avoid taking Selma with her when she visited Hazel. She stepped into the living room where she saw Selma sitting on the floor playing with Millie. “Jah. I wasn’t feeling like myself yesterday. I’m feeling much better now.”

  “Are you heading out somewhere?” Selma asked.

  “I was just on my way to visit Hazel. Would you like to come along for the ride?” Moira figured Hazel’s two children could keep Selma occupied while she talked to Hazel.

  Selma immediately leaped to her feet. “I would love to go with you.”

  “Then hurry up, get ready and meet me outside. Denke for looking after Millie so I could sleep so much yesterday.” Moira walked over to Millie, leaned over and took her hand.

  “It was a pleasure. You’ll need to eat before you go, though.”

  “I’m not hungry at all. I can always have something at Hazel’s haus. Have you eaten, and Millie?”

  “Jah, we’ve eaten. Just let me give you something?”

  Moira smiled at Selma; she knew Selma was always helpful to her, and she wished she could be happy for her. Moira nodded. “I guess I should have a little food.”

  “You certainly should. I’ve set breakfast aside for you.”

  Selma walked into the kitchen with Moira close behind. Selma pulled a plate of food out from the oven. “Sit down and eat slowly. There’s no rush, is there?”

  Moira shook her head. “Denke, Selma. There’s no hurry at all.” Moira placed Millie in the highchair. “I’ll put her in here while you get ready.”

  Selma headed to her room while Moira ate her food. She was grateful for Selma taking on so much of the responsibility of the household chores to give her a rest. Once she’d finished her food, Moira rinsed her plate and placed Millie on her hip.

  She walked to the bottom of the stairs and called out to Selma, “I’ve already got a bag packed for Millie. We’ll wait for you in the buggy.”

  “I’ll be right down,” Selma called back.

  Moira headed outside, then placed Millie in the buggy while she hitched it to the horse. Millie and Moira sat in the buggy and waited for their passenger. Moira looked out over the road and followed it with her eyes until it reached the horizon, far off into the distance. She hoped that Hazel could settle her fears and might whisper some words of wisdom about Michael and his plans of romancing Selma. Was she selfish in hating the idea of Michael dating again or possibly remarrying?

  After several minutes of waiting, Selma ran out of the house, holding handfuls of her long dress in her hands to avoid getting it soiled. Selma climbed into the buggy and looked at Moira with a tired smile. “Sorry it took so long,” she gasped. “You should have let me hitch the buggy.”

  “I can still do things for myself. It’s completely fine. Are you ready to go see my schweschder and her lively children?”

  Selma smiled sweetly. “Jah, I’m ready.”

  With that, Moira snapped at the reins, sending the horse into motion. The initial jolt caused the pair to tremble. She looked over at little Millie and chuckled after seeing the startled look on her face. “I’m sorry, Millie,” Moira said to her daughter.

  After the short trip to Hazel’s house, Moira tied the horse to the post. When she looked at the house, she saw that Hazel was already standing outside on the porch.

  “There you are,” Hazel said. “I haven’t seen you in quite a while.” She ran to Moira and wrapped her up in an extremely tight hug. When her sister had finally let go, Moira looked down to see two of Hazel’s children holding on to her legs.

  “Auntie,” they sang out.

  Moira leaned down and hugged the children while Selma got Millie out of the buggy.

  “Do you remember my really nice friend, Miss Selma?” Moira asked the two young children while glancing up at Selma.

  The two children giggled.

  Selma laughed and then greeted Hazel. “I’ll keep the children entertained if you two girls want to catch up by yourselves.”

  “Nee, you must join us for kaffe and cake, Selma. My kinner are well practiced at playing quietly,” Hazel said.

  “I take every chance I can to be in the company of children,” Selma said.

  “All right then.” Hazel agreed and put an arm around Selma as they all walked into Hazel’s home.

  “Are you sure you don’t mind looking after the children?” Moira asked Selma once they were inside.

  “I’d love to.” Selma placed Millie on her other hip and held out a hand to the youngest of Hazel’s children as they led her off to their bedroom to play.

  “Did you just do that on purpose?” Hazel asked Moira, smiling all the while.

  “It wasn’t my idea. Selma likes nothing more than to be with children. I’m glad because I need to talk to you in private about something very important.”

  “Of course.” Hazel motioned for Moira to follow her into another room. Hazel led her inside and pointed toward the sofa. “Go ahead; sit down and tell me what has you so flustered.”

  “You can tell?” Mo
ira walked over to the sofa and collapsed onto it. Hazel sat beside her and gripped her hand in her own. Slowly looking back up at her older sister, Moira sighed before speaking. “So, I overheard Michael Stutzman talking to Selma yesterday. I think they’re going on a date later today, and they even made plans for him to visit her when she goes back home. I’m so torn in my feelings because I care about both of them so much, but I feel like it’s a betrayal of Anna.” Moira blinked rapidly as she spoke of Mrs. Stutzman. “It’s like he’s forgotten her. Or it’s like she never even existed.”

  Hazel looked down and frowned. “Well, I’m certain that the Stutzman boys will be very upset to hear the news, but I’m not. He’d never forget Anna, I don’t think you’re seeing things clearly.”

  Moira’s chest tightened, making it difficult to breathe. She gasped for air, trying to make sense of her sister’s reaction. “You loved Anna just as much as I did. How could you just not care about him betraying her like that?”

  “He’s not trying to betray or hurt anyone, Moira. Mr. Stutzman is an older man who lost the person he loved most in life. He and Selma are both trying to restore the happiness that they once had. He’s been so lonely the past few years. Maybe Selma will be good for him.”

  Moira nodded even though annoyance ran through her body. She couldn’t believe that her own sister was taking Selma’s side. Then Moira and Hazel talked about Anna Stutzman and the good times their family and the Stutzman family had shared throughout the years.

  An hour and a half later, Selma put her head around the door. “I’m sorry to interrupt, but the little ones are playing contently, and I looked at the clock and realized that I should be getting back to Moira’s house. Michael is supposed to pick me up soon. He’s taking me out today.” Selma smiled and her cheeks turned as red as a rosy apple.