The Trustworthy One

by Shelley Shepard Gray

  “Did you really?”

  “Um, jah. I enjoy throwing pots, you see.”

  The woman ran a hand down the curve of the vase that Kendra had glazed in an unusual shade of green. “This is far more than simply throwing pots, dear. This is a work of art. You’re very talented.”

  She spoke so loudly that her friends walked closer.

  “You really made this, Kendra?” Harley asked. “It’s very fine.”

  “Danke.”

  The woman had turned her attention to the bowl. It had a fluted rim, was rather short and stumpy, and had been glazed a shiny black. “Tell me about this.”

  “Well, um, I thought the black color made it look kind of fancy. Less homespun.”

  “You were right. It would look great in anyone’s kitchen or dining room.” She held it up. “It’s the perfect size to give as a gift, too.”

  Kendra held out her hands to take it. “I’m glad you like it. That makes me happy.”

  “May I order some more? Do you take special orders?”

  “I don’t have any on hand. But I suppose I could make more.”

  “How about ten more? Could you do that many?”

  Ten? She’d priced each at twenty-five dollars. Ten more would earn her two hundred and fifty dollars. “Yes, um, I could do that.” Remembering that Naomi might not be working at her store anymore, she said, “It might take some time, though. It’s just me here, you see.”

  The lady looked crestfallen. “Oh dear. How long is ‘some time’?”

  “Well…”

  “We could help you with the shop,” Katie offered in a bright voice. “I’ll ask all the girls, even Gabby, Kyle’s wife.”

  “I couldn’t ask you to do that.”

  “I know, which is why I’m offering.” She turned to the woman. “Can you wait two weeks?”

  The lady grinned like Katie had just offered her the moon and the stars. “I like how you think. Yes, of course.” Opening up her purse, she said, “I’ll buy the yarn and these two items. And if I gave you a deposit for the other ten, would that be sufficient?”

  Kendra nodded. “How much would you like to put down?” She was starting to feel flustered.

  “Half? That’s, what?”

  It was easy math, but at times like this her dyslexia kicked in. “Um…” She reached for her drawer, hoping against hope that she’d actually remembered to put a calculator inside.

  “That will be a hundred and twenty-five,” Harley said, stepping to her side. After quietly moving into her spot, he picked up her pencil, computed the rest of the woman’s purchases, and gave her the total. “I’ll take care of this for you, Kendra. I know how you like to wrap up your pottery with care.”

  “Oh. Jah Danke.” Too grateful for her friends’ help to be embarrassed, she pulled out some tissue paper and started carefully wrapping the bowl and vase.

  Fifteen minutes later, the lady was out the door and Kendra was staring at a big check to deposit. “This is the biggest sale I’ve had since I opened the store.”

  “I don’t think it’s going to be the only one,” Katie said. “She told me she was going to tell all her friends to come to your store.”

  “Boy, wouldn’t that be something?”

  Harley smiled at her. “You need to keep thinking positively. She’ll come back, and she’ll bring her friends. She really thought everything about Tried and True was wonderful—gut.”

  “Danke for helping me with the math. I don’t know what happened. I mean, I guess I panicked.”

  “Don’t even worry about it. I’m glad I could help you out in a pinch,” Harley replied as the door opened and Nate walked in.

  Nate grinned at the sight of Harley and Katie. “Hi, you two.” Walking up to Katie, he lowered his voice. “You look mighty pretty, Mrs. Lambright.”

  Katie wrapped an arm around her very big stomach. “You mean for a woman carrying around a basketball?”

  “Carrying around basketballs looks gut on you,” he teased before clasping Harley’s hand. “On both of you.”

  “Danke.”

  Kendra bit her lip as she noticed that their usually very buttoned-up friend looked pleased as could be.

  “So, what’s going on?”

  “We’re recovering from one of Kendra’s customers,” Katie said. “The lady looked ready to practically buy out the store.”

  “Truly?” Nate smiled at her. “What happened?”

  “She bought a lot of expensive yarn and a couple of pots.”

  “And ordered another ten more bowls that our Kendra made,” Katie said. “Isn’t that wunderbaar?”

  Nate’s gaze warmed. “It is, indeed.”

  Kendra felt as if his warm gaze had made its way directly into her center. She’d felt so empty before her friends and Nate had come over.

  Suddenly realizing that none of them had come over to watch her sell things, she blurted, “Katie, Harley, I’m sorry, I haven’t even asked what you needed.”

  “We did come over for a reason, but you already took care of it,” Harley said. “We came to see how we could help you in the store.”

  “I’m so glad we did, too, since you’re now going to be busy making pottery,” Katie said. “By the beginning of next week one of us girls will stop by with a schedule for you.”

  “You will? Well, um, thank you.”

  “You need more help, Kendra?” Nate asked.

  “I might. The shop is busier than I thought it would be. There seems to always be a lot to do. Some days, I don’t think I’m going to be able to keep up with everything,” she finished honestly.

  “But what about your sister? I thought Nanny was going to be working here when she wasn’t at school.”

  Though sharing the truth hurt, Kendra couldn’t think of a way around it. She was going to need all the help she could get in order to make the shop a success. If she tried to do it all alone, she could lose everything she’d worked so hard to attain.

  “Naomi was going to work a lot, but I don’t know if that is going to happen anymore.”

  “How come?”

  Kendra had to remind herself that Nate was simply curious and that she didn’t have to tell him or Harley and Katie about her conversation with Nanny. However, everything inside of her was encouraging her to tell them the truth.

  She was even hoping they could give her some advice.

  “Well, um, it seems that my brother Chris told Naomi about what I did when I lived in Columbus. She was pretty upset about it. I mean, she was upset with me.”

  Katie’s eyebrows rose so high they practically reached her hairline. “Kendra, Naomi had no right to judge you. I mean, doesn’t she remember what you went through?” Continuing in a rush, she added, “And that Chris. I have to say that I’m fairly shocked. I canna believe he is throwing stones. Why, even I know how much you put yourself in between your parents and your little sisters and brothers. If it wasn’t for you, his life would have been different.”

  She snuck a look at Nate. He was staring at her. She didn’t need to know why—it was fairly obvious that he, like her little sister, had no idea what she’d done in Columbus. “Settle down now, Katie. There’s no need to get so riled up.”

  “Someone has to!”

  Looking pointedly at her stomach, Kendra said, “I think you should sit down and relax.”

  Katie shook her head. “My babe is fine.”

  Harley chuckled as he rubbed a hand along his petite wife’s back. “She’s just upset on your account. Nothing wrong with that. I’m pretty surprised about Chris and Naomi, too. What did they say?”

  The words started tumbling out of her mouth before she could stop them. “Naomi said she couldn’t believe I didn’t tell her. She acted like that was the worst of it, but I know better. Harley, I know Naomi was upset with me. I think she’s embarrassed about my past.”

  “Surely not.”

  “I’m afraid it’s true. She was pretty upset about what Chris told her. Nothing I said seeme
d to do any good.”

  “What happened in Columbus, Kendra?” Nate blurted.

  Maybe if they were alone, she would have hesitated. But here, with Katie and Harley, there was no reason to hide. They already knew about her dark past, and they still cared about her. “I started drinking and taking pills, Nate.” When his expression went slack, she realized that she needed to put it all out there. “Um, the truth is, I was an addict. I had to go to rehab and get clean.”

  “When was this?”

  It might have been her imagination, but it seemed like all of the muscles in his face had tensed up. “When I was seventeen and eighteen. About six years ago.” For some reason, it was important to mention both of those years—two very bad years of her life.

  Nate still looked like he didn’t believe what she was saying. He waved a hand. “But… but look at you now.”

  Harley stepped closer to Kendra’s left. “Jah, look at our Kendra. She’s a successful businesswoman.”

  Katie gripped her right hand. “Jah, she is.” Smiling at Kendra, she winked. “She’s one of the strongest people I know… and she bakes like a dream, too.”

  Still aware of Nate studying her, Kendra deflected the compliments. “You two are too much. You’re going to make my head swell.”

  “We didn’t give you compliments, we told the truth.”

  “Oh, brother. May we please talk about something else now? You all are embarrassing me.”

  “If you’re embarrassed, it’s because you might be one of the humblest girls I know,” Katie said.

  Harley chuckled. “I think it’s time we let you go. I need to calm my wife down, and it’s time for you to end your day, jah?”

  Surprised, Kendra looked at the time. Sure enough, it was five thirty. “Jah. It is time I put everything to rights and got on home.”

  Katie hugged her goodbye. “See you soon.”

  “Jah. See you soon. And thanks again for your help.”

  Harley, ever the protective one, paused. “Want to walk out with us, Nate?”

  “Nee, the hardware store is open for another hour, and Ben and Kane have things under control.”

  After giving Kendra a long look filled with worry, Harley escorted Katie out.

  When the door closed, Kendra braced herself for another difficult conversation. Gathering her courage, she turned. She needed to do this, needed to face him. But, boy, was it hard!

  Feeling like she was about to face a firing squad, she exhaled. “You might as well say what you want to say, Nate. I’m listening.”

  She thought she might die if he rejected her right at this moment.

  He calmly walked to the front door, quietly turned the OPEN sign to CLOSED, and then walked back to her. “I’m going to hug you, Kendra,” he murmured, just before he pulled her into his arms.

  She stiffened in surprise.

  “Hush now,” he murmured. “Just relax for a second, Kendra.”

  It took a couple of cleansing breaths, but she was finally able to do just that. His chest was solid with muscle, and he smelled like fresh laundry and the lemon drops he had for sale on his store’s counter. Sweet and clean and like Nate. It was an irresistible combination.

  “Nate, what’s this hug for?”

  “For everything,” he murmured as he brushed his lips against her cheek.

  She closed her eyes and felt everything she’d been holding on to edge out of her.

  This hug, this acceptance? Well, it was everything, too.

  TWENTY–SEVEN

  “And I couldn’t believe it, but I started talking, too. I didn’t talk about home or school. I told him about how one day I was going to be different, that everything about my life was going to be different.”

  FRIDAY

  Twenty-four hours had passed since Nate had held Kendra in his arms and had tried to comfort her. Twenty-four hours had passed, yet he was still furious.

  For the life of him, he couldn’t understand how Kendra’s siblings could treat her the way they did. Though he knew there were usually two sides to every story, for the life of him, he couldn’t imagine a situation in which Naomi would think it would be all right to side against her big sister. Especially in any way that would benefit their parents.

  What really broke his heart was the way Kendra had accepted their decision. He knew that had stemmed from a lifetime of not expecting much from anyone else—no, from getting little to nothing from anyone else.

  He couldn’t believe that she had been born that way, either. He felt sure that she’d once been a little girl filled with hope.

  He must have been scowling when he walked back into the hardware store because two customers took one look at him and walked in the opposite direction. Benjamin, who was working at the counter, paused for a moment in his conversation before continuing.

  “Everything all right here?” Nate asked.

  “Oh, jah. Everything’s grand,” Ben quickly replied. “No need to help me at the counter, boss. I’m doing just fine without ya.”

  That was Ben’s not-so-subtle way of telling Nate he should go hide in his office until he could stop scaring the customers with his bad attitude.

  Nate turned toward the back, deciding to do exactly that, but then he caught sight of Kane and had a better idea. Kane hadn’t been scheduled to work, but Ben shared that the boy had called during his lunch to see if they needed any help. Ben had been pleased with the offer and told him to come on in.

  That made Nate wonder if maybe Kane knew something, too. Maybe the boy could even give him some insight into the Troyer family that he hadn’t been aware of.

  When Kane saw him approach, he stopped chatting with old Mrs. Moss about the paint samples in her hand and stood up straighter. “Hiya, Mr. Miller.”

  “Hi, Kane.” When he noticed that Mrs. Moss was eyeing him closely, he stepped closer. “Good day, Mrs. Moss.”

  “Nathan.”

  “I trust you are well?”

  She gestured to the cane in her hand. “Well enough, I suppose. Your young man here is doing a gut job.”

  “That’s good to hear.”

  He took a deep breath, hoping to calm himself down. “Kane, when Mrs. Moss is all set, come to my office for a moment, please. I need to speak to you.”

  “Jah, Mr. Miller. Will do.”

  “Good to see you, Mrs. Moss.”

  “Indeed.” Her faded eyes peered at him closely before turning to Kane. “I need a gallon of Snowcap, or whatever that shade of white is, young man.”

  Nate heard Kane reply to the elderly lady as he walked into his office.

  Opening the door, he was besieged with the faint smell of tobacco, leather, and a variety of other scents that seemed to have embedded themselves into the woodwork over the last thirty years. But it wasn’t just the scents that were so familiar, it was everything about the office. The leather chair that wasn’t quite stable but brought back so many memories of his grandfather and uncle that he knew he’d never sit in anything else. The scars on the long wooden counter, evidence of the tools, gadgets, books, blocks, and change from a thousand pockets left scattered on top.

  Smiling at a stray nickel, Nate picked it up and carefully put it into the change jar he’d given his grandfather one year for Christmas. The old man had very nicely thanked him for the gift then continued to leave his pocket change all over the counter. Only when he was older did he realize that Dawdi had left it out so Nate would have a reason to visit with him every day. He could still remember the way his grandfather used to prop him up on his lap and help him count the coins as they put them in the jar together.

  Yes, the room made him feel at ease and his heart feel full. It symbolized a lifetime of being loved so much, of being given so many opportunities simply because he was family.

  For some reason, it seemed fitting that Kendra was making a place for herself just two doors down. She was starting from scratch, while he was caretaker of two generations of hard work, dreams, and success.

  T
he disparity between their two situations never failed to make him feel empty inside. He didn’t understand why the Lord had given him such an easy life and Kendra such a hard one, but he was determined to lighten her load as best he could from now on.

  Two light raps signaled Kane’s arrival.

  “Come in,” Nate said, hoping against hope that he was going to be able to do the right thing now.

  After the door closed behind him, Kane asked, “Is there a problem?”

  “There is.”

  “Really?” Kane’s voice practically went up an octave. “What did I do wrong?” A line formed in between his eyebrows. “Are you upset that I came in ten minutes late yesterday? I explained what happened to Ben…”

  The boy’s worried tone made him realize he needed to be more direct—and get a handle on himself. “Forgive me, Kane. I spoke out of turn. My problem, it ain’t with you. It’s about something else. I’m hoping you might help me gain some insight.”

  “Oh.”

  Kane looked completely perplexed, which wasn’t really a surprise. Nate knew he was talking in vague riddles.

  “Have a seat, wouldja? I just had a question, though now that I think about it, I probably shouldn’t even be asking you.”

  Still looking wary, Kane sat down in one of the comfortable leather chairs that Nate’s great-uncle had made. After staring at him a good long second, he said, “If I can help, I will, Mr. Miller. Ask me anything you want.”

  “That’s mighty kind of you. But, well, it’s not about the store. My question is about Naomi Troyer.”

  Back up went Kane’s guard. “What about her?”

  “I just needed to know something, but I don’t want to pry too much. So I decided to ask one of her good friends.”

  “Oh.” Kane shifted uncomfortably.

  “I mean, you are friends with her, yes?”

  “Jah. We’re not real good friends yet, though. We just met.” He stared at Nate. “But you already know that. What do you want to know?”

  “It’s nothing too personal. I promise you that. And, well, if you don’t want to answer, you don’t have to.” Nate looked at him intently. “There aren’t any strings involved. I promise.”