The Amish Baker

by Marie E. Bast

  She still had so many questions. And not enough answers.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Sarah opened her Bible to Jeremiah 29, and searched for the answer to why Gott took away everything she loved. Would He take Caleb away, too? When she came to the eleventh verse, she read it over and over. “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not evil, to give you an expected end.”

  She had always believed that Gott had taken Samuel and her bakery from her, and had closed her womb. Nein. He wouldn’t harm her.

  Jeremiah 29:11 is saying that Gott cannot keep us from suffering, but He will share our burden and carry us through. He was there all the time. He’d given her Samuel’s love. Hannah’s friendship. It all boiled down to the fact that she had to trust Him.

  A knock on the door startled her.

  She glanced at the clock. Ach, Caleb. She slid her Bible and study guide into her bag and hurried to answer the door. “I’m ready. I’ll just grab my things.” She slipped her cape and bonnet on and locked the door behind her.

  She settled into the buggy, beside Caleb. “I enjoy attending Sunday school and Bible study with your church group. Old Order still believes only the church should interpret scripture, so they don’t encourage group study. It’s probably one of the biggest differences in our Orders. That, and the use of mechanical conveniences. Yet Old Order has a better youth retention rate than New Order. Did you know that, Caleb?”

  “Jah. It’s a concern for us. Many think the youth leaving our Order is because we believe in evangelizing and going out into the community. It teaches the youth too much about the outside world and not about staying within our community. I worry about Mary and Jacob leaving the faith after they go through their rumschpringe.” Caleb glanced her way with worry lining his eyes.

  “Do you think you will ever change back to Old Order?” She hadn’t meant to blurt it out, but she had to know.

  “I need the use of the tractor and other mechanical devices, like the rototiller, bulk milk tank, and mechanical milker for farming.” His face flushed red. “I can’t change.”

  There it was. Her heart plunged to the floor. Her church and her family would shun her if she left the Old Order to marry Caleb. Neither of them was willing to give in. She drew a deep breath, met his gaze with a weak smile and reached over to pat his arm. “Jacob and Mary will stick with the faith—I’m sure of it. They’d miss you too much.”

  He took her hand and squeezed it lightly before letting go, but a cloud of uneasiness hung between them. Sarah shifted her weight and gazed out the window at the harvested fields. They looked as bare and bleak as her hope for a marriage to Caleb. “Since Hannah is married, I was thinking about moving to Iowa City and opening a regular bakery.” A plan she’d just now hatched since chances seemed slim she’d be marrying Caleb.

  Snowball held a steady pace as the buggy bounced over ruts in the country road. Finally, Caleb’s voice cut through the stillness. “Tomorrow I’ll get a driver and take you to Iowa City to start your search.”

  “You’re a gut friend to do that for me.”

  “You helped Mary can tomatoes, and that’s hard work in the heat. I’ll be glad to repay the favor.”

  She gripped her bag. He thinks he needs to repay the favor. That’s all.

  What was the point of them spending time together if marriage wasn’t in their future?

  * * *

  Caleb rose early and dressed. He’d slept restlessly, at best, with dreams of Sarah constantly waking him. Iowa City was eighteen miles away. By horse and buggy, that was almost an hour. He’d have to rent a car and driver whenever he wanted to see her.

  He took a calming breath, rubbed a hand over his chest and tried to ease the ache. What was he going to do without Sarah? He could ask her to marry him and not wait for Mary and Sarah to work out their differences. Surely Mary would come to accept Sarah. The question was...could he convince Sarah to change to New Order?

  The driver picked him and Jacob up on time, then headed for Sarah’s haus. She was waiting at the door with her bag, spiraled notebook and pencil in hand, and an optimistic smile on her face. How could he convince Sarah to stay in Kalona? He stepped out of the car and held the door while she slid in, next to Jacob. He hopped back in front next to the driver.

  “Jacob, I’m glad you are coming along while I look for a bakery. I value your opinion very much.” She patted his arm.

  “Why do you have to move to Iowa City? I want you to stay in Kalona and run The Cookie Box so I can visit you.”

  “Jacob. Sarah has lost Hannah and must make other arrangements.” Caleb glared at his sohn.

  Sarah handed a slip of paper with an address to the driver. “Hullo. I’m Sarah. We have an appointment with a real estate agent to look at a couple of empty shops.”

  He took the paper and nodded. “Eddie. Have you there in a few minutes, ma’am.”

  Soon they were walking around an old, dilapidated shop. She looked in closets, cupboards, nooks and crannies. She glanced at the ceiling and knocked on the walls.

  Caleb took a deep breath. It would take her a year to fix this place up. He could help but he had farm work. Doing this much alone was impossible.

  Sarah glanced at the real estate agent, Marge, who waved her arms around. “It’s old but it has a charm to it.”

  Caleb snorted.

  Sarah shook her head and Marge motioned toward the door. “The next building might be more what you had in mind.”

  Caleb cringed at the idea of Sarah staying alone in Iowa City. At the next spot, he glanced around at the expensive cupboards and counters and whistled. “What do you think of this place, Sarah?”

  “It’s a lot of money. I’d have to hire help in order to make enough to support myself and pay the rent. I’d have to charge a lot more than I did in Kalona.” Discouragement hovered in her voice.

  At the third place, he took her hand and helped her up the steps. Her palm was cold and clammy. He looked around the shop and whistled. “A fancy shop, jah?”

  She nodded. Her forehead furrowed, and her eyes clouded with worry.

  Jacob rubbed his hand over the brown marble counter. He blew out a big puff of air, trying to whistle. “Jah, this is gut and looks like an Englisch bakery. Can I come and stay with you? I’ll work hard on Saturday.”

  “Jacob!” Caleb tossed him a cross face.

  “I’d rather stay with Sarah.” Jacob pouted.

  Caleb regretted his outburst. He knew the bu was scared of losing Sarah. He was, too.

  Sarah caught Jacob’s hand and held it while they exited the building. Caleb wrapped his arm around her shoulder. “It’s time we stopped for lunch. Let’s go to a nice restaurant. We can rest and talk about some of the shops you wrote under the Maybe column on your notepad.”

  “That sounds gut.” She said goodbye to Marge and told her she’d be in touch.

  “Eddie, would you mind taking us to A Little Bit Country restaurant on Melrose Avenue? We’d like you to join us.”

  “No, thanks. I’ll come back and pick you up in an hour. The missus will have a delicious dinner waiting for me, so I don’t want to spoil my appetite.”

  The hostess seated them at a table by the window and handed them menus.

  Sarah opened her menu. “Caleb, this is expensive.”

  “It’s my treat. Order whatever you like.”

  She took a deep breath and studied the selection for several minutes. She laid it down on the wine-colored tablecloth and lightly rubbed her hand across the rich linen. “Nice.”

  “I’m glad you like it. Relax. Take that worried look off your face. They’ll think we can’t afford to pay.”

  She laughed. “I’ll try.”

  Their waitress brought them water, took their orders and quietly stole away.

  “You d
idn’t find anything you’re serious about today?” He could tell she was thinking about her answer.

  “I have money saved, but it’ll take a lot to set up the shop. It’s expensive here. I’d have to charge a lot more for the baked goods in order to pay for the rent. I’d also have to hire several people to help me. So it’s definitely something I’m going to have to think about before I make a decision.”

  “Wait until spring,” Caleb offered, trying to make it sound sensible.

  “If I waited until spring and needed your help, you’d be out working in the fields.”

  “Don’t worry. I promise you, we’ll figure something out. But take your time. This isn’t a decision to be made lightly.” He watched as she moved her silverware around and took a sip from her water glass. Her brow furrowed. Jah, she was mulling it over. He hoped she came to the same conclusion that he did.

  The waitress brought their food to the table. “I’ll stop back later. Enjoy.”

  Sarah took a bite of her sandwich. “This turkey on the homemade bread is delicious. It has tomato and melted cheese and some kind of sauce. How’s yours?”

  “Mine is gut. Jacob, is your sandwich tasty?”

  “Nein.”

  Caleb read the hurt in the bu’s eyes. “Jacob, Sarah has to run her business, and there is already one bakery in Kalona.”

  “Jah. But I want her to stay. She can come live with us.”

  “Nein, Jacob. She cannot do that.”

  Sarah quickly changed the subject. “Even if I don’t get a shop selected today, it was worth the trip to Iowa City just to eat here. This restaurant is charming.”

  The server stopped at the table with a water pitcher and refilled their glasses. “How are your meals?”

  Sarah’s face glowed as though she were a kind visiting a restaurant for the first time. “Wunderbaar. Could I see a dessert menu, please?”

  “Sorry, the pastry chef quit and the new one hasn’t started yet.”

  “Oh, that’s too bad.”

  “Haven’t I seen you before?” The waitress looked at Sarah with a scrutinizing eye. She glanced at her clothes, then at Caleb. “You look familiar. Wait a minute. Do you run that Amish Sweet Delights bakery in Kalona?”

  “Jah, I’m Sarah Gingerich. I did operate the bakery, but my bruder sold it.”

  “Oh, too bad. Your baked goods were wonderful.” She handed the water pitcher to another server before stacking their empty dishes on a tray. “Nice to see you again. Just in town, enjoying the day?”

  “I’m looking at shops in Iowa City and thinking about opening a bakery here.”

  “Hope you find one. It’d be nice having your bakery close by.”

  Caleb paid the check and helped Sarah slide her chair back. He glared at Jacob and his sandwich with only a nibble out of it. “Since you didn’t eat your lunch, don’t ask for a treat later.” He gestured to his sohn to lead the way to the door.

  “Excuse me.” A well-dressed man hurried toward them. “Are you Sarah Gingerich?”

  She stopped and faced the speaker. “Jah.”

  “I’m Kenneth Gardner. I’m the restaurant manager. I’ve visited your bakery before. You make delicious desserts.”

  “Danki.”

  “My pastry chef quit and my new one doesn’t start for four weeks. I was wondering if you’d be able to bake desserts for me for a few weeks. Either here at the restaurant, or if you bake them at your bakery, we could make arrangements to have someone pick them up.”

  “I live in Kalona.”

  “One of our workers is from Kalona, so he could pick them up on his way to work. We’d advertise them as Amish desserts. We’ll call it a special for the holidays. Since we’re located in the heart of the Amish community, our customers may like the change.”

  “I could maybe do it for a few weeks. What kind of desserts?”

  Caleb could hear the excitement in her voice. He took a step closer to the door.

  “Pies, apple crisps, brownies, cookies—that type of thing. Let’s step over here and talk about it further. I’ll introduce you to Mike Matthews. He’ll be the one to pick up the baked goods.”

  When they left the restaurant, Caleb flashed Sarah a smile. “Congratulations.”

  Sarah held up a hand. “I’m still shaking. I can’t believe it. It’s only for a few weeks, but it made me feel gut they even asked. And with this arrangement, the baked goods are preordered. I’ll need an organizer put in the pantry in my kitchen and some more shelves.”

  “Write out what you need. I’ll pick it up and be over tomorrow to get started.”

  “I might do what you suggested, Caleb. Just stay in Kalona for the winter, keep The Cookie Box and work on my cookbook.”

  Caleb forced a grin from his face. It was all music to his ears.

  * * *

  Sarah stood back and surveyed the organizer and extra shelving Caleb had installed in her house. “Wunderbaar. I don’t know how I’ll repay all the work you do for me.”

  “No repayment needed. You’re a friend, Sarah. I enjoy helping you.”

  His words struck her like a cold snowball to the cheek. Was he trying to tell her that’s all she meant to him? A friend. She forced a weak smile. “I’d like to make you supper to repay you.”

  “Another time. I want to get home to Mary and Jacob.” He gave a wave as he closed the door behind him.

  She unpacked her saucepans from the storage box, washed and hung them. The high-ceilinged room echoed as her shoes clomped across the wooden flooring. It reminded her of how empty the house was without Caleb’s presence. She needed to stay busy and forget about such things.

  She clutched her first order from A Little Bit Country to her chest. Working for a five-star restaurant was a gut move, even if the job was only temporary. If she opened a bakery in Iowa City, maybe they’d continue to give her business. That meant she needed to make them some very tasty desserts.

  After pulling her supplies from the pantry, she started on the brownies. When those were in the oven, she stirred up the cookie dough and baked five dozen chocolate chip and oatmeal raisin cookies. Next she started a batch of yeast rolls rising. They didn’t ask for the cinnamon rolls, but she’d throw them in as a danki for the orders and give them a sample. While those were set aside to rise, she made a chocolate cake and the apple crisp, then finished making the rolls.

  Sarah packed all the desserts into boxes, which took until the wee hours of the morning. She set the baked goods on the table, sat in the rocker and waited for Mike Matthews, the man from the restaurant, to stop by.

  The knock at her front door startled Sarah out of her snooze. She jumped off the rocker and found Mike on her front porch. “Mornin’, Mike. They’re all ready for you.”

  “Morning, Sarah. Fall asleep, didya?”

  “Jah. Since I closed the other bakery, I’m not used to working late and getting up in the middle of the night.”

  He laughed. “See you in a couple of days.”

  She locked the door behind him and headed to bed for a little more sleep.

  Two days later, she had a new order from the restaurant. Mr. Gardner’s order included a note. Thanks for the cinnamon rolls you included free last time. Our brunch crowd raved about them.

  It paid off. He’d ordered five dozen cinnamon rolls. For the next order, she’d include two dozen sample dinner rolls and a free apple strudel. This order would take all night. At times like this, she wished Hannah was still around to help her, but Hannah was happily taking care of her ehemann and his kinner.

  When Mike knocked the next day at 5:00 a.m., he handed her a slip of paper. “Chef Randy loved your desserts. He asked me to give you the name and address of his publisher to get your cookbook published. You still have time to get them printed to sell for Christmas. Randy’s Little Bit Country Cookbook sells out over the ho
lidays in the restaurant gift shop.”

  “Danki, Mike.” Sarah laid the note on the table and helped Mike carry the boxes to the car.

  The next day when Mike dropped off the order, there was a note stapled to it. Besides their usual order, they’d added three apple strudels. She grinned. Free samples were always her best advertisement.

  Sarah had hoped Caleb would stop by so she could share her exciting news with him. Each time horses’ hooves clopped on the pavement in front of her haus, she peeked outside. But each time, the buggy passed by.

  Why hadn’t he come by?

  * * *

  With his stomach signaling time for dinner, Caleb finished his chores and headed to the house. He opened the kitchen door to black smoke engulfing the room. He ran to the stove, grabbed a pot holder and pulled the unattended frying pan off the burner.

  Jacob ran into the kitchen. “What’s that smell?” He wrinkled his nose and made a face.

  “Looks like our dinner. Where’s Mary?”

  “She went outside.”

  “How long has she been gone?”

  “I don’t know. A long time. She told me to play in my room.”

  Mary slammed the back door and turned to face her daed. “Ach. Smells like burnt roast. I had the roast simmering in water. Guess it must have boiled dry.”

  “You can’t leave food on the stove with a lit burner and go out of the haus. You know better than that, Mary.” Caleb raised his voice. “Where were you?”

  “Sorry. I just stepped outside for a breath of cool air. The kitchen was hot.” Her tone was unapologetic.

  “It takes a while for meat to boil dry. Why were you outside?”

  “Talking to some girls. I walked with them down to the creek and back.”

  “That is a mile away. The meat is burnt and Jacob was here by himself.”

  “I’ll fry some hamburgers.” She slowed her words, but her voice shook.

  “You’ll do no such thing. Go clean up that mess, and Jacob and I will fix sandwiches.”

  After Mary and Jacob went to bed, Caleb sat and stared into the dark living room. He missed Sarah every second of every day. He rubbed his forearms. Even they ached for her.