The Farmer's Bride

by Kathleen Fuller

  * * *

  Nina glanced at her grandmother, then focused on the road ahead. She held on to Happy’s reins as he pranced down the road. He was living up to his name, and she was growing to love the gentle black gelding. Back home she loved going on evening rides in her father’s open buggy, usually by herself as she headed for the fishing hole. Fishing. When she first moved here, she hadn’t cared about her favorite pastime, but now she was itching to fish. She hadn’t expected Martha to be interested, but it never hurt to ask. She liked Martha, and although she’d heard an earful from her grandmother about taking off without telling her, it was worth spending some time with a new friend. A girlfriend, which she hadn’t had since her school days.

  But now they were headed to Seth Yoder’s house, at her grandmother’s insistence, of course. “I’m sure this could wait until tomorrow,” she grumbled.

  “We have a full day tomorrow. The flooring people are coming in, plus I want you to help me choose the linens and quilts for the inn bedrooms. I have a stack of catalogs for us to peruse.” She settled into the seat. “I want to get Seth’s confirmation for supper on Thursday. We don’t want this to be a last-minute affair.”

  Nina cringed at the word affair. Her grandmother could be so pretentious sometimes. Nina knew it was because she’d had a stern upbringing when she was little, more stern than normal since her mother had been a stickler for manners. Yet sometimes Grossmammi’s attitude could be quite snobby. “I’m sure Seth’s not home from Martha’s yet.”

  “Then we can wait for him and have a nice visit with the Yoders.” Grossmammi sat up and moved the tray of sweet rolls from her lap to the seat. They’d purchased them from Yoder’s Bakery on the way home from the optics shop yesterday.

  It dawned on Nina that the Yoders could have the bakery’s sweet rolls anytime, since the bishop’s sister, Carolyn, owned and ran the bakery. But she didn’t dare say that to her grandmother. “What if they’re busy?”

  “Then we’ll leave the sweet rolls and geh back home.” She huffed. “Why do you have to be so contrary, Nina?”

  “I’m being realistic,” she mumbled.

  “What did you say?”

  “Nix.” She focused on the road, glancing at the directions to the Yoders’ house on the piece of paper in her lap. Yes, Grossmammi wanted to nail down her plans, but Nina knew she also wanted to see the bishop’s home. To measure how he lived. She was nosy, and she always had been. The comparison trap had been a problem in their community. Even Nina had been aware of that. The women were also competitive, fighting to be the first one to get the wash out on the line or making sure their pie had the highest peaks of meringue. It was a contradiction of their faith, but in their tiny community, everyone knew everyone else’s business and foibles. Nina thought they were all being stupid. That was another reason she liked hanging out with the guys. They didn’t care about comparison, except when it came to fishing. She usually caught the biggest fish anyway.

  As they approached the Yoders’, Nina wished she would have put her foot down about coming here, but her grandmother would have gone anyway. It was already dusk, and she didn’t like the idea of Grossmammi driving home in this still-unfamiliar area after dark. Besides, she could at least try to keep her grandmother from being too nosy or embarrassing. She’d probably fail, but she’d rather have firsthand knowledge of Grossmammi’s well-intentioned mischief.

  She pulled into the Yoders’ driveway, parked the buggy, and met her grandmother on the other side. Grossmammi didn’t need any help, so she stood there while she got out, glancing around at the large house and pristine farmland. Cows lowed in the background, and she heard a few sheep bleating. Several other nice houses were on this street, along with expansive farmland.

  Grossmammi looked at her. “For goodness’ sake.” She pulled a handkerchief out of the pocket of her apron. “Didn’t you look in the mirror before we left? You have a smudge of chocolate on yer chin.”

  Nina took the handkerchief and scrubbed at the spot. She rarely looked in the mirror, and when she did it was on Sundays. “Did I get it?”

  “Ya.” She sighed, then took the handkerchief and stuffed it back in her pocket as she looked around. “These people have money, obviously.” She sniffed.

  Nina looked at her. “Does that matter?”

  She shrugged. “It all depends on how you use it.”

  “That’s not our place to judge.”

  Grossmammi smirked. “Who’s judging? I’m simply making an observation. Now, let’s see if Seth has returned from Martha’s.”

  Nina followed as her grandmother confidently made her way to the Yoders’ porch, then rapped on the door without hesitation. After a few moments, a young man opened it. Nina knew from her grandmother that Seth had two brothers, but she hadn’t met either one of them. Her gaze met his. He was taller than Seth—and bulkier, maybe stronger. His shoulders were wide, and the hems of his short sleeves were a little tight around his biceps. He had dark-brown hair, blue eyes, and a startled expression on his face.

  “Hello,” he said.

  “Hello, yung mann. I’m Delilah Stoll, and this is mei grossdochder, Nina. We stopped by for a visit.” Grossmammi tried peeking around him to look inside, but his large body filled up the doorway. Nina vigorously rubbed her nose. Her grandmother was in fine form.

  “Come on in.” He held the door open for her, and the two women went inside. “I’m Ira. I don’t think we’ve met.” He shut the door and turned to them. “Mei parents are out back. I’ll let them know you’re here.”

  “Is Seth home, by any chance?” Grossmammi asked.

  Ira paused, his welcoming expression dimming. “Nee. He’s . . . out.”

  “I see. Then we’ll wait right here for yer parents.”

  “Okay.” He looked at Nina, a little confused.

  All Nina could do was shrug and try to smile. If it was this awkward to pay a visit to the bishop, she could only imagine what it would be like at supper Thursday night.

  After Ira left to get his parents, Nina resisted the urge to bite her nails while Grossmammi inspected the room. She’d never been a nail-biter, but lately she couldn’t leave her hands alone. Her grandmother didn’t say anything, yet Nina knew she was taking in every detail. One graying eyebrow raised, she scanned the room. Nina wasn’t as thorough, but she did notice this was a nice, lived-in living room. She felt immediately at home here, which was surprising since this was her first visit. Yet something about the place was welcoming, and she got the feeling the Yoders never turned anyone away.

  Soon Freemont and Mary walked into the room, and Grossmammi’s attention swept to them, as if she hadn’t been nosily scrutinizing their living room. “Hello,” she said, walking toward them.

  “Hi, Delilah,” Mary said. “Lovely to have you drop by for a visit.” She turned to Nina. “It’s nice to meet you too. I’m Mary.”

  “Freemont.” The bishop extended his hand to Nina and gave her a firm handshake. His palms were calloused from farmwork.

  “It won’t take me but a second to put on a teakettle or the percolator.” Mary turned to Grossmammi. “Do you prefer tea or kaffee?”

  “Tea, please. And we brought some—” She let out a small gasp and turned to Nina. “I can’t believe I left the sweet rolls in the buggy. Do you mind getting them, Nina?”

  “Glad to,” she said, and then hurried outside, grateful for the escape. Maybe it had been a bad idea for her to come. She felt like she was on pins and needles every time her grandmother opened her mouth.

  Nina stood on the Yoders’ front porch and let out a long breath. The air was thick and muggy, as it had been ever since she’d moved here. But at least she had a moment to herself. After breathing in the comforting smells of the farm—sweet timothy grass, the perfume of the slightly wilting flowers in the pots on the porch, and even the scents of the pastured animals nearby—she started toward the buggy. On the way she swatted at a stray horsefly. Then another. Then two more. What was
it with the insects in Birch Creek? They seemed to like her far too much.

  “The horseflies have been pretty active lately.” Ira walked up to her, fishing pole in one hand, a wicker creel in the other. “Surprising since it’s so hot.”

  “I had the same problem with wasps,” she said, swiping at another fly. For some reason they were leaving Ira alone. She turned to him. “I’m sorry about coming over without an invitation.”

  “Why? We have an open-door policy here.” He smiled, and whatever had bothered him earlier when her grandmother mentioned Seth didn’t seem to be bothering him now. “Although yer grossmammi seems to have her own visiting policy.”

  “That she does.” Nina took in his fishing pole, and the sweet rolls were forgotten. “You’re going fishing?”

  He nodded. “With Zeb and Zeke Bontrager. It’s been too hot to fish during the day, so we decided to give it a try tonight.”

  “What are you fishing for?”

  “Mostly sunfish. The pond doesn’t have a big variety. It’s in the woods over there.” He pointed to the large house next door. “The Chupps let us fish whenever we want. They ought to, since we’re familye. Mei schwester is married to a Chupp and . . .” He shook his head. “I won’t bore you with all that. Do you like to fish?”

  She nodded, facing him, barely holding in her excitement. “I do. I fished all the time back home. We had several ponds, but like yers, they didn’t have a wide variety of fish. A couple of times a year I would geh with mei bruder and vatter to Lake Michigan. The walleye and perch are plentiful there.”

  “Sounds like Lake Erie. I went fishing there for the first time last year, with Zeb. We booked a charter.”

  “That’s what we would do.” She took a step toward him. “What kind of bait do you use?”

  “Worms, mostly.” He opened the creel and took out a Styrofoam container.

  “Mind if I take a look inside?”

  His brow lifted. “You’re joking, right?”

  “Not at all.”

  Ira handed her the container and she pulled off the lid. “Oh, these are nice ones.” She burrowed her fingers into the moist dirt and pulled out a fat worm. “Did you dig these up yerself?” She held up the worm and inspected it. What an excellent specimen. When he didn’t answer, she looked at him.

  His mouth was agape. “Um, ya. Yesterday morning, before 4:00 a.m. That was the coolest time of the day, believe it or not.” He looked at the worm dangling from her hand, then back at her. “I gotta say, I’ve never seen a maedel so excited about worms and fishing.”

  Feeling self-conscious, she put the worm back in the container and closed the lid. Her grandmother would be appalled at her reaction. “I like to fish,” she said quietly, handing the worms back to him.

  “Do you dig yer own worms?”

  She nodded, not looking at him. Now he probably thought she was weird. Well, he wouldn’t be the first one to see her that way. Normally she didn’t care, but she’d been more than a little sensitive lately.

  “Do you like to use minnows?” Ira asked.

  Nina lifted her eyes to him, surprised he was still asking her questions about fishing. She figured he would have been gone by now. “I prefer live bait, ya.”

  “Me too. Zeb and Zeke like using lures, but there’s nix better than live bait. Say, you want to geh fishing with us? We’ll probably be gone an hour or so. Think yer grossmammi can do without you for a little while?”

  Nina had never been more tempted in her life, but she shook her head. Her grandmother didn’t approve of her fishing, despite cooking up anything edible Nina brought home. “I can’t,” she said, remembering she was supposed to be getting the sweet rolls. Grossmammi was probably wondering what was taking her so long. “Danki for asking me.”

  “Okay. Guess I’ll see you later, then.”

  She paused. Was that a flash of disappointment in his eyes? How could she assume that, when they’d just met? He turned and headed for the backyard. She watched him go, wishing she could go with him.

  Her shoulders slumping, she walked to the buggy, got the sweet rolls, and returned to the house. She knocked quietly on the front door since she didn’t feel comfortable just walking inside.

  Mary opened the door and smiled. “Oh, Carolyn’s sweet rolls,” she said as she let Nina in. “Those are delicious.”

  “What took you so long?” Grossmammi was seated on a hickory rocker in the corner. Freemont was sitting on the couch opposite her.

  “Sorry. I was dawdling.” She didn’t want to bring up her conversation with Ira to her grandmother. She wasn’t in the mood for a lecture about how unfeminine fishing was, especially not in front of Mary and Freemont.

  “Normally Nina is very polite,” Grossmammi said. “She must have been taken by yer beautiful property.”

  She was, but Nina didn’t say anything as she offered the rolls to Mary.

  “I’ll bring these out with the tea,” Mary said when she took them. “Danki, Nina.”

  “Have a seat.” Grossmammi pointed at a comfortable-looking, cloth-covered chair near the couch.

  “Ya,” Freemont said with a slight smile. “Have a seat, Nina.”

  She cringed as she sat down. The Yoders were seeing all sides of Delilah Stoll—confident, pushy, in command of all situations. Nina had none of those traits, and she wished she had the ability to disappear, preferably to Ira’s fishing pond. But she sat down as ordered.

  Soon Mary came back to the living room carrying a tray laden with a teapot, mugs, napkins, and a plate of the sweet rolls. The three of them were chatting, but Nina tuned them out. She should have taken Ira up on his offer. She would love to be sitting on the bank of a pond, line in the water, the sounds of nature around her, forgetting about her homesickness, the inn, and her grandmother controlling her life.

  She didn’t know what the topic of conversation was until she heard her grandmother ask about Seth.

  “Do you know what time he’ll be back?” Grossmammi asked.

  “I thought he’d be home by now. He said he was having a quick bite of supper at the Detweilers’.” Mary looked at Freemont. “Did he say anything else to you about his plans for tonight?”

  “Nee. I’m sure he’ll be home anytime. Must be having a great time with Martha and her parents.”

  Nina caught the pinched look on her grandmother’s face. Seth and Martha having fun together was not in Delilah Stoll’s plans.

  After a little bit more small talk, it became clear Seth wasn’t coming home anytime soon. Nina was relieved by that. Martha had said she would come up with something to help all of them escape Grossmammi’s plans, but Nina didn’t expect her to. That wasn’t Martha’s responsibility; it was Nina’s. But Nina couldn’t get up the courage to put a stop to her.

  It was still dusk when they left, not dark as Nina had thought it would be by the time they’d be going home. “I like those two,” Grossmammi said.

  “They’re nice.”

  Nina expected her grandmother to say something else, but she could see she was deep in thought. Maybe she had reconsidered supper Thursday night. Before they’d left Freemont’s, she’d told Mary that Seth was invited over, but surely her grandmother had the idea that Seth and Martha were closer than she’d thought. Nina knew the truth, but maybe tonight would be the only convincing her grandmother needed to get the notion of matchmaking her and Levi with Seth and Martha out of her mind.

  * * *

  Delilah stared out into the scenery while Nina drove the buggy. Her plans were being thwarted left and right, and she didn’t appreciate it one bit. She knew in her mind that Birch Creek was the place for her family, but it had taken a lot of convincing to get Loren to move, although she let her grandchildren think it was his idea. Her son could be so passive sometimes, a trait he’d inherited from his father. He’d also inherited Wayne’s loyalty and love for his family, two qualities she had loved most about him. While her son had been a widower for a long time, Delilah knew better than to
push him to find someone else to love. Instead she focused on Nina and Levi. They required more than enough of her attention.

  She didn’t understand either of them. Any young man and woman would be chomping at the bit for the privilege to court them if her grandchildren weren’t standing in their own way. Levi was outgoing and friendly with everyone, and he had surprised Delilah with his eagerness to move to Birch Creek and open an inn. Yet he wasn’t focused on marriage or a family of his own at all. As far as she knew, he’d never had a date, and she made it her business to know her grandchildren’s business. He was twenty-one years old. High time he’d started planning for his personal future.

  Nina was a more difficult case. Beneath her rough exterior was a lovely woman, but Nina did everything she could to keep that buried from the world. Delilah couldn’t relate. Back in her day, she’d been one of the prettiest girls in her community, and she’d enjoyed attention from the boys until she’d fallen in love with Wayne. But all Nina had wanted to do ever since she was a child was roughhouse with boys. Oh, and fish. Delilah scrunched her nose. More than once she’d found a hook or a dead worm in Nina’s laundry. She wouldn’t get a husband by acting like a boy. The fact that she hadn’t been approached by any young men for a date proved that.

  It was up to Delilah to take charge, just as she had ever since she’d been in her teens and her mother had passed away. She had raised her younger siblings, then raised Loren, and now she was coming to the end of raising Levi and Nina. Truth be told, she was a bit weary of being so responsible. But God had seen fit to give her this purpose in life, and she wouldn’t fail him, or her family. Unfortunately, her family members needed a kick in the pants to get moving. And she was just the one to do the kicking.

  She shifted in her seat. Too bad Seth hadn’t been home tonight. He was a handsome man, from a good family. God wouldn’t have chosen Freemont to be bishop if he didn’t deserve it. She’d always believed bishops and their families were particularly blessed by God, even if she didn’t know any Scripture to back that up. And from the looks of the Yoders’ farm and house, they were well off. It was easy to say money wasn’t important, but not having to scrape out an existence alleviated a lot of worry, in her experience. Which was why she wanted Nina and Seth together. She wanted to see Nina happy, not struggle the way Delilah had when she was her age, before she’d married Wayne.