by Jenna Mindel
Epilogue
Cat spent the morning of her wedding day helping her mother. The last item on the list was a quick arrangement of the dozens of red poinsettias in the family room. Her mother wanted to line a path with the velvety plants down the stairs to where she’d meet Simon in front of the fireplace. “Where did you get all these?”
“This close to Christmas, they were on sale.” Her mom grinned.
“Nicely done.” Cat looked everything over with a critical eye, but not a single thing seemed out of place.
Her parents’ home made the perfect setting for a Christmas wedding, with the tall Christmas tree covered in twinkling white and bubble lights and special ornaments collected or handmade through the years.
They had moved the furniture out to make room for the rented white wedding chairs and square tables that were scattered throughout the room. Each table had a smaller potted poinsettia as a centerpiece. The reception would be held here as well, with a list of attendees that was barely larger than a regular Zelinsky family dinner.
Cat considered how much of her life had been spent trying to escape this house, along with the memories it held, but today she knew her past wouldn’t overshadow her wedding day. Sue Jensen and her husband had not only accepted the wedding invitation, but had brought along a basket of baked goods that graced the loaded dessert table.
Her mom rubbed her back. “You okay?”
Cat nodded with confidence. “I am. Everything is perfect, Mom. Thank you.”
Her mom smiled and then quickly checked her watch. “You’d better get ready. It won’t be long before everyone’s here. I’m going to check on your father and make sure he’s putting on the suit I picked out.”
Cat gave her mom’s hand a squeeze before she left.
The minister from Simon’s church, now hers as well, would soon marry them in front of her family and Simon’s. Cat had met his sister, Margo, and her husband the night before. She liked them and looked forward to visiting them as Simon promised.
“Hey, Cat, shouldn’t you get dressed?” Her brother Cam had arrived, taking over kitchen duty. The meal would be a simple one of grilled kielbasa, with her mom’s homemade pierogies, butternut squash soup and a cranberry-pecan salad.
“Yeah.” More racket caught her attention as the string quartet arrived and set up, compliments of her brother Darren and his wife, Bree.
Her brother Matthew and his wife, Annie, had delivered the chocolate wedding cake, made by a local bakery. They milled in the kitchen with Cam and his wife, Rose.
Her throat grew tight, knowing her whole family had pitched in to make this day special. She dashed upstairs to dress and peeked at Opal in her crib, sleeping. She caressed her daughter’s face. “Tomorrow, we’ll wake up at your daddy’s house.”
Cat had already moved in her things, along with a Christmas gift for Simon safely tucked under their tree. She’d ordered a hand-carved piece of reclaimed wood that read Home of the Roberts Family. Opal’s birth certificate was being changed, as well.
“Cat, you’d better hurry up.” Monica stood in the doorway, wearing a simple long-sleeved red dress as her maid of honor.
Cat smiled. “You look gorgeous.”
“Thanks. Now, what can I do to help you along? You’re going to be late to your own wedding that’s only a few feet away.”
Cat laughed. “I’ve got this. Go make sure Zach is here with the rings.”
Her oldest brother was standing up with Simon. The rest of her family were here too. She could hear Luke’s stereo playing down the hall. Erin had arranged Cat’s hair into a fancy swirl and doused it with enough hairspray to keep it in place through a hurricane. Her brothers Ben and Marcus had plowed the driveway, along with a place on the lawn for everyone to park. Everything was ready.
But her.
After brushing her teeth again and freshening her makeup, Cat dropped her sweats in a pile. She reached for the winter-white dress she’d found at the last minute in a boutique store downtown. Made of a heavy silk crepe, it had long sleeves and a slightly draped neckline.
Slipping the dress over her head, she sighed at the luxurious feel of the fabric as the hem brushed her ankles. Cat stepped into light tan pumps and then reached for her bundle of white poinsettias and red roses and looked in the mirror.
Every anniversary going forward, she’d remember this Christmas as the one when joy became real. This newly found joy was not some tinsel-based hope that got tossed out with the Christmas tree either. This joy would last because God was real to her in a very new sense and He’d never forsake her.
Her opal engagement ring flashed with color and she smiled. She wore no other jewelry. Nothing compared to the ring Simon had made from a hunk of rock that had brought them together. Simon would be with her too, by her side for better or worse, and Cat finally believed in for better.
A knock at the door brought her mother inside. “Oh, Cat, you look beautiful.”
She rushed to give her mother a kiss. “Thank you for being an example I can follow.”
Her mom’s eyes teared up. “I’m so proud of who you’ve become.”
“I’ve got a big job now as a mom.” Cat’s eyes filled too.
“You’re a good one, Cat.” Her mother patted her arm. “Speaking of which, Opal is waking up. I’ll change her and then meet you downstairs.”
Cat watched her mom lift Opal out of the swaddled blanket to reveal a red velvet romper. Her little holiday baby was in for the best Christmas present ever—a complete family.
Another knock at the door and her father stepped in. “Everyone’s here. Ready?”
She smiled at her parents. She’d put them through a lot and yet they’d never stopped believing in her. “I am.”
Taking her father’s hand, she walked out of her old room, down the stairs and into the warmth of everyone gathered for this moment.
Simon stood, waiting, looking dapper in his dark suit. He looked up and smiled, his dark eyes never leaving hers.
She kept her gaze locked on his as she approached, breaking contact only to accept a kiss from her father before he offered her hand to Simon.
Intertwining her fingers with his, Cat knew the instant connection she’d felt the moment they’d met hadn’t been wrong. God had brought them back together for a reason. He’d had forever in mind for them.
Simon leaned close. “I’ve never been happier.”
She nodded. “I know. Me too.”
Their painful pasts would always be part of who they were. Those pasts had shaped them, but neither would define them. With God’s grace, they could move forward and meet new adventures together, with joy.
* * * * *
Pick up these other stories in
Jenna Mindel’s Maple Springs series:
Falling for the Mom-to-Be
A Soldier’s Valentine
A Temporary Courtship
An Unexpected Family
Available now from Love Inspired!
Find more great reads at www.LoveInspired.com
Keep reading for an excerpt from An Amish Wife for Christmas by Patricia Davids.
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Dear Reader,
Thank you so much for reading my last book in the Maple Springs series. I hope you’ve enjoyed Cat and Simon’s journey to self-forgiveness, peace and finally love.
This was my most difficult book to bring together. For quite some time, I struggled with Cat’s character. I didn’t understand the depths of her pain until I researched online stories of people who’d caused an accidental death. I was deeply moved and I hope I’ve touched this subject with compassion. There is no pat answer to sooth
e such grief, but I do believe in a big God with the power to heal. If we let Him.
As I wrap up my visits with the Zelinsky family during my favorite time of the year, my prayer for this Christmas season is that we’d draw closer to God with grateful hearts that are full of His love for others.
My warmest wishes to you for a very Merry Christmas and joyful New Year.
Jenna
I love to hear from readers. Please visit my website at www.jennamindel.com or follow me on www.Facebook.com/authorjennamindel or drop me a note c/o Love Inspired Books, 195 Broadway, 24th floor, New York, NY 10007.
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An Amish Wife for Christmas
by Patricia Davids
Chapter One
“Your brother’s behavior reflects badly on you, Bethany, and on our community. Something must be done.”
Bethany Martin sat across from Bishop Elmer Schultz at her kitchen table with her head bowed and her hands clasped tightly together in her lap. Her dear friend Gemma Lapp sat beside her. Bethany was grateful for Gemma’s moral support.
“We Amish are newcomers here,” he continued. “We can’t afford to stir ill will among our Englisch neighbors. Don’t you agree?”
Bethany glanced up and met his intense gaze. She nodded slightly. An imposing man in his midfifties, the bishop had a shaggy gray-and-black beard that reached to the middle of his chest. A potato farmer and owner of a shed building business, he was known for his long and often rambling sermons, but he was a fair man and well liked in their small Amish community. Bethany didn’t take his visit lightly. She prepared to defend her brother.
“Ivan isn’t a bad boy. It’s just that he misses his grandfather. He’s angry that God took Elijah from us and he feels guilty. The two of them were very close.” Her heart ached for her troubled brother.
“Time will heal this,” Gemma added.
The bishop sighed. “Your grandfather Elijah was a fine man, Bethany. I have no doubt that he kept the boy’s high spirits in check, but Ivan has quickly put one foot on the slippery slope that leads to serious trouble. He needs a firm hand to guide him and mold him into an upstanding and righteous man.”
“I can do that,” Bethany assured him. “I’ve raised Ivan from the time he was five and our sister, Jenny, wasn’t much more than a newborn babe.” She might be their sister, but she was also the only mother they had ever known. Both mother and father to them after the man who bore that title left his family for the fourth and final time. Bethany’s anger surged to the surface but she quickly brought it under control. At least her mother had been spared knowing about his final betrayal. She had been positive he would return to care for his children after she was gone. He hadn’t. Bethany brought her attention back to the matter at hand.
Gemma waved one hand. “Ivan is almost fourteen. Boys that age get into mischief.”
It was a weak argument and Bethany knew it. Her brother’s recent behavior was more than mischief, but she didn’t know what to do about it. He seemed to be done listening to her.
The bishop’s expression softened. “Bethany, your grandfather was concerned that you have sacrificed your chance to have a family of your own in order to care for your siblings.”
She drew herself up straight. “I don’t feel that way. Ivan and Jenny are my family.”
The bishop laced his fingers together on the table. “I am the spiritual leader of this community and as such I have a duty to oversee the welfare of all my flock. Normally I would leave the discipline of children to their parents. In this case I feel duty bound to step in. Elijah was my dear friend. It was his vision that founded our new community here. It was his desire to see it grow. For that we need the goodwill of our Englisch neighbors.”
“I’m aware of that. I spent many months helping him search for the best place to settle. New Covenant is as much my dream as it was his.” She didn’t like the direction the bishop seemed to be going.
“Then you agree that we can’t let the reckless actions of one boy ruin what has been created.”
“He isn’t trying to spoil anything.” Bethany was compelled to defend Ivan, but the truth was she didn’t know what was wrong with him. Was he acting out because of his grief or was something else going on?
His schoolwork had suffered in the past weeks. His teacher had complained of behavior issues in class. He had been in several scuffles with non-Amish boys earlier in the year but they weren’t anything serious. It was his recent secrecy and withdrawal that bothered Bethany the most. How could she help him if she didn’t understand what was amiss?
She lifted her chin. “There is no proof that he damaged Greg Janson’s tractor or that he is responsible for letting Robert Morris’s cattle loose.”
Bishop Schultz leveled a stern look at her. “He was seen near both farms at the time and he’d been in fights with both the Janson and Morris boys.”
“That’s not proof,” she insisted.
The bishop pushed back from the table. “I have written to your uncle in Bird-in-Hand.”
She frowned. “To Onkel Harvey? Why?”
“Elijah mentioned that Harvey and his family plan to visit you this Christmas.”
“That’s true. We are expecting them to stay a week as they were unable to come to the funeral.”
The bishop rose to his feet. “I have asked your uncle to take Ivan with him when the family returns to Pennsylvania.”
Bethany’s mouth dropped open. “Nee, you can’t send Ivan away. This isn’t right.”
“It was not an easy decision. I know your intentions are goot but the boy needs the firm guidance of a man. You are too easy on him.”
“Because he’s still a little boy.” The situation was quickly slipping out of her control. They couldn’t take her brother from her. Fear sent her pulse pounding in her temples. “Please, Bishop, you must reconsider.”
“I will not.”
Bethany pressed both hands to her heart. “I promised my mother before she died that I would keep the family together. I promised her. Don’t do this.”
The bishop’s expression didn’t change. Her plea had fallen on deaf ears. Men were the decision makers in her Amish community. The bishop had the last word even in this family matter.
He took his coat and hat from the pegs by the door and put them on. “Bethany, if you were married I wouldn’t have to take this course of action. Your husband would be the one to make such decisions and discipline the boy. With Elijah gone, I see no other choice. I must think of what is best for all, not just for one.”
He nodded to her and left. Bethany wanted to cry, to shout at him, to run after him and beg him to change his mind, but she knew it wouldn’t do any good.
“I’m sorry.” Gemma laid a hand on Bethany’s should
er.
“What am I going to do? There has to be a way to change the bishop’s mind.”
“Why don’t I make us some toast and a cup of coffee. Then we’ll put our heads together and come up with a plan.”
“We’re out of bread and I don’t want any coffee.”
“What Amish woman runs out of bread?”
“This one. There has been so much to do since Daadi’s passing I haven’t had time to bake. If Ivan straightens up and starts behaving, if he apologizes to the bishop maybe he’ll be allowed to stay. It’s five weeks until Christmas. That’s enough time to prove he has changed.”
“Or you can get married. That will fix everything.”
Bethany gave her friend an exasperated look. Gemma knew Bethany’s feeling about marriage. It wasn’t for her. “It’s unlikely that I could find someone to wed me before Christmas, Gemma.”
“If you weren’t so particular, maybe not. Jesse Crump holds you in high regard.”
Bethany wrinkled her nose. “Having a conversation with Jesse is like pulling teeth. He’s a nice enough fellow, but he never has anything to say.”
“Ack, you’re too fussy by far.”
“You marry him.”
Both Gemma’s eyebrows shot up. “Me? Not a chance. Besides, it isn’t my brother that is being sent away.”
Bethany battled her rising panic. “I wish Daadi were still here. I don’t know what to do.”
Gemma slipped an arm around Bethany’s shoulders and gave her a hug. “If your grandfather was still alive we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”
“I know.”
Ivan’s troubling behavior had started when their grandfather became ill early in the fall but it had gotten much worse since his death. Her gaze moved to the closed door leading to her grandfather’s workroom. Their grandfather had happily spent hours repairing clocks and antique watches during the long winter months in his tiny shop. With the door open she used to hear him humming or muttering depending on how a particular project was progressing.
