by Leslie Gould
She nodded.
He grew serious. “And have a family.”
“That’s what I want too,” she whispered. “I’ll leave.”
“What?”
“I’ll become Mennonite. That’s what’s best for us.”
He shook his head. “No.”
“What do you mean?”
“I want to join.”
She tilted her head in that questioning way of hers.
He continued. “I think me joining the Amish makes more sense than you leaving.”
She shook her head. “Why’s that?”
“Because if I join we’ll have your Dat’s support—”
“Are you sure we would?”
He nodded. “I asked him this afternoon.”
“And he gave us his blessing?”
“Yes—as long as that was what you wanted. And as long as I was willing to join your church.” Zane let go of her hand and put his arm around her, pulling her close, reminding himself not to do all the talking but to listen. “What made you decide you’d be willing to become Mennonite?”
“Eve told me my birth father never knew about Daniel and me. All this time I thought my Mamm had chosen not to leave, but it turns out she didn’t know him very well, and she never even considered leaving.”
“And that made you want to join the Mennonites?”
She smiled and shook her head. “No. It made me realize my Mamm wouldn’t want me to stay Amish for her and miss spending the rest of my life with you.”
He tightened his grip on her shoulder.
“But, Zane, honestly, if you try to become Amish and it just doesn’t work, we can leave. I can live with being Mennonite. Truly.”
He leaned his head against her forehead. “Denki,” he said, and then, “Ich liebe Dich.”
“I love you too,” she said, turning her face up toward his. He leaned down and kissed her then, first lightly and then, as she responded, more passionately. All those years he’d waited, and finally, the time was right.
28
Lila followed Dat and Beth up the steps to the Becks’ home, while Rose and Trudy ran and knocked on the door. Each carried a dish in their hands—cranberry sauce, broccoli salad, stuffing, and green beans. Lila had sent the pies and the rolls over ten minutes before with Simon in Zane’s truck. Dat hadn’t said anything to Lila about Zane during breakfast. He’d cleared his throat a couple of times but then had stayed quiet.
The door swung open, and Zane stepped out onto the porch, motioning the girls in and then taking the pot of stuffing from Beth. He greeted her warmly, then Dat, and then nodded to Lila, his eyes dancing.
Her heart fluttered, and she stopped for just a moment at the top of the stairs while the others continued on.
“Come on,” he said, nodding toward the door. “Come in out of the cold.”
She brushed against his arm as she passed by, remembering their kiss. A jolt of electricity shot up her spine. Eve swept in and took the green beans from her, following Zane into the kitchen, while Lila hung her coat.
Simon and Casey stood by the wood stove, along with Adam and Trudy. Rose stood along the wall, probably wishing she was over at Monika’s with Daniel and Jenny—and Reuben.
The kitchen table had been pulled out into the living room, just before the hallway, and another long folding table had been added. All of them would sit together. Charlie was filling water glasses, and Dat joined him, picking up the second pitcher on the table. Lila followed Beth into the kitchen and Shani greeted both of them, giving Lila an extra-long hug.
When Lila stepped away, Shani had tears in her eyes. Zane must have said something.
Eve gave them both a funny look but didn’t say anything until Lila stepped past the refrigerator. Eve followed her and whispered, “Are you becoming a Mennonite?”
Lila shook her head and whispered back, “I’ll tell you later.” She and Zane didn’t want to make any sort of announcement today. He didn’t want to come off as prideful, as if he thought he could make it as an Amish man. Not very many Englischers tried and not many who did stayed. Then again, none of them were fluent in Pennsylvania Dutch either. Or had grown up on Juneberry Lane.
More importantly Zane had seven more months in the Army. He’d move home in June and get a job doing construction or working in a dairy or something else. Gideon had told him he could live with them or another family in the district. He’d sell his truck and buy a horse and buggy. He’d take classes to join the church. He’d see if it was a way of life he could embrace.
“All of this can go out to the table,” Shani said, motioning toward the platters heaped with food on the counter.
Zane grabbed the stuffing again, and Lila grabbed the rolls. Soon they were ready to eat.
After everyone was seated, Joel led them in a silent prayer and then prayed, “Lord, our hearts are overflowing with gratitude for everything you’ve done for us. You’ve kept us safe and well. You give us all we need—our families, our neighbors, and our friends. Thank you for bringing Zane home to us. Please protect Simon. Use this food to strengthen us to love each other more. We are thankful beyond all measure. Amen.”
When Lila opened her eyes and looked up, Joel had his eyes on her. He smiled, and she smiled back before she realized Simon was watching. He grinned in a knowing way. She quickly picked up the fruit salad, dished up her portion, and then passed it on to Zane.
By the time they’d finished eating, it was snowing again.
“Why don’t all of you kids go out?” Shani said.
Zane glanced around the table. “Kids?”
“Well, you’re all still kids to us,” Shani said. “All of us old folks can clean up.”
Rose said, “I don’t want to get cold. I’ll stay and help too.”
The rest of them put on their coats, boots, and gloves and traipsed outside.
“Shall we play Romans? Or Tarzan?” Simon joked.
Casey turned toward him. “What?”
“Yeah, your buddy here used to lead us in all sorts of different maneuvers.”
“That explains him leading us on our trek through the mountains,” Casey said. “You just didn’t know he was in training as a kid.”
They headed into the field, and then Zane veered off toward the fort with Simon and Casey. Trudy and Adam stopped and started building a snowman. Lila followed Zane down the bank.
Once they reached the fort, Simon sat on the stump and pulled Casey down beside him.
“So what’s going on with you and Zane?” Simon asked Lila, loudly.
Lila cleared her throat and said, “What’s going on with you two?”
Simon laughed. “Who, us? We just met.”
Casey nudged him. “And someone’s being deployed.”
“Yeah, well,” Simon said, patting his pocket, “at least I’ve got FaceTime figured out. We can stay in touch.”
“At least I’ll have an idea of what you’re going through.”
They were all silent for a moment, and then Simon looked up at Lila and said, “I never thought you’d leave the church.”
“She’s not,” Zane answered.
“What?” Simon shifted his weight on the stump. “Don’t tell me you’re going to have a bowl cut and be wearing barn pants soon.”
Zane shrugged. “I guess we’ll have a good idea about that by the time you get back.”
Casey broke out into a laugh. “I won’t say anything, I promise.”
“I don’t care if you do,” Zane answered. “Especially to Grant. It would probably push him completely over the edge.”
Casey grimaced. “He’ll end up over the edge all on his own, I’m sure. Without any help from you.”
Snow fell from a branch above them. Simon stood and grabbed the rope that had hung there all those years.
“Don’t do it,” Lila hissed, just as he grabbed up higher on to it and swung out across, landing on the other side, a huge grin on his face.
Lila grabbed the rope as it came bac
k and held on to it. Simon scooped up a snowball and threw it at her. Zane threw one back at him. Soon snowballs flew back and forth until, finally, Lila sent the rope back across the creek and ran up the bank. Casey followed her.
Up in the field, Trudy and Adam had the bottom half of a snowman made and were now making snow angels. Lila fell to the ground beside her little sister. Big, fluffy flakes were falling now, and Casey scooped up handful after handful, forming them into snowballs. When the guys came up the bank she started lobbing them at Simon.
Zane snuck on through and collapsed beside Lila, throwing his arm over her middle. She took off her glove and pulled the jasper stone from her coat pocket. “Do you want this back?” she whispered.
“Of course not,” he said. “Keep it.”
She slid it back into her pocket. “I’m going to stitch two stones to my crazy quilt,” she said. “And finish it.”
He rolled closer to her, their heads side by side, her eyes on the sky above. She wished they could stay in the field forever. But they had seven months to get through and then another spell until they could be sure exactly what their future held.
Knowing her future held Zane was enough though—for now.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Many, many people are involved in every story I write. For this one, my biggest thanks goes to my husband, Peter, who recently retired from the Army Reserve after a thirty-year career. In many ways he inspired this story, and he was my go-to person for all things military and medical (any mistakes are mine), along with supporting me through the writing process. Our four children—Kaleb, Taylor, Hana, and Thao—also encouraged me.
There are many other soldiers and military family members who have inspired me through the last thirty years, including Larrie Noble (Col., retired); Joyce Clarkson-Veilleux (LTC, retired); Diane and Chuck Cumiskey (Col.); Marilyn and Jim Weisenburg; and Dr. John McGraw (Col., retired) and his sweet wife, Ann, who is a reader and thinker extraordinaire. My sincere gratitude goes to all of you.
My sincere thanks goes to Marietta Couch for her friendship, insights, and encouragement, and for sharing her Amish experiences with me. I’m also grateful to Laurie Snyder for generously giving me feedback in the early stages of this story, to Melanie Dobson for helping later in the process, and to my agent, Chip MacGregor, for taking a chance on me thirteen years ago and continuing through the years to believe in my ability to tell a story.
Last, but certainly not least, all of the good people at Bethany House Publishers have my gratitude for all they do on behalf of my books, from helping to shape the story to the cover design to marketing to sales. This is the sixth book my editor, Karen Schurrer, has guided me through, and each time we come to “the end” it feels like a miracle. Thank you!
Leslie Gould is the coauthor, with Mindy Starns Clark, of the #1 CBA bestseller The Amish Midwife, a 2012 Christy Award winner; CBA bestseller Courting Cate, first in the COURTSHIPS OF LANCASTER COUNTY series; and Beyond the Blue, winner of the Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice for Best Inspirational Novel, 2006. She holds an MFA in creative writing and lives in Portland, Oregon, with her husband and four children.
Learn more about Leslie at www.lesliegould.com.
Books by Leslie Gould
THE COURTSHIPS OF LANCASTER COUNTY
Courting Cate
Adoring Addie
Minding Molly
Becoming Bea
NEIGHBORS OF LANCASTER COUNTY
Amish Promises
Amish Sweethearts
Resources: bethanyhouse.com/AnOpenBook
Website: www.bethanyhouse.com
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