Harvest of Hearts

by Laura Hilton

  Giving in to temptation, he leaned over and opened the basket lid. Sure enough, there was a tin filled with cookies. He grabbed two and shut the lid. Becky grinned at him. “It’s a new recipe. Cappuccino chocolate chip.”

  “Sounds gut. Danki.” Matthew turned away and grimaced. He should have known she’d find some way to sneak her fancy coffee into the cookies.

  “Let me know if you like them,” she called after him.

  He waved his hand in acknowledgment and headed toward the water’s edge, where Jacob worked at landing a fish. A good-sized one, too. He hoped Shanna would decide to fish with him and not spend the whole time sitting with Becky.

  He glanced back at Shanna. Then again, maybe she did need a girlfriend. To his knowledge, since she’d been home, she hadn’t spent any time with friends, except for the night when Nate had come to take her out.

  That still bothered him.

  Trying to change the direction his thoughts were going in, he dropped the extra rod and his tackle box between him and Jacob, hooked on a lure, and flipped the pole back to cast out. As he went to flick it out into the water, something white fluttered over his head. A prayer kapp?

  ***

  Shanna opened her eyes. She’d closed them when she’d seen the hook coming at her. Bad idea to try sneaking up on Matthew. She was immediately surrounded by a sea of faces, awash with shock and concern: Matthew, Becky, Jacob, the fish dangling from his line, and a dark-haired girl who looked a little familiar.

  “The hook didn’t scratch you, ain’t so?” Matthew stepped closer and inspected her scalp.

  She waved away his concern. “I have a hard head. And you aren’t supposed to see me uncovered.”

  Matthew stared at her. “A little late to be worrying about that now. You had your hair down when you came home, and it’s uncovered when you go to work every day.”

  “McDonald’s.” Jacob snapped his fingers. “That’s where I know you from.”

  Becky grinned, then turned to the dark-haired girl, who held a small pail filled with wild strawberries. “Annie, you remember Shanna Stoltzfus, ain’t so?”

  “Jah.” Annie smiled at Shanna, a little too sweetly. “You said you were leaving and never coming back. What are you doing here?”

  The remark stung like a slap in the face. No way would she explain herself to Annie, though. She wouldn’t tell her how her peers had gone to Mexico on a mission trip, but she hadn’t saved enough money, and she’d come home as a last resort. And she definitely wouldn’t admit that she didn’t want to leave because Matthew was here. She bit her lip to keep from saying anything. Instead, she tilted her head and touched her hair, making sure it was secure.

  “Young kinner often say things they don’t mean,” Becky said, smiling kindly. “We are glad she came back, whatever the reason.”

  “Jah. It doesn’t matter. What does matter is that she’s here.” Matthew reeled in her prayer kapp, wrung it out, and handed it to her. “You have a little rip on it. Sorry. I didn’t know you were right behind me.”

  “I thought I’d go ahead and let you teach me to fish.” She shrugged. “I think I might enjoy it.”

  Matthew grinned. “Right. Rule number one: Never walk closely behind someone while he’s casting. You might get hurt.”

  She laughed and fingered her wet kapp. “Lesson learned.” She walked back to the quilt, hooked the kapp on a low branch of a tree to dry, and hurried back to Matthew.

  He held out his arm. “Kum, and I’ll teach you.” When they reached the water’s edge, he moved behind her and brought his rod around front, placing it in her hands and showing her how to hold it. Wanting to be closer to him, Shanna leaned back so that her shoulders touched his chest. She felt Matthew hesitate, and then he wrapped his arm around her, his muscles moving against her, and guided her through casting. Thankfully, fishing required minimal concentration, for Shanna could think of little else than how wonderful it felt to be this near to Matthew. After several minutes, she felt a tug on the line, and he guided her again through reeling in her catch.

  She wasn’t sure what kind of fish it was, but it didn’t look too happy to be dangling there from the hook. She frowned at the fish. It seemed to frown at her. “Are we going to throw it back?”

  “What would we do that for?” Matthew left the rod in her hands and came around in front of her. “You caught a gut-sized trout. Go ahead and take it off the hook.”

  “You want me to touch it?” Shanna shuddered. “But it’s looking at me!”

  “I thought nurses weren’t squeamish.”

  “I’m not squeamish with humans. Fish that frown and stare are a different matter.”

  Laughing, Matthew took the pole from her and deftly removed the fish, tossing it into a cooler that Jacob must have brought. “Want to try again?”

  Shanna waved her hand. “As fun as that was…well, maybe.” She grinned at him.

  “On your own this time. Last time, you held the pole, but I did all the work.”

  She blinked. “Ach, I’m not sure I’m ready for that. If I could hold the rod and watch once more….” And have your arms around me again…. She didn’t dare say that old loud. Much too bold, for one thing. And, considering their audience—she glanced in Annie’s direction—she needed to guard her tongue. Why had Annie come, anyway? She wasn’t fishing. She’d just collected strawberries, and now she sat beside Becky on the quilt.

  Perhaps she was interested in Matthew.

  Yet Matthew had made it more than clear he didn’t have reciprocal feelings by inviting Shanna.

  On second thought, had she invited herself? She tried to remember the conversation with Matthew but couldn’t recall all the details.

  Maybe she was the one intruding on a date. Maybe this was supposed to be a double date, and she was the third wheel.

  She shook her head. She had no reason to expect Matthew to focus his attention exclusively on her. He was the one who’d stated that Shanna would marry him. Nein, Matthew wasn’t interested in Annie.

  Shanna smiled and allowed herself to relax against Matthew’s chest as he again walked her through the steps of fishing.

  “Matthew Yoder.”

  Shanna’s spine stiffened at the sound of the deep voice, and she moved away from Matthew, though she was certain a fish was on the line.

  Matthew glanced over his shoulder. “Hello, Bishop Sol.” An interesting shade of red crept up his neck. He met Shanna’s gaze briefly, then turned his attention to the line and whatever dangled at the end.

  The bishop frowned and looked at Shanna. When his gaze fell on her uncovered head, his eyes widened.

  Shanna’s face heated. “My kapp got torn. And wet. And—”

  The bishop waved his hand, cutting her off, as if her explanation didn’t matter in the least.

  “Dishonesty is a sin, Shanna Stoltzfus.”

  She drew back, shocked at the implication she was being untruthful. But it was probably better to be accused of lying than of purposefully inciting lust.

  The bishop turned away and gestured with his arm. A young girl stepped into view. “Matthew, do you know my granddaughter, Ruth? We were driving by and saw you out here. Ruth loves to fish. Mind if she joins you?”

  Ruth giggled.

  Shanna studied her, trying to estimate her age. Sixteen, maybe. Kind of immature. Homely, really, but she knew that outward appearances weren’t truly important. She fought a surge of jealousy. The bishop obviously didn’t approve of her and had decided to push his granddaughter at Matthew. Ruth might be young, but Matthew would—should—act wisely and agree.

  Matthew turned tortured eyes on Shanna, then glanced over at Jacob, who watched with an amused smirk on his face.

  It was Annie who answered. “Jah, the more the merrier. Ain’t so, Shanna?”

  Had she imagined the censure in Annie’s voice? And was there something going on between the still-giggling Ruth and tomato-red Matthew that she was clueless about?

  Chapter 19
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  Matthew had managed to ignore Ruth’s cow eyes and giggles the past several months. Yet, now that she’d chased Shanna away, off into the woods with Annie and Becky, he struggled to forgive her. Thankfully, Jacob’s presence meant that they weren’t totally alone.

  At least Ruth knew how to fish. She used the pole he’d prepared for Shanna and never asked him to show her how to use it, though she still giggled too often. As in, every time she glanced at him, which was every other second.

  Obviously, Ruth had a schoolgirl crush on him. It made him uncomfortable. She couldn’t be more than sixteen. Much too young for him.

  He eyed the strands of strawberry blonde hair that had escaped her kapp, and the small, square glasses that framed her brown eyes. He supposed she might be cute, in a girl-next-door sort of way.

  Yet she was nowhere near as appealing as Shanna.

  Jacob leaned close. “She likes you.”

  As if he didn’t know. Matthew glared at Jacob, who chuckled.

  At least Jacob didn’t start teasing him about it. Or about Shanna. Matthew was pretty sure his affections for her were crystal clear. In fact, he knew they were. Levi and Joseph had realized his interest almost immediately, and Jacob knew him even better than they did.

  Would it be acceptable for him to leave Ruth to her fishing and follow Shanna and the other girls into the woods to look for strawberries? He liked the fruit, and Shanna had said something about making jam if they gathered enough.

  The thought of homemade jam made his mouth water and his stomach rumble again. He set his fishing pole down and headed for the picnic basket.

  Then, he heard footsteps behind him. Ruth. “I’ll be at the singing tomorrow nacht, Matthew.”

  Ignoring her, he knelt down on the blanket and opened the lid of the picnic basket.

  “Will you be there?” She tilted her head and batted her eyelashes.

  He pulled out a couple of Cokes. “Want one?”

  “Jah. Danki.” She took it from him. “Will you be there?” she asked again.

  He reached back inside the basket to find whatever goodies Becky had brought besides the cookies. Individual fried pies. Apple, probably. He held one up to offer it to Ruth, but she smiled and shook her head.

  He shrugged. “I’m not sure yet.”

  He’d asked Shanna to ride home with him if she decided to go. She’d accepted, but that had been before their “breakup.” She’d apologized, though, and the way she’d encouraged him today, welcoming his closeness as he taught her to fish, he was pretty sure that conflict was far behind them. He didn’t want to ask her about it, though, for fear of triggering an adverse reaction.

  He settled down on the blanket and unwrapped the clear plastic wrap from around the pie.

  Ruth sat down next to him and popped open her Coke can. “I’ll be at the singing.”

  As if he hadn’t heard her the first time. “I’m glad. Maybe someone will offer to take you home.” He tried to let her down gently. Could she really be that clueless?

  She giggled.

  His heart sank. She probably hoped he was hinting at himself. But he couldn’t take her home; not when he had his eyes on someone else. He couldn’t tell her who, though. That would be completely unacceptable.

  “Ruth, I—”

  Shanna came out of the woods, followed by Becky and Annie. He was ashamed to realize that he hoped she’d feel a little jealous.

  Forgive me, Lord. Keep my thoughts in line.

  He did want Shanna for his frau, but that would be up to the Lord. As much as he disliked the possibility, God might have someone else in mind for him.

  Ach, Shanna.

  As if she could read his thoughts, she met his gaze and winked. Ever so bold. Beside him, Ruth gasped. She’d noticed it, too. And she would probably report it to her grossdaedi, the bishop. He hated the idea of Shanna getting into even more trouble than she would when word of their not-so-private cuddling while fishing and the absence of her head covering made it back to Levi.

  What would he have to say about it? Shanna was still in her rumschpringe, so the kapp might not even rank as an important topic. But a public display of affection?

  Jah, that would be discussed, with him and Shanna alike.

  Ruth had seen it, too, and yet she persisted in making her interest known to him. Maybe their actions hadn’t been as obviously affectionate as he’d thought. Either that, or Ruth was as dull as a fence post.

  After another moment of deliberation, Matthew caught Shanna’s attention and winked back. There. The damage was done. Anybody who was watching would know that he cared for Shanna Stoltzfus.

  Shanna approached the blanket with a mischievous smile, which faded immediately when a strange musical sound broke the silence. She pulled her cell phone out of her apron pocket. Time seemed to freeze as she glanced at it, then abruptly pivoted and headed in the opposite direction, pressing the phone to her ear.

  Memories of the last time Matthew had seen her answer her cell phone surfaced. Nate.

  Ruth touched his hand ever so lightly, but it was enough to draw his attention away from Shanna. She looked up at him, her eyes wide and filled with expectation. Had she said something while he’d been lost in his thoughts?

  He furrowed his brow. “Uh, jah?”

  He’d meant it as a question. But, judging by the way her plain face brightened, she’d taken it as an answer.

  What had he gotten himself into?

  ***

  Shanna trudged up the hill as she listened to Nate ramble on.

  “I’m so sorry, Shanna. Really. Let me make it up to you. If you’re free tonight, I could take you to dinner and a movie.”

  Translation: Another movie he didn’t want to see by himself was playing. If she agreed to accompany him to a film that would either bore or scare her, she’d be rewarded with dinner, a big bucket of buttery popcorn, and an icy-cold Coke.

  “I’ll even let you pick out the movie.”

  Wow. She hadn’t expected that. “I have no idea what’s playing, Nate, and tomorrow is a church Sunday.”

  He was quiet a moment. “Church Sunday? Well, you can sleep in if you get in too late. Not a big deal, right? You missed church a lot last semester.”

  Shanna winced. He was right. She’d have to do better.

  Nate cleared his throat. “I have some ideas. The downtown theater has a movie playing I want to see, and it’s only there through tonight. Tomorrow, they have something new starting, and….”

  Miss church? While living under her daed’s roof? Ach, he’d have plenty to say about that. And besides, she’d kind of looked forward to walking in with the other maidels and seeing the young men gathered by the doors, watching them.

  Matthew would be among them.

  Would his eyes be on her?

  She shivered with anticipation.

  “Shanna? Are you listening, or what? Will you go out with me?”

  She should say no. A super-firm, I-mean-it “No” that he wouldn’t dare question. Especially after his shenanigans the other night. Had he actually messed with his car on purpose so it would break down, as Daed had so vehemently insisted he had?

  Maybe she shouldn’t take Daed’s word for it. Shouldn’t Nate be allowed to speak for himself? Maybe it had been an accident. Maybe all of it had been. And Matthew had no claim on her. He was free to court whomever he pleased. Even Ruth. She glanced back at them, sitting there on the blanket, talking and looking so cozy. She and Matthew had made no promises to each other.

  “You’re going to marry me.”

  Ach! She had to quit thinking about that. It would drive her insane. Degree or not, she wanted Matthew to whisk her off to the bishop and be published. But that would never happen unless she joined the church.

  And that could never happen if she was away at school.

  “It’s all pride.”

  Daed’s statement from the night of their big argument pricked her memory. Maybe it was pride that had kept her going during
the first semester of nursing school, as she’d striven to prove she had what it took to be accepted into the LPN program. Failing hadn’t been an option. Maybe it was pride that had driven her during eleven months of nonstop classes and then the requisite on-the-job training. Pride that had earned her a spot in RN school. Now she had only a semester to go to earn her RN designation, followed by a semester of clinicals. She couldn’t quit now.