The Amish Buggy Horse BOXED SET Books 1-3 (Amish Romance Book Bundle: Faith, Hope, Charity) (Boxed Set: The Amish Buggy Horse)

by Ruth Hartzler

"Nee," Mrs. Glick said. "Many people do add carrots to Pot Pie, but my grossmammi, and her grossmammi before her, never did. I use their recipe: parsley, celery, ham, chicken and beef, with potatoes and square-cut egg noodles. I'm always making those noodles. Oh, and onion."

  "It reminds me of my childhood," Victor said. He looked so sad, and Melissa's heart went out to him.

  There was another prolonged silence, and Melissa figured it was because her parents did not wish to ask Victor questions, and so that did not leave much room for conversation.

  "Talking of my childhood," Victor said, breaking the silence, "that palomino buggy horse of Melissa's looks exactly like a horse I had when I was a child."

  Mr. Glick stroked his baard. "I doubt it would be the same horse," he said. "Blessing is only about eight years old."

  Victor nodded. "Jah, I know it’s not the same horse; it’s just that the likeness is amazing." Before anyone could speak, he pressed on. "I miss horses. In fact, I miss living on a farm."

  "Do you live in an apartment?" Mr. Glick asked.

  Victor screwed up his face and nodded. "I live in an apartment over my business. It doesn't suit me at all; I'm not a downtown type of person. I'd like to live on a farm again, with horses, and chickens. I also want a dog, but I can’t have a dog while living in an apartment and working long hours."

  When Melissa lay in bed that night, she could scarcely remember details of the dinner, except that Victor was reminiscing about his Amish childhood. Her mudder had not asked any probing questions at all, but Melissa knew that her mudder would get all those details out of Mr. Glick that night. After all, her vadder and Victor had been away outside for a long time, far longer than it would take to unharness Blessing and see to him.

  Melissa let out a long sigh, and then turned over again. Sleep was eluding her.

  Ephesians 1: 17 - 18.

  That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him,

  having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints.

  Chapter 13.

  Melissa adjusted her bonnet and smoothed down her apron, thinking with a smile that any other woman who would be going to dinner with Brian Adams would be putting on make up, an elegant outfit, and no doubt six inch, black stiletto heels. Melissa chuckled to herself at the thought. In contrast, her sturdy, black boots made a heavy, knocking sound as she walked down the steps of her haus. Outside, the cool evening air made wisps of her dark hair escape from her bonnet and flutter in the wind as she waited for the taxi.

  Seated in the taxi, Melissa sent up a silent prayer to Gott to ask Him to help calm her bubbling nerves as she made her way to her destination. It was now four weeks since her boss, Irene Blackwell, had left in a hurry for Barcelona, and she still had not gotten a grip on her new workload.

  Dealing with the agency's most difficult, and, needless to say, most demanding, clients was not something for which Melissa was cut out. It made her appreciate her hard working boss more than ever. Now, as she was driven downtown to meet Brian Adams, one of the agency's most difficult clients, Gott was the only One who could put her mind at ease.

  Melissa knew exactly what she had to do; go in and find out exactly why Brian had not found a single, suitable match after two years as a client with the company. Melissa remembered that Milly had told her that Brian was a typical 'ageist.' Melissa had said, "I know his type to the T. There are a few clients just like him in the company. You know them: the older guy looking for a younger woman to show off as a new trophy to his work buddies."

  Melissa did not, in fact, know them, but one thing she did know, was that she was not impressed by Brian’s type. She knew that she was in for a long night as she turned into the restaurant to meet him.

  Despite her time working and training with Irene, Melissa was far from an expert on match making. Filing? That was another matter. She considered herself competent at that, but as for dealing with people face to face - that was indeed another matter entirely. Irene, on the other hand, always said that she absolutely loved her job and was thrilled when her clients found true love. Irene knew exactly how to figure out what her clients wanted and what to look for in potential matches.

  Irene always said that some clients made it easy: they weren’t too fussy, but simply just wanted to find love, while others wanted an unrealistic combination of a Victoria’s Secret model, Martha Stewart, and a stripper named Honey, all sealed and delivered with a Masters Degree. Those were the clients for whom Irene said that she prayed for at church every Sunday. If only they realized that true love was a Gott-ordained, spiritual connection between two people, and not something that could be manufactured.

  As Melissa made her way toward the entrance of the restaurant, she was crystal clear about her mission, and that was to find out why Brian was stuck with so many unsuccessful matches. She was also there to lay out all his issues on the table. The task itself seemed simple enough, but the latter she found somewhat difficult. While Irene found it easy to be bold, outspoken, and upfront with her most difficult clients, Melissa was somewhat uncomfortable dealing with Englischers, especially ones to whom she should be speaking about issues. Telling Englischer menner that they had issues was a daunting prospect. How could she possibly be brutally honest?

  “Good evening, Miss Glick, table for two tonight?” Melissa was at first taken aback that the restaurant hostess knew her by name. After all, she had only been there once, but it was the same restaurant that the agency had all their business dinners. Irene always took her clients there and now it was the “go to” restaurant for client dining. The staff and chefs knew the Marriage Minded Agency team by name and even had a special Marriage Minded Agency discount for staff when they dined with their clients.

  Despite feeling like a fish out of water in such glamorous surroundings, Melissa had felt comfortable here throughout her dinner with Victor Byler, so hoped the same would be the case that night. The staff had been friendly and the familiar black and red modern décor, the very same colors as the Marriage Minded Agency's offices, helped to put her nervous energy somewhat at ease.

  “Yes, thank you,” Melissa said, as she followed the waitress to her reserved seat in the corner. She fidgeted nervously with her bonnet and adjusted her apron before she sat down to read the menu.

  After a while, she looked at the fancy, gold clock on the wall. Brian was already ten minutes late. No surprise there. Milly had told her that as the Chairman and CEO of a successful electronic company, Brian was used to having people wait on him. From his company staff, housekeepers, and drivers, Brian had been the man in charge ever since he inherited the multi-million dollar company from his father several years earlier. Milly had warned her that Brian Adams rarely apologized for his tardiness, and ran his company like a drill sergeant.

  So far Melissa was highly unimpressed by Brian Adams. Their one meeting had not left her with a gut impression of the mann. The very thought of him made her edgy and uncomfortable. It was the exact opposite of how she had felt at her last business dinner with Victor Byler. It had been two weeks since her meeting with Victor, and she had not been able to get him out of her head. Her time with him was the most relaxed she had ever been with any of her clients, not that she'd had many clients. He was charming, respectable, and had a good sense of humor. Their conversation had been easy and pleasant. If only Victor was Amish, Melissa thought with a sigh. He had all the qualities she looked for in a mann, not to mention his chiseled, boyish good looks, wavy brown hair, golden flecked, hazel eyes, and that dazzling smile. It left a sting in her heart to know that she was there to help him find love with someone else.

  But tonight was not about reminiscing over Victor. Tonight was about Brian Adams, and as he finally made his way toward her, she braced herself.

  Psalms 71: 14 - 15.

  But I will hop
e continually

  and will praise you yet more and more.

  My mouth will tell of your righteous acts,

  of your deeds of salvation all the day,

  for their number is past my knowledge.

  Chapter 14.

  Brian was taller and bigger than she had remembered. His six foot frame towered above the table. His graying hair was neatly slicked back, showcasing his receding hair line. He was decked out in an impeccably pressed black suit and tie, as if he had just arrived from some exquisite function.

  “I’ll have a glass of champagne, please. Cristal, obviously, but any vintage will do - I'm not a snob,” he said with a laugh, before the waitress even had a chance to place his menu on the table. “Are you ready to order?” he asked Melissa with a slight sense of urgency.

  Melissa was irritated by his rudeness; after all, he had not even said Hello. What's more, she had barely had a chance to look over her menu. Thoughts of Victor had occupied her mind right up until Brian arrived.

  Before Melissa was able to make a selection from the menu, Brian jumped in again. “Hey, it's fine; I know the chef. I can have him whip up something." He turned to the waitress. "Sweetheart, tell Paul we would like the steak, medium rare with a side of potatoes. I know it’s not on the menu tonight, but tell him it’s for Brian Adams.”

  Melissa could see that the waitress was taken aback by Brian’s abrasive instructions, and no doubt, by the fact that he was so rude as to address her as "Sweetheart." Melissa found Brian's pompous show of prestige and wealth particularly disturbing. She was not the least bit impressed by his pretentious display, and it left a sour taste in her mouth.

  The waitress collected their menus and raised an eyebrow at Melissa before walking away. Melissa easily interpreted the discreet gesture to mean, Good luck with this one! Melissa exhaled deeply.

  “So, it's Melissa, right?” Brian straightened himself in the chair as the waitress walked away. “Is Irene still in Barcelona?"

  “Well, um, yes," Melissa stammered, suddenly feeling at a loss in dealing with such a high powered individual.

  “I’ll tell you one thing; I could really use a vacation; those low lifes on the job have me working overtime,” he said, cutting Melissa off before she could finish, and letting out a small chuckle to himself. “What are you drinking?” he asked suddenly. "Actually, I thought I needed a glass of champagne to help me relax, but if you're anything like Irene, and about to lecture me, I’ll need something stronger." He waved to the waitress who was just returning. "A martini, please,” he called.

  Brian leaned back in his chair and looked at Melissa. “So Melissa, what are you drinking? Oh, you people don’t drink, do you? Never mind, I’ll order you another glass of water when the waitress comes back around. Now, what new broads do you have in line for me? I must say I haven’t been impressed so far.”

  Melissa almost choked on her water. Did he just refer to our ladies as 'broads'? she asked herself.

  Brian was still talking. “It’s like the ones that Irene picks for me are always missing something. The last girl you set me up with was really hot, just the way I like them. Tall, slim waist, nice butt, and huge, umm, pardon me," he said, and then his face flushed red.

  Melissa shifted uncomfortably in her seat and fought the urge to run out of the restaurant.

  Brian shrugged, and then launched back into talking. "So, in the looks department, she was good, but she wasn’t very smart. When I took her around my work buddies, she could hardly hold a conversation." He leaned back in his chair. "I told her to read up on current affairs so she wouldn’t make me look like an idiot in front of my colleagues, but that only made her offended for some reason. Women!" he said with a shrug.

  Melissa took a long sip of her water and hoped that the food would come soon. She wanted to eat it fast and then leave as soon as possible.

  Brian was on a roll. “The one before that was really cute. She was smart and funny, but wasn’t really good around the house. I mean, on one occasion, I invited her to my penthouse for dinner, and then I got called back to the office for a couple hours. When I got home, she'd already left. She hadn't cleaned up after the dinner or cleaned up around the penthouse; she'd just left, not so much as a note. That's when I realized that I just couldn’t take it anymore. I just had to break things off with that one.” He snorted rudely. "And she had the nerve to say that she'd wanted to break up with me!"

  The waitress arrived with their dinner but Melissa by now had absolutely no appetite. Brian’s egotistical and opinionated remarks were too much to endure. All she wanted to do now was call a taxi, and head home. Nevertheless, she was paid to do a job, and so she had better do it well. It just was not good enough to sit there and feel sorry for herself.

  Melissa took a deep breath and launched straight into it. “Well, that’s precisely why we planned this dinner. We want to try to figure why it hasn’t worked out with any of our arranged matches. All the girls we have selected for you are lovely and intelligent. We have tried quite hard to find suitable matches for you.” It was the first time Melissa had been able to get a word in since the dinner had started. She did not want to offend Brian by telling him that he would never find the right match if he continued to be self-absorbed and arrogant, but she would have to be honest with him to some degree.

  “Well…” Brian paused to cut a slice of his steak. “Maybe you and your team aren’t trying hard enough. Is it really that hard to find a chick who is young, hot, and intelligent and can cook? Come on, Melissa, you guys are the experts here. Look, I’m not getting any younger. I regret not having kids with my ex-wife, so now I'm kind of in a hurry. Just find me the right girl and we will all be happy.”

  Melissa let out another deep sigh. She had hardly touched her food, and Brian was now on his second martini and had consumed one glass of champagne. Brian was overwhelming, to say the least, and she was beginning to think that he wasn’t good enough for any of the girls in the agency. Dinner with him was far worse than she had expected, and the file on him did not do him justice. He was downright arrogant, self centered, and rude. Unfortunately, she could not bear to let the truth about how she really felt escape her lips. It was one thing to be considered forthright amongst her own community, but being forthright with this Englischer was quite another matter. Instead, she took the more polite route.

  “Mr. Adams, I am sorry to hear that the girls in our clientele haven’t met your expectations.” Especially when you rotate them on whim every couple weeks, she added silently to herself. “But I assure you that my team and I will head back to the drawing board to compose a list of new potential matches.”

  Thankfully, Brian seemed assured with Melissa’s response. It wasn’t a guarantee, but it was something. At this point, Melissa considered that it would be even harder to find a match for Brian after getting to know him. Would it be fair to set up a lovely girl with someone like him?

  Still, this was not Melissa's decision. At the end of the day, he was one of the agency’s wealthiest clients, and to lose him because suitable matches turned up futile would be a nightmare; Irene would be livid if she lost him as a client. Melissa had no choice but to attempt to find Brian his perfect Barbie doll - genius - homemaker.

  “Good to hear.” Brian rose from his seat. “I have an early meeting tomorrow, so I must get going. Thanks for the dinner. I'm looking forward to hearing from you."

  Melissa stood and nodded. “Yes, absolutely." She watched Brian exit the restaurant and then sat back down, relieved that she was no longer in his presence.

  Milly had warned her, but she had thought Milly had been exaggerating. Milly had said that Brian Adams was one of the, No girl is good enough for me, types and one of the, I’m too rich for my own good, types.

  That's right, Melissa thought. He is.

  On the drive home, Melissa’s mind wandered to Victor. She wished she had spent the night sitting across from his toned arms and piercing, golden-flecked eyes instead of a ba
lding, egotistical business man sloppily devouring his food in front of her. Her dinner with Brian made her realize that there were very few men like Victor out there. Not only was Victor good looking, but he was respectable; he made her laugh, and she felt at ease with him.

  But how was she going to deal with having feelings for a client? No good would come of it; he was not Amish. She needed a second opinion; she needed advice, and she needed it now. She needed her best friend, Isobel.

  1 John 3: 2 - 3.

  Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.

  And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.

  Chapter 15.

  Melissa's talk with Isobel would have to wait until her lunch break. For now, there was only Milly, and there was no way Melissa would confide her feelings to Milly. They had completely separate world views. That was brought home to Melissa even more so when she entered the office that morning.

  “I met someone,” Milly squealed, unable to contain her excitement. “He's wonderful, successful, smart, and incredibly handsome. I can’t wait for you to meet him!”

  “Wait, what happened to Travis Stringer? I thought you were dating him?” Melissa was confused. She had given up trying to keep up with Milly's boyfriends a long time ago. It seemed that Milly changed boyfriends every two months. As far as Melissa knew, Milly had been dating Travis, a young, budding lawyer from California. Milly had talked about him for hours on end, day in and day out.

  Milly rolled her eyes. “Melissa, keep up! I broke up with him weeks ago. He was getting boring. Besides, he lives in California; we barely saw each other. Irene was right; internet dating just doesn’t work.”

  Melissa was puzzled. “But I thought you loved the fact that he lived in California; you said you had a good time when you went to see him and that you enjoyed the time away.” Melissa knew that Englischers had a different view on dating than did the Amish. The Amish were looking to marry, but the Marriage Minded Agency was also trying to find marriage partners. In that way, the Marriage Minded Agency's view was similar to the Amish view of dating, but Milly, while she worked for the agency, had another view entirely. Why, the very thing Milly claimed to like about Travis was now the very reason that she had broken up with him.