“It’ll take more than me to get Elsie back.” Sam frowned. He’d already done so much damage already. “Are you willing to help?”
“What do you want me to do?”
“Go back in there and tell everyone that I’m calling a meeting with the school board at the school tonight at six o’clock. Then you and Reuben go to all the families who aren’t here and tell them what’s happened and invite them to the meeting.”
Wally shook his head. “You can’t call a meeting. You’re too young. They don’t respect you.” Sometimes, Wally was smarter than Sam.
“Then ask Simon Mischler to call a meeting. You saved his daughter’s life.”
“Gute idea,” Wally said. “What are you going to do?”
“I’m going to find Elsie.”
A grin formed on Wally’s lips. “Do you love her?”
Sam grabbed a handful of Wally’s collar and pulled him close. “Even more than I love you, and I do love you, with all my heart.”
Tears pooled in Wally’s eyes, but he quickly sniffed them away. “ Vell, gute. She deserves it.” Wally stuffed his hands into his pockets and turned to go back into the school. “Sam and Elsie sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G,” he recited in a high-pitched voice.
Elsie deserved every gute thing. Sam, on the other hand, didn’t even deserve Elsie, but Lord willing, she’d take him anyway.
And maybe she’d agree to do some K-I-S-S-I-N-G.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Elsie sat in the haymow, playing with the puppies and feeling sorry for herself. In a single day she’d lost her composure, her job, and Sam Sensenig. Her heart had broken into so many pieces, she didn’t think she’d ever be able to put it back together again.
A tear rolled down her cheek and plopped onto one of the wood slats. She swiped at the moisture on her face. She wasn’t going to wallow in self-pity any longer. She couldn’t abide wallowing. Of course, such a resolution was easier made than done, especially since Sam Sensenig was too wunderbarr for words, and she had lost him because she hadn’t known what tornado weather looked like.
On Saturday morning, before the rooster was even awake, a driver had picked up Elsie and taken her to Greenwood. Mammi was beside herself because Elsie wouldn’t stay long enough to meet the nice young man who was her perfect match, but Elsie couldn’t stand to be in Bonduel one more minute. They had chosen Rose Mast over Elsie Stutzman, and the humiliation stung like a wasp.
Elsie had considered going back to Charm, but there was nothing for her there but Wyman Wagler and Onkel Peter’s spare bedroom. She couldn’t impose on her relatives that way, especially when she didn’t even have a job. Besides, Greenwood was only a two-hour drive from Huckleberry Hill. She had arrived before breakfast.
After the dust had settled and she had told her family the whole pitiful story, her bruder Aaron had agreed to let her stay at his house. Aaron was a twenty-nine-year-old bachelor who grew soybeans and feed corn on a hundred acres. Aaron didn’t put up with nonsense from anyone, and he wasn’t inclined to get sentimental about anything, not even newborn buplies or weddings. That was why Elsie had chosen to stay with him instead of her parents. Mamm had clucked and fussed over Elsie something wonderful, and Elsie couldn’t stand the fussing. To Aaron, a broken heart was like a blister—just stab a needle in it, drain the pus, and get on with your life. Aaron didn’t care that she had a broken heart and didn’t treat her like an invalid because of it. She wouldn’t be allowed to wallow at Aaron’s house. His was just the unsympathetic shoulder she needed.
Elsie picked up a fuzzy black puppy and snuggled it against her cheek. How could anything be so soft? It wriggled and whined in her hands until she set it down into the safety of its mother’s warmth.
“How many puppies?” Aaron asked from the floor below. She couldn’t see him from where she sat, but she could hear him putting down fresh straw in the stalls.
“Cum and see.”
“Not interested. How many?”
Elsie smiled to herself. Aaron did not have a tender bone in his whole body. “Four. All black as coal.”
“Gute. Eight puppies are hard to give away. Four won’t take but an hour.”
“Don’t you want to keep one for yourself, Aaron? They are the most adorable things you have ever seen.”
“Nah. Puppies grow up to be dogs, and I already have two fine dogs.”
Elsie couldn’t resist teasing him. “Three dogs is that much more love to spread around.”
“Why would I want that?”
She giggled and ran her fingers down one of the puppies’ silky backs. Maybe she’d keep one of Aaron’s puppies. She needed all the love she could get.
Someone clomped loudly into the barn. Elsie couldn’t see him, but she could tell he wore a sturdy pair of boots. “Are you Aaron Stutzman?”
Elsie caught her breath, wrapped her arms around her knees, and tried to make herself smaller. She’d know that petulant, I’m-so-mad-I-could-spit tone anywhere. What was Sam doing here, and why did she care so much? Her heart was likely to bounce out of her chest, it was beating so hard.
She clamped her eyes shut. It didn’t matter how mad he was or what he wanted to lecture her about. She would not let Sam intimidate her.
“Jah. I’m Aaron.”
“I’m looking for your sister Elsie.”
“Why?” Aaron said, sounding more than a little suspicious. Gute. He was right to be wary of Sam Sensenig. Sam wasn’t one to keep his temper.
“Because I need to talk to her.”
“Who are you?”
“My name is Sam Sensenig. I need to talk to your sister immediately.”
Elsie heard Aaron stab his pitchfork into a bale of hay. “Maybe she doesn’t want to talk to you.”
Denki, Aaron! What a gute bruder he was, keeping pests and ornery boys away from his baby sister.
She heard a shuffling of feet. “Just tell me where she is, and I’ll leave you to your chores. I need to see her.”
“Elsie says you yelled at her.”
Jah, he had, and she wouldn’t be yelled at again. She wasn’t the teacher anymore. He had no power over her. Her throat got tight. Ach. He had too much power over her. She would love him and no one else until the day she died.
“Look, Aaron, I’ve been through the wringer these past three days. I stormed up Huckleberry Hill only to find out Elsie had left town, but I couldn’t follow her because I had to go to the school board meeting on Saturday night. All I could do on the Sabbath was worry about her. I didn’t sleep but three hours last night. And then the minute I could manage it, I found a driver to bring me here this morning. Do you know how hard it is to find a driver on Monday morning?”
“I really don’t care.” Elsie smiled smugly to herself. Sam deserved every bit of frustration he got.
“We drove around for an hour trying to find your house because all the direction your mamm could give was that you live in a white house three miles south. Do you think I’m in any kind of mood to be lectured by you?”
“I don’t care what kind of mood you’re in,” Aaron said. “You made my sister cry, and if you think I’m going to let you get within a mile of her, you’re wrong.”
Elsie’s heart swelled. Aaron cared more than he let on. Oh, how she loved her bruder.
Sam’s voice dropped to almost a whisper. “I made her cry?”
“You kissed her and then told the school board. No boy should treat a girl that way.”
“Angry Sam” was back. “She told you that?”
“She told me everything. How you blamed her for the storm. How you yelled at her when she was only trying to help your bruder.”
Sam was breathing heavily. For sure and certain he’d start throwing hay bales any minute now. “I was angry, deerich and angry. She was so brave during the tornado. She saved those children. I didn’t mean what I said about the storm.”
“Then why did you say it?”
“Because I was frightened out of my min
d,” Sam yelled. “Haven’t you ever said something you didn’t mean?”
“Nae. I always say exactly what I mean.”
“Well, I did. I was mean and doppick, and that’s why I need to talk to her. I have to tell her I’m sorry.” Sam never had learned that lesson about catching more flies with honey than vinegar. He shouldn’t yell at Aaron if he actually wanted to win her brother’s cooperation. “Let me talk to her.”
Aaron, on the other hand, remained so calm, he could have tied up a hammock and taken a nap. “She didn’t deserve to be fired. Elsie is the best teacher those children will ever have.”
“I know it. Don’t you think I know it?” She could hear more movement from Sam. Maybe he was running his fingers through that beautiful curly hair of his, or putting her bruder in a choke hold.
“If you feel so bad, why did you tell the school board to fire her?”
“I didn’t,” Sam shouted, proving that he truly was fearless, to dare provoke a protective brother with a handy pitchfork. “Rose saw me kiss Elsie. Rose told her dat. It wasn’t me.”
Elsie swallowed the sob that nearly escaped her throat. Sam hadn’t told? Sam hadn’t told! Of course he hadn’t. She knew him better than that. She should have had more faith in him.
“I don’t approve of you kissing my sister.”
“I don’t care if you approve or not.”
“She still lost her job over it,” Aaron said.
“That’s why I’ve got to talk to her. The parents called a meeting. The school was packed clear down the stairs. Even some fraas spoke up, though Andy Mast didn’t like it. He said women had to keep silent, and Simon stood right up and said that rule was only for church. There was a big argument, and they threatened to vote out the whole school board unless they brought Elsie back. That’s what I have to tell her. We want her back. Die kinner need her. Wally will never talk to me again if I don’t come home with her. I don’t even care if she thinks she’s in love with Wyman Wagler and Wagman Wyler or whatever his name is. I need her.” His voice faltered. “I’m nothing without her.”
How could she possibly hold this much happiness in? The dam broke, and tears flowed down Elsie’s face. They wanted her back. More importantly, Sam wanted her back. It was almost too good to be true.
“You love my sister?”
“Of course I love her,” Sam snapped. “More than anything, and if you don’t let me talk to her, I’ll camp out on your front lawn until your grass dies.”
The straw rustled as Aaron picked up his pitchfork. “Have you heard enough, Elsie?” he called.
“I suppose I have.” Elsie stood up so she could see Aaron and Sam down below.
Sam’s mouth fell open—so wide she could have driven a buggy down his throat. His surprise turned into a smile, a bright, fresh-as-springtime, I-love-Elsie smile. Not wasting another minute, he climbed the steep steps to the haymow in his clunky boots, took Elsie in his arms, and kissed her like a starving man.
Trembling with happiness, Elsie slid her arms around his neck and kissed him back. “I love you, Sam.”
“I love you right back,” he said between kisses.
“Sam Sensenig,” Aaron called. “I don’t approve of you kissing my schwester. Stop it this minute.”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Elsie made her bed, giving her sheets hospital corners like her mater had taught her. Elsie loved Saturdays. She didn’t have to rush around to get ready for school, and she had a chance to help Mammi around the house. Elsie mopped the floor on Saturdays, and cleaned the bathrooms. A woman Mammi’s age shouldn’t be mopping.
Elsie ran the dust rag over the top of her dresser and the windowsills. It was making down hard out there. If the rain let up, she’d wash the windows this afternoon.
She’d been back in Bonduel for two weeks, and spring had finally made an entrance. The forsythia bushes seemed afire, with their magnificent yellow blooms, and the red tulips that lined Mammi’s flower beds were just beginning to open their heads.
The children had missed only one day of school while Elsie had been away, but they welcomed her back that next Tuesday as if she’d been gone for a whole year. Wally had brought a basket of apples on her first day back, and Maizy Mischler had given Elsie a picture she’d painted with watercolors. It was a picture of Maizy, Elsie, and Wally holding hands and smiling. It didn’t take an artist to see that the three of them were very happy.
The weather had warmed up enough for them to play softball every day, except when it rained. Wally hit a home run almost every time. She was going to have to start really pitching to him.
Even though Rose had never tried to be her friend, Elsie felt awful sorry for her. Rose had been completely humiliated by what had happened with the school board. Prissy had told Danny that Rose had stayed in her room for a whole week and had only come out for her birthday party, to which Elsie and Sam had not been invited.
The gute news was that Freeman Kiem, Menno’s son, had taken an interest in Rose very soon after all the embarrassment, and Rose was attending gatherings and singeons again, telling anyone who would listen how badly she’d been used by Elsie and Sam. Elsie didn’t mind if Rose spread gossip. The people who knew Elsie and Sam never thought much of it.
Elsie had started tutoring Wally again, which meant she got to see Sam at least three days a week. She would eat dinner with the family and then play games or visit with Sam for hours before going home. She found herself wishing she could tutor Wally every day just for the thrill of being with his handsome bruder.
There was no getting around it. She loved Sam Sensenig to the moon and back. She wasn’t a scientist, but she knew it was a really long way.
Mammi opened Elsie’s door and stuck her head into the room. Her eyes sparkled like a thousand stars on a clear night. She was up to something, no doubt about it. “Elsie, dear. The day has finally come. The boy I want to match you with has agreed to meet you. He seems very excited about it.”
Elsie gave Mammi a half-hearted smile. She should have told her about Sam weeks ago. “Mammi, I appreciate it very much, but there’s something I need to tell you.”
“Can it wait, dear? It’s taken me so long to get you two together that I’m afraid we’ll lose him if we make him wait.”
Elsie swallowed hard. “Make him wait?”
“Jah. He’s at the front door, very eager to meet you. He wants to take you for a buggy ride. Doesn’t that sound fun, in the rain?”
Oh, sis yuscht! The day she’d been dreading had finally arrived. Elsie considered closing the door on her mammi and climbing out the window, but it would only hurt Mammi’s feelings and make everything worse in the end. All she could do was go on that buggy ride and tell Mammi’s boy that she wasn’t interested. It would be the shortest buggy ride ever. She hated to hurt anyone’s feelings, but it had to be done. Mammi had backed her into a corner, and she was stuck.
Mammi misunderstood her hesitation. “Now, Elsie, don’t worry about the dress. You look beautiful.”
Elsie looked down at what she was wearing—a gray smock that had seen many laundry days. It was her ugliest dress, the one she did chores in. Perfect. If this boy didn’t like the dress, maybe he wouldn’t like her. Being plain had its advantages.
She smoothed her hand down the dress. “Okay, Mammi. If you say so.” She feigned a little disappointment, as if she was sorry she wasn’t wearing a better dress. Mammi had to believe that she was at least trying.
“Cum, dear,” Mammi said. “He’s waiting.”
Mustn’t keep him waiting. Elsie slipped into her shoes and trudged into the great room as if she had a meeting with the school board. Dawdi sat in his recliner reading the paper. A tall figure filled the doorway. Elsie gasped as her heart flipped over itself.
Sam Sensenig stood on the porch holding a fistful of wildflowers and smiling with his whole face. How long had he known, and why hadn’t he told her? He had no business grinning like that. To think of the months and the grief she’
d spent avoiding him!
Mammi clasped her hands together in front of her, probably saying a silent prayer that Elsie wouldn’t back out at the last minute. “Elsie, this is Sam Sensenig. The school board sent Sam up here to our house to find you the day after the tornado.”
“That’s nice,” Elsie said.
“Sam, this is my granddaughter Elsie.”
“Hallo, Elsie,” Sam said, a private joke tugging at his lips. “I’m glad you agreed to meet me, even though you didn’t want to.”
Mammi laughed nervously. “Now what makes you think that Elsie didn’t want to meet you? She’s thrilled. Aren’t you, Elsie?”
Elsie stepped in front of Mammi and gave Sam the stinkiest of stink eyes that had ever been. He lowered his gaze, but she could still hear the soft chuckle coming from his throat. She had half a mind to stick her nose in the air and tell Sam he was too homely to date, but she was going to burst into laughter herself at any moment, so she kept her mouth shut, took his flowers, and gave his arm a pinch. She would have pinched his ear, but Mammi would have noticed.
“Ouch,” he said, rubbing his arm and taking a few steps away from her.
A giggle tripped from her lips. She loved him too much to be mad.
Mammi was not just a gute matchmaker. She was the master. Elsie shouldn’t have questioned her judgment. As soon as she got home, she was going to apologize for doubting.
Elsie handed Mammi the flowers. “Would you mind putting these in some water?”
It was plain that Mammi would have done anything to help Elsie get in that buggy sooner. “Of course not, dear. You go enjoy yourself.”
Sam cleared his throat—probably to keep from laughing out loud. “Before we go on our exciting buggy ride, I have something to say.” He reached out and took Elsie’s hand, then slowly got down on one knee.
Mammi gasped.
Elsie couldn’t catch her breath. She thought she might possibly, probably faint.
Sam flashed that beautiful, irritating, irresistible smile she loved so much. “I don’t have a lot to offer you, Elsie, but I’m a hard worker, and there’s no one who will ever love you more than I do. I know we just met, but will you marry me?”
A Courtship on Huckleberry Hill Page 32
