by Kelly Long
“You could have been killed.”
“The Lord moves in mysterious ways,” Kate said.
“I was close enough that the horse didn’t have as much power as he could have.”
“I didn’t know.” His eyes softened. “Of course you’re afraid. It’s a wonder you’re even willing to drive.”
“Ruler can be slow and stubborn under harness, but he’s quite docile when Jonah gets him ready. Daed sold his draft horse to buy him for me when he knew he had cancer.”
Kate sighed loudly and plunked her elbow on the table and propped her head on her hand. She couldn’t have looked more bored.
Lilly swiveled in her seat, turning slightly away from Kate, and fixed her eyes on Jacob.
Jacob set his mug down. “I remember Daed selling your daed that horse. He was one of the most mellow horses we ever had.”
“We got him from you? Why didn’t you say so?”
Jacob shrugged. “I thought you knew.”
“Big deal,” Kate said. “I can’t see why a horse purchase is of such importance. One horse is as good as another—as long as it can pull a buggy.”
Jacob didn’t even look her way, keeping his focus on Lilly. “If you like, I can help you feel more comfortable around horses. Will you let me sometime?” Jacob reached across the table to grip Lilly’s hand.
Her breath caught at his touch and she found herself nodding, lost in the intense pull of his eyes in the lantern light. “I—don’t know if I’d like it, but I’d be willing to try.”
He smiled at her and she returned the look, feeling a flood of friendship wash through her at his words. And friendship was a good thing to have in a marriage . . .
Kate broke the moment, drumming her fingers briefly before she abruptly rose from the table. “Jacob, my mamm will be worried. If you’re not ready to go just yet, I guess I’ll just walk. Thank you for the chocolate, Lilly.”
Somehow, the girl managed to sound vulnerable, even to Lilly’s practical ears, and she withdrew her hand from Jacob’s.
“You’d better go,” she murmured, not meeting his eyes.
She saw them to the door and out onto the porch when Jacob turned back from the top step. He bent close and whispered in her ear. “I’m sorry, teacher. About today.”
She smiled at him. “I’m sorry too.”
He grinned and even the sound of Kate’s tinkling laugh on the cold night air could not diminish the surge in Lilly’s spirits.
CHAPTER 11
W hy the green shirt?” Seth asked as Jacob headed down the hall past their bedrooms.
“It’s Meeting.”
“Jah, but you haven’t worn that shirt since—”
“Since I thought that I could win Sarah?” Jacob laughed over his shoulder as they went down the stairs.
“Did I miss some major lightning bolt in the middle of the night—besides your impending engagement?”
“Nope. Just feel like wearing my best shirt.”
“And so you should,” Mary Wyse interjected from where she stood at the cookstove. “It brings out the color in your eyes.”
“Vanity, Mamm, vanity,” Seth teased, encircling his mother’s waist with a hug.
Jacob bent to kiss his mother, then took a plate to the table. “I suppose mothers are allowed a bit of partiality.”
Samuel Wyse lowered The Budget from in front of his face and eyed Jacob. “Feeling well this morning, son?”
“Right as rain.”
“And how is Miss Lilly?”
“She’s gut, Daed.”
“She’s had a lot to deal with since Doc Lapp passed. I imagine you’ll lift a lot of weight from her shoulders once you marry.”
Jacob nodded. “I’ll try.”
“We’ll miss you here about,” his father said from behind the paper, and his mamm made a soft sound of agreement.
“I’ll be here for work every day and will come anytime you’d like to have us. I want to get Lilly used to the horses.”
“Gut, maybe I’ll teach my beautiful future schweschder-in-law to ride,” Seth announced, sliding up to the table with his plate of bacon and eggs.
Jacob took a sip of coffee. “Too late, little bruder; I’ve already offered.”
“Ach, my loss.”
“I know quite a pretty girl who might be willing to have lessons from you, if you’ve got the time.”
“Who?” Seth sat up straighter, eyes wide with interest.
“Kate Zook.”
Seth sighed. “I find myself too busy for lessons after all.”
“Boys!” Mary Wyse admonished from the stove.
Jacob shot a look at his brother and they smiled together in silence.
Lilly sighed under her breath as her mother continued her tearful explanation as to why she could not attend Meeting—yet again. Sometimes Lilly felt she could withstand her mother’s sharp tongue more than her crying, but in all honesty, all Mamm’s recent behaviors were becoming more difficult. Lilly had been praying lately to respond with more love to her mamm’s needs, and so she tried again.
“Please, Mamm. There’s plenty of time left to get ready. You could wear one of your new blouses. And besides, I miss your company. And, well, today the deacon will officially announce the engagement.”
“Yes, but it’s not your place to be there when it’s announced. Every other girl stays home the day of the announcement.”
“I know, Mamm, but Jacob already spoke of it before everyone. Sei so gut, won’t you consider coming?”
“I don’t feel well, Lilly, yet you’re always trying to pressure me. Sometimes it feels like you don’t really care about me at all.”
Lilly blinked back her own tears at the accusation and sat down on a small chair near the bed. “Mamm, I love you. I always have. I don’t mean to sound as though I don’t care. I can remember when I was a little girl and we made applesauce together, and you’d sing the hymns from Meeting. You taught me so well.”
Her mother sniffed. “I remember those times too, Lilly. You had such beautiful hair . . .” She reached over and touched Lilly’s kapp with gentle fingers. “You still do. I loved to braid it before Meeting.”
Lilly smiled. “And I always wanted to pull away from you and the comb!”
“You did. I’d chase you all over with your hair flying out behind you like a beautiful banner.”
“And you never grew angry, Mamm—no matter how late we were. I loved that moment when you’d catch me up in your arms and laugh.”
Her mother slipped her hand down to cover Lilly’s. “Do you remember Sunday afternoons? We’d go down to the watermelon patch in the summer to play and thump the melons with our fingers, trying to find the ripest one?”
“Ach, jah, Mamm. And then we’d haul the melon back to the house in my little red wheelbarrow and ice it down for supper. There was nothing like that frosty sweet redness!”
“You loved to spit the seeds out—always having distance contests with your father.” Her mother sighed suddenly and slid her hand away. “It seems like, since he died, I just forget things—even the words to our beloved hymns.”
Lilly touched her arm. “Ach, Mamm. Let me help you remember.”
Miriam Lapp shook her head. “I can’t, Lilly. I just can’t. It’s just too hard to face all those people. You go on now. Forget about me.” She turned her face resolutely to the wall.
Lilly rose from the chair, knowing when she’d lost the moment. “I’m sorry, Mamm. I won’t trouble you again to go. I know you don’t feel well.”
She went down the stairs, mentally exhausted, and the day had yet to truly begin. At least, she told herself as she put on her cape, she could gain the comfort of Meeting, and that was something to be grateful about.
Here she comes,” Seth murmured, giving Jacob a poke in his lean ribs.
Jacob sighed as Kate Zook made her purposeful way to where the brothers were standing, waiting for Meeting to assemble.
“She may well be seeking you since
I’m engaged.”
“I don’t think anything’s going to derail that girl’s train.” Seth grinned. “It’s an express headed straight toward you.”
“But why?” Jacob pleaded.
“It’s your shirt.”
“Seth . . . Jacob.” Kate smiled, baiting them with her attractive eyes. “It’s so good to see you . . . again.”
“Kate.” Seth smiled. “Always a pleasure.”
She nodded in an absent fashion but stared at Jacob until he wished he had kept his coat on.
Seth clapped him on the shoulder. “Gotta get to my seat.”
When Jacob would have followed, Seth waved him still. “Nee, stay and visit with Kate a bit. I’ll save you a place. No problem.”
Jacob ground his teeth but smiled down at the coy face of the girl in front of him. “So, how are you feeling after your chill last night?”
“Oh, I’m fine, thanks to you—and Lilly Lapp, of course. And the buggy ride home. It was so warm . . .” She shifted her weight onto her other foot and briefly laid her hand on his arm. “I’ve been thinking, after seeing you and Miss Lapp together that . . . well, maybe this whole engagement thing is just a ruse. Will you tell me the truth?” She swept her lashes downward. “I can keep a secret.”
Jacob controlled the angry words that came to his lips. He told himself that she was young and naive, impetuous, and not unlike how he himself had been at her age.
“No ruse, Miss Zook. Just a marriage, plain and simple. Now, if you’ll excuse me.”
She laughed deliberately, a high-pitched sound that caught the attention of several women nearby. Jacob straightened and frowned.
“Ach, Jacob Wyse, you are as entertaining as can be.”
“Right, danki.”
“I’m not like Lilly.” She lowered her voice to a husky drawl. “I love horses and am not afraid of them at all. And it’s finally perfect weather for a sleigh ride.” She batted thick eyelashes while he plotted ambushing Seth in his sleep for leaving him in this situation. His gaze swept the barn for an excuse, any excuse. When he caught sight of Lilly’s calm profile as she sat on the end of one of the hard Meeting benches next to Alice Plank, he tipped his hat to Kate.
“Miss Zook, a good day. Excuse me, I see Lilly . . .” He crossed over two empty benches with his long legs and escaped to the other side of the barn, leaving Kate’s angry and speculative frown behind.
“Lilly, Alice.” He pulled off his hat. “How are you both today?”
“Very well,” Alice said.
Lilly looked up at him. “I’m fine. How is Kate Zook?”
Alice coughed.
Jacob looked at Lilly cautiously but was pleased to see the calmness in her blue eyes. “A bother to me,” he confided.
Lilly raised an eyebrow, asking a question he couldn’t discern.
“Maybe today’s official announcement will scare her off,” Alice offered.
“If it doesn’t, maybe I’ll tell her Seth likes her.”
Lilly’s unasked question changed to a smile, while Alice covered her mouth to hide hers.
Meeting was about to begin so he backed away, when Lilly handed him a green envelope. “I know it’s not usually customary, but I just thought—well, read it and please let me know.”
He took the note and nodded. “Surely.”
He made his way to where Seth sat, taking his time to sit down, making sure to elbow his brother twice as he got situated.
“Ow,” Seth hissed, rubbing his side. “All right. I’m sorry about Kate.”
“No you’re not.”
“You’re right. I’m not,” Seth said, adding his mischievous grin.
Jacob shook his head and slid him the envelope under the cover of his coat.
“Now what did you do?”
Jacob shrugged. “Maybe nothing.”
“Sure . . .”
“Just read it. I have to let Lilly know something.”
The first hymn began and a sharp blast of wind whistled through the Stolises’ barn. The green envelope danced from Seth’s hold to twirl in the air and then land. Seth rose to make a grab for the paper, then stumbled backward onto the bench, but not before he’d caught the disapproving eye of many in the community.
“What are you doing?” Jacob growled, under the cover of singing.
“Don’t worry. I’m sure she never even noticed.”
Lilly saw her green envelope blown from Seth’s hand and wanted to cover her face with her cape in embarrassment. How could he? How could Jacob show his brother the invitation? It was meant to be something private. It wasn’t really personal, but private nonetheless. It seemed the two were having a joke at her expense. She tried to brush aside the thought that Jacob may even have told Seth the details of their engagement and the truth behind it. She told herself it didn’t matter. But embarrassment soon gave way to simmering anger as the Meeting continued.
She would not speak to him—that was it—engagement or no engagement. To think that she’d begun to trust him. He apparently thought nothing of the feelings of friendship and camaraderie he’d created in her with his kind words of interest about her insecurity around horses. Perhaps he had learned to be kind and polite around other girls as a matter of necessity while he’d been waiting for Sarah. She put aside the internal voice that suggested Sarah was no longer someone he could wait for, urging her to see what truly happened, to give him a chance to explain.
She nearly jumped when Alice reached over and squeezed her hand. Lilly looked at her friend, who leaned close.
“Are you all right?”
Lilly nodded, managing a weak smile. She turned her face to the front. But her attention was still highly focused on Jacob’s insensitivity.
When Meeting ended hours later, she wanted to bolt from the bench like a pig out of the chute, but one of the deacons stood up with a piece of paper in his hand and a smile on his face. She’d nearly forgotten the engagement announcement, and now she’d have to endure pleasantries while she fumed inside. She should have listened to her mamm and stayed home.
The deacon always enjoyed his role and smiled and teased the crowd a bit before he would read the names of the couples to be married within the next month. Finally, he cleared his throat, and the crowd rustled expectantly. This time was usually a surprise for all but the couples and their immediate families.
“Mary Stolfus and Christian Esh, Naomi Glick and Benjamin Lantz all wish to announce their intention to—ah, just a moment, I seem to have forgotten one couple. So sorry.”
Lilly wanted to crawl under the bench at the joke as Alice squeezed her arm.
“Lilly Lapp and Jacob Wyse also wish to announce their intent to be joined as man and wife before this community.”
Everyone laughed and Lilly avoided looking in Jacob’s direction. As people rose and turned to speak to her, she murmured politely. She excused herself from Alice with a promise to see her later in the week, then worked her way toward the barn doors. When she was finally free, she hurried up the lane to where the buggies stood in a line. she’d untied Ruler, climbed onto the buggy, and grasped the reins, when a large hand closed over her gloved fingers.
CHAPTER 12
Move over. I’m driving you home.”
She stared as Jacob jumped in beside her, and she opened her mouth to protest.
“Not one word until we’re clear of here, then you can let go all you need. You don’t want to make a scene.”
She swallowed hard, realizing he was right.
People turned to stare with interest at the engaged couple who drove away without even bothering to stop for lunch in the main house.
She sniffed and tried to ignore the clean male scent of him that drifted to her as he turned the buggy onto the highway.
“All right. Go ahead,” he said when they’d driven a short distance.
She held her tongue with perverse reason, not wanting to give him the satisfaction now of even so much as a word.
Out of the corner of
her eye, she saw him shake his head.
“Women!”
“That’s it, Jacob Wyse. You just—you just jump out right now and let me alone. Why I ever thought to give you that invitation is beyond me, but I was wrong. Absolutely wrong!”
He eased his hat back, exposing his dark hair, and exhaled. “It was—an invitation?”
“Of course it was an invitation! Didn’t you have the decency to read it before passing it along to joke about with your brother?” She felt her eyes well with tears and clutched her hands together in her lap.
“I wasn’t joking with Seth.”
“Then what were you doing?”
She looked at him and noted the strange expression on his face, the sudden flush on his sculpted cheeks.
He paused a long time, his jaw working as though he was deciding what to say and how to say it. He finally took a deep breath and spoke. “I gave it to Seth to read for me.”
“You what?”
He glanced at her, his eyes dark with a pain she couldn’t understand.
“I can’t read very well.” He drew another deep breath and turned to face forward, his stony expression silencing her.
“I’ve never told anyone but my brother.”
She struggled to find her voice as his admission washed over her. She knew by instinct that if she reacted with pity or concern he’d pull away, and she realized with sudden clarity that she didn’t want that, not one bit.
“Well, then it seems we both have something we can teach each other in this relationship.” Her tone was level, practical. “I let you teach me to ride, and you let me teach you to read.”
He shook his head. “Riding’s easy, but there’s something in me with the reading. I can’t do it.”
“You can try.”
“Do you think I haven’t?” he spat out.
“I’m sure you have, but . . .” Feminine instinct came to her in a tingling rush of inspiration and she lowered her voice. “Maybe you’ve never had the right—tutor.”
He responded to her soft suggestion; she knew it by the way his throat worked and how he glanced at her with a flash of speculative interest.
“Tutor?”
“Mmm-hmm. We can do it in complete privacy, after school, for a little while. Then maybe—in the evenings when we’re married. And no elementary primers for you. I’ll make up lessons that will hold your attention.”
