“The boppli just eats and sleeps.”
“That’s because he is very tiny. His tummy can’t hold all the cookies yours can.” Becky reached out to tickle first Mary and then Eliza. “He needs to eat often. Your mamm has to get up a lot to feed him, so she’s tired. How about if we go outside? We can only stay a few minutes, because it’s very cold. When we kumm back inside, we’ll heat up supper.”
Becky smiled at the girls as they nodded enthusiastically at her idea. They’d been inside all day. A brisk outdoor playtime would do them gut—provided she could stand the cold herself. Supper would be easy to prepare. So many women had brought casseroles, soups, and pies that she simply needed to pick something and add some vegetables or bread to round out the meal.
She bundled the girls into their coats, scarves, and bonnets and made sure their little hands were tucked inside warm mittens. She dressed the same way herself, took a last breath of warm air, and pulled open the door. “Ready?”
The little girls shrieked as they ran around the yard. The brisk wind whipped their cheeks and stained them red. Becky laughed watching their antics and was glad the windows were tightly closed so Lena would not be awakened by the noise. To keep from freezing, she ran around the yard with them. They held hands to play Ring Around the Rosie. Little Eliza couldn’t quite get the hang of the game and dropped to the ground at odd times, which sent Mary into fits of giggles. This was what they needed. A little outside time to run off pent-up energy and have fun did them a world of gut.
Becky was so distracted she didn’t hear or see the approaching buggy until it was halfway up the driveway. She thought she recognized the horse and buggy but couldn’t clearly see the occupant. Maybe Saloma had decided to check on Lena, but she should be preparing supper for her own hungry crew about now. Maybe she had sent Malinda over.
A push against her leg snapped her attention back to the girls. Mary’s cry of “You’re it!” sent her scurrying after them. She pretended she couldn’t catch them as they ran in two different directions, squealing in delight. Becky ran after Eliza before she got too far away.
“I got you!” a male voice that made Becky’s heart flip-flop called out.
She snatched up Eliza and turned around to see Mary squirming and giggling in Atlee’s arms.
“What are you doing out on such a cold day?” He had to raise his voice to be heard over Mary’s laughter.
“The girls have been cooped up inside all day. They needed to run off some energy so they can sleep tonight.”
“My mamm used to send us outside to do that until I got big enough to be outside doing chores.”
“We’re a little late getting outside. We should have kumm out when the sun was bright. Now that it’s setting, it must be ten degrees colder than it was earlier.”
“A little playtime is better than nothing. That’s what I always thought anyway.” Atlee released Mary to run around again.
“Swing?” Mary sidled up to Becky and gave her a hopeful look.
“Okay, for a few minutes. I don’t want you two to turn into icicles.” Becky carried Eliza to the swing fastened by sturdy ropes to a limb of the big oak tree. The wooden seat was long enough and wide enough for both little girls to sit side by side. Becky plunked Eliza down and had her scoot over to leave room for Mary. “Hold on!” she instructed when Mary got situated.
“I’ll push them. You rest.” Atlee gently pried Becky’s gloved hands off the ropes. “Stand back, Becky. These girls are going to fly high.” Atlee made a big show of flexing his arms like he was winding up to pitch a baseball.
“Not too high,” Becky mouthed.
Atlee nodded. He took a loud, exaggerated breath, pulled the swing back toward him with a deep groan, and gently let it go. “Look at them, Becky. They’re going to touch the sky.” He didn’t actually swing them very high, but the girls squealed as if they were flying.
A lump swelled in Becky’s throat, nearly blocking her breath. Her eyes watered. Atlee would make a great daed. He should have a houseful of kinner. She wished her little one could have a daed who worked hard to provide for him or her but would be fun-loving and willing to play. She wished her little one could have a daed just like . . . Nee. She hoped Atlee could find the right girl to give him the love he deserved. Grace must not have been the one. She’d have to think of someone else. A single tear escaped from the pool in her eyes and trickled down her cheek. Quickly she raised a gloved hand to brush it away, but she hadn’t been quite quick enough.
“Are you okay, Becky?”
“Jah. I guess something got in my eye.” She continued to rub her eye. She was telling the truth. Something had gotten in her eye. Tears.
“Let me take a look. Be right back, girls.” Atlee left the girls gently rocking on the swing and hurried over to Becky. He yanked off his gloves and grasped her chin to tilt her face upward. With his other hand, he carefully pulled down the lower lid of her eye.
Becky’s heart thundered so hard she knew Atlee must hear it or feel its vibration. It seemed to her the whole earth shook. She wouldn’t be surprised if the ground cracked open and swallowed them. Atlee’s breath was warm on her face and smelled of peppermint. He must have eaten a mint before he arrived. His touch was ever so soft but ever so powerful. Her skin tingled all the way down to her toes. She wished he would pull her into his big, strong arms and tell her everything would be all right.
Ach! What was wrong with her? Being in the family way must make her have crazy thoughts. She had never paid much attention to the older, married women before, but she thought she remembered hearing some say they were more emotional when they were expecting.
“I don’t see anything, Becky. The wind might have blown a speck of dirt in your eye.”
“Probably.” She only managed to croak the single word. Did Atlee’s hand linger on her cheek, or was it her imagination? You need to stop this right now! She tried to be stern with herself. She forced her eyes to leave Atlee’s and to look toward the girls. Though they didn’t want to budge, she moved her feet back a step. “Danki for checking, Atlee. I’d better get these girls inside before they freeze.”
Atlee dropped his hands to his sides. “Your cheeks are cold, but they’re rosy like they’re sunburned.”
“From the wind, I guess.” That and Atlee’s nearness. “Did you kumm to see Lena?” Becky couldn’t imagine that. Menfolk didn’t usually visit new mamms.
“I actually stopped by to see if you, uh, if everything is okay. Do you need anything? Do you need wood brought inside?”
“Nee. You made us a nice stack near the house, and I already brought enough inside.”
“I hope the pieces of wood weren’t too big or too heavy. You should, uh, take care of yourself, too.”
Becky thought it was sweet of Atlee to care. The bright flush in his cheeks made him all the more endearing. “I’m fine. And the wood wasn’t too heavy.”
“Gut.” Atlee looked at the frozen ground for a moment as if searching for the right words among the clumps of brown grass. “Uh, will you be staying on at Lena’s for a while longer?”
“A while, I guess. It’s a lot of work taking care of three little ones and the place all alone. I know everyone does as much as possible to help her out, but Lena has a lot of responsibilities.”
“I wonder if she’s thought of remarrying.”
“I don’t think she’s had much time to ponder that, but maybe she will now that the boppli is finally here.” Too bad Lena was older or Becky might try to play matchmaker between her and Atlee. Becky sighed. Lena would probably want someone older and more settled and ready to take on three young ones.
“What was the sigh for?”
“Nothing. I’m just a little tired. Even though they would never admit it, the girls are probably ready to get inside and get warm.” Becky turned to look at the swing, which barely swayed, all momentum gone. “You girls are going to be frozen stiff. How will your mamm like it if you had to walk around stiff as boards?” She exaggerated
a straight-legged walk over to the swing. The girls howled with laughter.
“One more swing?” Mary’s eyes pleaded, but her teeth chattered.
“Tomorrow we’ll try to get outside earlier when it’s a little warmer. Now we need to check on your mamm and bruder and fix supper. Are you hungry?”
“Jah!” two tiny voices shouted in unison.
Becky grabbed the swing as Mary jumped off. Then she lifted Eliza to the ground. “You’re wilkom to join us, Atlee. So many women brought food we’ll never be able to eat it all.”
“I’d like to, but . . .”
“Please, Atlee!” Mary tugged on his jacket.
Atlee stooped down to Mary’s level. “I have to do my chores at home, Mary, but maybe I can kumm another day if that’s all right with you, your mamm, and Becky.”
“Okay. Mamm won’t mind. You don’t mind, either, do you, Becky?”
“Of course not. Tomorrow or whenever you like will be just fine.” Now why did she say that and encourage him? Here she’d been trying to match him up with someone else and now her tongue had jumped ahead of her brain and invited him over. She had to start thinking with her brain and not her heart.
“We’ll count on tomorrow night, then, jah?”
Mary jumped up and down. Eliza joined her, even though she didn’t comprehend the reason for Mary’s excitement.
Becky almost felt like joining Mary’s celebration, too, but maintained her composure, if not her distance. “Tomorrow will be fine. Let’s get inside and get warm, girls.” Becky took a little hand in each of hers to lead the girls to the house.
“You’re doing a great job with them, Becky. They’re even lots quieter in church now.”
Becky’s heart warmed at the compliment. She couldn’t stop the smile that tugged at her lips. “Danki for stopping by tonight.”
“See you tomorrow.”
Despite her intention to distance herself from Atlee, her smile broadened at his merry whistling as he strode toward his buggy. Her heart did a little dance and her feet wanted to follow along at the mere thought of seeing him again tomorrow.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Becky took the girls out to play earlier the next day, while the sun still peeked through the clouds. She let them run and play until they began to droop. The poor little things could barely hold their eyes open to eat the noon meal, so as soon as they finished eating, Becky tucked them in for a well-deserved nap. She should have plenty of time to think of a supper menu.
“Don’t we still have tons of food left?” Lena shuffled into the kitchen after laying Matthew in a cradle in the living room.
Becky stood in front of the pantry surveying its contents. “Jah, we still have some things, but I wanted to make something fresh. The only thing is I’m not a very experienced cook.”
“Ah! We need to impress the beau, I see.”
Becky turned to face Lena, her fists on her hips. “Atlee Stauffer is not my beau. I am not in the market for one of those. I happen to think when someone has a guest for a meal, it’s proper to cook something fresh. I just don’t know what to cook that won’t turn out a disaster.”
“I see.” Lena smirked, and her eyes crinkled. “Well, you’ve certainly cooked for all of us before the boppli arrived and we were bombarded with casseroles. None of us died or got sick.”
“That’s reassuring.”
“You’re a fine cook, Becky. Honest.”
“I don’t have a very extensive repertoire, as the Englisch say.”
“Most of us make things up as we go.”
“What should I prepare?”
“Your beef stew is yummy, and we should have plenty of vegetables. Your meatloaf was tasty, too. I’m not sure what you added to give it a different flavor, but it was far better than mine.”
“Maybe I’ll do the stew since I can always keep it warm on the back burner. We have cornmeal, so I can bake corn bread.”
“That would be nice. Beef stew is a hot, stick-to-your-ribs food and would be perfect for this cold day.” Lena shivered and briskly rubbed her thin arms.
Becky glanced at the clock centered on an otherwise bare wall. “I should have time to make a batch of fudge brownies, ain’t so?”
“Sure. I’ll entertain the girls when they wake up. It’s time for me to resume my responsibilities so you can get on with your life.”
“Ach, there’s no rush.” Becky reached out to squeeze Lena’s hand. “I truly have enjoyed staying here and helping you and the girls and Matthew. I’d be at loose ends if I weren’t here.”
“You could always take Laurie up on her offer. You’d make a wunderbaar birthing assistant.”
“I don’t know. Maybe. But I’ve got my own childbirth experience to get through first.”
“You’ve got at least four or five months yet.”
“True.” Becky absentmindedly tapped one black-shod foot on the linoleum floor. “You know, maybe I should think about Laurie’s offer—and stop thinking about Atlee Stauffer.” The last part she declared practically under her breath, but Lena heard her anyway.
“Atlee’s a nice fellow. He’d probably make a gut daed, too.”
“To his own kinner.”
“Hmmm. He may surprise you. It’s not hard to love a boppli, especially if you love his or her mamm.”
“Ach, Lena!” Becky clapped her hands to her overheated cheeks. “Don’t talk of love!”
For all her protesting that this supper was nothing special, nothing more than a way to return kindness, Becky’s fingers fumbled often, and a whole flock of butterflies took up residence in her stomach. She barely rescued the brownies from the oven before the edges burned, and she almost forgot to put salt in her beef stew. How bland would that have been?
To top things off, when she cracked an egg to stir into the cornmeal, pieces of shell fell into the cup while the egg slid onto the counter in a gooey mess.
“Are you okay?” Lena entered the kitchen from which she’d been banished in time to hear Becky muttering as she wiped up the egg mess. Lena cradled Matthew in her arms.
“Jah.” Becky blew out an exasperated sigh. “I just seem to be all thumbs today.”
“Do you need some help?”
“Nee. If I can get this corn bread mixed up and into the pan without glopping it everywhere, I should be okay.”
“It sure smells gut in here. My stomach has been rumbling.” Lena patted her already flat abdomen.
“You’re always hungry because you’re nursing the boppli. You’d probably eat a mud pie if I sliced it up.”
Lena burst out laughing. “Hey, I’m not that much of a pig.”
Becky smiled and forced herself to relax. “Nee, you’re not. And you’re just as skinny as ever.”
“I never keep my weight on after delivery.”
“I hope I’ll be able to say the same thing.”
“What weight? I don’t think you’ve gained any. You’ve probably lost weight instead. You must be growing a peanut in there.”
Becky laughed. “I’ve got a long way to go. But I don’t have a lot of time left to get this supper pulled together. Atlee will be here soon.” She raised an arm to brush a stray strand of hair from her brow. She cracked another egg. This one made it into the cup without shell fragments. She whisked it into the dry ingredients in the big ceramic mixing bowl.
“But this supper is nothing special. Right?”
Becky looked up in time to catch the teasing gleam in Lena’s eyes. “Oooh, you! If I had another hand, I’d throw the wet dishrag at you.”
“Let’s be glad you aren’t an octopus, then. Would you like Mary to set the table? She’s been wanting to help, but I don’t think you could use her cooking assistance right now. You seem to be flustered enough without an inquisitive little girl under your feet or making a mess.”
Becky wrinkled her nose. “Sure, Mary can set the table.”
“You might want to wipe the cornmeal off your nose before our esteemed guest arrives.”
Becky poked out her tongue in Lena’s direction.
“Very mature response!” Lena’s laughter filled the room.
It did Becky’s heart gut to hear Lena laugh, even if it was at her expense. During the weeks before Matthew’s birth, Lena had been alternately excited and apprehensive. Becky assumed that was normal for women about to give birth. But Lena also struggled with sadness. The loss of her husband loomed large. Naturally, Lena wished he could have been with her to greet their new kinner. And then Lena had feared all the grief she’d experienced had harmed the unborn boppli, despite the reassurances of the other women and even the midwife that that would not be the case. With the delivery behind her and a healthy little son added to her family, Lena had perked up considerably. So Becky would gladly endure Lena’s teasing.
A clomping up the back steps told Becky Atlee had arrived. Hastily she brushed at her dress. She snatched up a big stainless steel serving spoon and held it close to her face so she could see her reflection in it. She turned her head this way and that way and squinted but couldn’t see any remnants of cornmeal on her nose. That Lena! Becky raised an arm to wipe her sleeve across her nose just in case.
“Hello,” a deep male voice boomed, sending a little shiver up Becky’s spine.
“Kumm on in.” Becky grabbed a thick dish towel, opened the oven door, and pulled the corn bread out. It looked like perfect timing, for once. The golden corn bread, barely crispy around the edges, smelled as wunderbaar as it looked. Becky hoped the taste matched. She also hoped she had remembered to add all the necessary ingredients.
“It sure smells gut in here.” Atlee entered the kitchen, rubbing his hands together. “It’s getting even colder, and the clouds have thickened. I wouldn’t be surprised if we had snow tonight.”
Becky shivered. “Brrr! I hope not. Snow is pretty, but I’m ready for warmer weather.”
“Jah, I think we’re all itching to get outside again. It’s about time to start working on the fields.”
“Hello, Atlee.” Lena inched her way into the kitchen. She carried a swaddled infant in her arms while the girls clung to her dress, making walking a challenge.
The Reconciliation Page 14
