Love Comes to Paradise Page 13

  She nodded. “I drove Violet home first and then Lewis.” Nora glanced nervously over her shoulder.

  “Drove him where?” Elam practically shouted the question.

  Nora lifted her chin and narrowed her gaze. “I brought him here. Emily invited Lewis to stay.”

  “Doesn’t that beat all? Emily never offered me a room, and I’m related to her.”

  She set her jaw in that new exasperatingly haughty pose. “You’ll have to take that up with her, but right now I must help make dinner. My chores won’t get done by themselves. Good day to you, Elam.” Nora pivoted and sprinted toward the house.

  Good day to me? She sounded like a checkout girl at the grocery store. Elam stared at her retreating back until the screen door slammed behind her. Then he jumped in his car and peeled down the driveway just as Lewis appeared in the barn doorway. This matter wasn’t settled—not by a long shot. But considering Nora’s odd behavior, he needed to cool off and plot his strategy carefully.

  NINE

  Dear dying Lamb, thy precious blood

  Emily let the curtain drop back into place before Nora reached the porch steps. What did that Elam Detweiler want on a Thursday afternoon? Nora had said little after their date, and that in itself spoke volumes. She certainly wasn’t walking on clouds either on Sunday or Monday as young women usually did while being courted.

  Now Elam postured in her side yard with clenched fists, towering over the young woman as though he had ownership rights. But she stood her ground, not cowering or backing down from his intimidation. Whatever they discussed had sent Elam back to his car in a hurry, while Nora ran to the house as though chased by a pack of wolves.

  Or maybe just one. “Is everything okay?” Emily asked when her flushed and breathless houseguest entered the kitchen.

  Nora walked straight to the kitchen sink and began to wash. “Elam wanted to know why Lewis came to Paradise. And apparently he didn’t like the fact Jonas hired him.” She dried her hands on a towel.

  “Do you think he’ll cause trouble at the lumberyard?” Emily watched the girl’s reaction carefully.

  “I don’t think so, but it is rather shocking that Lewis traveled so far. I think Elam felt jealous, especially as Lewis will be staying here.”

  “Jealousy is a very destructive emotion. Much harm has been done because of envy and jealousy.”

  Nora wrinkled her nose. “He’ll get over it. Anyway, no one knew where Elam was living when he moved here. You couldn’t have invited him if you’d wanted to.”

  Emily might have commented on the unlikelihood of that prospect, but Lewis strolled in the back door just then. “May I come in, Mrs. Gingerich?” He set down two suitcases and swept off his hat.

  “Of course you can. And call me Emily, or I’ll take a wooden spoon to you.”

  He turned a lovely shade of scarlet. “I feel right at home already.”

  Nora hung up the towel while stealing surreptitious glances at him. “Should I show him upstairs and around the farm, Emily?”

  “Nein. I’m home now, so I’ll do it. Why don’t you pick tomatoes and lettuce for a salad? Then you can start frying the pork chops.”

  “See you at supper,” Nora murmured to Lewis on her way out the door.

  “I look forward to it.” His smile revealed more than just relief at having reached his destination. Emily had seen that expression before—Englischers called it “the look of love.”

  “Let’s get you settled in your new room first.” She led the way as Lewis followed with his luggage, ducking his head at the entrance to the stairwell. She swept open the door to the second guest room and waved him inside. “Here we are. Just holler if you don’t find what you need in the blanket chest or linen closet.” She pointed out the location of both. “One bathroom is at the end of the hall, and a second is off the kitchen. My, you’re a large man,” she added unnecessarily. He certainly knew how tall he was.

  “Jah. Because my parents only had one son, they thought he’d better be big.” Lewis blushed each time he made eye contact with her. “May I set my bag on that?” He pointed toward a trunk by the window.

  “Of course. Jonas made that chest. It’s filled with baby clothes for our future bopplin.” Emily backed toward the door. “Would you like to rest before dinner?”

  “No, I’m not tired, but I would like to make myself useful. I rubbed down your buggy horse and gave her grain and fresh water. Do you have other chores for me? Or maybe Nora might need help in the garden.” His blue eyes twinkled.

  “Aren’t you a sly one, Lewis Miller, angling for a way to spend time with her.”

  “My family will assure you there’s not a sly bone in my body. What you see is what you get.” He sat down on the bed. “I’ll be straight with you, ma’am. I’m here because I’m in love with Miss King. I made my intentions clear back in Harmony, but she didn’t like our long winters. Maine isn’t for people with thin blood or those easily bored. After she left, my sisters tried fixing me up with every single woman from sixteen to thirty-five. But despite their noble attempts, I couldn’t get Nora out of my head.” His laughter sounded sad rather than amused. “So I’ve come to win her back from that rascal Detweiler, if there’s any possible way.” He slapped his palms down on his knees for emphasis.

  Emily blinked. “There was nothing sly about that declaration. Your motives are crystal clear.”

  Several moments of silence spun out as each carefully evaluated the other. “You say you have sisters but no brothers? What would happen if Nora agrees to court you but refuses to move back North?”

  “I’ve thought about that. I talked to my father before I left to make sure he understood why I’m here. He said because two of my schwestern are married and their husbands enjoy working in the store, he would have enough help.” Lewis rose and walked to the window, somehow deducing which offered the view he cherished. “Daed wants me to be happy, as long as I bring my bride home once a year to visit.” He gazed down on the garden below. “I can’t imagine marrying any other woman.”

  Emily joined him to watch Nora plucking ripe tomatoes from the vine. “My goodness, look how many vegetables she already has picked. Certainly such a skinny girl will need help carrying the basket to the house.” Emily winked at the earnest young man, who wore his heart pinned to his Plain blue shirt.

  Lewis sprinted across the room but paused in the doorway. “Danki, Emily, for taking me in and for listening to my pitiful tale of unrequited love.”

  “You’re welcum. But I wouldn’t be so sure about the unrequited part. The jury’s still out. If it makes you feel better, I’m rooting for you.”

  Hope filled his face. “Then how can I possibly fail? You won’t be sorry you backed my horse in this race. Now I’d better get downstairs before she tries to lift that heavy basket.” He bolted down the steps.

  Emily watched Nora and Lewis in the garden for several minutes. They danced around each other like wary coyotes, barely making eye contact—he, so tall and powerful; she, so petite and thin—and both painfully shy. Emily had always possessed a certain intuition when it came to people. It was something she inherited from her grossmammi. It told her Lewis was a good man, without pretense or swagger, whereas she wouldn’t have trusted Elam even without Sally’s warning. No one sat on the fence this long. By now he should have decided whether or not to remain Amish. A man afraid of commitment offered little to Nora. Elam was playing a game of manipulation, but she was too naive to realize it. Unfortunately, wisdom often didn’t arrive until people were long past courtship.

  Emily abandoned her window vigil and walked to where Lewis had left his bag. Setting it on the floor, she raised the lid of the trunk to look inside. She saw little quilts, booties, tiny kapps, and baby accessories—painful reminders of her heart’s desire. For years she had sewn clothes in her spare time for when God graced her and Jonas with kinner. A vice tightened her ribcage when she spotted one tiny garment. She’d embroidered a duckling on the front of a slee
per—an unnecessary embellishment, to be sure. Today, seeing the yellow duck nearly made her weep. She closed the trunk lid carefully, not fingering her handiwork as usual.

  In God’s own time. Jonas’s words haunted her like a melody.

  “Your will be done,” she whispered, choking back tears.

  She replaced Lewis’s suitcase on top of the trunk as her mission became clear. If the opportunity presented itself, she would play matchmaker between her houseguests. Nora should forget about Elam—a man with little intention to commit to her or the Amish faith. Emily had grown fond of Nora, just as her sister had taken Amy under her wing back in Maine. Nora still needed a mamm…or at least a guiding hand. Until God provided her with another maternal outlet, she would assume the responsibility. But Emily knew she’d better tread carefully. That twenty-two-year-old fireball might not like being bossed around at work and at home too.

  Nora concentrated on supper, grateful that Emily and Jonas kept the conversation lively. She devoured two pork chops instead of her customary one, a large baked potato, and two servings of salad. While Jonas learned about Maine and Lewis found out about Missouri, Nora prayed for divine guidance. Things are happening too fast, she thought for the sixth time that day. Lewis’s arrival had shaken her world, despite the fact she had invited him. She hadn’t anticipated he would seek employment and stay until the fall. She refused to consider that Lewis was here merely because he cared for her.

  Didn’t her heart belong to Elam? Isn’t that why she’d traveled fifteen hundred miles from her sister’s home? So why had she resisted a simple good night kiss?

  Until she made up her mind, maybe a diversion was a good idea.

  “I noticed fields under water,” Lewis said, taking another potato from the bowl. “Have you had heavy rains of late?”

  “Jah. Last weekend the skies opened up and dumped more rain on Randolph County than we’ve seen in a long time, washing out most of the corn crop and soybeans. Wheat and oats were better established and should recover if we get enough sunshine.”

  “Will you still have time to reset corn and beans?” Lewis rubbed a hand across his clean-shaven jaw.

  “We have a longer growing season than up North, so we’ll replant, providing the land dries out in the next couple of weeks.” Jonas selected his third chop from the platter.

  “We don’t grow wheat in Maine. No oats or rye, either, but beans and corn do well. We usually get three cuttings of hay.”

  “Lancaster County, the breadbasket of the East, ships grain up to Harmony,” said Nora, breaking her silence. “Lewis’s family grinds it using horsepower and sells it in their co-op.” Warmth spread though her blood as his blue gaze fastened on her.

  “I remember each one of your trips to our store,” he said. “Do you still have your sweet tooth? I filled every extra space on the shelves with lemon drops, chocolate kisses, caramel bullseyes, and cinnamon fireballs.”

  Emily leaned toward Nora. “Have we learned your weakness, Nora? Your deep, dark secret?”

  “I’m afraid so. I’ve loved candy since I was a little girl.” Feeling heat rise up her neck into her cheeks, Nora wished the topic would change back to farming.

  “Now I might be able to bribe you into washing windows.” Emily winked while slicing an apple pie.

  “Bribing won’t be necessary.” Nora grew nervous under Lewis’s perusal. “Do you need help with dessert? Why don’t I pour coffee?” She jumped up, feeling his gaze follow her to the stove, to the refrigerator, and back to the table. “Is something wrong, Lewis?” she asked, setting down the pot and mugs. “You seem to be studying me.”

  He cocked his head. “Nothing’s wrong, but I remember you as taller. Did you wear high heels back in Maine?”

  “Not that I recall.” Nora poured milk in her cup. “You look different too. Maybe you changed after I left, or maybe the state of Missouri agrees with you.”

  “My first day certainly does. Time will tell regarding the future.” Lewis accepted coffee from her and pie from Emily. “Danki for the delicious meal, Emily, but I should pay toward my board before I eat you and your husband out of house and home.”

  Emily spooned a dollop of Cool Whip onto his slice. “Not for two weeks. My terms were clear.”

  “Let my wife fuss over you for a while, Lewis. She enjoys it.” Jonas grinned at Emily over his mug.

  Suddenly, Nora needed to be away from their hosts for a while before she blurted out the wrong thing. “Would you like to see the rest of the farm?” she asked. “After you’re finished, of course.”

  Lewis devoured his dessert in five bites. “I would love to. That is, if no one has chores for me.”

  Jonas dabbed his mouth. “Not on your first day. Go enjoy your walk. Tomorrow on our ride to work we’ll figure out how you’ll earn Emily’s delicious cooking. Because my bruders tend the fields, neither of us have farm chores. I’m the entrepreneur in the Gingerich family.”

  Lewis stood and pushed in his chair. “I once read that word in a book. I understood the meaning but didn’t know how to pronounce it. Now I know how to describe myself—an entrepreneur.” He met and held Nora’s gaze.

  A shiver brought goose bumps to her skin. Either she was coming down with a virus or her old friend now affected her in strange ways. Nora grabbed her shawl from the peg and reached for the doorknob.

  But he beat her to it and swung the door wide. “Allow me.” Together they walked from the overheated kitchen into the cool evening. He didn’t take her hand or stand too close, yet she seemed aware of every movement he made.

  “Are you happy to have found a job so fast?” she asked, draping the shawl across her shoulders.

  “I’m overjoyed. I never expected to be hired and housed by Sally’s family. I pictured myself sleeping in someone’s hayloft and showering with a garden hose. I’m in your debt, Nora, if you had anything to do with my good fortune.” He tipped his hat brim.

  “I might have mentioned you’re not a kleptomaniac or an ax murderer.”

  His laughter roused birds from a nearby fence. “I’ve missed your sense of humor. Harmony returned to its somber self without you. By the way, Amy and John send their love. She’s still sewing curtains for all the windows in their new house. She’ll tell you the rest of her news in a letter, so I won’t spoil the fun.” Lewis paused where the dirt path forked into two directions.

  Nora liked his newfound talkativeness. In the past Lewis had struggled for things to say. “To the left leads to endless pastureland,” she said. “The path on the right takes us to the Gingerich pond, and beyond that, the river.”

  “Definitely to the right. Pastures look the same everywhere, but I’d love to dip my toe in Paradise water. I’ll bet it’s not half as cold as Maine’s.”

  “This will be my first time too. I’ve been learning to bake and working long hours. I haven’t had much leisure time. You might notice some improvement in my culinary skills.” With an uncontrollable urge, Nora picked up her skirt and ran down the path, not stopping until she reached the pond.

  Lewis kept pace easily with his long legs. “Does that mean you’re better at rustling up grub? Isn’t that how you say it out West?”

  “It does and it is,” she said, laughing. They kicked off their shoes and socks, rolled up hems and splashed into the shallows. “Goodness, that feels good,” she cried, holding her skirt above the water.

  He waded along the shore toward a rickety fishing dock. After boosting himself onto one end, he offered his hand. “Need some help?”

  “No, I’ll take the easy route.” Nora climbed the bank and walked onto the dock from shore. “You seem more relaxed than you were last summer,” she said, settling down beside him.

  “That’s because I am. Crossing multiple state lines has given me more confidence.” He leaned back on his elbows, gazing over sparkling blue water.

  “What happened to the starched New Englander who refused to walk me home without a chaperone?” Nora hoped humor would m
ask her anxiety.

  He cocked his head. “That guy stayed in Maine. The new Lewis Miller is ready to take on anything…or anyone.” He watched her from the corner of his eye.

  Her nervous giggle fooled no one. “Are we talking about someone in particular?”

  He straightened to a sitting position. “Nora…you know why I came.”

  She gulped while her mouth went dry. “Three or four months does sound long for a vacation.”

  “To tell you the truth, this was a spur-of-the-moment decision. I missed you something fierce after you left. Then things Sally said made me curious about what’s so all-fired great about Missouri.” He watched as two mallards approached the water. Beating their wings furiously, they landed with a noisy splash. “But I’m not here to play games or beat around the bush. If you’re already promised to Elam Detweiler and intend to marry him, just say the word. I’ll stay long enough for Jonas to replace me, do a little sightseeing, and buy my train ticket home. I’ll be happy for the change of scenery…and for one last chance with you.”

  Nora ran her tongue over dry lips. “As I explained in my letter, Elam and I are courting, but I’ve made no promises. I still like him, but certain things haven’t changed from how they were in Harmony.” Uneasiness and shame swept over her. Why was she gossiping about someone she professed to love?

  In slow-motion, Lewis lifted her chin and turned her face, studying her while she held her breath. “Hearing that makes me happier than my new job, a place to live, and good meals all summer. I’m asking only that you court me as well. Give me the same chance you’re giving Detweiler. By midsummer you will have made up your mind. If you choose him, I’ll buy you a wedding gift and catch the next bus back to St. Louis.”

  “I don’t see why not, since I’m undecided about my future.” Nora smiled tentatively, waiting for him to kiss her or draw her into his arms. After all, they were alone and that’s what Elam would have done.

  Instead, he jumped off the dock into the shallow water. “Fair enough. We’d better start back. I don’t want to oversleep on my first day of work.” Lewis offered both his hands.