Rachel pinched her face into a frown. “I forgot church is at Anna’s today. I can’t go. I’m exhausted.”
Moses took her resistance as a joke. “It would be strange for you to be sleeping while people are worshipping outside your door.”
“And they’ll need your room for mothers tending to babies,” Lia said.
Rachel snapped her head around and pinned Lia with a glare. “This is your doing, Lia. You insisted on waking me up.”
Moses’s face clouded over, and he riveted his gaze to the road ahead. “I hope you do not blame Lia.” He coughed. “I wanted to spend the time with you.”
Rachel’s expression melted into a glowing smile. “Oh, I didn’t mean that in a bad way, to accuse Lia. I am glad we can be together.”
Lia wanted to shrink into a little ball and make herself invisible in case they declared their undying love.
Rachel inched closer to him, but he had stacked a jacket and some work boots between them, so she couldn’t get close enough to touch. “Moses, what are you doing next Friday?”
“Same as I always do. Making cheese.”
“How would you like to go on a picnic with me?”
“Okay,” Moses said. “We could hike to the place where the huckleberry bushes are the thickest and find some shade. It’s not a hard walk. Mammi and Dawdi could do it with our help, if Mammi will let me help her.”
“This picnic would be for the two of us. Do you like fried chicken?”
Moses snapped the reins. The horse picked up its pace. “The more, the merrier on a picnic.”
“I want to explore the hill. Anna and Felty can’t walk that far, and Lia is always so busy.” Rachel stuck her bottom lip out in that way that always seemed to charm boys. “Please, Moses. I want to take you exploring.”
Moses glanced back at Lia, and his frown seemed to sink deeper into his face. He either didn’t know how to tell Rachel no, or didn’t want to say yes with Lia looking over his shoulder. It was what he’d told Dat he wanted.
“Okay,” Moses said, irritation still etched into his features. “I will come Friday at dinnertime.”
Rachel giggled. “We are going to have so much fun.”
When they arrived at Huckleberry Hill, men from the district were already setting up benches in Anna and Felty’s great room. Moses helped move the sofa to the side before Rachel collapsed onto it and didn’t move until people filed in for services.
Before they had finished the Lob Song, Rachel laid her head on Lia’s shoulder and fell asleep. She woke herself up with a rafter-rattling snort during the preacher’s sermon. The kind people of the district pretended not to notice, but Lia heard a few chuckles from Moses’s side of the room.
Chapter Thirteen
“Is it too hot to wag your tail for me, Sparky?” Moses called as he jumped off his horse and led him to the barn with less enthusiasm than he’d ever had in his life. Sparky, lounging lazily under the shade of the porch, looked more excited than Moses felt.
Why had Moses ever agreed to a picnic with Rachel? Some people considered her pretty, but Moses was convinced that those lovesick boys in Wautoma were either blind or foolish. Couldn’t they recognize a spoiled princess within ten minutes of knowing her?
Did Rachel always lie in wait for him just inside the house? She threw open the front door and squealed. “Moses! I was afraid you wouldn’t come.”
Moses lifted his hand in an unenthusiastic wave and kept walking to the barn. Rachel held Lia’s fate in her hands. If Rachel complained about how things were going between her and Moses, Lia would be commanded home without a second thought. Moses could not let that happen. Lia needed to stay here where she could learn from Sarah and where Moses could see her often.
There, he’d admitted it. He liked being with Lia. The happiest days he spent were with her, telling her dumb jokes, making her laugh, hearing her wisdom about everything. But the price of Lia’s company became increasingly steep. Not only was he forced to coddle Rachel, but Rachel might get her heart broken by his reluctant attentions. He didn’t care for Rachel, but he didn’t want to raise her hopes only to dash them. He wasn’t that cruel.
He would have to tread carefully. That’s why he’d said something encouraging to her fater about wanting to spend time with her. But when Rachel truly recognized his rejection, her anger would be swift, harsh, and unreasonable. And Lia would feel the brunt of Rachel’s displeasure.
And then he thought of Barbara. He had actually forgotten to send her his letter last week. He’d written it, but it had been buried under some papers on his desk. He had remembered it this morning when Barbara’s letter came in the mail. She was more constant than he.
Moses could tell by the tone of her letter how upset Barbara had been not to receive his.
Have you forgotten me like everybody else in Bonduel? I depend on your steadiness, Moses. You are the only person who still believes in me.
He felt so ashamed that he wrote a seven-pager to Barbara this morning and rode to the post office to make sure it got in the mail. He swam in guilt. Barbara depended on his faithfulness, but she dominated his thoughts less and less these days. Lia had a way of shoving memories of Barbara completely out of his mind. And worse, he didn’t want to stop thinking about Lia, no matter how disloyal he felt to Barbara. Lia made him so happy.
Leaving his riding horse, Red, in the barn, Moses emerged to find Rachel standing on the front porch with a basket tucked into the crook of her elbow. Moses felt like a teenager on the first day of school as he walked up the steps and took the heavy basket from Rachel’s arm. Was she planning on being gone for a few days?
Rachel wore a robin’s-egg blue dress that made her eyes shine extra bright. Her skin looked smooth and freshly scrubbed. “Which way to the top of the hill?” she asked.
Out of the corner of his eye, Moses saw a movement at the window and glanced in time to see Lia pull away from his view. He wished she were coming with them. He could stare at her all day. “Um, this is the top of the hill, where the house stands.”
“Oh. Lia didn’t tell me that.”
“We could hike to the north where most of the huckleberry bushes grow. It’s only a couple of miles.”
Rachel bit her lip and raised her eyebrows. “How long will it take? I don’t want to be worn out before we get there.”
Gute. If she didn’t want to venture too far from the house, they wouldn’t have to spend more than an hour together. Closer was definitely better. He pointed to the east. “There is a nice little clearing not a hundred yards from here.”
“Okay. I packed a blanket to spread on the ground so we’ll be comfy.”
She took his arm. He hadn’t offered it. He pulled away and made a point to walk three steps ahead of her. It was easy to keep his distance. She had come barefoot—to a picnic in the woods.
Moses shook his head. Those boys in Wautoma? Blind and foolish.
“Here we are,” announced Moses when he reached the clearing. By this time, Rachel lagged ten steps behind him. He reached into the basket and pulled out the blanket. It was a puny thing, no more than baby size. Rachel wasn’t dense. She wanted to sit close and had brought the perfect size blanket to do just that.
No matter. Moses would simply sit in the dirt. He hadn’t dressed up or anything.
He spread the blanket on a flat piece of ground and laid the basket on it. Rachel finally caught up. “Nae, Moses,” she scolded. “It is the woman’s job to lay out the food.”
Reluctant to sit until Rachel had chosen her spot, Moses stood idly by as Rachel pulled her treasures out of the basket. She placed two paper plates on the blanket and then produced a brown paper grocery bag saturated with grease. She rolled down the sides of the bag to reveal four generous pieces of cold fried chicken. The smell made Moses’s mouth water. Maybe Rachel did have talent with the skillet.
Another paper bag contained golden brown rolls, still warm from the oven. They smelled heavenly. Two small plastic containers held creamy butter and red raspberry jam. Moses knelt down to get a closer look.
Rachel saw his expression. Smiling in satisfaction, she produced a small bowl of coleslaw plus forks and napkins from the basket.
No matter how delicious it looked, none of the food could compare to the pie. It might have come straight out of a magazine, with stiff peaks of whipped cream sprinkled with flakes of chocolate. His taste buds did a dance of anticipation. Maybe the hour wouldn’t be completely wasted after all.
Rachel served him the biggest piece of chicken with three spoonfuls of coleslaw and a flaky roll. He made sure to keep with the basket conveniently between them as he sat down on the ground just off the edge of Rachel’s blanket. He spread a liberal dollop of jam on his roll and let Rachel talk while he ate. The bread melted in his mouth and the crispy fried chicken had just the right blend of spices to make his eyes water and his tongue crave more.
“Do you like the chicken?” Rachel asked.
Moses barely paid enough attention to catch her question. “Very good. It has a kick to it.”
“Lia doesn’t like spicy food, but I talked her into it. It’s our mother’s recipe.”
Of course. Lia had made the chicken and probably the rolls and the coleslaw and the pie too. Anything to humor Rachel and placate her father. Hadn’t Rachel said that Lia had been given certain responsibilities from her dat—like helping Rachel trap Moses into marriage? If she didn’t fulfill those duties well, she would be shipped home.
“Dat had high hopes for Lia because she is such a gute cook, but then she got tall and lost her bloom. She’s a big help to Mamm at home, though, which is good because that’s probably where she’ll be all her life. But Lia’s happy with what God has given her. She doesn’t pine for anything better.”
Moses didn’t know what to say. Would it make any difference to anybody if he defended Lia? Rachel thought Lia had lost her bloom? How absurd. Lia was the most beautiful girl Moses had ever met.
The guilt crashed into him like a barn door swinging shut. Did he really consider Lia more beautiful than Barbara? Barbara possessed perfect skin with a beauty mark at the corner of her lip that Moses had always found fascinating. Her eyes were the color of a frozen Wisconsin lake.
Lia’s eyes were the color of chocolate cream sauce.
“Did Lia do the cooking?”
Rachel batted her eyelashes in irritation and swatted the thought of Lia away with a wave of her hand. “She helped. I’m not as good at pies as her. I get along fine in my life without knowing how to roll out crust.”
Moses sank his teeth into his chicken as his indignation grew. Lia’s family had convinced her that her talents and qualities were of little importance compared to Rachel’s. And Lia, with her good heart, would never stand up for herself. In truth, she didn’t believe she was worthy of any consideration.
Once Moses had cleaned his plate, Rachel casually moved the picnic basket off the blanket and sidled closer to him. He responded by standing up and running his hand over the bark of a maple close by. “We tapped this tree for syrup last winter.”
Rachel didn’t seem to notice his resistance. “Did you like the rolls?”
Moses hated giving Rachel compliments that were meant for Lia. He knit his brows together. “They were delicious. The best I’ve ever tasted.”
Rachel blushed with pleasure. “Thank you. We had to get up extra early to make the dough so it would have a chance to rise. Lia woke me before sunrise. I think she takes satisfaction in robbing me of my sleep.”
“Tell Lia I am very grateful.”
Annoyance flitted across her face as she retrieved a knife and spatula from the basket. “Are you ready for some pie? It’s chocolate cream.”
Moses wanted a piece of that pie so badly he was tempted to scoop it from the blanket and run deeper into the woods where he could enjoy it in solitude. But if he took a piece of pie offered by Rachel, it would be like accepting a stolen gift. Lia had made the pie, but Rachel would take all the credit for it. Moses couldn’t stomach the thought. He wanted to be sitting next to Lia, not Rachel, when he took his first taste of Lia’s pie. He wanted her to take pleasure in the look on his face. Lia should be the first to hear his praise. Rachel didn’t deserve it.
He patted his stomach. “Couldn’t eat another bite.”
Rachel turned down the corners of her mouth. “Lia said you’d like chocolate.”
“I love chocolate, but I really am stuffed.”
Rachel held the pie out to him, most likely hoping the mere sight of it would convince him to change his mind. It almost did. There was nothing Moses liked better than pie.
When he didn’t take the bait, her frown deepened, and she shoved the pie into its special plastic container as if she were angry at it. Back into the basket it went. “I told Lia we should have done cherry.”
Did she have to be vexed with Lia every time she didn’t get her way? In hopes of diverting Rachel’s wrath, Moses surrendered and sat next to her on the blanket. “Cherries give me a rash.”
Rachel’s expression softened immediately. She giggled demurely and fingered the ties of her kapp, all the while keeping her sparkling eyes glued to his face. “I don’t like cherry all that much myself.”
Rachel stretched her legs out in front of her, crossed her ankles, and leaned back on her hands. “I could sit in the sun all day.” She tilted her head back, closed her eyes, and let her face soak up the filtered sunlight. Her tactics were impressive. She knew how to show off her good looks. With her eyes closed, a boy would feel free to gaze at her lovely face and dream about kissing those full lips.
Little did she know that Moses was immune to her charms. “Pretty is as pretty does,” Dawdi would say.
With her eyes still shut, Rachel sighed and puckered her lips slightly. Oh, she had a strategy, all right.
Moses wasn’t in a mood to humor her for very long. “Rachel?” he said softly so as not to startle her.
She fluttered her eyelids, turned her face to him, and smiled in anticipation. Oh, sis yuscht, she expected a kiss!
He’d let this go on long enough. Practically leaping to his feet, he put several feet between them. “I’ve got to make one more batch of cheese today.”
Rachel didn’t even attempt to hide her surprise or her displeasure. She raised an eyebrow and glared at him with those stormy blue eyes. “Right now?”
“Jah. I don’t want to be up all night pressing.”
She quickly composed herself and smoothed her hands down the front of her dress. “But it’s such a nice day.”
“We will have to do this again sometime.” Had he really opened the door to that possibility just to soothe Rachel’s wrath? Yep. He was a coward. But he couldn’t figure out how to deflate Rachel’s hopes without losing Lia.
Rachel pursed her lips and took her time putting things back in the picnic basket. Once she had everything loaded, she looked up at him and smiled warmly. Gute. She had decided to be sweet instead of vindictive. She reached out her hand, and Moses helped her to her feet. Her hand lingered in his, and her eyes danced playfully. Moses pulled from her grasp and picked up the blanket. He stuffed it into the basket and started walking.
This time his conscience nagged him to wait for Rachel. He shouldn’t leave her behind to limp around in the woods, even if they were only a few hundred feet from the house. He slowed his pace until she caught up to him. She smiled weakly as she tiptoed over the rough ground. Why hadn’t she worn her shoes?
“What is your house like?” she said, breaking the silence that had prevailed since they left the clearing.
“Do you remember seeing it? It is right next to the cheese factory.”
Suddenly, Rachel halted, grabbed her shin, and howled in pain.
“What happened?”
“My foot. I think I stepped on something.” Grasping her ankle, she limped awkwardly to a fallen log and sat down. She propped her right ankle on her left knee and examined the bottom of her foot.
Moses sat next to her. “Did it feel sharp?”
“It felt like a snake bite or something,” Rachel said, panting as if she had lost a toe.
Studying her foot closely, Moses gently pressed his thumb around her heel and up to her toes. He didn’t feel or see anything, but he tried to be sympathetic. Rachel really had convinced herself that she was delicate.
She hissed through her teeth when he felt around the pad of her foot. “There. That’s where it hurts.”
“It didn’t break the skin.”
“Do you think it was a snake?”
“Nae. Probably a sticker.”
A single tear trickled down Rachel’s cheek. “I don’t think I can make it back.”