Patchwork Dreams (12 page)

A strong instinct within him screamed to stake some sort of claim on Becky tonight and send this Amos Kropf packing. If only he could. But that would be unfair to Becky, not to mention Susie, to whom he’d already made a promise. And not when Becky did need a husband—someone who would love her, cherish her, appreciate her, and take care of her.

Someone like him.

His stomach clenched.

He’d be writing Susie at his first opportunity to ask for that break.

Noticing the Kropf buggy parked in front of the house, Jacob slammed the door to the blacksmith shop on his fingers and yelped.

Daniel turned to look at him. “Something bothering you, Jacob?”

Jacob glared. Daniel should know full well what bothered him.

Daniel crossed his arms over his chest and studied him. “Care to take a walk?”

It wouldn’t do any good. Jacob would still be conflicted over the situation.

He shook his head. “Nein.” If Amos Kropf was in that house, ogling his Becky…. “His” Becky? When had she become his?

Daniel nodded his head toward the fields, apparently not taking Jacob’s answer as final. “Kum.” He started walking away from the house and toward the fields.

Jacob shuffled his feet in the gravel for a second. Then, with another glance at the house, where unwanted company waited, he hurried to catch up with Daniel.

“What’s on your mind?” Jacob didn’t want to give Daniel the opportunity to drag confessions and secrets from him. If he could control the conversation, he would.

Daniel sighed. “I don’t like it, either. Amos Kropf and Bishop Sol have apparently been talking about this for some time, since I got a visit from both men. Amos wants to marry her before the young men kum down for the swap, and he won’t even wait until wedding season. As soon as possible, he said.” He kicked at a clump of dirt, breaking it up. “Bishop Sol wanted to take Becky out and talk to her, prepare the way for Amos’s proposal. But I can’t do that to her. She needs to have some choice in the matter.”

“Jah.” She needed more than some choice.

“They are pushing. Hard. They really aren’t even allowing me a decision. Becky is, uh…a disgrace, I guess. But Amos, well, it’s been said that he’s abusive. I just can’t in gut conscience allow my daughter…. I love her, you know.”

“Jah, I know you do.” Jacob nodded.

“So.” Daniel glanced at Jacob. “What are your thoughts?”

Jacob chewed his lip. Was that supposed to be a nice, tactful way of asking his intentions? He scratched the back of his neck. No way would he tell Daniel about how he’d offered to give Becky a massage. He simply had to get his raging hormones under control, that was all. At least until he was free to pursue her the way she deserved.

“You like her, ain’t so?” Daniel asked, not waiting for Jacob to formulate an honest answer.

“Jah.” Jacob hoped his shrug appeared nonchalant. “What’s not to like?”

Daniel looked down. “I want better for Becky. I want her to have a choice and to marry for love, like her mamm and I did.”

“Only fair.” Jacob nodded. That was what he wanted, too.

Daniel shook his head. “I just can’t see him being her choice.”

“Nein.” He’d better not be.

“You got any ideas how to run Amos off?”

Ach, he had ideas. But none of them was worth mentioning.

Daniel glanced around, apparently making sure they were alone. “Nein? Gut. I do.”

***

Becky closed the Bible and slid it back into the top drawer of Mamm’s dresser, being careful not to bend the cover. Then, she straightened the coverlet on her parents’ bed, erasing all evidence of her having sat there. Not that they minded, but it would postpone her going downstairs. After checking in on Abbie and Mary, who were playing quietly in their room with their dolls, Becky went to her own room and peeked out the window at the blacksmith shop. Then, she noticed Daed and Jacob walking out in the field, deep in conversation, it looked like. Maybe discussing the crop they’d be putting in soon.

Not able to think of anything else to keep her upstairs, Becky walked slowly into the hallway and down the staircase without straightening her hair, washing her face, or doing anything else to freshen up. Why bother? She didn’t want to impress Amos Kropf. Just Jacob.

She found the Kropf family in the kitchen with Mamm and Katie. Amos sat at the long kitchen table in Jacob’s seat, downing a cup of coffee. His kinner were lined up awkwardly against a wall, looking uncomfortable and unhappy. Some of them looked plain mad.

All buwe. Becky counted—seven kinner. And the oldest one didn’t look all that much younger than she. He’d probably be in his rumschpringe in a year or two. Studying him, Becky’s eyes widened. She remembered him from when she was in school. He was only a year behind her. So, he would be in his rumschpringe now.

The youngest one looked about three. He was a cutie.

But still, how could she be a mamm to this family when the oldest child was almost her age? What could Daed be thinking?

She aimed what she hoped looked like a smile in the direction of the kinner, but it probably looked more like a grimace. “Welkum.”

She got a couple of grunts in reply. Communicative bunch.

“Care for more coffee?” She glanced at Amos Kropf’s cup, almost half full. “Maybe a warm-up?” Turning for the coffeepot, she cast a desperate glance at Mamm, silently begging for help. Though what Mamm could do to help the situation, she didn’t know.

Maybe she should be turning to God.
Lord, help me out, here. Help him to realize I’m not the frau he wants….

She grabbed the coffeepot and turned, almost running into Amos Kropf, who had stood up while her back had been turned.

“Rebekah.” He stepped in closer, talking the whole time. Becky had no idea what he was saying. She couldn’t focus. It sounded like a bunch of nonsense. She stood there, uncertain, for who knows how long, holding the coffeepot and staring at his bushy, grayish-brown beard. He leaned toward her, and she caught a whiff of garlic on his breath. Ugh.

She couldn’t do this. She couldn’t do this. She. Couldn’t. Do. This.

The door opened, and Daed came in, whistling.

Whistling!

Becky stared at him in disbelief. Didn’t he realize what he was doing?

“Welkum, Amos!” Daed shook Amos’s hand. “Right beautiful weather today, ain’t so?” As if he hadn’t seen the man all day.

Becky shook her head. Ignoring the chatting men standing by the stove, she refilled Amos’s coffee cup, then filled a cup for Daed. After putting the pot back on the stove, she went over to speak to the kinner.

She’d just finished making small talk with all seven when the sound of buggy wheels crunching in the gravel drive caught her attention, and she turned to glance out the window. Who could it possibly be this close to dinnertime?

“Ach, that must be your beau, Becky. You’d best run and get ready, jah?”

Becky swung around and stared at Daed in disbelief. He winked at her, then nodded toward the other room. “Don’t worry, we’ll take care of Emma.”

Becky darted from the room, relieved. But the relief was short-lived. When had Daed arranged a date for her? And with whom?

***

Jacob’s stomach churned as he drove the buggy from the shed to the house. Funny how this date with Becky affected him. He didn’t remember being this nervous with Susie the first time. Of course, Susie had pretty much made all the arrangements. She’d decided they’d go out and had told him to pick her up down the road, out of view from her house. She’d wanted him to take her to eat at her favorite restaurant and then go riding. Susie was the life of the party, as he’d heard an Englischer say once. He’d been flattered by her attention.

Jacob hoped Becky wouldn’t be upset that Daniel had set this up. Her daed had even offered him money to take her out. Unbelievable. He’d refused it, of course. He could do this little thing for her.

He gladly would have roped the moon for her.

And if it meant eliminating Amos Kropf from the picture, well then, all the better.

Since he’d always picked Susie up down the road, Jacob didn’t know whether to go inside and wait for Becky or to stay outside and let her come to him.

He set the buggy’s brakes and sat there a minute, then decided he’d go in.

He wiped his sweaty palms on his pants and climbed out of the buggy. As he approached the front door, he remembered the day he’d arrived, when he’d stared up at the beautiful girl who’d come to the door. She hadn’t seemed too happy to see him, but he’d been intrigued, in spite of his fears.

That fascination had only grown.

As he reached the door, it swung open, and Becky appeared, strands of her blonde hair coming loose from her kapp. She didn’t look mad. Just relieved. Maybe embarrassed. And scared.

“Bex, you okay with this?” He studied her, hoping she’d say jah.

She shook her head, then frowned and nodded. After a quick glance behind her, she whispered, “I’m confused.”

Jah, he could relate. Still, he grinned and tilted his head toward the buggy. “Kum. I’ll explain it to you over dinner.”

She took a couple of steps, then hesitated. “I don’t want to kum between you and your Susie.”

Jacob blinked, then looked down. He’d jumped at the chance to go out with Becky, not giving Susie a moment’s thought. The letter she’d sent hadn’t even factored in. It still waited, unopened, on his bed. Half a world away. Maybe more.

Becky looked around and then shut the door behind her. “I do want to get away from Amos Kropf.”

“Kum schnell.”

She nodded, and together they hurried to the buggy.

Becky climbed in without assistance, then turned to look at him. “Where are you taking me?”

That was the big question in Jacob’s mind, too. Where was this taking him?

Becky tried to control her trembling as she perched next to Jacob in the buggy. She hoped that he wouldn’t take advantage of her by spiriting her away to an isolated spot. She wouldn’t have the strength to fight him off. But somehow, being alone with Jacob seemed less scary than facing Amos Kropf and his seven kinner across the dinner table.

Jacob had done nothing wrong except flirt shamelessly with her.

Of course, that was how Kent had begun, too.

She swallowed and turned to look at the man sitting next to her. As she watched, his expression changed from thoughtful to mischievous.

“Where am I taking you? Ach, I thought maybe McDonald’s. We could share another of your fancy coffees, ain’t so?” He shot a grin in her direction.

“A cappuccino does sound gut, jah.” McDonald’s would be busy, so they wouldn’t truly be alone. And it wasn’t likely that Kent would interrupt them again.

Jacob leaned over close enough that his shoulder bumped hers. “I’m teasing. You tell me where you want to go and how to get there, and I’ll take you. Daniel said there are a few places to eat in town.” Jacob turned the horse out into the road.

“McDonald’s will be gut.”

Jacob pulled closer to the edge of the road as a car sped past them. “Nein. We’ll stop later for your fancy coffee if you’d like, but this is a…a date.”

“A date? Because Daed told you to take me out? Probably paid you to? I’m grateful he gave me an out from dinner at home with Amos Kropf, but there’s no reason to pretend this is a real date.” Becky heard her voice quiver. Tears burned her eyes. Ach, why couldn’t she turn off the waterworks?

Jacob’s gaze turned thoughtful again. His brows drew together, and his forehead wrinkled. “Ach, Bex. Nein. Your daed didn’t pay me. And, if you remember, I offered to take you out when we talked earlier today.”

“How did Daed know that?”

A muscle flexed in Jacob’s jaw. He shook his head. “I don’t know. I didn’t go talking about the intricacies of our relationship to him.” His fingers slid over her hand, leaving tingles in their wake. “I’m going to be asking Susie for a break.”

For a moment, Becky’s heart stopped. She stared at Jacob, eyes wide, hope building, cresting, then breaking, like the ocean waves she’d seen in pictures. “A break?”

“Jah. I need to think about some things before I commit.” He glanced at her. “Let’s not talk about that. Are you hungry now, or would you like to drive around some first?”

She hated the distrust that instantly flared, and she slid as far away from him as she could. “Where do you have in mind?” Looking around, she noticed a house not too far off. She could jump; they weren’t going fast. She wouldn’t be alone with him in some secretive place. Never again with a man until she said her wedding vows.

Jacob shrugged. “I’m new here, Bex. Show me around the district. Where did you go to school?”

“School?” Why did he want to see her old school? It wasn’t like he’d be attending.

“Jah. Take me on the getting-to-know Bex tour. Where does your best friend live? Did you ever work outside the home? What is your favorite restaurant, or do I know that already?” He bumped her shoulder again. “Tell me about you.”

Jacob was interested in her past? Warmth flooded her. “Turn here. The schoolhouse is down this road.” She slid a bit nearer to him, close enough that his arm pressed against hers.

Or maybe he was taking flirting to a whole new level. She eased away.

***

There was a smile hidden inside her somewhere. Had to be. Jacob glanced at Becky, wishing she’d slide closer to him again. He considered wrapping his arm around her and pulling her nearer, but, considering how skittish she seemed, he decided he’d better not.

Probably best not to make any moves until he dispelled the confusion in his own mind.

Though he probably wouldn’t be able to do anything about the temptation to tease her. He didn’t want to be so attracted to Becky, but he couldn’t help it. There was something about her that called to him. He couldn’t keep from flirting.

He had to prepare her for someone else.

He felt a twinge in his heart. And he frowned.

Just not Amos.

Jacob studied the set of the horse’s ears. To be totally honest, he wanted Becky. For himself.

And if he married her….

Jah, that would be his ultimate goal. To win Becky’s heart.