The Restoration (24 page)

As they continued down the road, Priscilla enjoyed her time with David. He was easygoing and fun to be with and seemed to like their ride as much as she did.

It was the end of January, and still quite cold, although today she could feel the sun’s warmth. Snow still lay in the shadowy areas, but it had melted in places where the sun hit regularly. Only a few more months of winter remained, but on days like today, Priscilla was anxious for spring.

“What are you thinking about right now?” David asked, breaking into Priscilla’s musings.

“Oh, just enjoying the moment. After all the snow we’ve had, it’s nice to see it melting in spots.”

“Sort of makes ya hanker for spring, huh?”

She smiled. “I was just thinking the same thing.”

David leaned back, putting his hands behind his head again. “Before I forget, I saw Elam the other day.”

“Did he drop by your grandparents’ house to see how you’re doing?”

“No, I saw him at Adam Beachy’s hardware store. He was there getting some things his father needed.”

“Did he tell you he’s working a second job?”

“Jah.” David winked at Priscilla. “See, I can say that word pretty good, too.”

“Yes, you can.” Priscilla never could tell whether David’s winks were flirtatious or just his way of showing his humor. Whatever it was, she always felt embarrassed when he winked at her.

“Since Elam’s working two jobs, I’ll bet you don’t get to see him much anymore.”

“You’re right. I don’t.”

David looked at her curiously. “Are you okay with it?”

She shrugged. “If Elam’s thinks he needs more money, there’s not much I can do about it. I do miss seeing him, though.”

“Maybe he’s saving up enough money to buy you a house.”

“I doubt it. Elam hasn’t even asked me to marry him yet.”

“You think he will?” David prompted.

“I don’t know. I’m beginning to think maybe not.”

“He’s a
dummkopp.
If I had a girlfriend as sweet and pretty as you, I’d have proposed to her by now. If I were Elam, I’d be worried someone might come along and snatch his girlfriend from him.”

Priscilla’s face heated. She wasn’t used to such compliments. Even though she and Elam had been courting quite awhile, he’d never told her she was pretty—at least not so directly.

“Here we are.” Priscilla guided her horse and buggy up the lane leading to the Kauffmans’ house. “Would you like me to go in with you, or would you rather speak to the bishop alone?”

David took Priscilla’s hand, giving her fingers a gentle squeeze. “I’d be more comfortable if you came with me.”

“I’d be happy to.” Priscilla hoped things would work out for David to become Amish. It would mean he’d stay in Arthur and they could spend more time together. Of course, if she and Elam ever got married, she’d have to stop seeing David by herself. It wouldn’t look right for a married woman to hang around an unmarried man—especially one as good-looking as David.

W
hen Adam took a seat on a backless wooden bench inside Jonah Miller’s buggy shop Sunday morning, he felt grateful. Not only had he reestablished a relationship with his mother and begun building one with Jared, but they’d learned this week Leah was definitely pregnant. The baby would be born in late August or early September.

They hadn’t told anyone yet—not even the girls. Leah wanted to wait until she was a little further along in her pregnancy. Adam had agreed but was bursting at the seams, eager to share their exciting news. Because of the bitterness he’d harbored for so many years toward his mother, Adam had determined never to marry and have children. His life had changed when he’d agreed to raise his nieces and married Leah. Since he was raising three girls, he’d had a little practice at being a father, so having a child of his own should come naturally.

Shifting his thoughts, Adam remembered his mother would be coming by next week to meet the girls.
Sure hope the visit goes well.
He repositioned himself on the unyielding bench. It had taken awhile, but Adam had finally come to realize accusations and blame did nothing to change what had happened. Blaming his mother for everything that had gone wrong in his own life had made Adam bitter and caused him to pull away from others.

At one time, he’d thought shutting himself off from others would keep him from getting hurt again. But that was running from his past and brought Adam no peace. Every day, he thanked God for bringing Leah and the girls into his life. The love he felt for them and his recommitment to God had softened Adam’s heart. When Jared’s accident happened, Adam had finally let go of the past and truly forgiven his mother.

He smiled as the congregation sang another song from their hymnal, the
Ausbund. I wonder what my mother will say when she learns Leah
is expecting a baby—another grandson or granddaughter for her.

David glanced at Elam, sitting beside him on a wooden bench with no back. Unlike himself, Elam had joined the others in song, but then Elam was familiar with this type of worship and understood everything that was going on. It was frustrating not to be able to read the strange words on the page of the Amish hymnal. And every song they sang seemed to be longer than the one before. David hoped after a time he would feel more a part of things, but right now he felt like a bird with no tree to land in.

As the service progressed and the first message was preached, David’s eyelids grew heavy. The preacher spoke in German, which of course, David didn’t understand, either. He wished now he’d taken German instead of Spanish in school. But then, how was he to know he was going to need the language of the Amish someday?

To complicate things, the Amish spoke another dialect when they conversed with each other. They referred to it as “German Dutch” or “Pennsylvania Dutch.” The higher form of German was only used during their church services, weddings, and funerals.

David hadn’t attended a wedding or funeral yet, but Priscilla had tried to explain what they were like. He’d determined they weren’t too different from Sunday services, except weddings included a bit more, with the formal vows and messages about marriage. From what Priscilla had said, funerals were different, too, because the casket with the body of the deceased was present. During a funeral service, the message would be geared toward the topic of death, whereas a sermon during a regular preaching service could be based on any passage from the Bible. While David found the Amish way of life quite fascinating, it still seemed a bit foreign to him. There were times, like today, when he wondered if he really should take the necessary classes to join the Amish church. Other days, when he was with Priscilla, David felt confident he could handle almost anything—including a horse and buggy—with ease.

He reached around to rub a tender spot on his back, wondering how much longer until the service ended. It was hard to get comfortable on the rigid bench with no back support. But he did his best to deal with it. In addition to the discomfort in David’s back, the leg he had broken started to throb. Even though the break had healed and his cast was off, sitting in the second row gave him little room to stretch out his leg. Hoping no one would notice, David wiggled his ankle around, to get the circulation moving. It helped some, but it wasn’t enough. He was anxious for the service to end so he could go outside where he could walk around and stretch his legs.

When another minister stood to deliver a second message, David closed his eyes, succumbing to sleep. He was awakened by a sharp jab to the ribs, and grimaced when he saw Elam glaring at him.

Elam couldn’t believe David had dozed off here in church.
If this guy can’t even stay awake during one of our preaching services, how’s he ever gonna join the Amish church and become one of us?

Glancing around the room, Elam noticed Ray Mast, a widower in his nineties, was sleeping, too. Ray had been a farmer for as long as Elam remembered. In fact, Ray still helped his sons farm their land, so it was a little more understandable why he might be snoozing.
Sure hope if I reach Ray’s ripe old age, I’ll be as active as him.

Elam glanced back at David.
Maybe I should have let him keep sleeping. He might have started snoring and embarrassed himself. I wonder what Priscilla would have thought.

Elam stole a peek at the women’s side of the room and caught Priscilla looking his way. Had she seen what happened with David just now? Did she, too, think David wasn’t cut out to be Amish?
I liked him better when he was just our English friend who came to visit his grandparents once in a while. Having him here, hanging around Priscilla so much, is irritating. Sure hope he doesn’t have any idea about taking my girlfriend from me. I won’t stand for that!

Elam was eager to spend time after church with Priscilla today. He hoped David wouldn’t expect to be included in their afternoon plans.

Cora had finished clearing the table from the meal she and Jared had shared after church, when she heard a car pull in.
It must be Evan.

Jared had gone to his room to rest, so Cora wiped her hands on a dish towel and went to answer the door. When she opened it, Evan greeted her with a smile—one of those phony-looking ones she’d seen him use whenever he wanted something.

“Come in.” She gestured to the living room, her guard already up. “Make yourself comfortable while I fix some coffee.”

“Don’t bother. I drank plenty on my way here, so I’ve had more than enough caffeine today.”

“Would you like something else to drink?”

“Maybe some water with lots of ice.”

“Okay. I’ll be right back.” Cora went to the kitchen. She hoped Jared would remain in his room, at least until Evan had told her what he’d come here to talk about.

When Cora entered the living room, she found Evan standing with his back to the fireplace, surveying the room. “This place is sure small,” he muttered. “A far cry from our home in Chicago.”

“It’s sufficient for our needs at the present time. Actually, I find it to be rather cozy.” She shifted her weight. “And speaking of the home we used to share, I finally have a buyer for it.”

“Is that so? Mind telling me how much you’ll be getting for it?”

Cora bristled. Why did he need to know that? Part of the divorce agreement was that she would get the house, free and clear. It was none of Evan’s business how much it sold for, and she wasn’t about to give him those figures. “I’ll just say I got enough money to buy another place when I find it and still have some left over to put in Jared’s college fund.”

Evan took a seat on the couch. “Speaking of our son, I want Jared to come live with me and Emily.”

Every muscle in Cora’s body tightened. “What brought that request on all of a sudden?”

“You obviously can’t control what our son does, or he wouldn’t have been off joyriding with a troubled kid like Chad. Those boys should not have even been out on New Year’s Eve!”

Cora bit her lip to keep from shouting at him. “For your information, Evan, I did not know Jared would end up riding in Chad’s car. I thought he was spending the night with his friend, Scott, who is a nice kid. That’s what Jared told me he was doing, and I took his word on it.”