Amish Country Box Set: Restless Hearts\The Doctor's Blessing\Courting Ruth (70 page)

Easing her into the room, he nodded to those he knew. “Family,” he murmured in Lainey’s ear. “How is she today?” He focused on Katie Gaus, one of Rebecca’s many nieces, whose round face was made even rounder by her generous smile. The mother of a large family, Katie was comfortably middle-aged, her dress the dark purple color that seemed favored by Amish women her age. Katie had been the one to find Rebecca the day she fell.

“Not much change,” Katie said softly. She came to take Lainey’s hand. “Little Lainey, all grown up. It is
gut
to see you.
Wilcom
.”

“Thank you.” Lainey seemed to struggle to place her. “You’re Cousin Katie, right?”

“
Ja,
that’s so.” Katie smiled again, her gentle face warm. “I am a bit older and wider than you remember,
ja?
”

“You had a son about my age, didn’t you?” Lainey was showing more composure than Jake had expected at this horde of relatives. Maybe this was going to be all right.

“
Ja,
that would be Daniel. But
komm.
You are here for Aunt Rebecca, not for all of us.” Holding Lainey’s hand as if she were still a child, Katie led her toward the bed.

Jake stood back, watching. Now that he had a chance to look around, the room wasn’t as full as it had first appeared. In addition to Katie, three other women he recognized as relatives of Rebecca had apparently been sitting with her.

On the opposite side of the room was a small knot of men, their black coats and pants creating a dense spot in the bright room. Zebulon Stoltzfus, the oldest brother of Rebecca’s late husband, stood in front of three of his sons.

There was no doubt about who was in charge in that family—Zeb had always ruled his numerous progeny with an iron fist, and rumor had it that the bishop and ministers who shepherded the local Amish congregation had made more than one call on him. That usually meant the person visited had behaved in a manner that went counter to the
Ordnung,
the mutually agreed-upon rules by which the congregation lived. At the moment, Zeb looked like a man with a grievance, and Jake suspected he knew what that grievance was.

Lainey was bending over the hospital bed, drawing his attention. Her hair swung forward, hiding her face at the moment, but his thoughts were arrested by the tenderness in her movement as she took her great-aunt’s hand. She bent to kiss Rebecca’s cheek, murmuring something he couldn’t hear, and as she straightened he saw the tears that streaked her face. Jake had the uncomfortable feeling that all his preconceptions had just been upended.

He shook off the wave of empathy. Even if Lainey had genuine feeling for her aunt, that still didn’t mean that she was capable of making life-or-death decisions for her.

Zeb stalked over to him, his face set in a frown that would likely have even his grown sons quaking in their shoes. “Well? What are you going to do?”

Jake managed to keep from glaring back. It was no part of his duty to Rebecca to alienate her relatives if he could help it. “Lainey Colton is Rebecca’s choice to take change of her affairs.” He kept his voice even.

Zeb flung out a hand toward the women. “The
Englisch
woman is unsuitable. There is too much at stake.”

“She is Rebecca’s great-niece.” Jake’s jaw tightened. “And it’s Rebecca’s business, not yours.”

Obviously Lainey had heard him. She straightened with a toss of her head that sent her black hair flowing back over her shoulders.

“What is he talking about? What is at stake, and why am I unsuitable?”

Jake had hoped he’d be able to avoid an outright confrontation. Once again in this situation, he’d been wrong.

brings us back to Deer Run, Pennsylvania, where graphic artist Lainey Colton returns to the only place that’s ever felt like home…

Small-town life isn’t for everyone. Twenty years ago, Lainey Colton spent one perfect summer in Deer Run with her beloved great-aunt Rebecca. Since then, the beautiful graphic designer has been a gypsy, calling no place home. Now Rebecca is gravely ill, so Lainey has returned to Deer Run to care for her…and to escape her mistakes.

Lawyer Jake Evans gave up a high-powered job to build a quieter life in the small Pennsylvania town. So when a beautiful stranger appears after twenty years gone, he naturally questions her motives. Still, he is drawn to Lainey. But no amount of attraction will matter if he can’t keep her safe from a mysterious threat….

Coming June 24, 2014 wherever books are sold!

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eISBN: 978-1-4603-3829-2

AMISH COUNTRY BOX SET

Copyright © 2014 by Harlequin Books S.A.

The publisher acknowledges the copyright holders of the individual works as follows:

RESTLESS HEARTS

Copyright © 2007 by Martha P. Johnson

THE DOCTOR’S BLESSING

Copyright © 2010 by Patricia MacDonald

COURTING RUTH

Copyright © 2010 by Faulkner, Inc. and Judith E. French

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