Finding Love at Home (The Beiler Sisters) (13 page)

Debbie focused on Emery’s face. “I think you should forget about Crystal. She’s divorced.”

Emery’s words came quickly. “That’s no reason to reject the woman out of hand. I hope she stays around and finds the peace she’s obviously looking for.”

This was worse than Debbie had thought. Clearly Emery had spent considerable time thinking about Crystal. His conclusions could in no way be trusted. Not when it came to
Englisha
women.

Debbie tried again. “There are dangers out there you might know little of, Emery. I care about the wife you end up with. You deserve better than Crystal. She’d be a disaster. You know that. Your faith would be at stake. You’d lose everything you love.”

Emery laughed. “Now you’re thinking wild. Don’t be so suspicious. I’m not falling for a divorced woman, if that’s what you think.”

Debbie ignored his comment. “Do you know what the woman’s up to this week? Has she left the community?”

Emery hesitated. “How would I know? I just wanted to give my encouragement to Deacon Mast.”

“But you do know.” Debbie couldn’t keep the edge out of her voice.

Emery tried to smile. “
Yah
, I guess I do know. Deacon Mast told me. Crystal’s staying around for a while at her relative’s place, which is not far from here. And I did tell Deacon Mast I’d introduce her at our young-folk gatherings—if she came. And what’s wrong with that? Everyone deserves a chance, Debbie.”

Debbie’s fingers dug into her palm. “You know none of that’s going to work, Emery. Crystal will no longer be welcome at the services once people find out she’s divorced. She’d have to work a long time to overcome that obstacle. Look at me! I barely made it, and I…”

Emery moved away a step as the bishop appeared around the corner of a horse stall. “I know, Debbie. That’s why I’m going to help where I can. Help people understand that Crystal’s intentions are
gut
. Get them to trust her and give her a chance.”

Have you told your father this?
Debbie wanted to shout after him.

Emery gave her a tense smile over his shoulder as he walked away.

Clearly the man knew he was on dangerous ground in spite of his denials. Would Crystal be able to weave her spell completely around Emery’s heart? What hold did this woman have on Amish men? First Alvin and now Emery. Her worst fears were indeed true.

The bishop interrupted her thoughts. “Thanks so much for helping us chore this week, Debbie. I’ve been wanting to say something but haven’t gotten around to it until now. You’re almost like a daughter to us. But then you already know that.”

“Thank you.” Debbie smiled. “I’m glad to help.”

“How are you and Alvin getting along?” Bishop Beiler’s voice seemed to boom inside the barn.

Debbie swallowed hard. “Okay, I guess. We have a few rough spots, but we’ve always had those.”

Bishop Beiler appeared pleased. “I must say, I’ve heard nothing but
gut
things about Alvin lately—other than that deal with Crystal, which I hope is over with. He’s really taking care of his
daett
’s farm. The committee has disbanded now, having given Alvin full charge of everything. I’d say you’ve got a
gut
man there. And he’s getting a
gut frau
…if that’s how things work out between you.”

Debbie felt heat rise up her neck. “It’s only been one date so far.”

Bishop Beiler laughed. “I’m thinking you and Alvin have been
working on this for a long time. But then who can question the ways of
Da Hah
?”

That was true, Debbie thought, even if the bishop didn’t know the half of it. But his blessing was something she could be thankful for.

“We’re trying,” Debbie managed.

The bishop smiled and moved on.

Debbie gathered her wits together and walked out of the barn and across the lawn toward the house.

Saloma looked up in surprise when Debbie hurried into the kitchen. “Chores done already?”

“Yep!” Debbie chimed. “May I help you?”

“Certainly!” Saloma motioned toward the stove. “I’m almost done, but you can finish the bacon. I guess I drifted off thinking about Verna’s baby. What a blessing we’ve been given in our old age.”

“I know.” Debbie bit back further words. She wasn’t about to spill the beans about Emery. And perhaps this was just an innocent gesture done out of the compassion in Emery’s heart. But she doubted it. Doubted it with all her heart. All she knew for sure was the Beilers couldn’t lose Emery to the world. They just couldn’t.

Twelve

L
ater that evening after supper, Ida knelt as she poured warm water into the bowl set on the living room floor at Joe and Verna’s place. She tested the temperature with her fingers before she lifted the squirming Sarah Mae and set her inside. Ida kept a firm grip and washed her new niece with one hand. Gently she rubbed the soapy washcloth into the baby’s creases. Verna sat on the couch wrapped in a thick quilt and watched with a concerned face.

Joe was on the rocker and seemed to have no worries about how a baby should be washed. He cooed, “She’s such a darling.”

“Be careful. Don’t break her.” Verna pushed the quilt aside and tried to get up.

Joe laughed. “She’s too cute to break.”

“Those are the ones that break,” Verna asserted as she sat down again.

“I’m being careful.” Ida lifted Sarah Mae out of the water and dried her with the softest cotton towel she’d found in Verna’s linen closet. It was deep blue with stitched edges. Still, the cloth deepened the reddish hue of the baby’s wet skin. Sarah Mae kicked her legs and protested with a cry.

“She wants her
daett
.” Joe made a move to get up, but Ida gestured him down and made him wait until she’d dressed Sarah Mae. She handed the baby girl to him. He cuddled the infant in his arm, the picture of happiness. Verna leaned toward the two with a glow on her face.

Ida too smiled at the sight. This week had been among the most enjoyable of her life. Oh how she loved babies and the attention they received.
Daett
and
Mamm
, along with Emery, had visited on Monday night. Joe’s parents had come the following night. Ida had made hot chocolate and popcorn both times, and she kept her eye on Verna lest her sister tire herself too much. But Verna seemed to know when she’d had enough activity. Both parents were also sensitive and had left at a decent hour—after one last round of exclamations over the little bundle.

Things had gone so well Ida could almost forget what faced her next. Verna and Joe’s joy had drawn her in like a cocoon and wrapped her in a glorious glow of love and expectation. Verna already talked of Sarah Mae’s first Sunday visit to the services and how the
boppli
would again be the center of attention. This was, after all, the first of Bishop Beiler’s girls to bring a child into the community. And through it all
Mamm
would glow like a lamp with the wick turned on high.

This was also Lois’s honeymoon week with her
Englisha
husband, Doug. The comparison of joy on the one hand and grief on the other was hard to fathom. How could Lois jet off to that Mexican city Lois had called Cancun? The place must be full of fancy things. Surely Lois knew this, and that’s why when she was home on her last visit she’d only whispered the information to Ida when
Mamm
couldn’t hear. None of the family had gone to the wedding. What a sight that must have been, with Lois in an
Englisha
white dress and a long, flowing veil. Lois hadn’t said exactly how she’d be dressed, but that’s how brides appeared in doctor offices’ magazines
in Mifflinburg. Ida knew that Lois loved all things
Englisha
, and she would certainly have copied the best.

There would be pictures of Lois’s wedding and of Cancun. Lois would have them in her car when she visited after the honeymoon. She’d come over to the house without Doug that first visit. That was a given. Would Lois dare bring pictures into the house? That would take a lot of nerve even for Lois. But if Lois did,
Mamm
would need to throw them right out on the porch. There was no question about that.

Maybe she could sneak a look sometime when she visited Lois in Selinsgrove. But that might never happen now that Lois was firmly
Englisha
. And as Minister Kanagy’s
frau
, visiting Lois might be even more difficult to explain. Bishop Beiler’s daughter might get away with such a thing, but not a minister’s
frau.
That was just the way things were. Lois was responsible for the choices she made, and she would have her new position as
frau
and
mamm
to consider.

Ida emptied the bath bowl into the sink as memories of Melvin’s children flooded her mind. How she’d loved all six of them. But she didn’t want hope to rise in her heart just yet. That was why she hadn’t allowed thoughts of Melvin’s children to enter her mind this week. It hadn’t been that difficult, surrounded as she was by the joy of Verna’s new
boppli.
But now the weekend lay ahead, and Minister Kanagy would surely pay her a visit before Sunday. He might even come tonight. He’d know she was at Verna’s place, and he’d also know a visit was necessary to plan the wedding.

She would keep the wedding small, Ida told herself. But she’d said the same thing about her planned wedding to Melvin, and
Mamm
had overridden her. They had been in the midst of plans for a wedding the size of Verna’s when news arrived of Melvin’s passing. The baked pies and purchased food items had already filled the basement. But this time there really would be a small wedding. No matter what
Mamm
said. But first she would have to tell
Mamm
that she
was going to wed. A whole week had gone by, and
Mamm
still didn’t know anything about Ida’s sort of engagement to Minister Kanagy.

Ida pinched herself. She was promised to Minister Kanagy! This was hard to believe, and yet it was true… just as true as when she’d consented to be Melvin’s
frau
. There had been no thrills or chills when they’d spoken last Sunday on the back porch. No butterflies raced around Ida’s stomach. But that didn’t matter. She hadn’t felt that way about Melvin at first. Now with Minister Kanagy they were both older and practical. Minister Kanagy needed a
frau
, and Ida wanted Melvin’s children as her own. The exchange was fair enough. She would make this plain to the minister when he visited. He would agree, and that would be the end of the matter.

Ida returned to the living room where Joe was still cooing over baby Sarah Mae. She left them again to prepare Verna’s bed for the night. In the bedroom, she stripped off the sheet and slipped on a fresh one. Wash day had been every other day this week with the amount of dirty diapers Sarah Mae created. The wash line filled with white cloth diapers had been a beautiful sight. They’d flapped in the wind as the day warmed. All the hard work involved with
kinner
contained many rewards.
Yah
, the gift to bring
kinner
into the world to serve
Da Hah
in their generation must be one of the greatest privileges allowed
Da Hah
’s people.

Ida looked out the window and caught sight of buggy lights turning into the driveway. That would be Minister Kanagy! She smiled. Already she had the man figured out, and she hadn’t even said the vows with him. Wasn’t that a
gut
sign?

Oh! Verna and Joe didn’t know about Minister Kanagy’s interest in her. They would be surprised, and they must be told right away. Ida raced back into the living room. She tripped over the edge of the couch, and barely stopped her fall in time with a quick grab of the sofa’s back.

Verna and Joe looked up in alarm. “Is something wrong, Ida?” Verna asked.

Her words rushed out. “Minister Kanagy’s coming for a visit. I don’t know for sure, but it’s possible he’s coming to see me. You see, he and I… we’ve been…oh!” Ida paused to catch her breath. “He may be here because we need to speak of our wedding.”

“Ida!” Verna reached over to grab her sister’s arm. “You’re speaking with Minister Kanagy this soon after his
frau
’s passing?”

At least Verna wasn’t objecting to Minister Kanagy, just to the timing. Ida hadn’t expected Verna to object though. Joe looked a little skeptical, but he didn’t say anything.