Her Restless Heart (6 page)

Her grandmother walked in. "Well, this is a surprise. What are you doing here so early?"

"It didn't take long to walk over from Jamie's apartment."

Leah nodded. "But I told you that you could come in late if you wanted."

Mary Katherine shrugged and pushed the plate of cinnamon rolls across the table. "Have one. I stopped at the bakery on the way here. I didn't want to wake Jamie by fixing breakfast."

Truth was, when she went to store the leftover pizza the night before, she'd found Jamie's refrigerator contained several cups of yogurt and a paper container of food from a Chinese restaurant. There hadn't been anything to fix the kind of breakfast she was used to eating.

"Did you have a good evening?" her grandmother asked as she poured herself a cup of coffee and took a seat.

Mary Katherine nodded. "We had pizza and then watched a movie at Jamie's apartment."

"She doesn't live with her parents?"

"No. She's had her own place for about a year—since she moved out of her mom's house. She's putting herself through the community college."

Her grandmother broke off a piece of a cinnamon roll and tasted it. "Not bad."

"Not as good as Naomi's."

Leah smiled. "No."

Mary Katherine stirred her hot chocolate. "I'm spoiled. You won't let me cook at your house."

"I thought you got enough of that at your house. I wanted you to have a break from it so you could work on your weaving. Besides, I enjoy it." She frowned. "Maybe I'm not doing you a service. If you forget everything you know, you'll have to learn how to cook all over again when you get married."

"Hah! Like that's going to happen!"

Leah tilted her head and studied her. "You don't think God has a
mann
set aside for you?"

"If He has, He's taking a long time to show him to me."

"
Liebschen,
you're just twenty-two. Don't talk like you're an old
maedel."

Mary Katherine thought about seeing Jacob last night. He'd certainly grown to be a handsome man since they'd left school.

And he'd obviously found something attractive about her last night. Well, she could tell he'd been surprised at seeing how she was dressed . . . and wore her hair. Amish women wore their hair in a bun and covered by a
kapp.
Maybe he'd just been intrigued by seeing her hair. Most Amish men didn't see a woman's unbound hair unless she was his wife or girlfriend.

She brought herself back to the present. Her grandmother was regarding her, a puzzled frown creasing her forehead.

"What?" she asked.

"You seem a little troubled. Didn't you have fun last night? Did something happen?"

Mary Katherine shrugged. "Jamie's boyfriend was upset with her. He thought she was out on a double date."

"Why would he think that? Were the two of you out with men?" Then she shook her head and held up a hand. "Never mind. It's your business."

Mary Katherine appreciated her grandmother respecting her right to privacy during this time of getting to go out into the world and explore for herself before committing to baptism. She'd just had dinner with a friend, and Jacob and Ben had shown up and joined them. So she told her grandmother that.

"Jacob, eh? I remember him hanging around your house a lot," Leah said. "He even came over to see you at my house a couple of times."

"He was just a friend."

"I haven't seen him much lately."

"He's been busy taking care of the farm. He bought it from his parents."

Leah nodded. "I heard. I've also heard he hasn't married."

"No."

"He's a nice-looking man."

Mary Katherine nodded and tried to think of some way to change the direction her grandmother was headed in.

"Want some more coffee?"

"
Nee, danki.
So, if you two had supper together, does that mean you're interested in him?"

"You had dinner with a man? I thought you were going out with Jamie?"

Mary Katherine turned to see Anna standing in the doorway.

"I didn't hear you come in."

"You had dinner with a man? Who?" Anna asked. She put her purse in a cupboard and started taking off her coat and bonnet.

"Anna," her grandmother warned.

"It's okay," Mary Katherine said. "Jacob happened upon Jamie and me eating pizza, and she asked him if he wanted to join us and that was it." She finished her hot chocolate and got up to wash her mug.

"What was it?" Naomi asked as she walked in.

"Jacob and Mary Katherine had dinner last night," Anna told her as she helped herself to a cinnamon roll.

"I thought you were having supper with Jamie." Naomi put her purse away and hung her coat next to Anna's.

Mary Katherine rolled her eyes. "Did. Jacob came in the same restaurant. She asked him to join us. That was it." She paused. "Now if we're finished with the inquisition, I'm going out to work."

Leah chuckled. "Me, too."

Jacob walked his fields, his shoulders hunched against the chill wind.

Being outside, walking the land that had been tended by generations before him, always helped him think. The land didn't change.

But people surely did.

He'd never expected to come upon Mary Katherine dressed in
Englisch
clothes, sitting with a woman he'd never met, an
Englisch
woman whose clothes bordered on the strange.

Oh, he knew that Mary Katherine wasn't like most other Amish girls. She had daydreamed a lot when they were in
schul,
and often scribbled on a pad of paper when the teacher wasn't looking. But he'd seen that pad and it didn't have the kind of girlish ramblings on it like "I love Jacob" or spell out their name with one of the boy's last names attached.

No, she drew patterns for quilts and weaving projects and sketched woven caps and scarves and shawls and lengths that she pictured being worn over a woman's shoulders. Her scribbles were of names for these things—a stole?—and colors like emerald morning and cobalt sky and misty purple.

He frowned. Daniel had been the one to mention her work when they had eaten that day at the restaurant. That was something he had forgotten. Several months ago he'd noticed that she seemed happier, but he hadn't connected that to her working at her grandmother's shop. Well, of course she would, given her girlish interest in such things years ago.

Why hadn't he been the one who had mentioned it to her? he asked himself. Why had he let some other man look like he was sensitive and interested in her? Women loved that in a man. Even he, who hadn't had much to do with women—he certainly hadn't courted one yet.

While he didn't think anyone should pretend to be something other than he was—a sure way to disaster—he was interested in Mary Katherine and could have found a way to know more about her, to approach her, before this. Now Daniel was in town and he was clearly interested in Mary Katherine.

And she had seemed interested in him and where he lived.

He kicked at a clod of dirt. He'd probably blown it. At this moment, Daniel and Mary Katherine could be sitting together somewhere talking about Florida.

"Jacob!"

He jerked his head up and saw his sister Rebecca waving from the edge of the field. She held up a casserole in her hands, and he nodded his understanding. Supper was here! He started walking toward her.

Leaning down to give her cheek a quick kiss, he took the heavy casserole dish from her hands.

"
Gut-n-owed."

"
Gut-n-owed."

He sniffed at the contents. "Stuffed peppers?"

"
Ya."

"It's the best dish you make."

"You think so? You don't think my meatloaf is better?"

"Your meatloaf is wonderful. But to me, this is the best thing you make."

They climbed the stairs to the house, and she held the door open for him since his hands were occupied.

"So, what's your favorite dish that Linda makes?" she asked.

She tried to look casual, but Jacob knew better. The two of them had always been a little competitive in spirit. But as twins, they were the first to defend each other whenever necessary.

Jacob put the casserole in the oven, set the temperature on low, and turned around. He stroked his chin and thought about it. "Well, I think Linda's best dish is chicken and noodles."

Rebecca smirked. "I taught her how to make that."

"
Mamm
taught you how to make that."

"But I improved on it and taught it to Linda."

"Better not let her hear you say that."

"Linda?"

"No.
Mamm."

"But it's true. I make it better than her."

Jacob noticed that she looked over her shoulder as she said it. Laughing, he shook his head. "Yeah, better not let her hear you saying that."

Mamm
was sweet but firm and more than once had quietly walked up on them saying or doing something they shouldn't have.

He pulled a mug from the cupboard. "Do you have time for a cup of coffee?"

She glanced at the clock. "A quick one."

He poured it for her and gestured at a chair but she stood instead.

"So, have you been to town lately?" he asked, hoping he sounded casual.

"Haven't had time. Why?"

He shrugged and poured himself a cup of coffee. "I thought I'd make a run there next day or two. Pick up
Mamm's
birthday present."

Rebecca's eyes narrowed. "It's not for two weeks."

"Don't want to wait until the last minute."

She laughed and set her coffee down. "You always wait until the last minute for that sort of thing. A couple of times you'd have even forgotten if one of us hadn't reminded you."

Remembering how his timing with Mary Katherine hadn't gone so well, he set down his coffee. Suddenly it tasted bitter.

"Yes, well, maybe it's time to admit that my timing's been a little off in some things." He knew just where he was going to go for that present.

Maybe he'd get a second chance with Mary Katherine.

She put the back of her hand to his forehead. "Are you feeling
allrecht?"

He pulled her hand away. "I'm not one of your
kinner.
I'm fine." He kissed her hand to take away any possible sting from his words.

"I worry about you, baby brother. You're living alone here with no one to take care of you."

"I'm a man. I can take care of myself."

"
Schur.
That's why I just brought you supper. If I didn't, you wouldn't eat."

Stung, he stared at her. "I appreciate the meals but I'm not totally helpless in the kitchen, you know. I can cook."

"You've never cooked."

"Well, how hard can it be?"

Rebecca drew herself up. Her eyes flashed. "Maybe you should find out."

With that, she stomped toward the front door.

"Rebecca! Come back! I'm sorry! I just put my foot in my mouth!"

"Try some salt and pepper with it!" She shut the front door with a snap.

Jacob ran a hand through his hair. "What a
dumbkoff,"
he muttered.

First his mother. Now his sister.

What was he doing wrong with the women in his family lately?

Maybe if he was this inept, he should stay away from Mary Katherine so he didn't offend her when he approached her again. A guy had only so many chances with a woman. A single man, that is. At least, that's what he'd heard.

6

T
hat makes five," Mary Katherine said as the door to the shop closed.

"Hmm?" Leah looked up from her study of the day's receipts. "Five? Five what?"

"Every one of the Miller girls has stopped in to the shop this week."

"Really?"

"I don't think they've all visited in one month, let alone one week before, do you? Not even in the weeks before Christmas when we get a lot of women who like to make gifts for friends and family."

Setting her reading glasses aside, Leah tilted her head and regarded Mary Katherine. "So what are you saying?"

"I don't know. I just—well, it seems strange, that's all." She straightened the display table where Anna's adorable cupcake hats for babies were displayed. They were one of the most popular items in the shop.

"Jacob's mother came in, too."

Mary Katherine's hands stilled on the hats. "Really? When? I didn't see her."

"Yesterday, when you went to lunch with Anna. I didn't think anything of it at the time, but now that you mention it, she asked about you."

"Me? Why? What did she say?"

Leah gathered up her receipts. "She asked how you were doing." She paused and looked thoughtful.

"What?"

"Well, I didn't think anything of it at the time."

"What?" Mary Katherine put her hands on her hips and waited impatiently.

Smiling, Leah walked around the counter. "Well, she didn't ask about Naomi or Anna."

Mary Katherine stared at her grandmother as she walked to the back room. What was she supposed to think about that?

A customer walked in, an
Englisch
one, and smiled at her. Mary Katherine returned her smile.

"Can I help you with anything?"

"I'd like to browse a little if you don't mind."

"Of course. Let me know if I can be of any help," Mary Katherine told her.

A glance through the shop window showed few shoppers out. No wonder. It had been drizzling since early morning. Her grandmother and her cousins were doing inventory, leaving Mary Katherine in charge.

The woman walked around the shop, studying the quilts displayed on the walls, especially the collage quilt Mary Katherine had made.

Mary Katherine walked over to her loom and studied her pattern.

"Are you Mary Katherine?"

She looked up at the customer. "Yes."

"Jamie told me about you. Jamie Patterson. She said I should stop by your shop. I'm Allie Prentice, one of Jamie's college instructors."

She studied Mary Katherine's work on the loom. "This is lovely. Quite a creative use of pattern and color. Where did you learn to do this?"

"An aunt of mine taught me years ago."

"Could I get you to come in and talk to my class about your weaving?"

Shocked, Mary Katherine stared at her. "I—I wouldn't know what to say. I just . . . weave."

"And quilt," the woman said, gesturing at the collage quilt. "I love the images, the unusual quality to it. I haven't seen many examples of collage quilts. I'd like you to talk about both to my Fabric Arts class."

"Jamie let me see her textbook for that class," Mary Katherine said, excitement welling up in her. "It looks so interesting."

The woman smiled. "Why don't you come in and speak, and then you can observe the class a few times if you like?"

"Observe?"

"Sit in, see what we do. You don't have to pay. Or take the quizzes," she added with a smile.

Mary Katherine hesitated. "When is the class?"

"Ten to eleven a.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays." She pulled a business card from her purse and handed it to her. "Think about it and let me know what day is best for you. Oh, and I can send a driver to pick you up and bring you back."

She looked at the card in her hand, then at the woman. "I'll think about it and let you know."

"Great." The woman glanced at the clock on the wall. "Well, much as I'd like to browse for hours in here, I need to get back to campus. I have a ton of work to do."

Her grandmother came out a little while later. "Still quiet out here?" She peered at Mary Katherine. "You look a little flushed. Are you feeling
allrecht?"

She still didn't know what to think of the visitor who'd walked out the door just a few minutes ago. "Wait until you hear who came in."

"Not another Miller."

Mary Katherine laughed. "No." She told her grandmother about the professor and how she wanted her to speak to the class.

"I don't know why she thinks I have anything important to tell the students," Mary Katherine said.

"Will you hide your light beneath a bushel?" Leah asked her quietly. "Child, I know that we teach—we live—working at not being filled with
hochmut,
with pride. But it's not prideful to share yourself and what you know with others,
liebschen.
You're not bragging about yourself, about your God-given gift, are you?"

Mary Katherine shook her head. "Never."

"And I've never known you to be self-important. As a matter of fact—"

"What?"

Leah sighed and reached out to touch Mary Katherine's cheek. "I love my
bruder,
but he is not an easy man to be around. You've blossomed here."

Unbearably touched, Mary Katherine hugged her. "
Danki,"
she whispered. "I was miserable on the farm."

"It wasn't the farm, it was—"

Conversation ceased as Naomi and Anna entered. They stopped when they saw their grandmother embracing Mary Katherine.

"Is everything all right?" Naomi asked, looking concerned.

"It's fine," Leah rushed to say. She stepped back from Mary Katherine. "Why don't you tell them your news while I make us some tea?"

"News?" Anna grabbed Mary Katherine's hand and began leading her to the back room. She held up the bag she clutched in her other hand. "We got some more of those cinnamon rolls from the bakery. You can have the first one if you tell me your news."

"It's hardly big news," Mary Katherine said.

Anna stopped. "Does it have anything to do with the Miller family?"

Mary Katherine and her grandmother exchanged a look. "No. Why would it?" She followed Anna into the kitchen, eager to find out what she knew about the Miller family coming into the shop this week.

"They were in here a lot this week," Anna said as she got a plate from the cabinet and arranged the rolls on it.

"So of course, Anna's imagination is running wild," Naomi remarked. But there was no censure in her tone. "
Grossmudder,
sit down, I'll get the tea."

"
Danki,"
Leah said with a sigh as she sat. "It's been a long morning."

"You're sure there's no engagement in your future?" Anna persisted. She waved a roll under Mary Katherine's nose. "I can make you talk."

"That works on you, not Mary Katherine," Naomi said, frowning at Anna.

"True," said Anna, biting into the roll. Then, with a grin, she offered the plate of rolls to Mary Katherine.

"It would be kind of hard hiding an engagement from you, don't you think?" Mary Katherine pointed out as she chose a roll and passed the plate to her grandmother.

Naomi got mugs out, filled them with boiling water, and set one before each of them.

Mary Katherine chose a tea bag—peppermint tea, her winter favorite—and passed around a bowl filled with a selection of tea bags.

"So why do you think we all of a sudden had so many Millers in here, then?" Anna asked. "First Jacob and then all his sisters and his mother."

Naomi gave Mary Katherine a sympathetic look. "She's like a dog with a bone."

"I have no idea why they came. We did have a wonderful after-Christmas sale."

Anna stared at her for a long moment, and then she burst out laughing. "
Ya,
I'm sure that was it."

The shop door opened. Mary Katherine glanced out. "I'll take care of our customer."

"Did you see who it is?" Anna could be heard asking. "Maybe it's another Miller."

Mary Katherine shut the door behind her. "
Wie geht's,
Jacob," she said, smiling.

"My mother loved her gift."

He was struck again by that smile of hers. It had been worth the cold ride into town for that smile.

"I thought the thimble was for her birthday."

"I—decided to give it to her early." He felt the color creep up his neck. "So I need to get her something else."

He started to look away, and then he realized that she was struggling to hide her smile. "What?"

"What did you do?" she asked, covering her mouth with her hand. "You look so guilty."

"I do not!" he protested. Then, as she continued to look at him, he shrugged. "It just seemed like a good time to give her a gift. And you can't do enough for your
mamm,
do you think?"

He watched her smile fade and could have kicked himself. She'd never said much about either of her parents, but he didn't think they were as loving as his parents were. The Amish loved children, considered them a gift from God, but he had never seen any outward sign they appreciated Mary Katherine. Her grandmother, though . . . why she just adored Mary Katherine and her cousins.

"What I mean is, most boys really make life interesting for their mothers, don't you think?"

"I wouldn't know about boys," she said, sounding subdued. "But I don't remember you being like your brother."

"I had my moments." Few, admittedly, compared to his brother. But he wasn't about to tell Mary Katherine how he'd managed to get his mother and one of his sisters upset with him this week.

"I don't know what you want to spend, but I think your mother would really love this laptop quilting frame," she said, moving quickly to its display table. "She's looked at it quite a few times when she's been in, but like with the fancy thimble, she doesn't seem able to buy it for herself."

It was a bit pricey. But as he thought about what he'd said— how you couldn't do enough for your
mamm,
especially when she had lost her
mann
and worked so hard to raise her brood without complaining. Had he been guilty of taking her for granted the way his sister had said he'd done with them? He'd had a good year with his crops. Why shouldn't his
mamm
have the quilting frame?

"I think you're right," he said. "I'll take it."

She smiled again. "Shall I gift wrap it for you? There's no charge."

He nodded. "
Danki.
I think I'll look around a little more while you do that."

"If you need any gift suggestions for your sisters, just let me know. I saw them looking at a few things this week."

"You—what? When were they in?"

"Well, I can't tell you the exact days each of them was here. But they were all in this week. Even your mother."

He couldn't have moved if his life depended on it. All of them? Even his mother?

"I had no idea. Do they all come in often?" He got his feet moving and followed her to the front counter.

"No. That's why I thought it was kind of strange."

Jacob remembered how he'd blurted out that he was thinking of someone when they were nagging him about finding a wife. As he'd left that day, he'd overheard his sister ask his mother about the thimble.

So she'd obviously put two and two together and come up with five. So all of them had waltzed in here to see what they could find out. Since Mary Katherine was acting so casual, he figured his mother and sisters hadn't said anything to let her know what he'd said. Most Amish couples—not that Mary Katherine and he were a couple—kept their relationship, their dating—quiet until they were engaged, so even if they
had
been thinking about more he doubted any of them would get anything from Mary Katherine, anyway.

He watched her tear a piece of wrapping paper from a big roll behind the counter. She put the box on top of it on the counter and began covering it with the paper.

"Here, give me your hand."

Jacob held it out, not sure what she was after. She placed it on top of the paper to hold it closed, pulled a length of tape from a dispenser, and sealed the seam, doing the same with each end. His fingers tingled at the contact. He shoved them inside his pocket and tried not to let her know that her touch had affected him.

"
Danki,"
she said.

"
Wilkuum."

She added a premade bow and set aside the package. When she looked at him, he realized she was waiting for payment. He counted out the bills and watched her write up his receipt.

Books displayed on a shelf nearby caught his eye. He wandered over to look at them when he realized that they were spiral-bound cookbooks by a local Amish author.

What could be better than a cookbook with authentic recipes for the kind of food he loved? As he flipped through the pages of the book, he saw recipes that didn't look so hard to make. He hoped.

"I'll take this, too," he said, pulling out his wallet. It was already feeling a good deal lighter.

"One of my grandmother's friends wrote that," she said, taking the money, making change, and then adding it to the receipt. "Who's the gift for?"