Never Far From Home (The Miller Family 2) (27 page)

“What are they?” Three voices chimed in unison.

“Train tickets. We’re going to sit back and watch the world go by.” He hooked his thumb at the passenger cars waiting on the tracks at the edge of downtown.

Sam and Sarah jumped eagerly to their feet, but Emma felt frightened. It was one thing to come to Sugar Creek for the festival. She’d been here with her aunt many times before. But it was quite another to get on a train and ride to parts unknown without telling her parents.

“I don’t know, James. I didn’t tell my folks I’d be traveling somewhere other than here,” she said.

James patted her shoulder. “Not to worry. This is just a scenic tourist train. We’ll go down to Baltic, turn around, and come right back. Will that be okay? If not, I’ll give our tickets away and we can watch more of the fair.”

Emma thought for a moment. She’d never been on a train. Since they really weren’t going anywhere, she didn’t see any harm. “Okay, but don’t forget that I must be home by ten.”

The two couples walked toward the train station and then stood in line to board. “I wouldn’t forget,” James said softly. “I plan on doing everything possible to get on your father’s good side.”

A pig has a better chance of learning to ride a bicycle
.

Once the train pulled out of Sugar Creek, a strange sense of wonder settled over Emma just as it had when she had been in the canoe. Towns, houses, and farms—all quite ordinary when observed from the road—were much more interesting when viewed from the train car. She loved peeking into strangers’ backyards and gardens. Even laundry hanging from clotheslines became curious discoveries. One untidy yard was a veritable junkyard of broken farm implements and tractors. Another home had an enchanted garden of gazebos, topiaries, and flower beds. Farm fields stretching to the hills rippled with a bounty of oats, corn, and hay. Soon the train rounded a bend and crossed a river on a wooden trestle bridge. When Emma peered into the deep valley below, she slid back from the window and bumped into James.

“Sorry,” she murmured. “I just realized I’m not fond of heights.”

“Other than heights, what do you think? How do you like traveling?” he asked, snaking an arm around the back of her seat.

Most likely, her face expressed her opinion better than words. “Oh, James, I love seeing the world like this. I’d like to ride all the way to California and see the ocean! I’ve never been anywhere other than Ohio and Pennsylvania.”

James took her hand. She didn’t pull it back. “I love you, Emma, and I want to marry you when I finish college. I hope you’ll wait for me, and that you’ll have me for a husband someday.” His face shone with delight.

Emma glanced over her shoulder. Sarah and Sam were absorbed in their own discovery of the backcountry of Tuscarawas County. “I love you too, James. And
jah
, I’ll be your wife.” Her mouth went dry after speaking the words. “I’ve got no problem with waiting. I’ve still got plenty to learn,” she added, remembering her younger sister was already a better cook and baker than she.

James leaned over to kiss her lightly and sweetly on the lips.

Emma slid back against the window glass. “You are so bold,” she said, hoping the other two were still distracted.

“I don’t mean to embarrass you, Emma. I just wish we were older, that’s all.”

Emma felt she might float up to the ceiling of the train car. “Me too,” she whispered hoarsely. She grinned so much her face muscles started to hurt.

“You’ll love living on Hollyhock Farm. You can move your flock in with mine.”

She shook her head. “It isn’t much of a flock.”

“It will be once we join the two together and babies start to come. We won’t sell off any spring lambs until we have a respectable number.” His fingers interlaced through hers. “And I’ll build us our own house on the property, any style you wish—low and rambling or tall and stately—four, no five bedrooms. Would you like that, Emma?”

She felt nervous energy run up her spine. “I don’t rightly know. Sounds like a lot of rooms to keep clean.” Maybe it was the motion of the train, along with the strange assortment of food she’d eaten, but something was churning her stomach.

James squeezed her hand. “Sorry. I’m throwing too much at you at once. We’ll have plenty of time to figure things out. For right now, you just think about where to go for our honeymoon trip—maybe California to see the Pacific Ocean, or we could hop on a jet to Paris or Rome. Wherever you like.”

“I’ll give it some thought,” she said, smiling. But truthfully, Emma was grateful when the train stopped to switch over in Baltic. They had reached their destination, and the engine at the other end would bring them back to Sugar Creek.

Emma tried concentrating on the scenery during the return trip. Thankfully, James talked about smaller topics than the rest of their lives. It was a lot to digest—too much for one afternoon. But her younger sister had been right about one thing: James automatically assumed she would turn English when they wed.

And that was another frightening thing to consider.

Yet in the back of her mind, a picture of herself in blue jeans and a sleeveless top riding in a train car to California started to grow.

W
ho-wee
, Sarah,” Sam Yoder said. “That was some kiss. I believe we’ve just witnessed something momentous.”

James and Emma immediately pulled back to a respectable distance. “It
is
a momentous occasion,” James declared. “Miss Emma Miller has agreed to be my wife.” James turned around just in time to catch a startled expression on Sarah’s face, but she managed to recover quickly.

“Best wishes,” Sarah said, placing a hand on Emma’s shoulder. “I take it we’re the first to hear the good news.”

“
Jah
, you are,” Emma said. “And for now, I’ll thank you not to tell anyone. We won’t be formally announcing our engagement yet.”

She sounded more frightened than James would have thought, but he reminded himself that she was only sixteen.

“Congratulations, Jamie!” Sam cried enthusiastically. “But why does this not surprise me? You’ve been acting strange ever since you met Emma, or at least stranger than usual. And you’ve been off the farm more times this summer than in the past two years put together.”

Everyone laughed, but Emma’s laughter sounded forced.

“Will your
daed
announce your engagement by Christmas?” Sarah asked. “Once the harvest is in and things settle down?”

Emma glanced back at her friend and then focused her attention out the window. “No, we’ll wait a little longer than that.”

“I’ve got college to finish before we get hitched,” James said, starting to doubt the wisdom of telling anybody their good news. He should have allowed Emma time to adjust to the idea.

Sarah stared at James in disbelief as the train clattered into Sugar Creek. “You expect an Amish gal to wait four years for you, James Davis?” She lifted an eyebrow with a mischievous grin.

“She’ll only be twenty years old, Miss Hostetler, not exactly a senior citizen.” James tried his best at indignation.

“Hmm,” Sarah taunted. “You better be nice to my girlfriend. I’m not sure if any fellow is worth that long a wait!”

“Hey, what about me?” Sam asked, pretending to be offended.

Sarah punched him in the arm. “Not by a long shot.” General tomfoolery ensued as the train braked to a screeching stop in the station. The foursome exited the train in high spirits—all but Emma, that is.

“Why are you talking about me like I’m not here?” Emma asked, sounding peeved. “I’m standing right in front of you.”

“Of course you are, sweet girl,” James said, slipping his arm around her waist. “We didn’t mean anything by it. We’re just having fun.”

Surprisingly, Emma didn’t shrug off his protective arm as they walked through the station and back to where the Swiss Cheese Festival continued in full swing. People strolled on the street carrying things they had either purchased or won from one of the midway booths. Music could still be heard coming from the pavilion. The sun, about to drop behind the western hills, bathed the streets of Sugar Creek in a magical, golden glow.

“I’m hungry again,” Sam announced to the utter amazement of the others. “Let’s get some bratwurst sandwiches.” He rubbed his stomach with a circular motion.

“Oh, my, not for me,” moaned Emma, looking stricken.

“We’ll wait for you over there,” James said as he pointed to an out-of-the-way grove of trees. A park bench sat temporarily unoccupied.

“I’ll stand in line with you,” Sarah said to Sam, “but I’m not eating another thing until tomorrow.” The two strolled toward the vendors.

James and Emma walked hand in hand away from the hubbub. They didn’t talk, but her head on his shoulder felt better than he could have imagined. “I’m glad you promised to wait for me, Emma, because Monday I move into the dorm on campus.”

“Your classes have already started?” she asked, her blue eyes flashing with alarm.

“Yeah. I’ve been commuting back and forth, but I’m getting behind on my homework. I promised my folks to take school seriously and study hard. So it’ll probably be a few weeks before I can come home for the weekend.”

Emma nodded while her smile vanished into an unreadable expression. She appeared to be giving his news serious thought. “You probably shouldn’t have told Sarah and Sam our plans…considering it’ll be a while before we marry.”

“Sorry. I’ll remind them again not to spill the beans when I drop them off. I just couldn’t stop myself. You made me the happiest man on earth when you said you loved me.”

She pivoted on the bench to face him. “I do love you, James, but I don’t see why we have to wait so long. Four years might as well be forever.”

He chuckled and then patted her hand. “You’re only sixteen. You would need your parents’ consent. Anyway, you’re too young to get married. Heck, I’m too young and I’m already eighteen. English people wait longer to get hitched.”

“But I’m not English; I’m Amish. And I don’t see why you need so much schooling to be a farmer. I would think your pa would’ve taught you plenty by now.” She stood up, straightened her
kapp
, and smoothed the wrinkles from her skirt.

“He has taught me plenty, but there’s always more to learn. You’ve got to compete with the big agri-corporations out there, or you’ll be put out of business.”

She arched one delicate blond eyebrow. “Oh? I don’t see many families in our district forced off their farms by foreclosure.”

James bit down on the inside of his mouth. Perhaps he should sign up for a class in diplomacy at OSU instead of crop rotation, because he sure could use it right now. “Sorry, Emma, but it’s different on English farms. Lots more stuff to worry about. That’s why I’m going to college.” He braced his boot against the tree trunk, and for a minute, became distracted by a monster truck leaving the parking lot. It made a ruckus spinning gravel as it changed gears. When he looked at Emma, she had covered her ears with both palms.

“My goodness. Hasn’t that man heard of a muffler?”

James grinned as he pulled her hands from her ears and kissed the back of her fingers.

She met his gaze. Her eyes looked cool and dark, like a deep pool far beneath a waterfall. “You’re going away for four years so you won’t have to worry so much about things?” she asked. “Seems to me you could save yourself time and your folks a lot of money by just turning to the Good Book. And maybe asking God for a little help.”

James marveled at the wisdom of someone so young without benefit of higher education. “You’re right. I can’t argue with that. The truth is I’m going to college to please my parents. It’s something they want me to do, and I want to respect that. Anyway, I doubt I’ll stay four years. Most likely I’ll cram the necessary courses into two.”

Emma leaned back against the bench. “All right, James. I can understand your wish to honor your parents. It’s the right thing to do. So you’ll understand when I need to honor mine at some point in the future.” One corner of her mouth turned down sadly.

James wanted to ask what she meant by that. He yearned to reassure her that two or even four years would pass quickly. Then they could announce their engagement and start planning a wedding, but Sam and Sarah had returned from the bratwurst booth.

Sarah was picking at a cone of purple cotton candy, while Sam chomped on a sausage sandwich covered with grilled onions and peppers. “You two don’t know what you’re missing,” he said, taking a huge bite.

James’ stomach lurched from the greasy smell.

“We’d better head for home,” Emma said. “We don’t know how the traffic will be leaving the festival, and I don’t want to be late.”

The two couples walked uptown to where they had parked the truck, seemingly a long time ago. Despite the fact that everyone was tired, Sam managed to keep the conversation lively all the way to Winesburg.

Emma, quiet and subdued, stared out the window, offering only occasional
jah
’s and noes to questions. James regretted making a promise to his mom and dad, and he felt even sorrier he wasn’t able to convince Emma of the wisdom in waiting until they were older.