Plain Promise (3 page)

Please God
, she prayed silently,
bless me with companionship as I go
forth in life to serve You.

The ground was solid beneath Sadie’s feet as she walked toward the shop, with no new snow since the heavy downfall yesterday afternoon. She wondered if the snow would keep tourists away, but it was Saturday. At least a few customers would rough out the weather. Today’s schedule called for Sadie and Katie Ann to work, since Lillian and her mother had worked the shop yesterday. But Katie Ann was down with the flu, and Sadie declined Mary Ellen’s help. There wasn’t enough going on this time of year to require two women to run the shop. Sadie knew she could handle it on her own. Besides, Mary Ellen had a family to tend to. She, on the other hand, did not.

It was nearing eight o’clock when she lit the heaters and drew the blinds in the shop. Her day had started early that morning. She’d made another large batch of tapioca pudding, thinking her guest might have been requesting more when he left the empty container outside. It was no trouble. She also baked two loaves of bread for an elderly friend down the street, Lizzie Esh. Lizzie suffered with arthritis and had difficulty cooking these days, particularly considering the effort it took to repeatedly knead dough. She planned to run the bread to Lizzie after she closed the shop in the late afternoon.

The container of pudding sat next to her, and she peered out of the back window toward the guesthouse. One light appeared to be on. With her winter cape, bonnet, and boots still on, she decided she’d leave Mr. Saunders’s pudding on his porch. Surely he’d come out soon for firewood and see it before it froze.

She was grateful for a pleasantly warmer day, approaching thirty degrees. Nearing the cottage, she saw that Mr. Saunders still had plenty of firewood stacked on the porch, which reminded her that she would need to cart some to the farmhouse for later. Then she heard the music.

Evidently he was awake. She plodded slowly across the yard and stopped at the bottom of the steps. A woman’s voice belted loudly above an assortment of instruments. Sadie loved to sing and wondered what it would be like to sing along with actual instruments, something that would never be allowed in her district. Owning an instrument was said to bring forth unnecessary emotions.

This is like spying
, she thought, as she held her position, beginning to hum to the rhythm.
Just a little longer.
How could owning an instrument that produced such beautiful sounds be wrong in the eyes of God?

Finally, she placed the plastic container with the tapioca pudding on a small table between two rockers. She turned to leave but hadn’t even made it to the steps when the cottage door swung open.

Sadie spun around. Stunned, she faced Kade Saunders standing in the threshold. A flush rose from her neck, accompanied by a knot in her throat as she gulped back her embarrassment. The man was wearing what appeared to be pajama bottoms. He was barefoot, and he didn’t have a shirt on. She instinctively threw her hands over her eyes, gasping, but unable to move.

“Wait right here.” Kade held his palm toward her and backed into the house.

No problem. She couldn’t move. She widened her fingers on one hand to have a peek. He stood in the living area, pulling a white sweatshirt over his head as if sensing her embarrassment at seeing him in such a way. The flush had overtaken her face, she was quite sure. She brought her hands down and began nervously twisting the ties on her black cape.
Pajama bottoms, for goodness’ sake.

When he returned to the door, she stammered, “I . . . I brought you some tapioca pudding.”

Kade walked toward her, still barefoot. “Thank you. That was the best tapioca pudding I’ve ever had.”

His shoulder brushed hers as he whisked by her to retrieve it. Her feet were rooted in place when he came back her way; then he stood uncomfortably close to her, facing her. He put one hand on his hip and tucked the pudding container against his side with the other hand. “Do you want to come in?”

“No. I do not.” She wished right away that she hadn’t sounded so shocked by his offer. He wasn’t smiling, but at least he didn’t have the irritated look on his face like he did the first day of his arrival. “Okay,” he said, then shrugged. “Suit yourself.” He turned to head back into the cottage.

Finally, she was able to move her legs and turned to head down the steps, promising herself she would never come back to the cottage until time to deliver more groceries, which she quickly calculated wasn’t for another three days.

“Hey,” he called out to her.

She had only taken four or five steps into the snow when she was forced to turn around and acknowledge him. “
Ya
?”

“What’s your name?”

“Sadie.” She offered a brief smile before turning back around.

“Hey, Sadie?”

Again she turned around. “
Ya
?”

“If you like listening to the music so much, why don’t you knock on the door and come in out of the cold next time?” he said. “You don’t have to loiter on the front porch.”

If only the earth would open up and swallow me
, she thought.

“No, no,” she mumbled. She gave him a quick wave and began stepping backwards.

She remembered falling. She wasn’t sure what she tripped over, but as her legs buckled beneath her, she hit her head on the icy ground.

Sprawled out on her back, she recalled the image of Kade Saunders bolting barefoot across the snow.

2

'GOOD GRIEF!' KADE SPRINTED DOWN THE STEPS, THE frozen ground beneath his feet stinging his soles, a thought that quickly became secondary when he saw splatters of blood around the Amish woman’s head
. Oh, man.

He cradled his hand behind her neck and lifted her head. Not too much blood. But she was out cold. Kade lifted her into his arms in a clumsy, ridiculous way that he was sure would be uncomfortable for her if she had been conscious. His feet were numbing so much that he worried he’d fall with her in his arms. She wasn’t fully in his grasp. Her left leg hung loose, her black boot dragging across the snow. Not his most heroic moment.

The icy steps proved challenging. He quickly gave up any hope for gracefulness as Sadie’s left calf bounced off of each step. He cringed with each cumbersome movement, his feet practically anesthetized by the slick coldness beneath them.

The central heating from the cottage hit him while he was still on the porch and gave him the extra push to get inside. He wound around the coffee table and laid her on the couch. Kade propped a throw pillow behind her head and wondered if she’d be angry that he let her bleed on her own couch. He’d worry about that later. He wasn’t sure Amish people got angry anyway. Kade crouched beside her and gently lifted her head. He fumbled with the string on her white cap, then gently pushed it aside. Strands of red hair escaped, making it difficult for him to see the wound.

Her blue eyes opened wide. “
Ach!
” she screamed, then pushed his hand away. He was startled, but not half as spooked as she was. Then with the power of an army, she thrust her hands against his chest and pushed him to a standing position. When she stood up, a round of dialect unbeknown to Kade followed.

I think she’s angry
, Kade thought, without a clue about what she was saying.

He stumbled backward. “Hey, hold up, lady. You had a nasty fall, and I rescued you.” If you could call it that. She probably had a pretty banged-up shin that she didn’t have before.

She was on her feet and scurrying toward the door, trying desperately to tuck her hair beneath the white cap on her head. Kade would’ve never known her hair was so long, hidden beneath the cap on her head. Now several strands cascaded below her shoulders almost to her waist, wavy and full.

Kade thought he saw tears in her eyes. “Wait,” he said. “You banged your head pretty good. Maybe
—
”

She swung the door open, never looked back, and was gone.

Sadie’s head throbbed, and she weaved from side to side across the snow. She made her way inside the shop, then reached up and touched a gooey mess on the back of her head.
Blood
.

The recollection of Kade Saunders leaning over her in a most inappropriate way was much worse than the pain she was in. She winced as she recalled the horror and embarrassment of it all.

She should’ve never agreed to lease to a single man from the city. He’d come to the door in long, flannel pajama breeches—with no shirt on.
Most improper, indeed.

She was surprised to see Jonas Miller standing outside her shop. What in the world was Lillian’s grandfather doing here, especially in his condition? He’d had the cancer for some time now and didn’t get out so much as Sadie knew. Plus, it was a frigid day for a ride in the buggy. Sadie’s eyes darted to Jessie. Jonas had had that old horse for as long as she’d known him.

Lillian
. Was something wrong with Lillian?

“Jonas, what brings you out here on a day like this? Everything is all right, no?” She wiped her bloody hand on her apron.

“Is that blood?” Jonas pushed back the rim of his straw hat, squinted his eyes, and walked over to Sadie. He lifted her hand.

“That’s blood for sure.” He dropped her hand, stroked his beard, and scanned her from head to toe. “Where are you hurt, child?”

“
Mei
head.” She pointed to a spot beneath her prayer covering, which was absorbing the slow trickle of blood. “I slipped earlier.”

Jonas tilted her head to the side, pulled back her
kapp
, and looked intently at her wound, his touch causing her to flinch. “I reckon you’ll live,” he said matter-of-factly, then stepped back from her.

That’s it? I’ll live?

Lillian’s grandfather had a way with words—and people—that wasn’t reflective of most Amish men she knew. Everyone loved Jonas, but you never knew what might come out of his mouth. And knowing that to be true, her heart skipped a beat when she noticed Kade awkwardly making his way across the snow. At least he was sporting some running shoes, but didn’t the man own any boots? And he wore no jacket, only the sweatshirt he’d hastily thrown on.

“Who’s the fancy fella comin’ across the yard like he ain’t got a lick a sense?”

“Kade Saunders. He’s renting the cottage for three months.” Sadie felt her heart quicken as she saw Jonas eyeing him with suspicion.

“Three months?” Jonas twisted his mouth to one side and narrowed his brows. “He rentin’ it all by himself, or he got a
fraa
and
kinner
with him?”

“No. It’s just him.”

They stood silently as Kade came within listening space.
Please, Jonas . . . be good.

“I wanted to make sure you were all right,” he said to Sadie. Sadie nodded and opened her mouth to speak. She supposed she should thank him for not letting her lie in the snow and freeze to death, no matter the awkwardness of the situation.

“She’s mighty fine,” Jonas interjected. “What brings a man like you to Lancaster County for three months in this
kalt wedder
? You runnin’ from something?” Jonas stared the man down.

Sadie warmly reflected that if her father was alive, he would have the same question for a man traveling alone, especially a man Kade’s age. Sadie figured him to be in his mid to late thirties.

“No . . . I’m not running from anything. I just . . .” Kade looked bewildered by the question.

Jonas stood a little taller. “I come by every day to check on Sadie.”

Jonas, that is far from the truth
. Sadie arched her brows and shot Jonas an inquisitive look.

“Just so ya know,” Jonas added. He didn’t take his eyes off of Kade.

Bless his kind heart.
Sadie knew Jonas wouldn’t be any good to protect her, even if Kade were a threat to her, which she doubted.

Kade folded his arms across his chest, shivered a bit, and smiled. He seemed amused at Jonas’s display of chivalry. His dark hair was neatly parted to one side with a hint of gray at the temples. Sadie thought he looked very formal, until he smiled. His teeth were straight and white, but his smile crooked up on one side. It made him look nicer somehow.

But the smile was short-lived. “As long as you’re okay.” He held up his hand to bid farewell and turned to leave.

“Mr. Saunders?” Sadie realized she’d probably overreacted when she awoke on the couch. But it was so disturbing—his face so close to hers, his hands in her hair.

He turned around. “Yeah?”

“Uh,
danki
for helping me when I fell.”

“You’re welcome.” He didn’t smile. Whatever warmth she thought she saw earlier—gone. He was a strange man, that Kade Saunders. Seemed like an unhappy man.

Jonas kept a scowl stretched across his face as he watched Kade walk across the snow. When Kade was out of earshot, Jonas said, “Sadie, I don’t know if it’s
gut
for you to be out here alone with only him on the property.”

“I’m sure he is of no harm, Jonas. The lady who made his arrangements said he has
gut
references.” She paused. “I think he might be
somebody
. You know, like famous or rich.”