the STRUGGLE (29 page)

Another buggy was coming from the opposite direction. As it drew closer, she realized it belonged to Titus and Suzanne. They must have known she was in trouble, for as soon as they passed, Titus whipped his rig around and came up behind Hannah’s buggy. A few minutes later, his horse came alongside hers. Grateful for the help, but fearful a car might come and hit Titus’s buggy, all Hannah could do was cling to the reins and pray.

Titus’s horse was moving fast, and he managed to pass and move directly in front of Hannah’s horse and buggy. Hannah knew if Dusty kept running he’d smack into the back of Titus’s rig, but thankfully, the horse slowed down. When Titus pulled over to the side of the road, she was able to pull in behind him. Titus then handed Suzanne the reins, hopped out of his rig, and came around to Hannah’s buggy. “Are you okay?” he asked with a worried expression.

Out of breath and barely able to speak, she nodded and said, “Dusty got away from me, and I couldn’t slow him down.”

“Well, slide on over and let me take the reins,” Titus said. “I’ll drive your horse and buggy, and Suzanne can follow us in my rig.”

“Danki. I appreciate your help so much,” Hannah said, blinking back tears and grateful that nothing serious had happened—especially since she had Mindy with her.

“Where were you heading?”

“I was going to visit Bonnie, but I’ve changed my mind. I just want to go home.”

Titus climbed into the buggy and took a seat beside Hannah. Then glancing into the backseat, where Mindy was still crying, he said, “It’s okay, Mindy. Everything’s gonna be fine.”

Hannah was so relieved that Titus had come along and taken control of Timothy’s horse. One thing she knew for sure: she’d never take Dusty out again by herself!

Esther’s heart raced as she neared Samuel’s house. Rather than taking the time to hitch her horse to the buggy, she’d ridden over on her scooter. Since Samuel’s place wasn’t far from Bonnie’s, it hadn’t taken her long to get there.

Esther parked the scooter near the porch and hurried up the steps. Just then the door opened and Samuel, as well as all four of his children, rushed out to greet her.

Samuel gave Esther a hug. “It sure is good to see you!”

She smiled. “It’s good to see all of you, too.”

The children began talking at once, asking Esther questions and vying for her attention.

“All right now,” Samuel finally said, “you can visit more with Esther later on. Right now I’d like some time to visit with her alone. Why don’t you all go to the kitchen and eat a snack? There’s some cheese and apple slices in the refrigerator.”

“I’m not hungerich.” Penny pointed to her stomach. “My silo’s still full from lunch.”

“So your silo’s still full, is it? Didn’t know my little maedel had a silo right there.” Samuel gave Penny’s stomach a couple of pats; then he leaned his head back, and the sound of his laughter seemed to bounce off the porch ceiling.

Esther and the children laughed, too. It was good to be back with Samuel and his family. She’d missed them all so much. These children had become like her own, and she couldn’t wait to become their stepmother.

When the laughter subsided, the children gave Esther another hug and bounded into the house.

As Esther and Samuel sat on the porch visiting, she studied the man with whom she’d fallen so hopelessly in love. Samuel’s light brown hair, streaked with gold from the sun, was thick and healthy-looking. His dark brown eyes, so sincere, spoke of his love for her.

“Now that you’re back,” Samuel said, reaching for Esther’s hand, “can we set a date for our wedding?”

She smiled. “I’d like that.”

“How about next month?”

Esther shook her head. “Oh Samuel, as much as I would like that, it’s just a bit too soon. I’ll need some time to make my wedding dress, and with Bonnie and Allen getting married soon, and then going on a two-week honeymoon, I’ll also need to help at the B&B. Could we get married the last Tuesday in June?”

“I’d sure like it to be sooner, but I guess June isn’t that far off,” he said.

“No, it’s not, and we do need to give our folks some advance notice so they can plan for the trip.” Esther’s face sobered. “I hope Mom and Dad will be able to come. With my brother not doing well, they may feel that they can’t leave Sarah to care for him on her own.”

“I’m sure they can get someone else to help with Dan’s care for a few days,” Samuel said. “I don’t think your parents would miss your wedding.”

“I hope not. I’d really like to have them here.”

“Speaking of your parents, maybe when they come for the wedding I can ask about buying this house. I’ve appreciated being able to rent the place from them, but I’d really like to have a house I can call my own.”

Esther nodded. “It’s good that you mentioned it, because that topic came up while I was in Pennsylvania. Mom and Dad said they’d be willing to sell the house to us for a reasonable price, and I’m sure Dad will discuss the details with you soon.”

Samuel grinned. “Now, that’s good news!”

“There’s something else we need to discuss,” Esther said.

“What’s that?”

“I was wondering if you’d like me to quit my job at the B&B after we’re married.”

Samuel pulled his fingers through the ends of his beard and sat quietly as he contemplated her question. Finally, he smiled and said, “It’s really your decision, but if it were left up to me, you’d quit working for Bonnie and be a full-time wife and mother.”

“I feel that way, too,” Esther said. “And I think Trisha might be willing to stay on and keep working for Bonnie. She seems really happy there. In fact, if she agrees, then I can quit even before we get married.”

“That’s good to hear. Sounds like it will all work out.”

“As I said, I’ll need to help out at the B&B while Bonnie and Allen are on their honeymoon. If things get busy, Trisha will need some help.”

“That’s fine with me.” Samuel smiled widely. “I can’t wait to share the news with my family that you and I will be getting married in June.”

C
HAPTER
36

A
re you getting nervous yet?” Trisha asked when Bonnie came down to breakfast two days before her wedding.

Bonnie nodded. “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t.”

“I understand. My stomach was tied in knots for two full weeks before my wedding.”

“I think I’ll feel better once I get busy around here. Since Allen and I will be going to Nashville tomorrow to pick up my dad and his folks at the airport, I need to get as much done today as I can in preparation for the reception.”

“I’ll do everything I can to help, and don’t forget, Esther will be coming over.”

“I’m sure Dad and Allen’s folks will help when they get here, too.” Bonnie opened the refrigerator and took out a boiled egg. “Guess I’d better hurry and eat so I can get going.”

“You’d better have something more than an egg to eat, or you’ll run out of steam before you even get started.” Trisha placed a plate of toast on the table and poured Bonnie a glass of orange juice and a cup of coffee.

“Thanks.” Bonnie smiled. “You certainly do take good care of me.”

A lump formed in Trisha’s throat. “You’ve become very special to me, and it gives me pleasure to do things for you.”

“You’re special to me, too,” Bonnie said as she took a seat at the table. “Are you going to join me for breakfast?”

“I already ate, but I’ll have a second cup of coffee and visit while you eat.”

After Trisha joined her at the table, Bonnie said a prayer, thanking God for the food and for her and Trisha’s friendship. When the prayer ended, she reached for a piece of toast and spread some strawberry jam on top. “Are you sure you can manage on your own for the two weeks Allen and I will be in Hawaii?” she asked Trisha.

“Esther will be helping as much as she can, so between the two of us, we’ll manage just fine.”

Bonnie placed her hand on Trisha’s arm. “I’m so glad you’ve decided to stay here permanently.”

“I’m happy about it, too; although some of my friends in California weren’t too thrilled when I called and gave them the news.”

“I’m sure that’s only because they’re going to miss you and had hoped you might be returning to California soon.”

“I suppose.” Trisha pursed her lips. “I just hope your dad won’t mind when he hears the news.”

“Why would he mind?”

Trisha shrugged. “He might not like the idea of his ex-girlfriend working for his daughter.”

“Dad already knows you’re working for me, and he hasn’t said anything negative about it.”

“He may not have said anything to you, but when I spoke to him on the phone the last time, he made it pretty clear that he wasn’t thrilled about me being here.” Trisha’s forehead wrinkled. “He probably didn’t say anything to you because he assumed my working at the B&B was temporary. He may have figured by the time he came here for your wedding, I’d be long gone.”

“I think you’re worried for nothing. I’ll bet when Dad gets here he won’t say a negative thing about you working for me.” Bonnie gave Trisha’s arm a little pat. “Now, I’d better finish my breakfast, because this is going to be a very long day.”

The slanting afternoon sun glared in Hannah’s face as she gripped the hoe and chopped at the weeds threatening to overtake her garden. Weeding was no fun, but it needed to be done. She’d planted several things a few weeks ago, and already the weeds looked healthier than the plants coming up. Maybe what they needed was more water. They’d had a dry spring so far, and Hannah had to water her vegetable garden, as well as the flowers she’d planted close to the house, by hand. Oh how she wished they would get some much-needed rain.

Mo-o-o! Mo-o-o!
A brown-and-white cow in their neighbor’s pasture peered across the fence at Hannah with gentle-looking eyes but a forlorn expression that matched Hannah’s mood. She would much rather be doing something else, but if she didn’t stay on top of the weeds, she wouldn’t have any homegrown food to can in the fall.

Of course
, she thought ruefully,
all the homegrown food in the world won’t stave off the loneliness I’ve often felt since we moved to Kentucky
. In Pennsylvania she’d had some friends, and Hannah’s mother had always been available whenever she’d needed help.
If Mom were here right now, she’d be helping me with the weeding
.

Hannah knew she should quit dwelling on the same old thing. After all, she was making some new friends here in Kentucky, and things had been a little better between her and Timothy since they’d moved into their new home.

Hannah’s thoughts were halted when she heard buzzing to her left. Three hummingbirds fluttered around the glass feeder she’d hung on a shepherd’s hook in one of her flower beds. It was always fun to watch the tiny birds skitter back and forth between the trees and the feeder. If more hummingbirds came, she’d need to put up a second feeder.

Just then the van belonging to Timothy’s driver came up the lane. Hannah smiled. Timothy was home early today. Maybe he’d get those screens put in the window like he kept promising to do. Or maybe they could spend some time together this afternoon and do something fun with Mindy.

After Timothy told his driver good-bye, he joined Hannah by the garden. “Looks like you’ve been busy,” he said.

She nodded. “It’s a lot of work to keep up a garden.”

“Jah, but it’ll be worth it when we have fresh produce to put on the table, not to mention whatever you’re able to can for our use during the winter months.”

“I’m surprised to see you back so early,” she said, changing the subject.

“Samuel and I finished our job in Clarksville sooner than we thought, and he figured it was too late in the day to start something else, so he said I should go home.”

“I hope you won’t have to work this coming Saturday,” Hannah said. “It’s Bonnie and Allen’s wedding day, remember?”

“Don’t worry. Neither Samuel nor I will be working that day, and Titus won’t be working at the woodshop either, so we’ll all be free to go to the wedding.”

“I’ve never been to an English wedding,” Hannah said. “I wonder what it’ll be like.”