by Lisa Jordan
Jonah, who’d lost his leg overseas while on embassy duty, chatted with Dad about canning tomatoes. Jonah’s wife, Vanessa, bagged zucchini for a customer.
Isabella pulled out a container of raspberry profiteroles with Chantilly cream and chocolate ganache and refilled her sampler tray. Of course, they weren’t as fresh as they had been when made this morning, but hopefully they would draw those interested in her catering services.
Although since Jake and Tori Holland’s wedding and Tucker’s generous investment, her calendar was filling with events faster than she had anticipated.
Yep, life was good.
The past eight months with Tucker, Livie and Landon had been better than she could have imagined.
“Izzie!”
At the sound of her name, Isabella turned, and a smile spread across her face.
She rounded the booth and held her arms out wide. Livie, dressed in a white T-shirt with a purple heart and a matching ruffled skirt, flew into her arms. Her high ponytail tickled Isabella’s nose. “Hey, punkin, what are you doing here? Did you drive Daddy’s car without him?”
“Oh, Izzie. You’re silly. I came with Daddy.” She pointed over her shoulder at Tucker about four feet behind. He held a dual leash with Meno and Dory in the lead.
At the sight of him, Isabella’s heart tumbled against her ribs.
He wore a long-sleeved button-down shirt cuffed to his elbows, exposing tanned muscular forearms. With his khaki shorts, he could have walked off the pages of an Eddie Bauer catalog.
To her, he looked perfect.
Behind him, Landon bounced between Chuck and Claudia, chattering about something.
Jake and Tori, hand in hand, paused at the Bee’s Knees booth. He wrapped a protective arm over her five-month baby bump while she sampled clover honey.
“Hey, you.” Tucker’s velvety voice dipped low, and he feathered a kiss across Isabella’s mouth.
“Hey, yourself.” She clasped her hands behind her back to keep from twining them around his neck and twirling her fingers in the curls at his nape.
“Got a minute?”
“For you, I have two.”
His lips tipped up as he placed his hands on her shoulders. Then he slid them slowly down her arms until he detached her hands from behind her back and slid his fingers between hers. “Bella...”
He paused as he lifted his blue eyes. The playfulness left only to be replaced with the same gentle expression he wore every time he told her he loved her.
He wore that expression often.
And each time her heart stilled as she tried to remind herself that was her new reality.
“Bella, the moment I walked across the farmers market last fall when we had our first date, I knew I was walking toward my future. You know from hanging out with us these last eight months, my life is chaotic at times with active twins and more dogs than one family needs, but I’m crazy about you, so we want to ask you something.” Releasing her hand, he nodded to Landon and Livie.
Landon grabbed Livie’s hand. “Come on, Livie.”
They stood in front of Isabella holding something behind their backs, took deep breaths, then spoke in loud unison. “Izzie, we love you.”
She knelt in front of them. “I love you, too.”
“We gotta ask you something.”
Her heart leaped. Not trusting her voice, she bit her lower lip and nodded.
They pulled cards out from behind their backs. Her eyes widened as she read the words.
Will You Marry Us?
Childish scrawl and drawn hearts and flowers released a flood of tears that trickled down her cheeks.
Tucker pulled a small box from his front pocket and opened it to reveal a diamond solitaire.
A sob shuddered in her chest.
“Why are you crying? This is happy stuff.” Landon gave her an eye roll and batted at the ground with his card. “Man, girls are so ’motional.”
She gathered the twins in her arms and kissed their cheeks. “These are happy tears, you goof.”
Landon wriggled out of her arms and scrubbed a hand across his cheek. “Gross.”
Laughter bubbled in her throat. She released Livie, then turned to Tucker, who lowered to one knee in front of her. “Isabella Bradley, I can’t promise our lives won’t be chaotic, but I promise no one will love you more than I do, and I want to spend the rest of our lives showing you just how much. Will you marry us?”
“Tucker Holland, I love you. We both know how hard life can be. I will marry you. The whole crazy, chaotic, beautiful package.”
The gathered crowd clapped and whistled, but she ignored them. Pulling Tucker to his feet, she cupped his face in her hands. “I’ve been waiting my whole life for you.”
“Yay!” Livie clapped her hands. “I’m so ’cited. Izzie’s going to be our new mommy.”
Mommy.
Her heart sang over the beauty of that name.
He pressed his forehead against hers. Capturing her hand, he slid the ring on her finger, cradled it against his chest. Then he wrapped her in the security of his embrace and spoke into her ear. “Before you walked back into my life, I was imprisoned in my grief, but you freed me, giving me the greatest gift—a second chance at happily-ever-after.”
Lowering his head, he kissed her breathless, sealing his words.
After being held captive to the fear that love only led to heartbreak, Tucker’s promise offered her what she needed most—a love redeemed.
* * *
If you loved this story,
pick up Love Inspired author Lisa Jordan’s
previous books set in Shelby Lake
Lakeside Sweethearts
Lakeside Redemption
Lakeside Romance
Season of Hope
Available now from Love Inspired!
Find more great reads at www.LoveInspired.com
Keep reading for an excerpt from Seeking Refuge by Lenora Worth.
Dear Reader,
When I introduced Tucker in Season of Hope, I knew he was someone who hid a lot of his pain but he continued to push forward to be there for others. His motto was “just keep swimming.”
When Tucker married Rayne, they expected to grow old together. But after a decade, their happily ever after had been cut short by tragedy. And suddenly Tucker was a single father.
Grief comes in many forms—death of a loved one, death of a relationship, death of a dream. It’s like a powerful fist that punches you in the chest, stealing your breath and makes you wonder how you will ever survive.
But through time, prayer, counsel and encouragement from those who have walked that road, you move through it, treasuring those memories you’ve created. And those memory triggers start to bring smiles instead of tears. Through it all, though, when we keep our eyes on God and our hand in His, He will guide us and fill in those cracked, broken places with His grace and mercy.
Friends, just know you are not alone. God is with you every step of the way. He feels your pain. And that pain won’t be wasted. It can draw you closer to Him if you allow it. In the midst of the darkness, He shines His light. He has a plan and purpose for your life and He wants you to call out to Him and seek Him with your whole heart.
Thank you for reading Tucker and Isabella’s story. I love to hear from my readers. Visit me at www.lisajordanbooks.com and email me at [email protected].
All my heart,
Lisa Jordan
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Seeking Refuge
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sp; Chapter One
The house across the footbridge looked less sinister and sad in the spring.
Josie Fisher sat on the bench near the grossmammi haus and wished she could forget the other home that stood stark white, empty and waiting, off in the distance. She’d grown up in that house, and each time she went near it, the memories tore through her like a thunderstorm.
But today, with the spring wind in the air and flowers blooming all around, Josie felt hope in her heart. The early daffodils and dandelions her sister-in-law, Raesha, had planted around the yard lifted their determined heads to the sun. The old oaks and red maples were lush with new leaves. The herb garden behind the main house was coming along nicely. She could almost smell the fresh mint and basil, the dill and oregano. Josie watched as a robin pecked at the grass near the hat shop. She and Naomi had planted sunflowers there. It would take a while for those to grow and bloom.
Turning her head to the sun, Josie remembered Naomi Bawell’s sage advice.
“Look at the sunflowers, Josie. See how they lift their faces toward the sky. They seek Gott’s love, same as we do.”
Josie loved Naomi Bawell and clung to her as if she was indeed Josie’s true grandmother. Naomi and Josie lived in the small grossmammi haus located behind the main house on the Bawell farm. Lived together and watched out for each other, as a grossmammi and kinder should. Josie felt safe there inside the solid walls with the tiny kitchen and living room, two bedrooms and a washroom in the back. A breezeway separated their apartment from the rambling main house where her brother, Josiah, lived with his wife, Raesha, and their six-month-old son, Daniel.
And with little Dinah.
Josie’s daughter by birth, but their daughter now to raise Amish. After they were married, they’d officially adopted Dinah.
Over two years ago, Josie had left three-month-old Dinah on the Bawell porch. Hard to believe that tiny baby girl was now walking and jabbering, her mischievous smile as bright as the sunshine.
You ran away and left your child. The voice that echoed inside her head made Josie look down at her dark blue tennis shoes.
But she is safe now and healthy and happy, and so are you. That voice made her look up again. Toward the sky.
“I did the right thing.”
Yes, she’d done the right thing after being attacked by an Englisch boy. She’d felt it necessary to leave her baby with someone who could love her and take care of her. The Bawells had always been kind to Josie when she was little and afraid.
Now she was an adult but still so horribly afraid. She rarely left the property except to attend church and occasionally go to the general store. She’d been ruined by a man who’d later done the same thing to an Englisch girl, and because that girl also had a powerful family, Drew Benington had stood trial and had been sent to jail. After that, another girl had come forward to testify. Josie’s friend Sarah had written to her about his arrest and the trial since they’d all known him. Sarah had no idea what had happened to Josie, but Josie’s relief after reading her friend’s letter had been short-lived. What if Drew tried to get in touch with her? How would she handle that?
Would she ever be able to truly rest and give up her guilt?
Drew didn’t believe he was the father of a little girl and had denied signing any papers to acknowledge that. He had given up any legal paternal rights.
Josie prayed she’d never see him again, and she thanked Gott that Dinah was safe and happy.
But on sweet warm afternoons such as this one, Josie longed for the arms of another man. The boy she’d left behind in her shame and misguided confusion.
Tobias.
“I will walk you home.”
He’d told her that the first day they’d met by a rocky stream that flowed down the mountain. By the time their walk home was over, Josie had a huge crush on Tobias Mast. After that, they had managed to find each other at singings and frolics. He had smiled at her the first time she went to a youth gathering after church.
Sitting across the table from each other after they’d sung lively hymns had soon become her favorite part of attending church. She knew she’d see Tobias there.
“I will drive you home.”
Drive her home in his buggy? That was a big step but one she cherished. It meant he wanted to court her.
“I will allow that,” she told him with a smile, her heart already lost to his beautiful deep blue eyes. His curling light brown hair always needed to be combed, but he smelled fresh and clean, like that mountain stream.
“I cleared it with one of the ministers and with your friend’s family,” he said. “Then next we will arrange for you to meet my daed and my bruder.”
Josiah had allowed her to come to Kentucky, hoping she’d find a suitable husband. Maybe she had. But she’d been mad at Josiah for so long she didn’t want to prove him right.
Yet she couldn’t resist Tobias. “We will?”
“Ja. And since you have a bruder back in Ohio, I will ask his permission to court you.”
“No,” she’d said, causing Tobias to frown. “I mean—my brother is not concerned about me. I make my own decisions.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“I am when it comes to you,” she’d replied, being the flirty girl she thought the world needed. While flirting worked with Tobias, he always respected her. She loved him for being considerate and cautious. She had loved him completely.
Now her heart ached with missing him, with remembering his sweet laughs and his kind nature. They had planned a future together in Kentucky. But that future had been shattered the night her whole world had shifted and changed forever.
With the scent of honeysuckle surrounding her and the warm wind moving over the fields and valleys of Campton Creek, Pennsylvania, Josie closed her eyes and wondered where Tobias was at this exact moment.
* * *
Tobias Mast paid the taxi driver and turned to stare up at the place where he’d reserved a room for the week. The Campton Center had been recommended to him as a place to stay while he conducted some business here. He’d heard the center, which used to be a private estate, now served as a source of help for the Amish who lived in Campton Creek.
When he’d researched Campton Creek, he’d found the center online at the library back in Orchard Mountain, Kentucky. Tobias had immediately called the Campton Center and explained that he was Amish and he was looking to settle in Campton Creek. A nice lady named Jewel had talked to him.
“If you need a doctor, lawyer, room and board, a safe haven, advice and help on anything, we will find someone for you. That’s what we’re here for.”
“I just need a place to stay for a while,” he’d explained. “I plan to buy a home with land in Campton Creek.”
“We have several places for sale,” the woman had told him. “I’ll print out the listings for you and have them ready when you arrive. There are some beautiful properties here.”
Now that Tobias had arrived from Kentucky, he wondered at his sanity. He’d come to Campton Creek not only to buy a house and land, but to find the woman who’d broken his heart.
Josie.
Closing his eyes, he remembered Josie’s beautiful brown eyes and her golden-brown hair. She’d broken his heart and he needed to find out why. Why had she left him two months before they were to be married?
He could never forget the first moment they’d met.
“Who are you?”
Tobias had turned from where he’d been fishing in a mountain spring that ran through the community. He saw her and smiled. Her dark hair shimmered a deep reddish gold in the spring sunshine. She wore a light blue dress and a white apron, her black cloak open since the spring day had warmed. Her black kapp sat squarely over her oval face, its strings dangling against her neck. Freckles danced across her nose.
He went back to his fishing. “Who is askin
g?”
“I’m Josephine Fisher. I came here from Ohio with my friend. I might stay here.”
He thought he heard a challenge in that declaration.
“Ja? Well, I’m Tobias Mast and I live here in Orchard Mountain. Why haven’t I seen you around?”
She twisted the loose black ribbon of her head cover. “I have only been here for two days. I decided to come on a walk by myself. The woods are so pretty.” She lifted her hand. “I love the wildflowers.”
Tobias threw out his line and glanced over at her. Mighty spunky to take off into the woods alone. “Don’t they have woods and wildflowers in Ohio?”
Her dark eyebrows lifted. “Of course. But I don’t like Ohio.”
Tobias gave up on the fish since talking to her seemed so much better. After they had sat on some rocks and chatted a while, he said, “I will walk you back home.”
“I didn’t ask you to do that.”
“I want to. I am headed that way.”
“Do you know the way to where I’m staying?”
“Not yet. But I will. Wilkum, Josephine Fisher.”
She’d given him a big smile that had enveloped his heart. “You can call me Josie. Everyone does.”
Josie. He’d fallen for her that day and he still loved her.
Now he’d tracked Josie back to the place where she’d grown up. They had been in love, so why had she left?
He needed answers. He’d stick around until he had them.
After his father’s death, Tobias had inherited the family land and home back in Kentucky, but with both his parents dead and his only sibling living in Indiana, he’d decided it was time for him to move on. He sold out and packed a bag the day he deposited the check. After wiring his brother half of the asking price, Tobias had set out for Pennsylvania. Because he was alone and hurting, Tobias only wanted to find Josie and get to the truth, something he’d put off to stay with his ailing father. He couldn’t move on with his life until he at least had the opportunity to confront her.