“Today, I shoveled her driveway again, and the walkway twice, and began working on cleaning the upstairs of her haus. But I’m only doing it so she will teach me to bake shoofly pie. I worked so hard the last two days, that we didn’t even have time to start the pie.”
Benjamin looked at her curiously. “Shoofly pie?”
“Jah, she was supposed to teach me to make it—for mei mamm’s bakery.”
“Your mamm has a bakery?”
“Jah—well, not anymore. She’s gone on to be with the Lord. But mei daed won’t let me reopen her bakery, so I thought that if I could surprise him with learning how to bake a pie he would give me a chance.”
Benjamin let loose the reins and allowed his horse to slow his gait through a patch of deep slush.
“It takes much more than learning to bake a pie to run a bakery. You have to be able to fill special orders, and have cake-decorating skills. Not to mention, having a wide variety of baked-goods. You can’t run a bakery with one kind of pie. You wouldn’t have many customers. Besides, the business aspect of running a bakery takes inventory and book-keeping skills.”
Bethany blew out a discouraging sigh. “How do you know so much about running a bakery?”
Benjamin chuckled. “I suppose it sounds pretty silly hearing about running a bakery from a mann, but in the off-season I help mei aenti run her bakery.”
Bethany’s ears perked up at the mention of his experience. “Nee, I’m impressed.”
“Danki. The women back in my community have spent a fair amount of years teasing me for it.”
Bethany wouldn’t dream of teasing him about it. She saw his experience as an opportunity to get her father to change his mind. But how was she going to convince Benjamin to help her? She had no money to pay his wages. Perhaps, he would consider doing it as a favor in exchange for the debt his sister owed her.
“How many years have you been baking?”
He gave the reins a gentle tug to keep his horse from splashing through the slush. “I’ve been working for her since I was about ten years old.”
Bethany smiled. “You have more than enough experience to teach me how to run mei mamm’s bakery. If I learn the whole business, mei daed will have to give me permission to open it back up.”
Benjamin scowled. “You mean you’re doing this behind your daed’s back?”
Bethany’s expression fell.
“Only until I can prove to him I can do the job. It’s only because he is so stubborn he won’t trust me.”
“I don’t blame him.”
“What?” Bethany squealed.
“I wouldn’t trust mei dochder if she was going behind mei back to do something I had forbidden her to do. It’s obvious you can’t do the job if you don’t even know how to bake shoofly pie. And I won’t help you deceive your vadder.”
Bethany turned to him, hoping she could change his mind, but his jaw clenched and his eyes remained forward as he halted the horse.
They’d reached her destination and the end of their conversation.
CHAPTER 8
“Why are you here?” Bethany asked impatiently.
“I gave you my word I’d drive you home,” Benjamin retorted. “Just because I don’t agree with your plan to ambush your vadder doesn’t mean I won’t keep my word to you.”
Bethany pursed her lips. If he wasn’t so adorable, she’d have walked home just to spite him. His disagreement with her plan had been a thorn in her side ever since yesterday. His harsh words had kept her awake most of the night, and all day she’d struggled to keep on task as she’d endured another long day of the widow’s torture.
All of it over shoofly pie.
Was it worth it?
Her first answer would be yes, but after a long day to think about what she’d gotten herself into, she was beginning to second-guess herself and her plan. It was more than a matter of pie. It was her future independence, and her ability to support herself when she became an unfortunate old maid, enduring the whispers of her peers behind her back. Some would be sympathetic, but most would likely agree with Benjamin.
Ah, Benjamin.
It would seem he was her only prospect of avoiding the painful reality of becoming an alte maedel—old maid. But even Benjamin had suddenly turned on her, as did the widow and her own father.
Was it possible that she just wasn’t meant to open her mother’s bakery? At this point, she didn’t care. She needed something to relate to her mother, and the bakery was what she wanted. Levinia, the only mother she’d really known, was now newly married, and that left Bethany all alone and full of regret.
Regret over her early rebellion.
Regret that she’d taken Levinia’s instruction for granted.
“Danki,” she said humbly as Benjamin assisted her into his buggy.
His horse whinnied, puffs of icy air rolling from his large nostrils as he seemed to protest the extra passenger. Though she was dainty, Bethany’s added weight would put an added strain on the gelding as he trudged through the slush and muck on the shoulder of the country road that would take her to her sister’s house.
“I don’t understand the unusually heavy snowfall we’ve had so far. Winter has barely just begun,” he said, breaking the awkward silence between them.
“Jah, it would have been a gut day to stay inside and bake a shoofly pie,” Bethany grumbled.
Benjamin chuckled. “She still won’t teach you?”
“Nee,” Bethany complained. “She has put conditions on my lessons every day. And each day so far, there has not been enough time for me to learn to bake after I finish all of her chores. Not to mention the fact that I’m too exhausted.”
“Perhaps the widow is pulling the wool over your eyes.”
“Jah, don’t think I haven’t considered that. I did ask her to keep mei vadder occupied while I worked on the bakery to get it cleaned up, but so far, he hasn’t been over there. I’ve been there working every day and haven’t seen him even once.”
“You are trying to pair your vadder with the widow?”
Bethany nodded.
“That is dishonest.”
I don’t remember asking you for your opinion.
“Don’t you think that if your vadder wanted to court the widow he’d have done it by now? Or at the very least, begun to court her on his own without your interference?”
Her face heated with anger. “He would never ask her if I left it up to him. He is lonely, and needs someone to care for him because I don’t want to be the one who has to.”
“That sounds selfish. Not everyone wants to be married,” Benjamin said sternly.
“Sure they do,” Bethany argued. “You don’t want to get married?”
Benjamin slighted his gaze at her and raised an eyebrow. “Not really. All of the women I have met are selfish—like you.”
Bethany fumed. Why was he insulting her? She hadn’t done anything to him. Unfortunately, her own sister had called her selfish recently, as did her sister’s new husband, Nate. Perhaps there was some truth to their statements, but Bethany was getting desperate to stay out of her father’s home—out of the sad reality of becoming an old maid.
It would seem it was to be her fate.
Even Benjamin didn’t like her.
It would seem the bakery was her only hope.
Benjamin slowed the horse as they came upon her father’s home. Turning into the lane, Bethany could feel sudden panic gripping her heart that beat heavy against her ribcage.
“Why are you pulling up to mei daed’s haus? I’m staying with mei schweschder, where you’ve dropped me off the past couple of days.”
“I think you need to go home,” he said sternly without looking at her.
Bethany blew out an angry breath. “That isn’t up to you to decide. You are not mei vadder.”
“Nee, I’m not. But someone needs to make you accountable for your actions. I think you should talk to your vadder and tell him of your plan before you begin it. Tell him the
deal you made on his behalf regarding the widow so he can decide for himself. I know I wouldn’t want someone pushing me into a relationship with someone I didn’t choose.”
“What does it matter?” she squealed. “You don’t plan on marrying, so why should my decisions about mei daed bother you? It doesn’t affect you or your decisions one way or the other.”
“It does affect me,” he said as he tugged hard on the reins to stop his horse.
Turning in his seat, Benjamin drew Bethany into his arms and pressed his lips against hers, his breath heaving passionately. Stunned by his sudden transformation, Bethany slowly succumbed to his kiss, clarifying her desire for him.
All too soon, the kiss had ended just as abruptly as it had begun.
“Go home,” he said, still delirious from her kiss. “Make things right with your vadder.”
Bethany stepped out of the buggy and into her father’s yard. Confusion clouded her mind. She could still feel the tingle of Benjamin’s lips against hers. It reached all the way to her toes, dizzying her. She stood there, unable to speak, as she watched his buggy pull away from her and head back toward the main road.
CHAPTER 9
Bethany shivered, suddenly realizing she hadn’t left the spot where Benjamin had dropped her off several minutes ago. She’d watched his buggy until he’d pulled out onto the main road, still in shock from the kiss he’d surprised her with. Her cheeks warmed just thinking about it.
“What are you doing here, dochder?”
Bethany jumped. She’d been so caught up with romantic thoughts of Benjamin that she hadn’t heard her father walk up behind her.
“I’m tired,” she said abruptly. “I’ve had a long day at work today, and tomorrow will be worse. I think I’m going to hit the hay early.”
“There is beef stew you can warm up if you’re hungry,” her father offered.
She whipped her head around at his comment, knowing her father could not make beef stew.
“It came from the widow Yoder,” he offered before she could question him.
Bethany merely nodded, glad to see that at least one of them was getting some benefit from the arrangement she’d made with the woman. Too tired to let it bother her anymore, she entered her father’s house through the kitchen and shuffled toward the gas stove.
Lifting the lid to the still-steaming pot of stew, Bethany leaned in toward the pot and sniffed. Her stomach grumbled from not eating most of the day. She hadn’t thought that the widow would deprive her during working hours, but she supposed the woman wasn’t obligated to feed her. Since Bethany wasn’t about to ask her, she opted to go hungry and work through the mid-afternoon meal. For this reason, she chose to eat the stew now rather than collapsing on her bed and sleeping like a rock.
She shuffled to the table with her bowl, noting the basket full of fresh biscuits in the center of the table. It would seem the widow was going all-out to win her father over. She wasn’t making any progress with Bethany, but perhaps tomorrow would be the day.
Her day.
The day she would finally learn to make shoofly pie.
****
“Wake up, dochder.”
Bethany felt her shoulder jiggle. She groaned as she opened her eyes a little, unable to focus in the dimly-lit room.
Where was she?
“You fell asleep in your stew,” her father said impatiently. “Go to bed.”
Bethany lifted her head slowly from the table. She hadn’t taken even one bite of the cold stew in front of her. She’d only laid her head down for a minute just to rest her eyes. How long had she slept there? She twisted and turned her stiff neck to loosen it up a little.
Her father turned up the flame of the gas lantern that hung above the table. If he was just coming in from his evening chores, then she would have likely just dozed off for a few minutes. But it felt much later than that.
Bethany glanced at the clock on the wall above the kitchen sink. It was ten o’clock!
“Where have you been, Daed?”
Jacob cleared his throat and averted her stare.
“I was out with the sleigh.”
Bethany’s eyes widened.
“With the widow Yoder?”
“That is none of your concern, dochder.”
That means you were, Daed. And with you busy with her, it won’t be long before that bakery is mine!
Jacob handed Bethany her suitcase.
Her heart sped up. “Where did you get that?”
“Benjamin went to Levinia’s haus to fetch it for you after he dropped you off earlier.”
Bethany felt embarrassment warm her cheeks. If her father had seen Benjamin drop her off earlier, then he’d witnessed the steamy kiss between them. Would he punish her for such brazen behavior?
“I stopped him at the end of the road and he asked me to give it to you,” her father went on. “He’s a smart young mann. He explained to me how he told you to return home—after I asked him why he’d brought you here, and why he’d fetched your suitcase from Levinia’s.”
Bethany was getting a little angry. “What else did he have to say?”
“He told me of your plans to open your mudder’s bakery.”
Bethany’s expression fell. Why had Benjamin thrown her to the wolves like that? He’d kissed her like he loved her, yet he’d betrayed her confidence. Now she would never have a chance to run her mamm’s bakery. Had Benjamin done it because he disapproved of Bethany’s scheming against her father and the Widow Yoder?
Whatever the reason, it was obvious Benjamin didn’t love her. How could he if he was so quick to betray her?
Bethany had no words for her father. Defeat filled her as she took her suitcase and headed toward the stairs. Now she was trapped in her father’s house—doomed to become a spinster.
“Get some sleep, Bethany,” her father called after her. “I expect to see you down at the bakery first thing after morning chores.”
She whipped her head around to face him. Had she heard him correctly?
“Go on now, I need you well-rested. We have a lot of work to do before you can open the doors for your first customer.”
Bethany giggled. Benjamin had come through after all. He hadn’t let her down. Somehow he’d been able to convince her father to let her open the bakery.
He did love her.
She felt giddy and in love all at the same time. Now, the only thing she had to worry about was learning how to make shoofly pie.
CHAPTER 10
Bethany shouldered out into the blizzard-like snowstorm, wishing she’d have been able to start her new project in the summer instead of the beginning of winter. At least she was grateful for her father’s help. After all, he was the one who built the bakery in the first place. She hoped it wouldn’t be too overwhelming for him to reopen the doors.
As she neared the end of the road, she noticed two buggies sitting in the small parking area. One of them looked like Benjamin’s buggy. She wondered what he would even be doing there. Perhaps that since it was Benjamin’s talk with her father that convinced him to let her open the business, he was there to help with some advice on how to get the place up and running.
Bethany stepped up onto the porch and walked cautiously through the door. It was odd to see the door without the boards that she’d grown so used to seeing. Her father had boarded it up only a few days after their mother had passed away, and it hadn’t been open since.
She could hear her father inside the kitchen talking to Benjamin and another man whose voice she didn’t recognize. Her intention was not to eavesdrop, but she just couldn’t help herself. After all, this was her new bakery, and whatever was being said should be her business too. At least that is how she justified her reason for listening in on the conversation taking place in the next room.
“By the time Ray finishes repairing the porch and the windows, the place should be ready to start accepting customers,” Benjamin was saying.
Ray? Did he mean Miriam’s husband?
“I’ll put in the initial order later today,” Benjamin continued. “So we can begin baking as early as Monday of next week.”
We? Why would Benjamin be ordering anything for my bakery?
Bethany was about to barge into the kitchen with all the fury of a grizzly bear when she overheard Benjamin thanking her father for hiring him to run the bakery.
Bethany choked back angry tears.
Why had her father hired Benjamin to run the bakery? This was supposed to be her bakery. But now it would be a thorn in her side. Benjamin had betrayed her just as she had originally thought. He’d secured himself a position in her bakery, and neither of them had even consulted her about it.
Bethany turned to leave, but was caught off-guard by Benjamin.
“There you are. We’ve been waiting for you,” he said cheerfully. “We were just discussing the ordering schedule.”
“I’m well aware of what you were discussing in there,” she said angrily. “I have just one question. Who put you in charge of ordering for my bakery?”
“I did, dochder,” Jacob said sternly. “I hired him yesterday after hearing of your scheming ways to get me to open your mamm’s bakery. Benjamin was kind enough to offer his experience since he’s helped to run his familye bakery for the past fifteen years.”
Bethany leered at Benjamin. “Jah, I’ll just bet he did.”
“That will be quite enough, dochder,” her father scolded her. “You have no experience, so I had no other choice but to put Benjamin in charge of the bakery.”
“You put him in charge?” Bethany squealed. “I don’t need to be watched over like I’m a boppli.”
“Nee, but you need instruction, and Benjamin has the experience to offer.”
“Never mind, Daed. I changed my mind. I don’t want the bakery anymore.”
Bethany stormed out of the bakery, tears catching in her throat. Wind and snow assaulted her as she headed back toward her father’s home, but Benjamin’s betrayal had insulted her.
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