Like a Bee to Honey

by Jennifer Beckstrand

  “Will you read the one about the wolf?”

  “Jah. Take a bath first.”

  Rose filled the tub and washed the boys while she heard dishes and pans clattering in the kitchen. How many young men would babysit and do the dishes?

  Rose helped Aaron out of the tub first and cuddled him in his fluffy towel. She dried his hair and put on his diaper. After draining the tub, she lifted Alvin into a towel, giving him a warm hug. He wiggled his arms out of his towel and hugged her back. “I love you,” he said and planted a kiss on her cheek.

  “I love you too,” she said and kissed him right back.

  Rose looked out the window again. It was almost full dark, but she couldn’t leave—not until the boys were in bed and there was no danger of Josiah’s starting a fire.

  As soon as the boys were in their nightclothes with their teeth brushed, Josiah came tromping up the stairs. He placed a hand on Rose’s arm and sent a jolt of electricity all the way to her toes. “Rose, I don’t know how to . . . you are like an angel sent from heaven. You always have been.”

  Her heart felt lighter than air and heavy as a stone at the same time. She had watched Josiah deal so nobly, so faithfully, with the death of his parents, never questioning Gotte, never saying an unkind word, even in his pain, reaching out and pulling his sister through her grief.

  Rose was the weak, fearful one. Josiah was the one with a gute and faithful heart, and yet he was looking at her as if she were indeed an angel. She didn’t know what he wanted, but she knew she’d be a disappointment to him. She almost melted into a puddle of nerves and impossible expectations, but there’d been enough puddles in the house for one day. She’d have to fall apart in the privacy of her own home.

  If she ever got home. It was going to be dark as pitch by the time she left.

  Alvin handed Josiah the wolf book, and he sat in the rocker and cuddled the boys on his lap. Rose felt as if she were intruding on a very private moment. Maybe she should slip downstairs.

  “Don’t go,” Josiah said.

  “Ach. I don’t mind waiting downstairs.”

  He studied her face with a grin playing at his lips. “Don’t you want to hear the wolf story?”

  “He barks at the moon,” Alvin said.

  Aaron clapped his hands.

  Rose sat on the edge of the bed. “Then I better stay and listen.”

  Josiah, so mild-mannered and unassuming, turned out to be a very gute storyteller. He did all the voices, including a high-pitched one for the farmer’s wife and a low, gravelly voice for the wolf. Rose was just as mesmerized as the boys were.

  She lingered in the doorway as Josiah tucked his nephews into bed and kissed them good night. He followed Rose out the door and shut it behind him. “Suvie always tells me that bedtime is her favorite part of the day,” he whispered. “Now I understand why.” They stood facing each other in the hall, and Josiah seemed to get closer without even moving. “I’m sorry that you’ve been here hours longer than you planned. I’m hopeless as a babysitter. But . . . I’m not sorry you came. You saved me. I just hope you didn’t have somewhere you had to be tonight.”

  She took a small step backward. Josiah seemed to fill up the whole hallway with his presence. And he smelled like fresh-cut clover. She was having trouble remembering, but it might have been her favorite smell ever. “You really were doing fine. Aaron is a handful, but Alvin is very sweet.”

  Josiah smiled. “Alvin is the tricky one. If he’s quiet for more than three minutes, he’s doing something he shouldn’t.” He ran his fingers through his short hair, shorter than most Amish boys wore it. “I was taking a nap on the couch last Sunday, and Alvin cut most of the hair off one side of my head. I can’t believe I didn’t wake up. I had to cut off the rest to even it up.”

  Rose curled her lips. “I wondered why it was so short. It looks nice.”

  “It does? Suvie says I look like a plucked chicken.”

  Not a plucked chicken. Josiah would have been handsome any way he wore his hair. Rose lowered her eyes. “Nae. You look . . . I like it.”

  He fingered the black-and-blue goose egg above his eyebrow. “It definitely makes the bump on my forehead stand out.”

  Rose frowned. “How is it feeling?”

  “Better,” he said with a big grin, as if it didn’t hurt at all. “The one on the back of my head is bigger. At least my hair covers that.”

  She cracked a smile. “I’m glad you didn’t have to get stitches.”

  They stood in awkward silence until Josiah reached out and grazed his thumb across her cheek. “A little flour,” he said.

  “Oh.” He was too close. She couldn’t even breathe—he took up so much space. He stared at her as if he could have stood there all day. She didn’t have that much time. “I should get home.”

  They heard a sound in the other room. Josiah raised his eyebrows. “Arie’s awake.”

  The anxiety grew in her chest like mold. She couldn’t leave Josiah by himself. No matter how late it got, the children were her most important concern. She went into the baby’s room and picked up Arie. She was a cute little pink bundle of chubby cheeks and thigh rolls. Rose clutched the baby to her chest. Arie needed her. She could be brave for the baby.

  Josiah walked Rose down the stairs, cupping his fingers lightly over her elbow in case she tripped. He’d been too close too many times tonight. Rose was more than a little breathless.

  “I hope she isn’t hungry,” Josiah said with an amused light in his eyes. “I don’t know if I’m up to trying to feed her again.”

  Rose smiled. They’d have to scrub down the kitchen if Josiah made another bottle.

  The front door opened, and Suvie and her husband Andrew strolled into the room. Suvie was a tall woman with fair skin and a face full of freckles. Her hair was light yellow, like Rose’s, with just a tinge of red to it, and her eyes were the same brilliant blue as Josiah’s. Her husband, Andrew, was also tall with chestnut-brown hair and a perpetual smile on his face. There was nothing small about Andrew, including his big, booming voice and his loud, jolly laugh, which could be heard for miles in the outdoors.

  Suvie bloomed into a smile. “I saw the buggy out front and wondered who had come to call yet. How wunderbarr to see you, Rose.”

  “How are you?” Andrew said, smiling in Josiah’s direction.

  “I brought some honey,” Rose said.

  “How very kind,” Suvie said. “But you know you never need an excuse to visit.” She leaned toward Rose and nodded eagerly. “Have you been here long? I hope you two have been having a nice time together.”

  “She got here just in time,” Josiah said. “She saved the house from being burned to the ground and washed away in the toilet water.”

  Suvie seemed untroubled by the news of fire and flood. “Ach, vell, it’s gute Rose happened to come by.” She reached out, and Rose handed her the baby. “How’s my little pumpkin?”

  Rose grinned. “Pumpkin” was a perfect name for Arie. She was chubby and solid and orange on top. “She doesn’t take a bottle very well.”

  Suvie huffed. “She doesn’t, the little stinker. I fed her right before I left. I was hoping Josiah wouldn’t have any trouble with her.”

  “Not much trouble,” Josiah said. “But I felt really bad that she screamed until Rose got here.”

  Suvie stuck out her bottom lip sympathetically. “I’m sorry. We had to look in on Onkel Melvin. He isn’t feeling well.”

  Josiah narrowed his eyes. “I thought you said Aendi Linda was sick.”

  Suvie was busy bouncing Arie on her hip and didn’t seem to hear Josiah. “How did Alvin and Aaron do?”

  “They clogged the toilet. They got to bed very late, and Rose made them pancakes,” Josiah said. “Whole wheat. The best I’ve ever tasted.”

  Suvie’s smile seemed to double in width. “We all know what a wunderbarr cook Rose is.”

  Rose’s face got warm. She didn’t deserve such praise. Everybody knew how to make pa
ncakes.

  “They clogged the toilet?” Andrew said.

  Josiah nodded. “We dried up the water, but it’s still clogged. I will come by and help you fix it in the morning.”

  “No need,” Andrew said, a little too quickly. “I can do it myself. You’ve got plenty of chores.”

  Rose nearly sighed in relief. Josiah should probably stay away from plumbing fixtures.

  Josiah glanced at the clock on the wall. “I’ve got to get Rose home. She didn’t plan on spending her Friday night here.”

  Dread pressed on Rose’s chest until it became unbearably heavy. “My family will be worried,” she said, wincing at how winded she sounded. It would be a sure sign of weakness if she fainted before she even made it to the buggy.

  With her free arm, Suvie pulled Rose in for a hug and kissed her on the cheek. “Denki for saving my brother. He loves the kinner, but three is quite a handful.” Her eyes flickered mischievously as she pulled Rose closer and whispered in her ear. “Especially if you don’t have the right equipment to feed the baby.”

  Rose cracked a smile. Suvie often said shocking things that made the women laugh and the men turn red.

  Josiah gave Arie a kiss on the cheek. “Just so you know, Suvie, you should never ask me to babysit again.”

  Suvie ushered them out the door. “Maybe we’ll invite Rose to come too.”

  Josiah followed Rose down the sidewalk. The closer she got to the buggy, the harder her heart hammered against her ribs. She would be all right. She could take Queenie fast and be there in half an hour.

  Josiah slid the door open, took her hand, and helped her into the buggy. To her surprise, he climbed up next to her, forcing her to slide to her right. “What . . . what are you doing?” she asked, with an embarrassingly shaky voice.

  “I’m driving you home,” he said, as if surprised she didn’t know.

  “But how will you get back?”

  He picked up the reins. “I’ll walk. It’s not that far.”

  It was too much. “It’s five miles.”

  In the dim light, she could see the determined set of his jaw. “Rose, I would never want you to have to drive home alone in the dark.”

  “Denki,” she said, her voice cracking into a million pieces. Relief swept over her like a flood, and she turned her face from him as silent tears trickled down her cheeks.

  How had he known it was just what she needed?

  Chapter Five

  The sun had just disappeared below the horizon when Josiah and Dan climbed out of Dan’s open-air buggy and trekked up the lane. They were headed toward the barn, but Josiah’s attention was squarely focused on the house, where the propane lanterns had been lit. Rose Christner was inside that house, baking bread or painting a picture or reading a book with her sisters. What he wouldn’t give to be in there, sitting next to Rose, making her smile, talking about anything just so long as he could be near her.

  But he wouldn’t even see her tonight, even though he was achingly close. They had parked Dan’s buggy on the road so Rose wouldn’t know they were here. Josiah hated that he had to come under these circumstances. Why wouldn’t the troublemaker leave the Christners alone?

  Dan carried a heavy-duty flashlight, and Josiah had a roll of black vinyl tucked under his elbow. Lord willing, they could fix the buggy tonight, and Rose would be none the wiser. They crept silently into the barn, where Luke stood assessing the damage with his own flashlight.

  Four long slashes had been cut down the sliding door of the Christners’ buggy. Josiah clenched his teeth. Rose had been sitting in that buggy with him just last Friday.

  “Poppy came by this morning,” Luke said, not even looking up when they came in. “They’ve been canning peaches all day and haven’t had to use the buggy. Rose doesn’t know about it, but I don’t think we can keep this from her.” He motioned toward the vinyl in Josiah’s hand. “I’m afraid fixing this slider will take more than just a piece of vinyl.”

  Josiah winced. “Rose can’t know about this.”

  “I can fix it.” Luke curled his lips slightly. “I can fix anything.”

  Josiah wasn’t in the mood for Luke’s arrogance. “What else do we need? I can call a driver and go to the store. Whatever you need. Just tell me.”

  Luke shook his head. “It’s not that easy. We can cut the new vinyl, but then we have to get the damaged piece off the frame and hammer it into place—”

  “I can get whatever you need,” Josiah insisted.

  Luke sighed. “I need a buggy shop.”

  Josiah folded his arms. “Then we take it to a buggy shop.”

  “At eight o’clock at night?”

  “Jah.”

  Dan walked to the other side of the buggy. “Any other damage?”

  Luke shook his head. “Not that I can see.”

  “Let’s hitch it up and take it to the buggy shop,” Josiah said.

  “Ach, look at this.” Dan came from around the other side with a pocketknife in his hand. “Is this one of yours?”

  Josiah and Luke looked at each other. “Nae.”

  Dan pulled the blade from the handle. “Do you think one of them dropped it?”

  The knife had a rosewood handle with gold tips on either end. The dull side of the silver blade had seven raised notches. Josiah’s heart jumped. “I’ve seen this knife before. Or one like it.”

  Dan frowned. “Where?”

  “I can’t remember. But I will.”

  Luke scowled. “I’d like to personally return it to its owner and have a long talk with him.”

  They jumped as the barn door creaked opened, and four flashlight beams pointed in their direction. Josiah squinted into the light. He couldn’t make out who was behind those four flashlights, but he had a pretty good guess. His heart sank. Rose was going to be terrified, and he couldn’t do anything to protect her from it.

  All four flashlights lowered at the same time, and even in the dimness, Josiah recognized the hurt and uncertainty on Rose’s face.

  Bitsy’s hair was an ethereal shade of pink tonight, and her shotgun hung from her elbow like a purse. “Surely there are better places for a meeting.”

  Luke slid over and stood directly in front of the slash marks, blocking them from view just in case Rose hadn’t already seen them. Josiah sidled next to him. Luke wasn’t such a bad friend sometimes.

  “I told you it was Luke and Dan,” Poppy said. “Nothing to worry about.”

  “But why are they here?” Rose said, her voice shaking like a match in the wind.

  Josiah wanted to gather her in his arms and hold on tight, but he couldn’t move without revealing the slashes on the buggy, not to mention the fact that he’d scare her if he tried to give her a hug. “I’m really sorry, Rose. We didn’t mean to frighten you.”

  She furrowed her brow and looked as if she were going to cry. “I don’t understand.”

  “Neither do I,” Bitsy said. She gave Luke, Dan, and Josiah the stink eye. “What are you doing in our barn?”

  Poppy grabbed onto Rose’s elbow and tried to pull her backward. “I think we should all go in the house and have a pretzel,” she said, acting as if they hadn’t just caught her fiancé skulking around their property. “They’re warm out of the oven.”

  “That sounds delicious,” Luke said, not surrendering his place in front of the buggy.

  Poppy forced a smile. “Rose made them.”

  Rose blinked several times, and even in the dimness, Josiah saw a tear slip down her cheek. That tear felt like a fist to the stomach. “Rose,” he said. “It’s okay. Everything is going to be okay.”

  “What are you hiding?” she said.

  Poppy was still trying to pull her out the door. “It doesn’t matter.”

  Rose wouldn’t budge. She just stared at Josiah with that hurt, betrayed look on her face. “What have they done this time?”

  Nobody needed to ask her who “they” were.

  A look of desperation traveled between Lily and P
oppy, and Bitsy’s stink eye got downright smelly. “Luke Bontrager, I suspect you’re behind this. I told Poppy from the first that you were trouble.”

  “It’s not his fault, B,” Poppy said. “I asked him to come.” She huffed in resignation and looked at Luke. “Might as well show her.”

  Luke and Dan scooted away from the buggy. Josiah was the last to surrender his place. He slowly moved aside, keeping his gaze glued to Rose’s face. “It’s not as bad as it seems. We can fix it with a hammer and a little vinyl.”

  Fear saturated Rose’s expression, and Josiah felt sick. Sweet Rose should never be put through this. She wiped at an errant tear. “Did everybody know about this but me?”

  “I didn’t,” Bitsy said, “and I am very put out. I brought my shotgun out here for nothing.”

  “We’re sorry for not telling,” Lily said. “We didn’t want Rose to be scared, and we thought the boys could fix it before you found out.”

  “It was my fault,” Dan said. “We should have waited until you were in bed.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me when I saw them out the window?” Rose said.

  “I got all worked up for nothing,” Bitsy said. “And you scared Rose to death.”

  Poppy rolled her eyes at Luke. “I was hoping Rose wouldn’t see my fiancé sneak into the barn.”

  “She didn’t see me,” Luke protested. “It’s Dan and Josiah who don’t know how to sneak.”

  Poppy took Rose’s hand and squeezed it. “We were hoping you’d stay in the house.”

  Tears trickled down Rose’s face, but she didn’t wipe them away. It was as if she wanted to pretend they weren’t there. “You were going to lie to me?”

  Poppy only looked mildly contrite. “But Rose, now you see the buggy, don’t you wish you didn’t know?”

  Josiah wished Rose didn’t know. He never, ever wanted her to be this upset again.

  Rose slid her hand from Poppy’s and wrapped her arms around her waist. “I wish it never happened. That’s not the same as wishing I didn’t know.”

  “We just want to protect you,” Lily said.

  Rose pursed her lips. “You’re both getting married soon. You won’t be here to protect me. What will happen then?”