Will’s expression said it all: when he spotted Loretta, his facial features tightened and his eyes frosted over. “So . . . what’s going on here?” he demanded.
Loretta forced herself to hold Will’s gaze instead of looking away. He appeared haggard in his rumpled shirt, with dark circles beneath his bloodshot eyes and hair that needed washing.
“Will, we need to address your recent confrontation with Loretta in Nora’s shop,” Luke said matter-of-factly. “Have a seat, and let’s see what we can do to remedy this situation.”
Will didn’t move. “None of this would’ve happened if Loretta hadn’t—”
“I said I was sorry!” Loretta blurted. “I was just trying to tell you the truth so we could both move on.”
“By the looks of that squashed loaf of banana bread I found in my store,” Nora said before Will could respond, “it’s a gut thing you didn’t have your hands around Loretta’s neck. From here on out, Will, my shop is off-limits to you. I can’t have you bursting in and venting your frustrations on Loretta while she’s working.” She gazed at Will until he looked up at her. “Do you understand, Will?”
Long moments of silence squeezed Loretta’s conscience. She hadn’t foreseen such repercussions after Will’s visit, and she felt almost as bad now as she had when he’d gotten so angry in the store. She gazed self-consciously at her lap, wondering how this encounter could possibly get any more uncomfortable.
Will exhaled loudly. “So you two have become Loretta’s guardians now, protecting her from me?” he asked, looking from Nora to Luke. “Was that your idea, or hers?”
Luke crossed his muscular arms. “Ours,” he insisted. “You two are our employees, but more importantly, you’re our friends. I’ll confess that when Ira and I got home and saw the way you were contemplating the river and the big rocks on the bank—looking as desperate and defeated as I’ve ever seen a man—I knew you were in a bad mental state even before Nora told me you’d confronted Loretta in her store.”
Loretta swallowed hard. Will’s expression told her that he had indeed been standing on the riverbank with dangerous ideas running through his mind. Had she done this to him? Had she been so focused on her own feelings that she’d totally missed the anguish he’d been suffering?
“We would’ve immediately jumped in to rescue you, Will,” Luke continued softly. “We’re relieved that something changed your mind, because we like you. We want to help you out of your depression.”
When Will finally dropped onto the couch, he appeared embarrassed . . . and maybe bitter about the fact that Luke and Ira had been watching him. “Okay, so I was upset,” he said in an accusatory tone. “Can you honestly say you wouldn’t have been irrational after the woman you loved turned you away—raced off to be with another man—and then acted as though you were going to hurt her?”
“Will, we’re sorry—we feel bad for you,” Nora said, gently placing her hand on his arm. “That’s why Luke and I are concerned about your emotional state. But we’re also aware that you put Loretta in a very sticky spot.”
Will crossed his arms, looking away. “It all started out as a chance to just visit with Loretta—bring her some goodies and chat in the store,” he said in an unsteady voice. “But right off the bat, she shut me down.”
“I—I didn’t know what to say!” Loretta protested. She took a deep breath to settle her ragged nerves. “I admit I wasn’t very considerate when I left you sitting on the porch swing and went off with Drew . . . but then—and Thursday in the store—I was trying to be honest about my feelings, and you were having none of it. Didn’t hear a thing I said.”
Tears dribbled down Loretta’s cheeks.
“I’m so sorry, Will—for all you’ve been through, and for the pain I’ve caused you,” she whispered. “But that doesn’t mean I can marry you. Please try to understand.”
Nora brought over the box of tissues from an end table and offered them to Loretta. Luke sat down on the couch beside Will, his expression somber. For a moment, the only sound in the room was the sound of Loretta blowing her nose—and letting out a little sob, despite her efforts to control her emotions.
Will propped his elbows on his knees and buried his face in his hands. His shoulders shook with silent sobs until he inhaled deeply to settle himself. “I am so tired of crying,” he said.
Luke placed a hand on Will’s shoulder, while Nora walked over to put her arm around him. “We can’t imagine your pain, Will,” she murmured. “We don’t want you to hurt yourself, and if you’ll agree to some counseling—or whatever Andy Leitner, our local nurse, recommends—we’ll be happy to pay for it. We want you to be well.”
“We want you to be happy again,” Luke put in softly. “Everyone in Willow Ridge is glad you’ve come and wants you to find a new life here, too. A new purpose.”
“Jah, that’s right,” Loretta said, dabbing her eyes. “It’s not easy, moving to a new place and having to get settled in with new neighbors, but I think you—and our family—have come to the right place.”
“And when you can think about such things again,” Luke began with a careful smile, “I’ve seen the way some of our single gals have been checking you out.”
“Yeah, right,” Will said glumly.
“Just a couple hours ago Savilla Witmer was chatting about you while we were eating supper at the café,” Nora said quickly. “And don’t forget about Hannah Brenneman and Katie Zook—and Nellie Knepp,” she added after a moment’s thought.
Will scowled. “They’re just girls. Not even twenty—”
“Savilla’s twenty-five,” Luke interrupted with a knowing smile. “I asked how old she was tonight, thinking of you, Will. She’s a looker, ain’t so?”
When Will laughed and rolled his eyes, Loretta had a sense that he might be turning a small emotional corner. With her coal black hair and brown eyes like strong coffee—and her ability to cook and help run the Grill N Skillet—Savilla Witmer was definitely the most attractive single woman in Willow Ridge. And she was only a couple years younger than Will.
“It’s not like we’re trying to get you matched up before you’re ready,” Nora insisted. “But Savilla sounded very interested in the work you’re doing—planting the vineyard and helping Luke and Ira raise their grains.” She shrugged, her smile brightening. “I bet living with Josiah and Lena and baby Isaiah might make her feel like a fifth wheel sometimes, even though they all get along so well. She’d probably welcome the chance to get out now and again.”
“But everything in its own gut time,” Luke said with a purposeful glance at his wife. “How about if I give Andy a call? See if he can chat with you tomorrow and get you some help?”
“He’s an awfully nice man,” Loretta remarked softly. “He’s been such a help with Leroy and Louisa—made time to see them on really short notice, too, one night when Edith couldn’t get them to stop vomiting.”
When Will looked at her, Loretta felt more sorry for him than frightened. The blatant desperation had left his eyes, and he no longer appeared to be accusing her of starting this troublesome situation. Because she held no grudge against him—wanted him to be well and happy—it seemed only right to take the next step.
“Will, I’m sorry about the pain I’ve caused you,” Loretta repeated softly. “I hope you can forgive me for behaving so rudely, the day I left you on the porch swing to go with Drew.”
His eyes widened, and he bit back a retort. Then his shoulders relaxed as he let out a long sigh. “I crossed the line in the shop yesterday,” he admitted. “I was so focused on my own wishes I couldn’t hear what you were trying to tell me. Guess I’d better get over that.”
The room around them seemed to sigh as the tension dissipated. Nora poured a glass of lemonade and offered it to Will. “Glad to hear it,” she said encouragingly. “Life’s too short to let negativity and hurt feelings come between friends.”
Will gratefully gulped the lemonade, pausing only once before he drained the glass. “G
o ahead and call that Leitner fellow. Probably time I made his acquaintance anyway.”
“I’m on it,” Luke said as he rose from the couch. “His number’s in the kitchen.”
Within minutes Will joined Luke to speak with Andy Leitner, and Loretta relaxed. “This session turned out better than I thought it might,” she admitted. “Denki for stepping in, Nora. Now that I’ve heard about Will almost jumping into the river, I’m really glad you and Luke have insisted that he get some help.”
“And he said, of his own free will, that he was out of line to be so angry with you,” Nora said with a nod. “That’s huge. But jah, for a while I was wondering if we’d get Will to come around. Without Luke’s influence, we girls might’ve just aggravated the situation more.”
Loretta nodded. She had even more respect for Luke and Nora now . . . and it made her wonder. In a difficult situation, would Drew take the high road—as Luke had—rather than getting defensive or making Will out to be less than masculine because he couldn’t handle his emotions?
Loretta made a mental note to take her time getting to know Drew better, to wait for incidents that called for spiritual strength and see how he reacted to them. Now that she wouldn’t be running to Drew to escape Will’s hopeful overtures, she needed to allow her relationship with him to unfold at its own pace.
No need to tell Drew what happened here with Will, either. What happens at Nora’s house should stay at Nora’s house.
After Will left for his apartment, Loretta walked home at a leisurely pace. The sky was the shade of pale, translucent blue that followed the sunset and preceded nightfall. The clip-clop, clip-clop of a buggy made her look up and wave. Was that really Aaron Brenneman with Katie Zook in his courting buggy?
Loretta smiled. After she crossed behind the market and the café’s parking lot, she gathered the chickens into the chicken house for the evening. Then she grabbed a couple of big baskets, slipped out of her shoes, and entered the garden at the end where the squash plants and melon vines formed loose circles around the hills where they were planted. The warm soil soothed her feet as she lifted floppy green leaves to reveal zucchini and yellow squash that were ready to be picked.
As she filled her baskets, Loretta gave thanks for the fertile soil of the garden, and for the open hearts and true friends they’d made in Willow Ridge. And be with Will in his time of adjustment, Lord, she added fervently. He needs more care than we humans can give him.
The creak of the back door made her look up. Rosalyn was approaching with a hoe and a smile.
“I thought I heard somebody sneaking around in our garden,” she teased. “But this time it’s not Drew helping himself to our salad greens.”
“Jah, he won’t be doing any more of that,” Loretta remarked as her sister began to dig up the wilted row of lettuce. “But we might need to find a hundred and one ways to use all this zucchini! Especially since Dat doesn’t like it.”
“Dat’s snoozing in his recliner,” Rosalyn put in quickly. “So it’s just you and me enjoying the peace and quiet.”
Loretta smiled as the sky darkened around them. Peace and quiet was a bigger blessing than Rosalyn knew, after the tension of her confrontation with Will. “I say we get some ice cream at the café when we’re finished here. My treat,” she suggested. “I get paid tomorrow, so I’m feeling flush.”
And I’m feeling like a big load’s been lifted from my shoulders, too, Lord, she added silently. Denki for Your grace and providence.
Chapter Eleven
The week passed quickly for Nora. She was pleased that during the three days Loretta had worked so far, whenever she wasn’t helping with customers, charming them with her helpfulness and pretty smile, she was busy cutting long, two-inch-wide strips of fabric to prepare for her first rug-making class. Nora suspected the intense August heat was keeping customers at home, but the eight ladies who’d signed up for the first class on the twenty-fifth would fill the shop with chatter. She’d ordered a large cookie tray from Lena Witmer and would offer lemonade and coffee as well. Loretta’s students wouldn’t be able to eat while they were working on their rugs, but they would welcome refreshments during a break—and it would be nice publicity for Lena when they oohed and aahed over her decorated sugar cookies.
“Are we ready, Loretta?” Nora asked when she came to work on Thursday. “It’s your big day, and you’re going to be a huge success!”
Loretta appeared a little nervous as she set a basket on the checkout counter. “Jah, it’ll go well—now that I’ve got the toothbrushes all filed down with holes in them so each gal gets a needle,” she remarked. “I couldn’t believe it when Dat fussed over all the toothbrushes I bought. Said it was such a waste to cut new ones down,” she added, shaking her head. “I assured him—twice—that I bought them with money from my paycheck. So what could he say?”
Nora had a feeling Cornelius was finding plenty of things to say about his daughter and her new job, but she didn’t want to pry. “The ladies in your class will be very grateful that they don’t have to make their needles,” she said as she took one from Loretta’s basket. “Some of them would have trouble cutting off the toothbrush head and filing the end to a point—not to mention cutting the slot in the handle so you can thread the fabric through.”
Loretta smiled. “Truth be told, I showed Drew my needle and asked him to make these new ones just like it,” she said. “My needle was Mamm’s, and I have no idea how she made it, but I figured Drew would have tools in his shop. He made twenty-five needles in about an hour.”
“They’re filed off nicely, too,” Nora said as she ran her finger along the needle’s blunt point. “We should keep him in mind when we need small tables and shelves for our displays. The lady who had him fix her old rocking chair called me and went on and on about what a wonderful job he did and how polite he was.”
Loretta’s cheeks turned pink. “He has a way of pleasing the ladies,” she said with a giggle.
The bell above the door jangled before Nora could tease Loretta about her statement. The two English women who came in—a mother and a daughter, by the looks of them—said they’d seen her website and knew Simple Gifts was a store they needed to visit, so Nora gave them a quick tour before letting them browse. By the time she was ringing up the tea towel sets and other table linens they’d selected, Loretta’s students were arriving. Nora had set up chairs and a long worktable in the large back room she used for storage, and Loretta had assembled all of her needles and fabric strips there.
“Welcome, ladies!” Nora called out as she folded the linens into a plastic sack. “Go right on into the back room so you can put on a name tag and choose your fabric colors! Loretta’s ready, and it’s going to be a wonderful afternoon.”
“You’ve got a class today?” the older woman at the counter asked. “What sort of craft?”
“My employee Loretta’s going to show our students how to make a rag rug—like that one beside the sleigh bed,” Nora added, pointing.
The younger woman gazed through the door where the ladies were choosing their fabric strips. “That looks really cool! Can we watch for a while?”
With a patient smile, Nora handed each of them a flyer about Loretta’s classes. She saw no reason to let these two walk-ins receive the same information their paying students would receive. “This class is full, but we have another one on Saturday,” she said diplomatically. “Loretta needs to know in advance that you’re coming so she can have enough materials ready, you see.”
“Great! I’ll look this over when I get home and maybe give you a call,” the younger woman said as she stuffed the flyer in her sack.
After they left, Nora compared the names on her list to the stick-on tags the attendees wore and introduced Loretta. She decided to return to the main room of the store so Loretta wouldn’t feel she was hovering. Once everyone had taken a seat, they got quiet in anticipation. Loretta spoke in a clear voice, standing at the far end of the long table, telling about the tooth
brush needles and showing how to fold a fabric strip and guide it through the slot in the end. The women were hanging on her every word, watching and then imitating what Loretta was showing them.
You go, girlie, Nora thought proudly.
As the class continued, Loretta made her way around the table to help her students make the first few stitches that formed the center of the rug—assuring them that this was the trickiest part of the project. “And always remember,” Loretta pointed out with a smile, “that if your stitches look uneven or loose, you can pull them out and rework them. Nobody gets it perfect the first time.”
Nora sat back on her stool, pleased that her hunch had been correct: Loretta was a natural teacher, patient and confident. Some Amish girls were extremely shy around English people, mostly because their parents and church leaders taught them not to trust outsiders, but Loretta had risen above the fears her autocratic father had instilled in her. Loretta was one of a kind.
After about an hour, the ladies took a break. They exclaimed over the platter of cookies Nora placed on the table and welcomed the coffee and lemonade she’d prepared for them. “How’s it going with your rugs?” she asked.
One of the older ladies—Margaret, who frequented the shop—shook her head. “I suspect it’d be a lot easier if my fingers worked the way they did twenty years ago,” she said jovially. “But it’s a fine thing to try new crafts and learn something that doesn’t come easy. Keeps your brain sharp.”
“You’ve already got the sharpest brain I know,” Margaret’s friend Lucy put in with a laugh. She held up a small circle made of the rounds she’d woven with her toothbrush needle. “The center of my rug would probably be twice this size if I hadn’t taken out so many stitches. But Loretta keeps telling us to be patient, so I’m gonna keep at it.”
“Loretta’s such a nice girl,” Sara, a regular customer, chimed in as she joined them with coffee and a cookie. “Offering these classes is a really good idea, Nora. I suspect some of us will have a whole new appreciation of what goes into making the handcrafted items in your store—”
A Simple Wish Page 9