by Sarah Price
Now, as they returned from the doctor, Lillian greeted the anxious Mary Ruth and Rachel with the joyous news that she was, indeed, not facing some dreadful illness but the beauty of two additions to their family.
“Do twins run in the family?” Rachel asked, a look of trepidation in her eyes.
Lillian laughed. “I don’t think you have to worry, Rachel. I’ve yet to hear of twins from Junior’s cousins.”
Rachel looked relieved and turned back to drying the dishes.
“What else did the doctor say?” Mary Ruth asked, eager for any news.
“Ach vell,” Lillian began. “Said that twins tend to be more taxing on the mother which is why everything has been so extreme; the fatigue, the illness, the swelling. It might not get better and, come mid-summer, I may be bed-bound.” She frowned, obviously not liking that piece of the news. “But the doctor felt that they will probably come early. Mayhaps September…mayhaps August.”
“He?” Mary Ruth asked, her eyes wide. Amish women used Amish midwives. The thought of a male doctor for something so intimate was startling to Mary Ruth.
Lillian flushed. “Junior took me to the clinic in Lancaster. He wanted a specialist, not just any doctor. But it’s all fine, Mary Ruth. Junior was with me the whole time.”
The side door opened and Katie emerged from the room adjoining the two houses. She smiled at Lillian. “What wunderbaar gut news, Lillian!” She gave her daughter-in-law a rare hug. “I was so worried about you but, once again, the good Lord has proven that He cares for His flock in many ways!”
Junior emerged from behind his mother, a sheepish smile on his face. Young Jacob trailed behind, sensing that something important was amiss but not understanding. Mary Ruth retreated back to the sink, helping Rachel to finish washing the dishes while Katie gushed over Lillian.
“Wie gehts?” Samuel asked as he walked into the house from the joining room. “Such a fuss. Must be important,” he said. He glanced over and saw Mary Ruth next to Rachel. He nodded his head once but turned back to his brother. He was still sore from their words from the other day in the barn.
“Doctor said Lillian’s fine. Be even better in September when our twins arrive,” Junior said, trying to mask his pride as his eyes glowed at his wife. As usual, Lillian could do no wrong in Junior’s eyes. His adoration of his wife was more than apparent to everyone in the family.
“Twins, ja?” Samuel rubbed at his chin and shook his head. “What’s that make? Eight?” He tousled Jacob’s curly head. “You best be moving in with us, Jacob. Gonna get awful crowded and noisy over here.”
“Samuel!” Katie scolded him. “Don’t be putting ideas in the boy’s head.” She leveled her gaze at her youngest son. “Words spoken can’t be retrieved,” she reminded him.
Junior sighed and shook his head, clearly uncertain how to deal with Samuel. “You didn’t head back to work yet, eh?”
“Just finished dinner,” Samuel explained.
Lillian reached up and took Samuel’s hand. “Mayhaps you could drive Mary Ruth home? She was kind enough to stay late to help Rachel watch the kinner.” She smiled at Mary Ruth, silently thanking her with her gaze. “I’m sure her mamm would be right thankful if you could. Would spare her that extra time walking.”
The room fell silent and Mary Ruth watched expectantly. She knew that her mamm would be anything but thankful if Samuel drove her home in his buggy. But she also knew that she would like nothing more than to spend a few minutes alone with him. During the past few weeks, she had only caught some passing glances of Samuel when he came home for the noon meal. He usually disappeared into his parents’ house and rarely stopped at Lillian’s. She wondered about his behavior toward her, almost as if he was avoiding her since their encounter in the barn.
Now, as the room stared at Samuel, waiting for his answer, she meekly heard herself say, “I don’t mind walking.”
Lillian waved her hand at Mary Ruth. “Don’t be silly. It won’t take but a moment to harness the horse. Right, Samuel?”
Samuel grimaced as his sister-in-law turned expectant eyes to stare at him. Like the rest of the family, it was near impossible for him to say no to Lillian. She was similar in temperament to Mary Ruth, positive and cheerful, full of belief and support. Disappointment was not an option when it came to dealing with Lillian. Besides, Samuel knew that he owed her one. After all, she had been responsible for calming Junior down recently when he had overslept and missed work this past week. Like Mary Ruth, she seemed to be a staunch supporter of Samuel and, for that, he couldn’t say no.
“I’ll go harness the horse,” he mumbled and spun on his heel, disappearing through the doorway to return to his mother’s kitchen. Within seconds, they heard the screen door open and shut from next door. Samuel walked past the kitchen window, his straw hat on his head and his eyes cast downward.
Mary Ruth set the dishtowel on the counter, smoothing it before she turned to Rachel, smiling a silent good-bye. “Guess I can go help,” she said and hurried to the door. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Lillian,” she called over her shoulder before she disappeared through the mudroom and outside to help Samuel.
It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the darkness in the horse barn. Samuel was in the stall with his horse, a black mare with a high stepping gait. When he had purchased the horse, more than one person had raised an eyebrow at the expensive horse that was fancier than most standardbred horses that the Amish used for their buggies. This one was a different breed, a warm blood, with large hooves and a proud head.
“Samuel,” she said quietly as she peered over the stall door. “Truly, I can walk.”
He glanced up, his hat tilted back on his head as he brushed down his mare. He lifted up his hand and rested it on the horse’s withers. The intensity of his gaze on her face caused her to look away. “You step back now, Mary Ruth. I can harness the buggy faster without your help and don’t want you getting hurt,” he said, his voice low and soft.
She did as he instructed. Leaning against the wall, she watched as he led the horse outside the stall and over toward the buggy. She liked to see him working with the horse. Besides the fact that, indeed, he worked swiftly, there was a gentleness to how he handled the horse.
First, he slipped the harness saddle over the back of the horse, resting it just behind the withers and making certain that the girth was secure so that it wouldn’t slip while supporting the shafts of the carriage. He ran his hand along the side of the horse as he moved toward the tail, a kind and calming gesture showing how much he cared for his horse. He gently slapped her hindquarters before attaching the crupper, a V shaped piece of leather latched around the tail, buckling it at the dock, preventing the harness from sliding forward. Then, in one quick motion, he reached over the mare’s head and slipped on the breast collar, a wide piece of padded leather sawn to two long tugs that would attach to the buggy to allow for pulling and steering it.
Crossing the leather tugs over the back of the horse, Samuel then moved to the buggy, pulling it toward the horse while positioning the shafts into their holders, one side at a time, and, after clipping the holdback straps to the breeching, Samuel uncrossed the tugs and secured them to the swiveling base.
Mary Ruth couldn’t help but admire how patient, yet efficient he was with the horse, speaking softly in Deitsch to the animal and pausing to reassure it with a loving touch on the neck before he slid the bridle with blinders onto the horse’s head, checking to make certain that the bit was comfortably positioned in the horse’s mouth over its tongue. In less than three minutes, Samuel was done, with the mare harnessed to the buggy and ready to be driven.
“Ready?” he asked, leading the horse and buggy outside, pausing just long enough to slide open the door and reach for her hand. She hesitated before touching his hand and letting him help her step up and into the buggy. After she settled down, he climbed up and sat next to her.
Mary Ruth felt awkward next to him. The only other time she had been with
Samuel in a buggy had been masked by the cover of night when he had brought her home from the singing as a favor for Simon. Now, in broad daylight, she couldn’t help but steal a look at him, admiring the way he held the reins with one hand, staring straight ahead as he steered the horse down the lane and toward the road.
“That sure is wunderbaar gut news for Lillian and Junior,” she said, breaking the silence.
“If you like babies,” he replied dryly.
She laughed. “Everyone likes babies!”
“Not me,” he said, his voice void of emotion. “They’re noisy and underfoot all the time.”
“Oh Samuel,” she said. But she stared at him, trying to access whether or not he was serious. When his expression didn’t change, she waved her hand at him. “You don’t mean that!”
He raised an eyebrow and glanced at her. “Babies are for women, not men.”
She pursed her lips and rolled her eyes. “Now you’re just trying to be difficult.”
“Difficult?” That had taken him by surprise.
Mary Ruth turned on the seat to stare at him. “I’m getting to understand you, Samuel Lapp. You think it makes you interesting to be so aloof and act so distant but I know you!” She raised her voice as she pointed at him. “Yes, I do know you…better than you think.”
Now it was his turn to laugh. “So you think you do,” he said. She didn’t like the tone of his voice. It was dark and sinister, a new side to Samuel that she hadn’t seen before this day. Yet, she knew that it was just more of the bravado façade that he liked to show the world. So, she wasn’t surprised when he added, “You don’t know me at all!”
“I know what you are thinking.”
He chewed on his lower lip for a long second as if deep in thought. Then, slowing the horse down, he pulled the brake and turned to face her. His blue eyes glowed and stared into her own. For three weeks, he had been thinking about her. He doubted that she knew that. He had avoided the house while she had been helping Lillian, not wanting to run into her, which would surely give him more reason to spend his free time daydreaming about her. He doubted that she knew that, too.
“Really?” he asked. “What am I thinking now?”
“That I don’t know you and never will!” she shot back at him.
“Wrong!” he said, a smile playing on his lips and, with one hand, he reached for her shoulder and pulled her close to him. He leaned forward and pressed his lips against hers, forcing her to kiss him as he held her close to him. She could feel the strength of his arms around her and the muscles of his chest pressed against her own.
For a moment, she didn’t resist his kiss and found herself lost in it. After all, hadn’t she wanted this? Been dreaming of this moment for years? Yet the shock broke through and she placed both hands on his chest, pushing him away. “Samuel! How dare you!” She moved away from him, pressing her back against the side of the buggy. “You will not soil my reputation!”
“It’s what you wanted, isn’t it?” he said, moving closer to her. He reached out to brush his hand across her cheek. “And I think you liked it.”
None too gently, she slapped at his hand. “I’m not one of those fast Englischer girls that you run with!”
He grabbed her wrist and held her hand away from her body and also away from his. “You don’t know me at all, Mary Ruth. Mayhaps it’s better that way,” he murmured as he leaned down to kiss her one more time.
This time, she didn’t kiss him back. When he pulled back, she glared at him. She had never before felt anger toward Samuel. The way her heart was pounding inside of her chest conflicted with the way her stomach felt twisted and weak. How could her Samuel Lapp have stolen her honor in such a brutish manner? They weren’t even courting and he had thought to kiss her? Kissing was for marriage and they weren’t even a true couple.
Mary Ruth felt tears coming to her eyes but refused to give him that satisfaction. “Mayhaps you’re right,” she whispered, reaching for the door and sliding it open. “Thank you for the offer of a ride, Samuel, but I think I will walk from here.” Before he could object, she slipped out of the buggy and began walking along the road toward her home.
Her lips stung from the weight of his kiss. Yes, his lips had been soft and gentle and, true, she had enjoyed the kiss…at least until she realized what he was doing. He was trying to make her not like him, to show her what a scoundrel he truly was. And, for the first time, she was inclined to believe him. She knew that he cared for her, that deep down he was as interested in her as she was in him. But the fact remained that he had done something so scandalous just to prove her wrong.
Perhaps, she thought as she fought the tears, everyone was right about Samuel. Perhaps he was heartless and beyond hope for change. Truly he couldn’t care for her if he wanted her to feel hurt and pain. Even worse, she realized, he wanted her to feel shame. The disappointment that she felt was a new feeling for Mary Ruth. She let the tears fall freely as she walked, realizing that she didn’t like this new feeling, especially since she was beginning to think that the only truth about Samuel Lapp was, indeed, a feeling of disappointment.
Chapter Ten
There were at least forty people sitting at the five long wooden tables under the tall oak tree at Sylvia and Jake’s farm. The tree provided enough shade for the afternoon fellowship meal that Sylvia had arranged for their non-church Sunday. Besides her own family, she had invited her neighbors, the Smuckers, as well as Whitey Hostetler’s family. With his wife being so ill, it was a welcomed invitation for him and everyone was glad to see his wife join him, even if she spent most of the day sitting on a chair in the shade of the porch.
A small brood of children ran through one of the paddocks, chasing each other despite the heat of the spring day. Most of them were the grandchildren of Katie and Jonas, although Whitey’s oldest son and family had joined the festivities. The men sat at the tables, discussing their plans for upcoming crops and planning for hay cutting while the women moved about the kitchen and talked about their gardens. It was an easy day, with limited work and an emphasis on socializing with friends and family.
Jake held a sleeping baby in his arms, glancing over at the women. His eyes found his wife and, when Sylvia looked up as she carried some dishes to the tables in preparation of the meal, he smiled. “Don’t know much, Jonas,” Jake said, turning his attention back to the group of men seated at his table. “Your daughter seems intent on forcing my hand at adding onto this farmhouse,” he teased good-naturedly.
Jonas tugged at his graying beard and laughed. “You aren’t the only one. Appears Junior has a similar situation facing him.”
Raising an eyebrow, Jake turned to look at Junior. “Ja?”
Samuel grunted. “You didn’t hear about the twins? It’s all anyone is talking about at our farm.”
Jake gave his youngest brother-in-law a friendly kick with his boot. “Now, now, Samuel,” he chided gently. “You’ll understand soon enough once you settle down and burn a fire on your own hearth. There’s something magical about being a family man.”
With a wave of his hand, Samuel dismissed his words. “Don’t hold your breath, Jake. There’s not enough magic to entice me, that’s for sure and certain!”
Daniel laughed. “Typical Lapp! Determined to be an old bewe until a woman comes out of nowhere and spins his head.”
“Speak for yourself,” Samuel snapped. He didn’t like his brothers laughing at him. “Don’t care if I’m an old bewe. Courting just ain’t in my plans! And I sure don’t know why everyone’s so intent on my settling down.”
“Mayhaps it’s because the word in the wind is that you’d fare better settling down than running around,” Jake teased.
“Bah!”
Samuel didn’t wait to hear anymore from the laughing group of men. He stood up and stormed away, angry and frustrated at always being the brunt of their jokes. No one ever teased David about settling down, despite the fact that he had approached Bishop Peachey about his baptism in
the fall. And Jake always had a way of turning things around, Samuel thought with a scowl on his face. It was annoying at best.
“Where you going, Onkel?”
Samuel groaned, shutting his eyes momentarily as he quickly counted to ten. He didn’t have to guess who it was. He knew. His shadow. So, Samuel wasn’t surprised when he opened his eyes and saw little Jacob standing by his leg. “Why aren’t you playing with your cousins and friends?”
The little boy shrugged. “Rather be with you!”