Huckleberry Harvest (The Matchmakers of Huckleberry Hill Book 5)

by Jennifer Beckstrand

“I was right about you all along,” he said. “You’re only going to be here for four weeks. You came to have a little fun, maybe see if you could get some stupid boy to fall in love with you. Maybe stick your nose where it didn’t belong and ruin someone’s life in the process. You should be proud of all you’ve accomplished, and your month isn’t even up yet.”

  The sharpness of his tongue made her tremble. “Kristina wouldn’t believe me. She said I was imagining things. I told her you kissed me in hopes that she’d finally give up and leave you alone. Leave us alone.”

  “Why should you expect Kristina to leave me alone? You don’t.”

  A sob came from deep in her throat. “If I had known you’d be so upset, I never would have said anything to her.”

  “You know she can’t keep her mouth shut. About anything.” He narrowed his eyes into slits. “In fact, you were counting on it, weren’t you?”

  “Counting on what?”

  The pain and vulnerability flashing in his eyes cut her to the quick. “You must think I’m so stupid. Kristina knows all about what happened at the bar. Did you think I wouldn’t find out?”

  Mandy forgot to breathe. Could things get any worse? She’d hoped to keep Noah from finding out that Kristina had been there that night. “I didn’t want you to find out. I knew it would upset you.”

  “You wanted Kristina to tell the whole community.”

  “Why would I want that?”

  “Because you wanted to be right. You wanted to force my hand. You told me yourself that someday someone would find out about my dat. You thought that if news like that spread to the community, I’d be shamed into calling your counselor or checking my dat into the hospital. You wanted to get your way with me and my dat, and you didn’t care how you embarrassed us in the process.”

  For a moment, Mandy was at a loss for words. Is this what Noah thought of her? “That’s not true. I promised you I wouldn’t tell anybody.”

  “Your promises are as cheap as tissue paper.”

  Tears trickled down her face. “I can’t understand this. I love you. Can’t you see I love you?”

  He flinched as if she had struck him. “And so you think you know what’s best for me?”

  “It breaks my heart to see how tightly you’ve tied yourself into knots. You’re so afraid of the truth that you shut out the very people who could help you. You’ve even shut out God.”

  He glared at her. “You don’t know anything. I would never shut out God. He is my only strength. You’re so sure you’re right that you want to force me to do what I won’t do. To shame me in the eyes of my community.”

  “I don’t want to shame you. I want to help you. You don’t even know how the community would react because you won’t let them see. You’d rather ignore it or run away.”

  He took off his hat and raked his fingers through his hair. “Tell that to my brother who I haven’t seen in three years. I didn’t run away from my fater. I stayed. I’m the only one who stayed.” His voice cracked, and he nearly lost his composure. She gently placed her hand on his arm. He jerked away from her. “Go back to Ohio, Mandy. I was so much better off before you came.”

  He turned and stomped down the lane, giving a short whistle that summoned Chester to his side. He didn’t look back. She didn’t try to stop him.

  What had she done? She had wanted to tell him she was sorry, but her apology sounded more like a rebuke. You’re so afraid of the truth that you shut out the very people who could help you. You’d rather run away.

  How could she have said that to him when he had cared so faithfully for his fater for all these years? Noah was the bravest person she knew.

  He was right. He’d be so much better off without her.

  Raw and empty, she stood silently in the lane and watched Noah until he disappeared from sight. A pathetic sob involuntarily escaped her lips. She felt profoundly lonely, as if she were the only person left in the whole world.

  For the first time since she’d come outside, she noticed how brisk the air was. A light breeze teased wisps of hair across her face, and she shivered as a chill ran down her spine and tears spilled down her cheeks.

  She’d lost him, and she wasn’t even sure how it had happened. All she knew was that a cavern gaped in the place where her heart used to be, and it hurt to breathe.

  How long did she stand there? It could have been minutes. It could have been hours. She trembled as the wind picked up and seeped underneath her sweater.

  She had learned her lesson. She would never try to fix anyone’s problems ever again, never try to help girls with their broken hearts or boys with their broken families. Noah had made her see that her help was unneeded and unwelcome.

  But the lesson had come too late. Noah was gone.

  Chapter Eighteen

  The dry leaves skipped along the ground and cackled as the wind picked them up and swirled them in a dancing spiral. Mandy squinted against the dust that blew into her eyes. Lord willing, the wind would not make mischief of the loose shingles on the roof. Yost was working as fast as he could to finish the roof before the weather turned downright hostile, but if the wind kept blowing his shingles around, his job would take much longer. If only Noah hadn’t left Yost to do the job by himself.

  Noah had been fully aware of how little time they had left to finish the roof before bad weather hit. Only the deepest kind of hurt and anger would have kept him away when Yost needed his help so urgently.

  Mandy swallowed the lump in her throat. She’d really fixed things gute this time. Mammi and Dawdi’s roof might not get done, and Noah Mischler hated the very sight of her. Her heart ached so badly that it hurt to breathe.

  Turning her face away from the wind, she searched for green tomatoes on Mammi’s vines. If they got the tomatoes in before the first frost, they could ripen on the counter, and her grandparents would eat fresh tomatoes for another month or two, even if Mandy wouldn’t. Mammi wanted her to stay in Bonduel indefinitely, but Mandy wouldn’t be here to eat tomatoes or make pot holders or roast marshmallows with any boys in the neighborhood.

  If she had her way, she would leave immediately, go back to where she belonged, and forget that there was even such a place as Huckleberry Hill and such a boy as Noah Mischler. But she had promised Mammi that she would stay the full four weeks just in case there was a boy within a fifty-mile radius whom she hadn’t yet met.

  Mammi was planning a gathering at their house the night before Mandy’s departure. Even if the thought of Yost Mischler working on the roof all by himself made her want to weep, she couldn’t disappoint Mammi. She’d stay eight more days.

  She hoped that once she got back to Ohio, she would be able to breathe again. Maybe she’d find a new and exciting boy who wouldn’t be annoyed with her all the time. Of course, a new boy probably wouldn’t have arms as thick as tree branches or hair the color of clover honey. He definitely wouldn’t know how to fix the refrigeration system at the local market or how to install a gas stove without setting the house on fire. If he did know how to shingle a roof, maybe he wouldn’t want a stupid girl bothering him, even if she did know how to use a crescent wrench and a Phillips screwdriver.

  Mandy cleared her throat and made herself think about Eggs Benedict. Thinking about screwdrivers made her want to cry. She didn’t want to be sniffling all day.

  She picked up her two galvanized metal buckets full of green tomatoes and tromped toward the house. Before long, the snows would bury the hill in white drifts. Huckleberry Hill was so charming in the wintertime, but she wouldn’t be here to see it.

  The wind teased her hair from beneath the scarf she’d tied around her head as she made her way toward the house. The faint tinkling of a bicycle bell tripped along the breeze. It could only mean one thing. Kristina was coming for another visit. After yesterday, what could she possibly want?

  Mandy threw her head back and growled. Oh, how she wished Kristina would quit bothering her!

  Yost called to her from the roof. “I
s everything okay?”

  She quickly lowered her head. Yost did not need to see her pallid complexion or the red-rimmed eyes. “Jah. I am only making noises.”

  If Yost thought her strange, well, it probably wasn’t the worst thing he thought about her. Noah’s disdain certainly would have spilled over to his brother.

  Standing on the first step, Mandy slid her buckets onto the porch and waited, once again, for Kristina to pop from around the bend with that self-satisfied grin she had worn yesterday. After Noah had gone, Mandy had come trudging back up the hill only to be greeted by Kristina coming the other way on her bike. She had held her head as if she had a whole bouquet of flowers in her hair while she pedaled slowly down the hill. “It serves you right,” was all she had said as she passed Mandy coming the other way.

  As devastated as she had been, Mandy had been tempted to stick out her tongue.

  What would Kristina do today? Had she come to gloat?

  Mandy wouldn’t stand for that. Kristina could just turn that bike around and ride down the hill, because Mandy would not put up with any smug remarks from her best friend. Former best friend.

  With friends like Kristina, who needed enemies?

  Kristina came into sight marching up the hill with a purposeful stride, ringing that bell for all she was worth. When she saw Mandy, she scrunched up her face, as if she’d just eaten a crab apple.

  Mandy balled her hands into fists. She felt bad enough as it was. She did not need Kristina’s righteous indignation to make her feel worse.

  “Mandy,” Kristina said, quickening her pace when she saw her, “I am so sick of boys, I could just spit.”

  Mandy’s brows inched together. “Sick of boys?”

  Kristina didn’t even bother with the kickstand. She let her bike fall to the ground, reached out for Mandy, and pulled her in for an embrace. “Noah especially,” she said, loudly enough that Yost working on the roof could hear her.

  Mandy let herself be hugged and then pulled away to study Kristina’s face. “I thought you were mad at me.”

  “Best friends can never be mad at each other for long. Besides we’ve got to stick together against those stupid boys who break our hearts.”

  Could Kristina even begin to guess at the depth of Mandy’s broken heart?

  Kristina pulled her cell phone from her pocket and waved it in front of Mandy’s face. “Not one word from him since yesterday. Not one. And that text wasn’t even meant for me. I thought he’d at least text me back. But ten texts is my limit. If he won’t answer me after ten texts, then he’s had his chance.”

  “You don’t want to look desperate, I guess,” Mandy said weakly.

  “That’s right, because I’m not desperate. A boy who breaks up with two girls over a text message isn’t worth your time. Or mine. There are plenty of other boys. I’m through with Noah Mischler.”

  Mandy’s reaction bordered on astonishment to hear her own advice spouted back to her from such an unlikely source. Had all those lectures she’d given Kristina finally sunk in?

  She exhaled slowly. “That’s right. A boy like that doesn’t deserve our affection.” She felt even less convinced than she sounded. She was the one who didn’t deserve Noah Mischler, the ill-mannered boy who broke up with girls over text messages. “What made you change your mind about him?”

  “I chased him down the hill yesterday on my bike.”

  Mandy nearly choked on Kristina’s words, but she restrained herself from showing any reaction. “Did you?” Didn’t this girl ever have chores to do? She seemed to have a lot of time for idle notions.

  “He was halfway home by the time I caught up to him. First he tried to convince me that he wasn’t good enough for any girl. You know, because of his dat. Then he got impatient and told me that he wasn’t interested in me or you ever, and that if I kept pestering him, he’d speak to my fater and tell him to take my phone away.” She scowled and wrapped both hands protectively around her phone as if to guard it from Noah even now. “I told him I wouldn’t marry him if he got down on his knees and begged me to, even if he were the richest man in the world. Even if he were the bishop, I’d never even dream of marrying him. I told him off right good.”

  “What did he say?”

  “He said ‘gute.’ That’s all. Just ‘gute’ and stomped away. But I’m sure he regrets it now.”

  Well could Mandy imagine Noah’s reaction. He would have frowned, clenched his teeth, and when his back was turned, breathed a sigh of relief.

  “Good riddance,” Kristina said. “He’s caused me enough trouble. You almost drowned because of him.”

  Nae. She had escaped from the river because of him. She had smiled a thousand different times a day because of him. She had eaten French toast because of him.

  She had fallen in love because of him.

  “My one comfort is that you didn’t get him either,” Kristina said.

  Mandy shouldn’t have expected anything better from her friend, but her heart hurt all the same. Nope. She didn’t get him either. But it didn’t give her any comfort.

  Kristina folded her arms and pursed her lips as if she were trying to be strong. “I’ll never meet another boy like Noah Mischler, and now I’ve lost him.”

  Better him than the cell phone.

  Kristina burst into tears, just as Mandy had expected her to, and threw herself into Mandy’s arms. She was the friend who could fix things. Kristina depended on her, but she probably didn’t know or even care about the ache in Mandy’s heart.

  For once, Mandy was grateful for Kristina’s insensitivity. Mandy probably would have melted into a puddle if Kristina had shown her any sympathy at all. And Mandy was determined not to be a puddle until she got back to Charm. Mamm wouldn’t mind puddles on her floor.

  Mandy led Kristina to the porch steps to sit. She wrapped an arm around her to shield her from the cold and let her cry it out. The crying lasted a few minutes longer than Mandy expected, probably because Kristina was crying over the thought that she had almost lost her cell phone. That would have been a tragedy indeed.

  The wind rushed through the trees, pulling leaves from their branches and sending them whirling into the air like tiny birds. “It’s getting cold,” Mandy said. “Should we go in and make some tea?”

  “Have you got some of that lemon cake from yesterday? It was really good.”

  “Jah, I have a little left over.”

  “Okay. I’ll come in.” They stood, and Mandy led Kristina up the stairs like an invalid. Kristina halted on the porch and wiped her eyes. “I want you to know, Mandy, that I forgive you for what happened with Noah.”

  Mandy didn’t even bat an eyelash. “Denki. I appreciate that.”

  Over the sound of the wind, Mandy heard a horse coming up the hill. Both she and Kristina turned as Davy Burkholder rode up the lane and waved at them.

  “What’s he doing here?” Kristina said, probably put out because she’d have to share her lemon cake if Davy decided to stay.

  “Do you know Davy Burkholder?”

  “Jah. He isn’t in my district, but I sometimes see him at gatherings.” The corner of Kristina’s mouth drooped. “He’s short.”

  Mandy eyed Davy as he jumped off his horse. He wasn’t that short. And Mammi thought he had nice teeth. And according to Noah, he had three stuffed elk heads hanging in his living room. What girl wouldn’t find that charming?

  Davy led his horse to the tree at the edge of the lawn that served as a hitching post of sorts. He secured the reins around the tree, looked up on the roof, and yelled. “Yost Mischler, how are you?”

  Mandy heard movement above her. “Trying to keep from blowing away,” Yost called. “And you?”

  “Not too bad. We’re working on getting the corn in before the wind takes it.” He gazed at the roof for a moment. “Where’s Noah?”

  “Working at Yutzys’ today,” Yost said.

  “Tell him not to work too hard. If he wears out, nothing will ever get fixed in Bo
nduel again.”

  “I will,” Yost said.

  Davy smiled and removed his hat before the wind took it. “Hullo, Mandy. Hullo, Kristina. Wie gehts?” Davy did have sort of a cute smile.

  Kristina stood a little taller as she peered at him. “We’re just fine.” She must have forgotten that she had been bawling her eyes out not two minutes ago.

  Davy ambled up the porch steps. “Are you okay, Kristina? Your eyes are red.”

  Kristina self-consciously brushed at the hair at the nape of her neck. “Oh, I . . . dirt is flying every which way in this wind.”

  “Nae, you’ve been crying. I know when a girl’s been crying. I have sisters.”

  Davy hadn’t mastered tact yet. Well, he was young. If enough girls disapproved of him, he’d learn when to keep his opinions to himself.

  “What brings you to Huckleberry Hill?” Mandy asked. Surely Davy wasn’t here to talk about Kristina’s puffy eyes.

  “Your mammi asked me to take you kite flying tomorrow. It seems she’s got two homemade kites, and she wants us to see how high they’ll fly.”

  Dear Mammi. There was no end to her schemes. “Okay. I can go with you. What time?”

  “I get off work at four. I’ll pick you up at five.”

  “It might be too windy,” Mandy said, hoping beyond hope that they would have to cancel.

  “It depends if Anna made a strong kite,” Kristina said. “If it’s made of paper, the wind will rip it up.”

  “We don’t have to fly kites for very long. Then we can go shooting. I really want to take you shooting.”

  “Okay,” Mandy said, with even less enthusiasm. She’d tried shooting before and came back with a bruised shoulder. “I’m sorry you had to come all the way up here to ask me.”

  Kristina perked up and held her phone for Davy to see. “Next time, you can call me. Mandy and I are always together, and I have a phone. I can get a message to her without you having to make a trip.”

  Davy seemed to take a greater interest in Kristina. “You have a phone? That’s wonderful gute. All my friends are either baptized or nearly so. Nobody has a phone anymore. Well, Noah does, but he won’t text me.”