AMISH ROMANCE: Three Amish Sisters Box Set: PLUS NEW BONUS BOOK - Grace's Hope Renewed!

by Rebekah Fisher

  Frowning, she looked at him. “I’m sorry, Adam. I have thought long and hard and I just can’t go with you. I just can’t leave everything I have worked so hard to accomplish. Won’t you reconsider leaving?”

  “Well I have an opportunity to get a job across state and if I want it I have to leave in the morning,”

  “But what about your parents? Have you told them?”

  “Nee, they wouldn’t understand. I tried to talk to my daed but he wouldn’t listen. He said my loyalty should be to Gott and I shouldn’t even think about things like exploring the world,” he said. “But I need to do this. I feel it in my heart.”

  “I don’t know how you can even think of leaving your family, and everything you believe in,” she said. Stopping and thinking for a moment, she looked at him. “Adam, as much as I like you, I have to say nee, I will not be following.”

  “Alright, Beth, but I may not be back,” Adam added.

  “It’s your choice, Adam.”

  “Jah, this is a chance I must take,” Adam said, turning towards the door. “Good-bye Beth.”

  Beth stood and watched Adam walk out the door. Part of her wanted to run after him but another part knew she shouldn’t. She couldn’t leave her family. Her father was recovering and there was no way she could leave them now. Gott would not approve if she decided to go.

  She ran in the back room and let the tears flow. She had finally met a sweet man and was hoping that he’d be the one— and now he is leaving and she may never see him again. Why did Gott have to be so unfair at times?

  The next week was unbearable for her. She tried to pretend that there was nothing wrong but deep inside she was mourning Adam’s loss.

  Isaac noticed a change in her also, but knew better than to bring up the subject, seeing as the last time he did, she became upset with him. He figured the best way was to just be a good friend and be there for her, should she ever need to talk.

  Beth kept herself very busy and tried everything she could to keep her mind equally busy. She was going to start teaching quilting classes every Saturday in the back room of the Quilt Cabin so she was excited about that. She would just have to move on with her life. She had her business, her family, her classes. If Gott wanted her to find love, he would guide her.

  * * *

  Chapter 8

  Beth was sitting on a stool at the counter one afternoon, putting the finishing stitches on another quilt she was working on. She thought about how well her and Isaac worked together and she was beginning to see him in a different light. He was fun to talk with and very interesting, and he was really taking a genuine interest in the business. Hearing the door chime, she looked up to see a young Amish girl came into the shop.

  “Excuse me, but is Isaac here?” she asked shyly, almost as if she was worried she had disturbed Beth.

  Calling out to Isaac, who was in the back working, Beth smiled at the young girl. Isaac came out and when he saw her, his face lit up. “Sarah, what a wonderful surprise!”

  “I was wondering if you were free for lunch, Isaac. I came in town with my mamm for the afternoon,” she said quietly.

  “Beth, can I take an early lunch?” Isaac asked.

  “Of course, I wasn’t going anywhere,” Beth said wondering why he hadn’t introduced them.

  After they left, Beth sat wondering who this girl was. Isaac had never mentioned anything to her about meeting anyone, but then again, it wasn’t any of her business. I thought Isaac and I were getting closer these few days. She had come to really look forward to their lunch hour conversations and felt a bit disappointed.

  She shrugged and went back to her sewing, trying not to think about it, but deep down inside she worried that maybe she was too late. Had she ruined another chance of finding love and happiness?

  When Isaac came back from lunch, he never mentioned anything to Beth about Sarah.

  “Did you have a nice lunch?” Beth asked nonchalantly, hoping that Isaac would open up.

  “Jah, danke. I did,” was all he said. Beth had so many questions she wanted to ask him but she was afraid of what his answer would be.

  Arriving home that night, Beth found her mother busy making a cherry pie. Sitting down at the kitchen table, she smiled when her father walked in. After his accident the doctors didn’t know if he would ever walk again, but thanks to God, he was now walking around the house and getting stronger every day.

  “How is your business, my dochtah?” he asked as he sat down at the table beside her.

  “It’s going well, Daed,” Beth smiled. “Running a business is a lot of work but I am really enjoying it.” “I am very proud of all my dochtah’s.” her father said. “You have all been a wonderful help to me and your mamm. Gott saw the sacrifices you’ve made. That is why he gave me back my legs. Never forget that Gott always tests you, no matter what.”

  Beth went over and hugged her father. “I am glad we were all able to help you, Daed. Families stick together, no matter what.”

  * * *

  The next week, Sarah came in three times to go for lunch with Isaac and once she waited for him after work. He still hadn’t introduced Beth to her but she had to assume that Isaac and Sarah were together and Beth was waiting for the announcement that they would soon be wed.

  I guess I am destined to be known as the unmarried owner of the Quilt Cabin. As long as I have that and my family and my belief in Gott, I will just have to be happy with that.

  Beth kept repeating that over and over in her head as if she were trying to convince herself. Somehow she felt if she told herself over and over that that was all she needed, one of these days she would actually believe it.

  * * *

  Chapter 9

  It was a very busy Saturday morning and Beth had finished her quilting class. There were no customers in the store now, so she began to spend some time organizing the shelves some shelves. She stopped what she was doing and sat very quiet. Sniffing the air, she was positive she had smelled smoke. Sniffing again, she smelled nothing. She shrugged her shoulders and went back to organizing the shelves. She sniffed one more time and thought she smelled smoke again, so she called Isaac out of the back room.

  “Isaac, come here for a second,” she called.

  “Sure, what is it Beth?” Isaac asked as he came to the front of the store.

  “Do you smell that?” she asked.

  “What?”

  “I think I smell smoke.”

  Sniffing in the air, Isaac looked at her. “I do smell smoke, Beth. I wonder where it’s coming from?”

  Suddenly a commotion outside of the door caught their attention and Beth and Isaac ran out of the store into the street. The whole street was in a turmoil. Two stores down from the Quilt Cabin, the craft store was in flames. The store right next door to Beth’s was the pet shop and the owner was frantically running around, yelling that her animals were all going to die.

  Isaac looked at Beth. “I’m going to run in and help her. Those poor animals don’t deserve to die.” Beth nodded her head. “Beth, you go back to the store and remove anything that is located on the joined wall. If the fire is going to break through at least the material can be saved.”

  Running quickly, Beth began moving everything from the wall as fast as she could and piled it up in the back room then closed the door. When she was done, she ran outside to see if Isaac needed any help. She saw him carrying out a rabbit nestled carefully in his arms and gently placing it in a cage that was out on the sidewalk. Seeing Beth, he yelled, “did you clear off the shelves?”

  “Jah, what can I do to help?” she called out.

  “Come with me. There’s a few animals left to get and the fire is almost ready to break through the wall.”

  Running inside, Beth could hardly see. Isaac pointed to a shelf of small cages. “Grab as many as you can and get them outside.”

  She looked inside the cages and could see small lizards and snakes. She grabbed as many cages as she could, and kept saying these are G
ott’s creatures too, and they deserve to live, even if they did give her the creeps.

  Finally the last of the animals were safe. Beth turned to hear the sound of the fire trucks speeding towards the buildings. She looked around but couldn’t see Isaac anywhere and frantically started looking for him, hoping he wasn’t still inside the building which was now engulfed in flames.

  Seeing a small crowd of people gathered, she walked towards them. There on the pavement was Isaac, trying to give first aid to a small helpless kitten that lay in his arms unconscious.

  “Come on little one, breathe. Gott does not want you yet,” he kept saying as he pushed on its little chest. He looked up and saw Beth watching him. Beth noticed tears were falling down his cheeks and it made her heart break. Suddenly the little kitten opened one eye and let out a soft little mew. Everyone cheered. Isaac wrapped the kitten in a small blanket that someone had given him and carried it gently to the lady who owned the pet store.

  “What are you going to do with the animals?” Isaac asked her. “You can’t go back into the store.”

  “I have a friend with a truck who’s coming to help me bring them to my home. I will just have to keep them there until I can make arrangements to repair the damage from the fire,” she said. “I can’t thank you enough for your help. If it wasn’t for you, most of these animals wouldn’t have survived.”

  “Gott was looking down on us for sure. This could have been a lot worse,” Isaac said.

  Turning to Beth, he looked at her and laughed.

  “Why are you laughing at me?” she asked putting her hands on her hips.

  “Ach, your face is streaked with soot and I imagine I look no better,” he said. “Let’s go see if there’s any damage to your store.”

  Inside the store, they looked around. Isaac went over and examined the adjoining wall to make sure the fire didn’t burn through.

  “We must be sure to thank Gott,” Isaac said, turning to Beth. “No damage at all.”

  “I think if we opened the door and windows to give the store an airing out we can get rid of the smoke smell.”

  “Jah, you were smart to move everything into the back room and close the door. I think it protected everything,” Isaac said.

  Beth gave Isaac a warm smile. “I didn’t realize you had such a soft spot for animals.”

  “They are Gott’s creatures too, but jah, I love animals. When I was growing up I was always bringing home stray animals, much to my mamm’s disapproval,” he said as he laughed.

  “Did you grow up on a farm?” Beth asked as she went over to open the front window and door.

  “Well, not exactly. We had a farm, but he wasn’t a farmer. It was just a small hobby farm. He worked at the local lumber mill before we moved here. What about you? Did you grow up on a farm?”

  “Jah, my daed grew vegetables which we sold at the local market. He had an accident where his spine was damaged and we didn’t think he would walk again, but our prayers to Gott were answered and he is getting stronger and stronger every day. He hardly needs his cane anymore,” she said, handing Isaac some of the stock to put back on the shelves.

  They spent the rest of the afternoon putting the store back in order and chatted about their lives growing up and shared stories with each other.

  Putting the last bolts of material back on the shelf, Isaac turned to Beth and said, “well, I have to get going. I promised my daed I’d help him with some things after work.”

  “Ach, I didn’t realize it was 5:00 already. Thank you, Isaac, for all your help today. I don’t know what would have happened if you hadn’t been here.” She tried to hide the fact that she was sad he would be leaving. She really enjoyed these last few hours talking with him and she saw a whole new side to him.

  “How are you getting home, Beth?” he asked before he walked out the door. “I don’t see your buggy.”

  Forgetting that her shveshtah had driven her in this morning, she hadn’t even thought about how she was going to get home.

  “Ach! Rebecca drove me this morning and I completely forgot about how I was going to get home.”

  “I can take you home. It isn’t that far out of my way and I really don’t mind,” Isaac said.

  “If you are sure it isn’t an inconvenience, I would like that,” Beth said happily. She had almost forgot about the fact that there was another woman in Isaac’s life. She wanted to ask him about her but was afraid of what the answer would be. For now, she would just enjoy his friendship for as long as she could.

  * * *

  Chapter 10

  There was something about the spring that Beth loved. She wasn’t sure if it was the fact that the earth was coming alive again after its long winter’s sleep or whether it was because after several months of cold, the warm sun made her feel alive again. Either way, Beth felt happier than she had ever been. The memories of the fire were long gone. The Craft and Pet store had been rebuilt and business at the Quilt Cabin had definitely tripled.

  She and Isaac had become closer since the fire, but she still kept her distance. He had asked her to go out for lunch a few times but she always said no. Sarah would drop by once in a while to visit with Isaac and Beth had still not asked him what his relationship was with her nor did he mention anything to her.

  She had accepted the fact that she may not find love right away and that was fine. Her business, her family and Gott were more important right now and she was content with that.

  She unlocked the door to the store, turned on the lights and began preparing for her quilting class. Every Saturday morning she gave a class for beginners and she was amazed at how many people would come to learn how to quilt. Her classes had become popular and her classroom was usually full.

  Laying out her quilt patches on the benches, she heard the door bell chime. She walked out of the classroom and saw Isaac walking into the store.

  “Isaac, what are you doing here? It’s your day off,” she asked, smiling.

  “Jah, I left a tool here that I need at home but I also wanted to ask you something,” he stammered. “I was wondering, would you like to go with me to the Market Fair this afternoon?”

  Surprised, part of her wanted to shout out JAH! but she looked at him very calmly.“I don’t think that would be a good idea, Isaac.”

  “May I ask why?”

  “Because I don’t want to come between anyone. Plus it isn’t fair that you are seeing someone and asking me out,” she said, trying not to make eye contact with him.

  Looking confused, he said, “hummm, who am I seeing?”

  “Well, Sarah, of course. She comes in here all the time to meet with you,” Beth said a bit annoyed. “Not to mention the fact that your face lights up every time you see her.”

  Amused, Isaac said, “you think I am seeing Sarah? Actually, now that I think of it, I never really introduced you to her. I can see why you would think that.”

  “Well, why else would she be coming around all the time?” Beth said, irritated.

  “Ach, Beth. Nee. Sarah and I are cousins. We’ve always been good friends. She comes into town with her mamm to help her at the hospital where she is a midwife,” he said amused. “I never really introduced you because I thought you didn’t really care,” he added. “Besides, there is only one girl that I would be interested in going anywhere with and I am waiting for an answer from her.”

  She looked up at him in surprise. “Do you mean me?”

  Glancing around the room, Isaac said, “I don’t see anyone else here.” He smiled. “Of course it is you, Beth. I really like you and actually, I’ve liked you for a long time.”

  Beth sighed in relief, then smiled. “I would love to go to the Market Fair with you this afternoon. My class finishes at 11:00. You can come by and pick me up then.”

  Isaac left and she went back to preparing the classroom. She wanted to jump with joy and found it very hard to keep calm. She couldn’t wait for her class to be over.

  * * *

  At 11
:00 sharp, Isaac came back to the store. They drove to the fair and passed the time talking about anything and everything. Beth thought about how easy he was to get along with. She felt she could really be herself when she was with him. He found a place to park, then came around and helped Beth out of the buggy.

  “Thank you, Isaac. Where would you like to go first?”

  “I thought maybe we could just walk around first, unless there is something you would like to do.”

  “Nee, I am in no rush,” she said, starting to walk beside him. They spent a wonderful time walking around, seeing the sights. Stopping at the Ring Toss game, Beth smiled at the little stuffed carrot that was on the prize wall.

  “Look at how cute that is,” she squealed.

  “Well, let’s see if I can win it for you,” Isaac said as he handed the man a dollar bill.

  After three tries, Isaac took his last ring, and aimed carefully. “Cross your fingers, Beth.” He closed his eyes and threw it in the air. As if moving in slow motion, the ring landed on the top of the cone and looked like it was going to bounce off. Instead it slid down over the cone and rested firmly on the base.

  “You did it!” Beth cried out excitedly, as she pointed to the stuffed carrot. Taking the prize, she hugged it close to her. “Danke.”

  “You have a beautiful smile, Beth. I like to make you smile,” he said as they continued to walk around. He was unsure if perhaps he should take her hand as they walked just in case she wasn’t ready.

  They sat down on a bench and Isaac looked over at a group of men standing by a trailer. Watching them, he suddenly paled when he recognized Adam among them. What is he doing back here? I can’t let Beth see him, he thought as he tried to keep her occupied so she wouldn’t look in Adam’s direction.

  “BETH!” came a shout that Isaac dreaded. Looking up, Beth broke out in a grin when she recognized Adam. She stood up and ran towards him leaving Isaac sitting on the bench.

  “What are you doing back? Are you here to stay?”

  “Jah, I have decided the life of the Englisch is not for me, plus my daed needs me at the farm. He has fallen ill again so I had to come home to help,” Adam said, noticing Isaac on the bench.