The following afternoon, Mama came home from the hospital, and Papa and John helped her into her bedroom. Faith thought it was a good thing her folks’ room was downstairs, because with Mama having to rely on crutches for weeks, it would have been difficult for her to navigate the stairs safely.
Once Mama was situated, Faith herded Melinda and Susie into the kitchen and instructed them to set the table while she made supper. She’d no more than taken a package of meat from the refrigerator when a knock sounded at the back door.
“I’ll get it!” Melinda hollered. She scurried across the room and flung open the door.
A few seconds later, Noah entered the kitchen, holding a loaf of gingerbread in one hand and his straw hat in the other.
“I heard about your mamm’s broken leg, and I thought she might like this.” He handed the bread to Faith.
“That was nice of you. Would you care to join us for supper?” she asked.
“I appreciate the offer, but I can’t stay that long. Mom isn’t feeling well today, so I promised I’d get right home to make supper.” Noah smiled. “Guess I could stay long enough to have a glass of iced tea, though.”
Noah took a seat at the table, and Faith handed him some iced tea. “This sure hits the spot,” he said after taking a drink.
“Can Susie and I go out back and play now?” Melinda asked her mother.
Faith nodded her consent, and the girls raced for the back door, giggling all the way.
“Must be nice to be young and full of energy, don’t you think?” Noah asked when Faith took the seat across from him.
“I’d give up dessert for a whole week to be able to carry on the way those two do. Even with chores to do, they still find time for fun and games.”
“That’s the way it should be. We adults need pleasure and laughter in our lives, too.” Noah pulled a slip of paper from the pocket of his trousers and held it up.
Faith seemed interested as she leaned across the table. “What have you got there?”
“A scripture verse. I read it this morning before I left for work, and I copied it down.”
Faith sat back in her chair with a look of indifference. “Oh, I see.”
Noah couldn’t understand why she acted so remote whenever he brought up the Bible. It worried him. Her disinterest could mean she would never get baptized and join the church, which pointed to the fact that she wasn’t happy here and wanted to return to the English way of life. And if that English fellow Noah had seen Faith with at Baldy’s was her boyfriend, then she might be planning to leave home.
“Don’t you want to know what the verse says?” he prompted.
She shrugged.
“It’s Philippians 4:4: ‘Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.’”
When she made no comment, Noah added, “The Bible also says in the book of Proverbs, ‘A merry heart doeth good like a medicine.’ I think everyone needs a bit of God’s merry medicine, don’t you?”
“I’m a comedian, so it’s my job to try to make everyone laugh when I’m onstage.”
He shook his head. “I’m not talking about entertaining, Faith. I’m referring to good, old-fashioned, God-given humor.”
“I used to get into trouble with my folks for acting silly and playing tricks on my siblings.”
Noah lifted his eyebrows. “Acting silly isn’t so bad, but playing tricks is another matter.”
“You’re too good for your own good, do you know that, Noah Hertzler?”
“I don’t think my daed would agree. He took me to the woodshed for my fair share of bletchings when I was a boy.”
Faith shook her head. “You’re such a nice man; I find that hard to believe.”
“It’s true.”
“Well, be that as it may, I think you’re a do-gooder.”
“Is that a bad thing?”
“No, of course not.”
Noah fought the temptation to tell Faith that he’d seen her at Baldy’s Café, but he decided it was best not to mention it. Faith had enough on her mind right now, and being put on the spot about the Englisher he’d seen her with might only upset her.
Swallowing the last of his iced tea, Noah pushed his chair back and stood. “Guess I’d better head for home.”
Faith scooted her chair away from the table. “Thanks for stopping by with the gingerbread. I’m sure Mama will appreciate it.”
She followed him to the door, and just before he exited, Noah handed her the scrap of paper with the Bible verse. “I’d like to leave this with you as a reminder that it’s okay to have fun and tell jokes.”
Faith took the paper and placed it on the counter but made no comment.
“Let me know if there’s anything I can do to help out while your mamm’s recuperating.”
“Thanks, I will.”
Noah bounded down the porch steps, waved to the girls, and climbed into his buggy.
Faith watched until Noah drove out of sight. He really did seem like a nice man. Just not the right man for her. Besides, she was fairly sure Noah already had a girlfriend.
She turned to the stove, where she added the potatoes she’d peeled to the pot of stew, and when she turned back to the counter to cut up some carrots, she spotted the verse Noah had given her. Did God really find pleasure in hearing people laugh and rejoice? Was Noah all he seemed to be? Faith’s head swam with so many unanswered questions. “I have to leave Webster County before I go crazy with a desire for something I can’t have. I’ll go as soon as Mama’s back on her feet.”
“Go where?”
Faith whirled around. “Nowhere! I—I didn’t know you were here, Grace Ann.”
“Jah. Got home from work a few minutes ago.” Grace Ann headed over to the kitchen sink. “When I was putting my horse away, I saw Papa out in the barn, and he said Mama came home from the hospital.”
Faith nodded. “She’s in her bedroom resting.”
“Is she in much pain?”
“Probably would be, but the doctor gave her some medication, so I think she’s fairly comfortable.”
“That’s good to hear.” Grace Ann looked around the room. “Where’s the rest of the family?”
“The boys are doing their chores, and the girls are outside playing.”
“Esther’s not home yet?”
“Nope.”
“Would you mind if I slip into Mama’s room and say hello before I help you with supper?”
Faith shrugged. “Go ahead. The stew won’t be done for another half hour or so anyway.”
When Grace Ann left the room, Faith turned back to the stove. Her thoughts, however, returned to Noah.
Chapter 15
The next several weeks were difficult, with Faith working from sunup to sunset. Everything in the garden seemed to come ripe at the same time, and much of it had to be canned. Mama did all she could from a sitting position, the girls helped with the simpler tasks, and a few Amish women from their community dropped by to offer assistance. Faith gladly accepted everyone’s help—even Noah’s. He’d come over a few times on his way home from work and had helped Faith fix supper and do some outside chores. Last Saturday Noah had worked in the garden, helped with the canning, and done some baking, as well. It was hard to believe, but he was as much help in the kitchen as he was outdoors.
Faith hated to admit it, but she liked having Noah around. His cheerful disposition as he helped with the chores made her workload seem a bit lighter. Even so, she felt trapped like a mouse caught between a cat’s paws. Would she ever be able to go back on the road? It was beginning to seem as if the time would never come.
On this Saturday, Noah had come over to help. He was out in the garden picking tomatoes. Faith had helped him earlier, but she’d gone into the house to get them some water.
When Faith stepped inside the kitchen, Melinda and Susie, who were making a batch of lemonade, greeted her. She chuckled at the sight. Two little girls squeezed lemons into a glass pitcher, but more juice was running down their a
rms than was making it into the container.
“Need any help?” she asked as she stepped up to the table.
“We can do this,” Susie said, a look of determination on her youthful face. “Mama told us how.”
“That’s right, and we wanted to surprise you and Noah with a glass of lemonade,” Melinda added.
“Then surprise us you shall.” Faith gave her daughter a smile, then turned on her heel. “You can bring the lemonade outside when you’re finished.”
Faith was still smiling when she stepped outside. Melinda was adjusting so well. School would be starting in a few weeks, and as soon as Melinda was settled into that routine and Mama was back on her feet, Faith planned to leave.
“That Noah’s sure a nice man,” Melinda said to Susie, as they scurried over to the refrigerator to get out some more lemons.
“Jah, he sure is,” Wilma answered before Susie could respond. She’d been sitting at the table, reading the latest issue of The Budget and couldn’t help hearing Melinda’s comment.
“Noah’s a lot of fun, and he’s real smart, too.” Melinda fairly beamed as she carried a handful of lemons back to the counter across the room.
“That’s right,” Susie agreed. “With all the help he’s given you, you’ll be the smartest scholar in the first grade.”
Melinda’s cheeks turned pink. “I might not be the smartest, but I’m doing a lot better now that Noah’s been working with me.”
Wilma tipped her head and studied Melinda. Oh, how she hoped Faith would never leave and take the child away. She’d grown attached to the girl, and from the looks of Melinda’s exuberant smile, she had a hunch the child was happy to be living here, too.
“Say, Melinda,” Wilma asked, “do you think your mamm’s happy living here?”
“Sometimes, when she’s laughing and playing silly games with me, she seems happy, but other times, she acts kind of sad.” Melinda squinted as she turned to face Wilma. “I think she misses my daddy, and it makes me wish Mama would get married again.”
Susie plunked a sack of sugar on the counter next to the lemons. “Maybe she’ll marry Noah. He seems to like her, and truth be told, I think she likes him, too.”
Wilma smiled. If that were true, then she and Noah’s mother wouldn’t have to work so hard at getting Noah and Faith together. Maybe the young couple would begin courting on their own.
Just then, Grace Ann stepped into the kitchen. “Whew, it sure is hot out there,” she said, wiping the perspiration from her forehead. “I don’t know how Faith and Noah can keep working in the heat of the sun like that.”
Wilma motioned to the girls. “If you’d like something to drink, some lemonade is in the making.”
“Sounds good. Need any help?” Grace Ann asked, stepping up to the counter.
Susie shook her head. “We can do this by ourselves, can’t we, Melinda?”
Melinda nodded. “Course we can.”
Grace Ann chuckled and took a seat at the table beside her mother. “How’s that leg feeling, Mama?”
“It’s getting better every day,” Wilma replied.
“Glad to hear it. I’m sure you’ll be relieved when the cast comes off and you can get back to walking without your crutches.”
“That’s for sure.”
Wilma and Grace Ann chatted about everyday things, while Melinda and Susie finished making the lemonade. When the girls took the pitcher of lemonade outside, Grace Ann leaned closer to Wilma and whispered, “I’ve been wanting to tell you something, but there never seemed to be a good time.”
“What’s that?”
“The day you came back from the hospital, I overheard Faith mumbling something to herself about leaving.”
Wilma’s eyebrows drew together. “Leave here?”
“I think so,” Grace Ann said with a nod. “She was fixing stew for supper, and I heard her say, ‘I’ll go as soon as Mama’s back on her feet.’”
Wilma’s heart clenched. It was as she’d suspected. Faith wasn’t happy here, and she had no intention of staying. That meant she probably wasn’t as interested in Noah as Susie thought, either. “Danki for sharing that with me,” she said. “You haven’t told anyone else, have you?”
Grace Ann shook her head.
“Good. I think it’d be best if you didn’t.”
“How come?”
“Because if Faith thinks we’re talking about her, it might make her want to leave all the more.” Wilma patted her daughter’s arm. “The best thing we can do for Faith is think of some way to make her like it here well enough to stay.”
“How are we going to do that?”
“I’m working on that,” Wilma said with a nod.
When Barbara pulled her rig into the Stutzmans’ yard, she spotted Faith sitting on the porch with her daughter and Susie. Noah was also there, which gave Barbara a little hope that things might be getting serious between Noah and Faith.
Susie waved to Barbara and called, “Come join us for some lemonade.”
Barbara tied her horse to the hitching rail and hurried toward the house. “It’s plenty hot today, so something cold to drink will surely hit the spot,” she said as she stepped onto the porch.
“This is real tasty, too.” Noah lifted his glass in the air. “Susie and Melinda made it.”
“Did they now?” Barbara patted both girls’ shoulders and took a seat in the empty chair beside Faith.
Faith poured some lemonade into one of the empty glasses sitting on the small table nearby. “See for yourself how good it tastes,” she said, handing the glass to Barbara.
Barbara lifted it to her lips and took a sip. “Umm. . .you’re right, this is gut lemonade.”
Both girls beamed, and then Susie said, “Maybe we should go inside and see if there’s any cookies we can have.”
“Good idea.” Melinda jumped up, and the two girls disappeared into the house.
“Where are your boys today?” Faith asked, turning to face Barbara.
“They’re home with my mamm. David thought I needed some time to myself, so he said I should leave the shop for a while and go somewhere on my own.”
“Sounds like a good man to me,” Noah said.
“Jah, he’s the best.” Barbara smiled at Noah. “What brings you over here today?”
“Came to help Faith work in the garden.”
“How thoughtful of you.” Barbara had to bite her tongue to keep from saying what she was thinking. Noah would make the perfect husband for Faith, and if Faith was courted by someone as nice as Noah, it might help her smile more, the way she used to do when they were children.
Noah lifted himself from the chair. “This has been a nice break, but I think I’ll get back to work and let you two women visit.”
“Is there anything going on between you and Noah?” Barbara asked once Noah was out of earshot.
Faith’s mouth dropped open. “Why would you ask such a question?”
“I couldn’t help but notice the way he looked at you—like he thinks you’re something special.”
“No way! Noah and I are just friends; nothing more.”
“But I heard he’s been coming around here a lot lately, and—”
Faith held up her hand. “Noah’s been coming over to help out since Mama broke her leg, but there’s nothing special between us. Fact is, Noah already has a girlfriend.”
“He does?”
Faith nodded.
“Who is she?”
“I don’t know her name, but I saw Noah sitting with her at Baldy’s Café sometime back. I didn’t recognize her as anyone from our community.”
“Hmm. . .”
“Has Noah ever said anything to you about having a girlfriend?”
Barbara shook her head. “But then, most courting couples don’t broadcast their intentions until they’re ready to get married.”
“You think he’s planning to marry this woman?”
“I have no idea. Want me to ask him?”
“No!
” Faith’s face heated up. “He might not like it if you started prying into his business.” She shrugged. “Besides, what Noah does is his business. I sure don’t care.”
Barbara was tempted to say more on the subject but decided to keep quiet.
“So, how are things going in the harness shop?” Faith asked.
“Real well. David and I enjoy working together.”
Faith grunted. “I still can’t believe you’re helping him make and repair harnesses and other leather items. That seems like hard work for a delicate woman.”
Barbara patted her stomach. “After having two kinner, I’m afraid I’m not so delicate anymore.”
Faith stared out at the garden, where Noah worked.
“I guess I should get going and let you get back to work,” Barbara said as she rose from her seat.
Faith stood, too. “Yes, I should probably help Noah.”
Impulsively, Barbara gave Faith a hug. “It’s sure good to have you back in Webster County. I missed you.”
“Thanks.”
Barbara stepped off the porch and headed across the yard. She stopped at the garden to say good-bye to Noah, then climbed into her buggy, whispering a prayer for her childhood friend.
Noah looked up as Faith joined him at the row of beans he’d been weeding. “Did you and Barbara have a nice visit?”
“It was okay.”
“Just okay? I thought the two of you used to be good friends.”
“Used to be is the correct term. I was away from home a long time, and we barely know each other anymore.”
Using the back of his hand, Noah wiped the sweat rolling down his forehead. “She cared enough to come over and see how you’re doing. To me that says she wants to be your friend.”
Faith shrugged. “Maybe so.”
“I’d like to be your friend, too.”
To his surprise, she smiled. “I’d say you’ve already proven that by the acts of kindness you’ve shown me and my family.”
Noah wanted to tell Faith that he was interested in her as a woman, not just as a friend who needed his help, but he held himself in check. If there was any hope of them having a relationship, he needed to take it slow and easy with Faith. He also needed to accept the fact that she might never be romantically interested in him—especially if she was involved with an English man.
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