I wiped at my hands and rushed to the clothesline, grabbing at the clothes in haste and tossing them into the basket unfolded. The storm seemed to rush in, the darkness a little unnerving as I grabbed the last of the sheets and hauled the basket into my arms to rush inside. As I stepped onto the porch I saw Nathan in the pasture, herding the horses back into the barn. I dropped the basket and ran out to help him just as the heavens opened up and the thunder boomed overhead.
He had Magnus beside him as he guided him in, the horse stamping angrily as they stepped into the barn. The other two horses came trotting after. I helped to get them back into the stalls, offering them more oats in one of their basins. As soon as they were settled, Nathan shut the stalls and wiped his face, the rainwater dripping from him.
"Ready to make a run for the house?" he asked as we both looked outside at the sheets of water falling.
My answer was drowned out by the loud crack of thunder, but his hand grabbing at mine propelled me into motion. We dashed across the yard, mud and water kicking up as we ran. Jumping up onto the porch, we stood under the overhang, watching as the rain continued to come down in sheets. Nathan helped me with the basket of clothes and set it down on the kitchen table when another rumble of thunder sounded through the house.
"The window upstairs!" I cried out, realizing I had forgotten it was open to air out the room.
I rushed up stairs, shutting the window quickly before any more water seeped in.
Looking around, I shook my head at the mess. The water was not as bad as the mud I had tracked up the stairs with my soiled shoes. I took them off with a rough tug and was about to look for something to wipe it up with when I saw Nathan in the doorway, holding a towel.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to track mud into the house," I said, getting on my hands and knees to wipe up the mess.
"It is all right, Kate. That is why we have wood floors. They are easier to clean. Come. I will finish that. You should dry yourself," he said and took a measured step inside the room.
He looked around the space, clearly uncomfortable, before taking another step in and squatting before me. His hand reached out slowly, taking the towel in my hands.
"Go and get dry. You will catch cold," he whispered, and the look in his eyes made me realize he was concerned about me. Of course he was thinking about his family and their sickness.
I could see it in his eyes.
I nodded and stepped out, grabbing my soiled shoes and finding the clothesbasket back in the kitchen. I searched through it and found a towel to dry off with, taking off my cover and letting my hair down to dry it. I heard Nathan come down the stairs and as I turned I blinked at him, bare-chested and walking toward me.
"You need to dry off, Kate. You are soaked," he said, taking the towel from my hands and wiping down my arms and neck.
I stood there dumbly.
I was wet, not particularly cold in the moment while he touched me. He seemed to realize the effect he had on me and paused, looking at the towel in his hands. His eyes drifted up the length of me, my breath coming faster as I watched his eyes darken under his wet hair that had fallen down onto his forehead.
"Your dress is soaked through," he said, his voice husky.
"I'm just wet. I can just take the dress off and let it dry," I replied, trying to ease his concern.
"You do not have a change of clothes here," he said, his eyes widening some.
"You've seen me in less than my shift Nathan," I replied and started undoing the hooks. His hand stopped me.
"I don't have the strength today to keep my distance, Kate," he whispered. "I have been struggling all day to behave."
"Oh," I said, not realizing he had been in such dire straits with me. I knew it had been an emotional day, but I didn't know I had been part of the cause.
"I'll wrap up in the quilt, okay?" I said, starting to feel the chill as the cold settled in.
He nodded and pulled the quilt out of the basket holding it up for me as I undid the hooks on my dress. His eyes never left me though. I paused and smirked at him.
"Nathan, if you are struggling, then why are you staring at me while I strip?" I teased.
He blushed and closed his eyes, cracking one open before I swatted at him. He bit at his lip and closed his eyes again, letting me pull off my dress so that I stood in only my shift. It was damp as well, but I didn't want to suggest taking that off too. I reached for the quilt and wrapped it around me, covering me better than any toga at a frat party would.
Nathan opened his eyes again and smiled.
"Much better," he said and grabbed a dry shirt to put on. I watched in dismay as he dressed, rather liking him standing there half naked before me.
It seemed both of us had issues with behaving.
We stood there in the darkening kitchen while we waited for the rain to let up. As the minutes passed, the storm seemed to worsen, the sound of pelting raindrops slapping loudly against the porch roof. Looking out, we noticed the hail. I wondered idly if this was God’s way of warning me to be good when Nathan took my hand and pulled me close, the two of us standing in the doorway as we watched the yard in the back of the house turn a muddy grey. Perhaps God was giving us a little time alone in a place that wouldn't normally allow it.
I liked that idea better.
Nathan held me a little closer, dipping his head down to kiss the top of my head before looking out again at the storm. His fingertips drifted across the bare skin of my shoulder, making the skin prickle there.
"Are you cold?" he asked, tracing the skin and watching it pebble under his touch.
I shook my head and glanced up at him, his eyes dark once more.
"Why are you shivering then?" he asked.
I let out a slow breath and turned away from the torrent outside.
"You know why,” I breathed and leaned into him, enjoying his warmth.
"Jonah and Fannie will worry over you. They may come, even in this rain," he said, his hand slipping down and around the back of my shoulder, stroking.
"So stop touching me then, if you're afraid," I whispered and stood on tiptoes to kiss him.
He groaned and wrapped his arms around me, pulling me back into the kitchen, the storm and everyone in the world falling away. I felt one arm wrap around me high, the other low, and I had just enough time to brace for it before he picked me up and carried me up the stairs. I cried out in surprise when he tossed me on his small bed, following after.
His mouth covered mine with an urgency he rarely allowed, his hands twining into my hair while mine traveled down the length of his back. He groaned and pressed me into the small bed, partially covering me with his hard body while we explored one another in the darkening room. Lightning flashed outside, thunder rolled, and the rain kept hammering down, as if this was the first day of forty of the great flood.
He broke away from our kiss with a panting groan, and let his eyes wander to where the quilt had fallen loose, exposing my dampened shift underneath. Looking down I could see the shift was almost see-through. He slid his long body beside me so that his head rested against my breast. He wrapped his arm around my waist and pressed himself to me, letting out a contented breath.
"Perhaps we can just stay like this for a time? As much as I want to finish what we started the other day, I think I like just laying here like this with you," he murmured, his breath hot against my skin.
I let one hand play in his hair while the other stroked his arm around my waist. As much as I wanted to go further, it was nice knowing that Nathan could enjoy simply being together. Not needing to do anything more than lay in one another's company, even if our bodies asked for it.
Temptation could be kept at bay.
We lay like that until the rain slowed, the thunder growing more distant, the two of us quiet in our thoughts. Occasionally Nathan would squeeze me a little closer, or speak softly about something he wanted to show me in the spring. Or about what he wanted to plant in the next year. Or I would mention some
thing about what I wanted to grow in the garden.
It was a quiet bit of time where we could share our hopes for the future.
Our future.
"Kate?"
I hummed in response, feeling at peace with his heat against me. I felt him lift up and opened my eyes to see him looking down at me in the waning light.
"If I do become the Bishop, you will be all right with that path? Truly?" he asked, his voice rough from having rested for so long.
"If you are to become Bishop, I will support you as I should. But I worry that it's not something you want," I replied.
He looked at the window and chewed on his lips, deep in thought.
"It is my duty if Benjamin does not return in time. Our classes will be over by November. It will not be easy to get him back that soon I think," he said.
I sat up and touched his cheek, bringing his worried gaze back to me.
"We'll try, Nathan. It's all we can do. But Benjamin needs to want to come home and face his future, too. It’s ultimately up to him," I said and moved to get up.
"He feels guilty for many things. I am not sure how to help him with those."
I folded up the quilt as I thought about it.
"I think he needs to see how much he is needed here. To know that he has a purpose. Maybe he hasn't felt that in a while," I suggested, and smiled when Nathan leaned in and kissed me.
"I think if we must go the route of the Bishop, you will make a very good Bishop's wife. You have such well spoken thoughts," he chuckled and kissed me again.
"We need to get going, Nathan," I sighed as his lips trailed to my neck.
One last kiss at the base of my neck and he pulled away, smiling.
“A good Bishop’s wife that knows when to do right,” he sighed.
I changed in a rush, grabbing the vegetables I had gathered that day and walked hand in hand with Nathan back to the Berger’s house. Supper passed with some talk about why Benjamin did not join us, but Nathan and I both understood. It would take time. And we would be there to help him.
I settled into bed next to Emma that night, who hugged me and watched me as I thought about it all.
"Are you worried about Nathan?" she asked.
I shook my head slowly.
"Not so much. More about Benjamin, actually," I replied. "He wants to come home, Emma. He has a purpose here and I'm worried he didn't show up tonight because yesterday spooked him." I said, explaining about how I saw him in the field during Sermon.
She nodded and thought about it.
"We are going into town tomorrow to drop off some of the corn cakes we made today and to go shopping. Perhaps we will see him in town, and invite him again," she suggested.
"Maybe. I just want to see him happy again. He was happy at Nathan's. So was Nathan," I replied.
"They were best friends, like us. They need each other," she said. "Promise me you will still be my friend when I go off and make a home with John."
Her words caught me off guard, and I felt an instinct to hug her.
"Of course. I will always be your best friend, Emma. And your sister," I whispered into her hair.
"Good," she sighed and settled into bed, her smile mischievious. "Now I assume since you did not come home with hay in your hair, you did not spend any time in the barn?"
Her eyes were sparkling in the lantern light.
"Actually, Emma, I spent a while in the barn," I quipped, stifling my laughter when her eyes widened. "Mucking out stalls, Emma. I cleaned stalls today."
She giggled and rolled over to turn down the lantern.
As we sat in the dark, waiting for our eyes to adjust, I heard her chuckle.
"Do I want to know what you did while you waited out the storm?"
"Nope. Goodnight, Emma."
She giggled again and I felt her hand squeeze mine once before letting go.
"Goodnight, sister."
I sat in the dark and for the first time in many days, I felt like perhaps we were heading in the right direction.
CHAPTER 7
"Katherine."
I cracked my eyes open, squinting at the glare of the lantern near me. Blinking, I could see Emma and Fannie, Emma rubbing her eyes as well. Fannie was fully dressed, but it felt early yet.
"What's going on?" I mumbled, the sleep lingering in my brain.
"Jonah and I must go and help with the delivery of the Lapp baby. I am leaving it up to you girls to take care of the chores and take the food to Eli to sell. Mark and Hannah will be here in the morning," she whispered.
"Of course, Mother," Emma said, her voice a little more awake than my own.
"We will be home as soon as we can," she whispered and closed the door, our room plunging back into darkness.
I groaned and tried to roll over. Every muscle in my body hurt. The work I had done at Nathan's was showing up in all the aches and pains of my body. Somehow I knew this day was going to be long when we woke up earlier than usual, having double the chores than we were used to.
Abigail volunteered to get the eggs; I was not going anywhere near there in the dark. I had a hard enough time being in the barn by myself while I milked the cows. We were ahead of time, so I missed seeing Nathan coming down his hill. He arrived just as I pulled biscuits out of the oven. The sausage and eggs were done, and as he put his hat up, he looked around, confused.
"Evie Lapp is having her baby," Abigail explained and Nathan nodded, his brow puckering slightly.
"I suppose I will be taking the corn to market alone then, unless I can convince Mark to come with me," he said as he took a cup of coffee from me.
"Mark is going with us to town," Hannah said as she entered.
Mark strolled in behind her, inhaling the air as he did.
"You can go without me. I can go to the mill with Nathan after we offload the corn," he said and snuck a piece of sausage off the plate as Emma laid it on the table.
"But you also have to help Katherine with her car. You said the man wanted to make a deal," she argued and smacked his hand when he reached for another sausage.
"I can go and ask John," Nathan replied. "I am not sure I like the idea of the girls going to town by themselves."
Hannah pursed her lips at Nathan and shook her head.
"We are not three, Nathan. We can take care of ourselves," she said, her tone cutting.
"I love being the wanted man in the crowd!" Mark joked, patting Hannah's hand until she leaned back and glowered across the table at Nathan.
We ate and spoke about the course of the day, Nathan wanting to be sure I was back in time for our baptism class later in the afternoon.
"We have to drop off the food at the general store. I know Fannie wanted to pick up some more flour and basic items at the market. And then there is Katherine's car," Hannah was saying.
I was a little sad about seeing the car go. But if it fetched a good price, it meant that Nathan could relax a little about the winter. I was clearing away the last of the dishes when I felt Nathan's hand on my shoulder. I looked up into smiling eyes.
"How are you this morning?" he whispered.
I returned the smile and busied myself with the dishes while I spoke. It was nice having him this close. We both knew Emma and Hannah would understand. And luckily Abigail was distracted with pretending to arm wrestle Mark.
"I'm a little sore from the stalls," I admitted but laughed and shook my head. "I have to start working out or something."
He let out a soft chuckle and let his fingers slip up onto my neck, their warmth feeling nice on my sore neck.
"I imagine you will be sore for a few days. I am grateful for your help, though. I could not stop thinking about yesterday, all night," he breathed near my ear.
"Enough flirting, Nathan!" Hannah admonished. "You will see one another plenty soon. We must get ready or we will not be home in time for your class."
Nathan straightened and let his hand slip from me. But as soon as Hannah had turned, he leaned in and chanced a swift k
iss on the cheek, grinning.
"Be careful. I will be thinking of you today," he murmured and took a step back before Hannah intervened once more.
He and Mark disappeared out the back door while we packed up the treats Fannie hoped to sell at the general store. There were several pies she and Emma had made the day before, as well as her prized corncakes. It took us several trips to the buggy to pack them all in, with crates crammed between us and under our feet for the journey.
I sat in the back with Emma and Abigail, while Mark and Hannah sat in the front. I took a brief look back toward the hill, my smile playing on my lips until Emma spoke up, laughing.
"You two are inseparable now. I cannot imagine what it will be like once you are married," she said.
I pretended to scowl at her and turned back around to watch as the road took us to town. I was eager to get there. I was determined to see Benjamin today to be sure he returned to the Berger's for dinner, and hopefully to stay with Nathan. Emma and Hannah chatted about Emma's upcoming wedding. They still had not planned a date, waiting for when they were baptized. Emma had revealed that John would be going to the Bishop to ask for the two of them to be baptized within the month, so that the wedding could take place in November.
"That does not leave you much time, Emma," Hannah was saying. "And you need to work on your dress. Both of you do. Then there are the invitations to family and friends, coming out and planning the feast. It is more work than you realize."
"I know that, Hannah. I was planning on starting my dress this week, now that most of the crops are done. Besides the canning, we have more time for that," Emma said and smiled over at me.
"Katherine will need help. She has never sewn a dress before. Or did your mother show you?" she asked.
I frowned and looked out at the fields, many clear or in the process of being cleared.
I hadn't thought about my mom much since arriving here.
"My mom didn't show me much of anything before she died," I murmured and continued to look out the window. I felt Abigail lean in and take my hand, her bright blue eyes taking me in with more wisdom than any ten year old I had ever known.
Renewing Hope (In Your World #2) Page 9