An Amish Proposal

by Jo Ann Brown

  “People? What people other than your ex-boyfriend?”

  Astonished, she raised her eyes, and the intensity of his gaze seared her. “Isn’t that enough?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Then why are you asking?”

  “Because if you keep acting as if you expect to be ambushed any minute, you’re never going to fit into our community.” He raised one hand to halt her before she could retort. “Don’t say it. I know you haven’t decided to return to the plain life.”

  “I haven’t.”

  “But what are your plans if you don’t go home?”

  Katie Kay was glad when Sean called out from the kitchen to let Micah know he was ready for work. Sean had been avoiding her since he’d witnessed Micah trying to console her yesterday. Her host hadn’t said anything, but she caught his glances, swiftly disguised, in her direction. He wanted to make sure she didn’t hurt his friend again.

  How much did Sean know about what had happened between her and Micah? Enough so he felt protective of his partner.

  She should find another place to live, but where? Micah’s question echoed in her mind. What were her plans if she chose not to return to her daed’s house?

  Katie Kay knew she couldn’t put off making the decision much longer. To do so, she needed to come to terms with her past. Not just with Micah, but with Austin. Being around Micah made her feel confused because he was her sole connection with the life she’d lived until a few months ago.

  But it was time to move forward. She owed the boppli that much. Hoping she wouldn’t regret it, she picked up the telephone and called Austin’s number.

  * * *

  “Eyes on the job, Micah,” Sean warned.

  Micah knew his friend was half joking. All day, he’d been distracted, replaying the conversation he’d had with Katie Kay over and over. The memory of their sharp words matched the tempo of the drill he was using to prepare the roof for the solar panel frames.

  When he’d given her Beth Ann’s card, she’d seemed... What was the word he was looking for? Not quite relieved, but that was the closest description he could come up with.

  If only Sean had waited a couple more minutes before they left for work. Micah had hoped he’d get an answer from Katie Kay about her future plans. He knew he was getting too mixed up in her drama, but how could he walk away when her daed was going to marry his mamm? And there was the boppli to consider. He knew she was in shock about being pregnant, but he couldn’t let her risk the little one while she came to terms with her changed life.

  “Sorry,” Micah said, realizing he’d wandered off into his dilemmas again. “Lost in my thoughts, I guess.”

  “No need to ask you whom you’re thinking about.” Sean adjusted the belt they used to keep them safe on the roof. “Be careful, Micah.”

  “I’m trying to be.”

  “Are you? You’re getting more involved every day.”

  “I know.” Micah drove the screw into the framework and checked to see if it was square. He hoped Sean didn’t push further. In fact, if they weren’t standing on a roof, Micah would have found an excuse to walk away and put an end to the conversation.

  Sean meant well. Other than his brothers, Sean was the man he trusted most in the world. Yet, Katie Kay was one subject he wasn’t ready to talk about with anyone, not even his best friend.

  However, Sean didn’t seem to feel the same. Shifting the metal framework an inch lower, he asked, “Do you think she’ll leave again?”

  “I have no idea what she’ll do. I learned that last year.” He hated the bitterness in his voice, but he’d always been honest with his partner. He wouldn’t let Katie Kay’s reappearance change that.

  “When she dumped you?”

  He paused as he was about to screw in the next bolt. Looking at Sean, he asked, “How do you know she dumped me?”

  Sean gave a derisive snort. “Man, you’ve got the truth written all over your face. Every time you see Katie Kay, you either have a lovesick puppy expression or look like you wished you were a million miles from her.” He set the bolt he held into the metal beams to connect them together. “Even if I didn’t know you’d dated her, I’d know there had been some serious history between you two.”

  “History is in the past.” He said that as much to convince himself as Sean.

  And he failed, because his partner said, “But she’s here. It’s got to mean something.”

  “Ja.” He couldn’t argue with that, but he wondered if she would have ever returned if her former boyfriend hadn’t forced her out of his car and into her old life.

  Micah struggled to keep his mind on the day’s tasks. Every hour seemed to drag until it felt like a year. He was clumsy, and more than once, he had to dig another nut or bolt out of his pocket because his numb fingers had dropped the one he held. It wasn’t only his fingers that were numb but every inch of him.

  The break for lunch didn’t help because, as he took a bite of the sandwich with the roast beef his mamm had made last night for supper, guilt flashed through him. He’d kept his promise to Katie Kay and hadn’t told anyone about her return, but each time he thought about Reuben, he recalled how sad the older man looked whenever someone mentioned his runaway daughter.

  “Why don’t you come to supper tonight?” Sean asked as they threw their lunch trash into the dumpster in front of the house and put their lunch boxes in the van.

  “You don’t have to feed me every night.”

  “I know we don’t, but Gemma likes to have a chance to see you, and you know the kids adore you.”

  “Tell Gemma some other night. Mamm mentioned she wanted to discuss her wedding plans with us tonight.”

  Sean screwed up his face. “Be grateful she doesn’t want you to wear a rented monkey suit for the big event.”

  Micah chuckled because he knew Sean was trying to jest him out of his dismal mood. He played along the rest of the afternoon, but he doubted Sean believed his joking and easy talk about sports and future jobs they had waiting for them.

  Why should Sean believe that when Micah didn’t?

  Chapter Six

  Gemma burst out of the house as the Plain and Simple Solutions van pulled into the driveway just past noon the following day. Sean had forgotten his lunch, and Micah wanted to check on Katie Kay. He hadn’t seen her that morning before they left for the job site.

  Sean muttered something under his breath, and Micah understood when he saw dismay blossoming on his friend’s wife’s face. Sean didn’t like Gemma getting upset now that she was so far along in her pregnancy. Or was his partner distressed because Gemma was running? Micah knew she should be more cautious not to bring on premature labor.

  Then he noticed the other side of the driveway was empty. Had Gemma decided to put the family van in the garage with thunderstorms in the forecast?

  Throwing open the door, Sean jumped out. “Gemma, is everything okay? Are the kids okay?”

  “We’re fine.” She put her hand on his arm, glancing at Micah as he came around the work van. “My van is gone!”

  Micah wondered if his face was as gray as Sean’s became.

  “Gone?” Sean asked. “Stolen?”

  Gemma waved aside his words as ridiculous and then put her hand against the side of her rounded belly. She grimaced.

  Sean lifted her as if she weighed no more than one of the pebbles beside the driveway.

  Micah hurried to the front door and held it open. When the kids—including DJ, who must have just gotten home from school—crowded into the hall, he shooed them aside. Sean needed to carry Gemma in without tripping over one of the kinder.

  Once Sean and Gemma had passed him, he shut the door and then rushed to make sure no toys were in Sean’s way. Sending DJ for an afghan and Olivia for a pillow, he scooped
up Jayden to keep the little boy from being underfoot. He set the toddler on the nearby recliner and motioned for him to stay there. The older kinder quickly returned with the items he’d requested. Putting the pillow against one arm of the couch, he stepped back so Sean could set Gemma down. She was protesting that she was fine and she could walk on her own two feet, thank you, but Sean ignored her. He placed her on the cushions as if she were made of precious china. Micah handed him the afghan, and Sean draped it over her legs.

  “Mommy!” cried Jayden as he jumped from the chair and ran to her.

  Micah halted the kind by swinging him into his arms. The little boy giggled, distracted.

  “Do I need to call the doctor?” Sean asked.

  “No.” Gemma rolled her eyes. “Stop overreacting to everything I do or say, Sean. It’s not like you’re a first-time father. I got a stitch in my side. I haven’t run much lately.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Positive.” She squeezed her husband’s hand before she looked at Micah. “It’s okay. Jayden, come and sit with me.” Smiling at her other kinder, she motioned for them to join her.

  As the youngsters climbed up beside her, Sean said, “As long as you’re okay...”

  “I am.”

  “Let’s start over. Where’s the van, Gemma?”

  “I’m not sure.” Her gaze shifted to Micah again. “I think Katie Kay has it.”

  Micah sank to the recliner’s arm. “Why do you think that?”

  “For one thing, she’s not around, and I did tell her the first day she was here that she should feel free to borrow it. I wasn’t sure when she planned to see a doctor or if she would want to get some things for herself. She has nothing but the clothes she was wearing and an empty purse. I told her she could use the ready cash in the smallest canister if she needed to buy something.” She sighed. “She thanked me and showed me a driver’s license, so I figured she knew how to drive. But I also figured she’d let me know before she took the van.”

  “When did she leave?”

  “It must have been while I was taking a morning nap along with the kids. I didn’t know the van was gone until DJ got home.”

  Before he could halt himself, Micah said, “I guess she didn’t want to disturb you.” He regretted the words as soon as he spoke them because he saw the weight of worry in Gemma’s expression. She was less worried about her van than about why Katie Kay had taken it. “I guess she could have left you a note.”

  “Yes, she could have.” Gemma rubbed her forehead. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap at you, Micah.”

  “You’ve got every right to be annoyed with me. I’m the one who brought her here. I’m sorry to get you caught up in her turbulent life.”

  “She’s mixed-up and scared and feeling alone.”

  He nodded, agreeing. He’d never imagined Katie Kay Lapp feeling alone. All her life, she’d delighted in being the center of attention, and that had ended. At least for now.

  Sean asked, “Could she have gone home?”

  “I doubt it,” Micah answered. “She’s been insistent that she needs time to decide what to say to Reuben, though I don’t know why it’s taking her so long to realize she doesn’t need to say anything other than ‘I’m sorry’ and ‘Forgive me.’” Looking at Gemma, he asked, “Have you reported the van missing?”

  “Of course not! If Katie Kay has it, and I’m sure she does, I don’t want her being pulled over by the cops. I know you Amish don’t like having police involved in your problems, Micah.”

  He understood what Gemma was trying to avoid saying. She was most worried about upsetting him. Wanting to thank her and reassure her that nothing Katie Kay did was a surprise any longer, he went into the kitchen to get Sean’s lunch box. The Donnellys needed time to talk without him there.

  As he picked up the battered box, he wondered how Katie Kay could have taken Gemma’s van without asking. He hadn’t thought Katie Kay was that selfish. What was so pressing she couldn’t wait long enough to let someone know she was borrowing it?

  The search for answers taunted Micah the rest of the day. He tried to concentrate on work, because he could see Sean was having a tough time doing the same. When the distant rumble of thunder signaled they had to get off the roof, they collected their tools and scurried down the ladders. Micah sent up a silent prayer of gratitude.

  They gathered the ladders to put them onto the rack on top of the van. As they were loading the last ladder, Sean’s cell phone rang with the melody that meant Gemma was calling. Micah froze and then shoved the ladder into place. He lashed the bungee cords around it while his partner answered the call.

  “It’s Gemma,” Sean said unnecessarily and then continued to listen to his wife. “She’s back.”

  Hoping he wasn’t misunderstanding, Micah asked, “Katie Kay?”

  He got a nod in response.

  Sean ended the call and motioned for Micah to get in the van. A few raindrops struck the windshield, but the storm went north as they sped south toward the Donnellys’ house. Sean said nothing, and Micah did the same though curiosity taunted him.

  Where had Katie Kay gone? Why? Was she back to stay? Was she ready to go home and face the rest of her life? Or was she there only to return Gemma’s van and planned to leave for gut?

  He was shocked at how the thought of losing her again was more painful than he’d expected. His efforts to banish her from his heart hadn’t been as thorough as he’d bragged to himself. After accusing her of having too much hochmut, pride had misled him.

  Sean was out of the van the moment he thrust the shift into park. He started for the house and then paused.

  “What’s wrong?” Micah asked.

  “Someone hit the van.” He bent to run his fingers along a dent in the bumper. Straightening, he raced to the house.

  Micah wanted to follow him and get answers, but he knew the couple needed a minute or two to talk before he burst in. He knelt by the van and examined the damage. Running his fingers along the dent as Sean had, he smiled grimly. It was minor. The dent could be knocked out easily. It wouldn’t need much more than a little chrome paint to touch it up, and nobody would ever notice the difference.

  He hoped he could say the same for the harm Katie Kay might have done to herself in the Donnellys’ eyes.

  And his.

  Was she always going to be thoughtless and selfish?

  He pondered that as he entered the house just in time to hear Gemma sigh.

  “I don’t know what happened,” she said as he joined her and Sean in the kitchen. “She didn’t say a single word to me or the kids. She didn’t look hurt. Not physically anyhow. When I went out to talk to her, I saw the damage to the van. By the time I’d finished examining the dent, she was gone.”

  “Gone?” Micah asked. “She ran away again?”

  Gemma aimed a frown at him. “Why must you think the worst of her, Micah?”

  “Me?” He was shocked she’d turned her frustration on him. “She busted your van.”

  “It’s a teeny dent. Nothing more. I thought you’d be more forgiving.”

  “Because I’m Amish?”

  Her scowl deepened. “No, because you once were in love with her. She went to the swimming hole. I think she wanted to be alone to think.”

  A glance out the window over the sink revealed that Katie Kay still stood by the pond Sean had dug out a few summers ago to make a swimming hole for his kids. He’d stocked it with small fish the kinder could catch and release.

  “As long as nobody was hurt,” Sean said as he held out his arms.

  As Gemma threw herself into Sean’s embrace, Micah knew he should be somewhere else. Making sure he had his irritation with Katie Kay under control, he left the kitchen and crossed the yard toward her. The thunder was fading over the hills, and the ai
r hung with a clammy dampness that suggested more storms were heading their way. He doubted they could be stronger than the one inside him.

  He thought she was tossing pebbles into the water, but, as he got closer, he saw she was shredding a bright orange leaf. She must have heard him approach through the crackle of the fallen leaves, but she didn’t look at him.

  Stopping beside her, he remained silent. He bent and picked up a flat stone. He sent it skipping across the pond that reflected the gray sky. When she didn’t react, he chose a second and then a third and watched them skim the water. The pond rippled, though he knew it was quiet beneath.

  The opposite of Katie Kay who appeared calm, save for a faint quiver in her fingers as she ripped the leaf to smaller and smaller pieces. She hunched into herself.

  “You owe Gemma an explanation,” he said when he couldn’t endure the silence any longer.

  She looked at him. “Don’t, Micah. I don’t need you yelling at me.”

  “I’m not yelling. I haven’t raised my voice.”

  “Maybe not, but you’re angry.”

  His brows lowered as he wondered how she expected him to feel when she’d acted outrageously. “Of course I’m angry. Gemma agreed to let you use her van. Not only did you take it without letting her know, you dented it.”

  “I would have told her, but she was taking a nap, and I didn’t want to disturb her. I didn’t realize I’d be gone so long.” She clasped her hands in front of her as she added, “And for your information, I didn’t dent the van. Someone ran into it while it was parked.”

  He believed her. Katie Kay had never lied to get herself out of trouble. “Where did you go?”

  “Where else? Lancaster.”

  Astonishment ripped through him. She’d gone to the city? Back to the man whose name she seldom mentioned? Was she, as he’d thought earlier, at the Donnellys’ only to say good-bye?

  * * *

  Katie Kay watched as Micah closed his mouth that had become a circle of surprise. He was trying to keep his promise that he wouldn’t yell at her, but anger blazed from his eyes.