Amish Celebrations

by Beth Wiseman

  “She was crying?” Paul couldn’t stand to think about that.

  “Ya. But why would you want to drag it out with her? The Englisch have feelings, too, and it was obvious that she cares a lot about you. It just seemed mean to mislead her unless she was planning to convert to our ways. She seemed to agree with that, that she couldn’t join the Amish faith.”

  Paul’s stomach roiled even more. “She said she doesn’t want to be Amish?”

  “Ya, she did. So I did you a favor.” Becky glowered at him as if waiting for an apology.

  “Nee, Becky, you didn’t do me a favor. At first I thought she was one of those girls who just thought she wanted to be Amish. Now you’re telling me she doesn’t. You probably ran off my only hope at true love.” He waited for a reaction from his sister, but she just dropped her jaw. Then her eyes widened as it all seemed to fall into place for her.

  “That’s why you ran those girls off.” She gasped, still wide-eyed. “It’s why you’re twenty-two and still haven’t been baptized. You plan to leave. You want to live in the Englisch world.” His sister took a step back, her expression evolving into something bordering on hysteria, as if Paul had killed someone or something.

  Paul took a few steps toward her and gently latched onto her arms. “Becky, if I had been baptized, I would have been shunned later because I don’t belong here. But I haven’t been baptized, so I will always be able to be a part of your life even if I do choose to be baptized into a different faith.”

  “Then why date all those girls in our community?”

  Paul shook his head. “If I was hiding such a big secret, I wondered if any of them were too. I never would have encouraged any of them to leave, and once I realized each of them was firmly grounded in their faith, I let go of them. And it hurt me every single time.” He sighed. “But I didn’t feel about any of them the way I feel about McKenna. And now I have no way to find her. I don’t even know her last name.” He turned to leave. He’d already said too much, and Becky was sure to tell their parents.

  “Young.”

  Paul didn’t slow his step. He was done talking about it.

  “Young!” she said louder. “That is McKenna’s last name. Young.”

  He stopped and said a quick prayer of thanks.

  CHAPTER 11

  Paul had looked every place he could think of to find Noah, his only link to McKenna. Although Becky had no idea where Noah was, she’d offered up some places he might have gone. But after several hours of looking, Paul started a search of his own. He found seventeen families in the Paradise phone book with the last name Young. But among a population of eleven hundred people, it was like finding a needle in a haystack. Lots of Englisch folks no longer had a landline, only a cell phone. And if McKenna and her mother did have a home phone, it was likely listed in her mother’s name.

  But he’d called all seventeen numbers from the phone in the barn before he set out in his buggy. Twelve people who answered said they didn’t know a McKenna Young. The other five numbers had been disconnected. He jotted down those five addresses and decided to drive by each house, hoping to recognize McKenna’s blue car in one of the driveways.

  He was nearing the second house on the list when his horse decided to relieve herself, which meant he had to reduce his speed considerably or prepare to be sprayed. Just as he was slowing down, a woman emerged from the house toting a suitcase, frowning when she saw Paul’s horse relieving more than just her bladder. He thought people should be used to it, but Paul supposed he could understand her feelings. It was right in front of her house.

  “Ma’am, I’m sorry about this,” he said out the window of his buggy. Amish generally avoided traveling through neighborhoods if it could be avoided and opted for farm roads instead. Or at the least, they used a manure bag, which Paul had forgotten in his rush to find McKenna.

  “Trade hazard,” the woman said as she opened the car door and flung the suitcase inside.

  Paul figured now was as good a time as any. “Does McKenna Young live there?” He held his breath, but when the woman nodded, he released the breath and quickly stepped out of the buggy. He held his horse by the bit. “Is she home right now?”

  The woman shook her head. “No. I just came by to pick up a few things, and I’m leaving too.”

  Paul didn’t have anywhere to tether his horse, or he would have walked closer. But even in the distance, he could see that McKenna’s mother looked older than he’d imagined. Gray hair in his district was common for women even in their thirties. But the Englisch were known to dye their hair as soon as any gray began to show. This woman had gray hair that hung almost to her shoulders.

  “Can you tell me where I might be able to find McKenna? I’m a friend of hers.”

  Scowling, the woman walked closer to Paul. “I honestly don’t know where she’s at.”

  He wanted to say it seemed odd she wouldn’t know where her daughter was, but he thought better of it. “I lost her phone number. Could you possibly give it to me again?”

  McKenna’s mother folded her arms across her chest, the wrinkles on her forehead turning into deep lines of irritation. “McKenna is staying with friends for a while. I’m sure she’ll call you when she can.”

  Paul recalled McKenna mentioning a friend of hers, but he couldn’t remember the girl’s name. And he wasn’t ready to give up his only lead. “Mrs. Young, it’s important I talk to her.”

  The woman chuckled. “Oh, I assure you, I am not Mrs. Young. I’m a friend of the family. Mrs. Young will also be away for a while.” She held up a hand. “Look, I’m sure you’re a nice enough fellow, but that’s all I can say right now.”

  Paul opened his mouth again to ask the woman to give McKenna his phone number, but she held up a hand before she quickly walked back to her car and left. Paul crawled back into his buggy, tempted to follow her, but if she turned on the highway, he’d have no chance of keeping up with her in his buggy.

  He sat there for a while and thought about any other way he might find McKenna, but when his horse neighed, he figured he better get out of the neighborhood before he left another reminder of the visit. He clicked his tongue and gave a gentle tap of the reins, sending the horse into a slow trot. He would recheck the places Becky had told him Noah might be. If he still couldn’t locate him, he’d try to find a phone and call him again.

  But maybe this was God’s way of telling Paul that he and McKenna weren’t meant to be after all.

  Rebecca decided to surprise Noah at work the next day. She’d packed a lunch and hoped he could slip away for an hour. Maybe they could go eat at the park around the corner. His coworker Gavin was at the front desk when Rebecca walked in the hardware store carrying a picnic basket. Gavin reminded her of someone who could be on the cover of a fancy magazine. He was tall, muscular, and carried himself with confidence. His blond hair framed his handsome face. He’d always been very nice to her, but today she was fighting the urge to feel resentment toward him since he was the one who’d taken Noah to the Englisch party. In her heart she knew it wasn’t Gavin’s fault Noah chose to find comfort with a stranger.

  “Hey, Rebecca. You missed Noah. He just left for lunch.” Gavin smiled. Even his teeth were nice looking, white and straight.

  “Ach, okay. It wasn’t a planned lunch. I had to pick up some fabric nearby, so I just threw a little something together before I left home.” She glanced at the basket. “Chicken salad sandwiches, chips, and some apple pie.”

  Gavin shook his head. “His loss. I’ve tasted your apple pie.” He chuckled. “He gave me a bite once in the break room, but it was a very small bite. Stingy fellow.” Gavin laughed again.

  Rebecca had no reason to verify what Noah had told her, but an opportunity was presenting itself. “I have more errands to run in the area. Do you want to eat lunch with me?”

  “Sure. Noah will probably kill me for eating his pie, but I’m going to. And I love chicken salad.” He glanced at the front door. “It’s usually slow righ
t now. We can eat in the back, but I’ll have to jump up and run to the showroom if someone comes in. There’s a buzzer in the back, so I’ll know.”

  “Great.” Rebecca followed him through a door that led to a small room with a table and chairs, sink, small refrigerator, and microwave. She’d eaten lunch here with Noah several times before. As she lay out the food, Gavin found two paper plates, then grabbed them each a soda, which was a real treat since her mother didn’t approve of the drinks.

  Rebecca lowered her head, surprised when she looked up that Gavin had lowered his head in prayer also. It shouldn’t have surprised her. There were plenty of Englischers who prayed before meals. A reminder that there were a lot of good people in the world who weren’t Amish. Rebecca laughed when Gavin tore into the pie.

  “I’m not taking any chances Noah will return and want his lunch. I’m going to finish off this pie first.” He smiled with a mouthful, then swallowed and said, “And it’s just as good as I remember.”

  Gavin was a charming and handsome man. Rebecca remembered Noah mentioning a girl named Penny who Gavin was interested in. “I think Noah mentioned you have a girlfriend. I think he said her name was Penny.”

  “I’m working on it.” He shrugged. “She’s not really my girlfriend.” He shook his head. “She is absolutely gorgeous, but she’s got some issues. A little too much partying for my taste.” He raised an eyebrow as he peeled the plastic wrap from the sandwich. “Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy a beer as much as the next guy, but she’s all about having fun every night, and I gotta work. Penny’s parents are wealthy, so all she has to do is manage to hit a couple college classes in the afternoon. But we’ll see how it goes.”

  Rebecca fought the vision of Noah and another girl chatting it up while Gavin and Penny were in a different room, but she smiled, then took a bite of her sandwich. She’d already decided to leave her piece of pie for Noah.

  “Yeah, Penny’s got this girl living with her for a while.” Gavin took a sip of Coke. “And she’s not the big partier like Penny, so I’m hoping maybe McKenna will be a good influence on her.”

  Rebecca stopped chewing, sat taller, and after she swallowed, she said. “That’s not a very common name, McKenna.” She thought about Paul and how badly she’d messed things up for him. “My brother has a friend named McKenna. He seemed to really like her, and I accidentally lost the phone number he had for her. He’s been running all over town for days trying to find her.” She shook her head, glancing at Gavin, who was busy with his sandwich. “Those things usually don’t work out, when one person is Englisch and the other is Amish.” She recalled what Paul had confessed, and for her brother’s sake, she pressed onward. “Does her last name happen to be Young, by any chance?”

  Gavin nodded. “It sure is.” He chuckled. “Small world. I have McKenna’s phone number if you want to give it to him.”

  Rebecca let out a small gasp. “That would be wonderful.” A way to redeem myself after all the terrible things I said about Paul’s womanizing.

  “Let me go get my phone. I left it on the counter, and I have her number stored in it since she’s friends with Penny. I don’t really know McKenna all that well, but she seems like a really sweet person.”

  Rebecca smiled. “She actually came by our house looking for Paul, but I had no idea Paul really cared for her, so I didn’t encourage the relationship, which still worries me, for the reasons I mentioned. But I liked her very much.”

  Gavin wiped his mouth, then frowned a little. “I didn’t realize you’d met McKenna. Noah told me what happened. He said you’d freaked out about him spending time with her at the party. I think you’re an awesome person to put that behind you. Noah loves you, and he’d be a miserable soul without you. After you two broke up, he moped around here for days.”

  Rebecca forced her jaw closed, reeling on the inside that Paul’s McKenna was also Noah’s mystery girl. She could feel the color draining from her face as she swallowed hard. The sweet woman who had come to visit Rebecca was starting to grow horns in Rebecca’s mind.

  “I’ll go get the number.” Gavin stood, and as he was leaving the room, he said over his shoulder, “Anyway it was just a hug and a kiss, nothing more. Noah would never really cheat on you.”

  Rebecca’s heart was pounding against her chest. A kiss? I thought it was just a hug. Horrified, she scurried to stuff containers back into the picnic basket, and by the time Gavin returned, she was packed up and ready to go.

  “Here you go.” He chuckled again. “Wow. Such a small world,” he repeated. “And thanks for lunch. I plan to rub it in to Noah that I ate his pie.”

  Rebecca accepted the paper Gavin had written McKenna Young’s phone number on. Then, pausing only a moment, she picked up her pie and stuffed it in the basket with the rest.

  “Danki,” she whispered before she left.

  Outside, she took a breath. No way was she going to give Paul that phone number and be subjected to seeing that woman on a regular basis on the off chance that they became more involved—which would be stupid for both of them. Things would be better this way.

  After she left the building, she crumpled up the piece of paper and tossed it in the nearest trash can.

  CHAPTER 12

  McKenna lay on one of the queen-size beds in Penny’s room. Her friend’s bedroom was bigger than McKenna and her mother’s living room. It had been two weeks since Loraine took her mother to a rehabilitation facility and helped McKenna get the rest of her things out of the house before it foreclosed. Loraine said there was no money left in her mother’s account. Grandma’s inheritance was gone. And McKenna knew where most of the money had gone.

  Penny was sitting on her bed drinking a beer, citing that it was okay to drink in the early afternoon because it was Saturday. McKenna was searching for full-time jobs online. At least she still had her computer to peruse possibilities.

  “I told you not to worry about finding a job.” Penny sighed. “My parents said you can stay here as long as you like. You might as well take advantage of no rent or bills. My dad said he’d pay for your cell phone and car insurance, and I’m sure he’d take care of anything else too.”

  McKenna was grateful she had a place to stay and for Mr. Schroeder’s offer to help her, but she didn’t want to stay in this house one day longer than she had to. The fighting between Penny’s parents was almost unbearable at times.

  “Why didn’t you tell me things were so bad with your mom?” Penny grimaced. “I mean, I kinda knew she was a druggie, but it seemed to make you uncomfortable when I asked about her.”

  “It’s embarrassing, and it’s heartbreaking too. She’s still my mother, even if she’s not a very good one.” McKenna didn’t look up when Penny popped the top off another bottle of beer. “Isn’t that like your fifth one?”

  “I don’t need another parent. I already have two too many.” Penny wound her long blond hair on top of her head and secured it with a clip. “Let’s do something. I heard Frank Lymer is having a party tonight, but I’m bored now. We could go to the mall.”

  “Well, clearly I’d have to drive us.” McKenna didn’t have any money to shop, so that didn’t sound appealing. But about every five minutes, she eyed the time on her computer. It was nearing two o’clock, and she wanted to go to the library. She doubted Paul would be there, but she’d yet to get him out of her mind.

  Finally, she made a decision. “I’m going to the library.”

  “Oh, wow. Really? You’re still hung up on that Amish guy? Even if he’s there, the relationship has nowhere to go.”

  McKenna had told Penny a little bit about Paul, but when her friend made disapproving remarks, McKenna shut down the conversation and hadn’t brought it up again. “I don’t know how to explain it. There was just something about him.”

  “They live very differently than we do, but yeah, I’ve found most of them to be nice. Even that Noah guy Gavin brought to my party seemed okay.”

  McKenna recalled her time with Noa
h and the intimate hug and kiss on the cheek. “I thought he was very sweet. Maybe a little confused about his life, but nice.”

  Penny swung her feet over the side of the bed and slipped her feet into a pair of flip-flops, even though it seemed too chilly outside for sandals. She picked up her purse from the nightstand and stood. “Well, I’m off to the mall. Maybe I can find something to wear to the party tonight.” She put a hand on her hip and scowled. “You’re going, right?”

  McKenna sighed. “I don’t know.” Penny seemed to live for the next party, and she didn’t have enough responsibilities to occupy her time. Maybe if her parents enforced a few rules, things would be different.

  But then again, maybe McKenna should’ve done the same with her mom. She spent the majority of her life watching her mother go downhill, first with drinking, and then adding pills to the mix. She remembered the look on Evan’s face when she sent him packing. She regretted not doing something about him sooner. McKenna wouldn’t be able to see or talk to her mother for the first thirty days of the rehabilitation program. It was a voluntary facility, meaning her mother could walk out at any time, but so far she hadn’t. McKenna called to check on her every day.

  “I’m outta here.” Penny dug her keys out of her Michael Kors purse. McKenna glanced at her own worn-out knockoff designer bag she’d bought at Penny’s insistence.

  “I don’t think you need to drive anywhere. I can drop you off at the mall on my way to the library.”

  “I’ll be fine.”

  Before McKenna could object, the bedroom door opened and Mrs. Schroeder walked to the middle of the room to face off with her daughter. The woman folded her arms across her chest, a sour expression on her face that McKenna had come to recognize. Penny’s mom was getting ready to scold her for something, and she didn’t have a problem doing it in front of McKenna.

  “What?” Penny said as she rolled her eyes.