As they were introduced, Katy touched his arm. Megan cupped his hand in both of hers. Their warm welcome was family-like, and he could see that their friendliness was genuine.
“While we’re up, let’s move to the table.” Katy played the perfect newlywed hostess and led them to a country-style kitchen. He tried to imagine Lil living here with Katy, as she had related to him on their ride over. He imagined curvy little Lil in an apron, cooking up her fancy dishes in the plain but refurbished Amish kitchen. Quaint. He loved the image.
“This is new,” Lil said, fingering the table’s centerpiece.
Jake entered the room, carrying an extra chair, and Fletch moved some of the other chairs to the side so it would fit at the table. It didn’t match the other four chairs, and he hoped that wasn’t some sort of sign that he would never fit in.
“It was a wedding present,” Katy said, eyeing the rose-patterned teapot sporting a blooming African violet. “From Mrs. Beverly.” Her eyes softened. “It’s not really my style. Too fancy and delicate. See the gold edging? Since I moved the plant here, it’s thriving. It deserves to live since we dragged it all over on our honeymoon. Anyway, seeing it every day is a good reminder for me.”
“Reminder?” Fletch asked, not wanting to be the mismatched chair when everyone else knew exactly what Katy meant.
“There was a time I was pretty judgmental regarding outsiders.”
“Outsiders?” Lil teased.
“Well, most people,” Katy corrected, touching her covering. He’d seen her do that earlier, as if it served as a security blanket. He remembered Lil telling him how Katy liked to adhere to rules. Recalled the face Lil made when talking about it. From the little he’d seen of Lil, he knew she didn’t like them. She was this beautiful creature trying to break free from her chains. Sometimes it almost hurt to see her trapped at the farm. But his thoughts returned to Katy. Would she accept him? By Katy’s blush, Fletch wondered if he shouldn’t have pried.
Lil warned, “A year ago, you would have been discarded or at least labeled forbidden for your red shoes.”
As if on cue, everyone stared at his shoes. Thankfully, he was wearing dressier ones. He shrugged, wondering if Lil even liked his shoes. She mentioned them a lot, but he wasn’t sure if she liked them.
He considered Lil’s dreams of a new car and a head job at a restaurant with a fancy signature dish, her complaining about being plain. He knew she didn’t like the plainness associated with the Conservative Mennonites.
“So you two are pretty opposite then?” he asked.
“Wow, you know Lil pretty well,” Megan said, clutching his arm. “All my life, I’ve been refereeing those two. They’re like cats and dogs. Black and white.”
“No we’re not!” Katy and Lil denied in unison.
Lil wouldn’t let the comment go without rectification. “When was the last time you had to do that?”
Megan tilted her face and tapped her chin. Then her eyes widened, and her hand fell away from his arm. “It’s been months. Of course I was gone for a while.”
“Anyway, Mrs. Beverly was Katy’s employer,” Lil told Fletch. “But she retired and moved to Florida, where they honeymooned.”
“I misjudged her and didn’t think she was a Christian, but she sent me a letter explaining things about her faith that opened my eyes. So I think you’re safe to wear the red shoes around me.”
He wasn’t sure he’d followed the entire story, especially with so many pretty mouths sharing in the telling. “Thanks.”
Lil turned back to Katy. “The plant must be hardy. Look at all those blooms.”
Katy looked at her husband with admiration. “Jake has the green thumb.”
Lil made a face. “You guys are too mushy. Even when you aren’t being mushy, you’re mushy.”
“Lil!” Megan flipped her hair to the side. “Be thankful they finally get along.”
Lil blushed, and Fletch wondered if she was thinking of their budding relationship and the good-luck kisses they had shared in the car. When she glanced over at him, he quirked an eyebrow, delighted to make her freckles disappear.
“Fletch, I hear you traveled a lot, growing up,” Katy said.
Megan instantly came alive, peppering Fletch with questions. He was used to it. Missionary life intrigued most people. He found that his experiences usually made interesting conversation, and he was a skilled storyteller. He fed on Megan’s enraptured expression and explained to her how the Bambuti Pygmies climbed more than one hundred feet to the tops of the trees to collect honey, stunning the bees with smoke from burning wood clubs.
Then she told him about her trip to Bangladesh. He could relate to her experience. With Megan it was more than fascination over an unusual topic. She had missionary-fever in her eyes. She reminded him a lot of his mom, what she must have been like in the early years of her marriage. In moments, he could tell that Megan was destined for the missionary lifestyle.
At a nudge against his arm, he remembered his date. He glanced up, surprised to see that her expression had cooled. Her face was paler, and her freckles danced boldly.
“I need your keys. I left my dessert in the car.”
He feared he was responsible for the change he saw in Lil and knew that it was not a good change. “I’ll go with you.”
As they started to the door, Jake taunted, “Talk about mushy, Lil.”
“He’s just being protective,” Lil snapped.
“Am I?” Fletch asked, shooting Jake a grin.
“Just give me your keys.”
“Nope,” he dangled them and started toward the door.
Lil faltered and he could see she was struggling with something. Finally she relented. “I suppose there could be a rabid squirrel out there.”
“Or a vicious fox!” Megan teased.
“An angry deer.”
“Or a bear!”
“All right!” Lil exclaimed. “Let’s go.”
Although there was no real reason to protect Lil in the short traipse to the car, having his date clutch his arm was a good thing. “What was that?” he whispered. “Did you hear that crackle?”
“Yeah. It’s good the car is so close.” She played along, but her voice had lost its zest.
At the car, he swung her around. “Hey, what’s wrong?”
She shook her head too quickly. “Nothing.”
“It’s something.”
She sighed. “I was just thinking that maybe the reason we met …” She paused then started again. “Was so you could meet Megan.”
“What? I was just trying to be friendly in there. Because she’s your friend.”
“But you have the same interests. She’s really into missions.”
He lifted her chin until their gazes met. “But I’m not into missions at all. My folks are. Not me.”
She studied him carefully. Her voice was unusually timid. “You seem alike. You’re pretty. She’s pretty. And if you two want to date, I’m okay with that.”
“I’m pretty?” He moved on to his next objection. “How can you ditch me? That really hurts.”
“Okay, I’m not exactly okay with it, but—”
“Let me explain something. I was minding my own business, going to school. I was never out there looking for girls until you captured my attention. Lily, you’re every bit as beautiful as Megan. But it’s more than physical attraction with me. It’s everything about you. The attraction is there,” he quickly added, when he saw her expression fall. “You just strike a chord with me.” He pointed to his chest. “In here. Remember? You’re my sunshine.” He knew that their relationship would have plenty of obstacles in store, but Megan certainly wasn’t one of them.
“Thanks, Fletch.”
“You’re not going to be one of those jealous girls, are you?”
“I hope not.”
He had to smile at her honesty. “Great. Now you keep a lookout for the squirrels while I duck in and get your cake.”
“And foxes. Don’t forget about the foxes
, and careful you don’t tip it and let the icing hit the sides,” she warned.
He scooped out the cake and did a fake juggle act with it.
“Why do I adore ornery guys?” she asked.
“I thought I was your only boyfriend.”
“I was thinking of Jake and my brothers, silly.”
When they reached the house again, he paused. “That didn’t go so well first time around. I might need a little more luck.”
“Forget it, buster,” she said, opening the door.
Fletch hurried after her and placed the cake in the kitchen, and then they joined the others waiting at the table for them.
Before the meal, Jake prayed. Afterward, he passed the chicken dumpling casserole and said, “Katy and I have an important announcement.”
Fletch watched Lil’s eyes widen.
CHAPTER 16
Lil’s gaze sought Katy’s, wondering what Jake’s announcement would be. Was he going to announce a baby was on the way? Whatever it was, Jake’s expression was both joyful and proud, and Katy’s was that of adoration, like usual. Total mush, Lil thought, glancing over at Fletch.
“We made an offer on a house.”
Lil’s gaze returned to Katy, allowing the information to sink in. Her stomach twisted, yet her heart rejoiced. She wanted to do the garbanzo dance. She wanted to weep. This was all part of the plan—her door to freedom, but she was unprepared to make the move. She had no job. If she missed this opportunity, the doddy house might go to someone else. Her doddy house. Dollhouse, Fletch had called it. Her dream. She took a deep breath. “When will you move?”
“A lot has to happen first, but if everything goes according to plans, we will close the end of August and this place will be yours in September.”
“So soon?” Megan asked, exchanging a worried look with Lil.
Katy’s expression turned puzzled. “What’s wrong? I thought you were so eager to boot us out.”
“It’s great news,” Lil said. “Tell us about your house.”
“Jake got a contract with a local land developer, and one of the original model homes became available. They’re giving it to us at a great price.”
“Which development?”
“The Pines. And it’s near the Columbus outer belt. I won’t have to live in the middle of the city someplace,” Katy explained. “It’s perfect.”
Her expression fell. “For us. But what’s wrong? Is it your mom?”
“It’s just that …”
Across the table from her, Katy bit her lip, waiting.
Lil’s mind mulled over her circumstances, and she thought out loud. “Mom is doing better. By September, Michelle should be back on her feet. I guess the only obstacle is I need to get a job.” Her voice turned uncertain. “That shouldn’t be too hard.”
“I didn’t get the job at Char Airlines either,” Megan said, nervously twisting a shank of shiny blond hair.
“Oh no,” Lil exclaimed. “You wanted it so badly.”
Fletch leaned forward. “Wait! Did you say Char Airlines? I might be able to pull some strings for you there.”
All eyes turned to him, expectantly. Lil studied him and then saw Megan’s awestruck gaze. They were doing it again, connecting.
“What do you mean?” Lil asked. She wanted to move into the doddy house. Megan needed that job. But she didn’t need Megan staring at her date that way, ready to melt into a puddle on the doddy house kitchen floor.
“My mentor, Marshall. The man who contributed to my education,” he explained. “He has a connection with them, uses them.”
“Really? I can’t believe it. This is my dream job,” Megan gushed.
“Dream job?” Jake taunted. “Since when do you have a dream job?”
Everyone except Fletch knew that Megan had always floundered when it came to jobs, and Katy and Jake had been left out of the loop altogether regarding her most recent interview.
“This one was different. It came with opportunities to travel to various mission sites. It seemed perfect.”
“And it’s really close to my dream job,” Lil added. “I plan to apply at Volo Italiano.”
Katy frowned, obviously frustrated over the turn of conversation. “We don’t get together often enough anymore.” She thrust out her sulky lower lip. “Why am I just hearing about these jobs?”
Ignoring Katy’s remark, Lil turned to Fletch. “Do you really think your friend could get her the job?”
His coloring deepened a bit, and Lil was sorry that she had made him self-conscious around Megan. Fletch wasn’t normally the blushing type. He was the resourceful type.
“He’s pretty influential. It’s worth a try.”
Megan shot out of her seat and flew to Fletch’s side, tossed her arms around him. “Thank you so much.”
Lil saw his neck redden deeper. When Megan withdrew, he shrugged. “Sure. No problem.” Then he grabbed Lil’s hand and squeezed.
She looked into his gaze, appreciating his reassurance. She wanted to believe that their relationship was intact and moving forward. She needed to shake off her ridiculous jealousy. It was a new emotion for her. She never would have thought she was the jealous type. But if she didn’t relax, she was going to ruin their date. She would drive Fletch away. Now she understood how awful Katy must have felt when Jake was dating a girl from college.
Lil squeezed his hand back and forced a smile. “Happy endings all around. Just the way we like it.”
Just as Megan was the peacemaker for the three friends, Lil realized she was the tone setter. She was the lively and cheerful one, the schemer who kept things interesting and fun. Up to that moment, the tension had expanded into a giant balloon over the dinner table, but her decision to put on a cheerful front was the pin that pricked that balloon and successfully drained the tension from the room. Everyone seemed grateful.
Afterward on the ride home, Lil realized she had overreacted to the connection between Megan and Fletch. Megan had given Fletch her family’s phone number, but Megan didn’t have a betraying bone in her.
“It’s amazing that you have a connection with Megan’s dream job,” she remarked.
“God’s the amazing One.”
She studied him thoughtfully. “Do you think He cares about our dreams?”
“I think He plants them in our souls. Possibly in our DNA, too.”
Lil gave him the awestruck smile that Katy reserved for Jake. She couldn’t help it. When they pulled into her drive, he turned off the ignition. “Don’t want to wake up the house,” he teased.
“It’s kind of weird moving out, then coming home again. September won’t come around fast enough for me.”
“But I’ll miss seeing you here. I’ll miss stealing kisses behind the azalea bush.”
She remembered their first kiss, when the swing broke and they fell onto the ground together. She felt her cheeks heat.
He touched her hand. “Can we go out again?”
Her dad’s advice came to mind. She shrugged it off. She remembered how the first time Fletch had asked her out, she’d hoped a date might clarify her feelings for him. But it hadn’t. They had only scratched the surface in getting to really know each other. Before their relationship went much further, though, they needed to discuss their beliefs and talk about church.
“I’d like that.”
“It’s my turn to think of something to do. Unless you have something in mind?”
She shook her head.
“I should be by this week. Maybe I’ll see you. Otherwise, I’ll call.”
“Great!” She opened the door, jumped out, and gave him a little wave.
He lurched out of the car and called after her, “Wait! Lil?”
She blew him a kiss, almost giggling at his astonished face. He probably had more kisses in mind, but she figured it was time to play a little hard to get.
A crowing rooster did its best to awaken the humans on the Landis farm, but it didn’t irritate Lil like it did some mornings.
Wrapped in a towel, she stared at the clothing she’d tossed onto the colorful pinwheel quilt. Even the plain garb—calf-length jean skirt; faded, tiny-flowered, yellow blouse; and white tennis shoes—didn’t seem so drab today because of her date with Fletch.
Correction. Two dates, and another one lined up. She yawned. A smile replaced her yawn as she donned her clothing and pinned on her head covering. Her smile remained when she hung up her towel in the little bathroom at the end of the hall, and it was still in place when she went downstairs to start breakfast.
But when she stepped into the kitchen, her smile vanished, replaced by astonishment. Syrup, butter, and steaming sausage links graced the table, and her mom was already flipping pancakes on the griddle. “Mom?”
“Hi, honey. Hope you’re hungry.”
Lil scratched her head. Was she still dreaming? Surely all these wonderful miracles weren’t happening to her. First a Mennonite guy appeared in her life, God-planted right under her nose. And now her mom was making breakfast again? This was, indeed, a morning of hope.
If God meant to bless her now, she’d better go job hunting, too.
“Lillian!” Her mom laughed.
Coming out of her reverie, Lil stepped into the room. “Sorry, I was daydreaming.”
“I saw. That young man has you befuddled.”
She opened her mouth to protest, but the rebellious smile came back. She figured it was best not to deny it. “I’ll set the table.”
“Use the Autumn Leaf set. We’re celebrating.”
“Okay. What are we celebrating?”
“Life, Lil. Just life.” Mom studied her, then added with a half smile, “And perhaps love?”
“I’m all for life, Mom. You don’t know how happy it makes me to see you feeling good.” Even with her mom in such a glorious mood, the old fear lingered that one wrong word would send her back into depression. “Let’s celebrate life. But if by love you’re referring to my date, then I think that’s a bit premature.”
“Where’s the Lily I know? You’ve always chased after the boys.”
Chased them away, Lil thought, wondering why her mom was promoting Fletch. “Yeah, I tried to keep up with my brothers and Jake, but—”
Plain City Bridesmaids Page 47