“You caught me on a good day. I’m usually still at work.” He opened the door wider. “So, have you decided to offer your services to me this afternoon as payback for all of my hard labor?”
“I do owe you, that’s for sure.”
“I’ll take you up on it one day soon. There ain’t much that needs to be done at the moment.” He paused and grinned. “But you can mow the grass if you’ve got a mind to do it.”
Roman’s lips curved in what could only be described as a reluctant smile. “I’ll pass on that, but thanks.” Still hovering in the doorway, he said, “I need to talk to you about something.”
“Come on in, then.” Landon led the way to his sparse kitchen. “Want a sandwich?”
“No, thanks, but you go ahead.”
Landon was so hungry, he didn’t need any further encouragement. But as he was chewing that first bite, he started to realize that Roman hadn’t come over to talk about work. “What did you want to speak to me about?”
“Elsie.”
“What about her?”
“I know you took her out.”
Landon wondered why he brought that up. “ You were there when I asked her.”
His mouth suddenly felt dry. Grabbing his glass, he took a gulp of water. “I took her on a buggy ride, Roman. That’s it.” He hoped his friend knew his intentions were nothing but honorable. Being a big brother himself, he could imagine the protectiveness Roman might be feeling.
“I know. But my sister and I got the feeling that you might be seeing each other again soon.”
“We might. Is that a problem?”
“Maybe.” Looking increasingly uneasy, Roman took a chair. “We need to talk about you courting Elsie.”
“I’m a grown man, Roman, and she’s no child.” Suddenly, a terrible thought entered his mind. “Is something wrong? Did Elsie say I upset her?” He couldn’t imagine what she would have found fault with, but he’d learned that sometimes a woman’s perception didn’t always match what a man’s was.
“It’s nothing like that.” Looking aggrieved, Roman added, “Matter of fact, she said she had a gut time with you.”
“And why is that a problem?”
“You need to know something about my sister.”
“What do you mean?” Landon didn’t care for the way the conversation was going. He and his brother were close, and they’d both looked after their baby sister, Mary, too. But never had they ever interfered in each other’s romances.
Or in his case, his almost romance. After all, all he’d shared with Elsie was a few conversations and one buggy ride.
Roman glanced at Landon’s face, then at his sandwich, then settled on his folded hands. “It’s like this. My sister Elsie has an eye disease.”
Landon stopped chewing. Pushing his sandwich to one side, he gave Roman his full attention.
“She was diagnosed at age twelve.”
“Diagnosed? I know she wears glasses . . . ”
“It’s more than that.” After taking a breath, Roman exhaled softly. “Ever since she was a little girl, her eyesight has been steadily getting worse. Fact is, she’ll one day be almost blind. Even now, her vision is very poor.”
“What?” He chuckled, though what Roman was saying wasn’t funny. “Roman, I watched her unpin clothes from the clothesline. I’ve walked by her side. She can see just fine.”
“Not as well as you think.” He cleared his throat. “We’re starting to find out that Elsie can’t see as well as she pretends to. And one day, probably sooner than she’d like to admit, she won’t be able to see at all.”
As Landon sat there, stunned, Roman continued. “I like you, Landon. I think you’re a good neighbor, and I believe we could be close friends. But I also care for my sister verra much. I don’t want to see her get hurt.”
“And you think I might hurt her?”
“Maybe, if you don’t want to marry a woman who can’t see,” he said bluntly. “Landon, I didn’t come over here to make trouble. But I thought you needed to know this about her . . . just in case she didn’t tell you about her vision problems herself.”
“Obviously she didn’t tell me. No one did,” Landon said testily. He was starting to resent this situation. Both the fact the he hadn’t even noticed her problem and the fact that no one had even hinted about her trouble. He’d worked hours by Roman’s side and not once had he mentioned it.
“I didn’t think she had.” Roman shrugged. “I don’t want Elsie getting her hopes up about a relationship, you see. On the off chance that your, ah, feelings for her might have changed.”
“Because I wouldn’t want to court a lady who is going blind.” Landon knew his voice was flat.
“She’s going to need to be cared for, Landon,” Roman stated as he got to his feet. “I don’t mind looking after her, and neither does anyone in my family. Elsie is a wonderful sister and a good person. She may be able to make some man a wonderful-gut frau one day. But she needs the right man.”
Looking even more uncomfortable, he continued with his hat in his hand, “I’m not saying that’s not you. . . . But sometimes, when a man looks for a wife? He wants a woman to be his helpmate. Anyway, I wanted you to know . . . to know the truth.”
“And what did Elsie think about you coming over to tell me this?”
“She doesn’t know. And she’s going to be upset with me when she finds out.”
“You aren’t worried about that?”
“Nee. If hurting her now will save her from pain down the road, I knew I had to take that chance.” Roman chewed on his lip, clearly contemplating whether to say any more. “Landon, you’ve been a good friend. I figured you might not want to court a woman who is going blind, and I felt I owed it to you to tell you the truth. I also wanted you to take some care when you were with her. You can’t simply assume . . .”
“That she could see,” he finished quietly.
“Jah.” After shaking Landon’s hand, he strode out of the house, leaving Landon grappling with the news. Slowly, he walked back to his kitchen table and reached for his plate again.
He wondered if he should have picked up signs. But everything he’d seen of Elsie revealed a determined, capable woman. He’d seen her in the kitchen, helping to cook, and she walked inside without needing any help when he dropped her off. She might not be able to see perfectly, but she definitely hadn’t seemed helpless.
Roman had to be exaggerating. Most likely, he was simply being overprotective.
But as he worked his way through his sandwich, he began to reconsider.
From what he’d learned of Roman Keim, the man wasn’t one to overstate things. He was honest to the point of bluntness. So telling a tall tale about his sister didn’t make sense. Plus, why would he want to prevent her happiness?
As he washed his plate and dried it, Landon began to think about what he really wanted in a wife.
For the last few years, he’d done everything he could to realize his goals. Being able to achieve them in a relatively short amount of time had been a great source of pride. Now that he was working with Daniel, he wanted to be successful. When he married, he had expected that his wife would be much like Daniel’s Edith. She would take care of things at home and be in charge of raising their children. That way he would be able to devote the time he needed to his job.
But what would it mean if he had a wife who couldn’t see? How could a woman care for a baby if she couldn’t see him? How could she do anything without help?
Once more, how would he feel about that? He was a fairly independent man. Did he want to have a wife whom he might have to care for like a child? Even a woman as sweet and attractive as Elsie?
He honestly didn’t know.
Well, rather, he knew, but he didn’t want to face his worst fears. He didn’t want to believe that he was the type of man who wouldn’t be interested in a woman who had a disability like that.
He was going to have to face the facts. . . . He wanted a wife one day. A real
one in every sense of the word.
Not a blind one.
It didn’t make him proud, but he couldn’t deny how he felt.
Leaning against the wall, he rested his head back and closed his eyes. It was a difficult day, to realize one wasn’t the person one hoped to be.
At least, not yet.
chapter eleven
As the evening sun’s rays filtered through the window blinds, creating broad stripes on the foot of Marie’s hospital bed, Peter scooted his chair closer to his wife.
“I can hardly believe we’re sitting alone. At long last.”
She smiled tiredly. “I have had a lot of visitors, for sure.”
After their first, sweet greeting, the doctors and nurses had shooed everyone out and examined her. About an hour later, they moved her to a different room on a different floor.
Then, explaining how exhausted Marie was, they sent everyone home. He, too, had gone home reluctantly—only his own exhaustion had prevented him from staying.
Now, here they were, together again, and the world seemed a bit brighter.
Pulling his gaze away from Marie, he looked around the room. This one was a bit bigger and had a more homey feeling. It was on the second floor of the hospital, and located at the end of the hall. Now, instead of being across from a nurses’ station, they were across from an empty room. It was a far quieter environment.
Before his visit, Marie had been allowed to take a shower and even slip on one of her white cotton nightgowns Viola had brought from home. After she’d showered, a nurse had kindly brushed out her hair, then pinned it neatly at the nape of her neck.
Marie was pale but otherwise looked much like her regular self. No cords or tubes were attached to her now. The nurse said she could get all of Marie’s vitals by hourly visits instead of electric monitors.
“I am mighty glad not to have so much commotion around me,” Marie commented.
“Do you remember much about when you were so sick?”
“I remember feeling exhausted and dizzy.” Raising her eyes to his, she added, “And I remember many people sitting with me. Especially you.”
“I hated to leave your side.” Even now, after his month’s absence, he still gazed at her eagerly, anxious to reacquaint himself with her. They had so much to catch up on. So much to discuss when the time was right.
But for now, he wanted to keep things easy. There would be plenty of time to talk about things when she was home. At the moment, he wanted to concentrate on the present.
“I was so worried about you, Marie.”
She reached for his hand. “But I am better now.”
“The doktah said if you are fever-free tomorrow, you can go home on Wednesday or Thursday.”
“That will be wonderful-gut. I can’t wait to be back in my own bed.” She shifted a bit, rearranging the sheets and blanket across her chest. “Tell me about the kinner, Peter.”
Afraid all of the news might worry her, he patted her hand. “There’s time for all that later.”
“Tell me,” she coaxed. “Please? I want to think about something besides myself.”
He leaned back, stretched his legs. Debated the best way to tell her about all the goings-on. Then decided some things just had to be told without much preparation. “First off, Roman married Amanda.”
Her eyes widened. “What? Are you joking?” She struggled to sit up.
With one hand, he eased her back down. “Relax, dear. Don’t get yourself worked up.”
“I’m not—”
“You are.”
Grumbling a bit, she eased back into the softness of her pillow. “I’m relaxed. Now talk. Are you serious?”
He grinned. “I like to tease you, wife, but I wouldn’t tease you about this.” Taking a moment to weigh his words, he scratched his beard. “As soon as they heard you were in the hospital, they jumped on the first bus from Florida, Regina and Goldie in tow.”
“Goldie?”
“She’s their dog. You’ll meet her when you get home.”
“Why did they marry so fast?”
“Amanda and Roman wanted to be here with you, and they didn’t want to wait for a wedding. Roman talked to Bishop Coblenz, the bishop agreed, and married them on the spot. None of us attended. . . . They just walked into the house and announced they were husband and wife.”
“We should have a party or reception or something.” Her fingers drummed the mattress. “Maybe we could host a dinner in two weeks?” A pair of lines formed between her brows. “Or, is that too late?”
“I’m sure they will enjoy a party at any time.”
“Maybe sooner than later . . . Maybe Lorene could help get things organized. What do you think?”
“I think your mind is already spinning.” Unable to help himself, he leaned over and smoothed the crease in her brow. “Relax, dear.”
“But there’s so much to think about.”
She didn’t know the half of it! With a foolish grin he couldn’t seem to temper, he playfully curved a hand around her shoulder. Pretending to hold her in place. “Settle down, Marie. We must watch your blood pressure and your lungs.”
“My blood is fine. My lungs are, too—”
“Your lungs are hardly fine. And who knows what is going on with your pulse. You look like you’re ready to leap out of the bed!” He hardened his voice a bit, just to let her know that he was serious. “Calm down or I won’t give you another bit of information. You need to get better, not have a relapse.”
“Fine.” She coughed a bit, took a small sip of water with his help, then sighed. “I just can’t believe they got married without me. Without any of us.”
“This was their decision, Marie,” he said patiently. “Remember, Amanda’s already had a big wedding. And Roman? Well, he never was one for big events. They are both happy and living at home.”
A bit of hope flashed in her eyes. “They’re living at home? Is that what they’ve decided to do, live with us?”
“To be honest, I haven’t even thought to ask them. We’ve been otherwise occupied, you know. And Amanda’s been a big help around the house.”
When she reached for her cup of water again, he leaned over and helped her sip through the straw. Her nurse had warned that Marie might tire easily. He gazed at Marie’s face, searching for signs that she needed to rest.
She was starting to look drained. Already, her eyelids looked a bit heavy. “You should sleep now. We’ll talk more when you wake up.”
“Not yet. First . . . How is Viola? How was her trip to Belize? I didn’t get to ask her much when she brought me my gown.”
“From what I can tell, she said Belize was mighty different than Berlin. And I got the feeling that she didn’t make the best first impression.”
“That seems hard to imagine. Our Viola is always so put together and kind to others. I had hoped that everything would go smoothly.” Marie frowned. “Is she going to go back? Maybe she’ll want to live with us while Ed is away. Some married missionaries live apart, I think she mentioned.”
That was so like his lovely, tenderhearted wife. She wanted the children nearby always—even when they weren’t children anymore. “Well, Edward is scheduled to come home in three months. They plan to get married then . . . and then both go to Belize.”
“August will be a gut time for a wedding,” she said drowsily.
Unable to stop touching her, he picked up her hand and squeezed it gently. “You know what they say—any time is a gut time for a wedding.”
She smiled at that, then shifted a bit. Yawned.
“Are you ready for a break, Marie? I don’t want to tire you out.”
“I am getting sleepy,” she admitted. “But we still have one child to go. How is Elsie?”
For once, Elsie was the one he was most worried about. For a moment, he thought about not telling Marie about Elsie’s latest development, but he decided no good would come from keeping any more secrets. “She went on a buggy ride with our new neighbor Lan
don Troyer, the other evening.”
“That’s nice. I bet she enjoyed that.”
“No, you don’t understand. It was a date.”
Her eyes widened. “Oh my goodness. She’s being courted? By a man?”
He chuckled at her phrasing. “I’m afraid so.”
“She shouldn’t be courting. Should she?”
“It’s out of our hands. She’s a grown woman.”
“But her eyesight—”
“Is a concern. I agree. We told her she should talk to Landon and tell him about her eyes.”
“Did she?”
“She won’t talk to us, but I don’t think so.”
“My goodness. I need to get out of this hospital. I need to see Amanda. And meet Goldie . . .” Her voice was a bit slurred.
“You do need to get home. We need you verra much. But that is why you need to rest, dear. Why don’t you close your eyes for a bit?”
“But we haven’t even talked about you. Or your parents . . . Or Lorene . . ” She yawned, cutting off her other words.
“We will discuss all of that later. That’s the best thing about our life now, Marie. We have all the time in the world to talk and plan.”
After another yawn, she opened her eyes halfway. “You really are back, aren’t you? And . . . And you won’t leave me again?”
He was back, both mentally and physically. As he watched Marie fall into a peaceful slumber, he was never so glad to have made that difficult call to seek help.
“I am back,” he whispered, his voice hoarse with emotion. “Now, dear Marie, don’t fret. I promise, I don’t plan to ever leave you again.”
chapter twelve
The house was in an uproar. Marie was due to come home the next morning, and everyone had a different idea about what to do to prepare for her return. After watching far too many of her offspring discuss, plan, argue, and stew, Lovina knew it was time to get involved.
Her many children and grandchildren would probably never admit it, but sometimes they still needed her to be in charge.
As the voices rose to an uncomfortable pitch, Lovina held up a hand. “That, children, is enough.”
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