The Drifter (Amish Country Brides)

by J. E. B. Spredemann

  Maybe it had been a mistake to come here. Not the part about meeting his daughter, of course, but jumping into the Amish world by living with the Eichers. He had to leave. Maybe get a motel room or something—probably what he should have done in the first place.

  Or maybe he should just go back home. But he didn’t want to leave Bailey. Again. He couldn’t.

  Instead of driving back to Michael’s, he decided to search for a motel on his cell phone. It was late, but he’d still be able to get a room. He found one that seemed decent, called the number, and made a quick reservation. He’d sleep there, at least for tonight. He’d figure the rest out in the morning.

  FIFTEEN

  Josiah awakened to the buzzing of his phone. It was Michael. “Hey.”

  “Where are you? Did you spend the night at Nora’s?”

  “What? No.” Not that he hadn’t wanted to.

  “Are you still asleep, man?”

  He yawned and wiped the crustiness from his eyes. “I was. What time is it?”

  “Almost nine.”

  “You’re kidding.” He pulled his phone away to look at the time, but remembered he was on a call. He glanced at the alarm clock. Eight forty-five. Hopefully, he hadn’t missed the continental breakfast.

  “Where’d you stay the night?”

  “I got a hotel.”

  “Why? Why pay when you can stay here for free?”

  “It’s complicated.”

  “Oh, no. Nora?”

  “Yeah, something like that.”

  “So, can we expect you out at the farm today?”

  “I haven’t decided what my plans are just yet. But I should wash those clothes and get them back to Nora.” He could stop by when he knew she’d be gone. He’d leave them on her picnic table in a bag with a note expressing his gratitude for the use of them. And maybe some sort of farewell.

  “Are you leaving, man?”

  “I don’t know. I’m not sure.”

  “What about your daughter?”

  “We had a wonderful visit yesterday. I need to talk to her again. She’d said she’d call me when she could, so I’ll probably be waiting around for her call.”

  “Well, I’m glad to hear it went well. Just, if you leave, make sure to stop by and say goodbye to everyone, will ya?”

  “Yeah, sure.”

  They said their goodbyes.

  Josiah reached for the motel information card. Breakfast was available until nine. Perfect. He’d run down to the dining area and grab a bite to eat before he headed out for the day.

  He thought about his daughter. Leaving her was going to be difficult for both of them. But he couldn’t stay here forever anyhow. He had a job to get back to. He briefly wondered if Bailey would be willing to let him snap a few pictures of the two of them together. A smile crept across his face at the thought of framing them and placing them on his desk at work.

  He’d spied some shops last night when he pulled in, and he was pretty certain they were within walking distance. If he decided to go back home, he wanted to leave something with Bailey. Something special.

  Several moments later, he perused the jewelry in one of the small department stores. His eyes zeroed in on a silver pendant with the word Daughter on it. This necklace would be perfect. He didn’t expect Bailey to wear the token of his love, but he hoped she’d count it among her treasures.

  Truly, he wanted to stay longer. He and Bailey needed more time together. But a hundred dollars a night wasn’t exactly cheap, even with biscuits and gravy in the morning. He could still stay with Michael. It wasn’t as if he’d been asked to leave. But he feared he’d run into Nora. He couldn’t make any commitments or attachments here—two things he’d never been good at.

  ~

  Thankfully, when Josiah pulled up to the farm, Nora’s buggy was absent. If she believed he was there, there was a good chance she’d be staying away until he’d left for good. The thought pained him more then he wanted to admit. He cared deeply for Nora and he’d grown fond of her girls. He’d even entertained a thought or two of the four of them becoming a family.

  But he didn’t do families. He was a one-man show.

  Michael met him as he stepped out of the car. “You came back. Good. I think Dawdi wants to put you to work already.” He chuckled. “Unless you have other plans for today?”

  “No, not yet. Unless I get a call from Bailey, I’m all Sammy’s.”

  “Well, better suit up, then. The day is a-wastin’.” Michael pounded his back.

  As they approached the house, Michael’s wife and children descended from the porch. “Isn’t she just a sight for sore eyes.” He growled like a feral cat.

  “Oh, stop.” Miriam laughed and playfully pushed her husband’s arm.

  Michael pulled her near and planted a kiss on her neck.

  Josiah stood by awkwardly, averting his gaze yet enjoying their playfulness. Would he ever have that kind of relationship with a woman? Nora.

  “Ach, not with Josiah here.” She squirmed under his touch.

  “Then kiss me goodbye, at least.”

  “I’d think you got enough kissing this morning,” Josiah overheard her whisper in Michael’s ear, as her brow arched high.

  “Mm…there’s no such thing as enough, fraa.” He leaned down and kissed her, then reluctantly released her, watching longingly as she made her way to the buggy where the children waited with Sammy.

  “Mm…mm.” Michael shook his head. “I don’t think I’ll ever get enough of that woman. What she does to me…”

  Josiah chuckled as they finally made their way into the house. “Well, it looks like you married the right one.”

  “Don’t I know it.” He couldn’t seem to hide his mischievous grin. “When are you finally going to settle down?”

  “Family life isn’t for me, man.”

  “Why not?”

  “I don’t know. I don’t think I can handle it all. A wife. Kids.”

  “Oh, I can’t either.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Not without God. He gives me the strength I need for each day.”

  “How so?”

  “I read His Word. Check this out. Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the church.” He quoted. “That verse knocks me out every single time. Think about it. Christ sacrificed everything, including His very life, for the church. That means every single day I have to die to myself and put her needs above my own.”

  “It sounds hard.”

  “Jah, but I love her. When you love someone, you want to serve them, to make them happy, to supply their needs. Kind of like what you said you wanted to do for Nora.”

  “What did I say I wanted to do for Nora?”

  “To give her the day off and watch the kinner. Have you forgotten already?”

  He slapped a palm to his forehead. “See? That’s exactly what I mean. I’m not good at this.”

  “You learn as you go along. You’ll make mistakes, everyone does. You’ll get upset and angry with each other. That’s normal. But once you work through it, you’re stronger.” Michael squeezed his arm and lifted a lopsided grin. “And then you get to kiss and make up.”

  “Why am I thinking you cause problems on purpose just so you can get to the end result?”

  Michael lifted a finger to his lips. “Shh…it’s our little secret.”

  Josiah laughed out loud.

  “You know, there’s something to be said for friends and family and community. They help keep your feet on the right path.”

  “I don’t know. Truthfully, I’m afraid of myself. I mean, what if I did convert and marry Nora, and then it’s too much and I skip town? I’ve already left enough disappointment and broken hearts in my wake. Look at Kayla and Bailey.”

  “You might see it that way, but I think you’d be surprised that Kayla doesn’t. She found God because of your mistakes. She found Silas because of your mistakes. She found a community and purpose for her life because of your mistakes.”

&n
bsp; “No, it was in spite of my mistakes.”

  “Either way, God took it and He used it for good.”

  “I don’t know how to make it all work.”

  “The key is handing over the pieces to the Master Puzzle-Solver and allowing Him to make it work.”

  “I just see in my mind these two paths. One is easy. It goes straight back to New Jersey, back to my high-paying job, back to the life I’ve known for the past decade. The other one, well, it’s quite different. It’s difficult. It’s full of pain and trials and unknowns. Why would I choose the difficult path?”

  “How do you know it’s difficult?”

  “Because. You know, until Bailey’s letter came for me, I don’t think I’d ever really cried. And now? Sheesh! I’m bawling like a baby at every turn. No matter if it’s Bailey or Nora.”

  “It sounds like you’ve finally started living.”

  Josiah frowned. “I don’t know. I’m not used to all this…emotion.”

  “And you think your life would be better if Bailey and Nora weren’t in it? I hate to tell you this, Joe, but you’re already here. You’ve already stepped into their lives. If you leave now, neither your life, nor theirs will ever be the same. If you think that you can just go back to New Jersey and carry on as you always have, you are sorely mistaken. Allow yourself to love, Joe. Ignore the ‘what ifs?’ and live your life.”

  “You make it sound so easy.”

  “I don’t know about easy, but I don’t think it’s as complicated as you think it is. Maybe you need to spend some time in prayer.”

  Prayer. Right. Why did it seem like everyone had this praying thing down, except him?

  Sammy’s voice hollered through the house. “You two gonna be yakking in here all day or are we gonna get that hay moved?”

  “We’re coming, Dawdi.” Michael motioned to the door.

  Sammy snapped his fingers. “Let’s snap to it! I’m worried your jaw muscles are going to pass up them big arm muscles you young folks seem to be so fond of.”

  Michael laughed. “I spent quite a few years at the gym getting them to look this way, Dawdi.”

  Sammy sneered. “Waste of time, if you ask me.”

  “I think my fraa might disagree with you there, Dawdi.” He glanced at Josiah and raised his eyebrows. “She likes them.”

  Sammy grunted.

  SIXTEEN

  Bailey had a plan. It was a brilliant one, if she did say so herself. Now, if she could just put everything into motion and if everything would fall in line, it would be great. At least, she hoped it would.

  As soon as the coast was clear, she headed for the phone shanty. Fortunately, Dad picked up on the first ring, which made her smile. Like he’d been anticipating her call.

  “How’s the most beautiful girl in the world doing?”

  Ach, his words made her cheeks heat. She wasn’t used to the way Englischers spoke with so much vanity. “Dad…”

  “I know, I know. It’s not the Amish way. But it is the truth.”

  “Stop, already, Dad.”

  “Okay. What’s up, Bay?”

  “Bay?”

  “Nickname. Do you like it? Or I could call you George.”

  She frowned. “George? Why would you call me a boy’s name?”

  He chuckled. “George Bailey. It’s a character from a very famous Christmas movie called, It’s A Wonderful Life.”

  “A movie, Dad? Really?”

  “It’s a good movie. Maybe I’ll download it on my laptop and we can make some popcorn and watch it. Would you like that?”

  “That sounds like fun, but I don’t know when we could do it.”

  “You give me a time and I’ll figure out the logistics.”

  “The what? Never mind. Okay, I better hurry because I don’t want Mamm or Silas getting suspicious.”

  “Do you always call him Silas?”

  “No. I mean, I guess I do now sometimes. Since I found your letter and I knew you were still alive. You’re my dad.”

  Dad’s breath seemed a little heavy over the phone, but he didn’t respond.

  “Are you still there, Dad?”

  “Yeah, yeah. I just, I’m getting used to this dad thing. I’m a little emotional about it.”

  “You’re so adorable.”

  He chuckled.

  “Okay, back on track before I have to go. Can you meet me at ten o’clock at DQ tomorrow morning?”

  “Meet you there? Yeah, sure. You want more ice cream?”

  “I just want to see you. Maybe we’ll end up going somewhere else like last time.”

  “You have a ride?”

  “Yes.”

  “Okay, I’ll see you there at ten o’clock then.”

  “Kay. Bye.” Bailey hung up the phone and smiled. So far, everything was going exactly according to plan.

  ~

  Josiah rolled up to the Dairy Queen parking lot at five till ten. He didn’t want Bailey waiting around long for him in case she was early. He decided to just lay low inside the car in case her driver saw him. He didn’t want anyone thinking anything suspicious was going on.

  A couple of minutes later, he glanced in his review mirror and spotted not one, but two Amish women walking toward Dairy Queen from the IGA parking lot. Did she bring a friend along to meet him? Maybe he should just stay in the car in case Bailey had in mind to send her friend away. He’d wait and let her make the first move.

  Just as he thought, she and her friend walked right past his vehicle and up to the order counter. Bailey stood behind the other girl, who was now ordering. His daughter turned to him and waved him over while the other girl was placing her order. She must want to introduce him to her friend.

  He stepped out of the car and walked toward the window. The other girl finished ordering, then turned around. Except it wasn’t another girl at all. It was a woman. Kayla.

  He swallowed and stared at her. Her mouth dropped open as her eyes registered recognition. They both turned to Bailey.

  Bailey smiled tentatively, her gaze bouncing back and forth to each of them. “Surprise.”

  Kayla frowned. “Bailey. It’s…what…Josiah?”

  “In the flesh.” He tried to smile, but it faltered. He wasn’t prepared for this.

  “What are you doing here? Why are you here?” Kayla didn’t look happy.

  “He came to see me, Mamm,” Bailey chimed in.

  “I got a letter from our daughter a couple of weeks ago. She wanted to see me and I wanted to see her, so I came,” he explained.

  “Don’t be mad, Mamm. Please. I brought you here because I wanted you two to talk.”

  Josiah and Kayla looked at each other, then at Bailey. “Talk?”

  “Yeah. About the past. I mean, you need to. You have to work things out.” Bailey looked around. “Maybe we should go somewhere else, since people are coming.”

  “Yes, we should.” He agreed when he noticed that a couple of people had taken an interest in them.

  Bailey quickly retrieved their food from the takeout window.

  Josiah urged Kayla to walk to his car, but she shook her head. “Our driver’s coming to pick us up in a half hour.”

  Bailey came up beside her, handing her mother her order. “Nee, Mamm. I told them we already had a ride back home.”

  Kayla gasped. “When did you tell them that?”

  “When you were walking into the store. Remember I ran back for my purse?” She was sneaky.

  Kayla rolled her eyes.

  They all slid into his car. Bailey in the back, Kayla in the passenger’s seat. He pulled out onto the road and began driving toward the same place he and Bailey had gone last time, because he didn’t know of anywhere else to go.

  “We could go to the library,” Bailey suggested.

  “Libraries are supposed to be quiet. And I’m not sure how quiet this conversation is going to be,” Josiah mumbled. Oh, boy.

  “Bailey, you deceived me. Both of us. You tricked us into coming here. That’s not ri
ght.” Her mother frowned. It seemed about the only expression she had when he was around.

  “Kayla, it’s okay,” he said, attempting to save his daughter from a reprimand.

  She spun to face him and pointed a finger in his chest. “No, it’s not okay! I don’t want my daughter to grow up to be a deceiver just like her father was. Is.”

  He frowned. “That’s low.”

  “It’s the truth, Josiah! Does your family still think you’re dead?”

  He hung his head, working his jaw. “Yes. But Bailey’s a sweet girl. You raised her well.”

  “No thanks to you,” she spat out.

  “Me? As I recall, I offered to help you raise our daughter. You chose Silas!”

  “Don’t even…” She shook her head. “Josiah, I thought you were dead until a week before my wedding! What did you expect me to do?”

  He rubbed his forehead. “I don’t know. Maybe remember that we once loved each other enough to make a child together. Maybe postpone your wedding to see if we could make it work between us.”

  “That’s not fair. I loved Silas. And I could never have done that to him. You don’t just walk away from the people you love, Josiah! Or maybe you haven’t figured that out yet.”

  Her comment hit its mark squarely in the bullseye.

  “Mamm,” Bailey squeaked from the back seat.

  She twisted in her seat. “You wanted us to talk, Bailey. That’s what we’re doing.”

  Josiah peeked at the rearview mirror just in time to see his daughter wipe away a tear. He parked across the street from the library, but they stayed inside the car.

  “I want you to be nice to each other!” Bailey cried. “I love Dad! I want him in my life.”

  Kayla’s lips formed a hard line.

  “Kayla,” he said in the most gentle voice he could muster. He dared to reach over and touch her hand. “Will you forgive me?”