by Sarah Price
Immediately, they fell silent.
“Two rules.” The smile gone from her face, Edna leveled her gaze at them. “First off, I will make the meadow tea. And everything else that the guests will consume. Got it?”
In unison, they nodded.
“And second, no arguing.”
Ella Mae blinked her eyes. What on earth was Edna talking about? “We weren’t arguing.”
Edna pursed her lips together, and Ella Mae thought she heard one of the other women snickering. “Well, whatever that was”—Edna motioned with her finger, wiggling it in a circle at them—“will not happen again.”
Behind Edna, Verna and Mary glanced at each other and clearly suppressed smiles. Ella Mae pursed her lips, holding back the urge to say something. But she caught her mother’s eyes and saw a silent plea in her expression.
Ella Mae knew her mother had been trying for some time to get Edna to hire them both. When Bethany began working for Edna the previous year, Wilma was fit to be tied. Several times after she returned from Edna’s house, Wilma had ranted and raved about how Mary’s daughter had stolen their job. At the time, Ella Mae hadn’t thought much about it, but secretly, she’d been glad that Bethany “stole” the job.
Now, however, she knew how important this was to her mother. Despite her daughters’ protests the previous evening, Wilma probably hoped that, like Bethany, if her daughters worked with Edna, her two unmarried sons might fall in love with them, too. The only problem was that Rachel and Ella Mae would have to return the sentiment.
Ha! Ella Mae knew that would never happen. From what she remembered—and heard!—about Jonas and Jeremiah Esh, neither young man would be to her liking.
However, Ella Mae wouldn’t tell her mother that. Let her hold onto her false hope for just a little while. She deserved the inevitable disappointment for tricking them, and besides, she shouldn’t be meddling in their lives now that they were practically twenty.
Sighing, Ella Mae bent her head in an attempt to appear contrite and bit her tongue as she cradled the kitten and walked into the house. She’d try to behave herself, if only for her mother’s sake. But she knew that she’d never be interested in either one of those Esh boys.
EDNA
CHAPTER 4
Edna couldn’t wait for the tourists to leave. Or, rather, she couldn’t wait until the Schwartz sisters left. It had been a long day indeed.
In all her life, she’d never met two young women who were more difficult to work with than Ella Mae and Rachel. Despite her many warnings, they bickered nonstop. All morning and well after the guests had arrived, there wasn’t a moment of peace between them. It reached the point that Edna had to keep one in the kitchen with her while sending the other one into the large gathering room to serve the guests. Separating them had been the only way to keep some semblance of order in the house while the Englischers were trying to enjoy their meal.
Fortunately, the guests seemed to enjoy the food despite the ruckus the girls made during the brief periods of time when their paths crossed.
“Well, that went rather nicely, didn’t it?”
As soon as she heard Rachel’s words, Edna froze. The guests had just left and the engine of their large van had started. Edna questioned whether she had misheard the girl’s words—had Rachel just commented that everything had gone smoothly? Surely not. And yet, Edna knew that she had not misheard Rachel. Was it possible that she really believed what she’d just said?
Edna’s mother’s words from oh so long ago rang in her ears: sometimes the least said, the soonest mended.
“I . . . I suppose you could look at it that way,” Edna managed to respond.
But she wanted to point out that Rachel and Ella Mae had competed over everything. Everything. Whenever Edna asked one sister to carry something to the tables, the other would jump and do it instead. Once Edna asked Rachel to fill up the water pitchers and Ella Mae had scoffed, quickly grabbing the pitchers so that her sister “didn’t spill it everywhere.” And another time, Edna asked Ella Mae to cut the pies for the guests but Rachel snatched the knife so that her sister “didn’t ruin the pies.” It was apparent that they were immune to their verbal sparring and saw no mischief in their arguments. Neither one of them seemed to take any offense to the other’s words.
Edna would have loved mentioning that she’d been a bundle of nerves all day. In addition to their arguing, neither one of the sisters seemed to know her way around the kitchen, which was surprising because most Amish girls were helping their mothers in the kitchen by the time they could string a full sentence together. Had Wilma taught them nothing? When Edna told Ella Mae to cut up the butter and place several pats onto small plates for the table, she’d tried to use a large carving knife and almost cut her finger in half. And when Rachel was asked to fetch the cinnamon for the applesauce, she’d grabbed the cayenne pepper instead! That had been a disaster barely thwarted!
Edna sighed. But what good would it have done to point all of this out to Rachel and Ella Mae? Besides, deep down, Edna knew that her options were limited. Finding other help this late into the season would be nearly impossible, and Bethany seemed to be feeling worse with each passing day. Most young women already had job commitments. Or, rather, most good, hardworking young women already had job commitments.
For the life of her, Edna couldn’t put her finger on what it was about the Schwartz sisters that rubbed her the wrong way. Of course, the bickering was an obvious reason. But there was more to it than just the constant sniping at each other. It was more than their having no common sense when it came to working in a kitchen.
No, there was something else that just seemed off.
“What ho!”
At the sound of the booming voice from the doorway, Edna glanced up from the sink, where she was finishing the last of the washing, thankful for the appearance of her youngest son, Jonas. Usually he showed up during the tourists’ meal, eager to snatch a few morsels of sweets while entertaining the guests with stories or casual banter. Without doubt, of her three sons, Jonas was the most outgoing.
“Any food left for me, then?” he said with a big grin, his eyes shifting from Rachel to Ella Mae.
Ella Mae pursed her lips, ignoring him as she continued putting away the dried platters. Rachel, however, narrowed her eyes and gave Jonas a quick one-two study.
Their reaction startled Edna—such instant displeasure in young women who didn’t know her son very well.
“Where are your manners, Jonas?” Edna raised her eyebrows and tilted her head, gesturing toward the two young women. She watched as her son leaned against the counter, one elbow propping up his body and his smile widening. She could only pray that he’d behave. “You remember the Schwartz schwesters, ja?”
He grinned, his brown eyes sparkling with mischief. “How could I ever forget the Schwartz sisters?”
The sarcasm dripped from his tongue, and Edna could only hope that it was lost on Rachel and Ella Mae.
“Jonas Esh,” Rachel said in a low tone, her dark eyes flashing. “I’d heard you worked for some construction company. Didn’t think I’d be seeing you here this early in the afternoon.”
“Carpenter!” he corrected, poking the air with his finger as if making an emphatic point. “I don’t work for a construction company but a carpenter. You know. Like Jesus. He was a carpenter, too.”
Rachel clucked her tongue, disapproving either of his example or of his belief that she needed a reminder of the good book.
Edna tried to hide her smile. After the long, stressful morning, it was surprisingly refreshing to see Jonas tease the Schwartz sisters a little bit. She put the last glass on the drying rack, then made her way to the table and sank down into a chair, pretending to count the money in the metal box while she eavesdropped on their conversation.
“Construction company. Carpenter.” Rachel shrugged. “Same difference. Why aren’t you there?”
Jonas laughed at her reaction. “As luck would have it, my boss
is on vacation for a month. He takes off work every year at this time, apparently. Before the busy season starts.”
“Lucky him.”
Jonas pushed himself to an upright position. “And lucky you! Just think about all the fun we can have catching up! Why, I’ll be around all the time while you gals help my maem. And sampling the goods, too! Wonder if you can cook, either one of you. I’ll be certain to test your baked goods, and let you know what I think.”
Rachel rolled her eyes, scoffed, and turned her back to him.
Instead of appearing offended, Jonas grinned even more and winked at his mother.
Watching the exchange, Edna found herself mildly amused. She knew that Jonas loved nothing more than to get under someone’s skin. Perhaps he’d found a new target in Rachel Schwartz. She certainly was pretty enough, with her brown, almond-shaped eyes and dark hair. Truth be told, Ella Mae was the prettier of the two, but Rachel was the type of young woman who would catch the eye of Edna’s youngest son, especially if she used her knack for bantering with him.
Perhaps Wilma hadn’t been quite so far-fetched in thinking there could possibly be a love match between the two of them. And if that was the case, Edna realized the day hadn’t been quite as disastrous as she’d previously thought. Maybe Rachel Schwartz needed a little teasing from someone just like Jonas to help her cease taking herself so seriously. And Jonas would certainly benefit from a spicy attitude like the one Rachel was throwing back at him.
“Strawberry rhubarb pie,” Jonas said, smacking his lips in an exaggerated fashion. “Now, you bake me one of those pies, Rachel, and I might even take you home from a singing!”
Edna held her breath, watching as Rachel’s eyes bulged.
“A singing!” Rachel put her hands on her hips and faced him. “Why, that’s the last place I would go with you!”
He adopted an expression of extreme disappointment. “So, no strawberry rhubarb pie?”
“Not now. Not ever!”
He sighed in an overly dramatic sort of way. “Mayhaps you’ll change your mind one day. Especially when you see my pretty horse.”
“Highly unlikely.” She spun around and stormed out of the kitchen, leaving a quiet Ella Mae struggling to hide her smile and a stunned Edna sitting at the table.
“Oh, Jonas,” she said when she finally found her words. “You shouldn’t tease her so.”
Rather than appearing remorseful, Jonas laughed. He reached over and plucked a biscuit from a basket in front of her. “Why not?” He took a big bite and grinned. “She’s awful fun to tease.”
That was Jonas for you. Always joking and teasing. Of her three sons, Jonas had always been the one to find ways to make people laugh. Only, sometimes, his practical jokes and silly banter crossed a line. On very rare occasions, she saw the other side of Jonas, the serious and compassionate side that he hid so well. She never quite understood why he felt so insecure that he couldn’t just be that other person. While she’d grown immune to his goading and jests, Rachel had reacted strongly.
“Please, Jonas,” Edna said with a pleading look in her eyes. “It’s unkind to make her feel so uncomfortable.”
This time, he shrugged, but he said nothing as he sauntered out of the kitchen as if he had nary a care in the world.
Sighing, Edna rubbed her temples. She knew there was little chance of her curbing Jonas’s behavior. Sometimes he was rather humorous, and the guests always enjoyed the little stories that he shared with them. He was the whipped cream on top of their shoofly pie. Still, she’d have to ask Elmer to talk to him. Despite Rachel and Ella Mae’s constant bickering and lack of experience, Edna didn’t want Jonas chasing them away when she had her busiest weeks ahead of her. And, lest she forget, the MayFest was coming up the following week. They had all of those cookies to bake for the event—another way to raise money for Amish Aid.
No, Jonas could not be permitted to ruin this arrangement by pestering the two young women. While the Schwartz sisters were certainly not as efficient as Bethany had been, Edna knew better than to complain. At least not too much. Given time, perhaps they would learn how to work together and help ease Edna’s burden.
RACHEL
CHAPTER 5
On Thursday morning, Rachel caught her breath as she pedaled down the driveway toward the Esh farm.
The evening before, when her mother had asked her about how things had gone their first day with Edna, Rachel had minced no words about Jonas Esh. She told her parents that she found him impertinent and impolite. She shared his comments with them, imitating his deep voice in a mocking sort of way and scowling when her father chuckled. There was nothing amusing about that bumptious son of Edna Esh, that was for sure and certain!
“But how was working for Edna?” her mother repeated, emphasizing Edna’s name.
“Oh.” Rachel had squirmed on the chair where she sat. She glanced down at her plate and realized she had been talking so long about Jonas that she’d barely eaten a thing. Her eyes traveled across the table to Ella Mae’s plate. Empty. “Fine, I reckon. Those Englischers sure can eat a lot of pie.”
Their father laughed. “That’s your takeaway from the day?”
“Nee,” Rachel shot back, not appreciating her father’s laughing at her. “My takeaway is that Jonas Esh is a real en feiner Kall.”
“Rachel!” Her mother frowned and shook her head. “He can’t be such a bad fellow.”
“Oh, he is, Maem.”
“Still, it’s unkind to call someone names like that.” Wilma glanced across the table at her husband. “And at the supper table, too.” She clucked her tongue disapprovingly.
For the rest of the meal, Rachel sulked. She poked at her food, seething inside at what she considered just one more irritating thing about that young man. Why did both of her parents find him amusing?
For some reason, just the thought of Jonas Esh made her so angry that she could hardly see straight. She hadn’t talked to Ella Mae about it. Not last night, and not during the bicycle ride to the Esh farm that morning. Thankfully, Ella Mae had been too worried about the kitten to bring up Jonas’s behavior.
“Do you think it survived the night?”
Rachel rolled her eyes. “I’m sure I wouldn’t know, but you’ll find out soon enough.”
Ella Mae pedaled in silence for a short distance. “It was awful kind of Edna to say she’d keep the kitten and feed it throughout the night.”
“Well, we both know Maem would never have let it in our haus.”
Ella Mae snorted.
The rest of the trip passed in silence. Clearly Ella Mae was thinking about the kitten, leaving Rachel to her own thoughts. She hoped and prayed that Jonas would not be there today. She didn’t want to have anything to do with that cheeky boy and his mischievous remarks.
But luck wasn’t on her side. Before she rounded the corner of the barn, Rachel spotted him.
He was leaning against the side of the barn, his arms crossed over his chest. When he spotted them approaching, his lips spread into a wide grin. Jonas must’ve been waiting for them to arrive. Immediately, Rachel inhaled deeply and, slowly, exhaled. Count to ten, she reminded herself. What was it that Jesus said? Seven times seventy? She didn’t think she could turn the other cheek that many times.
No, something about Jonas did not sit well with her. How Ella Mae had just been able to ignore him was beyond Rachel’s comprehension. It wasn’t like Ella Mae to be so silent when faced with a provocative fool like that Jonas! She’d have fought back, for sure and certain, if she weren’t so ferhoodled over that silly kitten.
“You’re back!” Jonas pushed off the side of the barn and walked toward them. His clunky old boots scuffled against the gravel, the noise grating on Rachel’s last nerve. He hooked his thumbs into the lower part of his suspenders, and she noticed that the knee of his brown pants was torn. Why wouldn’t Edna have patched that? For someone who seemed to be hung up on the details, it was surprising that she let her son walk around with a h
ole in his pants.
“You sound surprised.” Rachel climbed off her bicycle and leaned it against the side of the barn.
He laughed. “How intuitive you are!”
Rachel rolled her eyes. “A four-syllable word. How impressive.”
Behind her, Rachel heard Ella Mae snicker. So she was listening after all, Rachel thought.
Jonas must’ve heard Ella Mae’s half-suppressed laugh, too, for his eyes darted from Rachel to her sister. “What ho! A giggle?”
As Ella Mae came to stand next to Rachel, she barely cast more than a glance at him. “More like a titter.”
Titter? Even Rachel smiled at her sister’s choice of words. She hadn’t expected Ella Mae to step forward and counter Jonas’s taunting remarks when she’d been so quiet the previous day.
Jonas, however, did not seem put off by her remark. Instead, he was clearly delighted to have someone to banter with. “A titter, eh? Do I amuse?” he asked playfully.
Ella Mae raised an eyebrow, giving him a cool look as she replied with a single word: “Hardly.” Then, without waiting for him to respond, she began walking toward the house, tugging at a stunned Rachel’s arm as she passed her. Certainly, Jonas has met his match with us, she thought, hoping he might leave them alone for the rest of the day.
Jonas, however, fell into step beside them.
“Why are you here, anyway?” Ella Mae asked. “I thought you worked at the auction haus.”
“Me?” He placed his hand upon his chest in an overly dramatic way. “Nee. I work for a carpenter and he’s on vacation.”
Rachel nudged her sister with her shoulder. “You must’ve missed this very same conversation yesterday.”
Ella Mae raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”
It didn’t surprise Rachel that Ella Mae had tuned out the discussion yesterday. She had an uncanny way of doing that: shutting out distractions or things that weren’t important to her when she felt like it. “Oh ja,” Rachel continued, feeling buoyed now that her sister was providing reinforcement. “We’re quite in luck that Jonas will be working on the farm for the next few weeks.”