The Amish Baby Finds a Home

by Barbara Cameron

  Apparently he, like many Amish men, felt it wasn’t manly to be around fabric and quilting supplies. She chuckled at the memory. It was so silly. After all, Amish women went into hardware stores, she’d pointed out. He backed away if she brought up the subject of fabric and sewing supplies.

  But he’d been the first one in the door the day she opened and had brought her a vase of flowers for her shop counter.

  A routine slowly emerged. Every morning since then they’d started their day with a cup of coffee at his shop or hers. Several times a week they ate lunch together. Gradually they began having supper out one evening a week—usually Saturdays.

  And soon things changed from their being friends to more. Although neither of them had put it into words, Hannah felt this was the man God had set aside for her and slowly revealed to her.

  She wandered back to her room, changed into a nightgown, and after she unpinned her kapp she sat on her bed and brushed out her hair. Then she braided it, tied a ribbon around the tail end, and climbed into bed. She picked up the book she read each night but soon discovered it held no interest.

  Her thoughts drifted back to Gideon and their conversation on the porch before he’d gone home. It was nice to know that if they had ever become intimate—she felt the heat rush into her cheeks at the thought—that he would have done the honorable thing and taken responsibility.

  But Gideon couldn’t force Eli to do anything. His bruder was a very stubborn man. Even if Gideon enlisted the help of the bishop to talk to Eli, Hannah didn’t think Eli would do what they wanted.

  As she lay waiting for sleep to claim her, she wondered what Gideon had been about to say to her just before her mudder had interrupted to ask if they wanted coffee. He’d talked about Emma and hoped she didn’t want to give John up. He’d told her that John was familye.

  Did that mean that Gideon would adopt John and raise him if Emma gave him up?

  Chapter Eight

  Gideon handed Hannah her morning coffee the next day. “Are you busy this evening? I’d like to take you to supper.”

  Hannah stared at Gideon. They’d been making it a habit of going to supper most Saturday nights for some time. “That would be nice.” She sipped her coffee. “But today’s Friday. We usually go out on Saturdays.”

  He shoved a hand in his hair and grinned. “I know. I’ve been a little distracted lately but I do remember what day of the week it is. I’d just like to go out tonight.”

  “Allrecht,” she said, smiling at him.

  “Let’s go someplace nice. You deserve it after taking care of John.”

  “I loved taking care of him. He’s a precious little bu. And he was no trouble at all.” She sighed. “The customers—especially the older ladies—really enjoyed seeing him in my shop.”

  Gideon stared into his coffee and wished it was suppertime already so he could ask her something that had been weighing on his mind. He had an idea about how she felt about him, where their relationship was heading. But he needed to know for certain.

  They both looked over as they heard the sound of a key being used to unlock the shop door.

  Eli walked in. “Where is she?”

  “Who?”

  “Emma,” he said impatiently. “Don’t play games with me. Where is she?”

  “She’s not here.”

  “I’ve looked everywhere for her. I went by her house but her mudder said she wasn’t staying there. She said she didn’t know where she was. Then her dat came to the door as I was standing there and shut it in my face.”

  Gideon frowned. “Such a stern man. No wonder she felt she had to leave town.”

  Eli turned to Hannah. “Do you know where she is?”

  “I know she’s in town,” she said carefully. “But she wouldn’t tell me where she’s staying.”

  Eli moved closer. “I need to talk to her. Think hard. Maybe she said something.”

  Gideon leaped to his feet and came around the counter. “Don’t be pressuring Hannah.”

  Eli held up his hands and gave Hannah a beseeching look. “I just want to talk to her. If you see her, will you tell her that?”

  She nodded. “I’m hoping she’ll come by my shop this afternoon.” She reached for one of Gideon’s business cards on the counter and wrote her shop number on the back. “Call me at the shop this afternoon.” She rose and gathered up her things. “I have to go open up. Gideon, I’ll see you at lunch.”

  He walked her to the door, disappointed that she’d left early, then turned back to Eli. “What time did you come home last night?”

  “Late. I went out looking for Emma after you told me she was back. Then I got up early and went looking for Emma some more.” He paced. “I just want to get this settled.”

  “Me too.”

  “What if she leaves town again? I’d never be able to find her.”

  Gideon sat again and sipped his coffee while he studied his bruder’s face. Maybe it was encouraging that Eli was so concerned. “What do you intend to do when you find her?”

  “I don’t know. I won’t know until we talk.” He turned and headed for the door.

  “Where are you going?”

  “To look for Emma.”

  “Don’t pester Hannah!” he called after him but Eli was already out the door.

  Customers kept Gideon busy for the next several hours. When he called, Hannah told him that Eli hadn’t stopped by, so he relaxed and concentrated on business. When there was a lull, he pulled out paperwork he’d neglected. It was never too soon to think about ordering supplies needed to make and paint toys for Christmas. It took time to make dozens of toys by hand and have enough stock for the holiday.

  Finally it was lunchtime—his favorite time of the day. As they headed into summer when things got busier, he and Hannah wouldn’t be able to close their shops for lunch even for a half hour. So he cherished the time he could spend with Hannah now. He quickly grabbed his lunch tote, locked up, and headed down to the quilt shop.

  Hannah met him at the door with a smile. “We have company for lunch.”

  He walked in and found Emma sitting by the quilting table feeding John a bottle as he lay in her arms. “Emma, John, gut to see you! If I’d known you were going to be here I’d have brought you lunch.”

  Emma gestured at the paper bag sitting on the table before her. “We stopped and got a sandwich. And of course John always brings his own lunch.”

  At the mention of his name John grinned at Gideon and milk dribbled down his chin as he broke the seal on the nipple of the bottle. She laughed and used a tissue to wipe his chin.

  “I told her Eli’s been looking for her,” Hannah said as he sat and opened his lunch tote.

  “I was afraid he’d come down here and pressure you about where she’s staying.”

  She shook her head. “Haven’t seen him.”

  There was a sharp rap on the door. All eyes turned to it.

  “Eli,” Emma breathed.

  “I’ll send him away if you don’t want to see him,” Gideon told her as he stood.

  “Nee, that’s why I came back to Paradise.”

  Gideon strode to the door and unlocked it. “She’s here. I expect you to be nice to her.”

  Eli’s mouth turned down. “This is my business, not yours.”

  “You made it my business when you didn’t take responsibility. John is familye.”

  Emma appeared at his side. She put her hand on Gideon’s arm. “It’s allrecht, Gideon. We need to talk.” She looked at Eli. “Let’s go outside. I don’t want John to be upset.”

  “Fine.”

  They went outside and sat on the bench in front of the shop.

  Gideon returned to the table and sat down, but his attention remained focused on the shop window instead of finishing his lunch.

  “Let them settle it,” Hannah said quietly.

  He dragged his attention back to her. “Hmmm?”

  “Let Eli and Emma settle it.” She got up and put John in a stroller, then
began feeding him from a jar of strained pears.

  “Where’s your lunch?”

  “Haven’t gotten it yet.” She stood and handed him the jar. “Finish feeding John his pears while I go get my lunch from the back room.”

  “I don’t know how—” he began, but she was already hurrying off.

  John gurgled and waved his hands. Gideon sat and dipped the baby spoon into the jar, then offered it to John. To his surprise John accepted it and made a silly face as he swished the pears around in his mouth as if testing its texture. Half of the fruit ended up on his chin. Gideon wiped it with the cloth Hannah had left and tried a second spoon. John gobbled it up and bounced in his seat while he waited for more.

  Gideon glanced up and saw Hannah moving gracefully toward him. She caught him looking at her and smiled. He felt the warmth of her smile spread through him.

  He couldn’t wait to talk to her, tell her what he hoped for them. Tonight, he thought, couldn’t come soon enough.

  John babbled at him, forcing him to return his attention to him. Gideon stared at the kind.

  “Little boy with eyes so blue, if they don’t want you I do,” he murmured.

  Hannah walked up and set her lunch on the table. “What did you just say?”

  Gideon blinked. “What?”

  “What did you just say to John?” She sat down and looked at him curiously.

  Stunned at what had slipped from his mouth, he shook his head and stared at her. “Just guy talk,” he said, pretending a lightness he didn’t feel. He wasn’t ready to share what he’d said to John with her just yet. He couldn’t explain why he’d felt so much for this little bu so quickly.

  And even if he wanted to adopt him if his mudder and dat didn’t want him, single men didn’t adopt in his community.

  “I see. I bet I can get it out of John.” She reached over and tickled John’s tummy.

  John giggled and babbled and Hannah nodded and laughed. “I agree. Gideon’s a nice man.” She leaned over and kissed Gideon on the cheek. “Get the rest of those pears in him so you can finish your lunch.”

  Chapter Nine

  Eli paced in front of the bench outside Hannah’s shop. “I went looking for you last year. Why did you have to go tearing off out of town without telling me?”

  Emma glanced around. “Keep your voice down, Eli. Everybody doesn’t need to know our business.” She smoothed her skirt over her knees. “I couldn’t stay. I was throwing up in the morning and having more trouble hiding it from my familye. And you didn’t appear interested in helping.”

  “I was messed up, Emma. I wasn’t expecting you to get pregnant.”

  She let out a short bark of laughter. “You think I was?” She sighed and shook her head. “I never thought one night would change my life forever.”

  “You didn’t have to leave.”

  “How could I stay? You said you weren’t ready to get married. I thought you loved me. I never would have been with you otherwise.”

  Eli stared at the passing traffic. “I do love you.” He stood and paced.

  “Well you schur have a funny way of showing it. Telling me you’re not ready to get married.”

  “I wasn’t ready for marriage then. You know I had a hard time getting over Daed dying after the way we always argued about farming. I’ve always felt I disappointed Daed.”

  He took off his hat, ran a hand over his hair in frustration, then set it back on his head and looked at her. “You were the only one who cared about who I was, who understood me. Emma, I want you—”

  “Emma? Is that you?”

  Rebecca Miller rushed up to them. “Emma! I can’t believe it! You’re back!”

  Frustrated at the interruption, Eli watched as the midwife and Emma embraced. They chatted quietly for a few minutes until Rebecca glanced over at Eli. She must have sensed his tension.

  She turned back at Emma. “I’m sorry, I’ve obviously caught you at an awkward time,” she said.

  “Eli and I have some things to discuss,” Emma told her quietly.

  Rebecca’s expression was sober as she nodded. “Stop by and see me. We’ll catch up.” She started to walk away then stopped. She stood there, biting her lip, looking indecisive.

  “I brought my boppli with me,” Emma said, understanding. “I’ll bring him for a visit.”

  Her face cleared. “Gut! I’ll look forward to it!” She hurried off.

  Emma sat back down, but he was too restless, too unsettled, to sit beside her. He watched as people walked past talking with each other, carrying shopping bags. It was just another day for them. But here he was, standing there feeling a fool, unable to come up with one reason why she should listen to him when he knew he’d let her down in every way a man could.

  “Can’t we go somewhere more private to talk?”

  She shook her head. “It wouldn’t be fair to ask Hannah to watch John again. You can say what you want to here.”

  Well, he’d blurted out that he wanted her and hadn’t gotten the reception he thought he would. Then before he could say more, they’d been interrupted by Rebecca. Frustrated, he sat.

  “Look, I wasn’t there for you the way you deserved,” he said. He took her hand and after some initial resistance she let him keep it. “I don’t know how to make it up to you. I probably can’t. But I’ve had some time to think about it and I knew if I ever had a chance to see you again I would ask you to forgive me and give me another chance. Marry me, Emma, and let’s be a familye.”

  Tears rushed into her eyes. “I don’t know if I can trust you, Eli. You’ve hurt me so much.”

  He had to look away from the tears, from the pain in her eyes. “Then stay and give us the time for me to earn your trust.”

  “How are we going to do that? I can’t move back in with my familye and I can’t stay in a motel for much longer.”

  The shop door opened behind them. Gideon walked out, nodded to them, and hurried down the sidewalk away from them.

  “I should get inside,” Emma said, as she pulled her hand free from his. “Hannah needs to open her shop. We’ve already taken advantage of her watching John. And he needs to go down for his afternoon nap.”

  “I’ll take you out to supper. Tell me where you’re staying.”

  Her hesitation told him she didn’t trust him yet.

  “Please, Emma.”

  She gave him the name of a small motel nearby.

  “I’ll pick you up. Five allrecht?”

  She nodded, rose, and started walking toward the shop door.

  “Hey, Emma?”

  She turned. “Ya?”

  “Does John like pizza?”

  She laughed and went inside.

  * * *

  Eli felt in a lighter mood as he walked back to the toy shop. When he entered, Gideon was busy helping a customer while two others placed toys on the counter. Eli moved behind it and began to ring up their purchases as he chatted with them.

  “Nothing better than a train set, right?” he asked the older man who was running the little wooden train along the counter much like a bu would.

  “We thought this was a good choice for our grandson. He’s two, and it looks sturdy and well-made.”

  Eli nodded. “My brother makes everything by hand and uses only child-safe materials. Did you see the train conductor hats?”

  “No, we must have missed those.”

  “We have them in child and adult sizes. My brother doesn’t make them, but a woman in our community sews them and she’s very good.”

  The man glanced at his wife.

  “Go ahead, dear,” his wife told him with an indulgent smile. “You know you want one.”

  “I was thinking of Benjamin,” he said but he grinned.

  Eli sold him hats in both sizes.

  “Danki for the help,” Gideon said after the shop emptied. “You know…the shop’s only going to get busier, and soon I won’t be able to help you with the extra crops we planted.”

  “I realize that.�
� Eli gestured at the paperwork he’d set on one side of the counter.

  “I have to find time to do some planning for Christmas. The creches are already selling and it’s only end of March.” Gideon started to make his way toward the back room. “Want some coffee?”

  “Nee. I need to get back home and get some work done. By the way, I need the buggy tonight. Emma and I are going out to supper to talk.”

  “Gut. What about John?”

  “We’re taking him with us. I asked Emma if he liked pizza.”

  “Very funny.”

  He grinned. “She thought so. Of course she has a better sense of humor than you. See you, bro.”

  It wasn’t just Gideon who would need more help with the shop as it got busier, Eli thought as he walked out onto the street. As the toy shop had grown more popular, Gideon didn’t have the time to help him with the farm as much as he had before. Eli needed to think about hiring some part-time help for the farm.

  But he’d think about that another day. He climbed into the buggy he’d parked behind the shop and used the time traveling home to think about what to say to Emma that night.

  * * *

  Emma was still smiling when she walked into Hannah’s shop.

  “You’re smiling,” Hannah said as she looked up from covering John with a baby quilt. “Everything went well?”

  “We didn’t get much time to talk. Rebecca—you know, the midwife—came up as we were sitting there. But after she left, Eli asked if we could go to supper and talk more. Just before I came in, he asked if John liked pizza.”

  Hannah laughed. “That’s Eli.”

  “Ya. That’s Eli.” Her smile faded. “Oh, what a mess I’ve made of my life.”

  “You haven’t made a mess of your life. Things are hard but they’re going to get better.” She gazed down at John. “And look what a beautiful boppli you have.”

  Emma bent to stroke a finger down John’s soft cheek. Love swelled up in her. He lay in the crib, his eyes closed, smiling in his sleep as if he was dreaming of something wunderbaar. “He looks so sweet when he’s sleeping.”