Bailey and Emily had agreed to write letters to each other while they were separated. Silas had suggested that. This way, they could keep in touch with the goings-on back at home and the girls would keep each other in mind. It seemed like there would be plenty of opportunity for Bailey to make friends here as well. That boosted Kayla’s confidence another notch. She hoped it wouldn’t be difficult to leave when it was time to return home. She had a feeling they’d be making some strong attachments here.
“Let’s get you settled into your new home, shall we?” It seemed like a lifetime full of adventures twinkled in Judah Hostettler’s eyes. No doubt, this man had stories to tell. Perhaps she’d get to hear a few of them while she was there. “Welcome to the Hostettler home.”
They walked into the spacious two-story house.
Lydia looked to Kayla and Bailey. “You two will share a room upstairs.”
“Thank you for all you’re doing. We really appreciate this.” Kayla smiled at the older woman.
“This most likely will not be an easy transition for you. Not everyone is cut out for the Amish life.”
“What would you say is the most difficult part of being Amish?”
“Shunning those you love when they have gone astray. But there have not been many, and most return to the fold after a time.”
“And the others?”
“We pray for their souls. Although, our district does not espouse some of the doctrines that other districts may believe. We excommunicate according to the plain reading of Scripture. If you’d like to learn more about it, you can find it in First Corinthians, chapter five.”
“I’m a little familiar with it. Silas has explained it some.” She glanced at her husband-to-be and smiled.
Judah Hostettler turned to Silas. “Shall we get you settled in the dawdi haus?”
“Jah, that sounds gut.” He looked to Kayla and raised a brow.
The bishop chuckled. “Don’t worry. Your aldi will be just fine without you. You’ll be seeing her at supper tonight.”
“I don’t think she has any dresses or a prayer kapp to wear to meeting tomorrow.”
“I have one!” Bailey beamed.
“That’s right.” Silas smiled. “Emily gave you one of hers. But they wear a different style here in Pennsylvania.”
“They do?”
“Jah. Do you see Sister Lydia’s kapp?”
“Ach, it’s shaped like a heart! I want one of those, Mommy.”
Kayla laughed. “We’ll see.”
Lydia waved at the air in front of her. “I have plenty from when the kinner were young. You can wear one of Susie’s old ones.” She turned to Kayla. “And I’m sure she’d have dresses that will fit you too.”
“That would be wonderful. We appreciate that.” Kayla nodded graciously.
“Kumm now, let’s get settled. I’m sure you’d like to rest up a bit before supper.” Lydia said, then led the way up the stairs.
Kayla glanced back just in time to see Silas disappear outside with the bishop. She wondered if they’d have any moments of privacy. Just now, she realized she’d miss being at the Yoders’ place. She and Silas had plenty of time together when they been in Indiana, but now they’d probably only get alone time occasionally. Of course, she was there to learn about the Amish ways. She most likely wouldn’t have a whole lot of free time. Soon though, they’d have all the time in the world together. It couldn’t come fast enough!
~
Until attending a church service, Kayla hadn’t really realized what a difference in culture there was between the Amish and the Englisch. Sure, she understood the variances from the outside—the dress, the horse and buggies, the houses—but seeing what their meetings were like firsthand had absolutely blown her away. She almost felt like she’d stepped back into nineteenth century Europe. The acapella singing, long and slow, reminded her of a Gregorian chant. The preaching, which she hadn’t understood, had been in a foreign language. And the service had been a lot longer than she’d expected. She hadn’t been used to sitting on the uncomfortable backless wooden benches. The separation of men and women had been interesting as well. She found herself questioning so many things.
Bailey had complained several times, and Kayla couldn’t blame her. She wondered if her daughter would make it through the service without crying. Fortunately, she had, and she seemed to be loving the time of fellowship afterwards. That had been a plus.
It wasn’t until then that Kayla stepped back and asked herself if she could really do this. Could she? It was a huge commitment. For the rest of her life, in fact. If she were honest, she’d admit it had all been a little bit overwhelming.
“Kayla, right?” A woman’s voice came from across the table.
“Brianna?” She smiled.
“That’s right, you remembered.”
“I’ve been attempting to recall the names of everyone I’ve met today, but I’m afraid I’ve already forgotten most of them.”
“It’ll take some time, for sure. There are a lot of us.” She smeared some peanut butter spread on a slice of bread. “What did you think of meeting?”
Kayla blew out a breath and shook her head. “It was quite unexpected.”
Brianna laughed. “I know, right? I felt the same way when I first attended one. Of course, I had amnesia and I thought that was the way I’d grown up.”
Kayla’s mouth dropped open. “You had amnesia? How did that happen? That’s something I’ve only seen in movies.”
“It is a long story and I’ll share it with you someday, but now I’d like to hear your thoughts.”
“I definitely want to hear it. But, yeah, I was pretty blown away. Silas had tried to prepare me, but I don’t think anything could have adequately prepared me for that. Seriously.”
“Are you having second thoughts about joining?”
“Thoughts? Yes. But I think it’s something I can probably get used to. Eventually. It’s only twice a month, right?”
“For the most part. And it’ll be more fulfilling once you learn the language. The most hectic, I’d say, is when we have to host.”
“You mean, at your house?”
“Yes. Every family has a turn in the rotation. How often you host depends on how many families there are in the district. We host twice a year.”
“Oh, wow. That’s something I hadn’t thought about.”
“You will be learning quite a few new things, trust me on that one.”
“I believe you.” Kayla shook her head. “How did you do it?”
“Well, support from my family was a big help. And then there was Luke. I would have done anything for him. I still would.”
Kayla glanced at Silas, who caught her eye and grinned. “I know what you mean. I feel like I love Silas more than my heart can contain. It’s crazy because we haven’t even known each other that long.”
“That’s how it was with me and Luke too. I mean, he thought he knew me and I thought I’d known him years prior, but when I came to Paradise and we began spending time together, I just knew he was the one.” She smiled. “We joke and say that I became Amish by accident, because it was due to an accident and a misunderstanding that I actually ended up here in Pennsylvania. But it was definitely no accident. God knew what He was doing all along.”
“Wow. I feel like we have so much in common. I turned into the Yoders’ place during a storm. I had no idea where I was, except I knew I was in Indiana. And then Silas came. And well, I hadn’t known it then, but I can see now that God had been directing me all along.”
Brianna smiled and nodded. “Isn’t it amazing? And then you wonder about those things, you know? Like, where would I be now, had I not been in that accident? Where would you be if you hadn’t turned in during that storm?”
“God certainly has His own way of doing things.”
“Yep. And His thoughts are not our thoughts and vice versa.”
“It’s like our lives are a bunch of puzzle pieces, and then God comes along and pu
ts the pieces together. And we really can’t see the whole picture until the puzzle is complete.”
“That’s an interesting way to think about it, but it makes perfect sense to me.”
“Yeah, it does, doesn’t it?” Kayla glanced up as Silas approached.
“You ready to go?” he asked. She’d never tire of gazing into his gorgeous eyes.
“Yes, I’m ready, but we’ll need to get Bailey.” She stood from the table. “Goodbye, Brianna. It was nice talking with you.”
“You too.” Brianna waved.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Silas and Kayla sat out on the Hostettlers’ porch swing, enjoying the crisp evening air and a little alone time. He’d come to cherish these intimate moments when it was just the two of them.
Silas turned to Kayla, hoping she’d like his next words. “I have news.”
“What? Good news?” Kayla studied him closely, trailing his arms with her fingers and leaving a trail of sparks in their wake. Her gentle touch always did funny things to him.
“Jah. Josiah’s folks are going to come to meet you and Bailey this week.” Ach, it had been so long since he’d last seen his best friend’s parents. It would be wunderbaar to reconnect with them again. He wondered how they’d been holding up. Even though sudden death was chalked up to Gott’s will, losing a love one was always difficult. He knew that good and well. He still experienced moments of grief only he and Der Herr were privy to.
She gasped. “Really?”
He nodded. “I think you’ll like them.”
“Will they like me?”
“You are the mudder of their grossboppli, of course they’ll like you.” He attempted a reassuring smile.
“I hope you’re right.” She worried her lip. “I’m kind of nervous about meeting them. I mean, are they going to judge me or criticize me because I had a child out of wedlock?”
“I don’t think so.” He rubbed the top of her hand with his thumb. “But even if they do, don’t worry about it. We’re all sinners. Just because your sin is different from theirs doesn’t make them better than you. Nor is the opposite true. We’re all on the same plane.”
She sucked in a breath. “I’ll have to prepare Bailey. Did they say when they’re coming?”
“Probably Tuesday.”
“Okay. I’ll need to have a talk with her tomorrow then.”
“Do you want me to be there?”
“Sure. Yeah, I think that would be nice.”
He yawned and covered his mouth. “Time to get some sleep now. Tomorrow will be here before we know it.”
~
After helping with breakfast and getting the laundry on the line Monday morning, Kayla met Silas outside. “Bailey’s inside. Do you think we should maybe go for a walk?”
“To share the news with her?”
“Yes.” She blew out a breath.
“Let’s pray first,” Silas suggested.
He always seemed to sense her needs and had God at the forefront of his mind. It appeared to come much more naturally for him than it did for her. But she was glad he offered to pray. She found that releasing her cares to God helped relieve some of her anxiety. Although she still felt she had a lot to learn about the Almighty.
She nodded and bowed her head, knowing Silas preferred to pray silently.
After a moment, he squeezed her hand, signaling the end of his prayer. She finished up her own with a quick amen.
“I’ll let Lydia know of our plans and call Bailey outside.” She moved to the door and did as she said she would.
Bailey bounced out of the door and straightaway latched on to Silas’s hand. “Mommy said we’re going to go for a walk.”
He smiled. “She’s right. Are you ready?”
Bailey turned to her and held her free hand out for Kayla to grasp. “Now, I’m ready.”
Silas led them toward the Hostettlers’ long driveway.
“Do you remember when we talked about your daddy?” Kayla attempted an amicable tone. She wanted this to be a positive experience for Bailey.
“Jah.” Bailey glanced at Silas, likely to see if he recognized her Amish word.
Silas smiled down at Bailey and dipped his head.
“The one that’s in Heaven with Jesus?”
Kayla nodded. “That’s right.”
“But I’ll have a new daddy soon, ain’t so?” She beamed up at Silas.
Silas’s laugh was easy. “Jah, you will, Gott willing.”
Kayla forged on. “Well, your daddy’s parents are your grandpa and grandma.”
“Grossdawdi und Grossmammi,” Silas nodded.
“Grass dawdi and Grass mammi?” Bailey attempted.
Silas chuckled, then corrected her.
Kayla continued, “They want to meet you. Would you like to meet them too?”
“Are they going all the way to Indiana?”
“No, they are going to come here to the Hostettlers’ house. They live in Pennsylvania.”
Bailey nodded without hesitation. “I want to meet them too.”
Kayla sighed in relief and shared Silas’s reassuring glance. “Good. So do I.”
~
“Mommy!” Bailey’s voice carried up the stairs, where Kayla currently tucked away fresh laundry in the bureau and closet. “Somebody’s here!”
Kayla rushed to the window and peeked out to see a white passenger van. Josiah’s parents. She inhaled a deep breath, willing her hands to cease their trembling. She glanced into the hand mirror to make sure her kapp was on straight, then bolted downstairs.
“Daddy…I mean Mr. Silas is hugging the people from the van.”
Kayla tried to ignore her jittery nerves and reached for Bailey’s hand. “Kumm. Let’s go say hello to your grandparents.”
She briefly looked over her daughter to see if her Amish attire met the district’s expectations.
As soon as the two of them stepped outside, a pleasantly-plump woman with silver hair and glasses approached. To Kayla’s surprise, she appeared to be about twenty years older than Silas’s mother. Oddly, the woman made her think of Mrs. Claus. She buried the thought.
The woman stopped just a few feet in front of them and examined Bailey. Her eyes filled with a rush of tears. “Ach, there is no doubt this is my Josiah’s dochder.” She opened her arms wide. “Kumm here, precious one.”
Kayla whispered in Bailey’s ear and nudged her forward. She’d never been shy about meeting strangers.
Bailey’s smile widened as the tearful woman embraced her. “Are you my grossmammi?”
The woman pulled back. “Yes, you may call me Mammi Ada. And your grossdawdi is Dawdi Alvin.”
Bailey gasped. “Like Alvin and the Chipmunks?”
Mammi Ada looked at Kayla, eyes wide.
“It’s a children’s TV show,” she explained.
Mammi Ada nodded.
“Have you seen Alvin and the Chipmunks, Mammi Ada?” Bailey’s smile widened.
“Nee, can’t say I have.” Mammi Ada winked at Kayla.
Kayla immediately loved this woman.
“Do you want to watch it with us? We can watch on my mommy’s computer.”
“Bailey, Mommy doesn’t have a computer anymore. We’re Amish now, remember?” Kayla reminded.
“I like being Amish.” Bailey bounced on her toes. “Do you like my Amish dress, Mammi Ada?”
Mammi Ada nodded, tossing an amused glance in Kayla’s direction. “It’s nice.”
Dawdi Alvin walked forward and crouched down in from of Bailey. “Who’s this little whipper snapper?”
“Are you Dawdi Alvin, like Alvin and the Chipmunks?”
He rubbed his beard and glanced up to the sky. Kayla caught the twinkle in his eye. “I’m Dawdi Alvin for sure, but I don’t have any chipmunks.”
Bailey threw her arms around him. “That’s okay. You can still be my grossdawdi.”
He chuckled, patting her back.
Kayla’s gaze roamed over the couple, searching for traces
of Josiah in their faces. Alvin had contributed his eye color, but Josiah’s face had resembled his mother’s. A wave of sadness washed over her at the fact that they’d never see Josiah again. What a terrible thing for his parents to have to endure.
“Mister Silas is going to be my daddy!” Bailey exclaimed.
Ada and Alvin shared a brief glance, then turned to Silas. “Josiah would have been happy to hear that you’ve stepped into his shoes.” Alvin shook his hand.
“I’m just glad that Kayla agreed to become Plain.”
Alvin pinned Silas with a sober gaze. “It will be gut for you, after you lost your fraa.”
Silas swallowed and nodded.
“Let’s go inside,” Ada slipped her arm around Kayla’s elbow. “And you can tell us all about you and Bailey. Silas says you’re from California?”
They led the way into the house, continuing their conversation, and settled down in the Hostettlers’ living area. Kayla helped Lydia bring out snacks for their guests.
~
The next couple of days seemed to fly by and before they knew it, they bid their new-found family goodbye. Alvin and Ada mentioned the possibility of attending Silas and Kayla’s wedding in the fall. All in all, they’d had a wonderful visit and Kayla was blessed to get to know Josiah’s parents. She couldn’t help but wonder how things would have been had Josiah not died. But it was something she’d never know.
With those thoughts aside, she looked forward to becoming Silas’s wife. Because, truth be told, if she had a choice between Josiah and Silas now, she’d choose Silas.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Several months later…
Silas had been shocked to learn of some of the differences between this community and his own in Indiana. Kayla would be baptized by immersion? Ach, he’d never heard of such a thing in the Amish church! They’d always followed the Amish tradition of kneeling before the congregation inside a member’s home. After that, the bishop’s wife would remove the woman’s head covering and, at the bishop’s words, she would feel water trickle down her hair to the back of her neck and the sides of her temples. That was how it had been with Silas when he’d been baptized and with every other Amish church member he’d ever seen. Well, except that he was a man and he didn’t wear a prayer kapp or require the bishop’s wife’s assistance. But that was how it would have been for a maedel.
The Trespasser (Amish Country Brides) Page 11