A Simple Faith: A Lancaster Crossroads Novel (28 page)

“Ya.” Elsie nodded for Ruben to lift the cradle so that she could properly wrap it. Her hand brushed his as she slid bubble wrap under the runners, and she smiled to herself at the tingle of warmth that passed between them. Ruben was such a big help. She was
grateful his father had said that he could spare him from managing Zook’s barn until the busy season came in the late spring.

She glanced up at him, admiring his square jaw, his wide and thoughtful eyes. But then he caught her looking and she lowered her head once again. Whenever their eyes met, she was sure he could see what she was feeling, and she wasn’t ready to share that. Truth be told, she wanted him here because she wanted to be near him. His daily presence filled her heart with laughter, and there was nothing like his honesty.

And at last week’s session, when he had told the group about his angels, that was the moment. That was when Elsie knew there was no one in the world quite as wonderful as Ruben Zook.

“You must think I’m verhuddelt,” he had said after last week’s counseling session. “A grown man, talking about angels.”

“Your story took my breath away,” Elsie had told him. “It’s such a beautiful thing, Ruben, having angels to comfort you. Gott has truly blessed you.”

“I’m thankful for it—but I don’t want anyone thinking that I’m special. I wasn’t bragging about it.”

She had assured him that no one thought he was bragging, and the conversation had fallen off. But in her mind, she was thrilled to imagine Ruben and the angels. In some ways her heart ached to think of six-year-old Ruben, so alone and in such pain! But then Gott in His Mercy had sent Ruben the comfort he’d needed. It was nothing short of a miracle.

“There we go,” Elsie said as she finished wrapping the wooden cradle. “That should keep anything from scratching it on the way home.”

“And there’s a card taped to the bottom of the cradle,” Ruben added. “It tells you a little about Adam King, the Amish man who made it.”

“Perfect. You have a delightful shop, Elsie. I know I haven’t been here before, but it seems so familiar.”

“Maybe you’re thinking of another country store. There are many in Lancaster County.”

“Oh, sure, but there’s something about yours … I don’t know.”

Elsie had to tamp down the surge of delight over Gwen’s comments. She didn’t want to be proud, and she wasn’t taking credit for the store’s success. The truth was, with Halfway right smack between Lancaster and Philadelphia, in the heart of Amish country, it was a great location for a store with Amish goods. She had always thought of the town as a sort of crossroads for the Amish, but since the accident she had come to see that their little town was a crossroads for Englishers, too.

“Halfway is a good location for our shop,” Elsie said. “And whether you choose to go north, south, east, or west from here, I say a prayer that Gott will bless each person who passes through here.”

Gwen smiled. “That’s such a lovely sentiment.”

The bells at the shop door jangled and Haley came in, dressed in her nursing scrubs and clogs. “Long time, no see,” she joked. Ruben and Elsie had seen her thirty minutes ago at a counseling session down the street. “I hope you don’t mind. Got some time to kill before I head over to the hospital.”

“You’re always welcome here.” It wasn’t unusual for Haley to hang around the store. In the month or so since the accident, Elsie had gotten attached to the Englisher girl who spoke her mind and always seemed on the lookout to help other folks.

“Are you a doctor?” the customer asked.

“Just a nursing student. But I live right outside Halfway.”

Gwen Slavin looked from Haley to Elsie to Ruben. “Wait a minute. Are you the nursing student in the newspaper? The one who came across the accident on the highway a while back?”

“That was me,” Haley answered slowly.

Elsie licked her suddenly dry lips.

“And you’re Elsie Lapp and …” She covered her mouth with one hand. “You were in the van. Of course! That’s why the name of your store rings a bell. I read all about it. I’m so sorry. It must be hard for you. I wouldn’t have brought it up, except that I just pieced it all together right now.”

“It’s okay,” Elsie said softly. “It doesn’t bother me to talk about it so much anymore.” For that, she was grateful to Dylan Monroe. Counseling had taken the sharp edge from the terrible memories of the crash, allowing her to talk about it without breaking into tears. The crash and losing Dat … it still hurt her to remember that difficult time.

These days Elsie’s heart ached more for the losses that clung to their lives. James stuck in a wheelchair. Rachel suffering from guilt. Fanny about to have a baby that would never know their father. Dear Fanny, so strong on the outside, but delicate as a rose on the inside.

Gwen pressed a hand to her chest. “I am sorry.”

“No reason to be,” Elsie said. “Everyone has some healing to do; it’s a part of life.”

“You’re a sweet young lady, and I’m happy to have met you and found your shop. I’m sure I’ll be sending my friends here. The town is really charming, but what an odd name. How did that happen?”

“I’ve always wondered about that, too,” Haley agreed.

Elsie looked up at Ruben, whose blue eyes twinkled. “Do you want to tell them?”

“No one knows for sure, but my family’s marketplace—you know Zook’s barn?” When Gwen nodded, Ruben went on. “That was built many, many years ago by a man named Jeremiah Stoltzfus. Jeremiah lived in a settlement in Christiana, but he had brothers he was always visiting in Strasburg. Being Amish, he was always traveling
to Strasburg by horse and buggy, and that’s a very long trip. Jeremiah got tired of so much traveling. So one day, he bought some land halfway between Christiana and Strasburg. He built a house and a barn, and other people started building and it became a town. And that’s how Halfway got its name.”

“Fascinating.” Gwen put her checkbook away in her purse. “Well, I guess that’s it for me. Unless you want to sell me that beautiful box in the window.”

“The box with the cherries painted on it?” Haley asked. “I like that one, too.”

“But it’s a family treasure, made by my great-great-grandmother in 1933.” Elsie recalled how her dat had told Caleb and Emma and her that it was something to pass down to the next generation. “I want to keep it in our family.”

“I can understand that.” Gwen tapped the check on the counter. “But you’ve got my phone number. Promise me you’ll call me first if you decide to sell.”

“Ya. I promise.” But she knew that day would never come.

While Ruben carried the cradle out to Gwen’s car, Haley moved closer to the sales counter.

“Now that we’re alone, I wanted to ask you about Dylan’s suggestion today,” Haley said. “About Graciana.”

At today’s session, Dylan had told the group that he wanted to invite Graciana Estevez to join in future sessions. He knew it might be difficult, but he thought that in the end it could help everyone heal, including Graciana.

“What is it?”

“Is it really okay with you if she attends a meeting? I mean, I know everyone said yes, that all is forgiven, but you lost more than anyone in our group. If it would bother you in the least, I’ll talk to Dylan about calling it off. He could say it didn’t work with her schedule or whatever.”

Running a feather duster over one of the shelves, Elsie tried to measure the reaction deep inside her. “When I think of Graciana, I remember the love in her eyes when she talked about her daughter. And then the sorrow … the pain of losing Clara.”

Haley nodded. “I’ll never forget that. When she said the angels came to carry Clara to heaven.”

“It was so very sad. And that’s my feeling for Graciana. Sorrow and sympathy.”

“Really?” Haley put one hand on her hip and cocked her head to the side. “It doesn’t bother you that her daughter made a stupid mistake that killed two people and put one in a wheelchair? Because I can go there, too.”

“I have no bad feelings for Graciana,” Elsie said firmly.

“Okay, good. Just wanted to make sure that was the case.” Haley squinted at her. “Because you’re way too nice to say anything hurtful. I just want to make sure someone’s watching out for you.”

“There is always someone watching over me.” Elsie was thinking of the Almighty Father and His angels when the bells jangled and Ruben came in the door.

Haley looked toward the door, then leaned forward to whisper, “That’s right; you have Ruben. And that stuff you said about just being friends? You’re not slipping that one past me.”

Elsie squinted up at her. “What do you mean?”

“Gotta go!” Haley raised one hand in a wave. “Bye, guys. Catch you next week.”

She blew out of the store like a winter wind, leaving Elsie to wonder just what folks were thinking about Ruben and her.

“We got a customer for life, I think,” Ruben said.

Elsie had to admit she liked the way he said “we.” Ruben had slipped into her routine in the store so smoothly, the way that winter slowly melted into spring.

He came closer and then stopped at the display of baby items
and rearranged the two remaining cradles to fill the space. “Gwen Slavin said she’ll be back with all her friends.”

“I hope you’ll still be working here when she returns.”

“I’m going to have to talk Dat into getting one of my brothers to manage the summer market.” He folded his arms across his chest, casually smiling. “Who would have thought I’d be so good at working for the competition?”

“We don’t really compete with the market,” Elsie said, moving the feather duster over jars of pie filling that had been put up by Annie Stoltzfus. “But it would be great if you could stay on here.”

“I know it started off with me helping you out and all.” Ruben paused. “But now I’m thinking I’m more than just a helper.”

“Of course you are!” She looked up at him. When he looked at her that way, his eyes were as blue as the sky.

“Good. I was thinking I would come by your house on Saturday night?”

Saturday night? Elsie couldn’t imagine what was going on that night … and then it dawned on her. That was the night when a young man visited after dark to see his girl.

He wanted to court her.

Her palms felt suddenly moist and her heart was beating in double time. How odd to be a bundle of joy and disappointment at the same time! Of course, she had become accustomed to having Ruben by her side. She couldn’t imagine this little shop without him humming in the background, joking with customers, helping with all the heavy lifting and inventory. Over the past weeks he had become like a kind brother to her. Well, maybe more than a brother. There was something different about the excitement buzzing in her chest like a hummingbird at the sight of his towering form waiting at the shop door each morning. And the times in the store when she and Ruben accidentally brushed past each other or
touched as they handed something off.… Oh! She had to admit that a certain excitement swirled between them.

But she couldn’t let him court her. She couldn’t let anything come of their relationship.

“I’ll flash a light on your bedroom window, and you’ll let me in,” Ruben was saying.

Elsie pulled herself clear of her cascading thoughts. “How do you know which window is mine?” she asked.

He gave a laugh. “I know. Are you a heavy sleeper? I don’t want to have to chuck any stones up there to wake you.”

“Ruben …” She paused to compose a careful explanation of why his plan was not a good idea. In that moment, the bells at the door gave a merry jingle and they both turned to see a line of customers streaming in from a van parked in front of the shop window.

This was not a good time. For all his jokes and pranks, she knew that Ruben was not so calloused inside. He had shown her a tenderness in his heart that most folks never got to see, and right now, she didn’t dare wound him.

“I am a heavy sleeper,” she said quickly as a customer approached the counter. “But for you, I’ll stay awake.”

His smile melted her heart. He really was a good man. Just not for her.

32

“
W
hat’s with the van? What happened to your sporty car?” Haley asked. Usually Dylan drove a Volkswagen Jetta, but today he had picked her up in a red minivan, which he handled like a bus driver. She loved the manly way he kept the steering wheel low to his lap as he steered through brown winter fields. In his plaid shirt and jeans, he was handsome and accessible. It would be so easy to reach out and touch the soft flannel of his sleeve.