An Amish Country Christmas (14 page)

Chapter Fourteen

“Mary? We’re gonna run a little late pickin’ you up.” Bram paused outside the real
estate office Tuesday morning, glad to have Mary’s voice in his ear before he joined
Nate and Dat inside. “We got called back to make another offer on the farm. Say a
little prayer, will ya?”

“Oh, but this is
gut
news! I’ve been praying ever since you fellows left,” she answered. Her giggle did
crazy things to his pulse. “If God wants us to have that place, we will, Bram. And
if we don’t get this one, well . . . Martha and I aren’t giving up. In for a penny,
in for a pound, we are.”

It struck him then just how deeply he cared for the redhead with the sprinkling of
freckles across her nose, and how her faith was inspiring his own. Bram suddenly knew
he would move heaven and earth to provide a place for Mary’s dreams to come true .
. . because then his life would be set up for the very best he could hope for, as
well. “
Denki
for sayin’ it that way, honey-girl,” he whispered. “I love ya. Really I do, Mary,
and you’re the girl I’ve gotta marry.”

“Oh, Bram,” she breathed. “I . . . it’s all I can think about now, being your wife
someday. It’s all going to work out wonderful-
gut
. I—I love you, too, Bram.”

“I love hearin’ you say that,” he murmured. “Gotta go. They’re waitin’ on me.”

When he stepped inside the agent’s office, he felt a goofy, lovestruck smile on his
face, but he didn’t care who saw it. He shook Ken Carnahan’s hand and took the chair
beside his brother. “
Gut
to see you again,” he remarked. “Our havin’ to come back means we’re still in the
runnin’ for this place, ain’t so?”

Ken smiled from behind his cluttered desk. He was wearing a sweater with elbow patches
and an open-necked plaid shirt, and appeared to be slightly younger than Dat. “Indeed
it does, and I’m pleased folks like you are interested in the place. I have Amish
neighbors and I’ve always been impressed by their work ethic—their willingness to
serve as volunteer firemen and to keep their farms looking nice.” The realtor smiled
at him and Nate as he shuffled some papers. “What sorts of plans do you have for the
property, considering there’s so little tillable acreage?”

Behind them, the front door blew open and a tall man in a camel-colored overcoat stepped
into the front lobby. As Bram told about the auction barn he envisioned, and his brother
mentioned stables and corrals for training horses, Ken got up to close his office
door. “Be with you in just a moment, Mr. Dana,” he told the fellow who’d just come
in.

“And the girls we’re courtin’ figure to start a bed and breakfast someday,” Bram went
on. “What with their
dat
, Amos Coblentz, helping out with that project, we hope to support ourselves pretty
well once all these businesses get going.”

“Fine man, Amos is,” Ken remarked. “Watched his crew put up most of a barn in a day,
and it’s a sight to behold. Now—if you’ll write the amount of your new bid here, and
sign on the lines again, we’ll be all set. I know this is a big move for you boys,
and I appreciate the chance to do business with you.”

“Tell the folks who’re selling this place we’ll pay them cash, too,” Dat said as he
signed his name.

Once again, the magnitude of this offer . . . his parents’ commitment to his and Nate’s
future, made Bram’s throat tighten as he and his brother signed their new, larger
offer. He had a good feeling as they rose and shook hands all around, because Ken
Carnahan seemed like a down-home sort of fellow who was genuinely interested in their
success.

When they stepped into the entryway, however, the man who had come in grabbed his
briefcase. “Couldn’t help but overhear the cute ideas you boys have for the Westview
place,” he remarked in a deep Southern accent. His cowboy boots glimmered with fancy
toe and heel trim and his tan Stetson was top of the line. “But I’ll be bringing in
a new tire manufacturing plant, and our business will provide hundreds of jobs—not
to mention that the taxes we’ll pay will go toward improving area schools and roads,”
he remarked. “In times like these, such an investment can only benefit everyone in
central Missouri, don’t you agree?”

Bram was too stunned to say anything. He went on outside, while behind him Nate murmured
something like, “
Jah
, whatever.” When they reached the enclosed carriages, the three of them sighed.

“Well, that fellow sure knew how to take the wind out of a man’s sails,” Nate said.
“Can’t see how our bid will top his.”

“
Jah
, I’m wishing I hadn’t heard what he had in mind for the place,” Bram remarked. “I’m
not real crazy for the way he called our ideas
cute
, either.”

Dat crammed his broad-brimmed hat farther down on his head. “You’ve got your hearts
set on that place, I know, but if you don’t get it . . . maybe the Lord’s got better
property in mind for you. We’ll keep believing that. And meanwhile, your
mamm
and I are looking forward to meeting Martha and Mary later today. Be careful on the
roads, now.”

“
Jah
. See you later, Dat.
Denki
for everything you’re doin’ for us.” They waved as their father’s rig headed back
toward Willow Ridge.

Bram’s thoughts tangled like contrary reins as he pointed Felix north on the county
highway. Nate sat silently beside him, stewing over the same thing . . . that other
fellow’s attitude, and the insistence that his tire plant was a worthier use of the
land they both wanted so badly. They rode several miles through the snow-covered countryside,
keeping to the edge of the road so the occasional car could pass. When Bram’s cell
phone rang, he handed the lines to Nate.

“
Jah
, this is Bram,” he said when he saw the number of the incoming call.

Ken Carnahan sighed. “The heirs of the farm instructed me to accept the highest new
offer, and that would be the one Mr. Dana has made. I’m not one bit happy about it,
but I wanted you to know so you wouldn’t be wondering and waiting over the New Year’s
holiday.”

“Uh—
jah
, thanks,” Bram rasped. “I . . . guess we’ll keep lookin’, then. Let us know if other
farms come on the market, will you?”

“I’d be happy to. You can come by for your earnest money check any time it’s convenient
for you.”

As Bram ended the call, his eyes stung and his heart clutched. “Well, now. Mary said
she and Martha were in this adventure with us all the way, but I’m not lookin’ forward
to greetin’ them with
this
information.”

“Not the way I’d figured on us celebrating the New Year,” Nate agreed glumly. “It’s
gut
to keep the faith, like Dat said. But no matter how you slice it, losing this bid
changes everything. The more I thought about it these past couple days, the more our
businesses seemed so perfectly suited to that piece of property,” he continued in
a rising voice. “We don’t need a lot of tillable land for our hay, so there’s no use
in paying the higher price for that kind of property.”

“But a tire factory?” Bram demanded. “Can you imagine what troubles that’ll cause,
with heavy construction equipment on this narrow blacktop? And then the car traffic
everyday, when the factory workers drive to and from work?” he added. “Truth be told,
Mr. Dana doesn’t impress me as the type who’ll hire many local folks to run that plant,
either.”

“Well, it’s out of our hands now.”

“
Jah
,” Bram said with another sigh. “And our mistake was figuring it was ever in our hands
to begin with.”

 

 

Through the window of the front room they saw Felix pulling a rig up the lane and
then noted the boys’ grim faces through the windshield. Martha grabbed Mary’s hand.
“They’re trying to figure out how to tell us the bad news, Sister,” she murmured.
“If they’d gotten the farm, they’d be jumping out and running to the house.”

“
Jah
, let’s figure out a way to commiserate without making the whole ride to Willow Ridge
feel like a funeral parade. And let’s not let on to Mamma just yet.” Mary led the
way to the kitchen to hug their mother, putting on the same determined smile Martha
wore even though they wanted to cry. “We’ll see you next year,” Mary teased.

“Try to keep the party under control while we’re gone, all right?” Martha teased.

“I could say the same for you girls,” Mamma replied with a wry smile. “Give the boys
and their folks our best. I know you’d like to get on the road again, so I don’t expect
you to invite them in.”

“
Denki
, Mamma. See you in a day or so.” Martha slipped into her heavy black coat and bonnet
and grabbed the big box of goodies they’d packed, which waited on the porch table
along with their suitcases. Mary followed her outside with a pie carrier and a bread
basket.

“Let me get this,” Nate said as he relieved her of her load.

Martha was careful not to react to his disappointment as she directed Bram to the
porch for their luggage. When they were all four settled in the rig, and she sat beneath
a blanket with Nate in the backseat, the buggy lurched into motion again.

The silence felt as heavy as wet snow for a few moments.

“You’ve guessed how the latest bid turned out,
jah
?” Nate murmured.

Martha’s hand went to his smooth-shaven face as she blinked back tears. “
Jah
, your expressions told the tale.”

“Burns my butt the way it happened, too,” Bram remarked. “Some fella in fancy clothes
said his company was gonna build a tire factory there! Outbid us big-time, by the
looks of him.”

“A
tire
factory?” Despite her best effort, Martha choked back a sob. “Why, that’s not even—what’ll
the neighbors think of
that
?”

Nate sighed and clasped her hand. “I get the feeling that man doesn’t much care about
the neighbors. Even though the place seems like a major investment to the likes of
us, it’s probably small potatoes to him because land here’s so much cheaper than most
other places.”

“And he’s buyin’ the place with other people’s money.” Bram shook his head as he gazed
at Mary, who sat beside him in the front seat. “I’m real sorry, honey-girl. I was
hopin’ to have all kinds of celebratin’ to do these next couple of days.”

Mary gazed out over the passing countryside, which was alight with afternoon sunshine.
“Maybe this is God’s way of telling us we were getting too big for our britches, thinking
we could handle two new marriages and three businesses at our age. Maybe—”

“But we at least made your uncle Abe a happy man,” Martha piped up with forced cheerfulness.
“We told him yesterday we were ready to take our instructions, so we could join the
church.”

“
Jah
, he won’t be reporting our kissing in the barn to Vernon Gingerich, our bishop.”
Mary muffled a giggle as she hooked her hand around Bram’s arm. “That little sin has
been forgiven, now that Dat’s told him we’re courting. Puts me on the higher road,
you know.”

Nate slung his arm around Martha’s shoulders, gazing into her eyes. “And you’re still
sure about joining the church? Even with this news we got today?”

“
Jah
, we’re positive. It’s just a matter of sooner rather than later for us,” she confirmed.
She loved it when Nate thumbed away the tear dribbling down each of her cheeks . .
. how he was offering her a way out of the arrangement they had all agreed upon so
quickly. “Our folks like it that we’ve all got plans that make us happy while we start
our families. And they’re real glad we twins will be in the same house. So if you
. . . well, if
you
still want to hitch up with—”

“You’re beating me to the punch, but
jah
,” Nate rasped as he grabbed her and murmured into her ear. “I want you for my wife,
Martha. Will you have me?”

Her body shivered with the thrill of this moment, dreamed of since she was a girl.
Had there ever been a handsomer fellow than Nate Kanagy? Or another man who would
respect her desire to work at something besides having a family? “I’m yours,” she
whispered.

In the front seat, Bram cleared his throat ceremoniously. “You girls aren’t the only
ones who have taken that step,” he announced. “Our Preacher Tom was mighty glad I
told him I was ready for my instructions, too. And the parents are acting like a Christmas
miracle has taken place.”

“They’re really eager to meet the two girls who set us along this path to getting
hitched—and to getting Bram into the fold,” Nate added playfully.

Mary tugged at the lapel of Bram’s leather jacket. “Well, would you look at this!
I
thought
I saw broadfall pants and suspenders under this English coat—and that’s a pretty
purple shirt, too. We’ll have you looking Amish in no time, ain’t so?”

Martha’s heart felt lighter and the mood in the buggy lifted. Wasn’t it a fine thing,
the way the three of them had committed to the Old Order faith, practically on the
same day? “This calls for a treat!” she declared as she opened the big box near her
feet. “Cookies and candy will sweeten up the news about the farm, too.”

“But I’ve got to tell you, I could already see myself baking in that new kitchen and
chatting with guests in our inn,” Mary said wistfully. She took the cookie bin from
Martha and placed it on the seat so Bram could choose something, and then dug a piece
of paper from her apron pocket. “Dat even sat down with us to sketch out a house like
we’ve been talking about—”

“So when the right property comes along,” Martha chimed in, “we’re ready! There’ll
be no stopping us then! Show them, Mary.”