Harvest of Hearts (9 page)

Matthew looked around at the two neighboring homes they could see from the porch. One sat across the road, and the other was maybe half a mile farther. “Do you have friends near here?”

Shanna lifted one shoulder. “Jah, I did. They all married men in different districts. Probably have two or three boppli by now. Our lives have gone different ways.”

“Jah. That happens.” Matthew picked at a string on his sleeve. “My friend Jacob came down here first. His daed signed him up for the man swap but didn’t tell Jacob; he thought he was just coming to his cousin’s farm to help out for a while. Jacob ended up falling in love with Becky Troyer, and they’re getting married in December. He needs to build a haus.”

“Speaking of which, did you make up your mind about that farm?”

Matthew shook his head. “Nein. Been meaning to go out there and look around again.”

“I work tomorrow morning. Maybe when I get off, I could drive you down to look at the farm, and you could help me take the kittens into Springfield.”

“I…uh, I….” Matthew stepped back. “I’m thinking not.”

Shanna had the grace to blush. “Seriously, my driving isn’t normally that bad. I promise to be more careful. Bumping that buggy was the first accident I’ve had since I learned to drive. Cars get dinged a lot when you live in the city and have to park on the street. Trust me.”

Trust me.

He’d heard it said that if someone needed to tell you to trust her, then you usually couldn’t trust her. A skunk could be identified by its stripes.

“I’d still rather not.” Maybe if she hired a driver. But saying that would be hurtful.

Shanna brushed past him. “Suit yourself. I just won’t go fishing with you this weekend.”

Matthew shook his head. Not that she could see him, with her back turned. It was just as well. If she came along, the fish wouldn’t get much attention. Of course, that wouldn’t be a bad thing.

Shanna walked two or three steps, then glanced over her shoulder. “Aren’t you going to say anything?”

What? Did she expect him to give in? Matthew shook his head. “It won’t hurt the fishes’ feelings if you aren’t there.”

Shanna huffed.

Matthew grinned and followed her inside. He was surprised to see the unfinished checker game put away and a Monopoly game laid out in its place, with paper money distributed into four piles. He’d thought they’d finish the other game. He’d told Joseph he’d be right back.

Shanna gasped. “You have Monopoly?”

Joseph’s eyes twinkled. “It’s Daed’s favorite game. We got one for Christmas last year. I’m the champ.”

Levi started organizing his money, making neat piles according to denomination. “You’ll be the champ when pigs turn down slop,” he muttered good-humoredly.

***

Shanna plopped down in a chair and shuffled through the colorful stack of fake money. Whoever had doled it out had started with the one-dollar bills, so that they were at the bottom of the pile, and the $500 bills were on top. She re-sorted them in reverse order, though she wasn’t sure they intended for her to play. She hoped they did, especially since the game had appeared after she’d mentioned it.

Matthew eyed the board warily, as if he expected some of the pieces to rise up and bite him. “This is the game where you buy properties and eventually add hotels? I think I’ve played once before.”

“Properties, bah. Farms. They are farms. And the hotels will be upgraded to full-fledged Amish bed-and-breakfasts.” Daed winked. “Have to make this materialistic game more palatable, ain’t so?”

Shanna lowered her head and grinned. This was a side of Daed she’d rarely seen. She wasn’t quite sure what to think.

Matthew shrugged and sat down on the edge of the seat next to Shanna. “Then, maybe we should find some horse-and-buggy-shaped playing pieces, ain’t so?”

Joseph lifted the bag of pieces out of the box. “Hmm. We have a battleship, a hat, a cannon, a horse, a wheelbarrow, a flat iron, a thimble, a shoe, a car, and a dog. So, here’s your horse, Matthew. Shanna, should we give you the car? I’ll be the cannon, because I’m going to blow everyone out of the water.”

“Ooh, violence from a peace-loving Amish man,” Shanna teased.

“I’ll be the shoe,” Daed said, “because I’m going to walk all over you.”

Shanna’s eyes widened at the trash talk, something she never would have expected from Daed. “I’d rather be the wheelbarrow than the car.”

Joseph nodded and put the extra pieces back in the box. Mamm set a plate of applesauce cookies on the table and settled down next to Daed with her knitting. Another pastime Shanna had never mastered, though Mamm had spent hours trying to teach her. To her credit, she had learned to crochet passably. Maybe she’d try one more time to learn how to knit. She could use a new scarf for winter.

“Let’s roll to see who goes first.” Daed picked up one of the pair of dice and gave it a toss. “I got a five. Beat that.”

Matthew and Joseph both reached for a die at the same time, but Matthew rolled a three and Joseph a four. Shanna rolled a one.

“I start.” Daed scooped up the dice and rolled. “Double six.” He moved the shoe to the electric company and counted out the money to buy it. “What am I going to do with an electric company?”

Shanna’s cell phone rang, the musical tone blaring out from her pocket. Everyone jumped and looked at her.

“Ach, you made me drop a stitch.” Mamm unraveled a few stitches.

Shanna reached into her pocket and pulled out her cell phone. The caller was Nate, a guy she casually dated in Springfield. She wanted to talk with him, but did he have to call while she was enjoying time with her family? She deliberated a moment, studying the phone, then the game. Well, maybe she could play a game later. She’d be here all summer. “I won’t be playing this time.” She got up and headed for the door. On the porch, she opened the phone and held it to her ear. “Hey, Nate. What’s happening?”

The next morning, Matthew crawled out of bed before the rooster crowed. He glanced across the room at the other twin bed, where Joseph was still sprawled, sound asleep. Matthew dressed quietly, then went downstairs.

Deborah was already in the kitchen, starting the breakfast preparations. She looked up from her task of measuring coffee and smiled. “You’re up early, Matthew.”

“Not so much. I’ll get a head start on the chores.” At the door, he pulled on his shoes and shoved his hat on his head. Then, he stepped outside and took a deep breath of the fresh spring air. He paused for a moment to listen to the chorus of birds before striding toward the barn.

When he had slid the big barn doors open, Matthew’s gaze wandered to the closed apartment door, and he wondered—not for the first time—who Nate was. Shanna hadn’t bothered to come back into the house last night after his phone call. Instead, she’d padded barefoot over to the barn, leaving her shoes and wet clothes behind. He could only assume she’d stayed there. He hadn’t seen or heard her car leave the property.

He milked the cows and led them to the pasture. After that job was complete, he hiked back to the barn to clean out the stalls. He’d just started the first one when he felt a presence. Turning, he saw Shanna grab a shovel and move to another stall. “You’re up early” was all he could think to say.

She grinned at him. “It’s about time I started pulling my weight around here, ain’t so?”

“Jah, but Judah usually helps with the stalls.”

Shanna nudged a gate open. “I know. I wanted to do something.”

Matthew supposed she could have gone to the house to help her mamm prepare breakfast, but since that thought hadn’t occurred to her, maybe it wasn’t his place to bring it up.

“I have to work eight till noon today. I thought maybe I’d help Mamm when I got home.”

It was good to see that she’d apparently swallowed her pride and was ready to try reconciling with her family. But he wouldn’t mention that, either. Nor would he remark about the Amish clothes she wore this morning, though he was surprised to see her in them. He’d figured she’d go back to her Englisch attire, since she’d put on plain clothes last night only because her other clothes had gotten wet. Soaked, really.

It wasn’t raining today. Just a bit drizzly. Misty. He grinned, remembering a nursery rhyme from childhood. “
One misty, moisty morning….
” It seemed to fit.

Shanna sucked in a deep breath. “I need to leave for work in an hour. You sure you don’t want to go into Springfield with me this afternoon?”

“Jah, I’m sure.”

“I need to get those kittens out of here before they wear out their welkum.”

“I haven’t heard Levi complain.” And he doubted he would. After all, Shanna had brought them. He was so happy to have her home, she could have come with a dozen extra mouse catchers and not worried about him drowning them.

She exhaled with a whoosh of air. “Well, that’s gut.” She paused. “I have a date tonight. Maybe Nate will come out a little early so we can take care of the kittens before the Humane Society closes for the evening.”

A date? Tonight? With Nate? The air left him so unexpectedly, his insides felt hollow. Nate. He would be her boyfriend, then. An Englisch man, no doubt.

Which meant that she was taken. And all his foolish thoughts about her being his future frau evaporated. No matter. They’d been pure craziness, for more reasons than one. He would never consider marrying someone who was not a member of the church, and he would certainly never court a woman who was someone else’s girl. Even if that someone else was Englisch.

They worked in companionable silence for a few more minutes, until the barn doors burst open and Judah darted in. “Sorry I’m late. I overslept. Mamm woke me up and told me to get out here so we could finish in time to eat breakfast before it got cold.”

Shanna thrust the shovel she’d been using at Judah. “We’re almost finished. I need to get ready for work anyway, so you’re just in time.”

“Danki, Shanna. Glad you’re home.”

Shanna stood rooted there a moment. Then, she reached out and pulled her brother into an embrace. He hugged her back.

Matthew turned away. He didn’t need to watch this display of emotions, normal as they were between siblings. He still remembered the feel of her in his arms. The softness. The rightness of her body against his chest.

And that was something he didn’t want to dwell on further.

***

After work, Shanna changed out of her uniform and into Amish clothes again. She didn’t want to disrespect her parents by dressing as an Englischer while she lived at home. Funny, because when she’d arrived, she would have sworn she would never put on another plain dress and apron. Maybe it was more because of the way Matthew had looked at her that night when he’d seen her with her old dress on. Like she had suddenly turned into the most beautiful girl he’d ever laid eyes on. He’d never said those words, of course.

She hurried into the house, the strings on her prayer kapp bouncing with each step. In the kitchen, Mamm stood over a large mixing bowl, studying a recipe card on the table. Canisters of flour and sugar, eggs, and other ingredients were spread around her.

“What are you making?” Shanna asked, glancing down at the recipe card.

Mamm looked up. “Ach, it’s the third weekend. Daed allows me to sell baked goods here at the haus once a month. I’m trying to get the baking done for it. This will be pecan pies.” She waved her hands at the messy table.

“May I help?”

Mamm looked at Shanna with a smile. “Jah. That would be wunderbaar. I’m getting the pie crusts made now. You could start on the fillings.” She moved the recipe so that Shanna could see it, too. “You remember where everything is kept?”

Shanna gazed around the room—spotless, except for the table. “Jah, unless you rearranged.”

Mamm shook her head. “We’ll make six pecan pies, and about the same of apple and cherry. Plus extra bread and cookies.”

Shanna tilted her head. “How much have you done already?”

Mamm gestured at the table again. “I’ve barely started. I’m going to be baking all week.” She hesitated and moved the recipe away. “On second thought, you never were able to get the fillings to set right. I’ll let you try on a day when they’re not for the sale.”