The Amish Blacksmith (20 page)

Before I could respond, she looked at me with a humorous glint in her eyes and added, “And thanks ever so much for invoking the Word of God to make your point.”

I laughed. “Sorry. I'm not trying to bash you over the head with this stuff. I just had a feeling you might need a pep talk. Besides, I think if you give them a chance, you may be surprised. I didn't grow up with these people, and I've only been living in this neck of Lancaster County for a year, but I've come to know some of them, and they're really nice.”

“That may be true for you, but I did grow up with these people. And I never made a close friend myself, not in fourteen years.”

“Amanda wanted to be your friend,” I replied. “She tried anyway. And she's trying again now.”

Priscilla shot me a look, and I knew what she was thinking.
Friends don't abandon friends the minute they get to a party.
Amanda's disappearance was regrettable, but that was beside the point at the moment.

“Listen, all I'm saying is that it's not as though anyone actually disliked you back then. They just didn't know what to do with you. Maybe the reason God sent you here now was to give them—and you—another chance. Don't push them away, Priscilla. Let them befriend you if they want. You may even find that you like it.”

She seemed to consider my words, and then she turned to me, her eyes radiant in the late afternoon sun.

“Okay. I'll try.”

And to my surprise, she really did.

Her first opportunity came almost immediately, as we were strolling back toward the group and spotted Amanda. She was headed in our direction, flanked by her two best friends, Katy and Cheryl. Irritation needled me at the site of the three of them in their little clique—until Amanda came right over to Priscilla and pulled her in with them.

Though these girls and Priscilla already knew each other from when they were younger, Amanda introduced them all by name, as if this was the first time they'd ever met. To Priscilla's credit, she actually made eye contact in return. I hovered nearby, standing close enough to hear their conversation
but not so close that I had to participate. If this went well, and Amanda really had things under control, then I'd be able to walk away and join the volleyball game.

Unfortunately, after that initial introduction, the four of them grew uncomfortably quiet. They all wore nervous smiles as they glanced around at each other, but apparently not one of them could think of a thing to say.

“Are you glad to be back?” Katy finally asked.

“Um.
Ya.
Good to be back,” Priscilla replied.

“And where is it you've been living?” Cheryl asked. “Ohio? Iowa?”

“Indiana.”

“With your aunt and uncle, right?” Amanda prodded.

“
Ya
.”

“On a farm?” Cheryl asked.

“
Ya.
Though I lived in town for a while, for a job as a caregiver.”

“My cousin used to be a caregiver, but I couldn't do it. Too boring,” Katy said. Then her hand flew to her mouth. “Sorry. No offense.”

To my surprise, Priscilla laughed lightly. “I'm not offended. I agree. I nearly went stir-crazy in that job. I've never done anything so tedious in my life.”

The other girls giggled, and for a moment it was as though they were the best of friends and Priscilla Kinsinger was not now, nor ever had been, the odd one out.

They began describing various jobs each of them had, or had had in the past, and once the conversation was really flowing, I leaned in toward Amanda and asked if I could speak with her for a moment.

“Sure,” she said, telling the others she'd be right back.

The two of us strolled away from the crowd until we were mostly out of earshot. Then I asked her, as nicely as I could, if abandoning Priscilla the moment we got here was her idea of helping the girl make new friends.

Amanda's eyes widened. “It wasn't like that, Jake, not at all. There was something Katy and I needed to go and do, and we tried to get Priscilla to go with us, but she wasn't interested.”

“Then maybe you shouldn't have gone right then. Couldn't you have waited for me first?”

She shook her head. “I didn't need to. I introduced Priscilla to Yvonne, who gave her a job helping with the table. I figured that would occupy her until we got back. You're making a big deal out of nothing.”

When I didn't respond, she added, “Why? Did she seem upset when you got to her?”

I considered the question for a moment and then shook my head. Now that I thought about it, mostly she'd just seemed busy—until I stood there talking to her and got her all worked up.

For the millionth time, I was reminded that the word that most aptly fit my pretty, green-eyed, easy-going girlfriend was “uncomplicated.” Amanda was the most even-tempered woman I'd ever known. That was one of the things I liked best about her, and here I was making a big deal out of something small
.
I knew I should apologize to her, but the truth was she didn't even seem offended. She almost never got offended.

I gave her an apologetic smile anyway, discreetly pressing my shoulder against hers. “So what was it that you and Katy had to go and do?”

“Can't you tell?” She leaned toward me, and I caught a whiff of fragrance, spicy-sweet. I could also see now that her eyelashes were darker, fuller, and curling delicately toward her eyebrows.

I blinked, startled. “Perfume? And mascara?”

She smiled as she blushed. “Keep your voice down! It's only a little. And it's just for fun. When I take my vows I won't be able to do stuff like this anymore.”

This wasn't the first time Amanda had done something outside the
Ordnung
for enjoyment. After all, she was still in her
rumspringa
. But the fact that she sometimes did such things even now that we were courting surprised me. If she was serious about our relationship, her perfume and mascara days were going to have to come to an end soon.

I decided not to go into any of that for now, as this wasn't the time or place. I just told her she should probably get back over to the group before they ran out of things to talk about.

We walked there together, and as we got closer, I was surprised and pleased to see that it wasn't just Priscilla and Katy and Cheryl any more. Their little cluster of friends had now more than doubled in size—and Priscilla was right there in the thick of things.

Amanda flashed me a huge victory smile and then dashed ahead to join in the fun. I held back, standing and observing as the group continued to grow. Amanda once again took charge of the introductions, as more and more people began to realize that their old classmate was now in their midst.
Watching, I caught Priscilla's eye once, but then others got in the way so that I could no longer see her.

Good.

Great, actually.

Priscilla was making friends. Amanda was enjoying herself. The volleyball teams still needed people.

I headed for the nets.

T
WELVE

B
y the time I had played a couple of matches—my team lost the first and won the second—I was hot and sweaty and ready for a break. Not only that, but other people wanted to play, and Amanda, who had come to cheer me on in the last half of the second match, was letting me know she was hungry. I retrieved my hat from her and then we headed for the refreshment table.

“How's Priscilla getting along?” I asked.

“I haven't seen her since I came to watch you play. But I'll have you know when I left her she was talking to Matthew Zook.” Amanda flashed me a knowing look and a dazzling smile.

“Oh, really.”

“Yes, really. I told you they were perfect for each other.”

I laughed. “So you did.”

We had reached the food table, which had been grazed over multiple times. There wasn't a whole lot left. I grabbed a couple brownies and a little paper bowl of caramel corn, and Amanda reached for two tall cups of lemonade. I was still heated up from the game, so I guided her away from the press of people to a more open spot. She handed me my cup, and I guzzled half of it in one swig.

“How did she seem when you left her?” I asked, picking up the conversation again.

Amanda took a sip from her cup and held out her hand for a brownie. “She seemed fine.”

“And how exactly did you get her to go over and meet him?”

“Oh, that was easy. She wasn't real keen on the idea, so we just switched it around. I left Priscilla with Katy and Cheryl, and I went and got Matthew instead. I told him there was someone I wanted
him
to meet.”

Leave it to Amanda to get her way somehow. “Clever. And he just came?”

“I had to talk him into it. At first when he realized I was trying to connect him with a girl, he just said no thanks in the most absolute cutest way ever. I've never seen a man blush so fast.”

I laughed, imagining the tall, curly-headed scarecrow turning red down to his boots. “How did you convince him?”

“I told him he'd be glad he came, that his life was about to change, that kind of thing.”

“His life was about to change?” I exclaimed, laughing louder.

“When you meet the person you're going to marry, your life changes,” she said matter-of-factly.

“So he went with you.”

“After a couple more tugs he did.”

“And?”

She grinned at me. “Look how curious you are now.”

“Okay, so I had my doubts. Tell me what happened.”

Amanda took a sip of her lemonade. “He went with me to where I'd left Priscilla with Katy and Cheryl, I introduced them to each other, and then we three girls just kind of one-by-one edged away.”

“And the two of them were talking to each other when the last of you left?” I was having a hard time picturing it.

“Yes, they were. She was telling him about some apple orchard in Indiana.”

I offered popcorn to Amanda and started in on it myself. I was about to admit to her that she'd proven me wrong when I saw Matthew walk past us toward a group of Amish men standing by the bonfire, which was now fully ablaze even though the sun had not yet set.

“When was it that you left Priscilla and Matthew together?” I asked.

“Just before I came to watch you play,” she answered, taking a bite of her brownie. “Twenty minutes ago or so. Why?”

I nodded toward Matthew's retreating form. “Because there he is and she's not with him.”

Amanda whipped her head around, a look of surprise and disappointment on her face as she swallowed the bite in her mouth. “Oh, for heaven's sake! Do I have to do everything myself?” She thrust her half-drunk cup of lemonade toward me and then huffed off to catch him before he reached his male friends.

I didn't want to be any part of her relentless matchmaking. I finished off the last of the popcorn, tossed the empty bowl and the cups into a nearby trash can, and set off to look for Priscilla. I didn't see her at first, and for a brief moment I wondered if she had taken off on foot for the three-mile walk home. But then it struck me where she might be. I headed out back for the long line of Amish buggies and carts—and the pasture that stretched behind them. Sure enough, I found her there, at the fence, with Willow on the other side. Priscilla was feeding my horse tufts of grass as she talked to her in a soft voice.

“Of course,” I called to her. “I should have known I would find you back here.”

She didn't turn toward me, nor did she reply. Instead, she stayed exactly where she was, her posture unchanged, her attention focused solely on my horse.

I tried again as I got closer. “Hey, Priscilla. What's up?”

Again, she did not acknowledge me nor even seem to notice my presence, so I kept moving forward until I came to a stop just a few feet behind her.

“I know you can hear me, Kinsinger,” I said, crossing my arms in front of my chest.