The Betrayed Fiancée (5 page)

“You look tired.” Elsie slipped her arm around Kristi's waist.

Kristi nodded, stifling a yawn. “I am a bit. It's been a long day. Joel and I got up early so we could be here on time.”

“Would you like to lie down in the guest room awhile?” Arlene offered.

“No. Thank you, though. Joel will probably want to go soon anyway.”

“How about another cup of coffee or a piece of zucchini bread?” Doris motioned to the desserts sitting out on the table. “Feel free to help yourself to anything you like. It looks like there will be lots of leftover chocolate-chip cookies. I'll get some for you to take home so you and Joel can share.” Doris opened the container on the counter.

Kristi watched her put a paper plate into the bag before placing the treats inside. She'd already sampled one of the soft, chewy cookies and found them to be quite tasty. She was on the verge of pouring a cup of coffee when Joel stepped into the room. “Kristi and I should go, but first I need to ask you a question, Elsie.”

“What is it, Joel?” She looked at him curiously.

“Where's Dad's will? We need to find out how much he left us.”

Kristi couldn't believe Joel would bring up this topic on the day of his father's funeral when the pain of losing him was so raw. She felt embarrassed. The last thing Joel should be concerned with right now was his father's will. And why had he been avoiding his family? What was wrong with him, anyway?

“Listen, Joel.” Elsie's chin quivered as she looked at him with watery eyes. “This is not the time to be discussing Dad's will. We can talk about it in a week or so, once things have settled down for all of us.”

“That's right,” Arlene agreed.

Joel's eyes narrowed into tiny slits. “We don't have to discuss the will right now. I just want to know where it is.”

“We don't want to discuss this today.” Doris spoke up.

“Well, I do!” Joel shouted.

“I couldn't help overhearing you talking from the other room, and there's no need for knowing right now,” Elsie's husband, John, intervened as he entered the kitchen.

Kristi held her breath, watching Joel's ears turn pink and waiting to hear his response.

Joel strode across the room until he was mere inches from John. The men were about the same height, so they were eye-to-eye and practically nose-to-nose. Kristi feared Joel might be about to punch Elsie's husband. “Listen to me, John, this is between me and my sisters, so I'd appreciate it if you'd just stay out of it and mind your own business.”

John's face colored, too, and his brown eyes narrowed through his glasses. “Whatever involves my fraa is my business, plain and simple. Furthermore, if you were truly interested in a relationship with your family, you'd come around more often, and without always asking for money. It seems now you are concerned about money again, or you wouldn't be worried about Eustace's will.”

“I'm not worried. I'd just like to know—”

John held up his hand. “We don't want any trouble here today. Our family is under enough sorrow and strain.”

The room got deathly quiet. Kristi was sure if a feather floated from the sky, she would hear it drop. These last few minutes, watching her fiancé's expression and listening to the anger in his voice, gave a pretty clear picture of why he hadn't previously told her about his Amish family. He obviously did not get along with them, and for good reason. From what she'd heard here in this kitchen, the man she loved and hoped to marry cared more about money than he did his own family. Didn't Joel feel remorse that his father had been killed less than a week ago? Wasn't he grieving like his siblings were? She clenched her teeth.
Maybe I don't know Joel as well as I thought
.

Joel whirled around, his dark brown eyes blazing as he looked at Kristi. “You'd better gather up your things. We're leaving!” He turned and pointed his finger at Elsie. “I'll call you in a few days to talk about Dad's will.”

T
he first thirty minutes on the road, Joel remained quiet. Kristi did, too. She needed time to process everything—especially the scene when Joel had asked about his father's will.
More like demanded
, she thought, glancing at Joel and noting his smooth, expressionless features. Kristi still couldn't believe the scene she had witnessed. Everyone in the room had looked like codfish, the way their jaws dropped open.
How could Joel be so insensitive? Or had he spoken in frustration from grief over losing his father? If so, how can I help Joel or support him when he needs it? He seems to keep things bottled up most of the time
.

Earlier, Kristi had wondered how she would be accepted by Joel's family. She'd hoped they would all like her and had felt comfortable with his sisters, but things had been awkward after Joel's confrontation with his brother-in-law.

Unable to bear the silence any longer, Kristi reached across the seat and touched Joel's arm. “Mind if I ask you a question?”

“Sure, ask me anything you want.” His gaze remained fixed on the road.

“Who was the Amish woman you were talking to in the yard before you came in the house to get me?”

“Which Amish woman? I talked to a lot of people today.”

“The younger one with golden-brown hair. You talked to her for a while, before you stepped onto the porch and began a conversation with an older woman.”

“The older woman is my aunt Verna. She's Dad's only sibling.”

Kristi sighed as she nudged Joel's arm. “Okay, but she's not the woman I was asking about, Joel. It's the younger one.”

“Uh… Her name is Anna Detweiler.”

“Is she a relative?”

“No, she's not.”

“Then a friend, perhaps?”

“Yeah, I guess.” A muscle on the side of Joel's neck quivered.

“Is there something you're not telling me? Is Anna more than a friend?”

He turned his head and frowned. “What's with the twenty questions?”

“I haven't asked you twenty questions. I simply want to know about Anna Detweiler.”

“She was my girlfriend. We were engaged to be married.” Joel glanced out his side window, then back to the road again, avoiding her stare. “Satisfied?”

Kristi flinched, as if he'd thrown a glass of cold water in her face. She wasn't about to let this matter drop. “No, I am not satisfied, and I don't appreciate the tone of voice you're using.”

He let go of the steering wheel and clasped her hand. “Sorry, Kristi. I'm not myself today.”

Although it was a considerate gesture, his touch felt unsympathetic. Usually, Kristi would wrap her fingers around Joel's, but her hand rested lifeless in his grasp. “I can't argue with you there. I'm not even sure who the real Joel is anymore.”

“Can't you understand, Kristi? I'm stressed out. I've got a lot on my plate, trying to run a business. Now with my dad dying and my sisters refusing to talk about his will, I'm very upset.”

“I do understand, but as your brother-in-law mentioned, today was not the best time to discuss the will.”

Joel let go of Kristi's hand. “Didn't you hear what I told Elsie before we left? I ended the matter by telling her I'd call her in a few days to talk about it.”

“Yes, I heard, but what I'm wondering is why it's so important to you. Are you expecting a big inheritance?”

Joel bobbed his head. “My dad was a millionaire, Kristi. There are oil wells on the back of his property.”

“Really? Guess I didn't notice.”

“That's because you never saw what's out back. I'm sure he has more money in the bank than most Amish people see in a lifetime.”

She tugged on the end of her jacket while shaking her head. “Money isn't everything, Joel.”

“It is to me.”

Kristi rubbed her forehead to ward off the headache she felt coming on. Were Joel's business struggles making him desperate for money? Even if they were, he needed to take time to grieve the loss of his father, not worry about the will. She'd heard her pastor say on more than one occasion how sad it was when someone died and the family fought over who would get what. It was not the Christian thing to do and did nothing to cement a family's relationship. People needed to bind together during difficult times, not worry about their selfish ambitions.

“Let's talk about something else, shall we?” Joel maneuvered his car into the right-hand lane. “I don't want to discuss this the whole way home.”

Figuring it would be best to comply, Kristi pointed to the plastic bags by her feet. “Before I tell you what's in the bigger bag, Arlene gave us some chocolate-chip cookies in the smaller bag.”

“That's nice. I'm sure they'll be good.”

“And best of all…” Kristi pointed to the larger bag. “Doris gave me one of your mother's beautiful quilted wall hangings.”

“Did she?”

Kristi opened the bag and pulled out one edge of the quilt so he could see the pattern and pretty colors. She didn't want to risk getting it dirty if it touched the floor. “Yes. When I admired this and she found out I was your fiancée—”

“You told her?” Joel's mouth twitched as he glanced her way.

“I figured she already knew.” Kristi's spine stiffened. “Why didn't you tell your family about me, Joel?” She folded the edge of the wall hanging so it was safely tucked inside the bag.

“I would have—eventually.” He looked back at the road.

“When? Would you have waited till we were married? After we had kids?” Her voice choked with tears, Kristi tugged at her jacket collar. “Would you have ever told them?”

His shoulders slumped. “Of course I was gonna tell them. I was simply waiting for the right time.”

“Why did there have to be a right time?” Kristi was beyond frustrated. “Your sisters were so kind and welcoming. I would have liked to have become acquainted with them from the time we started dating.” Her tone softened.

“Sorry, I thought….” He lifted one hand. “Oh, what does it matter? I can't change the past. We need to focus on our future.”

Do we have a future
? Kristi wondered, but she didn't voice her question. Now wasn't the time for them to get into a heated debate about this—especially since she wasn't composed enough to reason with him.

Kristi observed Joel as he kept driving. She couldn't begin to imagine what was going through his head. Yes, she was upset that he'd kept his heritage from her, but he had just lost his father. Kristi poked her tongue on the inside of her cheek. Was it fair to be irritated with him when he had so much on his shoulders right now? Joel needed a few days to work through the initial shock and grief over losing his father.

Charm

“I can't believe the nerve of our bruder.” Arlene looked at Elsie and shook her head. “His insensitivity must have been embarrassing for Kristi. She seems like a sweet woman. I can only imagine what she thinks of our family.”

“Hopefully Kristi only thinks good thoughts. When she brought up the fact that she and Joel were planning to get married, I gave her one of Mama's quilted wall hangings. It's the one that was on the back of the couch.” Doris rested her hands on the back of a chair. “Kristi was admiring it, and she seemed quite happy when I gave it to her.”

“I'm glad you did. She got along well with everyone today,” Arlene commented. “I doubt she has any ill feelings toward us, but it makes me wonder why she got involved with Joel. He can be such a
schtinker
sometimes.”

“You took the words right out of my mouth.” Elsie motioned to the leftover desserts on the counter. “Joel and Kristi left in such a hurry I'm surprised you were able to get her to take the cookies before they went out the door.”

Frowning, Doris leaned against the kitchen sink with her arms folded. She probably knew Joel better than any of them, and yet she couldn't figure him out. Just when, and why, had he become so desperate for money? Joel had his own business and should have been doing well with it by now. If he'd remained Amish and kept working with Dad, things would be better for everyone. Joel would be married to Anna, and maybe they'd have one or two children already. Instead, he was engaged to an English woman they knew little or nothing about. Even if Joel came around more often after they were married, Kristi would probably never fully understand the Amish way of life and might never fit in. But it would be best not to overthink things right now. It was better to take one day at a time. Perhaps everything would work out in the end.

“I wonder if Dad even made a will.” Arlene's statement pushed Doris's thoughts aside.

“I'm sure he did,” Elsie responded. “Once things have settled down a bit, we'll look for it.” She walked over to the cups and saucers still left in the sink. “At the moment, we have more dishes to do.”