CHAPTER 18
“T reva, you certainly have a way of turning this house upside down,” Aunt Ruth announced as she ran a cloth along the window frame in their already-clean living room. “I thought we were going to enjoy a relaxing afternoon. Instead, your mother has us cleaning this house top to bottom.”
Even though she had her hands full of flowers, Treva stopped in her tracks. Her aunt’s statement wasn’t wrong, but she certainly wasn’t going to take all the blame! “Aunt, all I did was tell Mamm and Daed that Jonny asked to come over this evening at seven o’clock. I didn’t add that he expected to see the entire haus —or that he was the sort of man who cared about dirt or dust.”
“That’s not how your mother took the news.”
“Well, she should have. Plus, we both know she wants this house to be perfect for her, not Jonny. After all, he runs a bicycle shop! He’s not going to care one lick about a dust bunny in the corner,” she added, as she finished arranging the bouquet of hydrangeas in a wooden vase on the table in the entryway.
“Hmmph.”
Ignoring her aunt’s complaining, Treva said, “Aunt Ruth, what do you think? Should I cut one or two more flowers for the vase?”
Aunt Ruth walked over to the hand-carved wooden vase, which Treva’s grandfather had made when he was just a newlywed. After fussing with the blooms a bit, she shook her head. “I don’t think we need to add a thing. These blooms are so beautiful, adding another stem won’t make any difference.”
“They are pretty. Maybe even more beautiful than last year’s blossoms.” Her mother’s prized hydrangea blooms were a dark, vibrant, violet purple. She said that the coffee grounds she spread around the plant’s base every August were what made them so vibrant, but Treva believed it was more likely her mother’s green thumb. She was known far and wide for her beautiful flower gardens.
Stretching her arms, Ruth murmured, “Well, I’d best go see how your mamm is faring in the kitchen. She’s working on pizza rolls for Jonny’s visit.”
“I told her that wasn’t necessary.”
“You can’t host a gentleman caller without offering food. You know that.” She sighed dramatically. “Perhaps I’ll help with the dishes. Why, I bet she’s worn herself to the bone.”
Even though she knew Aunt Ruth was prone to exaggeration and teasing, Treva still felt embarrassed. “Thank you for the help, Aunt.”
“Ruth, give my poor daughter a break,” her daed called out as he finished arranging wood in the fireplace. “You’re making Treva feel guilty when you know you’re loving every minute of this.”
“Don’t feel bad, child. We’re glad to help you. No lie about that.”
Sitting down on the couch, Treva exhaled. “Daed, Mamm and Ruth are being ridiculous. Jonny is coming over to visit. Not to propose marriage.”
“I know. Don’t let them bother you.”
“They’re not.” When she felt his gaze rest on her, she amended her words. “Okay, I guess they are a little bit.”
“Or a lot.”
She laughed. “ Jah . Maybe a lot.” She lowered her voice. “I just don’t understand why Mamm and Ruth have to do so much more than is necessary and then complain about the work.”
“They love you, dear. That’s all you have to understand.”
“I should’ve told Jonny no.”
“I’m glad you did no such thing. He might still be learning to be Amish and you might not be a fresh young girl in your teens, but it’s still important to do the right thing.”
“And the right thing is cleaning the whole house?”
“It is.” He winked. “And making pizza rolls. I love those.” Getting to his feet, he said, “What do you think? Are we ready?”
“We have a tidy haus , fresh-cut blumms , a merry fire crackling in the fireplace, and pizza rolls. I think so.”
“ Gut .” Leaning down, he kissed her cheek. “Now hurry on upstairs and look busy before your mother decides that you need to change clothes or rearrange the couch’s cushions.”
She didn’t need him to repeat that warning! As she hurried upstairs, she heard his laughter echo through the house. It combined with her mother’s and aunt’s chatter and made Treva feel good inside. This visit might have been unexpected, but a lot of good had come out of it already. Both her parents and her aunt were in merry spirits and seemed very pleased for Treva.
She just hoped Jonny wouldn’t be too taken aback by the sight that greeted him when he knocked on the front door.
* * *
It turned out that Jonny had no idea how to come courting properly. He’d shown up with a liter of soda and a deck of Uno cards. Before Treva could think to ask why he’d arrived with such things, he’d gone and asked the whole family if they’d like to play. Next thing Treva knew, all five of them were sitting on the floor in front of the fireplace, playing game after game of Uno, sipping soda, and finishing off the entire plate of pizza rolls.
“Uno!” Aunt Ruth called out.
“Argh!” Jonny groaned. “Ruth, I canna believe you won again.”
Her grin widened. “I did at that.” As if something had just occurred to her, she murmured, “You don’t mind, do you?”
“Losing five games in a row? Not at all.”
“She’s a card shark, that’s what she is,” her daed complained. “Ruth, is this why we don’t play Uno anymore?”
“Maybe.” As Ruth shuffled the deck with the expertise of a Las Vegas blackjack dealer, she added, “Or maybe it’s because you’re a sore loser.”
“Never.” Hefting himself to his feet, he held out a hand. “Just for that, come help me put these glasses in the kitchen, Ruth.”
“Fine.”
Watching the two of them walk out of the room, each holding two glasses, Treva shared a smile with her mother. The entire evening had been so much fun and so different from the times when Reuben had called and the two of them had sat awkwardly on the couch while sipping lemonade.
Climbing to her feet as well, her mamm said, “It’s getting late. It’s time we let the two of you have a few moments to yourselves. Jonny, thank you for bringing over the soda and the cards. I don’t remember the last time I laughed so much.”
“You’re welcome,” he replied as he also stood up. “Thank you for the pizza rolls, too. They were wonderful.”
“I’m glad you enjoyed them,” she said as she picked up her glass. “Treva, will you see your guest out in thirty minutes or so?”
“ Jah , Mamm.”
When they were alone at last, Treva glanced up at Jonny, who was now sitting on the couch. “How did you know to bring cards?”
“What do you mean?”
“It was the perfect icebreaker.”
“I just thought it would be fun.” He wrinkled his nose. “It’s probably not a good idea to tell you this, but I’m not a huge fan of sitting around doing nothing. I get bored easily.”
“Given that every other time we’ve talked, we’ve been doing something, I’m not surprised.” Realizing that she was still sprawled on the floor like a teenager, she sighed as she moved to stand up.
Jonny was on his feet in a flash . . . and was holding a hand out to her. “Here. Let me help you.”
Slipping her palm into his, she easily sprang to her feet. “Thanks.”
“No problem.” He didn’t release her hand, though. Instead, he reached for her other.
And there they were, standing across from each other in front of the warm fireplace, fingers linked. His hands were far bigger than hers and slightly calloused. She liked how they felt and hoped he wasn’t in a big hurry to let her hands go.
“I’m glad I came over. Tonight was fun.” His blue eyes sparkled. “And by that, I mean I enjoyed being with you, Treva. Not just letting your aunt beat me soundly at cards.”
“I had a lot of fun, too.” Looking at his shirt, which was a faintly checked button-down that was tucked into jeans, she realized that such an evening was probably far different from when he’d gone out with other girls. English girls in his past. “Did you date a lot in high school and college?”
“I did.” He shrugged. “No more than most guys, I guess.”
“Did you have a girlfriend?”
“I did in high school. I dated Leigh most of my senior year.”
Leigh? “Were you two serious?”
He dropped her hands and stuffed his into his pants pockets. “A little bit.”
Missing their connection, she folded her arms over her chest. “What does that mean?”
“I don’t know.” He flashed a smile. “I walked her to class and drove her to school in the mornings. We ate lunch together when we could.” He shrugged. “I took her to prom. You know, stuff like that.”
That was the problem, though. She actually didn’t know stuff like that. She had never been inside a high school and didn’t exactly know what walking to class together would look like. And though she knew prom was a dance where a lot of girls wore fancy dresses, she didn’t understand the significance of it.
Or if it didn’t mean anything at all.
Hoping she looked far more disinterested than she was, she added, “What about in college?”
“Well, by the time Leigh and I graduated, we knew we didn’t have a future. She had gotten a scholarship to an Ivy League school up east. So, we broke things off.” He shrugged. “I didn’t date anyone special in college.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t know. Maybe I was tired of having a girlfriend? Then, there were my classes. I took a full load those two years. Between those classes and my friends, I didn’t have any interest in dating.”
“Oh.”
He stepped closer. “Why all the questions?”
“I . . . I realized that you know all about Reuben, but I don’t know much about your past relationships.”
He chuckled. “Leigh was great, but neither of us were in love.”
“You didn’t like her that much?”
Jonny looked even more uncomfortable. “I liked her, Treva, but Leigh was a star tennis player. We both knew that she was going to get a college scholarship. And, like I said, she did.”
Reaching out, he ran his hands along her upper arms. “Treva, don’t worry, okay? I might have dated other women, but I came over here with my eyes open.”
She wasn’t sure what he meant by that. “What did you hope to see?”
Leaning down, he brushed his lips against her cheek. “You. I wanted to see you , silly.” Pulling away, he walked to the row of hooks by the front door and pulled on his jacket. “Now tell me good night so I don’t overstay my welcome.”
“Good night.”
He grinned again as he opened the door. “I’ll be at your café in the morning. See you then.”
“Yes. See you then,” she whispered before closing the door.
Taking advantage of the moment, she wandered back into the living room and stood in front of the warm fireplace. Thought about Jonny’s Leigh and Reuben and Uno and the way Jonny smiled at her in the morning.
And how much she’d enjoyed holding his hands.
She had no idea what the Lord had in store for them, but she was excited to find out.