Chapter 24
Lunch after church had been a disaster. Kyle couldn’t remember feeling that uncomfortable since he’d briefly contemplated jumping the fence and had announced it the day before the entire extended family was due to arrive for Thanksgiving.
To this day, he wasn’t sure if his mother had been more upset about him announcing that he wanted to be an Englischer or that he’d chosen to announce it when she was baking four pies.
Ironically, it had turned out that the timing of his announcement couldn’t be better.
Gathering around a table with his extended family and walking the fields of the farm with two of his uncles had changed his mind.
Instead of pressuring him about getting baptized, his family had shown him so much love and support that he’d felt foolish for even contemplating an Englisch way of life.
This situation he was in, however, felt far different.
He’d become good friends with Daisy. In some ways, she was the best friend he’d had in Walden. She was smart, didn’t complain about silly stuff, and knew almost as much about farming as he did.
The other day, when he’d stopped by to say hello, he’d found himself telling her about his ideas for the Millers’ back pasture. He was thinking it would be a good spot to plant pumpkins. Someone in town had said that there had been a lot of tourists clamoring for pumpkin patches to visit.
Daisy had listened intently to everything he’d said. Then, she’d even asked him questions about irrigation and timing. Eventually, she’d brought up logistics, wondering where he’d want the tourists to park, and what path they would need to take.
Kyle hadn’t even thought of those points. But when he’d admitted that to her, instead of acting like he should’ve thought about such things in the first place, Daisy had only said that she was glad to help.
He was coming to learn that that was Daisy. Helpful, strong, smart, and modest.
He liked her. He was glad he’d gone to her house and they’d become friends. He wanted to keep her in his life.
But Daisy wasn’t the type of woman he’d always thought he’d marry. He liked a more feminine type of woman. Someone who needed him.
Someone like Winter.
But he didn’t like the way Winter had talked to Daisy. It was almost as if she’d been trying to make fun of Daisy, but he had to be wrong about that. Not only had Daisy done nothing to encourage such ire … but it was obvious that she was going through a difficult time.
Surely a gentle woman like Winter wouldn’t be oblivious to that?
Feeling both restless and tired, Kyle sat down on Velvet’s milking stool. Velvet, who’d been napping, popped her head up in alarm.
He gently rubbed her side. “No worries, Velvet. I know I already milked ya today. I’m just taking a breather.”
He could almost feel the energy in the barn shift. Velvet’s stance eased, and she stared at him intently. Almost like she was waiting for him to start a conversation with her.
“I sure wish you could talk. I could use some sound advice.”
Velvet moved toward him. Not much, maybe just a few inches? But it was enough for him to run his hand along her nape. “Danke,” he whispered. “I appreciate your support.”
“Kyle? Is that you?”
“Jah.”
As Mervin walked through the open barn doors, Velvet once again stepped backward into the shadows. Feeling slightly protective over her—though he wasn’t exactly sure what she needed to be protected from—Kyle stood up.
“Did you need anything, Mervin?”
“Hmm? Oh, nee.” The older man stuffed his hands in his pockets when he stopped in front of him. “I was, ah, just going for a walk when I spied you in here through a gap in the doors. You aren’t working, are you?”
“Nee. I, ah, was just checking on Velvet here before I wrote my sister a letter.”
“I thought you called her once a week.”
“I do. But she likes receiving letters, too.”
“You’re a gut brother.” He frowned. “Aaron cares for Bethany as much as any brother does for his sister, but he’s never looked after her the way you do Sarah.”
“Sarah’s only fourteen.” Plus, she had her hearing disability. “It’s a habit, I guess.”
“Of course. Sorry if I was sounding critical. I was just making a comment.” He smiled. “Did I hear that you are going to a singing tonight?”
“Jah. I’m taking Winter Walker. Lila and Brandt Weaver, are hosting.”
“Well, I hope you enjoy yourself.”
“Danke.” Right before the older man turned away, Kyle called out, “Hey, Mervin, why do you think Daisy Lapp hasn’t married?”
He raised his eyebrows. “Well, that ain’t for me to say. I reckon she would have an idea more than me.”
“I suppose that’s true.”
“But, I do remember when both Aaron and Bethany were courting. I could be wrong, but neither of my kinner had been looking for a match when they fell in love. Bethany was enjoying her first year of college when she met Phillip.” He smiled.
“As for Aaron, well, Ruthie and I were with him the first time he met Hanna. It was as if she had a bright light shining down on her just for him.” Mervin’s eyes lit up. “Aaron couldn’t look away.”
“He never told me that.”
“I’m sure he wouldn’t!” Mervin cackled. “Ruthie used to whisper that the boy was obsessed with that girl. I don’t know if Aaron was obsessed, but he couldn’t see her enough.
” Smiling softly, he added, “One evening, when I was up waiting for him to come home, he told me that his only goal was to get her to want to marry him.”
“He got his wish, huh?”
“Indeed.” Mervin shrugged. “All that means I’m not sure why Daisy hasn’t fallen in love yet.
I reckon it hasn’t been her time, maybe because she was so focused on buying this piece of land.
Or, perhaps it’s Gott’s plan, jah. Just like maybe there’s a reason the Lord hasn’t brought you the right woman yet. ”
“You’re right.”
Mervin folded his arms across his chest. “What has surprised me the most is that Winter Walker hasn’t been claimed yet.
Now, there’s a girl who seems like she wants nothing more than to be married and to start a family.
” He shrugged as he stepped away. “But maybe none of the men in the area were the right ones for her, either.”
“Thanks for listening. I’m going to go for a walk, then write that letter to Sarah.”
“You do whatever you’d like.” He snapped his fingers. “Oh! I almost forgot. Ruthie told me to tell you that she made some chicken salad. You’re to help yourself before you leave for the Weavers’ haus.”
“Ruthie is the best.”
Mervin’s smile was so bright, it made him look ten years younger. “She is, Kyle. For sure and for certain.”
Later that evening, after being at Lila and Brandt’s for two hours, Kyle was ready to leave. The Weavers’ house was lovely and their backyard had multiple sitting areas and a wide space in the back with a firepit and still more chairs surrounding that.
But even though the couple had gone to a lot of trouble to make the evening comfortable, he still felt like a fish out of water. Maybe it was because most everyone else had either grown up together or had known Brandt and Lila for quite some time.
Or, it could be that he was beginning to wonder if he’d been hasty with his infatuation for Winter.
She’d wanted to meet him there, which had first confused him, because he’d been ready to say hello to her parents before properly escorting Winter to the gathering.
But after she arrived, Kyle began to understand why she hadn’t wanted him to go to her house.
She was a flighty thing, seeming to cling to everyone. And needing everyone’s attention, too.
To his surprise, her distance suited him fine. He was even more confused about his feelings for Winter. She was so different than Mary. Mary had always been straightforward and vocal about her feelings.
Winter, on the other hand, appeared to be far more vague. He couldn’t figure it out.
And … maybe she’d been feeling the same way, because after staying by his side for the first thirty minutes, she’d spent a lot of time with all the other single men.
He’d been cordial to the other single women he’d met, but for some reason taking the time to know them better didn’t sound appealing. Most were far too young.
In the end, he’d manned the grill so Brandt could man the bonfire, going with another one of his buddies.
When Lila approached, he picked up a plate. “How many hot dogs would you like?”
“One, please.”
After he placed the hot dog on a lightly toasted bun, he handed it to her. “Here you go.”
“Danke.” She stepped to his right and slathered a bunch of ketchup and mustard on hers and then took a bite. “Oh, yum. I haven’t had a hot dog in almost a year. This tastes good.”
He agreed completely. “I like them on the grill the best. Mei mamm likes boiling hers, but I don’t care for that much. It ain’t the same.”
“I agree.” After swallowing a second bite, Lila said, “I’m sorry you are stuck manning the grill tonight. If you’d like to go mingle, I’d be happy to finish up here.”
“Thanks, but I’m okay.”
“Are you sure?”
“Jah. I, uh, am not much of a mingler.” Looking across the way, where Winter was talking to a group of five men and women, he added, “I guess I never picked up the knack for it. I’d much prefer to have something to do.”
Looking reflective, Lila said, “Daisy is the same way. She gets bored at things like this. She always has.”
“Is that why you didn’t ask her to come over?”
Even in the dim light, Kyle could see her frown. “That didn’t have anything to do with it at all.” Looking even more uncomfortable, Lila tossed her empty paper plate in the nearby garbage can. “Lunch sure took a wrong turn, didn’t it?”
“I’m not sure,” he said diplomatically. “I did think that Daisy seemed uncomfortable though.”
“It was worse than that. The whole thing was a mess. Every time I looked at Daisy, I felt guilty. I didn’t know how to make things better, though.”
Kyle was pretty sure that Lila could have done something. He’d thought Lila was a good friend of Daisy’s. “Daisy did look upset about not being invited.” He held up a hand. “I know I sound judgy and I’m sorry. I don’t know the whole story.”
“I don’t blame you for pointing out the obvious. I knew she was upset, too. I honestly didn’t mean to not invite her. I … well, it didn’t feel like the right time. Not only does Daisy not enjoy gatherings like this, I also didn’t think it would be comfortable for her.”
“Because of her cast.”
Lila nodded. “Brandt and I talked about it. We both agreed that walking around on crutches in the dark didn’t sound safe. But, if she came and sat down the entire time, people might ignore her.”
“You’re right on both counts.” Even though there were lots of sitting areas, so far the only people who had been sitting down were the couples next to the firepit.
“I didn’t expect Winter to make her feel so bad, though,” Lila muttered.
“Maybe Winter didn’t realize how she sounded? I mean, sometimes people say things without realizing that they could be taken the wrong way.”
Lila pursed her lips. “Kyle, I’m not sure how to respond to that.”
“I don’t understand.”
Lila looked out into the distance, seemed to come to a decision, and then said, “Here’s the deal with Winter. She’s lovely and can be a lot of fun to be around.”
“But?”
“But, Winter doesn’t like Daisy. She never has. Honestly, it’s like she decided to pick on her years ago and never grew out of the habit. And because of that? Well, it’s made me realize that she is a person to watch carefully.”
He was sorry to hear that. Not just for Daisy’s sake, but for his own. He’d hoped that all the things that were starting to make him feel uneasy about Winter had been his perception. Of him being too critical.
But if that was the way she treated people, he would want to give her a wide berth in the future. “Is that why she hasn’t already gotten married?”
“I don’t know. It could be that she just hasn’t found her match.”
“Come on, Lila. Sorry, but you’ve known her all your life. Brandt has too, right?”
She nodded. “I know how Brandt has always felt about her, but it’s not my place to share.”
“I see.” It was obvious that Brandt didn’t like Winter very much. If he’d liked her, Lila would have said so.
“You know, the truth is that while Brandt and I were happy to host this gathering, we’re not matchmakers.
Also, everyone else’s relationships aren’t our business.
I mean, things happen at different times for different people.
” Folding her arms across her chest, Lila added, “After all, you don’t have a girlfriend, which is a surprise. ”
“I did. I courted Mary in Kentucky. We broke up shortly before I moved down here. It’s one of the reasons I was willing to move so far away.”
“You see, I had no idea about that. I’m sorry about the breakup.”
“Me too. But Mary taught me a lot about myself, and for that I can’t complain.” He was about to add something more, but Winter was walking toward them.
“Kyle, I’ve been waiting for you to leave that grill all night. When will you get a break?”
“Right now,” Lila said. She grinned as she shooed Kyle away.
Winter wrapped a hand around his elbow. “Oh good. Now we can finally spend some time together. Where would you like to go?”
She was looking up at him with such a sweet expression, all his reservations about her faded away. Perhaps Winter, too, had something in her past that had made her the way she was.
He gestured toward a pair of chairs situated a little away from the rest of the group. “Would you mind if we sat down and talked, just the two of us?”
Her pale blue eyes appeared luminous. “I wouldn’t mind that at all,” she whispered.
“Have fun,” Lila called out.
Kyle winked at her but Winter didn’t seem to notice anything but him. She clung to him as they crossed the yard. She was pretty and made him feel needed.
Maybe things between the two of them were going to work out after all.