Chapter 2
2
Moses climbed into his SUV and placed the collage on the passenger seat. Lois had tucked it into a cardboard sleeve, wrapped it in brown paper, and meticulously tied string around the packet. He started the engine and backed out of the space, swinging in front of the shop toward the lane. Lois stood in the window, her arms crossed over her chest. Staring at him. In her yellow-green dress, the color of a painted bunting, white apron tied around her waist, and white Kapp positioned over her brown hair, she hadn’t changed a bit in five years. Except perhaps to grow even prettier. Definitely feistier, which showed in her fiery blue eyes.
He shifted into drive and sped up the lane, between the cherry trees. A sparrow flew up from the ground into a tree. A white blossom floated down. He slowed for the stop sign and waited for a buggy traveling toward him before he could turn left onto the highway.
Then a car appeared over the knoll from the south. Moses’s face grew warm as he imagined Lois still staring. She had acted as if she’d never seen him before in her life. He knew she hadn’t forgotten him, though. He certainly hadn’t forgotten her.
They’d been friends when they were scholars, teasing each other and competing in their schoolwork. Then, when they were twenty, he’d realized Lois Yoder was the girl for him. For a month they—courted. But not officially. They met up at Youngie events and parties. They were on their Rumspringa , but he intended to formally court her in the months to come. He planned to join the church as soon as possible, and she did too.
But the last time they were together hadn’t gone well. It had at first—they’d ended up at the same party along the Susquehanna River the week before Amy’s wedding. Lois spilled her soda. He replaced it and sat down beside her on a log near the fire. He put his arm around her. All was going well until Sara Fisher arrived. Lois shrank back and then disappeared. Moses panicked when Sara took her place, and he didn’t go after Lois. Tall, confident Sara had been pursuing Moses for over a year. He wasn’t interested. At the time, he had eyes for only Lois.
Why, when Scotty Harris had said his one requirement was that whoever bought Paradise Found keep the manager, hadn’t Moses at least asked the manager’s name? He would have made up an excuse not to be interested in buying Paradise Found after all, even though he was already deep into the process.
But he really wanted the shop and the entire property. He planned to develop an Amish farmers market like the one he operated in Delaware. He would need to build a structure for inside booths and a large concrete pad for outside booths, plus a place for food carts and for restrooms. He had already looked into the zoning laws.
When he’d first toured the property a couple of months ago, Scotty’s wife was working—not Lois. It must have been her day off. Soon after, Moses’s lawyer had drafted a letter of intent, and Scotty came up with a purchase agreement. Another buyer had been interested, but Scotty said he preferred Moses.
Moses eased forward to turn onto the highway, but a semi appeared over the knoll. He braked as his phone rang. He glanced at his navigation screen. Scotty Harris. He pressed Accept, and the call came over his speakers.
“Moses!” Scotty spoke in a loud and friendly voice. “I crunched some numbers. One option for you might be a loan for half of the cost, and then I could finance the rest through payments. If you can circle back, we can talk through it more.”
Moses hesitated. Why would Scotty Harris offer to finance half the cost of the shop? Didn’t he need the money for whatever he planned to do next?
“Moses?” Scotty’s voice was kind and patient.
And could Moses return to the shop today and face Lois again? Maybe he should wait until tomorrow.
“Or you could stop by tomorrow,” Scotty said.
“No. I’ll swing back now. See you in a few minutes.” Moses ended the call. His father always said not to put off a business meeting if possible.
A buggy crested the knoll. Moses glanced in his rearview mirror. Was Lois still standing at the door? The buggy passed and Moses swung onto the highway and accelerated to the next farm, where he pulled into the driveway to turn around. He would visit his mother later.
As he pulled back into the parking lot, he scanned the front of the shop. Lois no longer stood at the door.
She certainly wasn’t reason enough to not buy Paradise Found, not when it came with ten acres of land, counting the woods. Where else in Lancaster County would he find a spot he could develop into a market? Besides, he had worked on the idea for the last couple of months, since he gave Scotty a letter of intent.
The fact that Lois worked at Paradise Found and lived in the apartment above it certainly complicated his plan but didn’t negate it. He would keep Lois on. But based on the way she’d treated him five years ago and today too, she would most likely quit soon regardless. Then he wouldn’t be on the hook to keep renting her the apartment, which would make the perfect home for him. And he liked Scotty’s office. It was much better than his current space in back of his grocery warehouse, in the studio apartment that came with the property. The previous owner had gone through a variance process to get the commercial building zoned for a residential unit. But it was a small, dark, depressing space. All he needed to do was bide his time. There was no reason to let Lois Yoder keep him from doing business with Scotty.
When he stepped inside the shop, Lois wasn’t at the counter. She didn’t seem to be in the shop at all, despite the Open sign still sitting in the window. Moses sauntered back to Scotty’s office, knocking even though the door stood slightly ajar.
“Come in,” Scotty called out.
Moses stepped inside. Scotty was sitting at his desk. A window behind him showed the grassy acreage where Moses hoped to build the Amish market.
“Thank you for coming back.” Scotty stood, shook Moses’s hand, and motioned to the chair in front of the desk. As they both sat, Scotty said, “I really hope you’ll buy the shop. I want someone Amish to have it.”
“I grew up Amish.” Moses brushed his jacket. “But I’m Mennonite now.”
Scotty smiled. “I know. But you have an Amish background, and I like your idea of an Amish market. It will be good for the local community and for Lois too. She could be a help to you. She knows everyone around here, both Amish and non-Amish. Plus, she has good working relationships with our vendors.”
Moses clasped his hands. “I hope to open the market by June.”
“Two months.” Scotty rubbed his bare chin. “Might be a little optimistic. Maybe by mid-summer.”
Moses pulled his phone from his jacket pocket. “I’ve already talked with—” he pulled up his notes app—“Jeremy Reynolds from J&R Contractors about the building permits. I’ll apply as soon as the sale goes through. I think June is realistic.”
“Maybe so.” Scotty shrugged. “Maybe not. But I like how you work.” Scotty placed one stack of papers on top of another. “What about financing? How is that coming along? Like I said, I can help if needed.”
Moses shook his head. “I have that figured out, thank you.”
“Have you run your numbers? Taking into account unexpected expenses?”
“Yes,” Moses said.
“And what does your bank say?”
Moses’s face grew warm. “My finances are in order.”
“All right, all right,” Scotty said. “I knew your father—I’m not surprised.”
Others often told Moses what a good businessman his Dat had been. “I still need to look at your books before we continue negotiating.”
“Of course. I’ll get those ready.”
“Perfect.” Moses stood. “I’ll talk with my lawyer on Monday and let you know if I’m overlooking anything.”
Scotty stood too and extended his hand. “The community will be lucky to have such a fine young man operating this business.”
Moses stood outside Scotty’s office for a moment after he stepped into the hall. He hadn’t seen the apartment where Lois lived, and he wanted to. But he feared if he asked to see it, he would make it obvious he hoped she wouldn’t stay for long. And it seemed a little creepy. But it was only fair he be allowed to inspect the entire property before he negotiated a price.
For a moment, he was tempted to sneak out the back door just in case Lois was at the front counter. But what if she was outside? The staircase up the side of the building most likely led to the entrance of her apartment.
He squared his shoulders and headed toward the front of the shop. Then someone—Lois—cleared her throat and said, “You’re back.” She was standing by the bird feeders, under the tree that looked like a liability. It would have to go.
Without turning toward her, he said, “Scotty called me back.”
She cleared her throat again. “Why did you pretend not to remember me?”
He slowed but kept walking. “I didn’t.”
In a commanding voice, she said, “Moses.”
He stopped. “You pretended not to remember me . And, I must say, you were convincing.”
She shook her head. “Same old, same old.”
His face grew warm. “If you’re saying I haven’t changed in the last five years, I agree.” He puffed out his chest.
She rolled her eyes. “No, you haven’t.”
His voice dropped. “I could say the same about you.”
She crossed her arms, holding the duster to the side, and stepped toward the counter. Moses moved to the side to let her pass, just as she did the same. The two collided, sending Lois flying. Moses reached out and grabbed her, lifting her off the ground.
“Let me go,” she hissed.
He hadn’t meant to jerk her off her feet—just to stop her from falling. But he’d overestimated her weight. He let go of her. She stumbled. He grabbed her again.
“I’m fine.” She glared at him.
He let go of her slowly, and she grabbed the counter.
“Sorry,” he muttered. “See you next week.”
“What’s happening next week?”
“I’ll be back.” If not sooner. His face grew warmer as he strode toward the door. He couldn’t get out of the shop fast enough. As he closed the door behind him, Lois stood in the window turning the sign from Open to Closed. Then she locked the door—he heard the click.
Surely she wouldn’t want to keep working at Paradise Found once he bought the shop. After a week or two, she would give her notice. It would be best for both of them. He didn’t want to be reminded of his failures when it came to Lois—and she obviously didn’t want anything to do with him.