Chapter 9 #2
Of course, it wasn’t as though there had been any hurry to get it built, since neither he nor Leanna had had any marriage prospects.
Fortunately, at least the frame of the house was finished and the drywall was in place.
But right now the three rooms—a bedroom, a combination living room and kitchen, and a bathroom, with enough space for his parents to live comfortably once it was finished—were little more than a shell.
Jalon turned on the gas lamp in the kitchen and yellow light filled the living room.
In the corner was a small woodstove. Jalon had forgotten his father installed it a few months before his parents moved back to Mespo.
At least he’d have heat tonight. There wasn’t a stick of furniture in the house, and he didn’t bother walking into the bedroom, where he knew the closet wasn’t even finished.
That was all right. When he took his clothes from his room earlier, he put them in a hall closet near the upstairs bathroom in the main house. He’d have to shower and change there.
He’d get his sleeping bag and park it in front of the stove. It wouldn’t be as comfortable as a bed, but he’d get a decent night’s sleep.
Once he could get his mind off Phoebe and Malachi. That, obviously, was easier said than done.
Phoebe felt a tickle on her nose. She wiped it away with her hand. Then she felt it again, this time not just on her nose but also her cheeks. “What on earth?” She opened her eyes, still thick with sleep, to find a furry tail directly in her face.
“Morning, Mamm !” Malachi brushed her face with Blue’s tail again.
The cat, for his part, didn’t seem to care that Malachi was using his tail as a wake-up assistant. Phoebe opened her eyes more fully. “I’m up, Malachi. I’m up.”
“Karen’s already made breakfast. I ate mine. It was good. She made blueberry pancakes.”
Those did sound good. Then what Malachi said registered. “She’s already made breakfast?” And had Karen also brought Malachi to bed for her last night?
“ Ya. When I woke up and went downstairs this morning, Jalon said to keep letting you sleep and not wake you up. So I ate mei pancakes. Jalon said I had to eat them all and I did. Now I can play with Blue. Doesn’t he have a fuzzy tail?
” He shoved the cat’s tail in Phoebe’s face again, apparently not realizing that he had indeed just awakened her. But she was glad he had.
“Malachi, that’s enough.” She gently pushed both Blue and Malachi away from her. “I’ve got to get up. I shouldn’t have slept so long.”
“Jalon said you must’ve needed it.”
Phoebe got up from bed, glanced down, and saw she was still wearing her dress from yesterday.
She touched her head, felt her kapp , and frowned.
She went to her suitcase, still on the floor, and dug for fresh clothes.
She found them, and was about to stand when she saw a flash of green underneath one of Malachi’s shirts.
She picked up the yo-yo. “Where did you get this?”
“Jalon gave it to me.” Malachi climbed off the bed and took the yo-yo from her.
Worried he would start flinging the toy around, Phoebe reached for it. “ Nee , Malachi. You can’t play with that in the haus .”
“I know. Jalon told me. He also said I have to watch for people and to have fun.” He examined the yo-yo before tucking it back into the suitcase. Then he picked up Blue and left the room.
Phoebe sat back on her heels, marveling at the effect Jalon had on her son in such a short period of time .
.. and also worried about it. Malachi was already attached to Blue, and it would be difficult enough on him when they left.
But if he formed an attachment to Jalon .
.. Wait. What was she thinking? He already had.
Sighing, she got up and went to the bathroom.
She hurriedly washed her face and changed into the fresh clothes.
What a great impression she was making on Jalon and Karen.
She should have made everyone breakfast instead of Karen.
She brushed out and pinned up her hair, fixed her kapp to her head, took her belongings back to the bedroom, and headed downstairs.
“I’m sorry I fell asleep last night and then overslept,” she said as she rushed into the kitchen. “It won’t happen again.”
Karen smiled. “ Nee worries. You were tired, and it’s okay to sleep in every once in a while.”
“I’ll make lunch,” Phoebe said, not feeling any better despite Karen’s kind words. If she’d overslept at her aunt’s house, the woman would have shot through the roof.
“Deal.” Karen placed a fresh plate of pancakes on the table, then surveyed the spread, frowning. “Guess I made too much. I’m so used to cooking for mei whole familye .”
“Everything looks delicious,” Phoebe said. “Have you seen Malachi?”
“He and Blue are playing outside. It’s cold, but with all the sunshine this morning, it’s not too bad. I told him to stay close to the haus . I’ve been checking on him, and he’s doing exactly what he was told.”
It seemed that Jalon wasn’t the only one having a positive effect on Malachi.
Phoebe sat down, fully taking in the food for the first time. Karen was right. There was far too much food for two people to eat. She had pancakes, a blueberry topping, bacon, boiled eggs, sliced bread, and orange juice and milk, plus the leftover corn muffins from last night.
“Jalon made a pretty good dent on all this food, though.” Karen sat down across from her. “I thought I’d wait to eat with you.”
“That’s nice of you.”
Both women bowed their heads and said grace. When Phoebe opened her eyes, Karen handed her the plate of pancakes. “I already buttered them. I hope you don’t mind.”
“Not at all.”
“I really enjoy cooking when we have frolics and barn raisings.” Karen took a sip of her coffee. “Now that the community is growing, there’s more of that going on. Daed ’s a little more relaxed than our previous bishop.”
Phoebe dropped her fork, then quickly picked it up. “ Yer daed is the bishop?” Then she remembered Jalon had gone over there and talked to him when they arrived the day before. What he must think of me ...
“ Ya. He has been for almost a year. It’s a long story. He was nervous about it at first, but almost everyone has been welcoming of him. A couple of families moved away.”
“Including Jalon’s parents?”
“I think they had other reasons.” Karen shrugged. “I never asked Jalon about it. It’s not really mei business. I’m just glad Jalon and Leanna decided to stay.”
Malachi came in, carrying Blue. “I took mei boots off in the mudroom,” he said.
Phoebe blinked. How many times had she told him to take his boots off before coming in the house at Aunt Bertha’s? Too many to count. “ Danki , Malachi.”
He grinned, his face flushed with cold. Little balls of snow stuck to Blue’s long fur. “Jalon said I had to mind you, because you deserve ...” He frowned, his lower lip sticking out a bit as he was deep in thought. “Respeck. You deserve respeck.”
“Respect,” she said softly.
“I’m sorry I didn’t mind you before,” Malachi added.
Phoebe touched his cheek. She wanted to tell him it was okay. She didn’t, because it wasn’t okay for him to ignore her wishes the way he had been. She reminded herself to thank Jalon for talking to him.
Karen got up and went to the sink. She opened a lower cabinet door and searched for something.
“Found it.” She stood, holding a comb with thin silver teeth.
“Leanna always keeps a few of these around the haus .” She handed the comb to Malachi.
“I think Blue is overdue for a combing. Would you mind doing it?”
He took the tool from her. “ Ya! I’ll be careful too.” He left the kitchen, still carrying Blue and filled with enthusiasm.
“Poor Blue.” Phoebe smiled. “That cat doesn’t know what he’s in for.” When Karen sat back down, she added, “ Danki for helping me with Malachi.”
“Anytime. And speaking of boots, I have a spare pair to lend you. Jalon said you left yers at yer aenti ’s.”
“ Ya , I did. Danki. ”
Phoebe pulled in a breath and tried to sound nonchalant, asking the question that had been on her mind since she’d walked into the kitchen. “Is Jalon around?”
“His taxi came to take him to work right after breakfast.” Karen placed her fork and knife on her empty plate.
“Oh.” They needed to talk, not just about the past but also about what she and Malachi were going to do next. She’d meant to do that last night, despite cowardice. Instead she’d fallen asleep. She couldn’t do that again, not before they talked.
She also had to write to her parents and tell them she wasn’t at Aunt Bertha’s anymore.
She should have written them last night, but she’d been busy with supper and clean-up, then had fallen asleep.
But she didn’t see the sense in telling them anything until she figured out something definitive.
And she couldn’t do that until she talked to Jalon.
Karen stood and picked up their plates. “He said he comes home from work around five or six, later if they’re busy.”
That gave her time to plan and cook him a fantastic meal tonight. She owed him at least that much. “Is there a grocery store nearby?”
As she put the dishes in the sink, Karen said, “Schrock Grocery. It’s about twenty minutes away by buggy.”
“I’d like to get a few things.” While the little bit of money she’d saved up wasn’t enough for her and Malachi to live on for any length of time, she could afford groceries for a meal or two and still have some money left over.
“I noticed the kitchen needs restocking too.” Karen turned around. “We can geh after we do the dishes.”
A short while later, Karen had fetched the boots for Phoebe and hitched up Jalon’s horse and buggy.
Then she, Phoebe, and Malachi were on their way.
Cold air bit into Phoebe’s cheeks, but the sun made up for the temperature.
Malachi had wanted to bring Blue, but Phoebe put her foot down.
“We are not taking the cat to the grocery store.”
“Why not?”