Chapter 20 #2
“No, but then I’ve tried to avoid both her and David.
I don’t really want to hear the excuses Alice would give me for what she did.
” Rachel sniffed deeply. “That’s why I came here, Emma.
I couldn’t deal with seeing Alice and David at church or any other function.
I was desperate to get away from Shipshewana and hoped that a few weeks away might help the ache in my heart go away and give me an opportunity to come to grips with their betrayal. ”
“I understand, and I hope your time here will help.” Emma’s heart went out to her sister.
Given Rachel’s recent heartbreak with David, she was hesitant to tell her about Ivan.
Emma figured there was a good chance that her sister might be envious, and she didn’t want to cause Rachel any more hurt than she’d already dealt with.
“Anything new with you, Emma?”
Emma jolted, and her hand dropped a glass into the sink, splashing some water on her face. Fortunately, it didn’t break. “Not much, other than learning to cook and sew.”
“There has to be more than that. We haven’t spoken in weeks, so I would think you’d have more to share that has happened since you left home.”
“Well, uh …” Emma scrubbed harder than she should on the glass she’d scooped up from the sink, trying to come up with something else she could share with her sister.
Fortunately, the sound of scampering little feet treading on the tile floor was enough to break Rachel’s attention and turn it toward Fawn, who ran up to her with a tongue hanging out and her tail wagging.
Rachel’s lips curved upward as she wiped her hands on the rag and then knelt down next to Fawn. “Whose adorable hund is this? This cute little fellow can’t belong to our grandparents since Grandma isn’t keen on dogs.”
“Fawn’s a girl. Grandpa found her on the side of the road one day, and we’ve been taking care of her ever since.”
“Fawn, huh?” Rachel stroked her fingers beneath the puppy’s chin. “What a cute name. She definitely has the eyes for it, doesn’t she?”
Emma was appreciative of Fawn’s prompt interruption as she wiped the water droplets from her cheek.
On her hind legs, Fawn attempted to jump high enough to lick Rachel, but Emma’s sister was too smart and tilted her head away from the enthusiastic pup.
Knowing she would eventually need to address her newfound relationship with Ivan, Emma pondered when to do so as she wrung out the sponge and laid it by the sink’s edge.
So maybe, Emma told herself, at least for now, I won’t say anything to my sister about Ivan or the fact that we’ve begun courting.
Jah, for my sister’s sake, that would be the best thing to do.
In fact, I hope neither Grandma nor Grandpa mentions Ivan’s name while Rachel is here.
Of course, she reasoned, I’m bound to see Ivan at church this coming Sunday, and since we are courting, it’s quite possible that he will come by to see me sometime during the two weeks my sister is here.
So that leaves me with a decision to make.
Do I tell Rachel about my relationship with Ivan or hope the news doesn’t get out?
Shipshewana
Dianna swept a stray hair off her forehead and stayed on the porch for a while, allowing the breeze to cool her skin as she relished in the peace and quiet of the late afternoon. She enjoyed having time to herself but also missed the company her girls had provided while helping with chores.
So far today, Dianna had accomplished a lot, both indoors and outdoors.
She was about to bring in some throw rugs she’d hung over the porch railing earlier, when her English neighbor came up the driveway, holding a basket in one hand and waving with the other.
Dianna waved in response and waited until Linda made her way up the porch steps. “It’s nice to see you,” she said.
“Same here.” Linda nodded. “I hurried over to let you know that your mother called to say that Rachel made it safely to your parents’ home in Arthur.”
“I’m glad to hear that. Thank you for taking the message and coming over here to let me know.”
“You’re welcome.” Linda reached into the basket and handed Dianna a jar of what appeared to be raspberry jam.
The color of the contents inside matched the deep scarlet shade of the woman’s fingernails.
“I picked an abundance of raspberries this morning and decided to make some jam. Thought you might like to have a jar.”
“I certainly would. Thank you so much, Linda.”
The older woman smiled and said, “Guess I should be on my way now. Frank might wake from his nap and wonder where I am. That man of mine takes more catnaps than our cats in the barn. The biggest problem is he stays up late at night, watching TV.” She scrunched up her face.
“Worst part is, he’s also hard of hearing, so that means the television is always turned up too loud. ”
Dianna was about to comment, when her neighbor spoke again.
“You Amish don’t know how lucky you are.
No TV or loud stereo blasting means peace and quiet in the house.
” Linda pointed to herself. “Me, I’d be happy if we didn’t have so many noisy distractions in our home.
” She gave Dianna a brief one-arm hug, her floral perfume flooding Dianna’s nostrils.
“Have a good rest of your day.” With that, Linda turned and stepped off the porch.
Dianna watched as her kindly neighbor made her way down the driveway and disappeared behind the blue and pink hues of the hydrangea bushes that grew along the side of the road.
She felt thankful for such a nice neighbor and even more thankful that she wasn’t married to a man who liked fancy gadgets or loud noises in the house.
Her neighbor was right: Dianna was fortunate to be Amish and not have to cope with the latest innovations that were being offered to the general public.
Dianna put the jar of jam in the kitchen and gathered up the rugs she’d been about to take in before Linda arrived.
Once the rugs were in place and the jam had been stowed inside one of the kitchen cupboards, she headed on out to Philip’s shop to give him the news that Rachel had made it safely to Arthur.
At least that was one thing Dianna no longer had to worry about.