Chapter 7
Perry was in his backyard and about to start weeding underneath his clothesline when he saw Daisy walk outside and sit under
a tree in her aunt and uncle’s backyard. After his client had canceled his appointment for today, Perry had an unexpected
day off. He’d hemmed and hawed before coming over to talk to Daisy about what he told his mother. Last night the reality of
what he’d done sank in, and he struggled to figure out what to say to her. Even now he didn’t have the right words to explain
his stupid lie.
He ended up walking over without the words, asking God to help him out of the hole he’d dug for himself—not that he deserved
it. He’d already prayed for forgiveness, and maybe the Lord would give him mercy for doing something so monumentally ludicrous.
When he reached Daisy, she was asleep. And smiling. Whatever her dream was, it must be a good one. He started to turn around
and leave. They could talk later, and maybe by that time, he’d have come up with a plausible justification for telling Mamm they were seeing each other.
Then he froze.
There it was. Limenitis arthemis , otherwise known as the white admiral butterfly, his wings gently flapping as he perched on Daisy’s ankle. And he was a beauty,
with predominantly black wings, a half circle of white around the bottom and sides, and—whoa—cobalt and baby blue markings.
Exquisite. And to top it off, the insect had red-orange dots above the bottom edge of the wings.
If Perry could capture him, the butterfly would be the apex of his collection. He wouldn’t kill it, though. Like he’d done
with Lady, he would put him in a glass jar with some food, make a few sketches of him, write down his color markings, and
then set him free. After church on Sunday, he would spend the afternoon drawing him.
All he had to do was catch him. Easier said than done.
He crouched near Daisy’s leg. Her ankles were crossed, the hem of her dress covering her knees. But his singular focus was
on the white admiral, who seemed satisfied on his human perch. Rarely had Perry been fast enough to catch a butterfly without
a net, and he didn’t have time to rush off and get one from his stash. In the past he’d only managed to capture four of them
with his bare hand. It required stealth, slow breathing, and quick reflexes. Any sudden movements and the admiral would flee.
He gradually reached out his hand toward the butterfly, his fingers almost within reach. Less than half an inch away...
The admiral unexpectedly switched its position, throwing Perry off balance while his hand kept moving. Instead of touching
the butterfly, his fingers lightly brushed over Daisy’s lower leg.
His heart rate began to gallop, and he wasn’t looking at the admiral anymore. He didn’t even know if the butterfly was still on Daisy’s ankle. His focus was on his fingers—more accurately, the spot where he was touching her. Unable to resist, he once again lightly moved the tips of his fingers over her soft, sunshine-warmed skin. His spine tingled. Nice. Very, very nice.
“Oh, Maynard,” she sighed.
He jerked his hand back, as if her skin shocked him. Wait, why had he touched her in the first place? Oh, the white admiral.
He glanced at her ankle. The butterfly was gone, but he couldn’t stop gazing at her ankle, then her feet, then back up, and
up farther—
“What are you doing?”
Perry squeezed his eyes shut. With the admiral’s disappearance, he couldn’t blame the bug. “I, uh...” He opened his eyes
and turned to her, expecting her to be furious.
Instead, all he saw was curiosity. Her question was genuine. He fell back on his behind and blew out a breath. “You’re not
going to believe this,” he said with a clumsy quarter smile. “But I was trying to catch a white admiral.”
“A white what?”
“Butterfly. White admirals are at risk of losing their habitats and they’re becoming rare, and when I saw him on your, uh...”
“My what?”
He gulped. “Your ankle.”
She tucked her legs underneath her dress, leaving only her feet exposed.
He didn’t blame her for covering up, considering what he’d just done. Actually, he could think more clearly now that her knees
and ankles were out of sight.
Glancing around the yard, she said, “I don’t see any butterflies.”
Perry frowned. “I said you wouldn’t believe me.”
“I believe you.” She faced him again. “I just don’t see any.”
“He flew away. Unfortunately.” He muttered the last word and was thankful she wasn’t upset with him. Still, he owed her an
apology for invading her personal space. “I didn’t mean to touch you.”
Her hazel eyes widened. “That was you?”
“ Ya . I accidentally did while trying to get the admiral.”
“I thought...” Her cheeks, already rosy from sitting in the sunlight, turned crimson.
“You thought I was Maynard.”
“H-how do you know about Maynard?”
“He’s your boyfriend, ya ? I found the note on the paper towel.”
“I thought I threw that away.” Her knees were bent, and she was staring at the grass at her feet. “I guess I forgot to.”
Her feet were small and so were her toes, including the big ones. Cute. Wait, he didn’t need to notice her toes, or her feet,
or her eyes, or anything else. He shifted his gaze to the unexciting view of the side of his house.
“Did I, um, say anything while you were catching the captain?”
“Admiral,” Perry corrected, looking at her again. She was fiddling with her kapp string. He debated if he should tell her he heard her whisper Maynard’s name. “I couldn’t tell.” Lie number two, but surely
this wouldn’t count against him since he was sparing her some embarrassment.
Daisy leaned against the tree, her needlework falling onto the grass. “I didn’t hear you come over. I didn’t know I’d fallen
asleep.”
He bent his knees and rested his wrists on them. “I saw you sitting out here, and when I noticed you were sleeping, I started
to leave... and you know the rest.”
She crossed her legs and sat up straighter. “Did you need something from my aenti or onkel ? Nobody’s home right now, but I can give them a message.”
“ Nee . I’m not here to talk to them.” He bolstered himself and looked at her again. “I came to see you.”
***
Daisy was still reeling from the shock that the Maynard in her dreams was Perry Bontrager. While she understood and believed
him about the captain—wait, he’d said admiral , right?—all she could think about was how real his touch had felt. Because it was.
She suddenly felt hot. Then cold. Then hot again. And what was that tingling sensation going down her spine?
Perry rubbed the back of his neck, not looking at her. Was he still embarrassed? He shouldn’t be. It was an understandable
misunderstanding. Yet the more he rubbed his neck, the more stressed he appeared.
Yesterday she thought lunch had been nice, up until Perry returned after talking to his mother. She had seemed nice too, along
with his sister, Phoebe. But whatever they had talked about outside had bothered him. In fact, right now he had the same expression
he’d had yesterday during the rest of their meal. He barely touched his food and gave the rest to Ferman to take home. “Is
everything okay?”
“I told my Mamm we were dating.”
“What?”
He held up his hand. “Before you get upset with me, I can explain.”
She listened as he talked about his brother Jesse putting a bride advertisement in the paper fifteen years ago. “It was a practical joke,” Perry said. “But there were enough women who believed it and wanted to get married that soon Birch Creek was overrun with single women.”
Interesting. “ Geh on.”
He continued, telling her that all his brothers had either gotten married directly or indirectly because of the ad. Except
for Nelson, who had met his wife when he moved to Marigold. “Even my youngest bruder , Elam, married the sister of one of the women who found a husband in Birch Creek.”
“How many bruders do you have?”
“Ten. Phoebe is my only schwester . I also have a nephew, Malachi, who is married to Nelson’s wife’s schwester .”
Daisy was used to complex families, so she wasn’t surprised when he told her about his.
“Out of my large familye , I’m the only one who isn’t married. I’m thirty-one, and Mamm can’t stop worrying that I never will.” He finished his clarification by telling her about the circle letter she’d started
with other Amish women across the country. “Yesterday when she came to the diner, she had a stack of mail for me.” He jumped
up from the ground and started to pace. “Daisy, I don’t want to get married. I’ve told Mamm that over and over, but she won’t listen to me. She insists that I need a wife, and she won’t stop trying to make that happen.
So when she asked me who you were...” He scrubbed his hand over his face. “This is embarrassing.”
Daisy stood and went to him. Considering the circumstances, she could see why he’d slipped up. “I understand she’s concerned
about you, but no one should feel pressured to get married.”
“I really am sorry,” he said. “Don’t worry, I’ll set things straight and confess to Mamm .”
They both turned around as a red sedan pulled into her aunt and uncle’s driveway.
“I’m the only one home right now, so I should see who it is,” Daisy said. No one had mentioned that they would have a visitor
today. Or it could be someone who was lost. That happened sometimes at her house—a car would pull up and the confused English
driver would ask for directions.
Perry picked up her cross-stitch and handed it to her. “I’ll let you know when I talk to Mamm . It will be this weekend for sure.”
She took the cross-stitch from him and glanced up. While he wasn’t as distressed as he’d been when he told her about his lie
to his mother, he still looked troubled. “Don’t worry, Perry,” she said with a smile. “This will all work out.”
His shoulders loosened up a little. “ Danki , Daisy. I owe you one.”
Perry headed for his house as she walked to the driveway. He didn’t owe her anything, although she did wonder if she should
be a little mad that he’d used her as an excuse to placate his mother. But she couldn’t. All she felt was sympathy. And she’d made plenty
of mistakes in her life. It was only right that she accepted his sincere apology.
As she neared the driveway, the car door opened. “ Mamm ?” Daisy said, shocked to see her mother step out of the vehicle. Then she rushed over to her.
“Hi, Daisy,” Mamm said, pulling into her a tight hug.
“What are you doing here? Are you helping with Grace’s wedding too?”
“Oh, lieb .” Mamm cupped her face. “You’re such a sweet, trusting maedel . And I’m so, so sorry.”
Dread started to churn inside her as she took in her mother’s troubled expression. “For what?”
Mamm sighed. “We need to talk.”