Amish White Christmas Pie (8 page)

Karen grabbed Will’s birthday present and hurried out of her bedroom. When she got downstairs, she spotted Will in the hallway talking to Mom. The way he smiled when he saw Karen warmed her heart. A dimpled smile and twinkling blue eyes—that was the Will she’d fallen in love with.

“Are you ready?” he asked.

Karen nodded. “I just need to get my shawl and outer bonnet.” She hurried into the kitchen and returned moments later wearing the items.

They said good-bye to Karen’s mother and went out the door.

“I don’t know about you,” Will said as they headed for his buggy, “but I’m sure lookin’ forward to eating at Das Dutchman tonight. They have some real tasty choices on their menu.”

Karen hoped Will wouldn’t be disappointed when he discovered they weren’t going to Das Dutchman after all.

“So what’d you get me?” Will asked, motioning to the small box wrapped in green tissue paper that Karen held.

“You’ll have to wait and see.”

“You’re not going to make me open it at the restaurant in front of a bunch of strangers, I hope.”

“Of course not. You can open it after we’ve eaten—in the privacy of the buggy, if you like.”

He grinned at her. “Maybe I’ll wait until we’ve dropped my folks off after supper and I’ve brought you back home. Then I can ask for a birthday kiss to go with the gift.”

Karen felt the heat of a blush cascade over her cheeks. She hated how easily she blushed.

“I didn’t mean to embarrass you.” Will leaned close, and his warm breath tickled her ear, causing her to shiver. “I just wanted you to know that I’m looking forward to a little time alone with my soon-to-be bride.”

She looked up at him and smiled. “I’m looking forward to that as well.”

Will had just guided his horse and buggy down the Yoders’ driveway and was preparing to turn in the direction of Das Dutchman when Mama Regina tapped him on the shoulder. “I need to go home for a minute, Will.”

“How come?”

“I forgot my pocketbook.”

“Can’t you go to supper without it? I’m hungry.”

“My money’s in the pocketbook, and I’ll need it to pay for our meal.”

Will glanced over his shoulder. “I figured Papa Mark would pay for our meal.”

Papa Mark’s face turned red as a radish. “Well, uh…your mamm insisted that she pay for supper, so I…uh…left my money at home.”

“It’s no big deal,” Will said. “I’ll take care of the check.”

“No, you can’t do that!” Mama Regina’s voice rose. “It wouldn’t be right for you to pay for your own birthday supper.”

Will looked over at Karen, figuring she might offer to pay for the meal, but she stared straight ahead with a placid look on her face.

“How about this: I’ll pay for our meals, and you can pay me back after we get home.”

“No way!” his folks said in unison.

“Our place isn’t that far from here, and it won’t take long for your mamm to get her purse,” Papa Mark insisted.

Will grunted. “Oh, all right.” His folks could be pretty determined when they made up their minds about something. Clucking to his horse and giving the left rein a little tug, Will turned in the direction of home.

When they reached the house, Will stopped the horse close to the porch so Mama Regina wouldn’t have far to walk. Then he climbed down from the buggy and went around to the passenger’s side to help her out.

“Would you mind going in after my purse?” she asked, making no move to leave her seat. “I think I left it on the kitchen counter.”

“Jah, sure.” Will figured he’d probably be quicker than she would, anyway, and he was eager to get to the restaurant.

He took the porch steps two at a time. When he opened the door and moved toward the kitchen, several people jumped out of the shadows. “Surprise! Happy birthday, Will!” they shouted.

W
ill jumped back and bumped the wall with his elbow. “Yeow!”

Someone lit a gas lantern, flooding the room with light. There stood several of Will’s friends: David Graber with his girlfriend, Amelia; Norman Yutzy with his girlfriend, Emma Sue; and Harley Kauffman with his wife, Luanne.

Karen, Mama Regina, and Papa Mark entered the house, wearing smiles that stretched from ear to ear.

“No wonder you wanted me to come inside and get your purse,” Will said to Mama Regina.

She grinned. “Karen and I have been working on this little surprise for a couple of weeks.”

Will looked over at Karen. “So we’re not going out to supper?”

She shook her head. “Not tonight, anyway. Everyone brought food, so we’ll eat supper here. Then we’ll have cake and ice cream.” She leaned closer to Will. “I hope you’re not disappointed.”

“He’d better not be,” David said. “It wasn’t easy to keep this secret.”

“That’s right. Finding a place to hide our horses and buggies was no small task,” Norman said with a chuckle.

“Where did you put them?” Will asked.

“Left ’em over at Aaron Chupp’s place, and then we walked over here.”

“We were glad it wasn’t raining,” Luanne put in.

Will scratched his head. “So you snuck over here while we were at the Yoders’ place picking up Karen?”

“That’s correct,” Harley said with a nod. “We had it timed just right, too.”

“I guess you did.”

“Let’s go into the living room where we can sit and visit awhile before we set out the food,” Mama Regina suggested.

Will had just taken a seat on the sofa next to Karen when a knock sounded on the front door.

“I wonder who that could be,” Papa Mark said with a sly smile. He looked over at Will and winked. “Why don’t you answer it?”

Will hurried across the room and opened the door. His friend Nathan Chupp stood on the porch. Nathan and his family had moved to Ohio when Nathan and Will were teenagers, and Will hadn’t seen Nathan for two years.

“Well, don’t just stand there with your mouth hanging open,” Nathan said with a grin. “Are you gonna invite me in to join your party?”

“Jah, of course. I…I’m just so surprised to see you.” Will stepped aside. “I mean, I didn’t know you were back in the area, and I sure didn’t expect you’d be here to help celebrate my birthday.”

“Aunt Susanna and Uncle Aaron have been kind of lonely since my cousin Sarah and her family moved to Illinois a few months ago. So I thought I’d come back to Middlebury and cheer ’em up for a bit.” Nathan entered the hallway and thumped Will on the back. “Figured while I was here, I may as well help you celebrate your twenty-second birthday.”

“I’m glad you did. How long are you here for?”

Nathan shrugged. “Awhile, I guess.”

“What about your job in Ohio?”

“Things are slow in the tree-cutting business right now, so my boss said he has no problem with me being gone a few weeks.”

“And how are your folks doing?”

“Real well. They moved to Sarasota, Florida, a few months ago, and they seem to like it. The warmer weather helps my daed’s arthritis.”

“What about your sister? Is she still living in Ohio?” Will asked.

Nathan nodded. “Alice and her husband, James, like it there, so I’m sure they’ll stay.”

“How about you? Do you like it better in Ohio than here in Indiana?”

Nathan shrugged. “I like Ohio well enough, but there are some things I miss about living here.” He thumped Will’s back again. “I especially miss pickin’ on you.”

Will chuckled. “You think you might stick around for Karen’s and my wedding?”

“I’d like that, but if I have to go back before then, I’ll be sure to return for the wedding.”

Will motioned to the living room. “Come join the others. I’m sure everyone will be glad to see you.”

Nathan nodded. “I’m lookin’ forward to seeing some of our friends again, too.”

They were almost to the living room when the door swung open, and in walked Karen’s parents and her sister, Cindy.

“Happy birthday, Will,” Alvin said, clasping Will’s shoulder.

“Danki. I’m glad you folks could come over.”

“We wouldn’t have missed your party for anything,” Hannah said with a friendly smile. “After all, you’ll soon be part of our family.”

As Megan sat across the kitchen table from Frank, she felt concern. He hadn’t said more than a few words since he’d returned home from work. No doubt he was still brooding about his son’s birthday.

Megan had been married to Frank for ten years, and they’d been blessed with two beautiful girls, but something had always seemed to be missing in Frank’s life. She felt sorry for him when he sank into depression on his son’s birthday every year, but it upset her when it lingered through the holidays.

When Frank had brought up his son’s birthday that morning, Megan thought he might open up and discuss his feelings, but he’d hurried off to work instead. She wanted to get him to talk about the way he felt—but not in front of the girls.

She glanced over at Carrie—their brown-eyed, dark-haired, eight-year-old daughter, who had just finished her plate of spaghetti. Red-headed, freckle-faced Kim, who had recently turned five, was still dawdling with hers. Frank, who’d been staring vacantly across the room, had only eaten a few bites.

Megan turned to Carrie and said, “Would you please take Kim to the bathroom and help her wash up?”

Carrie started to get up, but Kim frowned and pointed to her plate. “I’m not done, Mommy.”

Megan pursed her lips. “You’re just playing with your food, so it looks like you’re done to me.”

Kim scooped some spaghetti onto her fork and popped it into her mouth. “Is dat better?”

“Don’t talk with your mouth full,” Frank scolded. It was the first time he’d spoken since they’d sat down to supper.

Kim’s chin trembled. “S–sorry, Daddy.”

He reached over and patted the top of her head. “Just finish your meal and wash up like your mother said.”

“Okay.”