The Hawaiian Quilt (34 page)

Middlebury

It was Saturday, and Gideon had the day off. He’d arrived at the meat-and-cheese store where Mandy was working in hopes she would be free for lunch.

When he stepped inside, he spotted her near the back of the store, stocking shelves. “Hey, how are you doin’?”

She looked up at him and blinked. “I’m okay. I didn’t expect to see you here today.”

“Came to see if you’d be free to join me for lunch.”

She glanced at the clock on the far wall. “Guess it’s noon, but I only get an hour for lunch, so I’m not sure I’d have enough time to go out anyplace. Besides, I brought a sack lunch from home today. It’s a nice day, so I planned to eat out back at the picnic table.”

“I could buy some beef sticks and cheese and sit out there with you.” Gideon didn’t want to pass up this chance to spend a few minutes with Mandy. Except for the evening he’d dropped by her house and at church last Sunday, he hadn’t had the chance to see or talk with her.

She smiled up at him. “If you’d like to join me for lunch, I’ll get my food and meet you out by the picnic table.”

“Okay, see you there.” Gideon hurried over to the cooler where the cheese was kept and selected a bag of yellow curds, as well as a carton of chocolate milk. Then he picked out a teriyaki beef stick and paid for them at the register. He took his sack full of goodies outside and sprinted around back, where he found Mandy sitting at the picnic table by herself.
Whew! At least I’ll have her all to myself
.

He took a seat across from her, and after their silent prayer, they both took out their lunches. As they ate, they talked about the nice weather they’d been having, but it didn’t take long before the conversation lagged.

Desperate for an answer to the question nagging him for some time, Gideon blurted, “Who’s Ken?”

Mandy’s eyes opened wide. “How do you know about him?”

“I don’t know anything about him, but one day while you were in Hawaii, I called the B&B to talk to you and the lady mentioned you were at the beach with Ken.”

Mandy’s cheeks colored. “It’s … uh … nothing to worry about. Ken and I were only friends. He was Ellen’s friend, too.”

“Oh, okay.” Not quite satisfied with her answer, he continued probing. “You don’t seem the same since you came home. You’re almost a different person.”

“I felt different when I was in Hawaii. You can’t believe how beautiful and serene it is there.”

“You’re right. I can’t, ‘cause I’ve never been and probably will never have the opportunity to go.”

“I didn’t think I’d have the chance to go, either, but I did, and I’m glad. It was the opportunity of a lifetime, and I’ll never forget the friends I made on Kauai.” Mandy had a faraway look in her eyes, and it bothered Gideon. Her thoughts should have been here, with him, not on some tropical island.

“Is everything all right between us, Mandy?” Gideon dared to ask. “I mean, are you and I still…”

His words were cut off when Mandy’s dad came around the corner of the building. “Sarah’s been at the cash register all morning and needs a break. Would you please take over for her, Mandy?”

She was immediately on her feet. “I’ll be right there, Dad.” Looking at Gideon, Mandy offered him a brief smile. “I’m sorry for cutting our conversation short, but I’ve gotta go.”

“It’s okay, but before you do, would you be free to come over to my house for supper this evening? Mom plans to make her wunderbaar fried chicken, and she always fixes plenty.”

“I appreciate the invitation, Gideon, but I promised Ellen, Sadie, and Barbara I’d go out to supper with them. We’ve been wanting to get together and talk about our trip to Hawaii and haven’t had a chance before now, since we’re all working different schedules.” Mandy gathered up what was left of her lunch and put it inside her tote.

“It’s all right; I understand. We’ll talk again soon.”

After Mandy returned to the store, Gideon remained at the picnic table for several minutes. The sun felt good shining directly on his back. He took his hat off and ran his fingers through his thick hair. Hearing a whinny, he glanced at his horse stomping the pavement where he was tied to the hitching rail. Gideon wasn’t ready to leave yet and sat awhile longer. Any other time, Mandy would have lingered a few minutes before returning to the store, but things had changed between them. There was no doubt about it.

Watching a hornet on the table not far from where his arm rested, Gideon took his hat off and shooed it away. When the bee flew closer and hovered near his face, he whacked it again, relieved to see it fly off.

What can I do to make things right?
He was at a loss as to what to do next.
One thing’s for certain—I miss the old Mandy and want her back
.

T
he moon, hanging low in the east, was barely visible when Barbara came out of the house.
Thank goodness the days are getting longer
. She glanced at the sun, still high in the western sky, before climbing into the buggy. Daylight was a few hours from fading, and depending on how long she and her friends lingered at the restaurant, she might even get home before dark.

Barbara had decided to take a back road, so she’d left a little early. Traffic this time of year, especially on a Saturday, could get rather heavy. She wasn’t in the mood to put up with impatient drivers when they got behind the buggy. The last thing Barbara needed was her horse getting spooked, especially the way she was feeling right now. Barbara always enjoyed spending time with her friends, but this evening she felt a bit uneasy. It would be bad enough to try and hide the nervousness, let alone eat with the butterflies in her stomach.

As the buggy pulled out onto the road, she heard her dog barking in protest. “Not this time, Duke. Where I’m going, they don’t allow pets.” Barbara smiled, thinking how her German shepherd loved going for buggy rides.

Keeping her attention on the road, she asked herself,
Will I be able to hide my feelings for Gideon from Mandy tonight?
She and Gideon had become good friends while Mandy was in Hawaii. Barbara found it easy to talk to him—even if most of their conversations were about Mandy.

Barbara’s friendship with Mandy was important, too. They’d been good friends a long time. The last thing she wanted to do was break Mandy’s trust. But how could she deny her feelings for Gideon?
I must keep them to myself and guard my heart so neither I, nor anyone else, gets hurt
.

Barbara turned her attention to the scenery along this stretch of road. While her horse, Gaffney, trotted at a comfortable pace, she enjoyed looking at the fields that had been planted a few weeks ago and were now sprouting the first leaves of corn and soybeans. Apple and cherry blossoms added colors of pink and white among the red and deeper rosy hues of azaleas and rhododendrons.

Barbara smiled when she saw a hen turkey, followed by a dozen of her poults, scurrying into some underbrush. She sighed, wondering if she would become a mother someday.

Shipshewana, Indiana

“It’s nice we can be together this evening.” Sadie smiled across the table at Mandy. “We’ve all been so busy we haven’t had time to visit since you and Ellen got back from the islands.”

“It’s good we were able to get a table for four at this restaurant,” Ellen responded before Mandy could comment. “Saturdays are always busy, especially with so many tourists in town.”

Looking around, Barbara smiled. Being here before five o’clock helped, because the supper crowd hadn’t arrived yet.

Sadie looked at Mandy again. “I can’t believe how tanned you got while you were gone. You must have enjoyed the sun quite a bit.” She turned to Ellen. “Looks like you got some rays, as well, although Mandy’s skin is even darker than yours. Guess I’m a little envious of you two getting to be in Hawaii enjoying warm weather the whole winter. But I’m glad you had a good time.”

“Thanks.” Ellen picked up her menu. “I’m glad the Lord watched over us throughout the extended trip.”

“I believe God allows things to happen to us, and He kept you there long enough for a purpose,” Barbara stated.

“I agree.” Ellen smiled. “That purpose, of course, was helping out at the B&B, and we were both happy to do it. Right, Mandy?”

Mandy barely nodded as she stared at the menu. For some reason, nothing appealed. After working all day at her father’s store, she should be hungry. She glanced at the waistline of her dress, noticing how baggy it looked. Mandy hadn’t mentioned it to anyone, but since returning home, she’d lost five pounds. The reason for her loss of appetite had to do with missing the friends she’d made on Kauai. Her heart wasn’t in much of anything she did lately. In the waking hours, her thoughts were filled with things she saw and did on the island. When she went to bed, she dreamed of being back there. If only she hadn’t dropped her camera overboard, she would have gotten all those pictures printed by now and put in a scrapbook. Instead, she came home with only souvenirs and memories of their trip. Over time those memories would begin to fade, which bothered Mandy the most, as she didn’t want to forget the faces of the special friends she’d made.

She thought of all the pictures, resting on the ocean floor: Ken and her at the falls; the exciting luau; all the times spent on the beach; and the photos she’d taken in Luana and Makaio’s yard. Such a great loss. At least among the nice gifts she’d received from the Palus, she had three other mementos that meant a lot to her—these were from Ken. Mandy kept them in one of her dresser drawers underneath the muumuu dresses she’d worn during her stay on Kauai. Each night in the quiet of her room, she’d retrieve them to look at before going to bed. To some, they may only seem like trinkets from Hawaii, but because the coral, lei, and sunrise picture had been gifts from Ken, they held deep meaning for her. It was good she didn’t have pockets in any of her plain dresses; otherwise she would have carried the kukui nut lei close to her each day.

“It’s your turn now.” Ellen gave Mandy’s arm a gentle tap. “The waitress is waiting to take your order.”

“Oh, sorry. I must have been spacing off.” She glanced at the menu one more time, then ordered a spinach salad.

“Don’t you want anything else?” Sadie’s forehead wrinkled. “A salad’s not going to fill you much.”

“I’m not in the mood for anything else.” Mandy grabbed her glass of water and took a sip. Maybe coming here for supper wasn’t a good idea, especially if her friends scrutinized everything she did. Mandy’s conscience pricked her.
No one’s actually been scrutinizing me. I’m being too sensitive
.

After the waitress left the table, Sadie took a photo album from her oversized purse and placed it on the table. “These are the pictures Barbara and I took during our trip to the Hawaiian Islands. I thought you might enjoy seeing some of the things we saw along the way.”

Mandy swallowed hard. It was difficult to look at the lovely photos without feeling envious. “It’s nice you have them to keep your memory of Hawaii alive.”

“Don’t you have pictures?” Barbara asked. “You bought a digital camera before we left for our trip to Hawaii. I would imagine you took many photos while you were on Kauai.”

“I did, but the camera fell overboard when Ellen and I were on a whale-watching cruise.”

“It was my fault,” Ellen interjected. “I got seasick, and when Mandy tried to comfort me, she lost her camera.”

“Such a shame.” Sadie pursed her lips. “If you want copies of any of my photos, I’d be happy to have some made.”

Mandy gave a brief shake of her head. “The pictures I had were mostly taken on Kauai, and there’s no getting them back.” She released a heavy sigh. “I felt such peace when I was there.” Being home was good, but it wasn’t like Hawaii. Mandy still felt as though a part of her remained on the island.

“Don’t you feel peace here at home?” Barbara tipped her head, looking strangely at Mandy.

Mandy felt trapped and wasn’t sure how to respond. “Well, I only meant…”

“It’s okay.” Ellen came to her rescue. “Being in Hawaii was peaceful for me, as well. There were so many beautiful flowers, colorful birds, and swaying palm trees. Luana and Makaio’s bed-and-breakfast was peaceful, too, and they made us feel so welcome.”

“They’re good Christians,” Mandy said. “I don’t know what we would have done if strangers we met hadn’t taken us to the B&B the evening we became stranded.”

“I can only imagine how frightened you both must have been.” Sadie cast a sidelong glance at Barbara. “How do you think we would have handled it if we’d been in such a situation?”

Barbara shrugged. “I’m not sure. As it was, we were scared not knowing at first what happened to you both.”

“May I take a closer look at your album?” Ellen asked.

“Certainly.” Sadie handed it to her just as the waitress came with the drinks they’d ordered.

“You have some nice pictures.” Ellen turned each of the pages, pausing often to comment.

Mandy glanced at them, too. Seeing photos from the Big Island, Maui, Oahu, and especially Kauai, caused her to tear up. Barbara must have noticed, for she reached across the table and placed her hand over Mandy’s. “Are you all right?”