The Wonder of Your Love (A Land of Canaan Novel) (7 page)

She stood up, picked up her logs, and went toward the house. When she returned, she brought an old blanket. She laid it in the far corner on the other side of the workbench atop a pile of hay. “There. You have your own bed now.”

Ivan had never liked cats, said all they were good for was keeping mice away. Barn cats, he called them. So Katie Ann had never had one for a pet. But Ivan wasn’t here anymore.

Katie Ann jumped when the cat dashed out from behind the shovel, then ran across the barn like its tail was on fire. She’d barely focused on the animal when it took off again down the aisle, horses on one side, pigs on the other. One of the hogs let out a snort, but otherwise, the cat went unnoticed. Katie Ann tiptoed down the aisle, but the cat had either gone out a stall window or was hiding. Either way, she decided, she was going to name her cat Dash.

I
T WAS SIX
thirty when Eli readied his cousin’s buggy to travel to Katie Ann’s for supper. He’d spent most of the previous day helping with cleanup after the wedding. Katie Ann had come to help, too, but the woman seemed to steer clear of him all day. But tonight there would be no avoiding each other. He’d thought about canceling, but he hadn’t been able to come up with a good excuse, plus Vera would have been awfully disappointed. She’d made reference to his supper plans several times throughout the day.

Everyone was playing matchmaker, but none of them knew that it was all in vain. Eli and Katie Ann were moving in different directions in life, and he wasn’t about to step onto a different path.

By the time he arrived at her house, it was straight up seven o’clock.

Martha answered the door. “Come in, Eli.”

Eli took note of her bright green britches, matching blouse, and big gold earrings. Her hair was bundled atop her head in a mass of brownish-gray curls, and bright red lipstick matched her fingernails. Clearly Katie Ann was close to this woman, but it seemed an unusual friendship.

“Danki,”
Eli said as he moved into the living room, which he found instantly inviting. As with most Amish homes, the walls were white and there were no pictures hanging, but the focal point in Katie Ann’s living room was a large bookcase that spanned one wall. In addition to books, she had several potted ivies on the shelves, two candles, a lantern, and a basket full of yarn and knitting needles. A light brown couch faced two finely crafted rocking chairs, and there was a small coffee table in front of the couch. A propane lamp lit the area, and Eli breathed in the aroma of what must be the chicken lasagna.

“Hello, Eli.” Katie Ann stopped a few feet in front of him. “Can I get you some iced tea or
kaffi
?”

“Tea, please.” He smiled, suddenly wondering what he was doing here. She was bound to know this was a setup, and he had no business leading her on.

“Let me take your coat.” Martha held out a hand, and Eli removed his long black coat and black felt hat. She hung them on a rack by the door, then pointed to the couch. “You have yourself a seat, and I’ll go see if Katie Ann has everything ready.”

Martha disappeared around the corner too, but instead of sitting down, Eli found his way to the bookshelves and gingerly ran his hand along the titles. In addition to novels, she had a large collection of books on parenting. He turned when he heard footsteps.

Katie Ann handed him a glass of tea.

“Danki.”
He nodded toward his left. “You have a fine collection of books.”

“I like to read when I have time.”

A slow smile trembled over her lips, and Eli could tell that she was nervous. He stroked his beard, studying her.

Martha’s voice broke the trance. “Supper’s ready! Come and get it!”

Eli couldn’t help but grin at the woman’s loud voice booming from the other room. But Katie Ann laughed, and it was everything he could do not to tell her how pretty she was when she smiled.

“Forgive Martha.” Katie Ann scratched her forehead, grinning. “She’s the best friend I have, but we are working on her manners.”

Eli just smiled, and Katie Ann motioned with her hand for him to follow her. Martha was already seated at the table.

After they were seated, and following silent prayer, Martha scooped a generous portion of lasagna onto Eli’s plate first, then Katie Ann’s.

“Help yourself to some salad and bread, Eli.” Martha pushed the serving bowl closer to Eli from where she was seated across the table.

“Little Jonas in bed for the night?” Eli scooped some salad from the bowl.

Katie Ann sighed. “He doesn’t sleep through the night, but his tummy troubles have been better.”

Eli nodded but didn’t say anything. He already felt he’d been a bit boastful.

“This lasagna is very
gut
, Martha,” Eli said after he swallowed his first bite.

“Yeah, it’s not bad.” Martha grinned. “Our Katie Ann is the real cook around here.”

Eli glanced to his right at Katie Ann, whose cheeks flushed slightly.

He’d almost cleaned his plate and was considering a second helping when someone knocked at the door.

Katie Ann excused herself.

After several long minutes of silence with Martha, the older woman finished her lasagna. “I’d better go see who’s here and what’s taking our girl so long.” She flashed a toothy smile and pushed back her chair.

Our girl?
Eli wondered again if this was a mistake. But the lasagna was excellent. He piled another helping on his plate but stopped cold when Martha bellowed from the next room.

“I don’t care why you need to talk to Katie Ann. You have no business coming here!”

Four

“S
TOP IT
, M
ARTHA
.” K
ATIE
A
NN CLENCHED HER
hands into fists at her sides and wished Martha hadn’t overheard her call her visitor by name. Even though Martha had never met the woman, she’d certainly heard a lot about her. Katie Ann wasn’t sure what was worse—Lucy Turner on the doorstep, Martha yelling, or the fact that Eli Detweiler could hear everything from the kitchen.

“You got a lot of nerve showing up here unannounced.” Martha leaned around Katie Ann, her face twisted, her voice loud.

Katie Ann, holding a lantern, could barely see Lucy’s face by the dim light. But even in the darkness, she recognized the deceitful blue eyes of the woman who’d stolen her husband. “Now is not a
gut
time, Lucy.”

Lucy pulled her black jacket snug. “Didn’t you get my letter telling you I was coming?”

“What letter?” Martha glared at Katie Ann. “Did you get a letter from this tramp?”

“Martha! Stop it.” Katie Ann heard footsteps and briefly wondered if this situation could get any worse.

“Everything all right in here?” Eli eased up to the door and peered through the screen.

“This woman was just leaving,” Martha said with force as her hands landed on her hips.

Katie Ann gently pushed Martha back. “
Ya
, Lucy. I received your letter. Please come back Monday morning. As I said, now is not a
gut
time, and tomorrow is the Sabbath. Please come back on Monday.”

Lucy nodded. “I’m sorry, Katie Ann. I wouldn’t have come if—”

“You’re sorry?” Martha huffed. “Little late for that, don’tcha think?”

Katie Ann took a deep breath as she recalled the way Martha often talked about Lucy.
“No excuse for infidelity,”
she always said. Katie Ann had reminded Martha several times that Ivan was not an innocent bystander.

“Again, I’m sorry.” Lucy took a step backward. “Katie Ann, I’ll see you on Monday morning.”

Martha slammed the heavy wooden door before anyone could say another word. Katie Ann wished the floor would open up and swallow her. Her cheeks burned, and she wondered if Eli knew about her past—about Lucy.

“You’re not really going to meet with her, are you?” Martha demanded. “And what’s this about a letter?”

“Martha, let’s finish our supper. We’ll talk about this later.” She finally looked at Eli. He was stroking his beard with one hand and glancing back and forth between Katie Ann and Martha.

“I’m not hungry anymore.” Martha pulled a brown overcoat from the rack by the door. “I’m going home.”

Again Katie Ann wondered which was worse—that Martha was mad at her for not telling her about the letter, or that she was about to be left alone with Eli.

“No, Martha. Don’t go.” She reached out to touch her arm, but her friend pulled away and put her coat on.

“I ate too much anyway.” Martha buttoned her coat as she held her chin high. “You kids have fun.”

“But—”

As the wooden door slammed for the second time, Katie Ann briefly wondered if Martha would go hunt Lucy down, and the thought touched her as much as it frightened her. She took a deep breath but couldn’t look Eli in the eyes. “I’m so sorry.”

Eli slowly walked closer and put a hand on her arm, which was unsettling. “Don’t be.”

Katie Ann pulled away and stepped back. “I’m—I’m just very embarrassed.” She could feel Eli’s eyes on her, and when she finally looked up at him, she could see the pity in his expression.

Don’t you dare feel sorry for me
.

She stood taller, folding her hands in front of her. “Should we finish eating?”

“Sure.” He nodded, and Katie Ann didn’t think this night could end soon enough.

Eli followed her back to the kitchen, and they both finished eating without conversation, except for an occasional comment from Eli about how much he was enjoying the meal. Katie Ann felt obliged to offer him coffee and some peanut blossoms.

“
Kaffi
would be
gut
.” Eli stood from the table. “I saw you shivering. Should we have
kaffi
in the living room, in front of the fire? I can add a log.”

For a moment Katie Ann reflected fondly about how nice it would be to have a man to take care of such things, no matter how small.
“Ya. Danki.”

Eli went into the living room, and Katie Ann started the percolator on top of the stove, then set to clearing the table. She was sure Martha would be over first thing in the morning to find out about Lucy’s letter, and then her friend would most likely camp out here on Monday, waiting for Lucy to arrive. She wondered how she would handle Lucy and Martha in the same room at the same time. She knew Martha’s angry attitude was propelled by love, but her ranting and raving were only going to make things harder. She’d just finished cleaning the kitchen and pulled two coffee cups from the cupboard when Eli walked into the kitchen.

“I think I hear the
boppli
stirring.”

Katie Ann wiped her hands on her apron. “He’s probably hungry. I’m sorry, the
kaffi
is almost ready. I’ll be right back.”

Eli walked toward her and reached for the coffee cups. “I can ready our
kaffi
if you’d like.”

His fingers brushed against hers as he took the mugs in his hands, and a tingle raced up her arms. It took her a few moments before she nodded.

When Katie Ann walked into the living room with Jonas a short while later, Eli was sitting on the couch and asked if he could hold the baby. She leaned down and eased Jonas into Eli’s arms, then stepped back. It usually made her nervous for a stranger to hold Jonas, but the warmth of the freshly stoked fire hit her, and the sight of Jonas in Eli’s arms caused a lump to swell in her throat. She could almost see Ivan sitting on the couch holding his son. She shook her head to clear the thought.