The Wonder of Your Love - By Beth Wiseman Page 0,21
both trying to clarify the relationship this early on . . . well, that means something. When are you going to see him again?”
“What makes you think I’ll see him again?” Katie Ann fought to hide her expression as she realized that she was looking forward to Tuesday.
Martha tried to snap her gloved fingers. “Aha! You are going to see him again. When?”
Katie Ann lifted one shoulder as she pulled her eyes from Martha’s. “Tuesday.”
Martha’s eyes grew round. “Fabulous!”
“We’re going to travel together to see the sand dunes, as friends. Eli is hiring a driver.”
Martha crossed herself, which she often did, even though she wasn’t Catholic. “Thank God. I’ve been praying for you to find someone.” She let out a heavy sigh. “In case I kick the bucket, you’ll have someone to take care of you.”
Again Katie Ann felt sure Martha was exaggerating, but the comment was disturbing nonetheless. “Don’t say things like that, Martha.”
Martha hugged Katie Ann. “Don’t you worry about a thing.” She kissed Katie Ann on the cheek and closed the door behind her.
And for the first time since she’d met Martha and nursed her through a host of ailments, some real, some not so real— Katie Ann felt truly worried about her friend.
Five
LUCY THANKED HER HOSTESS AT THE MANSION BED-and-Breakfast after a meal that should have been more than satisfying. Eggs Benedict were her favorite, and the fruit bowl and homemade granola also topped the list of her preferred breakfast items. But this morning her stomach roiled with anxiety, and she wondered if coming all this way to see Katie Ann was a mistake. Ivan’s wife might be Amish, but she was still human, and Lucy had seen the loathing in Katie Ann’s eyes on Saturday. She wished this trip hadn’t been necessary, but after much deliberation, she didn’t see any way around it.
She carted her red suitcase to her rental car, popped the trunk, and stored the luggage inside. It was only ten miles from the B&B in Monte Vista to Katie Ann’s house, and she planned to drive as slowly as possible. She’d hoped to get this dreaded visit over with on Saturday and be back in Lancaster County by now, but she was certainly willing to work around Katie Ann’s schedule. That was the least she could do.
As she pulled off the main highway, she touched her hand to her stomach and felt the baby kick. In the darkness of the other night, and with a heavy coat on, her pregnancy hadn’t been noticeable to Katie Ann. The last thing she wanted to do was cause the woman more pain. But she didn’t have a choice. Ivan was gone, and he’d been the only person who could explain the contents of the box he’d left behind. Lucy’s future depended on Katie Ann being able to identify the picture.
She took a deep breath and tried to calm her rapid heartbeat. So many times she’d wanted to defend herself to Katie Ann and the members of her community. She knew that everyone in the Old Order district thought she’d seduced Ivan away from his wife, that surely no good Amish man would pursue an Englisch woman. If they only knew.
She thought back on Ivan’s many advances and wished more than anything that she could go back in time, wished she had never agreed to have lunch with the handsome Amish man who was clearly unhappy at home. One lunch led to another, until eventually Ivan had kissed her. She ended it after that, but Ivan only tried harder. Every day he would wander into the café where she worked. He’d also call her from a cell phone he was hiding from Katie Ann. And when he said he never loved anyone the way he loved her, she had melted. All she’d ever wanted was to be loved, and she’d managed to go thirty-two years without true love. Until Ivan.
She pulled into the driveway that led up to Katie Ann’s house. She glanced to her left at the house she knew to be Samuel and Lillian’s. She hoped that neither of them would be at Katie Ann’s when she arrived. Or the scary woman who had been there on Saturday night. It would be hard enough to talk to Katie Ann without an audience.
KATIE ANN PULLED the last of the clothes through the wringer washer, then began to hang the wet items in the mudroom. Temperatures had dropped during the night, and a blanket of frost