The Wonder of Your Love - By Beth Wiseman Page 0,70

working the land, raising kinner, and having someone to take care of. As he contemplated why he’d looked forward to this time in his life, he supposed it was because these things seemed appealing at a time when they were not within reach. Now he could do anything he wanted. And all he wanted to do was go home.

Three hours later he was on a plane back to Middlefield, with more time to think. The bishop had agreed to Eli’s request to fly to Florida and back, just as he had agreed to let him go see Katie Ann. But now Eli wondered if he was abusing the bishop’s leniency.

As the plane prepared to take off, his thoughts drifted to Katie Ann. He’d tried again to call her from the airport, but she hadn’t answered. Maybe she wasn’t home or near the phone.

Or maybe she didn’t want to talk to him. He hadn’t called her much the past couple of weeks, and their conversations were shorter these days.

Eli had wondered if—even hoped that—distance and time would help him stop thinking about her so much. Maybe once he got home and things returned to normal, he would.

He couldn’t help but wonder if his children were right—that it just wasn’t normal for an Amish man to travel and shirk responsibility. But even when he considered a new path, one that possibly included Katie Ann, he knew he could never leave his family in Middlefield. He had never been more than a few miles from his children until recently.

He leaned his head back against the seat, closed his eyes, and tried to sleep, but Katie Ann’s face was all he could see. She was her most beautiful when she was tending to Jonas, but she was a nurturing person by nature. The tender way she handled Eli, both in conversation and in touch, calmed his mind and soothed his soul. As was his duty, he’d provided for his family, but he’d also been caregiver for the children for many years after

Sarah died. A man should be strong and capable at all times, but with Katie Ann, he felt like he could let his guard down a little. And in return, he wanted to take care of her in every way.

Eli knew he couldn’t leave his family. And it wasn’t right to ask Katie Ann to leave the life she’d built in Canaan. And what about his plans to travel? What about loyalty to Sarah? His thoughts spiraled as they so often did recently. He just didn’t see how it could work with Katie Ann.

But he wasn’t sure he would ever stop thinking about her.

KATIE ANN HELD Jonas in her arms until long after he was asleep, enjoying the comfort of the one constant in her life. Her baby boy, who filled her with a love more profound than anything she’d ever known. Even when she’d heard the cell phone ringing for the second time today, she’d just sat holding Jonas, hoping the noise wouldn’t wake him. Of course it was Eli. But her heart was hurting, and she wanted to blame him for that. Rationally, it wasn’t fair, but over the past couple of months, she’d grown to love him in a way that was confusing.

It was late when she finally put Jonas in his bed, and after a hot bath she crawled into her bed, snuffing out the lantern before she tucked herself in. Loneliness settled in, the way it always did this time of night. She regretted that she’d let her emotions get the best of her in front of Martha, but it had felt good to just cry in her arms. Now she didn’t feel like she had any tears left, nor did she feel like she could sleep. It was probably fifteen minutes later when she heard the phone ringing on the kitchen counter. Twice she’d ignored Eli’s calls, and for him to be calling this late at night now made her wonder if there was an emergency. She leaped from bed and stumbled in the dark to the kitchen. A haze of moonlight lit the kitchen enough for her to locate the phone, but it wasn’t ringing anymore. She carried the phone back to the bedroom with her, crawled into bed, and kept it in her hand as she wondered whether or not she should call him back. After a few minutes, she dialed his number.

“I miss you,” Eli said before even saying hello. “I miss you so