“But a woman needs to know how to keep house,” Elias said.
“So does a man, at least a bit,” Delia added.
“Don’t I know it,” he replied with a sigh. “I was cooking, cleaning and going to work all on my own after Wanda passed away.”
Delia nodded. “I know. And I’m trying to keep up with everything on my own over here. It’s good for a woman to know how to care for the livestock and run the farm. But I think she fears that a potential husband will judge her based on her homemaking skills, and she longs to simply be loved for who she is.”
“I do love her for who she is.” He felt the implied judgment there.
“Oh, I know, Elias. I can tell! And there is the fact that a woman has to bring certain skills to her marriage. In order for any young person to be ready for marriage, they have to know how to do their part of the work. A young wife and mother has to know how to cook, clean, care for kinner, preserve food, make clothes... Being ready for a role doesn’t mean she’s only valued for her skills. It just means that she’s ready to step into that responsibility.”
“And the same for a young man,” he agreed. “He has to be able to provide for a family before he marries. It’s not enough to love the girl. He’d better be able to provide for her and the kinner that come along. But I like how you put that. You’re right. A certain set of skills is needed for a romance to survive.”
“They are so eager to put the cart ahead of the horse,” Delia said quietly. “But their hearts aren’t ready for marriage, either. It takes time.”
“I wish we lived closer to each other,” Elias said softly. “You make things make sense.”
Delia smiled at that. “Danke. I do try.”
A large white delivery truck turned into the drive and came slowly toward them.
“The truck is early,” Delia said, and she cast Elias a panicked look. “Would you mind lending a hand for a few minutes?”
“Yah, sure!”
He followed her as she gathered up her skirt and jogged ahead of the truck back toward the house. There was work to be done, and he’d be glad to help her out. This was a man’s life—helping those around him, and being the strong support the women in his life needed.
If only Violet could see that his hard work, the long hours, his stubborn determination to make sure she was in new dresses and every single shopping trip to town that cost too much so that he could bring home cooking supplies...all of that equalled love.
Elias helped to hoist buckets filled with water and long-stemmed flowers up into the back of the truck, and Violet was kept busy cutting flowers in the greenhouse, far from him. Not that he could talk to her with everyone around...and he didn’t have the words yet, either. He was still praying for Gott to give him some sort of wisdom, some words that would cut through that fog of hers and show her how life really was, and how beautiful their Amish world was, too.
The next couple of hours passed quickly, and he was impressed at how professional Ezekiel was through the whole process. He kept everyone on task and the flowers coming in a steady flow to be loaded up. He checked and double-checked the paperwork, had the driver sign... Ezekiel was truly a man now, it seemed, and Elias could only imagine how proud Delia must be to have raised him.
Speaking of being ready for marriage, Ezekiel was well on his way. He’d be a hardworking provider for his own family in a few years, Elias was sure.
When the truck rumbled away, Delia waved to Ezekiel, and then disappeared back into the greenhouse where Violet was working. Maybe she was going to give the girl some more advice...and he should probably leave the women alone for that. He’d asked for Delia’s help, after all.
“Violet’s working hard,” Ezekiel said.
Elias startled, and looked toward the young man. “Good. I’m really glad.”
“My mamm really likes her,” Ezekiel said. “We’re all of us men here at the farm. I think she likes having a girl around, too.”
“Well, Gott gives what he gives,” Elias said with a chuckle. “I know she’s awfully proud of you boys.”
“We almost had a sister,” Ezekiel said quietly. “Mamm was getting pretty big when she lost the baby. It had been a little girl.”
Elias felt those words like a punch to the gut. He had never heard about that. “What a terrible loss...”
“Yah. It was about three years ago. Before my daet died.”
Elias let out a slow breath. He’d been married for nearly twenty years when his wife passed away, and Wanda had lost two pregnancies before Violet. He understood what that did to a woman. It broke her heart, gutted her. It would leave her a shell for a long time while she tried to pull herself together. It took the women in her family and in her community to get her through it.
“Your mamm is an extraordinary woman,” he said in a quiet voice.
“She is,” Ezekiel said. “And I wanted to apologize for threatening you before. We’re protective of our mamm because she’s strong and smart and wonderful, but she’s vulnerable, too. We know that better than anyone. So when I said not to hurt her...I meant, please be careful with my mother’s heart. She’s wonderful, but she’s lost a lot, too. My daet, our baby sister... She deserves some peace, don’t you think?”
Elias met the young man’s gaze, and instead of anger in those dark eyes, he saw pleading. Delia did deserve some peace. She deserved kindness and support...and not to have her heart toyed with by the likes of him. Ezekiel didn’t know that their arrangement already protected his mother’s heart, but it was up to Elias to check his softer feelings that had started developing toward Delia. She was a lovely woman, but her boys weren’t out of control, either. They knew her life better than anyone, and they wanted to keep their mother safe from anyone who would cause her more pain.
“I understand, Ezekiel,” Elias said kindly. “You’re a good son. I will be very careful not to hurt her. That’s a promise, man to man.”
“Danke,” Ezekiel said.
That was a promise Elias meant to keep.
Chapter Seven
That evening, Delia stood in the kitchen alone. The boys had gone out for pizza with some cousins, and the house felt empty. One day, her boys would grow up, and this would be her life—a silent house and a full heart. If Zeke had lived, they’d live a quiet life together. The thought put a lump in her throat. Was it wrong for a mother to wish everything could freeze at this age, and the boys would remain under her roof forever?
Maybe it was. She hung a dish towel over the oven handle.
Her boys wanted nothing more than to grow up just as fast as they could, and she remembered being the same at their age, but she’d had more pressures around her back then. She’d been in a home with a stepfather who had been disinterested at best. Joseph had loved their mother, but she couldn’t say he’d loved his stepchildren. Not truly. He’d provided for them. He’d given advice if they wanted to hear it. And he’d stepped back and let Mamm do the rest. He’d raised them, not loved them. There was a difference. It was that difference that was scaring Violet so much, and truthfully, it was a daunting thought for Delia, too.
So Delia had longed for her own home and family from then on. She’d wanted to move out of her mother’s home and find a place where she could be the heart and center. Her boys already were the beating heart of this home, and she never let them forget it. And yet, they still yearned to grow up so much faster than Delia was ready for. As a mamm, she no longer felt like she was leading these boys. She was jogging behind them!
Outside she heard the clop of hooves. The boys wouldn’t be back already, would they? She headed over to the window to look out at a buggy making its way toward the house, and she recognized her stepfather’s grizzled face.
Joseph? What was he doing here?
