“That’s not quite how it happened, Moe,” Ellen said. “I remember. That was after my Valentina was born...”
Sarai took his empty plate from his hand, stacked it on top of her own and headed toward the sink. An array of eggs lay over the counter on a fluffy yellow towel. They sold eggs here—he knew that much. He slipped past the dining table and into the kitchen, where Sarai stood drying her hands on a dish towel.
Sarai hadn’t seemed happy to see him when he’d arrived at their door. Not that he expected a joyful greeting or anything, but he did wonder how many of his past mistakes she remembered.
He crossed the kitchen and stopped by the counter.
“Sarai, I know I was a foolish teenager,” he began.
“You were a thoughtless, flirtatious young man who left girls in tears in your wake.” She hung up the towel. “I had more than one friend who thought you’d been serious about her, I’ll have you know. My own cousin Lizzie Peachy truly believed you’d propose to her.”
Arden swallowed. “I...was a foolish young man.”
“Some might say you were a liar,” she said.
“Some might.” He couldn’t deny his bad behavior. He had one particular mistake he wanted to try to make up for on this visit, if he could. Arden owed Sarai’s father some money, although he didn’t know it. Arden would have to both confess his mistake and make it better, just as soon as he could summon up the courage and go empty his bank account. “Sarai, I’m not proud of how I acted back then.”
“I should hope not.” Still no softening in her face.
“And I’m sorry if I hurt your friends. I’d hoped they’d seen through my act... You sure did.”
“I did, for sure and certain,” she replied. “But too many other girls thought you were serious. Both of the girls I’m thinking of are married today, so at least you didn’t do any irreparable harm.”
“Good.” And he meant that. He’d have hated it if he’d ruined some girl’s chance at a happy marriage because he’d discovered that he was attractive to the girls and had figured out how to make them blush and trail after him. “So the plan to set up our grandparents isn’t to get back at me?”
“If my plan works,” she said simply, “we’ll be family. So no, this is not revenge, and I’m surprised you’d think me capable of that.”
Great, so now he’d offended her, too. Looking into her upturned face, those blue eyes sharp and wary, he couldn’t help but notice just how beautiful she was—especially when she had her back up.
“My dawdie will decide what to do,” he said. “Let’s agree not to put any undue pressure on him, okay? That isn’t fair to an old man.”
“I would never do that,” Sarai replied. “You catch more flies with honey than vinegar. How long are you here?”
“As long as it takes to convince my grandfather to come home with me,” he said, then shrugged. “Or two weeks. Whichever comes first. I have a job to get back to.”
And not only would his boss not allow him any more time off, but Arden needed the money badly. His family had struggled since their move to Ohio, and his income kept the farm afloat.
“Okay,” she said. “But if by the time you have to leave your grandfather wants to stay, then you’ll allow it.”
“Me? Yah. My daet? I don’t know. But I’ll leave without him if it’s what my dawdie wants.”
“Good. That’s fair.” She nodded as if they’d shaken on a deal, and she picked up a light pink egg, turned it over in her hand, then put it into a carton, completing a pattern of dark copper and light pink eggs. She shut the carton and added it to a pile.
“You might as well go sit down at the table,” Sarai said. “I’ll get some coffee on.”
She turned then and started to bustle about with the coffee percolator and a bag of grinds. He watched her for a moment, then turned back to the table as she had told him to do. He’d come to see his grandfather, but in the back of his mind was his other obligation this visit—to finally settle his own conscience about a wrong he’d done to Sarai’s father.
So Arden pulled out a chair and sat down. Sarai might want Moe and Ellen to get married, but when two elderly people without any more income wished to wed, it would involve financial support, and the Stoltzfus family didn’t have the means for that.
“There was another time we lost the whole harvest.” His grandfather’s voice tugged his attention back to the table.
“Yah, yah...” Mammi Ellen said with a slow nod. “That was a very hard year. We lost half of ours. It took the community pulling together to keep our families fed that winter, and we lived off our gardens exclusively all the next summer. Remember?”
“But Gott provided in the form of good neighbors,” Dawdie Moe replied. “You know, Gott created us for community. I know we say that over and over again, but the longer I live, the more I know it to be true. Gott created Eve with Adam, and He created animals with their mates. He went down to the garden to walk and talk with them. We were created with a longing to connect with each other, and all too often we see hardship as misery instead of the invitation to pull closer to our friends and community.”
“True, true...” Mammi Ellen murmured.
“Don’t you agree, Arden?” his grandfather asked.
“Of course, Dawdie. We all need each other.”
What was his grandfather getting at? Did he think Arden didn’t fully appreciate his grandfather’s neighbors, or was that recognition that he needed his own family in his old age now more than ever? He wished he knew, but Dawdie could be a little opaque when he wanted to be.
“Oh, that reminds me,” Dawdie Moe said. “I’ve got the vet coming to check out my horse’s stomach, so I’d best get back. I’m sorry to have to eat and run like this, Ellen.”
“Well, now, what can you do?” Ellen asked with a smile. “I hope your horse’s belly is okay.”
“Thank you. So do I,” Moe said, pushing himself to his feet. “I’ll see you later, then.”
“Yah, yah. I’ll see you, Moe,” Ellen replied. “So nice to see you again, Arden, all grown up.”
“Thank you, Mammi Ellen.” Funny how an old lady’s warm words could erase eight years just like that. He might as well be a teenage boy again.
Arden looked over his shoulder and found Sarai’s gaze locked on him, her lips pursed in thought. Sarai had never been one to fall for his charms, but her intelligent, thoughtful gaze made him nervous. It was like she could see straight through him and knew how to beat him in one move.
But family had duty, too, and it was time for them to do theirs.
Chapter Two
