“Waiting for Ella again, are you?” John asked from the other side of the counter.
Loyal felt his cheeks heat. “I guess it’s pretty obvious?”
“Only to a man who’s done some waiting a time or two for a woman.” With a wink he added, “Of course, the way you’re sitting in front of the picture window like a puppy in a pet store gave me a hint as well.”
With effort, Loyal turned away from his spot, realizing his uncle was exactly right. He had been sitting somewhat like an expectant pup, hoping for a smile from someone special.
Around the small dining area, all the men who’d overheard were grinning, too.
“Don’t fret, Loyal,” Bishop Thomas said with a smirk. “We’ve all done it. Sooner or later each man finds he can’t take his eyes off a woman . . .”
“And it’s up to the rest of us to make note of it and tease him,” Henry said.
“I know I have,” John murmured.
Uncle John was truly a surprise, Loyal reflected. Once Amish, now English, he’d had a successful business in Indiana, then packed everything up and moved out to Jacob’s Crossing just a few months ago.
Now, here he was, owning his own donut shop in the middle of Amish country. Being a part of the network of friends and acquaintances but also not.
And now here Loyal was learning that his uncle had waited on a woman before. “Are you talking about Angela?”
“I am not. I have dated some since she divorced me, you know.”
It felt strange to hear him talk about divorce so easily. Even the thought of divorce made Loyal uneasy. “I’m glad you haven’t been alone.” Then, all the sudden, he remembered seeing his uncle and an unfamiliar woman walking together. “Are you seeing anyone now?”
“No.”
“Really?”
His uncle gazed through the thick glass window. “Well, I suppose I am. Kind of. ” He shrugged, looking completely perplexed. “Anyway, my point is that I know that look of yours. We all do. And you, my nephew, are looking head over heels.”
Though it was on the tip of his tongue to deny it, he sighed. “I guess I have been waiting for Ella. She’s become a gut friend.”
“From what your mother has told me, it sounds like Ella could use some good friends right now.”
“Uncle John, do you think it would have been possible for you to have known that things weren’t going to work out between you and Angela?”
John’s expression became shuttered.
Loyal felt horrible. He shouldn’t have brought up the past like that. They all knew John’s failed marriage was a source of discomfort for him. “Sorry. I shouldn’t have pried.”
“You didn’t,” John said. “I was just wondering if I could have known what the future had in store for me.”
Even the bishop was leaning forward, all ears. “And?”
“And, the answer is, I’m not sure.” Picking up a rag, John began to wipe down the already clean countertop. “Angela and I should never have married in the first place. We were too different. It was soon very obvious that I was never going to be who she wanted.” Looking from the bishop to Loyal, he said, “You have to remember, when I first met Angela, I was young. Only eighteen.”
“You’d just left us,” the bishop said.
“I had. It was a really hard time for me,” John admitted. “I had a chip on my shoulder, and was so angry.”
Loyal hadn’t heard this story before. “Angry at what?”
“Angry at the Englischers, for not giving me a welcome party I guess,” he said dryly.
“What are you talking about?”
“Leaving the faith had been such a big step for me, I thought everyone would give me slack. But they didn’t. All the men my age just made fun of me when I didn’t fit in.” He rolled his eyes. “And believe me, I stuck out in a lot of ways. I did some really foolish things.” He took a deep breath, then averted his eyes. “I was also very angry at myself. Because I thought I’d made a mistake, but I didn’t know how to fix it.”
“You should have come back to us,” the bishop said.
“Perhaps . . . but even if I had wanted to, my pride wouldn’t let me. I wanted to be independent.” Removing a half-filled coffeepot, he checked the time, poured out what was in the carafe, and started making a fresh pot. “Anyway, it was right then and there that I first met Angela. She was my boss’s daughter, and pretty much the first person who didn’t act like I was a source of amusement.”
“So, she wasn’t a complete mistake. She was the right person for you at that time,” Loyal said.
“In a way, I suppose she was,” John said as he filled a paper liner with coffee grounds. “She made me happy, and I loved that. And she was beautiful—and I was young enough to like that very much, too. But then, well, she realized that I could never be who she wanted; and when I found out she was seeing another man, I realized I could never stay married to a woman who cheated on me.”
“What happened to her? Do you know?”
Uncle John nodded. “I came across her name on the computer when I was traveling here. She’s married and has a family. So I guess she finally did find what she was looking for. ”
“Well, I for one, am glad you’re back here,” Bishop Thomas said.
“I am, too.” He cleared his throat. “Well, this is what I get for asking you a personal question, isn’t it, Loyal? I get nosy, and end up telling you about myself.”
“It was the right time.”
A look of understanding crossed his features, softening them. “I think so.” Then his smile grew wide. “And here comes Ella, walking right by here. And, if I’m not mistaken, I think she just looked in here at you.”
Loyal’s heart jumped. “You think so?” he asked, getting to his feet.
“I saw it, too, Loyal,” the bishop said gruffly. “It would be a mighty gut idea if you went out and caught her. You know, before she walked on by and didn’t think you cared.”
He edged closer to the door, feeling like a silly fool. “John? Do you think we have enough in common?”
“I think you two have the potential to have as much in common as you possibly want,” he said. “That is, if you go see her.”
Loyal opened the door and strode out, the men’s laughter spurring him forward.
“Ella! Ella, wait, would you?”
He was coming her way! With effort, she schooled her features to something a little calmer.
“Good morning, Loyal Weaver,” she said. “Having another donut?”
He looked at his empty hands and chuckled. “Actually, I was so busy speaking with my uncle and Bishop Thomas that I forgot to eat.”
“How are they this morning?”
“They are good. Would you like to go inside for a bit? Or are you off to work?”
“Actually, I’m not working for another two hours. I just was eager for a break.” After quickly debating whether to burden Loyal with her latest news, she added, “And I thought I’d try to find a new place to live.”
“New? What happened?”
“Dorothy, she was very upset about the bishop stopping by. She wants me to move as soon as possible.”
“That’s hardly fair.”
“At first I was upset, but a part of me is kind of relieved,” she admitted as they walked past the library, and then by mutual consent, down a walking path to the Crossing Park.
As the path narrowed and they moved a bit closer to each other, she lowered her voice. “Loyal, I don’t think she’s quite right in the head. Her anger was scary, and I’m afraid that the way she looks at me makes me on edge. I’m now worried about coming home, wondering what she’s been doing in my absence.”
A fierce protectiveness rushed through him. Ella was such a sweet person, he ached with the thought that Dorothy was using those good qualities against her.
“Do you fear for your safety?” he murmured. There were a lot of things he wanted to say. He wanted to promise her that everything was going to be just fine. That he could solve all her problems. But of course, he couldn’t.
“I’m not afraid. Yet.”
“Yet,” Loyal echoed, then, almost without thinking, he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. For a second, she tensed, then he felt the muscles in her shoulders relax, and finally she moved closer to him.
That action filled him with happiness. Ella had been too alone for too long. He wanted to support her.
“Did you sleep last night?”
“Some. Mainly, I just kept going over that conversation, wondering how I could have handled things better.” She bit her lip. “Loyal, Dorothy is angrier than ever.”
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
Dealing with too many emotions to handle both walking and talking, she stopped and faced him. “I’m worried she’s going to ask me to leave the library.” Tears pricked her eyes as she recalled the pain Dorothy’s threats had caused her. “I love working at the library. I love being around the kinner.”
“Oh, Ella. I am terribly sorry. We will get through this.” His gaze was sweet as he reached out and rubbed her other shoulder.
“It’s not your problem . . .”
“It is, because it involves you,” he said softly.
Then, before she really knew what had happened, he opened his embrace, and she stepped closer. Then finally pressed her face into the nook of his shoulder.
And sighed as his arms wrapped around her and held her close. Into a very sweet, very comforting embrace.
Another pair of tears trailed down her cheeks, embarrassing her. Well, they would have embarrassed her if they hadn’t been completely alone and her face wasn’t pressed against his shoulder.
“It’s okay, Ella,” he murmured, patting her back slightly. “I promise, I’ll help you make everything fine again.”
She believed him. Slowly, she lifted her arms, too, and wrapped them around him.
Everything she was now feeling had nothing to do with fear and comfort and everything to do with a longing so fierce that it was almost a tangible thing.
This was Loyal Weaver she was embracing—the boy she used to watch from a distance, the man she used to dream about. Loyal Weaver, who to her was always so charming, so handsome, so everything!
She closed her eyes and inhaled.
And then felt his lips brush her brow.
She lifted her head. “Danke,” she murmured. “Thank you for believing in me.”
“Don’t thank me for that.” His blue gaze felt like a caress. “I’m glad to be here for you.” His right hand reached up and brushed the back of two fingers against her cheek. “Please don’t cry anymore. I hate to see your tears.”
“I’ll try not to.” Her voice drifted off as his head inched closer. His hand still on her cheek, she felt completely comforted.
Her lips parted. Trying to think of something to say. Something to tell him, about how much he meant to her. About how grateful she was to him—
But then she thought of nothing as his lips brushed hers. As he kissed her.
Ella’s breath hitched. A thousand thoughts ran through her head. But then nothing else really mattered as she tilted her head and kissed him back. Right there. In the park. Surely God was very, very good. If he could make her girlish dreams turn into this reality, then surely He could make anything possible.