On Sunday afternoon, Cal smiled as Elaine sat down next to him in Sharon’s kitchen and handed him a cup of hot chocolate.
“I hope you like a lot of marshmallows, Cal,” she said. “That’s how I like my hot chocolate.”
“I do.” He took a sip. “It’s perfect.”
He’d been surprised when Elaine agreed to come when Sharon invited everyone to her house after church. But now she smiled at him as they sat surrounded by their friends, and she seemed . . . comfortable. She’d finally become one of them.
She’d also called him Cal. Did that mean he hadn’t completely scared her away? He could hope.
“Elaine,” Sharon said as she set a fresh plate of iced sugar cookies in the center of the table. They were cut into the shapes of Christmas stars, bells, and angels. “I’m so glad you came today. We’ve been missing you at our suppers and singings. We still really need your voice, and we’d enjoy having our new freind there.” She grinned. “What better time to add an angelic voice to our group than Christmas?”
Elaine returned the smile—but shyly. “I have been thinking about going. I . . . I think I’m ready to . . .”
Elaine pushed a tie from her prayer covering behind her shoulder as she turned toward Cal. He gave her a slight nod, and she didn’t take her eyes off him as she continued.
“You all have been so nice to me, unlike some freinden back in New Wilmington who hurt me quite a bit.”
Her words seemed to be spoken only for him, sending his hope soaring. Oh how he wanted to be Elaine’s boyfriend! He’d just felt something shift between them, and maybe now was the time. Maybe she wanted him to ask again.
“I’m glad to hear it,” he told her.
One by one, their friends offered Elaine their support.
He’d talk to Abram next weekend. Then he’d ask Elaine to date him, and he prayed she’d say yes this time.
* * *
Elaine set a serving platter laden with fried chicken and a basket of rolls in the center of the kitchen table Friday night. Then she added green beans and salad.
“That chicken smells appeditlich,” Dat said as he entered from the hallway.
Elaine smiled as she filled their glasses with water. “Gern gschehne.”
“I think that’s everything,” Mamm said, pulling out her chair.
Elaine sat down just as a loud knock sounded on the front door. She turned to her parents. “Are you expecting anyone?”
“No.” Dat shook his head.
“I’ll go see who it is.” Elaine hurried through the family room to the front door, past the poinsettias she’d picked up in town a few days ago. She wrenched it open, allowing the cold December air into the warm house. Her stomach dropped when she found Lewis standing on the porch. “What are you doing here?”
He looked the same with his dark-brown hair, piercing bright-blue eyes, and handsome face, but she’d rather be seeing almost anyone else.
“Elaine.” He held up his hands. “Please don’t slam the door in my face. I hired a driver to bring me all this way to talk to you.”
“Hasn’t my silence been enough of a hint for you?” She ground out the words. “It’s over, Lewis. And I have nothing more to say to you. I forgive you, but I’m not interested in giving you another chance. You need to let me go.”
“Just listen.” He took a step toward her. “I’ll regret hurting you for the rest of my life.” He reached for her hand, but she snapped it out of his reach. “Danki for forgiving me, but I want to restore your faith in me. I love you, Elaine. I want to start over. I want to show you I know how to be a gut man and a gut husband.”
“Husband?” She barked a laugh, and he winced. “Are you kidding? Do you think I’m a dummkopp?”
Lewis glanced behind her and smiled. “Hi, Lovina.”
“What a surprise.”
Elaine spun and glared at her mother. Mamm’s tone had been just as forced as her smile was now.
“Why don’t you come in out of the cold, Lewis,” she added.
Had Mamm lost her mind? Why would she want this man to even step foot into their house?
Mamm’s eyes narrowed with a warning. “We should at least invite Lewis in for supper, Elaine. Then we’ll discuss sending him back home.” She turned to the intruder. “Let’s get your coat and hat off.”
“Fine,” Elaine snapped before stalking into the kitchen. Dat sat there with a bewildered expression. “Lewis is here,” she whispered. “We’re going to feed him supper and then send him on his way.”
“Why is—” Dat’s question was interrupted by Lewis and Mamm’s appearance.
“Hello, Abram.” Lewis approached Dat and shook his hand. “It’s nice to see you.”
“Oh . . . hello.” Dat shot Mamm a confused look but then smiled at Lewis. “Have a seat and join us for supper.”
“Danki.” Lewis washed his hands at the sink and then sat down.
Elaine brought him a plate, utensils, and a glass, resisting the urge to slam them onto the table to properly convey her annoyance. After Lewis’s place was set, Elaine took her usual spot, across from him, and bowed her head. She asked God to bless the food—and help her get Lewis out of there!
As they filled their plates, Elaine kept her eyes on her plate and hoped her parents would carry the conversation.
“So, Lewis,” Dat said, “how is your family?”
“Gut. Mei schweschder’s wedding is coming up in a few weeks, so she and mei mamm have been busy making final plans. And of course, everyone’s been getting ready for Christmas.”
Elaine peeked at him. Maybe the man was just caught up in his sister’s excitement about getting married.
“Oh, how nice,” Mamm said. “Is Lydiann marrying Paul?”
Lewis nodded. “Ya, she is. They’ve been together four years now. Mei dat says it’s about time.”
Her parents laughed, but the laughter sounded just as strained as this awkward conversation. Elaine’s food tasted like sand in her mouth. She wanted Lewis to leave, to go back home, to leave her alone. Oh, what a nightmare it was to be stuck at her own kitchen table with him!
Elaine glanced at her mother, who gave her a look of encouragement. Hopefully, the meal would soon be over, all the mundane small talk set aside, and then she could send Lewis back where he belonged.
* * *
Cal guided his horse up the rock driveway leading to the Lantz daadihaus, and as his heartbeat matched its lively clip-clop, anxiety tumbled around in his stomach.
Tonight was the night! He’d ask Abram for permission to date his daughter, and then, assuming he gave his permission, Cal would ask Elaine to be his girlfriend.
He climbed out of the buggy before tying the horse to a fence, and in moments he was jogging up the front steps of the house, light glowing from its family room windows. He smiled when he found Arnold lounging near the door.
“Hey, buddy. Nice to see you again. I guess you’re not too cold out here.” He rubbed the cat’s head and then knocked on the door. He could see his own breath in the night air as he rubbed his hands together and waited for someone to answer.
The inside door opened with a squeak, and as Elaine pushed open the storm door, she greeted him with a look of surprise.
Wearing his favorite red dress, Elaine seemed nervous as well as she glanced behind her and then stepped out onto the porch. She pushed the storm door closed, and Cal could tell something was wrong before she even said a word.
“Cal. Hi.” She hugged her arms to her chest. “I didn’t expect to see you here.”
“I was hoping to talk to—” He looked behind her, into the house. “Is now a gut time?”
A pained look darted across her face. “I’m sorry, but it really isn’t.”
Alarm shot through him. “Was iss letz?”
“It’s complicated.” She gave him a forced smile. “I promise we can talk soon, okay?” Her regret seemed genuine. “I’ll tell you everything when the time is right. I just can’t right now. You have to trust me.”
Cal studied her for a moment, trying to decode what she was saying. He glanced past her just as a man about his age—but shorter—appeared in the doorway behind her. He pushed the door open and joined them. Cal had a bad feeling about this.
“Hello.” The guy held out his hand. “I’m Lewis Byler. And you are . . .”
Cal took a step back as the porch floor seemed to drop out from under him. Lewis had come back for her after all.
His stomach knotted as the breath rushed from his lungs. He’d been fooled. He was going to be sick.
“I have to go.” He turned and dashed down the steps, then toward his buggy.
Cal thought he heard Elaine calling him, but he kept going, unwilling to even look back as he guided the horse away from her.
* * *
“How could you do this to me?” Elaine said through gritted teeth, infuriated as tears streamed down her cheeks. “You have no right to show up here and disrupt my life.” She sniffed and brushed away the tears.
“Who is he?”
“Cal King.” She looked out toward the road as the buggy’s taillights disappeared into the dark. “He’s mei freind. In fact, he’s my best freind here in Bird-in-Hand.”
He hesitated and then said, “And do you care for him as more than a freind?”
The truth hit her like a punch to the stomach. “Ya, I do. I care for him very much, and I think you just ruined any chance I had with him.”
She stood straighter as her anger spilled over. “Call your driver and ask him to pick you up now. Then go home. You’re not welcome here. In fact, you’re not welcome in my life.”
She turned toward the road again, feeling more helpless than ever. She had to find a way to get Cal back before it was too late.
* * *
Cal climbed Andrew’s porch steps and knocked on the door. Disappointment, heartache, and regret all stirred in his chest as his mind kept replaying that scene—Lewis standing on Elaine’s porch.
He’d come to see her, just like he told her he would. And Elaine had obviously let him back into her life.
Cal needed someone to talk to. And his first thought was to go see Andrew. He’d been through a lot with Darlene before they’d worked everything out.
The back door opened, and Andrew’s mother smiled.
“Hi, Calvin.” She pushed the door open. “How are you?”
“I’m fine, Jean. Is Andrew available to talk for a few minutes?”
“Of course. Come on in.” Jean led him into the kitchen. “Would you like some kaffi?”
“That would be nice. Danki.” He sat down at the table and tried to stop his leg from bouncing up and down.
Jean poured coffee in a mug for him and then called upstairs. “Andrew. You have company in the kitchen!” Then she poured coffee into another mug. “He’ll be down in a moment. I’ll just set this here for him. There’s cream and sugar already on the table if you want them.” Then she set the mug down before disappearing into the hallway.
Andrew came down the stairs and gave Cal a surprised look—the second he’d received tonight. “Hi. What’s going on?”
“It’s Elaine.”
“What happened?” Andrew sat down across from him and grabbed the handle of his mug.
“I had it all planned out. I went to her haus to ask her dat’s permission to date her.” He pointed to the wooden tabletop for emphasis. “Then I was going to invite her to go for a buggy ride and ask her to be my girlfriend. But when I arrived . . . You’ll never guess who was there.”
“Who?” Andrew gave him a palm up.
“Her ex-boyfriend from New Wilmington.” Without telling Andrew exactly what Lewis had done to Elaine, he shared how he’d hurt her, then recently written her, wanting her back. “But Elaine told me she wanted to avoid all contact with him. She misled me, Andrew. Do you think she was trying to play both sides? Keep her options open?”
Cal rested his head in his hands as a dull pain began to throb behind his eyes. “I’m so humiliated. I’m such a bad judge of character. I really thought she cared about me.”
“I don’t know, Cal. ‘Playing both sides’ doesn’t sound like Elaine.”
“I thought God had led me to her, but I think I’ve completely misunderstood.”
“You might be wrong.”
Cal dropped his hands from his face and narrowed his eyes. “How can I be wrong?”
“I don’t know.” Andrew shook his head. “I just have a feeling Elaine might have a gut explanation. Maybe you shouldn’t give up so easily.”
“She said she’d explain, but I can’t do this anymore.” He slumped back in the chair. “She’s rejected me too many times.”
“Just wait. Maybe things aren’t as they seem.”
“No. I’ve tried too hard, and all she’s done is hurt me.” Calvin sipped his coffee and wondered how he’d put his shattered heart back together.