What a day!
Kirsten dragged her low spirits to the gate in the picket fence at her aenti’s house. The small, white farmhouse had a glorious view of the bay and its red sand beaches. It was a simple clapboard house, two stories with tall, narrow windows across the front. A porch wrapped around three sides, giving views of the bay and shelter from the wind. The paint was peeling on the windward sides, and she guessed repainting was something they’d have to do often in the harsh Prince Edward Island climate.
Like tonight when the icy breeze sliced into her bones, reminding her how many hours she’d worked at the Sea Gull Holiday Cottages before the humiliating meeting with Mark Yutzy.
Humiliation... That was something she was far too familiar with. She’d come to the Island in order to escape the embarrassment of knowing everyone was thinking about how she’d been the bride whose groom hadn’t showed up for their wedding.
The enticing aroma of grilled burgers didn’t ease her grim thoughts. Aenti Helga loved to cook outside, no matter the season. Weeks ago, the light breezes off the bay had been pleasant. Kirsten had been told, because of the Gulf Stream, the summer waters around the island were warmer than anywhere north of the Carolinas. She hadn’t had a chance to dip her toe in the bay, because she’d been busy lining up clients for her cleaning company and working at Sea Gull Holiday Cottages.
Tonight, her boss, Lulu Wyler, had kept her late to talk about shutting down. Lulu had accepted reservations until the start of November because she wanted the extra income for a trip to Vancouver. By the end of the month, she intended to be there to hold her first kins-kind, as she said several times with a smile, “before he’s an hour old.” In addition, she’d hinted the resort would be up for sale next year. Gail, the other housekeeper at the resort, had urged Kirsten not to worry.
“She’s been saying that every year for a decade,” Gail had reassured her as her broad smile rearranged the pattern of wrinkles on her tanned face. For years, Gail had worked on a fishing boat with her husband. When he retired, she hadn’t been ready to give up working, so she’d gotten a job at the resort.
“She sounds serious,” Kirsten had argued.
“She does at season’s end. When spring comes around, she can’t wait to get to work. Wait and see.” After giving her a hug, Gail had headed to her home near the center of the small town of Shushan at the top of the bay.
Kirsten wished she could feel as sanguine about their futures at the cottages. Another layer of pressure had settled on her shoulders, a constant reminder of how much the family depended on her getting her business off the ground.
She would have been more optimistic if Mark Yutzy hadn’t complained when she thought her business was ready to become self-sustaining. Now, she had to deal with Janelle who would be more intense than Mark had been. When was the fifteen-year-old not intense? Janelle wouldn’t be as reasonable as Mark. Any comment could send her into dramatics worthy of the greatest actor.
Kirsten paused by the gate and took a deep breath. If she came into the yard with her thoughts on her face, she’d upset her aenti. She released the breath as she looked around. She’d loved this spot as soon as she’d arrived. Tonight the water rippled on the red sand, but she’d seen it splash onto the road when a big storm boiled in the North Atlantic. Though the island was nestled into the curved arm of the Canadian Maritimes like a boppli cuddled in a mamm’s arms, it was not protected from storms. She’d heard islanders talk about past hurricanes and blizzards and how everything on the Island came to a stop while the wind howled.
Tonight, despite the penetrating breeze, was as perfect as a picture postcard. The glint of the moonlight danced on the bay, turning the water a rich silver. A few stars pierced the night sky, and within a couple of hours the glory of the Milky Way, something she’d never seen before she came east, would arch overhead like an invitation to explore eternity.
Stop it! She couldn’t let her thoughts wander into fancy. Not after the uncomfortable meeting with Mark Yutzy. Again she wondered if she’d been dumm to agree to continue cleaning his house without speaking with Janelle first. Giving him a free cleaning? She must have been out of her mind.
She’d gone into the meeting annoyed. While she’d met with her boss, she’d stewed about the tone of Mark’s note. Hadn’t she learned letting her emotions get the best of her was stupid? She’d led with her heart too many times, and everything had gone wrong. On every step in the half mile between his farm and Aenti Helga’s, she’d pondered how she could have handled that situation better.
As she walked into the house and through the empty living room to the dining room which was filled with a long table surrounded by benches and mismatched chairs, Kirsten jumped aside to avoid her twelve-year-old cousin Theo.
“I’m starving, and Mamm said we couldn’t eat till you got home!” he shouted and bounced toward her, putting the plates he carried at risk. His reddish-brown hair caught the light from the overhead propane light.
“You’re always starving, even when you’ve just finished eating.” She ruffled his hair as she’d done since he was a toddler.
His reaction was the same as it’d been then. “Duh sell net!” His demand that she stop teasing him was ruined by how his eyes glistened with delight.
“You’re the boppli, Theo,” she retorted, delighting in the chance to play the game they enjoyed. “I get to tell you what to do.”
“Not gonna listen.”
“There is astonishing news,” said his mamm as she came to rescue the plates. She wasn’t as tall as Kirsten, but was larger boned. Her hair was the same color as her son’s but laced with silver. Those graying strands hadn’t been there before her husband’s death. New wrinkles scored her face, too, hiding what once had been laugh lines. “You use your ears so seldom, Theodore, you wouldn’t notice if they went missing.”
As they laughed together, Kirsten pushed her worries about Mark Yutzy aside. She should be grateful that her other customers were satisfied.
Aenti Helga sent her son to get silverware while she took the burgers off the grill. After taking off her coat and bonnet and hanging them by the door, Kirsten gathered freshly baked rolls and containers of ketchup and mustard. Glancing around the kitchen with its white walls and pine cabinets and bright green counter, she saw no sign of her other cousin. She hurried into the small dining room which had faded flowery wallpaper. She put the items on the table before returning to get the macaroni and tuna salad as well as the applesauce Aenti Helga served with every meal.
After Theo put two large bottles of root beer on the table, Aenti Helga motioned for them to take their seats.
“Where’s Janelle?” Kirsten asked as she sat beside Theo who gave her an eager grin. He would have dined on hamburgers or hot dogs or nachos every night.
“She went to visit a friend.” Aenti Helga sat with a sigh that spoke of her fatigue. “She’s young. She needs to have fun.”
Kirsten wasn’t sure how to reply. Janelle was fifteen, but in many ways acted younger than her brother. “Is she staying overnight?”
“No. She has the Martins’ house to clean tomorrow morning, so I told her to be home by nine.” Handing her son the ketchup, Aenti Helga sighed. “She wasn’t happy, but Janelle isn’t happy about much nowadays.”
Theo’s smile dimmed at those words, and Kirsten reminded herself how the first anniversary of Onkel Stanley’s death was approaching fast. It would be the first week of February. She reached across the table and patted her aenti’s arm, hoping the motion would say what no words could.
Theo’s spirits bounced back after they shared a silent prayer. He fixed his burger and took a big bite. He chattered about his day at school and shared every detail of the ball game at recess. He was prouder of getting on base three times than he was of the perfect score he received on his spelling test.
When he paused to concentrate on another burger, Kirsten asked her aenti about her day. It had been a light one. Aenti Helga had had only one house to clean instead of the two or three she did some days.
“I did the Carlisles’ house today,” Aenti Helga said. “You know, Dr. Carlisle and his wife, Michelle. He’s the new veterinarian at Shushan Bay Animal Hospital.”
Kirsten nodded. Two months ago, she’d gone to the animal hospital to ask if she could leave a flyer about her fledgling business. The receptionist had been new, so she’d had to ask Dr. Carlisle about their policy. The veterinarian had agreed to tack one of her flyers to his bulletin board and had arranged for her to meet his wife. Mrs. Carlisle had hired her within five minutes of her arrival. Pregnant with twins, Mrs. Carlisle asked for help unpacking the moving boxes piled throughout the house.
Kirsten had helped after work every day for the following week until the last box was empty. After giving the house a deep cleaning, she’d turned the job over to her aenti. Now Aenti Helga cleaned their house every week and gave Mrs. Carlisle basic cooking lessons as well as advice on raising bopplin.
It seemed to be a gut arrangement because her aenti looked forward to going to the house, and the Carlisles were pleased with how well Aenti Helga cleaned.
At least one client is happy. She silenced the thought and scolded herself. Why was she focusing on one unhappy client when she had a dozen who were pleased with Ocean Breezes Cleaning? When had she become so pessimistic?
When she’d found out her groom hadn’t shown up for their wedding.
She’d gotten into the horrible habit of looking for a cloud around every silver lining. Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope... So many times she’d prayed that verse from Romans 15:13, but her heart resisted its truth.
She tried again as she ate and listened to her aenti and Theo. She didn’t like being glum and expecting something terrible. She wanted to return to the hopeful, upbeat person she’d been. Maybe it was impossible to believe in “once upon a times” after seeing that wasn’t what God had in mind for her. She’d assumed she’d find the man of her dreams, marry and have a happy home filled with kinder. As her parents wanted her to do.
Kirsten was jarred out of her reproachful thoughts by her aenti’s laugh. Blinking as if waking from a nightmare, she heard Aenti Helga say, “You should see the stuff they have. Knickknacks everywhere and doilies. I’ve never seen so many doilies in so many different colors in one place in my whole life.”
“Do they have a TV?” asked Theo.
Aenti Helga spread her arms wide. “This big, and another even bigger. Another one as big in each bedroom. Who needs that many televisions?”
“You shouldn’t—” Kirsten began.
Her aenti paid her no mind as she continued to talk about the items she’d seen in the Carlisles’ house. Most were items that wouldn’t be found in a plain house.
Uneasiness burst into Kirsten’s head as she heard the undeniable awe and envy in her aenti’s voice. Was Aenti Helga considering leaving the Amish? That would be a monumental decision, because her aenti was a baptized member of the Leit. Leaving would mean being put under the bann. While she could live with her kinder, she couldn’t share a table with them. Would Janelle and Theo leave, too?
Don’t look for trouble, she told the dreary voice in her head. She’d seen no signs her aenti planned to jump the fence.
You didn’t see when Loyal decided to live an Englisch life, argued her memories.
Loyal... What a joke that name had been! The first man she’d walked out with had joined a rumspringa group that was plain and Englisch. He’d tried to persuade her to join with him. If she had, would they still be together? Would he have expected her to leave her family behind as he had his?
Again she shoved aside her thoughts, but her impatience with those memories whetted her voice. “Aenti Helga, let’s get dessert.”
“I don’t have—”
“Let’s get it.” She glanced from her aenti to Theo who was reaching for a third hamburger.
Aenti Helga frowned, but stood.
As soon as they were in the kitchen, her aenti asked, “What’s wrong? I told you I didn’t have time to make dessert.”
“I wanted to talk without Theo hearing,” Kirsten said.
“About what?”
“You shouldn’t talk about what you see in clients’ homes. They trust us to keep their personal lives private.”
“I’m not talking about their personal lives, but, Kirsten, you can’t expect me not to be astounded. I’ve never imagined anyone would have as much makeup as—”
“No, Aenti Helga! You shouldn’t—you can’t talk like that. If someone overheard, they’d know what our clients had in their houses and where. A thief—”
Her aenti’s scowl deepened. “I was talking to you and my son. Neither of you is a thief.”
“That’s not the point. We’ve got to be careful about slipping into habits that could cause problems for our clients and for us.”
“Us?” Aenti Helga’s voice rose. “How could such casual talk cause us problems?”
“Because nobody’s going to want to hire housekeepers who chatter about what they’ve seen and heard. The Carlisles have been gut clients, and I don’t want to lose them.”
“We’re not going to lose them. You worry too much.” Her aenti folded her arms in front of her, a sign she believed she’d had the final word.
Kirsten had learned how impossible it was to get her aenti to budge when she wore that stubborn frown. Would Aenti Helga heed her warning, or would she continue with her prattle? On one hand, her aenti was right. Talking with other family members didn’t create a problem, but gossip was insidious. It popped out at the wrong times and with the wrong people.
While she lived under her aenti’s roof, she must curb her tongue. She might be Aenti Helga’s boss, but she was grateful Aenti Helga and Onkel Stanley had allowed her to come to Prince Edward Island with them. She must not forget how much she owed them. She didn’t have to see every day her parents’ disappointment in their only kind. All her parents had asked of her was to marry and have kinder, and she’d failed.
Four times.
She wanted to caution her aenti not to let hochmut get in the way of gut sense, but she had to content herself with saying, “I appreciate you listening, Aenti Helga.”
Her aenti’s smile returned as if it’d never disappeared. “Always, Kirsten. We’re partners in this, ain’t so?”
She nodded, though Ocean Breezes Cleaning was Kirsten’s company, and if it failed, it would be disastrous. She didn’t want to think about her aenti having to sell the farm Aenti Helga and Onkel Stanley had been so excited about buying.
“Kirsten? Something else is bothering you. What is it?”
“I stopped at Mark Yutzy’s house on the way home.” She stared at her clasped hands. “He’d sent me a note saying he wanted to talk to me about how we’re cleaning his house.”
“I don’t clean his house.”
“No, Janelle does.” She looked at her aenti.
Comprehension blossomed on Aenti Helga’s face before her heavy brows lowered in a scowl. “I hope you told him Janelle is doing her best.”
“I did, and I...”
A knock at the back door was followed by Theo’s steps. He called, “You’ve got a caller, Kirsten! A guy!”
“Well, well...” Her aenti’s face lit with a smile. “Isn’t that unexpected news! Or is it expected?”
“Unexpected,” she said as she went to the door. She didn’t want another man asking if she’d walk out with him. Four had already asked before dumping her.
First, Loyal Derstine had decided he didn’t want her or a plain life after he began hanging out with Englisch friends two months after she and he had started walking out together. He’d ended up leaving the Amish for a barista at the kaffi shop where he’d been spending his time and money.
She’d thought Hans Tweedt might be interested in her when he offered her a ride home from every singing for three months. He’d put her and everyone else in the rearview mirror when he got a job as an over-the-road trucker. Last she’d heard of him, he’d purchased a truck and was running shipments from Nova Scotia to Alberta.
Nolan Oatney had seen her as a matchmaker rather than someone to court. He’d used her as an excuse to spend time with her best friend, Gwendolyn. Six months later, he’d asked Gwendolyn to be his wife. That one hurt because Kirsten lost two people who’d mattered to her. She’d tried to reach out to her friend by letter, but hadn’t gotten any response.
The worst had been Eldon Wheeler. He’d been eager to walk out with her. After he’d asked her to marry him, she’d made her parents happy by accepting. Eldon had acted happy, too, but, looking back, there had been warning signs she’d missed. Small things about how he’d changed the subject whenever she brought up their lives after the wedding. Larger ones, including how he’d disappeared for days at time in the weeks leading up to their wedding. Their whole courtship had been a series of lies.
She silenced the little voice inside her head as she reached the door. She didn’t want to be reminded again—as if she could ever forget—how much a mess her life had been in Ontario.
Her eyes widened when she saw who stood on the front porch. “Mark!” she gasped before she could halt herself. “What are you doing here?”
Mark Yutzy stood at the edge of the crescent of light coming from inside the house, his straw hat in his hands. His voice was calm, but she couldn’t mistake the twinkle in his eyes when he replied, “I’ve come to apologize.”
His words shocked Kirsten.
Mark hadn’t intended that, but her wide eyes confirmed it. He didn’t want their second meeting to be as confrontational as their first.
That’s the word Daryn had used, a word that had stung more than Mark had guessed a word could. Confrontational. It wasn’t a description he liked attached to him. A plain man was supposed to hold out a hand to build a bridge, not use dynamite to create a chasm. How many times had Mark’s daed said that? Not enough, it was clear, because Mark had allowed his anxiety about the farm spill into his conversation with Kirsten.
As they stood eye to eye, he was amazed how intriguing it was to be able to look at a woman without stooping. He watched, intrigued, as she wiped her face clean of her thoughts.
His lips tipped in spite of his efforts to appear as collected as she did. What sort of game had she convinced him, without a single word, to play?
“Would you two like something to eat?” asked the older woman in the kitchen. She was Helga, the one who’d come to his house. She hadn’t said she worked for the company instead of owning it. He’d assumed, and that had been his first mistake.
Then her words sank in. “Two?” He glanced over his shoulder to see his brother standing by the picket fence.
Daryn went to the back gate, pulled it open and walked toward the house.
“I thought you were out with friends,” Mark said.
“I was.” He stopped and stared at the grass beneath his work boots. “I was walking past, and I didn’t see you until you stepped into the light from the door.”
“Uh-huh.” He could tell when Daryn was lying. The teen never met his eyes when he was spinning a tale.
“Are you coming in?” asked Helga.
“I’d like—” Daryn began before Mark could answer. Footsteps approached along the road, and Daryn’s eyes cut to a young woman ambling toward them.
As she came closer, she put up her hand to keep her kapp in place as a gust of wind rose off the bay. He recognized her as the girl who’d cleaned their house yesterday. Or at least attempted to...
“What’s going on?” the girl asked. “You didn’t tell me you were planning a party, Mamm.”
If the girl was Helga’s daughter, she was Kirsten’s cousin. If he’d known they were related to Kirsten, he might have chosen different words to get his point across. It was a wonder Kirsten hadn’t stormed out, insulted by how he belittled... What was her name? Janelle.
When Daryn stepped forward, grinning, Mark guessed his brother didn’t have to remind himself of the girl’s name. “We decided to visit you.”
Janelle smiled.
Mark glanced toward Kirsten. Her eyes narrowed as she looked from Janelle to his brother.
“Mamm,” Janelle said with a smile. “I know you’ve met Mark, but this is his brother, Daryn.”
“Are you hungry?” Helga asked again as his mamm would have. No matter how much she’d had to struggle to feed her husband and kinder, she somehow found enough for guests.
“Are those burgers I smell?” asked Daryn.
“Mamm makes the juiciest burgers.” Janelle motioned toward the dining room. “Komm, and try one.”
As the two teens walked past her, Kirsten said, “I thought you were having supper when I stopped by.”
“I told you. His stomach is a bottomless pit.” Mark stepped inside. He paused when he saw his brother pulling out a chair at the table while introducing himself to the boy sitting there.
“Nice to meet you, Theo,” Daryn was saying. “How are the burgers?”
“Mamm makes the best ones,” the younger boy replied. “Go on. Try one.”
“How about you, Mark?” Helga asked as she motioned for him to take a seat. There were two empty chairs, and he guessed Kirsten had been sitting on one.
“Danki,” he replied, “but I try to limit myself to three meals a day.”
The older woman laughed. “I’m waiting for when Theo can get by with only three. Cookies are gone as soon as they come out of the oven.” She shot a glance at Kirsten, but either Kirsten didn’t see it or chose to ignore it.
Mark saw it, though. Helga wanted Kirsten to insist he sit. No need. He had to keep an eye on Daryn who couldn’t stop staring at Janelle. Did she know he’d be leaving for Ontario early next year? Daed planned to have Daryn learn more about running the factory since Mark had made it clear he wouldn’t return if he could make a go with the farm.
Drawing in a deep breath, Helga released it. “How about something to drink? I’ve got millich or root beer. If you’d prefer kaffi, I can make—”
“Root beer?”
“Ja. I make a big batch every year. I sent a few bottles over with Janelle. Didn’t she give it to you?”
“That was yours?” Mark asked and cut his eyes toward Daryn. “It was delicious.”
Janelle said, “Mamm won’t let us watch her make it, but she promises she’ll teach me the secret recipe one of these days.”
“Have you thought about selling it, Helga?” he asked.
Helga made a soft mewing sound and hurried toward the kitchen, leaving Kirsten and her cousins with bereft expressions.
“Did I say something wrong? I didn’t—” Mark began. He was shocked into silence when Kirsten gripped his arm and tugged him away from the table. He had the bizarre thought she intended to take him out behind the shed for a thrashing. That thought was followed by the image of them alone and her stepping closer.
He dislodged both ridiculous images. He didn’t have time for a relationship, most especially with a woman like Kirsten Petersheim who’d made it more than clear she didn’t like him.
When she opened the front door and stepped onto the porch, he said, “If I said something wrong...”
“You did, but you didn’t know. I don’t want her to overhear us.” Kirsten sighed. “The truth is Aenti Helga stopped making root beer after Onkel Stanley died.”
“I’m sorry. If I’d known, I would have chosen my words with more care.”
“There’s no reason for you to apologize.”
“I’m sorry. For you losing your onkel and for what happened at my house.”
In the light flowing through the windows, he saw her brows lower in the same puzzled expression she’d worn when he came to the door. “You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“You’re being nice, Kirsten, but if Theo had spoken to you as I did at my house, you would have reminded him of his manners.”
“Most likely.”
His respect for her rose another notch. She wasn’t trying to play to his ego as other women had. He appreciated that. A lot.
“Daryn made a point of telling me I was a dummkopf,” he said. “How could you and Janelle know what I wanted when I hadn’t told you?”
“That’s true. We aren’t mind readers.”
“It would make your job a lot easier if you were.”
A faint smile tugged at her lips. “It would.”
“I meant what I said about trying your service again.”
“Danki.”
When she didn’t say anything else, he found he couldn’t tear his gaze away from her pretty face. He’d never been able to look another woman straight in the eyes. This was a fascinating experience, and it gave him the chance to notice how fine wisps of her black hair curled in front of her ears and folded over the edges of her kapp. They accented the intriguing lines of her face, which were assertive and soft at the same time. She was a woman to be reckoned with, one who lived life on her and God’s terms.
“Komm and get some root beer!” Helga’s call rang from the dining room.
A jolt of something cut through him, and he saw Kirsten wince, too. Had she been caught up in the moment too?
As she turned to answer her aenti, he wanted to shake away the connection forming between them. He couldn’t be distracted by pretty eyes when he must keep his own on his brother, so Daryn stayed out of trouble.
He’d been warned. He wouldn’t be dumm enough to be alone with her in the moonlight again...or any other time.