Six months later
Carolyn turned the sign on the clear bakery door from Open to Closed. Another great day. She had sold out of her bread twists and wheat rolls, and she had only grape jelly fry pies left. She made a note to bake more twists, rolls, and fry pies tomorrow morning and let Mandy and Leah, her two employees—a mother and daughter—handle sales.
Several women had offered to help her run the store, but as the bakery was being repaired, Mandy and her daughter answered the ad. They weren’t put off by the low pay. “We need the work,” they said. “We’ll do anything.” Carolyn had been happy to hire them.
Normally she would tidy up the store and head home to her house behind Freemont’s. But not today. She left the back door unlocked and went to the pantry. The police had caught the vandals several months ago, and as the officer had predicted, they paid her restitution, which she promptly gave to Freemont for the community fund. Her business had thrived so well that she didn’t need the money.
“Carolyn?”
She smiled as she took the cinnamon off the shelves. Tonight’s lesson would be cinnamon rolls, at Atlee’s request. He was waiting for her by the worktable, an easy smile on his face. She could tell he’d showered, which she would have expected him to do at the end of his workday as a cabinetmaker in Barton. He’d secured his job shortly after he returned to Birch Creek—to stay. He was also building a home down the road from Freemont. He kept busy, but he always had time for their lessons.
Carolyn set the cinnamon next to the other ingredients. “Ready?”
“In a minute.” He took her hand and led her back into the pantry, where the sensor lights came back on, and closed the door.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“This.” He took her face in his hands and gently kissed her. When he pulled away, he had the biggest smile she’d ever seen.
“What was that for?” She pressed her hand against her heart, feeling it thrum beneath her fingers.
“I’ve been waiting to do that for a long time.” His grin faded. “And you’ve been very patient with me.”
“You’ve made it easy.” And he had. Lately she’d felt a kind of sizzle between them, but they had taken their friendship very slow. They’d been getting to know each other and their histories. He learned about her time in Nappanee, and she learned about May. Two months ago, he surprised her by shaving off his beard.
“I don’t want to wait anymore,” he said.
“For what?”
“Let’s get married. Right after Christmas.”
“But that’s two weeks away!”
He laughed. “Yer bruder is the bishop. I’m sure he’ll find time to marry off his schwester.”
“Humph.” But she couldn’t stop smiling. She leaned against him, sighing as he put his arms around her.
“I love you, Carolyn,” he whispered. “I never thought I’d love anyone again.”
“I love you too.” Months ago, she couldn’t imagine why she’d come back to Birch Creek. The community had been filled with painful memories. But she had let those go. She was ready to build something new—not just her bakery, but with Atlee. With love.