Five years later

Standing inside the warmth of her own home, Ariana relaxed as Quill rubbed her shoulders, easing the discomfort from her achy body. Music drifted softly through their living room, and she turned to face her husband.

He slowly leaned in and put his forehead against hers. “Would you like to get off your feet? Jasmine cream and a foot rub await.”

Ariana kissed his lips. “I’m fine right where I am, but thank you.” She rested her head on his chest, her rounded belly not yet large enough to keep her from snuggling in Quill’s arms. Often as he held her, she felt as if she were melting into him. If love were a tangible object, she was sure this home would burst at the seams. But love always served a purpose. Love felt good and gave energy, but its purpose reached far beyond that, and Ariana was fulfilled beyond her wildest imagination to be a part of all that love wanted to accomplish.

Quill oversaw all things electrical for Schlabach Home Builders, but his heart was more invested in helping women and their children who were in dangerous situations get to safety. Schlabach Home Builders and J&A Roofing, Jax’s and Abram’s business, had built a home for her and Quill, a small one with a beautiful craftsman breezeway that connected to Berta’s home. After that they’d built a few homes as temporary housing for women and their children who’d been rescued.

Ariana had bought an additional building and now had expanded Brennemans’ Perks twice since the original purchase. The café was open eight to eight, six days a week, and there was always at least one Brenneman on duty during that time. She’d trained all of her sisters and her Mamm how to be the manager on site. She currently had forty other Amish women working for her. The café was a hub of the community. People—Englisch and Amish alike—filled the place to capacity regularly. Speakers still came once a month, and a permanent small stage had been added for them and for the live entertainment, which could be a local church band, karaoke, or even a cappella singing by Plain people, all of which happened on Saturday evenings.

Lexi was sprawled on the couch, seeming to doze, and yet her tail was slowly wagging.

Ariana’s thoughts moved to her family. She and Quill visited with her Englisch family regularly—most often Brandi, Gabe, Cameron, and Nicholas. There were church traditions they kept with them, and they took turns going on trips with her mom’s family and then her dad’s. But the people she saw the most were her Amish family.

The dairy farm ran smoothly and at a good profit, so Daed and Mamm were doing really well. Salome and Emanuel still lived with Mamm and Daed, not because they had money issues or needed to save for future surgeries for Esther, but because the situation benefited both families. It freed Salome and Mamm to alternate working at the café while the other one kept things running smoothly at home. Esther had undergone a successful cosmetic surgery, which had been paid for, and the money for a second surgery, which should be the last one, was already saved.

Abram and Cilla had wed, but before they did, he’d informed the church leaders and both his family and hers that due to Cilla’s cystic fibrosis, they’d decided they wouldn’t have children of their own. The church leaders said the decision fell under the category of physical health, and they wouldn’t express an opinion, and they expected the church members to follow suit. Cilla’s family, her mom in particular, was very grateful to Abram for making that difficult decision. They had adopted two precious little ones and had hopes of adopting at least two more.

As soon as Skylar finished college, she and Jax married. They continued to do volunteer work with the poor and homeless. Skylar’s life was also immersed in teaching music—from private lessons for the underprivileged, to working with foster children and group homes, to helping Nicholas with charity events.

Susie was married, and she and Levi had a precious little boy.

Martha worked full time at the café. She seemed disinterested in getting married. Maybe she would be like Mark, who hadn’t found the one until he was in his late twenties.

The baby made several rapid moves, and Ariana moved Quill’s hand to her belly. His deep blue eyes gazed into hers, and her heart raced. Every day for five years he had let her know how grateful he was they were together. The baby seemed to ball up and shift to where Quill’s hand was. They laughed softly. “You seem to have powers to move more than just me.”

Quill grinned, and when the baby jolted, as if kicking a soccer ball, Quill startled and then laughed.

They didn’t know the gender. It didn’t matter. They were together, and this was their child. They’d held off starting their family for a lot of reasons, and now they hoped they would be blessed with three or four little ones, about two years apart. They were looking forward to the love and chaos that would fill this home, but Berta seemed even more excited than they were.

Ariana and Quill had ample time with his brothers, sisters-in-law, nieces, and nephews. She was blessed by her sisters working at the café, which allowed them to steal coffee breaks to visit. But as former Amish now living in the world, she had very limited time with many of her siblings’ children. The parents had to make that decision, and Ariana did her best not to let that hurt her. Some of her siblings seemed to have resigned themselves to their reality—the Brenneman family would forever intermingle with their Englisch family in influential ways, and regardless of how respectful and careful Ariana, Quill, Skylar, and Jax were, the ongoing effect could not be undone or ignored.

Life and love were messy, and relationships were often hard, but through the upheaval that had almost broken her, she’d figured out who she was and what she wanted. Even in the best family situations, life was about walking in love and finding one’s place.

Ariana had found hers.