The next afternoon, Emma was sitting outside in the backyard with the kids when Jay came over again. The kinner reacted to his arrival much like they had the day before. Lena and William looked pleased to see him but tried hard to act far too old to get excited. Annie and Mandy, on the other hand, rushed to him with outstretched arms. Jay got down on one knee and gently hugged each of them. And then gave Frankie a pat, too. Only after the girls went back to the tent they were making out of an old sheet did he walk to Emma’s side.
“Hi.”
“Hi, Jay. It’s nice to see you two days in a row.”
He grinned. “Ben and Mark have been teasing me, saying I’m smitten.”
“Are you?”
He winked. “Maybe.”
And just like that, her heart started beating a little bit quicker.
He took a seat next to her at the picnic table. “Do you have plans for supper?”
“Nothing too special. The girls and I were going to have soup and sandwiches.”
“Then, would you consider going out for pizza?”
“All of us?” a small voice said.
“Of course.” When he turned and saw that Annie had just walked up to them and had heard, he tapped her nose with his finger. “I couldn’t get a pepperoni pizza without Annie, could I?”
“I like pizza,” she said. “My frog does, too.”
“Everyone likes pizza. Well, except for frogs. I doubt they care for it.”
Annie frowned. “You don’t think?”
“I think he’d rather have a fly or something, dear.” While Annie stewed on that, he raised his gaze, meeting Emma’s eyes again. “So, what do you say? Will you and your girls join William and me?”
“Say yes, Mamm,” Annie coaxed.
Smiling at her daughter, she nodded. “I would like that. Danke.”
After Annie went to go tell the others, she asked, “Do you want to go right now?”
Jay and Emma looked around the yard. William was playing with Lena, Mandy was tossing a tennis ball with a happy beagle, and little Annie was now sitting at the picnic table with her frog. It was a nothing-special kind of day.
It was exactly the kind of day she’d used to take for granted.
“Do you mind if we wait a little bit?” he asked. I would like to simply sit right here.”
She pointed to the bucket with Annie’s frog in it. “You don’t mind sitting here, keeping company with a frog?”
“I would be content to sit with you all afternoon. And four kinner, and a beagle, and a frog.” He shifted, waving a hand in the air. “The kinner aren’t arguing, the sky is clear, the day is warm. I can’t think of any place I’d rather be.”
“I agree with you, Jay. Days like this are special. Too special to take for granted.”
Ten minutes later, Annie asked, “Jay, what should we name my frog?”
“How about instead of naming him, we let him go?”
She frowned. “But I don’t want to.”
“That’s your decision, but he looks kind of lonely, don’tcha think? He would probably rather be with his frog friends.”
Annie stared hard at the frog, then at the grass, then at last at Jay. Then, with a sigh, she held out her hand. “Will you help me put him back?”
“Yep.” Over her head, he caught Emma’s smile. “Don’t move, Em. I’ll be right back.”
As she watched Jay walk with Annie’s hand nestled in his, Emma thought that this was not simply a good day.
It was the best day she’d had in a very long while.
A FEW HOURS LATER, Emma was sure her girls had never been so spoiled. Jay’s pockets seemed to be filled to the brim. There was no other explanation for the bounty of food he’d ordered for the six of them.
He’d ordered not one but three pizzas. Three! Then he’d ordered Em some Stixs—Village Pizza’s famous breadsticks. And soda!
“The kinner are not going to be able to eat all of this,” she exclaimed, staring at the plain cheese pizza, the Pinecrafter, and the Veggie Delight all sitting in front of them. “I hate to see you waste your money on so much food.”
He laughed. “It’s not a waste if they enjoy it. Plus, you forget I’ve got Ben and Mark. They’ll think they’ve died and gone to heaven when they forage in the refrigerator later tonight.”
“I suspect boys are always hungry.”
“Always!” William chirped.
“See?” Jay asked. “Now, let us pray and then eat.”
Automatically, they bent their heads in silent prayer. Emma gave thanks for the bounty of food, the hands that made it, and her new relationship with Jay and his sons. After everyone raised their heads, Emma and Jay handed out paper plates and plastic utensils. And napkins! Lots and lots of napkins.
Finally, Emma took a slice of veggie pizza for herself, neatly cutting a piece with her fork and knife and savoring her first bite. “It is wonderful.”
“It is,” he said, amused.
“What are you smiling about?” She grabbed a napkin and pressed it to her lips. “Do I have pizza sauce on me?”
“Nee. I was simply thinking how cute it is that you eat a pizza with a fork and knife.”
“It’s neater that way.”
“I’m sure it is,” he agreed, just as he folded his pizza in half and took a generous bite.
She laughed. “It would serve you right if pizza sauce spilled on your shirt.”
“Since I do the laundry at my haus, I guess I’ll have to deal with my mistake.”
She laughed, enjoying the silly conversation about nothing important. Then froze.
Because right there, walking toward them from the post office, were Sanford’s parents, Rachel and Samuel. And they were staring at her with pained expressions.
Immediately, her hands began sweating.
Jay noticed her discomfort. “What’s wrong, Emma?”
She shook her head, not trusting herself to try to explain. Instead, she did what she knew was the right thing and stood up. “Hello, Rachel. Good evening, Samuel.”
A little bit of the worry eased from Rachel’s expression, though it was evident that she was uncomfortable. “Hello, Emma.”
“Grandmommi! Dawdi! Hi!” Lena said as she hopped up and ran over to them. Mandy and Annie followed.
As William watched them curiously, Jay got to his feet as well. “I’m guessing these are Sanford’s parents?” he asked Emma quietly.
“Jah.” She swallowed. “They are nice folk.”
“I’m sure they are.” He gave her a smile before introducing himself. “Hi, I’m Jay Hilty.”
Sanford’s parents had always been gracious. Right away Samuel shook hands with him and introduced Rachel. Then Jay found a way to usher the girls back to their places at the table, introduce Sanford’s parents to William, and then, to Emma’s bemusement, invite Rachel and Samuel to join them!
In the midst of all that, he’d somehow made it obvious that he was important to Emma . . . and that he would not appreciate them being distant or rude to her, especially not in front of her girls.
Though they politely declined his offer to join them for supper, Rachel and Samuel did linger. After eyeing the children all together, Rachel said awkwardly, “Emma’s mother told us that she and the girls had been spending time with another family. I’m, uh, glad to know you . . .”
“I’m pleased to know you, too.” Jay smiled. “Since we each have three kinner, we sometimes tease each other that we have too much in common not to be friends, though of course, our losses are not something we wish others would share.”
Samuel exchanged a glance with Rachel who then smiled awkwardly. “I imagine not.”
Emma noticed that Samuel was obviously waiting to help Rachel if the conversation became too much. Then, to her surprise, she realized that Jay was doing much the same thing for her. He, too, was being protective. Unable to help herself, she lifted her chin and shared a smile with him.
He squeezed her shoulder as he said, “I know this is hard, but I really would like us all to be friends. Emma has told me how much you both mean to her and the girls.”
Rachel’s lips parted slightly. “You still want to know us, Emma?”
Emma felt her throat tighten as she suddenly understood her mother-in-law’s concerns. “Of course I do, Rachel! I love you and Samuel, and the girls do, too.” When she saw that Rachel, too, was trying to hold back her tears, she added softly, “Lena, Mandy, and Annie will always be your grandchildren. They’ll also always be Sanford’s daughters. I want them to know you both. I want them to grow up hearing stories about their father. Only you two can help me do that.” Aware that a tear was now slipping down her cheek, she reached for Rachel’s hand. “I promise, you will always have a special place in our hearts. That hasn’t changed.”
“Our feelings haven’t changed, either,” Samuel said. “I think we can make this work.”
“I think so, too,” Rachel said as she clutched Emma’s hand. Then, with a sigh, she smiled. “I promise, I am happy for you both.”
Emma had never expected such words to come out of her mother-in-law’s mouth. “Thank you for saying that.”
“It’s the truth,” Samuel said. “I miss Sanford. I miss him every day. But no amount of prayer or tears is going to bring him back.”
“As hard as it is to admit it, we need to move forward,” Rachel murmured.
Samuel nodded. “Rachel and I have been talking.” Looking at his wife fondly, he said, “She and I have been married for forty years. I can’t imagine what life would have been like if one of us had lost the other. I do know that I would never have wanted my wife to spend the majority of her life alone if I had passed on to heaven thirty years ago.”
“Plus, those kinner need two parents,” Rachel said. “They are a handful.”
“Would you like to join us?” Emma asked, repeating Jay’s earlier offer.
Rachel looked at the empty seats, her eyes cloudy with what Emma recognized as a mixture of hope and hesitation. Emma had felt the same thing when she’d first brought over that meal to Jay’s farm but wound up staying several hours.
“You really wouldn’t mind?” Rachel asked.
“I would be sad if you didn’t want to join us.”
“Well, since you have so much pizza laid out, I think sharing it would be the least we could do,” Samuel said. “Someone’s eyes were a little too big, I think.”
“Come sit by William and me, Dawdi,” Lena said. “William has kittens. He can tell you all about them.”
Samuel winked at Emma. “I was just thinking that I needed to hear about some kittens. Move over, Lena, and hand me one of those paper plates, too.”
As Rachel took the chair next to Annie and reached for a slice of cheese pizza, Emma met Jay’s gaze. His eyes were filled with patience and understanding, making her realize that she wasn’t simply feeling hope; it was something far stronger.
She had just fallen in love for the second time in her life. That was surprising enough in and of itself.
What was even more miraculous was that she didn’t feel a single drop of guilt about it.