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  Hannah sighed. “Okay. Danki. I’m not sure I understand all that, but it was nice of you to help Jacob.” She folded her hands in her lap. “Now, about you. I’m so glad you chose to stay at our house until Ethan’s house sells.”

  Charlotte glanced at Buddy, who’d fallen asleep. “Are you sure it’s okay with your parents that I brought my dog?” She was already unsure where her relationship stood with Amos, and Buddy nipping at his legs wasn’t going to go well.

  “Of course.” Hannah nodded toward the window at the big U-Haul truck. “What’s next? Do you want me to get Isaac and some others to store your things at Ethan’s house?”

  Charlotte let out a long breath. “I, uh . . . need to talk to you about that. I contacted a real estate agent, and we got the house listed via e-mail, but she suggested that I not put a bunch of boxes and such at the house, that it will show better empty.” She bit her bottom lip. “Do you think it would be okay to store my things in your basement until the house sells and I find a place to live?”

  Hannah smiled. “Charlotte, I can see that you are exhausted, but this is one thing you shouldn’t worry about. Ya, we will get your things stored in our basement. And we will enjoy you being here for as long as you’d like.”

  “Thank you.” Charlotte felt weird. Things were moving too fast. She reminded herself that she was just as strong and capable as the next person. She wasn’t going to allow herself to slip into overload, so she redirected the conversation. “How are the wedding plans coming?”

  Hannah’s features lit up and her eyes twinkled. “Gut. Very gut. Isaac and I can’t wait.”

  Charlotte fought back more tears as she thought about Ryan. “Well, you just bask in your happiness with Isaac and don’t let this little snafu with Jacob upset you too much. If he chooses not to come back, you might have to just accept that.”

  “He’ll come back. He will miss Annie.” The corners of her lips rose. “And us.”

  Jacob stared at himself sideways in the full-length mirror in the bathroom. If he flexed his arm a certain way, he could make his tattoo move a little, which made him chuckle. It looked like the moon was tipping to one side and spilling stars. He studied his profile some more, wishing he wasn’t so skinny. His body size didn’t reflect his ability to do hard work. Sighing, he pulled on a pair of his black slacks and a blue shirt he’d brought from home, deciding to leave it untucked. And no suspenders. He wished he had some Englisch clothes, but if a hamburger and fries cost nine dollars, he figured he’d better save what he had left to secure a place to live. But so far, no word on an apartment and no return calls about jobs he’d applied for. Jacob wasn’t a liar, but he’d hesitated when filling out applications. Each one asked for the amount of schooling he’d had. The Englisch went to school until they were eighteen, then often to college. Jacob, as with all Amish kids, had only been schooled until he was fourteen. He wondered if that was why he wasn’t getting any job interviews. If he didn’t have a job in a few days, he’d have to go to a hotel, and his money wouldn’t last long unless he could find a really cheap one.

  As he made his way to the kitchen, his stomach growled.

  He took out a gallon of tea. It came ready-made from the market, and it wasn’t nearly as good as the meadow tea back home. He chugged it straight from the bottle, wishing Charlotte had sodas instead. Mamm didn’t think sodas were healthy, so she never bought any.

  He put the tea back and scanned the food that was left. Charlotte had left her groceries, and all he had to do was clean out her refrigerator and pantry before he left. Her friends would be by to pick up her couch. Mamm wouldn’t have approved of a lot of the things Charlotte kept on hand. Cheese that came in a package and powdered creamer. There were pickles in a jar, which he’d already tried, not the same as the ones Mamm made. He would need to quit comparing everything to how it was at home, and over time he was sure he’d get used to things here. But as he eyed what was left in the refrigerator, he wondered again why there weren’t any fresh fruits or vegetables. There were packages of deli meats, four jars of mayonnaise, each with only a little bit left—and he still didn’t understand why Charlotte kept her bread in the refrigerator.

  He opened the freezer. Now, this is better. He reached for the strawberry shortcake ice cream, and thankfully the container was half full. Charlotte seemed to eat a lot of ice cream before she left. He spotted some frozen french fries and some little boxes that looked like ready-to-go meals for the microwave. Ready in only a few minutes. He wondered how good a meal in a box could be. He hadn’t been brave enough to try one yet.

  Jacob found a spoon and headed toward the living room, the feel of the beige carpet tickling his bare feet. Once he got settled and said a prayer, he dug into the ice cream as the hum of the air-conditioning kept the apartment a cool seventy degrees. How he longed for a television though.

  He reached for one of the books Charlotte had left in a pile on the floor, and as he did, he dropped a huge spoonful of reddish-pink ice cream on Charlotte’s white couch.

  By the time he found a towel, wet it, and returned to the living room, the ice cream had mostly melted into a huge blob. He scrubbed and scrubbed, but with each effort, the spot got bigger. Charlotte’s white couch absorbed it like a sponge, until the dollop had turned into a messy patch of pink the size of a small kitchen plate.

  He could think of only two people who might be able to help him. His mother. And Annie. He sure couldn’t ask Charlotte what to do.

  Annie stared at her cell phone buzzing on her nightstand. Her parents had agreed to let her keep it on, but only on the vibrate mode. She considered not answering Jacob’s call, but maybe he was calling to say he’d made a terrible mistake, that he was coming home and they’d all be a family.

  “I’m in a heap of trouble,” Jacob said when she answered. Annie’s heart pounded and she brought a hand to her chest.

  “Are you okay? Have you been in an accident?”

  “I spilled red ice cream on Charlotte’s white couch. It’s bad, all mushed into the fabric. I tried to clean it, but I just made it worse! I don’t know what to do. And I can’t ask Charlotte. I think she’d be mad I let this happen. Maybe not. But I’d like to just not tell her. What should I use to get it clean?”

  Annie was too shocked to answer.

  “You still there? What should I do?”

  “Jacob . . .”

  “Ya?”

  “I’m so glad that you thought to call me about something this important.” She pressed her lips together so tightly she thought they might be stuck that way.

  “You were the first person I thought of. Well, you and Mamm.” His voice reflected his pride at having thought of her, which only fueled her anger.

  “I bet it’s a nasty stain, all that red on a white couch.” “Ach, it’s awful, Annie. I wonder what a couch like this costs.”

  “Probably thousands of dollars,” she said, smiling now.

  “Nee! Nee. What should I do?”

  Annie tapped a finger to her chin. “Hmm . . . let me think a minute.” Let’s see. You left me without notice, alone and pregnant. And yet I’m the one you casually call about cleaning a couch? “Still thinking,” she added.

  “Thank you for helping me, Annie. I thought you might be mad. It’s just . . .” He breathed heavily into the phone. “I never saw God’s plan for me. If I had, I wouldn’t have asked you to marry me. I love you. I really do.”

  Annie wilted into her bedcovers, where she’d been most of the day. She’d told her mother she was sick to her stomach, which was true, even if she hadn’t admitted knowing why. She wondered if her mother was having morning sickness too. But mostly, she hung on Jacob’s words, hoping they were a prelude to his saying he would come home. If he loved her, surely that meant more than anything else. “I love you too, Jacob.”

  “Great. So how do I get this stain out?” His chipper voice returned, and Annie was sure she was going to hurl.

  “Hmm . . .,” she said, return
ing to her original train of thought. “Here’s what you do . . .” You jerk. “Go find where Charlotte keeps her cleaning supplies, maybe under the kitchen counter.”

  “Okay. She took most everything with her in the moving truck, but I’ll go look and see what she’s got.”

  Annie could hear him rustling around. She sat up and folded her legs underneath her, suddenly feeling much better. “Did you find anything?”

  “Ya, ya. She must have forgotten this stuff or didn’t think she’d need it.”

  “Read me what she has.”

  “Uh . . . She’s got Windex, Pine-Sol, something called a Magic Eraser, 409, Pledge . . . uh, some sponges, Palmolive, and . . . a canning jar with a sticker that says Bacon Grease on it, and—”

  “That’s it. Take out the bacon grease . . . and what color is the Pine-Sol?” God, forgive me.

  “The Pine-Sol is purple. I’m going to read the instructions first.”

  “Nee, nee. Don’t do that. Just get a bowl and mix a cup of bacon grease with two tablespoons of the Pine-Sol.” Annie put a hand over her mouth for a few seconds. “And make sure it’s mixed really well. Oh, and you’ll need those Magic Eraser things too.”

  Despite the laughter that threatened to erupt, she couldn’t go through with this. It was an evil thing to do, and no matter what Jacob had done, it was no reason to ruin Charlotte’s couch. She shook her head, smiling. “Jacob, maybe that’s not—”

  “Annie, thank you so much for helping me,” he interrupted. “Charlotte told me men don’t know how to clean, and she was right. Hey, Charlotte should be there by now. Have you seen her yet? Whatever you do, don’t tell her about this. I’ll fix it, and she’ll never know. That isn’t a lie. I’m just not going to tell her. I feel like Charlotte would forgive me, but I’d rather she didn’t know about it.”

  Charlotte, Charlotte, Charlotte. Annie stiffened to the point she felt like she might break in two if she heard that woman’s name one more time. “I don’t know if Charlotte has arrived yet.” She cleared her throat. “Anyway, mix the Pine-Sol with the grease. Apply it directly to the spot on the couch, and—”

  “On her white couch? Is this some sort of miracle potion? It sounds weird.”

  Annie took a deep breath and slowly let it out, her best effort not to laugh. “Now, Jacob. You admitted you don’t know how to clean. Just pour the entire bowlful on the couch, then you’ll want to use the Magic Eraser to scrub the spot as hard as you can.”

  “Ach, that must be the miracle part—Magic Eraser.” He laughed. “Danki, Annie. You’re the best. I can’t find a bowl, but Charlotte left some paper plates and plastic cups for me to use. Will a plastic cup work?”

  “Ya. That should work mighty fine.”

  “Danki again, Annie.”

  “You’re more than welcome, Jacob.”

  She snickered as she pressed End on the cell phone.

  Six

  Charlotte was sitting on the front porch with Hannah, Buddy snoozing at her feet, when Lena and Amos came up the driveway. The familiar clip-clop of the horse hooves comforted her, but her stomach was a little fluttery as she waited to see if Amos would be welcoming or not. Please behave yourself, Buddy. She’d helped Hannah pull in the clothes from the line, fold them, and put them away accordingly. That was one thing she didn’t think would ever change. Wash day was Monday for everyone in the community, although she couldn’t recall why.

  “This is late for them to be getting home, isn’t it?” Charlotte eyed the moon peeking from behind the clouds as darkness descended.

  “Ya. Maybe they stopped to eat somewhere in town. I know they’re eager to see you, but Daed has to eat on schedule or he gets shaky.” Hannah grinned. “And cranky.”

  Charlotte was still unsure how eager Amos would be to see her. But she and Hannah had made a meal out of buttered bread, and that was perfectly okay with Charlotte. She was sure she’d never get enough of it.

  Amos tended to the horse and buggy while Lena hurried across the yard, stretching her arms out as she got closer. Charlotte ran down the steps and into the comfort of Lena’s embrace.

  “Sweet maedel, it’s so gut to see you.” Lena kissed her on the forehead, then eased away and cupped Charlotte’s cheek. “We couldn’t be happier that you’ve chosen to move here.”

  Charlotte glanced at Hannah, then back at Lena. “I’m so sorry I couldn’t convince Jacob to come home.”

  Lena’s eyes watered, but she raised her chin and said, “He just needs some time.” She leaned down and gave Buddy a quick pat on the head. “And we are happy to have your dog too.” She excused herself to go inside, and Hannah followed her with Buddy on her heels—thankfully. Buddy was sure to go nuts around Hannah’s father when they met.

  Charlotte waited on the porch for Amos. She considered meeting him with a hug but decided to follow the man’s lead as he came up the porch steps. He stopped in front of her. “Jacob is okay?”

  Charlotte corralled her disappointment at Amos’s lack of a welcome, keeping in mind they were all worried about Jacob. “Yes, he’s fine. I’m sure he’ll come to his senses soon.” She paused. “But I’m happy to be here.” It was a dumb thing to say. They all would have preferred Jacob over Charlotte.

  Amos nodded as he reached for the handle on the screen door, his dark hair and beard speckled with more gray than she remembered. He had one foot over the threshold when Charlotte called out to him. He stopped but didn’t turn around, as if waiting for her to add some brief comment so he could continue into the house.

  “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry for everything. For all the lies the last time I was here.” She’d asked herself for months why it was so important that Amos forgive her. It was their way to do so, but her need for Amos’s approval bypassed any Amish ways. She loved him, and she wanted him to love her back. Despite her recent life hiccups, deep down she believed that God the Father was still with her, but she longed to be Amos’s daughter during her time on earth.

  He slowly stepped inside the house, closing the door behind him.

  A tear slipped down Charlotte’s cheek as she listened for Buddy to start barking, which was only going to make things worse. But all was quiet.

  Daniel waited in his bedroom for Annie to get out of the upstairs bathroom. He’d already gone downstairs to see about using his parents’ bathroom, but his mother occupied it. Was this how it was going to be with two pregnant women in the house? Did pregnant women have to go a lot, or was it just a coincidence that this was the third time this had happened today?

  He headed down the hallway when he heard the pipes rumble, a familiar sound that meant the toilet had just been flushed. He met Annie in the hallway.

  “You okay?”

  “Nee. I’m never going to be okay. And I hate Jacob King.” She scurried past him with her chin in the air, slamming her bedroom door. He was exhausted with worry about his mother and Annie. But as he lay down, he thought about the way Annie spat her feelings about Jacob, and he feared harboring such hatred might cause her to start slipping from her faith. Over the years, Daniel had been more like a father to Annie. He forced himself to stand up, yawned, and headed to Annie’s room, trying to recall what it was like to be seventeen. He tapped on the door. He could see light underneath the door. He knocked again.

  “Come in.”

  Daniel sat down in the rocking chair where his father had sat earlier in the day. “You can dislike Jacob for what he’s doing, but you can’t hate him, Annie.” Although he could understand her strong emotions.

  “I can and I do.” She crossed one leg over the other beneath her blue dress. Daniel was surprised she hadn’t bathed or gotten ready for bed yet.

  Daniel shrugged. “You’re hurting yourself more than him.” He stood up, knowing Annie was in a mood he wasn’t going to be able to change. He walked to the door, glancing over his shoulder. “You need to get ready for bed.”

  “I’ll get ready when I feel like it.”

  He turned around. �
��You sound like a five-year-old.”

  She shrugged, and Daniel shook his head and went back to his own room. He’d heard the stories from others, how hormones get all out of whack when a woman is pregnant. And I’m living with two of them.

  Tuesday morning, Jacob opened his eyes, confused for a moment. He lifted himself from the blanket on the living room floor. Standing barefoot in his boxers, his arms dangling at his sides, he stared at Charlotte’s couch. At the stain—and at the letter he’d found in between the cushions of the couch. From her landlord. Charlotte wasn’t moving voluntarily.

  Annie had never betrayed his trust until last night. Why in the world did he listen to his ex-fiancée tell him to put bacon grease on a stain? He’d gotten out of that relationship because he felt called to do so. This is how she treats me for following my calling?

  Jacob went to the kitchen, yawning. He found his mobile phone and tried to call Annie. She didn’t answer until his seventh attempt.

  “Wie bischt, Jacob.”

  He took a deep breath. “Wie bischt, Annie. I bet you are feeling smug right now.”

  “Whatever do you mean?”

  Jacob almost grinned at her playful comment, despite the situation. “Charlotte’s couch is ruined. But I guess you already know that, ya?”

  She didn’t say anything, and he was tempted to hang up, but something unexpected had happened since he’d been gone. He was starting to miss Annie. A lot. Still, he didn’t want to go home, and he was pretty mad at her. But in an effort to keep his options open, he changed the subject. “I found a letter in between the couch cushions yesterday. Charlotte got thrown out of her apartment. I reckon that’s why she had to move so fast.”

  Annie grunted. “And this surprises you? Charlotte—or shall I say Mary Troyer—has lied before.”

  “She didn’t exactly lie. She said she was moving to somewhere less expensive.”

  “Well, she got her wish. She moved in with the Kings, which is free. Who knows what tales she will tell them while she’s taking advantage of their hospitality.”