Chapter Fourteen
At a loss for words, Emma could only stare at Adam. Had she misunderstood him? He couldn’t possibly think of this outing as a date. How could a man like Adam be interested in her?
She jumped like a rabbit when he asked, “What’s in the box?”
“A quilt and some of my jam. We are donating them to the sale.”
“Is your jam as good as Grandma Yoder’s? If it is, I’ll have to buy all you have.”
Lifting out a jar, she held it up for him to see. “I am Grandma Yoder.”
He turned to look at her in surprise, then burst out laughing. “Well, Grandma, I love your gooseberry jam. Why not use your own name?”
“A jar of Emma Wadler’s jelly doesn’t sell as well as one with Grandma Yoder on the label. Tourists are funny like that. They want things that look and sound like the Amish names they’re familiar with. Since the recipe is one handed down from my mother’s mother on the Yoder side of the family, I have no qualms about using the name.” She put the sample back in the box.
“You are a good cook. You should open a café.”
She looked up sharply. Was he making fun of her? “The inn is enough work.”
Giving her a sidelong glance, he said, “I have an idea about that. Want to hear it?”
He seemed serious. She nodded. “Sure.”
Eagerly turning to face her, he said, “I could cut a door to the outside in the dining room and build some booths along the back wall to give you more seating. You already cook for the guests so why not cook for more? The town is growing. The English like to eat out. It could give you a steady income, especially in the winter. You could call it the Shoofly Pie Café. What do you think?”
Surprised, Emma mulled it over. What he said made sense. Finally she nodded. “It is a good idea. I will think on it, but you may be sorry you suggested it.”
“Why?”
“Because then you’ll have to pay for the cinnamon rolls you eat in the mornings.”
He grinned broadly and clicked his tongue to get the horse moving faster. Looking at Emma, he said, “Your mother called you a treasure and she was right. I’m glad you decided to come with me today.”
Emma discovered that she was glad, too. A tiny spark of happiness flickered in the gloom that had become her life. Settling back against the buggy seat, she breathed in the cold morning air, feeling more alive than she’d felt in years.
After a few minutes of silence, he said, “Tell me about yourself, Emma.”
“I’m boring.”
“No, you aren’t.”
“If I tell you my life story you will fall asleep and the horse will run off the road.”
“Seriously, how did you come to own the Wadler Inn?”
That she could talk about. “A cousin of my father first bought the place fifty-five years ago. He never joined the Amish church. I started working for him when I was fifteen. He treated me like the daughter he never had. When he passed away suddenly, I decided to buy the inn and run it myself.”
“Did you ever think about marrying?” Adam asked softly.
She stared at her hands as her oldest heartache returned. “Sure, but it didn’t work out that way for me. The man I planned to marry died.”
“I’m sorry.”
“It was Gotte wille.”
“If the right man came along, you could still marry. It’s not too late.”
She glanced at his handsome profile against the blue sky. Did she dare believe him?
Chapter Fifteen
Adam turned the buggy into the Yoders’ lane. They’d arrived in plenty of time to bid on the items Naomi wanted. Since the quilts wouldn’t be auctioned off until after lunch, they were free to wander the grounds and seek out other bargains.
Within an hour, Emma got the ice cream maker, but the pressure cooker went for more than she was willing to pay. He bought her a hot pretzel at midmorning as they watched the horses being sold, and was rewarded with a genuine smile. Why had he ever thought she was plain?
Everywhere around them were the sounds of voices raised in greeting and laughter. He and Emma both ran into relatives and friends. What he had at first assumed was standoffishness on her part proved to be shyness. It seemed Emma had many layers. He wanted to explore them all.
“Having a good time?” he asked as she retreated from a group of her mother’s friends.
“I am,” she admitted with a touch of surprise and that tiny smile that so intrigued him.
“I am, too.” He stood close beside her, not touching her, but wishing he could hold her hand or caress her cheek.
She said, “If you want to stay, I can go home alone and take care of the kittens. They are my responsibility and I’m sure they’re getting hungry.”
“I said I would help and I meant it.” They rounded the corner of the toolshed on the way to the buggy and came face-to-face with his father.
It took a second for Adam to find his voice. When he did, he nodded. “Guder mariye, Papa.”
He looked for any sign of softening in his father’s eyes and thought he detected it when his father’s gaze lit on Emma. They were saved from the awkward silence by the arrival of three of Adam’s cousins. David, Lydia and Susan all carried plates with hot pretzels on them.
After greeting everyone, Adam said, “I’m sorry but I must go. I have promised to take Emma home, but we will be back later. Perhaps we can meet up then?”
His cousins exchanged pointed glances, but it was David who replied, “Sure. We’ll be here all afternoon. The cattle aren’t going on sale until three o’clock.”
“Great. We’ll see you there.” As Adam walked away, he thought he heard the girls snicker behind him, but when he glanced back, they had turned away.
Emma was quieter than usual
