Jayce decided to turn the tables. “How did it go with your daughter tonight?”
Gus shrugged. “She was pleasant enough. I’m sure she was just there to see if there was any money in it for her. I thoughtonly you millennials felt that sense of entitlement, that life owes you something, but apparently my fiftysomething daughterfalls into that category too.”
“Did you give her the money my dad gave you?”
“Of course.”
Jayce huffed. “Why, if you know she was only there for that?”
Gus stood and slowly started to the bedroom. “Because, trust me, kid. I did owe it to her. I wasn’t a good father.”
Jayce wished he could see Gus’s face. There was such regret in the statement.
“Well, I wish you’d been my father.” Jayce loved his dad, but he couldn’t recall ever having a decent conversation with him,and especially not one like he was having now with this grumpy old guy.
Gus stopped, and Jayce waited for him to turn around. He didn’t. All he said was, “You’ll be okay, kid.” Then he closed thedoor to his bedroom.
Jayce ate more pie.
* * *
Evelyn was brushing Millie in the barn when she heard a buggy pulling into the driveway Saturday morning. Her brothers wereoff with their girlfriends somewhere, and her parents were in town at the lumberyard. She wasn’t in a hurry to see who itwas. Any visitors would surely notice her swollen eyes from crying all night, and she wasn’t feeling up to explanations.
“Well, we’ve kinda made a mess of things, haven’t we?”
Evelyn gasped, spun around, and locked eyes with Jayce. “What are you doing here?”
“I asked if you wanted to spend the day with me.” He stuffed his hands in the pockets of his jeans. “But you didn’t reallyanswer.” Nodding over his shoulder, he said, “Lizzie said I could take their topless spring buggy since it’s such a nice day.And her other one still smells like vanilla. I thought you might want to go for a ride.” He stared into her eyes. “If you’refeeling better.”
He took a few steps toward her, rubbed Millie’s snout, then found her eyes again. “I know why you left. And I don’t think it was because you were sick. At least, not physically.”
Evelyn hung her head before she looked back at him. “I thought it might be best to say goodbye instead of spending more timetogether.” She put a hand to her chest. “Despite my best efforts not to care too much for you, I do. And it’s a hopeless situation.”
He took his hands out of his pockets, folded them across his chest, and kicked at the dirt before he looked at her. “Yeah,I know. And I let my heart get involved too. I care about you way more than I should.” He paused. “So, hmm . . . What to do?”
“We haven’t known each other very long. I guess that’s to our advantage.” Evelyn brushed hair from her face but didn’t botherto tuck it beneath her prayer covering. She’d been out in the barn for a while and was sure she looked a mess.
He stepped closer to her and cupped her cheeks in his hands. “Evelyn Schrock, one thing I know for sure is that I want tokiss you.” His lips descended onto hers, and she quivered at the sweet tenderness. She melted into him as her emotions skiddedand swirled. Her knees trembled as he eased away. “But we do have some issues.”
She tried to smile. “Ya, we do.”
“So, do you want to go for a ride with me on this beautiful day and figure out what we’re going to do?” His eyes pleaded withher, so she nodded. “I’m not sure there is a suitable answer, but we can try to find one.”
“I’m not sure there is either. But I think if we go somewhere to talk and pray about it, Gott will help us figure things out.”
Jayce kissed her forehead. “The power of prayer.”
She smiled, genuinely this time. “Ya. I just need to leave my parents a note.”
* * *
Jayce had already talked to God, and the Lord had responded. He knew what he needed to do. In some ways it sounded like aplan that was too far out to consider. But that was how Jayce knew he hadn’t come up with the idea on his own. God was challenginghim.
He’d tossed and turned on Gus’s couch most of the night, trying to work out the best way to follow God’s lead. The Lord hadn’tgiven him all the answers, but He’d placed the thoughts in his mind, leaving room for free will.
“You look like a natural,” Evelyn said as Jayce guided the horse onto a side street around the corner from Evelyn’s house.He tried to pick up on any dual meaning. Did she want him to convert to the Amish faith?
As the sun rose above the midmorning clouds, Jayce tried to clear the fog from his brain. He wanted to explain his plan soshe would understand his intentions without feeling any pressure. He waited until they were at the park where they’d eatena picnic lunch. After tethering the horse, they walked to the picnic table and both sat on top of it.
“I’ve got to go home.” He rubbed his temples before he looked at her. Evelyn’s expression didn’t reveal a thing. Surely this news didn’t surprise her, but there was more to say. “I want to come back here, Evelyn, but I have to make sure I come back for the right reasons. I can’t just run away from the only lifestyle I’ve ever known without more thought. There’s a big world of alternate lifestyles that are different from mine. Just because I’m not happy where I am doesn’t mean that buying a farm in Montgomery, Indiana, is the right thing to do. I’m smart enough to know that.” He paused when she turned away from him. Gently, he touched her face, coaxing her eyes back to his.
“And I don’t know if a person can fall in love in less than three weeks. But I know that I care about you
