Sara Harris makes her home with her family of seven, which includes
her romance novelesque husband and her five children.
She holds her BA in history and is currently back in school seeking her
BSN.
An Amish settlement. An English stranger. The Blizzard of 1888. Who can
Rebekah trust when the line between the Amish and the English becomes
blurred?
A sweet and gentle love blossoms between Rebekah Stoll and her
childhood friend Joseph Graber, despite attempts by her saucy nemesis,
Katie Knepp, to sway the young man's affections her way.
When Joseph hints at the promise of forever, Rebekah is positive she
should say yes to his proposal - until a mysterious English stranger
shows up at her homestead and sets everything she thought she knew about
her world on end.
Snippet:
“I understand you wanting to keep her, Elnora,” Samuel’s patient
voice was gentle when he finally returned to the wagon. Gentle and
firm. “Especially since the Lord has yet to bless us with children
of our own.”
Elnora fixed her eyes on the baby who lay asleep in the nest of
pillowy quilts in the wagon bed. Usually, Elnora was unable to tear
her gaze from the stars in the night sky. They seemed to wink at
each other in the blackness, making her think they were simply
bright young children, playing gotcha-games in Heaven. Tonight
though, Elnora couldn’t force herself to look away from the tiny
miracle of a girl. “Gelassenheit,” she whispered. “We must trust His
divine reasons and timing.”
Samuel exhaled, swiping his gritty hands on his britches. “We
simply can’t keep her. She is not one of us.” Exhaustion weighted
his words.
“Ja Samuel, but those she belonged to are now with Our Lord.”
Elnora sucked in a breath. “Aren’t we all children of God?” Her
gentle voice wafted with the night breezes.
Samuel rubbed the bridge of his nose. The other men had returned to
their families and were already fast asleep in their wagons, evident
by several different tones of snoring. “Ah, Elnora. I love you and
your compassionate heart. I want so to make you a happy wife.” He
stifled a yawn.
“You do, Samuel.” The baby stirred and began to squeak.
Elnora’s voice was tender as she plucked the rooting babe from the
nest of blankets. “Come here, Rebekah.”
“Oh mein! You’ve given her a name?”
She smiled, rocking Rebekah to and fro.
Sarah Wagler’s shy voice came from somewhere in the near darkness.
“Elnora? Samuel? Are you awake?”
“Yes Sarah, we are.” Elnora bounced Rebekah in her arms as the
infants squeaks grew into angry coughs and sputters.
“I heard the baby fussing.”
Crimson colored Elnora’s cheeks. “I’m sorry to have woken you
Sarah–”
Waving a hand, Sarah cut her off. “Oh no, you see, the baby sounds
hungry.” The flickering firelight from the Wagler’s dying fire
illuminated her timidity. “And Elijah is only six months old. So I
thought I might feed her until…”
The worried creases melted from Elnora’s face. “Thank you for your
kind offer, Sarah. We call her Rebekah. Danke.”
Sarah accepted Rebekah and turned back to her wagon, picking her
way carefully amid the carefully stacked wares and items. “Ah, sweet
Rebekah,” she cooed. “I will share with you the story of your
namesake.”
“Wake me when you bring her back,” Elnora whispered loud enough for
Sarah to hear.
As Sarah and Rebekah retreated to the Wagler wagon, Samuel turned
back to his wife. His hazel eyes shined with the tender light of a
father. Squatting, he scooped both her hands into his.
“Elnora, would it be agreeable to you if we keep the child-”
She nodded emphatically, the straps to her covering bouncing
against her shoulders.
Samuel’s face clouded over. “Dear Wife, if we keep her safe only
until another English wagon happens by?”
With pain cramping her heart, Elnora managed a compliant smile.
“That is agreeable, Husband.” Her words hung in the air as the song
of a night bird laced the momentary silence with hope. “But what
should become of Rebekah should we not meet another English
traveler?”
Samuel’s gleaming white teeth were visible above his inky beard. He
stood and ran his thumbs along the inside of his black braces.
“Elnora, the English are moving west in droves.” He extended his
hand and helped Elnora to her feet. “The Pike is rumored to be the
most traveled route in The United States now. We will meet more
English, you’ll see.”
Unable to meet his warm and weary gaze, Elnora nodded at the
ground.
“Come Wife, let’s go to bed.”
With a heavy heart, Elnora closed her eyes. Though whether it was
to hasten sleep or hold in the tears, she couldn’t be sure.
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