Amish Sweethearts
© 2016 by Leslie Gould
Published by Bethany House Publishers
11400 Hampshire Avenue South
Bloomington, Minnesota 55438
Bethany House Publishers is a division of
Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Michigan
Ebook edition created 2016
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—for example, electronic, photocopy, recording—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
ISBN 978-1-4412-6932-4
Scripture quotations are from the King James Version of the Bible.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, incidents, and dialogues are products of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Cover design by John Hamilton Design
Author represented by MacGregor Literary, Inc.
For our friends Col. John J. McGraw, retired, and Ann McGraw, two extraordinary people who serve so many,
including me and mine.
CONTENTS
Copyright Page
Dedication
Prologue
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Books by Leslie Gould
Back Ads
Back Cover
PROLOGUE
May 2010
L
ila Lehman yanked the chickweed from between the rows of beans as her thoughts drifted to Zane Beck, once again. Against her will. If only she thought about Reuben Byler half as much as she did Zane. Tossing the weeds into the pile on the grass, she tucked her dress around her knees and sank down into the furrowed soil.
Reuben was going to pick her up in an hour to go for a drive in his new courting buggy. Why was she thinking about Zane?
Her
Dat
, her grandparents, and Reuben’s father—who just happened to be the bishop—all thought she and Reuben were a good match. And they were right.
Reuben was kind and helpful, with a caring heart. He’d be good to her and any children they might have. She couldn’t make her family any happier—especially her father—than by marrying Reuben.
But instead of thinking about him, she couldn’t keep her thoughts from Zane. Or from all they’d shared over the last
nearly six years. She thought of the books they’d read together. The world events he’d talked about. The poetry they’d memorized. He’d won her heart with his enthusiasm. He embraced her Amish community, even when he didn’t truly belong. He questioned everything and never stopped talking—about what interested him, about Lila and her family, about his parents and brother, about his studies, his teachers, the universe. He’d made her world so much bigger.
What would she have thought about if she’d never known him? The latest gossip? Recipes? Housework? Certainly not global concerns, history, and literature. Her life would be so empty.
The first time she’d seen Zane, standing at the field gate, she’d found him fascinating. The way he stood—as if he belonged when he obviously didn’t. The way he flicked his bangs away from his face. The way he carried himself—like a grown-up even though he was still a boy.
She had no idea, all those years ago, how much it would hurt to watch him grow into a man. To see him change in such appealing ways. To have him share with her and want to hear her opinions. To value what she had to say, even though she only had an eighth-grade education. Sure, Zane could be intense, and there were times when he acted too sure of himself. He’d say he was decisive—but she sensed he was often confused and unsure. That was where Reuben was much more dependable—but then again, he was also four years older than Zane. True, Reuben had gone through an awkward phase, but he’d always been sure of what he wanted.
The warmth of the soil radiated up from the ground. She gazed toward the sun, shielding her eyes with her hand and began to quote Wordsworth.
“What though the radiance which was once so bright
Be now for ever taken from my sight. . . .”
A rustling stopped her. Probably her younger brother, Simon, sneaking up on her again. Or maybe her twin, Daniel. Mortified, she stumbled to her feet, brushed her hands against her apron, and straightened her
Kapp
. No one was in front of her. She spun around.
Zane stood at the gate, his honey-blond hair pushed back on his forehead. He wore jeans and a white T-shirt, the sleeves tight against his biceps. Lila kept her expression blank, trying not to let on how much she’d missed him. Or how her heart raced.
He grinned and started quoting the poem from where she’d stopped.
“Though nothing can bring back the hour
Of splendour in the grass, of glory in the flower. . . .”
The words hung between them, in the stillness of the warm spring day. The breeze stirred up the earthy scent of the soil. A honeybee buzzed among the squash blossoms.
For a moment Lila considered leaving the garden, taking Zane’s hand, and leading him to their childhood fort. Beside the creek, in the shade of the poplar trees, they could step back in time. She could almost feel the mud between her toes.
She exhaled. Meeting together at the fort was no longer a possibility. Everything had changed in the last year. She and Zane hadn’t talked at all since February, since her sister Trudy’s sixth birthday party. He’d gone on and on about his college plans—someplace in Michigan. At first Lila didn’t understand. For the longest time he hadn’t wanted to talk about the future at all. He’d said he never wanted things to change. He wanted to keep living on Juneberry Lane forever. So she was annoyed with Zane for talking about college at all and then bragging about going, but as he continued she was devastated by the fact that he really would leave. Her best friend would soon be gone—forever.
Zane opened the gate and grinned again. “I have great news.”
She tilted her head.
“I wanted to tell you first. I found out I got a scholarship, nearly a full ride. It was announced at our debate today.”
He really was leaving. Lila struggled to speak and finally asked, “What did you debate?”
“The Iraq War.”
“For or against?”
“For,” he answered.
She couldn’t even force herself to smile. “But you’re a pacifist.” At least that’s what he’d been saying for the last four years, much to his father’s chagrin.
His expression hardened. “Maybe I’m not.” What had changed in him in the last few months? He used to think it took courage to be a pacifist, to take a stand against war. Had he flip-flopped on his principles?
At least he was going to college—and not into the military right out of high school, as his father had. At least he was committing to something.
Zane stepped closer. “I’ve been thinking about a lot of things. . . . I think I was too quick to judge before. Especially about the Army.”
Lila gasped. “It would kill your mother if you signed up.”
He shook his head. “Who said anything about signing up?” He frowned. “But I’m not a coward.”
“Really?” Her heart ached. What had happened to her friend?
Zane crossed his arms. He knew Lila wasn’t implying he was a coward if he didn’t join the Army. He knew, in fact, she’d think him a coward if he did. But he also knew she believed he lacked courage because he’d stopped being her friend, without saying a word to her. After Trudy’s party, when he’d been a
jerk by going on and on about college in front of her and her whole family, he’d stopped sharing his lessons with her. He stopped wandering over to say hello. He stopped going down to their fort.
Zane had boasted about college that day because it had hurt to see her with Reuben. It made his heart ache to watch her serving him cake and coffee and then clearing his plate and cup. It had physically pained him to witness the way Reuben looked at her.
So Zane had started talking—and then couldn’t seem to stop. He wasn’t even looking forward to going to college, but he wanted to have something in his future to focus on. He was so embarrassed by his drivel that he’d avoided her after that though, thinking the time apart might help him feel more settled. Until today. He’d worked up enough courage to share his good news—and his new idea.
All he wanted was for her to listen. To understand.
“I need to go,” Lila said.
“Wait.” Zane swallowed. “Please.”
He’d had an argument with his dad the night before. Maybe it would devastate his mom if he joined the Army, but it certainly wouldn’t hurt his father. He’d challenged Zane, telling him he shouldn’t go to college if he didn’t know why he was going. “
You need to commit to something
,” he’d said. “
Something you can make a living at. I knew at eighteen the military was right for me. Don’t go to college unless you’re sure.”
When Zane joked that maybe he’d sign up, his dad told him not to bother, that he wasn’t soldier material. His dad would know. He’d been in the Army full-time, and then once he was medically retired he’d started working for the Veterans Affairs in Lancaster. He knew soldiers and was right in saying Zane wouldn’t make a good one.
But his words left Zane unsure about everything. About going
to Michigan. About what to study. About what he wanted to do to make a living. He couldn’t seem to come to a decision and stick with it. He thought the scholarship would make a difference, but now standing in front of Lila, faced with losing her, it didn’t. Not at all.