Shunned and Dangerous (An Amish Mystery) (25 page)

“I will soon have a family of my own. I must support them the best way I can. I hope you will help me do that.” Eli stepped around the back of the shop and gestured for Claire and the others to follow. What she found there made her gasp.

“Eli . . . it’s beautiful.”

“I made this for Esther. It is for her to keep blankets, or dresses, or anything else she sees fit.”

She ran her hand along the beveled edges of the handcrafted wooden trunk, the exquisite workmanship that went into the piece obvious. “I had no idea you could make things like this.”

“I would like to make more. For you to sell in the shop. Benjamin said they will bring good money for you and for me.”

It was no longer possible to hold the tears at bay. Somehow, in the blink of an eye, everything had changed. And it was all because of the people standing around her at that very moment—people who’d come into her life at a low point and given her hope for a brighter and more fulfilling future. It was almost too good to be true . . .

“Are you going to stop farming when you and Esther get married?”

“No. I will do both.”

“But what happens if you and Esther have to move in order to find land? Trunks like this would be much too big to ship.”

“I can put trunks in my buggy. Or you can pick them up and visit with Esther when you do.”

“But—”

Jakob’s breath warmed her ear as he moved his lips close. “That’s what I wanted to tell you earlier—the excuse I was using to track you down here.”

She looked up at him and smiled. “You don’t need an excuse to see me, Jakob. Not now, not ever.”

“Then I guess I’ll just tell you. Esther and Eli are staying right here in Heavenly.”

She felt the tears as they ran down her cheeks, unchecked. “Staying?” she repeated in a choked whisper. “Are you sure?”

“Yah. I am sure.”

“But how?” She turned her attention toward a smiling Eli. “I didn’t know there was any land around here for you to farm.”

“I will farm Harley’s old land and make it my own.”

She opened her mouth to speak but closed it as Jakob draped an arm across her shoulders and whispered a kiss across her temple. “So if your shop can get a second chance, maybe you can get yours, too?”