“Nay,” Jacob said with a genuine smile. “I’ll have a cup of the ham and bean.”
Charlie ladled the soup into a large tureen and placed it in the center of the table. She held out her hand for Nate’s bowl. His gaze locked on her as he gave it to her. The intensity of his look made her face heat. She hoped he’d believe it was from the hot soup rather than from her reaction to him. She set a filled bowl carefully before him then reached to fill a cup for Jacob. “Would you like bread, Jake?” she asked. “If your stomach is upset, it may help.”
He looked surprised but nodded. Charlie passed him the bread plate and butter dish. Jacob reached for a slice and buttered it.
“Don’t I get bread, too?” Nate teased.
She felt suddenly flustered until she realized that he was giving her a hard time simply because he could. A little imp inside made her cheeky. “Ja. Jacob, pass your bruder the bread plate, please.”
Nate continued to watch her. Her stomach reacted when he gave her a slow smile. She looked away, filled her soup bowl then sat down across from Nate.
The men expressed appreciation for her cooking, and Charlie felt inordinately pleased by their praise. She ate her soup slowly, not wanting to rush and spill it. The brothers discussed the farmwork to be done once the rain stopped.
“I need to fix the leak in our storage building roof,” Nate said.
“Can’t you just bale it into rolls and cover them in plastic to leave outside?” Charlie asked. Many Amish farmers within her community stored hay that way.
Surprisingly, it was Jacob who looked at her as if she were an oddity.
Nate calmly explained why they chose to bale the hay into blocks instead. They would lay plastic over the top of the stack to protect them from the weather until they could move the hay inside. “’Tis easier to store. Hay wrapped too long in plastic can ferment. Feeding fermented hay to our animals can make them tipsy. Dat doesn’t like to use fermented hay.”
“My vadder has used rolled hay bales.” She paused. “I have seen tipsy cows on occasion.”
Nate regarded her patiently. “Many use rolled bales successfully, but my vadder isn’t one of them.”
The men finished eating. Charlie ate the last of her soup then stood to clear the table. Nate rose and helped Jacob into the other room. He returned within moments as she stacked dirty dishes on the counter near the sink. “You have plenty of soup left for another meal,” she said as she ran hot water into a dish basin. When he didn’t comment, she faced him. “Is something wrong?” She sighed with disappointment. “The soup didn’t taste gut.” Dismayed, she began to wash dishes.
“It was delicious,” he assured her as he approached. To her shock, he pulled out a dish towel and started to dry the dishes.
“I’m glad you liked it.” She grew silent. “You don’t have to dry dishes.”
“I want to. Like you, I don’t mind helping others.”
She didn’t know how to respond. Was he mocking her? “Is that a subtle reminder of what I’ve done wrong?”
“Nay.” He continued to work in silence.
She was conscious of him working beside her, the way his big hands handled the bowl carefully as he ran the towel over its surface. As he dried each one, Nate stacked them on the countertop near the cabinet where they’d be put away.
She needed to leave, she thought. Being this close to Nate made her uneasy.
“Now that you’re here, I’ll leave once I’m done here.”
She felt him tense up. “Will you come back tomorrow?”
“You want me to?” she asked with surprise.
“I need someone to stay with Jacob,” he said without warmth. “Tomorrow I’ll be working with Jed.”
Charlie closed her eyes briefly. When she opened them, it was to find Nate staring at her strangely with dish in hand. “I’ll send one of my sisters if I can’t make it. Either way, Mam needs to know.”
“That’s fine. But make sure she understands that no one else can know. My dat has waited a long time for this trip. If anyone accidentally lets the news slip when he calls to leave a message, he’ll insist on coming home.”
After the leftover food was put away and the kitchen cleaned, Charlie reached for her coat by the back door. “I’m heading out,” she said.
“Danki.” The intent focus of his blue eyes gave her goose bumps.
She lifted her coat only to feel it taken from her hands. Nate held it open for her so she could slide an arm into each sleeve. Then, to her shock, she felt his hands briefly settle on her shoulders before she’d pulled the garment closed. Pulse racing, she avoided his gaze. “Tell Jake I hope he feels better.”
“I will.” There was an odd huskiness to Nate’s voice that she’d never heard before. He eyed her with an expression that made the back of her neck tingle as she met his gaze.
She cleared her throat. “I’ll make sure someone is here for him tomorrow morning.”
“Fine.” He accompanied her to the door.
“What time?”
“Eight? Jed will be here at eight thirty.”
She nodded. “Someone will be here before then.”
“Be careful,” he said, seemingly unmoved by the knowledge that she wouldn’t be the one coming. “The roads can be slippery when wet.”
Charlie didn’t respond, although she could have argued that she’d driven in the rain hundreds of times without any problems. She donned her traveling bonnet before she dashed outside. She sensed that Nate was behind her. She spun to face him. “Nay, go back inside! You’ll get wet again.”
She didn’t wait to see if he listened. She climbed inside her vehicle, picked up the leathers, then left without another look. Her thoughts were in turmoil as she steered the horse toward home. She’d ask Ellie if she could stay with Jacob. If Ellie wasn’t available, she’d ask Meg or Nell.
Tomorrow she’d speak with the bishop about becoming teacher. She couldn’t avoid it any longer. It was time to get her life in order. Her sudden desire wasn’t because the thought of seeing Nate so soon again thoroughly unnerved her.
Or was it?
Charlie released a sharp breath, all too aware of Nate’s negative view of her. She’d prove that she was the perfect woman for the teaching job, and that her students would benefit from her instruction. Not that it really mattered what Nate thought, unless it affected or hurt her chances in getting the position.
Nate glanced at the time and grew worried. Where is she? He had to leave shortly and Charlie promised that she or her sister would be here by now. Had he been wrong to trust her to keep her word? He recalled everything she’d done for Jacob and knew that there must be a good reason no one had arrived.
He entered the great room, where Jacob sat in a chair with his injured foot propped up on a stool. “Charlie isn’t here yet,” he told his brother. “Will you be oll recht until she arrives?”
Jacob glanced up from his book. “Charlie’s late?” he asked with concern.
“Ja. But it might not be Charlie who’s staying with you today. She said that one of her sisters might come in her place.”
Alarm