Hometown Cinderella: Hometown Cinderella\The Inn at Hope Springs (29 page)

Chapter Nineteen

A
dam was so happy he was humming as he climbed up to Emma’s loft. She was there before him, holding the kittens piled in her lap. “
Guder mariye,
Emma. How are the little ones?”

“The smallest one won’t eat. I think he is sick. The vet told me they would likely die. I should have listened to him and let him put them to sleep without suffering.”

Her tone was so sad it almost broke his heart. She wouldn’t even look at him. He sat down beside her. “
Nee,
do not say that. You have given them days of love and care. Do not give up now. We will take him to the vet and see if there is medicine to make him better.”

She looked at him then, her eyes empty and red-rimmed as if she’d been crying. “Some things can’t be fixed, Adam. Don’t you have work to do?”

“I thought I would help you with the kittens first.”

“I don’t need help.”

He took her chin in his hand, forcing her to look at him. “Emma, what’s wrong?”

She pulled away and replaced the kittens in the box. “Nothing is wrong. I got my hopes up and that was my fault. I’m a foolish old maid, but not so foolish that I can’t learn from my mistakes.”

Something wasn’t right. She wasn’t talking about the kittens. “It isn’t foolish to hope, Emma. I have hopes and dreams, too. I dream about finding a woman to share my life, about raising a family together and making a home filled with love and faith.”

Would she understand what he was trying to tell her?

“Good luck with that, Adam.” She scrambled to her feet, put the box under her arm and descended the ladder.

Confused and worried, he watched her leave the barn. What did he do now? Maybe he was rushing her.

Rising to his feet, he dusted the straw off his trousers. Patience was what he needed. He would show her how important she had become to him in little ways and wait for her affection to grow.

Leaving the barn, he walked through the garden gate to the inn. The morning sun gleamed off the snow on the roof and the long icicles decorating the edges. They were pretty, but they were proof that the gutters were blocked. The unusual weather was the culprit. The heavy snow followed by warmer days and freezing nights was causing the problem. When the sunshine began to melt the snow, the water that couldn’t run off could seep under the shingles and might damage the walls inside. Emma couldn’t afford any more trouble.

It was an easy fix. He knew exactly what to do. All he had to do was climb a ladder to the roof.

He would, as soon as his hands stopped shaking.

Chapter Twenty

E
mpty box in hand, Emma sighed as she walked home. In spite of all that had happened, she refused to go back into the darkness where she had lived for so long. Life held hardship and disappointment, but it held joy, too.

Like the joy of finding out the vet’s daughter was eager to take over the care of the kittens, and the sick one needed only a dose of antibiotics to make him better. Knowing they would be well taken care of lightened Emma’s heart. Yes, from now on she would look each day for the unexpected joys God granted everyone.

It would be hard, because she had believed Adam was one of those joys.

After putting her box in the barn, she walked toward the gate. When she pulled it open the first thing she saw was Adam high on a ladder against the side of the inn. He leaned out to lay something near the downspout and the ladder slipped.

Emma’s heart jumped into her throat as he clawed at the frozen shingles. Terrified that he would plummet to the ground and be killed, she raced toward him screaming, “Hang on, Adam!”

Grasping the heavy ladder, she stabilized it and leaned against it to hold it still. “I’ve got you. Come down.”

Breathless, he descended the rungs. “
Danki.
You saved me from a nasty fall.”

Her racing heartbeat slowed from its wild gallop. He was safe. “You need someone out here to keep you from breaking your neck.”

When his boots touched the snow-covered grass, he let out a sigh and smiled at her in spite of her scolding. “God put you here to keep me from harm.”

“This time. What about next time?”

“That is up to God. Are you busy? I could use your help for another fifty or sixty years.”

She gaped at him.

Stepping closer, he pulled off his gloves and cupped her face in his hands. “I wanted to take it slow, make you see how much you mean to me, but I can’t. I must tell you now that I’ve fallen in love with you, Emma Wadler.”

“Why would you settle for a woman like me?”

“You mean someone who is smart, someone with compassion and a deep faith who has beautiful eyes? A woman who is full of grace and can cook better than my grandmother? I don’t know, Emma, why would I settle for someone like that?”

“Because it will help you mend things with your father.” She waited to see his reaction.

He gave her a puzzled look. “My father and I have already mended things between us. That has nothing to do with why I love you. I want to marry you, Emma, but I will settle for courting until we know each other better. May I court you?”

Her heart tumbled over and poured out the love she had been hoarding for years. She smiled broadly at him. “Yes, Adam Troyer, you may court me.”

Before she knew what was happening, he kissed her. It was a kiss full of warmth, hope and the promise of many joys to come. As his arms encircled her, she knew it was a kiss that would mend her broken heart at last.

* * * * *

Originally Published for Harlequin.com

ISBN: 9781459221215

HOMETOWN CINDERELLA
Copyright © 2012 by Ruth
Axtell Morren

THE INN AT HOPE SPRINGS
Copyright © 2010 by Harlequin
Books S.A.

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