The Firefighter Daddy (17 page)

“I'm not afraid to love. I'm afraid of losing love.”

She took both his hands in hers. “So am I. We've both gone through it under different circumstances, but that should also make us realize how precious love is and want to hold on to it even more.”

“From the beginning I've known you would be a great mother. Then when I heard the pain in your voice when you were talking about how close you came to being a mother and it was snatched away, I knew I couldn't stand in your way of having that.”

“But you are. I believe we were brought together for a reason. You just happened to find my dog. I just happened to find your poster on the pole where I usually don't go. I'm meant to be a mother to Madison and Katie. I
want
to be. I love them. I've discovered how much, taking care of them while you were in the hospital.” She squeezed his hands gently. “
You
are the man I love and want to spend the rest of my life with.”

“But what if—”

She covered his mouth with her fingers. “Do you love me?”

“Yes.”

“Then there are no what-ifs. Life is a risk, but the Lord tells us not to spend our time worrying about the future. A waste of time because we don't know what the future will be. He wants us to give our worry to Him. He'll take care of it. That's how I want to live.”

He lifted her hand and kissed it. “I may need some help with that.”

“We'll help each other.”

Liam wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against him, settling his mouth on hers. “I love you, Sarah. It should be an interesting journey with you.”

Epilogue

New Year's Eve

I
n a cream-colored gown, Sarah held Katie's hand and walked down the center aisle at Buffalo Community Church toward Liam with Madison in pink taffeta standing next to him. At the altar, Katie, in a similar dress as her sister but purple, stood on her tiptoes and kissed Sarah's cheek then took her place next to Sarah.

Their wedding was a little unusual, but they had wanted to get married with the girls standing up for them. It had started out small, but Mom, Betty and Nana had turned it into a huge production with most of the members of the church in attendance, all the firefighters and other friends and family, even some of Liam's from Dallas.

When Pastor Collins announced to the large audience that they were husband and wife, Liam took Sarah into his arms and kissed her as though he'd claimed her forever. From the beginning she'd given her heart to Liam and hadn't regretted it one moment. Already she felt as though she were part of his family.

After taking Katie's hand, Liam clasped Sarah's, and she held Madison's. Together, as a family, the four made their way down the aisle while the guests clapped. Out in the lobby, the guests engulfed them in well wishes as the doors to the reception hall were opened.

As Sarah moved into the cavernous room, memories of that June night after the bachelor auction overwhelmed her. Now her dream had come full circle. She'd gained a husband and two adorable daughters.

“I love the idea we're starting a brand-new year as husband and wife,” Liam whispered as they made their way toward the table where the four-tier wedding cake sat, decorated in white frosting with pink and purple flowers.

“Mom and Nana outdid themselves with that.”

“Madison and Katie are both going to be master chefs between me and your mom and Nana.”

“On holidays we might have too many cooks in the kitchen.”

At the table Liam faced her, his golden-brown eyes twinkling. “And you'll be outside in the garden with our pets.”

She touched Liam's cheek. “You're always welcome to join me.”

He dipped his head toward hers, about to kiss her, when Aunt Betty presented them with a silver knife to cut the cake. “Okay, you two, there's plenty of time for that on your honeymoon. You've got some hungry guests.”

Sarah laughed. “Look who's most eager?”

Beaming, Madison and Katie stood next to the table with their plates in their hands.

“And right behind them is Nana.” Liam stepped toward the cake with the silver knife.

Sarah covered his hand on the hilt. “Our first task together as a married couple.”

“But not our last.”

They pressed the blade into the wedding cake, cutting the first piece. A round of applause from the guests echoed through the reception hall.

Liam captured her gaze. “I guess I'll be drummed out of the Single Dads' Club now, but that's okay. I have what I want the most.”

Then he kissed her.

* * * * *

Keep reading for an excerpt from
ELIJAH AND THE WIDOW
by Rebecca Kertz.

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Dear Reader,

This book is the start of a new series about single dads and the support group that they attend. Support groups are a wonderful way to help people cope with difficult or unfamiliar situations.

At times, we have all needed support. And we often turn to God, family and friends. But what if those people we usually seek support from haven't gone what we're going through? That's why support groups can be so important. The Lord wants us to band together to help each other. Going through a problem without support can sometimes overwhelm a person. Many communities and churches have created support groups for this very reason. If there isn't one where you live, why not start one? You might be surprised how many others are going through the same thing.

I love hearing from readers. You can contact me at
[email protected]
or at P.O. Box 2074, Tulsa, OK 74101. You can also learn more about my books at
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Elijah and the Widow

by Rebecca Kertz

Chapter One

Happiness, Lancaster
County,
Pennsylvania
Spring

T
he winter had been fierce with heavy snowstorms and time spent huddled near the woodstoves in the gathering room and in the kitchen. Elijah Lapp was glad to see the bitter cold weather end. He stood on the edge of the family farm, lifted his face toward the sun and closed his eyes. He inhaled deeply and smiled. The warm breeze felt good against his skin, and he enjoyed the scents of spring blossoms and freshly tilled dirt, a clear reminder of nature's rebirth.

The sound of distant male voices had him opening his eyes.
Dat
and his younger brothers headed in his direction. His father
handled the reins to the four big chestnut Belgians that pulled the plow while Isaac walked alongside the horses, ready to help maneuver them as they reached the end of the field. Daniel and Joseph, the youngest, trailed behind. He heard laughter as Daniel jostled Joseph teasingly.
Dat
scolded the two boys, and they grinned at each other as they returned to work.

Eli chuckled and shook his head. He remembered when Jacob and he were learning farmwork. They had walked with
Dat
and listened as their
father had explained how to get the most from the soil. He smiled as he recalled how excited he'd been when
Dat
had given him the leathers for the first time. To be allowed to operate the farm equipment had made him feel like a man.

He watched as
Dat
steered the plow to the end of a field before Isaac grabbed hold of the gear to lead the horses in the opposite direction. He should be working with them today, but Noah had asked for assistance with his furniture business, and
Dat
said Eli could go because he had enough help for the day's planned work.

His father acknowledged him with a nod when he saw him. Eli waved as Samuel Lapp slowed the horses to within a few yards of where he stood. The large draft horses halted on command, and
Dat
turned to him with a smile.

“
Dat
, I'll be leaving now. Are you sure you don't need me to stay?”

Samuel took off his straw hat and wiped his brow with his shirtsleeve. “
Ja
, but I'll need your help tomorrow.”

“I wouldn't go today, but Noah is eager to catch up with his work orders.”

His father settled his hat back onto his head. “You're becoming skilled as a cabinetmaker in your own right,” he said, sounding pleased.

Eli smiled. He enjoyed working with his hands, and he was thankful that his brother had given him the opportunity to craft a few wooden chairs and a number of tables. “The only things I'll be making for him today are deliveries.”

Noah and his wife, Rachel, had recently welcomed a baby girl—Katherine, named after his mother, the baby's grandmother. Little Katy was the joy of her parents' lives. Since her miscarriage two years ago, his sister-in-law had feared that she'd never be able to carry a child to full term. But everything had gone smoothly with Katy's birth. A proud father, his brother Noah hoped to finish his deliveries early so that he could spend time with Rachel and their infant daughter.

“Ever think of joining Noah as a cabinetmaker?”
Dat
asked.

“
Nay.
I want a business of my own.” Eli had been saving most of what he'd been allowed to keep from his earnings since he was eleven. Soon he'd have enough money to finance his own carriage shop. He'd known what he wanted to do ever since he'd been given an old courting buggy that shopkeeper Bob Whittier discovered in an outbuilding on his new property. Eli took work wherever he could, whether it was helping in the furniture shop or working on a construction crew for the company who occasionally employed his eldest brother, Jedidiah.

“I want to make and fix buggies and wagons.” Lapp's Buggy Shop
was his dream, and Eli wasn't about to give it up.

“Opening a business is not easy,
soohn
. You should consider working with Noah,”
Dat
said. “Now that he has a family, your
bruder
may want to take on a partner. There will come a day when you will want to settle down.”

“Someday,” Eli said. But not now. There was no one special in his life. While he enjoyed the company of several girls at singings and church gatherings, he hadn't found the one he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. And until he had a successful business, which he hoped would be sooner rather than later, he wasn't going to get serious with any girl. “I should go. Noah will be wondering why I'm late, and Jacob asked me to stop by on my way.” He started toward the barnyard, then halted and turned when his father spoke.

“Think about what I said.” Samuel rubbed his whiskered chin.

“I will.” He would think about partnering with Noah because his father had asked him to, but he doubted he'd change his mind. “I'll see you later,
Dat
.”

With a nod, his father returned to his plow, and Eli climbed into the family's open market wagon and headed toward his brother's house, a small cottage on the edge of Horseshoe Joe's property. He slowed his vehicle as he approached Jacob's driveway. He wondered why his twin had asked him to come. Joe Zook, Jacob's mentor, had invited Jacob into his blacksmith business two years ago after Jacob had stepped in to run Zook's Blacksmithy while Joe recuperated from a serious leg injury. Since then he'd married the woman he'd always loved, Joe's daughter Annie. His brother was blessed, and Eli was happy for him.

Jacob exited the house as Eli parked the buggy close to his brother's cottage. “Jacob!
Hallo!
” He climbed out of his vehicle.

“Right on time.” His brother smiled as he approached. “I appreciate you stopping. Annie wants to visit Martha King with EJ. I have to work at the shop. I don't want her out and about alone. I thought you could bring her since you're headed that way.”

Martha's farm was located between their house and Noah's home and business. “I'd be happy to take her.” He understood Jacob's concern. In the last trimester of her pregnancy, Annie was carrying their second child. EJ, Eli's namesake and Jacob and Annie's firstborn, was a toddler, and Eli realized that his brother didn't want his pregnant wife driving their buggy while trying to manage their extremely active twelve-month-old son. “Do you need me to bring her home?”

“
Nay.
She'll only be there a few hours. I should be able to slip away after I finish up with Amos's mare and William Mast's gelding. If I can't get away, I'll send Peter to bring her home.”

Annie came out of the house, holding her young son's hand. “Eli! I'm surprised to see you here. Anything wrong?”

“Nay.”
Jacob spoke up before Eli could answer. “Eli came to drive you to Martha's.”

She scowled at her husband, but her loving look said that his concern pleased her. “Jacob, you worry too much.”

Jacob regarded her with warmth. “You're my wife. I'll always be concerned about you.”

She heaved a sigh. “If you insist, I'll go with your
bruder
.” She addressed Eli. “Would you mind holding your nephew while I fetch a plate of brownies?”

“With pleasure.” Eli beamed as he lifted the little boy into his arms. “
Hallo
there, Elijah John.” He bounced the child until EJ gurgled with laughter. He recalled how pleased he'd been when Annie and Jacob had chosen to name their firstborn son after him. The fact that EJ had his coloring, blond hair and blue eyes, gave him cause to frequently tease his brother and sister-in-law. While he and Jacob were twin brothers, they looked nothing alike. They were fraternal twins. Jacob's hair was as dark as his was golden. His brother had brown eyes while his were blue. Of course, EJ's coloring might have been inherited from his fair-haired, blue-eyed mother and not his uncle. But it wouldn't be any fun if he couldn't tease his brother. “He's growing so fast.”

“
Ja
, soon he'll be as big as you,” Jacob joked, and Eli laughed.

Annie returned seconds later with the wrapped brownies. Jacob took the plate from her and set it in the back of the vehicle. He helped her up onto the bench seat of the wagon while Eli carried EJ around to the other side. He set his nephew in the middle of the seat beside Annie. He then slid in next to the boy and picked up the leathers.

“Be careful,” Jacob warned.

Annie shot him an irritated look. “He's only driving us down the road, Jacob. I could have walked.”

Eli looked at her. “With EJ?” It would have been too far for her to walk with EJ.

Jacob eyed his wife with patience. “I want you to be safe,” he said, his expression tender.

“I know you do.” Annie blinked rapidly as if fighting tears. “You will come for me later?”

“Ja.”
Jacob leaned closer to her through the open window. “If I can't get away, I'll send Peter,” he told her, referring to Annie's younger sibling. He eyed Eli from across the vehicle.
“Danki, bruder.”

“You're
willkomm
,
Jacob.
”
Eli waited as Jacob straightened before he flicked the leathers and drove off. Annie was quiet beside him as they left, but his nephew babbled incessantly in what sounded like baby Pennsylvania
Deitsch
, the language spoken within the Amish household. He shot them a glance as he steered his family's mare toward the King farm. As if sensing his attention, his sister-in-law turned from the window and met his gaze. She smiled, and he grinned back, his right hand reaching out to lightly ruffle EJ's hair while he returned his gaze to the increasingly busy road.

* * *

Martha Schrock King had opened the house windows to allow the warm spring breeze to filter in and freshen up the stale indoor air. She stood at her bedroom window, enjoying the light gust that caressed her face and rustled her clothing as she studied the yard below.

Spring had made her mark. The lawn was lush and green; the leaves on the trees were beginning to sprout light green while others showed the promise of rebirth in the tiny reddish-brown buds at the end of each tree branch.

She'd been alone in the house these past few weeks, and she was managing. There were memories of her husband in every room. She could almost hear his voice calling to her as he entered the house from outside. She and Ike had been married more than a year when he'd suffered a fatal heart attack while shoveling snow during an early heavy November snowstorm. During the winter months that followed, she'd had to come to grips with living the rest of her life alone. She would never know the joy of growing old with her husband nor experience the wonder of holding their baby son or daughter. But Ike's death was
Gottes wille
and she prayed to the Lord daily for the strength to accept it.

Martha shifted her attention toward her farm fields. It was the season when families gathered to work up the soil and plant seed. Soon she'd have to find someone to help with the planting. She could appeal to the community, but the farm was hers, and eventually she would have to find a way to manage on her own. If she didn't, she might have to sell the property and go home to Indiana.

Thoughts of Indiana made her think briefly of her former betrothed, John Miller. She had cared for him deeply and she'd thought he'd felt the same. But then John had chosen to leave the Amish way of life—and her. She had joined the church and would have been shunned if she'd gone with him.
Not that he'd ever asked me.
The knowledge still made her feel a little pang whenever she recalled the day he'd told her that he was leaving.

Martha straightened her spine. She must accept that her life hadn't gone the way she'd envisioned. She had loved and lost two men—John and her husband, Ike. She sighed. There was no use questioning God's plan. She would find the strength to rise above the challenge to become self-sufficient. Fortunately, Ike had left her enough money to last for several months, perhaps even a year if she was careful. But she needed to discover a way to earn income before there was nothing left to buy supplies, care for the animals and maintain the house.

As she turned from the window, she caught a flicker of movement out of the corner of her eye. She groaned as she saw her first challenge. Two sheep had escaped from the pasture and were munching contently on the side lawn. Then she watched as her best dairy cow widened the fence opening as it followed the sheep.

Martha hurried downstairs. If she didn't put them back where they belonged, the animals might wander into the road. As she raced outside, she made a quick decision to corral the sheep first. She eased toward the closest one, and when the animal bolted out of reach, she ran after it. Her attempts to corner her livestock became an unwelcome game of cat and mouse between her and the sheep as she raced about the yard in hot pursuit.

The animal stopped several feet away. Martha paused to catch her breath, hoping that if she remained still for a few minutes, the sheep would become too busy eating to notice when she approached. She bent over and rested her hands on her knees, peering at them in watchful anticipation. Straightening slowly, she took a small step toward it and then stopped. When the animal didn't move, Martha eased closer, then froze when the sheep suddenly looked up from his food, gave her an evil look and took off. She spun toward the other lamb that stood within range, but it baaed loudly at her and scuttled away.

Determined, she gave chase, zigzagging back and forth in an attempt to block one and then the other's escape. The sheep ran toward her Holstein, and Martha shrieked in frustration as the cow mooed and shifted into a loping run. She found herself running after three animals instead of two. She became dismayed when she heard bleating and noted the escape of a fourth animal—Millicent, her temperamental milk goat.