Elisabeth folded her hands in her lap and stared at them.

Lyle felt guilty for giving her advice he himself found hard to follow. To think that their youngest son—“sweet Evan,” as his mother had called him when he was a child—had seemingly hardened his heart against the Old Ways.

Lyle blamed Rumschpringe as the culprit. Like playing with fire!

4

That Sunday was Mother’s Day. Ellie made a large skillet omelet for everyone at breakfast and gave Mamm a handcrafted card, Evan presented her with a card he’d purchased in town, and Dat marked the day with a large tray of her favorite pansies for her flower garden. They weren’t for making much fuss over either Mother’s Day or Father’s Day, but Dat had always led the way in doing a little something special for Mamm.

Later that morning, Ellie enjoyed attending the baptismal instruction class and then the Preaching service, where she noticed several families absent. Of course, they might have been visiting other church districts in Bird-in-Hand or Ronks, spending the day with elderly mothers.

By the time Singing rolled around that evening, Ellie couldn’t have been happier when Evan, as he often did, offered to take her there in his black open carriage. The sky was still light and the day warm as they rode to the big two-story barn a mile and a half away. Busy as Evan had been in the orchard, they’d spent little time with each other these past three days since the barbecue on Ascension Day, and she was pleased at how talkative he was.

When they arrived at the farm hosting the Singing, Evan pulled partway into the long dirt lane and halted the horse right there, the driving lines still in his hands. “Have yourself a gut evening, Ellie.”

She was startled, if not confused. “Ain’t ya comin’?”

Evan shook his head slowly. “Meeting someone.”

“Oh,” she said softly.

“I already asked Sol to give ya a ride home if you don’t go out ridin’ with someone. Figured since he lives up the road from us, he wouldn’t mind.”

“Well, what if he asks someone out, though?” She was thinking of Cousin Ruthann.

“Sol seemed fine with it, so I wouldn’t worry ’bout that.”

Leah’s younger brother had always been neighborly toward Ellie—and they’d played together as children, especially when Evan was around—so she guessed it was all right.

“Denki for not askin’ Menno,” she said, indirectly admitting he was indeed the boy she liked. When and if the time came, she preferred it be Menno’s idea to offer her a ride home.

Evan nodded and smiled. “Oh, and I’d appreciate it if ya didn’t tell Dat I didn’t stay. It would only worry him all the more,” he said as Ellie stepped down from the buggy. “I’ll be home at the usual hour.”