The Courtship Basket (26 page)

R
ACHEL MANAGED TO KEEP HER EMOTIONS IN CHECK UNTIL
she arrived home later that evening. As she climbed the porch steps, her eyes moved to the small planter Mike and John had given her, and a pang of sadness and regret slammed into her chest. The cheerful pink Gerber daisies seemed to heckle the anguish
flooding her. When a butterfly flittered near the planter, Rachel gasped as tears prickled her eyes.

“Let's make some tea,” Emily said, touching Rachel's shoulder. “We need to talk.”

“
Ya
,” Rachel whispered, her voice caught in her throat. She was thankful her sister knew just what she needed.

As
Dat
disappeared into the barn to care for the animals, Rachel stepped into the kitchen behind
Mamm
and Emily.

“I've lost him forever,” Rachel managed to say as she flopped into a chair at the table. “I apologized to him over and over again, but he said things will never be the same between us.”

“
Ach,
no,”
Mamm
said, slipping into the chair beside her.

“What happened?” Emily sat down on Rachel's other side.

Rachel blotted her eyes with a tissue from her pocket as she shared the conversation she'd had with Mike.
Mamm
and Emily shook their heads as empathy gleamed in their eyes.

“I should've asked him who Janie was instead of assuming he was seeing another
maedel
behind my back,” Rachel said, her voice shaky. “I let my stubbornness get the best of me again.”

Mamm
pulled Rachel into a warm hug. “Don't give up on him. He just lost his
dat
, and his emotions are a jumbled mess. You can reach out to him again in a couple of weeks.”

“
Mamm
is right,” Emily chimed in. “We can send meals over to him, and we can even visit him.” She stood. “We can start cooking now.” She glanced around the kitchen. “Where's the basket?”

Rachel sniffed. “I left it at his
haus
Monday when I went to see him. I'll have to leave him a message and ask him to have John bring it to school.”

“That's a great idea,”
Mamm
said with an encouraging smile. “You can show Mike how much he and John mean to you, and he'll realize you made a mistake. Just be patient with him. I know
what it's like to go through a devastating loss, and it sometimes takes awhile before you can think clearly again.”

Rachel nodded, but deep in her soul, she doubted any number of meals could make Mike realize how much she loved and missed him.

M
IKE GLANCED AROUND THE KITCHEN AND RUBBED THE BACK
of his aching neck. “I appreciate everyone who came by today, but I'm also relieved it's over.”

Janie and Marie nodded in unison as they sat across from him at the kitchen table that evening.

“I can't believe all the food you have.” Janie pointed her fork toward her plate full of a variety of casseroles. “We should probably freeze some of it so it doesn't go bad.”

Mike finished chewing what he thought was a chicken casserole and then swallowed. The casserole tasted more like sawdust to him than chicken. “That's a
gut
idea. Before I go to bed, I'll sort through it and see what I can take to the big freezer next door.”

Mike peered down at the plate Janie had filled for him, but his appetite was still nonexistent. He glanced over at the counter, still full of casserole dishes, and his eyes locked on Rachel's basket. He got up and walked over to the basket, studying it as if seeing it for the first time.

“When did Rachel bring this over?” he asked his cousins.

A look of alarm appeared on Janie's face.

“I can't believe I forgot to tell you! I was just so distracted by everything that was happening with your
dat
. Rachel came to see you Monday when she heard he was in the hospital.”

She shook her head, her expression becoming grim. “She was so upset. She cried when I told her your father was in a coma, and
she looked as if she was trying not to cry again when she talked to John.” Her eyes were full of warmth. “I know you've been upset with Rachel, but she truly cares about you, Mike. She was devastated when we talked about your
dat
. I could tell she really cares about John, and he adores her too. He wrapped his arms around her when he found us talking in the kitchen.”

“Janie is right,” Marie chimed in. “I talked to Rachel during the visitation, and she was really upset. She hugged me when she saw me, and she immediately asked where you and John were. Did you get to talk to her? I told her you were out in your shop.”

“
Ya
, I did.” Guilt stole his breath as he picked up the basket. He recalled their painful conversation and the grief in Rachel's eyes. Had he been wrong to push her away when she reached out to him?

He lifted the basket lid and his eyes took in the Scripture verse written on the wood:
And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.

Mike closed his eyes as the Scripture verse echoed through his mind. And then something in his mind and heart seemed to click.

God had sent Rachel to Mike and John when they needed a friend. Rachel had broken down the barriers around Mike's heart and showed him what true love could mean.

Mike's chest squeezed with a further revelation—he loved Rachel, and he didn't want to lose her. He and John both needed her.

His breath came in quick bursts. “I need to go see Rachel. I have to take her the basket. Are your parents still here? Did their driver leave?”

“I think they're still here, but don't you think you should wait?” Marie asked, giving Janie a look of confusion. “It's late.”

“You shouldn't go out now,” Janie protested. “You need some sleep. Wait until the morning.”

“No, I have to go now.” He peered out the kitchen window and saw his uncle's driver's van parked out there. “Warren is still here.
I'm going to see if I can get a ride.” He started for the door with the basket and then turned back toward his cousins. “Will you stay with John?”

The sisters shared another incredulous expression before nodding in unison.

“Thanks.” Mike darted out the back door. His aunt and uncle were standing on the steps and talking to their driver. The rain had stopped and the air smelled like wet grass.

“Warren,” Mike said. “Would you please give me a ride to Bird-in-Hand?”

Warren nodded. “Sure. I can drop you off on my way to your uncle's farm. Let's go.”

Mike's pulse quickened as he climbed into the van and set the basket on his lap. He hoped Rachel would talk to him, but more than anything, he hoped she would forgive him.

R
ACHEL CLOSED THE
C
HRISTIAN NOVEL SHE
'
D BEEN READING
. She'd hoped reading would help clear her mind and ease some of the anguish that continued to swell inside of her. The book, however, didn't provide the diversion she needed, and she knew she wouldn't sleep tonight.

“Rachel!”
Dat
called from downstairs. “You have a visitor!”

Rachel turned toward the battery-operated digital clock on her nightstand and found it was nearly eight thirty.
Who would visit at this time of the night?

She slipped on her robe, pushing her waist-length dark hair over her shoulder, and hurried down the stairs as her mind raced with questions.

“I'm sorry for coming this late,” a familiar voice said. “I promise I won't keep her up long.”

“It's fine,”
Dat
said.

Rachel's heartbeat quickened when she realized the voice belonged to Mike. She clutched her robe tighter to her body as she entered the kitchen. Mike was holding her basket.

As his gaze met hers, he held out the basket.

“I wanted to bring you this,” he said. “I hadn't realized you'd left it.”

Rachel searched his eyes. The icy anger she'd seen earlier was gone and replaced with grief and exhaustion.

“
Danki
,” she said softly, her body trembling with anxiety and regret. She took the basket from him and set it on the counter. “You didn't need to bring it out here tonight. I was going to send a message home with John once he's back at school, asking that he return it to me there.”

“It's not a problem.” Mike stuffed his hands in his pocket and cleared his throat. “Could we possibly sit on the porch and talk for a few minutes?” His blue eyes pleaded with her to say yes.

Rachel turned to
Dat
, who nodded.

“
Ya
, but only for a few minutes,”
Dat
said. “You need to get to bed, Rachel.” Then he gave Mike a sympathetic expression. “You need your rest too, Mike. You look exhausted.
Gut nacht
.”

As
Dat
ambled toward his bedroom, Rachel grabbed a lantern from the mudroom and followed Mike out to the porch, where they sat next to each other on the glider. Rachel set the lantern on the floor so that it bathed the porch in a soft yellow glow.

She glanced toward the pasture and didn't see a buggy. “How did you get here?”

“
Mei onkel
's driver brought me here. He offered to wait, but I told him to give me thirty minutes.” Mike gave her a dark smile. “I took a chance that you'd talk to me.”

“Oh.” Rachel was thankful to see his smile again. She smoothed her hands over her pink robe, and when her leg brushed his, she jumped slightly.

They sat in strained silence for a few moments, and she wondered if she should say something. Instead, she listened to the cicadas and took in the stars sparkling above them. The rain clouds that had pressed down on them earlier were long gone and replaced by a gorgeous, clear sky.

“I'm sorry,” he finally said, his voice stricken. “I shouldn't have been so cold and cruel to you earlier.”

“You don't need to apologize,” she said quickly, angling her body toward him. “I was wrong. I should have asked you who—”

“Please,” Mike said, holding up a hand to shush her. “Let me finish.” He trained his eyes on the pasture. “I wasn't thinking clearly earlier. I haven't had a clear thought in days. I've just been so lost and distraught. I can't believe my
dat
is gone, and—” His voice broke.

Rachel placed her hand on his. He met her gaze with tears pooling in his eyes.

“I need you,” he whispered.

“I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere.” His wounded expression shattered her heart.

Before she could react, Mike wrapped his arms around her and pulled her to him. She closed her eyes and breathed in his scent—soap and musk combined with just a hint of the outdoors. She felt his body relax against her.

“I've wanted to hug you all week.” His voice croaked softly. “This is just what I needed.”

She closed her eyes and leaned in to him. “I feel the same way.”

He choked back a sob.

“It's okay,” she whispered, her voice wobbly. “You don't have to hold it in any longer.”

His breathing hitched, and then his body shook as he sobbed. His warm tears trickled through her hair and down her neck, leaving shivers in their wake. Her fingers traced the length of his muscular back. She cherished the comfort and intimacy of his embrace.

“I'm so sorry,” Mike finally whispered, pain creeping into his voice. “I was so hurt when you rejected me that I didn't know what to do. I was afraid to let you back into my heart.”

She raked her fingers through his thick hair, enjoying the soft texture. “You don't need to apologize.”

He released her and rubbed his eyes with the heel of his hands. “I looked at the scripture in the basket earlier, and everything made sense.”

“What do you mean?”

“When I met you, I only knew how to take care of
mei dat
and John,” he said, clasping her hand in his. “I didn't know how to accept help from others, except for my cousins. You helped me realize it's okay to accept help from people outside of my family. God puts special people in our lives for a reason, and he sent you to me and John when we needed you most.”

Rachel nodded as tears prickled her eyes. “The basket did just what I'd hoped it would do.”

“What do you mean?”

“
Mei mamm
told me
mei dat
brought her meals in that basket when they were going through a difficult time,” Rachel explained. “
Mamm
said the basket was sort of like a mediator and helped them work out their problems.
Mei dat
wrote that Scripture verse on the lid for
mei mamm
. I had hoped the basket would help us work out our problems too, and it did.”

“
Ya
, the basket did help us, but you helped me too. You taught me how to love. You reminded me that I am worthy of having someone special in my life.” He paused, and his lip trembled. “I can't imagine losing you again. I need you by my side.”

“I need you too,” she whispered, her voice quavering with emotion. “I'm so sorry for doubting you. You taught me how to trust again, and you renewed my faith in love. I need you and John just as much as you need me.”

“I want to go to youth group meetings with you. I want to get to know you better.” He trailed the tip of his finger down her cheek. “John and I need you in our lives.
Ich liebe dich
, Rachel.”

A single tear escaped her eye, and Mike wiped it away with his thumb. “I love you too,” she whispered.

Mike leaned down and gently brushed his lips across hers, and heat thrummed through her veins. She closed her eyes and savored the feeling of his lips against hers, sending her stomach into a wild swirl.

As Mike pulled Rachel to him and wrapped her into a warm hug, she rested her head on his chest and opened her heart to him. The sound of his heartbeat filled her ears. Rachel's smile deepened, and she silently thanked God for sending happiness to sit quietly on her shoulder.