The Second Christmas

Description

The warmth of the Christmas season and a woman’s return home to the charming Amish community of Promise Glen opens the door to a second chance at love.When Leah Beiler pictured returning to Promise Glen, she imagined taking everything she learned from her aunt’s business in Upstate New York and starting up a quaint herbal tea shop of her own. What she didn’t expect was for Josiah Burkhalter to insist on helping her. Josiah might have been her childhood sweetheart but they’ve both changed a lot since then and Leah’s not sure she can trust the man who once broke her heart.
 
Josiah is determined to make the most of this unexpected second chance. When he hears of Leah’s plans to open her own shop, he resolves to help in any way he can—beginning his gentle campaign to win her back by renovating the small cottage on her family’s farm.
 
During her time away, Leah looked forward to once again spending the holiday season with her family, especially Second Christmas, December 26th, a time of celebrating with extended family and close neighbors like the Burkhalters. But as Christmas nears, her feelings for Josiah grow more confused, strengthened by their time of working together. Now it will take all the magic of the season for Leah to confront her fears and reach for the love she deserves. Praise for the novels of Marta Perry “What a joy it is to read Marta Perry’s novels!…Everything a reader could want—strong, well-defined characters; beautiful, realistic settings; and a thought-provoking plot. Readers of Amish fiction will surely be waiting anxiously for her next book.”—Shelley Shepard Gray, New York Times bestselling author of the Sisters of the Heart series
“A born storyteller, Marta Perry skillfully weaves the past and present in a heart-stirring tale of love and forgiveness.”—Susan Meissner, author of As Bright as Heaven “Sure to appeal to fans of Beverly Lewis.”—Library Journal “Perry carefully balances the traditional life of the Amish with the contemporary world in an accessible, intriguing fashion.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Perry crafts characters with compassion, yet with insecurities that make them relatable.”—RT Book Reviews Marta Perry is the author of more than seventy inspirational romance novels, including the Promise Glen series, the Pleasant Valley series, and the Keepers of the Promise trilogy. Chapter One
“The cottage needs some work, but your mamm and I think it will be perfect for you.”
Her father’s comment brought a rueful smile to Leah Stoltz’s face. Daad didn’t mean that she needed work, but that was true, too. At least she was home in Promise Glen, and she couldn’t think of a better place for getting herself back to normal again after the trials of the past year.
“I know it will take time and effort to turn it into the herbal business I want,” she said, trying to reassure him. “But I have all winter before the spring growing season.”
The small cottage sat on a wedge of land between Daad’s farm and the next one, and it had been a thorn in her father’s side for years. It had been owned by someone who lived halfway across the country and seemed happy to let it deteriorate, and the condition had upset Daad’s ideas of what an Amish-owned property should look like. Her mother said that for the past year, he’d go out of his way to avoid passing it.
Finally the owner consented to sell, and Daad had snapped it up. Then he’d turned around and given it to his eldest daughter, Leah. At least, he was trying to give it to her. They were still arguing about that point.
Leah wrapped her jacket more closely against the chill December breeze. “I still say you must let me buy the property from you. After all, I have money from my year of working with Aunt Miriam’s business.”
Leah forced herself to sound pleasant about that fact, but it still rankled. The truth was that her aunt had sold the business out from under her, and even the money Aunt Miriam had forced on her hadn’t eased her intense disappointment about losing the business she’d thought would be hers. Or her sorrow that a person who meant so much to her didn’t trust her any longer.
“Ach, don’t be ferhoodled.” Daad grasped her arm in his as they walked through the crisp frosty grass toward the cottage door. “What else do your mamm and I work for but to help our kinder? Your bruder Micah will want the farm, that’s certain sure. He’s a born farmer. As for James . . .” He shook his head, frowning a bit when he thought about her eighteen-year-old brother, who seemed in no hurry to finish his running-around time and settle into having a real job and, of course, a wife.
“He’ll settle down when the time is right, Daad. You’ll see.”

James was just slow to accept the next step in growing up. He always had been, crawling long after he’d learned to toddle and letting Micah or Leah talk for him instead of trying it himself. According to Leah’s grandmother, that was just the way he was made.
Leah’s parents had always assumed that all six of their children would marry an Amish partner and have babies, the more the better as far as Mammi was concerned. Actually, they hadn’t started urging the three youngest girls yet, and as for Leah herself . . . well, her one serious relationship had come to nothing but disappointment. It might be best if they gave up on her.
Marriage wasn’t part of her plans, not after that unhappy romance. Her mind skittered briefly to Josiah Burkhalter, next-door neighbor, childhood friend, rumspringa romance, and very nearly husband until someone else caught his wandering eye. The Burkhalters had been a part of their lives forever, and she felt sure everyone had been thrilled at the thought of Leah and Josiah marrying. Except, apparently, Josiah.
Daad had accepted her jaundiced view of marriage, she thought, and so he was determined to see her set up with the work she wanted, although he’d think a business a poor exchange for a husband and family.
They’d reached the front of the cottage, which had a small front porch that would be ideal for displays once she’d opened. The step creaked and wobbled under her foot, and she made a mental note of repair needed. And the front door didn’t respond to the key until Daad gave it a shove with his shoulder. Her list of repairs would grow quickly at this rate.
“The place is small, but it’s not as if you’ll be living here.”
Daad planted himself in the middle of the front room and looked around. Windows on the sides and in front gave plenty of light, and she knew there was a kitchen and another room in back, along with two small rooms upstairs.
Leaving aside the question of where she might be living, Leah looked around the large room, picturing it with shelves for herbal teas and mixtures, tables holding plants for sale, and small bins for dried herbs. With this amount of space, she could devote a corner to crafts like the scented herbal pillows she’d been making.
“I think it will be just right once it’s ready. Aunt Miriam gave me a lot of ideas for marketing, besides getting me started on herbs to begin with.” She tried not to let her feelings color her voice when she spoke of her aunt.
Aunt Miriam had interested her small niece in making an herb garden on a visit when Leah was ten. She’d continued to encourage her, talking about the day when they’d have a business together. And at a time when Leah’s romantic dreams had been shattered, Aunt Miriam had invited Leah to move across the state to live with her and learn the business.
Because Aunt Miriam had no children of her own, she’d made it clear that she wanted Leah to take over eventually. That had made it all the harder when Aunt Miriam decided to sell out to a stranger. Leah had been ashamed . . . knowing she’d failed and struggling to find out why or how.
“Miriam certain sure knew her business.” Daad frowned a little, shaking his head slightly. “It’s a shame, her being so far from your mother. They were always close when they were young.”
Leah roused herself from unhappy thoughts to respond. “I remember hearing them sitting up late and giggling together like teenagers when she did come to visit, even if it wasn’t very often.”
Daad chuckled. “Yah, they did. But Miriam was caught up in her business, and your mother was busy with you young ones. Maybe now that Miriam is retiring, we’ll see more of her.”
Their lives had gone in different directions, and Leah wondered if they had regretted that. Had they been happy with their choices? Had they sometimes thought yearningly of each other’s lives?
Decisions made early dictated the rest of a person’s life, it seemed, and some decisions were pushed on you. Like her decision to leave Promise Glen, and now the decision to come back.
She reminded herself there was no use going over something that she couldn’t change. The past just had to be lived with, she guessed.
“About the carpentry work that’s needed . . .” Daad paused as if to be sure she was listening.
She looked at him. Was it her imagination, or did he seem ill at ease?
“Don’t worry,” she said quickly. “I know you and the boys don’t have time to do it all. I can afford to hire someone, and that’s what I plan to do.”
“We’ll want to help all we can,” Daad said quickly, “but we can’t do it all. Seems like you need a craftsman who knows cabinetmaking for a lot of the work.”
“Yah, for sure. Who do you think would be best?” There were several possibilities within the church district. She didn’t doubt Daad would know.
“As a matter of fact, someone was just talking to me about it a few days ago.”
It wasn’t her imagination. Daad definitely looked uncomfortable, and she couldn’t imagine why.
He cleared his throat, glancing at the door as if considering an escape. “He’s interested in doing the work, and there’s no doubt in my mind he’d do it well.”
“Gut,” she said, trying to sound as brisk and confident as Aunt Miriam would. “Who is it?”
“I mentioned we’d probably be taking a look around this afternoon.” Now Daad was looking out the back window. “I thought he might stop by to talk about it. And there he is.”
Leah followed the direction of her father’s gaze, and her heart seemed to stop beating. The person approaching the back door was hardly someone she’d consider reliable enough to do the job. Or to do anything else, for that matter. It was Josiah Burkhalter.

Ridiculous to be so nervous about talking to people heÕd known all his life. Josiah took a deep, calming breath, determined not to oversell this. Leah might hold the key to what he wanted most right now, but heÕd best keep still about that. After all, they hadnÕt parted on the best of terms.
He spotted Leah and Isaiah looking at him from the window, and his stomach cramped. He could only hope Isaiah had explained why he was there.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained, as Josiah’s daad was fond of saying. He stepped firmly onto the back stoop, trying to look assured. With a loud crack the board broke beneath his foot and his leg plunged down, leaving him trapped.
It took him a moment to realize what had happened and try to pull his foot clear, and by then both Isaiah and Leah had rushed out the door.
“Careful.” He threw up his hand in a gesture. “We don’t want anyone else stuck in here.”
“Ach, I should have checked this back stoop out before I told you to meet us here. We came in the front.” Isaiah stepped out, careful about where he put his foot.
“No problem,” Josiah said lightly, trying to hide his embarrassment. Here he was, coming to repair the place, and the first thing he did was make it worse. And it struck him that Leah was enjoying his discomfort.
“Just hang on to my arm while you pull your leg out.” Isaiah gripped him firmly, taking his weight so that he could regain his balance.
Josiah turned his attention to the one who stood watching. “Seems to me you need a carpenter, Leah,” he said lightly.
He couldn’t quite read her expression at his words. Funny, because he’d always been able to tell what Leah was feeling. Maybe he’d lost the gift after a year apart.
“Yah, we were just talking about that.” Isaiah filled up the momentary silence. Gripping Josiah’s arm with one hand, he helped pull his leg free of the jagged board. “I told Leah I’d found a carpenter for her already.”
Something negative showed in the tightening of Leah’s lips. “We haven’t actually discussed it yet.”
“Well, let’s get inside and do that,” Isaiah said briskly. He took a long stride over the hole, and the others followed, stepping into the old kitchen with its worn cabinets and worn-out stove.
Too bad Josiah couldn’t read Leah’s expression. Maybe she was thinking that turning him down completely was an appropriate return for what he’d done to her.
The inside of the cottage was chilly, but not quite as cold as it was outside. Josiah rubbed his hands briskly and tried to think of something that would get them back on the old familiar footing.
“Leah, Mamm wants to know why you haven’t been to see her yet. She’s plenty eager to hear about your time out at your aunt’s place.”
Leah’s face warmed at the mention of his mother, her cheeks regaining the peachy glow he remembered. “You tell her I’ll stop by tomorrow afternoon. I made some of that herbal tea she likes, and I’ll bring it over.”
For that moment, at least, Leah looked like her old self. He hoped it would last. It would sure make things easier.
“Mammi will be pleased. Are you thinking you’ll sell teas as well as plants once you get going?”
She nodded, glancing around as if picturing what her shop would look like when it was finally ready. “Yah. And maybe some crafts made with herbals, too. I’ll want a corner with shelves for those things. That’s what my aunt did in her shop.”
The mention of her aunt seemed to produce a little wariness in Leah’s expression, and her lips tightened.
“My wife’s sister, Miriam,” Isaiah added. “You’ll remember her. She made a fine business out of herbs over the past twenty years or so.”
Something his mother had said slipped through Josiah’s thoughts. Wasn’t it rumored that the aunt was going to leave her business to Leah? If so, why was Leah back home?
He certain sure couldn’t ask, but if he’d be working for Leah, it would probably come out sometime. If, he reminded himself. It wasn’t a deal yet.
He cleared his throat, thinking the silence had gone on too long. “How about showing me what you want done? Then I’ll have an idea of how involved the job is and whether I can do it or not. No sense in talking until we know that, ain’t so?”
Leah looked relieved. Maybe she figured that could give her an out if she wanted one. “Yah, sounds gut.” She gestured around the kitchen.
“This will be a workroom for creating the teas and working on the crafts, and I’ll want a couple of long tables for that, along with cabinets on one wall with a countertop and sink for some of the cutting and repotting. A lot of that will be done in the greenhouse, of course.” She looked out the window as if she pictured a greenhouse instead of brush and a few trees.
Josiah took out his tape measure along with a notebook and pen. “Let’s see what we’ve got, then. If you have the sink where the old one is, we won’t have to move the pipes. How about if I take the measurements, make notes of what you want and the supplies needed? Then I can work up an estimate of time and cost.”
“That seems reasonable.” Isaiah sounded as if the barbed atmosphere made him nervous. “Ain’t so, Leah?”
Forced to respond, Leah nodded. Well, if Leah didn’t want him to do the work, why didn’t she just say so and save them both the time?
Clenching his jaw, he busied himself measuring, but as he worked, his annoyance began to fade. He was expecting too much. It would take time to get back to his old relationship with Leah. He couldn’t rush it.
Leah had clearly thought their romance was more serious than he had. Maybe they’d been moving in that direction, maybe it would have come to that if things had continued the way they were. Maybe they’d have married. But then Susie Lehman came along.
Susie, with her sparkling dark eyes and her infectious laugh, had been so different from the girls he knew. She’d arrived in their small community like a summer storm, and created just about the same amount of damage. He’d known all the time it wasn’t serious with her, but he’d been captivated. And Leah had been hurt, embarrassed, and unforgiving.
He made an effort to shove off the past. Concentrate on the present, and hope a moment would come when he could tell her how sorry he was that she’d been hurt.
So he concentrated on business. Leah showed him the front room, talking about the kind of counters she wanted, the drying racks for herbs, and the shelves for tea and other mixtures of herbs. Following her around the room, he scribbled notes.
Leah moved to the nearest window. “I’ve been thinking the greenhouse could go there.” She pointed to the same view he’d looked at earlier from the other window.
He moved to her side to look out and found he was staring at Leah instead. She hadn’t changed in a year, or had she?
She was still small and slight, her eyes as green as a spring hillside, and her oval face, usually a tad serious in expression, was now lit with enthusiasm. With a shock, he realized that if she’d been a magnet, she’d have drawn him like iron filings.
Josiah took a careful step back. None of that, now. This was strictly business. And speaking of business…
“Something I want to bring up before we go any farther.” He shouldn’t sound so serious, and he tried to lighten his expression. “My idea is that this is a good project for me to get going on over the winter and early spring, before Daad’s construction business gets rolling with the good weather.”
She nodded, clearly not understanding what he was driving at, and he was hampered, not wanting her to guess how much it meant to him.
“Anyway, my point is that I’m not expecting you to pay for my labor. You just take care of the materials, and that’s fine with me.”
She reacted with an open-mouthed gaze, as if he’d suddenly stood on his head.
“Josiah, that’s ferhoodled.” She recovered her voice quickly. “You can’t offer that, and I certain sure can’t accept it. This is business.” She looked almost insulted at the offer.
He tried to treat it lightly. “Business, yah. But we’ve been friends since our mothers used to put us in the same playpen when they were working outside.”
“That’s not the point.” Her temper flared, and that just made him more determined.
“It’s just the point. I wouldn’t be doing much except getting in Mamm’s way over the winter anyway. There’s not enough work to be done then to keep Daad and me and my brothers busy. I’d rather be honing my skills than sitting around.”
“You mean you want to practice on me,” she snapped back, turning away.
He resisted the urge to catch hold of her arm the way he used to when she was a child…a stubborn child.
“Well, why not? You’re not a business owner, not yet, and I’m not a full-fledged carpenter.” Not yet, though he could be if this project convinced Daad of what he could do. “But I can do the job. How about it?”
She looked away from him, and her father stared at them both and then looked away, as if leaving them to resolve it. After an awkward silence she turned back, but her gaze avoided his.
“Josiah, you certain sure can’t work for free. That wouldn’t be right.”
“I don’t need…” he began.
“Yah, you do. I’d rather have anything between us on a strictly business-like basis.” She pinned him with a stare when she spoke, and her green eyes had never looked so cold.
So that was it. Leah was implying he couldn’t be trusted to do what he said.
Was he never going to get rid of the reputation that followed him around? Apparently not with Leah.
“Fine,” he snapped. “If that’s how you want it, then it’s a deal.”
Leah looked startled, as if she hadn’t meant to commit herself. Well, too late now. They had a deal, and he’d show her, and his Daad, and anybody else who was interested, that he could be a solid, reliable businessman no matter what he’d done in the past. US

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