Free A Joyful Break (Dreams of Plain Daughters) by Diane Craver

just like the Amish, Rachel thought.
    They all dug in to eat, and a few minutes later, Violet asked, “Mom, what did Adam want when he called you at the airport? I hope he’s still going to Florida.”
    “He asked if Nick could join us at the beach. Nick’s one of Adam’s friends,” her aunt said to her. “How do you girls feel about that? I’d rather it would just be family, but Nick’s having a hard time since his mother died recently.”
    Violet shrugged. “If we still have a couple of days just for us girls, I don’t care. It sounds like Nick needs us.”
    “Adam’s not done with finals for three days, so I’ll tell him that we need a couple days after we get to the beach to get groceries and to rest from our long trip.” Aunt Carrie’s gaze focused on Rachel. “Is it okay with you, Rachel? The beach house is big and they should only be there for a few days.”
    She couldn’t wear her swimming suit in front of Adam’s friend. I’ll be too self-conscious showing so much of my body. Well, I’ll just enjoy the pool when they aren’t there. “It’s okay.”
    “Should I tell Rachel how hot Nick is?” Violet turned her face away from her mother to look at Rachel. “I used to want Nick to be interested in me. He just thought of me as Adam’s little sis. Maybe now that I’m a second year college woman, he’ll look at me differently.”
    “This might not be a good idea.” Aunt Carrie jabbed a piece of broccoli with her fork. “Why couldn’t their break be a different time? I wonder if they’d like to go to our beach house at Outer Banks instead.”
    She tucked a loose strand of hair back under her kapp . “I’d like to see Adam but that might be nice for us to have a girls’ week only at the beach.” She’d be disappointed not to see Adam, though. She noticed Violet’s amused look. “Or not.”
    Violet grinned. “Are you afraid you might find Nick more attractive than Samuel? Competition makes life interesting. Samuel might decide to join us at the beach.”
    “I hope not. I need to experience new things without Samuel. He already mentioned visiting, too, so he could see Adam.”
    If Nick went to Cocoa Beach, Samuel wouldn’t be happy. He needn’t worry because she wasn’t going to be like Aunt Carrie and fall in love with an English man.
    Aunt Carrie never had an Amish boyfriend, or been courted when she met Uncle Scott. Or had she? Had she broken an Amish man’s heart when she married Uncle Scott?

Chapter Seven
    “All the houses are beautiful but I like yours the best.” Rachel gazed at the Robinson’s house as Aunt Carrie turned into their driveway. The two-story house had some stone on the front with the rest in brick. She was impressed with the landscaping and wondered if Uncle Scott had a green thumb or if Aunt Carrie took care of the yard work. She imagined that Carrie was in charge of the outside because of being raised Amish. Gardening was always the responsibility of women and children while men and boys did the field work. Obviously, Uncle Scott didn’t have fields to plow, but he wasn’t home a lot to take care of the yard.
    “We like it.” Aunt Carrie stopped in front of the garage. “I can see my friend, Marlene, over there working in her flower beds. I want you to meet her, Rachel. She’s the one loaning us her beach house to use. And I’ll just give her now the baked goods I bought for her.”
    “Mom, why don’t we leave super early in the morning? If we split the driving, we can drive straight through to the beach.” Violet leaned forward toward Rachel. “Is it okay we go shopping after we get to Florida for your clothes?”
    “I’m in no hurry to get other clothes. I’m anxious to see the beach so I’d love to get there tomorrow.” Turning her face away from Violet, she asked her aunt, “I’m sorry I can’t help with the driving. I know you’d both go by plane if it wasn’t for me.”
    Violet rolled her brown eyes. “Oh please, how many