Free Noah's Sweetheart by Rebecca Kertz

admitted only to himself, he would rather spend the day in her company than do any other thing on the good Lord’s earth.
    He had enjoyed watching her during church service. He could tell she was as aware of him as he was of her. She met his gaze and then averted her glance. He saw her look about to see if anyone had noticed the silent interaction.
    He liked Rachel Hostetler. He liked her a lot.
    “What about Charlotte?” Rachel asked, interrupting his thoughts.
    “What about Charlotte?” he echoed. Had he spoken his musings aloud? No, he realized. She would have looked mortified or pleased—whichever reaction she might have had if he had spoken how he felt about her.
    “She will be looking for you.”
    “ Nay. Charlotte has enough to keep her busy with Mae’s directions.”
    At the mention of her aunt, Rachel stiffened. “Please,” she said, “she asked me to bring the salads to the table. If I take too long, she will wonder—”
    “Wonder what?” Noah teased.
    “Noah!” Charlotte said as she entered the room. “Are you helping or hindering cousin Rachel?”
    Rachel met her cousin’s gaze with gratitude. “He’s offering to help me, but I think he should be helping the men.”
    Charlotte laughed. “Rather than you?”
    Rachel was surprised by Charlotte’s reasoning. “He’s like a younger brother. I think he enjoys teasing as much as helping.”
    “ Ja, Rachel,” her cousin answered. “You are most probably correct.” And she didn’t seem in the least concerned at finding her and Noah together in the back room.
    Her cousin did not seem upset by Noah’s attention to her. Were the women of the church district mistaken? Were Charlotte and Noah destined to be man and wife—or was it just wishful thinking on the part of the elders?
    Noah had his way. He carried the potato salad and coleslaw to the main table where the men would be invited to dine. Rachel, in the meantime, had found Aunt Mae and pitched in to help carry in the meats and breads and vegetables.
    “Rachel,” her cousin Sarah said as she arranged cookies and muffins on a plate on the kitchen worktable, “you are enjoying our community?”
    Rachel smiled, for she easily could admit the truth. “ Ja. I like Happiness and I’m eager to work with the students here.”
    “The teacher’s cottage,” she said, “it looks gut? ”
    Rachel nodded, noting again how much Sarah resembled Aunt Mae. “It will be done soon. The schuulhaus is ready, too. There will be swing sets for the kinner. The men have been working hard to ensure that all will be ready.”
    “Noah has been working there often,” Sarah said.
    Rachel’s heart skipped a beat. “Noah and Samuel and Noah’s brothers.”
    Her older cousin nodded. “You will have my John in your class.”
    Rachel smiled. Little John was Sarah’s youngest son; David, her cousin’s eldest, had finished the eighth grade over a year ago. “I will. John is a gut boy and smart. He does not think he needs to go, but I will show him differently. He will make a fine farmer, but he should know how to deal with the English.”
    Sarah agreed, but soon Eli approached to speak with his wife, taking her attention. Eli Schrock was a man of short stature, even shorter than his wife. His hair and chin-beard were dark, his build strong. Sarah made introductions between Rachel and Eli.
    Dressed like the other Amish men of the community in his black Sunday best, Eli was polite and pleasant, his gaze recognizing her as a family member. He wore a black vest over a white shirt. His trousers matched his vest and wide-brimmed felt hat, which he wore low and that shaded his serious blue eyes. “‘Tis gut to meet ya, cousin Rachel.”
    Rachel nodded and murmured an appropriate response. “And you, Eli.”
    Watching the interaction between husband and wife, Rachel saw how suited Sarah and Eli seemed for each other. Their two youngest offspring, John and Rose Ann, were enjoying a game of tag nearby. Rachel caught