Free In Plain View (Amish Safe House, Book 2) by Ruth Hartzler

Kate. It was something she could not speak with her own
parents about, as caring and understanding as they were.
    And now Rose was being set up, but Kate did
not think the Amish used such a term, despite the fact that they
appeared very fond of matchmaking. Kate knew for a fact that Rose
was attracted to Samuel, but Rose was so closed and shy about such
things.
    And Samuel himself was as shy as a man could
be. He hardly spoke, unless it was impolite for him to stay quiet.
He was tall with a square jaw, his eyes blue and shining. Kate had
seen him laugh only once, but his face held such joy when he did
so.
    There was a knock on Kate’s front door, and
then it swung open and Beth stuck her head in. “Dinner is almost
ready,” Beth said. Kate and Rose nodded, and then looked at one
another.
    “Relax,” Kate said, placing her hand on
Rose’s shoulder. “It’s just dinner.”
    The younger girl smiled and nodded. “Thank
you for everything you’ve done lately.”
    Kate smiled. “It’s my pleasure.”
    “You two coming?” Beth asked from the
doorway, and they nodded and hurried after her. They crossed the
back yard quickly and entered the Kauffman home through the back
door, cutting through the kitchen. Samuel and Isaac were already
seated at the table, and the men stood up as the women entered.
    Kate could not help but notice Rose’s
reaction upon seeing Samuel; she at once smiled, an automatic
gesture as if she could not restrain her joy when seeing him.
Samuel greeted Kate, but when he looked at Rose, he simply nodded
and forced a shy smile.
    “We’re going to wash up quickly,” Rose told
the men as she and Kate headed for the bathroom at the top of the
stairs. The two women washed their hands, and then they returned to
the kitchen and helped Beth set the food upon the table.
    Isaac sat at the head of the table with
Samuel to his right and Beth to his left. Rose sat next to her
mother, and Kate sat at the other end of the table, leaving an
empty seat next to Samuel. They said the usual silent prayer before
mealtimes, each member of the dinner party closing their eyes and
bowing their heads for a few minutes.
    “Thank you,” Samuel said. “Thank you for
having me.” His voice was quiet and small.
    “You’re more than welcome,” Isaac said with
a smile. “It wouldn’t be kind to keep my wife’s cooking all to
myself.”
    “I haven’t even kept it all to myself,” Beth
said, looking over at Samuel. “I’ve taught Rose everything I
know.”
    Samuel smiled shyly and nodded. “I’m sure
she’s a wunderbaar cook as well,” he said softly.
    “Maybe she can cook next time you come
over,” Beth said.
    Kate watched Samuel for a moment. He was
shy, his head dipping down as often as it could. She looked at Rose
and saw she was just as uncomfortable. It was clear that both of
the young Amish folk knew exactly why they were there, and it
embarrassed them.
    The rest of dinner passed with ample small
talk and not much left over. Kate helped Rose clear the dishes, and
then she rolled up her sleeves at the sink.
    “I’ll do the dishes,” Kate said. “You can go
and spend more time with Samuel.”
    Rose smiled softly and shook her head. “Not
you, too.”
    “Yes, me too,” Kate said with a laugh.
    “I thought my parents were bad enough.”
    “He’s a good guy. A gut mann . He
likes you, and you like him too.”
    Rose nodded. “I do.”
    “So go and ask him if he’d like you to walk
home with him.”
    Rose’s mouth dropped open, and Kate knew she
had said something wrong. As someone without much knowledge of the
Amish community just trying to fit in, she did this often, but it
usually could be explained away by her cover story of being in an
accident and forgetting who she was.
    “I couldn’t ask to walk him home!” Rose
exclaimed with a nervous giggle. “He would walk me home if I
weren’t already home.”
    “You’re right; I meant to see if he wanted
to go for a walk. Around your land