Mended Hearts Read online

  COPYRIGHT

  ZONDERVAN

  Mended Hearts

  Copyright © 2019 by Kelly Irvin

  Requests for information should be addressed to:

  Zondervan, 3900 Sparks Dr. SE, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49546

  ISBN: 978-0-310-35275-4 (e-book)

  Epub Edition March 2019 9780310352754

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication

  CIP data is available upon request.

  Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

  Any Internet addresses (websites, blogs, etc.) and telephone numbers in this book are offered as a resource. They are not intended in any way to be or imply an endorsement by Zondervan, nor does Zondervan vouch for the content of these sites and numbers for the life of this book.

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other—except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

  Publisher’s Note: This novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. All characters are fictional, and any similarity to people living or dead is purely coincidental.

  Printed in the United States of America

  19 20 21 22 23 / LSC / 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

  CONTENTS

  Copyright

  Glossary

  Featured Jamesport, Missouri, Residents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Epilogue

  Discussion Questions

  About the Author

  To my family, love always.

  “Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the LORD. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.”

  —Isaiah 1:18 NIV

  GLOSSARY*

  ach: oh

  aenti: aunt

  appeditlich: delicious

  bann: a temporary period of excommunication intended to cause a change of heart and end errant behavior in a church member

  bedauerlich: sad

  boppli/bopli/ boplin: baby, babies

  brot: bread

  bruder: brother

  bruders: brothers

  bruderskinner: nieces/nephews

  bu: boy

  buwe: boys

  daadi: grandfather

  daadi haus/dawdy haus: a small house built onto or near the main house for grandparents to live in

  danki: thank you

  dat/daed: dad, father

  Deutsch/Deitsch: Dutch

  dochder: daughter

  dochdern: daughters

  Dummle!: hurry!

  Englisch/English/Englisher: English: non-Amish person

  eck: married couple’s corner table at their wedding reception

  Fehla: sin

  fraa: wife

  freind: friend

  freinden: friends

  froh: happy

  gegisch: silly

  gern/gaern gschehne: you’re welcome

  Gmay: church district

  Gott: God

  groossdaadi/grossdaadi: grandpa

  groossmammi/grossmammi: grandma

  Gude/guder mariye: Good morning

  gut: good

  Gut nach/gut natcht: Good night

  haus: house

  hund: dog

  Ich liebe dich: I love you

  jah: yes

  kaffi: coffee

  kapp: prayer covering or cap

  kichli/kuche/kichlin: cookie, cookies

  kinner: children

  kitzn: cat

  krank: ill

  kuche: cake

  kuchen: cakes

  kumm: come

  leib/liewe: love, a term of endearment

  maed: young women, girls

  maedel: young woman

  mamm/mudder: mom, mother

  mammi: grandmother

  mann: husband

  mei: my

  Meidung: avoidance, shunning

  millich: milk

  naerfich: nervous

  narrisch: crazy

  nee: no

  onkel: uncle

  Ordnung: written and unwritten rules in an Amish district

  rumspringa/rumschpringe: period of running around when a young person turns sixteen

  schee: pretty

  schmaert: smart

  schtupp: family room

  schweschder: sister

  schweschdere: sisters

  sohn/suh: son

  Was iss letz?: What’s wrong?

  Wie bischt?: How are you?

  Wie geht’s: How do you do? or Good day!

  wunderbaar: wonderful

  ya: yes

  *The German dialect spoken by the Amish is not a written language and varies depending on the location and origin of the settlement. These spellings are approximations. Most Amish children learn English after they start school. They also learn high German, which is used in the Sunday services.

  FEATURED JAMESPORT, MISSOURI, RESIDENTS

  Hannah Kauffman and daughter Evelyn Rose (Evie) Kauffman

  Laura and Zechariah Stutzman (Hannah’s great-grandparents)

  Phillip Schwartz (bachelor)

  Susie and Declan Yoder, son Thaddeus, and daughter Mattie (married), and three other siblings

  Burke McMillan (widower), owner of Purple Martin Café

  Leo and Jennie Graber, owners of Jamesport Combination Store

  Ben and Rosalie Stutzman and children (bishop and Zechariah’s grandson)

  CHAPTER 1

  The aroma of cinnamon rolls wafted through the air, more aromatic than any perfume. Hannah Kauffman grinned to herself as she slid a thick ceramic plate laden with eggs, bacon, toast, and hash browns onto the table in front of an English customer who held up her fork, ready to dive in. The second plate, a Spanish omelet, toast, and a cup of fresh fruit, belonged to the woman seated in the red Naugahyde booth across from her.

  Hannah breathed through the ache in her shoulders and elbows. It had been a long morning filled with a steady stream of customers at the Purple Martin Café, Jamesport’s most popular Amish restaurant. Staying busy made her happy. Excellent food, nice customers, good tips. Making people smile made the aches and pains worth it.

  The stench of mingled perfumes hit her without warning.

  She rushed to place two glasses of orange juice and two cups of coffee on the table. The tickle in her nose ballooned faster than she could move.

  A gargantuan sneeze broke just as she swiveled away, burying her face in the crook of her arm.

  Trying not to sniffle, she turned back to the ladies. “Is there anything else I can get for you?”

  The women’s delighted smiles faded. “Do you have a cold?” The one wearing a purple dress and purple checked leggings frowned. “Are you sick? If you are you shouldn’t—”

  “I’m not sick. It’s the perfume—”

  “Are you blaming my expensive Estée La
uder Bronze Goddess?” The woman with hair dyed the color of cotton candy held up her plate. “You sneezed all over my omelet. Take it back. I want a different waitress.”

  “I’m so sorry, ma’am.” Breathing through her mouth, Hannah accepted the plate. “I really don’t have a cold. I promise.”

  Her baby, Evie, had the sniffles, but Great-Grandma Laura, who’d taken care of hundreds of babies over the years, insisted they were caused by allergies brought on by the gorgeous array of spring flowers blooming in her front yard.

  “Take mine as well.” Checked Leggings waved her hand over her food with a dismissive air. “I want to talk to your boss.”

  “I’m right here, ladies.” His usual smile on his rugged face, Burke McMillan strode toward them. “How can I help?”

  “This girl sneezed all over us.”

  “I didn’t—”

  “It’s okay, Hannah. Take the food back to the kitchen, please.” Burke swiveled toward Hannah and winked. “Have Nicole bring them fresh plates. Tell her I said thank you for helping out.”

  “I should call the health department.” Purple Leggings fingered her cell phone. “Surely you know better than to let employees work sick.”

  Her querulous voice faded in the distance as Hannah lugged the tray back to the kitchen. How quickly a good day could deteriorate. Just like her daughter’s mood. At twenty-one months Evie could be all sunshine and smiles one minute, and dark clouds and squalls the next.

  Hannah’s gaze caught Claire Plank’s. She sat at a table across from Isabel Schrock. The two women, both members of Hannah’s Gmay, stared at her as if she were a cockroach crawling across their eggs. Claire’s smile held a combination of pity and condemnation that was all too familiar. Hannah lifted her chin and smiled back with her best I-have-no-idea-what-your-problem-is smile.

  “How’s Evie?” Claire asked. “She was sniffling at church like she had a cold.”

  “She’s fine. Just allergies.”

  “Can you ask our waitress to come refill our tea glasses?” Isabel held up her glass. It was still almost full. “And to bring us some more sugar packets.”

  “Of course.”

  Claire ducked her head and whispered something to Isabel. Heads bent together, they continued whispering as Hannah worked her way through the tables to the kitchen.

  Her punishment might have been six weeks of bann, but it continued almost two years later.

  Shoving away the thoughts that tumbled around in her head, Hannah caught Nicole Wilson on her way from the serving window, her tray loaded with steaming oatmeal, scrambled eggs, sausage, and cinnamon rolls. Hannah quickly explained the situation. “Sorry to dump on you, but Burke told me—”

  “No worries.” Nicole flipped her long brown braid onto her back and shifted her tray onto her shoulder. Her pewter eyes were bright with sympathy. “Dump the old tray and put the new order in. I’ll sweet talk them so bad they’ll leave me a big fat tip.”

  Nicole was saving her tips for her wedding. She and her fiancé, Tony Perez, wanted to get married as soon as they graduated from high school in another year. Then he planned to join the Navy, and she would start college.

  Hannah returned Nicole’s smile and pushed through the double doors to the kitchen where she unloaded her tray and asked the cook to put a rush on a new order. She leaned against the wall for a second and breathed. Evie had awakened three—or maybe it was four—times during the night. Congestion and a cough made it hard for her to sleep, which made it impossible for Hannah. Heat sweltered in the kitchen. The morning-shift cook ignored her as she slapped sausages on the grill and made omelets.

  The aroma of baking bread mingled with the scent of frying bacon. Hannah’s stomach rumbled. Most mornings she had no time for eating her own breakfast. Time spent with Evie was at a premium on days Hannah worked.

  What would she do without Great-Grandma Laura to watch her baby? She brushed the thought away. Laura and Great-Grandpa Zechariah didn’t judge her like the rest of the world.

  The doors swung open and Burke strode through. “Don’t sweat it, kid. Accidents happen. I know you didn’t mean to sneeze on their eggs.”

  “I didn’t.” She straightened, ready to defend herself. “I turned away and covered my face.”

  Burke shrugged and took a swipe at the salt-and-pepper five-o’clock shadow he never seemed to shave. His hair was cut like the boys’ who came back from basic training at Fort Riley, but she didn’t know if he’d been in the Army. Burke never talked about himself. “The customer’s always right.” He snatched a washrag from the sink and began wiping down already immaculate counters.

  “I’m sorry I caused a problem.”

  “You’re one of my most dependable, hard-working waitresses.” Burke laid the washrag across the faucet and headed for the doors. “By the way, your Regular is out there waiting. Take your break. Have some breakfast. You look peaked this morning. I worry about you.”

  Every worker received one free meal per shift. That was Burke. A great boss who took care of his employees.

  He was also another person who didn’t judge. But he was English. Some Englishers had different opinions on babies born out of wedlock. What Burke thought remained a mystery. He never brought it up. Instead, he fed Evie homemade applesauce and peanut butter cookies on the rare occasion Hannah brought her to the Purple Martin. He claimed the cookies were good for her because they had protein in them.

  Her regular. She had several. But Burke’s use of the singular with a capital r could mean only one person. Wiping sweat from her forehead with the back of her sleeve, she pushed through the doors and glanced around.

  Phillip Schwartz sat three seats from the end of the counter, perusing a menu. Which made Hannah smile. He always ordered the same thing. Two eggs over easy, bacon, hash browns, fried crisp, and two pieces of white bread toasted not too dark, orange juice, and coffee, black. He liked strawberry jam for his toast and ketchup for his eggs.

  The last fact always made Hannah’s stomach feel squishy. Hot sauce, maybe, like some of the Englishers, but ketchup?

  Glancing around, she slipped her order pad from her white Purple Martin Café apron pocket, picked up the closest coffee pot, and approached him. “Gude mariye.”

  “There you are.” He smiled. His smile transformed a plain face. He had dimples and long, light eyelashes that framed pale-blue eyes. Thin blond hair hung below the rim of his straw hat. “Gude mariye. I was afraid you weren’t working today, even though you’re scheduled.”

  He made it a point to know her schedule. Heat warmed Hannah’s cheeks. After two years of steady attention from this man, she felt comfortable around him. Almost. She’d given her heart to Thaddeus and look how that ended. She poured Phillip’s coffee and returned the pot to its rightful place. Her hand didn’t shake. Not much anyway. She tugged her pencil from behind her ear. “The usual?”

  She worked to keep her voice nonchalant. He’s just another customer. No one special.

  “Jah.” He tossed the menu on the black Formica counter and then patted the stool next to him. “Can you sit? It should be time for your break.”

  Close. Too close. Too many eyes watching. “I shouldn’t. It’s not a gut idea.”

  “Do we have to have this discussion every time?” He sighed and shoved his straw hat back, revealing his bangs. His skin was smooth and his chin whiskerless. He was at least twenty-one—a year older than Thaddeus would be now—but he looked younger. Like a teenager. “People don’t expect you to remain single the rest of your life. You took your punishment. You repented. You’ve been forgiven. If you don’t court, you can never move on with your life.”

  Moving on with her life meant trusting someone again. Hard to do after the man Hannah loved left Jamesport for the RV factories in Indiana rather than marry her and be a father to his child. Either she hadn’t been worthy of Thaddeus’s love or he hadn’t been worthy of hers. Either way, she’d committed a terrible sin, and Evie had no father in her life. />
  A baby punished for her mother’s sins.

  How would she explain this to Evie when she grew old enough to wonder why other little girls had daddies and she didn’t?

  That day loomed like a future specter of pain for a daughter who, for now, loved without judgment and without limit.

  “Sit.” Phillip patted the stool a second time. His huge hands were callused from his work as a carpenter. He had a puffy red scar across his knuckles on one hand. A saw gone wild during his apprentice days? “Or sit two stools down. No one will realize we’re together. Or care. I promise.”

  All the customers at this moment, miraculously, were Englishers. Hannah put in his order, then removed an enormous raisin cinnamon roll from the bakery case, laid it on a saucer, and slid onto a stool—one seat down from his, just in case.

  He rolled his eyes—which made him look even more like a teenager—and sipped his coffee. “You’re a funny girl, Hannah Kauffman.”

  “I’m not a girl. I’m nineteen and all grown-up. I’m a mudder.” A mother with responsibilities and no desire to make any more mistakes. “But I’m glad I can entertain you.”

  His smile widened. “Always. How’s Evie’s cold?”

  “It’s not a cold, according to Laura. She says it’s allergies.” Hannah told him about her own sneeze and the customers. “I lost a tip there.”

  “You live with Laura and Zechariah. You help with Zechariah in exchange for Laura watching Evie. You shouldn’t have many bills to pay.”

  True, but she liked to pull her own weight. Laura and Zechariah didn’t have much. Zechariah’s Parkinson’s disease meant regular medical bills, big bills. They shouldn’t have to pay for her and Evie’s food and clothes. Allowing them to live with them was a gift itself. Laura had been her safe harbor since the day Hannah rushed from her parents’ home to find her great-grandmother and tell her about her terrible sin before others could.

  Laura had done enough for her and Evie. “I don’t want to take advantage. They have enough on their plate.”

  “You’re off tomorrow. Come out with me tonight after you put Evie to bed. Or you can bring her. You know I love Evie.” No doubt, he did care for Evie. Sometimes he spent more time trying to make her laugh than he did talking to Hannah. She liked that about Phillip. Among other things. He was kind and considerate. “We’ll go for a ride and enjoy the spring weather. The purple martins are returning. Maybe we’ll see some.”