Harlequin Love Inspired March 2021--Box Set 2 of 2 by Patrice Lewis (best large ereader .txt) 📕

be able to work, but I’m still on the clock. And you’re in the way.” She tempered her words with a half smile, but truthfully her schedule was easier without Levy’s constant hovering—even if it was, as her uncle pointed out, his house.

He moved away from the sink. “What is it you do all day?”

“What I always do,” she retorted. “But normally you’re outside.”

“Ja, ja, you’re right. I’m sorry, that was a schtupid thing to say.” He shrugged. “I’ll be in the barn.”

What is it you do all day? In the now-silent kitchen, Jane snatched up dirty dishes and dumped them in the sink.

Whatever he found to do in the barn only kept him occupied for an hour, then he was back in the house. Jane pushed aside a strand of hair that had escaped her kapp as she chopped bell peppers and onions for a casserole. “Are you up for a trip to town?” she asked.

“Ja, I suppose. What do you need?”

“Formula for Mercy. We’re running low.”

“And it would get me out of the house, right?”

“Why yes, it would.” She smiled and kept chopping.

“I have a few other things I could pick up as well. Ja, I’ll go into town.”

He grabbed his wallet and headed back for the barn. Jane sighed with relief.

Why was he so restless today? Whatever the cause, she was glad when she heard the clip-clop of hooves pull away from the house.

* * *

Levy hitched up his favorite mare, Maggie, to the buggy and swung into the seat.

He felt so restless today. He also couldn’t believe he’d insulted Jane in such a way. What is it you do all day? How dumb could he be? He knew exactly what she did all day.

He trotted the horse toward the center of town.

His errands were trivial, but he lingered in the hardware store. He avoided the Troyers’ dry-goods store.

It was with some relief that he saw friends hailing him from under a café awning where they lingered over coffee.

“Do you have time to join us?” asked Thomas.

“Ja.” Levy dropped into a chair. “This rain is keeping you from working outside too?”

“For sure and certain.” Thomas winked. “And alle daag rumhersitze macht em faul. Sitting all day makes one lazy. I could be doing things in the barn, but I blame Paul here for dragging me into town on the pretext of going to the bank. Next thing I know, I’m drinking coffee.”

Levy chuckled. He’d known Thomas Lapp and Paul Yoder since they were boys. They always managed to cheer him up, no matter what.

“How goes fatherhood?” asked Paul.

A waitress took his order and departed. Levy removed his hat and hooked it on the back of his chair. “Better, now that Jane’s doing most of the hard work.”

“Babies can be tough.” Thomas tugged his beard. “My Annie, she juggles both our young ones very well, but it is definitely easier with two people at hand.”

“Our third is due in about a month.” Paul sipped his beverage. “Louisa is wonderful with the kids. My eldest boy, he’s now old enough to follow me around the farm. He’s a joy, as is my little girl. But tiny babies…they’re best left to the frauen.”

Thomas chimed in. “Have you considered giving Mercy to another family?”

Levy shook his head. “Nein. She stays with me. She’s all I have of Eliza.”

“Then it’s good you have Jane to take care of her. Everyone says she’s wonderful with babies.” Paul grinned. “Better than you!”

The words were meant to be teasing, Levy knew, but they still stung. He drew his brows together. “So I’m a little awkward with Mercy. I haven’t had any practice before this.”

“Will Jane stay? Does she seem content to be Mercy’s nanny?”

“Danke,” Levy said to the waitress, who placed a coffee cup before him. “Ja, she says so. At this point I don’t know what else I can do but keep her on.”

“Why, is there a problem?” Thomas’s brows arched upward. “Everyone talks well of her. Is she hard to get along with?”

“Nein, not exactly,” Levy hedged. “I’m paying her a little extra to handle housekeeping chores as well, and she’s been very good about it. It’s just that…” He stopped and stared out at the downpour just outside the café awning.

“Just that what?” prompted Paul.

“I don’t know,” he went on. “I can’t put my finger on what’s wrong. She’s always wanting to go to singings and get-togethers. Last night she went to a hot dog roast and took Mercy with her. I can’t say she’s neglecting her job because she’s not. It’s just that…”

“…that you’re thinking of Eliza,” finished Thomas.

Levy felt his face flush. “It’s true,” he admitted.

“Is that a good enough reason to work against the best interests of the baby?”

Levy scowled. “I’m not working against her best interests. Jane’s doing a fine job with her.”

“But what are Jane’s plans?” persisted Thomas. “You hired her right off the train, and she started working because she knew you were desperate. But she’s under no obligation to stay. She can do whatever she wants.”

Paul chimed in. “Remember, she’s young and single, and there’s no reason she shouldn’t enjoy herself by socializing with other youngies.” His expression altered. “Why do you object to her going to youngie events so much?”

“I don’t.”

Thomas chuckled. “Don’t you know lying is a sin, Levy? Why does it bother you when she has some fun, especially since they’re all chaperoned events?”

Levy remained silent, since he had no real answer for Thomas’s question. He took another sip of his coffee.

Eager to change the subject, Thomas asked, “How goes the farmer’s market sales?”

Levy was grateful for the conversation shift, and a few minutes later, they all parted ways.

He left his horse hitched out of the weather in the open-sided shed provided by the café and ducked into a small grocery store to buy formula for Mercy. He considered it bad luck when he bumped into Bishop Kemp.

“Ah, Levy!” exclaimed the venerable man. “I was going to call on you, but now