Amish Harvest Mayhem (PAPERBACK)

Chapter 1.
Debbie Bruner Bontrager sat at the dinner table at the Baker Apple Orchard, pleased that everyone in the room knew about her baby. She could breathe again. Her life had totally transformed from a few weeks ago. 
Looking around at the faces of the family members, she could tell she was surrounded by people who cared about her. Tonight, Samuel and Ada were guests for the evening meal as they so often were.
After everyone had filled their plates from the bowls in the center of the table, Favor helped herself to an extra piece of fried chicken. “I’m excited you’re having a baby, Debbie.” 
Before Debbie could say anything, Onkel Levi said, “I’m going to write a stern letter to my brother telling him what I think about the way he handled things.” Levi had been delighted when he found out Debbie was expecting a baby. He wasn’t happy to learn his brother and sister-in-law had advised Debbie to keep quiet about her brief but legal marriage to the late John Bontrager. 
Wilma agreed with him about the letter. “I’m happy you’re doing that, Levi, because they shouldn’t have made Debbie keep this whole thing a secret. It could very well have ruined her life.”
“You’re right, Mamm.” Hope nodded. 
Debbie sat there, smiling. Not that she wanted her parents to get a stern letter from Onkel Levi, but her folks would finally see the situation from her side… she hoped. Either way, she wouldn’t have to give up her baby.
She looked down at her growing belly. 
The baby still wouldn’t have a father, and she’d be living in someone else’s home, but this was her home for now. If God was gracious, He would find her another husband, and it wouldn’t be a secret marriage. She should never have agreed to that even if John had insisted it wouldn’t be a secret for long. 
Ada said, “We’re all very excited to have you here, Debbie. And Wilma, there will be another baby in this very haus. How wunderbaar is that?”
“Jah, I know. As soon as I get back from helping with Mercy and Honor’s second babies, you’ll be about due, Debbie. Just as well I made so many baby clothes.”
“Thank you once again, everyone, for being so welcoming.”
“Of course we are. You’re family, after all,” Wilma said. 
Ada patted Wilma’s shoulder. “Gott is blessing your family.”
“I know. There will be babies everywhere. We’ll turn the sewing room into a nursery. That’ll be perfect since it’s the room next to yours, Debbie. We don’t really need to use that room as the sewing room. We can move everything to another room.”
Debbie was overwhelmed with how everyone was trying to make her comfortable. “You don’t need to do that. I can keep the baby with me. I don’t want anyone to be put out.”
“The baby might be fine in your room at the start, but what about when it gets older? It can’t stay with you forever.”
As lovely and thoughtful as it was, Ada's comment made Debbie think they all expected her to live there forever. But she’d get married again at some point; couldn’t they all see that? Peter White had already offered his assistance in that department. Over the past few weeks, she’d often wondered if she should’ve taken him up on his offer. Then, she would have a completely new beginning, and her baby would have a father.
Perhaps next time Peter asked her to marry him, it would be for a very different reason. It would be out of love, not a sense of duty, or helping her out of a situation. Or maybe Peter would grow tired of waiting for their romance to blossom. She hadn’t given him a no to his proposal. It was more of a ‘not yet.’ At least, that was how she thought she’d answered.
Levi cleared his throat. “I have an announcement to make. We are opening the shop from next week forward. Everyone must do her part in making sure it’s fully stocked, so you ladies will need to get busy in the kitchen making the apple goods. I want two people in the shop all the time. Hope, you can work out who will do what.”
“What hours will we open?” she asked.
“Same as last year, between ten and four. Whoever is working in the shop will work in the orchard between seven and nine-forty-five. Then they can go straight to work at the shop. Then finish at four. What does everyone think about that? I’ll help out when anyone needs a break.”
“Sounds like a good idea, Dat.” Bliss clapped her hands. “I can’t wait. I love working in the shop.”
“Yeah, it sounds okay.” Cherish looked at Hope. “Don’t forget I’m working at the café on Tuesdays, so don’t have me doing anything on Tuesdays, Hope.” Cherish was quick to get that out there. It was good to get out and be treated as an individual and not just as one of the Baker girls... the youngest one. 
“Okay, I’ll remember,” Hope told her. “Levi, I do have my things to sew for the wedding. With working in the orchard during the day and cooking at night, where am I supposed to find the time for it? I’m not meaning to be rude. I’m just feeling a little overwhelmed with everything.”
“I’ll help you with your sewing,” said Ada.
Hope whipped her head around to face Ada. “Would you?”
“Of course I will. I can help right up until the time I go up north with your mudder.”
“That would be wunderbaar. I forgot you and Samuel were going to Connecticut with Mamm.”
“That’s right, and we’re bringing Luke back with us.” Ada looked around at all the girls, smiling.
“You mean Matthew?” Hope asked.
Ada rolled her eyes. “Oh, that’s right. He wants to be known by his middle name now. That’s Matthew with two Ts. I keep forgetting to remember that. He says Matthew is more who he is.”
Cherish held her breath. “He’s staying with you, isn’t he?”
“Jah, he stayed with us last time, and he’ll stay with us again. Don’t worry, Cherish. He won’t be bothering you.”
Cherish was relieved to hear it, but if Matthew wasn’t going to be bothering her, who was Ada setting her matchmaking eyes upon? Looking around at the single women at the table, she noted that Debbie was a little old for him and Favor was too young. That left Bliss, but Bliss was in love with Adam Wengerd. Everyone knew that. Or did Ada have a long-range plan to marry Favor and Matthew off in a few years when they were both older? That made perfect sense. 
Her thoughts were confirmed when Cherish caught Ada looking at Favor with a certain glint in her eyes. 
Favor was munching on a chicken leg with no idea what was going on, but Cherish knew Favor found Matthew just as annoying as everyone else did. Ada would end up disappointed if that was her plan.
Mamm turned to Debbie and took hold of her hand. “You must write to John’s parents and tell them everything. No good comes from hiding things. Believe me. The truth will always come out in the end, and you will look bad for keeping the secrets.”
Cherish looked on at their clasped hands in disbelief. Mamm never held anyone’s hand. She wasn’t affectionate in that way. Why was she being like that with Debbie? 
“I’ve put it off for long enough, you’re right. I plan to do that tonight, Aunt Wilma. I’ve already warned my parents I was going to tell John’s parents. Maybe they told them already, I’m not sure. I don’t want another secret again in my life. It’s been far too stressful for me.” Debbie looked away from Wilma and stared across the table at Cherish.
Cherish didn’t know why she was staring at her so hard until she remembered her mother still didn’t know about Christina’s baby news. When Christina broke her baby news to them, she said they could tell their mother, but at the time, the girls agreed it should come directly from Christina. From the look on Debbie’s face, keeping the secret from Wilma was playing on her mind. There was only one thing to do. “Christina is having a baby too,” Cherish blurted out. 
Mamm let go of Debbie’s hand and stared at Cherish. “Don’t say that, Cherish. It’s cruel.”
“Yes, Cherish,” Ada agreed. “You must think of her feelings before you spread these rumors. If word gets back to Christina, she’ll be devastated. You should send her to her room for that, Wilma.” 
“It’s true,” Cherish insisted. 
“Nee. You must be wrong.” Mamm shook her head. “I’ve a good mind to wash your mouth out with soap.”
Hope spoke up, “Nee, Mamm. Cherish is right. We didn’t say anything because we had hoped Christina would tell you herself. That’s why we kept quiet. We heard it out of her own mouth.”
Wilma looked away and breathed out heavily. “After all this time… It’s nothing short of a miracle.”
“That’s what Christina said.” Cherish was annoyed that they had refused to believe her until they heard it from Hope. Why did they think so poorly of her? Cherish waited for an apology from Ada or her mother, but she wasn’t surprised when none came. 
Wilma touched her chin. “The baby will be my step-grandchild. And yours will be my grandniece or nephew by marriage, Debbie. Just like Iris. No, wait. Not like Iris, because Iris is my step-grandchild.”
Cherish frowned at her mother. She always had to define and name every relationship. Why couldn’t she just say Debbie’s baby would be a grandniece or nephew? She always had to point out that these babies weren’t directly related to herself. Maybe the only babies she truly loved were Honor’s and Mercy’s.
Wilma continued, “Still, I’ll love them just as much.”
“Well, that’s good to know,” Cherish said. 
Wilma turned to her best friend. “What do you think about that, Ada? Christina and Mark having a baby.”
“I’m shocked, but simply delighted for them.”
Hope added, “Christina said we could tell you and Ada, but she wants both of you to keep it quiet.”
“I understand. We can do that, but you should’ve told us immediately. She’ll think we know and haven’t even bothered to visit her and share in her excitement.”
“We should visit her as soon as we can, Wilma.”
“Jah, we will. We’ll go together.”
Hope looked over at Samuel and Levi. “Neither of you heard it either. You must keep quiet.”
“We will,” Samuel said.
“Everyone knew this before I did?” Mamm asked, staring at each of her daughters in turn. 
“Only because we told them,” Cherish said. “Christina said I could tell, just as long as no one tells anyone else.”
Ada shook her head. “It seems Christina doesn’t need to do a thing in regard to announcing her news because you’ll flap your gums, and soon everyone in the community will know.”
Mamm sniggered at Ada’s comment.
“I’m only telling family,” Cherish said, "and Christina said I could."
Ada sat tall, lifting her chin. “I’m glad I’m considered family.”
“Of course you are. You’re here all the time,” Cherish said.
Hope stifled a laugh at Cherish’s remark, and Levi nearly choked on his apple juice.
“On a different subject," said Wilma, "Cherish has been jabbering on about us all making that quilt. We need to make a start on it so Hope can have it for her wedding. Tomorrow, Ada is helping me cut out the fabric.” 
Hope looked around. “Denke, everyone for doing this. I'm so looking forward to having this beautiful quilt.”
“Yes, and it will be beautiful once we finish it. And we will finish it because I didn't buy all that fabric to go to waste.” Mamm gave a nod.
“Denke, everyone for doing this,” Favor said, mimicking Hope. 
Everyone stared at Favor. Mamm was the one to ask, “What's the matter with you?”
“Nothing.” Favor looked down. 
“Are you still annoyed about Krystal not being allowed to stay at our haus?” Levi asked.
“No. Well, yes. It's just that everyone gets everything done for them except for me. When was the last time you heard me thank anyone for anything? No, because no one does anything for me. I was practicing saying thank you for the imaginary time someone does something nice for me.”
Levi drew his eyebrows together. “What about when we had your pen pal stay here for months?”
“You didn't actually allow me to have her. I told her she could come.”
Wilma said, “Well, Levi and I could've sent her straight back, and we didn’t. We allowed her to stay.”
Ada leaned across the table and stared at Favor. “The question is, when have you done something nice for someone else? You’re sounding selfish. You’ll understand when you’re older that doing things for other people will bring you happiness.”
“Stop being so jealous all the time,” Hope told Favor. “Everyone should enjoy everyone else's good times and be happy for them. Your time to get married will come and we’ll all be happy for you.”
Once again, Favor looked down. With her fork, she pushed the chicken bones around. “No one understands.” 
“I do,” Mamm said. “You’re getting exactly like Joy, feeling left out all the time. It’s silly.”
Cherish knew that wasn't a good thing for Mamm to say because now someone would tell Joy what Mamm said about her and then more trouble would brew.
Hope agreed, “Yes, and you're not even the middle child.”
“It's not only the middle children left out. Anyway, I am in the middle. Cherish is the youngest, not me. She gets to do what she wants. She’s still allowed to work at the café, and Bliss can't even do that.”
Cherish had tried to be sympathetic to Favor, but mentioning her job at the café was going too far. Levi could very easily put his foot down and say she had to quit. “You're being mean to everybody now. Mamm, can’t you tell her to go to her room?”
“I'll tell you all to go to your rooms in a minute if you don't all be quiet.”
Bliss said, “I think everyone should be happy for Hope getting a lovely quilt and being married to a lovely man.”
Hope smiled. 
Ada looked at Samuel, who had been quiet through the meal. “Do you have anything to say about anything, Samuel?”
“Jah, I do.” He looked at Hope. “I’m happy that you are marrying Fairfax. You’ve both known each other for a suitable time and you seem like you’re well matched.” He then looked at Hope. “I’m also pleased you’re going to receive a lovely quilt made by loving hands.”
Ada gave a simple nod, showing she was satisfied.
Hope smiled at him. “Thank you, Samuel.”
Cherish did her best to shrug off her irritation with Favor. “And this won't be the only quilt we’ll make. We’ll keep making them. I'm sure I'm going to enjoy the process.” 
Levi smiled. “I'm glad that’s sorted, isn't it, Favor?”
Without looking up from her plate, she said, “I guess so. Is there any more chicken?”
“No, there is not. How about a smile?” Mamm asked.
Favor looked up at her and offered a fake smile.
“That's better. That's a lot better.”
But it wasn't.

* * *

When Debbie went to her room that night, she did something she’d been putting off. She wrote a heartfelt letter to John’s parents. She told them everything she and John had talked about for their future. Also, she expressed how she was unhappy about keeping the marriage a secret for so long, but John had insisted they do so, and he kept delaying telling the news. 
It was hard to reveal the truth to his parents, but that was precisely what had happened. 
She also mentioned why she had continued the ruse after he died. She hoped they’d understand that she didn’t want them to be disappointed in their late son when they found out he’d been deceiving them. 
After she’d written the facts just as she remembered them, she added that she was pregnant and was having John’s baby.
It was a sad letter to write, but she wanted the whole truth to come out. When she finished, she pushed the letter into an envelope and addressed it. Then she licked the glue strip on the envelope and sealed it. Lastly, she stuck on a stamp that Favor had given her. Hopefully, Wilma would allow her to send it tomorrow so she wouldn’t have a chance to second guess what she had written.

THE AMISH BONNET SISTERS

Book 1 Amish Mercy

Book 2 Amish Honor

Book 3 A Simple Kiss

Book 4 Amish Joy

Book 5 Amish Family Secrets

Book 6 The Englisher

Book 7 Missing Florence

Book 8 Their Amish Stepfather

Book 9 A Baby For Florence

Book 10 Amish Bliss

Book 11 Amish Apple Harvest

Book 12 Amish Mayhem

Book 13 The Cost of Lies

Book 14 Amish Winter of Hope

Book 15 A Baby For Joy

Book 16 The Amish Meddler

Book 17 The Unsuitable Amish Bride

Book 18 Her Amish Farm

Book 19 The Unsuitable Amish Wedding

Book 20 Her Amish Secret

Book 21 Amish Harvest Mayhem

Book 22 Amish Family Quilt

Book 23 Hope's Amish Wedding

Book 24 A Heart of Hope

Book 25 A Season for Change

Book 26 Amish Farm Mayhem

Book 27 The Stolen Amish Wedding

Book 28 A Season for Second Chances

Book 29 A Change of Heart

Book 30 The Last Wedding

Book 31 Starting Over

Book 32 Love and Cherish

Book 33 Amish Neighbors

Book 34 Her Amish Quilt

Book 35 A Home of Their Own

Book 36 A Chance for Love

Book 37 Her Amish Wish

Book 38 Amish Harvest Time

Book 39 Whispers of Change

Book 40 Her Hopeful Heart

Book 41 Return to Love's Promise

Book 42 Amish Circle of Blessings