Love's Abundant Harvest Read Online Free PDF

yellow light fly by and then turned toward Emma, jar in
hand. “They say the female lights up to show the male where she is.”
    He looked over to see Emma walking toward him. She stopped and tapped his jar with
hers. He opened the lid, and she poured the firefly into his jar. “Ya got to let
her go, Manny.”
    He nodded and put his arm around her. “What would I do without a cousin like you?”
    “Find a wife.”
    He turned to her. “I’ll find someone, someday. Quit trying to get rid of me.”
    “We need pie. Whoopee pie, to be exact.” She looked over expectantly, waiting for
his reaction.
    “You made my day by saying those words.”
    They’d almost made it to the door when a horse with one rider came thundering up
to the haus . It was Sam. His first thought was Lucy and the baby, but it was difficult
to read Sam’s face. He was a serious man without much expression. But looking at
him now, Manny wondered if that was the look of a man who never got over the death
of his first wife.
    Sam jumped off his palomino, dropping the reins, and let it wander a couple feet
away. “You have anything you want to say to me, Manny Keim?” His eyes were slits
and his breathing heavy. His fists were balled and white-knuckled. Manny could feel
the man’s steel grip without him actually taking hold of him. Sam stood a good four
inches above him and had twice the girth.
    “I’m assuming this is about my visit at Frieda’s place this afternoon.”
    “You assume right.”
    “If you’re referring to Lucy’s dizzy spell, I helped her gain her senses is all.”
    Sam let out a long breath and dropped his fists. “You touched my wife.”
    Emma stepped forward. “Now, just a minute here, Sam—”
    Manny held up a hand and stood in front of her.
    “She didn’t feel like herself, and I helped her gain her strength back. That’s all.”
Manny’s heart beat in his chest. He didn’t expect good manners from Sam, but he didn’t
like to be accused of doing something completely different than what he had done.
    “What is it you’re concerned about, Sam? There were three other people there who
can tell you that we had a nice conversation and something to eat.”
    Sam glared at Manny long enough to make him sweat a little. “Stay away from my wife.”
    With that, Sam yanked his horse over and hiked himself up into the saddle. He gave
Manny one last look, kicked both sides of his mount, and then took off at a gallop.
When the cloud of dust disappeared, Manny looked away.
    “I’m sorry, Manny.” Emma’s voice brought him back to the moment.
    “I wonder how word spread so fast,” he muttered under his breath. Then, realizing
what Emma had said, he looked at her. “Sorry for what?”
    “I told Sam I saw Lucy on the road heading toward Frieda’s when I was out earlier.
I didn’t think a thing about it. I guess someone told him you were there when she
had that fainting spell.”
    “You didn’t do anything wrong. Neither did I.”
    “Then what’s the fuss about?”
    “Lucy had a dizzy spell, and I kept her from falling, is all. No matter what Sam
says, I only did what was necessary.” He watched Sam turn down the dirt road and
slap his horse on the flank.
    “I never did understand that man or his wife.” Emma turned to go into the haus .
    Manny suddenly felt protective of Lucy and resented Emma’s comment. “Ya gotta get
to know someone before you decide how you feel about ’em.”
    Emma stopped and glanced at the road. “Well, I think we both know how Sam feels about
you.”
    Manny didn’t care what Sam thought about him. What he did care about was what kind
of tongue-lashing Lucy would undergo when Sam got home.

T here’s a stray horse in my yard.” Sam let the back screen door slam shut behind
him.
    Lucy stopped peeling potatoes and walked to the back door. She smiled when she saw
Sweet Pea grazing on the small patches of green grass. “I saw her out there the other
day.”
    “Raggedy old thing.” He