The Harvest of Grace Read Online Free PDF Page B

churning inside her, she went to the next cow. She hated Elam, but she still felt as though he were a magnet, drawing her closer. She longed to feel his lips against hers.

    Think, Sylvia, and stop feeling .
    “Did you get any sleep after I left last night?”
    How she slept was none of his business. “Rhoda’s breathing easier.” She patted the cow as she stood to move to another one.
    Elam’s hesitant smile drew her. “I never doubted you’d get the twins through this ordeal safe and sound. You have strength … determination that the rest of us don’t.” He moved closer.
    Every part of her begged to slip into his arms. She passed him the milking stool and took the nozzle, keeping a safe distance.
    She had to get out of Path Valley, but she doubted Michael Blank would hire her. She didn’t know of one man, Englischer or Amish, who’d hire a female farmhand—not unless she was part of a package deal that included a husband.
    Even if Michael Blank would give her a chance, how could she convince her Daed to let her go? He couldn’t make her stay, but he could cut off her contact with him, Mamm, and her sisters.
    While her mind searched for solutions, she and Elam continued milking the herd. By the time all eighty-two cows were milked, the sun shone brightly through the slats and the dirt-streaked windows. Once the stalls were empty again, she sterilized the milkers and buckets while Elam scraped the grates and cleaned the stalls. After scrubbing the bulk tank, she started spreading white lime sand onto the concrete floor. As soon as Elam joined her, she set the shovel aside and went to the mud sink. He could finish by himself.
    When she turned to leave the wash area, Elam stood directly in her path. He searched her eyes the way he had when they were dating.
    If she had the guts, she’d ask him what was going on between them. But it’d take so little to dismantle her will. She tried to step around him, but he moved in the same direction.
    “Sorry,” she mumbled.

    He touched her cheek, sending both surprise and warmth through her.
    She commanded her body to turn and walk away, demanded herself to break free of his spell, but she couldn’t budge. No matter what Bible verse she tried to grab, she wanted what stood before her. “I … I need to … go.”
    As if the two of them were floating dust particles, they continued hanging in midair and yet moving toward each other. How many times had she dreamed of kissing him again? His lips met hers, and suddenly nothing existed but the feelings that ran between them.
    She pushed him away, tears stinging her eyes. Her skin burned with embarrassment. “Get away from me, Elam.”
    “I don’t want to,” he whispered. “What are we going to do?”
    She knew how he felt. “You have to help me get out of here. Daed doesn’t want to let me go, but he’ll listen to you.”
    He brushed a tear off her face, looking weary and sorry and trapped. “Okay.”
    The door to the barn creaked open. “Sylvia? Elam?” Her sister’s hoarse voice sent alarm through her. Beckie’s brows furrowed as she looked from Sylvia to Elam. “What’s going on?”
    Sylvia’s heart shattered into a hundred pieces. “I … I tripped, and he caught me.” It was a believable lie. Beckie often teased that, when Sylvia was tired, she had all the grace of a newborn calf. Guilt ate at her, and she no longer recognized any part of herself.
    Coughing, Beckie grabbed a nearby wall for support.
    Elam hurried to her, placed his arm around her, and guided her back toward the house.
    Desperate for a moment alone, Sylvia went to the tack room and closed the door. She covered her face with her hands and sobbed, her whole body shaking.

Three

    June
    Shoving a thick packet of money into his pocket, Aaron left the small bank. He’d emptied his account of ten years’ worth of hard work and diligent saving. Even in his worst years, he’d never touched his savings account, and now he had something