Amish Christmas Twins. Shelley Shepard Gray

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      E.A. carefully closed the door behind her before tossing her robe on the floor and crawling back into bed. “I don’t know.” And that was the truth. She had no idea how Jemima and Roy were feeling.

      Looking even more concerned, Will sat up and faced her. “Well, what happened? You were in there for a while.”

      “I found Roy in Jemima’s room. He was sitting on the edge of her bed and they were whispering. But the moment I showed up, he jumped to his feet and promised he wouldn’t get out of bed again. Next thing I knew, he was scurrying back to his room.” Hating how scared he’d looked—and how resigned Jemima had been—E.A. released a ragged sigh. “I think that boy actually thought I was going to get mad at him. Can you believe it? He thought I was going to get mad at him for talking to his sister. It makes me want to cry.”

      “They’ve been through a lot, E.A. You’re still a stranger, remember?”

      “I haven’t forgotten. I believe Melanie said that we’re the sixth foster family they’ve been with since their parents died three years ago.”

      “She also said that the couple they were with before wasn’t a good fit and that the kinner had been especially unhappy there.”

      “That doesn’t make me feel any better. If anything, I feel worse—like we should have filled out the paperwork months ago.”

      “You can’t think that way. Their rough time of it isn’t our fault, darling. You can’t take on all their burdens, and most especially not their past.”

      She looked into his dark brown eyes and smiled. Will was truly one of the kindest people she knew. He’d always been that way, even back when they were children. What she hadn’t known, however, was that he could be romantic, too. He’d started to call her darling when they were engaged, and though they’d been married over a year and were no longer newlyweds, every time he murmured the endearment her heart pitter-pattered a little faster.

      “I know you are right, Will. It’s just hard. I want them to be happy.”

      “They will be. Or at the very least, we’ll try to help them to be happy.”

      “Even though they just got here and Melanie said for us to take our time getting to know each other, I already know I want more than that.” She reached for his hand. “Will, I want Roy and Jemima to be with us forever.”

      “I’m taken with them, too. I knew it the moment Melanie introduced us to them two weeks ago and Roy asked if I liked pumpkin pie.”

      E.A. giggled. “Just as I was about to say that I’d make him one, he wrinkled his nose and said he thought it was yucky.”

      “All while Jemima was trying to get him to hush.” The lines around his eyes deepened with his smile. “Elizabeth Anne, not to sound too full of myself or anything, but I think they’re going to be mighty happy with us, too.”

      “Do you really think so?”

      He nodded. “How can they not be? We already are starting to love them.” He ran his thumb over her knuckles. “I bet it will just take them a while to get settled.”

      “I hope so.”

      “Come now, try to stay positive, jah?”

      Against her will, her eyes filled up with tears. “Christmas is just around the corner. I wish those kids were only worrying about presents they wanted and how much fruitcake to eat.”

      Will grinned. “First, nobody sits around dreaming of fruitcake. Secondly, that’s a wonderful idea. We can ask them to write a Christmas list. That will give them something positive to think about.”

      “I’ll bring that up tomorrow.”

      “Gut.” He ran a hand down her hair. “Does that mean you’ll stop crying now?”

      “Yes. I’m sorry. I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”

      “I think you do, Elizabeth,” he said gently. “Ain’t so?”

      Feeling her cheeks heat, she nodded. Less than a week ago—just days before Roy and Jemima were scheduled to arrive—they’d gotten the biggest surprise. They were expecting a baby.

      When E.A. had shared her shock, the midwife had simply raised her eyebrows. “A smart girl like you can sure be foolish,” she’d chided. “I would have thought you’d have figured out how babes were made.”

      Yes, she had known. But she’d also learned years ago that the chances of her becoming pregnant were very slim. This pregnancy was truly a miracle, but it was also a closely guarded secret. She and Will wanted to wait a few weeks before they shared the news. Not just to hold their secret tight for a bit before it was all of their friends’ and families’ news as well . . . but for the sake of Jemima and Roy.

      Now all of their plans were up in the air.

      “Have you thought any more about what we discussed?” Will asked.

      E.A. nodded. “I’ve thought about it, but it doesn’t feel right. We brought the children here with the intention of adopting them.”

      “I know we did. But the timing might not be the best. Roy and Jemima need two parents to give them all their attention. They’ve already been through so much. How can we give them what they need if we have a newborn?”

      “Our babe won’t be born for months and months. We don’t need to make this decision now.”

      “I agree, but as soon as Christmas is over, we’ll need to decide.”

      “That’s in two weeks, Will.”

      He sighed in the dark. “Elizabeth Anne, I’m not trying to hurt your feelings or bring pain into those kinner’s lives. But one of us has to be tough. I can’t think that it will be easier on those children to wait to tell them that we can’t adopt them.”

      “If that’s what we decide.”

      “Yes, of course. If we decide that.” He ran a hand down her hair again. “Just keep an open mind, okay? At the very least, we’ll be giving them a wonderful Christmas.”

      “At least there’s that.” She felt her eyes fill with tears again.

      Will wrapped his arms around her. “Don’t cry. Everything will work out the way it’s supposed to. God has a plan, yes?”

      “Jah,” she whispered. But as the minutes passed and she eventually heard Will’s deep, even breathing, E.A. couldn’t help but think of everything the children had already been through.

      How did God have a plan that included orphaning two small children? No matter how hard she tried to wrap her mind around that, it didn’t make much sense.

      At last, she fell into a restless sleep, finally praying that the Lord would help her be strong enough to do the “right” thing, whatever that might be.

      Chapter 3

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