Recently wed Amanda and Wyman Brubaker are thrilled that their children from previous marriages have blended together to form a strong family. But when the construction of Wyman’s new grain elevator is delayed, making the project more expensive than anticipated, Amanda’s determination to rally the kids into taking on work to improve the family’s finances comes into conflict with Wyman’s sense of responsibility as head of the household….
Meanwhile, as James Graber and Abby Lambright prepare for their long-awaited nuptials, folks gather from far and wide. Amanda’s nephew Jerome has long been smitten with James’s sister Emma and wants to seize this chance to woo her. But Emma’s been burned once and is twice shy of trusting the fun-loving, never-serious Jerome. As Emma and Jerome struggle to understand each other, and find the courage to make a leap of faith, the Brubakers face a bigger challenge than they first anticipated and begin to discover just what it means to fight…the Amish way.
* * *
Excerpt
#1
“It’s been way too long
since I hitched up a sleigh,” Jerome said as he lightly clapped the reins on
Sparky’s back. “I don’t think this one’s seen the snow since Uncle Atlee
passed, and that’s a shame. Are you warm enough?”
Emma burrowed deeper beneath the quilts Jerome had draped
over them. Now that she was settled on the plush old seat, leaning into Jerome
as the sleigh tilted slightly on the downhill lane, she felt happier than she
had in a long time. The full moon was beaming down from a blue velvet sky
dotted with diamond stars, making the snow-blanketed pastures glimmer all
around them.
“I’m cozy. And I’m having a really gut time,” Emma
replied with a contented sigh. “Night rides are the prettiest, especially now
that the wind has died down.”
“Jah, it’s a perfect evening,” Jerome replied softly.
“I’ve been hoping for more time alone with you, well—since the day we went
shopping, Emma.”
As she thought back to that day she’d spent trying to
escape Jerome’s attentions, Emma let herself relax . . . allowed the breeze
from the accelerating sleigh blow away her former objections to the handsome
man who was driving it. The clip-clop of Sparky’s hooves on the snow-packed
road settled her heartbeat into its rhythm while the warmth they shared beneath
the quilts soothed her after a day of surprising guests and revelations. “Denki
for giving me another chance, Jerome,” she murmured. “You were right at the
wedding. I’ve missed out on a lot of opportunities to go out and have fun.”
One Big Happy Family, Book 2
NAL Trade (November 4, 2014)
ISBN-13: 9780451417886 •• ISBN-10: 0451417887
Click on these links to buy this book now!
Drawing upon her experiences in Jamesport, the largest Old
Order Amish community west of the Mississippi, longtime Missourian Naomi King
writes of simpler times and a faith-based lifestyle in her Home at Cedar Creek/One Big Happy Family series. Like her series
heroine, Abby Lambright, Naomi considers it her personal mission to be a
listener—to heal broken hearts and wounded souls—and to share her hearth and
home. Faith and family, farming and frugality are hallmarks of her lifestyle:
like Abby, she made her wedding dress and the one her mom wore, too! She’s a
deacon, a dedicated church musician and choir member, and when she’s not
writing, Naomi loves to travel, try new recipes, crochet, and sew. Naomi, whose
real name is Charlotte Hubbard, now lives in Minnesota with her husband and
their border collie, Ramona.
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