Never Far From Home by Mary Ellis

Author:Mary Ellis [Ellis, Mary]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 0736927336
Publisher: Harvest House Publishers
Published: 2009-01-02T07:00:00+00:00

August

Hullo, fraa. Is lunch almost ready?” Seth called, breaking Hannah’s daydreaming.

Hannah straightened up very slowly, allowing each vertebra in her spine to ease back into place. Spasms in her arms and shoulders reminded her she had been picking vegetables for a long while. Shielding her eyes from the sun’s glare with her hand, she spotted Seth by the garden gate. “Lunch?” she called. “How could you be hungry already? Didn’t we just eat breakfast?”

“Hours ago, my dear wife. It’s well past noon.” Seth sauntered through the green beans, looking annoyingly fresh. How could the man spend the morning tilling between rows of sweet corn and not look as limp as a dishrag? Her shoes were scuffed, her apron was dirty, her dress was pasted to her back, and her scalp prickled beneath her kapp. She could just imagine what she looked like.

“How goes your day?” he asked when he reached her, midway down a row. He took the basket of beans from her grasp.

“I’ve been going round in circles. I suffered plenty of scratches to pick enough blackberries to make jam, and then Turnip ate half the bucket while my back was turned.”

Her husband grinned from ear to ear. “Maybe he thought you picked them for him.” Seth rocked back on his heels.

“That dog is supposed to be guarding sheep, not thieving in the berry patch. Then I only got half the peaches picked before spotting a hornet’s nest at arm’s length. I had to leave the rest behind. Suddenly, everything in the garden has ripened at once, needing to be picked and canned before it starts to rot.” She wiped her sleeve across her forehead, leaving behind a smear of dirt.

“Is that all?” he asked with a mischievous grin.

“No, that’s not all. My feet are so swollen it feels like I put on somebody else’s shoes, and my back hurts from bending over.”

Seth dropped his arm from around her shoulder to the base of her spine and rubbed in a circular motion. “Where is that imp, Phoebe? She’s supposed to be helping you out here.”

Hannah shook her head. “She said she was getting a drink of water half an hour ago. I haven’t seen her since.”

“Let’s get you out of this hot sun for a while.” Tugging her hand, Seth gently led her from the garden.

Inside the house, they found Phoebe sitting at the kitchen table. A glass of water sat in front of her, while her doll occupied the opposite chair. A toy cup had been provided for the doll’s refreshment.

“Hi, mamm and daed,” the child sang out when they entered the room.

“Are you having a tea party while your mamm works outside alone?” Seth asked, sounding sterner than Hannah had ever heard him.

“I’m sorry,” she said, and ran to hug Hannah around the waist. Her dimpled face looked truly repentant.

“It’s all right, Phoebe,” Hannah said. She washed her arms and face at the sink while the child clutched her skirt.

“You help her make my big, gourmet lunch while I clean up next,” Seth instructed.

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