Love Blooms in Morning Star by Charlotte Hubbard
Author:Charlotte Hubbard [Hubbard, Charlotte]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Zebra Books
Published: 2022-06-08T00:00:00+00:00
Chapter 19
Jo sensed the tension in the Hartzlersâ front room was ramping up as she and her friends filed into their row for the Sunday morning service. News of Bishop Jeremiahâs absence had circulated quickly among the women as theyâd carried their food for the common meal into Martha Maudeâs and Anneâs kitchen earlierânot that folks seemed to feel anything was amiss. It was normal procedure for the preachers and the deacon to conduct worship in the bishopâs absence, so most ladies were expressing their concern over Margaret losing her cousin sooner than sheâd expected to.
Jo, however, couldnât forget the furtive air that had cloaked the table where Deacon Saul, Preacher Ammon, and Preacher Clarence had huddled on Saturday. Their black hats had almost touched, hiding their guarded expressionsâwhich had only confirmed her uneasiness.
âIs it me, or do the Hartzlers have their furnace cranked up?â Marietta murmured. After sheâd led her four friends into their usual row, she handed her new stepson, baby Levi, to her sister so she could remove her shawl.
Joâs lips curved. Marietta, still extremely thin from last winterâs chemo, was usually pulling her wrap more closely around her shoulders rather than taking it off.
Molly wore a grave expression, as well, as she bounced her little nephew on her knee. âHang on to your kapps, girls,â she whispered. âWhen the catâs away, the mice will play. Letâs hope they play nice.â
As Jo took her seat between Molly and Lydianne, she leaned close to the bishopâs fiancée. âWhat have you heard from Jeremiah? Any clue about his bishopsâ meeting or our service this morning?â
The blond schoolteacher shook her head. âThe last phone message I got was on Friday, saying heâd be staying in Carrollton for the funeral he was to conduct yesterday,â she murmured. âI think heâll be back tomorrow.â
When everyone was seated, Gabe Flaud sang out the first phrase of the opening hymn from the menâs side. His wife, Regina, seated at Lydianneâs right, was focused on her Ausbund as she joined in the hymn. Rather than radiating her usual cheerfulness, her freckled face looked pale and drawn.
Was Regina dealing with morning sickness? Or did she, too, worry that the day might bring difficult decisions for the five friends whoâd worked so hard to make The Marketplace a thriving enterprise?
Near the end of the second hymn, Saul and the two preachers emerged from the deaconâs office, where theyâd been deciding who would preach the morningâs sermons. Was it her imagination, or were the three leaders sharing a smug secret as they removed their black, broad-brimmed hats in one accord to signal the beginning of worship? Jo tried not to overthink their motives as Preacher Ammon opened the service by reading one of the prayers from his service book.
When Deacon Saul stood up with the Bible, however, his gaze lingered on Jo and her four friends before he opened the large book to one of his markers. âOur first Scripture reading today is from Paulâs letter to the Ephesians, chapter five, verses twenty-two through twenty-four.
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