"I'm not like you, Gabe," I replied wiping the last of the tears from my cheeks and straightening my kapp. "I love my family, but I have a life outside of this community, and I want to go home to it."
"I don't understand your need to put yourself before your family," Gabe said sadly.
"And that's precisely the problem," I shot back. "You've never understood anything about me."
"I love you, Grace," Gabe said. His expression was sad, but calm. "I always have and I always will. And no matter how hard you try to push me away, I'll always be here. Waiting for you."
"Gabe, don't," I said shaking my head. "Just don't. I'm not coming back."
"Grace?" Verity called from the kitchen. "Is Gabe staying for supper?"
I looked at Gabe and raised an eyebrow silently asking the question. He simply shook his head and headed for the front door.
"No, he's not staying," I called as moved back out to the porch watching Gabe walk across the yard, unhitch the horse and then swing himself up into the front seat of the buggy. He slapped the reins and the horse took off, heading for home as I stood silently watching him go.
"Your boyfriend seems like a nice guy," Adam said startling me.
"Huh? My boyfriend?" I said looking down at him holding the pot of peeled potatoes in his lap. “What on earth did you do?"
"Thought I'd help out," he shrugged giving me a lopsided grin and I could feel my pulse begin to race again. "You know, earn my keep and all. It looked easy enough. Did I get it right?"
I nodded as I took the pot from him and balanced it on my hip so that I could take it inside to Verity. I searched for something witty to say, something that would make me seem more cosmopolitan than I felt dressed in my plain clothes, but my mind was blank.
"Thank you," I said as I pulled open the front door and slipped inside.
"Don't mention it," Adam said, and then I heard him add, "I hope you two can work out your lovers spat."
I opened my mouth to reply, and then quickly shut it. I wasn't going to let Adam Wallace see that he could get to me—not when I had bigger issues to deal with in order to get back to my life in Chicago.
Chapter Twenty
Adam
I knew I'd hit a nerve with the boyfriend talk, but I liked seeing Grace Miller get flustered. She was normally so calm and reserved that it made me wonder if anything could penetrate her outer shell. It was obvious to me that Gabe had a huge crush on her, but the way she talked to him didn't indicate that his feelings were reciprocated. I wanted to ask her about it, but I knew that there was no way Grace was going to spill her secrets.
Over dinner, I watched as Danny excitedly signed the activities of the day and accounted for the work he'd done in the field. For a 15-year-old boy, he was surprisingly productive and eager to help ensure that the fields were cared for and the celery was healthy.
"What's up with this obsession with celery?" I asked as I scooped up a forkful of mashed potatoes. "I don't get it."
"The celery is for Verity's wedding," Honor said as she helped herself to more pot roast and signaled to me to pass the gravy.
"Okay?" I said looking across the table at Grace who was staring intently at her plate. "What's celery have to do with weddings?"
"Celery is used in the wedding dinner, English," Honor said impatiently.
"Honor!" Verity scolded. "That's not a nice way to refer to our guest!"
"He's not a guest. No one invited him to stay with us," Honor replied. "He's a convalescent who happens to be camped out on our sofa."
"Honor!" both Grace and Verity said at the same time.
"What?" Honor said defensively looking back and forth at her older sisters. "I'm just saying what everyone is thinking."
"It's rude," Verity said. "I'm sorry, Mr. Wallace. She's rather blunt."
"No need to be sorry," I shrugged. "She's right. I'm not a guest. I crashed my car and needed help. You offered under duress."
"Oh please, don't start pitying yourself," Honor interjected.