Love Inspired March 2015 - Box Set 1 of 2: A Wife for JacobThe Forest Ranger's RescueAlaskan Homecoming Read online

  “I’ll get you the socks,” he said softly. Inside the dawdi haus, he found the pair of socks right where she told him they would be. He grabbed them and the navy sneakers, brought them outside and handed them to her. “Your dat’s in gut hands, Annie. These men know what they’re doing.” She nodded. “They’ll get him to the hospital. You’ll need to go there, as well.”

  “Ja,” she said, glancing toward where the men bent over her father. She held on to the socks he’d given her but made no effort to put them on.

  “Do you need help?” he asked quietly.

  “Nay. I can do it.” But she didn’t move. She watched the men working on her father.

  “Annie,” he said. “Do you need help?” Without waiting for her answer, Jacob gently took the socks from her and hunkered down near her feet. “Hold on to my shoulder.”

  He tried not to think about the fact that he was holding Annie’s bare foot as he carefully pulled on the first sock and then the second one. Within seconds, he felt satisfied that her injured feet would be protected. He rose and, without meeting her glance as she bent to put on the shoes, turned to watch the ambulance workers.

  As two men lifted Joe onto a stretcher, the driver approached them. “Are you relatives?” he asked.

  “I am,” Annie said as she straightened. “I’m his daughter.”

  “We’ve secured his neck in a brace, and we’ve done what we could for him. It looks like he may have fractured his leg. We’ll be taking him to General Hospital. They’ll do X-rays and check for other injuries.” The dark-haired man wore a white shirt and pants and a white jacket embroidered with the red insignia of the ambulance company. “Do you want to ride with us?” he asked Annie.

  She hesitated. “Ja.”

  “That’s fine,” Jacob said. “We’ll make sure Josiah gets to the hospital.”

  A car rumbled down the dirt drive and stopped near the main farmhouse. As Jacob approached the vehicle, the door on the driver’s side opened and Bob Whittier stepped out. “Isaac called from the store,” he said. “Rick Martin was there. Your brother told us what happened.” He paused, studied the scene. “Do you need a lift to the hospital?”

  Jacob shot Annie a quick glance. “Annie’s going in the ambulance with Joe. I’ll take the ride.” The kind Englisher nodded and Jacob returned to Annie’s side. “I’m going to follow behind the ambulance with Bob.”

  Annie didn’t seem pleased. “You don’t have to come.”

  “Ja, I do. You shouldn’t be alone.” He paused. “I’ll stay until your brother gets there.” He watched as the EMTs carefully shifted Joe onto a stretcher. “Looks like they’re getting ready to move him.”

  “I need to get my purse,” she said.

  “Where’s Isaac?” Jacob asked Bob as Annie hurried toward the farmhouse.

  “Rick is taking him to the Kings to tell Josiah what happened. As soon as he can, Rick will bring them to the hospital.”

  Annie returned with purse in hand, and Jacob stood beside her and Bob as the EMTs placed Joe carefully into the back of the vehicle. He heard Annie’s sharp little inhalation, and he felt the strongest desire to comfort her, tell her that Joe would be all right and she had no reason to worry, except that he didn’t know the extent of her father’s injuries. He settled a hand on her shoulder and felt her jerk as if startled. He drew his fingers away.

  One of the ambulance workers approached. “We’re ready to go.”

  “I’m coming,” she said.

  Jacob couldn’t help himself from reaching for her hand, just for a moment, to give it a reassuring squeeze. She broke away and hurried toward the ambulance. The memory of her shocked look stayed with him as he climbed into the front seat of Bob’s car and buckled his seat belt. They were nearly at the hospital when he heard the light toot of a car horn behind them. He glanced back to see Rick’s car. He was glad that the Englisher was able to bring Josiah so quickly.

  He could tell Bob to turn around and take him back. Annie didn’t want him at the hospital. But she would just have to tolerate his presence. He wasn’t about to go home without learning if Joe was all right. It was the correct thing to do.

  * * *

  “Your father needs surgery. He has a displaced fracture of the tibia and fibula in his left leg, the two bones that make up the shin. He hit his head when he fell, but I don’t think that injury is severe. Looks like the leg suffered the worst of it. We’ll do a CT scan to be certain. He’ll need surgery to repair the damage.”

  Annie nodded. “Will he be all right?” Her fear rose with each revelation the doctor made.

  “There are no guarantees, but his prognosis looks good. We’re running tests to make sure an underlying condition didn’t cause his fall, but from what your father told me, I don’t believe that’s the case.”

  “When can we see him?” Josiah asked.

  Annie glanced at her brother, who was frowning. He looked impatient, agitated.

  In direct contrast, Dr. Moss looked confident and competent in her white lab coat. “You can see him for a few minutes before we take him up to surgery,” she said. A nurse approached with a clipboard. “Excuse me.” Dr. Moss studied the chart and nodded. She spoke privately with the young woman before she returned her attention to Josiah and Annie. “I’ll need one of you to sign a consent form.”

  While her brother waited for the form, Annie flashed Jacob a glance. She was keenly aware of his presence. When their gazes caught, she looked away. Why had he come? He said that he’d stay only until her brother arrived, but Josiah had arrived the same time as Jacob. She wanted him to leave. But how could she make him go after the way he’d helped with Dat? He cared about her father and she had to respect his feelings. She recalled the image of young twelve-year-old Jacob hanging on to her father’s every word as her dat taught him about blacksmithing.

  Disturbed by the memory, she tried to focus on Josiah, now bent over a clipboard with pen in hand. But she remained acutely aware of the man behind her. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. She was relieved to see him deep in conversation with his brother Isaac, Bob Whittier and Rick Martin.

  Tall, with dark hair like his eldest brother Jacob wore a royal blue shirt with suspenders holding up his triblend denim pants. He held his black-banded straw hat in his hands. She dared to examine his face. His features were a beautiful combination of his mam and dat—Katie and Samuel Lapp. Annie scowled and Jacob turned, caught her gaze. She gasped, looked away. How embarrassing to be caught staring. To her dismay, she sensed his approach.

  “Are you all right?” Jacob asked softly.

  She shook her head. “I will be once I know my father is all right.”

  “He spoke to us,” he said. “That’s a gut sign.” He offered her an encouraging smile. “I’m praying for his quick recovery.”

  Tears sprang to Annie’s eyes. “I appreciate that.” It was a kind thing for him to say, but then Jacob had been kind to her from the first moment he’d jumped out of his buggy and offered his help. And she’d been anything but kind to him.

  A nurse appeared from behind them. “You may see your father now but only for a few minutes. We’ll be taking him up to surgery shortly. Only immediate family may see him.”

  “Thank you,” Annie said. She turned to Jacob. “I’ll let you know how he is as soon as I can. I don’t want to keep you.”

  Jacob smiled. Amusement flashed in his golden eyes. “You’re not keeping me from anything. I’ll wait for you.”

  “I won’t be long,” she said as she turned away.

  “Annie,” Josiah interrupted, “we have to go now, or we’ll miss our chance to see Dat.”

  She hurried to join her brother, and they headed into the emergency room for a brief visit with their father.

  * * *

  Jacob waited with Annie and Jo
siah while Horseshoe Joe was in surgery. He could tell that Annie was anxious. Josiah was quiet and didn’t have much to say. Within the hour, Nancy King arrived, greeted them and then sat next to Josiah. Annie’s brother’s expression brightened; he was obviously glad to see her.

  Jacob glanced at the couple, then averted his gaze. Nancy had been his sweetheart, if only for a short time. They had parted ways after she’d gone with her grandparents to visit relatives in North Carolina. On her return, something was changed between them. It was almost as if they’d never spent time together. And then Nancy had begun walking out with Josiah.

  He’d felt hurt at the time, but later when he’d thought about it, he realized that he hadn’t been too upset by the breakup. God had helped him understand that Nancy King wasn’t the woman he was intended to marry. If he’d loved Nancy as much as Noah loved Rachel or Jed loved Sarah, he might have tried to win Nancy’s affection again. But he hadn’t; he’d simply accepted that their relationship was over.

  Thinking about marriage, Jacob knew that he had nothing to offer a wife. If Nancy hadn’t gone away, he might have married her, but he didn’t know how he would have provided for her, or for any woman he courted with the intention of marrying. He was getting older now and had to think about his future.

  “Jacob?” Annie interrupted his thoughts. “Dr. Moss warned us that this would be a long surgery. It will be another hour, at least, until Dat is in recovery.”

  “I’ll wait,” he said. She hadn’t always been a prickly thing. Her breakup with his eldest brother Jedidiah must have changed her.

  Annie stood, and he followed suit.

  “Restless?” he asked her.

  She nodded. “It’s going to be a long while yet.”

  “Let’s go downstairs for coffee,” he said, expecting her to refuse. She surprised him when she agreed.

  “Josiah, we are going down to the cafeteria for coffee,” Annie said. “Would you like to come?”

  “Nay. I’ll stay,” her brother said, and Nancy edged closer to him. His expression softened. “If we hear anything,” he told his sister, “we’ll let you know.” He had taken off his hat and he held it between his knees, twirling the brim.

  Jacob saw that Josiah was more upset than he’d originally let on. “This is an awful thing, but the Lord will help your vadder.”

  Josiah stared at him a second and then gave a nod. “Ja. When you are done,” he asked, “would you bring up coffee for us?”

  “Ja,” Jacob said with a slight smile. “We won’t be long.” He knew Annie would want to return as soon as they’d entered the cafeteria. She wouldn’t be able to help it; he could tell she was terrified that something awful would happen to her father during surgery.

  He followed her into the elevator, pushed the button and stood silently, studying her as he waited for them to reach the bottom floor. She didn’t look at him once during the entire ride. It didn’t bode well for their having coffee together. He would just have to somehow put her at ease.

  Chapter Two

  Jacob studied Annie across the table as she sipped from her cup of coffee, set the mug down and stared into its contents. The hospital cafeteria was quiet. The long institutional-type tables were empty except for Annie and him and two female nurses and a male hospital worker, who occupied another table on the other side of the room. It was too late for breakfast and too early for lunch. “How’s the coffee?” he asked softly.

  She lifted her gaze from the steaming mug. “Gut.” He could see the sheen from the rising moisture on her forehead. She looked at him a moment, her blue eyes shimmering with unshed tears, then glanced away. He could see how the events of the morning had taken a toll on her. “Jacob, I appreciate your help with Dat,” she said, almost reluctantly.

  “I didn’t do much—”

  “I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t stopped to help,” she admitted.

  “I wouldn’t have left you,” he assured her. “I knew something was wrong the minute I saw you.” He frowned. “How are your feet?”

  She blushed as she shifted briefly to glance beneath the table at her grandmother’s navy sneakers, worn over her grandfather’s black socks. “They are fine. They barely hurt.”

  “Must have been broken glass alongside the road.”

  “I was so scared, I just ran,” she admitted. “I didn’t take time to look down.” Her blond hair was a beautiful shade of gold beneath her white head covering. After the blush of embarrassment left her, she looked pale, too pale.

  “May I get you something to eat?” he asked. She looked lovely and vulnerable; he wished he could do more for her.

  Annie shook her head. “I’m not hungry.”

  “We’ve been here for over two hours and the only thing you’ve had is that coffee. Once your vadder is out of surgery, you may not have another opportunity to eat. How about a sandwich?” When she declined, he said, “A cookie? A piece of cake?”

  She didn’t answer. He heard her sniff. “Annie.” Jacob hated to see her troubled, but he understood. “Annie.”

  She looked up, started to rise. “We should get back.”

  He stood. “I’ll get the coffee for Josiah and Nancy. You can go ahead if you’d like.”

  She shook her head. “Nay I’ll wait for you,” she said, surprising him. “You may need help with the coffee.”

  Jacob paid for the drinks for Josiah and Nancy, and on impulse, he purchased two large chocolate-chip cookies. He tucked them under the coffee fixings in the center of the cardboard cup holder. He was back with Annie in less than a minute. There’d been no one in line at the register. “I grabbed sugar and cream for the coffee,” he told her. She inclined her head.

  He silently rode with her on the elevator up to the surgical floor. The doors opened and Jacob waited for Annie to precede him. To his surprise, she suddenly stopped and turned to him. “What are we going to do, Jacob? How will we make do, when Dat can’t work?”

  Jacob considered the woman before him, noting the concern in her expression. “I can help out in the shop, and our community will be there for you, too.”

  She shook her head. “You don’t have enough experience. You could do more harm than good.”

  “I’m not a boy, Annie. I can do the job.” There was a charged moment as awareness of her sprung up inside him. Jacob shook it off. “If I don’t do it, who will?”

  “I don’t know.” She seemed to think about it. “I’ll have to ask Dat.”

  She had grabbed his hat from the table, where he’d set it down when he’d gone for the coffee for her brother and Nancy. Now she fingered the brim nervously.

  “We are friends, aren’t we, Annie?” he asked. “I remember seeing you in the open shop doorway when we were kinner, watching me with your dat.”

  She hesitated, then smiled slightly. “I was sure you would burn yourself with the hot metal, but you never did.”

  “Not that you ever saw.” He remembered her as a young girl, the first girl he’d ever liked.

  Her expression turned serious. “Jacob, it’s nice of you to offer your help, but we can’t accept it.”

  “But if Joe agrees?” he said softly.

  “Then I guess the decision will be made.” She continued down the hall toward the surgical waiting room.

  Jacob fell into step beside her. He studied her bent head, admiring the beauty of her profile. She looked pale and tense, and he didn’t seem to be able to help. He saw Josiah leave the waiting room up ahead and approach.

  “How’s Dat?” Annie asked.

  “No word yet from the doctor.” Josiah nodded his thanks as Jacob handed him a cup of coffee. He declined sugar and cream and grabbed the other cup for Nancy.

  Inside the waiting room, Jacob set down the cardboard cup holder, accepted his hat back from Annie and then to
ok a seat near her. They waited in silence. He retrieved and handed her the wrapped cookies. “For when you’re hungry.”

  Annie’s eyes locked with his. She opened her mouth to say something but then nodded silently instead. Jacob found that he couldn’t look away.

  “Are those cookies?” Josiah asked, capturing Annie’s attention.

  “Ja, Jacob bought them.” Annie handed him one, and Josiah beamed.

  “Gut thinking, Jacob,” Josiah said before he unwrapped the treat and broke it in half. He handed a piece to Nancy and then took a bite of his own.

  Jacob smiled. He was pleased to see Josiah enjoying it, even more pleased to note that Annie had kept one for herself.

  It wasn’t long before there was a light commotion right outside the waiting room. Soon, others within their Amish community arrived, having received word of Joe’s accident. As the newcomers entered the room, he got up and moved away to give Josiah and Annie the time to be comforted by their friends. Among the new arrivals were his parents—Katie and Samuel Lapp—Josie and William Mast and Mae and Amos King. Annie and Josiah rose, and their friends immediately surrounded them.

  William Mast took off his hat, held it against his chest. “How’s Joe?” he asked Jacob.

  Jacob acknowledged the older man. “He’s still in surgery.”

  “Any idea how long?” the older bearded man asked. When Jacob explained it could be another half hour or more, William left to stand near his wife, Josie, who was comforting Annie.

  Josie moved aside, and Jacob’s mother stepped in to give Annie a hug. She spoke briefly to her and Josiah before she moved back to allow others to talk with the Zook siblings.

  His mam turned and saw him standing outside the group. She approached. “How bad?”

  “Bad enough.” Jacob was conscious of Annie across the room. He glanced over briefly to see how she was faring, before he turned back to his mother.