His eyes widened. “I never thought of it like that.” He clutched her hand and made her very happy when he sat down right by her side.
“I’m sure Tricia has thought of that. Ain’t so?” she asked the young lady.
Smiling softly, Tricia nodded. “I have a sister but no brothers, William. I’m glad you and Mark will be my bruders. It’s a lovely blessing.”
“Indeed, it is,” Emma said. “Happy news is always a blessing, to be sure.” When both Ben and Tricia sat down on her small front porch, she smiled. “Tell me how your parents took it.”
“My daed was surprised but pleased, too,” Ben said. “He married my mamm when they were young, so he remembered what being in love at our age felt like.”
“I married at eighteen, so I remember that feeling, too,” she said softly. Suddenly, all the years of building a home and a marriage flashed in her mind. Those had been busy years, stressful years. She and Sanford had been so young and inexperienced in the ways of the world. Luckily for them, though, they hadn’t had time to wonder if they were doing things right. They’d had Lena almost ten months after the wedding and Mandy and Annie followed soon after.
Then, of course, came Sanford’s heart attack. And after that? Well, her life had changed forever.
The rush of emotion she felt was an unwanted surprise. She didn’t want her past heartache to interfere with the happiness Ben and Tricia were experiencing.
Suddenly she realized that she’d been staring off into the distance and that the couple in front of her was simply waiting for her to continue.
“I’m sorry. I guess my mind flew away with me. Ben, I’m so glad Jay is happy for you.” Exhaling, she said, “Tricia, what did your family say?”
Tricia bit her bottom lip. “They were pretty shocked, of course. My parents don’t know Ben and last they heard, I moved here to discover myself, not fall in love.”
Emma noticed that Tricia looked a little hesitant but not devastated. “Will they let you get married?”
After a pause, she nodded. “At first they wanted me to go right back home, but after talking to them for, oh, hours, they began to understand how I felt.” Looking sweetly bashful, she peeked at Ben. “I don’t think a person can keep themselves from falling in love. It just happens whenever it’s the right time.”
“It sure does seem that way,” Emma mused. “I’m glad your parents didn’t forbid you to marry or demand that you return home.”
“Me, too, though I wouldn’t have agreed to move back no matter how much they yelled.” Clasping her hands together, she said, “I’m so happy. I feel like everything in my life is coming together. I can’t wait to get married!”
Beside her, Ben looked like he was trying not to start laughing. He held it together, letting her shine.
Emma smiled at the pair. She briefly wondered what Beverly’s reaction had been but decided not to ask since Tricia hadn’t mentioned her. “Soon, I’ll have to have you two over for supper. We’ll celebrate your wonderful-gut news.”
When everyone started laughing, even the children, she giggled, too. “I know the last meal didn’t go so well. But one can only hope that the next will go better. I’m sure it will. Well, with the Lord’s help.”
Ben leaned back on his hands. “Now, what I really want to know is what you are going to do, Emma.”
She wasn’t following. “What am I going to do about what?”
“You know, when my daed asks you to go courting.” Lowering his voice, he said, “Will you say yes?”
“He wants to court me?” Her voice sounded as giddy as Tricia’s. No doubt her cheeks were just as flushed with excitement. Remembering herself, she hesitantly asked, “I mean, what makes you think Jay and I would ever start seeing each other?”
Tricia wrapped her arms around her knees. “Miss Emma, I’m sorry, but it’s kind of obvious that the two of you like each other.”
Emma glanced to her left and right, worried that her girls were listening in. But they were currently bringing William through the back gate. Once she knew the coast was clear, she shook her head. “I don’t know what to say.”
“You could answer Ben’s question. What would you say if Jay came calling like a proper suitor?”
“I don’t know,” she whispered. And her answer was true. Yes, she’d noticed that Jay Hilty was handsome. And she had spent an evening or two imagining what it would be like having someone special in her life again. To have a man who cared for her the way that Sanford had.