Page 66 of Unforgiven

As Seth reminded himself of those words yet again, something inside him eased. The Lord was allowing them all the time they needed. He should give thanks for that. He and Tabitha had their whole lives ahead of them. They could take their time and learn to trust each other.

Maybe he would even share more of his feelings . . . and Tabitha would give him more of her smiles. They could heal. Maybe make a future together.

Yeah, he really liked that idea. He liked that a lot.

23

Melonie had a pretty good idea that she was going to regret her decision, but it couldn’t be helped. Not only was her brother’s devastated expression playing over and over in her head, she was concerned about Tabitha. Melonie had never had the connection with their former schoolteacher that Seth had, though she didn’t know why. Maybe it was because she’d been only a child when Tabitha had taught in their schoolhouse.

Back then, she’d been focused on her friends and playing with her dolls. She vaguely remembered when their teacher had left in the middle of the school year to get married, but it hadn’t made much of an impression on her. One week Tabitha had been their teacher, and the week after that Rachel had taken her place.

She’d had no idea that her older brother had been disturbed about Tabitha’s marriage. Or that Leon Yoder was considered a difficult man. Melonie had only been focused on herself. On her friends, her schoolwork, and whether or not she would get along with the new schoolteacher. Perhaps she’d also been caught up in the idea of Tabitha leaving in the middle of the school year because her husband couldn’t wait to marry her. It had sounded romantic.

Years later, right about the time Tabitha had been beaten so badly that the ambulance came, Melonie ended up embroiled in her own painful drama. Seth had been arrested, and then he went to trial and was imprisoned. Her days had been filled with her parents’ grief, the endless rumors surrounding Peter Miller’s death, Bethanne’s assertions about what had happened, and the way almost everyone in the community had taken a side.

Even after Tabitha had returned home a year after Leon was arrested, she hadn’t occupied Melonie’s thoughts all that much. Tabitha was no longer part of the Amish community, and Melonie had been so focused on Seth’s return.

Now she regretted being so self-absorbed. Tabitha obviously needed some friends, and Seth had told her all about how long it had taken Tabitha to even open the door to him. That had been hard to come to terms with. She might not have been attached to their former teacher, but Melonie definitely remembered her being full of smiles when she’d stood at the front of their classroom.

Melonie hoped this visit would be the first of many, especially because she was sure Seth wasn’t going to stay away from Tabitha very long at all.

Walking up the driveway, she noticed that while the surrounding yard and field were far from groomed and neat, they did look cared for. The closer she got to the house, the more picturesque it looked. It was white like most other Amish-owned homes in the area, but instead of having a plain white or black door, it was bright yellow. Like the colors of sunflowers in mid-July.

It was pleasing, and Melonie thought it gave her some insight to the woman Tabitha Yoder was. As if there had always been a hidden spark of spunk but she was only lately giving that bit of boldness the opportunity to shine.

Just as she raised her hand to knock on the door, it opened.

Tabitha was wearing jeans and a loose fisherman’s sweater. Her long, brown hair was contained in a high ponytail. If Melonie hadn’t known better, she would have guessed they were close in age.

“Melonie, right?”

“Jah. I’m Seth’s sister.”

Tabitha blinked. “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you up close.”

“Jah. I guess it has.”

She smiled softly. “You turned into a lovely woman.”

The compliment was unexpected. Probably as unexpected as her appearance on Tabitha’s doorstep.

“Is something wrong with Seth?” Looking stricken, Tabitha inhaled. “Oh no. Did he not make it home last night?”

“He did. I mean, we don’t live together. I live at home with our parents. But I was by his haus this morning. He was there.” And . . . she had now made her visit sound even more mysterious.

“Oh.”

Tabitha looked more confused, and Melonie couldn’t say that she blamed her. “I know it might be rude of me to stop by uninvited, but I wondered if we could talk?”

“Of course.” She stepped back so Melonie could enter, though her hesitation proved that she did so with reluctance.

“Danke.” The first thing she noticed inside the home was the array of beautiful woven baskets in an assortment of vivid shades. Blues, reds, and yellows. Unable to resist, she walked over to the collection arranged neatly on a small table. “These are beautiful.”

“Thank you.”

“May I pick one up?”

“Of course.”

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