Page 36 of Unforgotten

“Bethanne Hostetler.”

He held out his hand. “Bethanne, it is a pleasure to meet you.”

“You too. Thank you again for helping me find Jay.”

“Any time.” He smiled before walking toward another employee who had a clipboard in her hands.

Now that Bethanne was alone, she took another look around the showroom. Spying a beautiful desk in the corner, she walked over to inspect it more closely. She soon realized there was a sliding compartment in the back. It was a perfect place for receipts or pens and pencils. Or even special trinkets and such.

Deciding that running her hand over the wood wouldn’t harm it, she did—and practically sighed in appreciation. It was a gorgeous piece of furniture. She’d love to write her reviews on something so fine.

“I see you found the writing desk.”

She turned to see Jay approaching. He, too, wore a Burke Lumber polo shirt, but his was untucked. He also had on Amish-tailored brown pants, a ball cap, and Red Wing boots. He looked perfect.

His blue eyes stared at her intently. “What are you doing here? Do you need a desk?”

“Oh, nee. This desk is a beautiful thing, but I needed to speak to you. I couldn’t wait another day.”

That obviously took him by surprise. Honestly, the shock on his face probably matched what she was feeling. She decided to go with it.

“I, um, happened to see Mr. Burkholder on my way inside. He said it was okay if I bothered you for a couple of minutes.”

“You talked to my boss about talking to me?”

He sounded incredulous. Or, perhaps, surprised? Either way, his reaction made her feel even more nervous. “I didn’t seek him out or anything, Jay,” she said in a rush. “Mr. Burkholder was walking in the parking lot when I was parking my bike. He asked me if I was okay.” Figuring she had nothing to lose, she added, “I told him I was hoping to talk to you.”

“Wow, Bethanne.”

“I know. Please don’t be mad.”

As his posture visibly relaxed, a new warmth entered his expression. “I’m not mad,” he said in a soft tone. “Now, what did you want to tell me?”

Bethanne clenched her fists and said a prayer for strength. She had a feeling their upcoming conversation was about to change her life.

13

Jay looked around the facility’s showroom. There were about a dozen people in the vicinity. Mr. Burkholder’s office was in the front, as well as the offices of the vice president in charge of finances and Mary, who handled human resources. Everyone was doing their jobs and seemed to give him and Bethanne no more than a curious glance.

He knew better, though. It might be a professional organization that sold millions of dollars of merchandise annually, but rarely did one of their workers get asked to come to the showroom by the boss because a woman had decided to pay him a visit.

As much as he was delighted to see Bethanne, Jay felt awkward. How could he not? And, if he were honest, a little put on the spot. Hopefully nothing was wrong. “Is anything the matter?”

“Jah.” When his concern must have shown on his face, her eyes grew bigger. “I mean, nee.”

What was going on? Was she playing some sort of game with him? Tamping down his impatience as best he could, he asked, “Is it yes or no?”

She looked down at her feet, then drew a breath and methis gaze. “I mean, I’ve been feeling badly about my rudeness when you came calling. I wanted to apologize.”

He stuffed his hands in his pockets. “So you decided to come here in the middle of the day?”

Looking even more uncomfortable, she swallowed. “Jah. But I hadn’t thought it through. All I was thinking about when I woke up was that I didn’t want to wait another day to apologize.” She waved a hand. “Jay, I promise. I was about to turn around when Mr. Burkholder got to talking with me. Before I realized who he was, I admitted that I’d come to see you but thought your boss would get mad. Next thing I knew, he was opening the door and ushering me inside.”

“Wow.” So now Mr. Burkholder was up to date on his social life.

Reaching out, she placed her hand on his forearm. “I hope you’re not mad. I didn’t know how else to find you easily.”

“Except come to mei haus?”

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