"What the—" Gabe said turning around to see Danny laughing silently as Honor gave us both an annoyed look.
"I'm serious, Gabe," she said. "Knock it off. Grace said no, and you keep pushing like you're going to bully her into something that she's already said she doesn't want. It's embarrassing."
"Honor! That's incredibly rude," Gabe said as his face began to turn bright red. "Grace said no because that's what she's supposed to say."
"Good Lord, you really are clueless, aren't you?" Honor replied as she and Danny dropped the bale next to the far wall. She marched back to where Gabe stood and looked up at him with her hands on her hips. "Grace doesn't love you, Gabe. I'm not sure how much clearer it needs to be for you to get it through your head and let go. She doesn't want you pursuing her, and she certainly doesn't want to marry you."
Gabe's face was now beet red as he stood listening to Honor dress him down in front of Danny and I. I felt bad for him, but I knew that Honor was doing him a favor by laying it out clearly. Still, I looked away as she spoke hoping to spare him a little of the humiliation even though I was taking a tiny bit of pleasure in it.
"And you, English," Honor said as she turned and looked at me. "You're no better than he is! You think that you're going to sweep my sister off her feet and carry her away from her family just because you're handsome and charming? Guess again!"
Now it was my turn to feel the heat of shame rushing through my body and turning my cheeks bright red. I saw Gabe avert his eyes as Honor dressed me down.
"That's not fair!" I protested. "I'm here because I was trying to bring technology to—"
"To the poor, backward Amish folk?" Honor said in a sarcastic tone. "Please, we don't need your largesse, English. We're doing fine the way we are. You're both idiots. Now get out of the barn and let us do the work needed to keep our animals clean and fed."
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Danny sign something as Honor shoved him into a stall and yelled at him to get moving. She grabbed the pitchfork out of my hand and shoved me toward the barn door muttering, "Out! Now!"
Gabe quickly grabbed his hat and beat a hasty retreat to his buggy, and I wasn't far behind. Neither one of us said a word as he unhitched the horse and swung himself up into the driver's seat of the buggy. He stared at me for a long time before he slapped the reins and turned the horse toward the road.
As I watched him go, I wasn't sure who'd won that round, but I knew that neither one of us was going to give up so easily. Something about Grace had sparked my interest in a way that no woman had before, and I wanted to know how she felt about me, too.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Grace
I'd never felt such pure lust for a man as I felt for Adam Wallace, but I also resented his ignorance and the way he stereotyped me and my family as simple minded people who couldn't possibly understand the complexities of life outside of Corner Grove. And after Honor told me about what had happened in the barn, I was furious with both Gabe and Adam for being so stupid and childish.
The lust for Adam, frustration over the store, and grief over the loss of my parents mingled in a confusing mix that left me wanting to run away. So, I avoided Adam as best I could by rising early and being out of the house by the time he got up. By Sunday morning, I was exhausted from the physical demands of running the store, so slept until the sun shone through the open window in my bedroom and woke me. As was usual on a Sunday, the house was silent because the others were at services. When Mamm and Dat were alive, I'd go to services simply to avoid an argument, but now that I was the one in charge, I didn't explain and the others didn't ask.
I rolled over and felt the soft, silky nightgown rub against my skin. Sunday was my luxury day because I didn't have to put on my cotton dress or wear my kapp until the others returned for the evening meal. I threw off the covers and stretched as the sunlight covered my body in a warmth that made me feel like I'd shed the heaviness of the week. I could smell the hydrangea that Mamm had planted outside the windows on this side of the house and light breeze blew the scent into the house as I got up and slipped into the silky, aqua-colored robe that matched my nightgown and padded down to the kitchen to make coffee.
Verity had left the remains of breakfast on the table and after I'd made myself a pot of coffee, I sat and picked at the leftovers as I plotted my day. I had intended to spend part of it walking the fields to see how our crops were doing, but as I sat enjoying the
quiet morning air, I considered taking a book out to the porch and reading in the shade. The idea of spending a day doing nothing made me feel uneasy, so I decided to put on clothing and walk the fields before it got to hot, then maybe I'd relax for a bit before getting dinner started.
"Where is everyone?" Adam asked rubbing his eyes as he entered the kitchen. His hair was tousled and there were creases from the pillowcase on his cheek. He looked like a small child who'd just woken up.
"Sunday services," I replied as I pulled my robe around me and jumped up out of my chair. I'd forgotten that he was in the house and felt embarrassed to have been caught in my nightgown and robe. I left my coffee sitting on the table and tried to slip past him murmuring, "There's coffee on the stove. I'll go change."
"No, don't..." he said as he gently took my arm and pulled me back toward him. "You look so...relaxed. Just sit down and enjoy your breakfast."
"But I'm not appropriately dressed," I said as I half-heartedly pulled away from his grasp.
"You look beautiful to me," he said as he looked down into my eyes. I felt my breath catch in my chest as we stood staring at each other without moving. I blinked first and in an instant, my arms were around his neck as he wrapped me in his arms and bent his head to kiss me.
I knew I should resist. None of this was right, and I knew I shouldn't give in to the lust that drove my physical desire for this man, but I was sick and tired of disciplining myself to do what was expected of me. I wanted something that was just for me. Something that made me feel alive and free as opposed to weighing me down with obligation and responsibility. I wanted something that made me feel good, and the way Adam touched me made my body vibrate in a way that I'd never felt before.
"Adam, I..." I gasped as I broke away from the kiss and pulled back as the call of duty and obligation tugged at the outer edges of my brain.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." he said with a wild look in his eyes that told me he wasn't at all sorry, only that he was trying to regain the control that was quickly slipping away.
"No, not sorry," I said seeing the desire in his eyes. I pushed the doubt out of my mind and pulled him toward me kissing him again. His hands slowly roamed my body before cupping my silk-covered bottom and squeezing as he pressed himself against me.
"Grace..." he gasped as he kissed a path from my mouth to my ear whispering, "I need you."
I wound my arms around his neck and nodded in response. Adam took my hand and pulled me to the bedroom where he pushed me backward on to the bed before slowly sliding my nightgown and robe up over my body. I moaned as his hands pushed the silky fabric up around my waist and then pulling me up in to a sitting position, he tugged the coverings up until I lifted my arms and he could remove everything.