Read Online The Storekeeper's Daughter by Wanda E. Brunstetter - Free Book Online

harness.
    “Look out! You might be the next thing he kicks.”
    “He’ll settle down soon.” Norman’s face was cherry red, yet he continued to struggle with the boisterous animal. Midnight alternated between rearing up and kicking out his back feet. The buggy rocked back and forth.
    Naomi covered her mouth to keep from screaming, which would rile the horse more. Things were getting out of control, and if Norman didn’t do something soon, she feared the buggy would overturn.
    “Let that horse loose!” Papa’s voice shattered the air like a gunshot, and Norman quickly did as he was told.
    He led the panicked horse back to the barn and returned a few minutes later with one of their gentle mares. “Guess Midnight wasn’t quite ready yet,” he mumbled.
    “You think?” Papa shook his finger. “If you were a few years younger, I’d take you to the woodshed for a sound bletsching .”
    Norman hung his head. “Sorry, Papa. I didn’t expect Midnight to act that way.”
    “Jah, well, use your brain next time.” Papa turned to face Naomi. “You and the kinner ’bout ready to go?”
    She nodded. “I’ll run inside and see if Nancy’s got Zach ready.” She figured now probably wasn’t the best time to tell Papa about Hildy.
    ***
    Jim Scott heard his cell phone ringing in the distance, and he glanced around to see where it was. He usually kept it clipped to his belt, but he’d been on a ten-foot ladder and didn’t want to take the chance of the phone coming loose and falling to the ground. That had happened several months ago, and since he hadn’t been smart enough to buy insurance on the phone, it had cost him plenty to buy a new one. Today, he’d put the phone in a safe place. He just couldn’t remember where.
    “Your phone’s on the lid of that paint bucket, and it’s ringing like crazy,” Ed called from across the yard. “Want me to get it for you?”
    “Sure, if you don’t mind.”
    Jim climbed down the ladder, and his feet had just touched the ground when his employee handed him the phone. “The guy says he’s your lawyer.”
    “Thanks.”
    When Ed kept standing there with his hands in the pockets of his painter’s overalls, Jim nodded and said, “You can finish up with the trim on those windows now.”
    “Oh, sure. Right.” Ed sauntered off, and Jim turned his attention to the phone.
    “Hello, Max. How are you?”
    “I’m fine, and I have some news that I think will make your day.”
    “Really? What’s up?”
    “My friend, Carl Stevens, is a lawyer in Bel Air, Maryland. He called this morning and said a young woman came to his office the other day. She’s a single mother and can no longer care for her one-year-old boy, so she’s decided to put him up for adoption.”
    Jim’s heart skipped a beat. Did he dare believe this baby might be theirs? Should he risk telling Linda and getting her hopes up, too?
    “Jim, are you still there?”
    “Yeah, Max. Just trying to digest this bit of news.”
    “Carl said he’d be meeting with the woman again in a few weeks and should be able to tie things up then. My question is, would you and Linda be interested in a child that old? I know you had wanted a newborn.”
    Jim blew out his breath and sank to the grass. “Whew! This is so sudden, and I’m not sure Linda would want an older child.”
    “One isn’t that old,” Max said with a chuckle. “He’s still pretty much a baby in my book; and at his young age, it shouldn’t be that difficult for the little guy to adjust to his new surroundings.”
    “What about a father? Is there one in the picture?” Jim asked.
    “No. Carl said the woman severed ties with the baby’s father, and he’s married to someone else and living in another state. He’s signed away all parental rights to the child.”
    “Hmm...”
    “Talk it over with your wife tonight, and then give me a call with your decision.”
    Jim frowned. “I hate to get Linda all fired up about something that might not even