A Hope Springs Christmas. Patricia Davids

said, “I’m at your beck and call, so put me to work. What needs doing in here today that Grace would normally do?”

      What he wanted was for her to go home. The workshop was his sanctuary. How could it be a place of peace with Sarah in it? She disrupted everything, including his thinking.

      He said, “Nothing I can’t handle.” Now maybe she would leave.

      “I can at least clean up.” She turned around, grabbed a red rag from the box he kept them in and began straightening his workbench, moving his tools around and brushing at the bits of loose wood on the countertop.

      He didn’t like people touching his stuff. “Don’t mess with my tools.”

      She paid him no mind. “I’m not messing with them, I’m cleaning off your workspace.”

      “Stop,” he pleaded.

      She held up a lone drill bit. “Where does this go?”

      “Take it home with you,” he snapped abruptly.

      He shut his mouth in horror. He’d never spoken harshly to anyone.

      Sarah stared at him for the longest moment and then chuckled with delight. “You are so amusing, Levi. And Grace told me you don’t have a sense of humor. Take it home with me, how funny. I’ll find where it goes. You get back to work and pretend I’m not even here.”

      Like that was possible. He turned away before he said something he would surely regret.

      She kept dusting. “I’ll have this cleaned up in no time. I remember how to do inventory, too. It won’t be long before the end of the year. Might as well get a jump on it. I’ll start on that when I’m done with this.”

      “No need.” Inventory would take days. Days with Sarah underfoot wasn’t something he wanted to endure. He needed to be able to concentrate. She didn’t take the hint.

      “I don’t mind. I’d forgotten how much I enjoy being out here. Don’t you love the smell of leather and wood? It’s comforting knowing that each piece on the walls around me has a place and a function. I’m glad I told Grace I would help. This place could use some sprucing up, though.”

      Jonas had often said that Sarah had a one-track mind when she wanted to do something. Levi didn’t know how true that statement was until three hours later when she was using a long-handled broom and an overturned bucket to reach cobwebs that had hung from the rafters longer than she had been alive.

      Unless he took her by the arm, led her to the door and locked it behind her, he was going to be stuck with Sarah until Grace returned.

      Please, Lord, let Grace’s visit be a short one.

      Levi drew a deep breath. It was almost lunchtime, and he hadn’t gotten nearly enough done. His eyes were constantly drawn to where Sarah was working.

      He had orders to fill and much to do in the coming weeks. When there was snow on the ground, many Amish families brought their farm wagons and buggies in to be repaired while they used their sleighs. With Christmas less than a month away, he was sure to get swamped with work soon.

      Moving to the carriage body he was working on, he studied the list of accessories Grace had written out for him to add. The buggy was for Daniel Hershberger’s new bride. The well-to-do businessman was sparing no expense for his wife’s buggy. As Levi marked out the wood for the extra-sturdy seats to be added, Sarah began humming a hymn. After a few bars, she began singing softly. She had a lovely voice, soothing and sweet.

      Levi gripped his handsaw and drew it back and forth across the board. The sound blocked Sarah’s voice and he stopped.

      She must have noticed because she asked, “Does my singing bother you?”

      He looked toward her and found her watching him intently. “Nee, it’s nice.”

      She gave him a sweet smile and went back to work, humming as she did so. Maybe having her around for a few weeks wouldn’t be so bad after all.

      The outside door opened and Henry Zook walked in. He nodded to Sarah and crossed the room to stand in front of Levi. “I must speak with Grace. Is she about?”

      Levi could feel his throat growing tight. This was not a conversation he wanted to have. He cast a speaking glance at Sarah. This was her doing. She would have to make it right.