A Wife for Jacob. Rebecca Kertz

carefully shifted Joe onto a stretcher. “Looks like they’re getting ready to move him.”

      “I need to get my purse,” she said.

      “Where’s Isaac?” Jacob asked Bob as Annie hurried toward the farmhouse.

      “Rick is taking him to the Kings to tell Josiah what happened. As soon as he can, Rick will bring them to the hospital.”

      Annie returned with purse in hand, and Jacob stood beside her and Bob as the EMTs placed Joe carefully into the back of the vehicle. He heard Annie’s sharp little inhalation, and he felt the strongest desire to comfort her, tell her that Joe would be all right and she had no reason to worry, except that he didn’t know the extent of her father’s injuries. He settled a hand on her shoulder and felt her jerk as if startled. He drew his fingers away.

      One of the ambulance workers approached. “We’re ready to go.”

      “I’m coming,” she said.

      Jacob couldn’t help himself from reaching for her hand, just for a moment, to give it a reassuring squeeze. She broke away and hurried toward the ambulance. The memory of her shocked look stayed with him as he climbed into the front seat of Bob’s car and buckled his seat belt. They were nearly at the hospital when he heard the light toot of a car horn behind them. He glanced back to see Rick’s car. He was glad that the Englisher was able to bring Josiah so quickly.

      He could tell Bob to turn around and take him back. Annie didn’t want him at the hospital. But she would just have to tolerate his presence. He wasn’t about to go home without learning if Joe was all right. It was the correct thing to do.

      * * *

      “Your father needs surgery. He has a displaced fracture of the tibia and fibula in his left leg, the two bones that make up the shin. He hit his head when he fell, but I don’t think that injury is severe. Looks like the leg suffered the worst of it. We’ll do a CT scan to be certain. He’ll need surgery to repair the damage.”

      Annie nodded. “Will he be all right?” Her fear rose with each revelation the doctor made.

      “There are no guarantees, but his prognosis looks good. We’re running tests to make sure an underlying condition didn’t cause his fall, but from what your father told me, I don’t believe that’s the case.”

      “When can we see him?” Josiah asked.

      Annie glanced at her brother, who was frowning. He looked impatient, agitated.

      In direct contrast, Dr. Moss looked confident and competent in her white lab coat. “You can see him for a few minutes before we take him up to surgery,” she said. A nurse approached with a clipboard. “Excuse me.” Dr. Moss studied the chart and nodded. She spoke privately with the young woman before she returned her attention to Josiah and Annie. “I’ll need one of you to sign a consent form.”

      While her brother waited for the form, Annie flashed Jacob a glance. She was keenly aware of his presence. When their gazes caught, she looked away. Why had he come? He said that he’d stay only until her brother arrived, but Josiah had arrived the same time as Jacob. She wanted him to leave. But how could she make him go after the way he’d helped with Dat? He cared about her father and she had to respect his feelings. She recalled the image of young twelve-year-old Jacob hanging on to her father’s every word as her dat taught him about blacksmithing.

      Disturbed by the memory, she tried to focus on Josiah, now bent over a clipboard with pen in hand. But she remained acutely aware of the man behind her. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. She was relieved to see him deep in conversation with his brother Isaac, Bob Whittier and Rick Martin.

      Tall, with dark hair like his eldest brother Jacob wore a royal blue shirt with suspenders holding up his triblend denim pants. He held his black-banded straw hat in his hands. She dared to examine his face. His features were a beautiful combination of his mam and dat—Katie and Samuel Lapp. Annie scowled and Jacob turned, caught her gaze. She gasped, looked away. How embarrassing to be caught staring. To her dismay, she sensed his approach.

      “Are you all right?” Jacob asked softly.

      She shook her head. “I will be once I know my father is all right.”

      “He spoke to us,” he said. “That’s a gut sign.” He offered her an encouraging smile. “I’m praying for his quick recovery.”

      Tears sprang to Annie’s eyes. “I appreciate that.” It was a kind thing for him to say, but then Jacob had been kind to her from the first moment he’d jumped out of his buggy and offered his help. And she’d been anything but kind to him.

      A nurse appeared from behind them. “You may see your father now but only for a few minutes. We’ll be taking him up to surgery shortly. Only immediate family may see him.”

      “Thank you,” Annie said. She turned to Jacob. “I’ll let you know how he is as soon as I can. I don’t want to keep you.”

      Jacob smiled. Amusement flashed in his golden eyes. “You’re not keeping me from anything. I’ll wait for you.”

      “I won’t be long,” she said as she turned away.

      “Annie,” Josiah interrupted, “we have to go now, or we’ll miss our chance to see Dat.”

      She hurried to join her brother, and they headed into the emergency room for a brief visit with their father.

      * * *

      Jacob waited with Annie and Josiah while Horseshoe Joe was in surgery. He could tell that Annie was anxious. Josiah was quiet and didn’t have much to say. Within the hour, Nancy King arrived, greeted them and then sat next to Josiah. Annie’s brother’s expression brightened; he was obviously glad to see her.

      Jacob glanced at the couple, then averted his gaze. Nancy had been his sweetheart, if only for a short time. They had parted ways after she’d gone with her grandparents to visit relatives in North Carolina. On her return, something was changed between them. It was almost as if they’d never spent time together. And then Nancy had begun walking out with Josiah.

      He’d felt hurt at the time, but later when he’d thought about it, he realized that he hadn’t been too upset by the breakup. God had helped him understand that Nancy King wasn’t the woman he was intended to marry. If he’d loved Nancy as much as Noah loved Rachel or Jed loved Sarah, he might have tried to win Nancy’s affection again. But he hadn’t; he’d simply accepted that their relationship was over.

      Thinking about marriage, Jacob knew that he had nothing to offer a wife. If Nancy hadn’t gone away, he might have married her, but he didn’t know how he would have provided for her, or for any woman he courted with the intention of marrying. He was getting older now and had to think about his future.

      “Jacob?” Annie interrupted his thoughts. “Dr. Moss warned us that this would be a long surgery. It will be another hour, at least, until Dat is in recovery.”

      “I’ll wait,” he said. She hadn’t always been a prickly thing. Her breakup with his eldest brother Jedidiah must have changed her.

      Annie stood, and he followed suit.

      “Restless?” he asked her.

      She nodded. “It’s going to be a long while yet.”

      “Let’s go downstairs for coffee,” he said, expecting her to refuse. She surprised him when she agreed.

      “Josiah, we are going down to the cafeteria for coffee,” Annie said. “Would you like to come?”

      “Nay. I’ll stay,” her brother said, and Nancy edged closer to him. His expression softened. “If we hear anything,” he told his sister, “we’ll let you know.” He had taken off his hat and he held it between his knees, twirling the brim.

      Jacob saw that Josiah was more upset than he’d originally let