His Love Endures Forever Read Free

stepped down from the buggy and walked around to Sarah. She eased the heavy brown blanket from around her, then Levi helped her down. She was almost as tall as he was.
    “I had a gut time.” Sarah smiled, her teeth chattering. “ Danki for taking me.”
    “ Ya , it was fun.”
    Sarah leaned closer, near enough that Levi could have kissed her. “See you next Sunday?”
    Levi looked over her shoulder and saw that her daed was still on the porch, so he just smiled as he stared into her dreamy brown eyes. “Ya.”
    Sarah was beautiful; a perfect white smile, delicate features, and in the Englisch world, she probably could have been on the covers of those fancy magazines. Every guy in Canaan wanted to court her. Levi still wasn’t sure why she’d chosen him.
    “You’re so sweet and shy, Levi. It’s one of the things I love about you.” Sarah kissed him on the cheek, then quickly turned and ran across the yard toward her house.
    Levi moved fast too, hurrying back into the buggy sinceSarah’s father was now standing and holding a lantern out in front of him at arm’s length. It was completely dark, but a full moon lit Sarah’s front yard enough to make him wonder if John Troyer saw his daughter’s bold move. He clicked his tongue and moved the horse toward the main road, glad that his house wasn’t far. He pulled the blanket Sarah had used onto his lap and adjusted the small battery-operated heater on the floor of the buggy.
    Once his shivering was under control, he thought about what Sarah had said. “It’s one of the things I love about you.”
    Was that Sarah’s way of saying she loved him or just a casual comment? He’d known Sarah since her family moved from Indiana to Canaan about six months ago, but it wasn’t until recently that Sarah seemed to take an interest in him. Before that, Sarah had been spending time with Jake King, another newcomer to their small community. The talk around the community was that Jake might even propose. But a few weeks ago, Levi noticed that Sarah was going to the singings alone, and one night she asked Levi to take her home, then continued to do so. He hoped Sarah wasn’t expecting him to propose anytime soon. He cared about Sarah, but they weren’t anywhere near that kind of promise to each other. Plus, Levi wasn’t even baptized yet. Marriage seemed far off in his mind, even though he was twenty-two and his mother constantly pushed him about the issue. Two of his siblings, Jacob and Emily, had both married when they were younger than Levi.
    Thankful to be home, and looking forward to the warmth of his house, he pulled into his driveway, parked the buggy, then led Chester to the barn, lighting his path with a flashlighthe kept in the buggy. It was then that he heard crying. He pointed the light to the crumpled-up shape in the corner.
    “Danielle?” Levi hurried to her and squatted down. He pushed back long strands of blond hair from her face and saw tears rolling down her cheeks. “What are you doing here?” He sat down on the cold dirt beside her. “What’s wrong, Ladybug?”
    Levi had been calling Danielle by that nickname for almost as long as he’d known her, close to a year now. She’d plucked one of the red and black insects from Levi’s hair last spring and told him that ladybugs were lucky, something she wasn’t. Levi had told her that life wasn’t based on luck, but on faith and God’s plan. Danielle had gently placed the bug in her palm, smiled, and said, “I don’t know about that, but I want to be lucky like a ladybug.” And somehow the nickname just stuck.
    “I wasn’t ready to go home. I just needed—” Sobbing, she buried her face in her hands. “My life is a wreck. I’ve made a mess of everything, and Martha and Arnold are going to be so upset with me, and Matthew doesn’t love me, and . . .” She started crying so hard that Levi could barely understand her. After a few moments, she lifted her face to his and locked eyes with him.