His Love Endures Forever Read Free Page A

“And . . . and . . . I’m pregnant.”
    Levi hung his head and sighed before he looked back at her. “ Ach, mei maedel . Are you sure?” Danielle was his best friend, the only person he felt completely comfortable with. It had been like that since they’d met. She was a high-spirited Englisch girl who said whatever was on her mind, and she’d lived life in a way that Levi didn’t understand, but from the beginning, they’d fit together like bread and butter.
    “I’m sure.”
    Levi’s temples throbbed, and he wanted to leave right thento find Matthew. He’d never met the man, but he felt the need to punch him in the gut just the same. Matthew lived in a small district near Alamosa, about ten miles away, but Levi’d make the trip to straighten him out . . .
    He took a deep breath, reminding himself that it was not their way to be aggressive. But how did Matthew let this happen?
    Danielle sniffled and studied his face. “It takes two, Levi. This isn’t all Matthew’s fault.”
    Levi gritted his teeth together for a few moments. “Well, he should have . . . I don’t know . . . done something different.” He paused, shining the flashlight toward the barn window. “Where’s your car? You didn’t walk here, did you?” His teeth chattered as he spoke.
    Danielle nodded in the direction of the light. “It’s out there, parked on the other side of the barn. I didn’t want your parents to know that I was out here.”
    “You should have waited inside. It’s not that late, and you know Mamm stays up until I get home.”
    Frowning, she sighed. “Your mom doesn’t like me. You know that.”
    “She likes you.” He let the lie slip from his lips. Vera Detweiler hadn’t liked Danielle since the first time she noticed her spending time with Levi after worship service. Martha was friends with the Amish community, attended the Amish church service every other week, and often brought Danielle with her. His mother saw Danielle as a threat—an Englisch girl set on stealing away her baby boy, which couldn’t have been further from the truth. If his mother only knew how much time he and Danielle had really spent together, she’d have been doubly worried.
    Danielle smiled a bit, but sniffled again. “Thanks for saying that, but we both know it’s not true.”
    Levi gave her a rueful smile. He’d hoped his mom would have relaxed once she found out that Danielle was seeing someone, and now that Levi was seeing Sarah. But no, his mother was still worried. “You are too close to that girl. She’s wild, and she’ll lure you into her world,” Mamm had said. More than once.
    Levi pushed back the rim of his hat, and in an effort to avoid another lie, he changed the subject back to her pregnancy. “What are you going to do?”
    “I don’t know.” She swiped at her eyes. “Remember when I got stung by that huge bumblebee when we were picking blueberries?”
    Levi nodded. “ Ya , your hand swelled up pretty bad.”
    “But you went to your house and got something to put on it, and the swelling went down right away.” Danielle almost smiled.
    He shrugged. “It was just an herb mixture Mamm keeps around the haus . It wasn’t that big of a deal.”
    “I could name lots of other times, but the point is . . . you always know what to do about things.” She let out a heavy sigh.
    Levi scratched his chin, knowing he couldn’t fix this for her.
    “I’m going to be the best mother in the world,” she said. “That’s what I’m going to do.”
    Levi knew that Danielle hadn’t seen her own mother in over a year. And that was a good thing since the last time she’d been around, Danielle landed in the hospital; a faint scar on her cheek was a reminder of her mother’s cruel blow. That’s when the older Englisch woman, Martha, had taken her in. Levifigured it was the best thing that had happened to Danielle. Even though Danielle and Martha didn’t see eye-to-eye much of the time, it was clear that they loved each