Rum Spring by Yolanda Wallace Page A

Esther would remain behind.
    “I’ve been waiting for you. Mr. Lapp said you should be home soon and I wanted to be the first to greet you. Do you think we could make a blackberry pie after church?”
    “I don’t see why not.”
    “Was that Dylan Mahoney’s car you were riding in?”
    “Yes, it was.”
    “You didn’t pay her to drive you, did you? You know we’re not allowed to exchange money on the Sabbath.”
    “I didn’t have to pay her. She drove me for free.”
    “She has always been a good friend to you.”
    “As have you.”
    Esther linked her arm around Rebecca’s as they walked up the road. “Did you enjoy your time away?”
    “Very much.”
    “What did you do?”
    Rebecca hesitated. She wasn’t obligated to tell her parents or anyone else what she did during rumspringa. They could ask, but she didn’t have to answer. Her weekends were her own. She could do with them what she wished, spend them wherever she pleased.
    Rebecca regarded her friend and saw no cause for concern. Esther was the daughter of her family’s closest neighbors. They had known each other since they were very young children and were constant fixtures at one another’s homes. She felt certain Esther would never wish her harm, no matter what the Ordnung dictated.
    “There’s something I have to tell you.”
    “What?”
    “Can you keep a secret?”
    Esther tilted her head, a tendril of blond hair spilling out of her bonnet. Her eyes glittered at the prospect of a shared confidence. “Of course I can.”
    “Promise me.”
    “I promise. What’s the secret?”
    “I was kissed.”
    Esther clapped her hands in delight, then abruptly began to pout.
    “What’s wrong?” Rebecca asked.
    “Tobias will be jealous.”
    “Your brother? Why would he care that I was kissed?”
    “Rebecca, are you really so blind? Tobias has always fancied you. He was planning to tell you so tonight at the sing.” Esther blushed. “I guess I can’t keep a secret after all.”
    As they walked up the road, Rebecca thought about what Esther had said. Tobias was a nice boy—hardworking and firm in his faith—but Rebecca had never thought about him as anything other than a friend. The love she felt for him was one a sister might feel for a brother. Could she grow to love him as a wife would a husband?
    Rebecca didn’t know how to reconcile her conflicting emotions. On one side, there was Dylan and the promise of an uncertain future. On the other, there was Tobias and the certainty that life as she knew it would not change. Which side should she choose?
    Kissing Dylan—spending time with her—was fun. But it felt unfair. When she kissed Dylan, she felt it in her body. Dylan seemed to feel it in her heart. Rebecca felt as if she were toying with Dylan’s emotions. Such behavior was unacceptable. It was settled. There would be no more kisses unless they meant as much to Rebecca as they obviously meant to Dylan.
    “You’ve returned.”
    Rebecca smiled at the evident relief in her father’s voice. “Were you worried?”
    He held her at arm’s length, a twinkle of delight in his soft brown eyes. “I knew you would be safe with the Mahoneys. Your mother, on the other hand—”
    “Nonsense,” her mother said, shooing him away so she could give Rebecca a hug. “I knew I could count on you not to get into mischief. You did behave yourself, didn’t you?”
    “Yes, Mama.”
    Undoubtedly remembering Rebecca’s confession about being kissed, Esther giggled and pressed the basket of blackberries into Rebecca’s arms. “I’ll see you at services, Rebecca. I’ll come back later to help you with the pie. If you would like a ride to the sing tonight, Tobias and I would be happy to take you.”
    “That would be fine.”
    “Good-bye, Mr. and Mrs. Lapp. See you soon, Rebecca.”
    Rebecca noted the pleased look her parents shared at the mention of Tobias’s name. The beginning of courtship was a subject not openly discussed with family or