Sewn with Joy by Tricia Goyer Page A

clean. His gaze kept steady on hers. Finally he tugged on her hand. “Come here,” he whispered. He pulled up two chairs, and they sat down.
    â€œDid I say something wrong? I’m sorry if you thought I wasn’t appreciating your construction work, because I do. I just know you like—”
    â€œShh.” Matthew placed a finger near her lips. “You don’t need to worry. That’s not it at all, Joy, just the opposite. I’m not mad, but pleased. And you surprised me, that’s all.”
    She studied his eyes for a long moment, and he didn’t move so much as an eyelash. There was intimacy in his gaze. He wanted to tell her something and was building up the nerve to do so.
    He looked away, as if studying the pile of lumber stacked against the wall, and then looked back at her. “I’ve never told you this before, but I can’t picture myself doing construction my whole life.”
    She threaded a stray hair behind her ear and leaned forward, letting him know she was listening.
    â€œI want to have a farm, but my shop is my favorite place. I would love to do more woodworking and make small things others might enjoy, but I just thought it was a silly dream.”
    â€œIt’s not silly at all.”
    â€œYeah, well, my dat thinks it is.” Matthew paused before explaining. “He doesn’t understand why I’d give up a gut -paying job like construction to spend my days in a workshop with ne guaranteed income—especially if I’m thinking of supporting a wife soon.”
    Joy placed a hand over her heart. Matthew wasn’t the type to give her a flowery proposal, telling her why he wanted to spend his life with her, and she didn’t need that. It was romantic enough that he was pondering all these things and figuring out what made sense for a future with her.
    â€œI don’t have everything figured out yet.” Matthew shrugged. “And despite my dat ’s opinion, I don’t think I have to know yet. Mostly, Joy, I’m not as concerned with what to do with my future as I am with who I want to spend it with.”
    â€œAnd?” Her breath balled up in her chest, and in her excitement it was as if she’d forgotten how to exhale.
    Matthew leaned forward, and Joy’s eyes fluttered closed. He placed the softest kiss on her lips. His lips were warm, and he smelled like the sawdust that dotted his clothes. Tingles moved through her lips and down her arms. She lifted her face and encountered his blue, blue eyes, a deep blue like the color of the Florida sky just after a storm. She immediately remembered the first time she saw him. It was their first Sunday in Pinecraft. She thought he was handsome then, but she’d never imagined her first kiss would be from him. And she never imagined the emotions running through her would be so intense.
    â€œAnd I know who that is,” he whispered, still only inches away from her lips. “I have ne doubt. You’re exactly the type of woman I’ve been searching for.”
    Joy saw the love she had hoped to see in a man’s eyes someday.
    The sound of voices interrupted the moment. Matthew glanced over and pulled back when he saw a small group of men riding by on bicycles. Joy did the same. As much as she wanted to revel in this moment, such exhibits of affection weren’t approved of in public.
    â€œHow about we pick up a snack at Yoder’s and take it to the park?” Matthew’s voice was husky, and she knew all the heated emotions racing through her were affecting him too.
    â€œThat sounds like a perfect idea.”
    And it wasn’t until they were walking down the street to Yoder’s that Joy remembered she had first set out to find Mem .
    I’ll wait until tonight to talk to her. Just like Faith had planned. We’ll get it all worked out. Somehow we will.
    And as she glanced up at Matthew walking in step with her, she knew God hadn’t