Plain Paradise by Beth Wiseman Read Free Book Online Page A

morning with Josephine was brief, but they agreed that Linda’s birth mother would visit tomorrow morning at ten o’clock. That meant that Mary Ellen and Abe would have to tell Linda the truth this evening, and Mary Ellen’s stomach was rolling with anxiety. It was only fair to discuss the matter with Linda first, and privately, so sending Matthew and Luke to Samuel’s house worked out perfectly since Linda was due home any minute to help with supper preparation. Mary Ellen dreaded the conversation they would be having with Linda, but waiting could worsen the situation if Linda found out the news some other way. What if Josephine decided not to wait and went to Linda directly? She jumped when the screen door slammed.
    “It’s just me, Mary Ellen.” Abe hung his hat on the rack near the door, then ran a hand through his hair. “It’s gonna be all right.” He walked to the refrigerator and poured himself a glass of meadow tea, took a few gulps, and then took a seat at the kitchen table.
    Mary Ellen brushed flour from her black apron and resumed her pacing.
    “Sit down, Mary Ellen. Rest. I know you’re nervous, but we will have to trust the Lord to guide us to say the right things.”
    “There is no right way to tell our daughter that we’ve lied to her for her entire life.” Mary Ellen bit down on her lower lip, then eased onto the bench across from Abe. “I’ve always been close to Linda, and I’m afraid that when she finds out this news, that— that we will lose that.”
    “We didn’t lie, Mary Ellen.” Abe raised his shoulders, then dropped them in frustration. “It just didn’t come up.”
    Mary Ellen slammed a hand on the table, something she would normally never do. “Abe! We didn’t tell our daughter that she is adopted. Don’t you think that should have come up at some point?” She regretted the tone she took with her husband, and she could see the anxiety in his expression, the fear in his eyes. But her own worries were overwhelming her as she wiped sweat from her brow. A knot was building in her throat, and the last thing she wanted to do was cry in front of Linda when she arrived. Mary Ellen wanted to calmly tell Linda that it didn’t matter one tiny bit who gave birth to her, that she loved Linda as if she’d carried her in her own womb, that she was her daughter, no matter what. And she’d prayed all night that Linda would somehow understand.
    “Mary Ellen, where is your faith? It’s God’s will that things are working out this way. You know that, no?”
    To question God’s will is a sin, but Mary Ellen had never questioned His will more than at this moment. “Things better work out, Abe.” She sat up a little straighter, raised her chin. “We will just explain this to her, and then things will resume the way they were.”
    “I hope you’re right.” Abe’s tone was doubtful, and doubt was not what she needed from her husband right now. She always relied on Abe’s strength, and she needed him to stay strong for her, for them.
    Mary Ellen stood from the table, twisted her apron strings, and paced some more, apprehension rippling through her body like a tidal wave that threatened to destroy her. Instead of focusing on her own failure to tell Linda the truth, she wanted to lash out at someone, and she knew Abe wasn’t any more at fault than she was.
    “I just don’t know why she would want to ruin all these lives like this, that Josephine woman.” She shook her head, then stopped pacing and turned to Abe. “I reckon she’s not a gut Christian woman, or she wouldn’t be doing this.”
    “Mary Ellen, you don’t know that. I’m sure this is hard on her too.”
    She clenched her lips tight and bit back words that the Lord would surely not approve of.
    Abe turned toward the door when he heard the clippety-clop of hooves, then stood up and walked to the threshold. Mary Ellen followed him and together they peered through the screen. They watched Linda walk up the driveway,