What Love Built: An Amish Homecoming Story

By Kathleen Fuller

An Amish Homecoming story from bestselling author Kathleen Fuller.

Independent and headstrong, Carolyn is determined to forge ahead with the opening of her bakery, a lifelong dream, in the Birch Creek home she left ten years ago. But she’s in over her head and needs help with the cleaning, shopping, and deliveries. Carpenter Atlee Shetler is visiting Birch Creek to escape the memories of his late wife. He takes a job renovating the new bakery and finds the project—and its owner—to be much more than he bargained for. Both Carolyn and Atlee must face pains of the past if they want to have the bright future God has planned for them.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Zondervan
• Release date: Oct 16, 2018
• ISBN: 9780785218357

Kathleen Fuller

With over two million copies sold, Kathleen Fuller is the USA TODAY bestselling author of several bestselling novels, including the Hearts of Middlefield novels, the Middlefield Family novels, the Amish of Birch Creek series, and the Amish Letters series as well as a middle-grade Amish series, the Mysteries of Middlefield. Visit her online at KathleenFuller.com; Instagram: @kf_booksandhooks; Facebook: @WriterKathleenFuller; Twitter: @TheKatJam.

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COPYRIGHT

ZONDERVAN

What Love Built

Copyright © 2018 by Kathleen Fuller

Requests for information should be addressed to:

Zondervan, 3900 Sparks Dr. SE, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49546

ISBN: 978-0-7852-1835-7 (e-book)

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication

CIP data is available upon request.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc™ Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com

Any Internet addresses (websites, blogs, etc.) and telephone numbers in this book are offered as a resource. They are not intended in any way to be or imply an endorsement by Zondervan, nor does Zondervan vouch for the content of these sites and numbers for the life of this book.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other—except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

Publisher’s Note: This novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. All characters are fictional, and any similarity to people living or dead is purely coincidental.

Printed in the United States of America

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CONTENTS

Copyright

Glossary

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Epilogue

Discussion Questions

Acknowledgments

About the Author

To James. I love you.

GLOSSARY

ach (also ack): oh

aenti: aunt

appeditlich: delicious

bedauerlich: sad

boppli: baby

brot: bread

bruder, bruders: brother, brothers

bruderskinner: nieces and nephews

bu, buwe: boy, boys

Budget, The: a weekly newspaper serving Amish and Mennonite communities everywhere

daadi: grandfather

daadihaus (also daadi haus, dawdi haus): grandparents’ house, usually a smaller dwelling on the same property

danki: thank you

daed (also dat): dad

Die Botschaft: a weekly correspondent newspaper that includes reports from scribes in many Amish settlements across the nation

dochder: daughter

English, Englisher (also Englisch, Englischer): non-Amish

familye, familyes: family, families

fraa (also frau): wife

freind, freinden: friend, friends

froh: happy

gegisch: silly

geh: go

gern gschehne: you’re welcome

Gott: God

grossmutter: grandmother

Gude mariye: Good morning

gut: good

Gut nacht (also Gute nacht): Good night

haus: house

Ich liebe dich: I love you

jah: yes

kaffi (also kaffee): coffee

kapp: prayer covering or cap

kichli, kichlin: cookie, cookies

kind, kinner: child, children

lieb: love

liewe: love, a term of endearment

maedel, maed: young woman or girl, young women or girls

mamm: mom

mammi: grandmother

mann: husband or man

mei: my

mudder: mother

naut: night

nee: no

nix: nothing

nohma: name

onkel: uncle

Ordnung: the written and unwritten rules of the Amish; the understood behavior by which the Amish are expected to live, passed down from generation to generation. Most Amish know the rules by heart.

Pennsylvania Deutsch: the language most commonly used by the Amish. Although widely known as Pennsylvania Dutch, the language is actually a form of German (Deutsch).

Plain: the Amish way of life

rumschpringe (also rumspringa): running-around period when a teenager turns sixteen years old

schee: pretty

schmaert: smart

schtupp: family room

schwester: sister

sohn: son

vatter: father

Was iss letz?: What’s wrong?

wunderbaar: wonderful

ya: yes

yer, yerself: your, yourself

CHAPTER 1

I said I would never leave you.

Atlee Shetler knelt in front of his wife’s grave and touched the small, plain stone that marked her resting place. May had lain here for twelve years, and he’d mourned her death every single day—something he would do for the rest of his life. He’d also intended never to leave Fredericktown, not even to visit somewhere else.

Funny how intentions could change.

No, it wasn’t funny at all. But with the prodding of his English friend Derek, along with an invitation from Jesse Bontrager—or rather Thomas, as he preferred to be called now—Atlee found himself leaving his beloved wife to visit Birch Creek.

Resisting the urge to stay with her longer, he slung his duffel bag over his shoulder and headed back to his house to wait for Derek, who was going to pick him up and take him to the bus station. He would be gone for only a few days. And if he was completely honest, he’d have to admit a small part of him wanted to go. Leaving May was hard, of course, but taking a break from the suffocating community his small district had become wasn’t a bad idea.

When he reached the driveway of his small house, Derek’s truck was just pulling in. Atlee opened the passenger-side door, the air-conditioned cab cooling his face from the effects of the hot morning sun.

Atlee. Derek nodded from beneath a frayed Cleveland Browns baseball cap. Looks like a nice day for a trip.

Atlee tossed his duffel bag on the floorboard, then shut the door and clicked his seat belt in place. I guess.

With a smirk, Derek backed out of the driveway. You’re not having second thoughts, are you?

No. A lie, but he wasn’t in the mood for another pep talk from Derek. He’d known the man for about five years, since he first called him for a ride to Mansfield. Although he was fifteen years younger than Atlee, Derek was wise—which was why Atlee had given his suggestion of a change of scenery some serious thought.

How long have you known Thomas? Derek turned off Atlee’s road and onto Main Street.

A long time. Since when May and I were courting.

It’s good timing he invited you to come see him now.

I suppose.

Derek paused. Atlee, I don’t mean to pry into your business.

You’re always prying into my business, he said with a mild chuckle as he turned to look at his friend. But he didn’t mind too much. It was nice to know someone cared. Yes, his community made sure he wasn’t left out. A few of the married ladies occasionally gave him a casserole or a dessert, and he was never without a place to go on Christmas Day. Derek’s family invited him over regularly too. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t lonely at times. Lately, he’d been lonely a lot.

That’s true, Derek said. And I’m glad you took my advice and decided to get away. You’ve seemed restless over the last year.

You know work has been slow.

That it has. But I don’t think that’s the whole reason.

Atlee suspected his friend wanted further explanation from him, but he remained silent. Restless was a good word