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“I will find her and I have experience. If you must know, I’ve kissed Eve.”
Cain snickered. “Adam and Eve, how charming. Tell me, brother, did she tempt you with her forbidden fruit?”
Adam narrowed his eyes. “At least—”
His words cut off as Grace knocked at the bedroom door.
He glanced back to Cain. “Hush.” Quickly hiding his thoughts, he let his sister into the room only to still at the sight of her glassy eyes. “Grace?”
“You’re leaving so soon and it’s my fault.”
His heart pinched as he sensed her regret. Her heart shaped face, framed in her simple bonnet, looked up at him with such innocence. “This is fate’s fault, no one else’s.”
“But now you’re leaving.”
“Yes, and when I return there will be two of us.”
Her eyes cleared as a shaky smile crept to her lips. “She’ll love you the moment she sets eyes on you.”
Cain snorted.
Grace stiffened. “What are you laughing at, toad?”
“How am I a toad when Adam’s a stunning prince? We’re identical twins, runt.”
“You’re an unmannered hog. And I’m not a runt!”
“Ganoonk! Enough. Grace, how is Mother doing?”
Lips pressed tight, his sister’s anger vanished. “She’s resting. I brewed some herbs to help her sleep. She’s so worried, Adam. I’m afraid she’ll cry the entire time you’re gone.”
Cain groaned. “This is going to be worse than when Silus took Larissa.”
Their mother had been devastated when the Elders granted Silus Hostetler’s request for a quick union. Since relocating to the western territory of the farm where the Hostetler property existed, Larissa rarely visited anymore.
“It will not be that bad. I intend to live on Hartzler territory when I return with my mate.”
Yes, he’d be returning to the place he loved, at the same time asking his mate to sacrifice everything she trusted and knew to follow him to a society of traditionalists. She would lead a simple life, dressed in plain clothing, and forego all modern technologies. His journey suddenly seemed daunting and impossible.
What modern female would sacrifice all that for a stranger? What could he offer her aside from immortality? And what good was immortality when her eternity was to be spent with someone who shared nothing in common with her previous life?
This would not be a love match. Like many other cultures, it would be a partnership borne of necessity.
The truth pained him. An eternity indeed. That was likely the time it would take to earn her forgiveness after stealing her away from every comfort she knew.
His mind said he could go on without her. His heart didn’t want the complication, for her or for him. But tradition warned this was the only way.
Closing the last of his belongings into his satchel, he shifted to hug his sister. “I’ll move as swift as my legs can carry me, and before you know it we’ll be sitting here once more calling Cain a toad while discussing my more admirable traits.”
The door creaked open and he glimpsed his father and grandfather, looking as much like twins as he and Cain could. “Adam, it’s time.”
Grace caught his arm. He turned to face her one last time, forcing a smile and hoping it reached his eyes. “This is a good thing God has given me, Grace. Soon it will be you who is called and I’ll be the one worrying.”
She shook her head. “Everyone’s leaving.”
He cupped her jaw, dragging his thumb slowly over the apple of her cheek. “I’ll come back. I promise.”
Though tears gathered at her lashes, threatening to fall, she didn’t shed a single one. He and Cain joined the men in the kitchen once Grace went upstairs and they were alone.
“It is important you maintain a low profile, Adam. The fewer mortals you speak to, the fewer questions you will have to answer. If questioned, you’re away from home on Rumspringa.”
The Amish lifestyle provided the benefit of privacy from the ever changing outside world. Though they would sometimes stare, the English had learned to ignore their presence, especially the younger members of the community out on Rumspringa, an Amish tradition that provided youths a chance to run wild among the English in hopes that they would ultimately return, choosing tradition and faith over rowdiness.
“Feed frequently. If you’re caught poaching from another farm, erase the mortal’s memory.” In a more severe tone, his grandfather warned, “Under no circumstances should you assume that you can sustain your metabolism on mere human food any longer. Your body’s changing and will continue to need increasing amounts of blood until you find your mate. Complete the bonding as soon as you find her. Don’t waste time. You have the rest of your life to make up for poor first impressions. But if you fail, you’ll not have much life left.”
His grandfather glanced toward the dark window where the black night faded to shades of gray with the approaching dawn. An ominous mood settled around the table.
