A
Simple Vow
by
Charlotte Hubbard
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GENRE:
Inspirational Romance ( Amish)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:
Housed
in a rustic red barn, the Simple Gifts crafts shop celebrates the
talents of the Amish of Willow Ridge—and the faith that inspires
them. For the acceptance of simplicity opens the path to love.
As far as Edith Riehl is concerned, the baby twins thrust suddenly into her arms are a heaven-sent gift. Unable to conceive, she longs to be a mother with a home of her own. She’s going to abide by her promise to handsome Asa Detweiler to take care of them while he looks for their real father. And even if her domineering dat Cornelius refuses to countenance Asa’s suit, she can only pray the bachelor’s honesty and persistence will uncover the truth—even as he’s kindled an impossible hope for a love of her own…
Asa can’t understand why anyone would think he would be so dishonorable as to father babies and then abandon them. He’s determined to clear his name—but Edith’s caring ways also inspire him to help heal her wounded spirit and earn her trust. In the face of heartbreaking deception, he and Edith must find the strength to understand, forgive…and claim their own hearts’ joy.
As far as Edith Riehl is concerned, the baby twins thrust suddenly into her arms are a heaven-sent gift. Unable to conceive, she longs to be a mother with a home of her own. She’s going to abide by her promise to handsome Asa Detweiler to take care of them while he looks for their real father. And even if her domineering dat Cornelius refuses to countenance Asa’s suit, she can only pray the bachelor’s honesty and persistence will uncover the truth—even as he’s kindled an impossible hope for a love of her own…
Asa can’t understand why anyone would think he would be so dishonorable as to father babies and then abandon them. He’s determined to clear his name—but Edith’s caring ways also inspire him to help heal her wounded spirit and earn her trust. In the face of heartbreaking deception, he and Edith must find the strength to understand, forgive…and claim their own hearts’ joy.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EXCERPT
From her
upstairs bedroom, Edith heard the front door close, followed by her
father’s footsteps crossing the hardwood floor and then ascending
the stairs. She quickly dropped the two dirty diapers into an old
enamelware pot and put the lid on it, knowing Dat would object to the
smell . . . just as the babies’ fussing would bother him—now, and
when he went to bed in the room adjacent to hers. She’d figured Dat
would return early from the wedding. He’d had all morning to plan
his sermon while Bishop Tom and Preacher Ben Hooley had been
delivering theirs during the church service.
“Shhh,”
Edith whispered. She lifted little Louisa to soothe her, swaying from
side to side. “Let’s be very quiet, very calm. We’ll pray for
Dat’s patience and compassion and—”
“Edith.”
Despite
the tightening in her stomach, Edith turned toward the doorway and
put on a bright smile. “How was the wedding, Dat? Were there lots
of folks from—”
“Tell
me again how you came to be responsible for these two babies,” he
said sternly. “And then tell me how you intend to resolve this
situation you’ve gotten us into.”
Sighing
nervously, Edith sat down on her bed so she could quiet Leroy, who
was lying on a towel. Dat hadn’t raised his voice, but he
habitually spoke in a tone that conveyed his authority—a tone that
had always made her squirm, as the startled twins were doing.
“I—I
heard a baby crying when I was waiting for you and Loretta and
Rosalyn to come downstairs,” Edith began. “When I spotted two
fellows having an argument behind the rig the ruckus was coming from,
I just had to go and see—”
“And
why was their conversation your concern, Daughter?” Dat asked.
“Curiosity killed the cat.”
“Jah,
and—like you’ve told me a dozen times—I used up my nine lives
ages ago,” Edith replied, hoping to soften her father with humor.
“But it was the wee one’s welfare I was concerned about, rather
than the men’s talk. I wondered if the mother was too ill to
comfort the crying child—and when I looked into the buggy I saw two
babies. They were upset about the men’s argumentative talk, no
doubt,” she added, hoping he would catch the hint.
Her
father crossed his arms, filling the doorway with his
broad-shouldered form as his disapproval sucked the air from the
room. With his thick graying hair and beard, he reminded Edith of an
Old Testament prophet about to foretell her doom. He scowled as Leroy
began to cry, which inspired his sister to join in.
“How
are we to get any sleep? Or concentrate on our work?” Dat asked
above their rising wails. “Edith, you are to return these babies to
their mother at once!”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR
Bio and Links:
Many
moons ago—like, in 1983 while she was still a school
librarian—Charlotte Hubbard sold her first story to True Story.
This launched her into writing around seventy of those “true
confessions” stories over the years, and she’s been a slave to
her overactive imagination ever since. Over the course of her writing
career, she has sold nearly 50 books—most recently, Amish romance
series she’s written as Charlotte Hubbard or Naomi King.
Charlotte
lived in Missouri for most of her life, so her Amish stories are set
in imaginary Missouri towns. These days she lives in St. Paul, MN
with her husband of 40+ years and their Border collie, Ramona.
WEBSITE
www.CharlotteHubbard.com
Facebook
www.Facebook.com/Charlotte.Hubbard1
Click on
these links to buy this book now!
• Amazon.com •• Barnes & Noble •• The Book Depository •• B-A-M •• Chapters •• IndieBound •• Powell’s •• Kensington Books •
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GIVEAWAY
INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE
Charlotte
will be awarding a $15 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner
via rafflecopter during the tour.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Thanks for hosting!
ReplyDeleteThank you for the excerpt, I enjoyed reading it :)
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