Everybody dived into the food, Rebecca noted, like they hadn't eaten well in a long time. And they hadn't. The only time she felt full was when she ate with Levi on a date.

Danny finished the last bite of his apple pie and fell back on the blanket. Putting his hands to his stomach, he groaned softly. "I am so full, I'm going to die."

"Do you want the rest of your fries?" Max said, pointing to Levi's half-full carton.

"Go for it," Levi said.

"Should we play volleyball after?" Danny asked, flat on his back and looking up at the sky.

Levi picked up a fry Max had overlooked and handed it to Rebecca. "I would like to, but I have to be at my job pretty soon. Maybe next week."

"I thought you didn't work on Wednesdays," Rebecca said.

"I got a second job."

Linda munched her cookies daintily while staring persistently at Levi. Her persistence had lasted all day. "Where do you live?" she said. "Why haven't we ever seen you before?"

Levi didn't let the question derail him. He must have been expecting it. "I live on the other side of town. We just moved into our new place."

"So will we see you at the gatherings?"

"The gatherings? I've never been invited. When do you have them?"

"Every week. In the summer sometimes two or three times a week."

Levi's eyes twinkled mischievously. "That sounds like fun. Will you and Rebecca take me?"

Rebecca shook her head in disbelief.

"Can you come on Sunday?" Linda said.

Levi cleared his throat, most likely to hide the laugh Rebecca knew was hidden behind his eyes. "I can't come on Sunday, but I'll go home and ask my mother if she can spare me some other day."

"Okay," Linda said, grabbing Rebecca's arm. "We really want you to come, don't we, Rebecca?"

Rebecca could not muster her sister's enthusiasm for such a scheme, but she also knew that Levi was teasing her behind Linda's back.

Levi gathered all the trash into a bag and handed it to Danny. "Will you go throw this away?"

Danny took off to the trash bin.

Max stood and hooked his thumbs under his suspenders. "Denki for the McDonald's. It tasted gute."

Levi nodded, and Max sauntered to the house.

Gratitude. That was a new development.

Levi Cooper, miracle worker.

Levi stood, took both of Rebecca's hands, and pulled her to her feet. His hands lingered on hers a moment longer than necessary. "I'm sorry I can't stay and do something about that buggy wheel. Maybe next week."

"Do not give it a second thought. You have done so much already."

"Will you walk me down the lane? I want you to show me the pasture."

Linda's smile faded. She hadn't let Levi out of her sight all day. She'd even insisted on thinning peaches with them after the noon meal, which was her least favorite job on the farm. She slumped her shoulders and put on the pathetic expression she used when she wanted Rebecca to feel sorry for her. "I will go check on Mamm," Linda said, trudging toward the house with little enthusiasm.

Rebecca folded the blanket and laid it on the porch steps. Then she and Levi walked toward the pasture.

"I'll bring the power sprayer next week, and then we can paint," he said. "Or we can put off the painting until autumn. That will make it less likely your father will find out about me. At least for a while."

"I do not think we will have that much time. Linda is probably spilling the beans to Mamm right now."

"All your mom will know is that an Amish boy came to help with the chores today. Will she object to that?"

"Nae, but my fater will."

Levi stopped walking and took Rebecca by the shoulders. "Then you'll have to manage things with your mom. She must know how badly you need the help." He was more somber than Rebecca had ever seen him. "She can't expect you to carry the burden of the farm and the house all by yourself. Could you convince her that it is for your family's good not to tell your father?"

"I could try, but she will not feel right about keeping secrets from Fater."

Levi swore under his breath then glanced at Rebecca. "Sorry. Bad habit. But do you have to...?" He didn't finish that thought. "I wish it weren't so hard for you here. They work you to the bone and you get no appreciation."

"I can manage."

Levi took off his hat and ran his fingers through his hair. "What about your Amish neighbors? I know from personal experience how kind they are. They help each other with medical bills and farming and everything. Why won't anybody help you?"

"My fater refuses the help. He thinks it is his Christian duty to care for his own."

"His duty?" Levi raised his voice. "He's not doing his duty. You're doing his duty."

"Please. I do not want to talk about my fater."

This comment seemed to anger him more than anything else. "Good," he said, "because a problem usually gets solved by not talking about it."

Rebecca broke away from his side and sat on a low stone wall at the edge of the pasture. "I cannot change my fater, Levi. I can either bang my head against the wall every morning or accept what is." She pulled him over to sit next to her. "I accept what is."

"Not me. I like to bang my head against the wall."

"Jah, I can tell there is some brain damage."

"Yep, brain damage."

She studied his face. Did she really want him to know what was in her heart?

Jah, her heart was safer with Levi than anyone else in the world. "I am a wicked girl because, truth be told, I do not want Fater's help. I am happier when he is away."

"You have more freedom."

"I would never be allowed out to see you if he were always at home. And in his mind, I cannot do anything right. The first thing he does when he walks through the door on Friday night is find fault. At least I do not have to hear his criticisms every day."

Levi put his arm around her shoulder. "How could he ever find fault with you? You're perfect."

She couldn't face the honesty in his eyes. "Nae," she said, turning her head away. "No one is perfect. Least of all me."

"I'm sorry I got mad. I'm trying to watch out for you, since nobody else does."

Rebecca sniffed once. "What is it about you that forces me to confess all my wickedness? You know about my fater, my baptism, the skateboarding."

He grinned. "Your secrets are safe with me."

Jah, she knew they were.

With her hand comfortably in his, they continued their stroll through the pasture. Rebecca recovered some of her composure. "A thank-you isn't enough for what you have done today."

"I wanted to come. I'd muck out a hundred barns to be near you."

"You are shoveling manure at me, Levi Cooper."

"Not at all, kid. You're like my porch light, and I'm the moth. I'm naturally drawn to you."

Still walking along, she nudged him so that he lost his balance and tripped into a deep furrow in the pasture. He regained his footing, and they both laughed.

"Okay, okay," he said. "I surrender."

"I have done all the confessing today," Rebecca said. "Now I want to hear your confession."

He grinned. "Um, okay. I get stinking drunk three nights a week. I have a bad reputation with girls. I forgot to say my prayers this morning. And I don't make my bed. But I've never tried a cigarette, and I'm very good to my mom and my sister, and..." He paused significantly. "I'm thinking of becoming a former drunk. Is that good enough?"

"Do not fool with me, Levi."

"I'm not fooling. I'm a bad guy, Rebecca."

"I want to know about the Amish fater and the Deitsch."

"Jah, I thought you would," he said in Pennsylvania Dutch with a decent accent.

They halted in their progress again when he leaned against a fence post and stared out at the Glicks' cornfield. "Here's my confession. Till I was seven, I was Amish. My dat died in a car accident. My mom... she married an Englischer and left the faith."

Rebecca felt like she'd just crashed into the lake while waterskiing. It was a lot of information to sort out at once. She reached out to the post for support. "Your mamm was shunned, wasn't she?"

"She fell in love. How could that be bad?"

"I do not know," Rebecca said.

Levi looked at her closely. "My mom always defends the shunning. I thought you'd defend it too."

"What do I know about such things?" Rebecca said. "I am sure this has brought much pain to your family."

"Mom's new husband adopted us and everything." A shadow fell across his features. "But when he left us five years ago, we lost our house. Mom's Amish family wouldn't help us because of the shunning."

"I am so wicked," Rebecca said. "At least I have a fater."

"Having no father is better than having a jerk father," Levi said.

"Does he live around here?"

Levi shook his head. "In Chicago with his new wife. Works at some big-time investment firm. Makes a lot of money-not that we ever see any of it."

"Where does your mamm's family live?"

Levi paused then pulled his keys out of his pocket. "That's all the confessing I'm doing today. If you want more info, you'll have to go out on another date with me. How about Friday night?"

Rebecca ran through the list of tasks in her head. "Fater comes home on Friday night."

"What time?"

"The late bus pulls in right after midnight."

Levi jumped over the fence. "I'm thinking laser-tagging. You want to go?"

Rebecca took a deep breath.

He laughed. "Don't worry. Laser tag is pretty tame for a girl who can water-ski."

"Sounds like fun."

"Okay, kid. I'll pick you up at six."

"I will be waiting, Moe," Rebecca said.

"Moe? One of the Three Stooges? I'm honored." Levi bowed respectfully, winked at Rebecca, and disappeared into the bushes.

Rebecca furrowed her brow. Moe was the name of her uncle's horse. What were the Three Stooges?

Chapter Fourteen.

That evening after Levi left, they gathered around Mamm's bed and stared at her as if she had just broken out in spots. Mamm sat up slowly and studied each child's face.

Rebecca stood at the foot of the bed with Linda on her right and Max and Danny to her left. The unusual show of unity got Mamm's attention.