Her Heart's Desire


 
 
 
 
 
 Endorsements
 
 “When Mary Margaret Miller needs an escape from her small Amish community, she takes a vacation to Pinecraft, Florida, and is surprised to not only find true friends but also meet a handsome and charming Amish carpenter. Her Heart’s Desire is a tender journey that explores friendship, heartbreak, second chances, forgiveness, and finding true love. Shelley Shepard Gray highlights that God’s grace and mercy is with us even when we’re certain we’re alone and don’t fit in with our community. Fans of Amish fiction will be hooked on page one and won’t stop reading until they reach the end!”
 
 Amy Clipston, bestselling author of Building a Future
 
 “Childhood scars can stick around for a very long time. Healing those emotional wounds sets the tone in Her Heart’s Desire by Shelley Shepard Gray. First in the A Season in Pinecraft series, Her Heart’s Desire is full of endearing characters with insecurities and trust issues, each one lifted to a better place through hope, faith, and, of course, love. This entertaining tale of repaired friendships and kindled romances will delight readers.”
 
 Suzanne Woods Fisher, bestselling author of A Season on the Wind
 
 “Her Heart’s Desire, Shelley Shepard Gray’s latest novel, is destined to delight lovers of her sweet Amish romances. Set in beautiful Pinecraft, Florida, the story of three young Amish women who see themselves as wallflowers is a new take on the ‘mean girls’ theme popular in mainstream films and books. Watching these women blossom and gain confidence in their newfound friendships offers hope to any of us who have experienced the loneliness of being on the outside looking in. Gray gives her readers the additional gift of not one but two lovely romances. A sweet read!”
 
 Kelly Irvin, bestselling author of Love’s Dwelling
 
 
 
 
 Half Title Page
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Title Page
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Copyright Page
 
 © 2023 by Shelley Shepard Gray
 
 Published by Revell
 
 a division of Baker Publishing Group
 
 PO Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI 49516-6287
 
 www.revellbooks.com
 
 Ebook edition created 2023
 
 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—for example, electronic, photocopy, recording—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
 
 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
 
 ISBN 978-1-4934-3973-7
 
 Scripture used in this book, whether quoted or paraphrased by the characters, is taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
 
 This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
 
 The author is represented by The Seymour Agency.
 
 Baker Publishing Group publications use paper produced from sustainable forestry practices and post-consumer waste whenever possible.
 
 
 
 
 Dedication
 
 For my lovely friend Clara, who gave me my first tour of Pinecraft. Here’s hoping that we’ll get to meet there again one day!
 
 
 
 
 Epigraph
 
 
 To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given.
 
 Matthew 25:29
 
 
 
 Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.
 
 Amish proverb
 
 
 
 1
 
 
 
 MARCH
 
 There were only two beds in the motel room. Two beds for the three of them to share. Looking at the somewhat shabby space, Mary Margaret Miller felt her insides knot.
 
 When the Pioneer Trails bus driver had announced they’d needed to make an emergency stop in Georgia because the storm was too fierce to drive through, it had almost sounded like a grand adventure. Mary had never traveled much farther than Sugarcreek or Berlin, Ohio. And though she did know quite a few Englischers, most everyone she knew was Amish, just like her.
 
 She’d been so excited to see new things and meet new people, she hadn’t even been too concerned when the bus pulled into the parking lot of a small, rather run-down motel just off the highway. But now, as she stood next to two girls she barely knew and studied the forlorn pair of beds, Mary realized that her spur-of-the-moment decision to travel to Pinecraft, Florida, by herself hadn’t been the greatest idea.
 
 Not at all.
 
 Or perhaps her earlier prayers on the bus were to blame. After all, she had suggested to the Lord that surely anything would be better than being on a large bus in the middle of an ice storm. Maybe He had decided to take her at her word.
 
 Lilly broke the silence first. “Do either of you want to guess what that stain on the wall is from?”
 
 All three of them turned to stare at the dark blob seeping down from the ceiling to rest near the light switch. “I-I’ve been trying to pretend it wasn’t there,” Betsy said. “Obviously, that plan isn’t going too well.”
 
 “I would say that I’ve been trying to not think about the bedspreads, but I canna seem to think about anything besides who all has touched them previously,” Lilly murmured.
 
 Betsy wrinkled her nose. “M-maybe we should put them on the floor, jah? They m-might be infested.”
 
 “That would surely be best,” Lilly said.
 
 Straightening her slim shoulders, Betsy glanced Mary’s way. “Are you all right?”
 
 “Hmm? Oh, jah.” Finding her voice at last, Mary attempted to sound optimistic. “Do you girls have any thoughts about how we should decide who gets to sleep