Awakened Love

Book excerpt: Twenty-one-year-old Katie Detweiler loves to bake. When she’s hired at a local bed-and-breakfast to do just that, she’s excited, especially because the owner promises the shy young woman that she won’t have to leave the kitchen. But when her boss’s husband requires round-the-clock care, Katie is forced to wait on customers, too. Before long, a “customer” reveals himself to be a private investigator—and exposes a family secret that shakes her to the core.Twenty-two-year-old Abram Hilty has fled the drama of Shipshewana, Indiana, for Seymour, Missouri, where he’s staying with his cousin. His plan is to hide from a girl he no longer cares about—and more. Uncomfortable sharing his past and afraid of the consequences, he buries his troubles deep inside. When he meets Katie Detweiler, he is immediately attracted, but his pursuit of her is complicated by a past mistake he can’t undo. As Katie wrestles with questions of identity, she also struggles to navigate her blossoming romance with Abram, in the face of opposition from a jealous friend. As their relationship becomes more serious, Abram realizes that he must come clean about his past—even if doing so will require him to keep his distance from Katie, for her own protection. It soon becomes clear that only the hand of God can bind them together for good.