Ever since her step-mom brought her a snow globe of the New York City skyline, Annie has wanted to visit the beautiful, big city. Since it’s nearing the time of Annie’s rumschpringe―the time when Amish youth experience English life to make a decision whether to live in that world or become baptized into the Amish faith―the family decides a visit is a good idea. They watch the Macy’s Christmas parade, admire the decorated store windows, skate at the Rockefeller Center rink and― Annie’s favorite―get a glimpse of a writer’s life while visiting the New York Times building. But others aren’t as thrilled with Annie’s lure to the Big Apple. Aaron has long been attracted to Annie and is sure he’s in love. As he watches her engage in big city life, he grows concerned that she won’t want to return to their quieter life. Will Annie follow Aaron back home? Or stay and pursue her dreams? Competing for her attention, Aaron sets out to show Annie that Christmas isn’t about the glitz and glamour, but about family, love, and the birth of Jesus. Will New York City lure Annie away from her home...and the possibility of love? Barbara Cameron has a heart for writing about the spiritual values and simple joys of the Amish. She is the best-selling author of more than 40 fiction and nonfiction books, three nationally televised movies, and the winner of the first Romance Writers of America Golden Heart Award. Her books have been nominated for Carol Awards and the Inspirational Reader s Choice Award from RWA s Faith, Hope, and Love chapter. Barbara resides in Jacksonville, Florida. Annie's Christmas Wish Quilts of Lancaster County Series By Barbara Cameron Abingdon Press Copyright © 2013 Barbara Cameron All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-1-4267-3389-5 CHAPTER 1 Annie lay on the quilt-covered bed tucked up in her cozy,tiny attic bedroom. She held up the snow globe and shook it,watching the little snowflakes inside swirl and swirl and thenfloat gently down to cover the skyscrapers of New York City. It was her favorite Christmas present ever, brought backfrom the big city by her mamm when she went to see her editoryears ago. After she'd received the globe with its tiny glimpseof the city, Annie had borrowed books from the library andstudied the photos and read everything she could. New YorkCity seemed like such an exciting place, filled with such towering,fancy buildings, its streets lined with so many types ofpeople from so many places. Stories were everywhere, storiesof hope and joy and death and loss and—well, her imaginationwas soaring just thinking about them. She might be twenty-one now, a woman and not a child,but she was no less interested—some might say obsessed—thanshe'd been with the city than when she first received theglobe. Her one big wish had become to visit New York City,and now it was finally coming true. Life here in her Plain community of Paradise, Pennsylvania,wasn't boring. Not exactly. She loved everything about it. Butshe'd always been a seeker, endlessly curious about even thetiniest detail of life. She'd been like that even before her mamm had moved here and married her daed . Before she becameJenny Bontrager, her mother had been Jenny King, a televisionnews reporter who specialized in traveling around the worldand showing people what war did to innocent children. Annie thought the work sounded amazing. All the travel—itsounded so exciting. Meeting all kinds of people. Telling thestories of people who needed attention to their story to helpthem. Annie had never lacked for a meal. She'd always had acomfortable bed. And even though she had lost her mother at a young age,she'd always had so many people around her to love her andmake her feel safe and happy. The children her mother hadseen overseas in war-torn countries had often lost parents,their homes—even been injured or killed themselves. Andsometimes there was little food. She looked up when there was a knock on the door frame. "Hi. May I come in?" "Of course." Annie moved so her mother could sit on thebed with her. When she saw her mother's gaze go to the snow globe sheheld, she handed it to her. Jenny shook it and watched thesnowflakes settle on the skyscrapers inside just as Annie haddone. "I remember when I gave this to you." "You came back from a trip there and told us you weregoing to have a baby." "Seems like just yesterday." "Seems like he's been around forever to drive me crazy."She grinned. "Don't worry, I don't mean it. He's a good littlebrother." "You mean when he's not being a little terror?" Annie laughed and nodded. "Right. He's not afraid of anything.Must have some of the adventurer spirit you have insidehim." Her mother glanced down at her traditional Amish dressand laughed self-deprecatingly. "I'm not much of an adventurernow." "You have a spirit of adventure in your heart," Annie toldher. She studied her mother, who looked so slim and prettyin a dress of deep green; her dark brown hair tucked neatlyunder her snowy white