Home by September — Linda Cushman

Her self-esteem shattered, Anna Thias returns to Cottonwood Falls, Kansas, secretly hoping to resume her romance with Ben, yet knowing he could never be interested in an over-weight woman. Ashamed of her looks, she tries to hide away in the bakery she opens. Befriended and encouraged by a young seamstress, Anna begins to allow her heart to heal. Her world is turned upside down when Ben begins to exhibit the same traits as her tormentor.

Ben Liston's life is all planned out. He's going to get rich in a few months, and marry Anna. Ignoring the advice of family to ask for God's guidance, he invests all of his money in a new machine. Anna, who's changed from the cheerful woman he once knew, is a mystery. Rather than trying to understand her past, he loses patience and insults her. On the verge of total failure, he has no other recourse than God. Always controlling things himself, will he let God rule?