Read Online Tracie Peterson by A Slender Thread - Free Book Online

are,” Ashley said with a hint ofa smile. “And while I know it’s not the same kind of busyness, I feel I am probably just as much on the run as you are. But I have to watch everything I eat.”
    Ashley stared out across the lake, knowing that the shoreline on the opposite side belonged to Harry. “It was strange seeing him again,” she said without needing to give Brook any explanation.
    “He could tell us apart right away. Just like the old days,” Brook countered. “Even though we were dressed alike at the funeral, he came right up and called me by name. I didn’t say much at all, and still he knew.”
    “Of course he knew. You don’t have that haggard look of running after children,” Ashley said. She gave a nervous sort of laugh that wasn’t at all in keeping with her reserved nature.
    “Does it bother you?” Brook questioned, tossing her dark hair over her shoulder as she studied her sister for a response.
    “Not like I thought it might,” Ashley replied. “But it does bother me in some ways.”
    “Such as?”
    Ashley shrugged and rubbed her hands against her bare arms. With the sun continuing its descent, the evening was turning chilly. “I suppose it bothers me in the sense that it takes me back in time. And that bothers me because it shows me how much time I’ve let slip away from me. There’s so much I still want to do with my life.”
    Brook nodded. “I know what you mean. I suppose Grammy would say, ‘Landsakes, child, you’re only thirty.’ But thirty is marriage and family and mortgages and trying to plan vacations around school schedules. And I have none of that.”
    “Yes, it is,” Ashley agreed. “But it’s more than that. Or at least it should be.” Her voice faded for a moment before she continued. “And unfortunately, there never seem to be enough hours in the day. Sometimes I just wish everything would come to a grinding halt. Like right now. There’s no place I need to be. Nothing I need to be doing. I can sit here all night if I want to, and no one will be the worse for it.”
    “So how do we capture this slow pacing for our otherwise outof-control lives? After all, we have to go home sometime. And as I recall, we were both rather anxious to get away from all this peace and quiet when we were younger.”
    “I’m not sorry I left,” Ashley stated thoughtfully. “And I can’t say that I would ever want to come back to this on a permanent basis. It’s just that sometimes I think I’ve bitten off more than I can chew.”
    “But you are happy, aren’t you?” Brook sat up and eyed Ashley as though her answer carried great weight.
    “I think so. But sometimes I wonder . . .” Ashley said. She could never have lied to Brook even if she had wanted to, but it wasn’t a lie to admit that she was confused by her own existence.
    Brook crossed her legs and leaned forward. With elbows on her knees and her hands cradling her own face, she looked very much like a lost little girl. Ashley wondered if Brook was more miserable than she let on. She knew Brook would tell her the truth if she asked, but a part of Ashley wondered if she really wanted to know. The fact was, Ashley felt confident she already knew. Brook had told her how worried she was for her future and how confused she was about what her choices might be. Ashley didn’t really need to ask.
    “I am happy,” Ashley finally said. “I know what I have. I know what I can count on and what I can’t. I’ve adjusted to Jack’s schedule and to the social life we’re expected to participate in. I have my sons, and they make me very happy.”
    “But . . . ” Brook prompted, not even bothering to look at Ashley.
    “I don’t know, and that’s the honest truth.” Ashley shook her head. “Sometimes, like yesterday when I first saw Harry, I can’t help but wonder if I’ve missed the boat altogether. Then again, there’s the realization that so much of what I’ve done has been accomplished in order to prove