Read Online When You Wish (Contemporary Romance) by Lori Handeland - Free Book Online
Authors: Lori Handeland
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these.”
But some just like them. As a child she’d spent time with her paternal grandparents, at her mother’s insistence. Even as her father gave his life for the rights of his people, he would have let his daughter grow up ignorant of all that was Ojibwe. He wanted her to be who she was. He had never understood that part of who she was was just that.
Ignorance of the customs did not make her skin any lighter. Being half Irish did not make people stare at her any less. Knowing who she came from, and why that was important, was all that had made the tough times bearable. Her mother had understood that and sent her to her grandparents for part of every summer.
With them she learned to love the forest, and that love had never died . Tall buildings made her claustrophobic, flat places made her feel exposed, deserts were, well, deserted. Whenever she was away she ached for green rolling hills, sun on water, and snow heavy upon the pines. Bad memories had made her flee, but good memories brought her back.
Dan stopped. “Where are you from?”
Grace kept going. A breeze blew the hair back from her face, and she breathed deeply of the air, scenting rain, and a spark of electricity. No time to dawdle. She didn’t want to be in the woods when the coming storm broke.
“A place south and east of here.”
A place she had not been able to return to because all her bad memories lingered there.
Dan double-timed to catch up with her again. “You lived on the reservation?”
“No.” For some reason outsiders always figured every Indian in town had escaped from the reservation. She waited for him to ask why not, but for once he kept quiet.
The woods thickened and the going slowed. Their feet slid along the damp forest cover. Here, the ground remained wet well into August. The sun rarely reached past the blanket of trees to dry the ground from the winter snows and the spring rains. Purple flowers grew amidst the grass. The woodsy, wild scent of mushrooms and moss warred with the aroma of pine needles and sap.
Neither the moon nor the stars could be seen any longer. Grace reached into her pocket and pulled out a compass, flicking the beam across its face. She gave a sharp nod. She’d thought they were still headed in the right direction, but in the woods it paid to be certain.
“You’ve got a compass?” Dan sounded so amazed that Grace smiled.
“Doesn’t everyone?” She popped the circlet back into her pocket.
“I didn’t think you’d need a compass.”
Grace’s smile faded. “And why wouldn’t I?”
“Don’t you just know inherently where you are, where to go?”
Annoyance flashed through her. “Knowing how to get from here to there doesn’t come from my blood but from my brain. If you live in these woods, you need to know how to survive in these woods. Cars fail all the time. And a casual stroll can turn deadly if you don’t know what you’re doing.”
“I’ve offended you again.”
Grace sighed. She shouldn’t get so defensive, but some things never changed, and of all people, she’d thought Dan would not judge her by her cover since he didn’t like being judged by his.
“Never mind,” she said. “We need to hurry if we don’t want to be caught in the storm.”
“Storm?” Dan lengthened his strides to keep up with her trot. “What storm? The weather report said clear, no clouds.”
She couldn’t help it. She just had to roll her eyes. “You listen to the weather report?”
“Doesn’t everyone?” He threw her own words back at her. She didn’t take the bait.
“Sure, but they don’t actually believe it.”
“Then how do you know there’s a storm coming?”
“Inherent weather-predicting ability,” she said and plunged into the darkest part of the forest.
Dan walked faster, keeping one eye on the hide-and-seek white of Grace’s dress through the trees and the other on the shadows, searching for bears. Grace didn’t seem to think there were any about, but Dan
But some just like them. As a child she’d spent time with her paternal grandparents, at her mother’s insistence. Even as her father gave his life for the rights of his people, he would have let his daughter grow up ignorant of all that was Ojibwe. He wanted her to be who she was. He had never understood that part of who she was was just that.
Ignorance of the customs did not make her skin any lighter. Being half Irish did not make people stare at her any less. Knowing who she came from, and why that was important, was all that had made the tough times bearable. Her mother had understood that and sent her to her grandparents for part of every summer.
With them she learned to love the forest, and that love had never died . Tall buildings made her claustrophobic, flat places made her feel exposed, deserts were, well, deserted. Whenever she was away she ached for green rolling hills, sun on water, and snow heavy upon the pines. Bad memories had made her flee, but good memories brought her back.
Dan stopped. “Where are you from?”
Grace kept going. A breeze blew the hair back from her face, and she breathed deeply of the air, scenting rain, and a spark of electricity. No time to dawdle. She didn’t want to be in the woods when the coming storm broke.
“A place south and east of here.”
A place she had not been able to return to because all her bad memories lingered there.
Dan double-timed to catch up with her again. “You lived on the reservation?”
“No.” For some reason outsiders always figured every Indian in town had escaped from the reservation. She waited for him to ask why not, but for once he kept quiet.
The woods thickened and the going slowed. Their feet slid along the damp forest cover. Here, the ground remained wet well into August. The sun rarely reached past the blanket of trees to dry the ground from the winter snows and the spring rains. Purple flowers grew amidst the grass. The woodsy, wild scent of mushrooms and moss warred with the aroma of pine needles and sap.
Neither the moon nor the stars could be seen any longer. Grace reached into her pocket and pulled out a compass, flicking the beam across its face. She gave a sharp nod. She’d thought they were still headed in the right direction, but in the woods it paid to be certain.
“You’ve got a compass?” Dan sounded so amazed that Grace smiled.
“Doesn’t everyone?” She popped the circlet back into her pocket.
“I didn’t think you’d need a compass.”
Grace’s smile faded. “And why wouldn’t I?”
“Don’t you just know inherently where you are, where to go?”
Annoyance flashed through her. “Knowing how to get from here to there doesn’t come from my blood but from my brain. If you live in these woods, you need to know how to survive in these woods. Cars fail all the time. And a casual stroll can turn deadly if you don’t know what you’re doing.”
“I’ve offended you again.”
Grace sighed. She shouldn’t get so defensive, but some things never changed, and of all people, she’d thought Dan would not judge her by her cover since he didn’t like being judged by his.
“Never mind,” she said. “We need to hurry if we don’t want to be caught in the storm.”
“Storm?” Dan lengthened his strides to keep up with her trot. “What storm? The weather report said clear, no clouds.”
She couldn’t help it. She just had to roll her eyes. “You listen to the weather report?”
“Doesn’t everyone?” He threw her own words back at her. She didn’t take the bait.
“Sure, but they don’t actually believe it.”
“Then how do you know there’s a storm coming?”
“Inherent weather-predicting ability,” she said and plunged into the darkest part of the forest.
Dan walked faster, keeping one eye on the hide-and-seek white of Grace’s dress through the trees and the other on the shadows, searching for bears. Grace didn’t seem to think there were any about, but Dan
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