A Memory Worth Dying For (21 page)

Chris nodded, and Daniel sighed to himself along with a laugh. “Back to where we started.”

Daniel got into the boat and helped Chris settle in the middle seat. He picked up the oars and sat down in the back of the boat.

He handed Chris a child-sized oar.

“Want to help paddle?”

Chris lunged at the oar and nodded his head vigorously. After gripping the plastic handle with his small hands, he plopped it into the lake.

Daniel showed him how to push the paddle through the water and hid a smile as Chris’s short arms stabbed the water with the oar. Daniel pushed off from the shore, and the canoe glided smoothly through the water. As they paddled along the shoreline, Daniel noticed a woman standing inside the new gazebo skirting the edge of the water. She was wearing a sunflower yellow top with blue jean walking shorts, and the sunlight shining under the edge of the roof highlighted the russet color of her hair.

Marti.

The back of his neck tingled, and he swatted at his hairline to ease the feeling. The same emotional reaction he felt after Marti fell in the woods returned to tickle his stomach. He wished he could figure out why being with Marti brought something inside of him back to life.

“Come on, Unc’l Dan’l. Let’s go, let’s go.” Chris splashed the oar back into the water and tugged it backward, sending a spray of water at Daniel’s face and hair.

Daniel ducked and laughed. “Okay, okay. How about we pick up a passenger?”

“A pass-ger?”

“Passenger. That means a friend.”

“Okay.”

Daniel paddled toward the gazebo and watched the back of Marti’s head as she gazed across the lake. Her beauty was obvious, but something else called to him. Her personality? Her character? Something made him long to spend more time with the pretty portrait artist.

The oars made a plop sound as he steered toward the shore—trying to keep in perfect rhythm with the beating of his heart.

THIRTY-NINE

THE BENCH IN THE GARDEN
between the house and the stables was shaded by a gnarled oak tree and was the perfect resting place away from memories rolling over Marti’s sensitive emotions. After spending all morning staring at Daniel’s likeness on canvas, slivers of memory penetrated her thoughts one after the other. When she felt she could take no more of the emotional roller coaster, she wandered outside to let the beautiful spring weather lighten her mood. Princess followed her outside, and when Marti sat on the stainless steel yard bench, the cat jumped in her lap for nuzzling and a short nap.

Marti sat contented to hold the cat and appreciate the beautiful gardens surrounding the area. A vibrant patch of red salvia was encircled with a thick stand of dusty miller, and around the edges of the small garden were orange marigolds and shasta daisies. Anita’s green thumb was evident in the compact flower garden. Anita not only cleaned house but also spent time outside, enjoying her gardening hobby.

When Marti’s gaze turned toward the lake, she spotted a gazebo standing a few feet from the boat dock. She set Princess on the ground, walked down to the edge of the lake, and stepped up on the wooden structure skirting the sandy shoreline. It was a new construction Marti had never seen before, but it offered a perfect view of the mountains on the other side of the lake. They were picturesque this time of year—covered with new growth of leaves and foliage but still showing a touch of snow on the tips. Across the lake, wild flower blooms were beginning to pop out next to the water, adding touches of blue, purple, and orange.

She was standing on the gazebo enjoying the peaceful atmosphere when the mood abruptly changed. The air almost seemed charged with an electric current. She turned around and saw a canoe floating toward the edge of the lake with Daniel paddling through the water toward the dock. Daniel waved at her from inside the canoe, and she waved back. The little boy she’d seen the other day sat inside the canoe, trying to help paddle. She smiled at his awkward jabs at the water.

Daniel’s rust-color, patterned shirt emphasized his tanned features and coordinated with his knee-length khaki shorts. His hair was tousled from the brisk breeze, but he was beaming. Her heart took a nosedive, and goose bumps broke out on her arms. She would never get over her body’s reaction to his presence.

She smiled back and watched as the canoe approached the dock.

“Hey, Marti. Come meet Chris!” Daniel called from the canoe as he pulled it up to the short dock.

Marti crossed the grass from the gazebo and stepped onto the dock. Leaning over, she shook the little boy’s hand. “Hello, Chris. My name is Marti.” The boy had brown hair and the biggest brown eyes Marti had ever seen. His light blue shirt matched his blue jean cargo shorts, but Marti’s gaze was drawn back to the little boy’s face. She was startled by how much like Daniel’s the little boy’s eyes were.

Chris looked up into her face. “Hi.” His shy little smile ducked behind the handle of the oar he was holding.

“This is Veronica’s baby brother.”

“No, Unc’l Dan’l. Brudder. I’m her brudder.”

“Oh. Okay.” A smile and a wink were aimed toward Marti.

She shivered as a wave of warmth swept over her skin. She turned to the little boy.

“How old are you Chris?”

“Free.” He held up three fingers.

A wave of suspicion coursed through her. Veronica’s adopted brother? One who looked a lot like Daniel? And he was three years old? Was this the reason Daniel had sent her away?

“Would you like to come with us for a ride?” Daniel waved toward the canoe.

Marti mentally shook herself and stored those thoughts away for later. “Uh, sure. It’s been years since I’ve ridden in a boat. I’d like that.”

Chris raised his head. “You can wear a light racket, but you can’t swim,” said Chris with a serious face.

“A what?” Marti frowned.

“He means a life jacket,” said Daniel with another wink as he handed her an orange vest.

“Oh, okay.” Marti took the vest Daniel handed her and clicked the locks in place. Daniel braced himself on the dock and held out his hand to assist her into the boat.

When Marti’s hand touched Daniel’s, a current of warmth spread through her body. She spotted the surprised look on Daniel’s face and knew he felt the same sensation. For a minute, the world stopped turning while they stared into each other’s eyes and tried to absorb the unexpected responsiveness.

Daniel tugged on her hand. She leaned on his support and climbed into the middle of the boat. She made her way to the front seat and collapsed before her legs could give away. When Daniel turned to push the canoe away from the dock, she took several deep breaths and tried to calm her running away heart.

Chris turned to her shyly. “I’m helping Unc’l Dan’l go.” He illustrated the words by placing the oar into the water then turned to her. “Wanna help?”

“Sure, Chris.” Marti moved up to sit beside Chris and put one hand on the oar.

Chris moved over and smiled up at her as they pushed the oar in the water together.

Daniel grinned at their awkward partnership. “It’s nice to have some help, isn’t it, buddy?”

Chris nodded and concentrated on pushing the oar away from the boat.

Daniel looked at Marti with a strange expression on his face. “I have something to show you,” he said as he steered toward the other side of the lake. He pointed toward a protruding piece of land across the water in the center of an alcove. “Over there.”

Marti tried to recall exploring that area, but she couldn’t remember ever being on the other side of the huge lake. “What is it?”

He grinned and put his finger on his lips. “Wait and see.”

Marti forced a mock frown and then offered him a smile. “Hashtag: secret, huh?”

Daniel smiled and nodded. “Yep.”

When they reached the shore on the other side, Daniel slowed the boat by dragging his oar in the water. “Okay, guys. Pull your oar out of the water and be very quiet.”

“Why, Unc’l Dan’l?”

“We don’t want to scare the mama.”

“What mama?”

“You’ll see.”

Chris looked up at Marti. “I don’t have a mama.”

Marti’s heart bled. She leaned over and hugged Chris. “I’m sorry, Chris. I didn’t have a mama either when I was your age, but I had lots of friends. Don’t you?”

“Yep. Unc’l Dan’l, Papa Shane, Ronica . . . and you.”

Marti thought the love in his eyes would make her heart melt. She gave him the biggest smile she could muster and a kiss on the cheek.

“Now,” said Daniel as he pulled a flashlight from the storage box, “be very quiet.”

Chris pushed his lips together and turned to Marti. He put his finger on his lips. “Shhhh.”

Marti did the same and smiled at Chris. He was such a precious child. That same longing for a child grew inside her until she had to tamp it down before tears followed.
Not now, please
.

Daniel stepped out of the boat and held out his hand to help Chris. Marti waited until he turned to her. Then she put her hand in his and smiled up at him. The tingling in her hand came back, and she hurriedly stepped onto land.

Daniel pulled the canoe up onto the shore and waved at them to follow. They rounded the point of land jutting into the water and walked about a hundred feet away from shore. Daniel squatted in the shade of a large oak tree and whispered, “Be really quiet for just a minute, then you’ll see what I brought you to see. Now, Chris, we have to be absolutely still when the mama comes back, or she might leave. Okay?”

Chris nodded excitedly and squatted with Marti beside Daniel and waited. Chris’s excitement bubbled out, and he squirmed and kept grinning up at Marti. After a few minutes, a large brown bird flew around the area and perched overhead on a large tree limb. Chris stopped his squirming and froze.

“That’s an owl,” Daniel whispered to Chris.

They watched as the mama bird sat on the limb, looking around the area before she flew over to a hole that looked like a tunnel in the ground and went inside. They heard loud twittering noises.

Chris’s eyes widened, and his mouth formed an “O.” He put his little hand over his mouth and grinned. Daniel smiled back and put his finger on his lips again to indicate silence.

The bird stuck its head out of the hole, looked around the area, and flew away.

Daniel grabbed the little boy’s hand. “Come on! Hurry! She’ll be back in a minute.” He led Chris over to the gap in the ground as Marti followed. Daniel leaned way over to look through the opening. “Look in here and see what you see.” He held the flashlight so the beam went directly into the hole.

Chris leaned to peer in and then drew in a quick breath. “Babies! Baby birds.”

Marti was amazed. “What kind are they? How did you find them? How old are they?”

Daniel laughed. “You sound like Chris—full of a million questions.”

Chris looked confused. “I’m not full of questions.”

Marti and Daniel laughed, and Daniel told them, “They’re called burrowing owls, and the babies are about three weeks old. I saw them one day while I was over here cutting down a tree the beavers had sawed half through.”

“Can I hold them, Unc’l Dan’l?”

“No, Chris. As a matter of fact, we need to leave now so the mother bird can come back to feed them again.”

They slipped back over to the tree and squatted to watch. In a few minutes, another brown bird came swooping into the area.

Daniel leaned over to Chris and pointed toward the bird. “I think that’s the daddy bird, Chris. See how much bigger he is than the mama? They take turns feeding their babies until they’re old enough to feed themselves.”

Marti was awed. “I thought owls always built their nests in trees,” she whispered.

“Not all of them. Many species of owls build in tall grass, burrows abandoned by other animals—sometimes we’ve even had them build in the holes of the barn or hay sheds around the place.”

“That’s interesting,” Marti said.

“Most other owls are active at night, but some burrowing owls are out during the day—like today. I guess they catch their prey better in the day time. They eat large insects and small rodents.”

“What’s a rodun, Unc’l Dan’l?”

“A small animal, like a mouse.”

Chris scrunched up his nose. “
Eeeuuuww
.”

Daniel grinned and whispered to Marti, “Hashtag: disgusted.”

Marti nodded and hid a smile.

Once the daddy bird left the area, Daniel stood up. “Come on. We need to leave them alone now.”

They walked toward the boat until Chris spotted a large bullfrog hopping across a grouping of round lake rocks.

“Look! A frog.” He climbed up on the low rocks until the frog jumped back down on the sand beside the water. Chris giggled and hopped down after him.

Daniel laughed and turned to Marti. “Shall we follow and make sure he doesn’t get into trouble?”

When she nodded, he took her hand. “The rocks are a little rough here.”

He led her across the jumbled group of rocks and helped her down the last one. When she stepped down onto the ground, the sand was soft and her foot twisted. Daniel’s hand reached out to help her even as she found her balance. Their faces were inches apart. His eyes found hers, and she stared into them—mesmerized. Her breath was shallow, and Daniel seemed to have frozen in time. His head tilted to the side, and he whispered, “Marti,” as he reached up and caressed her cheek. He leaned toward her and touched her lips with his. The kiss was short, yet explosions of magnitude went off in her head. It was even better than she remembered. Even as her heart tried to find its rhythm again, she felt a stabbing pain for the wasted years they’d lost.

Unexpectedly, Daniel pulled away and stepped back. Without his arm holding her up, her knees gave way, and she sat down on the rock behind her.

“I’m sorry, Marti.” He turned away from her and looked into the clouds. “That wasn’t right. This never happened.” He turned toward Chris and yelled, “Chris, let’s go!”

When he turned toward the boat, Marti felt a heavy weight pressing on her chest. Daniel could pretend it never happened because he had no memories that once it was so much more, while she remembered in detail the love, passion, and companionship she’d lost. This was breaking her heart, and Daniel was determined to ignore any feelings he might feel toward her. She had to leave—and soon—or there would be nothing of her left.