“She never stopped looking.”
“What do you think happened to her?” Scott asked.
“We can only guess, but none of the prospects are pleasant. That’s why it’s so important for you never to wander off on your own. Understand?”
The two children nodded solemnly.
Abbey glanced at her watch, surprised by how late it was. When she’d read that Alaska was the land of the midnight sun, she’d assumed the light would be more like dusk. She was wrong. The sun was so bright she had to prop a board against the curtains in the children’s bedroom to make it dark enough for them to fall asleep. As it was, their routines had started to shift. They stayed awake later and slept in longer.
“Bedtime,” she told them now.
Her announcement was followed by the usual chorus of moans and complaints.
“Come on, Susan,” Sawyer said, standing. “I’ll give you a piggyback ride.” He hoisted her onto his back and Susan giggled, placing her arms around his neck.
“You’re next, partner,” he told Scott.
“I’m too old for that stuff,” Scott protested, but Abbey knew it was for show. He was as eager as his sister for a ride.
“Too old? You’ve got to be kidding,” Sawyer said, his voice rising in exaggerated disbelief. “You’re never too old for fun.” Then, before Scott could escape, Sawyer clasped him around the waist and held him against his side.
Scott was giggling and kicking wildly. With a smile, Abbey held open the screen door, and Sawyer carried the children down the hallway to the bedroom they grudgingly shared.
“How about a cup of coffee?” she asked while the kids changed into their pajamas. “Or I could make tea.”
His eyes brightened momentarily, then he shrugged and shook his head. “I can’t. Thanks, anyway. I came over to tell you I talked to my brother about the housing situation.”
Susan burst out of the bedroom wearing her Minnie Mouse pajamas and ran into the kitchen. Scott was close behind, his pajama top half over his head. When her kids were this excited, it was always a while before they settled down enough to sleep.
“Will you tuck me in?” Susan asked, gazing up at Sawyer.
He glanced at Abbey. “If it’s okay with your mother.”
They hopped up and down as if it were Christmas morning and they’d awakened to find the tree surrounded by gifts.
Taking him by the hand, Susan led Sawyer into the bedroom. Abbey followed, her arm around Scott’s shoulders. Sawyer tucked each child into bed, but it was soon apparent that neither one intended to go to sleep.
“Tell us a story,” Susan pleaded, wriggling out from under the covers. She hugged her favorite doll.
Scott, too, seemed to think this was a brilliant idea. “Yeah!” he shouted. “One with a dog in it.” It went without saying that he would’ve welcomed Eagle Catcher in his bedroom had Abbey and Sawyer allowed it.
“All right,” Sawyer agreed. “But then you have to promise to close your eyes and go to sleep.”
Sawyer entertained them with a story for the next fifteen minutes. He was obviously inventing as he went along, and Abbey was both charmed by his spontaneity and moved by his willingness to do this for her children. Afterward, emotion tugged at her heart as Sawyer bowed his head while each child recited a prayer.
A few minutes later, he slipped out of the bedroom. Abbey was waiting for him in the kitchen. She was boiling water for a cup of tea.
“Thank you,” she whispered, not looking at him.
There was an uncomfortable silence, then Sawyer cleared his throat. “As I said, I spoke with Christian about the housing situation. It’s clear to both of us that you and the children can’t go back to the cabin.”
“But I don’t really have any choice, do I?”
“There’s one vacant house in town.” His lips thinned. “It belongs to Catherine Fletcher.”
The name was vaguely familiar, and Abbey tried to recall where she’d heard it. Then she remembered the day Pearl Inman had stopped by the library and told her about Sawyer and his family, and some of Hard Luck’s history. If she recalled correctly, the two families had been at odds since the 1940s right after World War II.
“Christian thought we should contact Catherine’s family. She’s in a nursing home now, and it’s unlikely she’ll ever return to Hard Luck.”
“I’d be happy to pay whatever rent she feels is fair.”
“Midnight Sons will pick up the rent,” Sawyer said. “We promised you free housing when you agreed to move here, and that’s what you’re going to get.”
“Do you think she’ll let me have the house?” Abbey asked hopefully.
Sawyer frowned. “She’s a cantankerous old woman, and it’d be just like her to refuse out of spite. I’m hoping I don’t have to speak to her at all. Her daughter’s far more reasonable.”
“You don’t like Catherine?”
“No,” Sawyer said without emotion. “She went out of her way to hurt my mother, and I don’t find that easy to forgive. It’s a long story better left untold.”
Despite his negative feelings toward the old woman, Sawyer was willing to approach her on Abbey’s and the children’s behalf. Every day Abbey found a new reason to be grateful for Sawyer’s presence in her life.
“I appreciate what you’re doing,” she murmured. “Are you sure you don’t have time for a cup of coffee or tea?”
His eyes held hers, and a warm sensation skittered through her. Hastily he shook his head. “I’ve got to get back.” He looked past her down the hallway that led to the bedrooms. “You were right when you said your husband was the one to be pitied. Scott and Susan are great kids. They’d make any man proud.”
He moved past her, then paused on his way out the door and kissed her. Only their lips touched. The kiss was brief and casual, as if they exchanged such an intimacy every day.
It didn’t strike Abbey as unusual until he’d left the house. One hand covering her mouth, she watched him from the screen door.
His steps seemed to have an uncharacteristic bounce. He was halfway across the narrow dirt road when he appeared to realize what he’d done. He stopped abruptly and whirled around.
“Good night, Sawyer,” she called.
He raised his hand in farewell, then continued across the street to his own home.
“Midnight Sons,” Sawyer barked into the receiver, stretching the phone cord as far as it would go so he could reach a pad of paper.
“Sawyer, it’s Christian. Listen up. Allison Reynolds is on her way.”
Sawyer blinked. “Who?”
There was a loud, exasperated sigh. “Our new secretary. I talked to her this morning, and she’s back from vacation and ready to start work first thing Monday morning.”
“Great. This is the woman who doesn’t type, right?”
“She won’t need to. Besides, there’s more to being a secretary than typing. Don’t worry, what she lacks in one area she makes up for in others.”
That didn’t warrant a comment. “Have you booked her flight?” he asked.
“Yeah. She’s coming in on Friday morning. Same flight Abbey Sutherland did.”
Sawyer wrote down the information. “I’ll send Duke in to meet her,” he said. That should quell some of the dissension among the men.
“Not Duke,” Christian protested. “Send Ralph.”
“Why not Duke?”
“He’ll talk her head off, and you know what a chauvinist he can be. I don’t want Allison’s first impression to be negative.”
“Fine. I’ll send Ralph.”
“Ralph,” Christian repeated the pilot’s name slowly. “No, maybe John would be better,” he suggested.
John? It was his big mouth that scared off the last teacher! “Why not Ralph?”
“He’s too eager, you know? He might say something that would offend Allison.”
“Why don’t you get your butt home so you can pick her up yourself?” It seemed to Sawyer that his brother wa
s being much too particular.
“I would if I could get there in time. I’ve interviewed a nurse I think would be excellent. I know you asked me to wait on hiring anyone else, but this gal is perfect.”
“Then do it.” If she met the qualifications, Sawyer couldn’t understand the problem.
“She’s older. Way older. Pete Livengood’s age.”
“So?” All the better as far as Sawyer was concerned. Then maybe Pete would stop showing interest in Abbey.
“I was hoping to find someone younger. Attracting women to Alaska isn’t as easy as it sounds. I get plenty of calls, but once they hear exactly how far north we are, they start asking a lot of questions.” He paused. “I had to do some fast talking to convince Allison to give us a try.”
“Every position can’t be filled with Allison clones,” Sawyer said testily.
“I know. I know. Listen, I’ll talk to you again soon. I’ll want to know how Allison’s adjusting.”
“Fine.”
“Any word from Charles lately?”
“None, but I expect he’ll show up any day, hungrier than a bear and meaner than a wolverine.” Their eldest brother kept his own hours. He was often gone for weeks at a time, then would blow into town with his geological equipment and stay for a month or two. There was a restlessness in Charles that never seemed to ease. Sawyer didn’t question it, but he didn’t understand it, either.
He spoke to his younger brother for a few more minutes. Sawyer hung up the phone to find John Henderson standing on the other side of the desk.
“You got a minute?” the pilot asked nervously.
Sawyer nodded. “Sure. What’s the problem?”
“Not a problem as such. It’s more of a…concern.”
“Sit down.” Sawyer motioned toward the vacant chair.
“If you don’t mind, I prefer to stand,” the other man said stiffly.
Sawyer arched his eyebrows and leaned back in his chair. “Suit yourself.”
John folded his hands. He seemed to need a couple of minutes to gather his thoughts. Finally he blurted, “Me and a few of the other guys aren’t happy with the way things are going around here.”
“What things?”
Once more it appeared that John was having difficulty speaking his mind. “You’ve got an unfair advantage, and it’s causing hard feelings.”
Now Sawyer understood. After his talk with Ben, he should’ve realized sooner that this discussion wasn’t about Midnight Sons at all. John had come to talk to him about Abbey.
“You’re upset because I asked you not to disturb the new librarian while she organizes the library.”
“Yes,” he said angrily. “You ordered us to stay away until the library’s open, but I notice the same doesn’t apply to you.”
“I’m her contact person,” Sawyer explained, keeping his voice calm and even. “She needs someone who can help her, answer questions and so on.”
“Let me be her contact person,” John argued. “Or Duke. None of us would pester her. We just want to drop by the library and make her feel welcome. Everyone knows what happened when Pete went to see her. It wasn’t right that you chewed him out for doing his job.”
“Pete delivers groceries now? That’s news to me.”
“Come on, Sawyer, get real. If Abbey stopped by here and needed something, wouldn’t you be willing to take it to her?”
Before Sawyer could respond, John continued.
“Of course you would. She’s pretty and she’s nice, and heck, I thought when we came up with the idea of bringing women to Hard Luck, we’d at least get to talk to them now and then.”
Sawyer released a lengthy sigh. “Perhaps I have been a bit…overprotective.”
Henderson’s jaw tightened. “The guys are saying you want her for yourself.”
Sawyer opened his mouth to disagree, then realized they had more than enough evidence to hang him. “You could have a point there.”
“That’s what we think. All we’re asking is that you drop the restrictions on the rest of us. It’s only fair. You have my word of honor that I won’t bother her, and the others won’t, either.”
Sawyer couldn’t see any choice. If he didn’t do it, he’d have a mutiny on his hands. “Fine,” he said reluctantly.
John relaxed. “No hard feelings?”
“None,” Sawyer assured him. He picked his notepad and peeled off the flight information Christian had given him. “In fact, we’ve got another woman due to land on Friday. Would you be willing to pick her up?”
“Would I?” John’s face broke into a wide grin not unlike the expression on Scott’s face when Sawyer had given him permission to play with Eagle Catcher.
The pilot quickly composed himself. “I’ll have to check my schedule.”
“Do that and get back to me.”
Abbey had no idea what was happening. She’d had four visitors in the past hour. Each had produced a valid reason for coming to the library. She hadn’t realized how eagerly awaited the opening of the library was. In light of such overwhelming interest, she decided to do just that the next morning.
Abbey finished for the day and collected her things. She’d been visited by everyone but the one person she was aching to see.
As she walked toward Christian’s house, she recognized the familiar sound of Sawyer’s pickup behind her. She turned and waved.
He slowed to a crawl. “Heading home?”
“Yeah.”
“How about a ride?”
She laughed. “It’s less than two blocks.”
Sawyer leaned over and opened the passenger door. “I thought I’d take the scenic route. Where are Scott and Susan?”
“In the yard. They wanted to run through the sprinkler.” The temperature was in the low eighties for the second day in a row, and the kids loved it.
“Grab your swimsuit and a towel, and I’ll take you and the kids to my favorite swimming hole,” Sawyer suggested.
Abbey brightened. “You’re on.”
Scott and Susan came racing toward the truck when Sawyer pulled up.
“Hey, kids, want to go swimming?”
“Can Eagle Catcher come, too?”
“Sure. Hop in the back,” Sawyer told them. “I’ll just run and get my swimming trunks.”
As he did that, Abbey hurried into the house and slipped out of her clothes and into her bathing suit. She almost hadn’t packed it with the move. She threw on some shorts and a T-shirt, then grabbed towels and clothes for the children.
Sawyer drove out to the airfield and loaded them into a plane. He explained that this type had pontoons so it could land on the water. It was a tight squeeze with kids and dog, but they managed. The kids thought it was great fun.
“How far is this swimming hole of yours?” Abbey asked once they’d taxied off the runway and were in the air.
“Far enough for the kids to appreciate it when we get there.”
From the air, there seemed to be a huge number of lakes. She did remember reading that there were—how many lakes? A lot—in Alaska, but knowing a geographical fact sure hadn’t prepared her for actually seeing it. Above the noise of the engine, Sawyer told them he was taking them to an all-around favorite spot of his. Not only was the swimming great, the fishing was good, too.
It must have been an hour, perhaps longer, before Abbey noticed they were descending. She cast an anxious look at Sawyer before the plane glided gracefully onto the smooth water.
Once the engines had slowed, Sawyer steered the aircraft toward shore.
“Does anyone know we’re here?” she asked.
“I left a note for Duke.”
“But—”
“Trust me,” he said. “I wouldn’t take Scott and Susan anywhere they wouldn’t be perfectly safe.” He patted her hand. “You, too.”
“The kids have only had a few swimming lessons, but they’re not afraid of the water.” The lake was so clear Abbey could see the bottom. Near the shore, where Sawyer stopped, it
appeared to be just three or four feet deep.
Various shrubs grew along the shoreline. Abbey recognized wild rose bushes and knew that in a month or so they’d be crowded with small, vibrantly pink flowers. It was easy to imagine the beauty they’d add to this already beautiful scene.
The minute they could step out of the plane, Scott and Susan were splashing about in the shallows. “It’s cold, Mom!” Scott grinned at her, his teeth chattering. “Wow, and does it ever feel good!”
“It’s lovely,” she agreed, dipping in one foot. “What’s the name of the lake, Sawyer?” She was thinking she’d look for it on a map when they returned to town.
Sawyer shrugged. “There are three million lakes in Alaska. They don’t all have names. Let’s call it…Abbey Lake.”
“Abbey Lake!” Susan laughed.
“I like it,” Abbey said, playing along. “It has a nice ring.”
“Can we go in deeper now?” Scott asked. “I wanna swim.”
“Hold your horses,” Sawyer told him, tugging his shirt out of his waistband. He was undressed and down to his swimming trunks in almost no time; it took Abbey a little longer. Soon Sawyer and the two children were in waist-deep water and Scott and Susan were taking turns swimming short distances.
Abbey sat on the edge of the pontoon and dangled her feet in the water. It felt cold, but wonderfully invigorating.
“Come on, Mom! The water’s great once you get used to it,” Scott assured her.
“I think she might need some help getting wet,” Sawyer teased.
“No…no! I’m fine.” She saw the first splash coming in enough time to cover her face. But her defenses were hopeless against the concerted efforts of the other three. Within seconds she was drenched. “All right, you guys, this is war. The men against the women.”
For a short while, pandemonium reigned. Abbey and Susan might have done more damage if they hadn’t been laughing so hard. Abbey stumbled out of the water and onto the shore.
A few minutes later, Sawyer joined her. He wiped his wet face with his forearm, then sat next to her on the sun-warmed sand. He kept his gaze trained on the children, who continued to wage war and fun.
“This was a fantastic idea,” she said, wringing out her hair. “Thank you for thinking of us.”