A Time To Remember by Lois Richer

Author:Lois Richer
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2004-11-15T00:00:00+00:00

Saturday morning dawned with the crisp clarity that only an autumn day provides. The air was sharp, invigorating, the colors purely vivid. Was it the angle of the sun that made the greens seem more verdant, the reds, golds and oranges just that much more intense?

Marissa touched the bag behind her saddle to reassure herself that she’d packed her paints and her sketchbook. The undulating acres of land framed by granite peaks feather-dusted against the saturated blue sky were too good to miss.

“Are you regretting your decision?” Gray cantered alongside her, his forehead pleated in a tiny frown. “We don’t have to go there, you know. We can leave it for another time.”

“No.” She stared past her horse’s head to the gloomy forest and shook her head. “We’ll picnic, as we planned. I’ll sketch a bit, then I want to go on. Whatever’s back there, I need to see it.”

They took their time, neither rushing nor dawdling. Marissa tried to gauge her response as they got closer to the woods, but then wondered if her nervousness came from riding again, from watching Cody atop his pony, or from something else, something in her past.

Mrs. Biddle’s lunch was exactly right—thin slices of roast chicken on freshly baked bread with a touch of mayonnaise, celery and carrot sticks, crunchy apples and ginger snaps for dessert. Gray and Marissa shared a thermos of coffee while Cody sipped lemonade.

While Gray snoozed and Cody climbed a tree, Marissa found herself too tense to paint. Sensing her frustration, Gray suggested they continue the journey.

“My dad and Dermot DeWitt made a deal to keep this area as natural as possible, so we don’t let the animals back here. The trail is pretty rough.”

His side-glance told her he didn’t think she was strong enough. But Marissa knew better. She had to do this. It was time.

“I’m fine.” She nudged the horse on, bending her head to avoid the low-hanging boughs of massive fir and spruce.

They weren’t far into their foray when Cody turned to look at her, his eyes huge with unasked questions. Perhaps she’d been foolish not to leave him behind, but somehow the two of them with Gray made this a family thing. Strength in numbers—wasn’t that what people said? “It’s okay, Cody. We’re just going for a ride on Daddy’s land. Just us three. There’s nothing to worry about.” She smiled reassurance until he nodded, turned around and continued to follow Gray.

The deeper they penetrated the forest, the tighter her neck muscles pinched. There was little sunlight here, even though the ground was a carpet of yellow and orange. Wavering boughs thick with needles held out the light in a canopy above.

They were moving down a sharp incline now and Marissa’s horse stumbled. She leaned forward to pat his neck and saw herself picking up dead branches from the forest floor. The driest were best for starting fires. Then you didn’t use too many matches. He didn’t like fires that smoked and took a long time to light, so she was extra careful about which wood she chose.

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