Heritage Read online

  “I’m the head librarian.” A svelte woman in her forties came over by the desk where Rachel stood. It was the same woman who’d directed her to the school in the fall. “How may I help you?”

  “How would I go about making a donation to the library?”

  The librarian’s smile widened. “Make a check payable to the library, and I’ll see the right person gets it.”

  “What if it isn’t a check?”

  “I can write you out a receipt.”

  “Is there someplace private we can do this? I want my donation to be anonymous.”

  “Of course.”

  She followed the woman through a door in the back of the library. “This is where we repair books, do cataloging, a catchall room, and sometimes the lunchroom. We call it our everything room. Have a seat.” She pointed to one of the four chairs around a wooden table.

  She pulled a handkerchief out of her coat pocket and laid it on the table. Then she pulled back the corners to reveal the jewelry Christopher had given her.

  The woman sucked in a breath. “Are you sure about this?”

  Christopher had said he didn’t want them back. Well, she didn’t want them either. They were a reminder of a life she shouldn’t have strived for. They were holding her back. Holding her to a man she would never marry. She wanted to be free of them, and what better way than to donate the jewelry gifts to a good cause. She could have sold them and used the money for something else, but that didn’t feel right. She just wanted to be done with them. Not to have to hassle with trying to find somewhere to sell them. Let the library worry about that. “Positive. These are all the real deal. Don’t let anyone try to cheat you out of their worth.”

  She picked up the ruby necklace. “Why would you want to get rid of these?”

  “My ex-fiancé gave them to me. I have no need for them.”

  “Won’t he want them back?”

  “He wouldn’t take them. They are the library’s—free and clear.”

  ❧

  After the last bell of the day rang, Will went down to the office to check his teacher box for any messages or flyers. Most of the staff and a fist full of parents were gathered, clucking like hens.

  “Can you believe that? They think they are worth several thousand dollars.”

  “The ring alone could be worth at least a couple Gs.”

  He tapped a fellow teacher on the shoulder. “What’s going on? What are they talking about?”

  Karen turned to him. “Someone donated a bunch of jewelry to the library.”

  “Who?”

  “No one knows. A good-looking brunette. There was a ruby necklace and earrings, diamond tennis bracelet, and a very expensive diamond engagement ring.”

  Rachel? She gave away her engagement ring?

  Maybe she was ready to move on. Is this my great big clue, Lord? Is this Your way of telling me it’s okay to move beyond friendship? He gave a soft snort. His heart had moved beyond friendship a long time ago. Her act of generosity also told him money wasn’t a central focus in her life. That was important, because as a teacher he would never make a lot of money.

  He couldn’t wait to get over to her house to confirm his suspicions.

  ❧

  “You know how to create quite a stir.”

  Rachel pulled her eyebrows together in confusion. “And what is that supposed to mean?”

  “Giving your engagement ring and other expensive jewelry to the public library.”

  Her eyes widened. “That was supposed to be anonymous.”

  Yes! It was you.

  “The librarian promised,” she said.

  “As far as I know, your secret is safe. Only you, the librarian, and I know.”

  “Who told you?”

  He scrubbed his hand across his mouth reluctant to admit it. “You just did.”

  “What?”

  “By what everyone was saying, I guessed it was you.”

  “What were people saying?” She looked horrified that people were talking about her.

  She didn’t have anything to worry about. How could anyone say anything bad about her? “Just that a beautiful brunette donated several thousand dollars worth of jewelry. . . including a large diamond engagement ring. It didn’t take a genius to figure it out. There aren’t too many people on the island who fit that profile. Someone is eventually going to recognize you; then the cat will be out of the bag.”

  “I can always deny it. Plead the fifth.”

  “The scuttle is that they are stolen.”

  “I did not steal them. Christopher gave me that jewelry. I tried to give it back, but he wouldn’t take it. What else was I supposed to do with it?”

  That was good to know that she didn’t want to keep gifts from her ex. Giving it away told him she had severed her emotional ties to her ex, and she wasn’t interested in the money or she would have sold them and kept the money. But that question was a good one. “Why didn’t you sell the jewelry and keep the money?”

  “That just didn’t feel right. I didn’t feel like I had the right to keep them since I wouldn’t be marrying him. And since he wouldn’t take them back, I thought that donating them to a good cause would be the perfect solution. They don’t mean anything to me except that I wasn’t good enough because I have Native American blood in my veins.”

  She was definitely good enough.

  “Would you tell them that none of that jewelry was stolen?”

  He shook his head. “No need. They’ll figure it out. If I speak up, they may find you more easily. If you really want your donation to be anonymous, it’s best if we both stay out of it.”

  ❧

  Rachel had just finished chopping the vegetables for the stir-fry and had everything else prepped and ready to throw into the pan when the knock sounded on her door. That would be Will.

  She opened the door. Will stood outside with his hands braced on either side of the door. He didn’t make a move to enter.

  “You want to come in?”

  “That depends.”

  This behavior was odd. “On what?”

  “On whether or not I’m welcome.”

  “I have welcomed you every other time you’ve come over, why not today?”

  “Because I’m not here as just a friend today.”

  “Oh.” She felt a gentle smile pull at her mouth. “You’re still welcome.”

  He didn’t budge. “One more thing. If I step across this threshold, I’m planning on kissing you before I step back across it.”

  Her insides twisted at that declaration. She opened the door wider and waved him in.

  “I just didn’t want there to be any misunderstandings.”

  Her insides twisted more in anticipation of his promise as she closed the door. She wasn’t anxious for him to leave, but she knew she wouldn’t be able to concentrate on anything else until he did. “Just get it over with.” She bit her bottom lip.

  He raised his eyebrows to her. “Get what over with?”

  “The kiss.”

  He removed his coat and hung it on the coat tree. “Well, put like that, it doesn’t sound very appealing.”

  “I didn’t mean it like that. I just know I won’t be able to think about anything else until I know what it is like to have you kiss me. I have been wondering for some time.”

  “You have?”

  She nodded.

  “I wasn’t planning on kissing you until later.”

  “Well, I’m not going to beg.”

  He stepped closer and put one arm around her waist. “This kiss doesn’t count as the one I promised.” He caressed a lock of hair away from her face. “I still reserve the right to kiss you later as well.”

  She barely managed a nod.

  He leaned into her and brushed his lips against hers.

  It was every bit as wonderful as she had thought it would be.

  He pulled away. His voice was husky. “Happy now?”

  She took a deep breath and opened her eyes. “Mm-hmm
.”

  “I’ve waited a long time to do that.”

  “Wait here. I have something for you.” She went to her bedroom and grabbed the handles of the gift bag Will had given her before Christmas. She held it out to him.

  He didn’t take it. “You’re giving back my gift?”

  “I’m just recycling the bag. I couldn’t find any wrapping paper around here.”

  He nodded and took the bag. “What’s the occasion?”

  “You can just call it a belated or early birthday present, whichever fits.”

  “Birthday, huh?”

  “You have a birthday sometime every year. Or call it a thank-you gift, or a very late Christmas present. Take your pick. Go ahead and open it.”

  He set the bag on the dining table and pulled out the blue tissue paper wrapped around the trifold picture frame, a center five-by-seven flanked by four two-by-threes. He stared at the photos of her wearing the iridescent white dress. They were what Mark had called his Cinderella photos. Some of the pictures were taken with her wearing a pair of feather wings.

  The five-by-seven was her favorite. She had on the wings and was taking a break while the next shot was being set up. Mitzy had draped a white cloth over a large rock for her to sit on. She had bowed her head to pray and wasn’t even aware that the sun had broken through the gray sky to cast a ray of light on a small white flower poking out of the ground in front of her. The glitter Mitzy had applied to her face made it look like she glowed. Mark had snapped several shots before she’d noticed and the light faded.

  “Those were taken the last day of the Europe shoot.”

  “These are incredible.”

  Nineteen

  The next weekend, Will picked her up right after school on Friday and whisked her across the ice bridge before dark to stay at her grandma’s house for the weekend. He would visit his mother while he was on the mainland.

  “Have a good visit. I’ll come back Sunday morning and take you to church before we head back to the island.” He gave her a kiss before getting into the passenger side of his mom’s car.

  His mom leaned over to look out his window. “It was nice meeting you.”

  “It was nice meeting you, too.”

  He stretched his hand out the window and took hers. “I’ll miss you.”

  “I’ll miss you, too.” She watched the car pull away in the dark with the snowmobile on a trailer behind. She looked forward to Sunday.

  When she entered the house, Grandma moved away from the window. “He’s a nice man. I like him.”

  “Me, too.” She went over to her backpack she’d crammed in the things she could bring for the weekend. “I brought you something.” She handed her grandma the leather journal. “Grandpa wrote this to you.”

  Grandma took it and caressed the cover. “Thank you.”

  “It’s his quest to find you.”

  Grandma hugged it to herself. “You don’t mind if I turn in now and read for a bit?”

  “Go right ahead.” She’d expected as much.

  The next morning, the neighbor came over.

  “Would you like some coffee?” Grandma asked Randy.

  “I would love some.” When Grandma reached the kitchen, Randy said, “Are you really her granddaughter?”

  “Yes.”

  He lowered his voice to a whisper. “Then you ought to know that her social security checks don’t cover all her bills.”

  “Really? How has she been making it?”

  “Last summer they shut off her electricity. She couldn’t pay it.”

  “What?”

  “I tried to talk her into moving into a place she could afford, but she refused. She said if her daughter came back, it would be to this house.”

  “But she has electricity now.”

  “I told the electric company to send her bill to me. My wife brings over some of our leftovers in small containers and puts them in the refrigerator. We’re afraid she might not always be eating well.”

  “Do you know how much she owes on this house?” Maybe she could pay it off.

  “Nothing. I do.”

  “You own this house?”

  He turned to Charlotte as she came back into the room and took the mug from her, ending the conversation. “Thank you.”

  This conversation may be over for now, but she needed to know more.

  Later, after Randy left, she said, “I’m going to go for a walk. Do you want to come?”

  “No, thank you, darling. I don’t want to slip on the ice. Old bones don’t heal so easily.”

  She didn’t expect her grandma would want to go out in the cold. It would give her a chance to talk more with Randy about her grandma’s situation. She knocked on the door. Randy invited her in. “Would you like some coffee?”

  “No, thank you. Does my grandma know you are paying some of her bills?”

  “She thinks God is miraculously providing. God may be providing through my wife and me, but I don’t think it could count as a miracle. We don’t want to kick her out. She’s a sweet old lady, but we can’t keep losing money.”

  “I wouldn’t expect you to. I have a small house on Mackinac Island. I’ll talk her in to moving there with me. I don’t know how easy it will be to move in the winter.”

  “We’ve been praying for some kind of solution, and it looks like you may be it. You don’t have to be in a big rush. You can store some of her things in the garage until you can get them in the spring.”

  “Thank you. That would be very helpful.” An excitement bubbled up from deep inside her. She not only found her grandma who loved her, but her grandma would be coming to live with her. You couldn’t have family any closer than living in your own house. She hoped that would be all right with her grandma. Hopefully she wasn’t too attached to the house and refused to move, but if she was only there, as Randy said, so that Barbara could find her, then she shouldn’t have any objections.

  ❧

  Will stepped inside Charlotte Coe’s house. He’d come earlier than planned because he missed Rachel. He was taking her to church. She stood before him with her bottom lip captured between her teeth. “What’s wrong?”

  She opened her mouth to speak then closed it then opened it again. “My grandma doesn’t own this house and can’t really afford to live here, so I invited her to come live with me.”

  “So?”

  “She wants to go today. She’s almost all packed. All three of us and her belongings can’t fit on your snowmobile and the trailer sled. I don’t know how to tell her she can’t go today. We spent half the night packing, and then she got up early and was at it again. And what about getting groceries? That is why you brought the sled after all.”

  He looked to the boxes and suitcases piled in the living room and scrubbed his hand over his mouth. “Is this all there is?”

  “Pretty much. I think she is filling one more small suitcase.” She pulled her lip back in between her teeth.

  “What about the furniture?”

  “It stays with the house except the rocking chair.”

  How long would it take to get some groceries, take them over to the island and come back for two or three trips, maybe four? There wasn’t enough daylight to do it all. How did he tell her it was impossible? He turned back to her and looked into her pleading hazel eyes. “Where’s the phone?”

  “She doesn’t have one, but Randy, across the street, will let you use his.”

  “I’ll be right back.” Once at the neighbor’s, he dialed the phone. “Hey, Garth. You busy?”

  “I was just about to leave for church. The kids are sick, so Lori’s staying home with them.”

  “Remember when you moved to the island you said you owed me one or twelve. When you get back from church, would you mind bringing your snowmobile across the bridge with your trailer sled?”

  “What’s up?”

  He filled Garth in on what he was trying to do.

  “I’ll be there right after the service.”

 
“I appreciate that.”

  He walked back to Charlotte’s. There was no way to get even half her stuff on two snowmobiles not to mention the groceries both he and Rachel were planning on buying. He was out of practically everything.

  He took Rachel to church, then to the grocery store. As he loaded their food on the sled, he said, “It will be impossible to get all her things over to the island before dark. Maybe two trips with both Garth and my machines. I can take tomorrow off work and make whatever trips are needed to get the rest.”

  “Oh, Will. I don’t know what to say. That is so nice of you. I hate to have you take time off work.”

  “I’m glad to do it.”

  “Why would you do this for a woman you hardly know?”

  He cupped her face in his hands. “Because I love you.”

  Her eyes widened.

  She hadn’t expected him to say that. He hadn’t expected it either, but it had been true for a long time, and she might as well know it. “Don’t feel like you have to say it back. Two people don’t always fall in love at the same pace.”

  Tears rimmed her eyes.

  He leaned in and kissed her, then wiped away a stray tear. “Let’s go prioritize your grandma’s things so we know what she wants to go today and what can wait until tomorrow.”

  ❧

  Rachel stood in the doorway to her grandma’s kitchen and watched Will help an old woman sort through the pile of boxes and suitcases. He was patiently explaining that it all couldn’t go today. He’d done all he could to ensure her grandma and some of her belongings could go.

  She still wasn’t sure what to think about him saying he loved her. They’d only been dating a week, so he’d probably been in love before that. Now looking back she could see that he did. All the while he was being her friend, he had been patiently loving her as well. Did she love him, too? What was love? How would she know?

  The rumble of a snowmobile outside drew her attention, and she went to the window.

  “That should be Garth,” Will said.

  Garth pulled up at the front of the pack of half a dozen snowmobiles with trailers. “And the snowmobile brigade.”