Heritage Read online

  Will set down a large suitcase and came to the window, then went out the front door. She followed him.

  Garth saluted them. “Your Mackinac Island moving team.”

  Rachel folded her arms across her front to ward off the cold. “You brought all these people to help move?”

  “At your service.” Garth bowed.

  She couldn’t believe it. “This is amazing.”

  “Lori called a few of our students while I was at church. I asked Don at church. We picked up Troy on the way. He wanted to join the parade.”

  Seven more snowmobiles without sleds roared up the street. Garth thumbed toward the latest arrivals. “The news traveled pretty fast through the student body. I think they just wanted an excuse to get off the island.”

  Twenty

  It was a few weeks later when Will squeezed her hand as they stepped off the ferry. “Don’t worry, my mom will love you.”

  Surprisingly, she wasn’t worried. She had agreed to spend the weekend with his family. She had met Will’s mom briefly the day she picked him up at her grandma’s. “You have three sisters, right?” He nodded. “What are their names and ages again?” It was important to know people’s names. It helped make them feel comfortable.

  “Mandy is almost twenty-three and married. She lives in Plymouth near Detroit with her husband Jake. Bethany is eighteen, a senior in high school but is on a church retreat this weekend or something. Lauren is the baby. She’s fifteen and a freshman in high school. She’s the only one who will be there today besides Mom.”

  That would make it easier. “And your mom’s name is Linda.” He nodded. All she had to do was remember Linda and Lauren. Things seemed to be moving quickly now that they had started dating.

  Will’s mom met them at the ferry. “It is so good to see you again.”

  She shook Linda’s outstretched hand.

  After they got into the car, Linda said, “I must apologize. Will’s sister Mandy and her husband came up from Plymouth last night. She couldn’t stand not to meet you. And Bethany was sick yesterday and stayed home from school, so she wasn’t able to go on the youth group retreat. Don’t worry. She isn’t all that sick. I think she didn’t want to be the only one not meeting you. I know Will told you it was only going to be Lauren and me, so don’t blame him; he had no knowledge of them all scheming to be here. I made them promise to not interrogate you.”

  She was used to meeting new people. How would a houseful of girls be that different from a dressing room full of models? Probably a lot easier. And saner.

  Once at the house, everyone introduced themselves but didn’t crowd her. She met Mandy’s husband, Jake. They’d been married a year. Everyone was making an effort to be polite and not pelt her with questions, which made the room unnaturally quiet and the climate awkward.

  Will had gone outside with Jake to replace a burned out headlight on his SUV. Linda had run to the store to get salad dressing, butter, and ice cream.

  So Rachel stood in the kitchen with Will’s two youngest sisters cutting vegetables for the salad while Mandy stood watch over the fried chicken and fried potatoes. “I know your mom told you not to interrogate me, but there is nothing wrong with asking a few questions. You do have questions, don’t you?”

  They each acknowledged her with either a nod or a smile, but no one was brave enough to ask a question.

  Well, no one told her she couldn’t interrogate them. “So, Bethany, Will tells me that you are in the drama club.”

  Bethany gave her a shy smile and nodded.

  “What play are you doing?”

  “Guys and Dolls.”

  “What part do you have?”

  “Sarah.”

  “Isn’t that one of the leads?”

  She nodded.

  Getting her to talk was like pulling teeth. Maybe she’d have better luck with Lauren. “What is your favorite thing about school?”

  Lauren gave a sly smile. “You mean anything? Not like a class?”

  She nodded.

  “Eric Buchanan. He is so hot. He sits in the lunchroom strumming on his acoustic guitar. Sometimes he’ll sing these songs that he wrote.”

  “There are only a couple he actually wrote.” Bethany kept her head down as she spoke.

  “You’re a freshman, right, Lauren? What grade is Eric in?”

  “He’s a senior.” Lauren gave her sister a sideways glance. “Bethany has a crush on him.”

  “I do not!”

  Lauren mouthed, “She does so.”

  Suddenly a chunk of carrot flew across the kitchen island and hit Lauren in the shoulder. Lauren turned to her sister. “Then how come wherever Eric is, you are?”

  “None of your business.” Bethany glared at her little sister.

  Maybe a subject change would be in order. “Lauren, if you could ask me any question what would it be?”

  “Mom said not to.”

  “I said if you could?”

  Lauren’s mouth stretched into a wide grin. “What is it like to be a model? Do you travel all over the world? Will said you were in Europe. What was it like? Did you go to Paris?”

  That broke the dam. She answered all Lauren’s questions and more as well as questions from Mandy. Bethany even ventured a question or two.

  Later, after Rachel changed for bed, she looked around Will’s old room. Will was sleeping on the couch in the living room, and everyone else had done some room swapping to make a place for everyone. On Will’s old dresser sat five model cars that he’d probably built, a baseball and glove, a baseball trophy, and a framed photo of a Brittany spaniel. Nothing to be jealous of there. No photos of old girlfriends anywhere.

  A knock on the door drew her from Will’s memorabilia. Who could that be? Rachel cracked the door a little and saw Bethany standing in the hall. She opened the door wider and invited her in; then she closed the door so as not to disturb anyone else. “What can I do for you?”

  Bethany just shrugged.

  “You obviously came for a reason. Did you need something?”

  “No—well, sort of. Not really.”

  She sat on the edge of the bed and patted it, inviting Bethany to join her. “What is it?”

  Bethany hesitated a moment then sat. “Do you love my brother?”

  There was a question no one had asked her yet, and one she’d been trying to figure out the answer to since Will told her he loved her three weeks ago. “Yes, I think I do.”

  “How do you know when you love somebody? I mean how do you know it’s not just a crush?”

  Not how did she know she loved Will but a generic somebody. “I don’t quite know how to answer that. I guess I know I love your brother because I like being around him. When I’m not, I miss him.” A smile pulled at her mouth. “I think about him when I’m not around him when I’m doing other things. He’s always there in my thoughts.”

  Bethany nodded.

  She sensed there was something more to Bethany’s question than just finding out if his brother’s girlfriend was in love with him. “Are you asking because you really do like Eric?”

  Bethany dipped her head as she shook it. “His best friend. Don’t tell Lauren.”

  “I won’t. I don’t even know his name, and as long as I don’t, I can’t slip. Does he like you, too?”

  “I don’t know. He probably doesn’t even know who I am.”

  That was so sad to like someone who had no clue, and Bethany was too shy to drop this boy any clues. She, herself, had been clueless about Will’s attraction to her. She found it silly now that, back then, she thought he was only being neighborly. Now that she knew him better, it was so obvious; the little looks he’d give her, the way he would help her. Yes, she loved him. . . . But was love enough?

  ❧

  Will put his arm around Rachel’s shoulders as the ferry raced back toward Mackinac Island on Sunday. “My family loved you. Lauren was really taken by you. She wants to be a model.”

  “I liked them all, too.”
>
  He squeezed her shoulder. “You seem different today. Happier maybe. Almost mysterious or impish—like you have a secret.” He couldn’t put his finger on it. It wasn’t anything overt. Nothing specific. It was like it was her whole demeanor, her outlook.

  “Maybe I do. Bethany came to my room last night.”

  He guessed she didn’t want to talk about what the change was he’d seen in her. “I thought I heard people creeping around upstairs. What did she want?”

  “What she wanted to know and what she asked were only mildly related. She wanted to know how you know when you’re in love.”

  “What did you tell her?”

  “Basically that the other person occupies all your thoughts.”

  “Then I must truly be in love because you are always on my mind.” He kissed the side of her head.

  “When she came in the room, you know what she asked?”

  “Since I wasn’t there, I don’t see how I could.”

  “She asked me if I loved her brother.”

  His heart skipped a beat, and he held his breath for a moment. “Two people don’t fall in love at the same time. It’s okay if you don’t feel as strongly for me yet.”

  “I know.”

  “What did you tell her?” He held his breath again.

  “That I love you.”

  He let out his captive breath and wrapped both arms around her. “I love you, too.” He kissed her for a long time. Then she rested her head on his shoulder. This is exactly where he wanted her. At his side.

  “I’m afraid.”

  “Afraid of what?”

  “Of it all ending. Of losing you.”

  “You’re not going to lose me.”

  “I hope not.”

  He didn’t want to lose her either. Lord, help her feel secure in my love for her.

  ❧

  Winter faded into spring and the island lilac bushes were loading their branches with new leaves and bunches of tight little buds preparing to bloom in a week or so. By the middle of June, the whole island would smell fresh and sweet. Tourists were already beginning to swarm the area.

  Rachel turned over the envelope, hand-addressed: Rachel Coe (& Will). The envelope paper was heavy invitation-weight stock. She slid her finger under the flap, not even caring what someone like Christopher would say.

  It was an invitation to Hayden’s graduation.

  The short letter enclosed on notebook paper read:

  I know my family is a bunch of pinheads, but I’d like to have you there. There is a graduation celebration party for all the graduates and their families at Bayfront Park. You and Will are welcome to come.

  Hayden may welcome her, but the rest of the family wouldn’t. Whether they wanted to acknowledge her or not, they had to realize she wasn’t going away simply because they wanted her to.

  ❧

  As soon Rachel saw Will come up the street, she trotted across the street and waited for him to park his bike in his shed.

  When he came out of the shed and saw her, he smiled. “Hello. I like this kind of greeting when I come home.”

  “Hayden has invited both of us to his graduation. Will you go with me?” She hoped he would, but his smile slipped to a frown.

  Will looked at her a moment working his jaw back and forth. “Why do you want to do that to yourself?”

  “Do what?”

  “Set yourself up for rejection. You know the rest of the family is going to be there, and they won’t want you there.”

  “I’m not going to reject Hayden just because the rest of the family rejects me. He’s still family.”

  “You being there will only make the whole event awkward and strained.”

  “He wants me there.”

  “So he can make his family mad.”

  She knew that was probably the case. Regardless of his motives, he was still family and had invited her. “Do you want to come with me or not?”

  “I’m not going to let you walk into a lions’ den. I can’t just stand by and watch them treat you like a rabid dog. It tears me up inside just thinking about the anguish they will cause you. You can always call him and tell him you won’t be able to make it. Wish him well and send a card.”

  Oh, how she had wished there had been family for her when she graduated. All she had was a terminally ill mom who was in her last couple of months of the fight for her life. . .and losing. She would trade her graduation experience for all the strife Twin Bear’s family could dish out. It was nothing compared to the strife of your only family member dying.

  “I just can’t go and watch you be hurt. I don’t think I could handle that. When they rejected you before, it made me so mad I wanted to hit someone or grab that old man by the shirt and tell him what an idiot he was for pushing you away. I may do something rash.”

  That made her feel good to know he wanted to protect her from hurt, but it also hurt that he didn’t feel like he could be there for her. “I’m disappointed, but I understand.”

  Later that evening, she called Hayden. “I’m coming to your graduation.”

  “Really? Cool. I thought maybe you’d have some excuse because of the bozos I’m related to.”

  “Graduation is an important milestone. I want to be there for you.”

  “Is Will coming?”

  “I’m afraid not.”

  “Bummer. He seemed like a cool guy.”

  She didn’t want to get into why he wasn’t coming. “I’m going to need really good directions.”

  “No problem.”

  ❧

  “I’ve changed my mind.” Will wanted to be there for her. He wouldn’t abandon her like Twin Bear’s family had. “I’ll go to Hayden’s graduation with you.”

  She grabbed him around the neck and hugged him. “Thank you. You don’t know how much this means to me.”

  He would do just about anything for her, including using self-restraint if Twin Bear’s family was cruel to her. He’d just escort her out and console her. “Any day but Saturday.”

  She pushed away from him. “But it is this Saturday.”

  He shook his head. “What time? Maybe I can make both.”

  “It’s sort of an all-day event. Make both what?”

  “Bethany’s graduation is Saturday. Where is Hayden’s? Is it in Cheboygan?”

  “No. Let me get the directions he gave me.” She handed him the paper she’d scrolled them on.

  “Petoskey High School?” He looked up from the paper. This was incredible. “He’s graduating from Petoskey? That’s where I’m from. There’s only one high school. That means Hayden and Bethany are classmates. They’ll be graduating together.”

  She smiled. “I guess it’s true what they say, ‘It’s a small world after all.’ ”

  Maybe a little too small.

  Later that evening, Will called his sister. “Bethany, I was wondering if you could tell me a little something about one of your classmates. Do you know Hayden Dubois?”

  Silence.

  “Beth?”

  “Yeah, I know him sort of. Why?”

  “What kind of kid is he?”

  “Has Rachel been talking to you?”

  “What?” Why was she changing the subject? “I just want to know if he’s a troublemaker.”

  A pause. “No. . .he’s not a troublemaker.”

  Why were his sister’s answers guarded?

  “Why do you want to know about Hayden?”

  “He is Rachel’s second cousin. He invited her to graduation, and I just found out that he goes to your school. I thought you might know him. I just wanted to know more about him. He wouldn’t purposely do anything to hurt her, would he?”

  “No. He does goofy stuff but nothing mean,” she said.

  “What kind of stuff?”

  “Him and another boy stood on the tables in the cafeteria and sang ‘Chestnuts’ the day before Christmas break started. They bought ten windup alarm clocks and set them to go off at different times and put them behind the b
ooks in the library. Just goofy stuff like that.”

  Knowing how the librarians liked the silence, that probably set them on edge not knowing when and where the next one would go off. He was relieved to know that Hayden was only mischievous and not mean.

  ❧

  After the graduation ceremony, people mingled on the grass, waiting for the food to be served. Rachel stood to the side with Will’s family. She turned to Bethany. “My cousin Hayden also graduated. Do you know him or where I might find him?” She wanted to congratulate him and give him his gift.

  “Will told me he was your cousin. I saw him over there. I’ll show you.”

  “Will, I’m going to go find Hayden.”

  “I’ll come with you.” He laced his finger with hers.

  She was glad he was coming. She liked having him at her side. It was comfortable and felt right.

  Bethany led the way.

  Will leaned closer to her. “I asked her about him. I wanted to know if he was the kind of kid who might be setting you up. I just wanted to go into today with my eyes open. No surprises. I hope you don’t mind.”

  It was nice to have someone looking out for her. She’d never really had that. “It’s fine.”

  Hayden was in a cluster of kids. In the center to be exact, standing on a table with another boy who had a guitar. That must be Eric. The two boys were belting out a 70s rock song about school being out. The students around them were dancing and singing along. They really had the crowd going. When she glanced over at Bethany, Bethany was gazing up at the two boys, drew in a deep breath, and sighed softly. If Bethany’s crush wasn’t on Eric, then it had to be Hayden. Did he know?

  After the song was over and the crowd loosened up, Rachel caught Hayden’s gaze. As he strode over to her, Bethany’s head slowly lowered. Yes, Hayden was definitely the object of Bethany’s affections. Did he even have a clue?

  “Hey, Cuz. I’m glad you made it.” Hayden turned to Will. “Rachel said you weren’t going to make it. I’m glad you did.”

  Will stretched out his hand and shook Hayden’s. “It turned out that my sister was graduating from the same high school.”

  Hayden turned to Bethany. “Bethany, right? You sit up front by the teacher.”

  At least he knew who she was, even if he didn’t look interested in her.