Bird Song by S. L. Naeole Read Free Book Online Page A

were wide with the full impact of this new fact about him.   But the way my heart was pounding in my chest made it quite clear that there couldn’t have been anything he could have told me at that moment that would have made me happier.
    “ Is that why you’re treating me like some kind of nun?”
    It is part of the reason.   There’s more, but I think I’ve done enough sharing for one night, Grace.   I want you to think about what I have told you.   I want you to truly think about it, and try to see why it is I am taking this as slowly as possible.   With a swiftness that whipped my hair around my face and drew forth a quick gasp from my throat, we had reversed positions, and I was now atop him.
    Sleep, Grace.   I want you to think about all of this while you sleep.
    “I’m not a child, Robert.   I don’t need to be told when to go to bed,” I complained, refusing to lay my head down.
    He placed a strong hand at the back of my head and gently, albeit forcefully, pressed my head down onto his chest.   Please.   I’m sorry about what I said.   We can discuss all of this later.   Go to sleep, Grace.   I’ll be here in the morning when you wake up.
    The lull of sleep felt strangely appealing, and I closed my eyes in defeat.   “Cheater,” I mumbled, knowing that it had nothing to do with genuine exhaustion, but something else completely.
    I love you.
    “…love you, back.”

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    I woke up on New Year’s Eve feeling strangely relaxed and content.   Robert’s still form beneath me had a lot to do with it, but something else felt different.   I looked at the morning light streaming through the window, at the dust motes that seemed to sparkle as they emerged from the shadows to dance in the sunshine, and I felt a glowing warmth spread through me, while my mouth curled up, the corners of my mouth tipping towards the peaks of my cheeks.
    What’s the smile for?
    I looked up into Robert’s silver eyes and allowed the smile full access to a grin.   “I don’t know, but I feel…good—like something good is about to happen.”
    I stretched to rid myself of the tenseness in my body—sleeping against something that felt like a metal beam could get uncomfortable after a while.   I tilted my head down to check the time on the clock that was sitting on my dresser, and I groaned at the hour.   “It’s already eight,” I complained, and rolled over towards the bedroom door.   “Everyone’s eating breakfast already—Graham’s probably eating mine, too.”
    I suddenly remembered that Graham had come into the room last night.   “Oh no.   Graham!   What must he be thinking?”
    Robert’s face lit up as now, after the sun had risen and the fog of sleep had cleared from my mind, I was fully aware of what had happened.  
    Vindicated.   Robert was feeling vindicated.
    “Stop gloating,” I growled as I climbed out of the bed and walked to the dresser.   I began pulling out the prerequisite jeans and t-shirt and stopped as something on my hand caught my attention.   On the fourth finger of my right hand sat the ring that Robert had given to me for my birthday.   It was meant to remind me of him while he was away, he had told me.   Dark blue with a brilliant white star that was only visible when you looked at it directly, it was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen.
    But today, the star was missing.   “Robert…is the star supposed to disappear?”
    Although I had left him lying on the bed, he was there before the question had even left my lips, my hand in his, his keen eyes scrutinizing the silver wrapped stone on my finger.   It’s not supposed to … I don’t understand.
    Rarely is an angel ever confused.   You figure that out quite quickly after knowing one.   They can read the minds of those around them, and some even have the ability to see into the future.   So to see confusion on Robert’s face wasn’t comforting in the least.
    “What?” I asked,