Forsaking All Others by Lavyrle Spencer Read Free Book Online

through the frosty glass as theengine chugged to life. “Go south and take Highway 12. I’ll show you a place right in the middle of the city limits where we can get you your log.”
    “In the middle of the city?”
    “Well, almost. Theodore Wirth Park.”
    “Theodore Wirth! But it’s public land! It’s against the law. If they catch us, we’ll get fined.”
    He grinned, all lopsided and little-boyish. “Guess my mother didn’t cuff me quite enough. Sounds like fun, trying to put one over on the law. Course, it’s up to you . . . I mean, I don’t want to be the one responsible for getting your name on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted List.”
    She laughed again. “You do that, and I’ll personally see to it you never kiss Vivien Zucchini.”
    “Zuchinski,” he returned with a smile coming from deep inside his turned-up collar and hunched-up shoulders. “And you’ll have a tough time of it from behind the walls of the state pen.”
    They were thoroughly enjoying each other as the van headed toward Theodore Wirth Park. Allison stopped at a sandwich shop and Rick jumped out, returning a few minutes later with cups of hot coffee. The late-afternoon sun lit the clouds around it into crazy zigzags of aqua blue and vibrant pink. But suddenly Allison didn’t mind the frigid temperatures.
    Rick handed her a cup of coffee, watching appreciatively while she caught the fingers of her glovesbetween her teeth and yanked them off. He grinned broadly at the sight of her in the worst-looking bobcap he’d ever seen, pulled so low that her eyebrows scarcely showed.
    “Forgot to ask if you like cream or sugar,” he said.
    “Sugar, usually, but I’d drink it any way today.”
    “Sorry. I’ll remember next time.” He sipped, looking around. “Nice van.”
    “Yup, it is, isn’t it? Only another year and a half and it’ll be paid for. I need it. I’m always hauling junk back and forth from the studio. Buying a van was the smartest move I ever made.”
    “I’m not big on vehicles,” he offered. “Don’t really care if I have a tin lizzy or an XKE—as long as it’ll get me there, that’s all that matters.”
    It had always been Jason’s dream to have a sleek, silver Porsche, one that would set off his looks with a touch of panache. How refreshing to find a man whose values were so different.
    “Would you look at that sky,” Rick Lang said admiringly, almost as if reading her mind.
    “Beautiful, huh?” They fell into comfortable silence, driving westward, squinting into the lowering sun against which every object became bold, black, and striking. Even the telephone lines, power poles, and road signs became artistic creations when viewed against the brilliant sky.
    How long had it been since she had enjoyed a ridethrough an icy, stinging wintry afternoon and not complained about the cold? Allison wondered. Now she found herself noting the silhouettes of oaks standing blackly against their backdrop as she turned the van onto Wirth Parkway and entered the sprawling, woodsy park.
    Children were sliding down the enormous hills between sections of wooded land. Skiers were out on the runs in gaily colored clothing. Even a sweatsuited jogger could be seen, his breath labored and hanging frozen in the air.
    The road wove into the heart of the public land, past frozen Wirth Lake, the ski chalet, the ski jump, and acres of untouched woodland, which surprised and delighted Allison, situated as it was in the center of the teeming city. The van moved in and out of shadows as the late sun rested lower and lower in the west, behind the trees, making long, skinny shadow fingers across the road.
    Rick directed Allison up a steep incline at a sign that read Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden and Bird Sanctuary.
    “Anybody who’s looking for wildflowers today is going to be disappointed,” he commented. “I think we can steal our log up there without getting caught.”
    At the top was a paved parking lot the plows hadn’t