[Song of Alaska 02] - Morning's Refrain by Tracie Peterson Read Free Book Online Page B

roar of laughter. “Like that would ever stop me.”
    Phoebe eased into a sitting position. “What about the lut . . . Whatever it was.”
    “Lutefisk.” He sat up and dusted off his hands. “I doubt there’s a man worth his salt that would let smelly fish keep him from kissing a beautiful girl.”
    She felt her cheeks grow even hotter. A million butterflies fought for position in her stomach. Phoebe looked at the cookies, now scattered about the ground. “I baked those for you,” she offered. “It was my way of apologizing for being so rude when you rescued me.”
    To her surprise, Dalton reached over and picked a cookie up off the ground and popped it into his mouth. After a moment, he smiled. “Apology accepted.”
    Phoebe couldn’t help but giggle. “I’m Phoebe Robbins.”
    “Yes, I know.” Dalton flashed a smile that left her feeling as though she’d melted into the ground. “I’m glad to meet you. I’m Dalton Lindquist.”
    She nodded, finding it impossible to speak. Maybe life in Sitka wouldn’t be so bad after all.

Chapter 5

    D alton studied the staircase for a moment. With most of the Tlingit workers off to hunt and trade, Dalton’s father had asked for his help with his construction project, and this, in turn, presented an opportunity for them to talk. Still, as much as he wanted to know Father’s thoughts on the past—on what had happened when his mother had been injured—Dalton was at a loss as to how to start the conversation.
    “You seem to have a lot on your mind lately.”
    Dalton looked up and nodded. “I suppose I do.”
    Father smiled and gave his blond-brown beard a scratch. “The stairs will keep. Why don’t we take a walk?”
    They left the house his father had been building for one of the new government families. The day was overcast, but so far, the rain was holding off. His father seemed to be in no hurry to solicit conversation, so the two men simply walked for a time along the rocky shore. Kjell Lindquist had been a good father and mentor, teaching Dalton how to work with wood. Dalton had always felt at home in the sawmill and workshop where his father made furniture and other things for the family. Dalton’s true love, however, was building boats. It wasn’t so very different from making furniture.
    The path wound away from the water and up the hill, leading them to a stand of spruce and alder. Salmonberry bushes were blooming with their purplish-pink blossoms, while other flowers colored the ground from place to place.
    “I’ve always loved this island,” Dalton said, not really meaning to speak the words aloud.
    “For some, it’s a hard place to even like,” his father countered.
    Dalton looked at the man and nodded. “Until lately, I always felt I belonged here.”
    “But not now?”
    There was no condemnation in his tone, but Dalton felt guilty just the same. “Ever since Mother and Evie told me about the kidnapping—about my brothers and other sister—I’ve felt out of place.” Dalton waited for his father to comment, but he said nothing as the path turned and took them higher.
    “I’ve always known that Mother was expecting me when she came to Sitka. No one ever talked about my father, and for a lot of years, I figured it was because the sorrow was too great. I honestly never figured it was because he was such a heinous man. I mean, there were times when comments were made about trouble in the past, but I gave it no thought.”
    “There was no need for you to give it consideration. You were just a child.” Father picked up a rock and gave it a toss to the water below. “Nothing in the past was your fault or yours to make up for. It hurt your mother to remember those days, so it was just as easy to forget about them.”
    “Until I had to force the issue,” Dalton said, feeling terrible for the pain he’d caused. “I never wanted to hurt her. I still don’t.”
    “But?”
    Dalton looked at his father. “But I find myself vacillating from