Touching the Clouds by Bonnie Leon Read Free Book Online

neighbors. He was thankful for them. They were helpful and weren’t much for meddling. The only real point of contention was Sassa’s idea of him and Lily getting married. He’d tried to be straight with her, but she wouldn’t listen.
    Lily’s a pretty little thing, but even if she were old enough, there’ll never be another woman for me. The sorrow he usually managed to keep tapped down swelled in his chest. Fighting memories, he stepped back inside the house.
    The dogs whined and barked when Paul walked toward the run where they spent most of their time. The largest of the three, a big male, powered toward him and planted his feet on Paul’s chest.
    “Hey there, Buck, how you doing?” Paul buried his fingers in the animal’s thick ruff and kneaded his coat. He’d named him after the character in Jack London’s Call of the Wild . He moved to Nita, the female. She pressed in and nipped at Paul’s hands. She was the most intelligent of the three, so he usually ran her at the front of the lead when they were out with the sled. He patted her head. Jackpot, the quieter and smallest dog, held back, his tail thumping the ground. Paul stroked his glossy black fur. Although more reserved, he was also the most determined of the bunch. He’d won him in a game of cards, hence the name Jackpot.
    He unhooked Jackpot’s lead first. “Did you guys miss me?” More panting and tail wagging was his answer.
    Once free the dogs romped, bounding on and over one another. Paul headed for the trail, picking up a stick and sending it flying. All three dogs tore after it. Jackpot was the first to grab it. Although smaller, he was faster than the other two. Buck pounced on him, trying to wrestle away the prize. Jackpot held tight and trotted back to Paul with his offering. Paul took the stick and threw it again. While the dogs chased, he moved down the trail, accompanied by the occasional trill of a bird.
    The air smelled like fall—sharp and clean with the scent of fermenting berries. He breathed deeply, nature lifting his spirits. Alder and birch leaves were turning color, showing up as bright flecks of yellow amid the greenery. Soon the forest would be ablaze with yellows, golds, and reds.
    He stepped over a small birch lying across the path as the dogs bounded ahead of him and disappeared into the thick foliage. His attention went to the downed trees. There were several small birch and alder blocking the trail. They’d make good firewood.
    Paul scanned the forest, wondering where the dogs had gone. Putting his fingers to his lips, he whistled, splintering the quiet. A few moments later the sounds of something crashing through the brush moved toward him. All of a sudden the dogs broke free of the underbrush, tongues hanging and carefree expressions in their eyes. They lumbered toward Paul, their tails beating the air.
    He knelt and greeted his wilderness comrades. Buck nearly knocked him over.
    “Okay. Okay. That’s enough,” Paul said with a laugh. “Time to head back to the house. I’ve got work to do.”
    He walked toward the cabin, the canines by his side. Paul tied them, gave each a piece of salmon and some fresh water, then went to the shed to retrieve a handsaw and an axe. He’d limb and cut up the trees that were down on the trail, then load them onto a cart and come back for the dogs.
    The first downed tree was very near the house. He cut away limbs and threw them into a stack for burning later. The tree hadn’t broken completely away from the trunk, so he cut it free with an axe. Using a crosscut saw, he divided it into manageable chunks that he stacked on the cart.
    After he’d taken care of two other trees, he sat on a stump to rest. He wiped sweat from his face, then chugged water from a canteen. He studied the area. It was a nice spot. A breeze cut through the forest, rustling the leaves and bending tall grasses. Brilliant pink patches of fireweed swayed. On a day like this it almost felt like home.
    Although