Stars Over Alaska (Wild River #4) - Jennifer Snow Page 0,73

had taken the year before he died. The lake in the background and the bright sunny day reflecting the happiness in the siblings’ faces was a true reflection of simpler times—better times.

This picture had hung in the cabin for years and it had meant a lot to the Sanders family. To Leslie.

It was a miracle that most of it had survived the blaze.

Was there a way to restore it? Fix it for her?

Maybe he couldn’t help her with everything she was going through, but maybe he could give her back this small piece of her past.

Remind her that not everything needed to be forgotten.

* * *

LEVI HAD DISAPPEARED early that morning and so far, it had taken a hundred push-ups and fifty sit-ups not to read too much into it. Leslie had heard the truck starting just after 7:00 a.m. and had seen it drive away through the bunk room window. She’d been slightly relieved to have some time that morning to gather her thoughts about what had happened between them before she was forced to face him.

But him needing that time as well had her on edge.

What was he thinking? Feeling?

She suspected he was battling the same conflicting emotions as she was. They’d been friends for years, they’d recently lost contact (her fault) and now when her world was in chaos and her job, and quite possibly her life, was on the line, they’d connected on an even deeper level than ever before. On his end, he’d apparently always loved her—a huge surprise to her—and now she’d no doubt opened a can of emotional worms that she wasn’t sure she was ever going to be able to contain.

And neither of them had actually even mentioned the elephant not in the room, the third member of their triangle, who was still very much a reason for her and Levi to stop whatever was happening between them immediately.

She couldn’t confidently say that she was over Dawson. She’d spent the last few years burying her pain, never fully acknowledging the impact his death had had on her, changing her life so completely, and here Levi was, about to launch a charity honoring him.

Things were a mess.

One emotion she hadn’t expected to come from their night together was inspiration, but she’d woken up that morning feeling the desire to take some photos for the first time in weeks.

Getting up off the floor, she dressed quietly, careful not to wake Selena, who was cuddled in her bottom bunk with a snoring Smokester. Then, grabbing her father’s old camera, she slid into her boots and jacket and headed outside.

It was so quiet out there in the middle of nowhere. The trees were still. The ground was frozen solid, so there weren’t the usual spring thaw sounds like the crackling ice or snow falling from tree branches. There was no one around for miles. Everything was soundless and still.

And the overcast sky with just a few cloud breaks illuminating the forest in a beautiful early morning glow was the perfect lighting for photos.

She hung the camera strap around her neck and then snapped a few shots of the snow-covered evergreens surrounding the cabin and checked the images on the display. They were crisp and clear. The old camera was still one of the best ones on the market. Spotting a bird perched on a fallen tree trunk about ten yards away, Leslie zoomed in and captured the shot as the bird flew off. She took a deep breath, appreciating how much easier it was to breathe out here in nature. No smog, no traffic noise, no people... Nature definitely had a way of soothing a soul.

She hiked through the deep snow toward the trail they’d taken on the Ski-Doo and then followed it farther into the forest. Turning back around, she captured several images of the station cabin through the trees.

They weren’t amazing shots or anything worth framing, but just being out there alone with the camera, capturing nature, gave her a sense of peace, which was something her conflicted spirit needed that morning.

She didn’t regret being with Levi. She’d wanted him and her attraction to him had shocked the hell out of her, but giving in to it had felt right in the moment and one thing she knew for sure was that you couldn’t change the past, so regrets were a waste of time.

However, she did feel bad for having taken advantage of him. Knowing how he felt about her, it had been unfair