Winter’s Awakening by Shelley Shepard Gray Page B

with him, then easily found she could match her stride to his. With each step, the Grabers’ house faded into the distance and brought her closer to another thicket of woods.
    He wasn’t one to talk much, which was fine with her.Lilly let her mind drift. For once, instead of focusing only on herself and her problems, she found herself noticing the beautiful surroundings. Just feeling peaceful for a change.
    They continued. Soon, they reached a small valley. The natural lay of the land served to shield them from a bit of the wind, enabling the sun to shine down upon them and take the edge off of the chill. Their quick pace helped tremendously, too. A fine sheen of sweat formed on her brow.
    As they walked along, Joshua pointed out a beaver eagerly chewing what was left of a log. “He’s a hungry fella, that beaver is. Don’tcha think?”
    Lilly slowed as she watched the animal chewing furiously on a tree trunk that had to be as big as her calf. Its dark brown coat looked almost like shiny tar, it was so glossy in the sunlight. “I’ve never seen a beaver before. I mean, not in the wild like this.” She paused to think. “Maybe one was in a nature museum.”
    “Beavers, now they’re a rascally bunch. Usually we think of them as a nuisance. But I’ve often enjoyed their antics. Always busy, you know.”
    “Busy is how I would describe you,” Lilly commented. “From what I can tell, everyone in your family works hard.”
    “We’ve seven children. I’m the oldest. Next comes Judith, then Caleb. Anson, Carrie, Maggie, and finally Toby. He’s three. In addition, we’ve got two pigs, chickens, a milk cow, and two horses. In the spring, my mammplants a garden big enough to provide for us most all the year. With all of that, we can’t help but be busy. Mamm wouldn’t have it any other way.”
    The amount of work made her feel lazy. Here it was just a little after ten and Joshua had already chopped firewood. “And you’ve got your store.”
    “ Jah . We’ve many blessings, it’s true.”
    Lilly noticed he didn’t seem too happy about it. “Why do I get the feeling you aren’t happy about the store?”
    For a moment, Lilly didn’t think he was going to answer. Then, just as if he’d been hard-pressed to speak, he grudgingly said, “Lilly, lately I’ve had something weighing on my mind, if you want to know the truth.”
    It was almost a relief to think about somebody else’s problems. “Do you want to talk about it?”
    “I should talk about it, yes.”
    Oh, he cracked her up. Everything was so literal. He never took anything between them for granted. “I mean, would you like to talk about it to me ?”
    “To you?”
    “Sure, why not? I’m the perfect person to share things with. You hardly know me so you won’t worry about me giving you my opinions. I’ll just listen. Is it a relationship problem? I’m great at romance problems.” In spite of her bold words, she winced. Actually, she hadn’t been all that great at romance. If she had been, things would have probably worked out far differently with Alec.
    “I’m not sure.”
    Lilly wasn’t sure what he was replying to. Was he notsure he wanted to talk? Or was he not sure that it was a relationship problem?
    The landscape grew rockier. When she stumbled, Joshua reached out and took hold of her elbow, steadying her with his warm grasp. That impersonal clutch made her do a double-take. There was a connection between them. Something intense and personal. Like they were meant to be together. To be friends.
    “Or, we don’t have to talk,” she said a good five minutes later—even though the silence was starting to get to her. “Just walking is fine.”
    “I’m worried about my future,” he blurted. “I’m worried about my plans. And everyone else’s plans for me, too.”
    Lilly was glad her face was averted. If he saw her surprise, he might be embarrassed. “What about it?”
    “Lilly, do ya ever wonder if the plan everyone has for ya