Counting Stars (A Donnelley Brother's Novel) by Alannah Carbonneau Page A

up from where I’d placed a
hoodie on the ground to sit beside the fire. Logan had cut a large
pile of wood and judging by the size of it, I was pretty sure we
would be spending the next few days camping here. But I didn’t
mind. As much as I wanted to hike the land, I also wouldn’t mind
familiarizing myself with this beautiful place.
    In the distance,
mountains loomed. Just seeing them took my breath away. Although I
lived just outside of Edmonton, Alberta, I had been to the
mountains on countless occasions—mostly in the winter. I absolutely
adored skiing. Derek had been a snowboarder and we often ventured
out for weekend trips.
    The mountains were stunning in the winter. Capped in
snow, they glistened like shimmering jagged gems. But in the summer
they were something else. Their solid gray mass steadied the heart.
Looking up at them made me feel small and insignificant—but in a
good way. Sometimes it’s nice to just breathe. Sometimes it’s nice
to feel like there are no pressures to appease and no masks to
flaunt. In the mountains—in this great land—I can just be. In the mountains, I am just a soul like every other and
there are no expectations for me apart to simply live.
    It is this reasoning
that banishes the doubt I’d been feeling about coming to this
place. In the city, amidst the hustle and bustle of every day
life—the masks—the pointless conversation—the constant pressure to
conform—I never would have found the peace and quiet I needed to
find myself.
    In the city, with all the
noise and movement, I would never be able to hear the whispers of
my heart. It was those whispers that would surely heal me and I had
a feeling that this was exactly where I was supposed to be to hear
them.

 
     
    Glancing down at my watch I read the hands
and sighed. It was already 7:26 p.m. and Logan still wasn’t back.
He’d been gone for nearly two hours and I was beginning to worry.
Fishing had never been my thing, but I was almost certain it didn’t take this long to catch
a single fish. Did it?
    Glancing down at the
fire, I chewed on the inside of my cheek as I debated on going to
search for him. But where would I go? I didn’t know the land. And
even when I’d gone out in search of firewood, I hadn’t come across
any water. I mean, what if he was hurt? What was I supposed to
do?
    Logan had made it clear
that he wanted me to remain at the camp, and watch the fire, but
what if he needed me?
    “You keep thinking that
hard and you’ll be bound to hurt yourself.” Logan’s deep voice took
the tension right out of my body and I sighed audibly. Logan
frowned, noticing my obvious relief. “You alright?”
    “I thought you might be
hurt.” I blushed, picking at imaginary dirt beneath my fingernails.
“Or something.”
    A single brow rose, “You
thought I was hurt?”
    I nodded. “You were gone
for a long time.”
    He smirked. “Fishing
takes time. There’s never a guarantee that you’ll catch
something.”
    “Oh.” I looked down into
the blazing fire and found myself hoping that the heat of my face
was a result of the flames of the fire. If not, then this man made
me blush more than any other had ever done before.
    Including Derek.
    “Oh, what?” From the
corner of my eye, I watched him set the bucket on the ground. “You
weren’t planning on coming to my supposed rescue, were you?”
    “No.” I answered
quickly. Too quickly.
    Logan stiffened and I
knew, he knew, I was lying. “Reese, I know these lands. I was born
and raised on these lands. I know the animals and I know the
plants. I know where there is danger and I know how to handle the
danger I come across. You don’t. I don’t want you to ever come
after me. Do you understand?”
    If I thought my face was
warm before, well, it was definitely like lava now. Even my scalp
felt warm and tingly as I tried to ignore Logan’s eyes on my face.
He was waiting for my answer. “If I thought you needed help, I
wouldn’t just sit