Tracie Peterson - Summer of the Midnight Sun

SUMMER OF THE MIDNIGHT SUN

summer of the midnight sun

TRACIE

PETERSON

Summer of the Midnight Sun
Copyright 2006
Tracie Peterson Cover design by Ann Gjeldum Scripture quotations are from the King James Version of the Bible. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwisewithout the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews. Published by Bethany House Publishers
11400 Hampshire Avenue South
Bloomington, Minnesota 55438 Bethany House Publishers is a division of
Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Michigan. Printed in the United States of America Paperback: ISBN-13: 978-0-7642-2773-8 ISBN-10: 0-7642-2773-4
Hardcover: ISBN-13: 978-0-7642-0143-1 ISBN-10: 0-7642-0143-3
Large Print: ISBN-13: 978-0-7642-0144-8 ISBN-10: 0-7642-0144-1

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Peterson, Tracie.

Summer of the midnight sun / Tracie Peterson.

p. cm. (Alaskan quest ; 1)

Summary: The Barringer family is happy in the Alaskan Territory. Confronted by an old flame, Leah realizes her feelings never went away and she is whisked away on an unforgettable journeyProvided by publisher.

ISBN 0-7642-0143-3 (alk. paper) ISBN 0-7642-2773-4 (pbk. : alk. paper) ISBN 0-7642-0144-1 (large-print pbk. : alk. paper)

1. Domestic fiction. 2. AlaskaFiction. I. Title II. Series: Peterson, Tracie. Alaskan quest ; 1.

PS3566.E7717S86 2006

813'.54dc22

2005032029

To Jayce
You inspired the name ofmy character and have shownthe light of Christ in yourheart and actions. Improud to call you friend.May God ever directyour steps.

Books by Tracie Peterson

A Slender Thread I Cant Do It All!
What She Left for Me Where My Heart Belongs ALASKAN QUEST
Summer of the Midnight Sun
Under the Northern Lights Whispers of Winter THE BROADMOOR LEGACY
A Daughters Inheritance BELLS OF LOWELL
Daughter of the Loom A Fragile Design
These Tangled Threads LIGHTS OF LOWELL
A Tapestry of Hope A Love Woven True
The Pattern of Her Heart DESERT ROSES
Shadows of the Canyon Across the Years
Beneath a Harvest Sky HEIRS OF MONTANA
Land of My Heart The Coming Storm
To Dream Anew The Hope Within LADIES OF LIBERTY
A Lady of High Regard A Lady of Hidden Talent
SHANNON SAGA
City of Angels Angels Flight Angel of Mercy WESTWARD CHRONICLES
A Shelter of Hope Hidden in a Whisper
A Veiled Reflection YUKON QUEST
Treasures of the North Ashes and Ice
Rivers of Gold
with James Scott Bellwith Allison Bottke and Dianne ;Brian

Contents

L AST C HANCE C REEK , A LASKA T ERRITORY
MAY 1915

W here is he? Leah Barringer whispered, scanning the horizon for a glimpse of her brother and his dogsled team. He should have been home weeks earlier, and yet there was no sign of him.

A cold May wind nipped at her face, but it was the hard glint of sun against snow that made Leah put her hand to her brow. They had suffered through weeks of storms, so the sunshine was most welcome, but it was also intense and blinding.

Jacob, where are you? Her heart ached with fear of what might have happened. The Alaskan wilderness was not a place to be toyed with, and though Jacob was well versed in the ways of this land, Leah feared for him nevertheless.

Jacob had left nearly two months earlier for Nome. Hunting had been poor in the area and many families were going hungry. He had made the decision to travel to Nome for basic supplies and to replenish the store of goods he and Leah sold from their makeshift trading post. A master with dogs, Jacob figured he could hike out by sled and be back before the spring thaw made that mode of travel too difficult. It was a trip that should have taken two to three weeks at the most.

Storms had made it impossible to send someone out to check on Jacob, and hunger made it unwise. There was nothing to be gained by risking more lives. Besides, she reassured herself, Jacob is as capable as any native Alaskan . He had the best dogs in all of Alaska too. Leah tried not to worry, but Jacob was all she had. Since their mother died when they were children, they had clung to each other for comfort and support. Their father, a grand dreamer, had dragged them to Alaska during the Yukon gold rush some seventeen years earlier. After his death, Jacob and Leah had made a pact to always take care of each other.

Not that she didnt want more.

Leah was facing the harsh reality that she was nearly thirty years old, and the idea of reaching that milestone was more than she could bear. She longed for a husband and children, but here in the frozen north of the Seward Peninsula, there were few prospects. The natives had little interest in white women. The whites were perceived with skepticism at best and animosity at worst. Most of the natives she and Jacob befriended accepted them well enough, but none had shown an interest in marrying either Leah or her brother.

Leah wasnt sure she could be happy marrying a native anyway. She was not completely comfortable with their lifestyle and interests. Many were steeped in superstitions that she and Jacob could never be a part of. She had shared her Christian faith with anyone who would listen, but traditions and fears were strong motivators compared to white mans stories of a Savior and the need to put aside sinful ways.

And though Nome sported more white men than other areas, most were aging and grizzled, and not at all what Leah perceived as husband material, furthering her matrimonial woes. Added to this, many were just as steeped in their traditions and superstitions as the natives. Most had come up for the gold rush in Nomehoping against the odds to make their fortune. Few had actually succeeded, and many had lost hope long ago, giving their lives to a bottle or to some other form of destruction.

Ten years ago Jacob and Leah discussed their desires to marry and start families of their own. They agreed if either one found true love, they wouldnt feel obligated to forsake this for the needs of their sibling. Leah had thought they would both find mates and settle down to raise families, but this hadnt happened.

Her guardian after her fathers death, Karen Ivankov, understood Leahs distress. The same thing had happened to Karen in her youth. Love and romance had eluded her until she was in her thirties and alone in the wilderness of the Yukon.

Sometimes Karens long wait to find love and marriage encouraged Leah. Karen often said that when the time was right, God would send a husband to Leah. Leah prayed Karen was right. She prayed for a husband, even as she prayed for Jacob to find a wife. Because, despite their pact from so long ago, Leah knew she would want Jacob to be happily settled as well. But so far God had only sent one person that Leah felt certain she could love.

Ten years ago she had been almost twenty, and Jayce Kincaid had been all shed ever wanted in a husband. Strong and handsome, brave and trustworthy. At least shed believed hed been trustworthy. But what had she known of men at the tender age of twenty? Karen had taught her not to judge men by outward appearances, but rather to test their hearts. Leah had given Jayce her heart, but he hadnt wanted it. Hed actually laughed when shed declared her love.