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Interesting, that the ugly mess before her nudged a bit of sentiment in her mind. She and Hunter, they’d been a mess. And things seemed to have hit an ugly rock bottom before they’d gotten better.
But they had gotten better. So much better.
Miracle?
God, are You real?
That seemed a rhetorical question. Hazel had spent her life soaking in the wonder of the world around her. She couldn’t believe that all the beauty, the complexity, the majesty of nature had just randomly come together by accident. And more, this intense thing between her and Bennett—this deep love that stirred her soul? How did that just randomly evolve from heartless, emotionless organisms into the powerful driving force that it was in people?
In Hazel’s estimation, it just couldn’t happen. There just had to be a cause. That left her with a knowledge of God from a distance. But she’d assumed that would remain that way. Distant. Impersonal. And maybe . . . a bit resentful. Resentful because if God could stir the winds and hold the earth and design every living thing, couldn’t He make life less painful? If He endowed man with a soul that longed for love and wholeness, why did He remain aloof and far off?
Why didn’t He care?
Maybe He did?
Hazel wasn’t sure she was ready to go that far. Such thoughts were too deep, too big, and too scary to really ponder for long. So if Bennett talked of miracles, Hazel turned her attention to the dogs, or to fishing, or to anything else that she could feel and touch and understand. When Hunter brought up his new faith and talked of being saved, she would shrug and say that was nice for him.
She was content with the lake and life as it was.
But it wasn’t true. Not entirely. There were these moments when she was alone. The depths stirred in her own heart, a deep discontentment that yawned in her soul, and there was nothing to distract herself with. Nothing to push away the longing for more. It was like her soul had been stirred, and now it was hungry . . .
Standing at the edge of the tree line, Hazel indulged in a rare moment of surrender, and the question tumbled from her mind, through her heart, and took flight toward the heavens.
God, do You care?
A presence settled at her feet, and the warmth nudged her palm. Scout. The faithful pup—who wasn’t truly a pup anymore—had pushed her soft head beneath Hazel’s hand. Though a mild disappointment wove through her heart—had she expected an answer from heaven?—Hazel grinned down at her companion.
“You’re something, you know that, girl?”
The dog looked up, and her tongue lolled to one side as she panted through a doggy smile.Here for you.
Yep, Scout always was.
“Hazel.” Hunter emerged from the other side of the moving equipment, a hard hat on his head and his right hand lifted in greeting.
Not interested in donning a hat like his, or meeting the men who crewed his excavation team, Hazel waited at the edge of the clearing. When he closed the space enough not to have to shout, he spoke again. “What do you think?” Turning, he motioned to the work.
“It’s a mess right now.”
“Won’t take too long. The forecast looks good, and Evan says this is his most efficient team.”
Adjusting her stocking cap—the orange one Bennett had brought up over a year ago—she studied the emerging footprint and nodded. “You were right. It will fit well right there.”
“You didn’t believe me?”
“I thought it would be too big.” She shrugged. “It’s a whole lot bigger than the cabin.”
Hunter nodded. “The clearing over here is triple what you have at the big lake. I imagine that years ago, the big lake was a much deeper bowl of water and this one was much wider.” He pocketed his hands in his coat.
The machines clanged and beeped as they scraped the earth to bedrock and leveled the space where the lodge would take shape. Ice and Cream scurried between tractors, then jogged to the water’s edge for a drink before bounding back to where Hazel and Hunter stood.
The stretch of stillness grew heavy. Perhaps that was just for Hazel—she’d had a lot on her mind when it came to Hunter for the past several days. Ever since his groundbreaking celebration.
“Hunter, I promised Janie that I wouldn’t let you come between her and my friendship.”
“Okay . . .” He angled his body to face her. “I don’t want to come between you.”
Hazel nodded. That wasn’t exactly what made her nervous about this conversation she didn’t really want to have but felt like she should. “The thing is, I don’t want things between you and me to fall apart either. I mean, now that . . .”
