Reap (The Harvest Saga Book 1) Read Online Free Page B

dew–earthy and like home. I came to live with her when I was only two years old. I don’t remember my parents. Lulu says they couldn’t raise me, so they sent me to her. They were too young to have a child, her baby brother and my mother.
    I often wondered who they were, what type of people they were now, if they were even still alive, and if they would recognize me if they saw me now that I was grown. Would I recognize them? Would I favor my father or mother more?
    I was never unhappy here with Lulu. She had always been great, so supportive and loving. She’d been my parent for as long as I could remember and I wouldn’t trade her for the world. I harbored no bitterness or anger toward my parents. If they couldn’t raise me, at least they gave me Lulu, and along with her, they gave me the chance to be loved by someone who wanted and could care for me.
    I pulled away from her and smiled, looking her over. She was only five foot three, but she had always been a spitfire. Her brown hair was streaked with gray now and pulled back in a small bun at the nape of her neck, her hair having thinned over the years. Her eyes were strange, but beautiful. Sometimes they looked brown, but today they looked almost green. They were hazel, but so much more, ever changing with their surroundings. Chameleon eyes. Big and round and beautiful.
    She nudged me out the door toward the Preston’s, and I trudged down the path that began in back of our house. I passed several other homes along the way to the Preston’s. Their home was a bigger than ours, bigger than any in our village, actually. Goes along with their haughty egos.
    Cresting a small hill, the house rose mightily from the earth cleared around it. My heart began to beat rapidly. I really, really did not want to go into the Preston home. And, I desperately did not want to see Zander this morning. I promised Lulu I would behave. I would hate to break my promise. But with Zander, all bets were off. And, even Lulu knew that.
    Their home had two floors. It had more than four bedrooms in total. With only three occupants, this truly was luxurious. Most houses in the village had two bedrooms. Those were usually shared. Children would pile into one room and parents into the other. A couple of homes had three bedrooms, but an extra was usually only added when no more children could be stuffed inside the spare, and only after the council had consulted with the Greaters and they approved of the addition. 
    The Preston house was opposing. The wood had been whitewashed and the porch was held up by enormous wooden beams, adding to its imposing grandeur. I squared my shoulders, climbed the six stairs to the porch’s landing, and made my way to the door. It opened before I could even knock. I stood there, my hand raised into a fist, ready to pound on the wood. Looking back at me with his ever present signature smirk was none other than Zander Preston. Crap.
    If he wasn’t such a jerk, he would be attractive. Actually, that was an understatement. He would be amazingly handsome. But, his horrific attitude made him ugly. He smirked at me and swept his open palm inward, motioning me into his home. I stepped over the threshold and sucked in a deep breath.
    His palm landed firmly on my back, and I flinched and whimpered before I could control it. He laughed, but thankfully removed his paw from my skin, which was now on fire thanks to his carelessness, or purposeful placement, rather. “Oh, sorry, Abigail. I must have forgotten about your back.”
    “Right. You forgot the reason that I’m here? Sure you did,” I bit back. I was not about to let him bully me.
    “Easy, tiger. I’m just your welcome wagon. I’m supposed to show you what to do today. My mother left a list for you. It’s underwhelming to me. But, she argued that your back is still healing and that you mustn’t be pushed too hard; too fast. She plans to keep you around for a while and we need you healthy.”
    Keep me around for a