I do not see Anna saying that at the sheep camp at the dawn meeting -
Page 282 - "Anna. will you do a thing for me?"
Scrupulously kept her eyes on the wool brawl in fornt of us.
"If I can, I will. You know that, Angus. What?"
"See the dawn with me tomorrow."
A blue flash of eyes from her, quicker than quick, then away. I reasoned to her profile. "It'd be our one time to talk alone."
There was that same narrow hesitation she had shown when I asked her four years before, Do you have the life you want? Now her answer:
"Yes. Show me a Two Medicine dawn."
Then the scene changes to the sheep shearing and Rob giving him a time of it including Angus saying it was none of his business, Adair and his "climbing out of bed this morning to spy on me was none of your business either, Rob."
Page 286
Lisabeth reacts and Angus decides it is for Anna to explain that he would only make it worse if he tried to touch it. The truth, Lisabeth, that i had asked your mother: Anna, when Lisabeth and Peter and Varick are grown and gone...if Adair takes herself back to Scotland then...if and when, Anna, is there the chance then of our lives fitting together? Of you answering my love with yours, if and when? And her, Angus, you know how I am. Beyond anyone else, really, you grasp the kind of person i am. So you know all too well, I can only decide as far as I see a situation. The judging hesitation, the click as she gauged. But I can't see ahead to forever, can I. Whether Isaac is there in my life, after the children go-or whether...Her eyes honestly telling me that same as her words. I'm sorry the words aren't any better than they were, those years ago. You more than deserve better ones from me. But they're the same, Angus. If I ever see that Isaac and I have become wrong together, I'll know in the next minute to turn to you. Again and yet and still: Isaac was not lastingly innocent of the hazard of losing Anna: i was not irredeemably guilty of loving her hopelessly. Not Proven, the verdict one more time. Well, we had life ahead yet to see if proof would come, didn't we. I had lost no ground since our meeting in Valier, I could stay on the compass setting Adiar and I agreed to, getting on in life as best we could for Varick's sake, hers, mine, ours.
I guess I am not seeing Anna stringing Angus along - I am seeing her answer him in a way not to hurt him but not give him any encouragement - only to say, I cannot decide - who knows the future - I want to be with Isaac - if Isaac is not around then...you know me... and assuming you are also free from Adair - but that is a whole lot of maybe's -
I see Anna as not wanting to hurt of make an enemy of Angus - How would any of us handle living in a very small town seeing at all the socials and all the work meetings an old boyfriend who still had a crush on us and who is a decent nice sort of guy who even has a similar level of education as compared to most of the other folks in town.