Bearing My Soul: A Paranormal Werebear Shifter Romance by Ellen Graves Page A

dropped the scrub brush next to the bucket on the floor.
     
    “Hey, sis,” Tammy laughed. “Did I wake you up?”
     
    “Of course not,” I was a bit offended. “I’ve been up for hours now. I’ve got a job here, you know.”
     
    “So I’ve heard,” she teased. “So what are you doing today?”
     
    I drew in a long breath, while I stared in dismay at the rust around the gaping kitchen sink. “Once I’m done soaking in the hot tub, I have to endure a massage and pedicure,” I joked. “You’re lucky you don’t have to deal with this torture.”
     
    Tammy giggled softly. I missed the sound of her laughter, maybe more so as I worked my ass off kneeling on rock-hard tile. I knew I’d miss it before I even left home. “You always have something funny to say, don’t you?” she chirped.
     
    “Isn’t that why you call?”
     
    “Partly,” her voice trembled and trailed off. She was silent for a long moment. I cringed. I could hear her stifle a sob. “It’s really not the same here, you know.” I felt a familiar aching for home.
     
    “Hey, it’s only been one day.” I attempted to sound upbeat, but I came across as despondently useless. “It’s bound to get better.”
     
    “I think mom might try giving up drinking again,” she hastily interjected. “If she stops, maybe you could come back.”
     
    “Maybe,” I forced the word out, but it sounded as deceitful as it was. “You only have another year or so before you’re eighteen. Then, you could leave, too,” I suggested. I could hear from her heavy sigh that a year seemed terribly long.
     
    “So, how is the first day?”
     
    I clenched my teeth and stared at the old fixtures and layers of grime. “I think this is doable,” I grumbled. “Not easy, but I didn’t really expect easy.”
     
    “What made you decide to take a job as a caretaker anyway?” she pried.
     
    “It was the allure of seclusion,” I responded cheerfully. I repeated the line just as I had rehearsed it, in case anyone should ask. “I wanted to get back to nature. This little town nestled in the towering trees of the Northwest is just the place to do it.”
     
    “Hmm,” she grunted. “The fact that the job offered room and board to someone who couldn’t get an apartment on her own didn’t have anything to do with it?”
     
    I grinned. She wasn’t stupid. That was a shame. “I hadn’t really thought of that,” I said, as I laughed. “I guess that was a nice perk, though.” I drew in a bracing breath. “I need to get back to it, though. I still need to get outside today and get some trees planted. Mrs. Hall said they’d been sitting in the drive since Thursday. If I don’t get to them soon, they’ll die. I’m really glad you called.”
     
    She was quiet for a long time.
     
    “Are you going to be okay?” I asked.
     
    She sniffled. “Of course,” she assured me. “I’ll be great. Don’t worry about me. You know I can take care of myself. I’ll check up on you once in a while, okay? I worry about you being in that strange house alone.”
     
    I shivered involuntarily. “Mrs. Hall said the neighbors are always helpful. I should be fine. But... thanks for worrying just the same. I’ll talk with you soon.”
     
    “Bye.” She disconnected.
     
    “That’s enough inside work today,” I said to myself, loudly this time. The extra volume only accentuated the deepening isolation.
     
    I pulled on a thick coat. As I stepped outside, the chilly wind swept up beneath it. Still, I set my jaw and grabbed a shovel from the shed. I hurried over to the first flag. It indicated where Mrs. Hall wanted me to plant a tree. I shoved the blade, swift and hard, into the dark soil.
     
    It sank only an inch or two. I grabbed the handle tightly with both hands and jammed it deeper. It didn’t move enough to notice a difference. Finally, I pried a tiny piece of dirt from the ground. I tossed it a foot or so away. Then, I jabbed at the earth once