Shiftless by Aimee Easterling Read Free Book Online

of clothes and cardboard boxes of books in my backseat went even further toward giving me the illusion of being a vagrant.  Heck, who was I kidding—I was homeless at the moment.
    During the two-hour drive to Dale's house, I'd mostly worried over the issue of how to tackle Dale and Keith's ignorance.  My father made it clear in his file that my sister hadn't spilled the beans about our genealogy to her family, so Dale was to be kept in the dark.  Keith, obviously, would have to be told since I needed to help him learn to shift, but how would a hormone-addled teenage werewolf take the news?  Looking at their house, though, I now realized those problems were secondary to my first big hurdle—insinuating my way into my sister's family.  What would prevent Dale from assuming I was some kind of gold-digger, then sending me packing before I even got in the door?
    The front porch was bigger than my entire cabin back at the park, and the structure was imposing in its sheer size.  I was intimidated enough to try to walk lightly, but my hiking boots were still loud on the boards as I made my way to the glass-paneled door.  Cupping my hands around my face, I peered inside, where a beautifully modern kitchen sparkled with cleanliness.  My imagination could easily place Brooke in the scene, pulling homemade cookies out of the oven.  The role of a fifties-era housewife would have been the perfect fit for her cuddly personality, and it broke my heart to think she'd escaped Haven only to die of cancer four years into her perfect life.
    "Can I help you?"  I turned so quickly at the words that I nearly twisted my ankle, slipping and having to catch myself on the side of the house to keep from falling.  Yep, this is the exact kind of first impression I'd hoped to make , I thought, taking in the form of my brother-in-law in front of me.  Dale was older than he'd been in the last photo, but he still exuded the air of kindliness that I'm sure had attracted my sister in the first place.  Even when startling an intruder, the doctor couldn't quite make his face look stern.
    "This is so embarrassing," I said, trying to figure out where to start with my explanation.  Despite Dale's gentle nature, a tall male figure catching me in his territory was enough to set my senses on high alert, and I had to struggle against an urge to jump back into my car and spin out of the driveway.  Only the knowledge that my father would track me down and drag me back to Haven if I failed kept my feet rooted to the spot as I tried out a shaky smile.
    But then Dale surprised me with my own name.  "I can't believe it!  Terra?" he asked...then pulled me into a bear hug.
    I couldn't remember the last time I'd been hugged, and my body stiffened in response, then slowly relaxed as Dale's brotherly affection washed over me.  What kind of man would recognize on sight the sister-in-law he'd never met?  Would catch her snooping, but assume her intentions were pure?  My sister had clearly found a winner—too bad I was here to turn this kind-hearted man's son into a psychopath.
    "And you're Dale," I responded once he released me from the hug.  I could just make out the hint of a tear welling up in one of my brother-in-law's eyes, probably because my sister and I had a strong family resemblance.  Just thinking about Brooke made my own eyes tear up, so I swiped at them as I turned a more honest smile on Dale.  "I only just heard about Brooke," I continued, "and I couldn't stop myself from coming right away to meet you and Keith."
    Clearly I'd said the wrong thing.  For the first time, Dale's face became shadowed, and he paused for a minute before giving me the brushoff I'd been expecting, but for a different reason.  "I'm not sure now's a good time," Dale said, and I realized the unhappiness on my brother-in-law's face was for his son, not for the wife he'd lost a decade ago.  Unlike me, Dale would have had plenty of time to put Brooke's death behind him, but