AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"It certainly has,” her mum agreed, looking a lot more relaxed. “Evie, I like that you're no longer working at that demanding agency. You finally have time to come for weekly family dinners. We love seeing more of you."
"Me too," Eve said, glancing across the table. It didn't escape her notice that the only one who said nothing of the sort was Jack. It made her wish that she knew what her brother's problem was but whenever she mentioned it to Charlie, she was met with a wall.
Her dad helped himself to more gravy. “How are you liking working at the garage?”
“Don’t get me started on the garage. Your accounts are out of date, the offices upstairs are filthy, your bookkeeping is non-existent. I’m honestly shocked,” Evie listed off. And those were only the things she could remember off the top of her head.
A cheeky grin appeared on her dad’s face. “So you’re enjoying yourself then?”
“Well, yes,” Eve had to admit. “But just because I like sorting out this kind of thing doesn’t mean that you can keep running your business like this.”
“We knew you’d be an asset to the garage,” her mother said affectionately. “And don’t be too harsh with your dad, it’s been a very busy few years with all my medical stuff. But we’ve had a good talk and we’ve decided we can’t stay here. We love this house, it has so many great memories, but it’s impossible to navigate in my wheelchair. And the doctors are pretty certain my mobility is only going to get worse with the years.”
Eve groaned. “I’m sorry about the wheelchair, but really, mum? You waited until I was fired from my real estate job to start house hunting? I have suggested so many great places over the years.”
“We just weren’t ready before, Evie. Now we are. But if you can’t help us, my friend’s son is also in real estate—”
“Oh, don’t be ridiculous. Of course, I’m going to help find you a house. It’s what I do best,” Eve said, trying her best to keep her eyes from rolling out of their sockets. Some days, it felt like she was the adult and her parents the children.
Her dad smiled. “That’s what we like to hear. While we’re on the topic, a friend of mine is looking to sell their houseboat. Is that something you would do?”
“I don’t know anything about boats but I have a friend who does.”
“Great. Oh, and wasn’t Charlie looking for a new place?” her dad said, his question mostly directed towards Jack.
“You know what I’ve always wondered? What’s Charlie short for?” her mum chimed in.
“It’s short for Charlise,” Eve blurted out.
Her brother glared at. “And how do you know that? She doesn’t like telling new people her full name.”
Eve fiddled with her earring. “Umm… I, umm, I saw it somewhere when I was sorting out records at the garage. I didn’t realise it was a secret.”
“It’s not.” Jack stared for a little longer before he let his discerning gaze lapse.
Eve sure hoped she hadn’t accidentally revealed something major.
To her relief, her dad changed the topic. “It’s almost a crescent moon again. Are either of you two going to the Lake? The first week of winter is a great time to find your fated mate. That’s when your mum and I met.”
“Maybe, I don’t know.” Eve shrugged as casually as she could. She’d done her best not to think too much about fated mates and all that stuff while she was still getting to know Charlie. While some people refused to date someone unless they were sure about their fated-mate status, Eve wasn’t all that picky. As bearkin, there was a good chance she didn’t even have a mate.
“What about you, Jack?” her mum asked.
“Yeah, I’m going,” he said between bites of mash. “I’m going with Charlie.”
Eve almost dropped her fork. “Charlie is going to the lake? The lake of fate? Crescent Lake?”
Jack gave her another strange look. “Yeah, what other lake would I be talking about?”
Unease bubbled up in Eve’s gut as she processed the new information. She didn’t know what to make of the fact that Charlie was going out of her way to find her fated mate or why she hadn’t mentioned it any of the times they’d been together.
Secrets weren’t that fun when she wasn’t part of them, Eve thought.
She shot a sly glance at her brother. “Is that something you do regularly, like as friends, or…?”
“No, we’ve only gone together a few times. Charlie’s not really the romantic type. She mostly just chases after pretty faces,” Jack said.
Eve fought the worry welling up in her. “That’s… good to know.”
