Lib Novel Page 20
He just huffs and closes his eyes.
I make my way to the front door and knock. “Mrs. Brown? Are you home?”
Moments later, I hear a clatter, and a voice calls out, “The door’s open.”
Rita Brown is a sweet woman in her early seventies. She moved here when her husband died a few years back. Not every wolf shifter mates their partner. Quite a lot of them opt for the human version of mating: marriage. Most of the shifters who do this do it in the hopes that, perhaps, at some point down the line, they might come across their fated mate.
I find the concept a little cruel. Why would you string somebody along for so many years and then abandon them the minute you find the person you are meant to be with? Every shifter has a fated mate, but because of the wars that led to the creation of the three Alliances, not everybody gets to meet theirs. Once two shifters give each other the mating mark, any link they ever had to their fated mate is instantly broken. That is why some shifters prefer to get married.
One of the benefits of human marriage is if one of the shifters passes away, the other isn’t physically affected by the death. They may be upset and grieve, but they don’t lose the will to live, as is common among mated couples. One of the only reasons Drew survived his mate’s murder was because of his desire to care for his son.
Rita’s husband died in an attack at the South Alliance’s border. She was not left unscathed in the same attack, having lost one of her legs. That makes it harder for her to go into town to do things such as shop for groceries. I’ve been helping her with errands like that ever since she moved here.
“There you are, Sophia.” Rita beams at me, using her crutch to get to her feet. “I was wondering when you would come by. Care for some coffee?”
“Sure,” I reply, smiling back at her. “I can make it.”
“Nonsense.” Rita heads into the kitchen, and I trail after her. “I can do it. Let’s have it outside. The weather’s quite nice today.”
Despite having just one leg, Rita is fiercely dependent. She does make trips into town, but not all that often. Every two weeks or so, she comes to have dinner at the bar and catch up with the few friends she’s made in Oakrest.
“I got you some fruit and basic essentials,” I tell her as I put away her groceries. “I also found some packets of lentils and picked up a few. I know you like your lentil soup.”
“You’re a peach.” Rita puts the coffee beans in the grinder. “Do you mind pulling some weeds from around the gate, dear? My knee is giving me a little trouble, and I don’t want my flowers to die out.”
“Sure,” I sigh.
She always kicks me out of the kitchen when she’s making her special coffee. If it’s not one excuse, it’s another. The coffee she makes is the best I’ve ever had. Whatever her recipe is, the problem is that she won’t share it with anyone. I always look forward to my visits here, just for the coffee.
“I’ll be out soon. And then you can tell me all the gossip in town.”
Rita has a grandmotherly air about her. Aside from Elsa and Drew, she’s one of the few people I genuinely like. She never talks about her husband, and there are no photographs of him in the cottage. I’ve never asked her about him, as it is apparently a sensitive topic.
I head outside and take care of the weeds. Then, using the rake, I gather the debris and put it in a bag, leaving it outside the gate for the trash collectors to pick up.
As I come back into the yard, I hear the familiar squeaking of the wheels on the cart that Rita uses to carry her food. She’s exiting the front door; I don’t offer to help her, knowing she doesn’t like it. Instead, I wait for her to reach the patio table and chairs before pulling one out for her.
She sits down with a mug of coffee and a heavy sigh. “I do love company.”
I pick up the other mug from the cart and sip it, closing my eyes as I savor the taste.
“So, I heard you got in a little altercation with Freddy.”
My eyes fly open, and I look at Rita. “How does Elsa have time to gossip with you? Isn’t she too busy running a business?”
“Oh, my dear,” Rita chuckles. “One always has time to gossip. She was worried about you. How are you doing?”
“I’m fine,” I reassure her. “I’ll be back to work tomorrow.”
“I see.” Rita sips her coffee, her eyes on me. “What else is going on in your life? Anything interesting?”
My lips curve. “You know how boring my life is, Rita. What could possibly be going on?”
Rita leans back in her chair, a wistful smile on her face. “I don’t know. Small towns are so dreadfully boring. It’s the same people every day. I miss city life.”
“You lived in a city?” I ask curiously. “I didn’t know that.”
“There are a lot of things you don’t know about me, Sophia.” Rita gives me a mysterious wink. When I open my mouth, she lifts her hand. “But I don’t want to talk about myself today. Tell me something new that’s going on in town. Anything. Sometimes I feel like I’ll burst out of boredom.”