Bearing The Long Road Home (Ice Bear Shifters 7) Read Free Page B

couch and closed his eyes. If he left for three months, he would miss seeing Neal’s infant son, Grant, every day. Seth loved the children of the clan, and nothing cheered him up like their innocent little giggles. But even those giggles weren’t enough to chase away the bitter darkness in his heart. Seth needed space. He knew James had taken a weeklong vacation to Montana for similar reasons, but Seth needed more than a week. He wanted a few months, at least, to forget about the trauma of the past.
    Neal came out into the living room, wiping his hands with a baby wipe and scrunching up his nose in disgust.
    “I don’t understand how it’s possible for such a small human to make such a huge amount of poop,” Neal said. “I mean, seriously, where is he keeping it all in that tiny little body of his?”
    Seth laughed. “Well, there’s one reason I can be thankful I don’t have any cubs, I guess.”
    Neal smiled. “Of course, Grant is worth it. But, yeah, I’ll be glad when the poopsplosion days are over, that’s for sure.”
    Neal tossed the wipe into the trash can. “Thanks for chopping all that firewood, by the way. I can’t believe how much you got done. I think now we’re set on firewood until February.”
    “No problem,” Seth said. “I enjoy the physical challenge, although I’m sure my arms are going to be sore tomorrow.”
    “So what brings you over?” Neal asked.
    Seth took a deep breath. “I’ve had an opportunity come up that I really want to take, but it requires me being gone for three months. I wanted to ask for your permission and blessing before I leave.”
    Neal frowned. “You know you don’t have to ask me permission for every little thing. I’m a leader, not a dictator. What’s the opportunity?”
    Seth breathed a little sigh of relief. Even after two years, he still had trouble not seeing Neal as the same sort of alpha that the alpha of his old clan had been. The Frozen Claws alpha had ruled with an iron fist, strictly enforcing a long list of rules that were designed to keep his shifters in line. One of those rules had been that a shifter was not allowed to be away from the clan for more than two days unless he or she got explicit permission from the alpha. Neal didn’t have any strict rules like this. Neal wanted to know where his shifters were so that he knew they were safe, but he didn’t try to tell them how to live their lives. Still, asking permission for everything had been a hard habit for Seth to break.
    “It’s an ice-road trucking job,” Seth said. “I’d be hauling supplies across frozen ice roads from January to March, and getting paid a ton of money to do it.”
    Neal frowned again. “Do you need money?”
    “Well, not really. You guys have taken great care of me. But I’d like to contribute to the clan by getting my own job as well.”
    “Look, if this is a job you think you’ll enjoy, then, of course, go for it. But don’t feel like you need a paying job to make a contribution to the clan. You do a ton of work around here. I mean, you just spent an entire day chopping firewood for us, for example. Just because it’s not a formal job doesn’t mean it’s not helping the clan.”
    “I know,” Seth said. “But I still would like to try my hand at this. It sounds like it would be a fun adventure. And, besides, it would be nice to have a change of scenery for a bit.”
    “What, are you tired of looking at my handsome face already?” Neal joked.
    Seth laughed, but then his expression turned serious. “It’s just that there are a lot of bad memories around here for me.”
    Neal stroked his chin thoughtfully. After several moments of silence, he finally spoke. “If there’s one thing I’ve learned, Seth, it’s that you can’t outrun the demons of your past. You have to face them head on if you truly want to move forward with your life. I won’t stop you from taking the job, if it’s what you want to do. But I will tell you that it’s going to