Read Bear in the Rough: Bear Shifter Romance (Broken Hill Bears Book 1) for Free Online

I’ve bitten off way more than I can chew. I think it’s best if I don’t come with you.”
    Freya stared at Eloise and then at Marin, seeing her own confusion mirrored in Marin’s face. They were both thinking the same thing. Eloise was probably going to hate the hike. And it would probably be easier if she wasn’t there. There was a good chance she’d slow them down and make it harder for them to go right through to the end.
    “Eloise, are you sure about this?” Freya said gently. Eloise’s mouth turned down at the corners and tears sprang to her eyes.
    “Yes,” she said. “I don’t want to ruin it for you guys either by freaking out all the time or keeping you waiting.”
    “Don’t worry about us. You’ve got to think about what you need,” Marin said, taking Eloise’s hand. “We want you to come. Are you absolutely sure you’ve made the right decision?” Eloise nodded fast and screwed her napkin up in her fist.
    “Yes, I’m sure. I’ll stay with you all tonight and wave you off.  And when I get home, I’ll think about some other adventure I can undertake that won’t involve bears and caffeine deprivation.” She gave a burst of relieved laughter. “Okay, let’s have that beer we were talking about and toast you girls going off on your adventure!”
     
    They were all quiet during the rest of the meal and the journey home. But Freya’s brain was spinning with conflicted thoughts. Her first reaction when Eloise had said she wasn’t coming was relief. Relief that Eloise wasn’t going to ruin her big plan. It would be better for Marin too, she told herself. Marin had a lifelong dream to hike the trail. Imagine if she got part way through and they had to stop because Eloise couldn’t make it or something. She’d probably never go back and attempt it again. She had a feeling that the hike was one of those things that was so big that if you failed, that was it. No second chances.
    Back at the motel, they all took turns to use the bathroom. Eloise insisted on sleeping on the pullout sofa so that the other two could have a bed each.
    “It’s the last time you’ll be sleeping on a real bed for a while,” she insisted. They all climbed into their beds. It was a full two hours earlier than Freya usually went to bed, but she was beat. Her nerves were frazzled from all the adrenaline racing around her system. The thought that she’d wake up tomorrow and start a 3,000-mile hike was pretty terrifying. As she began to drift into unconsciousness, a fog of unease filtered into her thoughts. She was being unfair to Eloise, making out that her motivation for doing the hike wasn’t as strong as hers and Marin’s. Eloise needed this. Freya had sensed how miserable Eloise was with her life when they’d met at the school reunion. How much she hated herself for never finishing anything she started. And this would be just one more thing. She recalled the determination in her voice when she’d called her. She could help her. She’d spent the past few years being self-sufficient, not needing anything from anybody and not having anyone to look after. And that was how she’d wanted things to be. But she could go out on a limb and do something good for an old friend. She switched the light on and sat up.
    “Eloise, you’re hiking the trail with us,” she announced.
    “Huh?” Eloise mumbled, squinting in the bright light.
    “We’re not leaving you. You’re coming with us, and we’re going to get through this all together. We’ll take it slow, stay in motels as much as we can, and skip the worst parts, as I sure as hell don’t want to break a leg in the Sierra Nevada.”
    “What?” Eloise said, struggling to process Freya’s words.
    “You’re doing the hike,” Marin said, speaking very slowly.
    “I am?”
    “Yes!” Freya and Marin exclaimed in unison. Eloise looked from one to the other, her eyes wide and unfocused without her glasses on.
    “Okay!” she said, throwing her arms in the