Free Shaxoa's Gift by DelSheree Gladden Page A

only played baseball once before high school,
when he was twelve years old. Bigger than most of the other kids
his age, even then, the shirt looked like it would fit me.
    Pulling it over my head, I smiled. The
sleeves were too short, but it looked as if it had been designed
that way. Uriah might have a hard time getting this back from me, I
thought. How long would it be before he came back for it? That
question forced my smile to turn down and disappear. Could I last
long enough to have his gentle hands run down my cheek again?
Refusing to dwell on such doubts, I forced the smile back onto my
lips. He would be back, and he would love that I raided his
closet.
    Tucking the photo album I had slept with
under Uriah’s pillow, I was at last ready to leave the room. In a
better mood than I had any right to be, I hurried into the living
room. Uriah’s mother was propped up in an armchair going through a
stack of mail. Lina looked up at my arrival with a sweet smile. Her
eyes looked weary. I doubted she had slept any better than I had
last night.
    “Good afternoon, sleepy head,” Sophia said
when she stepped into the room. “I was beginning to wonder if you
were ever going to wake up.”
    Afternoon? “Is it that late?” I asked.
    Lina threw a withering look at Sophia before
answering. “It’s one o’clock, Claire, but don’t worry about it for
a second. You’ve been through a lot and needed the rest. I’m sure
Sophia has something for you to eat in the kitchen if you’re
hungry.”
    “Sorry,” I said, “I didn’t mean to sleep so
late.”
    “There’s a mutton sandwich on the table for
you,” Sophia said, her voice much softer than usual.
    “Has Uriah called at all?” I asked
quietly.
    Lina’s lips pursed and her fingers seemed to
falter. “No,” she said, “not yet.”
    “He’ll call when and if he’s able,” Sophia
said. Her stern expression made me wonder whether she had already
had the same discussion with Uriah’s mother before I came into the
room.
    Lina’s face hardened as she fought to control
her emotions. I wasn’t nearly so disciplined. Tears sprang to my
eyes. Given his strange departure, I hadn’t really expected Uriah
to want to speak with me right away. I knew I had hurt him badly by
admitting that I might not be strong enough to resist the Twin Soul
bond. I had been hoping that he would at least stay in contact with
his mother, though.
    Sophia’s firm hand grasped my shoulder.
“Uriah has something important to do right now. It’s better if he
stays focused. He’ll be home sooner if he does.”
    I nodded. Sophia was right as usual. My
whining would only keep Uriah from doing whatever he believed he
had to do. I just hoped that he wouldn’t leave me to fight alone
for too long. I needed his strength. Sophia’s hand fell away from
my shoulder and gestured toward the kitchen.
    Food. I should have been ravenous, but hunger
was only a dull thought lost somewhere behind the longing desire
for Uriah and the awful pull of the Twin Soul bond. Still, my body
needed something. Managing an appreciative smile, I walked into the
kitchen. A hearty sandwich sat waiting for me on the table.
    I hardly tasted the meal as I ate. I knew
that both Lina and Sophia were talented chefs, and I felt bad that
their efforts were going to waste on me. I ate the meal quickly and
was back in the living room after a few short minutes. I hadn’t
forgotten my promise to help out wherever needed. I walked up to
Uriah’s mother, my footsteps alerting her to my presence. She
looked up at me with an expectant smile.
    “Lina, is there anything I can do for you?” I
asked, trying out her first name as she had requested. It felt
strange on my lips, but her smile lightened my spirit.
    “You really don’t need to worry about doing
anything, Claire. It’s been a rough couple of days. Why don’t you
just sit down and relax for a while?”
    Normally, relaxing would have sounded
wonderful. Normally, Uriah would have