A Time for Home: A Snowberry Creek Novel by Alexis Morgan Read Free Book Online

day.
    Perhaps it was cowardly of her, but she preferred to remember her friend as she’d last seen him. She didn’t want the image of what had really happened to Spence burned into her memory for all time. It was bad enough to know he’d died on the other side of the world. With some effort, she dragged her mind back to the moment at hand. She paused to listen. Was that the lawn mower running? It sure sounded like it.
    She took her purse inside the house and grabbed a couple of bottles of cold water from the fridge before heading next door to investigate. The noise grew louder the closer she got to Spence’s place. Sure enough, she spotted Nick muscling the old lawn mower through the knee-high grass in the front yard.
    Whoa, mama! If he’d looked good that morning in running shorts and a T-shirt, it was nothing to how the man looked without his shirt on, his tanned skin gleaming in the afternoon sun. Rather than trying to outshout the mower, she’d wait in the shade of the trees until he turned back in her direction before trying to catch his attention.
    Mooch, on the other hand, was already heading straight for her at a dead run. She knelt down and braced herself for some serious doggy love. It had been years since she’d had a pet in her life because she moved around too often for it to be practical. Even so, it would take a harder heart than her own to resist a sweetie like Mooch.
    After all, the dog was a real-life war hero. Spence had told her all about how the dog had warned his unit about a shooter lying in wait for them. No one knew why a stray would single them out to help, but he had. Not only that, but Mooch had gotten shot in the process. His thick fur covered the resulting scar, but she could still feel it.
    “Hi, Mooch. Why don’t we go over and sit on the steps while your owner slaves away in the sun?”
    Almost as if he’d understood her, the dog immediately bolted for the shade offered by the porch, circling back a few seconds later to make sure Callie knew to follow him. She laughed at his antics. “Go ahead. I’ll be along in a second.”
    Before she’d gone two steps, there was a loud clunking noise from the mower. A second later, the engine died with a loud bang and a huge puff of oily smoke. She watched in horror as Nick screamed, “Fuck no! Incoming! Everybody down!” as he dove for the ground. Mooch charged out into the yard to stand guard over Nick as he lay there covering his head with his arms. The dog’s ruff was up as he growled at the poor lawn mower.
    Oh, God, the two of them were reacting to the small explosion just as they would have back in Afghanistan. Sensing neither of them would much appreciate having an audience, Callie quickly retreated back down the path toward her parents’ house, not sure what to do next. Maybe the smart thing would be to return home and pretend none of this had happened at all.
    But was Nick all right? The only way to find out was to check on him. She couldn’t very well leave him lying there alone and maybe hurt. Slowly, she inched down the path, listening for any sign that he was back up on his feet. Her patience was rewarded a few seconds later when Nick cut loose with a long string of colorful curse words. Feeling only marginally better about the situation, she counted off a few more seconds, intending to stroll back into the yard as if she’d just then arrived.
    “You can come back, Callie. I’m done making a fool of myself. For now, anyway.”
    So much for her crafty plan. The dark thread of temper in Nick’s voice made her even more reluctant to face him right now. She took a quick breath and walked forward, aiming for a calm she certainly wasn’t feeling.
    There’d been two occasions when Spence had clearly overreacted to a loud sound when he’d been home on leave. The loss of control had both embarrassed and infuriated him. Each time it had happened, he’d stormed off all wild-eyed and angry. He’d stayed gone for hours, until he