A Perfect Holiday Fling by Farrah Rochon Read Free Book Online

with a group of kindergarteners with missing front teeth trying to sing Christmas carols has to be worth something, right?”
    After his sister caught her breath from laughing, they said their goodbyes and Stefan switched to his email. Being the last person on earth without a smart phone, he still had to wait until he got in front of a computer to check email. The first one he spotted was the reminder from the VA clinic about his upcoming appointment.
    Stefan leaned back in the chair and pinched his eyes shut, the anguish washing over him like a tidal wave as he considered what it would mean if he walked out of the VA clinic with the knowledge that he’d never fly a naval aircraft again. It had been his sole purpose in life from the age of eighteen, when he’d decided to piss off Lieutenant Cornel Morris Sutherland and join the Navy instead of the Army. It had been his way of getting back at his dad for being such a demanding, mean-spirited SOB to his wife and children.
    But Stefan’s career choice had soon become about more than getting under his dad’s skin. He’d found his true calling in the cockpit. He’d never imagined himself doing anything else.
    But what if he didn’t have a choice?
    Dustin’s proposal echoed in his head. If he could no longer command an aircraft, maybe the next best thing would be teaching others how to fly.
    The disruption a negative result from his upcoming doctor’s appointment would cause to his well-ordered life was enough to spawn an instant headache. Stefan massaged his temple with his free hand as the numerous adjustments he would be forced to make bandied about in his head.
    If he were to accept the flight instructor position Dustin had offered, he would probably have to give up his apartment in Virginia and relocate to this area permanently. Although, now that he thought about it, that prospect was looking more and more appealing. Not only would he be closer to his sister and nephew, but there was a certain sexy veterinarian who was making his time in Maplesville a hell of a lot more enjoyable.
    He would never base such a monumental decision on a couple of flirtatious encounters with a woman he’d just met, but Stefan had to admit that Callie Webber made the idea of relocating to this town a very attractive option.
     
     
    ***
     
     
    “And just how is my favorite dog in the whole wide world doing?” Callie sang as Grant Lewis, who had been her dad’s best friend, walked up to her table with Bo, his beagle.
    “Don’t say that too loud,” Grant said, kissing her cheek. “You’ll make the other dogs here jealous.” He hitched his head back toward the people lined up behind him, all awaiting a turn for a free checkup and vaccination for their pets.
    “Everyone in this town already knows that Bo is my favorite,” Callie teased.
    And everyone in town knew why.
    Bo was the only dog remaining of the litter that her childhood dog, Huck, had been born to. Huck had been her only source of comfort during those dark days following her parents’ accident. After crippling arthritis had forced her to have Huck euthanized, Callie had latched onto Bo as a surrogate, regarding him as the last link to her family.
    “He’s been doing okay?” Callie asked as she gave Bo several injections.
    “Been moving a bit slower, but old age will do that to you,” Grant said.
    “As if you would know. You move around like a twenty-year old.” She rubbed Bo’s underbelly and kissed him on the crown of his head. “This one here is all done. Take care of him, Grant, and tell Janice I said hello.”
    Grant nodded, gathering Bo from the table.
    Callie watched the two walk away, then turned to the line of people still waiting for vaccinations. She blew out a tired sigh. No matter how many times she and her former vet school classmate, Lacey Douglass, did this, Callie was always astounded at the amount of people they drew in.
    It had been Callie’s idea to set up the monthly events to provide free