Falling for Her Soldier by Ophelia London Read Free Book Online Page A

this way?”
    “We don’t know,” Tess answered. “Maybe. It’s farther from the high school but closer to Jenna. Plus, we need to upsize.” She rubbed her belly.
    Jenna. Sometimes Charlie forgot that Jack had been married before and had a daughter. He shared custody with his ex. Jenna was maybe five or six years old. Or nine? He had no idea; he wasn’t any good at guessing kids’ ages. She was a cute little tyke, but Charlie never knew what to say to her, or to any kid. They were so…small. He was hoping he’d feel a real connection with his future niece or nephew.
    “Huh, really?” he offered. “That’s cool.”
    “We haven’t found anything,” Tess said. “Still looking. But it would be nice to get this out of the way. Football season started, and I already feel like a single mother.”
    Jack leaned over and kissed her. “Just try to keep me away from you.”
    When the doorbell rang, Charlie went to answer.
    “That’s the food.” Jack leapt to his feet. “I’ll take care of it.”
    Charlie stepped to the side and let his brother-in-law hustle by. He peered over his shoulder at Tess, wondering what was up.
    “We invited you,” she explained, as Charlie wandered back to the couch. “He’s all stressed about the kid, being a provider and all that jazz.” She patted her belly.
    “You know me, Tessa, I’ve never turned down a free meal.” Charlie helped her up, and they walked to the kitchen where Jack was unloading a brown paper bag of Chinese takeout cartons. “Thanks for this.”
    “You’re welcome.”
    “Where are your plates?” Tess asked. “Do you have plates? And I don’t mean paper.”
    Charlie pointed toward one of the cabinets. He did have plates—non-paper, though they were seldom used. In fact, they might have been Tess’s old ones from before she was married, or maybe they were his parents’ before they retired and moved. He couldn’t remember where he’d inherited them from.
    “So, what’s new in your world?” Charlie asked Jack. “When’s the next game?”
    “Thursday.”
    “How’s the team? Anyone poised to break my passing record?”
    “Your stats are safe,” Jack reported. “I have a few promising kids this season, though. We’ll see.”
    “How much time off are you taking for the baby?” Charlie asked Tess as he scooped noodles onto her plate. “Do you have a sub to cover your music classes?”
    “The woman who used to own the school will teach for me,” Tess said, licking a finger. “I’m thinking of taking about a month off.”
    “At least three,” Jack inserted.
    “Okay, maybe three. It’s not like my job is all that grueling.”
    “Babe, you can’t exactly have a newborn with you while you teach a violin class.”
    “It’s a viola.”
    Charlie couldn’t help smiling. If he ever did settle down and get married, he hoped he had a relationship like Tess and Jack’s. They really were best friends, and it was clear to the world just how much Jack cherished her. He treated her like a queen. Charlie wondered if anyone would label him as treating a woman that well. Knowing the answer, he pressed the heel of his hand to his chest, feeling a little like his heart had just shriveled.
    “Anyway,” he said, pushing back a chair and sitting at the table. “What else is going on?”
    “Mac’s engaged.”
    Charlie lowered his chopsticks and grinned. “No way.” He looked at Jack. “Why didn’t Rick say anything about it this morning when we were playing hockey?”
    Jack shrugged and took a bite of broccoli.
    “So, Rick finally popped the question,” Charlie said. “That’s huge news.”
    “Actually, Mac did the popping,” Tess corrected. “I guess she was tired of waiting.”
    Charlie laughed. “Sounds like Mackenzie.”
    “She already has me doing maid of honor stuff.” Tess stabbed an egg roll. “Best friend or no best friend, she knows I’m off the hook once this bundle arrives. I think she’s trying to push me into early