In the Line of Duty Read Online Free Page A

not interested in me. At all.” Was that too much protesting? Goodness. She shook her head. Good thing her mother couldn’t see her.
    Jean made a little noise. “Too bad. Just don’t close yourself off from possibilities. Promise me, Callie. Maybe it’s not this man, but if one comes along, don’t hide from it.”
    “I’ve got the boys to think about,” she pointed out, slightly peeved that her mother didn’t focus on that. “I’m not going to risk upending their lives for—for a chance, Mom. For something that probably won’t even work out. That’s selfish and not fair to them. They’ve lost so much already.”
    “I know, honey.” Her mother’s voice was gentle. “You’re nothing if not responsible. But don’t you think it’d be good for them to see you happy?”
    Callie took a sharp breath. Her mother’s words hit her hard. “I’m happy. As happy as I can be, considering.”
    “Well, right. But like I said, they deserve to see you taken care of. They are going to want to take that on themselves in a few years. Do you want them to feel responsible for you, too? Shouldn’t they know it’s okay to be happy, too? It’s not like you’d cut Jason out of the picture. He’ll always be their father. Always. You being happy with another man doesn’t take that from them, or take away anything from Jason’s memory.”
    Those words struck deep. Callie sighed. While part of her knew her mother was right, part of her resisted it so hard because it was a step into the unknown. And it seemed silly as an adult to be afraid of the unknown. But she controlled what she could, and right now she kept everything as safe as she could for her little family. With as little risk to them as possible. Bringing in someone new—even Matt— ran the risk of upending everything and leaving them swinging in the breeze again if he should decide to leave. She’d been through the soul-sucking pain of loss already. She wasn’t risking going back to that.
    “I appreciate your concern,” she said carefully. “But I think I’ve got everything under control. I can’t make any promises about possibilities, Mom, but I will try. I think that’s all I can do right now.”
    There was the slightest of pauses. “Then that’s all I can ask for. I love you, honey. I just want what’s best for you.”
    “I love you, too,” Callie said. “And I know you do.” She hoped her mother wouldn’t push this, wouldn’t keep at her to pursue something she wasn’t in any way ready for. Wasn’t sure she’d ever be ready for.
    “I’ll let it go,” Jean said, in a voice that made it clear she didn’t want to, and Callie had to smile. “But I’m still hopeful, honey.”
    “You can be,” Callie said, because it would make her mom feel better.
    They said their goodbyes and hung up. Callie put the phone on the counter and sighed. She couldn’t very well tell the boys not to talk about Matt. They’d noticed him right away and they didn’t usually pick up on strangers like that. It unnerved her, especially given her own unwelcome attraction to him. It was like something in all of them recognized him in a way, on a level she didn’t want to examine too closely.
    Or it could just be as simple as the man had a dog and her boys wanted one, too.
    She laughed at herself as she pulled the chicken off the stove. She’d go with the latter, since they were little boys, and the possibility of anything else was far too uncomfortable.
    * * *
    More snow.
    Callie stared out the kitchen window the next morning at the white stuff blanketing the driveway. A good six inches rested on the railing of the porch. Snow in March wasn’t unheard of, but the weatherman hadn’t said there’d be measurable snow. And this was the thick, heavy stuff, not the light and fluffy lake effect they often got. She did quick calculations in her head. It’d take her a good twenty minutes to shovel the driveway. Another ten or so to do the sidewalk. And she had to be