Page 16 of Major Love

I pull my fluffy baby blue robe tighter around my body, hiding my pyjama shirt and shorts as I mull over what I should do.

I glance back down at the bank statement and a little crease appears on my brow when I notice the name of the person that Casey’s money was paid to.

Why on earth do I recognise that name…?

I stare at it for a few long moments before flicking my eyes to the emerald pines, tall and towering beyond Casey’s back porch, ready for the imminent snowfall.

And then it finally clicks.

It’s not the name of a person.

It’s the name of a place.

A place that’s been here forever in Phoenix Falls town square.

And I have no freaking idea what Casey would want to do with it.

I reread the name a thousand times before I finally drop the statement to the floor and begin tentatively sipping my steaming hot cocoa.

Why the heck wouldCaseybuy abar?

I glance around Casey’s rustic living room, looking for more clues about what he was secretly up to before he left for deployment all those months ago.

I slide my eyes to the mail by his door and get to my feet, padding quietly across the rug.

I lean down and collect the rest of the envelopes, my intrigue growing as I check the names of the senders.

I turn one of the envelopes over, even more confused than I was ten seconds ago.

Real-estate mail? Why would Casey want to receive information about houses that are up for sale in Phoenix Falls?

There’s no way that he’d sell his man-cave and, even if he did, that would only be if he was moving into Haven’s craftsman permanently.

I blink down at the mail in my hand and suddenly another thought pops into my mind.

Because there might be one other reason why Casey would be getting involved in new ventures.

If he was finally thinking about leaving the Army.

I drop the mail to the mat and blink unseeingly at the warm fireplace.

If Casey was thinking about retiring from the military, there’s only one reason why he wouldn’t tell me. And that’s if he wasn’t one-hundred percent sure about his decision yet.

Or, even more heart-wrenchingly, he might be feeling guilty about the idea of leaving, even though he’s been serving for almost two decades of his life.

He’s spent more timeinthe Army than out of it, and maybe he thinks it’s time to come home for good.

And maybe I can help him.

I can use my Nashville-expertise to check out the bar that Casey’s bought and help him turn it into something beautiful, so that it’s ready for when he gets home.

So that his new life is already patiently waiting for him.

A grand gesture that says ‘I’m here for you’without even needing to say the words.

I bite my lip to hide my smile. A secret mission of my own.

I give my ponytail a little swish, invigorated by the idea of helping my selfless older brother, and I pad over to the kitchen so that I can grab some food from the grocery haul I did yesterday. Without the keys to Casey’s truck I had to catch a cab into town, but there’s no way that I’ll be making that a regular thing when I know his keys are probably right in front of me.

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