Page 9 of Home Team Advantage
She spent most of the morning familiarizing herself with the house, where things were, what she wanted to tackle first. The house didn’t require much in the way of cleaning, not on the surface level at least, but she could see where some deeper scrubbing was required.
Ears open and alert in case Mrs. Campbell needed something, Anna did some dusting, ran the vacuum, and swept the areas with hardwood flooring with a dust mop.
She made a light, healthy lunch, then shared tea and a rousing game of Scrabble with Mrs. Campbell. The elderly woman said she liked to play games every day in an attempt to stave off age-related mental decline as much as possible.
Afterward, Mrs. Campbell dozed off while reading, and Anna found quiet ways to occupy herself. She cleaned out the refrigerator and started on the cupboards, keeping a running list of what they had and what they needed.
Then dinner with pleasant conversation, which involved Elsa telling stories about Pine Ridge and the people in the neighborhood, before retiring for the evening.
As Anna lay in bed later that night, she couldn’t believe things had worked out so well. Elsa was a lovely lady and a wonderful boss. The job was laid-back and easy. Lots of downtime. So much better than what she would have had to deal with at that other place.
Too good, in fact. Something had to go wrong soon. It always did.
And when it does, Anna said to herself, I’ll deal with it.
Chapter Six
MATT
It was good to be home. To be surrounded by people who had been such an integral part of his life.
Matt had been hugged and kissed. Plied with a veritable feast of his favorite foods. Touched and teased and hugged and kissed some more. He received a steady stream of updates on people and places and things, told with great enthusiasm. At some point, he stopped trying to keep up and sat back, soaking it all in. So much had happened that the few years he’d been away felt more like a lifetime.
The next generation of Callaghans was coming of age, and he was somewhere in the middle. Too young to be part of the older generation. Too old to be included among the young. It was a weird place to be. Although Kieran did mention a newly discovered cousin who was around Matt’s age, give or take a few years. That was something.
He could look up some of his old friends while he was in town, too, but that didn’t hold much appeal. They’d lost touch when they went their separate ways after graduation, and there didn’t seem much point in rekindling old friendships now. Same with old girlfriends, although there was a whole other level of not going there with that. After the things he’d seen, the things he’d had to do, he was going to be as celibate as Father Francis this summer.
As the initial excitement waned to something less frenetic but no less warm, Kieran skillfully ushered the others off for baths, homework, and nightly bedtime routines. Matt found himself alone with his mother, sitting before the glow of the fireplace—one of those upgrades they’d made over the years. The peace, the normalcy of it, was a welcome, if temporary, break.
Faith sat on the sofa with her legs tucked up beneath her, a mug of hot cocoa in her hands. She still looked young for her age. When Matt had been fourteen and she’d been twenty-nine, they’d often be mistaken for brother and sister instead of mother and son. They probably still could.
“How are you really?” Faith asked. Her gray eyes, the same ones he’d inherited, held so much understanding and knowledge that it made his chest constrict. She didn’t know exactly what his job entailed, but she was a smart woman, and she could always see through his bullshit.
“I’m okay,” he assured her, sipping his Macallan 18—which was, admittedly, a nice perk of being a part of a family that owned an Irish pub.
She dropped her gaze to her cocoa, as if she knew that the truth was so much more complicated than that, but also knew that he could say nothing more. Matt wondered if Kieran had prepped her with gentle reminders not to ask for specifics. As a former SEAL, Kieran knew he wouldn’t be able to answer her questions.
She nodded. “I know you just got here, but … have you given any thought to what comes next?”
He’d been waiting for the question.
“Quite a lot,” he said honestly.
“And?” she prompted softly when he said nothing.
“I’m considering my options,” he said carefully. He only had two—stay or go. He could walk away from the military and reenter civilian life. Or he could accept the offer that had been extended to him and likely never see his family again.
On the surface, it seemed like a no-brainer, but it wasn’t that easy. He wasn’t the same wet-behind-the-ears kid who had left Pine Ridge and enlisted. He loved his family and had missed the idyllic valley that had become his home, but the truth was, he wasn’t sure if he belonged anymore.
What would he do if he stayed? Work at BodyWorks with Kieran? Tend bar at the pub?
Yeah, he had skills, but none that were likely to be of use in Pine Ridge.
The truth was, he didn’t think he could walk away from the service even if he wanted to. He liked what he did. Craved the adrenaline that came with a mission. The sense of purpose that came from achieving an objective. The absolute rush of knowing he was one of the best in a very elite, very specialized group. He couldn’t comprehend how anyone could go from life in the special forces back to a mundane existence and not lose their mind.
He couldn’t share any of that with his mother though. It would break her heart.
He gave her the most honest answer he could. “Now, I’m going to do what I’ve been dreaming of for the last two years. I’m going to sleep in a soft bed, spend time with my family, and gorge myself on your phenomenal cooking.”
