Free In the Line of Duty by Ami Weaver

Eli’s voice startled her from her ridiculous musings.
    She sat up and smiled at him, holding out her arms for a hug. “I am. Thanks, honey.” As she drew her little boy in, she closed her eyes tight, wishing she could just shut the rest of the world out.
    * * *
    The next day, Matt kept his thoughts off Callie, but it took far more effort than it should have. His day was busy, but she still crept into his head when he didn’t expect it.
    “There’s a word my grandma used to use,” Marley said conversationally. “Woolgathering. For moments like right now, when it’s clear the person you’re talking to is off someplace far, far away, mentally.”
    Caught. Matt winced. “Sorry, Marley. I’ve just got—a lot on my mind.”
    “Of course you do,” she agreed. “But you’re not a woolgatherer. So it’s a woman, right? Your neighbor, Callie?”
    He was not discussing Callie with Marley. “I’m just tired and busy.” Both true, but Marley was spot-on with her assessment. Far too much so, in fact. So he’d be more careful not to wander off mentally and give himself away. But he still couldn’t seem to put Callie too far out of his mind.
    “Well, the next step is mooning over her.” She gave him a smug little smile. “I give you a week.”
    Matt tipped his chair back. “You’re pretty funny.” There was no way he’d moon over a woman. Ever. He’d never even gotten moony over Trina, and he’d been planning to marry her. Of course, she hadn’t been the type you got that way over. She wouldn’t have liked it.
    Neither would Callie. He dropped the chair back down. The last thing he wanted to do was scare her away. Not for his sake, but for what he hoped he could share with her boys. Jason’s boys.
    Yeah, Jason was really the focus here. Or should be.
    Marley snapped her fingers in front of his face. “There you go again. Boom, you’re gone. Is there something going on with Callie, Matt?”
    Annoyed, he rubbed his hands over his face. He couldn’t deny anything, which annoyed him further. “Marley. Drop it. Please.”
    She sighed. “Why does it have to be a bad thing?” Before he could answer, she held up her hands. “But okay. Consider it dropped.”
    “What’s dropped?” Brice stepped up behind his wife and kissed her neck.
    She reached behind her to pat his face. “The subject of Matt’s new woman, honey.”
    Matt groaned. Brice lifted his head and met Matt’s eyes, his own full of humor. “Ah. I see. Who’s the woman, Matt? Callie?”
    Hell. “No one. No woman.” Matt ground his teeth together as he stood up and moved around them.
    “Definitely Callie,” he heard Marley say triumphantly. “Nothing else would make him so touchy.”
    “Leave him alone, Mar,” came Brice’s amused reply.
    Matt went into his office and resisted the far-too-teenage urge to slam the door. Great. Just great. Marley was on the trail now and it’d be hell to get her off it. And Brice would let her pick at him, unless Matt said something. And then he’d get knowing looks from Brice, too. But it was still probably worth the trade-off.
    So he’d say something and hope his friend called his wife off the scent. Or maybe if he introduced Marley to Callie, she’d see there was nothing between them.
    But that was kind of playing right into her hands, wasn’t it?

CHAPTER SIX
    C ALLIE DIDN ’ T SEE Matt for the rest of the week. She caught glimpses of lights on in the house or saw his truck in the driveway, but Aldo didn’t show up once on her porch.
    She told herself she was relieved, not disappointed. At all.
    If she kept thinking it, it would be true. Right?
    Either way, she was packing for her kids’ overnight stay with Grandma and Grandpa tomorrow. Miracle of miracles, she’d gotten all the laundry done, so she could cross that off her weekend list.
    The TV in the living room was tuned to the evening news and the meteorologist was talking about some storms that were coming in off Lake Michigan. Not