Free This Time by Kristin Leigh

to go. The nurse is due to come in anytime.”
    “Okay. I guess I’ll talk to you later then.” Tara clenched the phone and pressed it hard against her ear. On one hand, she wanted to continue their conversation, hear his voice just a few more minutes. On the other hand, she wished he hadn’t called at all. It was ridiculously confusing.
    “Bye Tara.”
    The phone clicked and she replaced it on its charger. How did he get my number? Tara hadn’t thought to ask, but her home number was listed, so it was possible Mike had just looked it up online or called information.
    Conflicted, she went in the kitchen and turned on the faucet to fill her coffee pot. She poured in the water and measured out the coffee grounds on autopilot. Tara knew Michael’s parents had been killed when he was young, and he’d been raised by an elderly grandmother. If he didn’t have anyone else, that meant his grandmother had passed away. He really was alone. The SEAL team would support him and remain in touch, but Michael wouldn’t be a part of it anymore. Other than that, he probably didn’t have anyone he considered a close enough friend to warrant a move to their location.
    Since he was talking to her, Tara assumed there hadn’t even been a girlfriend left behind. If there had been a girlfriend, she was either out of the picture or the biggest bitch in the world since he’d said more than once he had no one else to talk to. Not to mention he wanted them to try again as a couple. Michael was a lot of things but not a cheater.
    He’s going to want something. Especially after you practically told him last night that you did too.
    Did she want something else from Michael besides a weekend father for Maddie? The coffeemaker dinged, indicating that her morning fuel was ready for consumption. Tara absently poured herself a cup and liberally added creamer. She wasn’t worried about a relationship developing between him and Madelynn. Maddie was an amiable little girl, and Tara didn’t think there would be a problem with a bond forming after a while. The problem, she mused, was that she might also form a bond. Michael may be a changed man, but was it even possible for her to move beyond the past? Would Tara ever be able to watch Maddie and Michael together and not remember that he hadn’t even acknowledged Maddie’s existence? Would she be able to take a chance that he wouldn’t revert back to his old ways once he was more adjusted and less fragile?
    Tara had seen men in her father’s units with major injuries. She knew they were vulnerable for sometimes years afterward. Would Michael gradually adjust and years down the road change his mind about wanting to have a family? It was possible he’d truly changed and that he would live the rest of his life without ever going back to the way he was. But was that a chance Tara was willing to take? She sipped her coffee thoughtfully. Sighing, she walked into the living room, sat on the couch, and turned on the news.
    Tara couldn’t make a judgment call yet. It wouldn’t be fair to anyone. Once Michael had been around for a while, she would decide whether or not he was safe to get involved with. Tara sipped her coffee, trying not to burn her tongue. She closed her eyes and leaned back, trying to wipe her mind. She wanted to relax and have a conflict-free day, and she couldn’t do that if she was thinking about Michael. So Tara banished him from her thoughts as she turned her attention to the television.
    Melinda brought Madelynn home around five o’clock that afternoon. Tara admitted grudgingly that she had specified after church but not how soon after church. Melinda handed Tara a bag from KFC as she came in the door. Madelynn trudged back to her room, mumbling something about how she’d rather spend the week at Grandma’s than go to school.
    “I brought dinner for you guys. I’ve got to get back home, though. Your dad will eat a sandwich for dinner if I don’t take him something, and then