Read A Time for Home: A Snowberry Creek Novel for Free Online Page A

vocabulary, but then English was his second language. He’d mastered all the important words, though, and knew what “run” meant. Before Nick could stop him, Mooch was heading down the driveway.
    “Mooch! Let me get my shoes on first!”
    He paused to see if the dog had listened to him before ducking back inside long enough to change into running shorts. He waited until he was back outside to put on his shoes to make sure Mooch hadn’t gotten tired of waiting and taken off on his own.
    He also brought the leash he’d bought for Mooch, another word the dog now knew and hated. Mooch had grown up wandering free on the streets of Afghanistan and had yet to adjust to the trappings of civilization, in particular collars and leashes.
    “Come on, boy. You know the rules.”
    Mooch came slinking over to cower at Nick’s feet. “Aw, dog, I’m not mad at you, but rules are rules. When we’re here in the yard, you can run loose. Out there on the road, we’ve got to at least pretend to be like everyone else.”
    He clipped on the leash. “Let’s go.”
    Resigned to his fate, Mooch charged ahead, pulling the retractable leash out to its limit before slowing to match the pace Nick set for them.
    At the end of the driveway, Nick pulled up to decide which way to go. Finally, he turned in the direction of Snowberry Creek. Spence had talked about his hometown a lot, and Nick wanted to see how well his mental image of the place matched up with the real thing.
    He’d gone maybe half a mile before he passed another house, but after that it was clear he’d reached the outskirts of town. He reeled Mooch in closer as they turned right at a sign pointing to the business district.
    As the two of them pounded down the sidewalk, he made note of the various businesses they passed. Although a bit smaller than his own hometown, Snowberry Creek possessed at least two coffee shops. The closest one, Something’s Brewing, promised fresh-baked muffins and pastries. The scent of roasting coffee and cinnamon had him wishing he’d brought his wallet.
    “We’ll stop there next time, Mooch.”
    If there was a next time. He’d yet to decide how long he’d be staying in the area. He shouldn’t delay asking Callie about Mooch any longer than necessary. She might need to think about it. And if she couldn’t take the dog, then Nick would need the time to make other arrangements for him. He had a limited amount of time before he had to let the army know his decision about reenlisting.
    A lot also depended on how well his arm healed up. He fought the automatic urge to rub his biceps, knowing the pain was mostly in his head now.
    “Time to head back, Mooch.”
    The dog obligingly turned back at the first tug on his leash. As they started back through town, a car going in the opposite direction slowed down and stopped. Even if he hadn’t recognized Callie, Mooch’s reaction would have told him who it was.
    He checked for traffic and trotted across the road to where she’d stopped her car. Mooch immediately put his paws on the door, wiggling with excitement in hopes of getting petted.
    Callie obligingly reached down to scratch his head. The damn mutt acted as if he’d been neglected his whole life until that very moment. Of course, that might just be Nick’s jealousy talking. At least she shared her smile with him, too.
    “You two are ambitious for your first day in town. Makes me feel guilty for driving such a short distance.”
    He tugged Mooch back down beside his feet. “It’s the first chance we’ve had for a good run in almost a week. Don’t want either of us to get fat and lazy.”
    Callie gave them both a good looking over. “I don’t see that happening anytime soon.”
    He wasn’t sure how to respond to that, so he changed the subject. “There’s something I meant to ask you last night. Where’s the closest grocery store?”
    She pointed behind him. “Mr. Hanson’s grocery is a block back that way. If you need more than a few