The Soldier's Unexpected Family by Tanya Agler

Author:Tanya Agler
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2020-12-11T16:38:39+00:00

CHAPTER ELEVEN

AIDAN LEANED BACK against the Harrisons’ old gray shed, soaking in every detail. Carl and Diane sat in the distance with a photo album, showing off pictures of their wedding day. A few feet away, Natalie laughed with a group of people, her face animated with good humor as her hands moved along with the story she was telling.

A man in a black T-shirt, Natalie’s brother and the sheriff, approached him with two bowls. “Do you like banana pudding?”

Aidan hadn’t consumed pudding since his wisdom teeth removal. The sheer memory brought a shudder. “Gave it up a while back.”

“You haven’t tried my grandmother’s recipe.” Mike shoved one of the disposable bowls with a plastic spoon toward Aidan. “If you don’t like it, you won’t hurt my feelings, unlike my sister, who wears her heart on her sleeve.”

Aidan stiffened his spine and accepted the proffered bowl. “Thanks.” He swirled the whipped cream into the rest of the mixture and forced a smile.

“I wasn’t always the smart man you see before you today,” Mike said.

Self-deprecating humor. Relatable and approachable, Mike was the type of person Aidan could see as a friend if he stayed in one place long enough. Being a loner could get tiring after a while. Still, no real use in making friends here if he intended to leave.

If?

Where had that come from? Leaving was a given, with his itinerary planned for the next couple of years. Aidan blinked and rotated his spoon in the opposite direction. “Hollydale is thankful you’ve wised up, I’m sure.”

Mike ate a spoonful of pudding and pointed at Aidan’s bowl. “If you wear a hole in the bottom from all that circling and the pudding falls on the ground, don’t blame me. Where was I?” He licked his spoon before tapping it on his chin. “A long time ago, Natalie delivered a note to my now-wife that ended badly. Georgie didn’t talk to me for eleven years.”

Aidan nodded as if he understood a word Mike said. Six languages with a smattering of a few others, yet the Harrisons confounded him more than any dialect.

Mike finished off the last of his pudding, while Aidan swirled his spoon around his. “You’re diplomatic. I’ll give you that. You’re willing to play along.”

“To a certain extent.”

Seriousness replaced Mike’s good humor. “Natalie would kill me for saying this, but she’s a happy soul and loyal to a fault. When I was stupid and hurt Georgie, Natalie stopped talking to me for a long time.”

Mike was a straight shooter, so Aidan leveled with him. “Still not connecting the dots.”

“Try a bite, and I’ll fill you in.” Mike tilted his head toward the bowl. “It’s the sheriff and father in me.”

Aidan hesitated before curiosity won out. He brought the spoon to his lips. Creamy goodness slid down his throat. Nothing could be that good. He tried a second taste and discovered he was wrong. It was better than good.

He finished the bowl and glanced at the sheriff. “Thanks for the push. Now, what’s your point?”

Mike glanced at Natalie.

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