When Summer Comes. Brenda Novak

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СКАЧАТЬ to ask any questions about her, and that would risk her asking even more questions about him.

      “Wow, you’re really easy to talk to,” she said.

      His eyes flicked her way.

      “I’m afraid they won’t release my bike.”

      “The impound lot? Why wouldn’t they?”

      “I don’t have my license or registration.”

      Considering his situation, this didn’t really surprise her. But it did create a problem. ID was usually required. “So what’s your plan?”

      “I don’t know. It’s my bike. If we pay the fine, they’d better give it to me.”

      Callie didn’t want any problems. “You didn’t...steal it, did you?”

      He gave her a look that nearly shriveled her on the spot. “No. Just because I don’t have the registration with me doesn’t mean I stole it.”

      She wasn’t sure why, but she believed him. He seemed too forthright to be a theif. “I have a friend who tows for this yard. Actually, it’s the brother of a friend. I bet Joe can arrange it.”

      This seemed to ease some of his tension. “You think so?”

      “It’s a small town. We can work it out.” She loosened her seat belt to give her a bit more breathing room. “So what brings you to California?”

      “Figured this was as good a place as any.”

      She had so many loved ones she couldn’t imagine taking to the road, trading her relationships with them for a series of roadside diners and two-bit hotels—even if she was well.

      “Does your family know you’re here?” Who’d been part of his life? And where had they gone? Did they miss him? Care about him?

      Again, there was a slight delay in his answer. “I haven’t talked to them in some time.”

      Why? She wanted to ask, but no amount of effort on her part seemed capable of breaching the walls he’d thrown up. Because he wouldn’t engage in this conversation, it seemed more like an interrogation.

      Convinced that she was wasting her time, Callie let it go. She wasn’t necessarily looking for a friend. She had plenty of those. She was just trying to be one. But being a friend didn’t have to include badgering him into revealing his situation. She could live and let live. After all, she had her own secrets.

      Adjusting the volume on the radio, she fell silent and expected that silence to last—until he spoke.

      “That guy, Kyle.”

      She tightened her grip on the steering wheel. “What about him?”

      “You’re sleeping with him, right?”

      Fortunately, the impound lot was coming up. “Kyle’s a long story,” she said, and turned into the drive.

      * * *

      At the farm, the sun bore down on Levi, reminding him of Kandahar in July. In reality, this day, which was somewhere around ninety degrees, was mild by comparison. He’d never felt what the word swelter meant until he’d experienced one-hundred-and-fifteen-degree temperatures in the desert half a world away—while wearing an army uniform and fifty pounds of gear. Still...the blinding brightness of the afternoon sun brought back memories. Once again, he could taste the gritty dust that clogged his nose and throat, the salt of his own sweat, the fatigue of intense exertion. He could also hear the Pashto spoken in the market they policed. Afghanistan had been unlike any place he’d ever visited or previously imagined, but he hadn’t disliked being there. Not in the beginning. Joining the army provided an escape from his father, which had considerably improved his life.

      Besides, at nineteen and freshly graduated from high school, he’d been so idealistic and full of patriotism he’d been eager to face any challenge. He’d just had no idea what those challenges would entail—or how smiling at a pretty girl could turn out to be the biggest mistake he’d ever made.

      “Are you thirsty?”

      Grateful for the interruption, he raised a hand to block the sun. Callie was standing there, holding a glass of iced tea, but for a moment he thought he saw Behrukh in her shami dress and hijab—the way he’d first seen her in her father’s store—and his chest constricted.

      “Levi? Are you okay?”

      The vision cleared. This wasn’t Afghanistan. And Callie looked nothing like Behrukh, who’d been tall and thin with the characteristic dark hair and eyes of her people.

      “Fine.” In some ways, he was better than fine. The impound lot hadn’t given him any trouble about releasing his bike. The guy there had chatted with Callie, flirted a bit and taken a call from her friend Joe, who vouched for him, and that was it. Hooking an arm around one knee, he sat up and accepted the glass she handed him.

      “It’s too soon for you to be working. I wish you’d get some rest.”

      “I’m okay.” He took a long drink, letting the cool, sweet liquid soothe his parched throat.

      “Have you figured out what’s wrong with your bike?”

      He motioned toward it with his glass. “Carburetor’s jammed. I should also change the spark plugs.”

      “Will that be expensive?”

      “Not too bad, since I can do the work myself.”

      “Do you need parts?”

      He squinted against the sun. He was feeling a bit light-headed. Maybe it was time to knock off. While he’d been tearing apart the engine of his motorcycle, Callie had been bringing fresh bedding from the house to the barn, where she said there was a room with a tiny bathroom in one corner. She’d apologized for the fact that he wouldn’t have any heat or air-conditioning, but it was mild here this time of year, especially at night. He didn’t mind making do. That had become his pattern for life. Right now, just getting out of the sun and into the shade would help.

      “I need the plugs, maybe a few other things. I’ll know more when I finish here. But...maybe we can go tomorrow?”

      She nodded. “I’m glad to hear you say it can wait. I made some beef Stroganoff. My grandmother’s recipe. Why don’t you get showered and come in for dinner?”

      There didn’t seem to be any need to keep pushing himself. He wasn’t in a hurry. He liked the farm. It was isolated enough that, besides Callie, he didn’t have to run into other people.

      “Okay.”

      “My uncle installed an instant water heater for the bathroom in the barn,” she explained, “so you should have plenty of hot water, but the shower’s tiny and not much to look at. I put some towels out there.”

      “Thank you.” Fortunately, Callie, the one person he did see here, wasn’t difficult to be around. After that conversation in the car, she’d stopped prying into his past. He got the feeling she understood that he didn’t want to talk about himself and wouldn’t СКАЧАТЬ