Honeymoon Read Online Free PDF Page A

some
     
protest march over on Newbury, and every other street was
     
paying the price. Nora lucked out and found a spot after cir-
     
cling only three times.
     
She'd put his wedding ring on while riding the shuttle
     
bus at the airport. After her customary look in the car's van-
     
ity mirror, she was ready to go. The suitcase came out; the
     
convertible top went up.
It's showtime, babe.
     
As usual, Jeffrey was working when she let herself in.
     
She'd come to realize there were only three things that took
     
him away from his writing. Food, sleep, and sex, not neces-
     
sarily in that order.
     
Instead of calling his name, Nora quietly walked toward
     
the back of the brownstone. Between his deep concentra-
     
tion and the background music, there wasn't a chance he'd
     
hear her.
     
She opened the door beyond the butler's pantry and
     
stepped out onto the private patio. With its tall fleur-de-lis
     
trellises covered in ivy and other strategic plantings, the
     
cozy area offered seclusion.
     
It took her only a minute to get ready. Reclining on a
     
cushioned wicker chaise, she reached for her cell phone and
     
dialed.
     
Seconds later she could hear the phone ringing inside.
     
Jeffrey finally picked up.
     
"Honey, it's me," she said.
     
"Oh, don't even tell me you're not coming."
     
She laughed. "Not yet I'm not."
     
"Wait a minute, where are you?"
     
"Take a peek out back."
     
She looked up as Jeffrey appeared in the window of his
     
library. His strong jaw dropped, then he started to laugh,
     
which she could clearly hear over the phone.
     
"Oh… my…" he said.
     
Nora was naked on the chaise lounge, except for her
     
sling-backs. She purred into the phone. "See anything you
     
like?"
     
"As a matter of fact, I see a lot that I like. I don't see any-
     
thing I don't like."
     
"Good. Don't hurt yourself running down the stairs."
     
"Who said anything about using the stairs?"
     
Jeffrey opened the window, climbed out, and shinnied
     
down the copper-plated downspout. Very athletic, actually.
     
All to the delight of Nora.
     
Whatever the world record was for a man shedding his
     
clothes, it was promptly broken. Then Jeffrey slowly crawled
     
up to her on the chaise lounge. He dug his hands deep into
     
the seat cushion and wrapped his muscular arms around her
     
back. He was a sexy man once you tore him away from his
     
computer.
     
Nora closed her eyes. She kept them shut the entire time
     
they made love. She wanted to feel something for Jeffrey.
     
Anything. But she felt nothing.
     
C'mon, Nora. You know what has to be done. You've been
     
here before.
     
The voice inside her head didn't sound like an old friend
     
now. More like an unwelcome stranger, someone she almost
     
didn't know. She tried to ignore it. It was no use. That just
     
made it louder. More insistent. More controlling.
     
Jeffrey climaxed, then rolled off her, out of breath.
     
"What a terrific surprise. You're the best."
     
Ask him if he's hungry, Nora.
She wanted to cry out against the little voice inside. But
     
     
that would just be a waste of time. There was only one way
     
to make it stop.
     
And she knew it.
     
"Where are you going?" Jeffrey asked.
     
Nora had risen from the chaise without a word. She was
     
already heading inside the house. "The kitchen," she said
     
over her shoulder. "I'm going to see what I can make you for
     
dinner. I want to cook for you."
     
     
----
Chapter 44
     
OH, BROTHER -- what to do, what to do? This is a disaster
     
so far.
     
The Tourist sat alone in the small, dingy room with an-
     
other Heineken. He'd already had four. Or was it five? At
     
this point, keeping count didn't strike him as being very im-
     
portant. Neither did the Yankees game droning on his TV.
     
Or eating the sausage-and-onion pizza getting cold on the
     
table in front of him.
     
On the table were newspaper clippings about the shoot-
     
out in New York.