Moments In Time: The Complete Novella Collection Read Online Free PDF Page A

woman’s
window.
    The car stopped moving, and she rolled down
the window and gazed up at me with grey eyes. “Can I help you?”
    “I think this belongs to you.” I raised the
purse.
    Her well-manicured eyebrows shot up.
“Goodness, yes. I must have dropped it.” She reached for it. “Thank
you so much for returning it. How very kind.”
    “No problem.” I stepped away from the
car.
    “How can I repay you?” She leafed through
the notes. “How much?”
    “You owe me nothing.” It would be too
embarrassing to ask for any amount. What if I asked for less than
she had planned to give me? Or if I asked for too much and she
ended up thinking I was taking advantage of her generosity? It
wouldn’t be a big deal if I walked away with nothing. Every
selfless act of kindness I did for someone was a chance for me to
pay for my crimes.
    “How about this?” She pulled out a bunch of
notes, maybe a quarter of what was in the purse.
    I hesitated, and to my horror—and hidden
delight—she reached out of the car and pushed the money into one of
my jeans pockets.
    “Can I offer you a lift?” She tilted her
head to one side and her hair tumbled across her shoulder like a
silk curtain.
    “Thank you, but no need to go out of your
way. I’ll take a taxi.”
    What I wanted was for her to leave so I
could count the money that was now burning a hole in my pocket.
    “It wouldn’t be a bother at all. Where do
you live?”
    “Not very far.”
    “Well, get in. If you won’t tell me, how
about you show me? Come on, get in.” She let out a bubbling
laugh.
    “Okay.” I climbed into the car and inhaled
the cocktail of expensive perfume, hairspray, and leather.
    “Before Frank drops you off, how about we
have coffee together at my house?”
    “That would be nice.” Two coffee dates with
strangers in the last couple of weeks? But I couldn’t say no. This
woman enthralled me. My body buzzed with excitement at the thought
of soon finding out where and how she lived. The luxury surrounding
me didn’t have to come to an end just yet.
    I gazed out the window as the city lights
led us to an elite part of town with lush lawns, high walls, and
luxury cars parked in front of metal gates.
    Her spectacular house overlooked the sea and
had an English garden and brick patios.
    “Make yourself comfortable. I’ll get you
that coffee I promised.” She waved at a cream sectional couch and
left the living room.
    My feet sank into the thick, shaggy carpet.
The room featured floor-length windows and hand-painted ceilings. I
ran my palm along the silk curtains with embroidered patterns and
velvet trim—so soft and luxurious.
    Distracted by all the beautiful things, I
walked too close to a table and knocked over a ceramic vase. As I
caught it and placed it back on the glass tabletop, I heard the
woman returning.
    In a swift motion, I dived onto the couch
and grabbed a magazine, pretending to be calm. As if I’d been in a
house like this before and it was no big deal.
    She laid the tray filled with a variety of
cookies on the glass coffee table. “Since you’re a guest in my
house, I guess I should introduce myself. My name is Lilliana
Stalford.”
    Her name sounded familiar, but I couldn’t
place it. “I’m Carlene Adams,” I said and accepted a gold-trimmed,
porcelain coffee cup.
    “Lovely name. What do you do, Carlene?”
Lilliana asked.
    “I waitress at the Surry Hotel
restaurant.”
    “Waitressing.” She eased into the couch with
her own cup. “You look like you’re capable of so much more.”
    I wasn’t sure if I should take that as a
compliment or be offended. What if I told her I’d worked and lived
in a homeless shelter? “I enjoy waitressing.”
    Lilliana sipped her coffee and, remembering
mine, I did the same. “What did you study?” she asked.
    “Marketing and sales.” I left out the part
that I didn’t graduate.
    “Marketing and sales,” she repeated, staring
into space for a moment, then placed her cup back