The Distance Between Us Read Online Free PDF Page B

the ride, Hester. See you tonight?”
    I nod at him. “Yes. I’ll be curled up by the fire with a glass of wine and a book as soon as I finish teaching.”
    He smiles again. “Word.”
    I tilt my head. “Excuse me? Is that supposed to mean something?”
    His smile broadens. “It just means it sounds good.”
    I shoo him from the car. “Go to school. I hope my daughter can teach you how to speak properly.”
    He shuts the door and I watch his back until he disappears into Higdon Hall.

C HAPTER 3
    A rthur’s car is in the driveway when I get home, blocking access to the carriage house. It’s a black Lincoln Continental, with a Carson Conservatory Faculty sticker in the rear window, and the license plate on the back says AMATI (in reference to his cherished and obscenely expensive violin). He’s parked right in front of St. Booger, and I have to leave my own car by the curb in the street and walk up to the house. The statue has a slight scowl on its face, and its crossed eyes are staring down at Arthur’s car with displeasure, but the severity of poor Booger’s expression is undercut by a glob of half-melted snow on his head, in the shape of a beanie.
    St. Booger is truly an eyesore. Besides the revolting things I mentioned about him to Alex the other night (the chopped-off fingers, uneven legs, and patches of dead mold sprouting from his nose and ears), one of his cheekbones sticks out more than the other, and there’s an unsightly, goiter-like bulge on the left side of his neck. His face is also pocked with dozens of little acne-like craters, probably from standing outside in too many hailstorms. Lord, what an atrocity.
    I walk up to the front door and when I step on the porch I can see Arthur’s large head and shoulders through the window of my living room. He’s wearing a heavy brown sweater, and he’s standing with his arms crossed, glaring out at me. I take a deep breath and walk in, knowing exactly how this conversation is likely to go. Thelove of my life is now my worst enemy, and we haven’t had a civil exchange in months.
    I take off my coat in the entryway and step into the living room. He’s still standing with his back to me.
    I sigh. “Why, Arthur! What a pleasant surprise. Have you moved back home, then? You can sleep in the carriage house until we’ve ironed some things out.”
    He turns to face me with open anger. His thick gray hair is cut shorter than usual, and his mouth is drawn down at the corners in severe lines, making him look like a toy soldier nutcracker. His skin is blotchy with ire, but he’s still a terribly handsome man, with white, even teeth and bushy gray eyebrows the same color as his beard. His eyes are gray, too, and cold, with crow’s-feet at the corners.
    “Don’t you dare start with me, Hester,” he rumbles. “Not after what you did to my table.”
    I sit down in my chair. “I don’t understand what you’re so upset about, dear. As I mentioned on the phone earlier, it was an unfortunate accident.”
    “That is unmitigated bullshit.” His voice isn’t loud, but his words are clipped and fast. “You deliberately destroyed a priceless heirloom out of pure spite and jealousy.” He pauses. “No doubt you were drunk at the time, too.”
    There’s a quiet click of the door shutting in the entryway, and I glance over in time to see Alex stepping in. Arthur doesn’t hear him, and the boy is out of his line of vision because he’s standing behind a partial wall that separates the entry and the living room. I swear silently and keep my eyes on Arthur, hoping Alex will somehow manage to get upstairs without my husband seeing him. Arthur will not take kindly to my having taken on another tenant without his consent. From the brief glimpse I had of Alex’s face, I can tell he knows he’s stepped into a hornet’s nest. He’s frozen still in the entryway, next to the umbrella can.
    I gaze straight ahead and force a smile. “Why, Arthur, what a terrible thing to