WINDOW OF TIME Read Online Free PDF

and burn the skin.” He flexed his left hand, remembering how it had felt wearing his wedding ring. He’d fiddle it with his thumb. But he’d never really gotten a chance to get used to it.
    “I thought those big gloves are supposed to protect your hands.” Lucy leaned over and studied his fingers. “What happened here?” she asked, reaching for his right hand. She lightly touched his skin where a thin streak of white scar tissue wrapped around his finger where a ring should be.
    Johnny nodded. “I had to learn the hard way.” She lifted his hand, turning it over. “I’d been in the department for only a few weeks, and we had a call at three in the morning. I was green. I forgot to take off my college graduation ring before leaving the bunkroom. We had an actual structure fire, my first since being hired, and I got to go in on the initial investigation.” He took a deep breath. “It was so intense. I didn’t know my finger was burning until they pulled us out for rehab.”
    “For what?”
    Lucy’s tender touch captivated Johnny’s attention. He kept his hand very still while she ran her finger along the length of his hand. It felt electrifying, sending tingles up his arm, crossing over to his chest, and propelling his heart into high gear. It was a sensual stirring he hadn’t felt in a very long time. “We—” Johnny cleared his throat and tried again. “We can only spend so long in a fire before they rotate one crew out and send in fresh men with full oxygen tanks. Dehydration can happen very quickly.”
    “You didn’t answer me about being married,” Lucy said. “Or would you rather not?”
    He closed his fingers around her left hand. “I’m divorced.” She kept her gaze down.
    “How long?”
    “How long for what?”
    “When did you get divorced?”
    “Over eight years ago.”
    “How long were you married?”
    Now he felt inadequate. “Not even two years.” She didn’t respond. “Since you opened the subject for discussion, I don’t feel a ring on your finger. Is it due to your job?”
    “I … I’m not married. Anymore.”
    She shook her head hard enough to slide a curtain of hair along side her face, blocking her from his view. He’d asked the wrong question. Okay, he needed to steer clear of her ex-husband. That would work, since he had no desire to talk about his ex.
    The setting sun touched the horizon, emblazoning the few clouds leftover from an afternoon storm with bold streaks of magenta, purple, and orange. The tension in the air steadily grew thicker the farther they drove. Johnny rubbed a hand over his jaw.
    He needed to get things real again, change the subject to something not so touchy. It didn’t take long—his phone went off. Johnny had it set to a single low beep for a call, two beeps for a text. He slipped it out of his pants pocket, glanced at the small window on the front, and saw his girlfriend’s name.
    Monica and he had been dating on and off for over a year. Every time he thought they might be getting serious, she’d think the timing was wrong and tell him they should go out with other people. He only had to wait a month or so before she’d call him again and suggest dinner.
    He replaced the phone in his pocket without responding. He didn’t want to explain to her why he had no time to talk. For that matter, he had no interest in talking to her at all tonight.
    “What were you doing in City Hall today?”
    Pushing her hair behind her shoulder, she turned her face toward him, and the corners of her mouth tugged upward. “Since I joined the agency, I haven’t had a home base. Basically, I’ve been living out of hotels in different cities throughout the world. But two months ago I found this wonderful bungalow an old woman was selling. She told me she was an actress in the late 1940’s and 50’s, and she was ready to go into the old actors’ home. It’s in perfect shape, and she’s even leaving the furniture. Most of it’s antique. I’ve