Read Online The Promise of Paradise by Allie Boniface - Free Book Online
Authors: Allie Boniface
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blue curtains on the windows, but otherwise the
walls remained bare. A desk and matching chair were the only other
pieces of furniture she could see, besides the box spring and
mattress lying on the floor. A queen size, she noticed, not too big
and not too narrow. Really, just the perfect size for two people to
curl up in.
“Ash?” Eddie waved
a hand in front of her face. “You still there? Thought you were
gonna help me look.”
“Oh. Sorry.” She
glanced around at a faint meow. Eddie cocked his head. The meow came
again. “Bathroom.” In an instant, he had darted past Ash, and a
moment later he emerged holding a soggy ball of black and white. “Got
him.”
“Wow. It is small.”
A rumble started up in
the kitten's throat.
“I told you.” Eddie
peered down at it.
Ash took hold of one of
the kitten’s legs and pushed aside damp fur. “There's a cut here.
A bad one. No wonder it’s limping.” She lifted a towel off the
rack inside the bathroom door and wrapped it around the animal.
“Here.” In a moment she had clutched it to her chest, nuzzling it
and blotting off the worst of the water. “Might want to get it to a
vet. Know anyone who’s open on Sundays?”
“Maybe.” Eddie
loped off into the kitchen and re-emerged a moment later, cell phone
in hand.
Ash returned to the
living room and sat on the couch, kitten in her lap. Bright green
eyes looked up at her, and a weak mew escaped its pink mouth. A tiny
paw batted at the finger she reached out to it. She grinned. The only
pet she and Colin ever had was Buster, the oversized goldfish. She
used to watch him swim circles in his stupid glass bowl and wish for
just a day that her boyfriend wasn’t deathly allergic to all things
furry.
“Now I don’t have
to worry about that, do I?” she murmured into the cat’s head.
“Ash?” Eddie
appeared in the doorway. “Friend of mine in Tompkins Heights’ll
take a look at it this afternoon.”
“Really?” Ash
looked up, suddenly aware of the way her robe fell apart at the neck
and her bare legs stretched down to the hardwood floor. As she
watched, he dropped a glance to her toenails—newly painted red, as
of last night in front of the TV—before turning a shade of crimson
himself.
“Anyway, thanks for
the help.”
“No problem.” She
paused. “You know, I wasn’t sure what was going on down here.
Thought maybe you were still entertaining your date from last night.”
“Cheri?” He
chuckled. “Nah.”
“Things didn’t work
out?”
“We had a good time.
But she wanted to come in, stay a while, and…” He shrugged.
“You didn’t?”
“Woman stays the
night, things get complicated.”
Ash nodded, fingers
stroking the kitten’s fur as its purr regulated into a steady
rhythm. “And you don’t like things to be complicated.”
“Do you?”
Ash shook her head. No, she answered silently. They’re complicated enough already.
Chapter Eight
“Ash!” Marty stuck
his head into the kitchen of Blues and Booze.
She pulled her tips
from her pocket and started to count. “What's up?” It had been a
long week, and she couldn’t wait for the night to be over. Thank
God the clock read ten minutes to twelve.
“Some guy out here
says he knows you.” The manager wheezed. One arm snaked up to
scratch an itch between his shoulder blades. He peered into the
coffee pot, pulled some brown strands of lettuce from the salad bin,
and straightened the cocktail napkins.
Ash’s shoulders
hunched up, and she didn’t answer for a minute. The media? No.
Not at almost midnight. But she knew better than anyone that the
paparazzi didn't watch the clock.
“You hear me?”
“I heard you. Who is
he?”
“Dunno. He’s got a
couple of tattoos. Says his name’s Eddie something.”
Coins slipped through
her fingers like water. “Oh. Yeah, he knows me. Tell him I’ll be
right out.” She bent to retrieve quarters from the sticky floor and
waited for Marty to leave.She’d only seen Eddie
walls remained bare. A desk and matching chair were the only other
pieces of furniture she could see, besides the box spring and
mattress lying on the floor. A queen size, she noticed, not too big
and not too narrow. Really, just the perfect size for two people to
curl up in.
“Ash?” Eddie waved
a hand in front of her face. “You still there? Thought you were
gonna help me look.”
“Oh. Sorry.” She
glanced around at a faint meow. Eddie cocked his head. The meow came
again. “Bathroom.” In an instant, he had darted past Ash, and a
moment later he emerged holding a soggy ball of black and white. “Got
him.”
“Wow. It is small.”
A rumble started up in
the kitten's throat.
“I told you.” Eddie
peered down at it.
Ash took hold of one of
the kitten’s legs and pushed aside damp fur. “There's a cut here.
A bad one. No wonder it’s limping.” She lifted a towel off the
rack inside the bathroom door and wrapped it around the animal.
“Here.” In a moment she had clutched it to her chest, nuzzling it
and blotting off the worst of the water. “Might want to get it to a
vet. Know anyone who’s open on Sundays?”
“Maybe.” Eddie
loped off into the kitchen and re-emerged a moment later, cell phone
in hand.
Ash returned to the
living room and sat on the couch, kitten in her lap. Bright green
eyes looked up at her, and a weak mew escaped its pink mouth. A tiny
paw batted at the finger she reached out to it. She grinned. The only
pet she and Colin ever had was Buster, the oversized goldfish. She
used to watch him swim circles in his stupid glass bowl and wish for
just a day that her boyfriend wasn’t deathly allergic to all things
furry.
“Now I don’t have
to worry about that, do I?” she murmured into the cat’s head.
“Ash?” Eddie
appeared in the doorway. “Friend of mine in Tompkins Heights’ll
take a look at it this afternoon.”
“Really?” Ash
looked up, suddenly aware of the way her robe fell apart at the neck
and her bare legs stretched down to the hardwood floor. As she
watched, he dropped a glance to her toenails—newly painted red, as
of last night in front of the TV—before turning a shade of crimson
himself.
“Anyway, thanks for
the help.”
“No problem.” She
paused. “You know, I wasn’t sure what was going on down here.
Thought maybe you were still entertaining your date from last night.”
“Cheri?” He
chuckled. “Nah.”
“Things didn’t work
out?”
“We had a good time.
But she wanted to come in, stay a while, and…” He shrugged.
“You didn’t?”
“Woman stays the
night, things get complicated.”
Ash nodded, fingers
stroking the kitten’s fur as its purr regulated into a steady
rhythm. “And you don’t like things to be complicated.”
“Do you?”
Ash shook her head. No, she answered silently. They’re complicated enough already.
Chapter Eight
“Ash!” Marty stuck
his head into the kitchen of Blues and Booze.
She pulled her tips
from her pocket and started to count. “What's up?” It had been a
long week, and she couldn’t wait for the night to be over. Thank
God the clock read ten minutes to twelve.
“Some guy out here
says he knows you.” The manager wheezed. One arm snaked up to
scratch an itch between his shoulder blades. He peered into the
coffee pot, pulled some brown strands of lettuce from the salad bin,
and straightened the cocktail napkins.
Ash’s shoulders
hunched up, and she didn’t answer for a minute. The media? No.
Not at almost midnight. But she knew better than anyone that the
paparazzi didn't watch the clock.
“You hear me?”
“I heard you. Who is
he?”
“Dunno. He’s got a
couple of tattoos. Says his name’s Eddie something.”
Coins slipped through
her fingers like water. “Oh. Yeah, he knows me. Tell him I’ll be
right out.” She bent to retrieve quarters from the sticky floor and
waited for Marty to leave.She’d only seen Eddie
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