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[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ] He was cut. He has to stay warm so he won t catch fever. She pulled up his pajama shirt and ran her fingertips along the stitches. The skin had swollen and heated, but only a little; she found no puffy places or hot spots along the cut. Maybe it wouldn t go septic and kill him. Ummmmmm, Lorie. She looked into his smile. He had such an open, happy smile. She couldn t help returning it. We lived. We did, she agreed. You scared me, though. Just another scar. You want to kiss it better? You think that ll work? Sure. And then I need to tell you about the boo-boo on my willie. He was too close to slap! He grinned. I see what you re thinking. Did you and Jack go through the booty? Jack had a big envelope. She looked about. There, on the lowboy. She wriggled out of the warmth and grabbed it, then snuggled the blanket back over her lower half before reaching into the bloodstained envelope. A letter caught her fingers first. Mis Larry, Yu mother. She wos nis lade. Landlord say yu gon. put yu things by rode. I saf pictrus but scafngers got rest. Plese be alife. Dot look for me. I joyn Navy. I gaf lade dek of luky striks to sin me in. Lights Out! 91 Yu frind, Ukochany. She read it again. The boy was in the navy. Not safe, but not dead. If this is right, I ve lost my apartment and everything in it. I m a pauper. A beggar. How can a landlord do that? Never define yourself by what you ve lost, Lorie -- only by what you are. Easy for you to say. Then again, maybe it ain t. I sure don t know much about you two, do I? A folder came next. Her parents wedding portrait, a photograph of her grandparents and their children, two school pictures, and the newspaper clippings: Pa getting his medals, her high school band competitions, and the time she d been in that parade saluting Mrs. Roosevelt at the train station. That s you with the marching band, isn t it? And this would be your momma? Different face, same smile. Your smile should make the paper glow. Her face heated. My ma was a beauty. As are you. But you take after you daddy s side, don t you? I spect so. She shrugged. You can turn a girl s head with compliments. Or you can make her wonder what sneakiness you re up to. I m just sneaking up on asking if you ll scratch my back for me. If I were a dog I d sit up and beg for that. She laughed, and he hitched awkwardly to lie on his folded arms. How could she turn him down? She stacked the photos and the envelope out of the way, and knelt by him. How you want me to scratch? Kind of light when clawing down. Harder when going back up, using the backs of your fingernails. I meant under or over your shirt? Oh, under! I ll wiggle like a dog if you go under! Not much you won t. Not with those big old ugly stitches in your front. Woof! He wiggled his butt at the first down-stroke and she giggled. Woof! More! Tommy likes scritchety scratch! Woof! Woof! More! Laughing, she gave herself over to the simple pleasure of giving him the perfect back- scratch. She was shifting position about the third time when she noticed the shower wasn t running. Does this exercise in hedonism have a point? Jack stood next to the bed, steaming and looking like a movie star with his bathrobe open to show his muscled chest. Tommy laughed, Yes. It s an excellent exercise in purest hedonism. 92 Amber Green Are you done, though? Might as well be. The fun s gone out of it. She rocked back on her heels, and knocked the oilskin envelope to the floor. She gathered the photos hastily and Jack handed her the envelope. What all else is in here? Three wallets, not one. The thick one had two different driver s licenses, one for Jeremy Kent of Boston Massachusetts and one for Jerry Kant of Cambridge Massachusetts, and a letter from Doctor Bad Handwriting saying each of them was medically unfit for military service. Red and blue ration stamps, but not much of either. Just over a dollar in dimes and nickels. Dollar bills, seven of them. The other wallets yielded moldy stamps she wasn t sure could still be used and another three dollars in silver. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ] |