Fascination Read Free Page B

there hadn’t been many men in her life. Not many decent guys were turned on by a woman who had been convicted of a felony. Those who were weren’t the kind ofmen she wanted to know. How much of that would change when she was free?
    Standing in the middle of the sidewalk, she let the warmth soothe her until a pointed wolf whistle had her glaring at the source and continuing on her way. She walked down the sweltering city sidewalk to the waterfront, gazing out at the Elizabeth River—Lizzie, as the residents called it. She leaned over the rail that ran the length of the park and led down to the Nautilus naval museum, the gigantic battleship, the USS Wisconsin, looming above the museum building.
    It was a perfect day—the waters were smooth and green, and dolphins were frolicking out in the river as they often did, drawing amazed stares and the clicking of tourist cameras. Turning from the rail, she headed toward the hot dog stand in search of some lunch and companionship.
    She’d taken the day off from the shop to go to the interview, so there was nothing else on her schedule. She’d given her two weeks notice anyway—motivation for getting a better job—but now she thought maybe she had been a little hasty in that decision. Feeling down, she knew just how to lighten her spirits. As she approached the stand, she heard the gruff laugh she loved filling the air around her.
    “Hey, Ray.”
    “Sage! My favorite girl. Woooo, look at you! All dressed up today!” The older black man leaned over and whispered conspiratorially, “Did we have a date and I forgot?”
    Sage laughed, her mood brightening at the sound of his voice. She responded, her voice playful.
    “No, you never ask me out. I’m still waiting. You’re my guy, Ray, you know that.” She planted a solid kiss on his rough cheek and Ray howled again. He handed her a hot dog with everything on it—just the way she liked it—and a cola.
    She sat down on the cement-block wall behind the stand, munching while Ray served some customers. He’d been around as far back as she could remember. Her parents had taken her and her sister to lunch at the park every week when she was little. That’s when she’d met Ray. He’d become a good friend and a sort of honorary uncle.
    She’d continued to come by at least once a week until her arrest. The eighteen months at the beginning of her sentence, when she had been confined to home arrest, had been the hardest of her life for many reasons, but one of those was because she never got to visit Ray.
    Helping himself to a hot dog, he sat next to her, took a bite, then spoke. “So what has you down here all dressed up, li’l girl? You should be working, huh?”
    She nodded, swiping some mustard from her chin with her pinkie and sucking it from the end of her finger. “Yeah. I took the day off. Had a job interview.”
    “Hey! Good news! You’re almost done. You have to come down here and celebrate on the day.”
    Sage smiled, but then it faded. “You bet. But free is a relative term, isn’t it, Ray? I’ve reached the end of my sentence, but I feel like it will never really be over. Ican’t escape the past.” She knew she sounded sorry for herself in spades, but she couldn’t help it.
    Surprisingly Ray laughed again, and she looked up, popping the last big of dog into her mouth. He shook his head.
    “Well, you know, girl, I made my own mistakes an’ been where you are. Been in worse. You have a college degree. I never had none of that, but it’s no matter. We can do whatever we want. We make our own luck.”
    “Easier said than done.”
    “Depends on what you tryin’ to do, don’t it? You just gotta find the right thing, that’s all.” He cleared his throat and patted her arm. “Don’t worry too much. I had a hard time, too, when I got out. People’ll forget, it just takes a while. I kept at it, got enough odd jobs to get myself a cart and found myself a spot to sell lunch. Before you know it I had this