Love's Flaming Torch-Overview and Excerpt

 Synopsis

A series of fires have recently erupted throughout the city of White Plains, New York and fireman Garcia is the local hero. He rescued Professor Paul Smith from his burning house. His friend, Mary Reilly was grateful to Eric for rescuing her long-time friend and mentor. As time went on Mary began a relationship with Eric but was devastated to learn that there was something more to this heroic fire fighter than meets the eye....and who was this red haired lady in the picture on Eric's mantle? He claimed she was his sister, but there was no resemblance. Suspicious, Mary Reilly visits Eric to end their relationship only to discover a secret so horrible that it makes Mary's blood run cold. Can Eric really be a pyromaniac?

Excerpt


         "Love waits for no man." That's what I have learned from my ordeal. Love creeps into one's life no matter how prepared one is. No one is exempt. Love ignites like a gentle flame inside one's heart. Sometimes, for the wrong reason, the fire starts with but one small flame and burn like wild fire, devouring all within its path. Some times we often fear the fire and resist lighting it. Sometimes we inadvertenly light it and then it rages on. If one's not careful, the winds of change can fan the flames and next thing you know there is an unquenchable fire in your soul. Sometimes the fire rages for days on end destroying anything in its path; other times it extinguishes quite easily with indifference just as easily as it ignited. For a lucky few the fire of love is like a bonfire that warms the soul in the depth of winter.

    When you feel this fire burning, you can either extinguish it right away with indifference or let it warm your soul with its' sweet passion. You do have a choice.
I let the fire burn slowly in my heart, warming my coldest nights with the passion of its' incandescence. Before I met Eric Garcia the fire of love had extinguished from my heart and all was left was an empty void. Once upon a time, I too, was full of hope and dreams. I thought love was a silly intangible that only happened in romance novels. Girl met boy, they fell hopelessly in love, found something in common, got engaged and got married. That was before I got burnt by the flame for the first time in my life.

   I was nineteen at the time and thought I had met a wonderful man. David swept me off my feet just like in those romance novels. He was a student at Mercy College. Like me. he was working towards a Bachelor's degree in English literature. In a month we became friends and shortly after that we became an item. Then he proposed to me and I was over the moon. I was just turned twenty and thought my life was about to turn for the better. Not only was I going to earn my degree in English Literature that summer, but I was also going to be a bride. Then in December of that year, a little before Christmas, I caught David in bed with a swanky freshman. That's when the fire in my heart extinguished. That was the end of my love life. David swore he was drunk and didn't even realize he had brought this girl to our apartment....the apartment we had bought together as a couple with the money we earned working part time. I threw the engagement ring....a 1 Karat diamond ring which he had bought from a friend of his who owned a jewellery store on Main Street. He picked up the ring from the floor, put it in his pocket and said, "Your loss, Babe!" Then he looked at this crack whore lying on the bed, gave her a nod and asked her to get dressed. The game was over. He picked up his things, opened the door and walked out. He never looked back. I never saw David again after this. Furious, I stood there with tears in my eyes vowing never to let any sweet talking man with fire in his eyes waltz into my life again.

   Then I met Eric Garcia and at first I resisted him, putting up a fight at first and telling myself this was David all over again. But his blue eyes bore through me like an unquenchable fire. There was something about this fire fighter that lit my soul completely. We went out on a couple of dates and I thought I was wrong about love all along. Love was this unquenchable fire that raged within one's soul and lit one's soul like a candle. Then, I learned something so shocking about Eric that extinguished the fire again and for the second time in my life I was left in total darkness. I knew Eric was too good to be true and so I resisted telling him how much I loved him until it was too late. Now all I have left is the memories of Eric and this little boy who looks so incredibly like Eric. Every time I look into this little boy's blue eyes, I see Eric. I learned love's lesson on that cruel September morning in 2011 and it was this: Love comes into your life, for some, just once and when it does, you should hold on to it; embrace it....never let Love's incandescent flame extinguish because if you do, in a fleeting moment; in a wink of an eye the sweet flame of love will extinguish forever leaving you in the dark.