Fallen: An Angel Romance Page 6

  Draconel nodded. “A few days. If you haven’t solved it by then, you’ll introduce me to her as your friend and I’ll make an assessment. I have the feeling this human will change the shape of the balance.”

  That was a bold pronouncement to come from an archangel.

  “Toward the Light or the Dark?” he asked. “She has an equal combination of both in her.”

  The angel tilted his head. His eyes were fixed on a far-off point, and Alex suddenly understood that he’d used his angelic sight to watch Zara throughout the conversation.

  “I haven’t decided yet.”

  “That fucking woman.”

  Zara was so mad that she spoke aloud, her voice dripping with a mixture of disdain and anger. The trip home from work was long, and she should have cooled off by the time she got to her apartment. Instead, she was fired up thinking about the look on Patricia’s face as she sneeringly told Zara that she’d been under-performing and they’d have to let her go.

  “‘Under-performing.’ That’s rich coming from an entitled princess who’s never done an honest day’s work in her life.”

  Her emotions roiled through her, as near to a boil as she’d ever experienced. Zara didn’t get angry often, and when she did, she rarely did anything about it. Even this time, when she’d wanted nothing more than to claw out Patricia’s eyes and throw them in the sewer, she’d meekly gathered her things.

  It was frustrating always being the quiet and calm one, the easily ignorable girl in the corner.

  Instead of giving Patricia what she deserved in person, Zara’s mind spun with the ways she wanted to dismember, rend, and punish the spiteful woman.

  “She’s ruined me,” Zara said under her breath as she walked up the stairs. The elevator would have just put her in a small box—she needed to work out some of this aggression before she got back to her apartment… and Alex.

  It wasn’t that Zara even wanted the job. She hated every minute she spent there, especially since Patricia was promoted. But she needed it.

  Zara had no savings. She knew the value of saving money. She just didn’t make enough to pay for rent, food, necessities, and have anything left over to put away. Her finances were a constant state of concern. Most people didn’t know exactly how much money they had in their bank account down to the penny at all times, but she did.

  She would get the three days she’d worked this pay period, but that wasn’t nearly enough to pay the rent due in two weeks.

  A maelstrom of despair threatened to rise and swamp her, and she fought to force it down as she got to her door. She had a guest, and she couldn’t make him deal with this, not after all he’d done for her already.

  Closing her eyes for a moment, Zara hummed several gentle notes, the tune calming her unruly thoughts.

  Putting on a bright smile, she opened the door to find Alex reclined on the couch, a smartphone in his hand and an intent look on his gorgeous face.

  He took one look at her and dropped the phone, springing to his feet. The device clattered to the table, but he paid it no mind, as if it stopped existing the moment he saw her face.

  “Zara! What’s wrong?”

  She couldn’t help it—she shuddered. The question sent a forceful crack through the hastily erected barriers between her and her emotions.

  Despite herself, she laughed. “I must not have been hiding it as well as I thought I was.”

  He came around the table and put a hand on her shoulder. “What is it?”

  “It’s nothing. I lost my job today, but it’s okay, really.” Tears came to her eyes and her voice grew shaky as she spoke. “I hated it there, anyway. Looks like I’ll be joining you on the job hunt.”

  His eyes were understanding. He’d caught enough hints of her situation to know what this meant for her.

  “What happened?”

  Zara stepped forward and sank into the chair. Alex took his cue from her and resumed his perch on the couch, although he sat up straight-backed. The perfect posture was oddly disconcerting—it was so rare to see someone sit properly.

  “My boss, Patricia, is a giant bitch.” Alex’s eyebrow raised at the language, but Zara charged forward. The anger was coming back, and she had a willing ear. “She messed up an order for a customer. Big time. And she blamed it on me. She’d been looking for an excuse to fire me for weeks now, and it wasn’t even my fault—it was hers!”

  She was still incredulous. The abuse of power was frightful but not surprising. “That’s why the world is in such a terrible state. People like her get into power and nothing else matters to them except keeping their power. I wish I had a hot poker I could use to…”

  What was she doing? Alex was a nice guy. He wouldn’t want to hear about how she wanted to torture her boss for the things she’d done. Hell knows she deserved it, but it wasn’t something she should say to someone else.

  Not really something I should be thinking at all.

  She scared herself sometimes with the dark thoughts that appeared inside her head with no prompting.

  He sat with an attentive expression, no judgment in his eyes that she could see.

  “Sorry,” she said. “I'm just angry. I didn’t yell at her when she did it. I didn’t even object since I knew it wouldn’t change anything. That outburst was festering inside me the entire way home. You shouldn’t have to deal with it. It’s my problem.”

  Alex shook his head. “I don’t mind.”

  “No, you’re too nice of a person. And you have a ton of your own problems. I don’t want to load you down with mine, too. How did your day go? You got a phone. That’s exciting!”

  Zara shoved her issues as far back into her mind as she could and put on a bright smile. It wasn’t purely for Alex’s benefit—she needed to stop obsessing over her problems.

  He picked up the phone, turning it over in his hands. It was a sleek thing, like all recent smartphones. Zara had never been able to justify one—her old flip phone was built like a tank and kept working.

  “I can see why technology can be so addicting,” Alex said. “There’s a reason people spend so much time with their eyes glued to their screens. They are marvelous devices. I almost wish we had these…”

  Alex trailed off. Zara smiled. “The internet is pretty great. More cat videos than you can shake a stick at, and who needs anything more than that? Did you get ahold of your friend that you are supposed to stay with?”

  “That’s the bad news.” He paused and looked at her. “He’s completely disappeared. I found out where he was staying and the building is condemned. None of the contact information I have for him is valid, so my one lifeline here is gone.”

  His face was taut, his voice hesitant.

  Zara bit her lip. She’d woken up multiple times throughout the night, almost surprised that she was still alive and that Alex hadn’t turned out to be an axe murderer. Despite that, he made her feel safe, and that inspired her to fight against her nature to help him.

  “Hey, do you want to stay here a couple more days while you figure out what you’re doing next? It’s terribly uncomfortable and in the worst neighborhood possible, but it’s cheaper if you have limited funds.”

  Alex’s face relaxed and his eyes widened. “You’d let me stay?”

  She nodded, still unsure of herself but committed. “I want to help. And you’ll be helping me keep my sanity, too. Otherwise, I’d just stew in here by myself after losing my job.”

  There had been some doubt in her mind that he’d even come back home after spending last night at her apartment. Sleeping on a loveseat wasn’t the most comfortable thing ever, and the rest of her life was equally depressing.

  Her earlier anger was eroded by the warmth rising in her heart from knowing that Alex wanted to stay with her. She would have at least a few more days to figure out what there was between them, if anything.

  Maybe she’d be able to work up the courage to make a move before he left for good.

  Careful, Zara. This is still a bad idea.


  Her conscience wasn’t nearly as enthusiastic about the situation as her eager heart. Her mother’s advice never strayed far from her mind. The more trust she placed in Alex, the more dangerously entangled her heart became.

  “You are far too kind,” Alex said. “You must let me give you money to help cover the costs.”

  “Nonsense,” she said before his words even fully penetrated. “It’s nice to have someone around for a change, and I can’t take your money for staying in such a tiny place.”

  Inwardly, she winced. She wasn’t even going to make rent. She couldn’t turn down free money like that!

  He smiled as if he knew what was going on in her mind. “Zara, if you don’t allow me to give you money directly, then I’ll just hide it in your apartment when I leave.”

  A heartbeat passed as she considered what to say in reply to that. Eventually, she had to laugh.

  “I think you’ve got me there.”

  He laughed with her. “Good.”

  A silence grew between them. A comfortable silence. Zara didn’t feel pressured to break it or say something witty. It was perfect just the way it was.

  She’d never known silence could fill the space between two people without being awkward. Much the same as the first night she’d met Alex, she was shocked at how natural just being with him was.

  Is this what falling in… no. Don’t even think that.

  She’d only known him for two days.

  I just feel obligated to help him out since he chased off those muggers for me.

  If it weren’t for him… well, she might be screwed anyway, now that Patricia had stabbed her in the back and thrown her out the door.

  Zara clamped down on the thought, pushing it back. There would be plenty of time to panic over her situation later.

  “Hey,” she said, “how do you feel about getting out of here? This apartment is claustrophobic. We could both use something to take our minds off our problems.”

  He nodded. “What did you have in mind?”

  It was a good question. What could they do without spending any money?

  She smiled, abashed. “I guess I should have figured that out before asking.”

  “Have you eaten yet? We could go find dinner. I’ll pay.” Alex had figured out that money was a sticky issue for her.

  She bit her lip. If he were any other guy, she’d be worried that he was building her dependency on him, paying for things so he could hold it over her head later and make her do what he wanted.

  To be fair, I’m still worried about it.

  The other, infatuated part of her elbowed back the concerns. This was Alex. He’d saved her life. He was just a nice guy.

  “I would love that,” Zara said, smiling.

  Only after she accepted did she worry about what label would be attached to this dinner.

  Is this a date? Am I going on a date with a man?

  Funny feelings rose within her and completely put her lost job out of her mind.

  They walked a few blocks away, out of the dangerous area around Zara’s apartment. Alex had wanted to do something for Zara to show his appreciation, and dinner sounded like an easy choice. He’d spotted a dining establishment during his earlier wandering that looked acceptable, although he wasn’t a great judge of such things.

  As they approached, Zara faltered in her step.

  “Alex, this place is expensive. I thought we’d go for McDonald’s or something.”

  He smiled. She’d lived such a tough life that even the basest fast food was a treat to her. He wanted to make her happy, show her things she’d never experienced. They could experience them for the first time together.

  “Don’t worry about it,” he said, placing his hand on her lower back to guide her toward the door.

  It was a natural movement, and yet so foreign. Angels weren’t tactile creatures in their interactions with each other, but Alex could get used to it. There was something enchanting about the way she moved under his hand.

  The hostess gave them sidelong looks—they weren’t dressed as nicely as the other patrons Alex could see—but sat them at a table. It was out of the way, in the corner of the restaurant, but that suited Alex just fine.

  A sizable menu presented another learning experience for Alex. He’d never paid much attention to humans and the sheer variety of foods they ate—angels didn’t eat, so it never held much appeal to him. It had always looked straightforward, but as he flipped through the menu, the task grew more and more daunting.

  He peeked over the menu. Zara was staring at the pages, brows furrowed, jaw to the side. She saw him looking and blushed, the reddened cheeks contrasting with her blonde hair and those stunning blue eyes.

  “Don’t judge me,” she said. “This menu is so complicated. I don’t even know what half of these things are! What the hell is daikon?”

  Alex was saved from admitting his own ignorance when a waiter in a crisp white shirt and black slacks came up to the table.

  “Good evening. My name is Willard, and I’ll be taking care of you tonight. Would you like to hear the chef’s specials tonight?”

  “Yes, please,” Alex said.

  “Tonight our chef is pleased to offer a grilled craft cut short rib paired with a wild mushroom fricassee. The other special is pepper-crusted Denver venison leg with braised red cabbage, parsnip mousseline, roasted king oyster mushroom, and juniper jus. Would you like to start with drinks?”

  Alex blinked. The waiter had said a lot of words that didn’t sound like they should go together. “A bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon, please.”

  He’d looked into dinner rituals on his new smartphone when he’d decided to take Zara out and had mentally rehearsed the ordering of a bottle of wine. He hadn’t realized ordering the food would be the harder of the two.

  “It’s been a long time since I’ve been able to justify a bottle of wine,” Zara said. “I’d have a glass every day if I could. You'll spoil me and then I’ll have to go back to my meager existence once you find your own place.”

  He leaned forward and set the menu down. “You have good things coming your way, Zara.”

  A raised eyebrow met his proclamation. “Why’s that? Karma? I stopped believing in life being fair a long time ago. There’s too much evidence to the contrary.”

  It was a cynical viewpoint, but he couldn’t blame her for that. Life hadn’t been sunshine and rainbows for her so far. He also couldn’t tell her he wouldn’t let her life unravel or that he intended to take care of her. She couldn’t possibly know the motivation behind his presence in her life, and it would just freak her out to hear that kind of commitment from him.

  “You’re right. But it’s not karma. It’s that you are a strong woman with the drive to make things better for yourself. It’s only a matter of time before you get the break that improves your life.”

  The waiter came back bearing the wine bottle, interrupting their conversation as he let them sample the wine and poured two glasses.

  “Have you decided on your meals?” he asked.

  Zara put down the menu. “I’ll just have the special. I can’t decide.”

  “Certainly. Would you like the short rib or the venison leg?”

  She pursed her lips. “Surprise me?”

  The waiter nodded smoothly. “Of course. And you, sir?”

  It was the first time Alex had ever been called sir. It felt strange. “I’ll take the short rib, please.”

  “Excellent choice.” Willard scooped up the menus and retreated.

  Zara took her wine glass and held it aloft. “Cheers.”

  This was a custom Alex had observed countless times, and he knew what to do. The clink of the glasses was surprisingly satisfying.

  He took a sip, watching Zara covertly as she closed her eyes, savoring the rich liquid in her mouth. It was a sensual experience for her, and Alex shifted in his seat as her pleasure affected him far more than it should have.

  The draw he felt toward her intensified,
so strong that it was an almost physical pull.

  What is it about her that causes that?

  It was like nothing he’d ever heard of. Even though he was now a mortal and had lost his angelic senses and powers, he could still feel the effect of her presence, the attraction between them.

  Attraction… maybe that’s just what it is. Could I be attracted to Zara?

  She appealed to him, and she was a very good-looking woman. But he’d been so focused on a supernatural cause to his fixation that he hadn’t considered a baser animal attraction. He’d never been attracted to a mortal.

  He’d only been in three relationships total. Angels partnered with each other now and then, but it wasn’t a frequent occurrence. Still, when you lived for millions of years, it was bound to happen, and they could last for hundreds or thousands of years.

  Angel-human relationships used to happen, but they were always rare and kept quiet and became anathema once the Council of Archangels changed to the current anti-interventionist stance two thousand years ago.

  Anti-interventionist rules be damned. If they didn’t want me to interact with mortals, then they wouldn’t have sent me to Earth as one.

  The thought touched on something that had bothered him ever since his sentence. If he had broken the rules by involving himself too much in mortal affairs, then why punish him by sending him down to spend dozens of years with them? Was it a test? Or was it a way for the Council to experiment with loosening the restrictions?

  He pushed the thoughts aside for the time being. He was having dinner with the intriguing mortal across from him, and he should be more present instead of thinking of things that no longer mattered.

  “You mentioned that you never went to school because you couldn’t afford it,” Alex said. “Would you have gone if you’d been able? What would you have taken?”

  Zara tilted her head to the side. “You know, I never had anything picked out. It was obvious for a long time that it wasn’t going to be an option for me, so I never wasted too much time thinking about it.”

  “You didn’t daydream when you were really young?” he pressed. “Surely, there was something you wanted to be when you grew up.”