“Don’t go with him, Samantha,” said Craig.
Angel turned around as if he was going to say something, but I stopped him by putting a hand on his broad chest. “Don’t ever talk to me again.” I looked him dead in the eyes, making sure he got the message.
“I still love you Sam, don’t go with him.”
“Great way to show it. You will never change.” I looked at him briefly for a moment; still stunned that he’d just said that he loves me.
I pulled Angel with me and left Craig standing behind. “So, you drove all the way over here on that thing while wearing a tux?”
He gave me a conceited smile as he gave me a helmet. “Put your sunglasses on. This is going to be a long ride.”
I looked at the helmet in shock. It didn’t have a visor on the front; it was just a simple military helmet. I’d never been on a motorcycle before, so this would be an interesting experience. I must have put on the helmet backwards, because Angel took it off, and placed it on correctly, tucking as much hair as possible inside the helmet, destroying my fancy hairdo. He took the glasses from my hands and placed them neatly on my face.
“I’ve never been on one of these.”
He turned to me and kissed me gently, making me shiver with the cool night. “I told you, I’d always be there to protect you.” I was surprised that I’d actually chosen the perfect outfit for this ride.
Once he put on his own helmet, one that actually covered his whole face, he got on the bike and turned it on. He revved the engine loudly, making a scary noise. I swallowed, and then held his shoulders as I climbed on behind him.
“Put one foot there, and one there,” he directed in a muffled voice because of the helmet. I did as he said. “Put your arms around my waist and hold on tight. Are you ready?” I looked back at Craig one more time, who was still standing there staring at us, and then nodded.
Angel revved the engine one more time before driving off. I couldn’t hear the music anymore. He slowly drove down the long driveway, avoiding the collection of cars. He turned out of the deserted street and took Route 27. There, he took his time, giving me an opportunity to feel comfortable on the bike. There weren’t many people out. The usual night traffic but nothing that would scare me.
The bike ride wasn’t bad. He took his time as he made his way to the New Jersey Turnpike. It wasn’t cold out, but I tightened my grip on his waist when he sped up. The air, though, would hit my face like cold icicles. Whenever Angel was at a stop sign, he would lean back and caress my thigh, making me go crazy all over.
We made it to the entrance of the turnpike and he pulled over. He put both feet on the ground and lifted his helmet. It was loud because of the cars driving past us, but I was able to hear his instructions.
He turned to face me. “Okay, I need you to put both hands on the gas tank like this.” He held my hand and pressed them on the tank in front of the bike, making me lean even closer to him. “Tighten you legs around my thighs.” And I did. I scooted as close to him as I could. “We’re going to be going really fast. If you need time to breathe or something, tap my shoulder and I’ll pull over.” I nodded.
He put his helmet back on and went through the E-Z Pass. Now we were traveling like a shooting star. He was going really fast, and I mean over one hundred miles an hour. Everything around us was flying. I could barely keep my eyes open and I couldn’t breathe well. Weren’t there any cops or radars? Sometimes I would tuck my head behind Angel’s broad shoulders so I could catch my breath. But I could feel tears streaming towards my ears from the speed.
Sometimes, Angel would change the gears and I would knock my helmet on his by mistake. It felt like an eternity until we reached the George Washington Bridge. He slowed down a little, but not too much. Now he was dodging the usual traffic, making zig-zags all over the bridge until we made it out.
Driving in the city is already bad, only crazy people drive here. But here’s Angel, driving his motorcycle like a maniac around downtown. The honks and flashing lights could drive anyone insane, or give you a headache for the day. He made it to Central Park, which is a beautiful scene, and pulled around a white condo that faced the park. He drove to the underground parking deck and swiped his card for access.
The only cars that were visible here were the most expensive cars in the market. Every color and every style. We drove around the car show until he pulled into a spot by a black Audi. The windows were completely black. Angel cut the engine and put the bike on the stand. I looked around as he got off and saw at least four armed security guards. Angel held my hand and helped me climb off the bike, immediately feeling the stiffness in my muscles.
“So you live here?” I asked, looking around while he led me to the elevator and pressing the 45th floor button.
He turned to me on the elevator, “Yeah. I fell in love with the view. You’ll see.”
Once we made it to that floor, Angel opened the door marked C. I gasped, “Wow.” I thought my house was beautiful. But this was just modern. His plush carpet was white, so I immediately removed my boots and left them at the entrance. Everything in the condo was white. The carpet, the couches, the flat screen mounted on the wall, the kitchen, the bathroom. His office was the same way.
I ran into another room and was confused. The carpet and the walls were white, but everything else was black. This must be his bedroom.
“Why black?” I said, turning to face him as he removed his jacket and bow tie.
He pointed at himself and said, “Black Angel, remember.”
I laughed out loud and turned back to the living room. That sounded like something he would say, being super smug about it. I looked out the window in shock. The view must be beautiful in the daytime. I could see the park directly in front of us, and faraway buildings. I could see everything. The George Washington Bridge was in view; all the skyscrapers were beautifully lit. I went to school here in the city, but anyone could forget how beautiful this place was. Angel came up behind me and brushed my hair to the side to kiss my neck. I sighed, and closed my eyes.
I turned to him and forgot how to breathe. He was wearing nothing but sweats pants. His chest was as beautiful as I remembered it. Broad shoulders, ripped chest, and rock hard six-pack abs. I looked up at his face and caressed his cheek slowly. He closed his eyes as I did.
I sighed and said, “So this is your bachelor pad?”
He opened his eyes and shook his head. “No, I left that in DC. Do you want to get something to eat? Sushi?”
I thought about his question. “No, I want some pizza!” I was excited.
He laughed at me, but turned to the phone and ordered our food. When he came back, he took my hand. “I want to show you what I’ve dug up so far.”
I followed him back to his office. Everything in his house was extra neat. I thought it was because he just moved here, but he said, “Not really, I have a maid who comes once a week to clean for me.”
I felt a stab of jealousy for the first time, clearly visible to him. “Relax,” he laughed. “She’s at least forty years older than me. I knew you wouldn’t like it if I had a hot maid strolling around in her mini skirt and red heels.”
“What about the cooking?” I teased.
He pointed at his chest and said, “I am a fantastic cook.”
I didn’t say anything else as I sat on a white leather chair. I wanted to say that I wasn’t the jealous type, but who would I be fooling? Not me. Angel walked behind the white office table and opened a drawer. He pulled out a manila folder and came around to sit next to me.
He opened the folder and spread it in front of us. There were dozens of papers and pictures. Many of them were of me, some of my father, and one that had Captain written in black marker.
“Where did you get all of this?” I said, shuffling through the papers.
“I had Jessica contact an old colleague who works for the White House. She didn’t mention my name, so she went through everything she could find.”
I picked
up an article with the headline “Military colonel committed suicide in his home.” The story went on about his achievements, but mentioned nothing about a suspect. “Your Captain was strangled?” I looked over at him. He nodded.
There was a top-secret memo that classified my kidnapping as a tragic loss. It went on saying that I was found shot dead by terrorists in Afghanistan. The date was August 13th. My birthday. I didn’t have to ask Angel what this meant, because it was clear. I wasn’t supposed to come back home. Angel was supposed to be killed even before we met. He was supposed to be killed, and then blame it on the war against the Americans in the Middle East.
I picked up a few pictures of my father. He was with the man who raped me back in Afghanistan. He was dressed in a sharp black suit, almost unrecognizable. But I would never forget his face. They were in some sort of warehouse. They looked to be in agreement, because they were shaking hands. My hands began to shake. I didn’t know what this meant.
“This was the man who raped me,” I told Angel, pointing at the man in the picture with my father.
I saw the muscles in his jaw clench with anger as he ran his hands over his face.
I turned to Angel with watery eyes. “What does it mean?”
He sat back and rubbed his chin. “I don’t know. That’s what I’ve been trying to figure out myself.”
“But he wouldn’t sell his merchandise to them. That’s what he told me. That was the reason why I was kidnapped.”
Angel came closer to me and touched my chin. “I’m not judging any of these until I have hard evidence. Right now, we don’t know if any of this is true, okay. Your father is not the bad guy, trust me. I know one when I see one.” The doorbell rang and he got up. “We don’t know why your pictures were in the White House. I didn’t think that you were that important to the President. Let it go for now. I’ll dig everything up. Trust me.”
He held out his hand and I took it. I followed him to the door and the pizza guy, already short, was invisible behind all the boxes he was holding. Angel handed him a bill and said, “Keep the change,” and closed the door.
I followed him to the kitchen as he opened all the boxes. He’d ordered way too much, but I was glad. Pepperoni pizza, cheesy bread sticks, buffalo wings, and a fudge cake. We sat on the island counter and dug in.
We chatted for the duration of our meal, about nothing in particular. Once we couldn’t eat anymore, Angel began to put our leftovers in the fridge. I admired his rear end as he packed everything in gently.
Once he was finished, we went and sat on the sofa. He turned to me and held my hands. “So do you like this place?”
I looked around. Who wouldn’t? “Of course. You did a nice job decorating it.”
He smiled while he ran his hand through my hair. “I thought of you when I got this place.” He had that controlled look to him. Great, now what? I thought we were over this poker face thing.
“I want you to move in with me.”
He’d caught me completely off guard, and I mean completely. I never even imagined that he was going to say that. I replayed it in my head, just to make sure my mind wasn’t playing tricks on me. I looked at him in shock. My eyes were wide. My mouth hung open. I couldn’t say anything.
He looked worried. “I know we don’t technically really know each other. But there’s something weird going on. Something’s telling me that we were safer out there than in our own land.” My expression must have scared him. “I’m not saying this to become your commando again. I’m saying this because I don’t want to lose you. We just got back to our normal lives. I don’t know how it would be without you in this world. We can stay in separate rooms for now.”
I still couldn’t speak. My mouth was closed now, but I was too shocked to speak.
He knelt in front of me and took my face in his big hands. “I don’t know how else to explain it. I don’t want to lose you, Samantha.” He was struggling with his words. I was more nervous now. “Stay with me, Samantha. Let me show you how much I love you.”
This time an emotion erupted from my face. I was crying as usual. He revealed the dimple on his right cheek as he smiled at me. His smile was bright and triumphant, but I ignored it. I held his hands on my cheeks, but kept crying.
“You can redecorate this place however you want. Make it pink for all I care. But don’t leave me, please.”
I finally found words. “You love me?”
He looked at me intently with the blue eyes that I’d fallen in love with. His eyes were bright, beautiful, and angelic. His pink lips parted and he smiled again. I touched his buzz and it sent sparks of electricity all over my body. He nodded.
I smiled at him and threw myself in his arms. “Okay,” I whispered in his ear and his shoulders relaxed.
He quickly pulled back from me, serious. “God, I have no clue what you did to me Samantha. I have no clue how to handle these feelings.”
I laughed at him while he gave me a serious stare. “What I did to you? Angel, that’s exactly what I feel I’ve been given. An angel.”
He shook his head, trying to remove me from his embrace. “I’m far from that, Samantha.” He turned away and looked out the giant windows. His face looked sad in the reflection.
I got up and walked in front of him. “I told you already. I don’t care about that. I care about from here on in. And you are my Angel. Fine, so you’re not a guardian angel, more like an Archangel. But you are my Angel. I’ve been touched by an Angel, and that is you.” He leaned his head against the window with his eyes closed, but he was still facing my way. “And about all that love you have for me. We can put it to good use,” I said innocently with my big puppy eyes.
He opened his eyes in confusion. But he bent down and kissed me, still not understanding what I meant. I pulled away and removed my tank. He looked down at me, finally getting the picture. He picked me up and walked into the bedroom. His bed was really high up, and it was huge.
He laid me on the bed gently, as if he was afraid of breaking me. He was on top of me. He kissed my nose, my cheeks, my neck, and then my lips. This kiss felt like it was releasing a lot of tension from his shoulders, and he relaxed more. He began to kiss me more passionately, more seductively, and for the first time ever, I was able to completely feel his power when it came to passion. I was lightheaded; I was dizzy. I couldn’t remember where I was. I just felt him on me, and I didn’t care about anything else.
He felt me become a little limp and he pulled back, a little worried. I smiled at him and brought him closer. I let him kiss me everywhere. He removed my bra expertly and went for my jeans, leaving me in only a thong. He looked down at me, but didn’t say anything. His eyes were dazed. I sat up in front of him and began to pull down his sweats with shaky fingers. He saw how nervous I was, but didn’t say anything.
He came back to me and the temperature in the room went up. He began to kiss me hard and fast. He was everywhere. I felt like I was on top of the world. My eyes were rolling back, but I fought it. I wanted to experience that moment with him. He went for my lips, licking them and kissing them with all the love he had. He left my face and kissed me everywhere, in places that made me gasp and moan with pleasure.
When he came back to me, I was ready for him. He began to press himself in me. It was painful, both physically and emotionally, but I pushed that aside. He was extremely gentle. I think he was afraid that he would hurt me. He went very slow, moaning my name in my ear as he went along. I pushed onto him. I grabbed him and went faster, pushing him to the limit. He began to catch up with me, thrusting forward, sending the best pleasure I’d ever experienced through my whole body.
The man pulled my hair and threw me on the floor. Two men held my arms as the man in the picture entered me with such force that I screamed. The other men laughed like it was a joke. He went hard and fast, pulling my hair, slapping me, and grunting. When he was finished, he pushed me aside as if I was nothing.
I gasped. I stopped and Angel did too. He looked up
at me and he removed himself from on top of me. I turned to my side and began to cry. I buried my face in the satin comforter because I was embarrassed. Angel came around wearing briefs and pulled me underneath the sheets. He covered me first, and then slid next to me to console me like he’d done every night in the Middle East. I wrapped my arms around his waist as he wrapped his big arms around my shoulders.
“This was not the way I wanted our first time to be. I ruined it,” I cried into his chest.
His voice was still deep and husky. “You didn’t ruin it, Samantha. I was waiting for you to react like that. I wasn’t planning on doing this tonight. We need to go slow and take our time with this. You were severely damaged. It will be fixed, but you need to be patient.”
I lifted my face and looked down at perfection. I got up a little and stared. I traced my finger on his chest, every rip and every muscle in his chest. I touched the tiny bullet hole and could still remember when he was shot. His eyes were still half closed. His pink lips parted. His hair was extremely short. The scar on his eyebrow was unnoticeable, but I knew that it bothered him. He was absolutely beautiful and perfect. And he was all mine.
He opened his eyes. “I know I’m irresistible, but really Samantha, take it slow.”
I looked down and covered up. I lay down facing him again, and watched him drift into sleep. I watched him sleep for a little while. His breathing was clearly noticeable with his large upper body. I continued to run my hands all over his body, not able to get enough of him until my body went into its own spell of sleep.
That may seem like the end, but life never has a happily ever after. The end is only the beginning.
The end, for now
Epilogue
She was gone. He was going to meet up with her later. But now, he was going to enjoy his hot coffee and read the newspaper. He didn’t hear the footsteps but he should have. He knew they were coming for him. He turned to look into the man’s eyes just before he pulled the trigger, emptying all twelve shells into John Kelber’s body.
My Sweet Escape: A Touched by an Angel Novel Page 18
