Falling Angel

by Carmen Richter

  As Frankie was looking over her rider and the temporary contract she’d had her attorney draw up for him, my phone buzzed with a text. I was expecting it to be Rachel, since I’d just emailed her the plane tickets I’d booked for her and Arielle to come out to Portland. But it wasn’t her.

  Taylor: Hi, Ezra. I was talking to the rest of the girls, and we’re all going to fly out to Portland to come to the show. Figured D could use some friendly faces in the crowd. Any chance you can sneak us onto the stage door list without her knowing? We want it to be a surprise.

  I grinned. Daphne needed her friends right now. More than she probably realized. And it was about time I met the rest of the gang. The only people in Daphne’s circle of friends that I knew were Taylor, Alex, Reagan, and Aaron.

  Me: Absolutely. How many of you are there?

  Taylor: Do I count the three-month-old and the toddler? If so, eleven.

  Me: Reagan and Aaron are bringing the baby?

  Taylor: Yeah. They’re going to bring her before the show so D can meet her and then Aaron’s going to take her for the night so Reagan can stay. And Alex and I are bringing Penny to her first concert. She misses her Auntie D. We’ve already got tickets to the concert, BTW.

  Me: I’ll get the VIP part squared away for you guys. She needs her friends. Make sure you have noise reduction headphones for Penny.

  Taylor: Already taken care of. See you in a couple of days.

  I woke to an empty bed, and for a second, I panicked. I knew Ezra wouldn’t have just left me without a good reason. Especially not while I was in danger.

  Except that I wasn’t in danger anymore. He’d killed the man who was trying to hurt me, and the person who was working with that man was dead too. I was safe.

  Just as I started to roll over to grab my phone so I could text him and see where he went, I heard the front door of the suite open. A few seconds later, Ezra slipped into the bedroom, shutting the door behind him.

  “You’re awake,” he said with a smile.

  “Just woke up,” I mumbled groggily.

  He sat down next to me and leaned down to give me a kiss. I couldn’t help moaning a little as his tongue found mine and started to massage it, and I put a hand on his face to keep him where he was.

  How was it possible that I’d only known him for five months? It felt like so much longer.

  “What?” he chuckled as he pulled back and looked at me. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen that look on your face before.”

  “It’s just crazy how much my life has changed. Six months ago, I didn’t even know you. And now I can’t imagine life without you and Ari and this baby,” I told him.

  That earned me another kiss that took my breath away, and he slid his hand from my waist to my stomach in a soft caress. Even though this pregnancy was far from planned, how happy he seemed to be about it—now that we’d figured out what we were going to do once this tour ended—warmed my heart. I tried to pull him down with me so I could make love to him before I had to get out of bed, but he groaned and backed up.

  “Baby, as much as I want you, we can’t right now. Get dressed and come out to the living room. I have a surprise for you,” he said, brushing my lips again.

  “Okay,” I sighed as I sat up.

  “I promise you’ll like it,” he chuckled with a kiss to my nose. “And yes, there’s coffee too.”

  Wait. Caffeine. Wasn’t that a no-no during pregnancy?

  “I’m not sure if I—”

  “I’ve done this once before, remember? Caffeine’s fine, in moderation. You’ll be fine. I promise.”

  I smiled as I got up and threw on a shirt and some yoga pants. “Okay. I’m trusting you.”

  Ezra walked up behind me, sliding his arms around my waist and kissing my neck. My eyes slid closed as I leaned back into his embrace.

  “I love you,” he whispered into my ear. “I can’t imagine my life without you either.”

  I turned around and wrapped my hands around his neck. “I love you too. So, what’s this surprise?”

  He grinned. “Come and see.”

  I followed him out into the living room, and almost immediately found a little pair of arms around my waist.

  “Daphne!” the little girl I’d grown to love like a daughter exclaimed.

  My eyes stung with tears as I squeezed Arielle back as tight as I could, and a few of them spilled onto my cheeks. Just a few days ago, I’d genuinely been afraid that I might never see her again.

  “Ari,” I said quietly, kissing her head. “Oh, my God. Hi, sweet girl.”

  “Hi,” she mumbled, tightening her embrace.

  “And I guess I’m chopped liver,” came Rachel’s voice.

  I looked up and saw her grinning at us, while Ezra looked like he was close to tears. With another kiss on Arielle’s head, I let go of her and went to hug her aunt.

  “Absolutely not,” I told her.

  “Nice to see you in one piece,” she mumbled into my shoulder. “You gave us all a good scare.”

  “Thanks,” I sighed.

  I let go of her and hugged Ezra, standing on my toes so I could whisper to him.

  “Thank you,” I whispered, sniffling a little. “You couldn’t have given me anything I would have loved more.”

  “I promised I’d bring her to see you when everything was over. And it’s over now,” he whispered back.

  “Can we tell her about the baby?” I asked. “Or do you want to wait?”

  “That’s part of the reason I brought her here. I thought she should hear it in person. And that we should talk to her about moving in person. I’m honestly not sure how she’ll take any of it, so it gives her some time to wrap her head around it,” he told me.

  I nodded and pulled back to give him a quick kiss. But he took that little peck and turned it into something that probably wasn’t appropriate in front of his daughter. After about three seconds, Arielle groaned. Ezra and I both backed up at the same time, chuckling.

  Heading to the couch, I patted the space next to me for Arielle to sit down. But, instead, she waited for her dad to sit down and climbed onto his lap instead. I scooted closer, and Ezra let go of her with one arm so he could wrap it around me. Then Arielle pulled out of the hug for a second to grab a Starbucks cup off of the coffee table and hand it to me.

  “Daddy said this was your favorite,” she told me.

  I took a sip of the dirty chai. “He was right. You got it perfect.”

  “Listen, munchkin, there’s something Daphne and I need to talk to you about,” Ezra started.

  “What?” she asked.

  He looked at me, and I could tell he wasn’t quite sure how to broach this subject with her. Especially not after the Tim fiasco. I figured I could give it a try, since I had to ease her into the idea of me being a mother figure to her anyway.

  “What would you think about having a little brother or sister, Ari?” I asked.

  “Why? Am I getting one?”

  “Yeah, you are. Your dad and I found out a few days ago that we’re going to have a baby,” I told her. “You’re this baby’s big sister, so that makes you and your dad my family now. Well, that’s not quite right. I already thought of you and your dad as my family, so it really just means my family is growing.”

  “Does that mean you’re going to live with us now?” she asked me.

  “Actually, your dad and I were talking, and I already have a big house in Ashview, with enough room for all of us, and for a nursery for the baby too. What would you think about moving to Ashview with me in a few months, after my tour is over?”

  “It’s only a few hours away from Montauk,” Ezra added. “So we can still go back to visit everyone a lot.”

  “I’ll miss Aunt Rachel and Uncle Hector and my friends. But our house is kind of small,” she mused. “There’s not another bedroom for the baby. So if Daphne has a bigger house, it makes more sense for us to move into her house, I guess.”

  “I know that’s a lot to proce
ss. Me being a part of your life now and moving to a new city and getting a baby brother or sister,” I said. “Are you okay with all of this?”

  “Are you going to be my new mom?” she asked.

  I looked at Ezra, whose eyes were as big as saucers, and smiled.

  “I’d like to be,” I told her. “I love you like a daughter, and I’d be honored to be your mom. I know that’ll be a big adjustment for you, though, so if we’re just friends for a little while, that’s okay.”

  “You’re not going to leave again, are you?”

  I pulled her into a hug, and I choked back some more tears when she moved from Ezra’s lap to mine.

  “Nope. Never again. The only reason I left the first time was because there was someone trying to hurt me, and I was scared of them hurting you too. But the person I was scared of is gone now, so I don’t have any reason to leave anymore,” I explained. “It killed me to leave you before. I couldn’t do it again if my life depended on it.”

  “Good. Because I don’t want you to leave again. I want you to be my new mom,” she said.

  I squeezed her tight while squeezing my eyes shut. It felt like I could cry at the drop of a hat lately.

  “I love you, sweet girl,” I murmured, kissing her temple. “So much.”

  “I love you too,” she mumbled against my shoulder. “And my baby brother or sister.”

  Ezra wrapped an arm around each of us and pulled Arielle close, so she was sandwiched between us. I smiled and laid my head on his chest, completely content.

  As I was sitting in my dressing room after sound check, trying to wrap my mind around performing after the horrors of my last concert, a knock sounded on the door.

  “Daph? You decent?” Ezra called.

  I looked at the clock, and it was way earlier than Mikey had told me he would be here. But maybe he’d left Sienna early.

  “Yeah. It’s open,” I called back.

  The door opened, and a little blonde girl zoomed toward the couch I was sitting on at top speed, carrying the very well-loved stuffed elephant I’d bought her over a year ago.

  “Annie D!” she exclaimed.

  “Penny!” I gasped, picking her up and setting her on my lap as I squeezed her tight. “Oh, my God.”

  “Surprise!” Taylor sang.

  I looked up again and found the room full of people. My whole tribe was here. A lump rose in my throat, and I couldn’t swallow it, no matter how hard I tried. A few tears leaked out as I set Penny on the couch next to me so I could greet my friends.

  Taylor cleared the distance to me in two long strides, picking me up in the world’s biggest bear hug. “Hey, Tink.”

  I chuckled and sniffled at the same time as he set me back down, and his fiancé pulled me into his arms next.

  “How are you holding up, sugar?” Alex asked.

  “A lot better now,” I told him. “I can’t believe you’re all here.”

  “Where else would we be after what happened to you?” Olivia said, practically yanking me out of Alex’s arms to hug me. “Scare us to death, why don’t you?”

  “About that. Bitch, we need to have words. You let us find out about that through Taylor? Really?” Phoebe said as she gave me a hug.

  Harper joined in on the hug. “Yeah. When something like that happens, you tell all of your friends, woman.”

  “Sorry,” I sighed. “I’ve been busy trying to deal with this train wreck. I just needed to hear a friendly voice while I was waiting for Ezra at the FBI’s office, so I called T.”

  “We’re just glad you’re okay,” Dahlia told me, hugging my shoulders.

  I turned to the introverted brunette who was standing there quietly and gave her a hug, knowing she wouldn’t speak up if I didn’t.

  “Elle, you’re actually out in public?” I teased.

  “When one of my best friends almost gets abducted by a psycho, I make an exception,” she said quietly, squeezing me tight.

  Then Reagan walked over to me. But she wasn’t alone, or empty-handed. Aaron was with her, and in her arms was a baby girl that, until now, I’d only seen pictures of. And she was wearing an adorable pink skirt over one of the onesies I’d sent for her, which had a microphone on it and had “My Auntie Rocks” written underneath.

  “Someone’s been waiting to meet her Auntie Daph,” she said with a grin.

  “Oh, my God,” I sniffled, my eyes stinging with another round of tears. “Sabrina. Look at you. Reag, she’s so beautiful. Can I?”

  “Of course,” she told me.

  I held my arms out, and she placed Sabrina in them. I melted into a puddle and more tears spilled over my cheeks as I held my honorary niece for the first time.

  “Hi, Sabrina,” I murmured, kissing her forehead. “It is so nice to finally meet you. I’m your Auntie Daph. And I might not be around a lot, but I love you to pieces and I promise to spoil you rotten.”

  “Yeah, about that. You know the six-foot teddy bear was overkill, right?” Aaron teased.

  “I might have been overcompensating a little,” I mumbled, not looking up from the baby. “For having to get on a bus and go to New Orleans instead of coming back to Ashview to meet her.”

  I heard Reagan’s camera clicking as I spoke.

  “Look at me and smile, Daph,” she said.

  I obeyed, and she snapped a couple more pictures before putting the camera back in its case.

  “How are you holding up, babe?” she asked. “Really?”

  I sighed. “I’m still freaked out. I mean, we all know I didn’t like Hugh, but a serial killer? I never would have thought he was capable of that. And Josh wasn’t my favorite person either, but he didn’t deserve to die like that. But I’m still here, and as weird as it sounds, getting back to work so soon is what I need to do. I think I’d go crazy if I had to sit around and think about it.”

  Familiar comforting arms slid around my waist and a kiss was pressed to my shoulder. I leaned back into Ezra’s embrace, turning to look at him. He stole a kiss, then looked down at Sabrina.

  “You look good with one of those,” he murmured. “I can’t wait to see you with ours.”

  “Wait, what did he just say?” Elle gasped. “With yours?”

  I chuckled. Of course she’d picked up on it. But I was actually kind of glad she did. Because it meant I could give them some happy news. I handed the baby back to Reagan so I could prepare myself for the onslaught of hugs that was sure to follow this announcement.

  “You heard him right,” I said. “I found out I’m pregnant a few days ago. We only just told Ari this morning.”

  “Speaking of Ari, when do we get to meet her?” Harper asked.

  “She and my sister are sitting next to you guys tonight,” Ezra informed them. “I might have pulled some strings and upgraded your tickets. So you’ll meet both of them in a little while at the meet and greet and you can hang out with them before the show.”

  Taylor grinned. “I will never turn down more time with Little Miss Cute Stuff.” Then he turned and picked me up in a bear hug. “I couldn’t do this over the phone the other night. Congrats, babe.”

  I smiled. “Thanks. But how about putting the pregnant lady down before she pukes on you?”

  “Fuck. Sorry,” he said, quickly setting me back on my feet.

  “Taylor! Little ears!” Reagan giggled. “Including your sister’s ears. Want her to drop some more F-bombs?”

  “It was kind of funny,” he chuckled.

  “To you, maybe,” Alex teased, grinning and picking Penny up to kiss her cheek.

  “Wait. How are you going to dance tonight if you’re feeling sick, Daph?” Phoebe asked.

  “Lots of ginger tea has been consumed today,” I said.

  “You know what helped me? One of those holistic seasickness bracelets,” Reagan suggested. “It sounds weird, but it’s worth a shot. You could just hide it with a leather cuff or something onstage.”

  “I’ll have someone run to the store and grab me one,” I s
aid. “Thanks.”

  “I can go,” Taylor offered.

  “No, stay. I hate to sound like a diva, but I have people for that,” I chuckled weakly.

  “Oh, did you hear that? She has people,” Harper teased.

  I snorted, and then there was a knock on the doorframe.

  “Looks like I’m interrupting a party here,” Mikey Ecosta said as he walked in.

  I laughed and gave him a hug. “An impromptu one. Hey, Mikey. Thanks for coming and jamming with me tonight.”

  “Thank you for inviting me,” he said.

  “Oh, my God,” Dahlia gasped. “How didn’t we know that Mikey freaking Ecosta was going to be here tonight too?”

  I felt heat rising to color my cheeks. “So, these are my crazy friends. They flew out and surprised me today. Sorry in advance for any fangirling that happens.”

  He laughed and winked at them. “Hey, ladies.”

  “And I know he’ll never ask for an introduction, but this is my boyfriend and head of security, Ezra. And he’s a huge fan,” I told him.

  Mikey shook Ezra’s hand. “Nice to meet you, man.”

  “You too,” Ezra mumbled.

  “Um, anyway, we already did the sound check, but did you want to run through the songs with me before I have my meet and greet?” I asked Mikey.

  “Yeah, that’d probably be a good idea. It’s been a while since I’ve done this song,” he said.

  “Ladies, you can fangirl later. I need to borrow Mikey for a little while,” I chuckled. “I only have like forty-five minutes before the meet and greet, so we need to rehearse now.”

  “Fine,” Phoebe mock groaned.

  “Mikey, got your guitar?” I asked.

  “Yep. Let’s do this,” he said.

  After Mikey and I ran through both songs we were performing with my band, he set his guitar in its stand and turned to me.