Golden Angel: (Broken Angel #5)

by L. G. Castillo

  There was no doubt about it. Jeremy and Leilani were destined. And if Jeremy couldn’t see it, Naomi was going to have to make him see it.

  “It’s getting late, and this old chicken needs her beauty sleep,” Auntie Anela said as she rose from her chair.

  Naomi gazed at the older woman. She couldn’t get over how Auntie Anela reminded her so much of Welita with her short salt-and-pepper hair and the warm smile that was constantly on her face.

  “You’ll think about what I said?” Auntie Anela asked.

  “I will,” Leilani said.

  Naomi watched Leilani pace the yard after Auntie Anela went back into the house. She wished she could read Leilani’s mind. Was she having second thoughts about telling Jeremy?

  Naomi looked up again, sensing that Lash was calling her to return home. She couldn’t go back until she was sure Leilani was going to tell Jeremy. This might be her last chance to come back down again. Maybe if she nudged Leilani some more, she’d go to Jeremy tonight.

  “He loves you, Leilani. You just need to tell him how you feel,” Naomi said.

  Leilani paused, closing her eyes. Her dark lashes formed crescents on her high cheekbones. When she opened them, Naomi saw the fire within those soulful brown eyes.

  She’s perfect for him.

  This beautiful girl was meant for Jeremy. He just had to stop being so stubborn. She sighed, thinking of Lash. Stubborn obviously ran in the family.

  Leilani’s eyes flashed open. Snapping her fingers, she dashed to the front yard. Naomi followed close behind, hoping she was going to find Jeremy. The last time she’d checked, he was moping in that little cottage of his.

  Leilani went to the house across the street and peeked into one of the windows before going to the truck parked in the driveway. She bent down, reaching behind the front bumper.

  “Where did Kai—ah, ha! It’s still here.” Leilani pulled out a set of car keys.

  Naomi bounced on her feet, excited as Leilani climbed into the truck, quietly shutting the door. Leilani was going to Jeremy. She wished Rachel were here to see this. Playing matchmaker was fun. No wonder Rachel was always nosing into everyone’s business.

  Naomi frowned when she didn’t hear the truck’s engine starting.

  Why isn’t she leaving? She went to the driver’s side and rolled her eyes. Leilani was just sitting there arguing with herself.

  “I shouldn’t take Kai’s truck.”

  “On the other hand, he won’t know if I bring it back before he wakes up.”

  “No, I shouldn’t. He said it was only for emergencies.”

  Naomi wanted to smack her upside the head. Go already!

  “Aww screw it! This is an emergency.”

  That’s my girl. Naomi beamed as Leilani started the engine.

  “Make Jeremy listen to you. Tell him,” Naomi said as the truck drove away.

  “Tell him what?”

  Crap! Gabrielle’s here.

  Slowly, Naomi turned to face her. “Oh, hey, Gabrielle.”

  “You shouldn’t be here, especially alone.”

  “It was only for a minute. I’m on my way back up now,” she said, opening her wings.

  “You know it’s dangerous for you to be here. I could report both you and Lash to Michael.”

  “Lash had nothing to do with this. I take full responsibility.”

  “Funny, Lash said he forced you to come down alone and that he took full responsibility.”

  Naomi groaned. Lash shouldn’t have done that. She had made the mess, and it was her responsibility to fix it. He’d already suffered enough.

  “Yeah, well, you’re not supposed to be here either,” Naomi said.

  “I’m here to make sure Jeremiel is safe.”

  “I want him to be safe too . . . and happy,” she added. “His banishment was my fault. I had to come down and make things right.”

  “By pushing temptation in his way? How is that helping?”

  “He loves her.”

  Gabrielle pursed her lips. Then, taking a deep breath, she said, “We’ve had this argument before. Your situation with Lash was unique.”

  “Well, Leilani is a special case too. She and Jeremy are meant to be together. You’ve seen them. I know you have.”

  Gabrielle’s face softened. “Yes. Love is there.”

  “See!”

  “It is not enough. Jeremiel has a chance to return home when he’s done his time. And even though he’ll be on Earth during the girl’s lifetime, she’ll still die.”

  “But she can be reunited with Jeremy when he returns home. I was with Lash.”

  “Only because you were the seventh archangel. You were meant to be with us. This girl isn’t.”

  I wasn’t meant to be with the angels, mejita.

  Welita’s voice echoed in her mind. She couldn’t even bring Welita over to be with her. How could she bring over Leilani? There had to be a way. There just had to.

  “And if this doesn’t stop now, he’ll only suffer even more when she passes,” Gabrielle said. “You know what it feels like to have to live forever when a loved one dies and to never see them again.”

  Naomi did know—all too well. She never wanted anyone to feel the way she did. But Jeremy’s situation was worse. Without Leilani, he’d be alone.

  “Is there anything I can do? Please, Gabrielle. There has to be a way.”

  “Naomi, we all endure hardships. Come. There is much preparation. Joab and Jether were on the island. They were watching Jeremy too. I managed to chase them away, but when they find out I was alone, they will return. It’s too dangerous for you to be here.”

  “If it’s too dangerous, then let me and Lash help you.”

  “No. You’re both seraphs. Even together, you don’t have the strength to overpower Joab and Jether. Only an archangel can match their power. It’ll take at least four highly trained seraphs to take them down. You must continue your training. Remember we’re still down an archangel because you made the decision to step down.”

  You were meant to do important work for Him. I couldn’t be prouder.

  That’s it! Welita had known all along Naomi’s destiny even when Naomi didn’t want to see it.

  Naomi groaned. And I had to go and mess it up.

  Well, she was going to turn everything around for Jeremy and her angelic family.

  And Michael was going to give her the key.

  19

  Leilani rolled the truck into the gravel parking lot. She couldn’t believe she’d done it. She’d actually stolen Kai’s truck. Well, it wasn’t really stealing. Kai had told her where the keys were hidden just in case she needed it for an emergency.

  Turning off the engine, she gazed out into the horizon. The cliff was her favorite spot to go to when she wanted to be alone. She smiled, remembering how Jeremy had freaked when he’d looked over the cliff’s edge. It’d been so hard to concentrate on not getting them both killed. She’d thought she was going to combust when he’d pressed his hands over her chest. And then when they were finally in the air, his face had lit up and his eyes had come to life. It’d taken every ounce of brain power to keep her hands on the bar and not jump his bones.

  “Jeremy,” she sighed. Why did she have to fall in love with him? Why couldn’t it have been Kai? That would’ve made life so much easier.

  Taking her MP3 player and cube-shaped speaker, she climbed up the cliff to a grassy spot. She had every intention of telling Jeremy how she felt. She’d even passed by his place, but instead of marching to his front door and declaring her love, she’d driven up and down the street, arguing with herself. She couldn’t handle it if he turned her down—no matter how gently. And even though every single cell in her body told her he felt the same way, she didn’t trust it. What if she was wrong? What is he was still in love with that Naomi chick?

  She scrolled down the player’s screen and tapped on the song she was looking for. Soft music filtered through the tiny speaker. Her body was ready to tell the world h
ow she felt about Jeremy. This was the only way she knew how. She would dance.

  Lifting her arms, she told the story of how she first met him. Her arms floated over her head, palms up, then drifted downward and out of her body forming a circle, telling the moon how a golden angel appeared on the island.

  She swayed her hips to the soft music as her hands continued to speak for her heart. They told how the golden angel became a friend. Then slowly crossing her arms over her chest, she told how the friend grew to be her heart and how he gave her spirit a fire she’d never felt before.

  The music shifted and she wiggled her fingers as her arms floated downward, saying how he was like the rain nourishing her soul.

  She lifted her hands again, telling how she dreamed of his return. How he would take her into the clouds where they would live together forever.

  The music floated into the quiet night, and she continued to dance, letting graceful hands tell her story. As the last note drifted into the air, a tear slowly rolled down her cheek. Her story was over, the ending unfinished because she didn’t know how her story would end.

  Would she ever know what it felt to be loved by him?

  A shadow moved toward her and she jerked back. Crap! She wasn’t alone. Snatching up her things, she dashed to the truck.

  “Wait, Leilani. It’s me.”

  Her heart raced as Jeremy stepped from the shadows. His face was flooded with emotions she couldn’t make out. She froze, not sure whether to run to him or run away.

  Seconds passed without either of them saying a word. She wanted to say something, anything to break the silence, but the words wouldn’t come. Instead, all she could do was gawk at how stunning he was. He was utter perfection in something as simple as a black t-shirt and jeans.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you,” he said.

  “What are you doing here?”

  “I couldn’t sleep. And you?”

  Moonlight spilled onto his handsome face as he slowly walked to her. That was when she saw it—that look in his eyes. She’d seen it when they were hang gliding, and then again at Auntie Anela’s.

  Why did he have to look at her that way? It made her believe that he wanted her too. It gave her hope. Hope was dangerous. Hope could get you hurt.

  “I was practicing.” She looked down, fiddling with the player.

  “Leilani?”

  “Yeah?”

  He placed his hand beneath her chin. Her breath hitched as he slowly lifted her head until she was gazing into soft pools of blue.

  “It was beautiful.”

  Her breath quickened. Her mind went blank except for the voice on the back of her head.

  Tell him.

  Tell him!

  “I, uh, thank you. It was nothing.”

  “It was more than that. You’re . . .” His Adam’s apple bobbed as if he were swallowing words he wanted to say but couldn’t. “It’s magical the way you dance. Sammy said your dances tell a story.”

  “Yeah, all hulas do.”

  “What was yours about?” Sapphire eyes gazed lovingly as the moonlight shined on his golden hair.

  Her heartbeat went into double time. She’d seen this before in her dreams. The same expression. The same moon. She had to take a chance. Now.

  “There’s something I have to tell you.”

  20

  He was going to kiss her. If he didn’t stop touching her right now, he was going to kiss her.

  “There’s something I need to tell you too.” Jeremy shoved his hands deep into his jeans pockets. Whatever happened, he had to make sure he didn’t touch her again. He didn’t dare get too close. He didn’t know how much longer he could stop the flood of emotions from spilling over.

  Hurt fluttered over Leilani’s face, and he immediately regretted it. His heart banged against his rib cage, demanding him to touch her again.

  “I’m sorry about earlier today. I didn’t mean to offend you by giving you the money. You’re a great surfer, and I know you can win, but you shouldn’t have to worry about money. You work so hard. You deserve a break.”

  “I wasn’t mad about that. Well, maybe a little. It doesn’t matter now. Before you say anything else, I need to tell you something, and I want you to listen carefully. Okay?”

  Soulful brown eyes looked deep into his, pleading for his understanding, pulling his heart to hers, drawing him into her fire.

  Don’t say it. He should stop her. It would be the right thing to do. It was his responsibility. She was so young. She had a crush on him. Yes, that was all it was—a schoolgirl crush.

  Only there wasn’t a girl standing in front of him with the wind blowing her hair off her beautiful face. It wasn’t a girl who gracefully danced into his heart under the moonlight. It wasn’t a girl who made him feel like a god, even more so than when he was the archangel of death.

  God help him. He wanted to hear those three magical words come from her ruby lips. He ached for them.

  “I’m listening,” he said softly.

  She nervously licked her lips, then with a deep breath, she reached for his hands, drawing him to her.

  “What are you doing?” Heat coursed through his veins like wildfire. He pushed it back, determined not to let it consume him. He didn’t know how much longer he could fight it off. He wanted her so much.

  “I’m going to show you what I want to say,” she said, lifting his hands.

  “Show me?”

  “Yes. You already heard it when you were watching me dance.”

  Dark lashes hid her eyes from him as she stared at his hands. Slowly, her finger drifted over the lines of his thick palm, creating a delicious quiver in his stomach.

  “Each hula tells a story. What you saw was a story that I wanted to tell for someone special.”

  “Who?”

  He knew the answer. The moment he had gone to the cliff after a sleepless night, hoping to relive the memory of them in the sky and found her, he’d known. When she’d begun dancing, he’d seen the joy on her face, that special spark she’d had since the first time he’d met her. And when she had crossed her arms over her chest, sorrow filling her lovely face, his heart had ached with the knowledge of who she was thinking about.

  Her lashes lifted, unveiling a love so deep and pure it took his breath away.

  “You,” she whispered.

  “Leilani,” his voice cracked as he gently pulled his hands out of hers. “I can’t—”

  “No.” Her voice was firm as she held on to him. “I have to tell you. You can’t go until I do.”

  Jeremy’s jaw tightened as he fought between doing what he should do and surrendering his heart.

  Let go, Leilani.

  Please, don’t.

  “Okay, show me,” he finally said.

  “The hands tell the story. In my story, there is the moon.”

  She gently lifted his arms above his head, facing the palms outward.

  “The moonlight guides a stranger across the ocean.” She guided his hands, moving them up and down in front of her as if they were waves.

  “Until the stranger found a home in my heart, my `ohana.”

  Moving his hands down to his chest, her silky hair fell forward as she adjusted his fingers, tenting them to form a rooftop.

  “`Ohana,” he repeated in a hoarse whisper. She was so close he could smell the intoxicating perfume of jasmine in her hair.

  “Then the stranger, this golden angel, brought the rain to nourish my spirit.”

  Taking his hands, she lifted them and then wiggled her fingers downward. He followed her lead.

  “And then . . .” She paused, her eyes locked with his.

  The Earth stopped moving. The island disappeared. All that was left was Leilani holding his heart in her hands.

  She took his arms, crossing them over his chest. Keeping her hands on his arms, she closed the space between them until all he could see was the depths of her soul.

  He gazed at the glorious wonder on her face. Her
e he was with nothing to give her, no angelic powers, barely any human strength. She didn’t know he had once been a god who walked among men, or the archangel of death, one of the most powerful angels in Heaven. Yet, here she was, loving him, adoring him.

  He dipped his head until her sweet breath lapped his lips.

  “And . . .”

  Her lips brushed against his as she whispered, “And love came home.”

  He kissed her gently. Her lips were like honeydew, so sweet and soft. Liquid fire rushed through his veins, almost making him lose control. Painfully, he pulled back slightly. He was getting dangerously close to the edge.

  Leilani responded and immediately wove her fingers into his hair, bringing him closer and deepening the kiss.

  He groaned. He couldn’t hold back. He didn’t want to anymore. Just one more kiss. Just one last taste of her.

  Her tongue flicked into his mouth and he lost all control. He pressed her to him, his mouth ravishing hers. He felt the softness of her body against him and moaned into her mouth. He held her to him as his hands gently skimmed down her body, urging her down on a pillow of hibiscus that sprinkled the grass.

  She moaned in his embrace, tilting her head back to look into his eyes. Jeremy caught her intense gaze and dipped his head, pressing his face into her fragrant neck, peppering the soft skin of her neck and shoulder with kisses.

  He pressed the hardness of his lower body into her, and she moaned and arched, echoing his need with fervor. He kissed her deeply then, trying to pour every ounce of his love for her into his kiss, trying to show her what she meant to him.

  He released her and she looked at him with solemn eyes. She knew. She understood his need without him having to say a word. Slowly, she reached down and pulled off her white tank top. Tossing it away, she sat up and pulled at his black t-shirt, pulling it up and running her hands over his smooth chest.

  Jeremy let his head fall back at the exquisite feel of her hands on his skin as she slowly peeled the shirt off him. He fought the urge to rip it off himself and waited until finally his skin was pressing against hers.