Wings of an Angel

by Shanna Hatfield

  “When was the last time you skied?” Drake asked as they drove up the highway that would take them to the slopes on Mount Hood.

  “Oh, gosh, I guess it would have been almost eight years ago.” Angela looked outside, awed by the rugged beauty of the landscape. Snow-frosted trees on either side of the road almost looked ethereal in the gilded morning light. “You’ll have to let me practice on the kiddie slopes first.”

  Drake laughed. “I haven’t been for a while, either. Drew and I used to go all the time, but life gets busy.”

  “It surely does.” Angela looked over at him. “So how are things going with Drew and Joy?”

  “I think Drew and Joy are the only two who don’t see how perfect they are for each other,” Drake said, shaking his head. “My brother is so dense, I’m not sure he’ll ever figure it out. He was moping around last week and didn’t spend time with her, but he said he planned to go to her place after work today, so maybe that’s progress.”

  “She seems like a wonderful person, Drake. In fact, I keep meaning to go over and see her again. I’m sure it’s hard being stuck in the house like she is until her injury heals. Winter is the worst time to have a foot or leg injury.”

  “I know. Seth’s grandpa is stuck at home, too. I swear, this snow we’ve had has left a lot of people in bad situations.”

  Angela nodded. “It’s hard on the animals, too.”

  Drake glanced at Angela. “Seth said you stopped by one day when they almost lost a calf. Ivy is Sam’s special bovine, so that would have been tragic.”

  “Ivy throws awesome calves, though.” Angela smiled. “And I met Sam’s nurse.”

  Drake’s eyebrow lifted. “What did you think of her? I’ve heard varying reports.”

  Angela laughed. “She’s gorgeous and full of fun, so if Seth told you anything else, he’s fibbing.”

  A smirk made the dimple in Drake’s chin pop out. “And here I thought she had fangs and claws.”

  The tension melted away and the two of them visited like old friends on the rest of the drive. After Drake parked, they made their way to the ski rental shop where they both rented skis, boots, and Angela got a pair of goggles.

  “Remember, I’m going to be rusty,” she said after she strapped on the skis and stood. “Be gentle with me.”

  Although she meant the comment in a teasing manner, Drake cupped her chin in his hand and gave her a look full of such emotion, it momentarily stunned her. “Always, Angel. I’d never be anything else.”

  In an abrupt switch, he grabbed her hand and motioned to the ski lift. “Come on, my little ski bunny. Let’s hit the slopes.”

  An hour later, Angela laughed as she and Drake stopped at the bottom of a slope. It hadn’t taken long for her body and mind to remember how to ski. When she stopped trying to think about how to ski and just did it, she had no problem keeping up with Drake.

  “I thought you said you were rusty,” he said, grinning as they removed their goggles and looked back up at the slope they’d just skied down.

  “I am. Can’t you tell?” she cast him a flirty glance over her shoulder as she headed toward the ski lift.

  “No, I can’t.”

  “I’ll race you down, slow poke.”

  They ate a picnic lunch from a basket of sandwiches, fruit, and cookies Drake’s mother had packed for them. She’d just brushed the last cookie crumbs from her fingers when Drake talked her into trying snowboarding. After turning in their skis, they rented the necessary equipment and headed back out.

  Angela had a blast and laughed every time she or Drake took a spill. Once, they fell almost on top of each other.

  “Are you okay?” Drake asked, raising himself up and staring into her face, searching for something she hesitated to define.

  “I’m great, Drake,” she said, smiling up at him. Desperate to wrap her arms around his neck and pull him down for a kiss, she clenched her hands at her sides to keep from putting her thoughts into actions.

  “Angela,” he whispered, his gloved hand cupping her cheek. “Sweet Angel…” His head started to dip toward hers. Afraid he was going to kiss her and terrified he wouldn’t, she grabbed a handful of snow and tossed it in his face.

  Startled, he pulled back, spitting snow. “You are so in for it, young lady. Just you wait. I’ll get you back when you least expect it.” Drake rose and pulled her to her feet as she laughed at him.

  “I’m two years older than you, so you can’t go around calling me young lady.”

  Drake fished snow from inside his coat collar. “I can call you anything I want when you bombard me with snow.”

  They played on the slopes until they both noticed it starting to get dark.

  Angela cast a panicked glance at the sky, and then grabbed her phone from her pocket. “Oh, my gosh, Drake! It’s almost four. Lisa said she’d bring Nick home at four. Even if we hurry, we won’t make it in time.” She took off at a jog, carrying her phone in one hand and the snowboard in the other. “Ugh, and Lisa left three messages. How did I miss them?”

  “Not to worry,” Drake said, catching up to her in a few long strides. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders as they made their way toward the equipment rental shop. “Lisa is going to leave Nick at the café with my folks. After dinner, Drew is going to take him over to Joy’s place to play with Bacon and Pete.”

  Angela scowled at him and pushed away from his side. “That is not okay, Drake. Not at all. Who gave you permission to decide anything about my son?”

  Drake stepped back from her and frowned. “Honestly, Angela? You were having such a good time today I didn’t want you to feel rushed to get back to Faraday. I kept an eye on the clock and when I knew we wouldn’t be back in time to meet Nick at your house, I made other arrangements. My apologies if I overstepped. If you want to leave, I’ll take you home right now.”

  “As a matter of fact I do.” They left the equipment at the shop then walked to the parking lot in silence. Angela listened to a voice mail message from Lisa letting her know the boys were having a great time and they would be home at four. The second message assured her she was happy to leave Nick at the café and she hoped Angela enjoyed her afternoon on the slopes. A text message told her she supposed she should have checked to make sure it was okay to leave Nick with the Millers at the café. If it was a problem, she just needed to let Lisa know.

  Angela yanked off her gloves and shoved them in a pocket then quickly texted Lisa letting her know it was fine to leave Nick at the café and thanking her for taking him for the day. When she finished, she glanced up at Drake and tucked her phone in her pocket.

  He looked miserable, like a little boy who’d gotten in trouble for sneaking a cookie right before dinner. When Drake opened the passenger door to his SUV, Angela squeezed his hand. “I’m not used to having anyone help with Nick and I’m really, really not used to having a day to enjoy myself. I’m sorry if I snapped at you, but going forward, please don’t make plans for Nick without consulting me. I do appreciate the arrangements you made for him this evening, though. He’ll have a great time with your folks, and with Drew and Joy. I just don’t want to inconvenience anyone.”

  “Are you kidding?” Drake gave her a hand inside then jogged around the front of the SUV and slid behind the wheel. “My mom is pumped that Nick will be there for dinner and Drew said Joy was thrilled he’s coming over. The puppy will have a great time playing with someone closer to his size.”

  Angela’s phone chimed and she pulled it out, hiding a grin as she read Lisa’s text.

  Enjoy yourself with that handsome bachelor on the slopes. Milk it for all it’s worth, girl!

  “So what’s next?” Angela asked, as she texted a winking emoji face to Lisa then tucked the phone back in her pocket.

  “Next?” Drake gave her a questioning look as he pulled out of the parking lot onto the road. “You mean you aren’t in a rush to go home?”

  “Well, since you’ve already gone to all the effort of making arrang
ements for Nick and I’ve gotten over my initial tizzy fit about it, I’m not in a hurry. Besides, Nick is probably already at the café and I’d hate to disappoint him or your mom.” Angela grinned at him. “Assuming you had further plans for the evening in mind.”

  Chapter Eight

  Drake cleared his throat. Boy, did he have other plans in mind, but Angela wouldn’t like a single one of them. Not when they started with kissing her and ended with… kissing her.

  All day, he’d battled to keep his feelings in check even if his thoughts ran rampant. Multiple times, he’d almost kissed the beguiling beauty sitting beside him, but he’d managed to resist. Barely. The one time he’d almost surrendered to the temptation, she’d tossed snow in his face. It might have chilled the moment, but did nothing to cool his ever-growing ardor for the woman.

  He loved her. Wanted her. But how in the world could he convince her to see him as something beyond a friend?

  The day had been amazing and good for them both, but then he had to go taking charge, like he was often inclined to do, and make her upset. Angry, even.

  She’d looked like an enraged mama bear when she dressed him down for making plans without consulting her. If Drake was easily frightened, that would have done the trick. Only he deserved her wrath. Looking back, he should have told her at the time, suggested his plan, and let her decide what she wanted to do.

  However, Drake had forged ahead without asking her opinion because he’d wanted to keep her to himself longer. Given the option of going home to Nick or staying with him, Drake knew she’d rush back to Faraday. Part of him, that stupid ego part, took a hit knowing that she’d always put Nick first. The sensible part of him cheered Angela for being an awesome parent. He admired her dedication to her son.

  Through his years of teaching he’d watched enough people to know parenting a child was hard. Being a single parent was incredibly challenging. And balancing being a single parent with a hectic career was close to impossible, but somehow Angela succeeded.

  Nick was a happy kid who rarely misbehaved or got into trouble while seeking attention. The little boy was a normal, inquisitive, bright student who loved his mom.

  Drake was definitely a card-carrying member of Angela’s fan club. He just didn’t think she was ready to hear him admit it. Not yet. Maybe not ever.

  Today, though, he wouldn’t worry about the future and what might happen, or not, between the two of them. For now, he’d be content that he had several more hours to spend with Angela and enjoy each and every one.

  He pulled into the parking lot at the ski lodge and into one of the few open spaces. “Hungry?” he asked as he unfastened his seatbelt.

  “Famished. I can’t believe I’m hungry after eating that great lunch your mom packed.” Angela unfastened her seatbelt, but Drake hurried around to open her door before she could get out.

  He gave her his hand and she took it as she hopped out of the SUV. Rather than relinquish it, he held on, rocked by the jolt that shot up his arm each time they touched. Could she really not feel it?

  “Are you sure we’re dressed appropriately for the lodge? Isn’t it fancy in there?” Angela asked as they neared the door.

  “You look perfect. Perfect and beautiful,” Drake assured her then pulled open the door and they stepped inside. For the first time since he’d met her, Angela appeared carefree and full of youthful zest. He loved seeing this side of her, loved watching her long golden waves of hair bob in the ponytail at the back of her head, loved watching her smile and listening to her laugh. Her laugh wasn’t one of those annoying high-pitched screeches or mindless little girl-like giggles. It was rich and warm and made Drake want to do whatever he could to draw out more of it.

  Inside, Angela came to a stop as she stared at the two-story rock fireplace flanked by towering Christmas trees. “Oh, wow.” She turned in a slow circle, taking in the architectural details of the historic resort.

  Drake remained silent as she looked around then placed his hand at the small of her back and guided her to the restaurant where he gave the hostess his name.

  “You made a reservation?” Angela whispered as they followed the hostess to a table. “That’s a bold move, Miller.”

  He grinned and held her chair for her as she took a seat. “Hopeful. It was a hopeful move that you’d agree to have dinner with me.”

  “Whatever,” she smiled as the hostess handed her a menu. She glanced through it then looked at Drake. “I take it you’ve eaten here before. What’s good?”

  “Everything.” Drake smirked as he set down the menu and fought the urge to move so he sat next to Angela instead of across the table.

  Angela perused the menu then sat back and took a sip from her glass of water. “Tell me about this place,” she said, waving her hand toward the massive rock chimney.

  Their seats in the second-story restaurant put them in a wonderful position to see the fireplace and also look out the window at the lights and softly falling snow. With candlelight flickering on their table, Drake thought it might just qualify as a romantic atmosphere.

  He nodded and gazed down at the grouping of furniture in front of the fireplace where people gathered and laughed. “The lodge was built back in the 1930s by the WPA.”

  “That’s the Works Progress Administration, right?” Angela asked, leaning slightly forward on the table.

  “Yep, that’s right.”

  A smiling server appeared and took their orders. When she left, Drake pointed to the area below them. “The workers who built the lodge added a lot of unique details, like hand carving every newel post. The lodge was dedicated by President Roosevelt. It’s a national historic landmark and, following the tradition from when it first opened, there are St. Bernard dogs that are kind of the mascots of the lodge.”

  “That is awesome,” Angela said, gazing downstairs then looking back at Drake. She reached across the table and placed her hand over his where it fiddled with his fork in nervous agitation. “Thank you for bringing me here. This is the first time I’ve had a lovely dinner out in almost ten years.”

  “That’s too long, Angela.” Drake gave her a studying glance then lifted her hand to his lips and kissed the back of it. He saw something flicker in the chocolate-depths of her eyes, something that looked a lot like yearning and a little like love. “Do you mind my asking what happened to your husband? All you’ve ever said is that he died before Nick was born.”

  She pulled her hand away and fell silent as she stared outside. Drake wished he’d kept silent. They were having such a good time together and he had to bumble ahead and ruin it.

  “It’s okay, Angela. You don’t have to tell me.”

  She turned from the window and offered him a sad, resigned look. “No, Drake. You’re my best friend and it’s time I told you the whole story, but it’s not for the faint of heart.”

  “I’ve got a pretty tough one,” he teased, slapping a hand to his chest then doing his best to look encouraging. “I can take it.”

  Angela nodded and settled her hands in her lap. “My grandparents lived on a farm near a small town in Tennessee. Actually, Faraday reminds me of it quite a bit. They had one son, my father. Although my grandfather hoped he’d stay on the farm, my dad hated it. All he could think about was getting away and moving to a big city. Granny and Papa didn’t have a lot of money, so my dad kept his grades up and worked hard. When he was sixteen, Papa died at a neighbor’s place. He was helping fix a tractor and it rolled over him. Granny says losing Papa made my dad that much more desperate to leave. And he started drinking. Dad earned an engineering scholarship to a college in Denver where he met my mother. Right after he graduated, they wed and he went to work for a great company. A few years later, they had me. My mother lives in a state of denial about life in general and my dad in particular. During the day, he’s a respected engineer, but once he gets home, he drinks. Sometimes he’s verbally abusive, although I’ve never known him to be physically violent. To their credit, they sent me t
o stay with Granny anytime I had a break from school. Those were the happiest moments of my childhood, when I was with her at the little farm in Tennessee.”

  Drake didn’t know what to say and sensed Angela just needed to share the whole story without interruption, so he remained silent.

  She took a sip of water, toying with the stem of the glass before releasing a pain-infused sigh. “When I was a sophomore in college, I met a senior who was about to graduate with a degree in software engineering. His name was Allen Plankton. He was charming and good-looking, said all the right things. He and my mother seemed to really hit it off. She told me over and over I would never do better than Allen. So when he proposed, I said yes. After all the years of my father telling me how I wasn’t good enough or smart enough, Allen was full of flattery. He made me feel smart and beautiful, like I could do anything. We wed right before I started my senior year of college. Within a month, I knew I’d made a huge mistake. Allen had gone from being sweet and charming to possessive and cruel. Constantly, he’d check up on me, wanting to know where I was and what I was doing. For reasons I’ll never understand, he was convinced I was cheating on him. If I wasn’t in class or at my part-time job on campus, he wanted me right beside him. He’d randomly show up at school, following me. Every day became a battle of wills. Although I was against it, he and my mother insisted we move into a little apartment above my parents’ garage to save money, since vet school was expensive. I had scholarships and he earned good money at his job, so it wasn’t like we couldn’t manage, but he and my mother wouldn’t relent.”

  “Your mother?” Drake asked.

  Angela nodded. “Allen had Mom completely fooled. She always sided with him, told me I should drop out of the vet program and be a devoted wife. I was in my last year of school when I found out he’d put a tracking app on my phone, hacked into my lab computer, and spent more time stalking me than he did at his job. I freaked and kicked him out of the apartment. Mom invited him to live in the house with her and Dad.”