Fallen angel? Come on. She had to be drunk. Sure the wings were darned realistic, but maybe he was drunk, too. He hadn’t had anything alcoholic in almost three years, but still. They’d flown. He plopped down onto a roof vent.
Livia rubbed her hands over her bare arms. “Too much?” She sighed and looked away. “That’s my thing, too much, too soon and over my head.”
Ty sat forward with his elbows on his knees and watched her turn away from him. Her wings did move, fluttering slightly and tucking tighter against her back. The movement oddly soothed him.
“One of these millennia, I’ll learn to use my head not my heart.”
Ty stood and crossed the few feet between them. He needed to say something. “Come on, you can’t be a fallen angel. They have darker wings and don’t just fall out of the sky—or are you one of those underwear models I asked for last night before I fell asleep?”
She didn’t turn around. “I didn’t tumble out of the sky.”
“Damn. I wanted to see you in the rest of your underwear.” He brushed his fingers down the leading edge of her wing, marveling when she shivered slightly. I seriously hope this isn’t a dream or a joke. He continued to make his way around her and tipped his head to look into her downcast eyes. “You can smack me. That was a horrible joke.”
“I fell in love.”
He’d heard her speak. Understood the words. And yet... “With me?” he pinched the bridge of his nose and gritted his teeth. Stupid.. “I mean...no, you don’t have to explain. Really.” He folded his arms. “It’s my luck. The first hot girl I really want to meet and there’s a catch. I swear.”
“His name was Isaiah.” Livia sank down next to him on the air vent. A lock of her flaxen hair slipped across her eyes. She folded her hands in her lap, but it didn’t hide the tremble.
Ty slipped his hand under hers and wrapped his fingers around hers. She traced the lines of the veins along the back of his hand. “He was so charismatic...knew the right lines, touched me when I needed it.” Her hand stopped moving. “I was sent to guide him through life, to keep him from getting hurt and what did I do? I fell in love with him and failed.”
He couldn’t not touch her. No matter how much he told himself making a move would be disastrous. “How, Liv? I don’t think you know how to fail.”
“Really?” She stared at him with moist eyes and her voice came out husky in a way that resonated to his core. “It wasn’t love.” She cleared her throat, making her voice deeper. “I found out after I’d fallen, he only wanted immortality. I was so in a rush to feel...something. I wanted his touch, his kisses, admiration and to enjoy a physical relationship. I left my charge to be with him and it was a mistake.”
Somehow he doubted anything about her was true mistake. So she didn’t know her true calling yet. Who really knew what they were meant to do from the get-go? He sure didn’t.
A song played in his head. Yes, he’d only just met her but he refused to believe their meeting was nothing more than a simple chance. He’d been looking for a woman just like her for so long he’d almost given up.
“What if the mistake was a way to get you to the place you belonged?”
“Like learning a lesson so you appreciate what you’ve got?”
“Yeah, just like that.” Ty stood and tugged her up into his arms. He began to sway, brushing his cheek against her temple. “Like bumbling along the road of broken dreams, not knowing at the time it was all important to what you’re supposed to do later on.”
She settled tighter in his arms. “You’re wise for a college man, or you’ve really practiced your come-on lines.”
“I don’t have any pick-up lines.” He let go of her hand and wrapped both arms around her back, below the wings. “If I’m so smart, then why do I feel so fucked up in your presence? I want to impress you, not make you think I’ve lost my mind.” He stopped swaying and gazed into her eyes. God, he could get lost there forever. “This sounds crazy, but I wanna be loved by you.”
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