by T. R. Hamby
“It’s okay; I know the owner,” Mel replied, turning them through another door and into a dark room.
He flipped a switch, and a gentle light came on. The room looked like a private party area, complete with a pool table and bean bags. Mel took her to the couch, and she eased down onto it, still feeling woozy.
He knelt down in front of her and looked into her eyes. “How much did you have to drink?”
She shook her head. “I didn’t. I wasn’t up to it.”
“Do you feel sick?” he asked, touching a hand to her brow. His touch made her blush, and she tried not to shiver.
“I feel fine--just tired and dizzy,” she said, gently taking his hand away.
“I’ll get you some water,” he said, and he left the room for a moment.
Nora groaned. As if she needed another thing to stop...whatever was happening between them. She laid her head on her knees and took deep breaths, willing the spinning to stop. She had just had a long week, and she hadn’t been sleeping well…
She heard Mel’s footsteps, and she straightened just as he came in, carrying a water bottle.
“Here, dancing queen,” he said, smirking slightly and handing her the bottle.
She thanked him and took some sips. Mel pulled out a stool and sat down, still studying her worriedly.
She gave him a reassuring look. “I’m really fine. Just a tough week. I should’ve just stayed home.”
“I’m sorry,” he said quietly.
She frowned. “Why?”
“Well--technically this is my fault. Your tough week.”
She decided not to bring up the you’re-not-an-Angel thing. “It’s not.”
“Really? You don’t regret meeting me?” he murmured, his eyes sparkling.
Nora smiled at him. She knew what he was doing. “No, I don’t...I just wish you were a better dancer.”
They both laughed. Nora looked at Mel, and realized the room wasn’t spinning anymore. Her heart was beating fast, and she felt reinvigorated, confident. Mel caught the look in her eye, and watched as she set her water bottle down. She stood and approached him slowly.
He kept his eyes on her as she drew close, eye-to-eye with him as he sat on the stool.
“You sure you’re all right?” he murmured as she ran her hands up to his shoulders, their faces just inches apart. She could make out every detail in his eyes, which were just as brilliant a blue up close.
“Yeah,” she murmured back, nodding. Then she touched his cheek and kissed him, slow at first. Almost immediately she moaned, and so did Mel, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her against him.
Then they were kissing hard, their hands wandering. Nora shivered; kissing him was so good...she knew it would be. Her body was tense. She hadn’t felt this way in a long time, not even with Luca, who paled in comparison to Mel.
Mel stood, gripping her waist, and slid a hand upwards, over her chest. Then he slipped his hand beneath the fabric of the dress, and Nora gasped at his bare touch on her breast. She leaned into his hand, and he growled, ducking his head down and kissing her neck. She tilted her head, allowing easy access, and he bit and kissed her from her ear to her shoulder, his hand still cupping her breast.
She sighed; everywhere Mel kissed her burned, and his hand on her was magic. She was dizzy again, but this time it was because of him, making her breathless, and she loved it.
He finally pulled away from her neck, and smirked at her, his eyes hungry.
“My place?” he murmured, and she instantly nodded, grinning.
He got them a cab, and they sat in the back, tense for the whole ride. Nora played with his fingers while they drove, glancing every few moments to see him smiling in the darkness. She felt warm, and happy. And excited.
Mel’s building was tall and luxurious. She followed him out of the elevator and down the carpeted hall, taking in the ornate wallpaper and handsome oak doors.
“I would have thought you’d live in a penthouse,” she said as Mel held open his door for her.
“Too big,” he replied, and his voice was husky, making her shiver.
She didn’t have time to look around. The door snapped shut, and they were on each other, kissing roughly, hands roaming. Mel guided her to the bedroom and, gripping her waist, eased her down on the bed. He hovered over her, still kissing her, and grabbed the hem of her dress and pushed it up to her waist.
She gasped--no one had ever done that before.
Mel broke away, smirking, and then trailed kisses down her body, until he was between her legs. Nora swore under her breath, immediately writhing, her heart pounding and her whole body hot. Mel purred, gripping her legs, his mouth so lovely on her…
It wasn’t long before she was crying out, clapping a hand over her mouth and shaking. Intense pleasure rolled over her. Mel hovered over her, taking in the look on her face, breathing heavily and smirking. His body was flush against hers, and she could feel him hard beneath his slacks.
“Glad you came out now?” he purred, and she rolled her eyes at him.
“I think we need to get our clothes off,” she breathed. “You seem uncomfortable.”
He laughed and stood, helping her to her feet. She steadied herself on him, and before he could say anything said, “I’m fine. More than fine.”
She kissed him before he could chuckle, and he groaned instead, tangling his hands in her hair. They kissed for a few moments, before Nora pulled away, smirking--now she was in control.
She turned around, and Mel reached out to grip her zipper. But she leaned against him instead, turning her head to kiss his neck and grinding against him. He chuckled, swearing, and held her hips, moaning under his breath. Nora grinned, and bent over the bed, exposing her zipper.
Mel gave a little laugh, though he was clearly breathless. It took him a moment to unzip her, spreading his hands flat on her back, making her shiver. She straightened, flushed, and turned to face him again, slipping out of her dress and letting it crumple to the floor.
He took her in, and his gaze was intense. Nora blushed again--she was normally self-conscious when it came to her body. But the way he stared at her made her feel very sexy, and she was grateful.
Before he could do anything she reached out and started unbuttoning his shirt. He helped, his fingers moving faster, and quick as a flash he was removing his shirt and his pants, until he was naked too.
Nora’s turn. She smiled--he was gorgeous. All muscle, lean and fit...with…
She frowned at the scar on his chest. It was vertical, a couple inches long, and thick, and centered right in the middle of his chest. She reached out, smoothing her fingers on it, and he stood still. Right above the scar hung a sparkling sapphire pendant on a silver chain, and she traced her finger around it.
“Trust me,” he said as she opened her mouth, “you don’t want to hear it.”
She raised an eyebrow while he wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her close. “Another Angel story?”
“All my stories are Angel stories,” he whispered, bending his head and kissing her neck again.
She closed her eyes, biting her lip and pressing against him. “Lie down on the bed,” she said, gripping his arms. “I want to be on top.”
He pulled away to smirk at her. “You’ll get dizzy,” he teased. “You might fall.”
“You’ll catch me,” she giggled, tugging him to the bed.
He lied down, watching as she hovered over him, her hair spilling down over her shoulder. She looked down at him, loving the look on his face.
He smiled and cupped her face in his hands. “Bella donna.”
“Oh, another nickname?” she teased, reaching down and stroking him. He hissed, smirking at her, clearly enjoying himself.
“Don’t tell me you hate that one,” he said breathlessly, gripping her hips. “God, you’re a tease.”
“I never thought I could make Mel King squirm,” she said, enjoying watching him writhe. She finally eased onto him, and they b
oth groaned. She began to move, lazily, and Mel chuckled, squeezing her waist.
“Is this my punishment for being such an ass?” he murmured.
Nora grinned, just able to make out his face in the dimness. Every inch of her felt alive, electric, and he felt so amazing. She continued to go slow, torturing him, while the rest of her ached.
“Touch me,” she pleaded, and he slipped his arms up her torso, cradling her breasts and making her shiver.
“Sei bella,” he breathed, and she moaned, leaning into his hands. “Come un angelo.”
They continued like this for a little while, both moaning and murmuring, until Mel grabbed her by the waist and flipped them over.
“I think I’ve suffered enough,” he purred.
Nora woke up a few hours later, to an empty bed. She frowned, trying to remember where she was…
Mel King’s. Right. She remembered, and a smile spread on her face. She had slept with Mel King, and how lovely it had been.
But where was he?
She got out of bed, and was happy to find that she was no longer dizzy. Good. They had had their fun before settling in bed, talking. Mel mostly asked Nora questions about herself--her career, her time in Rome, her childhood. They seemed to be skirting around the Angel topic, and she wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not.
She went to the bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror. She smiled slightly--she had actually slept with Mel King. And it had been fun--the most fun she had had in a long time. He was lovely, and--if it wasn’t for his lack of dance skills, she thought amusedly--he would have been the perfect man.
She put on his shirt, buttoning it, and padded out of the bedroom. It immediately opened into a large living room, complete with a fireplace.
Mel was on the sectional, stretched out with a laptop on his lap. All he was wearing was a pair of sweatpants--an attractive sight.
He looked up, frowning. “You okay?”
“Yeah,” she murmured quietly, coming to stand beside him. “Couldn’t sleep?”
He had been tossing and turning earlier.
His head gave a twitch, and he shook his head. “No.”
“Can I sit with you?”
“Of course, Angela.”
She rolled her eyes at the nickname, grabbing a throw blanket from the couch and wrapping it around herself. Then she curled up beside him, resting her head on his chest. Mel slipped an arm around her and kissed her hair, and she smiled. She liked this, very much.
She peered at the laptop’s screen. “What are you looking at?”
“Houses,” he replied, brushing his hand up and down her back. “In Denmark.”
Nora frowned. “You’re moving?”
He chuckled. “No. I have places all over...just not here yet: Farver. A few of my clients live there, so it’s a good idea to have a place to sleep there.”
“Speaking of sleep--you were tossing and turning,” she said. “Bad dreams?”
He gave a wry chuckle. “Yes. I don’t really sleep well. Not lately, anyway.”
She considered asking what his bad dreams were about, but decided against it. It couldn’t be something he wanted to discuss. She shifted her head on his chest, hearing his heart beating. It was beating quickly, very quickly.
“Are Angels supposed to have heartbeats?” she asked jokingly.
He chuckled again. “I don’t know. I’ve always had one.”
“It’s very fast.”
“Yes, it is.”
Suddenly she had an epiphany. “I know how you got that scar,” she said.
“Oh?”
“Yeah--you had heart surgery, didn’t you?”
He was quiet for a moment, before replying, “Wrong again, Angela.”
She rolled her eyes. “How, then?”
“You really want to hear?”
She sat up a little, shifting onto her back and laying her head in his lap, looking at him. “Go on.”
He smiled at her, letting out a sigh. “It’s a long story...but the short version is that I did something that displeased God. And he punished me…” His head twitched, and his smile vanished. “In the worst of ways. Some of the other Angels were horrified at what he had done. The brutality of it...and they felt it was undeserved. So we came together and formed an army. And we went to war against my brother and his army.
“We fought for just one day...and towards the end I was fighting Michael--my brother. I was besting him...for the first time in my life, I was stronger than him. But another Angel, from a distance, threw an axe at him. I jumped in front of him just in time.”
Nora listened, captivated. No matter how bullshit it all was, Mel was a wonderful storyteller. She could see the battle clearly in her mind...see the axe buried in Mel’s chest…
He looked at her, a vague expression on his face, as if he was truly remembering.
“It killed me,” he said simply. “That was when God spoke to me, and offered me a deal. I would come back to life, and live on Earth, working together with Michael to find evil mortals and send them to Hell--to stop them wreaking havoc on the rest of his Creation.”
Nora raised an eyebrow. “And what do you get in return?”
He let out a sigh. “Well, I’m not dead. That’s a start.”
“And?”
He was quiet, his jaw tight. She could tell he was conflicted.
Finally he shook his head. “I could tell you one day, maybe.”
Nora considered pushing it. After all, it was just a story. But there was a sudden look of sadness in his eyes, and she found she couldn’t bring herself to test him. She grasped his hand, tugging his arm over her waist, and he smiled at her.
“What did you do? To displease God?” she asked.
He looked down at her torso, playing with the buttons to his shirt. “I fell in love with a human,” he said softly.
The sadness was still there, and Nora felt a pang. No, she didn’t like him sad.
She decided it was time to change the subject, though she had a million questions.
“Which house did you like best?” And she turned her head, looking at the listings on the laptop.
Mel cleared his throat, bending far enough to tap on the mousepad. He gave her neck a little kiss and she giggled, ticklish.
“This one,” he murmured, as the page refreshed.
Nora frowned. “A two bedroom? You might as well rent an apartment.”
“I don’t need extra rooms,” he replied. “But there are mountains right outside the city, and I want to live close to them. Hence a house.”
Nora turned onto her side, putting her fingers on the mousepad and navigating the page. She clicked on a link, and glanced over her shoulder at him.
“This one’s three bedrooms, and you can see the mountains from the master,” she said, leaning back so he could see. “One of the rooms is a library, wow--and it has a piano...it’s listed for one million?”
He chuckled, cocking his head at the screen. His fingers were still playing with the buttons on her shirt, slowly tugging each one free.
“A library would be nice,” he said, almost to himself. “I’ve been wanting to collect rare books again. I used to...back in the day…”
Nora was smiling. She liked the curiosity on his face, the slight smile, the cocked head. She also liked what his hand was doing, tediously unbuttoning the shirt she wore.
“When was this?” she teased, raising her arms over her head. “The eighties?”
He smirked. “The eighteenth century, more like.”
She rolled her eyes, and he chuckled. “How old are you, anyway?”
He slipped his hand beneath the shirt, and her breath hitched. “Do you really care how old I am?” he murmured, his voice low.
“I’m curious.”
He shook his head. “You’re beautiful.”
“Don’t distract me,” she said, shivering as his hand roamed over her chest.
He chuckled. “Fine. Officially I’m forty-two. My birth cer
tificate says I was born in 1978.”
“And unofficially?”
She looked at him, and he smirked again, his eyes glimmering. “What do you think, Angela? I don’t have an age. I’m Immortal.”
She studied him, her brow furrowed. “If you’re Immortal, why do you look forty-two?”
“Thanks,” he said dryly.
She raised an eyebrow, squirming slightly under his touch. “You’re still gorgeous.”
He sighed. “Don’t you want to do something else?”
“We can talk and...do other things at the same time,” she replied, smiling mischievously.
“You’re insatiable.”
“I want to know.”
He took a deep breath and sighed again, looking at her as if she was a puzzle he was longing to solve.
“If you had met me just a few years earlier, I would have looked younger--ageless, almost. But my body can’t remain on Earth without eventually deteriorating, which is why I look older.”
“Why?”
“Because I don’t belong here. I belong where I was Created--the Immortal World, where all the Angels live. Here is what I call a Mortal Plane--all living things die here. So do I, after a millennia or two. Then I go down to Hell to Regenerate.”
Nora absorbed this, trying not to smile and give away how amused she was by the whole story. It was so detailed--she wondered how long it had taken him to make it all up. Maybe he had practiced in a mirror.
He still caught her look, and he shook his head. “Still don’t believe me,” he murmured, tracing his fingers down her stomach.
She moaned, arching her back a little. “It’s a good story.”
“Forget I said anything. Come here.”
She sat up eagerly, straddling him and slipping his shirt off her shoulders. He looked at her, his blue eyes striking, but his stare wasn’t as intense. She knew his mind was elsewhere--somewhere troubled and brooding. She cupped his face in her hand, bringing him back to the present, and kissed him gently, soothingly. She wanted him to feel better--wanted to make him feel better. He kissed her hard, running his hands up her waist, and for a while they were solely occupied with each other.
They made it back to bed, Mel holding her and kissing her temple. Nora curled into him, happy and wonderfully exhausted. It felt so good to be with someone like him. To be honest, she hadn’t quite met someone like him before. She had met her fair share of brilliant men--but there was something different about Mel. Something gentler, something braver--stronger. It was refreshing.