“Angelina, you can’t think like this, you’re not betraying Daniel. He would want you to be happy, you know he would. He wouldn’t want you to live your life alone and sad. That’s the very last thing he would want for you. Do you like Joshua?”
“Yes, yes I do, a lot. That’s the problem. I was not expecting to feel like this again, Lucy, and it scares me, it scares the hell out of me. He is a soldier, Lucy, he is home for just two weeks and then he will be off God knows where and for God knows how long. I just feel like I am setting myself up for a fall.” Angelina could not stop herself from crying; her heart was hurting and all her old memories taking poll position at the forefront of her mind. Her memories of Daniel came flooding in, not leaving much space for anyone else. The guilt she felt was taking over and her conscience was tugging at her heart.
“Right then, I am coming over. We need to talk more about this, Angelina, and I won’t take no for an answer. See you in ten minutes.” And with that, Lucy rang off, leaving Angelina hanging.
True to her word, a few minutes later, Lucy was hammering on the door. Angelina opened the door and Lucy wrapped her warm arms around her friend. “Oh baby, what am I going to do with you? You are such a lost soul and it’s my intention to find you again and bring you back to life.” Angelina smiled and wondered how she had been so lucky to have such a wonderful friend grace her life. She really didn't know what she would do without her.
“Now, do you have any wine in that sorry looking fridge of yours?”
Nodding her head, Angelina reached for two wine glasses out of the cupboard and poured them both a large rosé. They sat down on the small sofa and clinked their glasses. “To special friends.” Lucy smiled.
“To special friends,” repeated Angelina.
“Look, you have only just met Joshua, give him a chance. Hell, give you a chance, for God’s sake. Clearly fate has intervened here; how else would you explain the fact you keep bumping into him in the most obscure of places, the most unlikely of places? And then tonight, there you both were at the same party, two people doing everything they can to avoid love and relationships. You have to agree, there's something to it, Angelina. Maybe you have been brought together for a reason, who knows? Just don't give up on him before it's even begun, okay? A few dates won't hurt you and they may even be good for you! You have to put Daniel behind you. I know he would approve and if you searched deep within yourself, you would be convinced of that too.”
“I know you're right, Lucy, it's just hard to get past my conscience, that's all. I was a firm believer that each person had a designated soul mate out there in the world and I had found mine in Daniel. I can't tell you how low I fell when he died, Lucy, I scared myself. I just need to get past the thought that's occupying my mind right now and that is I feel as if I am betraying what Daniel and I had. I know how it sounds, I know how ludicrous this must come across to you right now but you haven't loved someone and then watched them die right next to you. It's enough to send any sane person crazy. And for a while back then, as you well know, I did go a bit crazy.”
“I know how hurt you were, Angelina. I was there, remember, each and every day. It was devastating to me to see you like that day after day. But you came through it; you eventually picked yourself back up and carried on with your life.”
“Not without your help though, Lucy. I will never be able to repay you for standing by me and persevering with me for so long. You were amazing, I couldn't wish for a better friend. I just hope one day I can be there for you the way you have been there for me.”
“Well, right now, what you can do for me is give Joshua a chance. I know you like him and it will never take away from what you had with Daniel, not ever. Daniel was a part of your life and he always will be. But you need to start a new chapter now, it's up to you to write the story you want to live, Angelina,” urged Lucy.
They talked for hours, laughing and crying together followed by hugs and then more wine. By the time they reached the end of the bottle, Lucy was spent and Angelina was dozing off. They fell asleep on the sofa, head to toe like a pair of teenagers.
Chapter Five
Lucy rolled off the sofa, half asleep; Angelina fell about laughing. “Agh, my head is spinning! Do you have a couple of Paracetamol?”
Angelina rummaged around in her quaint kitchen cupboards and located a small white bottle hidden away at the back. “Here you go; you will feel much better in twenty minutes or so.” She smiled as she handed Lucy the tablets.
“Maybe it was not such a great idea to consume a whole bottle of wine on a Monday night. I need to call my boss and let him know I am running late if I value my job.” Lucy reached for her phone while Angelina raced up stairs to get ready for work.
“Thanks for last night, Lucy, I really needed it. I know you think I am over-thinking all this Joshua stuff, but I can’t help myself. I’m afraid to give my heart away again. You can understand that, can’t you?”
Lucy hugged Angelina tight. “Of course I understand, and it’s my job as your friend to help you and your heart to move on from this and start living again. So don’t expect me to give up on you any time soon okay? Besides, it's in my best interest to pair you off with Richard’s best friend!” Lucy said with a laugh.
As Lucy made her way to the front door, she turned to her friend with a serious look on her face. “Just promise me you will give Joshua a chance, don’t let him slip through the net. I know you really like him so go with it and don’t fight it. Right, that’s my lecture over for today. I have to run, I will call you tomorrow.” Angelina stood on the doorstep and watched Lucy pull out of her driveway like a maniac. She could not help smiling as she closed the door behind her.
Angelina made it to the office with five minutes to spare. Jayden was not at his desk, which she thought was unusual as he was always in before her. Mary, one of the junior clerks, came rushing over to her before she had time to take her coat off.
“I guess you have not heard the news then? Well, Jayden has handed in his notice, effective immediately. It came as a shock to everyone.” Angelina was not surprised at all. Jayden was too egotistical and his pride had been severely wounded when he was passed over for promotion. She knew it was just a matter of time before he left. He did not fit in at the newspaper; he was not a team player at all and had caused more problems for the office than everyone else put together over the years.
Angelina was charging her laptop when a stranger walked towards her with the biggest bouquet of flowers she had ever seen. “Angelina Ferria?” Her mouth was agape as she nodded and received the flowers from the young man, who was seemingly in a hurry to offload the bouquet.
“Thank you.” Angelina was stunned into silence. The rest of the women in the office came rushing over to admire the flowers.
“Someone has an admirer,” teased Mary.
“Wow, why don’t I ever get flowers like that?” commented Charlotte.
Angelina took the little card which was attached to the bouquet; it read:
Are you free on Friday evening? If so, wrap up warm and meet me at the Hare and Hounds at 7:00 p.m. Joshua X
She read the card over and over again, smiling from ear to ear. “Mmm, wrap up warm” she whispered to herself. What on earth has he got in mind? The words of Lucy the night before reverberated through her mind. Give him a chance she had said, Daniel would hate to see you unhappy. She knew Lucy was right. It was time to move on and if she could just tackle her conscience then maybe she would be able to find it within her to take a leap of faith and give Joshua a chance.
Angelina spent the rest of the day glancing at her beautiful flowers. Every time her boss walked by, he threw her a teasing smile. “So are you going to tell us who your admirer is?”
“Nope, not right now anyway.”
“Well, whoever it is, he has certainly put a smile on your face! It's great to see you smiling,” said Geoffrey as he walked into his office.
Home time was a long time coming; she could n
ot wait to leave the office and get home. Her mind was finally made up. She had been thinking about Joshua all day. She was more than just attracted to him and she no longer wanted to fight her feelings. As she pulled in to her driveway, she spotted something on her front step. It looked like a box. She climbed out of her car, ran over and picked up the parcel before making her way into the house. The box was wrapped in purple iridescent paper, with a purple satin bow placed in the centre. She sat down and slowly started to unwrap the parcel to reveal a large silver box. She lifted the lid and then broke into fits of laughter at the unexpected gift. A purple card was placed on top, she opened it and glanced over the words:
I know this is a most unusual gift! But please bear with me as all will be revealed on Friday night! That is, of course, if you agree to meet with me… Joshua x
Her eyes glanced over the single kiss placed just after his name. Her heart was beating fast and her smile would not fade! She closed her eyes for a few seconds and rubbed her lips gently with her finger as she re-lived her kiss with Joshua the night before. On opening her eyes, her attention was again drawn to the items placed neatly inside the silver box. She held up the green wax jacket and thermal gloves and fell about laughing once more. Angelina was filled with teenage excitement, and wondered where he planned on taking her on Friday night.
The weekend did not come around fast enough for Angelina. She had a spring in her step for the first time in years. She decided to visit Daniel’s grave before her up- coming date and drove down to the cemetery the night before. Kneeling down on the damp grass, she placed a single rose in front of Daniel’s gravestone.
“I will always love you, Daniel, your place in my heart is forever. I will never forget you, I promise.” Her eyes welled up as she kissed the top of his grave stone. She wiped the gravestone clean of dirt and removed the dead flowers. A few minutes later she left and made her way to her car.
Angelina drove home with a heavy heart. She had passed up on many offers of dates over the years; they had never felt right, not by a long shot. This time, however, it felt right. Lucy had been right; it was time to start living again. For the first time in years, Angelina slept soundly through the night. There were no cold sweats or haunting nightmares in the middle of the night. The following morning, she felt different somehow, lighter. Her thoughts drifted to Daniel once more and she knew he had released her.
Chapter Six
Joshua was anxious, not knowing whether Angelina was going to turn up or not. Oh, how he hoped she would. He could think of nothing else but Angelina; she had taken over his thoughts, ever since he first laid eyes on her stranded on the roadside. He smiled as he recalled the second time he saw her, gripping hold of the grass verge, half submerged in the lake. Her dark hair was unkempt and sprayed all over her face as she struggled to pull herself out of the water. Her embarrassment was very apparent, which he’d found endearing.
He packed his car with a picnic box full of hearty food, warm blankets, a bottle of wine, two glasses and a flask of coffee. He dressed in a warm jumper, jeans and walking boots and popped on the green wax jacket he’d also purchased for himself. This was going to be a major success or the worst date imaginable; he smiled at the thought. “Oh well, time will tell,” he said out loud as he climbed into his four wheel drive and headed to the Hare and Hounds, a nervous twinge settling in the bottom of his stomach. He prayed she would be there or he was going to feel pretty foolish.
At 7:00 p.m. Joshua was sitting at the bar waiting for Angelina. By 7.05p.m., there was no sign of her; he was starting to fidget and was beginning to feel a little anxious.
“On your own tonight, Joshua?” asked the bar man as he cleaned the bar top. Just then, Angelina walked into the pub, sporting the green wax jacket he had sent her and a beautiful smile as she headed straight towards him. He was captivated by her; his own heart skipped a beat as she approached him. Not wanting to show his surprise, he got up off his chair and smiled confidently as he reached for her hand.”
“You made it then.”
“I guess I did,” replied Angelina shyly.
“I hope you’re ready for this. I am guessing this is one date you won’t forget in a hurry!”
They headed out of the door, leaving the barman to his duties. Angelina felt nervous and could feel a knot tightening in her stomach as she climbed into Joshua’s car. As she glanced his way, she took in his features; a diamond in the rough, she thought.
“It looks good on you, the jacket that is. I wasn’t sure if you would turn up tonight. I can’t tell you how happy I was when I saw you walk through the door.”
“So, where are we going?” Angelina asked curiously.
“Now that would be telling.”
“Can I at least have a clue?”
“Nope, it’s a surprise!”
Joshua drove towards Lake Windermere; he had found the perfect spot for their late night picnic with a beautiful open view of the lake framed by the hills and woodland. The moon had kindly made an appearance and would act as their light for the evening and a few stars were dotted about for company, the North Star being the most prominent. A perfect back drop. He smiled at the thought, feeling very proud of himself.
Angelina realised their date was taking place at the lake; she was very impressed and liked that he had gone to so much trouble. He pulled up onto a clearing a few feet away from the lake. He caught Angelina looking at him and threw her a cheeky smile as he climbed out of the car.
“Okay, ma lady, dinner will be served in ten minutes.”
He opened the boot of the car while Angelina stood on the edge of the river bank, looking out onto the vast lake and feeling happier than she’d been in a very long time. The moon reflected off the shimmering water like diamonds. She took a deep breath and then felt Joshua’s large strong hands wrap around her tiny waist. She turned to him and kissed his lips gently before pulling away. “Thank you, this is perfect,” she said.
Joshua took her by the hand and led her to the over-sized chequered picnic blanket. He had laid out a hearty picnic fit for the chilly autumn night.
“Coffee or wine?”
Angelina started laughing. “Wine would be lovely. Good thinking, bringing the coffee; I think we’re going to need it before the night’s out.”
He handed her a large glass of wine, and poured just a little for himself. “I know this is a little unconventional for this time of year, but I wanted to take you on a date you wouldn’t forget!”
“Well, I can safely say you achieved your goal with flying colours.”
“I cannot believe I have not seen you around the town until recently. Do you keep yourself locked up in your little cottage?” teased Joshua.
“I don’t really go out too much, to be honest. I write in my spare time and time is very precious. I also like my own company. When the weekend arrives, I just want to curl up on my sofa with my laptop and my favourite music playing in the back ground; that's when I'm at my happiest. How often are you away?” she asked curiously.
“A lot; if I am not deployed somewhere, I am on training exercises somewhere in the world. I get home for a few weeks here and there throughout the year. I have 38 days off each year so I guess it’s no real surprise we have never bumped into each other!”
Angelina sipped her wine quickly, through nervousness more than enjoyment. She started to feel a little giddy and fell back on her hand; Joshua leapt to her aid and held her still for a few seconds before leaning into her slowly and stealing a kiss. Angelina felt the softness of his tongue on hers, she felt completely swept away. For a long while afterwards, they sat wrapped up in each other’s arms, looking out onto the enormous lake laid out before them like a perfectly framed painting. Joshua’s hand was gently rubbing the arch of her back and he was kissing her neck gently as they talked and shared insights into one another’s life.
As the temperature lowered, Joshua wrapped a spare blanket around Angelina’s shoulders. “You have been the best part of coming h
ome for me this time around. I have broken my most hard and fast rule too!”
“I see, and what rule would that be?”
“I made a promise to myself a long time ago never to commit to anyone until my term in the British Army came to an end.”
“That’s a pretty tough rule to commit to for someone so young. Why would you do that to yourself? And why deprive yourself of the chance of meeting someone?”
“I have seen so many families torn apart by losing loved ones in one war or another. I promised myself I would not put anyone in that position. It also makes it far easier for me while I am away.”
“It sounds like a very lonely rule for you.”
“I guess it was; only I never really thought about it too much until I met you. Now I have a problem, I am going to have someone to miss while I am away.” Joshua looked intently into Angelina’s eyes for a reaction. He desperately needed to know they were on the same wavelength. He only had a week left before his next deployment and he wanted to spend every last waking minute with Angelina. He already knew his heart was hers and he wasn't about to let her go.
“Well, I have a rule of my own; at least I did until you came along! When I lost my boyfriend, I was heartbroken, devastated, my whole world just came crashing down around me. It took a long time for me to get over the loss of Daniel; he was a good man. I had convinced myself that I was destined to spend the rest of my life alone. I thought my chance of love had been stolen from me. The pain I felt following his death was just unbearable, I never wanted to feel pain like that ever again. I never knew a person could fall so far. It took me a long time to recover from the accident. It was very hard on Daniel’s family too, of course, and for a while I couldn't be around them as they were too close to what I'd lost.
“Why do they call it mourning? Personally, I think there should be another name for it as it takes so much away from a person and all but destroys them. I always felt that I was going through so much more than mourning. I guess I'm not making any sense, anyway, I all but cut myself off. I buried myself in my work and my writing. I rarely went out unless it was with Lucy for lunch or the odd shopping trip.”
Broken Wings (Contemporary Romance) Page 4