Third Love (Heaven Sent Book 3)

by Mary Abshire

  Emily brought up the location of the pawnshop on her phone. After she tapped the screen to get directions, she handed the cell to him to relay the information. He preferred reading the directions to her instead of her taking glances off the road to check the GPS. It was much safer for both of them if she stayed focused on driving. Within minutes, they were back on the road and heading to the interstate.

  “Turn right at the next light,” he said before she reached it too fast. “What kind of ring are you interested in?”

  “Well, probably not one from a pawnshop.” She flipped on her signal and steered into the turn lane.

  “Fake wife-to-be, do tell your fake husband what kind of phony marriage ring you’d like.” He’d earned a grin from her.

  “Something small,” she said before she turned.

  “You’re really not giving me any ideas.”

  “We’re on a budget, so it’s not going to matter much what I think.”

  He pressed his lips together as he reviewed the directions on the phone. Maybe she thought it didn’t matter, but he still cared about her interests even if the token supported a lie. He didn’t want to get something she disliked.

  Emily made two more street changes before she reached the interstate. The traffic seemed light compared to what they’d dealt with in New York City. Emily sped past most cars, cutting down the time on the highway. What might have taken a normal driver twenty minutes only took Emily fifteen, thanks to her heavy foot on the gas pedal.

  “Turn left at the light,” he said as she exited the interstate.

  She checked her mirrors before she changed lanes. “I just realized something we forgot to consider.”

  “What?”

  “You getting to work.” She veered into the turn lane. “You have an ID, which you can use. But if you’re taking the car, I won’t be able to go anywhere. I’ll be stuck at whatever house or apartment we rent.” She came to a stop behind several cars.

  “Unless you bring me to work and pick me up. We can say we downsized to one car to save money.” He could drive, but since she owned the Jeep and liked to be in control, he never bothered asking to get behind the wheel.

  “I guess we’ll have to wait and see. Troy has to get your records fixed first. Then the hospital has to hire you. There are a lot of steps that have to be completed before we worry about if you’re going to drive to work or not.”

  The light changed and she followed the row of cars in front of her.

  “It’s good you brought up though so we’re prepared with an explanation,” he said. “The shop is going to be on the left a few blocks from here.” He lifted his gaze and searched for the shop.

  “I see it,” she said as she prepared to turn again.

  The small strip mall had a pet facility, a dry cleaning shop, a Subway restaurant, and a few other establishments. Andrew had thought it strange the pawnshop would be open twenty-four hours a day, but the large sign on the building advertised it. Given the amount of idle cars near the pet grooming and dry cleaning shops, he presumed they were open early too. Emily found a spot in front of the entrance to the pawnshop.

  Andrew handed her phone to her. “How shady do you think this place is?”

  “Oh, they’re all shady. But we have fake IDs too, so we fit right in.” She grabbed her purse from the backseat before pushing her door open.

  Andrew reached the barred glass doors before she made it to the curb. He waited for her to catch up and then tugged the handle.

  “Thank you,” she said as she passed him and entered the shop.

  Andrew stayed close to her as they passed rows of used televisions, furniture, and tools. The store had a musty scent. Small black cameras hung from the ceiling near the door and over the counters in the back where two men were working. The tall and large man with a gut twice as big as Andrew’s thighs sat on a stool and stared at the laptop in front of him. The other fellow crouched behind the display case shifted items inside it. He had a shaved head, tattoos covering his arms, and a variety of earrings in his ears. He rose as Emily approached.

  “Morning,” tattooed man said.

  “Do you have any wedding rings?” she asked.

  He gestured with his arm and began walking. “At the end of the display.”

  Andrew followed her and noted more cameras in the corner. He wondered how many times someone had stolen from the shop.

  “Are you looking for anything in particular?” tattooed man asked.

  “Something small,” she said.

  Keys jingled as he removed the ones strapped to his belt. He unlocked the door behind the counter, bent, and then retrieved a long case containing a variety of rings. He set the holder on the countertop.

  “Are you looking for one too?” tattooed man asked Andrew.

  “Yes. We’re on a tight budget,” Andrew said.

  “Hey, I understand,” tat man said.

  Emily picked out a set of rings, one engagement and one small band. Both were silver and dainty. A very small diamond sat on top of the engagement ring. She slid it on her finger.

  She held her hand up before her. “Not bad. And the price is decent.”

  The rings looked good on her. Part of him wished he could get her something better, something she’d really like. But he knew she would refuse.

  She removed the ring and lowered her gaze. “Is there one for you?”

  Most of the ones in the case were gold, but there were a few silver bands. He picked out the first one that caught his attention. Immediately he noticed it was too small. He pushed it back into the slot. Finding another ring, he tugged it out. It looked like it could fit, so he attempted to slide it on his finger. His knuckle prevented the damn thing from going all the way down.

  “Damn.” He returned the band to the case.

  Tattooed man plucked out a silver band. “Try this one.”

  Andrew took it from him and slid it on his digit. Again, his knuckle got in the way, but the fit wasn’t as tight. With a little push, the ring slid down. “It fits.”

  “Is it too snug?” Emily asked.

  Tattooed man pulled out the remaining silver bands. “I think the one he has on is the largest one we have in that, unless you want gold. We have plenty of gold.” He set the remaining silver rings on the countertop. None of them looked big enough to fit on him.

  “This will do,” Andrew said as he tugged to get the band off his finger. It took a little effort, but he finally removed the ring.

  “If you use olive oil, it will get it off faster,” tat man said.

  “I’ll remember that,” Andrew said as he set the band near the ones Emily had chosen. “How much for them?”

  “The lady’s are two hundred and fifty. The man’s is four hundred,” tattooed man said.

  Emily’s eyes widened as she met Andrew’s gaze.

  “Imagine what we’d spend at another store,” Andrew said.

  Emily shook her head and then faced the tat man. “We’ll take them.”

  “Great. I’ll meet you down at the register,” tat man said.

  Andrew withdrew his wallet from his pocket as he walked next to Emily. “I got this.”

  “Are you sure?” she asked softly.

  “Not a chance in hell I’d let you pay. This is my idea and you’re my wife.”

  “This feels so weird. I can’t believe I picked out wedding rings and we’re married. I never in a million years would’ve thought this would happen, even if it isn’t real.”

  He grinned widely. “It’s strange all right, but it’s kind of cool. Love, honor, and obey until death do us part.”

  “Please don’t say that anymore. The last part gives me the creeps.”

  They stopped at the cash register and waited for the tattooed man to arrive with their wedding bands. Andrew laid out seven one-hundred dollar bills on the counter. He’d kept ten with him in case he’d need a lot of cash at any moment. The rest of his dough was with Emily’s in the safe-deposit box at the hotel. He’d ha
ve to dig out more to carry later.

  While it did feel strange to be buying wedding rings, the decision made him happy. He didn’t care that the bands had belonged to someone else. The rings were a token of their partnership. He couldn’t wait to tell people they were married. Most of all, he looked forward to playing the loving husband.

  Chapter Four

  Emily sat at the table with the laptop propped open in front of her. Andrew had moved one of the chairs to her side. His proximity made her heart thump faster. He sat so close he’d bumped his arm and leg into hers a few times while he tried to get a better view of the document on the screen. She typed up adjectives in a résumé for Andrew to describe his skills. She considered putting charmer, experienced flirter, and ability to stir a woman’s desires, but she didn’t think those qualities would help him get a job at a hospital. After they’d returned to the hotel from the pawnshop, she’d spent some time researching telephone numbers for the demon’s two ex-spouses. In less than an hour she’d found both. But since it was still early enough in the morning, she didn’t want to call and wake them. To pass the time, she’d opened a word program and started typing up Andrew’s résumé. He’d helped her fill in dates of employment and other important details.

  “Is there anything else you can think of?” she asked as she finished typing. She scrolled up and down the full document so he could see its entirety.

  He studied the screen. “Education, certifications, work experience, skills… It looks good. Can you think of anything missing?”

  “Only that you have no evidence to support any of this for Spencer Reynolds.”

  He rose from the chair and started pacing in the room. “All of this is contingent upon Troy creating records for me. If he’s not going to do it, then I have no way of getting to know the demon and no access to drugs to kill her.”

  Andrew ran a hand through his dark locks while he paced. The angel had angered Troy and now the two were at odds with each other. But the one good thing Andrew had going for him was Emily.

  “I’ll talk to him. If I explain how his aid will keep me out of harm’s way, then he’ll be more willing to assist us,” she said.

  He stopped and sat on the end of the nearest mattress. The Holiday Inn had the basic amenities with two double beds, a television, mini-refrigerator, table, and free Wi-Fi. The soft cream-colored walls were easier on the eyes and calmer instead of bold and dark. Unlike the first hotel they’d stayed in, this one was clean and didn’t have spots in the ceiling or the floor.

  “I don’t know how the council thought I could kill people without having connections or resources to complete the job,” he said.

  She twisted to face him and put her arm over the back of the chair. He’d raised a good question. “Do you think they wanted you to walk up and stab each person?”

  “If I had done that, I would’ve been caught by the police by now. They couldn’t have thought that.”

  “Do you think they wanted you to get caught and go to prison?” she asked.

  “I wouldn’t think so. They aren’t vindictive. They want to rehabilitate people so heaven can continue being a safe and enjoyable place for everyone. Say the police captured me and I went to prison, I would be trapped there forever without completing the job they sent me to do. I can’t imagine the council’s goals were for me to rot away in a cell.”

  “Do you think their intent was for you to fulfill your sentence, and if you did, to return?”

  Nodding, he spread his legs slightly and clasped his hands together in his lap. “They punished me other times and I completed the terms of the sentence.”

  “Yeah, but they obviously thought you weren’t reformed since they punished you again.”

  “I honestly don’t think they’d want to keep me or any other person sent back to Earth from returning to heaven. That wouldn’t be right. Do I have to earn my place back? Sure. But there’s no way I could do that if I had to wait out my days in prison.”

  “I hate to break this to you, but life isn’t always fair or right.”

  “I know that, but we’re talking about council members in heaven. They’re the justice keepers. I can’t believe that the big boss in charge would allow them to return people with the intent of keeping them out of heaven.”

  His argument made sense, but she still didn’t put her entire faith behind a group of council members who could decide to return people to Earth or not. Politicians and plenty of law enforcement employees were corrupt. Why couldn’t the same be true of people in heaven?

  “Say you’re right for the sake of your argument. They want you to complete the terms of your sentence,” she asked. “What’s your point?”

  “My point is that there was no way to do so without meeting someone who could help me.”

  “So you met me and I have a soft spot in my heart for flirty angels. Sue me.”

  “That’s not what I’m getting at.”

  “I don’t understand. Whether you’d met me or someone else, at some point you would’ve a partner to help you. So what’s the problem?”

  He lowered his gaze and shook his head. “Nothing. I guess I was just thinking…”

  “What?”

  He lifted his bluish-gray eyes. “It’s strange how I met you and Troy. I’m grateful for the help, don’t get me wrong. It’s just … I guess I didn’t know what to expect. They didn’t tell me much.”

  “You’re overthinking.”

  “Maybe, but everything has a purpose.”

  “And mine is to help you. So, if you want me to do that, I’m going to have to call Troy.” She twisted to face the laptop.

  The time on the screen showed 9:32 AM. Emily doubted Troy would be awake at such an early hour. The man often stayed out until three or four in the morning sometimes. But she could leave him a message. Since she hadn’t spoken to him in almost a week, she hoped he’d want to hear from her. Maybe his anger toward Andrew had calmed too. It was wishful thinking on her part. She’d known Troy for twenty years. The man held grudges like no other person she’d ever met.

  Andrew reclaimed his seat next to her. “Do you think he’ll want to talk to me?”

  “He might. But he’s likely to still be sleeping right now.” She dug out the phone from her purse on the table and then tapped the screen for it to light up. “I’m just going to leave a message for him to call me.”

  “I’m willing to pay him.”

  She nodded as the call went through. After the third ring, his voicemail clicked on. She waited for the beep. “Troy, it’s Em. Give me a call, please. Thanks.” She lowered the phone and ended the call.

  “You didn’t say much.”

  “No, because if I had said I needed a favor, he would delay calling me. It’s best not to give a reason so he’ll be curious.”

  “That’s smart. It would work for me.”

  “Of course it would.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “Because you’re a man.”

  He crossed his arms. “What does my gender have to do with being curious?”

  “When it involves a woman a man cares about, the man will be more curious. He has to know everything.”

  “I don’t have to know everything,” he said with a hint of irritation in his tone. “And what makes you think I care about you?”

  “You were asking me about rings even though it didn’t matter what kind of rings we got. Our marriage is the work of fiction.” She held a slight grin as she spoke.

  “There’s nothing wrong with sprucing up a lie.”

  She silently chuckled. Was he really trying to hide his feelings from her? “Okay, how about the kiss in New York and the countless times you’ve told me you want to help me get to heaven?”

  “Sue me for caring. And for the record, the kiss was out of excitement.”

  This time she couldn’t hold her laughter inside. She placed her hand on the side of his arm. His muscle felt as hard as a rock. “All I was trying to say is that men are more c
urious when a woman is involved.”

  He glanced at her hand and then her lips before he met her gaze. “Am I to believe you wouldn’t be curious about me if I’d left a similar message?”

  She opened her mouth to respond when her phone rang with the familiar tune Bad Romance from Lady GaGa. Every time she heard the song, she thought of Troy, so she always used it for his ringtone. She tapped the screen on her cell before she lifted it to her ear.

  “I hope I didn’t wake you,” she said.

  Andrew left his seat and took to pacing in front of the double beds again.

  “Is everything okay?” Troy asked with a hint of concern in his voice.

  “Yes, I’m fine. We both are.” She glimpsed at Andrew. His lips were pressed tight and he held a look of concern. Maybe he wasn’t as okay as she was.

  “So you’re not in any trouble?” Troy asked.

  “No, I’m not.”

  “Praise the fucking lord,” Troy said before she could continue.

  “But I do have a favor to ask of you and it’s to help keep me safe.”

  “Do you want me to kill the angel?”

  “Troy,” she said in a flat tone.

  “Well, it would be the best way to keep you safe,” he said too calmly.

  “My favor shouldn’t be too difficult, but it would help us both and keep me out of harm’s way.” She reiterated the last part so it would stay fresh in his mind.

  “What do you need?” Troy asked, a bit chipper.

  “I can’t remember if you knew this or not, but Andrew used to be a nurse. He was in med school before he died.”

  “So?”

  “The target he’s after works in a hospital.”

  Andrew stopped near her. “She’s in neonatal care.”

  “She works in the neonatal part of Mercy Hospital. We’re in Springfield, Missouri,” she said, and Andrew took a seat on the bed.

  “Hold up. This demon is a woman?” Troy asked.

  “Yes. She’s on her third marriage and has a couple of kids. From the research I’ve done, she had other kids in her first two marriages, but they all died. She doesn’t have any criminal record. I have the phone numbers to her ex-husbands and I plan to call them later. Andrew is speculating what she’s done in the past, but we don’t have any hard proof.”