by Tina Gerow
Logan sighed. “We may not be Fort Knox here, but then again, we don’t need to be. Regardless of what bull my business manager told you, I’m not some big Hollywood star. I’m a simple song writer.”
She startled at the dichotomy of the humble man standing before her now and the over-confident one from a few minutes ago. “The most sought after song writer in Nashville, last I heard. And you don’t have to be a star to be in danger, Mr. McAllister. I’m good at what I do, and as I said, I can help you.”
She knew the death threats, the arrow, and even the break-ins had to have rattled him, but the addition of the phone taps and all the rest might make him see reason.
“I don’t think you have a choice, Logan. You’ve scared all the rest away.” The deep voice came from the doorway.
*****
Both Logan and Ariel turned to see the newcomer.
“James…” Logan began. Ariel bolted to her feet, a stricken look marring her lovely features.
“You,” she said. She rebuilt her composure in the span of a few seconds. So completely, Logan wondered if he’d imagined the look of pain that rode across her face moments earlier.
“Hello, Ariel. It’s been a very long time.” James Wellington, Logan’s business manager, stood as if prepared for battle.
He started at the wistful tone of James’ voice and looked back and forth between the two of them. “Am I missing something? I feel like I’m interrupting a reunion.”
Ariel’s gaze flashed, and she continued to stare at James with a mixture of anger and bitterness. “Not unless you already know your manager is a soulless blood-sucker. I should have suspected something when an evening meeting was requested.”
James’s deep laugh rumbled through the room, but Logan noticed the edge of sadness. “Still have a heart of stone, don’t you, Ariel?”
“We can discuss it at high noon tomorrow under the blazing sun if you’d like,” she answered in a low, deadly voice. “Or how about over some Italian with heavy garlic in that nice little converted church downtown.”
Logan realized whatever was between them must be pretty bad if she was comparing James to a vampire. What could James have done to alienate her so completely? Then he glanced at Ariel and saw the hurt behind her anger. Jealousy burned through him at the thought of James with the brunette angel before him.
Where did that come from? I’ve only just met her!
James walked fully into the room and took the chair next to Ariel. “This has nothing to do with the past, so don’t get your wings all in a ruffle. This is about Logan. He needs protection, and I think there’s some dark and evil intent behind the threats.”
Logan was about to point out the irony of calling the threats dark and evil, when Ariel spoke up.
“Some of the old brotherhood, maybe?” she asked, her expression still clearly skeptical.
James only nodded. “You and I both know Gabriel asked you to take this. Even if you don’t trust me, I know you still trust him.” James started to reach out to touch her hand, but she flinched away. “Don’t put Logan at risk just to spite me.”
Ariel’s gaze flashed again, and her chin thrust up in a stubborn tilt, but she remained silent.
Logan furrowed his brow. It was as if they were both speaking Swahili and he didn’t have the translation guide. “I assume by the conversation, you two know each other.” What an understatement. “Would you care to let me in on it? And who the hell is Gabriel?”
The tension in the room skyrocketed, until finally James broke the silence. “I’ve never been one of your assignments, Ariel, and contrary to what you believe, I would never betray you.”
“Yeah, I’ll bet you only do that once every two hundred years or so, right?” She nodded curtly to Logan and stood. “I’ll discuss this with my sisters, and with Gabriel. I’ll be in touch.” She turned and walked out of the office without a backward glance.
Both men watched Ariel’s retreating form, then Logan turned to James. “What the hell was all that about?”
James smiled. “About? It’s about the most fascinating woman I’ve ever met, keeping you safe.”
*****
Ariel slammed the front door of the house she shared with her sisters and threw her purse in the general direction of the hall table.
“Gabriel. We need to talk,” she yelled into the air, then stalked toward the living room. She plopped down on the couch and kicked off her high heels as she heard one of her sisters pounding down the stairs.
“Ariel, what the hell is going on?” Kefira stood in the doorway, her red hair still wet from a shower. “None of us have ever dared speak to Gabriel that way!”
“That was before he set me up,” Ariel growled. Her sister sat next to her, a concerned frown marring Kefira’s striking blue gaze.
“Who set you up?” asked Dara from the doorway, her long blonde hair pulled back into a stylish twist.
Ariel sighed. “Where is Odeda? I might as well tell everyone at once. And, I’d like everyone to be here in case I’m tempted to dismember a certain Archangel.”
Ariel reached out with her mind to summon her remaining sister. Times like this made her glad God hadn’t removed their telepathic link when She released them from their warrior status last year.
Odeda rushed into the living room.
“What’s wrong?” asked Odeda as she sat on the loveseat opposite the couch, waves of chocolate brown hair frothing around her.
Ariel glanced around at her sisters—her clan, and sighed. All of the original five hundred gargoyles were created at the same time. So, in the purest sense of the word, they were all sisters—created by the same hand. But they were also a clan, a traditional fighting unit, and the last remaining clan of the entire gargoyle race.
She blinked back tears and said a silent prayer of thanks for these three women. With all life had thrown at them over the centuries, they had always been there for each other. She knew this time would be no different. They would listen and help her through this, no matter how it turned out.
She would rather take on an army of shape shifters, zombies and Pharisees than face James again. Now if she could just convince her sisters.
“I met with our new client this evening, and he really does need our help. He has taps on his phones, security alarm wires were tampered with along with several other issues. He’s really a very interesting man….” Sexy, frustrating, adorable, stubborn…and interesting. “But, I don’t know if I can take the job.”
Dara turned toward her, her lovely face etched with concern, her blonde brows knitted. “Tell us what’s wrong. I’ve never heard you say that about any job we’ve ever done. And that’s saying quite a lot.”
“Logan McAllister’s business manager is…James Wellington.” Her eyes burned with unshed tears, and she blinked them away. She’d cried enough tears over James two-hundred years ago. She refused to give him any more.
“Wait.” Kefira held up her hand in stop sign fashion. “You mean, lying bastard vampire, James, from when we took that assignment in England?” Her blue gaze flashed fire. “I knew we should have hunted him down and staked him through the heart while we had the chance. The bastard!”
Dara, always the voice of reason, spoke up. “Ariel made a conscious choice to let him go, and we stood by it.” She laid a comforting hand on Ariel’s shoulder. “Besides, he wasn’t our assignment, and we don’t kill indiscriminately, Fi. Or have you forgotten that?”
“Hold on,” Odeda broke in. “Let’s cut through all the emotional crap. Ariel, tell us what happened at the client’s meeting.”
She filled them in and her anger returned as she mentally relived her encounter with James.
Odeda whistled long and low. “Wow, did you really say all that vampire stuff in front of Logan?”
“He’s a mortal,” Ariel said stubbornly. “He’ll just think I was speaking metaphorically.”
“So, is James still hot?” asked Odeda with mischief dancing in her chocolate-brown
gaze.
“Deda, one of these days I’m going to belt you in the mouth.” Ariel pressed her palms to her eyes to keep the tears at bay.
“I think that answers my question,” Odeda said and grinned, clearly unrepentant. “And what about Logan McAllister? I’ve seen pictures of him that could singe a girl’s panties!”
Before Ariel could lie and deny she’d soaked her own panties at the mere sight of Logan McAllister, the room suddenly smelled like cinnamon and the air crackled with electricity.
“Now, maybe we’ll get some answers,” Ariel said under her breath, pointedly ignoring Deda’s last question. She wasn’t ready to examine her reaction to one Logan McAllister, which was actually very interesting before James showed up and ruined it.
Gabriel appeared, floating a few feet off the floor, in a comfortable sitting position. Once again, Ariel was stunned by the angel’s surreal beauty. Even after seeing him daily for centuries, he still took her breath away.
A halo of light surrounded him, which glinted off his long blonde hair. All six-foot-eight of him was very well defined—the Creator had definitely been paying special attention the day She made Gabriel.
Odeda often described him as a walking wet dream, and no one disagreed. Eyes so blue, they looked like glittering sapphires glinted mischievously. And beautiful, sculpted lips curved up at the edges.
She looked around and realized the four of them had unconsciously stood when Gabriel entered the room. Nine hundred years of ingrained habit had Ariel kneeling down on one knee and placing her right fist over her heart in a sign of respect. Her sisters did the same. She may be angry with him, but there were some lines not to be crossed.
When Gabriel nodded, Ariel stood and faced him, her hands on her hips, while her sisters took their seats. “James Wellington.” She said each word distinctly and glared at the angel.
Gabriel had the grace to look almost sheepish. “Ariel.” He sighed and let himself float down onto the armchair, which sat to the right of the couch and the loveseat. “I asked you to protect Logan because he has lasting significance in the Creator’s plan. I didn’t think you’d have issues with James—after all, it’s been two-hundred years.”
“Bull,” Ariel said, though curiosity snaked through her about what significance Logan represented. She knew better than to ask Gabriel, he would only share on his own timetable. She stalked over to stand in front of him. “I don’t have a problem with the assignment itself. I have a problem with the fact that you didn’t warn me James was involved.” She groped for the words to explain what she was still trying to understand.
“You’re right, Ariel. I didn’t warn you, but that wasn’t my decision to make.”
“What?!” she sputtered. “You mean She told you not to tell me James was there? What possible reason could She have for putting me in that position?”
Gabriel’s gentle laugh flowed throughout the room and a sense of comfort and contentment rolled over her, as it always did when the angel laughed. Irritated, she shrugged it off and continued to glare at him.
“You know better than that, Lioness of God. She doesn’t tell anyone the reasons behind Her decisions, not even me. No one but The Creator is capable of seeing all the nuances to Her plan, especially with free will wreaking havoc.” Gabriel stretched out his long legs and crossed them at the ankle. “Besides, you’ve handled entire armies of undead, zombies and other beasties. I didn’t think you’d have a problem with one, lone vampire.”
Ariel’s irritation mounted. There was nothing worse than a smug angel. “So, you won’t have a problem if we stake him?” she asked with a saccharine smile.
He sat up straighter, his severe frown causing his halo of light to dim. “Now, Ariel, there’s no need for that. I never asked you to eliminate James, and frankly, there are worse beings out there.”
Interesting, Gabriel actually defended James. She decided to push down this path further. “You wouldn’t be trying to influence my free will, would you?”
“Certainly not!” Gabriel scowled marring his beautiful features, clearly offended by the insinuation. “I was just attempting to point out that you’ve always had excellent intuition about good and evil in all its forms. But it seems like you’re letting your personal biases cloud your judgment.”
Kefira bolted to her feet and pushed Ariel out of the way. “Are you trying to tell me that lying bastard isn’t evil? He’s the undead, right? And I’m perfectly willing to help him become all the way dead!”
Ariel smiled at her sister’s impassioned protection of her. Did Kefira realize she’d cursed in front of the angel for the first time ever? Even if “bastard” wasn’t really all that racy. They were meshing with the mortal world faster than any of them realized.
Gabriel merely smiled and gestured to include everyone in the room. “All of you have an excellent ability to sense evil. Yet none of you ever warned Ariel when she entered into the relationship in the first place.” He turned to Ariel. “And when you talked with him tonight, did your skin crawl as it does when you are in the presence of the truly evil?”
The words hit her like a blow. After she saw James rip a man’s throat out and realized he was a vampire, she never once stopped to think if he was truly evil or not. But then again, the line seemed pretty clear when he had blood dripping from his chin.
“Remember, not everything is always as it seems. I think you four of all people, would have learned that by now.” Gabriel gazed around the room. “Now, it’s up to you if you take the McAllister job or not. After all, you were released you from your warrior vows, and I only asked this as a favor among old friends.”
Ariel smothered a snort of laughter at Gabriel’s description of them as old friends. True, they all held great respect for the angel, but not once in nine-hundred years had he ever shared anything personal with them.
“Logan is very important in the overall plan. And he’s also a challenge. You will no doubt have your hands full.” Gabriel fixed them all with a smile that could melt any woman within one hundred miles. “From past experience, I know you all enjoy challenges—especially you, Ariel.”
She ground her teeth. “I don’t suppose you’d share why Logan is so important?” she asked, already knowing his answer.
Gabriel just smiled. “All will be known in due time.”
Damn, how many times had she heard that old gem? But he did have her pegged correctly. She loved challenges, especially now that there were no more missions to keep them busy. And Logan McAllister had piqued her interest. Besides, she’d never run from anything in her life—except for James.
Maybe it was time to start fully enjoying her new mortal life. And Logan McAllister might be a great way to start. She placed her fist over her heart and nodded at Gabriel. “Her will be done.”
Chapter Two
Ariel stepped out onto the balcony off her bedroom wearing a low-backed tank top and comfortable jean shorts. She concentrated on the small fairy wings tattoo between her shoulder blades. The tattoo began to tingle, and suddenly her massive wings reformed and unfurled around her.
She rolled her shoulders to get used to the weight of the large leathery wings against her back, which had been only a tattoo for the last two months.
That was one of the big problems with modern-day America as far as she could see, too much radar and other monitoring to allow her clan ample time to stretch their wings.
She didn’t miss the days when she had the wings twenty-four-seven. Those were also the days when her clan turned to stone from sunrise to sunset. But at least when you sleep standing up as a block of stone, there’s no fighting for a comfortable prone position with wings that are bigger than the rest of your body.
No thank you!
She didn’t miss it. The Creator released them after nine-hundred years of loyal service. She allowed them to walk in daylight and gave them the ability of glamour for their wings. Much easier to fit in with human society that way. And Ariel was eternally grateful.
Stepping lithely onto the railing, she breathed deeply and enjoyed the rich smell of earth and night. Then she said a silent prayer of thanks for allowing them to find a ranch with enough land where no nosy neighbors would be around to see the women return to their true forms.
She spread her wings wide and gave a few trial flaps to make sure they weren’t overly stiff, then jumped off the railing and let the wind catch her. Immediately, she pumped her wings to gain altitude.
Her unused muscles protested, but after a few minutes, they began to warm and remember what had come so naturally for so many centuries.
The cool wind against her face exhilarated her. Adrenaline pumped through her, and she felt more alive than she had for months. She reveled in the way her wing tips cut through the currents to propel her forward. Tangy Texas night air whipped past her, billowing her hair and giving her the feeling of freedom flight always allowed.
All too soon, she sighted her objective. The McAllister ranch.
If Gabriel wanted them involved in protecting him, then she wanted some reconnaissance free of James’ bias to go on.
Or maybe she just wanted to get a closer look at how Mr. McAllister lived. She’d recognized the spark of attraction with him immediately. Sparks she hadn’t experienced since…well, since James. She remembered being surprised that after two-hundred years of not being affected by a man, merely being in the same room with Logan McAllister made her heart race and her palms sweat.
She was enough a creature of The Creator to know when She was trying to tell her something. But exactly what, Ariel wasn’t sure. Then again, she’d gone with that theory with James, and look what happened.
The thought instantly irritated her. Even if James wasn’t the evil bastard she believed—or so Gabriel said—she still didn’t trust him. Good guys didn’t go around ripping people’s throats out and drinking their blood! And no one would convince her otherwise.