Caleb typed, Hello, can you tell me what I have to do, please?
Three moving dots appeared. Jamie is typing.
He waited.
Hello, Caleb. I’m here to help you find your perfect match. Please fill in your profile, and we can get started.
Next, up popped the registration fees, with various options.
He signed up for one month, the shortest time.
Jamie’s speech bubble appeared again. Thank you for joining Love Bites. Find the magic in love.
He cringed.
Please upload a recent picture to your profile, too. When you’ve done that, you can send someone a message by clicking on their profile pic. Don’t forget to check the red ‘messages’ button on the top right of your screen. When someone clicks on your profile, their message will appear in your inbox. All messages are private and confidential.
Okay, got it. Thanks.
Evie read over his shoulder. She typed in the process on her phone, then smiled into the screen. Flash. The phone camera clicked.
He took her lead and did the same, his pose a tad cheesy, but what did he know about how people went about going on a date these days? In his day, things were so much easier. He understood things changed, and he had to move with the times, but it didn’t make it any less confusing.
Once again, he despaired at what he’d got himself into. He wasn’t even interested in finding someone.
Ting!
Evie looked at her phone and screeched. “Wow, that was quick. The Fae sent me a message.”
Ting.
Ting!
His phone this time. Surprised, he tapped the red ‘messages’ button. Both the mermaid and the banshee had messaged him. “What do these people do, sit on their phones all day? It’s a bit desperate, isn’t it?”
Ting. Ting!
Evie laughed. “Clearly. That’s me again. Three messages. How many have messaged you?”
“Two. Like you’re not counting.”
She nudged his shoulder, a clown-sized grin on her face. “Me? Never.”
A spot of rain landed on his cheek. Caleb looked to the sky, noting the clouds sweeping across the full moon. A storm was brewing; he could feel it in the air, a heaviness as certain as the pride in his heart at being bestowed the honour of teaching and nurturing would-be angels, like Evie, to become amazing. Not that Evie wasn’t already amazing.
Evie tapped away at her phone, presumably replying to the messages. He didn’t peek.
“I think I’ll call it a night, Evie.” He slipped his legs out of the railings and then stood and brushed his trousers down. “Thanks for the wine.”
Evie finished typing into her phone and stood too. “You’re welcome. Thanks for the pizza. How about we meet up next week and share our experiences in the big bad world of dating?”
“Nothing I’d like better. Good luck with finding another job.”
“I’m sure I’ll find something equally as crappy.”
She pecked his cheek, and he smiled. “Bye, Evie.” Caleb rolled his shoulders, extended his wings and soared into the night.
“Bye, Caleb,” she called, her soft voice whipped away by the wind.
Caleb breathed in through his nostrils, savouring the chill in the air that filled his lungs and ruffled his feathers. With a downward thrust of his wings, he flew higher, the sweetness of purer air calling to him the higher he flew.
The magic veil allowed him to become completely invisible to humans in flight mode, not only his wings, which were masked by the veil all the time for living amongst them, but he still had to keep an eye out for aeroplanes and the odd flock of birds in the daylight.
But it was dark now and getting darker, so he kept a look out for bats instead. Clouds shadowed the moon and stars as he headed towards Raphael and Ophelia’s house, rain dampening his clothes. A rumble of thunder sounded in the distance.
His mind wandered to another time, decades ago, recalling a weatherman from the time when they used to have cardboard cut-outs of rainclouds and suns. The fellow would stick them onto a map of the British Isles, along with varying sizes of arrows to represent the wind.
Ah, the good old days. Evie called him old-fashioned, and she was right. He made a mental note to work harder at moving with the times.
Maybe Ophelia and Raphael could help. They seemed to manage fine, and they had hundreds of years on him.
He shook his head. A date with a mermaid and a screaming banshee—what had he been thinking?
Caleb landed softly on his friends’ front porch and checked his watch. Half past eleven. He shouldn’t have come. He went to fly away again, but the porch light flashed on.
A few moments later, two shadows appeared behind the glass front door.
“Who is it?” asked Raphael.
“It’s me, Caleb.”
The door opened. Ophelia and Raphael were dressed in their nightwear.
“Sorry. I didn’t realise it was so late.”
“It’s fine, Caleb,” said Ophelia, a knowing smile gracing her lips. “Why don’t you come in and tell us what’s worrying you. We were about to have a nightcap.”
He smiled. Trust Ophelia to pick up on his mood. A revered psychiatrist, she tended to read too much into every situation. “If you’re sure you don’t mind?”
“Of course not, dear fellow. Come on in,” said Raphael. “I could do with some male company. Ophelia has been nagging me all day about painting the spare room again.” He offered his wife an affectionate smile.
She nudged his shoulder. “I have not been nagging. I’ve been negotiating.”
Caleb laughed as he stepped inside, folding his wings, so they lay against his back, his wingtips brushing the back of his thighs. “Did it work?”
“Not yet, but he’ll have to do it eventually,” Ophelia replied. “He knows I won’t shut up until he agrees.”
Raphael rolled his eyes and sighed. “What colour, dear?”
Ophelia smiled as she cupped his jaw. “I thought we’d go with the palest blue, darling, so I can be reminded of your beautiful eyes every time I go in there.”
He chuckled. “Flattery will get you everywhere.”
“I know.” Ophelia planted a kiss on his cheek.
“Is that all I get, a peck on the cheek?”
“For now, yes.” She arched an eyebrow. “We have company.”
Caleb cleared his throat. “I should go.”
Ophelia linked her arm with his. “I’ll hear nothing of the sort. Come along.”
Raphael followed as Ophelia led him to the drawing room and sat him on the sofa like one of her clients.
“Drink, Caleb?” asked Raphael, chuckling.
“Make it a large one.”
“Tell your Auntie Ophelia what’s wrong.”
Caleb waited until Raphael poured brandy into three crystal glasses and then handed one to him. “Thanks, Raphael.” He took a mouthful and swallowed. “I signed up to a dating agency,” he confessed.
“Whatever for?” Ophelia asked.
“It was Evie. She confessed to being afraid of spending eternity on her own, and then she said she felt selfish for wanting more out of her new immortal life.”
“So what’s that got to do with a dating agency?”
Caleb swigged his brandy, savouring the burn as it slipped down his throat. “I’m getting to it. I told her it wasn’t selfish, and angels are allowed to be happy too, like you two. The next thing I know, I’m showing her the dating agency website you told me about, Raphael. I thought it might make her feel better.”
“How would you know about a dating agency website?” Ophelia asked her husband, not accusingly so, more in a curious way.
“From one of my wards.”
“Did they have any luck finding a date?”
“I don’t know. I’ll ask when I see him again.”
Ophelia clasped her hands, her eyes full of excitement. “Ooh, I do hope so. I love it when couples find their way to each other.”
“Anyway,” Caleb said, clearing his throat. “Evie somehow managed to convince me to sign up too. I’m not even looking for anyone. I’m happy as I am.”
Raphael walked over and slapped his shoulder, grinning. “You’ve got it bad, dear fellow.”
“What are you talking about?”
Ophelia and Raphael nodded their heads sagely.
“You’ve fallen for Evie, haven’t you?” said Ophelia.
“What?” He shook his head vehemently. “Evie’s a good friend, I’ll admit that, but first and foremost, I’m her teacher. I will not risk the disapproval of the Powers That Be. They put their trust in me—think of their disappointment. No, I will not even consider it.”
“You protest too much, Caleb,” Raphael remarked.
The sympathy in his friend’s tone ignited a sudden explosion of anger. “I do not. Evie is a beautiful girl, stunning, in fact, and who wouldn’t be charmed by her sweet nature? But there’s absolutely no way I think of her like that.”
“Are you sure?”
Now the sympathy from Ophelia too. This was not going how he’d hoped.
“Yes, I’m sure.” He baulked at the loudness of his voice. Maybe he was protesting too much. He pushed the thought to the back of his mind. “Even if there was the remotest possibility of anything happening between—”
Ophelia’s waggling eyebrows stopped him mid-sentence.
He glowered. “Which there is not, so you can stop with the matchmaker look.” He downed the rest of his brandy. “Evie’s not interested in me. She’s a free spirit, and I’m a fuddy-duddy who’s stuck in my ways.”
He stood, the anger in his belly about to boil over. “I wish I’d never mentioned it. Thanks for the brandy, but I’m going before I say something I regret.”
“You must do whatever you think is right, Caleb, but take care,” Ophelia said. “Don’t do anything stupid or reckless.”
Caleb snorted. “When have I ever done anything stupid or reckless?” Except for the time he’d accidentally flown into a flock of birds. It hadn’t been pretty; he got himself covered in bird shit, blood, and feathers. And the smell… not pleasant. He did manage to save one poor sparrow, though, took him home and tended to his broken wing until the little fellow was able to fly again.
He offered a curt goodbye, marched out of their house, and then spread his wings and soared into the night sky.
Thunder rumbled, lightning flashed in the obsidian sky, and rain pelted down, soaking his clothes in minutes, but he didn’t care.
Why would Ophelia and Raphael even think he was in love with Evie?
He’d lost his chance with her the day she tried to kiss him. Back then, he’d hardly known her, but he’d let her down gently, explaining he had a duty to be the best teacher he could be. Sometimes, he wondered what would have happened if he had given in to his desires that day, but his commitment and duty had outweighed any feelings he might or might not have for Evie.
In a strange way, that was how they became friends, as well as teacher and student, so good had come out of the awkward incident in the end. He would not risk losing their friendship on the romanticised whim of two ancient angels who were trying to play Cupid.
Obviously, Evie had moved on. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have agreed so eagerly to his suggestion about the dating agency.
He breathed in, soaring higher into the night. Tomorrow was another day, and he had a date with a mermaid and a banshee to look forward to. Or not.
Chapter Three
Evie checked her appearance in the mirror, smoothing her hands over the black bodycon dress, which was a tad on the snug side over her rounded hips and ample breasts but still quite elegant for her since she was more a jeans and tee kind of girl.
Black knee-high boots with laces the length of her shin, which took forever to tie, completed her look. They were her only boots, and she wasn’t sure they complimented the posh dress, but she’d never got on with those impossible-to-walk-in stilettos some women wore. So the comfy boots would have to do for her date with the gorgeous-looking Fae tonight.
Evie wriggled her wings through the makeshift slits she’d cut in the back of the charity shop dress. They wouldn’t show once she put her jacket on, and her feathers would cover them too.
She turned around, craned her neck and lifted her wings to look at her back view. Yep, the tight dress clung to every one of her curves, but she was okay with that. She had to be—she was going to be on the curvy side for all eternity, so she might as well get used to it. At least she wouldn’t get saggy tits, age spots, and grey pubes.
Someone knocked on her door. Odd. No one ever knocked on her door. Suzy, her waitress friend from three jobs ago, sometimes popped around, but her visits were getting less frequent, and Evie suspected she wouldn’t see her again. Evie didn’t blame her; Suzy worked all the shifts she could get to support her family. People were busy, no big deal. Her only other friend was Caleb, but he would be getting ready for his date with the mermaid. She’d texted him earlier to wish him luck, and he’d done the same.
She made her way to the front door, tripping over a bag of clothes she’d meant to take to the charity shop for weeks. “Hold on a sec!” she called out.
“I haven’t got all day, lady,” came a curt reply from the other side of the door.
Evie opened the door and gasped.
A guy stood there with a bouquet of flowers.
No one had ever bought her flowers. She grabbed them, offered a quick thank you to the surly guy, then shut the door and ran back into her lounge, her heart pounding.
She buried her face in the flowers and savoured their sweet scent.
Evie turned the bouquet around, searching for a card, and looked inside the blooms too, beautiful peonies, sweet peas, and ranunculi in soft pinks and creams. No card. Odd again.
Maybe Love Bites dating agency sent them, or perhaps her Fae date… No, it couldn’t be him. The agency wouldn’t have given out her address.
She shrugged. The flowers were lovely, whoever sent them.
Then she remembered she didn’t have a vase to put them in.
Evie walked into the windowless kitchen that led from her lounge and searched the cupboards for a suitable substitute. A mug. Nope, too small. A mixing bowl, from the time when she made a chocolate cake for Caleb despite never having cooked in her life. The burnt offering ended up looking like a lump of blackened dog poo. Caleb had been diplomatic, as always, but her cooking skills left a lot to be desired.
She tried to balance the flowers in the mixing bowl, but they were too tall, and the bowl toppled over.
Next, she tried her one and only saucepan with the wobbly handle. Nope, no good either.
Short of sticking them in the kitchen sink, which was piled high with dirty dishes, there was nowhere else to put them.
Oh well, if she couldn’t enjoy the flowers, she knew a certain adorable little girl who would.
She checked her watch. An hour before her date. She could make it if she hurried.
Evie slipped into her canvas khaki jacket and took the bus to the children’s hospital. She could have flown there, of course, but she didn’t want to get all windswept before she went on her date later.
“Hello, Evie,” said the ward sister, looking up from a pile of papers on the counter. “Two visits in one day?”
“Yeah, I can’t stay away from the place,” Evie replied. “I popped in to give these flowers to Lucy, but I can leave them here as it’s a bit late?”
“Don’t be daft, Evie. I’m kidding.” Mary finished whatever she was doing with the papers and skirted around the counter. “Your visits are like a breath of fresh air around here. The kids love you.”
Evie smiled. This was one job she couldn’t get fired from. “I love them too, but I’m only a volunteer.”
“No only about it. The kids look forward to your visit every day.” She gestured for Evie to follow her towards the children’s ward. “Lucy was asleep when I looked in on her. S
he was poorly after you left this morning.”
“Oh no, not again.” The cute five year old had been through so much in her short years. Evie didn’t have a favourite out of all the kids she visited, but Lucy reminded her of the young girl she’d once saved from drowning, and she’d been naturally drawn to her. “Is she okay?”
“The doc gave her some different medication this morning, and it didn’t agree with her. I told him, but you know what these doctors are like.”
Evie didn’t, but she nodded politely.
“Lucy will be okay. She’s a fighter, that one.”
They reached Lucy’s bed. She looked so peaceful and pain-free when she was asleep.
“Maybe I could come back later?” Evie suggested.
The child opened her eyes and rubbed them. “Evie!”
Evie smiled. “Hi, Lucy. How are you feeling, cutie pie?”
“I was really sick again.”
“I know.” She perched on the edge of the bed. “Do you feel better now?”
“A bit. Ooh, those flowers are really nice.”
“I’m glad you like them. They’re for you.”
Lucy’s face lit up. “For me?”
“Can I leave you to it, Evie?” Mary asked. “I still have a ton of things to do before my shift ends.”
“Yes, of course. We’ll be fine. Do you have a vase for these flowers?”
“There’s one in the bedside cupboard,” Mary told her, already halfway out of the room.
“Can you look after the flowers for me while I get the vase, Lucy?” She laid them beside the girl, near her pillow.
Lucy turned her bald head towards the blooms and sniffed them.
Evie found the vase and filled it with water from the washbasin attached to the wall. She returned to Lucy’s bedside and arranged the flowers.
“You look pretty, Evie,” said Lucy, struggling to sit up.
Evie helped her and propped the pillows behind her back. “In this old thing?” She tugged the dress down. It had been riding up her thighs all the way here. “It was only five pounds from the charity shop, but I think it’s a bit small. I’m going on a date tonight.”
“Who with?”
Evie looked around and leaned in close as though she was giving away a big secret. “Don’t tell anyone, but I have a date with a Fae, a fairy.”
Dating an Angel Page 2