Chapter 9
Nick
“I’m truly sorry, Mr. Angelini,” the B this was his passion. “I’ll let you know in the morning.”
We walked in and an older couple passed us on their way out.
A wave of jealousy swamped me when the woman eyed up Nick’s naked torso.
She had the good grace to blush when she noticed me staring at her.
The strength of my possessiveness stunned me.
I’d known Nick for three days. We’d spent less than 24 hours around each other, and I was ready to fry someone for admiring what deserved to be appreciated.
My watched buzzed on my wrist and I checked the alert. “Huh?”
Nick stopped and looked at me. “Something wrong?”
He must have thought I’d lost my mind when I just stared at the tiny screen without answering. The problem was, I didn’t know what it meant. Finally, I yanked my gaze away. “Message from work.”
“Is that bad?”
Without returning the call I wouldn’t know for sure, but it wasn’t good. “I doubt it. I probably forgot to sign something.”
I sold the lie well and it filled me with guilt. Everything about us was a lie. Except my feelings. Those were real, but with every new lie, I made it harder for Nick to return them once the truth came out.
“Are you sure? You look…shaken.”
The way Nick read me didn’t help me regain my composure. No one, in a hundred and fifty plus years of dating affected me like him. Figuring out why was important, but it needed to wait.
“I’m fine. Let’s go clean up.”
Walking into the courtyard in the back of the house, I couldn’t remember being this tense.
To my guilty conscience, I added sexual frustration.
The shower was big enough for two, and I couldn’t stop thinking of us under the spray, pressed tight together, my hands running over his lean, hard body.
I swear I saw a heap of disappointment when Nick agreed to let me go first. Alone.
Clearly, he’d had the same ideas for washing up as me.
On top of those two, I added anxiety. I pulled out my phone and opened the message again. >
No surprise Nick had caught my mood change. Uriel had never contacted me. How did he have my number? Since when did Uriel text?
Too many questions and only one source for answers.
I sent a message telling him I was alone and waited.
My stomach squeezed so tightly I wasn’t sure I’d be able to eat tonight. Uriel obviously wanted to talk to me about Nick, but why now?
If he had a problem with my being around Nick, he’d need to speak to Michael. I did not want to get in the middle of a Uriel versus Michael power struggle.
I paced the small backyard, stewing in the unanswered questions. Thankfully, Uriel didn’t make me wait.
“Hello?” I sounded as tentative as I felt.
“Good evening, nephew. Are you having a pleasant trip?”
Was he angry I hadn’t asked his permission to take Nick on a weekend date. His neutral tone gave nothing away. “Hello uncle. So far it’s been good. I bored Nick with my antique shopping, and he made me pay by running me into the ground.”
Uriel barked out a laugh. “That sounds like him.”
Okay, so not mad, but he spoke like he knew Nick very well. “He’s inside showering, but he might come out at any time.”
“Noted.” Uriel drew a deep breath. “I’m sure you want to know why I asked you to call.”
I nearly laughed. He texted me out of the blue, demands I be alone before I call, and acts like this isn’t a huge fucking deal. “I do. Is something wrong?”
“What you really want to know is did you do something wrong.”
The hot and cold conversation left me more confused than before he called. “Did I?”
“If you had, I’d have come in person. You are not to tell Nick he’s an angel. I can’t stress this enough. It is imperative he not be told until he’s ready.”
Did he really call just to tell me something Michael had stressed repeatedly? “I was told before I arrived, Uncle. I won’t.”
“I’m sure Michael told you this order came from me, and only I could tell Nick the truth.”
The bulls were fighting for supremacy, and I was stuck between them. “He mentioned I couldn’t tell Nick without your permission.”
“Did he tell you why?”
Now I knew he was mocking me. Michael didn’t tell anyone anything more than he wanted. “Of course not.”
“I share your frustrations with my brother’s methods. Unfortunately, it usually does more harm than good. I’ve had many visions concerning Nick. Every time he learns of his powers too soon, he ends up dead.”
My heart stopped for a second. Dead? I’d never let that happen. “How can telling him the truth kill him?”
“If I told you, you’d try to save him and then you’d both end up dead. Henry, please trust me. I’m not doing this for some power trip or just to piss off Michael. Your uncle doesn’t believe me, he never has, but you must.”
There was enormous pain in the last word. True or not, Uriel was convinced what he’d seen would happen. Unfortunately, his visions were usually true. “I believe you, uncle. I promise not to tell him without your approval.”
“Good. Now, let’s talk about you and Nick.”
How did we go from, don’t tell him or he’ll die, to talking about whatever Nick and I were doing. “What do you want to know?”
“Nephew, I’ve seen the future. You love him. That’s good. You’re the best of your generation. Nick deserves someone like you.”
I thought the conversation was weird before, but this took it to a new level. I’d maybe seen Uriel in person ten times, and he was talking about me like he’d watched me grow up. “Thank you?”
Uriel laughed again, and it broke the tension. “Relax. It’s a good thing. Mostly.”
With one word, my anxiety returned. There was something he wasn’t telling me. “Why only mostly?”
“What do you think is going to happen when you two get close and he finds out you’ve lied to him the whole time?”
We both knew Nick would be angry and hurt. It would destroy any trust between us and shatter anything we’d started. “He’ll feel betrayed and mostly likely end things.”
“Which is the reason I called. Right now, you’ve promised not to tell him, but when the time comes, you’ll want to break your word rather than lose him. At that moment, you must remember my warning. You will lose him forever if you tell him.”
I lowered the phone from my ear and stared into the air. My choices all ended the same way. How could this be happening.
Karma really did suck.
Bringing the phone up, I knew what I needed to do. “I understand, Uncle.” My voice cracked and I almost lost my nerve. “Can you please ask Uncle Michael to replace me. I can’t….”
“Henry,” he said softly. “Only you can protect Nick. I can’t replace you.”
I wanted to shout at him to find someone else, but he wasn’t being cruel. He must’ve seen this. If I was the only one who could keep Nick safe, I’d have to. Somehow.
“How?”
“All I can say is find a way to keep him safe and not lose him. There is a solution, but you need to find it on your own. Don’t give up. If you do….”
If I gave up, Nick would die and maybe me as well. “I won’t.”
I’d find a way to keep my word. Uriel wouldn’t have called me if there wasn’t real hope. I just needed to find it.
“One last thing,” Uriel said. “You and Nick are HKarlin.