An Archangel's Promise (2 page)

Leaving the cocoon of her bed, she took two stairs at a
time, practically dancing into the kitchen. Her brother Nolan had already found
his spot at the kitchen table, holding his coffee cup like it was the Holy Grail.
She grabbed a mug and poured herself some.

“What’s got you so chipper?” Nolan asked.

Peering over the rim of her cup, she shrugged. “Just excited
about tonight.”

Nolan looked suspiciously at her. “You’re that worked up
over a formal? It wouldn’t have anything to do with a certain boy I saw
sneaking out of your room late last night, would it?”

Choking on her drink, it took a moment for her to answer.
“Um, what?” she squeaked. She felt her face flush and wanted to smack herself
in the head.

Nolan chuckled. “Don’t sweat it. I promise I won’t tell Mum
or Dad. Besides, we’ve all been waiting for you two to get your act together.”

Gabriella gaped. “You have?”

“Yes.” Nolan sighed, rolling his eyes. “Now hurry up. Mum
has a full day planned for you.”

She groaned, her shoulders slumping. As her mother’s only
daughter, Gabriella had a feeling her Mum had been waiting for this day longer
than she had.

“Probably best not to tell Dad about you two yet, anyway.”
Nolan grinned. “Because he’d likely shoot him first, and then ask when he
planned on marrying you.”

Gabriella glared at her brother, who laughed, though he had
a point. Their father was a senior sergeant with the police force and knew how
to use a gun.

Thankfully, when her parents walked into the room, her
brother kept his word and didn’t say anything.

“Busy day today. Hope you got plenty of rest last night,”
her mother chirped as she began breakfast.

Nolan sniggered, and Gabriella kicked him under the table.
“Yep. Ready to go.”

“Excellent.” Her mother cracked some eggs into a pan. “Did
you need me to take you to get Hunter’s birthday present?”

Gabriella smiled. “Nope. I picked it up yesterday.”

She thought of the small pouch she had sitting in her top
drawer. Originally, the silver ring had been simply for friendship, but after
last night she felt like it stood for more now. On the inside of the band, she’d
engraved one simple, and very meaningful, word. Whenever people asked how long
they had been friends, they would always reply with that one word—eternity.

The sound of the phone drew her attention. Her father’s
strong, stern voice echoed through the room. “When? Yes, I do know the family.
I’ll be right there.”

Hanging up the phone, her father didn’t turn around
immediately, and Gabriella grew concerned. “Dad?”

When he finally faced her, the look of dread had her stomach
plummeting. “Sweetheart. There has been an incident.” He swiped a hand down his
face. “Something has happened at Hunter’s house.”

Fear and panic raced through her. Something was horribly wrong;
she could feel it.

Shoving back from the table, Gabriella bolted to the front
door. Not even stopping for shoes, she threw open the screen and ran as fast as
she could. Hunter lived only a few streets away. Cutting through the side way,
mud and dirt caked her bare feet, small, sharp pebbles cutting into her soles,
but she ignored the pain and pushed on.

Nerves spiked through her, and her heart beat frantically
when she turned into Hunter’s street and saw police tape surrounding the small
townhouse.

Oh God.

Stumbling to a stop, Gabriella barely acknowledged her
parents as they pulled up beside her seconds later. Her mother rushed from the
car and dragged Gabriella into her arms. Her father stepped out of the vehicle,
throwing her a concerned look, and approached the nearest man in uniform. “What
do you know?”

“Sergeant Richards.” The officer nodded in recognition.
“We’re still not exactly sure what happened, sir. All we can say for certain is
that neighbors heard a disturbance in the early hours of the morning. When the
first team arrived, they found some strange scorch marks in one of the rooms
and signs of a struggle.”

Her father’s gaze narrowed. “What do you mean ‘scorch marks’?
You mean the room caught on fire?”

The other man grimaced. “No, that’s the weird part. There
were scorch marks in certain areas of the room, but nothing that suggested a
fire had started. There was a fair amount of debris scattered throughout the
place, and no one was home.”

“Were they hurt? Does anyone know where they are?” Gabriella
sobbed, holding tightly to her mother.

The constable gave her a sympathetic smile. “I’m sorry, but
no one can find Mr. or Mrs. Downer, or their foster son, Hunter Bailey. They’re
missing, and we don’t like our chances of finding them in one piece if the mess
they left behind is any indication.”

Finding it hard to breathe, Gabriella dropped to her knees.
Everything around her began to spin, and before she knew it, darkness was
closing in. Darkness she welcomed, because she suddenly felt like her soul was being
ripped in two.

Present Day…

Gabriella was frantic. Not only had she had to do a last
minute scramble to fit more people onto the guest list, but there had to be
alterations made to the menu due to allergies. And now there were complaints
that some of the wines weren’t the right year. Her brother, Nolan, owed her big
time for this. He had asked her to organize his company’s annual fundraising
gala, the event of the year, and she’d reluctantly said yes. Gabriella loved
her brother dearly, but had only agreed to it because it would have looked
extremely bad for both of them had Nolan not gotten his sister—one of the
biggest event planners in the city—to cater the event.

“Gabriella,” Nolan called out to her.

Damn. She had been hoping to make it to the bar for a drink
before someone spotted her.

Turning, she plastered on the biggest fake smile she could
muster. “Hey, big brother. Is something wrong?”

Please, God, don’t let anything be wrong.

Stopping in front of her, Nolan laughed. “No, I was just
going to say how wonderful things are. You are such a gem, doing all those last
minute things for me.”

“It was no problem.” Which was, of course, a lie.

Just getting the rooftop restaurant had been a struggle.
When her brother and his colleagues had insisted on hiring out the observation
deck on the floor below, it had taken everything she had to get it done. It had
only been due to the fact that Gabriella owned one of the top-floor apartments
in the building, and had brought a lot of high-end business their way in the
past, that the management had agreed. She hadn’t been certain the new owners of
the tower would agree, having never met them before, but as luck would have it,
they were happy to accommodate her. After all the hassles, she was surprised
she had survived with her sanity intact.

“And I have to say, you look great,” Nolan said.

She probably would have been more thrilled with the
compliment had he not sounded so shocked. Granted, Gabriella usually didn’t put
much effort into her appearance, but when she worked, she worked it. Tonight
she had her long hair twisted to the side in a simple bohemian braid and was
wearing a sleeveless, emerald cocktail dress. The dress was one of her
favorites, with a plunging neckline and ruched chiffon details. She loved
wearing the color because it enhanced her eyes, making their emerald coloring
shine brighter. She’d topped it off with a killer pair of diamante covered
four-inch stilettos.

“Do you have to sound so surprised?” She raised an eyebrow.

Nolan’s response was to mimic the move. She sighed, knowing
he was right. Once upon a time she would have never left the house without a
certain amount of preparation, but that was when she had someone to dress up
for. Now, Gabriella only dressed up for work, needing the clients to see her a
certain way. Event planning was all about glam, and while she loved the thrill
of a deadline, of planning a memorable event, and loved the outcome, outside of
work her passion for most things had died years ago. Along with the young girl
who still believed the boy she loved was alive and would come back to her.

Nolan wrapped an arm around her, tilting his head to her
outfit. “You should dress up more often, sis. It might help you meet someone.”

“Nolan.” It was a warning for him to stop.

“Yeah, I know.” He sighed, frowning. “I just don’t want you
to wake up one day and realize you missed out on your life because you were too
busy looking at the past.”

She knew he worried about her, but she could never properly
explain how she felt. “I get what you’re saying, I do, but…”

“But part of you still thinks he’ll come back,” he finished
for her. The look of pity on his face was like a knife in the stomach.

Yes. That was exactly it, and no matter how crazy it
sounded, she couldn’t squash the feeling that she was supposed to wait for him.
What she would do if he actually turned up, she had no idea.

Shrugging, because it was the only response she could give Nolan,
she saw the moment he gave up.

“Okay, well, at least stop flitting around and enjoy the
party. There’s nothing else to be done, and you’re giving me a headache.”

“I suppose you’re right.” She laughed. Maybe it wouldn’t
hurt to have a little fun.

“Of course I am.” Nolan grabbed a glass of champagne from
the waiter and held it out to her. “Now, drink up.”

Taking the offered drink, Gabriella forced herself to relax.
Nolan was right, not that she felt it wise to share that information. Her
brother would run with it for months. Scanning the crowd, she smiled when she
saw everyone enjoying themselves. She had been working herself up for nothing.
All the guests had a place to sit and a meal to eat. Who cared if the wine
wasn’t a preferred year, as long as no one needed an EpiPen.

People started to gather in the center of the ballroom, the
soft sway of the music encouraging them to grab a partner. Seeing the couples
dancing and enjoying themselves tugged at her heart. She wished she had someone
to share moments like this with, someone to hold her, to dance and laugh with,
but it just wasn’t possible. Ten years after the disappearance of the only
person she had ever loved, and Gabriella still couldn’t bring herself to move
on.

Maybe that was her problem tonight. She was so frazzled
because today marked the tenth anniversary of the day she’d arrived at Hunter’s
home to find the police instead. This date was always a challenge for her, but
this year seemed to be worse than all the rest. Her dreams of him were no
longer simply at night, they were in the day now too. Just the other day she
could have sworn she saw him standing across the street from her at the
markets, staring at her. That in general wasn’t unusual, there had been plenty
of times after Hunter disappeared when someone had reminded her of him.
As it always happened though, the closer she had
gotten, the more the person paled in comparison to the boy she’d lost.
What concerned her more lately was that her mind was so twisted that it had
decided to age him. The visions of him were now of a man in his late twenties,
instead of the boy she remembered.

Gabriella knew it wasn’t healthy, but no amount of therapy
seemed to help. Her only saving grace was that while her personal life might be
non-existent, her professional life excelled.

Smiling as people greeted her, she moved closer to the dance
floor when something on the other side of the room caught her eye. The vision
before her made her gasp, shocking her enough to drop her glass. Looking down
at the mess she had made, she quickly glanced up, desperate to know if what she
had seen was real.

Disappointment welled inside of her when she saw an empty
space.

“Gabriella. Are you all right? What happened?” Nolan rushed
to her side, placing a hand on her arm. “You’re as white as a ghost. What’s
wrong?”

She blinked rapidly, her eyes focusing on the empty space.
“I-I thought, I…”

“What?”

There was no way she was finishing that sentence. Her
brother already worried about her enough, and if he knew she was seeing things,
then he’d be insufferable. “Nothing, Nolan. It doesn’t matter. Let’s clean up this
mess I made, and hopefully by the end of the night, everyone will have forgotten
about the little scene I just made.”

Nolan shot her a skeptical look, nodding reluctantly. “All right.”

As the party continued the lights dimmed and the music got
louder. Gabriella decided to leave, heading for the lift that would take her
down to her apartment on the eighty-third floor. Waiting for the lift, she
impatiently tapped her foot, glancing around the room one last time.

Happy that things were running smoothly, she turned to
leave, hearing the
ping
of the arriving cart. Her movements halted when
she caught something out of the peripheral of her eye. Drawing in a deep
breath, her eyes widened and focused on someone who couldn’t be there.

It was official. She had gone crazy.

“Hey, you’re leaving already?” Nolan asked as he came to
stand beside her.

Blinking rapidly, Gabriella began to tremble when the vision
didn’t disappear.

“Gabriella? Hey, what’s wrong?”

She could hear him calling her name, could tell she was
scaring him, but was unable to do anything except raise her hand and point to
the figure on the other side of the dance floor. Gabriella knew the moment
Nolan caught sight of what she was seeing, knew then that it was real. That he
was real.

Hunter.

“What the fuck!” Nolan cursed.

Gabriella started moving forward. Nolan tried pulling her
back, but nothing could keep her still. The need she felt coursing through her,
urging her to the man on the other side of the room, was just too strong,
powerful, and consuming. She barely acknowledged the throng of people
surrounding her as she made her way across the floor, her eyes transfixed on
her destination.

Her destination being the tall, strong, and commanding form
of her childhood best friend. His dark, almost black, hair still fell into his
sapphire eyes, and his lips looked just as soft and supple as they had been the
last time she had seen him. When she stopped mere inches from him, Gabriella
held her breath, unable to believe Hunter really stood in front of her.

The small quirk of his lips at her indecision answered her
question. Oh, this was her Hunter all right.

Hunter’s hand came up to cup the back of her neck, drawing
her those few inches closer. Shocked at their sudden closeness, Gabriella only
had enough time to suck in a breath before his other arm came around her,
pulling her against his hard chest, his mouth taking hers in a kiss filled with
possession and a hunger that had her opening up for more.

The kiss was fearless, robbing her of thought. Gabriella’s
body melted under his mastery, becoming pliant, molding into his as if they’d
done this a million times before. She felt a thrill run through her as the
familiarity of the man’s embrace drew her in deeper. This was her Hunter. Oh
God. Hunter’s hand roaming up and down her back created such delicious sparks
of electricity along her spine. She’d never felt so hungry, so needy.

Pulling back, needing to breathe and to see his face,
Gabriella felt tears pool in her eyes. “You’re real.”

Hunter smiled down at her, his eyes softening as his large
hands cupped her face. “Yeah, Gabby. It’s me.”

How was it possible? Hunter was standing right in front of
her, kissing her. It was all so surreal. She caressed her fingers over his
tanned face, taking it all in. His features, once boyish, were different. They
were replaced with a strong jawline and an essence of confidence and maturity.
Gabriella noticed that his eyes, though still the same startling sapphire, now
held flecks of azure and shards of cobalt that made them seem fiercer somehow.

Still the same, but so different as well.

“I missed you.” The deep rumble of his voice made her weak
in the knees and dampen between her legs. It was such a strong reaction it
startled her out of her haze.

He had been gone so long.

Too long.

What the hell was she doing?

Wrenching herself out of his arms, Gabriella gazed up at
him, at the boy who had left her broken and alone. The longer she stared into
his eyes, the more furious she became with both him and herself. Why on earth
was she kissing him? And how dare he show up like this, acting like he had all
the right in the world to be there.

Raising her hand, she delivered a blow straight across his
handsome face. Hunter had clearly not been expecting that reaction because he
staggered back, his shock evident as his eyes widened and his hand covered the
abused cheek.

“What was that for?”

“Really? You have no idea why I would want to slap you?” she
seethed. “You disappeared, Hunter. You left when you swore you never would. I
thought you were dead.”

His face softened, which just served to irritate her more.
“I know my leaving like that must have hurt, but surely you can give me a
chance to explain.”

Unbelievable. The bastard thought she actually had to give
him a chance. She didn’t owe him a fucking thing.

“No, Hunter. I don’t have to give you a damn thing.”
Spinning on her heels, she headed for the doors leading to the stairway. Screw
waiting for the lift. The sooner she got out of there the better.

“So that’s it. You won’t give me anything?” Hunter called
out behind her.

Pausing at the doorway, she turned to see him still standing
in the spot she had left him. She smiled sadly. “You know, if you had shown up
a few years ago, I probably would have given you anything you asked for.” Her
face hardened, and she narrowed a glare on him. “But I was weaker then. I had
to become tougher because the pain of losing you was too much to bare. So
congratulations, Hunter, you made me a stronger person. You should be proud.”