Angela's Salvation (17 page)

After a long sleepless night, Nolan drove back to the hospital to pick up Angela.  His mind tried to come up with any idea that would make her forgive the mess he'd made of things last night, but came up with nothing.  He didn't want her to leave, but after what he'd allowed to happen, she had the right to hold him responsible.

He'd
spoken with Sanders at the break of dawn and the PR team had said their best defense against the press was to spin the story that a deranged fan had made it through security at his home.  That was the story he gave as he made it through the dozen reporters waiting outside the facility.  After their annoying interruption he managed to get Angela back through the mass of vultures and into his car.

She looked so lost, he thought as they drove silently back to the mansion.  Over the last few weeks she'd come out of her shell and had shown him a side of her playful personality that he'd come to adore.  He wanted that vibrant young woman back, not this shell of a creature that seemed to cringe at the slightest bump in the road.
  Never in his life had he met a more compassionate person, and it angered him that all it took was one visit from that piece of shit to destroy her confidence again.

"I know I don't have the right to ask this of you Nolan, but would you mind if I asked Rachel to come visit with me this weekend?"  She'd already talked to her on the phone, and knew she was really worried about her wellbeing after the circumstances of last night.

"Of course I don't mind Angela, whatever you need," he forced a smile then focused on the road again, not really knowing how to tell her how sorry he truly was.

She hated the professionalism that seeped into his voice and wanted to scream in frustration that she was still the same person, and beg him to take her in his arms.  He deserved so much more though, and she refused to be a bigger burden than she already was on him.  She knew it had to be a huge pain to have your ex lover sharing your house.

He'd increased his security team with a few phone calls earlier this morning, and got a quick report at the gate as they drove through.  He vowed that no one would touch her while she was here, and when she moved out he would assign a group of people to her new place as well.  "I hired you a personal body guard and he's waiting in the mansion to speak with you.  If you don't like him, we can always find another but he comes highly recommended."

"You didn't have to do that Nolan, I'm sure the security you already have in place w
ill be sufficient until I move."  She appreciated all the effort he was going through, but didn't feel right about him spending even more money.  "I would like to learn to shoot a gun, though."

The thought of her handling a weapon made him feel like even less of a man, but he knew it wasn't his place to tell her what to do.  "I'll have Sanders call around and see if he can find a trainer."  If she needed to do that to feel safe, then he wasn't about to refuse her. He'd already proved once that he couldn't protect her.

"I'd appreciate that, the sooner I learn to defend myself the better.  So what did the police department say about the trespassing charge?"

"They are sending over an officer at noon today to speak with us.  I informed them that coming to the station would just have reporters crawling all over the place and they agreed."  He didn't add that the lawyer he'd spoken to told him that if the man was invited in, they might not have a case that would hold up in court.

"I'm sorry I brought all this into your house Nolan," she whispered softly, hoping he could forgive her for the added drama in his life.

"Stop it Angela," he said angrily, frustrated at their circumstances and the feeling of inferiority it brought about.  "What happened wasn't your fault and I don't want to hear another apology, okay?"

She knew he was furious, and who could blame him, she thought sadly.  "Fine, I just wanted you to know that I didn't mean for any of this to happen."

He couldn't talk with her about this right now, he was dealing with his own frustration at losing her.  "Noted, now let's go inside and see if your new bodyguard is acceptable."
They walked inside the house together neither one of them speaking.

Leonard Newman
was definitely not what she was expecting.  Angela smiled at the middle-aged man with the buzz cut, accepting his handshake.  It was his smile and the light in his coffee colored eyes that really didn't seem to fit the bill for someone Nolan would accept as member of his security team.  With the other men that worked in this capacity, they all seemed so impersonal and gung-ho, Leonard most definitely didn't fit into that category as the deep laugh lines around his eyes indicated.

"Ms. Storm, it's a pleasure to meet you Ma'am, I'm Leonard Newman, but please call me Lenny," letting go of her hand, he was pleased to discover she didn't look like the egotistical teeny boppers he'd normally worked for since retiring from the armed services.

His Southern drawl made her feel instantly more comfortable.  "Nice to meet you as well Lenny, and Angela, Ms. Storm makes me feel a little old."  It was very odd for her to feel she could trust someone instinctively, but this man definitely brought that emotion out.

He chuckled warmly, thinking that maybe he wouldn't have a raging head like he did with the other singing diva's in the past at the end of the day after meeting her.  "Thank you
Angela and I want you to know that as long as I'm looking out for you, no one will cross any lines."  He took his job very seriously, having discovered firsthand how some of these crazy fans could be as dangerous as the combatants he fought in his career.

For some reason she believed him, and even though she hated the thought of Nolan adding on this expense,
she hoped having him around would help ease some of her fears about Ronald confronting her again.

"Mr. Newman, let me make it clear that Ms. Storm's safety is my number one priority.  Your credentials are without fault, which is why I hired you, but if anything negative happens while she's under your protection I can assure you that it will prove difficult for you to find work in this industry again."  Being a nice person didn't matter to him as far as Angela was concerned, knowing she was safe and putting the fear of God into this security member was his only concern.

"You have my word that I would lay down my life before I allow one hair on her head to be harmed, Mr. Fitzgerald."  He didn't take offense to the underlying threat offered, he'd expected nothing less from the reputation that preceded this man.

"As long as we're clear on that, then we will work together well.  I will have a list of Ms. Storm's upcoming engagements by the end of the week.   I expect you to be on call at anytime day or night, and just so you understand if you are unavailable during any of those times, you no longer have a job."  He'd already dismissed two security team members after the fiasco last night and had no problem firing anyone if they failed to do their jobs.

Angela was shocked at how rude Nolan was being, and knew she needed to step in. "Lenny, thank you so much for agreeing to protect me, I'm sure we'll get along just great and that you know how to do your job."  Glaring at Nolan, she shook her head. She wanted to smack him in the head for the way he treated this man.

"I take my job very seriously, Mr. Fitzgerald, so I'm sure we won't have any issues."  He'd lost his own daughter to a violent attack, and inevitably his wife when she couldn't cope with the grief of that loss.  He knew more than most just how sick some people in this world could be, and understood that in this business the
groupies could be even crazier.

With a curt nod of his head, Nolan concluded this interview was over.  "Ms. Storm will have your number, and I'll have that list for you soon, you're dismissed." 

Lenny smiled at Angela before walking out of the room, and Angela was beyond livid at the way he'd been treated.  "Honestly Nolan you could cut the guy some slack."

Rolling his eyes at her naivety, he took a deep breath to control his mood.  "Listen Angela, I know I probably came off as a total ass, but I know if you don't set the right mood with these people they'll get you killed."  She didn't understand the seriousness of the world she was walking in yet, or the people that would make her stepfather seem like a saint if they managed to get her alone.

"I would think people would work harder for you if you didn't treat them like some idiot with the IQ of a school kid."  She rolled her eyes right back at him, frustrated already by the circumstances and just spoiling for a reason to argue.

Already angry that he was losing her, her comment sent him right over the edge.  "Maybe I should have offered him flowers and chocolate,
and then took him out to dinner?"  Couldn't she comprehend that he was trying to keep her safe?  He'd already failed her once, he damn sure wasn't going to allow it to happen again.

Stomping her foot, she wanted to slap his arrogant attitude right out the door.  "Maybe you should learn a little human compassion Nolan, not everything in the world centers around you being the boss."  She wasn't even sure what they were fighting over at the moment.  She was pissed off that he didn't want her for himself anymore, but still felt like he had to protect her, and angry at herself for not being enough to make him want more.

"How far did that human compassion get you last night with your stepfather Angela?"  Even as he said the words he wanted to bash his head into a wall.  The look of pain on her beautiful face was enough to make him sick, and once again he failed her.  "Damn it baby, I'm sorry."

Holding up her hand, she shook her head.  He obviously wanted to hurt her, and needed to put distance between them.  "Let's just stop here Nolan," giving him no time to respond she walked upstairs, not sure where she was supposed to sleep now that she wasn't sharing his bed any longer, she found her way into one of the spare ones and slammed the door behind her.  Frustrated at the entire scenario, she wanted to scream at the top of her lungs how unfair this all was. Pulling her phone out of her purse she called Rachel, needing advice. 

Rachel answered the phone groggily, not normally accustomed to getting up before noon when she worked the night before.  The pain in her best friends voice had her wide awake instantly though.  "What happened hon?"

Angela gave her the full run down on what was going on with her and Nolan, and she agreed to take some time off work and make it to Las Vegas tonight.  A huge part of her just wanted to go back home, and forget this whole music business and heal over her break up with Nolan, but she'd signed a contract. 
The dream did not seem like the paradise she once thought it would be now, and maybe she just wasn't meant to be this person, she told Rachel miserably.

"You will stop this self-pity right now Angela," Rachel told her firmly, refusing to allow her to do this to herself.  "That asshole Ronald is not going to take away anymore of your life, and if Nolan Fitzgerald can't see what he's losing by giving you up, then so be it, but you have a destiny and I'm damn well not going to let you give that up over any man." 

She'd known that Angela hooking up with Fitzgerald was a mistake, and he'd now made it to the third most hated man on her list of people she'd like to beat the shit out of.  Rachel was not going to allow any of them to take away her friends dream, even if she had to stand between her and any other idiot that tried to bring her down again.

"I'm going to get the first flight out there Angela, and you are going to sit tight and not make one more decision until I get there, okay?"  This was intervention, she thought to herself.  If Angela couldn't fight for herself, then damn it, she'd take up the slack and get her back on the right track again.

"I don't even know what they're paying me yet Rach, and I know you don't have the money to miss this much time off work or pay for the flight."  The last thing she wanted to do was put her best friend in arrears over her failures.

"When I get there we'll sort all that money crap out, and don't you worry about me baby girl, I'll be fine."  She could grab some extra shifts at the bar to cover the flight when she got back, and finances weren't going to keep her away from the one person in this world she considered family.

They'd always lived week to week, struggling to pay the bills, but even that wasn't going to keep her from doing the right thing by her best friend.  "You just keep your chin up Ang, I'll be there soon and all of this will seem like a bad memory."

Tears streamed down her cheeks at how much her best friend was willing to give up just
being there by her side.  "I'm going to make this up to you Rach, I promise."  There was so much she owed this incredible woman, and the debts just kept increasing.

Rachel laughed softly, "Just making sure you're okay is worth it to me baby girl, now let me get off this phone so I can get a flight out of here." With all her experience in the bar industry, she decided if this turned into an extended stay, she could probably find work at one of the casino's there.

"I'll see you soon, Rach," they said their goodbyes, and for a brief moment, she felt the panic recede knowing with Rachel here everything would work out just fine.  Knowing how much she was willing to risk by flying out here, she decided to walk downstairs and at least find out what type of income she was making so she could hopefully repay her for the loss.