Out of the Dark (Forbidden Love) (19 page)

     “Oh, hi Angel.  I was just telling Miss Brea how wonderful everything looks tonight.”

     “May I cut in?” Angel growled.

     “Whoa,” John said, holding his hands up, palms out,  “Of course.  Oh, this must be your-“

     “Yes, thank you for keeping her company.  I’ll take over from here.”

     John backed away as Angel took both of Brea’s hands into his own.  “Where have you been all night?” Brea asked, slightly irritated.

     “I have been busy with our guests,” he smiled.  Brea did not look happy.

     “What is it?  Did he say something to upset you?  If he did, I’ll tear his tongue out.  I swear it. Just say the word.”

     “He didn’t do anything.  He was discussing the possibility of me working for him sometime this spring.  I would have to spend a month in Texas, but he’s willing to pay for all my expenses.  It would be a good opportunity.”

     “No,” Angel snapped.

    
“Why not?” Brea snapped back.  She was mad, Angel was sure of it.  Her eyes were narrow and her lips were drawn into a thin line.

     “Because, I don’t want you to,”

      “Well, Mister rock star, contrary to what you might think, you don’t always get what you want.  You do not own me.”

    
Mine!
Angel’s mind shouted.  “You are right, I don’t,” he conceded. 
But I want to
, he thought.

     “Nice tattoo.  When did you get that?” she asked.

     “Um, I got it last night.”

     “Is that all the explanation you are going to offer?  You got it last night?  Well, big news!  I may not belong to you, but you do belong to me.  When were you going to tell me?  Why didn’t I get a choice in the matter?”  Angel could see that she was fuming.  He hoped it was more about his lack of good judgment rather than the act itself.

     “I was going to tell you tonight, in private.  Who told you?”

     “Does it matter?  What really matters is that you didn’t.”

     “Let’s go upstairs, I’ll explain.

     “Damn right you will,” she spat, glaring at him. 
“But not right now,” she said. 

    
“Why not?” Angel asked.

     “Ladies and gentlemen, if I may have your attention please,” the DJ interrupted over the PA system.

     “That’s why,” she muttered.

     “Mr. Angel Knight, would you join me up here please?” the DJ requested.

     “Go, please,” Brea said.  Angel did what she asked.  He walked to the DJ stand and hopped up the step to face his guests. 

     “As most of you know, Angel is our most gracious host tonight,” the DJ continued.  “He has lived for a lot of years and tonight is a special night for him.  I hope he will forgive me for being the lowly messenger. 
Happy Birthday, Angel!”  The crowd erupted in cheers and applause.  How could he have forgotten?  He knew Brea had planned a surprise for him, but in light of recent events, it had completely slipped his mind.  The look of total shock and surprise on his face was one hundred percent genuine. 

     The crowd began singing a chorus of “Happy Birthday,” and all Angel could do was stand there and take it.  Frieda rolled in an enormous cake with what
was probably three hundred candles on it.    Embarrassed and only slightly irritated, Angel  worked to blow them all out.  He was showered with small gifts from just about everyone and he opened them graciously, thanking each person sincerely.

     It was more than an hour before he got the chance to talk to Brea.  She was smiling, but she was still angry with him. 
She was pretty when she was mad, Angel decided. 

     “Can we talk now?” he asked in her ear.  “Let’s go up to my room.”

     “Yes, and your office will do just fine.”  Brea stormed off in front of him, leaving him no choice but to follow.

     Angel stopped briefly to explain to Sebastian where he was going, then followed Brea into his office.  He stepped inside, and she shut the door rather hard behind him.

      “Just tell me why,” she glowered.

     “I didn’t actually plan for it to happen,” Angel said, taking her hand.  She quickly jerked it back.

     “But you had to know what would happen!  I trusted you and you went and tied yourself to me forever!  You didn’t even ask how I felt about it!”

     “I know, and I am sorry.  I never meant to deceive you, Brea.  But the mating is only one way right now.  You are free to walk away at any time.”

     “And what about you?  What are you supposed to eat if I walk away?”

     “I can still eat.  I just can’t feed off of anyone else.”

     “Ever?”

     
“No, never.  But I would never hold you to something you didn’t want.  I gave myself freely to you.  And I am glad I did.  I have walked this earth for three centuries, alone.  I now know who I belong to.  I feel whole, alive again.  I know I didn’t do this right, but I wouldn’t change it for anything.”

     “Why?” she demanded.

     “Because, I love you, Brea.  And I always will.  You are my other half, my soul mate.  I cannot explain to you the feeling I have inside me.”

     “How did you know it was me?”

     “I didn’t.  But I wanted it to be.  The tattoo only appears if the person is a true mate.  I won’t force you to be with me, but will you at least think about it?  Would it be so bad?”

     “I don’t know.  I don’t want to think about anything right now.  I don’t know what to do with all this information.  And I am still mad at you for not telling me.  And don’t you need to feed to live?”

     “Yes, eventually.  I need blood to survive.  But I can go long periods of time without it.  I will just be weaker the longer I abstain.”

     “So your life is in my hands?”

     “Yes.  But if this is not what you want, I would rather die than live without you.”

    
“God!  You are really stupid for a Clan Leader!  So what am I supposed to do?  Let you come over and bite my neck and feed from me once a week or something?”

     “The choice is yours,” Angel whispered.  He was losing her, he knew it.  She felt betrayed and trapped.  He really was stupid for making the decision without her.  How had things gone so terribly wrong?  He told her that he loved her, and she completely disregarded the statement.  Angel felt a stab of pain in his chest, and he was having trouble breathing.

     “Enjoy your party, I’m going to bed.  Alone.” Brea pushed past Angel and stalked out of the office.

     Angel let her go.  He respected her wishes and left her alone all night.  He tried to go back to the party, but
he wasn’t really interested anymore.  He just wanted to be alone as well.  At the first available opportunity, Angel stole away to his own room.  Just before he went to bed, he got online and ordered four dozen roses to be delivered to Brea early in the morning.  He would have to try again, to apologize, to talk her into staying.  Hell, he would hire her full time if that’s what it took.  Anything to keep her in his home.

     When he woke that afternoon, Angel
felt a keen sense of loss and emptiness.  He knew immediately that Brea was no longer in his house.  He leapt from his bed, still wearing his clothes from the night before, and ran to her room.

     The roses he ordered for her were all in her room, as were the clothes he had bought for her. 
Everything she had brought with her from her apartment was gone.  On top of her dresser was a black box.  Without knowing why, he opened it.  Inside was the diamond necklace Angel bought for her and a note.  “I can’t accept this.  It’s too much,” the note said.

     Angel’s heart leaped up into his throat.  He flew out of her room and down the stairs, hoping against hope that he was wrong.

     Angel stormed into the kitchen where Ricco and Keelie sat at the table.  “Where is she?” Angel demanded.

     The look in Keelie’s eyes was one of sympathy.  “She left a few hours ago.  She went home with Brandon.”

     “Why? Who let her leave?  Go get her and bring her back here!”

     “Angel, she wasn’t a prisoner here.  She can come and go as she pleases.  I tried to talk her into staying, but she said she had to work tonight and wanted to go home,” Ricco said.
  “Would you really want her here against her will?”  Angel had said before that he would never force her to do anything.  He felt his own words as strongly as if someone had slapped him across the face.

     “Is that all?
Did she say anything else?”

     “She left you some of her blood.  She said when you run out, for someone to call h
er and she would send more,” Ricco answered.

     “What!”

     “You screwed up, man.  Big time,” Keelie explained.  “She said she wouldn’t be responsible for you starving to death, but right now she didn’t want to see you.  So Ricco and I helped her draw her blood last night and again this afternoon.  It’s in the fridge with your name on it.  She wouldn’t even let Ricco pay her.”

    
“Why not?” Angel demanded.

     “I don’t know if I want to say,” Keelie said warily.  “You’re pretty upset right now and
I’d like to keep my neck intact.”

     “I promise
, I won’t fly off the handle.  Just tell me why,” Angel said, trying to keep his temper under control.  It was difficult; his fists were at his sides and his entire body was trembling.

     “She said that the amount was too much, and she didn’t want to
paid for her company like some high priced call girl.  She said she didn’t want your money.”

     Angel felt like someone
had hit him in the chest.  His heart squeezed in his chest and his lungs refused to draw air.  He felt light headed and his vision blurred.  He was gasping for air and holding fast to the table top for support.  He was breathing too fast, and yet he could not seem to get enough air into his lungs.   His rational mind was telling him to calm down, that he was having a panic attack.  But his heart was screaming at him louder.  Not only was she gone, but she was hurt and insulted.  In his attempt to bring Brea into his life, he had driven her away.  How could one man screw up so badly?   He had to get her back, but he didn’t know how.  He had never felt such hopelessness in his entire life.  His breath came even quicker than before and his mind was working too fast to hold to any one coherent thought.  Angel’s whole world was quickly spinning out of control.  A dark and empty feeling that started in his chest spread to every part of him and everything around him went black.

******

     Two weeks passed and Brea hadn’t seen Angel.  He sent her flowers every day, a dozen red roses delivered at dawn.    Her apartment was overflowing with the sweet smelling blooms, and she had started bringing them to work with her.

    
“More roses?” Keelie asked as Brea set the vase on the counter.

     “Every
damned day,” Brea muttered.

     “Why don’t you call him?”

     “Because I don’t want to.  That’s why.  How’s things going with Ricco?”

     “Good,” Keelie answered.  “We’re going out after work tonight, if you want to come along.”

     “No thank you.  I wouldn’t want to intrude.”

     “You wouldn’t be. 
Really.  Come with us,” Keelie pleaded.  “You got to get out.  This isn’t healthy.”

     “What isn’t? 
Working?”

     “No, sitting around the house all the time when you are not at work, moping and crying.  Brea, you’re miserable!  Everyone can see it.  Forgive him and call him.”

     “I don’t mope.”

     “Yes, you do.”

     “Whatever, I’m not ready to talk to him yet.”

     “Ok, but you’re going to have to sooner or later.”

     “No, I
don’t
have to.  When he needs my blood, someone can call me and I will hook him up.  That’s the end of things I
have
to do.”

     “He made a bad decision, Brea.  Don’t you think he’s miserable too?”

     “I have a table,” Brea mumbled as she stalked off.  Keelie watched helplessly as her friend walked away.

     After her shift ended, Brea went straight home.  As she suspected, there was a fresh vase of flowers on the coffee table.  There was a wrapped gift box beside it.  Brea picked it up and dropped it in the box with the dozen others she hadn’t bothered to open.  She figured eventually she would have to send them back to him.  Soon enough the box would be full and she could just seal it and slap some postage on it.

     Dropping her purse to the floor, she headed into the kitchen to get a drink.  Even though Brea rarely drank alcohol, she had been having a stiff margarita every night for at least a week.  It helped deaden her nerves, and her pain. 
Ever since the first day when she left Angel’s Estate, she had felt his pain and his loss as sharply as her own.  It was the mating, she knew.  Damn him again for doing that to her without her consent!  The first night had been the hardest.  Brea was already feeling like complete crap when she felt him.  It had to be when he realized that she had left.  Brea’s heart pounded wildly in her chest and then threatened to stop altogether.  The pain was so fierce that her knees had buckled underneath her and Brea fell to the floor, gasping for air.