Redeeming Angel (31 page)

“
No flames.” I
smirked.

A small smile split her
lips.

I dropped a small key into the palm of
her hand.

She glanced down at the single silver
key. “What’s this? The key to your heart?”

My lips twitched. “Hardly. You’ve
already managed to unlock that all on your own. This is something
more tangible.”

Her violet eyes went wide. “A car?
Chase, did you buy me a car?”

I laughed. “Think bigger.”

She wet her lips, putting on her
pondering face. “You know I hate surprises.”

“
How about I give you a
hint? Close your eyes.”

“
Chase,” she warned. “Just
tell me.”

“
What fun is that? Now
close your eyes.”

She huffed, but her lashes fluttered
shut. I walked behind her, brushed the hair off her shoulder, and
whispered in her ear, “Don’t peek.”

I felt a shudder roll through her body
and smiled. Gently, I placed my hands on either side of her arms to
guide her. “Okay, put one foot in front of the other.”

“
If I run into something,
so help me…”

I chuckled. “Trust me. I’m not going
to let you face-plant the grass,” I assured. “This will be worth
it. I promise.”

“
It better be,” she warned,
walking like a mummy across the yard. Her steps were slow and
unsure. I let her set her own pace, drawing out the surprise. Plus
it was kind of funny watching her fumble across the
grass.

When she was right where I wanted her,
I told her to stop. “Now open your eyes.”

Flashing in front of her so I could
see her face, I watched her long lashes lift. She stared at me a
moment before her gaze flicked over my shoulder at what used to be
her house. Some crazy person had bought it.

“
Uh, I don’t get it. What’s
the surprise?” She glanced down at the key dangling between her
thumb and forefinger, and then back up at her house.

I rocked back on my heels, waiting for
the moment when she made the connection. I didn’t have to wait
long.

“
Holy shit. Chase, you
didn’t. You’re the lunatic who bought my house?”

My grin was full-wattage. “It’s not
mine. It’s ours.” I smiled down at Angel who still seemed
dumbstruck.

She blew out a breath. “You. Bought.
A. Freaking. House.”

My shoulder lifted in a slight shrug,
and I shoved my hands into my pockets. “I figured we’d need a place
to live after we got married.”

Her cheeks flushed. “You did, did
you?”

“
And I know your mom
selling the house tore you in two.”

She linked her hands on the back of my
neck. “I love you.”

I twined my fingers around her waist,
content to just stand there holding her and feeling happiness stir
inside her, blooming. “So does that mean you like the
surprise?”

She leaned down, placing the softest
kiss on my lips, the kind I’d treasure forever. “When do we move
in?”

I wiggled my brows. “As soon as we say
I do.”

“
When’s the next flight to
Vegas?”

I coughed. “Angel Eyes, we’re not
getting married in Vegas.” There was no way I was ever going back
there. Hell-to-the-no.

Her brows drew together. “What do you
have against eloping?”

I brushed the tip of her nose with
mine. “Nothing. Name the time and the place, just as long as it’s
not Vegas.”

She rested her cheek on mine. “I think
I want to get married here.”

My hands flattened on the
small of her back, and I pulled her close. “You mean like
here
? In Spring
Valley?”

She nodded, tracing the line of my
jaw. “Right where it all started. And I was thinking it might help
take Lexi’s mind off…things.”

“
I think it’s perfect.” And
just what we all needed, something happy to look forward to for
once. I brushed my lips across hers.

Giddy with joy, she laughed. “You’re
perfect. I don’t know how, but you’re absolutely
perfect.”

I framed her face and again kissed the
girl I loved. The girl I would marry. “I’m perfect for
you.”

We walked hand in hand, toward our
house, toward our future together. Tonight was the beginning of our
happily ever after.

Epilogue

{Angel
}

Ten years later…

“
Mom!” yelled a little
voice. “Dad’s fighting again.” It was coming from outside, through
the screen door.

Smiling fondly, I stepped out on the
porch and that smile slipped from my lips as I watched Chase
deliver a killing blow. The demon went up in ash.

“
Cool,” said the little
four-year-old at my side who was the spitting image of his
father.

I glanced down, ruffling Liam’s dark
hair. “Chase,” I said in a disapproving tone.

He sauntered over to me, a sinister
smirk on his lips. The man had not aged a day—well, except for
crinkles near his eyes, which only made him better looking. Beads
of sweat from the summer sun dotted his temples.

Leaning my elbows on the railing, I
met Chase’s impish gaze. “Will you stop using Kira’s demons to
impress your son?”

A dark brow shot up. “What? You know
he’s not the only one impressed.”

I folded my arms. “Is that
so?”

“
Come on, Angel Eyes. I
can’t get rusty. These skills need to be maintained.”

“
Mmm-hmm. You don’t see me
out there lighting things on fire, do you?”

A little giggle sounded behind us, and
Chase’s smile grew, his eyes twinkling. “Did you hear that? I think
we have faeries in the garden.”

It sounded again.

A little girl with faerie blue eyes
peeked her head out from a bush on the side of the porch. At only
three, Olivia was a glittering toddler who had an eye for pretty
things, much like her aunt Lexi. Sometimes I wondered if she was my
daughter, so opposite of me except in coloring.

“
I think we might need to
call the faerie exterminator,” Chase said.

I laughed.

Chase was an exceptional father and a
loving husband. I never imagined my life could be so happy. Not to
say it wasn’t without its problems.

I mean, whom was I kidding? He was
part-demon and I was a slayer, but neither stopped us from
living—from giving our two children a happy but slightly unusual
childhood. They were raised knowing what existed in the world,
brought up to defend themselves and their family. Lines got a
little blurry when Kira came to visit, but that was another
story.

Emma and Travis often brought over
their little girl, Nora, who was just three months older than our
daughter, Olivia—the sneaky faerie. Mischief lived on in the
Winters’ bloodline and our children were proof. Nora was stubborn
and strong like her mother, a born leader. She was also full of
life and humor like her father. Nora was going to make a great
demon hunter one day. Emma, like Chase and me, chose to raise our
families with a different outlook on the world.

Our families gave new meaning to the
definition of blended.

The sunlight sparkled off the twirling
wind chime hanging on the porch next door. Mom and Devin absolutely
adored being able to spoil their grandchildren. They’d been married
for seven years now.

Chase snuck around the side of the
bush, and when he captured our little girl, she squealed with
delight. It was music to my ears. His laughter mixed with
hers.

He would always be my soul, my heart,
my life.

Chase Winters was mine. His eyes took
on tiny gold flecks of light when he was annoyed, upset, or
ridiculously happy as he was now.

I felt sorry for all those girls who
didn’t have a Chase. I was never going to let mine go.

The End

In case you go through
Chase and Angel withdrawals like me, check out my Wattpad, where I
will randomly be posting bonus scenes from Chase and Angel’s life
after Redeeming Angel. This collection of bonuses is called
Eternally Angel.
https://www.wattpad.com/user/jlweil

Stalk Me Online:

(I’m serious. I would love
to hear from you.)

Website:
http://www.jlweil.com

My Blog:
http://jlweil.blogspot.com/

Twitter:
https://twitter.com/#!/JLWeil

Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/#!/jenniferlweil

Goodreads:
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5831854.J_L_Weil

Acknowledgements

First and foremost, I want to thank
each and every reader who picked up this series. Without you I
never would have been able to write The End on the final page of
the final chapter. I never would have had the courage to continue
writing. So I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I love your
guts out.

It’s crazy for me to wrap my head
around the fact that this is the end for Chase and Angel. When I
sat down a few years ago to write book one, I didn’t think a single
person would read it, let alone grow to love these two very cheeky
characters as much as I did, and here we are, book five. I had no
clue what was going to happen, but I adore how the story
unfolded.

I have so many people to be grateful
for.

My two ah-ma-zing boys, for knowing
when to wait patiently while I finished a thought, a sentence, or a
whole chapter.

All the awesome book bloggers for
taking the time to post and spread the good word, as well as my
rockin’ beta team.

And as always, to my family for their
support and inspiration. I couldn’t have done any of it without
them.