Enticing An Angel (11 page)

"That's not funny," she replied angrily.

"No, it's not" he said calmly.

"Honestly," she said with annoyance,
"sometimes I believe you boys do these things just to aggravate
me."

Michael rolled his eyes again and headed for
the kitchen. "No, Mom. We do these things out of innocence. The
fact that they irritate you is just a perk."

Joshua soon arrived and the family gathered
around him in the kitchen, all except for the children and Melanie
who were lost somewhere in the house. They gave him well wishes and
happy birthdays, and he thanked them all, giving warm hugs as he
did so. His mother got a long hug, and she took a moment to
sincerely ask how he was.

"I'm fine, Mom," he replied. "Thanks for
asking."

"Are you sure? Do you need money? How are you
eating?" she asked.

Joshua smiled, shook his head, and looked to
his brothers. They all gave him the same look—he had better answer
her or she wouldn't stop asking.

Joshua took a moment to reply and reassured
his mother several times that he was holding up. It had only been a
year since the finalization of his divorce, and the family was
still feeling the effects. When he was able to extricate himself
from his mother, Michael took the opportunity to address him. They
walked away and headed into the house.

"How's school?" Michael asked.

"It's fine," Joshua replied.

"How are the grades?"

"Those are fine as well, Michael," he replied
and then stopped his brother before he went any further. "Look, I
appreciate the concern, but I really am fine. Work is tough, and
the class load is full, but I'm getting it done."

"I'm sure you are, but if you need help, or
if those grades start slipping, I'll be there for good or bad."

"You don't have to be so overprotective,"
Joshua stated.

"Hey, you’re my kid brother. It's what I
do."

Joshua didn't hear his brother; he was busy
staring over his shoulder and into the living room. Michael turned
around and chuckled when he saw the scene. Melanie was lying on her
stomach with her legs bent and feet in the air—barefoot of course.
Katherine and Joey were with her, and the three of them were deeply
engrossed in a game of Chutes and Ladders.

"Who the hell is that?" Joshua asked
skeptically.

"That's Melanie, she's my girlfriend,"
Michael replied as he enjoyed the view.

Joshua turned dour for a moment.
"Girlfriend?" he asked skeptically.

Michael shrugged his shoulders. "Well, we've
been dating a couple of weeks," he replied.

"Uh huh," Joshua replied.

Michael caught the tone and turned to
Joshua.

"Hey, she's good people," he stated
clearly.

Joshua returned the comment with a blank
stare. He then turned around and began to leave.

"Whatever," he said.

"Hey, Josh," Michael said sternly, and his
brother turned back. Michael moved to his brother's side.

"I really like this girl," he said. "Can you
please be nice to her, for me?"

Josh's face turned cold. "I'm always nice to
women, Michael. It the reverse situation I have a problem
with."

As Joshua turned around and walked away,
Michael shook his head. He rarely swore, but this was one time he
couldn't help himself.

"Boy, she really fucked you up didn't she,"
he whispered.

Dinner was an interesting affair, and
everyone enjoyed it with the exception of the boys' mother. It
began simply enough with Mrs. Angel having her boys set the table
and Melanie arriving in the kitchen with the kids.

"Oh, you must be Joshua," she said as she
extended a hand.

Joshua looked at her hand skeptically and did
not take it as his look became one of contempt and scorn. He was
immediately saved from an awkward social encounter when the
children piped up.

"Uncle Josh!" they chimed almost in
unison.

Josh's face transformed almost instantly and
he bent down to receive his hugs. The kids barreled into him and he
almost fell backwards.

"Oh, careful, little Angels. I'm the runt of
the litter," he said.

Melanie analyzed him and wondered about his
comment. He was certainly the smallest Angel she had seen, but he
was still taller than she was. He was probably five foot eight and
certainly the slimmest of the boys, but he still sported a nice jaw
line and cheekbones to match. His hair was a dirty blonde, leaning
more to the dirty color, giving him an interestingly handsome
charm. Overall, he was a good-looking man. She could certainly see
why a woman would lie to keep him.

Melanie smiled as she watched him interact
with the children. Her first impression rapidly altered in her
mind. His dismissal of her, and few seconds of rude behavior, was
erased when she saw him smiling and laughing.

Joshua picked up Joey and slung him on his
back, while Katherine wrapped herself around his leg.

"Oh, no," he cried out, and then he spoke
very slowly as if he were over acting. "Must get out of
kitchen."

His arms extended as if he was Frankenstein's
monster, and he walked across the hardwood floor, dragging
Katherine along as he did so. When he began to pass Melanie, he
looked down at her, and for a moment, that look of contempt flashed
across his face.

He returned his attention to the kids and
continued to move across the floor. Michael came to stand beside
her and she leaned into him and wrapped her arms around his waist
all without taking her eyes off Joshua.

"She really messed him up, didn't she?"
Melanie whispered.

"You don't know the half of it, little
Darling," came the reply.

Melanie startled and looked up. She was
leaning against Brian; he was staring down at her, smiling as he
did so. She glared at him and pulled away quickly. Brian
scrutinized her again and chuckled. He was not unlike Michael in
that respect, but at least when Michael did it she felt loved. When
Brian did it, she felt as if she were merely an amusement.

Melanie left Brian and decided to assist Mrs.
Angel. The two of them had hardly spoken a word as Melanie had
spent most of her time playing with the kids—an activity that she
enjoyed. It had been a long time since she had played Chutes and
Ladders.

"Is there anything I can help with, Mrs.
Angel?" she asked.

Much like before, Mrs. Angel ignored Melanie
and dismissed her easily.

"No, that's okay Melanie. I can get this.
It's just lasagna."

Melanie could feel the coldness from the
woman, but chose to ignore it. She had acted the same way each time
she was at the attorney's office, and Melanie didn't want to read
too much into it. Still, she got the distinct impression that
Michael's mother did not like her.

The kids were soon back and Joshua was in
tow. Katherine had a book in her hand and came up to Melanie.

"Will you read us a story?" she asked.

Melanie frowned and took the book. She
laughed when she saw the title.

"Well, I'm not sure. I think we need a Pop
for this story. Do you have one?"

"Uh huh," they both said with exaggerated
nods.

"Well you better go get him," Melanie said
with a laugh.

"Daddy!" the kids cried out as they went to
find their dad.

He was not far. He was obediently setting the
table like a good son. The kids barreled into him as they had done
to Joshua and began to pull him into the living room.

"Hop on Pop," they began to chime several
times and Melanie laughed as she joined them. She took a seat in a
corner chair, and before opening the book, she cried out, "Stop!
You must not hop on Pop."

The kids laughed and she smiled as she opened
the novel. Nathan rolled to the ground and grabbed his kids,
tickling them as he did so. The climbed on him and began to bounce
as Melanie began the story properly.

From the dining room, Joshua watched the
affair. He glared at Melanie, but then smiled as he watched the
kids jumping on their dad. Nathan was a fantastic father, and that
was something every Angel knew.

"She's good people," Michael said again, as
he came alongside Joshua and watched Melanie read the story.

Josh turned to his brother and refrained from
answering. Michael was watching Melanie, and Joshua looked between
the two of them. It took him a moment to put the puzzle pieces
together, and when he did, he had to speak.

"My God, you're in love with her," Joshua
stated.

Michael startled and turned to his brother.
He became contemplative. His response was slow and accompanied with
a shrug.

"Maybe," he said. "I don’t know. But she's
fun and I like being with her."

"Well, the kids seem to like her. So, maybe
she's not all bad," Joshua said carefully.

Melanie made a funny face as she read out
some of the lines, and Katherine giggled and returned the funny
face. Both men suddenly chuckled at the scene. Michael was shocked
by his brother's response, but like hunting a deer, he didn't want
to spook Joshua. He just let the scene play out, and hoped Melanie
could work her magic on his brother. He didn’t wish for a miracle.
He just prayed that Melanie would demonstrate to Joshua that not
all women were evil.

Dinner was served, grace was said, and food
was passed around. Conversation was entertaining and certainly
interesting; at least Melanie thought so.

The boys were well behaved; their mother saw
to that, and it wasn't long before conversation turned to
Melanie.

"So Melanie," Mrs. Angel asked. "Do you have
any long term plans?"

"Not really," she replied with a shrug.
"Being a paralegal is okay, but I prefer my art."

"Oh, you're an artist," Mrs. Angel replied
with judgment.

The comment's meaning was not lost on
Melanie, but she just shrugged and agreed that she was an artist.
She then talked about some of her work.

"She's actually very good, Mom. You'd be
impressed," Michael said.

Melanie glared at Michael for a second. She
knew he was trying to defend her, but she didn't want it.

"I'm sure she is dear," his mother replied,
and Michael rolled his eyes at the condescension in her voice.

"So do you ever want children, Melanie?" Mrs.
Angel asked.

"Oh, maybe," Melanie replied. "I haven't
thought about it much."

"You can have children can't you?" was the
next question, and Michael's eyes widened at the nerve of his
mother.

"Oh, I'm sure. All the plumbing works as far
as I can tell," Melanie replied as she scanned about the table for
something.

Michael looked to his brothers who returned
his silent entreaty with dumb stares. The looks all said one
thing.

Hey, at least it's not us getting
grilled.

"Mom, that's not really an appropriate
question," Michael stated as he turned back to his mother.

"Oh, Michael relax," Melanie said as she
reached for the roll basket and began to pick out a roll she
wanted. The basket had several varieties and she couldn't
decide.

"Besides, it's not like she's asking if we've
had sex," Melanie said as she finally picked out a roll.

"Have you?" Mrs. Angel asked directly.

"Yep," Melanie replied without taking her
eyes off the roll she had chosen. She smiled at it and began to
open it as if she didn’t have a care in the world.

Brian had been taking another sip of his beer
and for the second time today, he choked on it. He began to fight
his laughter and attempted to keep from choking at the same time.
He stood quickly and headed to the kitchen, pausing long enough to
grab his brother by the shoulder and whisper in his ear.

"Damn, Michael," he said with a laugh.

He then left for the kitchen, and Michael
could see by the rapid movement of his brother's shoulders and the
hand over his mouth that the man was about to bust a gut.

Michael turned to his other brothers and they
both appeared amused. He was pleased that Joshua was being
entertained, but he was not so sure he liked the reasoning. Turning
back to his mother, he could see that the head of the household was
unhappy.

"All right, boys. That's enough," she
said.

Nathan ignored his mother.

"So, Melanie, is he any good?" Nathan
asked.

"I'm still grading him," she replied as she
eyed her roll and began to spread butter on it.

Joshua gave an honest chuckle, smiled, and
looked at Michael as he spoke. "Well let me know how he does.
Michael's always checking on my grades. If he slacks off, I'll make
sure he works harder for you."

Melanie stopped spreading her butter and
looked to Joshua. He actually turned to her as well and kept his
smile in place.

"All right, Joshua, for your birthday present
I'll keep you informed," Melanie said with a smile that spoke of
innocence.

Michael could hear Brian laughing in the
kitchen; the man obviously found the conversation too amusing to be
able to contain himself at the table.

"I said enough," their mother said. "This is
not appropriate conversation for dinner."

"Come on, Mom," Nathan said as he sat back
and smiled to his mother. "You brought it up."

"Yeah," Joshua agreed with his brother.
"Besides, it's not like we're talking about analingus."

"Ooh, Michael loves that," Melanie chimed in
loudly and with an eager face.

The kitchen door to the garage opened quickly
and before it shut, Brian could be heard laughing hysterically as
he exited the house.

"That's enough!" their mother said loudly as
her hand slapped the table. "I will not have this talk at my
table!"

The boys quieted quickly and Michael heard a
couple of "Sorry, Mom's" and one barely audible but ever so cute
"Sorry, Mrs. Angel."