The Angel of Death (The Soul Summoner Book 3) (26 page)

“You’d better not. I’m just getting used to having you around, so I’d hate to have to use my light ball on you.”

He watched me retrieve a second slice of pizza from the box. The thick mozzarella drew out into a long greasy string for as high up as I could reach. I had to use my other fingers to break it.
 

“Do you ever plan on practicing your skills, Sloan?” he asked with a hint of exasperation.

“Of course,” I said.

He crossed his arms. “When?”

I lowered the stringy cheese into my mouth and winked at him. “It’s my New Year’s resolution. I promise.”

* * *

On Friday afternoon, Adrianne came to my house to get ready for the party. She claimed it was so we could all ride together, but I really knew it was so she could make sure I looked presentable next to her in public. “You should wear the black Ivis Mishi dress I got you,” she said as she pinned a hot roller into my hair.

I made a sour face. “The monstrosity that looks like a jeweled garbage sack?”

She made a sharp screeching sound that echoed around the bathroom. “You take that back!”

“I wish you’d taken that dress back,” I teased.

She yanked on my hair.

“Ow!”

“You’re such a brat,” she said, rolling her eyes at me in the mirror.

I slathered on a layer of sheer lip-gloss. “I know.”

“You look so hot in that dress,” she whined.

My heart sank. Nathan had said the same thing not too long ago. In the five months we’d known each other, hardly a day had passed that I hadn’t heard his voice until that week. He’d been gone four whole days.

“Earth to Sloan,” Adrianne said.

My eyes snapped up. “Sorry.”

“What’s the matter?”

I scrunched up my nose. “Thinking about Nathan.”

“Have you talked to him at all?” she asked.

I shook my head. “Not even a text message.”

She twisted another long strand of my hair around a hot roller. “Was it really that bad? You never told me exactly what happened.”

I sighed. “Yeah, it was
that
bad. The night you were out with Azrael, I had another one of those crazy weird nightmares. Only this time, Nathan was a part of it. It was pretty, um…” My cheeks flushed red.

“Explicit?” she asked.

“Very. But then he tried to kill me in the dream and I almost killed him.”

She looked confused. “But it was a dream.”

“Well, somehow I woke up with bruises around my throat, and he had bloody scratches down his chest. God only knows what really happened.”

“That’s terrifying.”

“Yeah.”

She hosed down the set curlers with hairspray. “So that’s why he left?”

“That and he said he’s tired of being so close and not being able to have me,” I said.

Her bottom lip poked out. “Ohh…that’s so sad.”

“I know.” I slumped in my chair. “And he kissed me.”

“Shut up. Really?”

I nodded.

“Like a real kiss?” she asked.

“Closed eyes and everything.”

She gasped. “Not closed eyes.”

“And face-holding,” I added.

She put her hands on my shoulders. “You poor thing.”

“And now he’s gone,” I said. “We weren’t even a couple, and it’s still the worst breakup I’ve ever been through.”

She grimaced. “Will you tell Warren? He’s going to know something major is wrong if he comes home and Nathan is gone.”

“I don’t want to lie to him,” I answered.

Adrianne shook her head. “No. You can’t do that. Maybe he won’t ask.”

I laughed. “Right. Because Warren is about as oblivious as a hawk at dinnertime.”

“Sorry.”

I waved her off. “Let’s talk about something else before I start crying and ruin my makeup.”

“Right! There will be absolutely no sad tears tonight. This will be a glorious evening!” She spun around toward my closet. “Now, what are you going to wear?”

* * *

“I look like a California Raisin,” I grumbled, tugging at the hem of my skirt as I followed Adrianne and Azrael—who were locked at the elbows—up the stone steps to the glass front doors of the Deerpark Restaurant.

Adrianne flashed a painted smile back at me. “You look gorgeous.”

“I look
alone
,” I corrected her.

Azrael, who was wearing a black suit against his will at Adrianne’s insistence, glanced over his shoulder. “Not true. You’ve got Taiya.”

Taiya.

I stopped walking and looked around for her. It was the second time we’d lost her that evening, and we’d only left the house a half hour before. The first time, she’d disappeared through my neighbor’s backyard to the street behind my house. Azrael had brought her back. This time, she was wandering down the cobblestone handicap ramp. I shouted her name, but she was looking everywhere but at me.
 

“
Eshta
!” Azrael called out.

Taiya spun toward us, causing the short skirt of her dark blue velvet dress to swirl around her thighs. Adrianne had found the frock in the children’s department at the mall, and it almost fit perfectly, except for the sleeves which were barely long enough to cover her scars. The square heels of her strap-on dress shoes clopped against the path as she ran over.

I took her hand. “Stay with us.” I pulled a pen out of my purse, yanked up Taiya’s sleeve and on the outside of her pale forearm I wrote my phone number and
If found, please call Sloan Jordan.
 

She ignored me and smacked her lips together like she had been doing ever since Adrianne put pink lipstick on her at the house.
 

“Azrael, tell her to quit doing that. She looks like a guppy,” Adrianne said.

“Oh, leave her alone.” Azrael reached for the door handle and held it open for all of us.

I imagine there are few places in the world as grand and spectacular as the Biltmore Estate. The 250 room home, nestled against the backdrop of the Blue Ridge Mountains, was nothing shy of a fairytale castle. Even in my current, irrevocable state of melancholy, it was hard to be blasé about the Biltmore at Christmas.
 

Inside the spacious restaurant lobby, we were greeted by ten-foot, flawless Frasier firs sparkling with white twinkle lights and silver jingle bells. Fresh pine garland and poinsettias of every size garnished every stationary furnishing in the room. Soft Christmas music drifted from the instruments of a string quartet somewhere nearby.

Dinner at the Deerpark was like dining inside a Hallmark snow globe.

I missed Warren.

And Nathan.

The hostess led us through a maze of banquet tables and buffet stations. Taiya swiped a handful of cheese cubes from an artisan platter as we passed by. Our round table, draped with a pristine white tablecloth and set for a party of six, was tucked into the corner beside the windows that overlooked the center outdoor courtyard hidden at the heart of the restaurant. Adrianne and I had attended our high school prom out in that magical space beneath the stars. I smiled as I pulled out the chair closest to the window.

Adrianne grabbed my hand. “Let me sit there. You know I hate having my back to the action.”

Rolling my eyes, I stepped back beside Taiya while Adrianne eased into the seat right next to Azrael.

Deep inside my belly, a distinct flutter tickled my bladder.

My hands covered my stomach. “Whoa.”

Azrael looked up with alarm. “What’s the matter?”

I giggled. “I think I felt the baby move.”

Adrianne clasped her hands together. “Really?”

“I think so.” I froze, waiting to feel it again.
 

Everyone was watching me. Well, everyone except Taiya. She had walked around to the window and was pressing her cheek against the glass.

Azrael snapped his fingers in her direction. “
Eshta. Por dova.
” He pointed to her chair, and obediently she pulled it out and sat down.

Giving up on feeling the flutter a second time, I sank down beside her. “That was weird.”

“What did it feel like?” Adrianne asked.

I bit my lower lip. “Kind of like I had to go to the bathroom.”

Adrianne’s face soured. “That’s gross. Isn’t it kind of early to be feeling her kick? When my boss was pregnant, she felt her son the first time at the salon and she was further along.”

Azrael shook his head. “You can’t expect this to be a normal pregnancy. It’s not a normal child.”

Even if it was true, I didn’t like him calling my baby abnormal.

A waitress took our drink orders and invited us all to help ourselves to the buffet tables. Normally, I didn’t like buffets. It reminded me of cattle being herded to a trough, but for the Biltmore, I’d make an exception. And since my dad wasn’t there to argue, I started at the dessert table.

It was clear from Azrael’s scowl that he didn’t approve of my chocolate raspberry cheesecake and triple chocolate mousse. “The baby needs calcium,” I said, putting my plate down on the table.

Perhaps she heard me using her as my gluttony defense because she moved again.

I smoothed the soft fabric over my midsection. “I feel her again!”

When I glanced toward Adrianne, movement behind her in the courtyard caught my attention. A tall, broad figure was poised in the moonlight, and when he looked up, his black eyes locked on mine.

It was Warren.
 

20.

Gasping, I covered my mouth. “Oh my god.”
 

Everyone in earshot turned to look outside.

Warren stuffed his hands in his pockets smiling from ear to ear.
 

In my haste toward the door, I knocked over two chairs and caused an older gentleman to dump his untouched slice of cheesecake onto the floor. I didn’t even stop to apologize. My feet didn’t stop till I was through the door, across the courtyard, and on top of him. “Warren!” Under the canopy of stars in the cloudless sky above, every nerve ending in my body came alive when his strong arms closed around me. He lifted my feet from the ground and stumbled backward from the force of my impact.
 

I buried my face in the bend of his neck and cried. “I can’t believe you’re here!”

He set me down on my heels and pulled back enough to see my face. “Surprise!” Tears sparkled at the corners of his eyes as he cupped my face in his strong hands and pressed his lips to mine. The baby tumbled in my stomach as his energy surged with mine. When he finally broke the kiss, he rested his forehead against mine, sliding his hands down my bare arms till his fingers tangled with mine.

“Are you real?” I asked quietly.

He chuckled. “Of course I’m real. What kind of question is that?”

“A valid one,” I said, rubbing my nose against his. “Weirder things have happened lately.” I opened my eyes and looked into his. “What are you doing here?”

“We got back yesterday,” he said. “I have until Monday to spend at home before I have to go back and process out.”

“How did you know…” I blinked up at him. “Adrianne organized this, didn’t she?”

He grinned. “Yeah. I called her last week. I wasn’t exactly sure this would work out, so I didn’t want to get your hopes up.”

His black hair was growing back out, and he was as formal as Warren ever got: nice dark jeans that clung to all the right muscle groups, a fitted, black button-up shirt covered by a steel-gray jacket. The jacket looked amazing, but I knew it hadn’t been a fashion choice; Warren likely hid an arsenal beneath it. I slipped my finger between two buttons on his chest. “Is this new?”

“I literally bought it”—he glanced down at the tactical watch tucked under his sleeve—“forty-seven minutes ago. Adrianne told me to dress up.”

“You look amazing.”

“
You
look amazing,” he said. “And you look cold. Let’s go inside.”

I grabbed his hand to stop him. “Wait. Before we go in, I need to tell you something.” Over dinner was not how I wanted to tell him about the baby and waiting till after wouldn’t be an option given my new affinity for chocolate as an appetizer.

Concern flashed in his eyes. “What’s going on?”

Standing in front of him, I sucked in a deep breath and held it.

“Sloan?”

Say it.

“Warren, I’m pregnant.”

His face froze.
 

“Warren?”

Nothing.

I stepped to the side, but his eyes stayed fixed on the spot I’d vacated. I waved my hand in front of his face. “Warren?”

He blinked twice, his mouth gaping. “You’re pregnant?”

I nodded.

“Pregnant?”

I nodded again. “I didn’t want to tell you inside with everyone.”

His gaze fell to our feet. “Are you sure?”

“She’s due in July.”

“She?” His voice broke.

I shrugged. “Your father says it’s a girl.”

His eyes doubled in size and he angled his ear toward me. “My
father
?”

Crap.

I covered my mouth with my hands. “Oh, geez. Warren, we have so much we have to talk about.”

He looked around the courtyard. “I think I need to sit down.”

Behind us was a waist-high wall built in a semicircle. I tugged him toward it. “Here.”

Carefully, he sat down on top of the bricks, and I stood wringing my cold hands in front of him. “I’m sorry this is a lot of overwhelming information to dump on you.”

He held up his index finger. “One thing at a time. Are you really pregnant?”

“Yes. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner. I didn’t figure it out till you were gone.” I put my hands over my stomach. “Please don’t be mad.”

In an instant, he was on his feet in front me. He gripped my hands in his and held them against his chest. “Sloan, I could never be mad about that.” He blinked back tears. “I’m going to be a dad.”

“Yeah.” I laughed and burst out crying at the same time.

Warren pulled me into his arms and kissed me, his tears mixing with mine. He was breathless when he pulled away. “This is the absolute best news I could come home to. I love you so much.”

I gathered the fabric of his jacket in my hands. “I love you too.”

His large hand rested against my stomach, and the baby fluttered again.
 

I laughed. “I think she’s kicking.”