Page 23 of Lips of an Angel

I didn’t get angry very often, but standing there with Billie challenging me, my blood boiled. For the first time in nearly a decade, I tried to speak, but all that emerged were stutters before I gave up. I sighed, frustrated.

Billielaughed.

They left soon after, closing and locking the door behind them. I wasn’t sure how long I stood in the middle of the living room trying to figure out what to do, but in the end my anxieties won out. I never told Raleigh, worried it would make him realize he truly didn’t need me. Or worse, that he’d accuse me of making the whole thing up.

So I swept it under the rug. I made myself as scarce as possible when Billie was around, and it worked. Eventually, their relationship fizzled out and things went back to normal.

I guess the spark had been ignited once more. Though it was borderline comical for Billie to think Raleigh considered them more than a fling. The man was thirty years old, and outside of me and the Hopyard, he’d never committed to anything in his life. I think his tattoo artist was the longest standing relationship he’d had.

Before I fell down a rabbit hole of anxiety at hearing their voice, I returned to my nest. I dug out my headphones and connected them to the TV. When I heard another giggle and Raleigh’s low, rumbling voice, I turned Joey and Chandler up as loud as they would go.

The next afternoon, I got up and ready before either of them woke up. I wasn’t sure whether Billie was back for one night or more, but I dreaded the idea that they were back in our lives. Either way, I had no desire to cross paths with them.

Unfortunately for me, Raleigh couldn’t actually read my mind. They both stumbled down the stairs—an hour late.

Raleigh flashed me a grin, and I did my best to return a genuine smile. With one arm around Billie, he tried to usher them out the back entrance, but Jack caught his attention, causing him to poke his head into the front of house. Of course. It was Tanqueray day, and yet again the vendor had dropped the cases wherever they saw fit.

Since the entrance required a key from both sides after hours, someone needed to escort Billie out. Raleigh reached into his pocket, and fearing the worst, I jumped into action. There was no way in hell I was letting Billie get a spare set of keys again.

I rose from the table I’d been sitting at. “I’ll see them out.”

Billie glared, but Raleigh gave me a grateful smile. “I’ll call you, okay?”

Billie plastered on the fakest smile I’d ever seen. I matched it with one of my own. “Sounds great.” They clenched the front of Raleigh’s T-shirt, hauling him in for a kiss that even made Jack squirm. It was only when he cleared his throat that Raleigh pulled away and nudged Billie toward me.

I unlocked the door and held it open for them. “Thanks, Angel,” they said in a tone that made me want to slap that fake smile right off them.

I only gave a noncommittal grunt and made sure they were well out of sight before I shut and locked the door.

When I returned to the front of house, I fussed with the liquor delivery to avoid Raleigh. I could sense his eyes on me, and I should’ve known better than to think I could hide it from him. The second we were alone, Raleigh lowered his voice. “Are you all right? You seem off.”

“Fine,” I signed.

Raleigh leaned into my field of vision, trying to make eye contact with me. So like the twenty-nine-year-old I was, I turned and walked away, pretending to have something else to do. God, I wish I had something else to do.

Lo and behold, the big guy followed me. “Are you sure?”

“Since when have I ever judged you for the fuck buddies you bring home?” If Billie knew I’d said that, they’d go absolutely batshit.

That thought almost produced a smile.

“Angel,” he warned, drawing my attention. Damn it, looking at him was a bad idea. I swiftly turned my gaze back to the task at hand, acting like napkin dispensers were the most interesting thing in the world. Raleigh continued, “We’ve known each other our whole lives. I know when there’s something you aren’t saying.”

“Technically, I neversayanything.”

“Angel Christian…”

“I’m fine, Raleigh. I swear. I’m just tired.”

I couldn’t put much conviction into my words, so I tried to pour as much as I could into the look I gave him. I hoped it was enough for him to drop the subject. I didn’t have the mental capacity to get into why I couldn’t stand the sight of Billie.

“Okay,” he relented, though the tone of his voice suggested he was far from through with the conversation. “If you say so.”

I hoped the shift, at least, would be easy, but we hadn’t been open for more than an hour when Billie returned. After my morning with Billie, dealing with a group of drunk strangers didn’t seem like such a daunting task, so I was working the floor and was the first to notice their arrival. At first I simply rolled my eyes and continued working, unwilling to let them chase me out of my own bar, for fuck’s sake.

Then I caught sight of Raleigh openly flirting with a tiny, busty brunette, and I sensed World War III looming on the horizon. I managed to catch his eye and tell him I was heading to the office. He gave me a nod, then returned his attention to the brunette before I could warn him about Billie. I retreated, having no interest in watching the upcoming disaster unfold. Ducking out of a high-stress situation was best for my mental health. Adding a panic attack on top of the commotion tended to make things spiral.

I didn’t choose when my powers activated. Sure, they favored those people I was closest to—like Raleigh—but my marks often started fluttering in anticipation in situations with obvious stress or injury.

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