Page 50 of Wings of Torment
I finish in record time, drying off quickly and getting dressed before braiding my wet hair. By the time I check my phone, I find a message waiting.
Zeke: Just finished my shift. See you in a few.
Sent six minutes ago. Shit! I toss my dirty clothes in the laundry hamper and race from the bathroom. I need shoes, a jacket, my bag and slate, and I need it all before—
Knock, knock, knock.
Grabbing my shoes, I practically jump out the front door, startling Zeke. Maybe if we hurry, we can just leave, get away before they notice.
If only I were so lucky.
“Is that him?” Mom calls.
Panic welling inside me, I do the only thing I can think of in the moment. I drop my shoes, wrap my arms around Zeke, and whisper, “Just go with it, okay?” I don’t give him a chance to answer before my mouth presses to his, and fire ignites in my belly.
The kiss is supposed to be chaste, a light touch with no ramifications, but the moment he breaks free of the shock, he wraps me up in his arms and holds me there.
When it ends, all I can do is look at him, this angel who confounds me. And it’s only when my parents speak that the spell fades away.
“Hayliel! Bring that boyfriend of yours inside so we can meet him.”
I take a deep breath, then mouth the wordsI’m sorryto Zeke before pulling him through the door. He comes willingly, even if he is two paces behind. Maybe I should have told him the plan first, but I worried he wouldn’t come at all if he knew. He hates me, and the only reason he’s even sticking around now is to find out what the demons, and the angels helping them, are up to.
“Ezekiel, these are my parents. Parents, this is Zeke.” I wave my arm between them. “Great, now that that’s settled, we’ll—”
“Hey, not so fast,” Dad says. “I’m Camael. It’s nice to meet you.”
“And I’m Maribella. You’ll have to excuse us. Our Haylie-bear has never brought a boy home before, so we’re a little excited,” Mom adds, causing my face to flame.
Kill me now.
“Oh, she hasn’t?” Zeke asks, throwing me a wink. “Well, then I’m glad to be the first. It’s an honor to meet the angels who raised such a wonderful woman.”
Mom laughs. “Charming, I see. But you’re right, you know. She’s pretty amazing. I think this calls for the baby book. Don’t you agree, Cam?”
“Archangels, no. We’ll be in my room,” I tell them before my Mom can go find the damn book, pushing Zeke toward the stairs. As I pass my parents, I whisper, “Best behavior my ass.”
Dad laughs and calls out far louder than necessary, “Leave the door open a crack, you two. I don’t want any funny business in my house.”
I drag a palm down my face, somehow both surprised at how today’s gone and also not. Things are never easy, are they?
Zeke looks around the bedroom that may not have been my childhood room, but holds enough trinkets from my past to be damn close. He eyes the family pictures Mom put up on the wall. There’s even a few of Dina and me when we were younger. I don’t say anything, only watch him as he takes in the brief glimpses of my life with a look of awe, or maybe even reverence, on his face. A far cry from the usual grumpy frown. It’s kind of … nice.
Memories flash through my mind of another night when he seemed happy in my company, one that feels like a million miles away yet was only a few months. If I close my eyes, I can still feel the touch of the brush while he painted my cheeks, the feel of his arms wrapped around me while we flew through the sky, and the taste of his kiss as he brought me to ruin.
“It’s cozy,” he says, hauling me back from my trip down memory lane. “Nothing like my childhood room.”
“Oh, my childhood room was far cozier than this. My parents only moved here recently, when I started school, actually. Another family needed our old apartment, and they were shipped off here.”
Our gazes collide, and I feel all the things he isn’t saying. Anger for my family. Sadness for me. And maybe even a little regret, but I can’t piece together why.
“So what is it I’m supposed to just be going with?” he asks, changing the subject.
I collapse on the edge of the bed, lying back and covering my eyes with my arm. “They overheard us talking last night. Not everything,” I add before he can ask, “but enough to know I’d invited someone over. With that, and my apparently strange behavior, they assumed I could only be worried about introducing them to my boyfriend. I didn’t really know what else to tell them, so I just sort of went with it. I’m sorry. I should have told you about it first instead of forcing you into a weird situation.”
Zeke comes to sit next to me on the bed, far enough away that we aren’t touching. “Look, it’s fine. I can’t exactly be too mad about it after that kiss you offered earlier. Besides, your parents seem pretty great, and I’ll get to look through your baby book,” he teases.
I sit up, eyes wide with fake outrage. “Don’t you dare!”
