Page 73 of Wings of Strife
“Shit. We have to go,” he says, folding up the paper and placing it back in the drawer. “Find the book on flight tactics and push it in as far as it’ll go.”
I waste a precious second just staring at him; the request more than a little odd, before jumping into action. When I find the book, I realize it’s one I’d already pulled out and put back in, but I follow Castiel’s instructions and push it in further. Behind me, stone grates against stone, creating an unpleasant sound and revealing a hidden door opening in the wall.
What the hell?
Jovial voices reach us from the hallway. The first voice I recognize clearly as Uriel, sounding far too happy for my liking, but the second is too soft for me to make out any distinct features.
We need to leave. Now!
I spare one more glance at the shelf and the top of the desk, wanting to make sure I didn’t leave a single thing out of place.
Castiel ushers me through the door we just revealed, but I don’t get a chance to take in my surroundings or enjoy the fact that I’m in a secret fucking passageway.
He pushes on a stone, and the door slides closed. Just as it finally slots into place, I swear I can hear Uriel’s key turning in the lock just outside the classroom.
We don’t stick around for him to enter.
32
Ispent last night cuddled with three gorgeous angels, and even though Iknowit happened, it still doesn’t feel real. My mind hasn’t felt this rested in a long time, or at least it feels long.
It was a little awkward at first, but I expected that given the guys and their history with me, and I guess with each other. But we made it work.
Okay, so we more than made it work, but that’s beside the point. Waking up to them sprawled around me on the bed, while the spare mattress they hauled in lay completely forgotten on the floor had angel wings fluttering in my stomach. I want us to do it again.
And I want everything else they promised, too.
Now, though, I’ve got other things to worry about. Like spending the afternoon with Raph’s family.
Wind roars against my ears as we fly to the housing district, but I barely hear it. My thoughts and fears drown out everything else.
I’ve talked to his mom only once, and to be honest, the experience wasn’t something I’ve been clamoring to repeat. The woman is nasty. Part of me worries they won’t like me, while the other part says good riddance, because angels like that aren’t who I strive to impress. The opposite, actually.
No, I don’t care what they think. I’m only here as support for Raphael.
The man in question sends me a shy smile, his blond hair caught in a vortex of air and making him look even more attractive.
We lower in altitude, breaking through the cover of cloud, and the wind steals away my gasp. Below us, directly in our trajectory, is an enormous property that looks nothing like the single-family homes I’ve seen.
As we land just outside the gate, my mouth hangs wide as I take it all in. I’m about to tell him how stunning his house is when I catch the look on his face. He’s more nervous than I’ve ever seen him.
“Listen, I should warn you about my family,” he begins, but I cut him off by placing a finger against his lips.
“Screw your family. I’m here for you, Raph. I’m onyourside. Not theirs.”
He pulls me against his chest and we just stand like that for several minutes. When his breathing has calmed down a bit, he breaks the silence. “I just want you to be prepared. I can’t guarantee they won’t say or do something offensive. You put up with enough shit from everyone else, sunshine. I don’t want you to have to deal with it from my family as well.”
I pull back, needing him to look into my eyes and see the truth of my next words. “I can take it. What I can’t take is them beingasshats toward you. I promise you don’t have to worry about me. There’s nothing they could say that would change how I feel about you. And as long as you want me here, I’m staying.”
“You are not from this world, I think,” he says, placing a soft kiss against my lips. When we break apart, he turns to face the gate he’d clearly rather not enter.
As much as I’d hoped my words would soothe away some of his worries, he still isn’t himself. Gone is the usually happy, funny, carefree guy that I’m used to. The man before me is sour and nervous. He reminds me more of Zeke in all of his grumpiness than the Raphael I’ve come to care for. And as much as he tries to plaster on a smile and hide it, I see through it as easily as breathing.
A butler greets us at the door, which is far larger than any door truly should be, and ushers us inside. With Raphael’s hand in mine, I follow him into a large entryway with closets lining one wall and row after row of mirrors on the other. When I catch sight of myself, eyes wide and full of wonder, I try to school my expression into something more neutral.
It’ll be as clear as day to these angels just how much I don’t fit in here. I won’t do anything to encourage them to make things more uncomfortable for Raph.
The butler announces to Archangels-know-who that we’ve arrived, and it takes a moment for me to realize that this is how I’m being introduced. Weird, but okay. Not exactly how I envisioned Raphael’s parents meeting me as his girlfriend, but with these angels, I have a feeling my expectations will be found lacking all around.
