Scene #18
Gabriel cursed as he yanked the soaking wet shirt off over his
head. Kicking the door shut behind him, he toed his shoes off. He
strode into the room, his shirt in one hand, cursing softly under
his breath at the footprints he left in his wake. He’d unbuttoned
his slacks to shove them off when he realized he wasn’t alone.
A woman with startled doe eyes perched on the very edge of the
couch. Her mouth was a perfect oval of surprise as she stared at
his abdomen. He wasn’t sure if she really stared at his body or his
tattoo. The elaborate pair of wings tended to draw attention
whenever he went shirtless.
"Who the bloody hell are you?" The accent he usually managed to
curtail leapt out.
Her gaze snapped up to his face, her face turning a shade of white
he’d never seen before. He realized part of her paleness might be
shock, but she also carried the curse of very fair skin. Her blonde
hair framed her face, ending just below her chin.
Angrily striding toward her, he checked his movement as she shrank
back against the sofa. She’s terrified. Gabriel hesitated then
moved more slowly toward her.
"He, I," she paused then took a deep breath, pointing toward the
kitchen of the penthouse. "Lucian said I should wait here. I’m
sorry. I didn’t know, I mean I didn’t think...why don’t I just wait
in the hall."
She stood as she spoke and Gabriel realized how small she truly
was. In fact, with her head hitting him about mid-chest level, she
might be five feet tall, if she stretched.
"Wait, I’m sorry. If Lucian told you to wait here, you should. I
don’t usually come into a room like that. I got caught in the
storm."
Gabriel gestured toward the picture window just as a flash of
lightning lit the night sky. A movie director couldn’t have done
better with that gesture and the mystery woman jumped as though
shot. Instinct more than anything else made Gabriel reach out to
her.
"It’s okay. The lightning can’t get you in here."
"I know, I’m sorry. I’m just a little, well a lot actually," she
paused again as she gazed at him.
Gabriel stared. Her eyes weren’t the surprised brown he’d first
thought. No, they were hazel. Flecks of green and gold interspersed
with the brown to light her eyes with an internal fire. He watched
with purely male interest as her chest expanded on a deep breath.
He smiled slowly. "Who are you?"
"Mary. Mary Miller. Who are you?"
"Gabriel."
"You’re like Lucian then? You’re an Archangel?"
He tilted his head to the side. "Archangel is the name of the
organization we work for, yes. Are you a client?"
"Yes, you see, someone is trying to kill me."
Gabriel felt his brows rise but as he started to speak there was
another flash of lightning followed by the boom of thunder and the
lights went out.
