Ablaze (18 page)

Chapter
Nineteen

Something
wasn't right. He could sense it. Hands in his pockets, Dylan leaned against the
doorjamb and watched Angel sitting on a chair
,
looking out the window. Her suitcases were on the floor and her
purse on the table. She changed into her pink tank top and miniskirt. Damn, she
looked lovely, but utterly sad.

He felt
for the velvet purple box in his pocket. In it was a small box containing a
ring of round brilliant diamonds set in a triad of perfect harmony and in
platinum. A celebration ring to celebrate a special moment--their meeting. A
surge of excitement at the thought of seeing the ring around her finger made
him smile.

He
hoped whatever made Angel look sad, the feeling would go away when she saw the
ring. The lady at Tiffany's said any woman would cry with joy if presented with
an Aria ring. "Hey, babe. I'm back. Let me just get my things and we--"

"My
taxi will be here soon."

He
heard her clearly, but what she meant by my taxi he couldn't understand. "We
have a car, hon."

Angel
looked at him. Her eyes red-rimmed. God, she'd been crying. What the hell was
going on here? Only a few hours ago, they were excited about spending time at
his house. Now, she was waiting for her cab?

"I'm
flying back to North Carolina. "

Dylan
pushed off the doorjamb and slowly walked toward Angel. He stopped when they
were only a foot apart. "Why? Something wrong? Is it Manfred or Minnie?"

Angel
shook her head. "Because it's time for me to go home and end whatever is
going on between us."

"End
it? I don't understand." Dylan heard the front door open followed by his
brothers boisterous bantering. They'd have an audience, but he didn't fucking
care. "Did I do something wrong?"

Angel
stood up and faced him. "Everything is wrong."

Footsteps
stopped behind him. The room became quiet again. "Come on. Let's go back
to the house. We'll talk there."

"No.
I'm not going anywhere with you."

"Baby,
come on."

"You
should have told me the truth."

"What
truth?" Goddamn it. Was she upset because she found out
he
wrote
Dee Saint's books?

"I
wouldn't have slept with you if I knew…"

"Knew
what? Goddamn it, hon. Just tell me." He combed his hair with his fingers.
He could feel Angel slipping out of his hand and he didn't like it. "What
did I do?"

"You
hurt someone. And by lying to me, I ended up hurting her, too."

"What
are you talking about?"

"Ivy.
If I knew about her, I wouldn't have stayed here and slept with you. You lied
to me. When I asked you if you have a girlfriend, you said no. You lied."

A lot
of groaning came from behind him, but Dylan ignored them. "Baby, listen.
You're most likely misinformed."

"Ivy.
I talked to her. I know about you and her. She's your secret. Are you denying
it?"

"How
did you know about her?"

"Does
it matter? Do you deny that you're in a relationship with her?"

"Babe--"

"Are
you denying that Ivy is your girlfriend?"

Time to
face the music, he thought. "No. I mean, she's not really a girlfriend.
Well, we had a relationship, but--"
Fuckin' eh.
Dylan took Angel's
hand in his. He was glad she didn't pull back. He rubbed her knuckles when all
he wanted to do was gather her in his arms. "Hon, she's not my secret. Well,
kind of, but my brothers…" He looked toward the door. Marley, Morrison,
and Tony were there watching them. They looked formidable and angry--at him! "They
know about her. When did she talk to you?"

"She
came here."

How did
Ivy find out about Angel? Had she been following him?

"Dylan,
she saw us at the beach. You were lovers, but you treated her like a paid
whore."

"We
have a mutual agreement."

"What
agreement? Fuck-but-no-love-involve kind of agreement? That's your rule
,
isn't it? And isn't that what we're
doing?"

"You're
wrong."

"Willy
used me and now--"

"Don't
fucking say that I used you, Angel."

"I
saw your rules, Dylan. Women are nothing to you but a warm body."

Dylan
let go of Angel's hand. He looked at Marley who stared back at him as if saying,
now you've done it, bro
. "I wrote the rules before I met you. Angel--"

"Ivy
loves you, Dylan. But she'll take you back if--"

"I
don't want Ivy. I want
you
."

"The
way you wanted Ivy when you first met her? Or while I'm here? Don't get me
wrong, I am enjoying my time with you, Dylan. But as much as I'd hate to leave,
I have to shorten my stay. I can't be with you knowing someone's heart is
breaking because of me."

"It's
not my intention to deceive you as it isn't my intention to hurt Ivy. We had an
agreement. She knows that." Dylan reached in his pocket to fish out the
box, but Angel looked away.

"If
she didn't give you any signs that she's falling for you, would you leave her?

Dylan
didn't know the answer to that. He stopped seeing Ivy when he picked up her
hints that she wanted a real relationship. If not, would he still be with her?

"Yes.
Even if she stuck to our agreement, I would still leave her. You know why?
Because I met you."

"Because
you're tired of Ivy and you want to make a new arrangement with me? But if any
hint of emotions shows between us, you'll turn your back to find another woman.
That's how you roll, right? Skip from one woman to the next because love,
according to your rules, is bullshit. How long have you been following your
rules? Three, four years?"

Angel
shook her head. "Oh, hell." Angel planted her hands on her hips. "Why
do I even care? I am not in the right position to question you, to get mad, to
feel this way. Expecting anything from you is wrong since we're not committed
to each other. I suppose jealousy and feeling sorry for myself is
understandable. But I have no right to get mad. It's not like we're in a
relationship or something. You can date whomever you want and you're not
obligated to tell me or feel guilty about it. Sleeping with you doesn't make
you mine. Therefore, I shouldn't care, dammit."

"But
you do." Angel, he learned would talk and talk when upset. Just like the
first day she walked in, in his restaurant.

"Because
I'm stupid and a sucker for a man with rock-star hair, sleepy eyes and…" Sadness
or it could be a shadow of disappointment crossed Angel's face. "If I don't
go… I had fun hanging out with you, Dylan. My short time here with you…" She
angled her head to look behind Dylan. "…and the rest of the Bands is the
best and I will never forget any part of it."

"Angel,
please let's talk about--"

"No.
It's best if I leave. You obviously have a lot of thinking to do. And so do I."

"Please
don't let me go, baby."

Angel
gave him a wan smile. "Search yourself, Dylan. Ask what it is you really
want. Otherwise, your happiness will always be fleeting."

What do
I want?
Dylan stared at Angel. His fingers curled around the box in his
pocket. Did he get caught up in the moment of bliss and was momentarily blinded
by it? Was this insane happiness of being with Angel a short-lived kind? Could
he really toss away his simple rule of attaining painless life for Angel? Was
Angel just an itch he needed to scratch or was what he felt for her as real as
the pain presently gnawing at his heart.
What do I want?
He repeated the
question, but did not immediately find an answer.

Angel looked
at the window. "My taxi is here."

"Marley,
tell the Goddamn driver to leave. Now."

"No.
Marley, don't. I have a flight to catch. I'm leaving, Dylan. Please don't stop
me. Friendship, even a relationship, if built under pretenses, will never grow.
Unless you learn what it is you want and what it is you want to share, your
night sky will remain dark. Don't say anything anymore. Thanks for everything."

Chapter
Twenty

Dylan
tipped the can of Coors in his mouth until it was empty. Squishing the can, he
tossed it at the already filled garbage can. It bounced against the wall
,
missing his target. He reached for
another can on the table, ignoring the pain in his head caused by the movement.
He pulled back the beer can's aluminum tab and waited until the hissing sound
stopped. Ah, one more and he would definitely fall asleep. There would be no
tossing and turning, no staring at the ceiling, no thinking about Angel.

It had
been two weeks since he watched her walk out Pink Door. Yet, he still missed
her as if it was only yesterday when she said goodbye. Damn it. Leaning back
against the couch, he stared at the same spot he was looking at for the past
few days.

He
shouldn't have brought her here. Now, everywhere he looked, he could see Angel's
face, smiling, admiring every room in the house. He must admit though, even
without Angel, the house seemed livelier now. It was as if God breathed life in
here when Angel stepped inside.

Dylan
felt so miserable. Losing Angel was comparable to losing his hearing and having
poor eyesight. No music, no birds chirping. The skies were always cloudy, the
weather balmy. Without Angel, paintings were blurry, the colors faded as if
someone dumped a bucket of water on a canvass.

God,
honey. I miss you so much. Sorry I lied. Come back to me please. Come back to
me.

He
closed his eyes and hoped for sleep to claim him. It took a long time before he
felt the pull of sleep. His body felt heavy, tired, and achy, but it was
nothing compared to the pain inside his chest. Dylan opened his eyes and
covered his mouth with his fist.

Angel had
asked him what he wanted. He didn't know the answer then, but he knew now. He
wanted Angel. God, he loved her so much. She was his star, the one that guided
him back to the path of reality that he wouldn't exist without love. He'd never
been so happy with any woman until Angel. She made him feel complete just by being
in his arms. That night on the balcony, he was so overcome with happiness he
almost proposed to her. Maybe he should have done it. Angel would have been
with him right now. But then, maybe not. She referred to him as one of the men
with secrets, the kind that she didn't want in her life.

"I'm
sorry, love." He closed his eyes when he felt his eyes burn "Oh, God.
I love you so much." But would Angel believe him?

Dylan
sat up. An idea popped in his head. What better way to prove that he was
willing to open his soul to Angel than show her his secret. Combing back his
hair, he stood up, ignoring the loud buzzing in his head, and then walked
upstairs. He went into his room and sat down on his desk. It had been a week
since he touched his computer. Mya, who understood his situation, stopped
bitching about his deadline. She even told him to take a break.

Opening
his manuscript, he deleted his current dedication and replaced it with a new
one.

To
Angel who could see the stars dance, loved frappucino, and whom I love so much
, he
began and then followed it up with the poem he recited to Angel while they were
looking at the stars. He signed it DFB.

Dylan
printed the manuscript and carefully placed it in the envelope. "I'm
baring my soul, baby. This is how much I love you."

Two
weeks since he mailed the manuscript to Angel, Dylan immersed himself in
writing, ignoring his brothers' calls to join them in the restaurant. He'd
never heard from Angel although he wrote his cell number on a sticky note that
he attached on the manuscript.

He was already
resigned to the idea that he lost Angel. Indescribable heartache had been his
constant companion now. It was debilitating, so pathetically defeatist, so
heavy, and he deserved it. He shouldn't have lied to Angel.

Dylan sat
down on the side of his bed, then touched the bandage on his forearm. Ivy gave
it to him when he went to visit her for the last time. When he told her his
intention, the woman went nuts. She screamed and threw things that she was able
to grab. He dodged all of them except for the glass picture frame. It hurt like
a mother fucker, but he supposed he deserved it. Even with the existence of
their agreement, he should have been upfront with Ivy.

Dylan rubbed
his eyes. He hadn't had a good sleep since Angel left nor dreamed about fucking
a beautiful woman. At least Mya remained loyal to him despite his tardiness. He
was about to lay down when his cellphone rang. He bolted upright and shoved his
hand inside his pocket to fish for his phone. Without looking at the display,
he answered, "Hello, babe."

"Sorry,
bro. Wrong babe."

It was
his brother Marley. Damn. "What's up, bro?"

"Gotta
come to the restaurant, man. There's some kind of an emergency going on here."

Of
course. His brothers had been pulling all kinds of tricks to make him go to the
restaurant. But he just couldn't' find his feet to go there. Right now, he just
wanted to be alone. "Call nine one one."

"I
would have if nine one one is the right one to call."

"Couldn't
you guys do something about this
emergency
?"

"I'm
not kidding, Dylan. Only you could do something about the situation here."

"What
situation?"

"Just
come here. Fuck man. It's not easy to explain it. Something happened. Just
come, bro. After this you can go shove your head in your ass again."

Marley
had never sounded this serious before. What the heck was going on? "Is
everyone okay?"

"Yes.
We're all here. Please come. Now."

Sighing,
Dylan thought for a moment. Maybe he should go. He'd been neglecting his
business and the small staff that had been depending on him. Yeah, it was time
to move, keep his head out of his ass and look at the world again. If there was
indeed an emergency situation that needed his attention, then he should set
aside his personal problem. Besides, he needed to eat something other than
delivered pizza and Chinese food. He'd better go. Without bothering to shave
and change into something that wasn't as wrinkled as crepe paper, he went to
grab for his keys on the dresser. Something caught his eyes. The small box with
the ring still inside. Grabbing it, he shoved it in his pocket. It was time
that he returned the ring to Tiffany's. Another woman's finger deserved to wear
it. With that thought, he left his house and drove to the restaurant.

The
restaurant was closed. No broken windows and no bodies sprawled all over the
cement. No police car outside to indicate that something bad happened. Dylan
listened for a minute. Aside from the faint sound of music, he didn't hear
anything alarming. Good. At least his brothers weren't trying to kill each
other. Not that that would happen. He hoped nothing serious was going on.

He
walked to the door and slowly opened it. The smell of barbecue and his brothers
laughter mixed with crude words, greeted him. So, the emergency thing was a
ruse to make him come here. Sounded like they were having a party. "Hell,"
he muttered. He shut the door and went straight to the back room. He bet even
if he yelled hello no one would hear him. His brothers were laughing as if they
inhaled nitrous oxide.

Hands
in his pockets, he stood by the door to watch his brothers sitting at the
table. Marley was pounding something, Hendrix was laughing so hard his whole
body shook, Tyler was cursing nonstop. Morrison, he noticed, was talking to
someone beside him. Dylan couldn't see who it was because Hendrix's was
blocking his view. So was this the emergency? They want him to come here so he
could join them?

Well,
hell. At least his brothers were happy. It took more than a minute before his siblings
realized he was there. When they did, all laughter died down. They all looked
at him with a grin on their faces. Hendrix moved and then he saw the woman.

Dylan
stared. She stared back. He didn't dare blink for fear that she would
disappear, that she was just a vision produced by his constant imaginings.

"Marley,
you didn't tell him to shower?" Hendrix whispered loudly.

"How
the fuck would I know that he looked like a hobo. He'd been hiding in his cave
for weeks."

"He
looks like crumpled toilet paper."

Dylan
ignored his brothers. All that mattered now was this woman who shattered his
heart's shield the moment she walked in here.

"Hey."

"Hey,
baby," he replied. His voice croaked, making his brothers snicker. He
ignored them.

"Good
to see you again, Dylan." Angel smiled, her gaze still focused on him.

He
wanted to run to her, scoop her up in his arms, and never let go. But his feet
felt as though they were cemented on the floor. God, his heart beat like a
million drums inside his chest. He was happy, nervous, and damn, he wanted to
cry. "You have no idea how happy I am to see you."

Angel
stood up and walked toward him. She stopped when they were only arm's length
apart. "I received your mail."

"Cat's
out of the bag now."

"Did
you really mean it when you wrote your dedication?"

Dylan
couldn't help it. He reached for her to hold Angel's hand. Slowly, he pulled
her closer to him. "I've never written anything so true in my life, babe."
He wrapped his arms around Angel. "I'm sorry."

"Shh."
She covered his lips with her fingers. "It's enough that you dedicated
your book to me. It's a secret that you guarded so well and yet you told me.
That says a lot."

"I'm
more than willing to share everything with you. My home, my time, my heart."

"Me,
too."

"Thank
God." Dylan placed a hand behind Angel's neck and gave her a kiss that
reached his soul. He wanted to devour her, to melt with her, to become one.
God, he loved her so much. Ending the kiss, he reached in his pocket. "That
day I told you I was meeting someone--"

"You
were meeting your agent, Mya. Your brothers told me. And the reason why you're
always using your laptop is because you're writing."

"Yes.
And it took me a long time to come back because of this." He pulled out the
box. "I got you this."

"Dylan…"

"Open
it. It's not what you think it is. I know you're still--"

"No.
I'm over my cancelled wedding and Willy. But you, I'm not over you."

"Glad
to hear that, love. Here, open it."

Angel
took the box. Smiling, she opened it, then gasped. "Oh, my. This is
beautiful."

"The
lady at Tiffany's said this is a celebration ring. I thought to give it to you
to celebrate…Our meeting. I don't even know if you want to celebrate it. But I
got it anyway."

"To celebrate our meeting is fine."

"I
have a better idea." He took the ring from its perch and slid it on Angel's
finger. "Angel McCready, will you celebrate the joy this day has given us?
Will you laugh with me and celebrate the new dawn. Will you share life and the
night sky with me? Will you celebrate with me the love that we both have found
the moment you walked in this restaurant?"

"You
loved me the first day I walked in here?" Angel's voice shook, her eyes
filled with tears.

"Yes.
Although, at the time I didn't realize it. And, Angel, will you celebrate with
me a bit of heaven that we found in each other's arms?"

"Yes.
I love you, Dylan Francis Band."

"I
love you, too." Dylan kissed the ring and then scooped Angel up. He
twirled her, laughing that finally she was back where she belonged--with him.

"Alright!
Crabby is happy once again," Marley said. "Hey Angel, we're done with
our sculpture."

Dylan
lowered Angel, but kept his arms around her. Both of them started laughing when
they looked at his brothers' sculptures. There, on the table were four huge
cocks. Marley's was the biggest and curved like a banana, Hendrix's was short,
but must have been as thick as a cucumber. Morrison's cock was shaped decently
except his balls were as big as tennis balls. Tyler's was a limp dick.

"Oh,
my God!"

Dylan
buried his face on Angel's face, laughing. "You ready for this? My
brothers are all dicks."

"I
love them all, hon. I wouldn't want them any other way."

"Me,
too. I missed you so badly, it hurts." Dylan kissed Angel's temple and
then her jaw. His body though dictated that he do more than just kissing. "Wanna
get away?"

"Where
are we going?"

"Home."

"I
like the sound of that. Home."