Divinity (11 page)

“Just now?” Alex said, cocking his head to one side. “I would have thought…”

Julia grabbed Alex’s hands and pulled him toward her. Their noses almost touched. “I’ve always known, Alex. That’s why it’s been so easy with you all along. But I feel like something clicked. Like my soul finally gets it.”

“Your soul.” Alex inhaled deeply, and Julia thought he was fighting the urge to kiss her.

“My soul.” Julia looked deeply into Alex’s eyes. Her skin prickled with excitement, feeling his breath meet hers. Her voice lowered, husky with desire. “Perhaps after lunch I’ll show you what I mean.”

The flush of Alex’s cheeks and the awkward shift of his body as he tried to cross his legs showed the effect her voice had on him. He opened his mouth to speak, but the sharp squeeze of her hand stopped him.

Julia nodded her head toward the approaching waiter. Alex sighed and glanced down at the menu, his cheeks glowing as he unfolded the napkin and draped it across his lap.

Something about the waiter seemed familiar, but Julia couldn’t place him. When he spoke, she noticed his front teeth looked remarkably like Chiclets. She thought she would remember a smile like that and shrugged it off.

“Hello, Miss Samson,” he said, one arm formally bent in front of his stomach, the other behind his back. He tilted the upper half of his body forward in a bow. “My name is Clyde, and I’ll be taking care of you this afternoon.”

Julia exchanged a look with Alex. Her skin prickled and a shudder ran through her. She couldn’t put her finger on it, but something about the waiter was unsettling.

The new staff had to wait on the restaurant owner. It was some sort of rite-of-passage within the restaurant industry, and not one that Julia enjoyed. The nervousness inevitably caused mistakes, and often resulted in a missed drink or meal. She was surprised at the ease of this one’s manner. She kept it simple for him and ordered the same thing as Alex.

Clyde took their orders without jotting them down, as though he had worked there for years, always holding Julia’s gaze just a little too long, and all but ignoring Alex. Julia was astounded that a new waiter would be so familiar; by the time he finished taking their order, she was furious, though she guarded her reaction.

As soon as the waiter turned his back to stride away, Julia frowned. “Really? I’m shocked he didn’t ask for my number.”

“You can’t blame him,” Alex said. “You’re gorgeous.”

“I’m his boss, Alex,” Julia whispered. “It’s inappropriate. And the way he snubbed you…”

“I’m okay,” Alex said, grinning as he watched the waiter disappear into the kitchen. “Besides, I get to leave here with you.”

Julia sat back. “Yes, you do. I’m still going to talk to Sandra about it.”

As if on cue, Sandra appeared with a bottle of Julia’s favorite red. She presented and poured the wine. “How’d he do?”

“He was smooth,” Julia said. “Too smooth. He was too friendly with me, and all but ignored Alex.”

“I’ll talk to him. He’s probably just nervous. You know how they get.”

“Do me a favor and wait until I leave, all right?”

“You got it, Boss,” Sandra said cheerfully. Just before she turned away, she set a note facedown on the table, sliding it towards Julia.

“Sales?”

“Yes. I think you’ll be pleased.”

“Thank you, Sandra.” Julia picked up the note and looked over the figures. She kept a poker face, but could have given a whistle. Perhaps the chef, Phillipe, actually was one of the gifts she had so recently learned about.

“You know,” Sandra began, looking toward the kitchen and lowering her voice, “he was the best interview I’ve ever had. It was like he’d rehearsed it.”

“Everything he did felt rehearsed, too,” Julia said. “Not sure that’s a bad thing. At least he knows what he’s doing.”

Sandra shrugged. “Anyway, nobody else showed up for their interviews. I guess we got lucky.”

As Sandra walked away, Julia leaned forward and in a hushed voice said to Alex, “If every day started out like today, I could have a new car every six months.”

Alex shared her smile. “You know what you’re doing. And you have a staff that knows what they’re doing. It makes a difference.” Alex raised his glass. “To the best darned restaurateur I know.”

Julia raised her glass to his. She watched him drink, a wave of guilt washing over her. She wanted to tell him what had happened. She didn’t like keeping this huge secret from him. Part of her was afraid that she really was going crazy, and if she told him, he would confirm it. Maybe if she started with vague concepts, she would be able to gauge his reaction.

“I’ve been thinking about past lives a lot,” she said, quietly. “Do you think it’s possible that our spirits knew each other in Heaven?”

After a long drink of wine, Alex put his glass down. “Sure, I think it’s possible.”

“Really? You believe that?”

“Why not?” Alex paused and gazed at Julia. “Where is this coming from?”

“Do you think if you knew me in Heaven you would have come here to help me pull through the tough time?” Julia said, braving another step in the direction of her truth. “I know this sounds crazy, but you entered my life at an impossibly perfect time, and I just don’t think I believe in coincidence anymore.”

Alex sat back in his chair and took a sip of his wine. His gaze held hers, and she thought for a moment that he was seeing her the way Michael had—and reading her thoughts. After a long pause, Alex set his wine glass down. He leaned forward, resting his forearms on the table, his shoulders framing his body perfectly. “Maybe I just have impossibly perfect timing.”

Oddly, Alex looked like he was the one who was getting ready to unload a truth. Julia wondered if he also knew something and wasn’t telling her. She didn’t have time to contemplate that thought further, however, as their meals had arrived.

The waiter expertly set their plates before them, deftly plucking the wine bottle from the table to refill her glass. The air hung heavily with unspoken words as he topped up Alex’s glass. A brief, calculating glance over the table, and the waiter smiled. “Enjoy your meals.”

“He got everything right,” Alex commented as the waiter walked away. He chuckled as he picked up his steak knife and cut into his steak. “And he didn’t drop your meal in your lap like the last one did.”

Julia laughed and began to eat her perfect meal. A new family in the clouds, and the only person who had ever made her feel she belonged sitting in front of her. As she outwardly savored her tenderloin, she inwardly wondered if she could have both. What would she do if she had to choose? She wasn’t ready to give up her life—she’d only just begun really living it.

Julia had a sudden urge to grab Alex’s hand and run. To go somewhere nobody would find them. She thought she knew a place they could go.

“What are you thinking about?” Alex said, between bites.

Startled, she looked up at him. “What?”

“You look like you’re a million miles away,” he said. “Take me with you.”

“I will,” Julia said with a mischievous grin. “After lunch, I will.”

“I cannot see into that one’s mind,” Michael said, a troubled crease along his forehead.

Gabriel peered through the opening in the clouds and frowned. “She has dealt with people of ill intent many times before. Not surprising that there is another on her path, even if it is unexpected.”

“Yes, but the ill intent is what is missing.” Michael gestured toward the waiter lurking near Julia’s table. “There is no intent. It is as though his spirit has been wiped away.”

“Removed? Is that possible?” The rise of Gabriel’s wings matched the rise in his voice.

“Possible, yes. But not with a functioning body left behind.” Michael spun to face Gabriel. “Find Zacha-riah. I want to know where this one came from.”

“Zachariah is protecting his girl. His and…” Gabriel set his shoulders back, causing his wings to resettle on his back, “…mine… They are the only two adults left. And equal in strength, or so Zachariah tells it.”

“Yes, I have seen her.” Michael smiled. “Leave him, then. Find Ariel. Give him my message.”

Gabriel turned to leave and looked back over his shoulder, squinting toward the opening in the clouds. “Brother…”

“She will be safe.”

XI

T
HE
rest of the lunch patrons had cleared out, and the staff busily prepared the restaurant for the supper crowd. Paper napkins were replaced by linens, and burgundy, leather-bound wine lists were set up in the middle of the tables. Soft music from a digital jazz station played in the background, and the aroma of prime rib wafted through the air.

Julia tipped back her wine glass for the final sip and then set it back on the table. Alex reached across the table and took her hand.

“Are we all set?”

Behind Alex, the new waiter appeared to be studying the dinner menu, but kept peering over the top of it, studying Julia instead. She leaned forward and whispered, “I can’t tell if he’s just nervous, or if he is watching every move I make.”

Alex leaned closer. “It’s definitely weird. Every time I catch his eye, he glares at me. You’d think I ran over his dog or something.”

The feeling of “wrongness” regarding the waiter got stronger and stronger throughout their meal, until Julia couldn’t ignore it any longer. She decided she’d rather cover Sandra’s shifts herself. “I’ll tell Sandra to get rid of him. I don’t care how smooth he is.”

Alex released Julia’s hand, pushed his chair back, and stood. He pulled out his wallet, flipping it open and leafing through the bills.

“What are you doing?”

“Leaving a tip,” Alex said, his hand frozen with a twenty pulled halfway out. He looked up at Julia’s frowning face, nodded, then pushed the twenty back down and tugged out a five. “Better?”

Julia smirked. “Better. Let’s go.”

Alex tossed the bill on the table and offered Julia his arm. She took it, and they walked casually out of the restaurant. Julia could feel the waiter’s eyes on her. As the door swung shut behind them, Julia let go of Alex to pull out her cell phone. This was one time she would listen to her instincts. She dialed Sandra.

Sandra picked it up halfway through the second ring. “I knew you were going to call me from the lot.”

“Sandra, he’s got to go.”

“I know, he’s a loon. I’ve not seen anyone so obsessed before. Once you came in, he stopped doing anything else. I caught him staring at you through the kitchen doors, right in the way of the other servers. It’s a bloody shame, though; he was a good waiter until you got here.”

“I want you to make sure Phillipe is with you when you let Clyde go. I don’t trust him.” Julia glanced over her shoulder at the front door of the restaurant. “Not even a little bit.”

“Will do, Boss.”

Alex smiled when Julia put her phone back into her purse. “Feel better?”

“A little. I’ll feel better when he’s gone.” She shivered.

Alex walked Julia out to her car. He opened the door for her, but placed himself between her and the driver’s seat and took her hand. His eyes searched hers. “I want you to know how much I love you. I want you to know that it’s safe to talk to me about anything.”

Julia smiled, hoping she kept her guilt from showing. He obviously knew she was keeping something from him. She leaned forward and gave Alex a kiss, her moist lips pressing against his tenderly. When she backed away, she looked up at him. “I do know, Alex. I do. Thank you for finding me, and helping me, and always being here for me. I don’t know that I would have made it through this past year without you.”

“Of course you would have, sweetheart. You have more strength than you give yourself credit for. So…” he paused, and was suddenly awkward. “I was wondering…”

Her eyebrows rose, amused and thankful that he was changing the subject. “What I am doing for the rest of the day?”

“Something like that,” he said, smiling sheepishly.

“You,” she said, flipping her long hair back over her shoulder. “Hop in.”

“Okay. Where are we going?” he asked, stepping out of her way and heading for the other side of the car.

“Definitely my place. I don’t think we need your mother to be an audience for this.”

As Julia pulled out of the parking lot and turned onto the highway, she caught a glimpse of the restaurant doors in her rearview mirror. Clyde was standing there, arms crossed, puffing on a cigarette, his eyes glued to Julia’s car.