Secret Worlds (376 page)

She raised an eyebrow.

“Please.” His eyes widened.

Maybe if she played along with him, he’d give in. She went back to the trunk, pulled out a roll of paper towels, and tossed it to him. “I’d feel a lot better if we went to the hospital,” she said as she brushed off dirt from the phone. “It still works, only the screen is broken. You can pay me back to replace the screen you broke, and …”

She lost her train of thought as Lash lifted his shirt, exposing streaks of blood. She couldn’t take her eyes off him as long fingers glided over the muscled abdomen, the movement stirred something inside of her.

“Are
you
okay? You’re awfully quiet.” Lash gave her a lopsided grin.

“Uh, phone screen … broken … hospital.” Her cheeks grew a bright pink and she ducked her head.

“Look at me.” His fingers lifted her chin. “I’ll show you why I don’t need a hospital.”

Naomi willed herself to come to her senses and focus on the seriousness of the situation. She should be figuring out a way to stop the bleeding rather than gawking at him.

Her eyes locked with his and his cocky expression disappeared. “Don’t freak out.”

He lifted the paper towel and showed her the place where there should have been a bullet hole.

But there wasn’t.

This can’t be real.
She blinked, trying to adjust her eyes. She leaned in closer, astonished. She rubbed her eyes again and blinked when all she saw was flawless skin. Without thinking, she reached over, her fingers tracing his abdomen.

Lash moaned at her touch.

She pulled her hand away. “I’m sorry. Did I hurt you?”

“No.” He let out a rush of air.

“There’s nothing there. Not even a scratch. That’s impossible.” She took a step back, her eyes wide.

“I want you to listen carefully,” Lash said, pulling down his shirt. “I know you might find it hard to believe, but hear me out. I’m an angel. I was sent to you for a reason. My mission is to get you to New Mexico.”

Something was wrong. Something was very wrong. There was no way this was real. Maybe she’d inhaled too many fumes from the car exhaust. Maybe this was his way of getting her alone. Ever since she’d met him, he was always in the same vicinity. What were the chances they’d just happened to be at the same grocery store at the same time? Who went grocery shopping that early in the morning? What if he was in with the shooter?

She bit down on her lip, confused. If he wanted to hurt her, then why bother protecting her and getting shot in the process? Naomi’s survival instincts warred with her attraction to him. She needed to leave, get some distance from him.

There was a brief pause as Naomi’s eyes locked with his.

“Look, I don’t know what’s going on here with this pseudo Criss Angel thing you’re doing, but something is not right.” Naomi slammed the trunk shut and headed toward the driver’s side, walking backwards as she kept an eye on him. “I’ll send you some help.”

“I’m not trying to trick you into anything.” He took a step forward.

“Stay back.”

His face fell. “Don’t you trust me? I’m telling you the truth.”

Naomi felt a stab of pain. Her heart was telling her he was being honest with her. The hurt in his face was obvious. But her head was saying there was something totally wrong with this picture. Maybe he was delusional. She heard trauma did that to people sometimes.

“I want to believe you.”

“Then do.”

“It’s not possible.” She continued to walk backwards and tripped over a bottle.

Lash quickly grabbed her. “Listen to me. You’re in danger. Last week was not a random drive-by shooting. The person who shot the Taylors was aiming at you, they just got caught in the crossfire.”

Naomi looked into his frantic eyes. “I know you really want to believe that you’re an angel, but you’re not. It’s not possible. Let go of me, and I’ll get us some help.”

“Have faith, Naomi.” Lash’s fingers traced her neck and the cross pendant. “You trust in God.”

Her breath hitched as his fingers glided along the necklace. She closed her eyes and willed herself not to think how her body was responding to his touch. “The necklace was my mother’s. She was the one with faith.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know that.” Lash loosened his hold on her, and stepped back.

An awkward silence passed between them. Then she looked at him sadly and said, “I don’t know what happened during the shooting. Maybe you banged your head. Maybe I banged mine. Either way, whatever is happening right now can’t be real.”

“Damn it! I’m not crazy. You’re not crazy.” Lash kicked a soda can, sending it soaring into the darkness. Running his hands through his hair, he paced the lot, deep in thought. After a moment, he turned to her, his face determined. “I
am
an angel, and I’ll prove it.” He tore off his t-shirt and threw it to the ground.

Naomi balked. “You don’t have to prove anything to me. Keep your clothes on.”

He charged at her and she screamed as he lifted her off the ground. This was it. He’d gone off the deep end. Then she noticed something odd. The ground was getting further away.

A gust of wind blew her hair into her mouth, and she gagged. She brushed the hair out of her face and noticed that she could see the top of the surrounding trees. “Oh my God! What’s happening?”

He chuckled as she clawed his back trying to get a better grip. “Don’t worry. I’ve got you.”

“You’ve
got
me? How?”

Lash smiled and gestured behind him. Her mouth dropped at the pair of wings lined with downy white feathers.

“Holy shit—uh, I mean, you’re an angel.”

He grinned. “I told you.”

His grin was contagious, and she laughed. He chuckled and looked at her, and then his smile faded. He was so close she could feel his warm breath on her lips. She found her hand reaching out to stroke the dark stubble that lined his chiseled jaw. It was surprisingly soft.

“Naomi.” His voice was deep and his eyes gazed intently into hers. “I’m an angel.”

“I know.” Her fingers brushed his lips.

He quivered and closed his eyes. When he opened them, they were alight with pain. “I’m an angel,” he said again.

Her face crumpled as the words sank in. He was an angel. He was only there to watch over her and keep her safe, like Rebecca was Welita’s guardian angel. He couldn’t be anything more than that to her.

“Hey.” He gave her a nudge and a forced smile. “Want to see how many birds we can freak out?”

Before she could answer, he climbed higher into the sky. She tensed as the city lights grew smaller and everything began to spin.

“You’re not going to fall.” He tightened his hold, and his eyes darkened as her face neared his. “I won’t let go. I promise.”

Daylight found Lash and Naomi sitting in the car in front of Welita’s house. Lash replayed the experience of having Naomi’s body pressed against his bare chest over and over again—how her body fit into his, the feel of her heartbeat, her soft hair as it brushed against him. He closed his eyes and replayed the memory of the last few minutes they’d had with each other before facing reality. One, Sal, the shooter, wanted her dead. Two, their time together was almost over. He pushed the thought aside, needing to focus on her safety first. He had to get her to New Mexico, and the fastest way to do it was to catch the next flight out. “We need to get your things packed. There’s a safe house in New Mexico. You’ll be safe there.”

Her eyes were raw with an emotion that made him want to forget his assignment, forget about going back home, and stay with her, whether or not it was forbidden. “Why didn’t you tell me before?”

“You probably would’ve reacted the same way you did just now, and you definitely wouldn’t have given me a chance to explain.”

“So you’re here to watch over me? Like a guardian angel?”

“You could say that.”

Naomi groaned. “Welita was right. I’ll never hear the end of it.”

Lash chuckled. He stepped out of the car, went to her side and opened the door. “Come on. We need to get moving. The sooner we leave, the sooner we can get you to safety.”

“What happens after that?”

“I’m not sure.” It wasn’t a lie. He didn’t know what would happen to her. He hated that he’d been given such limited information. What he did know was that, once he was done with his assignment, he would have fulfilled his obligation. That would mean he was free to go back home. The prospect of going home should have made him feel excited, but instead he felt empty—worse than he had during the last thirty-five years.

“I can’t leave. I don’t want to worry Welita.”

“Worry me about what?” Welita walked to the front yard with a water hose in her hand, Bear bouncing behind her. When she saw Lash, she sped to him, jumping up and down and running circles around his feet.

Naomi glanced down at Bear, then back up at him. “Now I get it.”

“Angel or not,” he whispered, “I had to bribe her to make her like me.”

“What is it, Naomi?” Welita shut off the water and wiped her hands on an apron.

“There’s something we have to tell you,” she said escorting Welita back into the house.

They sat on the living room sofa while Lash went to the kitchen to grab a chair. He sat down and Bear hopped onto his lap.

“Why are you so serious? Did something happen?”

“A few days ago a couple of Chuy’s students were shot in a drive-by shooting outside of the community center, and”—her eyes darted to Lash and he nodded—“and I was almost shot too.”

Welita pulled Naomi into her arms. “Thank God you’re safe. The Lord is watching over us.”

Lash winked.

“Wait a minute. Is that what happened to your head?” Welita touched the bandage, and Naomi winced. “You told me you scratched your head at the community center.”

“Well, the bullet just grazed it. So, it’s kind of a scratch.”

“Dios mío.” Welita squeezed tighter. “Don’t ever lie to me again.”

“I won’t. Um, there’s more.”

Welita pulled back. “More?”

“The person who shot Chuy’s students was not really after them. This morning at the grocery store, the same person tried to shoot me again.”

Welita gasped. “Are you hurt? Maybe we should take you to the hospital.”

“No. Lash was there and he pushed me into the trunk.”

Welita turned to Lash, confused. “The trunk of the car?”

“It’s a long story,” he said. “Needless to say, it worked.”

“Thank you so much for watching over her.”

“Where are you going?” Naomi asked as Welita crossed the room.

“To call the police. There’s someone after you and we need to make sure we get you some protection.”

Lash placed Bear on the floor and stood in front of Welita. “There’s more we need to tell you. Please sit down.”

“You two are acting very strange,” Welita said. “What’s going on?”

“First, I want to apologize for not sharing this information with you earlier. In my position, revealing this is not standard protocol.”

“Reveal what?”

He pulled a chair close to Welita. “Uh, you may want to sit for this.”

She eyed him suspiciously as she sat down. He knelt by her side.

“I know you’re a spiritual woman and you believe in angels.”

“Yes, I have Rebecca. Although she didn’t mention that anyone was going to hurt Naomi.”

“That’s because angels are limited in what they are allowed to share with others.”

“How do you know that?”

“Because …” Lash glanced over at Naomi then back to Welita and took a deep breath. “Because I am one.”

The room was silent for a moment.

“But I can see you,” Welita said.

“You said that you could see Rebecca too,” Naomi pointed out.

“I can, but I’m the only one that can see her.” Welita leaned over and touched him. “You are body and flesh. I can touch and feel you.”

“Rebecca doesn’t appear to you like Lash does?” Naomi looked to him for an explanation.

“I’m not exactly a guardian angel,” he said.

“You said you were an angel.”

He stood up and joined Naomi on the sofa. He squirmed under their questioning gaze. “On rare occasions, some angels are allowed to have a human form while working on assignment.”

“And why is that?” Naomi asked.

“Because an angel’s powers are limited in a human body, and when you’re on assignment it’s more efficient if you have all your powers.”

“So why are you in a human body?”

“I didn’t have a choice,” he muttered his eyes gazed down at the worn floor.

“Why is that?”

“Because I was kicked out of Heaven.”

“You were what?” Naomi jolted upright from the sofa, eyes wide open.

“Remember, when I said that my family kicked me out of the house? Well …”

“It’s not the same thing.” Naomi jumped up and paced the floor. Bear watched her curiously.

“To me, it is.”

“But, but, you have white wings. I saw them.”

“Only fallen angels that join Lucifer have black wings. I’m not one of them.”

“Good,” she sighed and sat back down. “How long ago did this happen?”

“It was a long time ago. Thirty-five years.”

“So, looking after me is some type of punishment?” Hurt flashed over her face.

“No, it’s not like that,” Lash said.

Naomi bit down on her quivering lip. Her face tinged with pink and her eyes grew moist.

She thinks she’s just an assignment to me.
How could he tell her that she was more than that? The problem was, she shouldn’t be more to him than that.

He went to her side and tucked her hand in his. “I don’t know why I was assigned to you, but if I hadn’t, I would’ve never gotten to know you or your family. It’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me. Please believe me.”

“I believe you,” she croaked.

“I was given a chance to return home after I did one last assignment … to watch over you and keep you safe from danger. So as soon as I was given the assignment, I came here.”

Welita leaned in. “When was this?”

“I was here the day of your son’s funeral.”

Welita looked up. “Thank you. My prayers were answered.” She then turned to Naomi. “I prayed for God to send someone to look over you.”