Two Books in One - Ominous Love and Paradox - The Angels Are Here (12 page)

I kneel up and sit on my heels. “I ... I was joking, Seal. You know I hate Devlin. I Love you, and I’m
begging
you,
please
, come home with me.”

His brows furrow and he runs his hands through his hair. “Don’t you see, Eloise, Devlin hates me with a vengeance, hates what I stand for. He'll do anything to destroy me. When he realised my weakness was you, he taunted me by going after you. He’s determined to make you his bride, but don’t get me wrong, Devlin doesn’t just want you so he can get at me, he wants you to bare his child. Lucifer wants you to bare Devlin’s child. When Devlin went to Richie’s party he knew I’d come looking for you. But he had Lucifer’s help. I was powerless to help you. Devlin would love me to stay on earth with no powers. He’d love to make me do something evil so I’ll burn in hell. Don’t you see, if I stay up here I can protect you, but down there, Devlin will always win. I’m so sorry, honey, but there's no hope for us to be together on earth. Not ever.”

My lip quivers as uncontrollable tears pour down my cheeks. “You know I didn't mean what I said, Seal,” I sob. “You're the only boy I'll ever love, and now you're telling me we can never be together. I hate Devlin for what he's done to us. I wish we could go back in time to before I went to Richie’s party with Tom. If only I’d stayed home with you, we’d still be together.”

Seal squeezes my hand. “Oh, Eloise, I’m so sorry things can’t be different, but going back in time wouldn’t solve anything.  Devlin would still be around, stalking you. And I’d already decided to come back to Heaven to save you, that’s why you went to the party in the first place.”

Shaking my head, I glance around. “This can't be happening. I must be in a horrible nightmare. I want to wake up, but I can't.” I cover my face with my hands, then I peek out through my tears. “You don't even have any darn tissues in Heaven.”

“We're not actually in Heaven. We're just underneath.” He rips a piece of denim from his torn jeans and passes it to me. “Here, use this.”

Holding it in my hand, I stare at it. No way am I using this as a handkerchief. It’s all I have of Seal’s. I stuff it down my bra and wipe my nose with the back of my hand.

“Come here.” Seal lifts me onto his lap and rocks me in his arms. “Sweetheart, please say you understand. I’m hurting like you are, but we have to be strong. We have to accept that we can’t be together on earth. It’s not our destiny, it’s forbidden.” Then as he looks into my eyes, he whispers, “I’m still your guardian angel, Eloise, and I’ll always love you.”

Staring up at his sad face, my heart crumples into a million tiny pieces. “Can I still come up here in my dreams?”

“It’s not a good idea, baby. It will just make things harder for both of us.” He kisses me gently on the forehead, then whispers, “Sleep now, Eloise, and I'll take you home. When you wake you'll have no memory of me, though you'll sense you have a guardian angel. And I'll always be there for you, my love.”

Teardrops fall from his sea-blue eyes and plop into mine, making me blink. I want to keep them, hold them forever and I squeeze my eyes shut. Suddenly, I feel relaxed like I've been drugged, and as I drift off to sleep, the beautiful image of Seal is still visible on my lids.

Chapter Seventeen

The phone is ringing, bringing me out of a deep sleep. My eyes flicker open and I glance at the clock radio. Crap. It's only seven-thirty. Who would call me this early on a Sunday morning? Groaning, I crawl out of bed and pad to the hall.

“Hello,” I say grumpily into the phone. Then I hold it away from my ear as my mother's voice blasts from the receiver.

“Eloise, where have you been? I've been calling you since yesterday. I was just getting ready to send your dad home or call the neighbour. I hope you weren't out partying with Tom.”

“Mum, you woke me up. Why did you ring so early?”

“What do you mean you just woke up? You're supposed to be starting your job at the pet shop today. Have you slept in?”

Holy shit, is it Monday? “Um … I guess I slept in. I'll have to go, Mum. I don't want to be late on my first day. Can you ring me back tonight?”

She sighs into the phone. “Okay, but you better be there. I want to talk to you.”

“I'll be home at five-thirty.”

“Okay, I'll phone you at six o'clock. Bye, love.”

“Bye, Mum.”

I hang up and dash to my room. How can it be Monday? I tap my lip and try to think what I did yesterday. I remember going to Richie's party with Tom on Saturday night, but I don't remember coming home. Far out, I must've slept for twenty-four hours. I better check my messages and emails. I dash to my room to get my cell phone.

Darn it. Where's my bag? I rummage through the mess in my room, but I can't find it anywhere
.
What's wrong with me? I can't believe I don't remember where I put it. Frowning, I search through my wardrobe, but it's not there either. My stomach flips. Crap. Did I lose it? Scratching my head, I try to think. I know I had it at the party because after catching Tom with Francesca, I phoned for a cab—though I don't remember actually getting
into
a cab, or arriving home.

Someone bangs loudly on the front door, startling me from my thoughts. Wondering who it is, I run into the front room and peek out the window.
Yes!
It's Brooke and she's holding my handbag. I punch the air with my fist, then run to the door and let her in. “Hey, you found my bag. Come in.”

She passes it to me. “What happened, Elle? How did you manage to lose it in the first place?”

I close the door. “I don't know, but I'm so glad you found it.”

“I didn't. Francesca picked it up yesterday. It was on Richie's front lawn. Apparently she stayed the night.”

“Really? And did Tom stay the night, too?”

Brooke's jaw drops. “Why? Did I miss something?”

“Never mind, come in and I'll tell you while I get ready for work.”

Grinning, she follows me down the hall to my room and sits on my bed. “I had to get up early to bring you your bag. I knew you'd need it today. Where were you yesterday? I got your text after you left the party and I kept calling your cell phone, but you never answered, plus I phoned your landline. And if you hadn't answered your door today, I was going to call the police.”

“Well, I'm glad you didn't. My dad would've caught the next flight home.”

“But why did you take off early from Richie's? You missed a great party.”

“I didn't feel like staying, but I don't know what happened yesterday. I must have slept for twenty-four hours. I don't even know how I got home from the party. I remember calling a cab, but I don't remember getting in it, or arriving home. And when I woke this morning, I thought it was Sunday.”

Brooke's jaw drops. “Oh, Elle, that's a worry. Are you all right?”

“Yeah, but I've been thinking that I might have fallen asleep in the cab. If I left my purse at Richie's, I wouldn't have been able to pay for a taxi. Maybe the driver felt sorry for me 'cause I lost my purse. Who knows, I just can't remember.”

“Gosh, it's not as if you had any alcohol or anything. Could someone have slipped something into your drink?”

I shrug. “I don't think so. I only had one cola and I had it in my hand until I'd finished it. Then I left to call a taxi.”

“Why? Did you and Tom have a fight?”

I roll my eyes. “It wasn't a fight exactly. I just took off when I found him in bed with Francesca.”

Brooke splutters, nearly choking on her bubble-gum. “What? Were they …?”

I nod. “Yep. They were in one of the bedrooms, naked and under the covers.”

“Shit. No wonder you went home, Elle. They're arseholes.”

“It doesn't matter. Tom's only after one thing. He couldn't get it from me and Francesca was available. No biggie. They're welcome to each other.”

Brooke rubs my arm and smiles. “But what about that hot new guy called Devlin? He seemed to really like you.”

“Devlin?”

Her jaw drops. “Don't tell me you don't remember him. He was the talk of the party.”

“Yeah, I was talking to him when he was with Francesca, but then he started flirting with me in front of her. She gave me a filthy look, so I left and went indoors. That's probably why she slept with Tom, for revenge.”

“Maybe, but, Tom didn't have to agree to it, the two-timing creep.”

I blow out a breath. “Francesca probably told him I said I was about to break up with him, so why wouldn't he? I don't blame him really.”

Brooke scowls. “Yes, but he could have talked to you first.”

I rummage through my bag for my cell phone. “Maybe but he’d been drinking. Anyway, I’m over him. Besides, they deserve each other.”

‘Well, now you and Tom have broken up, you should consider Devlin. Not only is he a hunk, but he's rich, too. You should grab him before someone else does.”

I shake my head. “He's not my type.”

Brooke rolls her eyes. “You don't even know him yet.” Then she stares at my top and snorts into her hand. “What on earth are you wearing?”

Looking down at my pink stretchy pyjamas, I laugh. “I don't know why I put these on. They're too short. I haven't worn them in years. I must've been really tired and just grabbed anything.”

“They're cute if you're ten,” says Brooke, getting to her feet.

Blood rushes to my face and I empty the contents of my bag onto the bed. “I can't find my phone. It's not here.”

Flicking her long black hair over her shoulder, Brook points to the pile of dirty clothes on the floor. “Maybe you dropped it amongst that lot when you got undressed. Anyway, Elle, I didn't just stop by to give you your purse, I wanted to let you know about Francesca's seventeenth birthday party tonight. It's in the church hall and she's hired a DJ. She asked me to invite you.”

“Oh, is that ’cause she’s too chicken to ask me herself after what happened with her and Tom?”

“Maybe, but please say you'll come. Ruby and I are going. Plus it’ll be fun.”

I shrug. “Okay, I'll be there. What time?”

“Seven o'clock. Do you want me to pick you up from work?”

“Nah, I'll come home and get changed first. The church hall is only a ten-minute walk from here, so I'll see you and Ruby there.” For some reason I get a surge of electricity through my body. That was odd.

“You okay, Elle? You’re not changing your mind, are you?”

I blink. “No, why?”

Brook shrugs. “Dunno, but you seemed to be having some kind of fit.”

“I guess I’m just cold. But it’s okay, I’m still coming.”

“You sure you don’t want a lift?”

“No, I’ll walk.” Shoot, there it goes again. I guess my instincts are warning me not to go out alone or something.

She slaps my leg.
“Oh, Ruby and I met some cool guys at Richie's party on Saturday. I hope they'll be there tonight. I'm going home to wash my hair and put on some fake tan.”

“Fake tan? Who's gonna see your skin under winter clothes?”

She grins. “You never know. Anyway, I'm not wearing winter clothes. I'll be on the dance floor all night. The DJ's going to be playing all the latest hits, including One Direction’s new album and Johnny Ruffo's new single.”

I smile. “That's great. I love One Direction and Johnny Ruffo's so cool. Pity he couldn’t be there in person. He’s such a great dancer, and he’s so cute.”

Brooke hugs herself. “Yeah, and Reese Mastin. He rocks.”

“Well, they’ll play his songs, too, I guess.”

Brook gets up to leave. “See you tonight, then, and don't be late.”

“I won't.” I get up and walk her to the front door.

“I hope you find your phone, Elle.”

“So do I. Thanks for bringing my bag.”

“See ya.”

“Bye, Brook.” I close the door and pick up the hall phone, but when I dial my cell, I can't hear the ringtone anywhere in the house. Either the battery's dead or I dropped it when I lost my handbag. I sigh. What a klutz I am? With no time to worry about it, I dash to the bathroom
, but as I slip out of my pyjamas, I see I’m still wearing my white lacy bra. That’s odd. I don’t usually wear a bra to bed. As I take it off, I notice my panties are the ones I put on before going to Richie’s Party.
Eww, gross.
That was two days ago. I rip them off and jump in the shower. As I wash my hair, I try to remember going into my drawers and taking out my old pink pyjamas, but I can’t recall any of it. Confused, I quickly blow-dry my hair, brush my teeth, then hurry to my room to dress.

The manager at the pet shop said to wear jeans because I'll be cleaning out cages and looking after animals. I'm excited and can't wait, but I can't find my black-stretch jeans. That’s funny because I wore them on Saturday, so they must be here. I rummage around in the pile of discarded clothes in the corner, but they're not there. I scratch my head. That's strange. I can't find my red jumper either. Noticing a long silk gown on the carpet, I hold it up. This isn't mine. I look at the label. It's my size, but I've never seen it before. When I sniff it, my heart skips. How weird. I sniff again. The sweet scent is strangely wonderful but I can't think why I like it. Staring at it, I notice something stuck in the bodice and I pluck it out. It's a feather, a large silver feather. As I run it under my nose, I tingle all over. How fascinating. It must have been an awfully big bird to have a feather this size. Shrugging, I put it in my bag for good luck.

After dressing in blue jeans and a black top, I look for my boots. What? I can't find them either. Now, I'm really starting to worry. Could my day get any weirder? My clothes and boots are missing, there's a strange dress in my room, I'm wearing pyjamas that are way too small, and I lost my bag and phone as well as my memory
.
Jeez, maybe somebody
did
spike my drink. Trembling at the thought, I slip into my sneakers, but then I can’t even find my black jacket. Crap. I pull on my denim one and pick up my bag. What the hell’s going on?

On my way through the kitchen, I grab a banana from the fruit bowl and a protein popper from the fridge. After locking the front door, I head up the street towards the beach, and as I munch on my banana, I shudder with a weird ominous feeling. I glance over my shoulder to see if I'm being followed, but there's nobody there. I know I shouldn't be so superstitious all the time, but there's no wonder after this morning's happenings.

Then I remember the dream I was having when the phone woke me. My heart flutters as an image of a gorgeous boy with dark hair and blue eyes pops into my head. He seemed so real and his body was to die for. I inhale deeply. Gosh, no wonder I slept so long. I must have been enjoying myself. I chuckle into my hand. What will I dream of next? Deary me. It's time to stop living in a fantasy world and get a real life. Maybe now I've broken up with Tom, I'll meet someone new. Walking faster, I turn the corner, and as I head towards the pet shop, Tom's car pulls up at the side of the road. He jumps out and grabs my hand. “Elle, I have to talk to you.”