For Angelo(6)

“You’re good?”

She nodded dumbly.

I’m good.

And I’m infatuated.

Lane didn’t care if the thought made her foolish and insane.

All she knew was that this beautiful stranger made her blood sing like no other man had ever done.

She had the biggest crush on this fallen angel of hers, and that was that.

She remembered Laura telling her stories about how she had fallen in love with Lane’s father. She remembered asking her mother, when she was a little older and wiser, how Laura could still cherish the memory even when her father had proven to be anything but prince-like. And she remembered how Laura had blinked at her like she shouldn’t have asked the question at all.

“Just because we didn’t end up together doesn’t mean we weren’t really in love. We were the ones who made mistakes, but love…” And Laura’s smile had been of undimmed hope and dreams. “Choosing to love is always the gloriously right thing to do.”

Lane looked back at her fallen angel.

His concerned gaze made her heart skip a beat, and his voice was like the most darkly seductive melody as he murmured, “If you’re sure you’re okay…”

“I think I hurt my ankle,” she blurted out. God forgive me. “M-maybe you can check on me later?” She could feel a blush stealing over her cheeks at how unnaturally forward she was being. “I’m out in an hour.” Lane’s words had the stranger raising a brow, but even as her cheeks turned redder, she just couldn’t make herself take the words back.

“I see.” The stranger’s lips curved in the sexiest little smile, and his silvery gray eyes settled on her contemplatively.

His sudden scrutiny was unnerving, but Lane forced herself to meet his gaze. She had nothing to hide. She was just crushing on him, and now she was, well, flirting outrageously with him. Other girls did it all the time. So it wasn’t bad…right?

“You’re…different,” the stranger murmured.

“In a good way…right?” Lane clarified worriedly.

His smile widened, but he didn’t say anything.

Her heart slammed hard against her chest. Gosh, oh gosh. It was just a smile, but she felt hot all over.

When he took a step back from her, Lane caught her breath, the pain of the increased distance surprising her.

“I’m keeping you, aren’t I?”

He nodded.

Her heart sank. “You’re meeting with someone?” Please say no, please say—

Another nod.

“I see.” Her heart had sped up its descent at his response, and she struggled to paste a smile on her trembling lips. Infatuation and heartbreak at first sight, Lane thought numbly. Who could’ve imagined it would happen this way?

Slowly, she made herself take a step back as well. Not meeting his gaze, she mumbled, “Sorry for keeping you.”

“It’s nothing.”

Silence.

“I’ll check up on you later—”

“You don’t have to—”

The stranger cupped her chin and forced her to look up. “Why not?”

She refused to be excited, frowning unhappily at him. “Because.”

“Because…what?” Again, his lips curved in that sexy little smirk, which even in her pain didn’t fail to make her body tingle all over.

“Because you’re meeting with someone,” Lane snapped in a rare display of annoyance. “Happy now?” The words were supposed to come out a snarl, but she ended all choked up with hurt disappointment.

The stranger released her chin. “See you later.” And just like that, he turned and started to walk away.

“I said you don’t have to,” she muttered resentfully.

“Even when I tell you I’m only meeting up with the college dean for work?” the stranger answered without looking back.

Her eyes widened.

“And have I mentioned the dean also happens to be fifty years old, bald, and male?” But he was getting farther and farther away from her now, and she barely heard his next words, spoken in a musing tone. “But then, if you think I shouldn’t be checking up on you—”

“NO!” Lane clapped her hands over her mouth, shocked that she had actually ended up yelling the word out.

The stranger stopped walking.

She didn’t hesitate.

She hurried after him, and by the time she reached the stranger he had already turned to face her, a familiar smirk on his strong, beautiful face.

“You don’t seem to have a hurt ankle—”

She didn’t hesitate, pretending to limp on the last few steps.

His laughter rang out, and this time she realized what made it so different, what made her want to hear it again and again.