I glowered at her through her fingers as she ran away with the demonstration, thrusting faster with her fingers, making erotic noises and expressions.
“Stop that,” I snarl.
She slapped her hands down against the table, and her expression shifted to one of complete seriousness.
“You know she’s in love with you, right?”
My breath hitched.
Of course, I know that.And I’m trying like hell to pretend that I don’t know it, that it doesn’t matter. That I don’t care.
But I’ve never been good at lying to myself.
Between Mel’s mouth-watering attempts to entice me and Jess’ more blunt methods, I was having a hell of a time ignoring the facts.
I was just trying to do my job as a guardian. What would my archangel think if she caught wind of me fucking my ward? Whatwas Ithinkingdating the archangel back in college? Admittedly her pussy was a distraction from Mel. But now my boss is also my ex-girlfriend.
Stupid, stupid, stupid.
I’m a fucking idiot of an angel.
Jerks like me have had their wings taken away for far less sinful crimes. What’s more, I couldn’t in good conscious enter into an intimate relationship with a woman who thought me to be something else…
“Look.” Jess sighed. “I’m not trying to give my best friend’s secret away.”
“Except that youdid,” I snorted.
“Oh, come on, it’s pretty damn obvious.”
Scoffing, I grabbed for Jess’ drink, ignored her “hey,” and took a big gulp. The liquid was overpowering, washing over my sensitive taste buds and making them sting.
“Look,” Jess continued, clearly not wanting to waste the rare moment of both of us being alone without Mel within earshot, “I’ve had a blast getting to know you guys over the years. I love you both. You’ve got something…special. And I’m not talking like Ross and Rachel onFriendsspecial. I’ve never seen, heard, or read about anything like what you guys have. I see how you look at Mel, and she sees it too. So I guess she’s confused about why you guys aren’t a thing yet?”
I heaved a sigh. I hated that I had to play this whole aloof shit. Until recently, I’d always looked down on guardians who chose not to have personal relationships with their wards and instead took the stalker route. Now I saw the appeal. Less complicated, with no hurt feelings as long as they didn’t get caught.
None of that helped me now.
Jess studied me intently, her lips tugging to the side in a thoughtful look. “You do have feelings for her,don’tyou?
“I do,” I admitted. “Don’t tell her.”
Jess’ eyes narrowed to slivers. “Why?”
“Because it’s complicated. You wouldn’t understand.”
She canted her head, blonde hair spilling over her shoulder. “Do I need to remind you that I got a better grade-point average in school?”
Sliding her a flat glare, I took another sip of her cosmopolitan. “Your point?”
“My point is that I might not agree with your reasons for snubbing the love of your life. But I think I’ll manage to keep up with your explanation, ‘kay? So try me.”
Blood and feathers. If Jess had her own guardian, I would feel sorry for the poor bastard.
“Look. Mel is…special. She’s good, wholly, completely…” I struggled to explain it in a way that didn’t make me sound crazy. “Her type is rare.”
Jess popped a blonde brow. Normally she kept them perfectly threaded, but she hadn’t had time for that lately by the looks of them. A frown split my lips. I’d put in a request once for her to get her own guardian. While she didn’t need help looking out for herself, they could, at the very least, help keep an eye on her father, as his health was failing due to a rare form of cancer. But they’d rejected my request. Bastards.
“What kind of ‘type’ is Mel, exactly?” Jess asked, skepticism underscoring the question.
