Angels at the Table (Angels Everywhere #7)(13)

“That’s wonderful.”

“I’d like for you to take New Year’s Eve off this year.”

“Mom, I can’t do that. It’s bound to be one of the busiest nights of the season for us.”

“Don’t worry … we’ll bring in extra help.”

“Mom, I can’t. I know what you’re thinking. You want me to return to Times Square on the off chance I’ll run into Aren again. I can’t do that. I won’t. It would be nothing more than a wild-goose chase, an impossibility.”

“Oh, Lucie, I didn’t realize you could be this stubborn.”

Lucie laughed. She couldn’t help it. “And just who do you think I inherited this trait from?”

“Your father,” Wendy insisted and then they both laughed.

“I’m pleased to see how well the restaurant is doing,” Shirley said.

“Poor Lucie, though,” Will whispered and exhaled sharply. “She’s never forgotten Aren.”

“What was all that talk about a meeting?” Goodness scratched the side of her head as if she’d missed something important.

Gabriel explained.

“Lucie didn’t show?” Mercy inquired anxiously.

“No, and Aren waited as long as the guards would let him. He returned a second time as well.”

“Oh my, poor Aren.”

“Does he think of Lucie, too?”

Gabriel nodded. “All the time.”

“Just a minute … hold on here.” Mercy started pacing Gabriel’s office.

“What?” Shirley asked, studying her friend.

“What are we waiting for?” Goodness looked from Mercy to Gabriel. “We have work to do.”

Mercy started waving her hand, one wing flapping as she spoke. “I get it. I get it. Aren’s a food critic. His byline will never show in the paper in order to keep his identity a secret.”

“Yes,” Gabriel said and waited for Mercy to complete her thought.

“And he’s been assigned to review Heavenly Delights, right?”

“Right.”

“And that’s how they were originally intended to meet?”

Gabriel said nothing. He wanted them to work this out for themselves.

“He couldn’t let her know about the pseudonym,” Shirley reminded them, “because of his contract with the newspaper.”

“But he would fall in love with Lucie’s desserts even before he met her,” Mercy cried with what appeared to be perfect logic.

“Now it’s our job to be sure Aren and Lucie meet again.” Will’s face brightened with excitement. “We can do that, Gabriel, leave everything to us.”

“You’re sure you’re up to the task?”

“Without question.”

“Then have at it, my friends. And this time make sure you stay on task.”

“Not a problem,” Mercy promised.

Before he could issue a warning, the four disappeared. Gabriel grinned and then shook his head. All he could do now was stand back and watch as these four headed for Earth.

Heaven help them all.

Literally.

Chapter Five

“Look, Aren’s already at the restaurant,” Will whispered. Shirley, Goodness, and Mercy joined him and the four gazed down from the light fixtures in the restaurant Heavenly Delights.

“Is that Lucie’s mother?” Goodness asked, looking toward the middle-aged woman who greeted Aren.

“Which woman? There are several.”

“The one who’s leading him to his table.”

“That’s her.”

“Who’s that woman with Aren?”

Will shook his head. “I don’t have a clue. She wasn’t with him on New Year’s Eve. In fact I’ve never seen her before. Have any of you?”

No one seemed to know. Mercy sighed, worried now. Perhaps Aren had met another woman, someone he liked even better than Lucie. The two certainly looked to be chummy, laughing and joking with each other. Oh dear, that would pose a significant problem. Something would need to be done and quickly.

Will wrung his hands, apparently worried as well. “Do you think it might be too late? Do you think Aren’s found someone else?”

“It could be a colleague.”

“Or a friend,” Shirley suggested.

“S-h-h, let’s listen to their conversation. Maybe that will tell us what we need to know.” Mercy didn’t understand why she had to be the practical one in the group. The others were far too quick to leap to conclusions.

“First impressions of a restaurant are important,” Aren said, unfolding the linen napkin and spreading it across his lap, looking up at his sister. “What are your thoughts?”

Josie looked around her, apparently taking in the ambience of the room. “The decorations are simple and subtle. I like that.”

“I do, too,” Aren agreed. Eye appeal was important—the dining experience was never just about the quality of the food.

“What about the hostess?” he asked next. His sister had dined with him several times and he’d come to appreciate her input. Tonight’s dinner was especially important. He’d worked for the newspaper nearly a year now and reviewed many different types of restaurants, from the very expensive to the very cheap, from the most famous and established to undiscovered holes in the wall. But he felt that a new, up-and-coming place like Heavenly Delights provided the greatest opportunity for both his readers and the restaurant.