Angels at the Table (Angels Everywhere #7)(25)

“Amazingly, you do.” Aren’s grin was so wide it hurt his face. “I’ll see you next week then.”

“Okay. Will you call me with the time or should I phone you?”

“I’ll be in touch.”

“Wonderful. Thank you for calling me back, Aren.”

He should be the one thanking her. They said their farewells and Aren felt like he could climb a mountain. Returning to the task at hand, he waited a few minutes and then reached for his phone to contact his sister.

Josie answered almost immediately. She worked on Wall Street for a large brokerage firm.

“I have good news, good news, and bad news.”

“Do tell.”

“I heard from Lucie.” He could have tried to play it cool, but his sister knew him far too well. She’d read through his blasé attitude in one second flat. Fooling Josie would be near impossible; consequently he didn’t even try.

“She called already?”

“A few minutes ago.”

“You’re going to see her, aren’t you?”

“Yup. That’s the good news and the bad news.”

“Explain yourself, little brother.”

“I’m taking her to dinner and a show.”

“Wow, you sure know how to sweep a girl off her feet. Which show?”

“That’s the bad news.”

A short hesitation followed. “Don’t tell me … you have tickets to Angels at Christmas?”

“I do.”

“Aww, man.”

“Don’t hate me,” Aren teased. “I have other good news, too, but I didn’t want to overwhelm you.”

“You might as well kick me harder. I suppose they’re orchestra seats.” She laughed and Aren knew she was happy that Lucie had agreed to go with him.

“As far as I’m concerned they could be in the nosebleed section and I wouldn’t care. My third bit of good news is that I talked to my boss and Sandy said it would be fine for me to write the review for Heavenly Delights, and retract my previous one.”

“Well, duh, of course you should.”

“I feared it might be considered a conflict of interest, but Sandy basically said not to worry about it as long as I don’t reveal my identity.”

“Good … but does Lucie or her mother know you’re the one who wrote the initial review, panning the restaurant?”

“No.”

“No? Aren, this could come back to bite you.”

“I’ll tell her when the time is right. I don’t want to hide it from her but my contract states that I can’t let anyone know my identity outside of family. Besides, Lucie and I just reconnected.”

“And you don’t want to upset the proverbial apple cart.”

“Something like that,” he admitted. In his mind he had the perfect excuse.

“Oh, Aren, promise me you won’t keep it a secret for long.”

“Josie, I’m under contract. I could lose my job if I tell her I’m writing as Eaton Well.”

“There are ways you can do it without saying it directly, you know.”

“Maybe,” he countered. “But it’s too soon.”

“Okay, I agree with you there, but I’m afraid this is going to hang over your head like a giant water balloon, threatening to burst at any moment.”

“I’ll find the right time,” he promised. “But not until I can figure out a way to do it without actually telling her and until we’ve had a chance to get to know each other better. Agreed?”

“Okay, but don’t wait until it’s too late.”

“I won’t.” This would be tricky, but he’d look for a way, and for a time when it was right.

Chapter Nine

“Get a load of those angels on stage,” Mercy muttered, shaking her head in exasperation. “Apparently this is humanity’s idea of what we look like. Oh dear, these poor people don’t have a clue.”

Shirley, Goodness, and Mercy, along with Will, sat in the box seat section of the Broadway theater and found themselves highly amused by the musical. After strict instructions from Gabriel they knew better than to interfere with the budding romance between Lucie and Aren. This was a hands-off assignment.

Still, Mercy kept a close eye on the two. They had great seats about ten rows back in the orchestra section and seemed to be enjoying the musical immensely. Every now and again their heads would come together and they’d exchange whispers. Mercy had a bit of a romantic streak and it seemed the couple was perfect together. Her heart swelled with appreciation when shortly after the musical started Aren reached for Lucie’s hand and she smiled ever so sweetly up at him. It was the most romantic moment Mercy had seen in a very long while.

When Mercy’s gaze wandered back to her friends, she froze as an odd sensation went through her.

Goodness had disappeared.

“Where’s Goodness?” she whispered, fighting down dread.

Shirley shrugged, apparently caught up in what was happening on stage.

“Will, have you seen Goodness?” she asked, hoping to hide the panic in her voice.

Their young charge seemed to find the antics on stage highly amusing, and he answered with a shake of his head.