Love of an Angel Ch. 01

"Well, we better go see to your room, huh?" I said before I lost myself in her eyes.

She bounded off my bed in glee.

"Oh, yes, that sounds like fun! Thank you again, so much, Danny!" she said as she dashed from the room.

I laughed sadly. Seeing her so gleeful made her seem like she... shone. Ah, her beauty truly was something to behold.

I followed her out of my room and down the hallway to my empty spare bedroom. She was already standing in the middle of it, looking around with wonder and delight in her eyes. Odd, considering that, as an angel, you would have thought she would have seen a few rooms in her time.

She caught the expression on my face.

"I've never had my own room before. Every time I came to Earth, like I said, I was pursued and feared and hated for my differences. So I was never able to blend in well wherever I went. So this, having my own room in the home of someone I trust, is new and refreshing and... fun," she said delightedly.

"Well, you're more than welcome to it," I said with a smile. "I daresay it's a little lonely living all by myself, and having your beautiful self here will certainly brighten my days."

She blushed when I said that.

"Well, I'm happy that you're letting someone... and something... like me stay here with you," she said shyly.

I looked at her in confusion.

"Why wouldn't I? You're an angel. That's nothing to be afraid of or angry at. You're beautiful... every part of you," I said, implying her wings in the description.

Again, she smiled that heavenly smile in my direction, and I almost melted.

"Why do you keep calling me that?" she asked.

"What, beautiful?" I asked.

"Yes, beautiful. I know I'm an angel and celestial and all, but still... no one has ever treated me like you have... no one has ever... called me beautiful. Even the other person I loved before... he... didn't think the same way as you," she said.

"Oh, well, sorry to hear that. He really didn't know what he let go, then. No, the reason is, I suppose, because I spend a lot of time among women, I have developed the knack for discerning why and how a woman is beautiful, rather than just thinking about her body. Oh, that plays a part, too, don't misunderstand," I said with a grin. "But I tend to look deeper at a woman than a lot of guys will. I'm really intuitive, too, so when I say I think you're beautiful, I really mean it."

Cadence shook her head. "I just can't see why you think so."

"Well, I've never met a girl with all the things you have going for you wrapped up into one package, that's for sure. Nor can I say I've seen a girl with glorious white wings that seem to glow with perfection, like yours. But enough of this. I suppose you'll need to settle in here, and what better way to do that than to go buy you some new clothes? They, uhm... seemed to have ripped your dress last night," I said lightly, changing the subject.

She looked down at the large tear in her dress and gasped. "Oh my, so they did! Well, that was rude. But where shall we go? I have a limited knowledge of the way of things here on Earth, but I do know what I would like to wear," she said.

"Well, we could always go to the mall," I said. "I've got some money set aside that we can put to use helping you out. So let's get going, huh?"

She looked at me and nodded, smiling again. I smiled back at her.

I went and grabbed my wallet and keys, and we walked out of my apartment, heading for the parking lot. I unlocked my 2006 Toyota Camry, which I happened to get for a great deal, and she got into the passenger side and I buckled my seat belt on the driver's side.

I turned the ignition and the car started straight-away. I backed out of the parking space, and exited the lot. I pulled onto the main road and began the medium distance sojourn to the city mall, which was only a mile or two away.

When we finally reached the mall, it was only 12:30. We had plenty of time. I took her to several different stores, where she looked at all the things she could get in her body size. She would randomly ask me how something looked on her, or if I thought something was cute or not, and I tried to give my honest opinion, or select something I thought would be better. I had been through this routine many a time, and while it wasn't something I particularly enjoyed, I was glad to be of assistance to her. Most of what I said or offered seemed to please her, so I assume everything was alright.

We browsed through many stores for hours, and she would always come away with one or two things that she really liked. I'm not rich, but I'm definitely not poor either. She could have bought much more than she did, and it wouldn't have hurt my savings in the slightest. A generous inheritance is always a nice thing to receive. And the profession I chose to pursue after college would help insulate me for a good long while... provided I was successful, of course.

Finally, we arrived at the inevitable: Victoria's Secret. She looked askance at me. I just smiled and pushed her lightly through the entrance, where she was immediately swarmed by several pretty, middle-aged women who started measuring her up and down with just their eyes. They'll take good care of her, I thought to myself, as I waited outside with all the bags. I made it a point to never enter that particular store with any of my friends. It would have been a little awkward to help them pick out lingerie for the man they were trying to please.

So, after about an hour of waiting, I started to feel the pangs of hunger growing in my stomach. I picked up the bags and walked a short distance from Secret in search of nourishment. I bought myself a nice turkey sandwich from a little moveable cart not too far away, and when I turned around, I saw Cadence standing outside the door to Victoria's Secret. She was looking from left to right, apparently trying to find me, and she had an expression on her face that was half-way between terror and crying. My heart swelled with compassion and I hurried back to her.

Half-way there, I saw a man walk up to her and start talking. As I got closer, I heard him say, "Hey babe. What's a fine young thing like you doin' out here all by her lonesome? You need some company? You could hook up with me, sweet thing, and I'd take real good care of you." She looked at him, and I could tell from her eyes that she was about to break down crying. Hmm, they must have treated my little angel really badly whenever she decided to come to Earth. Wait, when had I started thinking of her as 'my little angel'...?

Dismissing that for more important matters at hand, I walked up and stood next to her. She turned, took one look at me, and threw her arms around my neck in glee and relief. "Sorry, pal, she's with me. Get lost," I said to him with as much courage as I could. "Pfft, you? Bullshit. No way that fine piece of ass would be with you, you fat fag," the guy said with a really disgusted tint to his voice. I bristled, and Cadence pulled her face out of my neck and looked at him.

"He's right, you jerk, I'm with him. Please, go away," she said. Bravo, Cadence, I thought happily.

The guy gave us a disgusted look, looked hungrily at Cadence one last time, and turned on his heel and left us alone.

Cadence left go of me. That was a sad feeling. "I was worried when I walked out after buying some things and you weren't here. I thought for a minute that maybe you had... had..." she trailed off.

"I had what, beautiful? Left you? Abandoned you? Deserted you? No, I would never leave you by yourself unless you were comfortable with it. Like I said, I'm here to protect you. And I plan on doing a damn fine job of it, too," I said with a smile.

She brightened immediately. A glowing smile like that from her is something to behold. It almost seems like the sun shines solely on her, and her entire body seems to radiate warmth and kindness and... beauty. It was a real treat.

"So, are you happy with your purchases?" I inquired. She nodded avidly, and dove into the bag to pull things out to show me. "Whoa, whoa there, girl. Those are your personal things. You shouldn't show those to someone you don't want to... hmm... give your... gift... to, ok?" I said to her, stopping her from pulling out God-knows-what from the bag.

She looked at be with a puzzled expression for a moment, then it dawned on her what I meant. She blushed profusely and looked down at her feet. "Oh, there's nothing to be ashamed of, darling. You just didn't know, is all. But I'm glad you like what you got. Come on, we have one more place to go," I said to her.

"But, Danny, that's why I wanted to show you," she said so softly behind me as I walked away that I almost thought she hadn't spoken. Had she really said that? No mind, we had one more store to visit. Of course: shoe store. I followed her into this one, because it wasn't nearly as embarrassing as Secret would have been. She browsed around, and we managed to flag down a helpful young sales attendant who helped her pick out and try on several pairs of sandals and heels. I think she was more partial to the sandals and flats that were presented, which didn't really bother me. She may on be 5 foot 6, but she's just the right size for me.

And so she made her final purchases of the day. And boy, did we have a haul. I'd bought a few odds and ends for her that I thought might help, and a few things for myself that I simply wanted. All in all, it was slightly on the expensive side, but it hadn't made any sort of dent on my inheritance. I'd be set for awhile, even with living with someone now. One of the first places we had stopped was Bath & Body Works, so she had all her necessary toiletries. It was time to go home. Yes, home.

I hauled everything out to and into my Camry, and Cadence got into the passenger side. Once I was finished loading everything away, I climbed into the driver's side and started the car. Cadence started talking avidly about all the things she had seen and bought, and how happy she was to be living me, and many other things as I pulled out of the mall parking lot and onto the main road. I glanced at the clock. 6:53. Wow, we'd been at it for awhile. I looked at her out of the corner of my eye.

"So why were you so scared that I had up and left you? And why did you look like you were going to cry when that guy came up to talk to you?' I asked curiously.

"I was scared you'd left me because you finally couldn't deal with... what I am," she said quietly. "And as for the guy, he reminded me of those thugs you saved me from when we first met. I was scared because you weren't there to protect me, and I thought you weren't coming back for me, and it just made me sad and scared. I'm sorry I'm such a burden."

I reached over and covered one her hands, which were resting palms down on her lap, with my own. I gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "Like I said, I would never just up and leave you. I'll be around for as long as you want me to be. I'll protect you for as long as you want me to protect you," I said with a smile.

Her hand turned over under mine and her fingers laced together with mine. "Thank you," she said. "The women in Secret started talking about you as soon as you turned around. They immediately identified you as someone who is important to me. I told them that you were very important to me, and they just smiled knowingly and immediately brought me several very interesting items," she said with a giggle.

"Oh, did they now?" I said, only barely aware of what was going on, divided as my attention was between staying on the road and under the speed limit and the fact that she was voluntarily holding my hand. Ah, I thought, now here was a girl I could fall for in less than a second. Sadly, I also thought, it's not to be.

Still, basking as I was in my happiness, I simply kept hold of her delicate, warm, soft hand all the way home. When we finally reached the apartment parking lot, I reluctantly let go of her small hand. We got out, and I went got all her bags. I hauled them bodily up to and into my apartment, where I promptly deposited them into her room. She was extra giddy with the excitement of putting all her things away. I left her to it.

I walked into the kitchen. 7:15, the clock read. Time for dinner, I suppose. "Hey, what would you like for dinner?" I called to her.

"Oh, please, just make extra of whatever you were going to make. I haven't had many mortal dishes you know," she called back.

Right, I remembered, I'm living with an angel, who until a day ago, was living in Heaven. Of course she wouldn't have had many Earth courses. Hmm, what do they eat in Heaven? Do they even eat...? Well, that's not important, I thought to myself, I have dinner to prepare for a lovely lady who is now living under the same roof as me. Oh, right, and I need to eat too, I suppose.

I started the preparations. Truth be told, it was a rather simple affair. Skillet-fried chicken breast, for two this time, some mini red-skin potatoes with dill and lots of butter, and my personal favorite veggie, green beans, made the right way. I set out all the utensils and dinner-ware, and two cups of water on ice. Cadence chose this point in time to walk in. I looked up, and the first thing I noticed was that she had changed.

Whereas before, she had been wearing a ripped one piece cotton dress, now she wore loose-fitting jeans and red cotton t-shirt, which, I noticed, accented her full breasts and shapely buttocks very well. I just shook my head in wonder. How much more beautiful could the girl be, truly? Well, she was an angel, so I guess she could pull and extra few notches out of nowhere. She smiled when I appraised her new ensemble.

"Does it look alright on me? I wasn't really sure the look would work for me, but from your expression, I guess it does," she said with a smile.

"Oh, yes, I looks awesome on you. You do look spectacular, Cadence. Well, sit, sit, dinner will be ready in 3 minutes or so," I said, returning her smile. She had left her hair down, thankfully. I love girls with long hair, and ponytails are really pretty, but Cadence's hair down was even better than that. The silky tresses fell in grand-curls around her beautiful face, the silvery-blonde the perfect accompaniment to her pale skin.

Dinner was ready, and I played the gracious host as I served it to my new roommate. After we were both served, we began chatting about random things as we ate. She talked about all the things she had seen today, in greater detail, and I found I was able to pay attention more easily, and even add my own comments, now that we were in a safe place settled down after the long day. I realized I loved listening to her melodious voice. She was a perfect-pitch alto, and it was a real treat to listen to. Her voice was calm and soothing, and I almost became so enraptured that I stopped eating, but I realized what was going on and forced myself to continue.

Once dinner was over, I cleaned the table off and washed the dishes. Cadence went into the living room and lounged on the couch. Once I was done with the dishes, I came in and sat down next to her. She leaned her head onto my right shoulder, and my heart fluttered. It just felt so right, her and I, sitting there talking like we had known each other for forever. I talked to her about my past and my ideals, and she told me things I would never have expected about herself and even Heaven itself. What an interesting conversation.

Eventually, the conversation died down, and I heard her breathing steady and deepen, and I realized she had fallen asleep. Laughing softly, I extricated myself from her gently as I could, and then leaned over and picked her up in my arms. She didn't wake up, but she did bury her head into my chest, despite the fat there. I sighed. What an amazing girl. I carried her into her new room and deposited her on her bed, pulling the covers up and over her, tucking her in snugly. She murmured something that I didn't catch, and then I leaned down and kissed her softly on the forehead, before taking my leave of her room. I walked into my room, and removed all my clothes down to my boxers. I unwound all the bandages, feeling that the wounds were fine by now, which to my delight I found that they were indeed fine and on the mend. I walked to my mirror and turned, back to the mirror, and looked over my shoulder at my back. The scars I had accumulated were still there, all of my past follies clearly visible on my pale skin. I sighed. I hoped Cadence hadn't seen them when she bandaged me. I thought not, considering she hadn't asked about them yet. Oh well, if she did see them, I would just have to explain some of my darker and sadder past to her.

I walked to my bed and got in, pulling the covers up as I lay there staring up at the ceiling above my four-poster king sized bed. I mused about what had happened in just the past day. I did realize that my life was changed forever. I found my thoughts drifting more and more to Cadence. She was so beautiful. I wondered if all angels were as beautiful as her. Maybe, maybe not. I was just happy to know her. But, try hard as I might, I just couldn't stop thinking about her. My heart fluttered when I remembered her taking my hand in hers and lacing our fingers together. My mind reeled as I thought about those words, so softly spoken in the mall earlier, But Danny, that's why I wanted to show you. Had she really said that, or had my ears been playing tricks on me due to my wishful thinking? I wasn't sure. All I did know was that I loved being around her, and it wasn't because she was an angel. She had a really vibrant personality, and I realized I loved absolutely everything I knew about her. And I knew her happiness meant a lot to me.

What did all this mean? Against all odds and careful precautions on my part, had I fallen in love with an angel? Was there any possible chance she would reciprocate? I didn't think so. I was mortal, and not a fine specimen of mortality, either. Well, whatever. All I knew was she was amazing, and I had vowed to never let anyone make her cry. All these things were spiraling through my thoughts as I fell asleep. My last conscious thought was, "Am I in love?"