After Dark: The Complete Series Page 7

  Reluctantly, she leaned over and grabbed the phone just as the ringing stopped. “Oops. Too bad, Becs.”

  Angel flopped back onto her plush pillows and dropped the phone on the bed, closing her eyes in hope of a couple more hours of sleep. Her hope was short-lived when the phone immediately started playing the song again. Angel picked it up and answered with unveiled irritation. “What!”

  “Are you still in bed? You have twenty minutes to get to the gym or your ass is mine,” Becca answered shortly.

  Angel and Becca both had studied social science and liberal arts at Northwestern, which quickly led to becoming fast friends. A study in contrasts; they complimented each other well. Angel was subdued and focused, while Becca was outgoing, wild, and easily distracted. They balanced each other over the years; each adopting some of the other’s traits.

  Angel continued for two more degrees while Becca had taken her physical education and nutritional science bachelor’s and become a personal trainer. And boy did she train! There were times Angel wished Becca had done anything else, but that. She was merciless in the gym and literally worked Angel’s ass off. She rolled over and scratched her flat stomach beneath the lime green cotton of her pajama top.

  “Becca, I’m so tired. How about we just meet for brunch?” Angel sat up and ran a hand through her hair, squinting in protest at the bright sunlight streaming in around her tightly drawn blinds.

  “Uh… no! Get. Your. Ass. Here. Now!” Becca punctuated her words with a giggle. “Angel, you owe that tight little bod to me, so suck it up. Don’t punish me because you’ve suddenly taken to giving advice to the lovelorn until all hours of the night.”

  “It’s not just the lovelorn, you Nazi trainer bitch!” Angel groaned. “It’s also the codependent, dysfunctional, and mentally unbalanced. Why can’t I just run five miles on the treadmill here?”

  The apartment that she lived in was first-class with a well equipped-gym where residents had twenty-four hour access; so, it was more for friendship than for necessity that made Angel trek to the Bally where Becca worked. Angel overpaid her outrageously for their sessions since it was the only way that Becca’s pride would allow Angel to help her financially.

  “Because, I said so. Get moving.”

  “You have no idea how long these nights are,” Angel lamented while she hugged one of the huge white pillows to her, wishing again that she could just sleep. “I hate you.”

  “I know you love me,” Becca teased. “You can whine to me at the gym. I need to hear all about that guy you talked to last night. Holy hell, that was hot.”

  “Seriously? You heard the same thing that I did, so what else can I tell you? He’s an arrogant prick who thinks he can get his dick wet whenever and with whomever he wants. I wanted to reach through the phone and strangle him on the spot. He was so friggin’ infuriating.”

  She flushed at the memory, the heat infusing beneath her pale skin in a hot rush. In truth, his confident arrogance turned her on in a big way, and she bristled at the thought of his sultry voice and the way he’d made her feel. He pushed every one of her invisible buttons. She’d actually been aroused.

  “Whatever. Just get here. Jillian wants to see you, and I have to pick her up by ten-thirty.”

  Angel smiled as she thought of the beautiful little girl with golden blonde curls and sparkling blue eyes, whose chubby little cheeks got even chubbier when she giggled. Her heart swelled with love. Becca had the misfortune of getting pregnant, and her loser boyfriend left her to deal with the hardships of single parenthood. Now, Jillian’s father saw her only on rare occasions. It was harder on the poor thing than it was worth, and the little girl suffered terribly from separation anxiety from her mother. Angel had stuck by Becca’s side, been her birth coach, and was now Jillian’s godmother. The two shared a very special bond and simply adored each other.

  Angel got up out of the bed and went to her dresser to select her clothes. She pulled her gym bag down from her closet shelf and packed the street clothes she would need after her workout.

  “Okay. I won’t shower since you’re gonna make me sweat my butt off anyway. See you in twenty.”

  “Angel… 20 extra squats for every single minute you’re late.”

  “You whore,” Angel said, but she was laughing out loud as she padded back into the bedroom. Becca joined in, her high-pitched laughter tinkling over the phone. “I have to go now or my slave driver best friend will kill me.”

  “The clock starts now.”

  “Guh!” Angel giggled and shut the phone off, carelessly tossing it on the bed. She hurriedly dressed in black yoga pants and a lavender top, grabbed some socks and her New Balance trainers. She rushed to pull her long, thick hair up into a messy knot on the top her head before grabbing the bag and darting down to the parking garage in the basement of her building.

  She glanced at her watch and tossed her gym bag in the passenger seat of her Lexus HS hybrid before sliding in behind the wheel. The car was luxurious without going overboard. Angel’s conscience wouldn’t allow her to spend unnecessary money when she didn’t have to. She’d rather send it to her dad or give it to one of her causes than waste it on things she didn’t need to be happy. Her three bedroom apartment was her one splurge. It was more than she needed, but it had extra room for Becca and Jill in case they needed to stay with her, and it offered convenient access to her office and the courthouse. In Angel’s hectic world, time was much more valuable than money.

  She still had 14 minutes to reach her destination; as she merged onto the 290, her phone rang in her purse. The ringtone this time was her father’s and she happily picked it up.

  “Hey, Daddy!”

  “How’s my baby?” His deep voice was gruff and scratchy from years of smoking. Each time Angel thought of it, her heart fell a little. He hadn’t had an easy life, but he somehow managed to be so happy all the time. She often wondered how he did it after her mother split. Angel had tried numerous times to get him to pack up and move to Chicago to be closer to her, but he liked his friends and his life in Joplin. The lack of bustle was what Joe enjoyed, but Angel had felt claustrophobic in the little town, and she was never really accepted at high school. Kids were mean due to her position as ‘the janitor’s daughter’. “I’m good. Becca has me on the way to work out. What are you up to?”

  “I’m headed to pick up William and Benjamin. We’re going to the Ozarks for the weekend. The weather’s nice and the fish should be biting.”

  Inwardly, Angel groaned at the memory of how lame she’d found those trips. Joe dragged her along more times than she could count, and sitting in a boat, waiting for the fish to bite, was boring as hell. William’s son, Ben, was the only real friend she had in high school, but even he went over to the dark side when it came to fishing.

  “Dad! Do something fun! Go to Branson, at least! See some shows.” Branson was a bustling tourist trap with lots of musical shows, amusement parks, restaurants and golf courses. She’d abhorred the golfing, but the rest was something Angel had enjoyed the two times they went there together.

  “Fishing is fun! Besides, Will’s been a little under the weather, and this is what he wants to do.”

  “Oh? Is he okay?” Angel was concerned. “Why haven’t you mentioned this before?”

  “Sure, Angel. He’s not one to talk about his troubles. He had some stomach problems, that’s all.”

  “Okay. I hate to run, Dad, but I’m at the gym, and Becca threatened me with extra squats if I’m late. Tell the guys hello for me.”

  “Love you, hon. It wouldn’t kill you to come see your poor old dad sometime, ya know?”

  “Yes, I know. I will soon. Love you, too. Bye.”

  Angel took her bag and rushed through the doors of the club, stopping briefly to swipe her membership card at the desk before rushing to the locker room to stash her things. Becca was waiting for her on the bench in front of their lockers and glanced in exaggeration at her watch. Angel pursed her lips and rolled her
eyes in response. Becca was pretty, with shoulder-length blonde hair, a very muscular build, a pert nose and bright green eyes. Physically, she was sturdier than Angel’s waif-like frame, but emotionally, much weaker.

  “Stop with the watch watching. I’m here, aren’t I?” Angel scoffed, closing the locker and quickly pushing the padlock in place. “Lead on.”

  “Barely.” It didn’t take Becca long to begin drilling Angel about her late night caller once she had her on the elliptical to warm up. “Angel, ten minutes at 3.5.” She leaned on the frame of the machine as she looked expectantly into Angel’s face, who tried not to make eye contact but bit her lip to keep her smile at bay as she started the machine.

  As she worked out, Angel kept her mouth shut and waited for Becca to crack, wondering just how long it would be until she couldn’t stand it anymore. It didn’t take long.

  “Well?” Becca said with her hands outstretched in front of her, palms up, and Angel burst out laughing. So predictable.

  “Well, what?” Angel teased.

  “Stop fucking around and spill!”

  “Bec, you heard it! What are you expecting me to say?”

  Becca was exasperated. “Shit, Angel. Am I the only one with a vagina? I almost came at the sound of his voice. Alex, right?” She raised her eyebrows suggestively as she repeated his name, and Angel smiled despite her attempts to keep a straight face. Becca had a wonderful sense of humor and wicked wit that often left her laughing so hard she cried. Angel wasn’t sure why, but she didn’t want to admit that she was definitely aware of her vagina last night, simply from speaking with the faceless caller. She felt ridiculously out of control, and it was disconcerting, to say the least.

  Her warm up completed, Angel reached out and pointed at the timer on the machine. Becca nodded and increased the speed and the resistance. Angel ignored her but her mind raced, wondering if his face and body matched that silken voice.

  Fuck, yes, Alex! She felt a flush spread beneath the skin of her neck and face, thankful for the workout so Becca wouldn’t notice how this guy affected her. “Was that his name?”

  “Angel,” Becca admonished. “If you don’t think he was hot, I might as well call the morgue to come and collect your corpse.”

  “Stop being so over-dramatic.” Angel wrinkled her nose at her friend. “Yes, he sounded hot, but he could be a slug, for all I know. It’s like that joke Kyle used to make about those phone sex girls on the late night commercials. Remember?”

  Kyle was Angel’s boyfriend while they were attending Northwestern; a music major and a bad boy, complete with tattoos, a rock band, and a vintage Les Paul electric guitar that was his pride and joy. He was smoking hot, but even he hadn’t shaken her like this.

  “Sorry, no.”

  “He used to say that they were probably overweight trolls in hot pink, velour track suits, shoving bonbons into their mouths and reading Tolstoy while they pseudo-moaned with over-exaggerated pants into the phone.”

  They both chuckled. “Angel, if you’re trying to convince me that this Alex is anything but breathtaking, I won’t believe you.”

  “You always were the more delusional of the two of us. I keep my head on straight; less disappointment that way.”

  “Please don’t confuse delusion with optimism! What’s his story?”

  Angel could see that Becca’s curiosity would not be denied, and she sighed in defeat as she climbed off of the elliptical and used the towel hanging around her neck to wipe the perspiration off her brow.

  Out of habit, they walked into the room that housed the free weights next; usually they were the only women in there and surrounded by several men pumping iron. Angel found it funny how the men always stared at themselves in the mirror while they worked out. She didn’t particularly like all of the ogling they did either, but Becca insisted that if you got the form right, free weights worked the muscles harder in a shorter amount of reps. Angel was all for expediting.

  Becca nudged her shoulder when Angel didn’t answer right away. “Hello?”

  Angel shrugged. “I don’t know that much. His girlfriend called in complaining that he was gone all the time and she wanted more. I told her to toughen up and get it or get out. He called in a week later to tell me his side of the story.” Angel shrugged as she picked up a seven pound dumbbell in each hand.

  “Okay, 3 sets of 20 reps each arm, rest fifteen seconds in between.”

  “Jesus, Becca. I got it. I know the drill. You only need to be here to irritate me, not tell me the basics, all right?” Angel tried to transition the conversation away from Alex. Alex, whatever-his-name is, she mused.

  “What aren’t you telling me?” Becca asked and picked up a barbell to start lifting beside Angel.

  Angel shrugged. “I really don’t know much about him, other than he’s rich, and he wants his relationships all business.”

  “Mmmm, well if he fucks as good as he sounds, I’d want to get down to business and fast.”

  “Becca! You’ve got a one-track mind.” Angel smirked in helpless response to the humor. “He was a caller. Nothing more.” She hesitated, wondering if it was wise to say the next words. “Even if I was curious about him, he’s my boss’ best friend.”

  Becca was steadily pumping iron, her toned arms taking the weight easily. She stopped as her eyes widened. “Darian knows him?”

  Turning, Angel walked back to the weight rack and replaced the dumbbell where she’d found them, took a deep breath, and answered. “Yes. But that’s all I know.”

  “And you have no intention of finding out about this man? Are you dead?” Angel rolled her eyes while Becca helped place a barbell across her shoulders for the legwork.

  “He sounds sexy, sure. So what? It means nothing. If he’s attractive, no doubt he’s a heartbreaker. Those types of men are a dime a dozen. I don’t need to turn into one of the desperate women who call the show. I’m not going down that road.”

  Angel dropped down into a squat as Becca started counting them off with a frown settling on her face.

  “Maybe it’s a trip you should take, Angel. At least, check out the travel brochure. What could it hurt? Your wheels have to be getting a little rusty, girlfriend.”

  “Ugh! I told Darian last night that I wasn’t interested, so it’s really a moot point, Becca. Can we move on? I want to get this shit knocked out and go get my Jillybean.”

  Becca’s features softened at the mention of her daughter’s name, but she wasn’t distracted from the subject at hand. “Is Darian trying to set you up?”

  “Not exactly.” She grunted as she began another set of squats, the sweat starting to bead on her forehead and seep through her top on her back and under her breasts.

  “Oh, for God’s sake! Will you just come out with it?”

  “He called Darian’s phone and asked to speak with me after I cut him off. I said I wasn’t interested loud enough for him to hear me.” Angel rolled her eyes and kept up the squats without breaking her rhythm.

  “He called. He fucking called.” It was more of a statement than a question. “You didn’t even talk to him? He’s obviously interested. Aren’t you even the slightest bit curious? If his dick is anything like his voice… I mean, shit!”

  Angel burst out laughing. “Becca, take this, please. You’re incorrigible!”

  “And you’re insane!” Becca removed the bar from Angel’s shoulders and set it along the mirrored wall. As usual, there were a number of the men eyeing the two beautiful girls, one of them even moved closer, clearly interested in Angel. His eyes roamed over her small, well-toned frame in appreciation. Becca glanced his way and caught what he was about to do and waved a finger at him. He was tall, blonde, and muscular, but too meaty for Angel’s taste. “Oh, no, honey, this girl is a vegetarian. You’re wasting your time.”

  The man got a perplexed look on his face. “What? Are you two dykes or what?”

  Angel bit her lip, trying to keep the hysterical laughter at bay while Becca huffed in res
ponse, looking over the man in disgust, taking in the thickness of his legs, body, and especially the neck. Dude, we don’t like men whose neck circumference exceeds that of their skull, she thought and wished she could say it aloud.

  “Uh… no!” Becca’s blue eyes flashed to Angel and then back again. “Apparently, she has a new aversion to meat. If she’s not up for filet mignon, she’s not interested in ground round.”

  By now, Angel was shoving Becca back toward the cardio room again, both of them laughing uncontrollably.

  “Shut up, Becca! Oh, my God!”

  The man stood entranced, watching them move away from him. “Huh?”

  Another fit of laugher shook Angel’s shoulders, and she wiped at the tears leaking from her eyes.

  “Exactly!” Becca quipped to him over her shoulder as they disappeared through the locker room doors. “I know steroids shrink their balls, but I guess the brain goes, too.”

  “Stop, Becca. My sides hurt!” Angel threw out, and it was Becca’s turn to laugh. “Is it just their balls?”

  “No… you know teeny peens never were my fave! I mean, seriously, all that muscle except where it counts. Dumb asses.”

  “How much, um, research have you done on the subject?”

  “Enough! And Angel, you need to research that sexy voice.”

  “Yeah, yeah, okay. Running or stair-stepper today?”

  “Running. Three miles at intervals. Start with a jog.”

  Angel pushed the start button on the machine and began a slow jog while Becca joined her on the treadmill next to hers. “You could use a good bone. Maybe Mr. Velvet Voice can throw you one. Just sayin’, Angel.”

  Angel smiled again. “You’re the one who won’t let go of the bone. You’re like a rabid dog. Why don’t you concentrate on getting yourself a good man, and let me worry about me? Let’s run. Maybe if you’re out of breath, you can get off my ass about this guy. Do you want to meet him? I’ll ask Darian to set you up.”

  “He called you. You can’t tell me that doesn’t make your panties at least a little bit damp. What are you afraid of?”