Chapter 16

NASH

When Nash realized how late it was, he said goodbye to Charlotte and went searching for Angel.

Coming back into the hall, there were only a handful of people left, and he quickly located Abby and Eddie.

“Hey, have either of you seen Angel? I can’t find her anywhere.”

“She left about ten minutes ago. She seemed really upset.”

Nash felt his blood turn cold. “What? Why would she be upset? I was only away from her for a few minutes.”

Abby shrugged. “I asked her when I saw her coming from the back, but she wouldn’t tell me what was wrong.”

Nash drew his eyebrows together. “You saw her coming from the back?” He pinched the bridge of his nose. “Shit, she must have seen me with Charlotte and misunderstood what we were doing.”

Abby crossed her arms and gave Nash the death stare. “Just what ~were~ you doing with your ex that made Angel go running out of here in tears?”

“Did you see which way she went?” he said, half rushing off, half waiting for their answer.

Eddie shook his head. “Sorry, Nash.”

Nash grabbed his boots and coat from the coatroom. He saw Angel’s heels on the floor.

~She really did leave in a hurry.~

He picked them up before heading outside into the freezing night. Looking around from the raised steps, he tried to think where she might go.

~Abby is still here, so not to hers. The ranch is too far to walk to, and she probably wouldn’t go there or to my parents’ place anyway if she wanted to avoid me.~

Flashing caught his eye, and Nash found himself staring at the large Christmas tree in the distance.

~Of course.~

He hopped down the steps and ran in the direction of the park.

***

Nash found Angel sitting on a bench, her white coat changing from green to red to blue in time with the Christmas tree lights. She wasn’t crying but appeared forlorn and tired.

She was so lost in her thoughts that he was able to get all the way up to her and sit down before she was startled.

“Angel, what you saw back there isn’t what it looked like.”

She stared straight ahead. “You don’t owe me an explanation, Nash. But if there’s something going on between you and Charlotte, I think Mike has a right to know.”

“Nothing is going on between us.”

She cocked her head at him. “I saw you two in each other’s arms. Are you getting back with her? If so, I’ll find somewhere to stay.”

“Angel, I was consoling her. Charlotte and I didn’t work out romantically, but we are still friends.

“She and Mike had a big fight, and Charlotte was worried it was over between them. That’s why he wasn’t with her tonight.

“I was talking her into going home to sit down with Mike to try and work it out. They love each other so much.”

“Oh… But why all the secrecy? Why the back room?”

“When I saw her tonight, I could see she was barely keeping it together. I didn’t want her to feel embarrassed and upset, so I took her to the back so she could pour her heart out.”

Tears formed in Angel’s eyes. “Are you telling me the truth?”

Nash put his hand over hers. “I am. I love you, and there’s no way I would do anything to hurt you. Charlotte is a friend—we’ve known each other most of our lives—but I’m not in love with her.”

Angel studied his face before she winced and buried her head in her hands. “Oh, God, I feel like a fool. A jealous fool.”

Standing up, Nash took her hands and pulled her to her feet, then put his arms around her. “You’re not a fool. If I walked in on you in the arms of another man, I would have thought the same thing.”

“What would you have done? Run out too?”

Nash shook his head. “I would have taken him outside and beaten the living hell out of him.” He smirked. “It’s frowned upon to do that sort of thing inside the church.”

Angel chuckled and wiped her nose. “I’m sorry for jumping to conclusions. I should have asked you instead of running away. Without my memory, my identity, I feel so insecure. Can you forgive me?”

He rubbed his chin. “I don’t know.”

“Nash…?” Her bottom lip quivered.

Nash winked and smiled. “I suppose, if you were to kiss me, I might be able to forgive you. But it has to be the best kiss ever.”

Putting her hands on his face, Angel drew him closer, her lips going to his. Nash deepened the kiss, only for Angel to push her tongue into his mouth. When she moaned, the bulge inside his pants grew.

She pressed her body against him harder, pulling him closer, making his head spin and his heart pound. Feeling hot and bothered, they finally pulled back to take a breath.

“So, am I forgiven?” She ran her tongue along her teeth.

It took a moment for him to regain his composure. “Oh, yeah, you’re forgiven. But now, you have given me a hard-on, so I think we’d better go home so you can help me get rid of it.”

Angel giggled and fed her arm through his. He drew her in closer, carrying her heels in his other hand, and walked her back to the church and his truck.

They started the drive back to the ranch, though it took them a few minutes to realize he hadn’t turned the heating on. Though the night was cold, he felt warm next to her.

“It’s a beautiful night,” Angel said, looking out of the window at the full moon. “I feel so at home here. It’s like I’ve lived here all of my life. Does that sound crazy to you?”

“No, it’s not crazy. A lot of people feel that way at one time or another when they go somewhere that touches them in a special way.”

“What about when you meet someone and you get this weird feeling that you’ve met them before?”

Nash shrugged. “I think it’s our way of sensing if there’s a connection. Or maybe it happens when you meet someone you actually have met before, even if it was only briefly.”

“I feel like I know you somehow, Nash.” She places her hand over the top of his. “It feels like there’s something, I don’t know, more between us, no?”

He glanced at her. “It’s strange, but I feel the same way. Maybe we feel this way because we are meant to be together. Maybe it’s fate.”

She smiled. “Yes, maybe you’re right.”

After arriving back at the ranch, all Nash wanted to do was follow Angel inside as she headed for the bedroom, but Moe was desperate to go outside first.

When he came upstairs again, Angel was in the bathroom, the shirt she usually wore at night hanging over a chair.

“Don’t you need my shirt for bed?” he asked, calling out to her.

“No, not tonight.”

Nash followed the sound of her voice to see Angel standing in the bathroom doorway wearing a skimpy, sleek, body-hugging negligee, a teasing, sexy smile on her lips.

“So, what do you think, do you like it?”

His eyes grew wide, and he couldn’t help but feel like a pervert when dirty thoughts flooded his mind.

He imagined tearing it off her slender body and doing things to her that would make any decent person blush.

“It’s beautiful.” Nash gulped. “It really shows off what’s under it. Where did you get it?”

“It was with the clothes that Sherry gave me. It’s so soft and silky.” She ran her hands over the material. “Would you like to feel it?”

Nash sat on the bed. “I’d very much like to feel it. Come here.” He motioned for her to come forward by curling his index finger.

When Angel was close enough, he grabbed her hand and pulled her down onto the duvet before getting on top of her.

“I meant, do you want to feel the gown, not my legs,” she said when his hand moved up her body.

“Not to worry, I’ll feel it when I take it off you.”

ANGEL

After several orgasms and a deep sleep, Angel awoke in an empty room, the sunshine beams piercing the slats in the window and warming her bare skin.

Looking at the clock, she realized she had slept in. She reached for her gown, neatly folded on the nightstand, and found a note with it.

~You looked so beautiful, I didn’t want to wake you. I hope to see you wearing this when I come back inside from the cold barn; it will warm me up instantly, love Nash.~

Giggling, Angel slipped the gown on and headed downstairs to start breakfast.

Before long, the front door opened, blowing snow through the house, and she heard the gentle pitter-patter of Moe’s paws.

“I’m feeling hot already.”

Turning around, Angel smiled when she saw the lust in Nash’s eyes. “You look freezing.”

“I am, but I’m getting warmer by the second.”

She spied the bulge in his pants and clenched her thighs together. “Sit down, and I’ll pour you some coffee. That can warm you up instead.”

He crept toward her slowly. “I know something that will warm me up a whole lot quicker.”

She held her hands out in front of her, shaking her head. “Don’t you dare touch me with those cold hands of yours or you’ll be sleeping with Moe tonight.”

This earned a howl from the dog.

“That’s not going to happen,” he said and began chasing her around the table. “Stop running. You know I’m going to catch you sooner or later.”

“I know,” she said, laughing, “but by then, your hands will be warm.”

“Oh, shit! Something is burning,” he said, looking at the stove.

She turned to look, but there was nothing on the burner, and she realized too late that he’d tricked her when he grabbed her from behind, the cold in his fingers piercing the material of her nightie.

She let out a scream. “You monster!”

The next moment, his lips were on hers, and before she could say anything, Angel felt herself being lifted up into his arms and carried upstairs, where Nash laid her down on the bed.

After making love to her passionately, Nash rolled off Angel, pulling her close so that he could hold her in his arms. “So, are you still going to make me sleep with Moe?”

She ran her fingers over his bicep, her body still tingling from their lovemaking. “No, I’ll let you get away with it this time, but you won’t get off so easily if you do it again.”

Angel’s smile fell away. “We need to talk about something.”

“What’s that, baby?”

“Funny you should use that word. We’ve not been using any protection. Aren’t you worried I might get pregnant?”

“To be honest, I’ve not given it any thought, but if it were to happen, I wouldn’t be upset. If it bothers you, I can buy some condoms.”

“I don’t know how I feel about it. I mean, I love you, but we’re still so new. Plus, we still don’t know who I am, so won’t it complicate things if I were to become pregnant?”

Nash rolled her over onto her back and towered over her. “No matter what, I’ll be here for you. No one is going to come between us.

“As for you getting pregnant, I’d be very happy. I told you before that whatever we find out about your past, we’ll deal with it together. I love you. You’re my Christmas angel.”

“I love you too. Now kiss me, cowboy, and show me what you’ve got.”