Chapter 6: Chapter 6

ANGEL

Lying in bed, Angel couldn’t sleep, her mind always wandering back to Nash and how it felt when his hand was resting over hers. Just the thought of it made her heart race and her body become warm.

She imagined his handsome features, his muscular body, and the naughty things she wanted to do with it.

She wondered what it would be like to have his strong arms around her, and what it would feel like to have his lips on hers.

Turning on her side, she punched the pillow and swore quietly to herself.

~Stop thinking of him that way. He’s a stranger.~

Having enough, she got off the bed while it was still dark, went downstairs, and decided to start making breakfast. She was so focused on preparing the pancakes, she barely noticed the sun coming up.

Or Nash walking into the kitchen behind her.

“Oh, Nash! You scared me!” she said when she turned around.

“I’m sorry.” He held up his hands. “I was just on my way out with Moe to do some chores and I smelled the bacon cooking.”

His stomach began to growl, and Angel had to laugh.

Sitting down, he smiled at her when she handed him his plate. “You keep feeding me this way, and I’m going to get fat.”

“Then I guess you’ll have to work it off,” she said, smiling back at him.

~Oh, I can think of one way to work it off.~

~Dammit, Angel.~

She looked down, hoping to hide her blushes. And hoping he couldn’t read her thoughts.

She clears her throat before looking up again. “So, what exactly happens today?” Her eyes wandered to his chest, the buttons on his shirt only done up halfway.

“First, we go to the church. It has two ovens, so the men will be on one side of the kitchen making the chili, and the women will be on the other side to make the cookies and any other treats.

“When the food is ready, we’ll come home to rest and change. Later tonight, we’ll go back and decorate the tree in the park. You ladies will serve the food and drinks…”

He stopped on his way to the sink, turned, and showed her the grimace on his face. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to sound sexist. It’s just the way it’s always been done.”

“It sounds like fun,” she said, handing him her plate.

“You don’t have to help if you’d rather not.”

“Are you kidding me? Everyone has been so nice to me. Besides, I want to.”

She found his manly scent intoxicating as he stood close to her.

It had her wondering what kind of woman she was when all she could think about was ripping off his shirt and kissing those amazing muscles.

“But if you’re feeling really guilty, you can do the washing up while I go get myself ready.”

He laughed as she made her way out of the kitchen and rushed back upstairs before he could see her reddening ears and neck.

***

The church was already busy when they arrived. Among the crowd of strangers, Angel recognized Nash’s mom and dad and felt a small sense of relief when they came over.

“Glad you’re here, son,” Wade said, taking their coats. “We’ve made a start on the chili but have been waiting for you to add your secret ingredients.”

“Secret ingredients?” Angel turned to Nash. “And what would they be?”

With a big smile on his face, he touched her chin. “Sorry Angel, that’s for only me to know.” He then went over to where most of the men were gathered around a stove.

“He won’t even tell me, and I’m his mother. Come with me, dear. Some of the cookies have cooled off, and you can help decorate them.”

Angel followed Mildred over to the other side of the kitchen where Sherry and a couple of other women were setting out the different colored icing.

They all gave her a warm welcoming smile, and Sherry hugged her before admiring Angel’s choice of her daughter’s old clothes.

As she decorated the food, Angel listened to the women talking while the smells of freshly baked cookies and chili filled the kitchen.

She stopped to take it all in. The sense of community, the kindness, the support. She felt part of something here. Like she was part of a family.

Did she have a family somewhere else too? She had no idea. Not knowing was almost worse.

~I need to remember. You must remember, Angel.~

Without realizing it, she found herself looking at Nash. He had rolled up his sleeves and was giving the other men orders. Angel blushed and turned away when he caught her watching him.

“He is one gorgeous hunk of a man, isn’t he?” The young girl sitting beside her nodded at Nash.

Angel put her hand on her chest to compose herself before she shrugged. “I guess so.”

“My name’s Abby by the way. And you are the woman he rescued, yeah? I’ve been dying to meet you ever since I heard all about you. Is it true that you can’t remember anything?”

She shook Abby’s hand. “Hi, it’s nice to meet you. It’s true, I don’t even know my name. But the doctor says my memory will come back.”

Abby patted Angel’s back. “That must be hard for you.”

Her expression switched from one of sympathy to excitement. “But the important thing is you’re alive, and Nash saved you. He’s really a nice guy, such a gentleman.”

She glanced over at Nash. “I think he likes you, a lot.”

“I like him too. He’s very kind and he took me in when I had nowhere else to go.”

“No, he ~likes~ you. He keeps looking over here at you.”

Angel was lost for words, but thankfully, she hadn’t had to answer because Nash appeared next to her, interrupting them. He held a spoon in his hand with some chili in it.

“Try this and let me know what you think.” He lowered the spoon to her lips for her to take. “It needs to simmer for a few hours, but this will give you an idea of what it tastes like.”

“This is really good,” she said, but a second later, the spices kicked in, and she fanned her mouth with her hand. “Oh, that’s hot, so hot.”

He grinned. “I’m sorry, I should have warned you it would take a moment. The guys over there say it needs to be spicier, but if the lady thinks it’s hot enough, I’ll leave it as is.”

NASH

After sneaking a little more of his secret ingredient into the pot of chili, Nash looked up in time to notice Angel leaving with Abby toward the auditorium.

“She’s probably going down to watch the kids. Don’t worry, she’s not going to run away.”

“Dad, really? I wasn’t keeping an eye on her.”

“Yeah, yeah.” His father’s smile faded. “Son, be careful.”

“What?”

“I see the way you look at her, and the way she looks at you. You’re starting to have feelings for each other. I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

“You think she’ll hurt me?”

“Not intentionally. I like the girl, she’s pretty and sweet, and I think she has a kind heart. But you know nothing about her, who she is, or if she belongs to another man.

“One day, someone is going to find her, and she’ll leave.”

Nash wiped down the counter, more as a distraction from the fact he’d been avoiding the same thought. “She’s not wearing a ring.”

“There could be many reasons for that. Wait until we find out who she is before you get too close to her is all I’m saying. Maybe it would be better if she came to stay with your mother and me.”

“No, don’t worry. Nothing is going to happen between us.”

Wade put his hand on his son’s elbow. “All right, son, but if you change your mind, we’d love to have her.”

“I’m going to let her know that the guys and I are going to the park to finish the skating rink for tonight.”

Nash turned, putting his hands on his father’s shoulders. “I’m a big boy, I can take care of myself. I’ll see you later.”

When he found her by the auditorium, she was standing alone. He didn’t look around for Abby for long as he was too captivated by watching her. She was singing quietly under her breath.

He moved slowly toward her, trying not to make a sound so that he could hear her better. He felt a warm glow in his body.

~She has the voice of an angel.~

He moved up behind her, putting his hands on her shoulders, softly so as not to scare her. “You have a beautiful voice.”

Angel turned to face him with tears in her eyes. “I remember the Christmas songs and singing them, I just can’t remember where I was at the time.

“I know I love Christmas, the tree, lights, and music. If only I knew who I was and where I belonged. That would be the best Christmas present ever.”

He swallowed the lump in his throat, pushing down his feelings of guilt for hoping she wouldn’t remember. If she didn’t remember, she could stay here forever.

“I just came to let you know some of the guys and I have to go finish fixing up the ice rink for tonight.”

“Oh, all right.”

“Do you want to come, or will you be okay here until I come back?”

“I’ll be fine. I’m having fun with Abby.” She wiped her wet cheeks and smiled. “If you’re good, I’ll sneak a cookie or two for you.”

“I’d like that.”

“Not that you need any more.” She giggled. “We’ve been laughing at you coming over to sneak cookies all night.”

“What? I would never…” Nash rubbed the back of his neck. “You saw that?”