Page 160 of Angel

Angel found me crumpled on the wood, his tight growl pulling me back to consciousness.

I opened my eyes to his face, lips pursed, eyes narrowed on me with concern.

‘I scarcely slept last night,’ I whispered, tears leaking down my cheeks. ‘The only time was when I was sitting up straight with my legs crossed in bed.’

Angel gathered me into his arms, his face set in a grim line as he took me back to my room and helped me dress.

Then he carried me out to his Defender and drove me to my doctor’s clinic for an urgent evaluation.

Inside the examination room, a nurse came in to manage what the doctor declared was severe dehydration.

She hooked my vein to a fluid drip and administered an IV dose of promethazine.

I sat back against the medical pillows, depressed and dejected until the midwife entered and checked the vitals on the monitor screen.

‘Does this get better?’ I asked her.

‘There is hope. At fifteen to sixteen weeks, the placenta takes over,’ she reassured me. ‘The hormones causing this intense nausea should subside then.’

On the advice of the nurse, Angel stopped at a store to stock up on green apples, citrus fruits, and mints.

He bought massive quantities of Pedialyte popsicles and electrolyte infusions.

At home, he added the infusions to ginger juice for me and served me popsicles along with frozen fruit bars he made himself.

Angel also threw together sandwiches, fresh garden salads, and diced vegetables that kept me hydrated when the fluids made me gag.

He kept a supply of oatmeal cereal bars and ginger biscuits beside my pillows.

Despite his care and the doctor-prescribed meds, my sickness intensified as the days dragged on.

The nausea remained debilitating.

Angel was amazing throughout the ordeal; he kept me going when I thought I wouldn’t make it through the second trimester.

Nothing was too difficult for him.

Each time I heaved, he was by my side.

He even smoothed warm oil over my distended stomach, using light strokes that relieved me.

He also took full charge of the dirty laundry and the grocery runs, and slowly my heart began to shift with his devotion.

In time, I realized how much he was extending himself to prove his devotion and loyalty.

My defensive walls began to crumble.

Maybe we had a real chance after all with the beautiful, maddening, chaotic odyssey of love.

ANGEL

I spent my days split between running my business affairs and caring for Roxy, which was fuckin’ righteous.

Her nausea wouldn’t let up, so I stepped up, tackling her care, the household duties, and cleaning to lift every ounce of stress off her shoulders.

One mid-morning, a knock sounded on the front door, breaking the quiet.

I went to the door, opening it to find Roxy’s mother in elegant heels, a tailored white Chanel suit, and a wide-brimmed hat.