Against All Odds - Angel's Story: Against All Odds (Destiny Series Book 4) (14 page)

I get a shock when I open it. I find a just as shocked, older version of my sweet-cheeks standing there. Fuck. It must be her mother. It has to be.

The colour drains from her face as she stands staring at me. “Hi,” I say, trying to ease the awkward situation. Shit, I should’ve woken Angel. I’m sure she wasn’t expecting to find a half-naked guy answering her daughter’s door first thing in the morning.

“H…hi,” she stammers, still a little unsure of what’s going on. “Is Angel home?”

“She’s still asleep. I’m Chase. Chase Daniels,” I answer, extending my hand to her. At first she looks down out my outstretched hand, before finally grabbing hold.

“Daniels,” she mumbles. I have no idea why. “I’m Brooke. Brooke Cavanagh. Angel’s mum.” When she lets go of my hand, she looks me up and down. I use this time to do the same. I can’t believe how much sweet-cheeks looks like her mum.

She’s a fucking babe.

“Come in,” I say, stepping aside. It feels weird inviting someone into a house that isn’t mine. She smiles, reaching down. That’s when I notice a small suitcase sitting at her feet. “Let me get that for you.”

“Oh, thank you,” she says, her smile growing. “I’m not interrupting anything am I? I wasn’t aware Angel had company.” I almost want to laugh at her question. I’m not sure what Angel has told her mum in regards to the attack, so I play it cool just in case.

“No. It was late last night, so I ended up crashing on the couch.” I notice her eyes move in that direction. Relief washes over her face when she sees the pillow and blankets laying there.

“Mum!” I hear Angel squeal from behind us. “What are you doing here?” I can tell by the tone of her voice she wasn’t expecting her visit.

“Baby,” she says, turning around. “After our phone call yesterday morning, I was worried. I needed to come see for myself that you were okay.” She closes the distance between them, pulling her into a loving embrace. “How are you?” she asks, gently stroking her hand down her daughter’s face. I watch in awe. My first thought is, she’s nothing like my bitch of a mother.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy sweet-cheeks has a mother who loves and cares for her, yet I can’t help but feel envious. I don’t know what it feels like to have a mother who cares.

I walk over to the coffee table and swoop up my shirt. It’s time for me to get going. After slipping it over my head, I turn to see them both watching me. “Thanks for letting me crash here last night, sw…” Shit. I almost called her sweet-cheeks in front of her mother.

“Aren’t you going to stay for breakfast?” she asks.

“No. I’ve gotta get going.”

“I’ll make you another omelette,” she offers with a hopeful smile. As much as I’d like to stay, her mum has come all this way to see her. They probably need some alone time.

“As tempting as that sounds, I really should be getting home. Pops will be wondering where I am.”

“Oh,” she says, sounding disappointed. My eyes move to Angel’s mother. She’s looking between us, a huge smile plastered on her face. I have no idea what that’s all about.

After grabbing my keys and wallet off the table, I walk towards Brooke. “It was nice to meet you Mrs. Cavanagh,” I say sincerely, extending my hand to her. She ignores it and pulls me into a hug. Of course I’m shocked, but I can’t stop the smile that spreads across my face. I can count on one hand how many times my mother held me.

“It was nice to meet you too,” she replies, smiling at me. I like her. I see where Angel gets her sweetness from.

Turning my attention to Angel, I say, “I’ll see you later okay.” I’m not sure when that will be. She won’t need me around as long as her mother is staying here with her.

“Why don’t you come back later this afternoon?” her mum offers. “You can have dinner with us tonight.” I look back at Angel, seeking confirmation. She’s smiling, so I guess she’s okay with it.

“Sure, that would be nice. Thank you.”

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Angel

“So who’s the hottie?” is the first thing my mum asks when Chase leaves. It makes me laugh, but it stops the second she asks her next question.

“Is he the guy you went on a date with the other night?” When my face drops and my eyes fill with tears, she reacts straight away. “Jesus,” she says, pulling me into her arms. All the emotions I’ve being trying so hard to hold in the past few days come rushing to the surface as I completely break down. “Oh, baby,” she says, as she leads me towards the lounge. “After our conversation the other morning, I just knew in my heart something wasn’t right. What’s going on?”

“I can’t tell you,” I answer as I wipe my eyes.

“Bullshit. If there’s something going on with you, I want to damn well know,” my mum says sternly. I don’t know what to do. My dad can’t find out about this, and I know my mum tells my dad everything. “Angel,” she snaps when I don’t answer her.

“Please, mum. I wish I could tell you, but I can’t.”

“Why? If something has happened with you, Angel, or to you, I want to bloody know.” My mum rarely gets angry, but when she does, she won’t back down. She’s as stubborn as hell.

“Daddy will freak if he finds out. He’ll probably make me move back home.”

“What? Why? Talk to me. What’s going on with you? Does it have anything to do with your date the other night, or is it something else?”

“My date,” I whisper, as tears fill my eyes.

“Was it with Chase?”

“No. His name is Riley.”

“Did he do something?” When I nod my head my mum’s face drops. “Oh, sweetie,” she says wrapping me in her arms.

She holds me and lets me cry. I know this isn’t the end of it though. She’s going to want the whole story, and I know she’s going to flip her lid when I tell her. My only hope is that daddy doesn’t find out.

••••

After she makes us a cup of tea, we go and sit outside on the deck and I tell her everything; from the time Riley picked me up, until the moment Chase brought me home.

She holds my hand the whole time, and when I’m done she stands and paces the deck a few times. She looks angry. “Have you reported it yet?” is the first thing she says.

“No.”

“Why the hell not?”

“Because I don’t want Chase to get in trouble, and I don’t want dad to find out. I love it here, mum. He’ll make me come home. I know it.”

“You can’t let this bastard get away with what he did to you, sweetie,” she says slightly calmer as she comes and sits beside me.

“He’s in a coma, mum.” When I say this, the colour drains from her face.

“I see,” she exhales. “From what Chase did?”

“Yes.”

“I see.” We both sit in silence. I think she understands now why I haven’t reported it.

But my heart sinks when she says, “I wish I could ask your father for advice.”

“No mum, please!” I beg.

“I don’t like keeping secrets from him, especially something like this. But you’re right. He’d have you on the first plane home. If you didn’t have Chase here to look after you, I’d probably be doing the same thing.”

“I’m sorry I’ve put you in this position. I know you and daddy tell each other everything.”

“Don’t be sorry, sweetie,” she says as she pulls me back into her loving embrace. “I’m glad you told me. I’m furious but also sorry this happened to you.”

••••

After our little talk this morning, what happened with Riley was only mentioned once more. She wanted to know if I had any physical evidence I could document, just in case it was needed in the future. I didn’t. All I had was my grass-stained clothes, grazed palms and knees.

She took photos of my injuries and bagged up the clothes, which were still sitting in the bin in my bathroom. “His DNA will be all over these,” was all she said. Living with a lawyer for all these years was rubbing off on her.

After she forced some breakfast into me, she made me shower and dress so we could go grocery shopping. She asked me a lot of questions about Chase and his family while we were out. I thought it was kind of weird, but I guess after what happened with Riley, she was just doing the overprotective motherly thing.

I bought all the ingredients for my seafood pasta, and mum got what she needed to make us dessert. She’s a fantastic cook, but dessert is definitely her speciality. If Chase thought my omelette was the bomb, he’s in for a treat when he tastes what we cook for him tonight.

I’m happy my mum invited him to dinner. I knew she’d love him. It’s my dad who worries me.

••••

Chase

I shower and dress for my dinner date. I’m surprised at how nervous I feel about tonight. I don’t do dinner dates, and I certainly don’t do parents, but fuck me if I’m not looking forward to tonight. I get to see Angel again, and hopefully a chance to know her mum a little better. I really like her. She’s the kind of mother you see in those shows on television, and the kind I always dreamed of having.

When I walk into the kitchen to retrieve the bottle of wine I put in the fridge earlier today, Pops says, “Where the fuck are you goin’ all dolled up? You smell like a fuckin’ chick with all that shit you’re wearin’.”

I ignore his smartarse remark. I know he’s just trying to get me to bite. “I’m going over to Angel’s house for dinner. Her mum’s in town.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, why?”

“Nothin’,” he says with a chuckle.

“What’s so funny?”

“You’ve really done your nuts over this one, haven’t ya, boy?” When I tell him to fuck off he just roars laughing. I haven’t done my nuts over her. It’s fucking dinner, nothing more.

“Don’t wait up,” I say with a wink as I walk past him, making my way to the door.

“Hey. When do I get to meet her?”

“Never,” I call out. I hear him laugh again as I close the front door.

••••

When I pull into her driveway, the nerves settle in again. What the fuck is wrong with me? I’m not usually the nervous type. “Fuck me,” I mumble to myself as I rub my hands over my face.

Angel’s beaming when she answers the door. Seeing her smile like this makes my nerves vanish immediately. I haven’t seen her smile so genuinely in months. As always, she takes my breath away.

“Hey,” I say, passing her the wine.

“Hey. Come in.” She moves to the side so I can enter. “Hope you’re hungry.”

The smell of whatever they’re cooking hits every one of my senses. “It smells delicious,” I say following her towards the kitchen. I swear I hear her mumble, “So do you,” but I’m not sure if it’s just wishful thinking on my part. My eyes drift down to her arse. Food is not the only thing I’m hungry for. I have to remind myself yet again,
we’re only friends.
As much as I’d like to, I won’t be taking a piece of that arse again.

“Mum, Chase is here,” Angel calls.

Brooke emerges from the kitchen, wiping her hands on the apron she’s wearing. “Hi sweetie,” she says as she walks towards me. Nobody has ever called me sweetie before. Coming from her, I like it. I’m taken aback when she wraps me in her arms again. This time she holds me longer and squeezes me tight. When she pulls back, she cups my face in her hands.

“Thank you for saving my daughter the other night. I’ll be forever indebted to you for what you did.” Even though her words surprise me, the sincerity I see in her eyes makes me smile.

What the fuck? She knows? My eyes drift to Angel. By her mum’s comments I’m presuming she told her what happened. She gives me a small unsure smile, mouthing ‘sorry’. She has nothing to be sorry about. “It was nothing,” is all I say. I’m at a loss for words. It’s nothing I wouldn’t do a thousand times over. I’d do anything for
my
sweet-cheeks.

“Sit,” Brooke says, gesturing towards the table. I notice it’s set all fancy and shit. It makes me wonder if they went to all this trouble just for me. I doubt it. They probably eat like this all the time. “You sit too, baby. I’ll get you both something to drink.”

“I need to stir the sauce and check the pasta,” Angel says to her mother.

“I’ll do that. You keep your guest company.” When Brooke winks at Angel, I notice a small blush light up her beautiful face. Fuck I love it when her cheeks flush pink like that.

••••

Dinner goes well, really well. Better than I thought it would. The ladies pampered me all night. I’m not used to that kind of treatment from females. Well in the bedroom, yes, but outside of it, not so much.

Angel was right. Her seafood pasta is to die for. Best food I’ve ever fucking tasted. Her mum’s dessert was right up there, too. It’s funny how normal you think your life is, until you see how other people live. Pops and I rarely sit down to eat like this. Sure we eat together, but most of our meals are eaten in front of the television.

The conversation flowed freely throughout dinner and into the night, but was mostly between Angel and I. Her mum just sat back smiling, watching us the whole time. I’d love to know what was going through her mind.

I’m surprised how much I like her, given my track record. How different my life would’ve been if I’d grown up with a mother like Brooke.

••••

Angel

Having Chase here tonight, with my mum, has been wonderful. It’s been just what I needed. My mum seems to really like him. He’s a hard person not to like. He’s charming, polite, funny, and down to earth.

When it was time for him to go, my mum hugged him again. I hope he’s okay with all the affection she’s been giving him. My mum’s just like that. She hugs everyone. Well, the people she cares about anyway.

“It was lovely to meet you,” she says. “I hope I get to see you again next time I’m in town. Or maybe Angel can bring you to Sydney.”

“Mum,” I squeal. “I’m sure he has better things to do than come home with me for a visit.” Chase looks over at me and chuckles.

“Nope,” he says to me with a smile, before turning his attention back to my mum. “I’d like that.” I’m sure he’s just being polite.

“Look after my girl for me. It’s hard having her so far away from us.” God, I could just die. As much as I have loved having him around, I bet he can’t wait to get back to his old life.

“I plan to do just that,” he answers winking at me, and my mum beams.

“Knowing she has you here looking out for her, eases my mind. Thank you, sweetie.” She reaches for Chase’s hand, giving it a squeeze. He smiles at her again. I hate how she’s putting pressure on him to look out for me.

“Mum, shouldn’t you go ring daddy or something?” I ask, trying to get her away before she embarrasses me further.

“Oh, of course. Goodnight Chase.”

“Goodnight. Thank you for dinner and your hospitality,” he answers. Thankfully mum just smiles this time, before leaving us alone.

“God. I’m so sorry about that,” I say when we step out onto the front porch.

“Don’t be. Your mum’s great. I really like her.”

“You do?”

“Uh huh. She’s sweet, just like you,” he says as his hand comes up, lightly brushing the side of my face. It sends shivers coursing through me. Is it wrong that I love him touching me?

We stand looking at each other. I’m suddenly feeling awkward and I don’t know what to say or do. Then he does something that I think shocks us both. He steps forward, cupping my face in his hands, before pressing his lips to mine. My hands come up and fist in his shirt as I pull him closer to me. He groans against my mouth.

The kiss, is just that. A simple kiss. Our lips joined together, nothing more, but it’s enough to send excitement coursing through my whole body, desire pooling deep inside me. How can he make me feel like this from one simple kiss? Especially after everything Riley did the other night.

It’s in that moment I realise Chase may be exactly what I need to help me forget. Can I really go there again though? Risking everything—possibly losing him, our friendship.