Fall from Grace (Book 2: An Angelblood Novel) (16 page)

The girls were tired from shopping all day, so they
decided on pizza for dinner.
They could tell Aura was still
upset with Aidan, but no one dared mention it; not even Rita.
Will asked Rita to take a walk with him and she reluctantly
agreed.

“Do you want us to join you?” Joshua asked.
“Not this time. I’m sure Jessica would prefer you
stay here and help Aura set up for dinner,” Will replied.

“It’s only pizza. How much setup do we need?”
Jessica laughed. But when she saw Will’s face she knew he
wanted to be alone with Rita.

Will helped Rita put her coat on and walked with
her towards the park.
It was cold outside, but not brittle.
She remained quiet the entire time they were together today.
Will had to explain his behavior if he had any hope of Rita
forgiving him.

“I wanted to apologize to you. I had no right to be
so angry,” Will said.

 

“There’s no need to apologize. I understand
completely,” Rita said.

“You don’t understand at all. You didn’t know my
family.
They were good honest people and they suffered a
fate they didn’t deserve. I know it was those creatures that
killed them. I would’ve been home too, but Joshua and I
were
out
with
Natalie
and
Renatta
when
the
attack
happened.

“You used to date Natalie?”

“No, of course not, but Meredith insisted we spend
time together, because Renatta was going to marry Richard.
I had a fight with my brother earlier in the day and I was still
angry when I left.
I never had the chance to tell him I was
sorry.”

“What did you fight about?”

“Natalie. Arian thought Meredith was trying to
force me into a relationship with her and my brother warned
me to stay away.
Meredith was trying to secure her future
because
my
family
was
worth
a
substantial
amount
of
money.
I told Arian he had nothing to worry about, but he
didn’t believe me. I lost my temper and walked out of the
house, slamming the door behind me.”

“
It was the last time I saw him. My parents were so
mangled when we found them, I could barely identify them.
I looked everywhere for my brother, but he was gone. I was
scared when I found out you and Jessica went after those
creatures by yourself.”

“Jess and I can call for angel
-fire. It doesn’t mean
you’re not a powerful angel-blood. If you had access to our
weapons, you would have done the same thing.
We were
thinking about you and Joshua when we went after them,”
she said. “After I saw the vision showing us where they
were, we had to go after them. I knew my grandfather’s
shield would protect us.”

“I wasn’t thinking about that. I’ve lost everyone I
cared about in this life except Joshua and I didn’t want to
lose you too. I love you Rita.” He chuckled.“I guess I’ve
loved you since the first day we met.”
She smiled.“I think I love you too.”

“You think?” Will laughed. “What’s not to love?”
He took his hands and wrapped them around her face. As he
pulled her closer he looked deep into her eyes before kissing
her.
It was a gentle kiss, but a memorable one, because it
was Rita’s first kiss.

She smiled as he took her hand. “I know we haven’t
known each other long, but I can’t imagine spending my life
with anyone else.
Would you mind if I put a ring on your
finger, to show you how committed I am to you?”

Rita held both her hands out and laughed.“I won’t
stop you if your mind is made up.”

 

“Did you see the creatures on your own or was Aura
sending you one of her visions?”

“At first I thought it was Aura, but then I was able to
show Jess.
We knew the rings would help, but the vision
was so clear,eventually we decided it was mine.”

“So you’re a seer too,” Will laughed. “Your gift
could come in handy; especially in a fight.”

“I have to admit I never believed I had the sight. I’ll
never be like Aura, but Jess thinks the power will become
stronger each time I use it.”

“I’m glad you have so many gifts. No one is more
deserving than you. I’m afraid I don’t have any gifts of
value,” Will laughed.

“You have me,” Rita assured him.

He kissed her again.
“I hope this gift lasts forever.”
“I’m sure of it,” Rita smiled.

“What are we doing hanging around out here? It’s
freezing.” Will wrapped his arms around her.

When Rita looked up at the tree she saw a change.
“Look Will,” she pointed to one of the branches. It was her
name andentwined around it was Will’s name. If the tree
joined them together, Rita knew it would last forever.
They
stood there staring at the tree for a few minutes before
walking back to the house.

“I need to speak to your parents when we get back,”
Will said.

“Are you afraid?”
“Not at all; I’m looking forward to it.”
“I knew you were a brave man.”

When Rita and Will returned to the house he asked
hers parentsif he could speak to them privately. “We can go
into the library,” Eve smiled.

“Do you want me to
go with you?” Rita asked.
“I can handle this.”

As they entered the library, Paul asked Will to sit
down. “No thanks, I think I’ll stand.”

“What’s this about Will?”
“I’d like to marry your daughter.”
“Which one?” Paul asked.

Will had a look of confusion on his face until Eve
said, “He’s teasing you.”

Paul smiled.
“Is Rita accepting of your offer?”
“She said she would accept my ring.”
“I know a wonderful jeweler,” Eve said.

“Actually, I was planning to give her my mother’s
ring.”

 

“I think that would be lovely.”
“Have you given any thought to the date?” Paul
asked.

“I
know that Jasmine and Tristan are getting married
on New Year’s Eve. I thought we could get married on the
sixth of January. It’s my mother’s birthday. If that’s alright
with you,” he added. “I know it’s only nine days away, but
with everything else happening, I don’t want to wait.”

“
Nine daysis more than enough time. I’m sure
you’ll have a beautiful wedding,” Eve said, as she wrapped
her arm through Will’s.

“I guess we should tell everyone else.”

 

“I’m sure they’ll all be happy for you,” Paul assured
him.

As they left the library, Will went up to his room to
get Rita’s ring. He hoped she would like it. It was a
beautiful platinum ring with a large heart shaped diamond in
its center.
His father had the ring made for his mother.
It
was found on her hand when she died.

Arthur removed the ring and gave it to Will. “I know
your mother would want you to have this.” Will accepted
the ring graciously. He didn’t know if Arian would have
wanted it, but at the time he wasn’t even sure his brother was
alive.

When Will returned, he asked Rita to sit down.
Bren and Alannah saw the conversation he had with her
parents and informed Tracy.
Will got down on one knee.
He held her hand.“I never dreamed I would find someone as
beautiful or as wonderful as you. I couldn’t imagine
spending my life with anyone else.
You are the light that
lives inside me; each day growing brighter.
Rita Quinn
Allheart would you please do me the honor of becoming my
wife?”

A smile crossed Rita’s face.“Nothing would give
me greater pleasure.”

Will reached into his pocket and pulled out the ring,
placing it on her left hand. “This belonged to my mother.
She was a kind and beautiful lady and I know she would
want me to give it to you.” Rita stared at the ring for a
second and they could see the tears falling gently down her
cheeks. She was too overwhelmed to speak.

“If you don’t like it, I can get you another ring.”
“No
- it’s perfect,” Rita said between sobs. “I
wouldn’t want any ring but this one.” She then leaned
forward and gave Will a soft kiss that made the entire room
applaud.

“Have you set a date?” Jessica asked.
“We were thinking about the sixth of January if
that’s Ok.”

“That’s only
nine days.That’ll work,” Bren said.
“We don’t want him to change his mind.” Everyone
laughed, including Rita.

“We have to find a new dress. I think we should go
shopping in New York again. What colors are you using?”
Bren asked. “We can have a party to celebrate after church
tomorrow.

She
looked
at
Aura. “You can put something
together by then; you’ll have more than a week.” Bren then
took Alannah and Tracy to gather some magazines so they
could choose their dresses.

“She should wear som
ething with green in it to
match her eyes,” Alannah said. They quickly turned the
pages looking for a white wedding dress with green trim.
When they were sure they found the perfect dress they
showed it to Rita and Jessica.
Bren winked at Alannah.
Theydidn’t say anything, but the girls knew Joshua would
be proposing to Jessica today too.

“I want to say thank you; to all of you. When I lost
my family a couple of months ago, I thought I would only
have Joshua to help me get over my loss. I was so wrong. I
have come to regard each of you as family and I’m more
grateful for that then anything else. I hope I won’t
disappoint any of you,” Will said genuinely.

“There’s little chance of that happening,” Eve
assured him.

 

“Welcome to the family,” Papa said,
vigorously
shaking Will’s hand.

Jessica ran over to look at Rita’s ring. She couldn’t
help feeling a little jealous, but she was ecstatic at the same
time. Joshua had a grin from ear to ear.“I’m your best man
right?”

“You’ll always be my best man.”

“Excuse me for a minute.”
own
room.
He bought
the
ring
couldn’t find the courage to ask her. After Ella and Jasper’s
death, he wasn’t sure it was the right time to ask her to
marry him.
But since Will asked Rita, he knew the timing
couldn’t be better.
Joshua left to go to his
before
Christmas,
but

When he returned, he asked Jessica to take a seat.
Like Will, he got down on one knee. “I want you to know,
I’ve been holding on to this for a while now. “Jessica Dunn,
I swear no one will ever love you more than I do. He placed
the ring on her left hand.“Will you marry me?”

Jessica was overwhelmed with joy.
She looked at
Joshua and whispered, “I’d love to be your wife.” Like Rita
she had tears falling down her cheeks. “Do you think we
could get married onthe same day as Will and Rita?”

“I was hoping you would say that,” Joshua smiled.

“We’re saving you all kinds of money Papa,” Bren
said. “We’re having a two for one special,” she giggled.
The rest of the family joined her.

“Does that mean we get to shop for two dresses?”
Alannah asked.

 

Aura smiled at her daughter.“Of course we can.”
“What color do you want to wear Jessica?” Tracy
asked.

 

“It has to be something that goes with green,” Bren
insisted.

 

Rita and Jessica both started laughing. “We won’t
have to do any of the planning.”

“
Bluegoes with green,” Alannah said.
“You’re right,” Bren said. The girls started sifting
through the books trying to find a white dress with blue trim.
Aura was sure they would be occupied for hours.

Jessica’s ring was
almost identical to the ring Will
gave Rita.“Where did you find it?” she asked Joshua. He
looked at Eve who was smiling.“I had a little help.”

Eve and Angie took the other wives into the dining
room to discuss the wedding plans.
They had already made
plans for Tristan and Jasmines wedding.
Now they would
have two more receptions to plan in less than nine days.

Though Aura was still upset with Aidan, she didn’t
want anything to dampen the mood, so she agreed to speak
with him privately in the library.

“Aura I am sorrier than you know for not returning
home last night. You misunderstand my intentions.

“I doubt I misunderstood anything Aidan. You’re
my guardian. I expect nothing more. I appreciate honesty
over anything else.”

“But you’re angry with me.
I thought you would
understand how important friendship is.”

“Why do you feel like you owe me an explanation?
I suspected when you left yesterday morning you would be
searching for Jeziel. You haven’t been right since the fire.”

“Jeziel and I have k
nown each other a long time.
After the Great War, many were distrustful of her.
She was
only a child, no older than Willow.
I befriended her so she
would never feel alone. Would you not do the same for your
friends?”

“Of course I would, but there is a
vast difference
between my friends and yours.
I sympathize with her; I do.
But I can’t fathom why she wouldn’t meet with the Council
and put this whole matter to rest if she were innocent.”

“She’s frightened and fears retribution from the
Guild. Leaving your charge is a serious offense.”

“I understand what you’re saying, but that’s all the
more reason she should tell her side of the story. She’s had
ample opportunity to come to us for help. You’ve been here
for over a month; perhaps you share the samedistrust.”

“Nothing could be further from the truth. I regard
all of you as family.”

“I know a great many truths, but Jeziel is a mystery
to me. I don’t know her as you do, but surely she should
trust my father.
They share the same blood.
You say that
she was afraid of retribution from the Guild.
If she was
trying
to
discourage
Samhael from
contacting her,
why
didn’t she tell them about his visits? I know of three
separate occasions when she was in his company.”

“I can’t explain why she didn’t tell
your father about
meeting with Samhael.
Perhaps it was the same reason that
she feared she was in trouble for not being there when the
fire started. Shouldn’t she be given the same opportunity as
the others you welcome to your home?”

“When have I not tre
ated her with respect?
Did I
not try to include her in all the family’s celebrations?
Perhaps you should remember it was she who shunned us
after getting close to Natalie.
That was her decision, not
ours,” Aura was starting to feel the heat rising in her cheeks.