When Angels Fall (Fallen Angels) (43 page)

“Well, we’ll leave you to that. Again, it was a pleasure to meet you. Chloe, tell my nephew I want a dance with you tonight.” He placed his warm hand on hers, and then got up to leave.

“Well, well, well, look at you. All made up to look like your new friends. Are you having a good time with your rich friends?” There was a coldness to Shelly’s voice that suddenly scared her.

“The Allen’s are really nice people. They’ve been really good to me. I thought you would be happy because you don’t have to worry about me now.” Her voice was almost a whisper. She didn’t like the way they were looking at her.

Shelly drummed her long, red fingernails on the table as she looked at her.

“Do you know how important this deal is for Shelly?” Her father had gotten up from the table and walked towards her.

“No, I don’t think she does. This is a very important contract for me to get. It would open a lot of doors for me. Don’t screw this up for me. I would hate to have to make you break up with this boy. If I lose this deal, you will. Do you understand me?” Shelly warned her.

“No,” Chloe answered, not knowing where that came from. She was shaking, but from deep inside her the word escaped her lips.

“No, what?” Her father was standing next to her now.

“I won’t break up with him because you told me to. If this deal falls through, it is because of you. I have no influence over them. You’ve already taken away too much from me as it is. I won’t let you take him from me.” She felt empowered suddenly. She straightened her back and squared her shoulders.

“You are such a stupid girl. Boys like that are not going to keep you around. He comes from a good family, and you really have nothing. We have money; you have nothing. And sooner or later, he will realize that and you will be an afterthought,” she hissed at Chloe.

“You have no idea how good you have it right now, little girl. I could’ve left you out on the street.” Her father put his hand on her shoulder and squeezed. He’d never touched her before, not even after her mother had died and she had reached for him.

“You have done worse to hurt me. This is the most I have spoken to you in a year,” Chloe said, trying to hold back the tears that were ready to fall. The sudden empowerment she had was starting to fade and she had to fight to keep it together.

“You have a year left in my home. When you go way to college, I never want to see you again,” he said, dealing a crushing blow.

She couldn’t let him see what he had just done to her. Instead, she steadied her voice and looked at him, trying to give him the same icy stare he‘d given her. “That won’t be a problem. I‘ve been doing pretty good taking care of myself up until now. What’s the difference if I’m here or not?”

Shelly laughed at that. “You think it is so easy? Fine, then you’re cut off. Take care of yourself now. You can live in our house, but you support yourself. Maybe that will knock this holier than thou attitude out of you.”

Chloe got up. “It’s sad that you think you needed a second chance at being a father. Maybe you should have just given her the money and left it at that. You could have kept all the plans you made. And after she died, I would have been given to another family that would’ve cared whether I was all right or not. That’s something I will never understand about you. Why did you stay after she died? I would’ve been better off if you had walked away.” She wanted to try to cut him where it would hurt.

“I had no choice. Your mother made sure of that. If she’d listened to me, you would have just been a mistake we made one night and corrected three weeks later!” he shouted at her. His face was as crimson as Shelly’s dress.

“Do you see how badly you’ve upset your father? This is why we stay away from you. You’re a burden we‘ve gotten stuck with. When you get home, there are going to be some really big changes in your life, little girl.” Shelly went to stand next to her father and stared her down.

“Why don’t I just save you the trouble and leave now?” Her legs felt like they would fail her. She was shaking uncontrollably and hoped they didn’t notice.

“Why don’t you just finish the job you started with your wrists last year? You’re an ungrateful child. You have roof over your head and all we ask is that you be quiet. Now you’re acting out. I will put an end to this relationship if you continue to cause us problems,” her father stated.

She could tell by the look on his face he meant it. Chloe backed down. She was afraid he would make good on this threat.

Time seemed to stop. As the icy air chilled her, Chloe shivered. She’d run from the room and found the only door that was open that led outside. She wasn’t sure how long she‘d been standing there, staring off at the lake in the arctic air; she just knew she was numb.

She’d finally stood up to him a little, and in the same instance, he’d made his true feelings known. When she finished high school, she was dead to him. The hot tears rolled down her face and she wondered again why she wasn’t leaving. She looked up at the moon and thought about her mother, and wished like she always had that she was here. She felt Nick’s warm lips on her shoulder and his arms around her waist.

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“Chloe, come back to me.” Nick’s voice brought her back from the thoughts that filled her mind.

She smiled and wiped away the tears. She put her arms on his and he held her.

“Baby, you’re freezing.” He put his jacket around her and rubbed her arms to try to warm her up.

“You would’ve been so proud of me,” she said through the tears.

He rested his chin on her shoulder. “What did they say?”

“It doesn’t matter anymore. He’s done with me after I graduate. He even said that. Shelly thinks I should break up with you; that boys who come from a family like yours find out the truth about girls like me and drop me like a bad habit,” Chloe told him, hoping she was wrong.

“That’s crazy! What am I going to find out about you that I don’t already know?” He laughed a little. He’d been afraid they’d beat her down again, and now that he found her, he could see that whatever happened, they had pretty much gotten to her.

“That I have nothing. I’m nothing. I just exist. They’re cutting me off and making me fend for myself. Like this is something new. I just spent most of that money she gave your parents.” Chloe suddenly felt stupid.

“Hey, look at me.” He made her turn to face him.

 
She wiped away the tears quickly as he touched her cheek.

“You’re too beautiful to stand out here in the cold and cry like this. You’re not nothing; you are everything. Don’t let them tell you otherwise.”

“Why are you still here?” She smiled through her tears.

“Because you keep me around.” He laughed a little and hugged her.

“I’m freezing,” she confessed, shivering in his embrace.

“Yeah. Me, too. Let’s go find a warm room to have some fun in,” he suggested and took her hand.

As midnight approached, Nick took Chloe’s hand and led her out to the dance floor. He held her tight against him and she rested her head against his. She closed her eyes and let herself relax in his embrace.

“Chloe, stay with me. Baby, please don’t let them do this to you,” he whispered, hoping she would let go of whatever happened in that room go.

“I’m fine. I just can feel that icy stare every once in a while.” She looked into his eyes.

“There are just a couple of minutes left of this year, and I’m kinda glad. It really wasn’t that great for me until I met you.” He wanted to see her smile.

She ran her fingers down along his tie and then looked up at him. “Yeah, I know what you mean.”

“This next year is going to be so much better, Chloe. I promise.” He knew that as long as she was with him, it would be.

She smiled softly at him. “I know.”

The room started to get really loud.

 
Kevin and Mark, along with Claire, joined them.

“Let’s end this year on a good note,” Nick said with a smile.

She searched his eyes to see what he was suggesting.

 
He leaned in and kissed her until the clock hit midnight.

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Chloe put her hands to his face and kissed him, giving over to the warmth of his embrace and the safety he offered her without even realizing it.

“Happy New Year, baby.” He hugged her tightly.

In his embrace, she closed her eyes and wished that this would never end. That he would always love her like this and never want to let her go. Sometime after midnight, Chloe lost sight of her father and Shelly, and was glad to be done with them now.

When the night came to a close, they were taken back to the house. Everyone seemed to go their own separate ways.

Nick and Chloe walked up the steps, and then stopped at her door. When he put his arms around her waist, she laid her head on his shoulder. The sweet, tangy scent of his cologne filled her senses. She didn’t want this night to end, not just yet. She wanted to be alone with him, since every other time this week, something or someone interrupted them. She looked up at him and smiled a little.

“You look tired.” He kissed her nose.

Chloe ran her hand down his tie. She hated that he had to wear one for school, but this one wasn’t as bad as it lay against the black shirt he wore. “I’m not tired. I was just thinking,” she hesitated for a minute, not sure what to do. “If we keep the door open a crack, do you think we would get in trouble if you came into my room for a while?”

“I think tonight we’re safe if we shut the door. My parents have been drinking, so they will go right out until about noon tomorrow. Mark and Claire are going to the boat house.
 
Kevin said he was going to veg out in front of the TV.”

Chloe pulled away and smiled as she tilted her head. “I’m going to go and get changed. When you’re done, come see me.” Her hand drifted away from his chest as she went into her room.

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Nick all but rushed to get changed, and then went into the bathroom to brush his teeth. He knew that he really didn’t have too long, depending on how long Mark and Claire stayed at the boathouse, but he was hoping it would be awhile. He knew Kevin would pass out downstairs. Max was fast asleep with Collin, so he pretty much was home free for a little while. He brushed his hair really and checked to make sure it was okay. He hated how unruly the curls could be and really wanted to cut them all off one day, but he knew she liked them. He had to admit, when Chloe ran her fingers through his hair, it was kinda sexy.

He snuck out of his room, and then knocked softly on her door. “Chloe?” When she didn’t answer, he opened the door and went in.

 
She was coming out of the bathroom with a towel in her hand. She’d pulled her hair into a loose bun with the ends fanned out around the top of her head. She had washed off all the makeup and was back to the natural beauty he loved so much.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” She laughed as he shut and locked the door.

“I’m glad you washed all that crap off your face. I like it when you aren’t wearing any makeup.” He pulled her into his arms and kissed her.

“I don’t wear it that heavy. That’s why you don’t notice.” She laughed and pulled away from him to put the towel back in the bathroom. When she came back in, he was sitting on her bed. He reached for her and she seemed more than happy to be pulled into his arms.