Total pages in book: 101
Estimated words: 93412 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 467(@200wpm)___ 374(@250wpm)___ 311(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 93412 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 467(@200wpm)___ 374(@250wpm)___ 311(@300wpm)
“I guess I’ll just live in the moment then,” he said, watching the homes outside.
Red Oak was a nice little town, with clean facades and maintained greenery, yet he’d never been here on his own. How was he to cope with real life once his new guardian was gone? He didn’t know how to pay his taxes or even where to buy his favorite toothpaste.
They’d passed the supermarket, closing in on the bus stop, but as they left behind the small cinema that only ever played one movie at a time, Abaddon leaned closer and whispered, “Look, a poster for Lucky You! I wanted to see that.”
Gabriel’s mind did a double take. “Huh? When? What? How can you know about this movie? You have romantic comedies in Hell?” he asked in a harsh voice.
Abaddon looked at him like a kid caught with its hand in the cookie jar. “I… I don’t know. The girl in the green bear costume looked fun.”
Fuck it. Life was short and Gabriel would only have so many days with Abaddon. “Wanna go see it?” he smiled, letting his gaze slide to the lips he couldn’t wait to kiss again.
Joy was back on Abaddon’s face, and he nodded as the bus came to a halt.
“I saw the time of the screening as we passed. We have an hour and a half to kill. How about we grab some dinner?” Abaddon asked, offering Gabriel his hand as he rose.
Gabriel smiled and pushed some hair off his face. “Like a date?”
The smile on Abaddon’s face couldn’t have been any more handsome. “Yeah,” he said and tugged Gabriel down the aisle, to not keep the driver waiting. He didn’t care that they were two men, or that people stared. It made Gabriel not give a damn either.
Even the rain couldn’t spoil Gabriel’s mood. The souls he’d helped take today belonged to the devil now, and he was glad of it, because Abaddon had finally shattered the distorted lens Gabriel had been seeing the world through. And now, for the first time in years, he could breathe freely too.
When the bus drove off, leaving them soaking on the pavement, he pointed out the diner shining at them with its neon from the other side of the road. “I know that place. Mrs. Knight took me there for a few of my birthdays.”
“I really feel like having the dirtiest sandwich and a mountain of fries,” Abaddon said with a grin before placing the stolen wallet against his lips to whisper, “Thank you, thank you Dr. Rogers!”
“Let’s go!” Gabriel laughed, only now realizing how hungry he was, and he ran across the street, uselessly covering his head from the rain with his arm.
A horn blared, and he lost his breath when bright lights shone straight at him, but a pair of arms wrapped themselves around Gabriel and yanked him back into the warmth that smelled of hot stones.
Gabriel’s heart rattled like a wild animal thrashing in its cage, and he squeezed Abaddon’s arms, barely comprehending that he could have just been killed by a passing car. It was as if Abaddon had pulled him back split seconds before the car honked. As if he knew what was about to happen.
He was the real deal.
Gabriel’s guardian angel.
With his heart in his throat, Gabriel rose to his toes and kissed his angel, no longer caring whether someone could see them or not. He might have almost died, but he’d never felt more alive.
7
ABADDON
“What do you mean you’ve never been on a date?” Abaddon asked, staring at Gabriel, who hid behind the menu and backed into the midnight blue seat of the booth.
For a small-town diner, The Cozy had a surprisingly intimate, classy look reminiscent of city bars attempting to emulate the atmosphere of the good times before modernity had destroyed everything, especially elegance. The walls were a dark green shade, and the seating—dark blue and brown. The golden clock was the single item Abaddon would have considered decorative, but all in all, the atmosphere evoked by the dark shades made the place a fantastic spot to take out your girl. Or your boy, for that matter.
Gabriel shrugged. “I don’t have a car, or money to ask someone out. And who would date me anyway?”
Abaddon chuckled. “I can give you at least one name,” he said and poked Gabriel’s foot. They were at a discreet table in the back, hidden from sight by a screen featuring artificial plants, so he had no qualms about expressing affection and enjoyed the way it lit up Gabriel’s cheeks.
Gabriel held back a smile, but it shone in his eyes. “But you have to care for me, since you’re my Guardian Angel and all that.”
“Oh, excuse me for having eyes and taste,” Abaddon responded, feigning indignation. “Last time I checked, I didn't give blowjobs to every guy I met.”