20. Caleb

TWENTY

Caleb

My brain had to be short-circuiting; I’d finally lost it, seven years into my life as an earth-bound angel. Because there was no way I was actually seeing Josie, here and now, after I humiliated her on her date. I’d followed their auras from afar, all the way back to her apartment, until it got too painful.

Even with my senses, I had to break it off when she pulled him in for a kiss.

And yet, instead of at home, having a post-date coffee with Ethan, she was… here?

“Josie? What do you mean? You had a date, and I already?—”

“Shh. It’s okay.”

“It’s not, and I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to embarrass you or ruin anything—I didn’t even mean to be there. My feet just… took me there. And then I thought I’d make sure he seemed like a safe guy. I was trying to leave when the stupid wasps got me.”

She bit her lip, trying to hold back a laugh.

“Yeah, yeah, really funny! I know how ridiculous it sounds, okay?” I threw my hands up in frustration, nearly losing my cell phone in the process. That dark pulse around my vision was tearing me up, but damned if I knew what to do about it.

She placed both hands on my chest and looked up into my eyes, and like silk sliding over stone, that demonic influence slid away to nothing. I was breathless at her complete sincerity when she said, “I forgive you.”

How did she do it? We weren’t meant to be , so how did she wipe away the stain on my soul with a single touch? It flew in the face of everything I knew, but I couldn’t push her away. I slid my hands up over hers to hold them in place. Her touch felt right.

Everything with her was right, easy.

But I didn’t deserve her forgiveness, not this time or the last time. Yet here I was, receiving it anyway. She patted me lightly and stepped back, squaring her shoulders as she turned to face the Showbox, where the streets had emptied as the show got started.

“Now, tell me about this couple,” she said again, prodding me lightly with her elbow when I didn’t answer right away.

“They’re inside, watching the show. Happy, based on their energy signatures. They both love this band. I can sense them talking to each other, and that’s already a step in the right direction after so many failed attempts.”

“So, what do we do now?”

“Nothing. We let them have a good night, and we check on them tomorrow.”

“Oh, okay.” She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “So, I walked all the way over here for nothing, huh?”

I looped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her a little bit closer to my side, against all my better judgment. “Can I buy you a slice of cake for your troubles? Giordano’s is only a block over, and they have your favorite.”

“Italian cream? Really?”

“Really.”

She nearly broke into a jog, tugging me along.

“It’s the other way,” I said with a laugh.

She changed directions without missing a beat, still tugging my hand. “What are you waiting for, Caleb? Let’s go, let’s go!”

The next morning, I was up before the sun, dressed in my nicest casual private-investigator clothes and standing outside Josie’s favorite coffee shop precisely fifteen minutes before the Bookish Cat opened. Which was how I was waiting for her with a smile on my face and her favorite latte precisely five minutes before opening, when she walked up. Her skin shone in the morning sun like a beacon. So much beauty afforded to the woman I couldn’t have; she truly put many of the female angels to shame. But the fact that I wasn’t allowed to love her didn’t mean I couldn’t love the sight of her. And damn, she took my breath away.

“Caleb! What are you doing here? Also, why are you so perky? I’m beat. We stayed out way too late last night.” She stopped, sniffing before pointing to the coffee. “Is that for me?”

“It is. And I didn’t hear any complaints last night when they brought you the second slice of cake.”

“Okay, one, it’s rude to complain when someone brings you cake. And two, shut up.” She took a sip and groaned, the sound sending all sorts of inappropriate thoughts racing through my head. Damn, I was jealous of the coffee sliding down her throat. “This is heaven. Thank you.” She smiled and opened the door, letting me in with her.

“I should be thanking you . Jonathan and Kim are both glowing with happiness this morning, which I think means their unplanned date went very, very well.”

“Excellent. So, do you have to meddle some more today, or?—”

“Josephine Ray! You have well and truly done it this time!”

The front door of the shop flew open with a bang, startling Josie so much she spilled her piping-hot coffee. Anger tore through me at the minor wound, and I didn’t even think before sending out a thread of power to snap the offending liquid from her skin, following it with a cooling rush of healing.

“Mr. Anderson! What’s the matter? You startled me!”

Her aura was turning prickly, but the overwhelming fear had me stepping between her and the angry landlord. Thankfully, he hadn’t noticed the coffee evaporating.

“ This is the matter. It’s not enough that you’ve filled my property with scurrilous, allergenic felines, no! You’ve got to go and bring the tax man down on me? No! This will not stand!” He was angrily waving a sheaf of papers in the air, too quickly for me to read them.

I reached out and plucked the papers from his hands, and Josie snatched them from me just as quickly.

“I don’t understand, Mr. Anderson. How could I have brought you trouble with the tax man—my business only just started, and I always file on time. This doesn’t make any sense.” Her hands shook as she read, and I found myself glaring at Anderson, running through all the ways I could kick him to the curb without breaking any of my angelic vows .

Taxes weren’t something I was familiar with, given I didn’t technically exist according to the US government, and had never filed any. They weren’t equipped to deal with angelic immigrants, so it was just best for everyone that way.

“Oh, it’s not your sales taxes ,” he spat. “Apparently, you’ve been importing foreign goods to sell on my property without filing any of the proper paperwork or paying the business and occupational taxes for an importer!”

His entire face was red, his aura boiling with rage, and was that… desolation? I sent the suggestion that he calm down, and the man rocked back on his heels, eyes falling briefly to half-mast before springing back up. Apparently, it was stronger than my usual subtle intentions.

Tone it down, Caleb. This is not life or death.

I sucked a breath in through my nose, not letting myself do anything else but be a staunch presence by Josie’s side. But the color was steadily draining out of her cheeks as she read further down the paper, so whatever the issue, it had to be legitimate. That was a hard blow for my rule-following girl, but everything was fixable. I’d help her sort it out and make things right.

Something about the man’s aura was niggling at me. This was more than just a tax problem. It had to be.

“You don’t even deny it. Well, know this—you’ll be hearing from me again, and soon. I’m not going to allow this kind of reckless flaunting of the law on my property, I can promise you that!” He sneezed, turning for the door.

“Mr. Anderson, please! Give me a few days to sort this out. I didn’t know these taxes existed , let alone that I could get you into trouble as the property owner. But now that I do, I’ll have everything filed and paid up immediately. Please!”

He sneezed again as he snatched the door open, not giving her a backward glance. “I’ve had about enough of you and your lawlessness for one day, Ms. Ray. This is not over.”

The door slammed behind him so hard it sent several bookshelves rattling. Josie sank heavily against the counter, shaking like a leaf.

“I’ve really fucked up this time, Caleb. What am I going to do? I don’t know how to file all this stuff! He already hates the cats. What if he uses this as a way to evict me? I can’t afford to lose my deposit and re-open in a new location, not without the shop’s income. I used every penny I had to get this place up and running as it is.”

Tears lined her lower lids, and I leapt into action, rubbing her arms lightly with my hands to distract her as I spoke. “No. That’s not going to happen, okay? There are rules, laws, about tenancy rights, aren’t there? You just have to figure this tax situation out. I’ve got a plan for him and the cats, and I’m already working on it. Don’t worry about them.”

As if talking about them made them magically appear, all three cats were suddenly purring and rubbing against Josie. Gatsby and Matilda were on the floor, keeping her ankles warm, and Heathcliff on top of the counter, rubbing his cheeks against her shoulder.

Good cats. I thought the praise, but the black one turned and made eye contact with me as if he’d heard it, a flash of magic in his eyes giving me a second of pause. But I quickly snapped out of it; Josie needed me, and I was not going to let her down.

“I’m going to follow him, see if I can move my plan ahead sooner. You stay here and read up on the taxes. We’re going to fix this; I promise.” I squeezed her shoulders and planted a reassuring kiss on her forehead, but she barely responded. Shock was rolling over her, tangling with the fear in a toxic combo .

I pushed a—very, very gentle—wave of calm at her, hoping it helped her settle enough to focus on the problem. After my last time using my angelic powers to calm her, I was terrified it wouldn’t work, but the power leapt at my command, clearly fine with soothing her, just not dampening her libido. Relief surged through me as her aura filled with a lighter blue, a sense of peace taking hold of her.

“Okay, you’re right. Yes. I need to look up these… B & O taxes and see how to file the paperwork.”

She was still wobbly, but she was moving forward, and I could see the determination in her eyes, trying to win out over the trepidation as she stepped around the counter to start up her tablet.

“We’ll work this out. I can sense Barb down the street. She’s on her way here, so you’ll have company. I’ll be back as soon as I can, okay?”

“Okay,” she said, her voice small as I raced out the door to catch up to the landlord. I hated to leave her when she was upset, but I needed as much time as possible to figure out what was going on with him, to see if I could fix this.

Josie losing the Bookish Cat was not going to happen, not as long as I was around.