💫GISELLE💫

"Mmmm." A groan in the night sounded off. "ugh!" Angel was getting up when I finally opened my eyes.

"Angel?"

"Where are we?" Angel tried to stand. "Aah! What the—" Immediately, gravity pulled him back down onto the couch.

"Hey. No. Sit down. I'll get you some water." I was up faster than he could counter my offer. By the time Angel tried to decline, I was already in the kitchen getting two bottles from the fridge. On my way back into the living room, I caught Angel trying to get up again. This time I caught him before he fell back down. "God! You're heavy. Here, sit down."

I sat down on the couch first, pulling him down onto my lap so that his head rested on the pillow beside me and all of his upper body on me. He moaned a little from the pain he was in, causing me to massage his shoulders in an attempt to comfort him. As he grew calm and still, I slowed down the motion of my hands and simply rubbed his shoulders, chest, back, and head.

"Sorry." He huffed.

"Drink some water. You were on fentanyl, and you haven't had anything to drink since.

"What? You gave me drugs?"

"We had to, Angel." I ran my fingers through his hair.

"So, I'm no longer 'sober'?" Out of all the times to crack a joke, he chose this moment?

"I'm sorry but you were in a lot of pain. Your collar bone was dislocated and your thumb. Not to mention your ribs are bruised. Sevyn and I had to give you eleven stitches." I winced. "Eleven, Angel." Pausing for a moment, hoping he understood the severity of the situation, I continued once he nodded. "Look, I had a doctor friend come by. She checked you out and got you all fixed up. You're going to be ok."

"How much do I owe you?" He laughed, then retracted the glow from his terribly timed sense of humor. "Trust me, I know."

"Really? Because for the past few hours you've been out of it. I was afraid."

"Aww, little Miss Sunshine cares about me?"

"Yes." I knew he was joking or being sarcastic, but I wasn't afraid to let him know he was right. I did care. "As a matter of fact, I do. And I'm worried."

His expression changed from playful to serious again. "I'm okay. This is nothing compared to what I've been through."

"You don't look okay to me, Angel. You were beaten badly. There was blood everywhere. Your bruises and bones and—"

"Hey." He sang a sweet song that comforted my soul. "Giselle, baby. I'm good. I promise." Smiling as he wiped a bead of sweat from my forehead, Angel pulled me closer to him.

"Baby?" My heart was in my throat, causing me to choke on the word.

"Yeah. Isn't that what you called me in the car?" His smile widened.

Raising my head to hide the shame, I laughed a little. After taking a few deep breaths, I lowered my eyes back towards him. "I didn't mean—"

"It's ok. First you kiss me, beg me to take you home, then you call me baby? Oh, and you care about me. Can't forget that part"

"Not like that, Angel. Don't be so full of yourself." Lines formed on my forehead as my brows closed in tighter and tighter. "Forget it." I began to stand, pushing Angel from my lap. Once he was sitting up, I attempted to stand to my feet.

"Ok. I get it. I'm sorry." Angel pulled me back onto the couch. He groaned quietly as his smile faded. "Tell daddy all about it." And just like that, he was joking again.

Without thinking, I shoved my hands into his chest.

"Sheesh!" Angel threw his head back into the coach, clenching his jaw to mask the pain.

"Oh my goodness. I'm so sorry."

"I'm alright. He groaned. "Here I took you for a gentle human."

"Ha ha. I am gentle. As gentle as they come."

"Wish I could say the same." Angel threw his hands behind his head, slouching deeper into the couch.

"I like you the way you are."

"You keep throwing hints and I can't help but wonder—" Leaning forward, he placed his hands behind my legs, pulling me towards him until I was straddling him. Then he pulled me closer to him, so that I was sitting directly on his lap.

"Wonder what?" Feeling nervous, I felt my heart rate increase. I had never been this close to anyone other than Aaron, sitting on his lap the way I was. To be honest, even as intimate as Aaron and I were, he didn't touch me the way Angel did or make me feel anywhere near the way he did.

"Are you feeling me? I never took you for a girl who'd be attracted to a guy like me."

"What's a guy like you?"

"Tattoos, small town kid, bad news."

"You're not bad news. We've had this talk before. I see you didn't learn anything."

"I mean...you've got this slow ass music playing, setting the mood. You're up all hours of the night, nursing on me because I got into a fight. You're sitting on my lap, a few inches from my face—"

"You're not bad news." Trying to revert back to the other topic.

"Ok. Let's say I'm not. Answer the question."

"Question?" Nervous, my body became jittery like the inside of a beanbag. I consciously controlled each breath I took, praying it didn't breathe too quickly or too slowly. In response to this sexy, tatted, confident man, my body grew tense but calm. It was like I was exactly where I was supposed to be, but afraid of the truth behind it.

"Breathe, Giselle. I'm not going to bite you." Angel chuckled, shaking his head. "Why are you so tense?"

"I don't know."

"Where's the girl that kissed me that night?"

"She's sober." I said matter-of-factly.

"So, you only want to kiss me and go home with me when you're drunk?"

"I only did that because—"

"Because you're pledging and your little head b in charge told you to?"

"What?" Angel caught me completely off guard. How'd he figure out all of that?

"I pay attention." As if he heard my thoughts.

"To me?"

"To everything."

"You want to play this game? You want to make me squirm? Well, I can play it too." I smirked. "You pay attention to me. You don't smile, but you smile for me. You don't care about much, but you're starting to care about me." Tapping my finger on my chin and rolling my eyes upward, I pretended to think on it. "Do you like me, Angel?" I turned on my charm, rubbing my hands up his chest until they wrapped around his shoulders. Locking my eyes on his, I smiled mischievously. "Do you want me?" I whispered. There was something about this careless bad boy that brought out another side of me. A confident me. A version of myself that I had no idea existed and probably would never know had it not been for meeting him.

Angel gripped my waistline with his bruised hands. I immediately took a deep breath, feeling an electric wave run through my body. Surging lustful desires through every muscle in my body, he continued to turn me on. With a roughness only he could make sexy, he pulled me closer to him, forcing out an unwilful moan.

"You want me?" he countered.

Of course, I wanted him. I wanted him since the day I laid eyes on him, sitting in that dark corner, hiding behind that dark hair and those dark eyes. Drenched in sorrow and buried in pain, trying to blend in with the shadows that life cast on him. I had wanted him since the first time I laid eyes on him. How do you tell someone that? Because, despite having a boyfriend that I'd loved for so many years, I got a feeling from being in his presence and under his spell, that I'd never felt before. I wanted him.

Without further hesitation, I leaned into Angel and planted a kiss on his soft lips. He didn't kiss me back, but he also didn't stop me. I tried again, pressing my lips into his. He pressed back the second time, tightening his grip on me. Parting my lips, I whispered, "I want you". Angel's kiss grew more intense as he shoved his tongue into my mouth and pressed his pelvis up against me. Every thrust of his hip, I countered with grind of my own. He hissed into my mouth as I moaned into his, tugging on his shirt and rubbing on his body. If I was expecting him to get gentler, that wish was denied. The way Angel clutched my hair and squeezed my ass told me the story of a man sick with desire and hungry for sex. I stopped, pulling my head back far enough to gaze into his eyes for confirmation. Was I making this up in my head or was he really sitting beneath me, waiting for me to make my move? Once I knew the answer to my risky question, I began taking his shirt off, trying to be careful not to hurt him more than he was already hurt. He wasn't as careful, ripping my blouse right off my body, exposing my breast and immediately putting them into his mouth. I threw my head back, weakened by the pleasure his mouth provided. A wave of goosebumps spread over my body as his hands traveled freely and he continued to lick, suck, and nibble the life right out of me. My mind wandered to how I'd never felt a feeling like this before. How had I made it this far and beyond time and time again, but had never been electrified with pure desire? Was I supposed to be with Angel? Or was the right place for me to be, in the arms of Aaron?

"You guys should probably get a room." Loki burst into the kitchen, turning on the light.

"Loki!" I screamed, covering myself.

"Jesus, dude. Seriously?" Angel covered me with the shirt I'd taken off him.

"Oh, you expose V in front of a hundred people, but you cover up blondie in front of little ole me? Yeah, y'all are in love." He laughed as he pulled a drink from the fridge, turned the light back off, and left the kitchen.

I turned to look at Angel, who was already looking at me. I could tell the mood was blown, so I took his shirt and pulled it over my head. As I attempted to get up from his lap, he pulled me back down.

"What?"

"Just because he ruined our moment doesn't mean I want you to get up."

"What do you want?"

"You."

"Me?"

"Don't get me wrong, I'd love to screw your little brains out, but I really just want you."

"Okay?"

"Okay, so stay." Angel wrapped his arms around me and pulled me onto his chest. Laying there in the dark, he held me, and I held him. His breathing was calm and steady. I mimicked it. Before I knew it, I was fast asleep.

THE NEXT DAY, WAKING UP in Angel's arms felt like a dream. The sun peeped through the curtains a little after six in the morning. Struggling to open my eyes, I didn't want to move. I didn't want to leave his side, but I also didn't want to wake him. Starting with each hand, I pried them from around my body. Once I was free of his grasp, I inched off the couch, onto the floor.

"Going to class today, blondie?" Loki popped up out of nowhere.

"Shh." I quickly looked over to see if Angel was awake.

"Sorry." Loki mouthed, stuffing a croissant into his mouth and grabbing his things.

"I'm riding with you, bro. Hold up." Like it was normal to jump up after taking a beating the night prior, Angel was up on his feet. He ran to the bathroom, and I heard the water turn on.

I sighed a long breath, thrilled that I wasn't going to have to miss class, but upset that I wouldn't get the chance to be alone with Angel like I'd anticipated. Walking into the kitchen with Loki, I grabbed one of his croissants and pressed my back against the fridge.

"Long night?" He grinned.

"Shut up." I huffed, shoving more of the croissant into my mouth.

"Worked up a mean appetite, I see."

"Loki."

"What?" He sang, rushing over to tickle me. "Seriously though, did you get laid?"

"Nope."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Sorry to hear that. I wanted to know if it was as good as he made it seem."

"Loki, what's your deal?" I laughed.

Loki raised his brows and smiled from ear to ear, naturally, I did the same, holding back a laugh I dared to escape. That was until we were joined by Angel, who walked in slowly, acknowledging the pain that I wasn't so sure was still there.

"I'm ready." He sighed.

"Are you sure you're up for this? I planned to stay out of class with you today." I admitted, walking to his side.

Angel paused briefly, staring at me as if he was thinking about it. "Yeah. I'm sure." He spat out, walking out the front door ahead of me and Loki. Talk about mixed freaking signals. I had no idea what I'd just witnessed, clearly Loki didn't either, as he stared at me staring at him. Finally, our standoff ended with him shrugging his shoulders and running to catch up with Angel. I paused, then quickly took out my phone and called Sevyn.

"What's up, Star?" She answered with a groggy voice, sleep still evident in her tone. 

"Oh my God. Something happened. Where are you? We have got to talk." The excitement couldn't be hidden or avoided as I waited impatiently for a response. 

"I'm in bed. Did he die?" I could tell she was laying on the side of her face and almost laughed.

"Lord. No! He's perfectly fine. As good as new." I exaggerated. "I cheated on Aaron." 

"Duh. That's not new. You're bound to break his poor little All American heart one of these days. It's just a matter of time."

I heard laughing in the background.

"Who is that? Is that Max? Are you in bed together?" 

"Hey. I'm not coming to class. I'll see you later and you can tell me all about how Angel banged your back out. Love you!" 

"Giselle. Today?" Loki peeped his head through the front door.

 I followed behind him slowly, trying to shake the confused expression planted on my face. I was bound to break his heart one of these days? Max and Sevyn in bed together? When the hell did I miss the memo about me being a bonified cheating slut, and Max and Sevyn hooking up on the low?

***Author's Words****

Drama, Spice, Scandal...what more could one ask for?

Coming up next is Angel - You're going to love  it!!

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