Date with Destiny Collection: Angel Romance Series: Books 1 - 4 Page 9

  Eve placed a hand on his bicep and smiled. “Maybe that’s your gift, Zeph, supernatural discernment. Maybe it’s mine, too.”

  Zeph’s mouth fell open as he stared at Eve in awe. Was it possible that this girl, who knew nothing about Divisa until two ago, had figured out what had baffled everyone else for the last 17 years? “Oh my gosh, Eve, maybe you’re right!”

  Chapter 12

  Thoughts tumbled through Eve’s mind like clothes in a dryer as she drove home from school that day. Was her father really half angel? Did her mom know about it? Had she been keeping it a secret all Eve’s life? And the biggest question of all, the one that had plagued her since the first day she learned her stepfather was not her real dad, why had her father left them? She hoped her mother was in the mood to talk, because she needed to find out.

  She waited till dinner was over and her brothers were in their room, distracted by video games before heading to her mother’s bedroom. Julie was elbow deep in clean laundry.

  “Hi darling! What’s up? Things still going good with you and Zeph?”

  Eve stifled a chuckle. If her mom only knew. “Yeah, we’re good,” she said, and realized it was sort of true.

  She knew that Zeph still liked her, so whether they had a relationship or not was up to her. Somehow, she’d managed to accept his story, and going out with an angel didn’t bother her quite as much as dating a crazy person. But she also still kind of wondered if she’d just gone crazy, too.

  “So, did you hang out with him today?” Julie wiggled her eyebrows.

  “We ate lunch together. We mostly just talked.”

  “That sounds nice, sweetie. It’s important to find someone you enjoy talking to. Love is not all about kissing and romance, although that’s pretty nice, too! What did you two talk about?”

  Eve sucked in a deep breath. Her mom had asked the right question; did she have the courage to answer? “We talked about… my father.”

  “Oh, well, that’s kind of a somber topic! But I guess he must have wondered about your father, since he introduced you to his. Steven was such a great dad. I wish the boys could’ve gotten to know him.”

  Julie sighed and dumped a basket of socks on the bed. Instead of helping her match them like she normally would, Eve stared quietly till she caught her mother’s eye.

  “We weren’t talking about Steven, Mom. We were talking about my real dad. Why don’t you ever talk to me about him?”

  Julie dropped the pair of socks she was folding and looked thoughtfully at Eve. “Because Steven was your dad, sweetheart. The man who shares your DNA wasn’t a good enough man to be your father.”

  “I’d still like to know about him,” Eve whispered.

  Julie sighed and sat down on the bed. “I suppose I can understand your curiosity. What would you like to know about him?”

  Eve climbed up next to her mother and folded her legs. “Tell me everything.”

  Julie smirked and chucked her daughter under the chin. Her gaze drifted back in time as she recalled the love affair that ended as passionately as it began.

  “Your father’s name was Amadeus…”

  “Amadeus?” Eve wrinkled her nose. “Like Mozart?”

  “Yeah.” Julie chuckled. “He hated the name. I always wondered if there was a story behind it, but he never told me. He called himself Day.”

  Eve perked at the idea, remembering Zeph’s explanation about Celestia Divisa names. What did the name Amadeus mean? She’d have to google it later.

  “His last name was Cera. We met at a party. I was fresh out of college, ready to start my new life, and all of a sudden here was this handsome guy, trying to distract me.” Julie stood and let her body wander around the room as her mind floated back in memories.

  “He was all about romance. Every date, he gave me flowers — giant bouquets of roses and tulips and daisies. He took me out to fancy restaurants and romantic movies. After a week, he told me he loved me. That was the night I gave myself to him. He said he wanted to wait, but I talked him into it. How unusual is that?”

  Julie chuckled and smoothed her auburn hair then fingered the silky camisole lying on the bed. She was always a sucker for romance.

  “I don’t regret a single minute of it, though, because it gave me you,” Julie murmured, stroking Eve’s hair and cheek.

  “If he was so in love with you, why did he leave?” Eve whispered, a tear threatening to spill from her eye. “Was it because of me?”

  Julie grabbed her daughter’s shoulders and sank to the bed in front of her. “No, sweetheart! Don’t ever think that!”

  “But he didn’t want me…”

  Julie dropped her head in her hands and scrubbed at her face. “I didn’t give him a chance to.”

  Eve cocked her head in confusion. “What do you mean?”

  “I never told your father I was pregnant. He doesn’t know you exist.”

  Eve’s mouth fell open with a thousand unanswered questions.

  “I was going to tell him. The day I found out was a Saturday, and we had plans for that night. I was so excited.” Julie smiled at the memory.

  “I wasn’t expecting to get pregnant. I had my whole life planned out, and children were supposed to be a long way in the future, but from the moment I found out about you I was ecstatic. I knew Day would be, too. We’d only known each other a few weeks, but I figured we would get married.”

  Julie’s eyes clouded over as she remembered the last day she saw him. “I went shopping and bought a little onesie with ‘Daddy Loves Me’ written on it. I couldn’t wait to see his face when he opened it. When I was done it was still a little early, but I decided just to go on to the restaurant. Day was already there, but he didn’t see me. He was too busy flirting with another woman. They were talking and laughing, and the woman leaned over and kissed him. He didn’t push her away. In fact, he kissed her back, just as passionately as he’d ever kissed me, and I knew in that moment it was all a lie. My last boyfriend had cheated on me, too, and there was no way I was going to let another man break my heart.”

  Julie wiped the moisture from her cheeks and took a deep breath. “I turned around and threw the onesie in the nearest trash. He came over later that night, wondering why I hadn’t shown up at the restaurant.

  I told him what I had seen, and he apologized, said it was a terrible mistake, but I just couldn’t risk loving a man I couldn’t trust. I decided we’d be better off alone, so I broke up with him and I haven’t seen him since.

  I met Steven a few years later, and he was such a good, honest man. He loved me enough to raise another man’s daughter, and he loved you like you were his very own. Amadeus Cera may have been your father, Eve, but Steven Jones was your dad.”

  Eve stared at her mom in confusion. All these years, she thought her father didn’t love her, when in reality he never even had a chance! A barbed-wire strand of anger began to wrap around her heart, tearing holes in the love she’d always felt for her mother, causing it to bleed. She tried to understand why her mom had done it, but all she could feel was her own sadness and pain.

  She had considered telling her mom Zeph’s theory, but now she felt too stunned and betrayed to confide in her. At least she had a name. Maybe Zeph would recognize it.

  “What did he look like?” Eve asked.

  Julie dug in her closet and pulled out an old photo album, one Eve had never seen. The picture had never made it onto one of the plastic-protected sheets, but instead lay loose in the very back of the album, like an afterthought. Eve imagined her mother wanting to destroy it in anger, but saving it instead, for just this day.

  With shaking fingers, Julie handed the photo to her daughter, and Eve stared at the stranger who shared parts of her face. She didn’t really look like him, she looked more like her mother, but she found a few similarities — the slope of her nose, the curve of her cheek.

  “Can I keep this?”

  Julie’s face softened towards her daughter, and only then did she realize h
ow twisted with emotion it had been. “Sure, honey. It’s yours.”

  Eve flipped it over, looking to see his name in writing, but the back was blank. It didn’t matter. Now that she knew it, she’d never forget it anyway.

  Zeph stared at the face that confirmed all his suspicions about Eve. It was Tuesday afternoon and he had agreed to meet her at the park near his house after school.

  The temperature had dropped suddenly, so the normally busy park was empty. They sat on a bench, and Eve huddled, cold even in her jacket, the leggings she wore under her sweater dress not enough to protect her legs. Her knees bounced up and down, whether to generate heat or siphon off nervous energy, Zeph couldn’t tell.

  “I know this man,” he said, handing the picture back to her. “His name is—”

  “Amadeus Cera,” Eve said the name at the same time. “You know him?! Is he a…. Celestia Divisa?”

  Zeph nodded. “He’s a counselor. My parents sent me to him when I was a kid, hoping he’d help me discover my gift. He’s really… nice.” Zeph wasn’t sure how Eve expected him to feel about her long-lost father.

  “I don’t think he ever told my mother what he was. And she never told him about me.”

  Zeph’s eyes popped open. “He doesn’t even know he has a daughter?”

  “Does he have other children?” Eve bit down on her thumbnail.

  “No, he never even married. But that helps explain things.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well, see, Celestia take relationships very seriously.” Zeph took a quick glance at her face but was too embarrassed to maintain eye contact.

  “When we enter the covenant of marriage, our souls are bound together by God. Sex binds the hearts and the bodies. Celestia don’t have casual sex because they understand the bond is unbreakable. To have sex with someone and then lose them would be almost unbearable. If Amadeus Cera had sex with your mother, you can bet he was in love with her and planned to be with her forever. That explains why he’s never married. He still feels bound to her.”

  Eve stared at the picture of her father. “Then why didn’t he ever try to get her back?”

  “Maybe he felt too guilty, since he had defiled the relationship by being with that other woman. Maybe he felt like he didn’t deserve to win your mom back.”

  “That’s really sad.” Eve’s eyes grew wistful as she glanced mindlessly around the park. A few birds twittered around their feet, hoping for a handout. “It was wrong of him to cheat on her, but he didn’t deserve to spend the rest of his life unhappy. I wonder…”

  Zeph grinned and bumped her knee with his. “I know what you’re thinking. What if they got back together? It might be worth a try.”

  “Do you really think he still loves her?”

  “Well, I can’t be positive; maybe he just felt like he could never have anyone else because he had been intimate with her, but it’s not like it’s the unforgivable sin. I would think he would have sought forgiveness and found someone else by now. The fact that he didn’t makes me wonder if he’s still pining for her.”

  “If he loved her, I would think he would have at least tried to get back together.”

  “Well, I’m not trying to blame your mom or anything, but if she didn’t want him to know she was pregnant with his child she probably didn’t even give him a chance to reconcile. Then she got married to your stepdad, so he definitely wouldn’t want to interfere with their marriage.”

  Eve stared into Zeph’s eyes and pondered, their pale blue depths like staring into water. Finally, she asked, “Do you think he would want to meet me?”

  A twinkle disturbed the placid pools. “Definitely.”

  “I mean, I don’t want to mess up his life or anything. What if he finds out and then wishes he never knew about me?” Eve bit her lip and scrunched up her face in dismay.

  Zeph tugged her lip from between her teeth and cradled her cheek till she looked into his eyes. “Eve, no one could ever regret meeting you. He will be the happiest guy alive to know he’s your father. The only regret he’ll have is missing the first 17 years of your life.”

  Eve dipped her head and smiled. “Do you really think he could… love me?”

  Zeph chuckled. “Well, considering his gift is love, I’m pretty sure he won’t have any trouble with that.”

  Chapter 13

  “Hey Zeph, nice to see you again, bud! How you been?”

  Amadeus Cera grabbed Zeph’s hand then pulled him in for a bro hug, the two bumping chests and slapping each other on the back. Only with his head over Zeph’s shoulder did he see Eve standing quietly behind. “You brought a friend?”

  “Yeah, this is Eve.”

  Eve stuck out a hand, and Amadeus shook it; the psychologist in him couldn’t help but notice the shy way she hunched her shoulders and dipped her head.

  “I’m Amadeus Cera, but everyone calls me Day.”

  “Nice to meet you.” Eve’s cheeks flamed, and Day cocked his head, curious.

  Day threw a glance at Zeph, nodding towards Eve and raising his eyebrows, silently questioning their relationship. The attraction was obvious in the way Zeph stared. Zeph’s mouth quirked in a small smile.

  “Well, come on in! Have a seat! Tell me what’s been going on!” Day waved a hand at the available seating — a small couch and three comfortable armchairs, upholstered in variegated shades of charcoal. Zeph sat on the couch, and Eve settled next to him, taking his hand.

  Cozy, Day thought, happy to see Zeph with a friend. He knew relationships didn’t come easy for him.

  The teens seemed hesitant to start the conversation, both of them glancing awkwardly at the black and white prints on the soft gray walls, so Day tried to break the ice. “School just started, didn’t it? What grade are you in this year, Zeph?”

  “I’m a senior. It’s my last year.”

  “That’s great! Have you got plans for what comes next? College, career… family?”

  It was Zeph’s turn to blush. “I don’t really know yet. We, uh… we actually came here so Eve could meet you.”

  Day faltered. He didn’t think he was an important part of Zeph’s life anymore; it’d been years since he’d seen him regularly. Why did Zeph want him to meet his girlfriend? Did she have some issues Zeph was worried about? The look on his face must have revealed his confusion because the two exchanged just a quick glance before Zeph blurted out his news.

  “We think she’s your daughter.”

  The words hung in the air like over-sprayed air freshener, their intense, cloying presence overwhelming his senses, making Day’s eyes water and his throat gag.

  “What did you say?” Day managed to croak out when the shock began to dissipate.

  Eve held out a photograph with shaking fingers, and Day recognized himself immediately. “This is my father; my mother was Julie Davis.”

  Day took the picture, his own hands trembling, and stared at his younger self. Joy danced in the young Day’s eyes, delighted to be in Julie’s company. He remembered that day, when Julie snapped a photograph of him because she said he looked like the happiest guy alive at that moment. And she was right. He had everything back then, back before he destroyed it.

  “My mother was pregnant with me when she broke up with you,” Eve explained, but Day could barely hear her voice, he was so caught up in staring at her face. Now that he knew, he could recognize it. It was obvious she belonged to Julie.

  “I used to think you left me, that you didn’t want me, but now I know you didn’t even know about me.” Eve sniffed and stared at her lap where Zeph’s hand lay squeezing hers. A tear landed on their fingers.

  “It’s okay.” She raised her head and wiped her eyes. “Another man raised me. He’s gone now, but he was a good father to me.”

  “Eve, I don’t know what to say…” Emotions ricocheted through Day’s brain like a swarm of bees, drowning out every sound but their buzzing. His first instinct was to be angry at Julie, but he knew immediately why she’d hidde
n the truth from him, and guilt overwhelmed him instead.

  He stumbled to his feet and crossed the room to kneel by Eve’s legs. “I’m so sorry, Eve. Please believe that I would never have left you if I’d known.”

  Eve nodded, and Day lifted himself to sit next to her. He gingerly placed a hand on her shoulder and another on her knee. “Thank you for finding me.”

  Eve reached out and Day quickly offered his embrace, burying his face in her hair and rubbing her back softly. Eve caught a whiff of his cologne and breathed in deeply, memorizing the rich, musky smell of her father.

  “I want to know everything,” Day said, wiping his face on his sleeve.

  He listened intently as Eve and Zeph explained everything that had led them to this moment, his eyes growing wider with each amazing revelation.

  “Does your mother know any of this?”

  Eve shook her head. “I bet she’d like to see you, though.”

  “I’d give anything to see her again.” Day leaned back on the sofa and rested his head, overwhelmed by how much his world had changed in less than an hour.

  “Will you come over and see us? Tomorrow night?”

  Day chuckled at Eve’s eagerness and stared at her lovely face. Everything about her was enchanting. His gaze shifted to Zeph, and he swelled with happiness for him. He’d always had a soft spot for the boy, and he was thrilled to see him looking so hopeful. Eve’s theory about their gifts was fascinating and definitely had merit. Eve was still looking at him expectantly, and his thoughts returned to her question. Did he have the courage to reach out to Julie?

  Chapter 14

  Eve’s belly clenched as the doorbell rang, low and solemn, and her mother went to answer it. She had no idea how to tell her mother she had invited her father for dinner, so she didn’t. She only told her Zeph was coming so she’d be expecting company. Eve abandoned her watch of the baking enchiladas and followed her mother to the door, unsure what her reaction would be but hesitant to miss it.