All Amity Allows (Fall for You Book 2) (23 page)

Michael frowned, and then noticed the direction of her gaze.

“Amitiel, no.”

It was too late. She had already released Drew’s hand. She was already running. She was already free. She hit the ledge of the roof without hesitation and threw herself over the side.

Into oblivion and nothingness.

Chapter Twenty-Four

Drew didn’t even
pause. As soon as he saw Amity leave the edge, he turned and raced for the stairs. He didn’t think the fall would hurt an angel, but he didn’t know enough about their anatomy to be certain and he wanted to be first on hand just in case. He took the stairs two at a time, racing against an unseen clock, knowing that he had to get to her side before her brother could take her away.

He burst from the stairwell and ran straight for the automatic glass doors.

“Amity!” he cried, garnering the attention of the people milling around the entry of the hospital.

When he worked out roughly where she should have landed, his eyes scoured the ground as he ran.

“Amity!” he cried again as he caught a glimpse of platinum hair. He didn’t even slow down as he reached her side, just threw himself to his knees beside her unconscious form. His joints ached in protest, but he didn’t care.

Blood trickled from a wound on her forehead.

“She made the ultimate sacrifice,” a voice behind Drew said. He couldn’t focus on it, but neither could he tune out the words. “For you.”

“She’s not . . . she can’t be . . . dead,” Drew muttered. He couldn’t have gone through it all, suffered and rejoiced as he had for it to end like this. All of his training left him completely as he pulled her into his arms and cradled her gently. He brushed the hair off her face and checked the wound.

The person behind him scoffed. “Only a human would think that death is the ultimate sacrifice.”

“Then what happened, Michael?” Drew said, using the name Amity had called the man earlier as he stroked Amity’s forehead. “Tell me what the fuck is going on here.”

“The whole of eternity. The balance of humanity. Being a paradigm of good. She gave it all up.
For you
.” The last two words were practically sneered with disgust.

Amity blinked
as she opened her eyes to nothing. A clamor of confused voices filled her mind as all of her brothers burst into conversations about her choice. She wasn’t sure exactly what she had expected to find at the end of her angelic life, but it wasn’t what greeted her.

A second later, Michael appeared before her in corporeal form. With a snap of his fingers, he returned her body to her and filled in the blanks of the space surrounding them. The garden was remarkably similar to the one Peter had constructed for their talk, but there was a good reason for that. Both were modeled after Eden.

“What have you done?” Michael asked. Betrayal colored his tone and he could barely look in her eyes.

“What I had to.”

“I could still take you away. There are places in Heaven for fallen angels. Places in Hell too.”

“Are you so determined to be right that you would hurt me that way?”

“It’s not a matter of right and wrong!” he snapped, before breathing calm back into his voice. “You betrayed us.”

“You asked me to betray myself. Which is worse?”

“You’re an angel, Amity. There are responsibilities. The world needs you. I—” he cut off with a sigh. “I need you. You are the keeper of the truth; surely, you know how important that is when it comes to weighing judgment? I rely on you more than I should, and I’m sorry for that. But you can’t just turn your back on me.”

“I’ve felt happiness unlike any I’ve ever experienced before. I can’t turn my back on that.” Clarity had come to her during the fall and she knew now things that had been hidden from her for centuries. Her grace held her angelic power—but her grace wasn’t her. Buried deep inside, able to be extracted by another angel, was her soul. All she needed to do in order to request that process was fall. Then her grace could move on to another host.

“You’re sure about this? There is only heartbreak and pain on the path you’re choosing.”

She smiled at Michael’s naivety. He didn’t understand humans like she did, hadn’t spent years buried amongst them, living as close to their lives as an angel could—including indulging in many of their vices. Yes, being human would open her up to heartbreak and pain, but it would also offer the chance at a love the like of which no angel could ever fully appreciate.

Drew focused
on the girl in his arms. She was what mattered, not the dick who’d fallen oddly silent behind him.

“Amity, can you hear me?” Drew asked.

She issued a soft moan and he breathed a sigh of relief in response.

“I did it.” She tried to sit up, but it was obviously too much for her, and she dropped back against Drew’s hold. She pressed her hand against her head and winced. “I did it, for you, Drew. I fell.”

“I need to get you inside,” he muttered as he watched her struggle to hold herself upright. Then he paused. “Why do I need to get you inside? Angels can’t get hurt, can they?”

He looked between the woman in his arms and the guy behind him.

Michael shot Amity a look filled with regret and then turned and walked away, tossing out one statement as he went. “No, but humans can.”

“Humans?” Drew still felt he was missing one vital piece of the conversation. “You’re human? How?”

“It was the only way for us to stay together.” Amity’s mouth tipped up into a smile. “I fell for
you
, Drew.”

As if speaking those words stole the last of her energy, she collapsed in Drew’s arms. His training kicked back in, and he raced to get her the help she needed.

There were
many things Amity was going to have to get used to. Not being able to travel to Drew’s side on a whim was one. Having to get used to having a last name, a driver’s license, and a social security number was another. Although she hadn’t given those last few items a second thought, a Louis Vuitton purse with a full set of identification papers was at her hospital bedside when she woke. She was certain they were a parting gift from her brother.

The hours after she’d thrown herself off the building were a bit of a blur. She spent so much of it dozing in and out of consciousness. One thing she could remember was a steady stream of visits from hospital staff, but not from the one person she longed the most to see.

She’d left her old existence behind for him, and he hadn’t even stopped in to check on her. At least, she hadn’t seen him if he had.

Just as night was falling, the curtain around her bed fluttered and then parted to allow him to enter.

“Hey you,” he said, with his mouth set in a half-smile. His eyes were pinched with worry, but Amity thought he was a little too nonchalant for having been absent from her hospital bedside for so long. “How are you feeling?”

At the sight of him, tears welled in her eyes and fell down her cheeks.

He covered the distance to her bedside in a heartbeat and swept away the drops with his thumb. “What’s wrong?”

“You weren’t here. You didn’t come back, and I was afraid. Michael warned me that this choice would end in heartbreak . . .” she trailed off with a sniff.

Drew bundled her up into his arms, holding her against his chest while she brought her tears back under control. “He was wrong. That’s why I couldn’t come before now.”

She was confused by his statement until he pulled out a small velvet box.

“Am, I know there are a thousand more romantic ways I could do this. There are a hundred sappy words I would want to say, but I don’t want to waste time trying to find them. I don’t want another minute to pass without you knowing exactly how I feel about you. There is not a single doubt in my head that you are the one I’m supposed to spend the rest of my life with. And I want that to start right now.”

He opened the box for her and inside was an exquisite ring with a solitary princess cut diamond.

“Today, you showed me your hand, now I’m showing you mine. Will you be my everything?”

She didn’t answer him. Couldn’t. Not with her racing heart and shaking fingers. Instead, she just plucked the ring from the box and put it on her finger where it belonged, and where it would stay until the end of her days.

Epilogue

Amity ran the
drying chamois along the smooth metal of the old green Corolla.

My car
, she thought as a smile broke out on her lips.

It was twenty years old, the paintwork was faded, the dashboard cracked, and the seats stained, but it was hers. She’d saved up the money and purchased it all on her own. It was impossible for her to feel better about her wheels, even if it had been the newest Lamborghini.

For so many years, she’d thought humanity was the ultimate burden, but now she was able to see it with a new mindset. It was the ultimate prize. Every achievement she made, even something as small as buying a car, became another treasured memory. Of course, Drew had argued a little when she’d pointed it out in a lot as they drove by. He wanted to buy her something better, preferably something that had a few less rust holes, and was newer and prettier, but had stopped short of insisting when she’d explained why it was important to her to be able to pay for it herself—and with the money she’d earned.

It was clear that he’d understood her insistence, that while leasing a fancy new car for her was a sweet gesture, it took away her pride of achievement. She didn’t want to be his trophy—someone to look good on his arm in exchange for gifts and money. Thankfully, he didn’t want that either. They both understood that she’d chosen a mortal life, and that it would take quite some time for her to adjust to being human and all that came with that existence.

The only concession she’d granted Drew was to let him pay for the relevant courses she needed to take in order to get properly qualified to start her own personal training business so that she could eventually quit her job at the bowling alley.

“You finished?” Drew asked as he popped his head out of the front door to check on her. He had offered to help her wash her new—
old
—car, but she wanted to spend some time getting to know every dent and scratch on the exterior of her first real possession. She hadn’t done a fantastic job really—she’d ended up wetter than the car, causing her soggy clothes to cling to her every curve. She’d forbidden Drew from coming outside until she was finished—telling him in no uncertain terms that she was quite capable of washing a car—but she’d spotted his eager gaze watching her from the front window more than once.

“Just about,” Amity said, wiping the hood once more with her chamois. “I just have to get changed.”

“You’re set on taking your car then?”

“You’re not changing my mind. Cory is going to be our proud chariot today, whether you like it or not.”

“My car—”

She cut him off with a glare. “If you value your manhood at all, you won’t even finish any sentence that ends in you suggesting that we take your car instead.”

He cast her an overly innocent look. “I wasn’t going to suggest any such thing.”

She moved closer to him, stalking toward him in her wet clothes. “Sure you weren’t.”

He could see the direction of her thoughts, and his eyes widened.

“I just know the way a little better. It’s my father’s house after all.” He backed away from her with his hands raised in surrender. “But I can see this is important to you,” he added in a rush as he backed away a little faster.

“Uh huh, sure,” she murmured when she closed in on the front door.

If he’d really wanted to escape her pursuit, he could have pushed the door shut. It wouldn’t have stopped her from going inside, but it would have signaled that he wasn’t in the mood to play.

“So, you don’t think Cory is just a death trap on wheels anymore?”

“I didn’t say that,” Drew said with a wicked grin. He was baiting her. She knew it and she didn’t care. He was going to get what was coming to him.

She passed the threshold into the house and pushed the door closed behind her.

“You think she is then?”

“If I say yes, will it get me in trouble?” His ass smacked against the back of the sofa and he ran out of room to back up. After checking behind him, he turned back to her, a smirk playing on his lips.

Amity narrowed her eyes at him and slowed her forward progress a little. She was just out of arm’s reach when she grew wary. “You almost sound like you
want
to be in trouble.”

In a heartbeat, he reached out for her, wrapped her in his arms, and then tossed her over the back of the sofa before leaping after her. The movement left her stunned, and before she was able to recover, Drew’s lips covered hers, and his body pinned her against the seat.

“What can I say?” he murmured between kisses. “I like your particular brand of punishment.”

Laughing, she pushed him off her and sent him tumbling to the floor. Before he had a chance to move or react, she straddled his hips and pulled off her wet shirt. “Well, in that case—you’re really going to get it!”

Drew’s hand
found the base of Amity’s spine as he led her around the side gate into his father’s garden. It was hard to believe it had been twelve months since he’d come home full of expectations about setting the world on fire with his ideologies. So much had changed since then. His career was still important, and he was still set on being a cardiothoracic surgeon, but his priorities had shifted. It was all because of his angel. He knew how to have fun now and that it was okay to lighten up a little from time to time.

He and Amity had intended to arrive early to help with the set up, but her punishment for his jibes about her car had taken a good hour to resolve, making them late.

It had been a very good hour though.

The party was almost in full swing, just waiting for the guests of honor to arrive. A few people milling nearby nodded their hellos or moved closer to welcome the pair. When Drew met his gaze in the crowd, Dr. McGregor’s face turned an odd shade of puce, just like it did every time Amity—whose very existence the psychologist had so vehemently denied—was near.

Addy bounded over and took Amity’s hands in her own. Since the first moment Drew had introduced them, Addy made it her personal goal to ensure Amity was as comfortable as possible at all times. Addy had taken Amity in as the daughter she would soon become. Although her over exuberant personality had frightened Amity at first, Drew had been able to get his former angel to see that Addy was merely making up for lost time with him and, by extension, his fiancée.

“You’re here at last!” Addy said, pulling Amity away. “Late on a day like today of all days!”

Amity looked at Drew with a guilty expression. “Sorry, we were waylaid.”

Drew’s lips twitched. Laid is right, he thought.

Amity’s gaze echoed his thoughts and he wondered whether anyone would miss them if they disappeared for another hour.

They probably would, Drew decided.
It’s kind of important for us to be here.

Before he had a chance to see whether Amity would mind playing hooky for a little while longer, Addy linked arms with Amity and led her into the house. Amity winked at him as she disappeared.

It was hard to believe that the next time he saw her . . .

“What are you grinning about?” Becca asked. Drew’s gaze reluctantly left the house that had stolen Amity from his view and turned to greet Becca. He smiled at what he saw.

The soft plum fabric of her summer dress clung to the newly rounded bump she sported. Her dark curls were loose around her shoulders, and she looked positively carefree.

“You of all people should know the answer to that,” he responded as he looked in Evan’s direction.

It hadn’t been all that long ago when he’d thought a friendship with Becca and Evan would have been impossible. Ever since the day Amity had given up her grace to live a normal life with him though, he’d been able to look at Becca without the hurt that had occupied his body and soul for what had felt like an eternity.

When Amity struggled to settle into her new human life and needed help—assistance that Drew was at a loss to give—Evan had stepped in with his unique understanding. Somewhere along the way, the four of them had become friends. Not just a close approximation, but real honest-to-goodness friends.

They’d even gone on a double date and Evan had filled in the blanks about how and when he and Becca had fallen in love. Drew had listened to the story with his arm around Amity’s shoulder, confident in the knowledge that it had all worked out the way it was supposed to. He supposed that without Heaven's influence, he and Becca probably would have ended up together. They may have even been happy enough . . . but neither of them would have felt the glow of true love. He’d found someone better suited for him than he could have ever imagined. He’d found his angel.

“Everything okay in there?” Drew asked, nodding at Becca’s stomach.

Becca beamed at him and Drew couldn’t help but acknowledge the truth in what people said about the glow of pregnancy. “Scans were perfect. She’s perfect.”

“She? I didn’t think you were going to find out?”

Evan moved over to them as they talked and wrapped his arm around Becca’s back. “I didn’t want to.”

“But he has trouble saying no to me,” Becca added with a chuckle.

Drew laughed too. “I know the feeling.”

“Are you excited?” Becca asked.

“You’d be better off asking him if he’s terrified. There's still time to back out you know?” Evan deadpanned, before issuing a loud “oof” sound as Becca’s hand struck him across the stomach.

Cathy dragged her husband over to join in the gentle ribbing of Drew. She’d joined Becca in taking Amity into their circle without a second thought. “You know what they say about the only food that kills a woman’s sex drive.”

She nodded in the direction of the towering cake on a small table to the side of the gazebo.

“Run for the hills,” Gary said, wrapping his arms around his wife’s waist and pulling her close. “While you still can.”

“Not a chance,” Drew said with a smile wider than he ever imagined he’d wear. He'd been looking forward to this day for months—ever since Amity had answered his simple question without a single word.

Over in the one corner of the garden, someone waved once for his attention. She wore a pressed power suit and had a cell phone clutched in one of her hands like it was a lifeline.

“Mom!” he called after excusing himself from his group of friends.

When he reached her, she gave him a half-hug and air-kissed beside his cheek. “You’re looking well.”

“Thanks for coming, Mom.” He’d thought she might pass because of the location, but had desperately wanted her there to celebrate with him.

She patted his cheek. “I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.”

“Come, I’ll find you a VIP seat.”

“You look
so beautiful,” Addy exclaimed, before pressing her hand against her mouth. Her eyes were glassy, and in the instant before her fingers had covered them, her lips had quivered. She seemed more nervous about the day than Amity felt. The fact that Addy was the mastermind behind it all was probably largely to blame. No doubt, she was acutely aware of the pressure to get everything right. Not that Drew or Amity would have complained if things went a little pear-shaped. They were both used to things not going as smoothly as expected.

Amity looked at the mirror. The dress wasn't designer. In fact, it was off the rack, the discount rack at that. With her limited income, she couldn't afford designer anymore and letting someone else buy it for her was another concession she refused to allow. For now. She still had a few designer pieces, but mostly her everyday clothes were discount. That was likely to change once she and Drew were married though. After all, she would be expected to wear a certain type of attire to the various charity fundraisers organized by her mother-in-law and the hospital, but there was a certain pride in paying her own way in the meantime.

That was exactly what surprised Amity the most about her new wardrobe. She was just as happy in a pair of discount store jeans as any of her old outfits, happier in fact. Okay, the brands would have been nice as well, but she didn’t need them to feel her worth like she once had. In the simple cream dress, which Addy had customized with hand-sewn beadwork, Amity felt richer and more beautiful than she ever had before.

Amity's hair was loose, the powder-white strands falling to her waist. A halo of flowers rested on her head, a secret joke that only a few special people in her life would understand. Today was the day she would finally be able to shed the last of the pain that had pervaded her existence since she’d failed Rose—maybe even longer if she was being completely honest with herself.

She glanced back over to Addy who was fanning herself to stop her tears. “I promised I wouldn't cry, but I just . . . I can't help it. You are so perfect for Drew. You've brought him out of his shell in ways I never even knew were possible. And now, you're going to marry him, and everything will be perfect.”

“Thank you, Addy,” Amity said, pulling the older—but also much, much younger in some ways—woman into her embrace. “Thank you for organizing all of this and for being there for Drew, even when he wasn't always there for you.”

Addy just pulled away and patted Amity’s hand without saying a word. Amity understood why. The last time Addy had tried to voice the emotions she felt about her new relationship with Drew, and about how much it meant to his father, she’d broken down in tears. Neither of them needed tears at that moment.