Graham, Jan - Finding Angel [Wylde Shore] (Siren Publishing Ménage and More) (24 page)

Angel’s eyes lit up as she saw the exquisite items on offer. On her budget, she didn’t buy a lot of fancy underwear, but she definitely liked looking at it. Christian walked over to the sales assistant who started showing him various items. Angel wandered over to the racks of what she called “everyday underpants” with Daniel a few step behind her. She chose a few pairs of boyleg-style knickers before looking at the T-shirt bras and selecting one in her size. Daniel didn’t say a word but seemed to have a bemused look on his face as she continued to shop. Angel spotted the nightwear and picked herself a casual summer nightshirt and a pair of pyjamas comprised of a cotton spandex singlet top and shorts.

Daniel watched Angel in silence as she looked at the items. She checked the price on everything before she decided if it was what she wanted. She wasn’t buying anything flashy. All the items were very everyday and practical. Even when she selected the nightwear, Angel looked at the satin chemises like the one Christian had ripped off her, but after looking at the price tag, she had walked away from the rack and found a more casual cotton knit alternative. He glanced over to Christian and the sales assistant and pointed toward the nightwear, in particular the rack of silky chemises that Angel had walked away from.

“Okay, I’m done.” Angel stated as she walked over to the counter and stood, waiting for the sales assistant to finish with Christian.

“Is that all you want?” he asked coming to stand beside Angel at the counter.

“No, but it’s all I need.” Angel glanced up at him and then frowned “Why, is there something wrong with what I’ve chosen?”

“Not at all, you buy what you want, Angel.” He tried not to let his amusement with the frugal way she shopped show on his face.

Daniel decided that Christian and he may have misjudged their opinion that Angel had expensive taste. But then she was a woman full of contradiction, or at least a woman that contradicted Daniel’s notation of who she was. He loved learning new things about Angel. Some things had shocked him, like the events of yesterday, while others had inspired him to make sure she stayed with them forever. The sex was certainly mind blowing. She was so responsive to both their touch and their cocks. Daniel had been unsure if there would be issues in relation to her ability to be both intimate and sexual, but he loved the fact she had embraced both with a passion he hadn’t seen in any woman he had met before. Yes, she had a problem with the knives in the dungeon, but then Daniel didn’t really like the fact that they were on display, either. He wasn’t one for edge play, but he understood why Christian had purchased them. He was also relieved that Christian was getting rid of them, especially if they made his Angel scared.

“What is Christian doing?” she asked Daniel quietly, looking a little concerned.

“He’s shopping for lingerie,” Daniel stated in a matter-of-fact tone.

“Der.” The roll of Angel’s eyes and exasperated way she emphasised the word made Daniel laugh.

Angel couldn’t believe Daniel had been so literal with her question. She did enjoy the fact that he seemed to have a dry wit, unlike Christian, who was cheeky and made a joke from nearly everything. Angel felt a sudden rush of anxiety as Christian walked over to her and the sales assistant carried a mountain of items into the dressing room.

“Come on,” he said, taking her by the hand. Daniel slipped her bag off her shoulder as Christian dragged her into the change room. Both men watched as she tried on every item that had been selected. Christian had chosen corsets, bra and knickers sets, chemises, bodysuits, all of them very fancy. There was everything from lace and satin to silk and, from the few price tags Angel managed to glance at, all very expensive. To Angel’s surprise, all the items, bar one or two, fitted her perfectly. Some were discarded if either of the brothers shook their head or verbally stated no, but by the end of the modelling session, at least a dozen items remained.

“We’ll have all of these.” Christian nodded toward the pile of acceptable items that the sales assistant had already folded ready in anticipation of what Angel assumed was her biggest sale in a long while. Christian ignored the horrified look on Angel face and headed toward the register.

“Christian. Stop! I can’t afford all that. I don’t need it,” Angel called after him as she tried to quickly put her own clothes back on. By the time Angel reached the checkout, the tally of the register was already at four hundred dollars and climbing.

“You’re not paying for it.” Christian smiled at her. “Now tell me what the problem is, my sweetheart.”

“I don’t need any of that. I only need these things.” Angel picked up the few items she had laid on the counter earlier.

“I don’t like those ones. I prefer my selection,” Christian said arrogantly.

Angel stood in defiant silence, holding onto the underwear she had chosen. Once Christian’s transaction was completed, Angel stepped back up to the counter and handed everything she had in her arms over to the sales assistant and looked over to Daniel who was still holding her bag.

“Can I have my bag please?” She smiled, taking the bag back away from Daniel and avoiding Christian’s stare. Angel opened her wallet and paid the sixty-two dollar total before turning around to face both men. “Where are we going next?”

“You really are stubborn, Angel. I don’t know if I like that or not.” Christian seemed annoyed.

“I appreciate everything you just bought for me, Christian. I love every item in those bags, and I will wear them for you when ever you want me to.” Angel reached up and kissed Christian on the cheek. “But these were the things I needed. This is what I can afford.”

As Christian wrapped her in a bear hug, Angel hoped he didn’t notice she was trembling. She hated confrontation. It had never ended well for her in the past but she told herself this was a different situation. Christian and her had each spoken their mind and differed in their opinion of what Angel needed. Obviously, he now accepted that Angel needed some essential items, but he also wanted her to have the items he had bought, simple as that. Angel had bought what she could afford, and Christian had done the same.

“Where to now?” Christian asked Daniel as they walked out of the store.

“I think we need to sit down and talk to Angel about what she needs to buy, instead of just buying things we want her to have. Would that be okay with you, Angel?” Angel noted that Daniel directed his comment at his very generous brother before making eye contact with her.

“Yes, but can we talk about it over coffee and cake?” Angel pointed to a sign out the front of a small café not far from the lingerie store.

“Coffee and cake for six dollars, can we afford that?” Christian joked as they walked over to find a table.

“Well, Daniel and I can, but after everything you just bought, you might just have to sit there and watch us eat,” Angel answered cheekily.

Christian replied by giving her a playful slap on the arse as Daniel pulled out a chair for Angel to sit on.

Christian and Daniel opted for a chocolate torte with their coffee while Angel settled for the carrot cake. Angel explained she needed some casual clothes to wear around the house, and maybe something a bit nicer in case she went out anywhere while she was staying with them. Angel was particularly concerned that she didn’t have anything appropriate to dress in to meet Christian and Daniel’s father. She was interested in what they thought she should wear because, after all, they knew him best. Christian had made the arrangements for the following weekend and said that he wanted Angel to come on the visit because his father had known her family through work channels many years ago. Angel wasn’t thrilled with the idea, but she had agreed to go. She wanted to meet the brothers’ family. It was part of getting to know them and would actually be the first time anyone she had been intimate with had introduced her to their parents. That fact alone meant she needed to look her best and make a good impression.

Daniel intended to pay for Angel’s clothes, but after her reaction to Christian’s spending, he wasn’t sure how well-received that would be. He and Christian had decided that Angel was in dire need of extra clothes if she was going to stay with them for any length of time. They had discussed driving her home to collect some extra belongings but felt that ran the risk of her not wanting to come back home and making excuses for her need to do things at her house. Besides, Daniel and Christian both liked to spoil their women, and Angel was no exception.

“You know, Angel, you intrigue me. I believe you are the only woman I have ever met who has been genuinely surprised by the fact that Christian and I want to spend money on you. And before you say anything, I need to let you know I am paying for any clothes you want to buy today.” Daniel waited for Angel’s response, trying to gauge what she was thinking as she looked at him, eating a mouthful of her cake.

“I’m just not used to it. I always thought it would be lovely to have someone buy me nice things, though. I was surprised, that’s all. And I was a little embarrassed at the cost. I mean, it’s not a special occasion or anything, and I haven’t done anything to earn it.” Angel took a sip of coffee. Daniel waited for her to continue, she stared at him blankly not seeming to have anything further to say regarding the matter.

“That’s it. I’m not used to it,” Angel reiterated.

“So, let me check I heard you correctly. If it was your birthday and I bought all the things I did today and gave them to you, that would be okay, but because it’s not a special occasion, it surprised and embarrassed you? Daniel noticed the shocked look on Christian’s face. “And what does having earned it have to do with anything?”

“You sort of heard what I said but not quite. I don’t expect you to get it.” Angel shrugged and continued to eat.

“Explain it some more,” Daniel instructed as he called the waitress to order another coffee for them all.

“Okay, let me try again.” Angel sighed, seeming a little frustrated. “I buy my own everything. I have a budget that I stick to, and if I want something nice, then I save up to buy it. So, for example, I have a couple of nice sets of lingerie, and everything else is just plain, everyday-type stuff that doesn’t cost a lot of money. The same with clothes or jewellery, I have a couple of nice things, and the rest is just normal everyday. I would never have even thought of buying all that lingerie. It just seems excessive. I love it all, but it isn’t necessary to survival. And I try to buy things on sale as well. I don’t usually pay full price for anything.” Angel smiled at the waitress as she bought over fresh coffees and cleared the old plates. “And it wouldn’t matter if it was a birthday or not, I’d still be surprised. The last birthday present I got, unless I bought it myself, which I sometimes do as a treat, was for my seventh birthday just before my mum died.”

“Are you serious?” Daniel heard the outrage in Christian’s voice but was too busy staring at Angel, lost for words over her last statement.

“Yes,” Angel said flatly. “As for earning things, that’s just what you have to do. You know when you don’t have any money and you need something, you have to do something to earn it.”

“Give us an example.” Daniel had finally found his voice.

“Okay, when I was ten I wanted to go to my friend Nancy’s birthday. All the girls at school were talking about new party dresses, so I asked Dad if he would buy me one, and he told me I had to earn it. So he paid me thirty dollars to serve food at a cocktail party he was having.”

“When you were ten he paid you to serve food at a cocktail party? Isn’t that illegal? Wouldn’t most parents just pay you to do some housework? Or better yet, buy the damn dress without conditions.” Daniel was once again lost for words and from Christian’s tone he was obviously still outraged.

“I already did the housework. That’s how I paid Dad for food and board. Anyway, it doesn’t matter really.” Angel gave a dismissive flick of her hand. “It’s all just silliness on my part. Feel free to buy whatever you want.”