Saviors 101

Chapter 31

Chapter 31

Sam mumbled something like, “Not again,” into her belly button.

He followed her pointing arm with a resigned expression until he was turned far enough that she could no longer see his face.

Then he tried to stand and instead, still tangled up in her legs, collapsed back against her out of control. His elbow went into her gut and slammed the wind out of her.

“Who the hell are you? And how’d you get in here?”

She couldn’t have said it better even if she could breathe in more than squeaky little gasps.

“I’m Michelle. And I’ve decided to take my own advice and came to see Dana myself. My timing appears to be less than opportune, but now is convenient for me.”

“Not for us.” He had the decency to turn and check for her agreement. Perhaps he really was as nice as she’d thought.

She nodded vigorously, and shoved his elbow aside so that she could get a gasp of air.

Instantly solicitous, he unwound himself and held her as she regained control of her diaphragm.

He kept an arm tight across her shoulders. A very proprietary, alpha-male thing to do, but she decided that too was just fine with her.

Michelle snagged one of the blankets and lay down on it with the casual confidence of a welcome guest. She propped her head on one arm, stretched out her long, denim-clad legs, and kicked off her Birkenstocks. She wore a black turtleneck and an electric-blue flannel shirt open in front and with the sleeves rolled up.

“I like your socks.”

Sam aimed a look at her as if she were insane before turning to inspect the woman’s footwear. Her feet were wrapped in rainbow-toed socks. Sam glared at her again but it was more, “How can you think such things at this instant in time?” than “What! Are you frickin’ nuts?”

Dana wanted to react.

To toss the woman out.

Or complain.

Or protest.

Anything was better than commenting on a pair of socks whose owner had just interrupted her efforts to have wonderful s*x. Again.

But she was familiar. Perhaps a teacher in kindergarten, or someone’s mom in second grade.

“Who are you?”

“I answered that.”

“No. Your name doesn’t answer that at all. Who are you? And how did you get in here.” Sam sounded quite put out by the whole thing. “I’d wager you don’t have a security code.”

“My name translates as…” She drew out the last word as a tease and directed her attention in Dana’s direction as if Sam wasn’t in the room.

She didn’t have a clue. She knew there was power in names and that her own was “judge” in Hebrew. “Michelle” she didn’t have a clue about.

The woman sighed, “Your education has been sadly neglected. My name translates as ‘Who is like God?’”

Again she waited.

“So, are you God’s wife or sister?”

Sam was looking at her strangely, as if checking how often this sort of stuff happened around her. Once again she had too many things to deal with at once, but had no idea how to straighten out the one when she didn’t know who the other was.

The part of her brain that had been happily forgotten as she lay in Sam’s arms clicked back into place.

The angel.

The tens of thousands of words the angel had dumped upon her a couple nights before included a Michelle. What had she said?

“You’re the…” she glanced at Sam. If she said the next word, would he storm out again? No, it was his lab. But he might throw her out.

Just then a small flash of light popped like a camera flash above their unwanted guest and Henrietta fluttered down to sit on Michelle’s shoulder, one protective hand clutching her halo.

“Oh, good, you two found each other. You know I was wondering when that would happen. You two were such friends before that I—”

Michelle turned until she was nose-to-nose with the angel perched on her shoulder.

“Henrietta, shush.”

The angel crossed her arms and huffed. Dana was tempted to go ping her halo just for old time’s sake.

Sam’s voice was more than a little irritated as he inquired.

“Who in the hell is Henrietta?”