Chapter 1
Standing before a door engraved with a list of all the virtues, I knock three times. Patience isn’t listed, so I knock again, biting my lip, my gaze glued to Prudence. For example, the wisdom to know better than to sneak coins behind the Veil and feed Dad’s addictions.
Checking the time, I knock again, getting a little nervous I’ll miss my class. If I do, I’ll never hear the end of it from both students and the supervisor since I teach Work Ethics of Achievers 201, and starting on time is part of the message.
Punctuality also isn’t one of the virtues listed. Well, that’s encouraging.
At this point, if I run across the massive property, I might make it to class on time, but I also really need to speak with the archangel. I fidget with my pencil, pace the hallway a little, every now and then checking the door.
I can’t wait anymore, and I can’t leave it for after classes because I have more problems to deal with then. I twist the knob and enter on silent feet. A mixture of frankincense and orange blossom that His Highness Gabriel the Virtuous uses fills the room, and I bat the smoke away, searching for the angel. We’ve never spoken before, and I’ve only been at the school since the regular teacher took maternity leave late in the second part of the school year, so I’m feeling a bit awkward, nervous, and apprehensive as I walk into his space uninvited.
I asked Dad if he would stop sneaking into the Veil. Yes, he said to me.
He lied, which was why I ended up teaching here, in the House of Virtue, an orphanage for misguided youth, and not in one of the schools in the Court. The House of Virtue is the closest school to the Veil.
“Your Highness,” I call out. When he doesn’t answer, I think perhaps he’s not here, but this can’t wait, and I’d rather be late for class and have to make excuses to students than not tell him what I’d overheard. He’s not behind his desk, so I pass the three rows of book stacks on the right of the desk, round the last stack’s corner, and proceed toward the only door at the end of the dark narrow hallway. A feeling I shouldn’t be here overwhelms me, and although I want to turn and run, this is urgent. I swallow, fighting my unease as I approach the metal door at the end of the hall.
At the iron door, I feel in my gut nobody’s ever allowed to enter here, so before knocking, I bend and peek through the keyhole. A male organ covered by blue leather cloth greets me just before Gabriel swings open the door.
I jump away and pretend I was standing there the entire time.
His Highness Gabriel the Virtuous stands at six foot four, all muscle and long strong legs. His dreads, decorated with elaborate beads, are pulled back today to reveal the muscular chest he oiled for a reason I’m sure every woman in the realm would love to know. The glistening of his hard abs makes it difficult for me to notice the features of his face, but I make an effort to lift my gaze upward and look at him. There, I’m a bit distracted by a jaw carved of stone, lips made for sucking, and blue eyes rumor has it vary in tone depending on his mood.
They’re almost midnight blue now, so his mood is pretty clear.
Swallowing, I dip my head and look at the floor, my gaze finding his bare feet. He wears rings on his toes and a bracelet on his left ankle. It’s silver and winds about his perfectly muscular leg all the way to his hip. It’s clear why my student, Luna, renamed him Gabriel the Fine after accidentally seeing him naked while cleaning his private baths. Luna was on detention duty. I’ve never been on detention duty, so I never got to clean his private anything. Though wouldn’t it be nice if I had?
“Ms. Combs,” Gabriel cuts into my thoughts, “curb your lust.”
Heat crawls up my neck, and I know I’m blushing. “Yes, Your Highness.” I hum the Hymn of Temperance we recite before each class day and lock eyes with his. I open my mouth to tell him what I came here to tell him, but I can’t speak because a light ignites inside my chest, and I swear I feel my soul lift and dance. Entranced, I can’t quit staring at him. This is all inappropriate and wrong. I should acknowledge the divine beauty before me and move on with my life. That’s what normal people do when they interact with him, but I can’t seem to pull my shit together.
Suddenly, my brain is blank and I’m a human statue, devoid of all feelings and sounds, and I’m standing there inside the vacuum of space where the only thing that exists is Gabriel before me. He’s all I can see, hear, think about, and then, as if a switch has been flipped, the sounds return and the scent of incense penetrates my nose.
“Good morning, Your Highness,” I say, feeling much better once I can speak. Knowing something happened just now, I frown in confusion. I can’t quite put my finger on it.
A small smile plays on his lips as he steps forward and to the left. “Tell me why you’re sneaking around my private space.”
“I really have to talk to you.”
“Talk, then.”
Easier said than done. I square my shoulders. “Luna’s birthday is coming up,” I say. Luna and Mary, the two energetic sixteen-year-old teens, always find ways to cause trouble. This time, they joined with Mike, an eighteen-year-old boy whose looks and charm would break through anyone’s defenses. The trio is up to something no good.
Gabriel steps closer, and his shoulder is practically in my face. I stare up at him, my lips parted.
“Excuse me,” he says.
Dear Lord, the male is trying to get on with his day, and I’m standing here like a lusting idiot, gaping at him and wondering if we could make out in the hallway. Facepalm. I step aside so he can pass, and his midnight-blue wing brushes the front of my body. A shudder runs through me, and my left nipple perks where the wing brushed it.
Conclusion? I just need to get laid. At this point, anyone would do, archangel preferably, but beggars can’t be choosers, so I’ll take what comes. I’m twenty-seven, and the last time I had sex was three years ago with a Court of Command soldier who stayed at my lodging for a total of three days.
It was a great three days, but it didn’t cover my needs for the next three years.
As I follow Gabriel back to his office, I keep my gaze glued to the floor, and when we make it to his office, I stand before his desk, head bowed so I don’t stare at his oiled maleness.
His loincloth hits the hardwood floor.
Shit.
What is the etiquette here? Is this something he does and nobody told me about?
I’m gonna look. I shouldn’t, but I am, for one thousand and one reasons. I peek from beneath my bangs. Too late. He’s donned his usual attire, a plain pale blue robe that does nothing to showcase his body. Boooo.
“I’m aware,” he says.
“Of what?” Where were we and why did I come here? I truly can’t remember anymore.
Gabriel leans on his desk, his eyes dark pools of midnight, twinkling. “That Luna’s birthday is coming up. The entire school or perhaps even the entire realm is aware.”
Luna is a spirited girl, and I adore that about her. “Then you’re also aware of the tradition.”
He glances at the clock. “You have a class in seven minutes.”
I don’t know how he knows my schedule by heart, but I’m not surprised. Gabriel is said to know everything. He’s a walking library, and people are the books he reads every second of his endless time. “I’m gonna be a little late, but this is important.”