Can one determined angel smooth the course of true love and help Ricky get his man?
Ricky has been secretly in love with his best friend Jez forever, but he’s never dared confess his feelings because he thinks Jez is too high-class for him. One evening, while sharing a quiet evening with Jez, a mysterious angel, Madred, appears and tries to persuade Ricky to take a chance on love.
Too bad Ricky doesn’t believe in angels. Madred is forced to take desperate measures in an attempt to show the reluctant Ricky the truth. When the angel leaves, can Ricky find the courage to declare himself to Jez, and what will happen to their friendship if he does?
As Ricky turned towards the kitchen, a light flared up in front of him, and he raised his hands to his face to avoid being blinded by the sheer brightness. It was weird — whatever it was didn’t diminish. Instead, it kept on burning, but not like fire; no, not like fire at all.
“So, you don’t believe in angels?” a voice echoed in the sparkling light, surrounding him with a sense of golden tranquility. Almost as if whoever was speaking was actually singing, but with a kind of melodic harmony Ricky had never heard before. Like a stream in summer. “It’s a good thing we believe in you, then, isn’t it?”
Because the strange being’s voice had lifted him off his feet and tumbled him back down on the sofa again, Ricky had no immediate answer to that. Besides, there was something else he needed to know that was far more pressing.
He took a deep breath. “What have you done with Jez?”
The being in front of him laughed. As the light took on a softer hue, Ricky could see the shape of a man within it, though there was something rather odd about him.
“No need to worry,” the man said. “Jez is perfectly all right. The only reason you can’t hear him is that I’ve stopped time. Oh, and by the way, my name’s Madred. I’m your guardian angel. Your fifth, to be precise.”
“Fifth?” Ricky swung his legs round on the sofa and pushed himself upright.
“What are you talking about? Stop saying crazy stuff. Nobody can stop time. Look, I don’t care who you are or what kind of game you think you’re playing, but my advice is to get out and leave us alone.”
The man calling himself Madred laughed again, and at the same time, the light he was somehow producing dimmed. Ricky gasped and stared. The bloke definitely had wings — and not delicate, gossamer ones, either. These wings were made up of great quivering feathers, in a myriad of colors Ricky had seen and some he had not: deep green, sea-blue, yellow, orange, red, and everything else in between. They began at Madred’s shoulders — lean, but muscular — and ended somewhere around his ankles. They looked as if they could pack a fair wallop, too, should the need arise — more psychotic swan than baby duckling. Just in case, Ricky took a step back, as he really wasn’t that brave.
- Word Count: 5,000
- Author: Anne Brooke
- Website: Anne Brooke
- Heat Level: 3
- ISBN: 978-1-61937-123-1
- Cover Artist: Kelly Shorten
- Editor: Megan Embry
MM Good Book Reviews
Reviewer: Pixie
Rating: 4.0
Review: Ricky has been secretly in love with his best friend Jez forever, but he’s never dared confess his feelings because he thinks Jez is too…
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