Silver Bells (short story)

The snow continued to fall in Washington, actually making a beautiful background for the many decorations that the city had in place, from the lighted wreaths hanging at Union Station to the National Christmas tree near the White House. People were rushing around town, trying to do last minute shopping with only two days to go until the holiday, trying to select that perfect gift for their loved one.

Alex smiled smugly, knowing that all her shopping had been completed weeks ago and it was all wrapped and under the tree in her townhouse where her family would gather Christmas night for the annual gift exchange. She had to confess to herself that she had gone a little overboard where Paul’s gifts were concerned, but he had made the last few months so perfect for her that a little spoiling was in order.

She would be meeting up with him at the farm tomorrow and then he would be joining her back here in the city on Christmas Day for her family get together. The lucky guy had seniority at the agency and had managed to get the four days before Christmas off work. While he had spent the last two evenings with her, he had grabbed a commuter flight back to the farm this morning to, "take care of some last minute wrapping."

Her smile remained in place as she passed the shops, stopping to look in at the holiday displays. Yes, everything in her life was going better than it ever had before and she could honestly say for the first time that she was truly happy. She loved God, her job, and an agent by the name of Paul Gatlin, who had turned her world upside down rather pleasantly. They had been dating ever since the whole Devin Jackson fiasco when she had nearly lost her life and though it had taken both she and Paul staring her death in the face to admit their feelings for one another, she would not change a single thing.

Alex came to a stop at one of the bridal shops, taking a moment to look at the dresses in the window. The long, red dress with white fur on the sleeves and around the neckline looked like something out of ancient times, but it was appealing in its own way and she allowed her imagination to wander, wondering what it would be like to marry Paul one day. The feelings he inspired in her heart and soul caused her to long to be united with him forever, but they hadn’t really talked about it as of yet. True, they had only been dating for a little over a month, but she had known him longer than that, and she had no doubts already that she wanted to spend the rest of her life with him.

"Quite lovely, isn’t it?"

The Irish accent that disturbed her thoughts could only belong to one individual and Alex spun around to find the little angel standing behind her, "Monica!" She hugged her friend tightly, delighted to see her again, "What are you doing here?"

She smiled, pleased that Alex was so happy to see her as the feeling was mutual, "I have a little time off and I decided to try to find you and Paul to pay you a visit."

"And Andrew?"

The angel lowered her eyes briefly, feeling the twinge of sadness, which she tried to cover when she looked up once more, "This is a busy time of year for him unfortunately. I haven’t seen him," She could see that the agent was getting ready to pepper her with questions about her feelings about this, so Monica dove right in to beat her to it, "Looking at bridal gowns?" She raised her eyebrows in mischief as Alex giggled.

"Well, just a little future window shopping in case I ever need it," She replied with a wink.

"Soooo, things are going well?"

"Very well," Despite the fact that Alex was normally one to keep such things to herself, Monica was, after all, an angel and the one who had led her to God in the first place. Besides, Monica was innocent enough to find true joy in her happiness.

"I’m so glad, Alex," Her face was lit up with happiness and the flush in her cheeks was a combination of that and the cold.

"Me too. Can I buy you a cup of coffee? There’s a little coffee house right around the corner."

"Now you’re talking," She grinned as Alex linked her arm through hers and they set off walking, "So, where is Paul?"

"At the farm. I’m meeting up with him tomorrow, as today was my last day of work," She glanced at her angelic friend, watching as she took in the festive appearance of the city, "It’s beautiful, isn’t it?"

"Yes," Monica admitted truthfully. Washington didn’t hold many fond memories for her, but there had been definite advantages. Not even bad memories would keep her away from seeing Alex and Paul.

They walked in silence for a moment, before Alex spoke up once more, "You miss him."

Monica looked surprised for a moment but saw the agent looking at her knowingly and nodded her head, "This is normal though. Unfortunately, not everyone is so joyful during the holidays."

"No, I suppose they aren’t," Alex replied, knowing that she had spent her share of lonely Christmases alone, other than with her family. But it was definitely not the same as spending it with someone you were hopelessly in love with, "How long has it been?"

"He’s checked in a few times since Thanksgiving. You know Andrew. He likes to keep an eye on me," She rolled her eyes, but Alex didn’t miss the affection that lingered in her dark eyes as well as in her voice.

"Well, if you are still off tomorrow and Christmas Day, you are more than welcome to spend it with us."

"Oh no, I couldn’t," She was already shaking her head, "It’s your first Christmas with Paul and that makes it special."

Alex stopped walking and looked into the angel’s eyes, "And your being there would make it even more so. Please say yes?" If Andrew was not going to be around for her, she wouldn’t be able to stand knowing Monica was by herself and not on assignment.

Monica’s lips twitched in a little smile, "I’ll think about it," She consented finally.

*****

His breath hung in the air in front of him and he had to swipe one gloved hand along the window to brush away the fog. The store would be open for another two hours and Paul had walked by it four times so far and still hadn’t made it past the door.

"Looking for something in particular?"

Paul was so startled that he nearly smashed his forehead right into the plate-glass window.

"Andrew! What the hell are you doing here? And don’t you know better than to sneak up on a person? Man, and an angel of death at that. Sheesh… am I next on your list and your assignment is to scare me to death?"

The blond angel was having a very difficult time containing his laughter but he managed to keep it to a stifled chuckle as he shoved his hands into his pockets and rocked back on his heels. "I was just in the area and I thought I’d take a chance you were around," he answered Paul’s first question. "Now, are you going to tell me what you were looking at?"

Paul moved to block more of the window as he said, "Nothing… well, nothing special…"

Andrew craned his neck to look over Paul’s shoulder and then squeezed himself in next to the agent. "I don’t know, those don’t look like nothing to me," he said teasingly.

Displayed prominently in the window was a selection of diamond rings, all laid out on pale blue velvet like bits of ice against a frozen hill. Here were a few other things in the arrangement as well, but Andrew didn’t think that the agent had been looking at snowmen cufflinks or rather gaudy Santa Claus pins.

"Yeah, well, maybe not nothing, exactly," Paul muttered and then he rolled his eyes in a much put-upon look as Andrew patted him on the back and grinned.

"You and Alex have been talking about marriage? I think that’s great, Paul. Why the big secret?"

Paul nervously shifted his shopping bag from hand to hand. "Well, we haven’t exactly discussed it. I think it’s what we’re both thinking about, but we’re afraid to mention it. Okay, I’m afraid to mention it. Alex brought it up once and I switched topics."

"I don’t get it. You were just looking at rings, but you won’t talk to Alex?"

Paul shrugged and started walking down the street, with the angel right beside him.

"I love her, Andrew, don’t get me wrong, I do. I love her more than I thought was possible, and I can only dream of living my whole life with her."

"But?"

"I don’t know. Every time I think about actually broaching the subject with her, much less popping the question, I feel a cold hand wrap around my heart. I’m scared shitless, Andrew," he said bluntly. "Sometimes I feel like a walking, talking curse, and if I say or do the wrong thing then something will happen to her. Something will take her away from me." He glanced over at the angel and they both knew precisely what that something was.

"So you’re just going to go on, stringing her along because you’re afraid asking her to marry you is going to make God strike her down or something?" Andrew said, hoping that it sounded as ludicrous to Paul as it did to him. The grimace on the agent’s face showed that it did.

"Yeah… I know… stupid…"

"I wouldn’t exactly say stupid, but Paul, you already placed her life in God’s hands. Why are you worried now?"

"I’m sure it’s hard for you to understand," Paul said, feeling suddenly a bit angry with the angel. "You haven’t watched someone you love bleed to death in your arms. I have. I have, and I came close with Alex. Let’s just say it’s made me a little more cautious."

Andrew knew where Paul’s bitterness was coming from but it still felt like the jab it was. "I think you’re forgetting how close I’ve come. Maybe you’ve blocked out the fact that Monica was just as close to death as Alex… closer."

Paul clenched his jaw. Of course he hadn’t forgotten. He was just being his usual insensitive self. "I’m sorry, man… you know I didn’t mean anything…"

"Yes, I know, but Paul, don’t you see what you’re doing? You’re talking about putting off commitment because you don’t want to lose Alex, but how long do you think it will be before lack of commitment drives her away?"

"Well, I would hope at least a couple of years," His lopsided grin showed he was joking, but the look Andrew was giving him showed it was not all that amusing.

"I can’t interfere with your free will, Paul, but it seems to me that you don’t chose girlfriends lightly. Between Lauren and Alex, how many ladies have you dated?"

The agent seemed to be concentrating for a moment, before he questioned, "Counting my brief thing for your best friend?"

"Doesn’t really count. You never dated her."

"But only because she’s an angel and you all can’t date."

"So it doesn’t count," Andrew replied, amused by this argument.

Another beat and then, "Well, can I count her anyway?"

Andrew let out an exasperated sigh, "Fine, count her."

"One," Paul grinned, and then explained sheepishly, "One sounded so much better than none."

"Which proves my point," Andrew chuckled, but giving him a pointed look, "You think about these things, Paul. This isn’t just some brief fling and I think you know it. So why not make sure Alex knows it?"

Paul sighed and hung his head for a moment before looking back up, "I thought you couldn’t interfere?"

"I’m not interfering."

"What would you call it then?"

"Weighing your options," He smiled smugly, "It isn’t my fault if you only really have one of those."

He gave his angelic friend a mock glare and continued walking down the street with the angel beside of him. They came to another jewelry store and Paul was starting to think the shops were simply mocking him as he hadn’t remembered there being so many of them.

"So where is Monica anyway?" He changed the subject and talking again gave him an excuse to stop in front of the store.

Andrew fixed his eyes on the display window in an attempt to keep just how much he was missing the little angel hidden, "I can only assume on assignment. I haven’t seen her in a few weeks now."

"How do you know she is all right?" His protective instincts kicked into gear as he shot a glance at his friend.

"I would know if she wasn’t," He replied firmly, referring to the connection he shared with his dearest friend.

"Must be rough."

"It is."

Paul let out another sigh and moved to push open the door of the store, not missing the way Andrew’s eyebrows raised in amusement, "Cufflinks. Need cufflinks."

Andrew stifled a grin and nodded his head, "Yes. You do dress up so often."

Chapter 2

Bright sunshine was pouring in her bedroom window but it couldn’t disguise the fact that it was freezing outside. Each windowpane was edged with frost, and a few errant flakes from the storm continued to blow around in the wind. Her normal routine was to flip the covers back over her head and pretend that it was still three a.m., but that plan was disrupted by the fact that when she rolled over she immediately smelled coffee brewing in the kitchen.

Monica.

Convincing the angel to spend the night had definite advantages, Alex thought as her bare feet hit the floor. She scuffed into her well-worn bunny slippers (which she hid whenever Paul was around) and headed downstairs. Monica had obviously been up for some time, because the downstairs, which was usually freezing in the morning, was already warm and toasty. Alex padded into the kitchen and smiled at the sight of the little angel bundled in one of her spare robes, sitting at the table with her hands wrapped around a large mug of coffee.

"I wasn’t sure if you’d still be here when I woke up. Figured Tess might whisk you away in the middle of the night," she said with a wink.

Monica looked at her over the rim of her mug with just the tiniest hint of sadness. "Tess is busy for the Christmas season. She’s been temporarily transferred to lead the choir."

Alex’s eyes widened. "She has? That’s some honor!" she exclaimed, and then realized the implications an instant later. "Well that does it then. You’re coming with me to the farm. You are not spending Christmas alone!"

The angel shook her head lightly. "Alex, I’m never really alone, and I can always go Home."

Alex stared at her and crossed her arms. "I know all about that, and I think He’ll pardon me for saying that while being in His presence is the most wonderful place you can be, but at this time of year, more than any other, you also need your friends and family around you."

"He is my family," Monica said with a grin.

"And I’m your friend," Alex replied with a definitive nod, "and so is Paul, and you’re coming to the farm to spend Christmas with us, and that’s that." She brushed her hands together and considered it a done deal.

Monica giggled. It seemed ridiculous to be hundreds of years old and yet reduced to the role of little sister by one particularly stubborn woman.

"All right, all right. I suppose you won’t be happy until I agree."

"Quite right," she said with a wide smile.

"Then you’d better call Paul and tell him to set another place for me at the table."

"Yes, I guess I’d better, and I know how thrilled he’s going to be!"

Carrying her coffee she headed to the phone, not even noticing that it was really only seven in the morning. She dialed the farm, turning her back to Monica so that it wouldn’t be so obvious that she knew the number by heart. By the third ring she was beginning to tap her foot, but thankfully he picked up a moment later.

"G’morning," he slurred, still half asleep.

"Paul? Paul, it’s Alex. Are you okay?"

Paul shook his head to clear it and blinked blearily at the clock. "Yeah, yeah. I’m fine. Sorry, Alex. I wasn’t expecting you to call so early."

"Early?" Alex glanced around at the clock above the oven. "Oh good Lord! I’m sorry! Didn’t realize it was so early myself! I had a sort of unexpected guest last night."

"Guest?" Paul was instantly awake. "Nothing bad, right?"

"Not at all! It’s Monica! I ran into her last night and she’s going to come with me to the farm." She lowered her voice before she continued, "Andrew and Tess are both away on assignments and she’s all alone."

Paul chuckled. "Tess may be on assignment, but Andrew is right in the next room. He showed up last night when I was out sho… running some last minute errands. He’s gonna be just as happy as I am to hear she’s coming."

"Yees," Alex drew the word out. "Quite a Christmas surprise, don’t you think?" she said slowly.

On the other end of the phone, Paul smiled. "You don’t want me to tell Andrew?"

"Exaaactly," she replied. "So," she started speaking normally again, "we should be leaving by around nine or ten and we’ll be out at the farm by mid afternoon."

Paul’s smile faded and he almost scowled. "Are you sure you don’t want me to fly up to get you? It’s a long drive, even if you do have company."

"Paul, don’t be such a worry-wart!" Alex exclaimed. "I’m driving out and that’s that. You can fly us all back Christmas day."

"All right, you win."

"Yes, I’ve been batting a thousand this morning."

"Drive safe, and try not to get any tickets on the way out here."

She rolled her eyes playfully even though he couldn’t see it. "I’ll do my best. See you soon… love you," she added.

"Love you too, Alex, and I can’t wait to see you."

She hung up the phone and walked back over to the kitchen table. "There. All settled! And Paul was thrilled, just like I said he’d be.’

Monica grinned. "Well I’d better get dressed and packed so we can leave."

Alex shook her head. "Hold your wings there, Monica. It’s barely seven-thirty! I’m going back to bed for an hour and then we can start getting ready."

Laughing, the angel replied, "I suppose that’s fair. I guess you didn’t realize I was sort of a morning angel."

"No, considering the last time we spent any amount of time together, we were either freezing or dying. No offense, Monica, but I’m looking forward to spending a little stress free time with you this time."

Monica smiled as Alex headed back upstairs before she turned her gaze back to the window. Snow was in the forecast though there were no signs of ominous clouds now. Giving a tiny sigh, she closed her eyes, hoping that God would deliver the message to Andrew; that she loved him and was thinking about him.

*****

Andrew wandered around the stables, pausing just outside of Scout’s stall to give the horse a pat. Scout put his ears back slightly and let out a little snort of air that sounded distinctly like the same question that the angel had been wondering about.

"I’m not sure of where she is, buddy," He replied, not even bothering to consider that he was speaking to a horse, "I’d like the answer to that one myself." Andrew let out a heavy sigh. The last few weeks had been exactly what he had expected. Some of his assignments during the holidays were a true joy; ninety-eight year old Mildred Blackstone, who had wanted to tell him all about her husband, Harvey, and how anxious she was to be reunited with him in heaven, or even fifty-six year old Joe Hamilton who had been battling cancer for years, constantly fighting the disease to be able to reconcile with his daughter. Peace had finally been made and Joe had willingly gone Home, happy now with all he had accomplished in life.

Those were the good assignments, the ones that filled the angel of death with great peace. But there was also nineteen year old Maggie whose boyfriend had broken up with her Thanksgiving night and unable to realize that she had her entire life ahead of her, she had ended it with a handful of pills. Or thirty-two year old Michael who now knew his wife was having an affair, and had taken his life with a handgun, in his car, outside of his wife’s lover’s home. These were the cases that broke his heart. The ones where no matter what caseworker tried convincing these humans that all they needed to live their life fully was God, just couldn’t or wouldn’t listen. These assignments made him weary right down to his soul and what was even harder than the assignments themselves was not having Monica around to relieve his tension.

The little angel had always had a way of touching his heart, without even trying and even more than that was his need to know that she was indeed all right. Though he had told Paul that he would know if that were not the case, Andrew always felt unsettled when more than a day or two past without seeing her. He knew God was always taking care of her and that was more than enough, but he had appointed himself her personal protector here on earth long ago. It was even more than that this time. It was Christmas and he wanted to share the joy of the very first one with her.

"Don’t worry, Scout," Andrew said softly, the words intended for himself every bit as much, "God is watching over her."

"So, is there an angel of therapy for the angels who hold conversations with horses?"

At the sound of Paul’s chuckle Andrew turned around and managed a self conscious grin, "Dunno. I guess we’ll find out." He then noticed the look of concern that lingered in the agent’s eyes, "What is it, Paul?"

"Well, while you’ve been in here, the little white Christmas that started awhile ago, has turned into a much bigger white Christmas. It’s really coming down outside. I tried to reach Alex to warn her, but she has apparently already left. With a roughly five hour drive, she is going to run right into this mess." Just the thought of Alex being caught in the storm had him feeling eternally grateful that she was not traveling alone.

"What about her cell?"

"Tried that. She may not be getting a signal where she is."

Seeing his friend’s worry, the angel replied carefully, "She isn’t due for a few hours yet, so lets not panic. If she sticks to the highway-."

"She prefers back roads, especially in bad weather," Paul frowned, "Something about ‘all the other idiots on the road’."

*****

"This is getting bad," Alex muttered as she switched the high beams on once more in an attempt to help her with visibility. It had been over an hour ago that she had made the decision to escape the highway and the numerous tractor trailers that insisted on flying by her, and now she was beginning to regret that decision. The alternate route she had chosen was full of winding curves and it was all she could do to keep her eyes on the dotted yellow line.

"Yes," Monica agreed quietly, still recovering from the last curve they had slid around, "So much for ‘stress free time’ with me, I suppose."

Alex giggled nervously, "I knew I should have knocked on wood." They fell silent again, so she could concentrate on staying on the road, but the snow coming at the windshield put in mind a movie she had once seen when the spacecraft had gone into light speed. It was nearly mesmerizing and she had to force herself to focus.

After a few minutes, her vision blurred for a just a fraction of a second but it was enough for her to miss the next curve until it was too late. Alex cursed and Monica gave out a surprised cry as the car skidded across the road and into a small embankment. For the moment the only sound was that of human and angel catching their breath, before Alex grinned sheepishly, "Just wanted to make sure you were awake."

"If I wasn’t, I am now," Monica assured her with a little grin in return, but it soon faded as Alex tried to turn the car back onto the road, but the wheels only spun helplessly in the snow. Seeing the agent’s determined expression, Monica said nothing for a moment as her friend tried to reposition the wheel and tried again, in vain to get the car to budge.

"Perhaps I should get out and push?" Monica offered, preparing to button up her coat.

Alex glanced over at the petite angel and managed not to chuckle. Unless Monica started glowing, the angel pushing would be pointless, "No, I’ll push. Can you drive a car?"

She gave a tiny shrug, "Depends on who you ask."

"Okaaay. Andrew or Tess?"

"Andrew says I have potential, but Tess says I can’t stop talking long enough to watch the road and that people on the sidewalks aren’t safe," She smiled brightly then, "But as you won’t be in the car with me, talking should not be a problem."

Alex rolled her eyes good-naturedly as she zipped up her jacket. "Okay, well let’s go with Andrew’s take. Slide on over once I get out and I’ll tell you when to step on the gas."

Monica nodded and Alex flipped her hood up onto her head and pushed the door open against the blowing, swirling snow. It was strange how very quiet it was outside. Aside from the howling wind making the trees knock into each other, and Alex’s feet crunching into the new snow, there wasn’t another sound to be heard. Even the car’s engine sounded muffled and far away. Alex wished she was wearing real boots instead of the dress boots she had picked to go with her outfit.

"Okay, Monica, I’m gonna start rocking it! You need to step on the gas when I say now!" Alex shouted to be heard through the closed door. She watched Monica nod her head and then started leaning against the trunk. "Okay, now! Gun it!"

The engine revved but the car barely moved. Alex, however, was not known for giving up easily. It took another twenty minutes of digging, leaning, rocking and revving, along with a few muffled swears, but finally the car shot from its place and back into the road. Alex was breathing hard and she stripped off her heavy coat and threw it into the back before climbing into the driver’s seat again.

"Now," she said, still slightly out of breath, "let’s just pretend that didn’t happen and we won’t have to tell the boys, ‘k?"

Monica nodded doubtfully. "I suppose I would just as soon forget it," she finally agreed. "I was beginning to get nervous."

"Well don’t. Trust me, I’ve driven in way worse than this before. We’ll just take it nice and easy and we’ll make it. We’ll be late, but we’ll make it."

"Maybe if we take long enough the storm will die down," Monica joked.

"I wish!"

In fact Alex was also hoping that the time it had taken to push the car out would have allowed the storm to move past them. As she started up the car again however, she saw that her wish had no been fulfilled. The snow was still coming down and so was the sun. Before long it would be dark and she would be forced to drive even slower than she already was.

She didn’t want to keep glancing down at the dashboard, but morbid curiosity drew her eyes there again and again. They were still fifteen miles from the main road and that last little stunt getting the car unstuck had used up a lot of gas. If she didn’t pick up the pace, they were going to be in trouble.

*****

"Paul, looking out the window isn’t going to make her get here any sooner," Andrew said as he patted the man on the shoulder. "She’s taking her time. That’s a good thing." When that failed to bring even a look in his direction, he asked, "Have you tried her phone again?"

"Yeah. It goes straight to voicemail. She must be out of range or the cell towers are acting up."

Andrew let out a frustrated breath. He hated seeing his friend so distracted. "I’m sure she’ll be here soon," he tried again for reassurance, then moved on to his own muttering. "Too bad she’s driving alone. If I’d gone to Washington instead of here I’d probably be driving back with her."

That made Paul’s head shoot up and Andrew looked at him questioningly. "What? What’s that look for."

Paul raked his fingers through his hair and stepped away from the window. For some reason he felt like he needed to be out of arm’s reach. "okay… ummm… here’s the deal. It was supposed to be a surprise… for both of you… And it was all Alex’s idea!"

The angel’s eyes opened. He didn’t need to have a map drawn for him. "Monica? She’s with Alex?"

"Well… yes. She ran into Alex last night and she convinced her to come here to spend Christmas with us."

"Monica is with Alex. They’re together." Andrew repeated the facts and then rolled his eyes. "That’s like sending Lucy and Ethel out to find their way through the woods. Between the two of them they’re a walking disaster area!"

"Andrew! That’s not making me feel better!"

The angel took a breath and unclenched his hands. "All right… you’re right… I’m sorry. I’m still sure they’re fine."

Paul looked back out the window. "One hour. I’m giving them one more hour before I head out after them."

Andrew didn’t offer to join him, but the agent let a wry grin flit across his lips as he noticed that he hadn’t said he was planning on waiting behind either.

*****

"Damn, damn, damn!" Alex’s hands slammed down on the steering wheel as the engine of her car sputtered and died. Though the gas light had been on for quite some time, she had been praying that the fuel would hold out just long enough to reach the next town, but as she guided the car to the side of the road she knew her prayers had not been answered.

"We’re out of gas?" Monica’s voice was very, very small as she shot Alex a concerned look.

"Hell, yes!" She leaned back in her seat and laid her head back as well, closing her eyes in frustration as she tried to collect her thoughts. "We’re probably a mile from the nearest town so hopefully another car will come along soon and help…"

"But I haven’t seen another car the entire time," The angel observed worriedly. She didn’t like the idea of waiting for a stranger to come along to help them either. Despite being an angel, experience of late had taught her that not all humans were friendly and someone who seemed willing to help, may not necessarily be good.

"Well, it is either we wait or we walk," Alex sighed, neither option appealing to her all that much. The storm was still raging and the car was already beginning to feel chilly. Walking could warm them up and she had flashlights in her trunk, but if they got lost….

Monica shivered slightly and pulled her coat tighter around her small frame. She briefly thought about trying to let Andrew know she was in trouble, but she stopped herself. If he was working, he certainly wasn’t worrying about her and she wasn’t really in trouble. She and Alex had options, despite the fact that neither of the options was comforting, but God was always with them and surely He would provide. Besides, she felt guilty about always looking to her best friend to bail her out of situations, no matter how accidentally she had gotten herself into them, "It’s getting dark."

"Yeah, we should have been there an hour ago and I’m sure Paul is getting worried. He may even come out looking for us before long," She was hanging onto the surprise for her friend, not wanting to tell her about Andrew.

"Are there blankets in your trunk?" Monica was trying to assess their situation, remembering how miserable it had been to be cold and unable to move.

"Well, there would have been," She admitted ruefully, "Had some jerk not abandoned a litter of puppies on the road the other day. They were so cold and I used the blankets to wrap them up in to take them to vet to be checked and then put up for adoption. The blankets remain in my dryer at the townhouse."

Monica smiled, obviously pleased, "That was so sweet of you."

"Perhaps, but it doesn’t help us now with keeping warm."

"No, but the puppies are grateful just the same."

Alex had to chuckle at the expression of complete happiness on the angel’s face. Only Monica would be so delighted in the face of adversity over rescued puppies, "Okay, we are in agreement that the entire time we have been on this road that we have seen no other cars, correct?" Seeing the angel nod her head, she continued, "Then due to the fact that it will soon be colder than a witch’s….er…broom ride in December in here, and taking into consideration that there is a guard rail for us to follow and flashlights in my trunk, I say we brave the storm and walk into town. We can find a phone and call Paul to come and rescue us as he is good at that. What do you say?"

Monica still looked uncertain, but nodded her head anyway, "Sure. After all, it is only a mile, right?"

"Right." Alex had already donned her abandoned coat from the back seat and she then got out of the car and shrugged into it before retrieving the flashlights from the trunk. By that time, Monica had gotten out of the car as well and Alex handed her one of the lights and then turned on her hazards before closing and locking up the car.

"Now," She began to instruct as they switched on the flashlights, "Stay to the guard rail and follow me. If you need to rest, just let me know."

Another nod and the little angel fell into step behind her friend with a tiny sigh, hoping that out of their two options, they had not chosen the wrong one.

*****

"Where the hell could they be?" Paul grumbled more to himself than to Andrew as he drove along in the snow, "This was not the way I had envisioned Christmas Eve by a longshot."

"We’ll find them, Paul," Andrew encouraged, managing to mask his own mounting concern. They had taken the highway to the place Paul felt certain that Alex would have exited but they had been traveling the road for quite some time now with no sign of her car. What bothered him even more was that he couldn’t shake the fact that Monica was in some kind of trouble, but yet he had not heard her speak to his heart.

"I’m sure she would have come this way," He had left a note at the farm in the event the two females arrived with instructions for Alex to page him, but his pager remained ominously silent, "What is it about these two and cold temperatures?"

"Paul, the last time was a bit out of their control," The angel reminded him, knowing he was referring to their being held hostage in the barn by Devin Jackson. He sighed, "I have a feeling though that this time has their names written all over it."

"Yeah, if I know Alex she wasn’t about to stop just because of a ‘little snow’, as she likes to put it."

"And Monica isn’t much better."

Paul flipped the windshield wipers on to high, and grimaced when it barely affected the swirling picture in front of them. "Why didn’t I insist on flying her out here?" he muttered to himself.

"Because she’s much too independent for you to order around like that."

The agent shrugged his agreement and was silent for a minute before speaking again. "I just can’t get this knot out of my stomach, Andrew. I’m sorry."

"I told you, if something was wrong, I’d know it," Andrew reminded him, although he was a little worried himself. He hadn’t heard anything bad from Monica. He hadn’t heard anything at all. That alone was enough to set him on edge.

"I don’t know what I’d do, Andrew…"

"Paul!" the angel cut him off.

"I can’t help it! You know why I’ve pushed off even thinking about taking that next step with Alex, and now, here I am with a ring in my pocket and it’s like my worst fear is coming to life! If anything happens to here, so help me, God…"

"That’s right, Paul. So, help you, God," Andrew interrupted. "He has helped you before and no doubt he will help you again. It’s nearly Christmas, Paul. One of the times of year when you should have the most faith. Can you at least try to keep that in mind?"

"I’m trying, buddy. Believe me, I’m trying."

They continued on in silence, but Andrew noticed that Paul’s hand often went to his chest pocket, where the ring was stored. He turned his attention out the side window and tried to ignore the increasing uneasiness in his own heart. Where were they?

*****

Alex Bennett had been raised in the DC area, and she wasn’t a stranger to cold weather or snow. She had even spent winters on the high school ski team, and camped overnight with her brother in the mountains one new year’s eve. None of that had prepared her for the bone-deep cold that was creeping through her entire body. She was moving her legs by pure will, and wasn’t even sure if all of her toes were still attached.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Monica stumble, but the angel was trudging forward again before she could even put out a hand to steady her. They hadn’t said anything for the past fifteen minutes but they both knew what the other was thinking. The car was far out of sight, the town seemed even further away than when they’d started, and the constant snow made even staying on the road difficult. Alex had started praying for someone to pass by, and she hoped that Monica was doing the same. It never hurt to have someone with an "in" on her side.

Monica noticed Alex looking at her and hoped that she didn’t look as lost as she currently felt. It wouldn’t do for an angel of God to be the one in need of faith. The truth was that she had complete faith that they would be fine. The problem was that she wanted "fine" to take place sooner rather than later. Her feet were cold and wet, her ears were bright red and her nose felt like an ice cube. Patience was never her strong suit.

"So, what did you get Paul for Christmas?" the angel asked, as much to fill the time as anything else. The silence was almost overpowering and only mad her feel more lost.

"Well I bought him a new wallet to replace that battered one he’s been carrying around, but his big gift is a weekend ski trip up in Vermont. He mentioned that he went there once when he was a kid. We’ve been on little trips together before, but this is the first surprise vacation."

"I’m sure he’ll love it," Monica said enthusiastically. "Do you know what he’s giving you?" She grinned a little mischievously. "You were looking at those wedding dresses pretty intently," she teased.

"Monica! Don’t be silly! We’ve barely talked about that, and usually I’m the one who mentions it and he’s the one who changes the subject." Alex kept her voice light. It was something she had noticed about him, but they really hadn’t been dating for too long. She was sure that things would improve.

"He’s probably just a little scared," Monica reasoned. "I understand that men can be that way sometimes."

Alex let out a long laugh and it warmed her right to her toes. "Well you’re right about that!"

They walked on silently and after another ten minutes Monica turned to Alex and then back to the road, squinting and, trying to see more than ten feet in front of herself. "Alex," she said slowly, "shouldn’t we be able to see the town by now?"

The woman had been blowing at her frozen hands and she looked at Monica with just a trace of worry in her eyes. "I thought so, but I guess we must have been a little further out than I thought. It’s so hard to tell in all this snow."

"Oh," was Monica’s only reply.

"We probably should have stayed in the car," Alex said a few minutes later, in response to what she was sure Monica was thinking.

"No, Alex, we would have been just as cold there… maybe colder sitting in one spot all this time. I’m sure we’re probably almost there. Maybe a car will even come by now that we’re closer to civilization."

"Yeah, there’s always that," Alex answered. She let out a long breath and watched it hang in front of her. This was not how she had imagined spending Christmas Eve. A quiet sigh from Monica caused her to turn her head. "What is it, Monica?"

"Nothing really," she replied. "I was just wondering where Andrew is. I haven’t felt him and I’ve been afraid to try. I hate worrying him like that. He’s probably working on an assignment right now anyway."

Alex bit her lip, wondering what to say. Andrew was supposed to be a surprise, but maybe it would spur the angel on if she knew her best friend was waiting for her. She opened her mouth to make, decision made, when suddenly she squinted and held her hand up to shield her eyes. A car was speeding down the road, it’s bright lights cutting through the snow. Things were looking up!

*****

"What if they were in an accident? Would you know?"

"I’d know," Andrew replied to the fourth such question in a quarter hour.

Paul’s hands were tight on the wheel and his knuckles were almost white. With every minute that passed he became more certain that something horrible had happened. The roads were treacherous and visibility was next to nothing.

"What about--"

He was cut off by Andrew exclaiming, "There! Over there… what’s that? I see something!" Pointing to the side of the road about five hundred yards ahead of them he waited for Paul to see.

The agent didn’t say anything, he just stepped on the gas and ate up the road. "It’s them! I recognize Alex’s jacket!" he said as they got closer. Another second and he was slamming on the brakes and sliding to a stop in front of them.

He jumped out of the car with the engine still running and ran through the snow to Alex’s side. Without even a word of greeting he pulled her into a hug so tight it forced the breath from her chest and lifted her toes off the ground.

"Thank God," he whispered. "Thank God you’re all right."

Alex felt a mix of emotions all welling to the surface and she hugged him back and pressed her lips against his cheek before pulling back and swiping at her eyes. "Of course we’re all right," she said. "We’re tough girls."

Paul just laughed and pulled her close again, spinning around until she squealed in laughter.

The gentle scolding that the angel of death had prepared to give to his dearest friend, died on his lips at the look of surprise, happiness and relief that was present on Monica’s face at seeing him. Tears had rushed to her eyes and a moment later, he was holding onto her tightly, having already decided that the questions of why she had not spoken to his heart could wait until later.

"You’re here," She murmured against his chest, her arms wrapped tightly around him, "I’ve missed you."

"I’ve missed you too, angel," Andrew replied, kissing the top of her head, "But right now, I think we need to get you both into the car and warmed up." Paul was already leading Alex in that general direction and now he followed as well with his arm wrapped around the little angel’s shoulders.

"We ran out of gas," Alex was explaining as she got into the passenger’s side of the car next to Paul, "I got stuck on the side of the road and we used up a lot of it getting out. I thought I’d have enough to get to the town, but needless to say, I didn’t," She smiled sheepishly as she basked in the heat that Paul had turned up in order to warm them.

"Alex, you are still nearly four miles from the town!" Paul exclaimed, unable to help but to laugh at her look of surprise at hearing this news.

"Four miles?" Monica uttered as she shivered, the warmth now reminding her of how cold she really was as Paul’s words settled into her mind. She and Alex would have been walking forever had Paul and Andrew not gone in search of them.

"So what is the plan of action?" Andrew asked, as Monica settled in against him in the back seat.

"I think we’re going to stop in town and fill the gas can in my trunk. Then if you are game, Andrew, you can drive my car back to the farm and I’ll drive Alex’s. It shouldn’t take long and we should be home by eight ‘o clock."

"Actually, maybe we’ll stop for a bite to eat on the way home," Andrew offered, hoping he sounded casual enough. He knew what Paul was carrying in his pocket and he wanted to give the couple time in order for Paul to propose. Besides, he and his angelic companion had a little bit of talking to do.

"Ohhh, that sounds like a great idea!" Alex grinned, looking over at Paul, "I am starved!"

"Alex," Paul’s voice was low, knowing exactly what Andrew was doing and after this little scare, he had already decided he was more than ready to take the plunge, "I think they have a little catching up to do, you know?"

"Oh right," She whispered conspiratorially before raising her voice to a normal level, "but I think I can wait till we get to the farm to eat."

The agent suppressed a chuckle. Yes, the best way to get Alex in his mindset was to make her think her think she was part of something important. If she only knew how true that was this time.

*****

Paul was stalling and he knew it. They had arrived at the farm over an hour ago and he had insisted Alex put on something warmer after being out in the cold for so long. Then he had fixed her soup and a sandwich and once she had eaten he had made the excuse of wanting to check on the horses. At the rate he was going, he’d may as well have Andrew propose for him as surely the angels would be returning before too long.

Alex looked up as she heard the back door open and Paul walked back into the house. His expression was nervous, but he had been acting rather peculiar ever since they had gotten to the farm. Though she secretly enjoyed the attention he had been giving her, it seemed a little over the top for him. After all, she was an FBI agent as well and he knew she was able to take care of herself.

"Care to go for a little ride?" He asked her, trying his best to look spontaneous, "That is, if you have any desire to go back out in the cold."

"Sure," Alex replied, moving to grab her coat and following him out the door where she was surprised to see Scout already saddled and waiting at the bottom of the steps, "A bit presumptuous, aren’t you?" She chuckled, though she accepted the boost from him into the saddle.

Swinging himself up behind her, he grinned, "No, I was just really hoping you would say yes," He rolled his eyes at himself, thinking that was the understatement of the year. Gathering the reins, he clucked to Scout and the horse set off through the snow.

They rode in silence for a few minutes before Paul broke it softly, "You know, you scared the hell out of me tonight. All I could imagine was that something terrible had happened to you and that thought was far from comforting."

"What? The tough guy was scared?" She leaned her head back and grinned up at him, but seeing the serious expression on his face, she changed her tone, "I’m sorry. I tried to call you, but I couldn’t get a signal and we weren’t sure of whether to stay in the car or try to walk to town. I guess those nights of sitting half frozen in that stable made the decision for us. Neither of us really wanted to sit in a cold car and wait for something to happen."

"I suppose I can understand that," Paul stated after a moment of consideration, "I just thankful you are both safe." He left it at that as he urged Scout onwards until they reached the edge of the forest. Stopping, he climbed down to the ground and then reached up to help Alex down as well. She looked beautiful, her cheeks flushed from the cold air and her hair free and tumbling around her shoulders. It had grown quite a bit since Devin Jackson had forced the issue of a much shorter style. He resisted the urge to kiss her, feeling sure that if he did, he would just start babbling and his proposal would be nothing like he had planned it to be.

"I want to show you something." Taking her hand, he led her into the woods, no more than a few hundred feet until they came to the base of a large tree. There were boards hammered into the trunk and leading upwards and Alex could tell that they had been there for some time judging by the rust on the nails and wear on the wood, "After you," He grinned, seeing her look of curiosity before she reached up to grab hold of one of the wooden slabs before climbing up. Paul was right behind her, in the event she lose her footing and she smiled to herself at that knowledge.

She emerged into a relatively spacious treehouse, though she did have to keep to her knees in order to not bump her head on the roof. There was thankfully, a blanket on the floor and she scootched across in order to make room for him to follow her. Looking around, she could see a few remnants from children; the remains of an old slingshot and a dirty, well worn baseball were on the little shelf.

"My grandfather built this for me when I was a kid," Paul explained, sitting down on the floor across from her, "I spent many a summer afternoon here, dreaming about my future as a major league baseball player," She laughed and he grinned, "How differently things turned out." Reaching into his coat pocket, he pulled out a pack of matches and lit one in order to light the single candle which was also on the shelf.

"Not bad different, I hope," Alex teased gently, watching as the candle cast a soft glow against the wood and against Paul’s features.

"No. Not bad. Actually much better than I ever could have planned," He cleared his throat nervously and reached for her hand, "I never, even in my best childhood daydreams, could have imagined you, Alex."

A slow blush crept across her cheeks as she lowered her eyes self-consciously, "Paul…"

"No, let me finish. A couple of years ago, I didn’t think I would ever even be happy again, yet alone fall in love again, but then you came along and all of that changed. Sweetheart, you make me happier than I ever thought I could be. I knew from that moment when I sat beside your bed, praying to God to spare your life, that I loved you, that I wanted to spend my life with you. Maybe it seems silly, but it was how I felt…how I still feel…" He felt moisture in his eyes and he looked down briefly and blinked to clear them. Her hand to his cheek brought them back up to meet her gaze once more.

"And you know I feel the exact same way," She whispered, a tear escaping her eye, "I love you, Gatlin and these last few months have been the best of my entire life."

He smiled, feeling more confident already as he drew in a deep breath, "Yes. It has only been a few months and maybe it is too soon, but I know that I won’t feel anymore certain than I do right now," He reached into his coat pocket and his hand closed around the velvet box, "Alex, I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I want to make you happy every single day, as happy as you make me and in order to do that, we need to make things official."

"Paul, you know I’m not dating anyone else," She insisted, sure that was what this was all about. She had already made the decision months ago to exclusively date just him as she had no desire to play the field any longer, "You don’t have to worry about-."

Her words fell short as he pulled the open box from his pocket, the diamond setting in the ring catching the candlelight and sparkling brilliantly. Her free hand instantly flew to her mouth as tears filled her blue eyes and fell with a blink, "Paul…"

"I’m thinking really, really official, baby," He whispered, his voice choked with emotion, "Alex Bennett, I want you to marry me. I want you to be my wife," His hand was shaking as he took the ring from the box, "Please make me happier than I could ever have imagined to be and say yes."

Her eyes searched his through tears as a trembling smile crossed her face, "Yes," She said tearfully, her voice catching in a sob, "A million times, yes!"

Allowing a tear to escape, he reached for her left hand and slid the engagement ring onto her finger before kissing her palm softly, "I love you, Bennett."

Alex rose quickly to her knees to fall into his arms, "I love you too," She whispered before his lips met with hers in a tender kiss as the candle traced the silhouette of two souls who would soon become one.

*****

It was toasty warm in the little diner, but Monica still rubbed her arms occasionally, more out of remembrance of the cold than an actual chill. Andrew knew that was the case, but he still wasn’t taking any chances.

"Here, lean forward," he said as he slid out of the booth and moved to her side. He shrugged out of his coat and gently draped it around her shoulders, smiling broadly when she looked up at him with happiness and contentment in her eyes. "Better?"

"Much," she replied, eyes following him as he took his seat again. She wrapped her hands around her coffee mug and raised it to her lips, but her gaze never left him. "I still can’t believe you’re here. I’m so happy that we’re getting to spend Christmas together after all," she said as she set her mug down.

"You know, when Paul told me you were with Alex I had mixed feelings." He watched as her face fell and immediately reached across to grab her hands before she could bury them in her lap which was her habit when she started to retreat. "Monica, no! Not mixed that way," he said, mentally slapping himself. "Mixed because I was excited to see you, but Paul didn’t tell me you were coming until Alex was already overdue and the storm was going full force."

Monica let out a little breath of air and smiled again. "Alex didn’t tell me at all, but I kept thinking about you just the same."

"Well that brings up another little issue."

"Issue?" She furrowed her brow, perplexed and slightly uneasy at the look on his face.

"I kept telling Paul that Alex was fine, and that you were fine. I told him that I would know if something had happened, and I know that’s true. If something horrible had happened I would have known. But still, the whole time, I kept waiting to hear from you and wondering what was going on. You didn’t even give me a clue that the two of you were in trouble."

She frowned a bit and shrugged her shoulders as she stared into her mug. "I thought you were working, and I didn’t want to interrupt or interfere. It isn’t like you could have just come to my side and I didn’t want you worrying. I guess that plan didn’t work very well since you did anyway."

"Angel, don’t look so upset. There’s nothing to be upset about. It’s just that I had hoped that you would trust me enough to call out to me if you’re in trouble."

"Of course I trust you!" she exclaimed. "You know that! I told you… I didn’t want to bother you…"

Andrew met her gaze seriously. "And that is what I thought was really behind your reluctance. It wasn’t that you didn’t want to interrupt me, it’s that you somehow think you’re a bother to me."

"Well you have to admit that I have been rather… accident prone… the last assignments we’ve been on together," she said slowly.

"We both know that those weren’t accidents. You were where you needed to be, when you needed to be there."

"And you and Tess ended up worried sick about me every time," she insisted.

He grinned crookedly. "Yes, but I was worried sick this time too."

Monica threw her hands in the air. "I just can’t win!"

Laughing, he squeezed her hands. "I think we both won. We won the instant God gave us this connection we share. It eases both our hearts, when we’re apart, and it helps us to be more in-tune with each other when we’re on the same assignment. Don’t ever think that opening your heart to me, even when you’re scared or in trouble is a burden on me because it never has been and it never will be. If it isn’t within my abilities to go to you, at least I can share what you’re feeling from a distance and encourage you along the way. Just the same way you have always encouraged me, even when I’m upset about an assignment."

She remembered a few times when she had felt sadness coming from him and had sent back reassurance and love. It had been as natural as breathing to her and she had never thought about the fact that Andrew felt the same way.

"Is this where I should apologize?" she asked with a tiny grin.

He laughed again. "No. No apologies necessary. I just wanted to make sure you knew where we stand. You’re not a trouble or a burden to me. In fact, you’re a gift… one that I’m particularly appreciative of this Christmas."

Monica let out a tiny giggle and her smile extended all the way to her eyes. "You always say the sweetest things, Andrew. It must be your secret talent."

"Well keep in mind, I’m an angel… I’m only speaking the truth."

"And you know I feel exactly the same way." She took another sip of coffee but her eyes continued to twinkle. She happened to glance out the window as she put her mug down, and she was able to see all the stars arrayed above. The storm had finally moved on, and the night had turned clear and beautiful. "We should probably head to the farm," she commented. "Paul and Alex will think we got stranded somewhere!"

Andrew chuckled knowingly. "I have a feeling that the two of them may have other things on their minds."

Monica’s eyes narrowed as she turned her head back to him. "What are you talking about?"

"Let’s just say that I think someone may be getting an early Christmas present, and it’s small and sparkly just like the snow you two were caught in."

The little angel’s eyes widened and her eyebrows shot up. "Andrew, you don’t mean… Alex was just telling me that she didn’t think Paul was ready!"

"He was on the fence, but only because his fear was holding him back. I actually think this little mishap of yours was the best thing that could have happened. It made him see two things: how much he loves Alex, and that he isn’t doomed to lose everyone he loves."

"In that case, I am glad that my toes are still numb! It was worth it to have the two of them together and happy!"