A Guardian Angel by Phoenix Williams Page B

performed at this
point. She had to be impressed.
    “This is my
brother's apartment,” she said through the passenger window.
“I'd introduce you, but he's out on duty right now.” She
climbed into the car after receiving a smile in response. “Where
did you have in mind?” she asked. Her scent filled the car.
    “A small
restaurant with a lot of Italian food,” Andy said. He did well
as a flirt, finding little trouble in pretending to be what he was
not. “Hopefully with a lack of crying children.” Steven
had picked the place.
    “Ooh,”
she hummed, impressed. “That's a perfect balance. You are a
good first date.” They smiled at each other and drove off into
the young Lumnin night.
    “I have to
ask,” Andy said, doing his best to exercise his grasp on the
art of conversing, “what made you ask me out?”
    Haley smiled with
her beautiful-without-lipstick lips, a comfortable sign. Andy was
surprised by her warmth toward him. Her ignorant trust. “You're
cute and you're intelligent,” she explained. “It's a vibe
I get. They haven't been wrong yet, so don't be the first.”
    They laughed.
“Trust me,” Andy said, feeling evil, “I certainly
won't try to be.”
    “Where are
you from?” she asked.
    “Chicago,”
Andy replied, glancing over at her. “Since I was born.”
    “You don't
have a Chicago accent,” Haley commented.
    Andy looked over at
her. He had not lied, but she was right. “I travel a lot. I
guess I don't hear it enough.” This was true.
    “Is this it
here?” she asked, pointing out the red canopy that sheltered
the entrance to Pastafaria. He nodded in response and parked the car
in one of the several better spots. Good, he thought, it'll
be quiet.
    Romance is
regulated.
    “Two?”
the hostess asked. She was an older red-haired woman with warm
vitality. A happy employee.
    “Yes please,”
Andy said. “Corner table, if you can.”
    “Sure thing,”
was her answer, then she lead them through the green-carpeted room
with two menus cradled in her arm.
    The place was dead
with only three other tables occupied out of the two dozen. She
brought them to a half-sized table draped in a deep purple cloth and
decorated with an already lit candle. She set the menus down and said
that she would be back to take their drink orders personally. They
thanked her and opened up their menus.
    “Get anything
delicious that you want,” he said.
    “What if I
wanted a bag of rocks?” she replied. “Something not
delicious.”
    “Well then
you clearly can't have it,” Andy replied. “Although, it
depends on the kind of bag.”
    She laughed. He
smiled at that.
    “You're a bit
of a weirdo,” Haley commented, getting her silverware oriented.
“I like that.”
    Andy only had a
shrug to reply with as he began looking more attentively at his menu.
“I'm thinking that I'll have some hash-browns smothered in
green chili with a side of,” he turned the page, “macaroni.”
    “Hash browns
for dinner?” Haley echoed, flipping through the menu. “Where
do you even see that?”
    He didn't. Steven
had told him that it was an off-menu dish that they offered and gave
it a raving review. He didn't much fancy pasta as it was. “Nowhere,”
he answered. “I'm just going to tell the waitress that that is
what I want and hope I get something along those lines.”
    Haley's eyes
glistened as she chuckled. Everything about her face seemed to smile
at once as she peered into his eyes dreamily. He couldn't keep
himself from getting lost in them as they smiled. Such beautiful
eyes.
    “This is
really nice, Andy,” she thanked him. “Thank you so much.
I'm already having fun.” Her white teeth were seemingly
perfect, shining through her lips as she spoke.
    “Is your job
fun?” Andy transitioned.
    She scoffed. “I
wouldn't say that it's fun,” she replied. “But it's good
work.”
    “What do you
do?”
    Haley seemed to
search for the words. “I'm a journalist. I do a lot of snooping
around and expose bad