Second Nature by Elizabeth Sharp Page A

had time to smile before he swept
me into his arms and hugged me tight. As he stepped back, I placed
my hand on the back of his head and pressed his lips to mine. There
was no guilt, only a strange silence as if we were the only two
people in the world. Dylan placed his hands around my waist and
moved closer, his surprise devoured in the passion of the kiss. I
buried my fingers in his hair as our lips molded. He pulled back,
and I could only sigh. “Heavenly.”
    Dylan gently flicked the end of my nose with
an index finger, and I laughed feeling more alive than I had in a
very long time. His angel aura wrapped around me as surely as his
arms. I didn’t know what was happening, but I decided not to dwell
on it. Being with Dylan felt good, which was all I cared about at
the moment.
    I wasn’t up to driving, and Dylan didn’t
know how—a fact I vowed to remedy. We found a nearby pancake house
and got a table in a corner of the nearly empty restaurant. It was
late enough that the all night partiers had cleared out, but still
early enough that the morning rush hadn’t started yet. We had the
place mostly to ourselves. I didn’t think there was anything on the
menu I could actually eat, but I didn’t want to spoil the mood so I
said nothing.
    The waitress took our orders. Dylan ordered
a large stack of pancakes, scrambled eggs, bacon and hash browns.
Shaking my head, I ordered the fresh fruit platter and a glass of
orange juice. Dylan raised his brows at me, and I shrugged. I
watched horror spread across his face as he realized my problem
with the menu. Suddenly, he was apologizing profusely, and I
flushed with embarrassment. It all would have been adorable if I
hadn’t been kicking myself for ruining the moment. Dylan got up and
talked to the waitress, handing her a folded bill, before he came
back and grabbed my hand. Pulling me to my feet, he headed out the
door. We walked holding hands for a block while I pestered him
about where we were going. Finally, he turned to me and smiled.
    “You trust me, don’t you, Sprout?”
    I smiled. I wasn’t sure when it had
happened, but I did trust him. I nodded and he folded me into his
arms. His light surrounded us, and the world went silent again.
Then the light began to intensify, and I looked up to see a ray of
light shining from above. It became very bright, to the point all I
could see was white, yet it never hurt my eyes.
    When the whiteness cleared, I had a clear
view of the mountain meadow we stood in. Morning mist hung in the
hollows like a curtain. White flowers dotted the long grass,
bobbing their heads in a soft breeze. The power of the mountains
energized me, and the beauty of the view took my breath away.
    “Where in Heaven’s name are we?” I turned in
full circles as awe rolled over me.
    “Pun intended?” Dylan raised a brow at me
with a grin. “Vermont.” He inhaled deeply, and I mimicked him,
filling myself with the fresh mountain air.
    I barely had time to exhale before Dylan
grabbed my hand and dragged me along a path nearly hidden from
view. It disappeared over a hill and down to a giant farmhouse
surrounded by a low stone wall. As he opened the gate, he reminded
me of a happy little boy showing off his toys. His excitement was
contagious, and I couldn’t help but laugh as we pounded up the
stairs to the front door.
    “What in the world?” A woman’s voice drifted
out as the door swung open. “Sounds like a herd of elephants out
here—” She broke off as the door swung all the way open, and her
eyes landed on us. Her face lit up in a smile as a white light
silhouetted her. “Dylan!”
    Before I knew it, we were swept into a
kitchen that looked like it was straight out of a Norman Rockwell
painting by the angel who answered the door. The table was square
and covered in a red and navy blue checked tablecloth. A single
black ladder-back chair with a wicker seat sat at each side. White
lace placemats sat in front of each chair with a neatly