Chapter 5

"We are about to head into town to see about some temporary housing, did you need anything?" he continued.

"No, but thank you for the offer. I hate to have to be the one to tell you this but there is no other housing in town. It's a small town so there's never been any need for any type of hotel or anything" Angel stated.

"Well maybe we can find someone to rent out a few rooms for a couple of weeks, just until we get the water working" Ryan said with hope.

"The people in town are really nice, but to let a stranger into their homes is a little far fetched even for them. I have a small, 1 room cottage out back and one extra room in the main house if you need a place to stay for a while" Angel stated.

At that same time she thought to herself, 'why are you inviting complete strangers into your house you idiot?' The voice didn't take long to respond, "We can trust them, its ok". 'How do you know? You're not even a person you a voice she rebutted. "Just trust me, I would never put you in danger" the voice responded. 'Yeah sure, I guess we will see.'

Ryan looked at her with surprise before he responded, "You would let us stay with you?"

"It's just an offer, I know how hard it would be to find a place in town and the only other option would be almost an hour away. If you don't want to stay with me I'm fine with that too" she replied feeling kind of disappointed.

She found that it some how made her angry that he would question staying with her. 'What's so wrong with me that you can't just stay next door,' she thought to herself.

"Well it will only be for a few weeks and let us know if we bother you in anyway. Is there a couch in the cottage?" Ryan asked.

"Yes, there is a bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and living room in there. I think the couch in there is also a hide away bed. One of you will have to stay in the main house but the bedroom in there has its own bathroom so I won't get in your personal space" Angel said back smiling.

"Ok, that's set then, Jack and Tony, you stay in the cottage and I will stay in the main house." Both men looked at Ryan and Angel swears she seen Jack wink at Ryan before he turned to go get his bags out of the truck.

'What's with these guys,' she thought to herself. There was something off about them that she just couldn't pin it down. She didn't know why she was so willing to trust these guys in her home when she knew nothing about them. Although, the voice inside of her seemed to think that it was all ok. Almost like the voice knew something about them that she didn't. She wished that the voice would just let her in on the secret that it was holding from her, maybe then she would feel a little better about the split decision that she just made to allow these strangers live with her.

"Would you like to show us around?" Ryan asked interrupting the debate she was having in her head.

"Sure, follow me." Angel said back.

She decided to take them to the house first since that would probably be where they spent most of their time. The cottage was ok for one person to live in for a short time, but it was too small for three men of this size to spend a lot of time in together. As they approached the front door, Angel turned around to see if they were even following her. She didn't hear any foot steps behind her and wondered if they had changed their minds about her offer. She was stunned when she turned around to find all three of them right there behind her waiting for her to continue. 'How could three men of their size walk that silently?' she questioned herself.

She turned back around and walked into the house, as they followed.

"If you don't mind, please take off your shoes. The carpets are white and hard to keep clean."

When she turned around, she saw that they already had off their shoes. 'Well at least they are polite,' she thought to herself as she removed her own shoes and hung up her running jacket. She took them through a tour of the house showing them the living room, kitchen, half bath, and laundry room.

"There is no laundry room in the cottage, but if you bring your clothes up and leave them in here I can wash them for you." she stated.

"Thank you for the offer, but I think we can handle our own laundry" Tony replied.

"Very well then." Angel said softly thinking to herself at how surprised she was that these men were so domesticated. To her, there seamed to be something about them that was wild, maybe she was way off on that feeling.

"This will be your room Ryan", she stated as she led him into what use to be her old bedroom.

She had used this room for the first year that she lived here, but she felt that she would like the view of the back room that use to be her parents so she moved into that room and this one was now empty. She felt a wave of relief that she had finally packed up all her childhood things from the room. She didn't think that Ryan would be that comfortable staying in a room full of pink princess themes and baby dolls. She let out a small giggle as she thought about the man sleeping on pink sheets in the room. She hadn't noticed that she had done it until she looked around at the men staring at her with questioning looks. She thought it was best to explain herself so that they didn't think she was crazy; or maybe they were thinking that she was overly excited to have this new man sleeping in her house. Either way she felt she had to clear it up.

'But we are happy about this new man sleeping in the house' the voice chimed in. 'That's not the point,' was all she could reply, knowing that it was the truth.

"I was just thinking that it's a good thing that I cleared out this room a few years ago. It was full of pink things and Barbie dolls. I didn't think that you would be too comfortable sleeping with that." she grinned as she looked up at Ryan. A smile spread across his face and she suddenly felt the heat in her face again.

'You like him don't you?' the voice said. Why did this voice keep bothering her today? It was usually pretty quiet just in the background, but today it was loud and clear and talking more than it had in months. As if he could feel how uncomfortable she was getting, Ryan broke the silence.

"It would have made me feel a little out of place, but I still would have been grateful that you opened your home to us, thank you."

"You're welcome." Angel replied.

She finished the tour of the house and they headed back outside to go to the cottage. The guys had given her many compliments on the house and she felt proud to be the owner of the estate. When they arrived at the cottage, she opened the door.

"I haven't been in here for a few years so I'm sure that it could use a good cleaning. I can come back tomorrow and clean it up for you." she stated a little embarrassed at the dust all over everything.

"No, there's no need for that. We can clean it ourselves. It's the least we can do for you allowing us to stay here." Jack replied.

She gave the tour of the cottage not that there was much to show, and showed the guys where the towels and extra blankets were. She was happy to find that there was a hide a way bed in the couch. She was feeling guilty that maybe one of the men would have to sleep on a couch to small for his large body.

She looked down at her watch and all of a sudden reality hit her.

"Oh crap! I'm going to be late." she said as she started out the door. "I have to go to work. Just make yourselves at home" she said over her shoulder as she ran back to the house.

She heard them say 'thank you' as she was running and turned to flash them an appealing smile. She grabbed her purse and coat from the house and went out to the car. She drove a little faster than she normally would into town. She didn't want to be late. She was never late for work. She walked into Betty's Diner at exactly noon. She smiled to herself as she knew she had made it on time. It wasn't her normal day to work but one of the other girls had been sick and Betty had asked her to fill in. She was more than happy to do it. She looked forward to working at the diner so that she could listen to all the newest town gossip.

She was expecting to hear about the new men that moved into the old farm house, but no one had said anything about it yet. She remembered that the guys had said that it was their first day here. They must not have made it into town yet. She knew that the first time any of the girls in town saw those three gorgeous men that they wouldn't stop talking about it for days, maybe even weeks. She smiled to herself as she thought about the men that she had met this morning. They all seemed so polite, and very sexy. She almost thought about bringing it up to a few of the women in the diner, but she decided against it. What if it was all in her head? What if the men didn't even exist? Maybe her mind made up the whole thing to just make her feel less alone out there on the estate. How else could she explain that these three, out of this world, men had shown up at her doorstep, or rather the doorstep next door this morning?

Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard the chime go off above the door when someone walked in. Not only that, but all of a sudden all the talking in the diner had stopped. She turned wondering what was going on that would stop everything in the diner at once. What she found should not have surprised her. It was the three picture perfect men that she was thinking about just a few seconds ago that she had made up in her mind. 'I guess I'm not crazy they are obviously here.' She had to laugh at herself for thinking that she had a good enough imagination to make up three guys that looked as good as these. She walked over to the door to greet the men.

"Welcome to Betty's Diner. Let me show you to a booth", she smiled at the men and grabbed three menus as she motioned to a booth for them. "Can I get you anything to drink?" she asked.

"Just some water for all of us please Angel." Ryan spoke. She felt her face get hot again

and a shiver ran down her spine when he spoke her name.

"Ok, I will be right back with those while you take a look over the menu" she smiled and rushed away to the kitchen.

Why did she keep blushing and what's with the shivers? She had never acted like this before and it was really confusing to her. 'It's because you like him; we like him' the voice said. 'You be quiet I didn't ask you, and you have been way too outspoken today. You're starting to get on my nerves!' she responded back. 'I am only speaking the truth. You should not be mad' the voice said back. It sounded almost sad and she felt bad for yelling at it, but she wasn't about to tell it that. She needed it to be quiet for a while so that she could think.

"Are you going to take those boys their drinks, or just stand there dear?" Betty spoke in her soft voice.

"Oh yes, I was just, umm, giving them time to look over the menu." she smiled up at the elderly lady.

'Was I really standing there for a long time?' she asked herself. She took the drinks back over to the table and set them down to take their orders. She didn't even look up at them as she took the orders. She was afraid that she would lose her train of thought and not get the orders right. She took the orders and headed back towards the kitchen.

"Are you alright dear? You seem sort of flustered." Betty asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little tired today." Angel lied. When their orders were ready she took them back to their table.

"Thank you Angel. When do you get off?" Ryan asked.

"I get off at 4:00, but then I work at the Red River Inn until midnight" she replied.

"What is the Red River Inn?" Ryan asked with curiosity.

"It's the bar across the street. You guys could stop in if you're not busy." Angel said as she refilled the waters on the table.

She spoke to them on and off for the rest of the meal. They seamed to have a lot of questions about the new town that they were living in, and she was happy to give them all the information she had about the place. She was getting more comfortable and no longer blushed each time she was around them. She even found herself sliding into the booth next to Ryan when she would have a lot to explain about something they asked her.

As she drifted through the diner helping other customers, she could hear all the comments about the new men in town. The girls were all drooling over them, while the men were curious as to what they were doing here. There were a few men giving their wives dirty looks when they would catch them staring at the men like they wanted to eat them. She smiled to herself at the way the town was reacting to the newcomers. \par}

She knew that as people left they were spreading the word of the new comers. There were far more than the normal amount of people in the diner. There were people that never come into the diner there that day and she knew it was just to get a better look at the men. When she gave back the change for the check, Ryan stood up to thank her and shake her hand. Again she felt the shiver run down her spine when he touched her, but this time she didn't pull away. She found that she didn't even want to let his hand go when he pulled away. She liked the way he felt, and she liked it when he touched her. Again, she felt the fire in her face as these thoughts passed through her.

"See you later tonight, Angel." Ryan said as he winked and walked away. She could feel all eyes in the diner on her, and was almost afraid to turn around to see all the wondering eyes.

As she turned around, she was automatically met by a group of three women. The questions flew out of their mouths and she could hardly understand them all.

"Do you know those guys?" "Where are they from?" "Do you know how old they are?" "Is that your boyfriend?" "Are they staying in town?" "Do you know if they are single?"

Angel took a step back and the questions stopped. It may have been the step back that she took, or maybe it was the overwhelming look that she had on her face. Either way she didn't care. She was just glad that they shut up.

"They moved into the old farm house next to my estate. I do not know their ages, or if they are single. No, he's not my boyfriend. I don't know where they came from. Somewhere down south I guess. Look, I don't really know anything more about them then you do. If you want to know about them, then you can ask them. I have to get back to work." 'I think I covered all the questions she thought to herself as she walked away. Angel felt she needed to get away from the women before they bombarded her with more questions that she didn't know how to answer.

She was relieved when her shift was over and slipped out the back door of the diner just in case there were more people with questions waiting for her up front. She headed across the street to start her shift at the Red River Inn. She was relieved when she walked in the bar to only see two people there. They were some of the regulars and quiet men that kept to themselves. It wasn't until about 8:00 when more people started showing up. She noticed that there were a lot more people then there usually are in this little bar. A lot more women to be exact. They must be hoping that the new men would show up to the bar tonight. All the women in the bar were wearing clothes that she's sure that they would not normally wear. Clothes that were showing off all their assets.

She was mixing a drink for one of the new girls in the bar, when she noticed the bar grew quiet. It was just like at the diner when the men had walked in so she didn't even need to turn around to know what happened. She smiled to herself as she thought about when she first came to town. She didn't get quite the same jaw dropping, absolute silence that these men encountered, but she did notice that all eyes were on her. When she turned around to hand the girl her drink, she was greeted with a bright smile. Not one from the woman that she had mixed the drink for, but from someone much better. She found it hard to take her eyes off of the god that was standing in front of her to find the woman the drink in her hand belonged to.

After handing the drink to the woman she returned back to the face that held her attention a few moments earlier. She studied his face, even in the poor bar lighting she could see every detail. His skin looked like it would feel like velvet if she were to touch it. She noticed her hand flinch at the idea and she quickly corrected it. He had a nice tan skin tone, and even with the loose shirt he had on she could still see the muscles on his exposed skin. 'How can a guy be as perfect as this one standing in front of me?' she thought to herself. He had soft stubble on his face that made his jaw line look even more defined. His nose was straight and thin, and his sapphire eyes, well she didn't even know how to describe those eyes. When she looked into them she could almost feel them burning into hers.

He turned his head to the side as if he were waiting for something. How long had she been standing there staring at him?

"Hey Ryan, what can I get you?" she asked looking down at the bar.

"Just a beer." she could feel the laughter just behind his words. He had noticed her staring at him, she knew it.

'You stupid girl,' she thought to herself. 'He didn't mind it. He liked looking at us too' the voice inside of her spoke up. 'Agh, I thought that you were supposed to go away for a while, and what do you mean us?' she said back to the voice with anger. 'You're so uptight. Just relax a little' it said back with attitude. She just ignored it. She didn't have time to argue with the voice with the crowd in the bar that night. She handed the beer to Ryan, but before she could say anything other customers were calling for refills. She smiled back at him as she walked away.

It was a long night at the bar. She has never seen it so full in the three years that

she had been there. She never had time to get more than a few words in with Ryan and his friends. By the time her shift was over she couldn't wait to get home and go to bed. When she pulled up in the driveway her stomach growled. 'Damn, I forgot to eat today,' she thought as she dragged herself out of the car. She was worn out. These guys drew in more attention than she could handle today at the diner and bar. She walked into the house and was surprised when she saw the TV in the living room on. She had been so busy that she had forgot for a moment that she now had other people living in the house with her.

After taking off her shoes and coat and hanging up her purse she started for the kitchen. 'Mmm, what's that smell? There's some type of beans, and tomatoes, and meat' she thought to herself as she made her way into the kitchen. Ryan was sitting at the table when she walked in with a bowl of chili in front of him and another one sitting across the table from him.

"Hello Angel. How was your day?" he asked.

"It was long, there seamed to be a lot more customers today than usual." she replied.

"Are you hungry? I made you a bowl of chili." He put his hand out to show that the other bowl was for her.

"I am starving, thank you." she sat down and started to eat the hot chili in front of her.

It was really good chili and she was surprised that the man in front of her was a good cook. They ate in silence but would both look up to see if the other one was looking at them every now and then. They would quickly look away once they seen that the other one caught them staring and smile.

"Thank you for dinner. I'm beat; I really need to get to bed. Do you need anything before I go?" Angel asked as she took the bowls to the sink to wash them out.

"No, I have everything that I need, thank you. Goodnight Angel, sweet dreams." he said as he walked into the living room.

Angel laid in bed trying to get her mind to stop going in circles so that she could get some sleep. She couldn't get the man in the other room out of her mind. She was thinking about every part of him. His eyes, his lips, his muscles, and his butt. She had never thought about someone in so much detail before in her life. Finally the long day of work she had today set in and she fell into a deep sleep.