5. Loving an Angel

"Thank you for having me, Mr. and Mrs. Adams, this will save me a lot of time and money," Connor said to my parents.

"It is our pleasure, sweetheart. Everyone here loves having you around," mom said.

"Not everyone," he looked at me and winked. Jerk.

"Don't worry about Anya. She'll warm up to you eventually," mom said.

"I'm not a goddamn house cat," I protested.

Yup, this was happening. Connor Williams was staying with us for the entire week until the wedding was over. Fuck my life.

I tried to ignore him as much as possible, but it was impossible. He had this certain presence about him. And he was always looking at me and smirking his devilish smirk. I think he got a kick out of my frustration.

I kept myself busy by helping Ansel and Jessica with the wedding. Everything was going according to the plan, and everyone was happy with how things were turning out. I was starting to feel more relaxed.

But that changed on the night of the rehearsal dinner.

I put on my dress for dinner and headed toward the front door to get a ride with Ansel. I stopped in my tracks when I heard noises coming from the guest room.

"You need to stop. You can't have her!"

I recognized Ansel's outcry.

"We are both grown adults now. We can be together if you want to, and you're just getting in the way," Connor said. His voice was thick with emotions.

"Well, you're too late. You lost her anyway. She doesn't love you one bit," Ansel said.

What were they fighting about? I thought. It seemed like it had to do something with someone they both liked. A woman?

The realization hit me. Oh my God, are they talking about Jessica? I pressed my ear on the door to keep listening.

"I still love her," Connor said. His voice was so low and thick with emotions; it gave me goosebumps.

"We are best friends. I don't want to have to kick you out of our lives, Connor. Promise me you won't do anything?" Ansel said.

I heard Connor sigh. "Fine...just let me be alone for a moment," he said.

I walked away quickly before I get caught. I didn't understand why Ansel would trust him. Is he stupid?

This wasn't good. I couldn't let Connor drive a wedge between Ansel and Jessica and possibly ruin their wedding day! I needed to keep a close eye on Connor. I debated whether I should ask Ansel about it, and after much deliberation, I decided against it. I couldn't let him find out I was eavesdropping.

I kept eyeballing him at dinner. Our eyes met a few times, and he smirked, knowing it'd irritate me. He approached me while everyone was mingling and stood behind me, but I pretended like I didn't acknowledge his presence.

"Something you wanna tell me?" he leaned over and whispered in my ear. His voice sounded deep and husky, and I felt goosebumps all over my body. Gosh, I hate myself for loving his voice.

"Nope. Nothing," I said quickly.

"Oh, really? Then why were you staring at me?" Connor asked.

"I wasn't staring at you. You aren't that pretty," I let out a nervous giggle.

"I could feel your eyes burning a hole in my skull from the other side of the table," Connor chuckled.

"Whatever... go back to your seat before I stab you with my fork," I snarled.

Connor made no effort to leave. Instead, he sat down in front of me and placed a hand on the arm of my chair. "You look beautiful, Anya," he said. His green eyes twinkled under the dim lights at the restaurant.

"Flattery may have worked on Jessica and other girls, but it doesn't work on me," I said irritably.

"Well clearly, it didn't work as well since she is marrying your brother," Connor said. Did I sense a certain bitterness in his voice?

"Yeah...well...she loves him, not you, so get over it," I blurted out.

Connor narrowed his eyes. "I'm already over it. I'm happy for them."

Liar.

"What are you two whispering about over there?" Ansel spoke all of a sudden, Connor and I broke our eye contact.

"Nothing. I was just telling Anya how happy I am for you and Jessica," Connor said.

"A-ha...okay. We are just about done here, so why don't you help us wrap up and go?" Ansel said. He looked like he was annoyed at Connor. I don't blame him one bit.

"Hey, is everything okay between you and Connor?" I asked Ansel later that day.

"Yeah. Why do you ask? What did he tell you?" Ansel asked and looked at me suspiciously.

"Nothing. Things seem tense between you guys," I said. "You know you can tell me anything, right? I'm your twin, after all." I added.

"Everything is fine. Stop asking me weird questions,"  Ansel walked away in a hurry.

Okay, this was definitely about Jessica.

I knew what I had to do. It was my mission to keep Connor away from Jessica no matter what. Or at least until the wedding was over. Even if it meant I had to be around him more and see his smug face.

I saw Connor approaching Jessica. He leaned down and hugged her. "The dinner was lovely, Jessica," he said.

"Thank you. I'm glad you are here with us," she smiled back.

Hmm...it seems like Jessica is too friendly with Connor too. She doesn't still love him, does she? I strode toward them.

"Connor! Hey, come with me for a second," I linked my arm with his and interrupted their conversation.

Both Jessica and Connor narrowed their eyes at my friendly behavior. Oh no, they are suspicious!

"Can I steal him for a second, Jess?" I insisted.

"Eh...sure?" she looked confused.

"Where are we going?" Connor asked as I dragged him away from the room.

"I just wanted to show you this....really cool...fish!" I said awkwardly as I saw the fish tank in front of me.

"A fish?" he had a puzzled expression on his face.

"Yes, look at this fish, isn't it gorgeous?" I pointed at a silvery-blue fish with black stripes.

"This is an Angelfish. I didn't know you were so fascinated by fishes."

"I love fishies. They don't talk back or make noises. You don't even have to take them for a walk!" I said quickly. What am I even saying at this point?

"I see. Well, thank you for showing it to me, but I'd like to go back to the party now," he smirked.

"Right, go ahead. Goodbye," I said and released his arm.

I was exhausted by the time we went home. I couldn't wait to be done with all the wedding stuff already.

The next morning I woke up and went straight to the dining room. My mom was working on something on her laptop, and dad was reading a book. Ansel was quietly chomping on his muffin. No sign of Connor anywhere.

"Oh honey, you're up. There's a delivery for you in the living room," mom looked up and said.

A delivery? I didn't order anything.

I could hardly contain my curiosity as I went inside the living room. I spotted the thing right away as it wasn't there before. Next to the couch, there was a rectangular glass tank filled with water. In it, two silvery-blue fishes were swimming around lazily. Those were what Connor called Angelfish.