THE GIFT
Chapter 3
Angel, Cordelia, and Connor were up and dressed for the funeral by 9 A.M.. Cordelia had bought new suits for both Angel and Connor yesterday. She had bought suits that were all black and styled exactly the same. The only difference would be the ties. Angels was a very expensive blue/silver silk colored tie while Connors was a silver/black colored tie.
Cordelia had a long black full dress on. Since she was starting to get a little tight around her waist she had chosen a dress where the fullness of the skirt came up to just underneath her breasts. The top part was close fitting and sleeveless. She wore a small deep blue long sleeved vest that closed just below her breasts. Although it wasn't required Cordelia had chosen to wear a large black scarf to put over her head during the funeral mass. Since they had to walk to the cemetery she had chosen sensible shoes that had only a 3/4 inch heal.
They walked up to the convent at 9:30 A.M.. There were already a lot of cars parked out at the front. Most of them were from Sr. Margaret's family. They saw one long limo that they presumed to be Dr. Martins friend John Williams. As they entered the front door little Sr. Cecil was there with another Sister. They curtsied to Angel, said good morning and took Angel, Cordelia, and Connors coat. Sr. Cecil then directed them to see the young novice at the entrance to the chapel.
When they came to the chapel doors they were greeted by a young novice. The young sister bowed to Angel and asked them to follow her. Dr. Martin had instructed the young sister to sit them in the second pew from the front. The young Novice had said that Sr. Mary would be joining them shortly.
All of the flowers that Angel and Cordelia had ordered had been delivered that morning. The alter and casket were draped with flowers of all kinds.
After a few minutes Dr. Martin joined them. "Why are we sitting so far to the front of the chapel?" Angel asked Dr. Martin.
"Sr. Margaret requested it." "Why?" Angel asked. "I can't say, but we are just following Sr. Margaret's wishes." Dr. Martin said.
They heard the priests that were going to perform the funeral mass gathering at the back. Mother Superior was with them along with the Secretary, Treasurer, Mistress of Novices, and Mistress of Postulants. Eight alter servers were lined up behind them than the Priests and apparently the Bishop of the diocese.
"Why so many priests and the Bishop?"Angel asked. "I thought they only came for someone like the head of the order."
"Angel Sr. Margaret was once head of the order, but poor health forced her to step down. Our Mother Superior and all of the important positions under her are voted in by all of the sisters. We have a lot of important people here because of their association with her when she was the Mother Superior."
The young novice that seated them came up the aisle and gave Angel a letter that was given to Mother Superior by Sr. Margaret with the instructions that it be given to him at the funeral. Angel opened the envelope while they waited for the mass to begin.
"Dear Angel. I gave instructions to Mother Superior to give you this envelope before my funeral began. Most of what is in here are instructions that were given to me by St. Michael. I also gave other envelopes to her with instructions that they were to be sent to each of your associates including Connor. Please let Cordelia read this also. Sr. Mary wrote all of these letters for me so she of course knows the content. (Angel pulled Cordelia closer to him and whispered to her to read the letter with him. When she caught up to where he was she said ok, then he continued.) When they start to give out the communion you are to go up and receive communion as well. Do not worry about Angelus. Do not be afraid. Our Savior is waiting for this to happen. Christ will take care of him. Leave it all in His hands. Angelus has been causing you too many problems even though he was commanded to do and not do certain things. Christ will be taking care of him. He will not exert any pressure on you and he will give you what you need from now on. Your St. Michael himself requested Christ to do this since he was constantly having to intervene and force Angelus to comply. The fact that Angelus is doing this shows everyone how strong he is and what you have been having to deal with. This is the "only" time that you are to receive communion until you are given your redemption.
Good bye Angel and Cordelia, and thank you for all of the flowers."
Sr. Margaret Carter
Cordelia looked up at him and smiled. She put her arm through his and leaned her head on his arm. Angel folded up the letter and put it in the inside pocket of his jacket. Angel looked up to the cross and gave a silent thank you. The music began then and the procession started up the middle aisle. By now Angel knew when to sit and when to stand for the different parts of the mass. Cordelia had found a small church in Hollywood that celebrated Sunday mass at 9 P.M. at night. This gave Angel the only opportunity that he had to fulfill his penance given by Fr. Barris. By now though Sunday mass was something that he looked forward to. Fred and Gunn had started going with Cordelia and Angel also.
When it came time for communion Angel stood with the rest. Cordelia wished she could take a picture of him. He had a grin on his face that almost went from ear to ear. Sr. Mary held on to his hand, like he was a little boy, as they made their way to the center. He followed Sr. Mary's example and genuflected then held out his hands to receive the host. Angel looked at it for a second than put it in his mouth and made the sign of the cross. As he walked back to the pew Connor stood to the side so they could enter the pew. This time though Angel let Cordelia go first so that he could easily exit the pew along with Connor so they could go to the coffin when the time came.
Angel kneeled and gave his prayer of thanks. He put his hands together, closed his eyes and leaned his forehead against his hands. Angel didn't know it but as each Sister passed in front of him they each genuflected and made the sign of the cross. Finally everyone had received communion and the priests sat down. Sr. Mary sat down so Angel and Cordelia did also. Angel was deep in thought so he didn't notice everyone, including the Bishop and priests, watching him. After 10 minutes the Bishop stood up and concluded the funeral mass. Angel, Connor and the other men that were going to carry the coffin stood up and went over to the coffin. They took their places along each side. The music began. Sr. Margaret had requested Ave Maria to be sung. When they got to the 2nd verse the Bishop gave the signal for the procession to the cemetery to start. Angel, Connor, John, and 3 men from Sr. Margaret's family put their hands on the casket and started to push the cart carrying it to the outside of the chapel. They had to pick the casket up though when it was time to go down the steps to the waiting hearse. The only people that did not walk were those that were to old to make the long walk. All of the others walked behind the hearse to the grave site. All those patients that were able to attend came in wheelchairs that were being pushed by aids and nurses.
At the entrance to the cemetery the hearse stopped at the gate and the men took the casket out. They carried it slowly to the burial site and placed it over the grave then stepped back. Usually, because of the Sisters vow of poverty they were all buried in plain pine box caskets, but since Sr. Margaret had been the head of the order at one time they had bought a beautiful casket with white silk material lining the inside of the casket. Thirty minutes later the funeral was over and everyone returned to the convent.
Lunch was served in the main dining room. Of course the Bishop sat at a table with Mother Superior and the rest of Sr. Margaret's family. The Bishop exchanged pleasantries with the family and gave his condolences. As soon as the Bishop had the opportunity he asked Mother Superior who the man was that was sitting with Sr. Mary Martin. "I saw all of the Sisters bowing or genuflecting in front of him. Who is he that they would do that?"
"That is Angel Martin. He is a distant cousin of Sr. Mary. At Sr. Margaret's and Sr. Mary's request we offer our mass everyday for him." Mother Superior was hoping that he wouldn't ask anymore questions because as her superior she would have to answer him truthfully.
"But Mother that still doesn't answer as to why the good Sisters were all bowing and genuflecting to him." The Bishop asked more earnestly this time. "Let me go and ask some of the Sisters Monseigneur." Mother Superior got up and walked to one of the tables of sisters that was all the way to the back and in a corner where they would be less likely to be heard. She pulled a chair over to the table and sat down.
"Sisters the Monseigneur is asking me why all of the Sisters that walked in front of Angel either genuflected or bowed before him as they went by him."
"Mother didn't you see the white mist around him again? Even though we didn't see Him we all felt as though Christ was with him or in him. We don't know exactly how to explain it but we all felt the presence of Christ in the chapel and His presence seemed to surround Angel." One of the Sisters answered.
"Thank you Sisters." Mother Superior got up and went to Angels table. She whispered something to Sr. Mary.
"Angel we need to talk over in the guest dining room." Mother Superior, Sr. Mary and Angel all left the room to go to the guest dining room.
"What's going on?" Angel asked. "Angel after you received communion the Sisters saw a white mist surrounding you, Cordelia and Connor again. They said that they could sense the presence of Christ in the Chapel and the presence seemed to surround you."
"Yes, He was with me. He was having a few words with Angelus at St. Michael's request." Angel answered.
"Angel the Bishop is questioning why the Sisters were bowing before you as they passed in front of you." Sr. Mary said. "I know and I wish they would stop that. I'm nobody special. I'm just a very old Vampire with a soul that happens to have St. Michael as his guardian." Angel said as he walked back and forth in front of the Sisters.
At the back by the door they heard a mans voice replying. "Of course what else could you possibly be you old crow bait." Angel looked up and the Sisters turned around at the sound of the Bishops voice. Angel stared at him for a minute. The voice sounded familiar but he couldn't place the face. Then it dawned on him. "Jack? Jack O'Connel?" Angel said inquiringly. "Who else you old Bat Wanna Be." Angel and the Bishop went to each other and hugged and patted each other on the back. Mother Superior and Sr. Mary were so shocked by what just happened that you could have knocked them over with a feather.
"I see you finally made Bishop just like you always wanted. How have you been?" "Doing okay as you can see." He patted his stomach. Angel laughed and gave him a light punch in the stomach. "I didn't want to say anything."
Mother Superior cleared her throat. "I take it you two are old acquaintances?" "I am sorry Mother, please forgive me, yes we are old friends. Jack and I met when he was still a seminarian. He made the mistake of walking in the park late at night and a group of teenage vampires were going to make a midnight snack of him. He was lucky I came along and saved his worthless hide." "Yeah but that last demon that was hiding came up behind you and almost split you in half. If it wasn't for me you would have turned to dust when the sun came up. He was unconscious for an hour. When he finally came to I helped him to the basement of the seminary dorm and took care of him for the next day or so. I was amazed at how fast he healed." "Yeah but in order to heal I needed blood and since you didn't know how to get any for me you gave me your blood and for that I will be forever in your debt."
"I think for now though I should hear Mother Superiors explanation as to what is going on here." Jack O'Connel said.
"Is anyone else hungry cause I am. I am going to go and get something to eat and I'll let Sr. Mary explain what has been happening with me and why I am the Boss's favorite right now. When your done you can come down to the Guest House and well have a couple of beers. You can meet my wife and son. I'm sorry Dr. Martin but I need to drink some blood. I haven't had any since yesterday and I am starting to feel a little weak."
Dr. Martin looked at Angel closely. Like a mother does when she is trying to figure out if her son is telling her a fib or not. "Angel look me in the eye and tell me that your not going to go and eat the rest of Cordelia's chocolate." Angel started squirming. "Okay, okay it's true she is craving that last Hershey chocolate bar and I am to and I just have to have it." Dr. Martin reached into her pocket and pulled out a Hershey chocolate bar and threw it to him. "Be a good husband now and leave that last chocolate bar for your poor pregnant wife. Angel had almost made it out the door before Dr. Martin had caught on to what he was doing. Without Angel realizing it he had put on his vampire face and he stared at the chocolate bar like it was blood. Mother Superior gasped in fright. When Angel heard her he realized what he had done and changed back.
"It's okay Mother Superior, it's okay. Cordelia's hunger for the chocolate is just as strong as his hunger for blood."
Angel sat down and started eating the chocolate bar. Unfortunately Cordelia sensed it through the link that Angel was eating chocolate. She came running to the guest dining room.
"You have a Hershey's chocolate bar don't you?" Angel turned away and shoved the last piece in his mouth. When he turned back to her he said "No dear, what made you think I had a Hershey's chocolate bar?" Cordelia came to him slowly. As she bent forward he bent backward. "You liar. I can smell it on your breath and there is this evidence also." Cordelia ran her finger over the corner of his mouth and held it up in front of him. "Oh..... that chocolate." Angel said. "You dirty rat, you knew I was craving it and here you are having some and you don't even share it with me. Where did you get it from?" "Dr. Martin." Angel squirmed under Cordelia's questioning. "I don't suppose you have another one?" "Sorry Cordelia that was the only one." Cordelia sat down and started crying. This, of course, had the affect on Angel that Cordelia wanted. She was going to make him pay for not sharing the chocolate bar.
Angel stood up and went to Cordelia. "I'm sorry Cordy, but you know how bad your cravings get and it affects me in the exact same way. I'm sorry, I'll go and get you a whole box of Hershey chocolate bars. The king size ones okay? Please don't cry anymore you know how it hurts me to see you cry." Angel was kissing her hands and begging for forgiveness. While he was doing that Cordelia had her head turned away and towards the rest. She gave them a wink which let them know that it was an act. Mother Superior felt sorry for Angel and reached in her pocket and pulled out one. "It just so happens that I have one Cordelia." She threw it to Cordelia across the table. She caught it as it almost fell over the side of the table and into Angels lap. "Oh Mother Superior you a life saver." She sat down and immediately started to eat it. Angel cracked up. "What's so funny?" Dr. Martin asked. "It's Cordelia, when she gets something that she is craving she purrs like a kitten."
Bishop O'Connel looked at his watch. "Well this has been fun but I have to get going. Angel how much longer will you be here?" "We leave for Ireland tomorrow for 2 weeks then well be coming home. How about if I change our flight and stop over for one day?" "Oh no you don't we have to get home. We have to get started on the nursery. Don't forget that all of Connors stuff got burned so we have to start from the very bottom." "Yes dear. Sorry Jack, as you can see I also have another new boss." "Yeah but your loving every second of it." "Yes I am. Why don't you come out to Los Angeles to visit us?" "I just may be able to do that. I have 2 weeks of vacation coming up. I'll see what I can do." Jack turned around and looked at Mother Superior and Sr. Mary. "I'll see you two later. My secretary will call you with an appointment. By the way sisters let's keep this miracle quiet so that we can give Angel his privacy." They all walked out to the front door and said good bye. The Bishop and Angel hugged again. John was just coming out to get his coat when he saw the Bishop come out into the hallway.
"Angel I haven't been able to introduce you to our friend John Williams. John this is Angel Martin my cousin. Angel this is John Williams." Without even giving it a second thought John pulled back and hit Angel as hard as he could. Angel went flying and John grabbed the Bishop by the arm and pulled him through the door. "Let's go Monseigneur." Jack looked at everyone questioningly. "Go ahead Monseigneur, I think I know what it is about. Angel will be fine. He has a very thick skull." Sr. Mary said.
Angel sat up rubbing his jaw. "What was that about? I didn't even get a chance to say hello."
"Let's go into the dinning room and I'll explain. By the way it's a good thing that you and the Bishop are old acquaintances. It will be a lot easier for Mother Superior to explain what was going on with you and why you where here." Sr. Mary said as she ushered them back into the dinning room.
"I'm going to get something to eat first. I'm hungry." Angel said as he got up again. "Me too." Cordy said as she followed him to the banquet table. Sr. Mary and Connor followed them. Angel took several slices of roast beef and covered it with the juice from the roast. Next he grabbed a large slice of Chocolate cake. Cordelia had pretty much the same thing except she added salad to the roast beef and took a smaller slice of cake but she did scrap off more of the frosting from the rest of the cake and put it on her slice then poured a small amount of milk onto it. Connor made a large sandwich for himself then a large slice of cake like Angel had done. He saw what Cordelia had done and tried it with his cake. Sr. Mary took some salad and a small slice of cake and followed them back to their table. They all sat in silence for a moment while they ate.
"Okay, now that we have satisfied Mary Kathleen what was all that with your friend?" Angel asked as he finished off his cake.
"John is jealous of my relationship with you. He has been in love with me for a long time. Of course as a nun I was untouchable. I have discussed with him my dilemma as to whether I should leave the convent or not and as to why I was considering it and where I would be moving to if I do leave." Sr. Mary continued to finish off her chocolate cake now that she had given an explanation for Johns behavior.
It was difficult for Angel to not tell her what Sr. Margaret had told him. He wanted to tell her so bad that he was almost feeling sick.
"That still doesn't explain why he hit me though." Angel said as he rubbed his chin again. "For a human he sure packs a wallop."
"He sees you as the one that is taking me away from him. So the power behind that punch was fueled by his hatred of you for taking me away from him." "Do you have any feelings for him?" Cordelia asked. She had stopped eating her cake even though she still had half left and was just listening to Sr. Mary.
"I love John as a friend but nothing else. Besides which John is 8 years younger then me. Such marriages rarely work out when the woman is....." Sr. Mary stopped talking when she saw Cordelia starting to get a little pale. "Cordelia are you alright?" Dr. Mary asked. "I think that nice chocolate cake is going to be making a reappearance." She jumped up and ran to the bathroom that was in the hallway. She almost didn't make it to the bathroom before all of her lunch came back up.
"When did Cordelia eat last Angel?" "This morning around 8 A.M.. We all had something to eat." "Did you notice if she had her herbal tea?" Angel thought about it for a minute. "Connor do you remember seeing her drink her tea?" "No I don't think she did." Connor answered after thinking about it for a minute.
"But she never gets sick after eating, it's always before." Angel said, but he knew it was the morning sickness because he felt the need to go to the bathroom as well. "Is their another bathroom that I can use down here?" "No, you will have to go outside." Angel went running out of the door. "Go and take care of your father Connor and I'll take care of Cordelia. It's going to hit them harder because their stomachs were full this time." Connor got up and went outside and Sr. Mary went into the bathroom to check on Cordelia. She could hear her still throwing up so she just left her alone. Ten minutes later Cordelia came out of the stall. She rinsed her mouth out and Sr. Mary gave her a cold compress for her head. They went out of the bathroom and Sr. Mary got their coats from the closet. "Lets get you home Cordelia. You need to get as much rest as you can. It's been a long day for you and it will be another long day tomorrow. Don't tell Angel but Mother Superior has given me permission to join you on your trip to Ireland." Cordelia managed to give her a smile as they went out of the door.
Connor and Angel were just coming back to the driveway. Angel was holding a handful of snow against his forehead and holding onto Connors arm. When he saw the women he let go and straightened his back. He didn't want anyone to see him in such a sad state. They joined Cordelia and Sr. Mary in the driveway. Angel grabbed onto Cordelia's hand. "We're a sad looking pair."
Cordelia managed a smile for him. "I'm sorry I forgot to drink my tea this morning." "That's okay baby, we didn't need that chocolate cake anyway. I would have had to put in a lot of hours in a gym just to use up those calories. This is a lot easier." He gave her a kiss on her forehead and they all walked back to the guest house. Connor started a fire in the fireplace in the living room and their bedroom. When he was done Sr. Mary took Cordelia upstairs and helped her get undressed and into bed. "Before I leave Cordelia I am going to make something for you to eat and leave it in the refrigerator. You'll wake up later and feel hungry. So eat the food then have your tea. I am going to go and make you some tea right now that I want you to drink. It's only going to be a small amount so you don't have to worry about overdosing on it. I had the tea checked Cordelia and it's all okay. There is nothing dangerous in it but you can overdose on it."
Just as she was about to leave Angel came up with some of her tea. "That link sure comes in handy." Sr. Mary took the tea from Angel and gave it to Cordelia. "Remember what I said now, only take a few sips." Cordelia did as she was told than gave it back to her.
Angel got into bed along side of Cordelia. "Why do I feel worse this time than when I get sick on an empty stomach?" Cordelia asked Sr. Mary.
"Because your stomach has a lot more to push back up. Don't worry about it though what happened is natural. A lot of women do the same thing during their pregnancy. It's like Angel said though, you really didn't need that chocolate cake. Don't forget that old saying "A minute on the lips forever on the hips." Go to sleep now. I'll come and see you later tonight." She bent down to fix her covers and gave her a kiss on the forehead. Cordelia sat up and hugged her. Sr. Mary sat back down again.
"Thank you for being Angels mom. A girl needs another woman around at a time like this, especially during her first pregnancy. I don't know what I would do without you. My own mother would never do anything like this for me. Thank you." Cordelia let Sr. Mary go then and wiped the tears from her face with the back of her hand. Sr. Mary pulled out a handkerchief and gave it to her to blow her nose. "The pleasure is all mine Cordelia." She took her handkerchief back and put it in her pocket than gave Cordelia a kiss on her forehead again and left the room.
This little session with Cordelia helped Sr. Mary to make up her mind. When she came back from Ireland she would submit her request to Mother Superior to be excused from her vows. She felt a lot lighter as she walked back up to the convent. The decision had been weighing heavily on her mind ever since she came back from California. She was glad that she had finally made her decision. She wanted to get back to the hospital so that she could call her lawyer and let him know what she was going to be doing and where she would be for the next 2 weeks. The 2 new sisters were working out just fine and they would be able to take over her patients without any problem. Sr. Rosalind was a good psychiatrist and she felt comfortable leaving her psychiatric patients with her.
Later that night after all of the guests had left and she helped the other sisters clean up Sr. Mary asked Sr. Pauline to make that special lamb mixture that she had made for Angel a couple of nights ago. When it was done she took it down to the guest house. She found that everyone was up and sitting in front of the fireplace and watching TV.
"Don't you all look like a typical American family. How are you feeling now Cordelia? A lot better?" "Yes I do feel a lot better and now I am getting hungry. How about you Angel. Getting hungry yet?" Cordelia asked as she got up. "Yeah, is their any blood left in the fridge?" Angel said. "It just so happens that I have Sr. Pauline's special right here." "The lamb special?" Angel asked. Sr. Mary gave the towel wrapped jar to Angel. It was still nice and warm and he opened it and drank half of it right away. "That is so good. If Sr. Pauline would write up that recipe for me I would really appreciate it."
Cordelia came back in with a tray of the food that Sr. Mary had left and some hot chocolate for Connor and Sr. Mary. Jeopardy was on so they sat for awhile just watching it and coming up with what they thought the answers were. Of course Angel always came up with the right answers since he lived through more than 250 years of history.
"I'm going back now. I have some things to do tonight before I go to bed. When are you going to be leaving Angel?" "We better leave by 6 A.M. tomorrow morning in order to get their in time. Did you give Cordelia our passports?" Angel asked as he got up from the floor where he was sitting. "Yes she has everything. I will say goodnight now and I'll see you tomorrow morning. Connor would you walk me back please?" "Sure Grandma."
Sr. Mary had really wanted to talk to Connor. "Connor I am going to be going with you tomorrow. Mother Superior gave me permission to take a 2 week vacation with all of you to Ireland." Connor was literally jumping for joy he was so happy. "Now I can have someone to talk to while those 2 are carrying on in their major love festival. You can teach me how to play poker to." "Okay that's a deal. Tomorrow make sure that Angel drives up to the convent. He doesn't know yet but Cordelia does." They had arrived at the front doors of the convent. Sr. Mary said goodnight and went inside. Connor was so happy that he gave out a loud howl then ran back to the guest house. When he went in he found Cordelia was laying on the floor in front of the fireplace and among several pillows and a blanket. Angel was sitting on the floor and leaning against the couch while watching the weather station to see how the weather was going to be in Ireland tomorrow. By the time they arrived it would be sunny but cold. The temperature would be around 40.
Connor came over and sat next to Angel. It was then that he noticed that he had Cordelia's feet in his lap and was massaging them. Connor sat in silence for awhile then he said "Dad, do you think I will ever be lucky enough to find someone to love me like Cordy loves you?"
"Connor if a man like me can find such love after all that I have been through then you can certainly find it also."
"Actually I'm not really in love with him. I just act like I do so I can have his beautiful sexy body make love to me." Cordelia sat up then and gave Angel a kiss. She whispered in his ear "I'm hungry Angel. Lets go upstairs." She pulled him up after her. "You mean you were awake all this time?" Angel asked. "No, I woke up just when Connor started talking. When your this close to me the link comes in loud and clear. I don't know how to block it." Cordelia started to pull him upstairs. "Your going to wear me out woman. No Vampire special for you tonight though." "Aw come on Angel, I probably won't feel like having sex pretty soon. Please, please, please." "I'll do it if you do something for me." Angel said. They were at the top of the stairs by now. Cordelia put her back to the door and put her hand on the door knob which prevented him from opening it. "And what would that be?" "I want you to dress up like you were today then do your striptease like you did on our wedding night. Then who knows what may happen tonight." Angel nuzzled her neck and kissed it then lightly bit her ear and pulled on it. Cordelia melted under his careful attention to everything he did to her. Every time he made love to her it was like the first time. He never became complacent. With each kiss to each square inch of her skin it was like it was a new discovery for him and he treated it as such. He worshiped her from micro second to micro second.
"Come into my chamber said the spider to the fly." Cordelia said as she opened the door. She went over to the chair and picked up her clothes that Sr. Mary had draped over it as she helped her to get undressed and into bed. Cordelia left Angel standing in the middle of the room with the bathroom light bathing his body. She closed the door and quickly took a shower. She got dressed and made herself look as pretty as she could manage here in the small mirror over the sink.
Cordelia turned the light off before opening the door and re-entering the bedroom. Angel had built the fire up again so that it threw more light into the room. He had put his suit on again and was sitting on the edge of the bed just like he had on their wedding night. His jacket was unbuttoned and his bow tie hanging down. Angel put a tape into the radio that had a cassette player in it. To Cordelia's surprise it was the ever classical striptease music. She almost busted out laughing then decided to play the part to the hilt. Angel had moved the furniture away and cleared the center of the room.
Cordelia walked to the center of the room just like Natalie Wood did in the movie Gypsy which was the story of Gypsy Rose Lee who was a famous stripper during the days of Vaudeville. The difference was that Gypsy never really exposed herself to people she just more or less taunted the men. Since Angel had the tape on Cordelia had to do her act faster than she had done on their wedding night. By the time the tape was over she was down to her black laced panties and she struck a pose as the ending of her act. Angel had left the drapes open to the balcony and the moon light struck her just right. Angel could see the slight roundness to her once flat stomach. For some reason that turned Angel on even more than the striptease. He went to her, picked her up and put her on the bed and proceeded to take his own clothes off. Cordelia stopped him and pointed over to the center of the room then rewound the tape and turned it on. Angel did as she ordered and played his part. But he went to the drawer and pulled out another tape and put it into the tape player. It was a slower beat so that he could take it off more slowly. He was kidding around at first but then he got more serious. He took his jacket off and carefully put it over the chair. His white shirt and tie came off next. Next his pants came off and he stood before Cordelia with his black silk boxer shorts on. Cordelia had been laughing so hard that her mouth hurt. He bent down and pulled her up so that he could take her panties off and Cordelia took his shorts off.
"Did you know that your starting to show now?" In between his kisses she answered him. "Yes, my pants are getting a little tight. It won't be long before I have to start getting maternity clothes." Angel started getting more turned on as she talked about maternity clothes. He used to be able to feel her hip bones but now she was becoming more rounded and they were now hidden beneath her pregnancy. Cordelia could feel him starting to get more aroused. She pushed him down on the bed and straddled him. She took his hand and rubbed it across her stomach. He stopped moving his hand and kept it on her stomach as he became very still and quiet. He was concentrating on listening to the sound of his daughters heartbeat. Through the link Kathleen's parents shared they both listened to her heartbeat.
"Her heartbeat is getting stronger." Angel said. "Kathleen will be as strong as her brother. She will inherit everything that Connor did." Cordelia said as she bent down and kissed him. "How do you know that?" Angel asked in between kisses. "Sr. Margaret told me. She said that she would grow up to be a tom boy but that I would turn her into a beautiful princes as she went through her teen years, and no man would be able to resist her, just like her Mommy."
"Close your eyes and ears Mary Kathleen because your Daddy wants to make love to your Mommy now."
Angel and Cordelia spent the next hour making passionate love. When he had finally let them climax he fell to the side and pulled her closer to him. "Tomorrow night we'll be sleeping in the land that I was born in. My lovely green Ireland. When I was at the lowest level that I could exist in I would sustain myself with thoughts of my birthplace. I would dream of Kathleen and taking her for a ride on my horse to the seaside where we would have a picnic. You'll love it there Cordy. I rented a house for us to stay in while we are there." He kissed her on her forehead and they went to sleep in each others arms as they often did after making love. Angel thought to himself "Making love, that saying was never so true as when I make love to her, because each time that I do it I love her more and more. He wanted to start again but he knew they had to get up in 6 hours to get ready to leave so he satisfied himself with just a kiss and he fell asleep.
At 4:30 the next morning the alarm that Cordelia had set the night before went off. She reached over him to turn it off. Angel was still asleep so she got up and took a quick shower to wash herself after a night of making love. It was nice while it was happening but she was always eager to clean up the next morning. She had her back turned to the shower door when she heard it open and Angel walked in. He put his arms around her and put his hands on her breasts. She straightened up and put her hands on his. She hadn't washed her hair yet so he grabbed the shampoo and started to wash her hair. They quickly bathed after that so that they could pack to leave.
Angel got dressed right away and went to check on Connor to see if he was up yet. He knocked on the door. "Connor are you up yet?" "I'm down here dad. I have breakfast ready." Connor yelled upstairs. "We'll be down in a few minutes." Angel went back to his room and helped Cordy to pack. Angel put the fire out and they took one last look around and picked up their luggage and went downstairs.
"Wow Connor you mean you actually made scrambled eggs, toast, and coffee. Thank you." Cordy and Angel sat down at the table and watched Connor get everything together and serve them. He had warmed up a mug of blood for Angel and gave it to him with some toast that he liked to dunk in the blood. By 5:30 Connor had the kitchen cleaned up and had served Cordelia her tea. He made sure that he put the rest of the herbs in Cordelia's bag that she would be taking on the plane. Angel was already starting to put the bags in the back of the van when they came out. "Let's go you 2. Do you have all of our passports and tickets Cordy?" "Yes sir right here." She patted her bag then got into the front passenger seat. Connor opened the side door behind Cordelia and got in. "Angel, make sure you stop at the convent for Mom." Angel started up the van and pulled up to the front of the convent. Sr. Mary was standing out in the front with 2 bags. One large and the other small, just like when she had entered the Hotel Hyperion 6 months ago. She was dressed in an all black pant suite and white blouse and her hair was up in a bun at the back of her head.
Angel jumped out of the van. "And where are you going Sr. Mary?" "Stop that and come and get my suitcases, I can tell you know exactly where I am going." Angel had a big grin on his face. "Connor come and get Sr. Mary's luggage it's starting to rain." Connor ran up the stairs and gave Sr. Mary a kiss then grabbed the bags and loaded them into the van. Angel put his arms under Sr. Mary and carried her to the van. "Angel I can walk you know. I'm not that old." Angel put her in the seat behind him then climbed into the front and took off. When they got on the main road Angel broke the silence. "Mom." "Yes Angel." "You have done so much for me that I can't even begin to thank you. But I need for you to do one more thing for me." "And what is that?" "I want you to let me do things for you. I don't want you to protest when I do things for you. I want you to except these things with just a smile and a thank you. Let me express my happiness at having you with me and to show my love for you without any protest. Can you do that for me from now on?" Dr. Martin was quiet for awhile.
"Angel you have to understand that I have taken care of and attended to the needs of others for so long that I have a hard time in letting others do for me. But if you'll be patient with me I will do my best to except what ever you have to give." She put her hand on his shoulder. He reached up and took hold of hers. "Thank you." Angel said as he turned and kissed her hand.
"Would you all do a favor for me now?" Sr. Mary asked. "Your very wish is my command my lady." Angel asked. "We have just enough time to pray the rosary before we arrive at the airport."
"Whenever you want to begin go ahead." "Wait a minute I am just learning this and I don't know the prayers by heart yet." Connor said. Angel reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a small book with all of the appropriate prayers. He handed it to Connor. "This is what I used when I was relearning the prayers. You can have it. Cordy has one that we use when we say the rosary together since we usually read each mystery as well when we do it together." "Thank you." Connor said as he took it from Angel. "Go ahead mom." Angel said. Dr. Martin started by making the sign of the cross and began with the first prayer. By the time they were done they were pulling into the small airport. Angel dropped everyone off at the front entrance then left to take the van back to the rental station. He was back in 15 minutes.
They made it to the loading gate with 30 minutes to spare. "Anyone want coffee while we wait?" Angel asked. Everyone responded with a yes. He went with Connor over to a stand that was selling drinks and snacks. He ordered 3 decaffeinated coffees and grabbed some Hershey candy bars and picked up a bunch of packets of sugar and cream. Connor ordered a hot chocolate and grabbed a magazine and a couple of candy bars. When he returned they could see their plane being loaded with the luggage. In another few minutes they were boarding the plane. It was another small plane so Angel took the single seat and Connor sat by Cordy again. Dr. Martin sat in a single seat in front of Angel. Connor did a lot better this time since he was in an aisle seat the whole time.
The flight went very smoothly and they were in Boston within 30 minutes. In another 30 minutes they were finally on their way to Ireland. Angel was starting to get excited. Cordelia settled down to take a nap as did Dr. Martin. Connor was reading his magazine and listening to music. They started an in flight movie so he settled down to watch it. It was a new one that had just come out a week ago. Half way through it Angel fell asleep also.
TBC..........