PART 2

When the Irish angel returned to the cabin at the end of the day there was laughter coming from the living room. With a smile on her face, she tilted her head and watched from a distance, still in her angelic form, as Andrew entertained a very cheerful and smiling little Angela. They were sitting on the carpeted floor, in front of a warm fireplace lit up a while ago, when the night started to fall.

"Fwog, daddy... an' 'tepillar..." she tried to speak, which only amused Andrew even more. Monica could see the spark of joy in his green eyes, and it also brought her great happiness. Much had been said about her being the perfect angel to be assigned to experience motherhood, but if there was one angel who had certainly been created to perform the father role, this angel was her beloved Andrew. The amazing way he had with children and his gentle and protective nature, which she knew so well, were even more evident when he was interacting with the little ones - with that little one in special.

It didn't take more than a few instants for them to realise someone they loved very much was quietly observing them by the kitchen door.

"Mummy!" Angela spoke, immediately moving her tiny arms, and making Monica smile even more.

"Oh! Hullo, sweetheart!"

"Hey, look who's here! Your mommy arrived just in time to see the little surprise you have for her!" Andrew whispered in the little girl's ear, and then looked at Monica. "Stay where you are, angel... Someone here wants to give you something, and especially to show you something!" he said, before she walked over up to them.

Monica looked surprised, but highly amused. "Ah, a surprise, huh? Alright, let's see what this wee one has in mind for me!" she knelt on the floor and watched as Andrew deposited a small daisy in Angela's hand. "Here we go! Give it to your mommy!"

With his help, the little angel was placed on her feet, and before Monica's surprised eyes, Andrew slowly let go of Angela's small body and the baby girl stood on her feet without losing her balance and gave one tiny step towards her mom.

"Andrew..." the Irish angel whispered, with her eyes full of amazement and emotion.

"Call her!" he said, enjoying both the fact that his beloved Angela was giving her first steps, and also Monica's joy and surprise at that piece of news.

Moved with emotion, she opened her arms to the little girl. "Hey, my little angel... Come to me! Come here to mommy!"

Angela smiled broadly at her. "Mommy..."

"Come here, honey..."

A second later, the little one gave one more step towards her mom; and then another, and another...

"She’s walking!" Monica said, with emotion in her eyes.

Equally excited, Andrew nodded his head enthusiastically, "I found that out this afternoon... Go on, keep calling her!"

"Come here with mommy, my little angel!"

Walking clumsily and threatening to lose her balance at any moment, Angela finally shortened the distance between them and threw herself into Monica's arms.

"Oh, wee Angela! You walked! You walked!" she said, kissing the baby’s cheeks repeatedly.

Highly amused, Angela raised the chubby arm and showed her the white daisy she was carrying. "Fower..."

Monica and Andrew looked at each other: their little one would definitely melt the hardest of the hearts, and theirs as well. "A flower to me? Why, thank you, sweetheart!" she said, accepting the flower and kissing her tiny hand. Andrew joined them and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"Just as adorable as her mother!" he said, kissing Monica's cheek.

She turned to him and looked deep inside his green eyes, with a spark of gratitude and always with much love. "I beg to differ! Her daddy is as much enchanting and he makes my heart skip a beat exactly like she does!"

He cupped her cheek and brushed his thumb against her delicate white skin. "I can see there's much joy in those pretty eyes of yours, and although a great part of it comes from our little angel's walk, there's something else in there..." he said, placing a strand of hair behind her ear. "... perhaps a successful assignment?"

Monica leaned on his touch, treasuring every second of that blessed evening. "Probably more than that, you know, Andrew. Probably the joy to know that true love, forgiveness and peace walk together, and that they now fill my heart, and some humans' hearts as well... human beings that crossed my way in the last few days..." She caressed her daughter's soft hair for a moment and then looked back at him, "Sadness, fear and perhaps anger remain in the past now... they were all replaced by joy..."

Smiling, and happy to see the contentment in his beloved angel's face, he crossed the small distance between them and pressed his lips onto hers. It was a soft kiss, a reminder of how much he needed her by his side for the rest of his existence. But it then turned into a more loving caress, as they were both aware of how much they had missed each other during the last few troubled days. Andrew moved his hand to the back of her head, entangling his fingers through her hair and applying gentle pressure so that their kiss would last longer, as he knew he would never get enough of that sweet caress.

But it ended with the sudden baby giggle that reached their ears. Even before their lips parted, they started smiling. "We seem to have an audience..." he said, resting his forehead against hers, both laughing at the expression of curiosity on Angela's face.

"Yes, and I guess we might be entertaining this wee one!" Monica spoke, as he traced a line along her cheekbone and then started to deliver soft tiny pecks against her lips, "kissing her smile," which he loved so much.

She remained in silence for a few instants, both enjoying his tenderness and also reflecting about the latest events. "So much beauty came out of our meeting, a long time ago..." she finally said, as he looked inside her brown pools.

"It always happens when there's love involved." He pointed at his own heart, "And this angel's heart here... it holds so much love for you and for this little one that it could never be put into words..." he said, caressing her cheek.

Monica nodded in agreement, with the pensive expression that would always amuse him. "You're right... I've tried sometimes, you know... I mean, putting into words what I feel for you..." she let out a small sigh. "... but I guess I've failed..."

Chuckling, he brushed one more soft kiss against her lips. "You certainly haven't, my angel..."

He captured her smile with his lips once again while little Angela joined her tiny hands together, as if she was trying to clap her parents' romantic kiss.

X

Night feel silently in the cabin, and for the first time in many days the angels' hearts were filled with nothing but inner peace. Little Angela was finally back in their arms and now she was sleeping peacefully between her mommy and daddy, in their bed. Besides this, a woman at last forgave her long gone brother and they would spend the rest of his days by each other's side. And in the future, a childless mother would recover from her loss and help other mothers who had to face such tragedy.

With her elbow propped on the bed and holding her chin with her right hand, Monica watched as both Andrew and Angela slept serene right next to her. The beside lamp was the only source of light in the room and it allowed her to contemplate the ones she loved so dearly. The Irish angel had a permanent smile on her face and knew that she would never get enough of that image.

"Oh, wee Angela... as the days pass by I'm more and more certain that you came to this world to spread joy and love, my wee angel..." she whispered, gently caressing her daughter's soft auburn hair, so similar to hers, and then brushing a soft kiss on the little one's rosy cheek.

Then she turned to look at her beloved Andrew, and her smile grew wider: she was always happy to detect the smallest resemblance in Angela's and Andrew's traits, just like now. Their asleep faces were so similar and brought so much peace to her own heart! Besides, she was sure that Angela's tiny nose had an equal shape to her daddy's, even though Andrew always chuckled at that comparison.

Slowly, she reached out and stroked his short blond hair. "You mean the world to me... my whole existence, you know..." Just like she had done with Angela, and careful not to wake them up, she inched closer to him and kissed his handsome face.

It was then that she saw his lips curve into a slight smile, even though his eyes remained closed. "You can keep doing this... I'll appreciate it..." Andrew whispered, aware of her surprised face.

"I... I didn't mean to wake you up..." she said, blushing slightly as he opened his eyes.

Andrew captured her hand and kissed her palm, chuckling at her embarrassment at the same time he found it adorable. "You can wake me up like that anytime you want..." he said, still holding her hand in his. The blond angel moved slowly and crossed the distance between them and brushed his lips against hers.

Once that sweet kiss was over, they both lay down with their heads over their pillow, and looked down at their little one, fast asleep and safely tucked between them. Monica and Andrew looked at each other again, now both with a sleepy smile across their faces.

"I love you, Andrew..."

"I love you too, angel... Have a good night and only sweet dreams..."

"I know I will..."

x

To be continued