Den of Angels (closed for wideeyedone and Blase)

"Southern barbeque sounds great!" Joel replied.

"You can tell me how authentic it is!"

He didn't add that he'd found that ordering regional specialties outside of regions where there was a good population of people who knew what said specialties were supposed to be was often asking to be disappointed. He had learned the hard way not to order Italian food in Florida, for example.

But this was New York City, where everyone came, eventually. Just as with him and Julie, the only way to find out was to try.

"Seven, tomorrow, then!"
 
Last edited:
You never knew how your nerves were going to work. In this case, they actually made the time seem to go by quickly for Joel.

He felt as though just a few hours - or maybe a few minutes - had passed as he stood outside Den of Angels the next night, waiting for Julie. When she arrived, she managed to surprise him for the second evening in a row, because she was on foot, having apparently walked to the bar.

They said hello to each other and then Joel made a quick show of looking around in feigned confusion for a vehicle that wasn't there.

Finally, he said, "Well, I take it this place isn't very far from here. It's a nice night for walking and we certainly can, if you want to. But, if you like, I can offer you a ride."

He pointed to his Harley in a corner of the parking lot.
 
She smiled when he pointed at his Harley. Everyman had his "toy". Jason had had a bass boat and a truck. So, Joel had his Harley. She was glad she had decided on jeans. She had worried when she put on her best jeans and a little hunter green cami that she might look too much like she did at work. But in the end she had chosen a casual dress for a reason, she didn't want to have to be "on" all night long. She wanted to know who Joel really was.

"I walk everywhere, I would love a ride. Maybe sometime you could teach me to drive it." Julie hoped that the hint that they might do something in the future wasn't too much. She didn't want him to freak out. "This place is called MAMA's . It is about eight blocks over." She let him lead her over to his Harley. She didn't know a thing about them, but it was a great looking bike. Classic, not to flashy, but with very impressive chrome.
 
Good, she liked the bike.

People usually thought it was pretty cool when they found out what he drove, but once in a while he ran into someone who was either unenthusiastic about bikes or quite simply afraid of them.

Joel himself wasn't a stereotypical enthusiast - he didn't consider the bike a piece of his soul - but it was unbelievable on gas, compared to a car, and ideal for the short hops that so much city driving consisted of. And if it happened to look cool in the bargain, well, so be it.

As they got to the Harley, Joel picked up the spare helmet that he'd brought along, just in case.

"Here, put this on," he said, flipping the helmet to her with an underhand motion. She caught it easily.

"If you really want to learn, that's Rule Number One: Never ride without protection."

He helped her to adjust the helmet straps, then gestured for her to join him on the bike.

"Rule Number Two is 'Hold on tight'".

After quickly getting directions from Julie and making sure that she was indeed holding on tight, Joel started the engine and pulled away from the curb.
 
Last edited:
Julie had liked the feel of sliding her arms around him as they rode. Being the youngest in a family with two older brothers she had ridden a motorcycle a few times. But that wasnt the same. She held her seat pretty well. She only winced a few times as he zipped through traffic.

When they got to MAMA'S, it was a pretty stereotypical barbeque joint, trying very hard to hit all of the sterotypical notes just right. The facade was faded brick. The front littered with license plates and road signs with southern sounding street names. Inside it was dark. There were bowls of peanuts in the shell on the butcher paper covered tables. Peanut shells crunched under their feet. The whole place smelled like hickory and spices and onion rings.

"I know this place could be a total bust, but online it said the owner and cook is actually from Lousiana, so that gives me hope. A girl that I take a class with reccomended the place...." The menu was written in chalk above the counter. Julie did her best not to fidget, she wanted to mess with her hair to make sure she didn't have helmet head, but she definitely didn't want to look like too much of a chick.
 
As they stood reading the menu, Joel caught himself humming

Jambalaya and a crawfish pie and a fillet gumbo,
For tonight I'm a-gonna see ma cher a-mi-o


He shut it down quickly before Julie heard him. They weren't quite to the "big fun on the bayou" stage.

But there was jambalaya, he was pleased to see.

He touched Julie's arm lightly.

"Looks like they got jambalaya. I always order that when I find a new place that has it because it's so tasty and hard to find in these parts. I'll be really interested to see what you think of the way they do it here."

"How about you?"

"What are you lusting after?"
 
She wrinkled her nose as she looked at menu..."Would you ever have dinner with me again if I have ribs and lick the sauce off of my fingers?" She asked with a playfull giggle. She had her hands shoved in her back pockets as she looked up on the menu. Julie didn't wait for his answer she went up to the counter and ordered her ribs with a side of potato salad. She also ordered a large coke with extra ice. It was then that the cook popped his head out of the kitchen.

"I thought I heard someone from back home talking out here." He said with a big smile. Southerners are never really strangers to each other. He and Julie made small talk for a moment. She told him she was from outside of Montgomery, that she had moved up north for school. She was relaxed and the more relaxed she got the more of her southern accent that seeped back into her voice.
 
Joel was careful not to say exactly how he felt about the mental image of Julie licking sauce off her fingers.

And when she stepped up to the counter to order, he was doubly careful not to give a hint of just how good the rear view looked when she was wearing jeans.

When she started to chat with the cook, he decided he'd better order, himself, before the girl behind the counter started rolling her eyes at him. He didn't really need a side of anything, since jambalaya was a complete meal, and the girl said that it came with a slab of cornbread.

Since he was driving and giving Julie a ride, he decided against having a beer, instead going with another Southern specialty, iced tea.

Told that they could sit where they liked and their meal would be brought to their table, Julie and Joel headed for a booth against the wall, near the jukebox.
 
Julie tucked one of her feet underneath her after she slid into the booth. She smiled at Joel. "Are you from here?" She asked settling in. She played with bowl of peanuts on the table, not eating any but just fidgeting. Damn, she liked him. A tiny part of her felt guilty for liking him so much. SHouldn't she still be sad over Jason not being able to handle his girlfriend flirting for tips?

She really liked that her job didn't bother Jason. That tuition money was too important. Her classes were expensive as hell, and then there was private lesson fees and clothes for auditions and if she ever got to fill in for any professional gigs she would need a few nice long black dresses. She shook her head though, this wasn't the time to think of any of that. She wanted to focus on really getting to know Joel and really enjoying the evening.
 
"Actually, I'm originally from even farther north. New Hampshire," Joel responded.

"I came down here to go to school and I planned to build a career in advertising."

"It was working, too, except that I've always loved to write, and I found myself wanting to work on more interesting things than ad copy. So, I started working to build up freelance writing credits in my spare time"

"Then the World Wide Web came along. At first, it was just something new that people in my field were going to have to learn to deal with. But after awhile, I realized that I could do the Web design thing by myself and for myself. I started building Websites for businesses. After a year or so, I realized that I was making more doing those two things than what the agency I worked at was paying me. So I left advertising to pursue my real interests fulltime. I haven't looked back."

Joel looked across the table at Julie.

"What about you? What brings you to the place that the natives so blithely refer to as 'the city'"?
 
Julie smiled as he responded. She liked that he was earnest and honest. She also liked that he didn't emphasize what he made even though she knew he did well.

"I came here to go to school. I am a cellist. I am taking classes at the Julliard School of Music. I can't afford to go full time yet. I have played since I was a little girl. I started on the violin and moved to the cello when I was tall enough. I don't really know how or why, but it just came to me. I loved to play. It wasn't long before my teacher sent me on to play with someone else in Montgomery. It was always my dream to come here. I did my first two years at home, working to save up for this. I have a scholarship, but so does everyone and everyone is really good. Both of my brothers went to school on athletic scholarships, so 'Den of Angels' is sort of my financial aid program."

As she finished speaking the food was brought. It smelled wonderful. Julie couldn't help dipping her finger in the sauce to see how it was.
 
Last edited:
Joel smiled inwardly at Julie's unselfconscious casualness. She hadn't been kidding about licking the sauce off her fingers.

The bowl of jambalaya in front of him smelled very good. He was pretty sure that it would have some heat to it, which was lacking in the versions that many restaurants offered for Northern pallets.

"Before we get started," he said, "can I trade you a bite of jambalaya for a taste of your ribs?"
 
Last edited:
She slid her plate across the table to him. "Yes, please...When we come back I'll have to try the etouffee. "She grinned as he dished some jambalaya on her plate and swiped a rib or two.

"Do you have a local place that you love? Sort of your homecooking?" She asked. The table had big clear plastic bottles on the table, labeled in black marker. One read sweet, the other spicy. She picked up both bottles and added a little of each to her plate.
 
When we come back...

That sounded promising.

Joel picked up a rib, taking a bite and finding it meaty and tender. The sauce managed to be both sweet and tangy. He had to mimic Julie and lick his fingers.

Remembering her question, he considered for a moment.

"There's an Italian place called Grandma Nonna's that's pretty authentic despite the tautology. They have the usual pasta and such, but they also do a good job with dishes like polenta or calimari, which are just as Italian, but a lot of places leave them off the menu."

He watched Julie for a moment as she polished off her taste of his jambalaya.

"So, what's the verdict, Miss Julie? Do we have real Southern cooking here?"
 
"It is pretty close...probably as close I will get before I go home for a visit. I am pretty impressed." She took a long sip of her coke. "If this was a southern place though, there would be Dr. Pepper. Not that I am a big Dr. Pepper girl, but it is practicly the house wine of the south. " She ate for a moment. The silence between them was comfortable. She didn't feel as if she needed to prattle on and on.

Julie really was having a great time. The first real fun she had had in forever. She felt at ease and excited all at once.
 
She wasn't a fussy eater, Joel was pleased to see. He preferred women whose first thought with food was to enjoy it. Some, especially pretty girls with flat stomachs, had such a love-hate relationship with anything edible that they never finished anything and seemed to expect the leftover portions to ambush them and add five pounds to their waists if they let their guards down.

They ate in mostly unbroken silence for a bit, managing to get most of the way through their entrees.

Joel was thinking about what Julie had told him about herself. Unfortunately, he couldn't ask very sophisticated questions about playing the cello or about playing music in general: he didn't have the background.

Still, the thought of music gave him an idea.

"I doubt that there's anything classical on it," he said, breaking the silence. "But would you like to hear something from the jukebox?"
 
"Brown Eyed Girl is my song....I bet they have it. I got grounded for singing the part about being behind the stadium when i was like ten... I didn't even know what it was about... I just loved that there was a song about a girl with brown eyes like me."

She popped up from her seat and grabbed his hand dragging him to the juke box. She laughed as they went. So easy and relaxed. She squeased his hand just a little and she didn't let go.
 
Behind the stadium?

Joel didn't remember that part and thought it best not to ask.

It didn't take long before Julie was proven right. "Brown-Eyed Girl" was indeed one of the selections.

Joel managed to fish some change out of his jeans and, a few seconds later, the song began to play.

Hey where did we go,
Days when the rains came
Down in the hollow,
Playin' a new game,
Laughing and a running hey, hey
Skipping and a jumping
In the misty morning fog with
Our hearts a thumpin' and you
My brown eyed girl,
You my brown eyed girl.


Joel and Julie were still holding hands and Julie was swaying a bit despite the lack of a real dance floor.

Joel looked into Julie's eyes. Lord, they were brown.

Whatever happened
To Tuesday and so slow
Going down the old mine
With a transistor radio


A long, slow Tuesday with Julie sounded very good.

And as the song continued, talking about standing in the sunlight and hiding behind a waterfall, Joel suddenly knew where he wanted to bring Julie for their next date.

My how you have grown,
Cast my memory back there, Lord
Sometime I'm overcome thinking 'bout
Making love in the green grass
Behind the stadium with you
My brown eyed girl


Oh, that part about behind the stadium.

Joel managed not to be looking into those brown eyes right at that moment. He was afraid his own eyes might say a bit too much if she could see them.

As the song came to a close he squeezed Julie's hands lightly.

"That reminds me; There's a place I'd like to show you sometime soon. For right now, though, are you in the mood for any dessert?"
 
She closed her eyes and bit her lip... deep in thought for a moment. "Only if it has chocolate in it... I would give my left kidney for something decadent and chocolate right about now."

She looked up at him and smiled. "Where do you want to get dessert? I bet you know lots of great places..." She was glad he wanted to extend the date. That had to be a great sign, didn't it?

This had to be the best first date of all time. She leaned against the jukebox. "Want to head out or linger a bit?"
 
Looking at Julie as she leaned against the jukebox, lingering with her seemed like a very good idea.

Joel reminded himself firmly that tonight wasn't about that. Or not overtly.

"Well, I think we can manage both decadent and chocolate without going too far," he answered.

"There's a place right down the street called Oh, Dough! that makes great pastry."

"I'm all set here if you are. After all, you aked me out, so you get to set the agenda."

"Shall we ask for a check?"
 
"I asked you out, so I'll get the check...and then OH, Dough sounds perfect." She waved at the waitress for the check. She was over in just a few seconds handing Julie the check. Julie counted out the cash to pay the bill with a very triumphant smile.

"Mmmm, I am in the mood for chocolate... are we all set?"
 
"I think we are."

"Let's go get something sweet."



Oh, Dough! really was just a short distance away.

It wasn't long before Julie and Joel were looking at a huge variety of baked goods, trying to make up their minds.

"The half-blond brownies are incredible," Joel told Julie, "and the cannolis are even better. In some places, the cannolis have a pasty filling that I'm not too enthused about. Here, the filling is creamy, and they usually have a few different kinds. For example, today...Ah, yes. Chocolate covered with chocolate cream filling. Highly recommended, but if there's anything else that catches your eye..."

As he spoke, Joel was slipping off the denim jacket he'd worn just to provide himself with some protection from small stones and such that got kicked up from the road. That left him wearing jeans and a sleeveless red t-shirt. The color of the shirt went well with his dark complexion and the lack of sleeves showed off the definition of his arms.

Joel was no weightlifting fanatic but he did try to keep in shape.
 
Julie looked through the glass display. Everything looked delicious. "I have never had cannoli, so chocolate filled it is. What about you?" She asked. She took in his arms as she talked to him. She even nudged his upper arm playfully as she waited to see what he would order. Damn! He really was so cute. Just thinking that made her feel like such a girl!
 
Joel decided to get a half-blond brownie.

His instinct was to offer to pay for dessert but he didn't want to seem chauvanistic. Besides, he knew that the girls at Den of Angels could pull down three figures a night. Julie wasn't getting rich, paying for courses at Juilliard, but she didn't need his help with pastry.

Oh, Dough! served sandwiches at lunchtime, so there were some small tables to sit at. Julie and Joel took one of them.

Joel knew that Julie couldn't easily share her cannoli with him; the tubular, cream-filled shells just wouldn't break evenly and she'd wind up with chocolate cream all over her fingers and crumbs falling onto her lap. But he wasn't quite in the same boat.

He broke off a piece of brownie, making sure that he got some of both the blond and the chocolate parts. "I know you can't really reciprocate with a cannoli," he began, bringing his hand up with an elaborate flourish and moving it forward, to hover near her mouth. "But can I tempt you with a piece of brownie?"
 
Last edited:
Julie nodded and opened her mouth. She delicately took the brownie from his fingers. She almost giggled when his fingertips touched her lips. It felt amazing, his touch. "Mmmmmmmmmmm." The yummy sound melted from her lips. "That is soooo good." She whispered.
 
Back
Top