Cupid's Light

by Tami Lund

  If only Adora and Matt—no, no, if only Matt could find his mate. Then Adora would be free to return to Cupid’s Plain, with no worries about losing her wings. So long as the Assigner didn’t figure out she’d slept with Matt before matching him with his mate, she might even get a promotion.

  She needed to hold onto that thought. Especially when Matt walked over and, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, bent over and kissed her forehead before leaving the room.

  “Don’t leave this house without calling either me or Josh to escort you,” he said, popping his head back into the room.

  The housekeeper appeared just as he disappeared again. Rachel and Adora remained in the dining room while Jeannine cleaned up around them. “I still think we should ask Dane,” Rachel said. “The worst he can say is ‘no’, right?”

  “True,” Adora agreed.

  Rachel frowned. “I’m not sure how to get ahold of him. Matt says most of them don’t have cell phones. They didn’t associate much with anyone outside the coterie until the past year, so there wasn’t a need, I guess.”

  “Tanner has a cell phone, doesn’t he?”

  “Yes, but I really want to talk to Dane directly, first. I want to know if he’s even interested. I’m not going to bother asking Tanner if he doesn’t want to consider moving here.”

  “Are you inviting the shifters from that coterie to move down here to our pack?” Jeannine’s voice cut into their conversation. Adora lifted her gaze and watched the older woman. She hovered near the sideboard, plates in each hand, a pensive look on her face.

  Her white hair was cut into a bob, a carefree style that didn’t get in the way during food preparation, which encompassed a fair amount of her waking hours. She wore a pair of khaki pants and a basic white shirt. Adora realized she’d never seen the woman wear anything else, and she wondered if that was a uniform required by Josh, or was it the housekeeper’s way of keeping her own life simple and easy?

  “No.” Rachel shook her head. “I want to see if one of their healers would be interested in moving here. It would be so much easier on the pack if we didn’t have to rely on human hospitals, don’t you think?” She sounded so hopeful, Adora’s heart ached. The poor woman desperately wanted her mate’s pack to like her, and while many had warmed, some even befriending her, the one who spent the most time in her home remained as frigid and unyielding as an icicle.

  A sour look crossed Jeannine’s face, so quickly Adora might have imagined it. Quite possibly she had, as she’d anticipated a scathing remark or an insult. She certainly did not expect what Jeannine said next.

  “Maybe I can help.”

  While Adora’s eyes narrowed, Rachel’s widened. “How?” Rachel asked, sounding far more eager than Adora would have liked. Something about Jeannine’s offer set off Adora’s internal alarm bells, even though the woman hadn’t yet elaborated.

  “Maybe it would be best to ask in person. I-I’ve been to the coterie. I could take you there.”

  “You have?”

  Her gaze shifted to the side while she nodded. “Yes.” She did not elaborate, but apparently it was enough for Rachel, who clapped her hands and grinned at Adora.

  “I’ve never been to a coterie before. Have you?” she asked, looking at the Cupid.

  “There is only one,” Adora explained. “And until recently, the Lightbearers have always had arranged unions, rendering our involvement unnecessary.”

  “I remember the king saying that at the party. Are arranged unions usually love matches?” Rachel asked, momentarily distracted from Jeannine’s suggestion.

  “Not at all, unfortunately. While Cupids would of course prefer to ensure everyone finds a love match, we have to abide by the rules of each species’ community. A union is a union, whether love is involved or not. And most non-human species, with the obvious exception of the fae and water sprites—probably because they are both immortal—tend to mate for life. So, until Tanner and Olivia changed the rules, we had no involvement in the Lightbearer community. It will be interesting to see if we start receiving assignments within the coterie, now that they are free to choose their own mates.”

  “Huh,” Rachel said, and Adora chuckled because she knew the human woman could not remotely grasp the concept of so many different species, all with their own rules and ways of life. Maybe, after she finished this assignment and returned to Cupid’s Plain, Adora would sneak back at some point, and let Rachel borrow one of her books on the history of non-human species. She would no doubt find it fascinating reading.

  “Well, this sounds like the perfect excuse to go visit the coterie.” Rachel smiled triumphantly.

  “Your mate and my—er, Matt—would never allow it, not unless they go with us.”

  Rachel frowned. “Josh has so much going on right now, I don’t know if I could convince him to leave even for a weekend.”

  “I told you I know how to get there,” Jeannine interrupted. “It’s only a few hours away. We could make the trip in a day, if you wanted.”

  “Josh says it’s over near Lake Michigan. That’s a long drive to do in a day,” Rachel said, while Adora studied the shifter woman. Something in her offer felt…deceitful.

  “But if we did, Josh wouldn’t even have to know you were gone. We could leave as soon as he goes to the hotel. We’ll leave a note, letting him know you went to visit someone in the pack, in case he arrives home before we return. Or maybe say you’re taking a walk with the Cupid here. He won’t worry if he thinks you’re on his property.”

  “That’s awfully well thought out,” Adora noted.

  Jeannine scowled. “You’re right that Josh likely won’t let her leave. If she wants to speak to the Lightbearers, this is the only way.”

  Adora wasn’t at all convinced this was the only way, but Rachel was on board, and if the housekeeper was finally warming to the pack master’s mate, she supposed there was no harm in trying. Besides, her suspicion of deceit was obviously a result of Jeannine’s suggestion to arrange this little trip without Josh’s knowledge. The purpose for Adora’s visit was to help Matt find his mate, but if she helped Rachel and Jeannine become friends as well, certainly there was no harm in doing so.

  “When can we go?” Rachel asked.

  Jeannine appeared to give her question some thought. “I’m not sure I can be ready by tomorrow. Possibly the next day. Or Thursday at the latest.”

  “There’s a convention starting at the hotel on Thursday, so Josh and Matt will both likely be working late. We might even beat them home.”

  “Thursday, then,” Jeannine said with a firm nod, and then she gathered the remaining used dishes and hurried from the room.

  *

  A truck Matt didn’t recognize was parked in the circle drive in front of Josh’s home, when he arrived there after work. Pulling his Ninja H2R up behind it, he killed the engine and dropped the kickstand, climbing off the bike and tugging his helmet off his head. As he strode toward the porch, he ran his hands through his hair and hoped it was enough to make it presentable. Not that he particularly cared what some stranger thought, although he did care about Adora’s opinion.

  He was reasonably certain that Adora did not mind his wayward, unruly hair. She certainly liked to tug on it while she was heading toward a powerful climax—one he’d given her. Grinning, he recalled the last time they’d made love—last night—and wondered how quickly he could coerce her into doing it again.

  And then he frowned, because he didn’t like feeling like he was coercing her. He would never force himself on a woman, but she sure did spend a fair amount of time feebly protesting every time he tried to cozy up to her.

  Okay, yeah, she was supposed to be finding him a mate, but so far, none of the options she’d presented had been good enough. He couldn’t imagine getting along with any of them as well as he and Adora got along. None were as charming as Adora, or as beautiful. And while her propensity to puke at the slightest hint of viole
nce had been annoying at first, now it was more endearing than anything else.

  He couldn’t stop thinking about her, couldn’t imagine his life without her in it. Didn’t like the idea of her taking off at some point, disappearing into another world where he could not reach her. He wouldn’t mind her going home every once in a while, so long as he knew the visits would be short and she would come back to him.

  There had to be a solution that involved he and Adora staying together and her not losing her wings. There had to be.

  His thoughts were centered on tracking down Adora, getting her alone, and then demanding answers. He wanted to know more about Cupids, about their responsibilities, this world in which they lived. He wanted to find a loophole, so Adora could stay with him.

  He wanted to mate with her.

  His steps faltered as that realization hit him. Before Adora entered his life, he hadn’t thought about taking a woman to mate since he was in high school. Since Kat had tried to pin her kid’s parentage on him. Then, because it was Adora, he had agreed to allow her to help him find a mate. It hadn’t been about his own driving need to be mated; it had been all about pleasing her.

  But he didn’t want to please her. Okay, yes he did—as frequently as possible—but he wanted to be happy, too. And the only way they would accomplish both tasks was if he were mated…to her.

  Holy shit. She had found him his mate. She’d done exactly what she was supposed to do. Now, all he had to do was convince her of that fact.

  He strode into the sitting room, intent upon demanding to speak to Adora alone so he could tell her as much. Until he found she and Rachel, entertaining his worst nightmare.

  Dressed in a short red dress that hugged every one of her generous curves, Kat complimented the outfit with open-toed hooker boots, giving Matt the impression she had stopped by on her way to her gig moonlighting as a stripper. Hell, for all he knew she was a stripper. He knew nothing about the woman; hadn’t laid eyes on her in years. More than a decade.

  “What are you doing here?” he demanded, wondering why the hell he’d now run into her twice in one week. Something wasn’t adding up.

  “I invited her,” Adora said, all fake perky cheerfulness.

  He narrowed his eyes at the Cupid, who was dressed in her usual gauzy dress, looking fresh and breezy and so tasty he wanted to lick her from her toes to her ears—despite his annoyance at Kat’s presence. Which was apparently Adora’s fault.

  “You don’t take hints well, do you?” he said. “Neither one of you.”

  Adora flushed and Kat laughed, a throaty sound that at one time might have had him hard as a rock. Now, though, the only woman who could make him hard without trying was Adora. His goddamn Tinkerbell.

  “Oh, I definitely take hints,” Kat stated, her eyes twinkling with mirth.

  He was definitely missing something.

  “Adora, can I talk to you? Alone?”

  “Nope,” she said so blithely, she had to realize he intended to chew her out for trying to push Kat onto him. “Come in, sit down. Chat with us. Make small talk.”

  He was tired of playing games. “No. I’m not in the mood for small talk. Kat, I think it’s time for you to leave.”

  Kat leaped to her feet and ran her hands down the front of her dress, all smiles, as if she knew a secret and was thoroughly enjoying the fact that Matt had no clue what the hell was going on.

  “Always a pleasure, Matt,” she said as she strutted over and wrapped her body around him for a hug that lasted a few seconds too long. He smirked at an envious Adora over her shoulder.

  Brought this on yourself, Cupid.

  Extracting himself, he ushered Kat out the door. When he returned to the sitting room, Adora and Rachel were arguing over the fact that Rachel wanted to leave her alone with Matt.

  “That sounds like a great idea,” he said. “Come on, Adora, let’s go.”

  “Where to?” she asked on a squeak, jumping like she’d been electrocuted when he grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet.

  “Upstairs. Your bedroom.”

  He could swear he heard stifled laughter from behind him as he practically dragged her from the room. Apparently Adora was the only one who didn’t seem to get it.

  “You aren’t an idiot,” he said once he had her inside the room. He pushed the door closed and turned to face her. She stood in the middle of the space, looking as though she were giving serious consideration to sprouting her wings and flying away. Half afraid she would do just that, he moved forward, crowding her, invading her personal space until she was backed up against the dresser. Her hands clutched the edge of the wood, her chest heaved, her heartbeat pulsed in her neck, faster and faster, until she began panting, staring up at him with eyes as big as saucers.

  “You aren’t an idiot,” he repeated, his voice low, soothing. Lifting his hand, he trailed his fingers up her arm until he reached that pulse point at her neck. And then he traced a path down along the neckline of her dress. She stood, frozen, her eyes dilating, her nipples peaking. He could scent her arousal, almost taste it in the air. It fed his own, and he hardened, wanting to skip the chitchat and get down to the business of coupling.

  Or mating.

  “So why do you keep trying to pretend we aren’t perfect together?”

  White knuckling the edge of the dress, she shook her head so violently, her pink hair whipped around her face. “B-because we aren’t. You need a mate.”

  “Okay. I choose you.”

  He didn’t think her eyes could get any wider, yet she managed. “N-no. That’s not how it works.”

  “Why not?”

  “It just doesn’t.”

  He smoothed his hand down her side and then lifted the other so he could cup her tiny waist. “That’s not a good enough reason. I want a solid reason. Something tangible.”

  Her body leaned into him of its own accord, until she realized what was happening and forced herself to go rigid again. “Cupids don’t take mates.”

  “Is there a reason for this rule, or did someone along the line just decide it was easier to keep you all on the job if you never got the chance to experience what you give to everyone else? And really, does that make sense? Don’t you think you’d be even better at what you do if you had first-hand experience?”

  She had leaned toward him again, her lips puckered, her chest flushed. “I do,” she said, and she blinked like she’d just had a revelation.

  “You do?”

  She nodded. “It’s the reason I was demoted to Level One.”

  Much to his irritation, she found her gumption and blithely stepped to the side, out of his reach. Turning her face to the window, so she could not look him in the eye, she said, “I thought I was in love once. It was a situation much like this one. I gave in to the desire, slept with him. I thought it was mutual. I thought we were both in love. I thought…But I was wrong. He found his mate, fell in love with her, and pushed me away.”

  He watched her blink rapidly, as if she were fighting tears, and he said, “Okay, so that sucks, but you had a successful assignment, right?”

  The headshake was excruciatingly slow. “I did the worst thing a Cupid could possibly do. I went against everything I’ve ever been taught about love and relationships.”

  She paused, and he stood there, watching, waiting for whatever bomb she intended to drop.

  “I sabotaged their relationship.”

  Chapter 10

  ADORA managed to avoid Matt all day on Wednesday. As it turned out, it hadn’t been difficult to do. He had worked at the hotel all day and hadn’t stopped by after work, as was his usual routine. She supposed that was her fault. She’d frightened him away with her confession the day before.

  Now what was she supposed to do? She still had to find the man a mate, whether he wanted her interference or not. Otherwise, she would lose her wings. Losing both Matt and her wings…She could not fathom the pain she would feel. Losing Matt
—without even truly having him in the first place—was bad enough. Her heart ached, and it was a far worse feeling than she had experienced a few years ago when she’d thought she was in love with her assignment, only to realize he had been using her as a distraction until his true love came along.

  Sleeping alone, she decided on Thursday morning, had become a chore. She lay on her back, staring at the ceiling, willing her mind to stop racing so she could actually catch some shut-eye. Dawn was breaking, casting a dull gray light over the room. It was enough to catch the glitter of a tiny trail of lights as it zoomed around in circles for a moment, before coalescing into the shape of a human female.

  Adora shot into a seated position, grabbing the blanket and pulling it to her chest, not so much to cover herself, but almost a reactive attempt to hide or perhaps protect herself from the person standing in the middle of the room.

  An Assigner. Not her normal one, either. This one had blue hair, perfectly shaped ringlets draping down to her heart-shaped backside. She wore a silver, shimmering dress and glitter on her eyelids. Everything about her was serene and calm, soothing…And Adora’s agitation shot into the stratosphere.

  “No,” she whispered, staring at the warm, friendly woman standing before her, smiling as if she had not a care in the world.

  “Adora. I’ve found you. Are you still working on your latest assignment? I had expected you to be done by now.”

  “I-I’m not.”

  The woman laughed, a low, musical sound, like wind chimes. “Well, hurry it up. It’s time. I have a spot reserved in the Procreation Chamber. You’re going to love it.”

  With another musical laugh, her wings sprouted from her back, beating faster and faster, until her slippered feet lifted off the ground and she faded into a swirling mass of sparkling lights once again. The door opened and the lights rushed past the man standing on the threshold and disappeared down the hall.

  Adora sat in the bed, staring at nothing, trying to absorb the words the Assigner had spoken. She did not want to go to the Procreation Chamber. She hadn’t wanted to before, but now that she’d fallen in love with Matt, she certainly didn’t want to. The idea of having sex with anyone else repulsed her, and it was only made worse by the fact that whomever she slept with in the Procreation Chamber would be little more than a faceless, nameless stranger, someone who was necessary only for the purpose of creating a babe.