“Adam,” Phoebe said a little breathlessly.
Adam blinked. “Phoebe?”
Phoebe yanked her hand back from Cal. “Uh, yes, hi. Cal and I were… I spilled coffee and—”
“You spilled coffee again?”
Cal frowned at her. “What does he mean, again?”
A delicate pink stained her cheeks. “Long story.”
“Phoebe, what are you doing here?” Adam asked.
“What am I doing here?” she repeated. She went speechless and a glazed expression began to spread over her face.
Good grief. This woman was either a ditz or a terrible liar. Or maybe a combination of both. Either way, it was kind of cute, so he decided to throw her a bone. He leaned into her ear. “The free photo session,” he whispered.
“Oh, right!” She clasped her palms together, as if summoning strength or maybe saying a prayer, and continued on. “I came here to tell you that you won a free photo session at my studio and, uh…”
“It expires on Valentine’s Day,” he supplied when she looked at him for help.
“Yes, it expires on Valentine’s Day. And I didn’t want you to miss out on such a deal. It’s a special promo I was running for past customers and I happened to draw your name.” She started twirling that strand of hair again. He recognized it as a sign that her nerves were getting the best of her, and he bit down on a smile. “So…what do you say? Do you want to take advantage of this once-in-a-lifetime offer?”
Adam’s mouth quirked as he ran his fingers through his already messy blond hair. “You came all this way to tell me that?”
Phoebe looked to Cal for an answer again. This time he just shrugged. He figured he could only take her so far in this lie of hers.
She turned back to Adam. “Uh, yes, I didn’t want you to miss out. To be honest, I wasn’t sure if you’d want to speak to me again.” She lowered her voice. “After the coffee incident.”
Adam chuckled. “Don’t be silly. It’s really sweet of you to come by. I’ve never won anything so great in my whole life.”
Cal folded his arms with a snort. Adam was laying it on a bit thick for his taste. He’d never won anything so great in his life? That was funny, considering Adam had received a Distinguished Fellowship Award from the International Academy of Cardiology last month.
Phoebe’s face lit up. “Really?”
“Yeah, and I always thought you did a great job taking my niece and nephew’s pictures. I’ve actually wanted to get in touch with you again anyway. I need to get some pictures done for a new hospital brochure we’re having made.”
Her smile widened. “I’m glad I could remedy the situation.” Opening her purse, she pulled out a scrap of paper and a pen. “My studio moved, so I’ll write down the new address. Maybe you can come by today.”
Cal stood back and observed them together for a minute. He didn’t like it. Phoebe seemed extra eager to spend time with Adam. Nothing against his friend, but he couldn’t quite figure it out. There was no chemistry there. Not even an ounce of what she and Cal had just experienced. It was like seeing two scoops of vanilla ice cream in a white bowl: bland.
Besides, he couldn’t understand how Adam had let a woman like Phoebe walk out of his life without so much as her phone number in the first place. It was practically sacrilegious.
All of that was enough to cause the words to come flying out of his mouth before he had a chance to stop them. “I’ll come, too!”
They both looked at him as if he’d announced he’d passed wind.
He cleared his throat. “Uh, if you two don’t mind, that is. I’m interested in getting some pictures done. A gift for my parents.”
“Oh. Well, sure,” Phoebe said, looking anything but. “I guess so.”
Adam shrugged. “Fine by me.”
Cal became the victim of Phoebe’s glare before she turned her attention back to Adam. “Maybe the two of us can grab a drink afterward,” she suggested.
Adam’s lips curved. “Sounds great.”
Cal simmered. No. That does not sound great. In fact, from the way he was feeling now, he was pretty sure it would be over his dead body.
Hell. What was going on with him?
Here he was ready to deck his roommate for accepting a simple invite for a drink. So help him, somehow this woman had managed to tie him up in knots in under thirty minutes. Yet despite the mutual attraction they seemed to have, Phoebe was going out of her way to get Adam’s attention. He couldn’t figure it out. She didn’t seem the type to play hard to get.
Normally, if a woman showed interest in another guy, Cal would cut his losses and walk away. No problem. After all, there were plenty more fish in the sea. But Phoebe was definitely up to something—from the way she mysteriously showed up at their doorstep to the way she invented the whole story about a free photography session. And he was going to figure out exactly what it was.
Or at least have fun trying.
Chapter Five
Later that afternoon, Phoebe almost had her studio in perfect working order. All she had left to do was hang up one last strand of mistletoe. She’d bought it before Christmas but never had the opportunity to use it…until now. Yes, it was perhaps a tad late in the season, but desperate times called for desperate greenery. Now all she had to do was hope she could find the right opportunity for her and Adam to stand under it. Ten sprigs strategically placed around the room ought to get the job done.
She climbed down the wooden ladder and surveyed the ceiling with a critical eye. Per Cosmo, in order to speed things up in the love department, she and Adam had to kiss before the end of Valentine’s Day. He also mentioned it had to be a toe-curling kiss.
A little tall on the order side, but she was sure things would fall naturally into place.
She and Adam would kiss, one thing would lead to another…and voilà! They’d both realize how perfect they were for each other, love would be preserved on earth, she’d be hailed as a hero by all Roman gods and goddesses, and Cosmo would gratefully give out a round of cigars to everyone involved.
All she had to do was make sure Cal Crawford didn’t get in her way.
It was unsettling the way he’d studied her. She needed to stay away from him. She didn’t know why he was so determined to tag along to her studio anyway—he had to know she was only interested in Adam.
Or should only be interested in Adam.
The trouble was that ever since she’d returned to her apartment, she couldn’t stop thinking about Cal. Worse, every time she did, something deep within her tightened.
His eyes were incredible. They were that color of blue water she’d seen on vacation in Mexico, and whenever he’d gazed at her it’d felt like she was being hit by wave after wave…
Darn, I’m doing it again!
That was it. She was blowing the whistle on this beach.
According to Cosmo, Cal and his Mexican-ocean blue eyes didn’t fit into her future at all. Her soul mate was Adam. Adam, who was sweet, cute, and perfect for her. Cupid couldn’t be wrong, especially not with so much at stake.
Her studio door opened, and Cal and Adam both walked in.
“Hi,” she said, trying her best to ignore Cal and the little flip her traitorous stomach did at the sight of him. “Would either of you like some coffee?”
“No!” they both answered.
She winced. Right. Coffee was too much of a loose variable for her.
As was Cal.
Phoebe stole a glance at him. He wore jeans—which he happened to fill out quite nicely—and a black button-down shirt he hadn’t bothered tucking in. He carried himself with a commanding air, as though he was used to a position of authority. Just watching the male fluid grace of his movements dried up every last bit of her saliva. Damn him.
Adam shoved his hands in his pockets and smiled sheepishly at her. “I’m not used to getting my picture professionally taken. Where do you think would be a good place to stand?”
She found it endearing that
he would be so nervous and patted him encouragingly on the arm. “You’ll do great. Just have a seat on that stool over there.”
Cal walked forward, coming to a stop where she was adjusting the lights. He glanced around the studio. “Nice place,” he commented, then his neck craned toward the ceiling and he froze. “Uh, is that mistletoe?”
She looked up and her heart dropped. She and Cal were standing directly under it.
“No!” she blurted. Her face heated. Good grief, leave it to him and not Adam to notice all that mistletoe. The last thing she wanted to do was kiss Cal. Well, maybe not last. But now was not the time to complicate her plan. Plus, she didn’t want to look desperate.
“Um, I mean, lots of people think that,” she said, trying to calm her voice. “But it’s not mistletoe at all. It’s…fennel.” Fennel?
“Fennel?”
Her head bobbed up and down as her mind cranked out a flimsy story. “Yep, fennel. It’s the herb of sight.” Or so she hoped. “I figured it was perfect to use for a photography studio.”
He looked back up and squinted at it. “Interesting decorating choice.”
“I thought so,” she squeaked, then rushed over to Adam.
She bit down hard on her lower lip. It figured Cal would have a gift for observation. The mistletoe plan was scratched now. She’d have to find another way to get Adam to kiss her.
“Give me one second,” she told Adam. She’d bought a new lens last week and wanted to try it out. She ran over to her desk while he made himself comfortable on the stool. A new lens for a new love. How fitting. She’d just finished attaching it when Cal sidled up behind her.
“What are you up to?” he whispered in her ear. His voice was low and firm and—dare she admit?—sexy.
Her knees did an odd little wobble. Damn him again. She whirled around and locked them firmly back into place by supporting herself on her desk. Bad move, since his face was even sexier than his voice.
“W-what?” she said with a laugh that sounded fake even to her own ears. “I’m not up to anything. Why would you think I’m up to something?”
“Just a feeling.”
“Well, you felt wrong.”
His blue eyes sparkled. “I wouldn’t go making those kinds of statements without all the facts. I think if you got to know me better you’d find out that I feel”—he leaned in then, his face startlingly close to hers—“quite right.”
Oh, I bet you would. Uh-oh. Thoughts of feeling up Cal were not the ones to be having. Not when Adam was just a few feet away and she should be focusing all her attention on him. Suddenly it felt very hot. Maybe she should check the thermostat or her own temperature. And while she was at it, her sanity.
“Are you ready, Phoebe?” Adam called.
Ready for what? she wanted to ask. Then she remembered she was supposed to be taking his picture. No, more than that—she was supposed to be getting to know him better, and if all went as planned, getting him to kiss her so love would be preserved on earth. And here was Cal, about to ruin everything. He had a way of clouding her mind with his six-foot-two frame and that quiet, speculative way he’d turned those baby blues on her.
She placed her hands on his chest and shoved. Hard. Then mentally added “muscles” to the list of things he had clouding her mind.
“Excuse me,” she told him in her best haughty voice, “I have pictures to take.”
“You’ll be taking my picture, too,” he reminded her.
“Yes, well, we’ll see if I have time. You might have to come back another day.” Preferably another decade. Or at least after she and Adam had fallen in love.
She didn’t give Cal a chance to respond. Clasping her camera to her chest, she went over to where Adam patiently waited. He looked ready, but the collar of his blazer needed to be flattened. Taking the opportunity to touch him, and get her mind off touching Cal, she walked up and began fussing with it.
She frowned when her fingers skimmed his neck. Okay, no zip of attraction yet, although Adam did smell nice. But not the kind of nice that made her want to rip his clothes off. Maybe she needed to test that theory out more. She ran her hands over Adam’s shoulders, pretending to smooth his jacket down. Nice shoulders, too, but not quite the linebacker status of Cal’s.
Ugh. There she went again. Cal. She couldn’t get him or his stupid shoulders out of her head. It’s not love; it’s just lust. Lust was fleeting. Love was forever.
She couldn’t afford to confuse the two.
She took a few steps back, rallying her determination. Love was harder work than she thought.
Adam adjusted his already-straight tie. When he was done fussing, he folded his hands in his lap and looked up. “How’s this?” he asked, his lips curling upward.
Not good. That smile made him look like he was in serious dental pain.
She cleared her throat. “How about we get a few candid shots out of the way,” she suggested. “We want you more natural. This way you’ll become used to the camera and you won’t look so stiff.”
“Stiff is natural for him,” Cal commented drily and Adam chuckled.
She shot Cal a withering glance, but then snapped a photo of Adam.
“Hey!” Adam protested. “I didn’t know you were going to take the picture.”
She laughed. “That’s the point. If you don’t know, I can catch you on film more relaxed. You were laughing at Cal, so your smile wasn’t forced.”
Cal came over and nudged her in the side with his elbow. “Good thing I was here to help you, then.”
“I’m a professional,” she told him, deliberately ignoring the thud her pulse made when he touched her. “I didn’t need your help.”
“You’re welcome.”
She smiled despite her desire not to. The man had an easygoing charm she couldn’t seem to resist. Shaking her head, she snapped a couple more pictures of Adam.
Adam’s free session was working out great. He was going to be surprised when he saw the pictures. As soon as that thought popped into her head, she lowered the camera. This was her chance to get close to him.
“How about we see the results so far?” she suggested, pulling up another stool. She held the camera between them and, through the digital window, gave him a slide show of what she’d taken so far.
Their shoulders touched briefly. She decided to test the water a bit more and gave in to a full lean. Adam didn’t shift away. That was a good sign. He shyly glanced at her and they even shared a smile. Her heart lifted. Another good sign. Maybe things would work out after all.
Cal suddenly came up from behind and stuck his head between them. “Not bad,” he said, but there was a critical tone to his voice.
She bit down on a sigh. “What do you mean, ‘not bad’? Adam could use any of these pictures for a hospital brochure.”
He shrugged. “A hospital brochure is one thing. The true test of your talent will be photographing me.” He folded his fingers under his chin and playfully fluttered his eyelashes. “I’ve been told pictures don’t do me justice.”
She refused to be charmed and instead checked her watch. “That will have to be for another day. It’s getting late.” Biting her lip, she peered at Adam. “Not too late for maybe a drink, though. We could go over which picture package you might want to order.”
“That could be—”
But Adam’s answer was cut short when his cell phone suddenly went off.
Chapter Six
Gah. That could be…what? She needed to know.
Phoebe pressed a hand against her forehead and sighed. Fate had a way of intervening at the worse possible times. Although maybe it wasn’t fate at all, but the goddess of hate as Cosmo had mentioned. And if so, no wonder he was so desperate for her help. The bad guys played hardball.
Adam took the phone out of his pocket and glanced at it. “Sorry, I need to take this. It’s the hospital.”
“Of course,” she murmured as he got up.
Cal plopped down in Adam’s vacated seat
and grinned. “Saved by the ringtone.”
“That’s not funny,” she snapped. Her nerves were shot, and taking out her anger on Cal wasn’t helping, which only made her want to burst into tears more.
“You’re right. It’s hilarious.” His brows drew together when he noticed her eyes filling up. “Hey, relax.” His tone softened.
“I can’t relax.” She swiped at her eyes, willing the tears away. That’s all she needed to do—have a major breakdown in front of Cal on top of everything else. She was such a screwup. Why on earth did she ever think she could handle saving humanity? Why did Cosmo think she could help? Even with Cupid practically placing her soul mate in her lap like a gift-wrapped present, she still couldn’t get him to pay any real attention to her.
She took a deep breath, her thoughts going to the news reports Discordia had caused. She could do this. She just needed to stick it out a little longer and trust in Cupid. “I’m sorry, Cal. I don’t mean to fall apart. But you wouldn’t understand.”
“Try me.”
Cal’s kindness got to her. He seemed so willing to help. She wanted to confide in him, but this was her battle to fight. She pressed her lips together, not trusting her voice, and shook her head sadly.
Adam walked back to them, a look of concern and regret on his face telling her what he was going to say next before he even spoke it. “There’s an issue with one of my patients. I need to go to the hospital. We’ll have to take a rain check on those drinks.”
A rain check? Her chest constricted. There was no time for rain checks.
“When?” she blurted.
He blinked. “Uh, I’m not sure. My schedule is kind of unpredictable. I’ll give you a call. But if I don’t talk to you beforehand, happy Valentine’s Day.” He grabbed his jacket and tipped his chin to Cal before walking out.
The door closed behind him with a soft click, a rather ironic final seal of love’s fate, if you asked her. A mixture of guilt and disappointment grabbed at Phoebe and she closed her eyes, hoping Cosmo would magically come to the rescue and direct her about what to do next.
Cal laid a hand on her shoulder. A little tension eased out of her, and she sighed. There was nothing he could do to help the situation, but his touch was comforting anyhow. “Hey, you’re really upset over this, aren’t you?”
A Little Bit Cupid Page 3
