Page 6 of Incurably Cupid

“I’m not amiable,” I warned him.

“Yes, I know you’re a holy terror. I’m still interested in being friends. Your answer?”

I sighed. “Yeah, sure.” I shook a finger of warning at him. “But no Statistics of Love stuff. I had enough of that when I was a student. You can vent about your students, but not your course material. I have no sympathy for you.” I squinted at him. “Whyon earth would you want to teachStatistics of Lovein the first place? It’s the most depressing subject at the university.”

He pursed his lips. “Why would you choose to teachLove 101?”

I scowled. “A ginormous pregnant belly and huge doe eyes.”

He laughed and flagged down a waiter to order while I returned to my quizzes. Well, I hadn’t scared him off yet. There was always tomorrow.

Chapter 3

Indie

“Love protects.”

Cupid Inc. New Recruit Training Manual

It was now Wednesday evening, and I was at the Leto Villa in invisible cupid mode, which allowed me to phase into the ether while remaining present so that paranormals and humans couldn’t see me. It was a skill all cupids learned at Cupid University.

Leo was not with me. He couldn’t keep his circuits quiet enough for these covert observations, so I’d left him behind, and he was sulking. I could, however, connect with him through a small, discreet gel earpiece that I’d placed in my ear canal earlier, but I’d muted him to avoid distractions.

Being at the Leto Villa was distraction enough.

I was considering using my sleep magic on the couple in the room.

King Draven and Consort Mia were sitting on a sofa in the living room while Mesmer stood several feet away, trying to give them privacy, though I sensed he could hear everything they were saying.

“Are you not feeling well?” King Draven asked, an expression of tender concern on his face.

Consort Mia grimaced. “I think I picked up some kind of flu bug.” She touched his face tenderly. "I'll be okay." They were cuddling on the couch in front of a crackling fire, and I was trying to ignore their adorableness. It wasn’t easy. Their love for each other was palpable, filling the entire room. It made me want to congratulate the cupid who had found King Draven’s mate and arranged for them to meet. Truly, they were a genius. Maybe I could take notes on how it had been accomplished. Finding Consort Mia in the human world couldn’t have been easy.

I stood next to Mesmer, watching him closely. His eyes were averted, but I knew he was tuned into them—not in a creepy stalker way, but in a I’d-like-to-keep-you-both-alive way. I shifted, unable to remain as completely still as Mesmer was.

I had been trying to spend as much time around him as possible to see if I could get a sense of where his soulmate might be. I’d made his rounds with him, accompanied him when he took Consort Mia to the store to buy two boxes of her favorite candy. And then, when she’d hidden them in her desk drawer in her and King Draven’s office, I’d squirmed when King Draven caught their scent as soon as she entered the room and then lovingly teased her about her sweet tooth. I didn’t believe in true love, not even for soulmates—inconvenient when matching people up was my job—but Consort Mia and King Draven tempted me to reconsider. I was chalking it up to them still being in the honeymoon phase.

It wouldn’t last.

Nothing did.

Zian, Consort Mia’s overly large familiar, sat alertly in front of me as though he could sense me, which shouldn’t be at allpossible. I kept trying to shoo him away, but he was a persistent kitty cat.

“Zian, come here, boy. My feet are cold. You can lay on them to warm them up.”

“I’ll warm them for you,” King Draven said, and I kid you not, I almost blushed. I didn’t blush. At all. But his voice had dropped in volume and pitch, and I knew he was implying more than just warming her feet. My annoying cupid bonding powers were attuned to people in love. I couldn’t help the information those powers gave me, whether I wanted that information or not. For most cupids, being around couples in love was said to feel pleasant—like a warm fire on a cold day.

It did not feel like that to me.

They started kissing, and I was sorely tempted to leave the room and explore the villa further. It was a beautiful place, adorned in creams and golds with pops of color here and there. The style resembled many Italian villas I'd seen, which King Draven had obviously intended.

I sighed, shifting again. “How do you stand the lovey-dovey stuff all the time? It must drive you crazy,” I said aloud, not expecting a reply because no one should be able to hear me, enmeshed in the ether as I was.

Except... Mesmer’s eyes flicked to me and then away. I blinked at him in astonishment. “Can you hear me?”

He jerked his chin in a nod.

“Can you see me?”

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