Authors: Melissa Hosack
Stupid Cupid (8 page)
Gripping the arrow tightly between her
hands, she pulled upward. It took more strength than she’d been expecting. The
arrow needed to rip its way back out of muscle and flesh. She felt the violent
tearing all the way up her arms, and the howl of pain from Valen brought a sob
from her throat.
As soon as the protrusion was out of
his chest, Valen slumped to the side, his elbow resting on the restaurant’s
hardwood flooring. “Shit. That hurt.” He fell silent for a few moments, his
breathing heavy. When he finally opened his eyes, they were full of sadness. “I
need you to take over for me.”
“What?” Her voice came out a horrified
squeak.
“You have a knack for this. Someone
needs to do it.”
rush. “Valen, no. You will be fine.”
“Promise me!”
A sob escaped her as she realized how
grim their situation was. “Okay. Okay, I promise.”
He nodded, closing his eyes. “Good.
Thank you.”
Fear seized her heart at the shallow
breaths that rattled through his chest. “Valen, don’t,” she begged desperately.
“Don’t give up. I need you.” Lowering her head, she pressed her face into his
neck. “Please.” A shuddering sob escaped her. “I love you.”
A sharp, pained gasp came from deep
within Valen’s throat. He struggled to get his next words out. “I’ve always
loved you. From the first day you appeared in my house. Uninvited,” he added,
trying to lighten the mood as he gave a weak laugh.
With tears streaming down her cheeks,
elbow. Leaning in, she gave him a gentle, chaste kiss. She put her heart into
that kiss, trying to convey with her mouth just how much she loved him, how
much he’d come to mean to her.
Suddenly, his body began to convulse.
He bucked against the ground, his hips rising and falling as he growled in
agony.
“Valen!” she yelled in horror. Her
hands fluttered over his chest and she sobbed. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
When his body went still, she was
filled with pure and potent terror. “Valen!” She shook his shoulder, feeling as
if her entire world was shattering. What was worse, she’d done this. “Oh,
Valen. I’m so sorry. I never meant for this to happen.” She stared at his now
peaceful face, overcome with remorse. Reaching a hand out, she stroked his
cheek. “You were right. We did have a Romeo and Juliet type of love. Tragic.”
She went to stroke his cheek again when
his eyes snapped open. She gave a startled gasp and sat back on her butt with a
thud.
He turned to look at her, eyes as wide
as hers. “
She bobbed her head, barely able to see
through her tears. He’d been dead. She was almost positive of it. Now he was
here, gazing at her with those enthralling lavender eyes.
“How?” he asked. “How is this
possible?” He rubbed a hand along his chest in amazement. Then he reached out
to touch her cheek. “I thought… I never realized…”
She pressed her hand over his, holding
him to her cheek. “What?”
“You’re my soul mate.”
Those four simple words took her breath
away. “What?”
“My arrows are lethal. The only thing
that can stop their deadly progress is a kiss from my soul mate.” His eyes
filled with wonder. “You. It’s always been you.”
one was of joy. “I’m your soul mate?”
He nodded. “You are. No wonder I could
never track down your soul mate. Over the past few months I’ve tried. I wanted
to give you the option to choose, to really choose. This explains why I
couldn’t find him. Because I can’t see my own fate.”
A laugh bubbled from her throat. “I’m
your soul mate.”
He nodded.
“And you’re healed?”
He lifted his shirt to reveal his
stomach, a smooth expanse of unmarred flesh.
disbelief and threw herself into his arms. Her mouth was on his a moment later.
“I love you.”
He chuckled, his arms wrapping tightly
around her waist. “I love you, Lincoln
Belmonte.”
with all of her pent up emotion and fear. She kissed him as if he was as
necessary as the air she breathed. And he was. He was her soul mate, the one
man in all existence who was perfect for her. “I’m sorry I tried to kill you.”
He continued to kiss her, his mouth desperate against hers.
“I’m sorry I didn’t warn you about the arrows.”
She nodded. Cupping his face in her hands, she crawled into
his lap and deepened the kiss. She could spend an eternity kissing this man,
loving him. And she planned to do just that.
“
The shocked sound of Amy’s voice had her drawing away with a
gasp. Of all the times for humans to suddenly notice their surroundings… “Amy?”
Her friend’s eyes were wide with surprise. They flicked
pointedly to Valen, and she arched her brows in question. “What are you doing?”
at Valen, then back to her friend. “Um…”
“I just asked
be described as intense.
eyes going wide. “Valen…” Her mind whirred as she tried to determine whether he
was serious or not.
“Well,” he pressed. “Will you marry me?”
She gaped at him for a moment in shock. Then she threw her
arms around his neck. “Yes! Yes of course I will!”
She went to kiss him again when Amy cleared her throat.
with a laugh. “Oh!” She climbed out of Valen’s lap and tugged him to his feet.
“Amy, this is Valentine. Valen, this is my best friend Amy.”
Amy offered a hand for him to shake. “Valen…hello.” Her gaze
flicked to
their depths full of questions.
“Valen and I met the morning after my birthday.” She wouldn’t even dare give
any details. It was too bizarre to even believe. Sometimes even she had a hard
time believing the circumstances that surrounded her relationship with Valen.
“Wow,” Amy drawled. “Looks like all that Cupid bashing,
bitter woman stuff worked.”
giving an uncomfortable laugh.
Valen, meanwhile, beamed at Amy and patted his fiancé’s
back. “You have no idea how well that worked.” His voice was full of amusement,
but underneath was a confidence in his own prowess.
dropped at the cocky, sexual tone of his voice. She lifted her gaze to his,
feeling her belly tighten with arousal.
He grinned down at her, his violet eyes dancing with
enjoyment. Gripping her chin, he planted a kiss on her lips, letting his tongue
delve briefly into her mouth. “You look like a fish with your mouth hanging
open like that.”
Amy chuckled, causing
moment later, a wry smile spread across
lips. She never could resist Amy’s giggly sense of humor.
“Why don’t you join us?” Valen offered. “Obviously, the two
of you have a lot of catching up to do.” There was a firmness to his voice that
brought
that of the Hispanic waiter her friend had been kissing earlier.
Amy shifted her feet uncomfortably. “I wouldn’t want to
intrude on your special night. Getting engaged is pretty huge. You two should
celebrate together.”
Valen nudged a chair pointedly in her direction with his
foot. “Nonsense. I want to get to know
best friend and…” He trailed off, arching an eyebrow at the waiter beside her.
Amy gave a soft sigh. “I guess I have some explaining to
do.”
The waiter squeezed her hand. “I should get back to work.
I’ll come see you in a bit?” His words were an uncertain question.
Amy nodded. “Yeah. Join us when you get off.” With a nervous
glance at
she gave him a quick, shy kiss.
man walk off. She knew her eyes must be as wide as saucers, but she couldn’t
help herself. She felt like she was in a twilight zone. Was she the only one
who remembered that her friend had a husband at home?
Amy sank into the chair Valen had offered her with a loud
sigh. “Kevin and I are getting divorced.”
legs might collapse, so she dropped into her seat. “How? Why?” She couldn’t
stop her accusing gaze from straying to the waiter. “Because of…”
Amy’s eyes widened and she frantically waved her hands in
the air. “No! No.” She let out a sigh and dropped her hands to her lap. “Things
with Kevin…They just weren’t working out. We tried. We really did, but we were
trying because our families are close. We were trying to work things out for
their sake. We weren’t trying for the right reasons.” She shrugged. “We came
here a couple months ago to talk it out and call an end to things.”
Her expression was sad, but her face was determined as she
continued. “He wasn’t happy, Lincoln, and neither was I.” She hesitated then
added, “He’s gay. He was struggling with his attraction to a co-worker. He was
just so full of guilt…It hurt me to see him like that.” A half smile curved her
lips. “The two of them are making a go of it, and I’m happy for them.”
she could barely move. “So the two of you have been separated for months?”
Amy nodded.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I wanted to give him time to figure things out. It wasn’t
my place to expose the new life he’s struggling to understand. I do care for him,
Lincoln. I wouldn’t hurt him like that.”
toward the waiter. “And him?”
An affectionate smile touched Amy’s lips. “The night Kevin
and I called it quits, Manuel was our waiter. Kevin left and…” She shrugged
sheepishly. “I was upset, crying. Even though it was a mutual decision, my
marriage was over. It was still a lot to deal with emotionally. Manny sat down
with me, kept me company.” Her expression became one of pride. “He’s an amazing
man. He’s caring and kindhearted. And he’s so smart. He’s working here to put
himself through veterinary school.”
“He sounds nice,”
“He is.” With a glance at Valen, Amy waved off the topic of
her love life. “Enough about me! Can we talk about this hunk you failed to tell
me about?” She turned her attention to Valen and gave him an approving perusal.
“Where have you been hiding him?”
Valen grinned widely, obviously enjoying the attention.
“Tell her I’m a fairy tale come true,” he teased.
As sad as she was to hear her best friend’s marriage was
over,
intentions where her friend was concerned. He was a good man, and she’d
misjudged him from the very start. “It’s been such an amazing four months. I
guess I haven’t come up for air. I wasn’t intentionally hiding him.” She smiled
up at Valen. “And he is a dream come true. I can’t wait to marry this man.”
Epilogue
6 Months
Later
Valentine’s Day
from her soul mate, her hands linked tightly with his. The surroundings of the
Chapel of Choir were breathtaking, but she paid them no mind. The large
blooming violets were no match for Valen’s eyes. The beautiful, satin runway
stretched down the aisle had only served the purpose of bringing her to his
side. He was the only thing that mattered to her on this day.
When she heard the priest speak the age old question to her,
she smiled. “I do.”
Valen’s fingers tightened on hers and his thumb ran along
the back of her hand. When prompted for his own response, he took a deep
breath. “I do. For all eternity, I do.”
breath in anticipation of the priest’s next sentence. She let her gaze flick
over her groom’s attire. The blackest black suit set off the color of his
shoulder length, blond hair, and the deep purple of his tie matched the vibrant
color of his eyes. He was a breathtaking man, but it was the love reflecting in
his eyes she prized the most.