Bonds of Cupidity (Heart Hassle, #2)

by Raven Kennedy

I watch as Evert reaches for another contestant and shouts something to him. Systematically, one after the other, Sylred’s message is passed on, until all of the contestants are linked together, joined by the grip on arms and legs, feet and hands. Using the link, the fae at the very back starts to climb up each body like a ladder of limbs. When he gets to where Ronak is, he settles himself in front, and Ronak grabs hold of his leg.

When my heel turns and my ankle rolls on one of the steps, Okot stops in front of me and lifts me up for a piggyback ride. I hold my arms around his neck as he grabs me under my thighs. “This is better. I hate stairs. And heels. And walking.” “You are not very good at any of them, either.”

I try to shake off the direness of the situation, because that’s not going to help my guys, anyway. I also don’t want Okot to feel burdened with being mated to a Debbie Downer. By the way, poor Debbie. She’s seriously typecasted. I’m sure there are super fun Debbie’s out there.

At the bottom of the stairs, Okot keeps hold of me, and I relax against his back. Lots of fae give us weird looks, but I don’t care at all. They’re just jealous they don’t have a bull boy to walk for them. “Can you just carry me everywhere? This is so much better.” I feel more than hear Okot’s rumbled laughter against my chest. “It would be my pleasure, my beloved.”

“You are sooooo pretty,” Mossie, my favorite earth sprite croons. I lean forward to pet her vine hair, but I miss and hit her in the eye instead. Aside from her eye getting red and teary, she doesn’t seem to really notice. “Stop it. You are pretty. You have flowers growing from your head. I freaking love flowers.” “Me too!” Mossie says, taking another drink. “What’s your favorite flower?” “Pink,” I answer without hesitation. She nods solemnly and passes me the bottle so I can take another swig.

Mossie picks up the bottle of wine and starts pouring it over her head to water her flowers with it. They start swaying, which sends me into a fit of laughter. A burp erupts from my mouth, cutting it short. “Your flowers are drunk.” She tilts her head back to try to look at them, but of course that doesn’t work and only makes me laugh harder. “I have buzzed blooms,” she supplies. I purse my lips in thought. “Plastered plants.” “Sloshed shoots.” “Say that ten times fast,” I challenge. Mossie taps her nose in challenge accepted. “Sloshed shoots, shloshed shootsh, slosheds shootses…shit.” I cackle delightedly.

“Go pinch his butt,” I giggle. She blushes dark green. “No!” I frown. “Why not? Does he have a gross butt?” Mossie frowns, tossing a hair-vine over her shoulder. “I don’t know. I didn’t look. Should I have looked?” “Umm, duh. What if he has a bad one?” She claps a hand over her mouth, horrified. “I never even thought of that!” “Mm-hmm. I know. That’s why you have me.” “You are so smart.”

“Ohmygods, I’m flying!” “I’m carrying you.” “Oh. Good. Cuz I’m supposed to be hiding my wings. Besides, flying is hard. Drinking fairy wine is so much easier. I’m good at drinking wine. I could be a professional wine drinker. I like it. A lot.”

“I don’t want to disappear again,” I whisper. “If you do, I’ll find you.”

“You are different from what I thought my mate would be like.” I feel myself get immediately defensive. “How? What did you think your mate would be like?” “Soft spoken. Demure.” I blink. “Oh. Well…I’m sure I could talk softer or something. You mean, like, you want me to whisper? I’m sure I could be super good at whispering,” I whisper. Okot breaks into laughter, and I’m not entirely sure if I should be offended or not. “What? You don’t think I can be quieter? I totally could.”

He laughs even harder, his red eyes sparkling. “No, no. You misunderstand me,” he says, trying to stop his laughter. He sucks at it because it keeps leaking out. “I don’t want you to be quieter. I like you the way you are, my beloved.” I straighten up in my chair. “Oh?” He nods, his eyes smoldering. “Yes. You are unexpected, but I happen to like it. Don’t change.”

“You are my mate,” he says, as if that explains everything. I bite my lip in thought. “I know you said that, but are you sure? What if I just smell super good? Maybe it’s the dye?” I say, looking down at my pink arms with a frown. “It’s not the dye.” “Maybe it’s a whole Veil smell thing, since I’m not supposed to be here.” “You’re supposed to be here. Of that, I have no doubt. Fate brought you to this realm.” “But—” “No more worries about this. Lamassus can sense their mates immediately, and I sensed you. Many of my kind are never blessed enough to find their mates. It matters not what you are. You are mine.”

“Rest, my beloved. I’ve got you.” I listen to his heart beating. “I know you do.” My body drifts off, lulled by his steady steps and his strong arms wrapped around me. “Thank you for flying in the stars,” I say on a quiet breath. I feel a kiss pressed against the top of my head. “For you, I’d pluck them from the sky.” All those years I hoped and wished and prayed to know what falling in love felt like? Yeah. I think I know now. It feels like this.

“They will make it through.” “They better, or I’ll go back into the Veil, drag them back to this realm, and force those assholes to become cupids.” Okot chuckles. “The frowning one would not be a good cupid at all.”

“I need a sniff.” With a quirk of his lips, he bends closer to me. I lean my nose into his neck and take a nice, long inhale. The warmth of his smell immediately comforts me. A little contented sigh escapes my lips. When I lean back again, my eyes slowly open, and Okot rubs the nape of my neck with his thumb. “Better?” I nod. “Totally.” I don’t know what it is about this mate smell stuff, but it’s the best anxiety remedy ever.

“What’s your name?” I ask. His eyes flick from the knife to me. “Quorred.” “Ever have a knife stabbed into your pupil, Quorred?”

When my face meets his, he leans forward and presses a kiss to my cheek. “As much as I love watching you threaten to stab a man in the eye, now is not the time,” he murmurs into my ear. “It was just gonna be a little stab.” He gives me a pointed look, and I sigh. “Fine.”

The contestants take the offering, staring at me with surprised yet wary eyes. When I chance a look to my right, I see my genfins staring at me like they want to wrap their hands around my throat and strangle me. Even Sylred. He doesn’t look so nice right about now. Oh, well. I refuse to stuff my face while they starve. I refuse to take part in this ruthless display of public humiliation. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” Evert hisses.

Okot leans over to me. “That was a very brash move, my beloved.” “I know,” I whisper, keeping my eyes on my plate. I can tell he wants to say more, but he doesn’t. Okot lets it drop, not once lecturing me or making me feel like an idiot. I’m immensely grateful.

Delsheen laughs shrilly. Well, isn’t she sweet. I look down at my fingernails. Damn. They’re all short and blunt. Note to my stupid cupid self: Grow those suckers out and sharpen them to a point so I can claw her face next time. I guess it takes a lot of planning to have a proper catfight.

Prince Elphar cocks an amused brow, but Delsheen sneers at me. “You’re actually bragging about living like a pig? You really are half human,” she snickers. “At least I don’t have wings that look like hairy flapjacks.” She bristles. “At least I’m not bare-back and useless,” she fires back. “Only the lowliest of fae have no wings.” “You didn’t always have wings,” I remind her. “Who agreed to shack up with you for life, anyway? I’d like to offer my condolences.” Furious, she tosses her napkin down on her plate. “Why, you little—” “Ladies, ladies,” Prince Elphar interjects. “Play nice.”

“First you flew me to the stars, and now you’re holding me through a dance. I don’t deserve you, Okot.” He looks down at me with the softest expression on his face and kisses the top of my head before tucking it beneath his chin. “It isn’t that you do not deserve me. It is that you do not yet see your own worth. I see it. Those genfins of yours see it, too, even if they have not yet admitted it.” I think my heart just crawled out of my chest to go cuddle with him.

“Delsheen,” Ronak says in a clipped tone. She reaches out a finger and trails it down his chest. “I will bite that off,” I threaten her. “Do you like my dress? It’s the best fur that money can buy,” she says, drawing their attention to her shapely form. Evert looks her up and down and then shrugs, unimpressed. “Someone else wore worse fur and looked better.” I beam.

She blanches. “What do you mean, no?” “No, Delsheen. We won’t be bonding with you.” She laughs in his face. “A united front, is that it? Well, you can’t say no to me, remember? You’re the alpha. That means that, for you, it’s your animal side that chooses the mate. And your animal chose me a long time ago,” she says in a victoriously sultry voice, pressing up against him. “So you have no choice but to go through with it, unless you want your animal to rage and fight against you for all eternity. He’ll reject any other female because he already chose me. You have to finish the mating ceremony. Your animal won’t accept anything less. Besides, since we already started, you won’t get your magic or your wings unless it’s me. So be a good alpha and control your covey, yes?”

She reaches around and grabs hold of Ronak’s tail while her own starts wrapping around his leg. Evert curses under his breath. By the look on the guys’ faces, it’s obvious that this tail-touching thing is a super big deal. For a moment, Ronak looks defeated. Until his animal side comes roaring out. And I mean that literally. He roars. In the middle of the ballroom. People scream dramatically and run away. Even Delsheen jumps. It’s awesome.

Delsheen pales and her own eyes flash gold. She immediately whimpers and drops her hold on his tail like it burns, while her own tail unravels from his leg. She bows her head and cowers submissively. When he growls and snaps his teeth, she takes the hint and starts backing away. Once she’s twenty feet away, she turns and races from the room. I pump my fist in the air. “Yeah! You better run!”

“Ronak,” Sylred coaxes again. Finally, the gold bleeds out of his eyes, and his posture shudders. When he blinks, his dark eyes look back at his covey. He looks equal parts shocked and confused. “Did my animal just publicly reject Delsheen as a mate?” Evert grins. “Sure as fuck did. It was awesome.”

“I’ve never heard of alphas rejecting a mate they previously chose,” Sylred says. “She must have really pissed your animal off,” Evert adds gleefully. “Good. Glad that shit’s over. If your stupid-ass animal still wanted to keep her, I was going to be pissed.”

“What was with her disappearing arm trick?” Evert asks. The other two shake their heads. “Now that I think about it, I can’t feel her. I usually have some sense of her,” Sylred admits. Ronak frowns. “So did I. Now that you mention it, I haven’t felt her since…” “Since the end of the culling.” “Yeah. I wonder what that means.” “Nothing fucking good,” Evert replies.

Sylred takes in his expression. “You feel it, too?” “Like if Scratch were here, you’d bend her over the drink table and fuck her ’til she can’t walk?” Evert supplies. Sylred groans and fixes his pants again. Ronak just nods, although it looks painful. “Aww, you’re all lusting after me?” I ask, ecstatic. “I knew it! You totally like me. Now be clever genfins and figure this out.”

“Wait a second…” Sylred begins. “Lust-Breath,” Ronak adds with a nod. He would know. Evert looks around. “She’s here. She’s right fucking here, isn’t she?” I blow a big fat yes of Lust into Evert’s face. He groans and bends over slightly. “Fucking Scratch. It is you. You’re killing me here.”

“Okay, Emelle is here, but for some reason, she’s in the Veil again, and we have to assume she can’t get out. Is that right?” Sylred asks a little uncertainly, like he’s embarrassed that he might just be talking to air. I blow more Lust at him. Maybe I should’ve made the Flirt-Touches designated for yes… Oh well. “Okay. So Lust is a yes, then,” he strains to say. “What’s a no?” Evert asks. I trail a Flirt-Touch finger across his shoulder. He frowns. “Well?” Sylred prompts. He lifts his hands, at a loss. “I don’t fucking know.”

Sylred turns to Ronak. “What was her other power again?” Ronak shakes his head. “I don’t remember. All I remember was the hard-on she left me with for four hours.”

“Well?” Sylred asks Evert again. “I don’t fucking know! It just felt…different.” “Like what?” he persists. “The Lust one makes me want to fuck her. The other thing she just did makes me think of stupid shit. Like writing her poems or getting her flowers or some pansy-ass shit like that.” “You really need some improvement in the romance department,” I tel...

“Okay, so only yes or no questions, then.” “If she answers yes many more times, I’m gonna blow a load in my pants,” Evert adm...

“I need a fucking minute,” Evert replies, looking pained. “Or a jump in a frozen lake.” Sylred narrows a thoughtful look at him. “Prince Elphar. Delsheen. The snake monster from the culling. Your mother. My mother. That gnome with the oozing nose—” Evert glares at him. “What the fuck?” He shrugs. “Did it help?” Evert tilts his head. “Yeah, a bit.” Sylred turns and starts walking away. “You’re welcome. Now come on, Stiff.” “It’s Stitch,” Evert bites back. His growl doesn’t cover up the laughter that follows him.

“Lovely night, wouldn’t you agree? The moon is positively vivid.” Evert looks like he doesn’t give a single fuck about what the moon looks like, but somehow manages to stop from rolling his eyes. He’s respectful like that. Ronak nods. “Yes, Your Highness, it is.” “I often like to take walks in my private courtyard in order to enjoy it all the more. I find that midnight is often the most illuminating time. Wouldn’t you agree?” she asks, looking at them pointedly. The guys share a look. “Oooh. You’re speaking spy right now, aren’t you?” I say excitedly. “I do,” Ronak answers carefully.

Princess Soora nods. “Excuse me, I see someone I must speak with. Congratulations again. I had a handmaiden who did so root for you to be victorious.” “Me! She’s talking about me.”

Evert shrugs and picks up another drink to guzzle back. “Aww,” I smile. “You miss me so much you’re turning into a grumpy alcoholic.”

“How about her comment about her handmaiden? Was she talking about Scratch?” I blow Lust into his face mid-drink as my yes. He chokes on it and coughs, alcohol dribbling down his chin. He shoots a glare into a spot that I am currently not floating as he wipes his chin. “Dammit, Scratch. Give a guy some warning.”

“I know your histories, Covey Fircrown. And I know you have no love for the prince.” “To say so would be treason,” Ronak points out. “It would,” she agrees. “But the fact remains.” “Yeah, we hate the fucker,” Evert says. When the guys give him an exasperated look, he shrugs. “What? We do.” Sylred sighs. “Tact, Evert.” “And maybe some restraint,” Ronak adds with a frustrated shake of his head.

But let me cut to the chase, as you said. I asked Emelle to spy for me. To help my attempts in the rebellion. I’m hoping you will join that cause as well.” The genfins weren’t expecting that. Sylred’s brown eyes widen, Ronak’s jaw clenches and Evert scoffs. “Wait a minute, you want Emelle as a spy?” he laughs. “She’s not spy material.” “Hey!” “He’s right,” Ronak agrees. “Congratulations,” I snap. “You’re known as the asshole again. And you,” I say, pointing at Evert. “Watch it.”

“No, she didn’t tell us,” Sylred says quietly. “Fucking hell, Scratch,” Evert snaps. “Sorry,” I say, feeling chastised. “She was using us,” Ronak says. I shake my head adamantly and try to grab onto his arms, forgetting myself. “No, I swear.” Evert points at his face. “That’s not what she was doing. Stop always trying to see the worst in her.”

Surprisingly, it’s Princess Soora who answers. “I don’t believe she withheld that information in order to take advantage of you. That’s not the impression I got from her at all. In fact, I believe she didn’t tell you because she wanted you to know that she only wished to stay with you for the right reasons. For all her lightheartedness, she’s actually quite thoughtful.”

“You’re putting yourself at great risk by associating with Emelle, even if you do want her as a spy,” Ronak says. She lifts a shoulder. “I am at risk every day. I am also a very good judge of character. I see fierce honesty and loyalty in her, which is exactly what I need for members of the rebellion.” I grin. We’re totally besties.

“That’s my window, there. Did you know, I’m certain I accidentally left out some objects of great worth on my dressing table tonight?” Evert frowns, bewildered. “Uh, okay…” Ronak rolls his eyes at him and mumbles, “Idiot,” under his breath. “She’s helping us to ‘steal’ something to bring to the thief,” Sylred says. Realization dawns on Evert’s face. “Oh.” I pat him on his cheek. “That’s okay. You’re pretty. You don’t have to be smart.”

In the human realm, I heard a lot of fancy sayings like, “absence makes the heart grow fonder,” and “you don’t know what you got ’til it’s gone,” and “I wanna really really really wanna zig-a-zig-ah.” Like I said. Fancy.

But some words actually are genuine, and it’s those ones that seem to sink into your skin and stay with you—because you know they really meant something. That’s how I feel when I think of every word Okot ever spoke to me. It’s totally true that we haven’t known each other for long. He just sort of bumped into my life. But I liked the bump. I want my bump back.

When he spoke to me, every fancy word he said was true. I could just tell. When he said I was his mate, he was being sincere. When he called me his beloved, he meant it. I didn’t get enough of his fancy words. I meant it when I said I was going to keep him. So I have to get him back.

“Right,” Evert says, staring up at Princess Soora’s open window. She’s already gone, so it’s just the guys standing around the private courtyard now. “Guess I’ll just go and steal some of her shit,...