Bonds of Cupidity (Heart Hassle, #2)

by Raven Kennedy

I float behind the guys, their steps clacking against the cobblestones. The guys are quiet as they make their way up the street, and they end up walking into Hellfire & Hounds Inn. “Really? I would’ve gone with the Snug & Dandy Inn down the street, but whatever razzles your berries.”

“I keep forgetting she’s hanging around,” Ronak mumbles before flopping onto one of the beds. “Me too. Unless…maybe she didn’t follow us,” Sylred says. Evert snorts. “Course she followed us. Didn’t you, Scratch?” Well, since he asked. “Fuck! Stop doing that! It was rhetorical. I know you’re fucking here,” he says, scowling at his erection. Sylred and I chuckle. I’m pretty sure Ronak’s lip twitches, too.

I lie next to Evert for the rest of the night, pretending I can feel and pretending Evert can feel me, too. What? I’m freaking lonely. Also bored. I miss sleeping. Watching people sleep isn’t nearly as entertaining as that Edward vampire dude made it out to be.

“Gods, why are you all so quiet? Seriously, you haven’t spoken a single freaking word since you woke up.” I don’t think that’s natural. Can’t be. It’s probably bad for their voice boxes. Or their tongues. The tongue is a muscle, right? It needs to be worked out. I bet my tongue is totally ripped. I mean, as far as muscles go, I totally win that one for sure.

If I’d had to walk all this way, I would’ve been panting by now. And probably gotten leg cramps. Also feet cramps. And stomach cramps. Probably all the cramps. I don’t care what anyone says, walking is super hard.

“Okay, do the thing, hang the object, request the meet, and let’s blow this balloon stand, because this place is spooky,” I whisper. Realizing my idiocy, I snort. “Stupid cupid. Whispering when no one can freaking hear you anyway.” I see a ghost meandering around the grove. “Well, except that guy. Hey, ghost!” He ignores me. Figures.

Well, that’s all fine and dandy, but I don’t have to wait. So I decide to do some recon because I’m badass like that. Wait, is it recon if I’m chasing after someone? I shake my head at myself as I float up the tree. I actually don’t know what stipulates a strict “recon” mission, if I’m being honest. I just get pumped up when the guys are around doing important sneaky things and I throw around mission words like “recon” in my head because it seems appropriate. I clearly need to study some spy terms.

“If any of you check her out, so help me, I will Lust you to death in your sleep.” Aside from some widened eyes of surprise at her appearance, the guys keep their gazes steadily above her neck. It’s like they know I’m thinking of murdering them with their own erections.

Sylred clears his throat. He’s always the one to talk during delicate matters since he’s the best at it. Ronak goes into his scary caveman speech too often, and Evert just says fuck a lot.

Sylred totally shocks me by saying, “The princess’s personal guard was taken prisoner. We need to know where he is.” Oh my gods. If I could kiss him right now, I would. He didn’t forget about Okot. Even though he’s nothing to the genfins, Sylred knows he’s something to me. “I like you so hard right now.”

“What do you think?” Evert asks quietly. Ronak moves his eyes around the forest. “Not here. Too many eyes and ears.” “Too many nude-ass chameleens, you mean,” Evert drawls. I punch a fist of Flirt-Touch right through his chest. He shivers. “Scratch, don’t do that flirty shit on me. Wanting to pick wildflowers and sing songs to you is not my thing.” Sylred smirks. “Which is why she hit you with it.” “What the hell did I do?” Sylred looks at him like he’s an idiot. “Talked about naked chameleens.” Evert throws his hands up. “They were naked! Hard not to notice.” “Wrong thing to say,” Sylred mumbles. I punch Evert again. Twice. He does this whole-body shake thing and tries to run away like he’s a cat that got stuck in the rain. “Knock it off!” I stick my tongue out at him, because I’m super mature like that.

But finally, the Horned Hook guy sends word by…letter. Yeah. Total letdown on the exciting department. Talk about lackluster. I guess he saves his dramatics for the whole Elder-Tree-naked-chameleen-secret-stairwell-masked-thief spiel.

“Fine,” Ronak grits out. “What are we doing here, Evert?” “I think it should be obvious even to you that we’re riding in a fucking carriage.” “I mean with the cupid.” Evert scoffs. “The cupid? You can’t even say her name all of a sudden?” “You know what I mean.” “Yeah, I do. But apparently you didn’t know what I meant when I said I was serious about being fucking done. I am not going back home to chase some genfin females around. I choose her.” Holy mother of marinara sauce. My poor little invisible heart just fainted.

“She’s not a genfin!” Ronak roars. Evert leans forward to get in his face. “So the fuck what? You want her, too. I know you do. And I bet your animal side does, too. I bet that he chose her already, and you’re just ignoring the signs. Your animal reacts to her. Hell, he attacked a pack of beasts to protect her. But you’re being a jackass and not letting him out to see for yourself if he’ll claim her. What the fuck is the problem?”

“We won’t get our wings, and we won’t get our covey magic. Not without a genfin mate. We’re supposed to help lead our people when we get back. How will any of them respect us if we abandon one of our core foundations by rejecting a genfin mate? We have so little genfin children as it is. They’ll reject us for it, Evert.”

Evert just shrugs like he couldn’t care less. “I’m not living my life for a bunch of Delsheen assholes. If that’s what you care about—politics and power—then have at it. I’m sure you and Syl can find some genfin female to your liking, but I’m gonna stay with Scratch.”

“She already has a mate!” “The fucking lamassu. I know,” Evert replies dryly. “I don’t care. I saw her first. The fucking lamassu can get in line.” “You’re saying you’re willing to abandon us and form a covey with them?” Ronak asks incredulously. “I’m saying that the choice is yours,” Evert counters. “Either choose power or choose Scratch. S...

Evert ignores him. “Is that really your only hold-up?” he asks Ronak. “I want to know. Is it really just the political shit and the powers?” At first, I don’t think Ronak is going to answer. He’s clenching his teeth hard enough to break at least a molar or two. “Yes,” he finally growls. “Huh.” That surprises me. I thought maybe… “So you don’t still ‘hate’ her or hold a grudge?” Evert persists. “No.” I scoot a bit closer to him. “That’s the sweetest thing you’ve ever said about me.”

“I don’t think that’s just it,” Evert counters. “I think you actually like her. That’s what the real problem is.” My face scrunches in confusion. “I don’t get it.” “What are you talking about?” Ronak snaps. “After what Delsheen did, you don’t want to trust another female. You were determined to find a mate that would be good for political reasons and that’s it. You were going to make sure you didn’t actually have feelings for her. But you like Scratch. And that’s why you’ve been such an asshole this whole time. You don’t want her to have that sort of power over you. You resent that your animal likes her, too.”

Evert’s voice lowers. “Fuck it all, Ronak. Let’s do what we want with who we want. You know you want her. We all do. It doesn’t matter if she’s a cupid or a fucking demon. She fell ass-first onto our island for a reason.” “I didn’t fall ass-first—”

“Fuck the politics. Fuck outside opinions, and screw the powers. We’re strong enough without them. I don’t want to leave this covey, and you don’t really want to mate with a genfin female you don’t even like,” he declares. “Let’s go all in. For once in your life, do something because you want to do it. Not because you’re supposed to.”

“How about you, Tune?” Evert asks, looking over at Sylred. Sylred clears his throat. “We are a covey. We need to stick together. And Emelle…it feels like she’s a part of us already.”

Ronak runs a hand over his short hair and sighs. All the fight has seeped out of him. “She won’t want me.” He says it so quietly that I almost don’t hear him.

stop it 😭😭😭

“Maybe you should ask her,” Sylred suggests. I don’t even hesitate. I perch myself onto his lap—which is hard to do without sinking right through, but I manage because I’m awesome—and I blow a huge burst of Lust into his face. His whole body clenches. Evert and Sylred start laughing. “It’s funny when she’s not doing it to me,” Evert says. “Hilarious,” Ronak says dryly, while simultaneously covering his crotch with his hands.

“So. We’re doing this?” “My animal needs to decide,” Ronak replies. Evert waves him off. “Yeah, yeah. I’m not worried about that. Are we doing this or what?” Ronak shifts in his seat and looks between them. Then he nods. He freaking nods! “Okay.” Evert smirks. “Okay.” They both look at Sylred. “Okay,” he ...

Evert leans his head back on the carriage wall and closes his eyes. “You hear that, Scratch? We’re keeping you. I knew these assholes would agree. It was just a matter of time.”

I scowl at them. “You can’t just drop a bomb like that and then go to sleep. You don’t get to just okay yourselves into my super awesome cupid covey.” I mean, they can, but that’s beside the point. I take in a huge breath and then blow out every last particle of Lust-Breath I have in me until pink tendrils fill the inside of the carriage like smoke. All three sets of genfin eyes snap open.

“Fucking hell, Scratch.” Sylred shifts uncomfortably while Ronak covers his junk with his hands. “Too much,” he wheezes out. “Serves you right,” I say primly, leaning up to try to peek at their packages standing up in formation. “And yes. I’ll accept you into my covey. But there will be requirements. We’ll discuss it at a later date. When you can see me. And hear me. And give me orgasms.”

“Does this mean she’s happy or irritated?” Sylred asks. Evert smirks and leans back again, fixing the front of his pants. “Knowing her? Probably both.” “My dick can’t take this kind of punishment,” Ronak grumbles. “Get used to it,” Evert says dryly. “We just chose a cupid for a mate. I have a feeling our dicks aren’t getting off easy.” With that...

“Hey, genfins! He’s awake. Chop, chop, go tend to my mate.” They keep on eating. I blast them with Lust-Breath and punch some Flirt-Touches into their bodies just for good measure. “Come on! You can stuff your faces later!” Three sexually frustrated groans are my reply. Wait for it… “Fucking hell, Scratch!” There it is. “What the hell was that for?” Ronak demands, cradling his package. And it’s, like, a large package. Like, if he went to a post office on the human realm, he’d have to pay extra to ship that thing. Not that they’d ship a penis. I don’t think. Right, focus.

I fly over to him and sit down before attempting to put my hand on his thigh. He looks down and frowns. My eyes widen. “Whoa. You can feel that?” The guys watch him curiously. “What can you sense?” Sylred asks. Okot shakes his head as if he’s trying to think of the right words. “I’m not sure, but I feel her near. I feel her…here,” he says, putting his hand over mine. I smile and lay my head against his shoulder, not caring when some of me goes through him. “We are so confirming our bond,” I tell him. “I’m gonna confirm the hell out of it when I turn solid again.” The guys stare at his hand on his thigh, and they look like…like they wish they could feel me, too.

Okot stands and bows his head to them. “You saved my life, and you have looked after my mate when I could not. I am in your debt.” Evert puts his hands in his pockets and smirks. “Our.” Okot frowns. “What?” “She’s our mate. All four of us. You okay with that?” His tone is challenging. I try to bite my nails in nervousness as I await Okot’s answer. But he just nods. “Like I told her, she has my heart. If you have hers, then I will respect that.”

Evert claps him on the back. “Good. But be warned—she likes to Lust-Breathe the fuck out of us when she wants to talk or get us to do something or just because she can. Welcome to the fucking party. Your dick will never get a break.” Okot just grins. “I can live with that.” Evert chuckles darkly. “Good. Then let’s get our girl back.”

“I don’t like being separated. What if something happens to her?” Evert asks with a scowl. “Like what? She can’t get hurt or caught in the Veil,” Ronak points out. “Trouble follows her,” Evert replies. “What if she gets all cupidy or some shit? Gets distracted, starts blowing Lust all over the place, and shoots Love Arrows up some fae asses? You know how easily distracted she is. Her cupidity shit might sidetrack her, and then she’ll lose track of us.” I stop playing with the Love Arrow in my hands and frown.

Sylred blinks. “Is that a thing?” I huff. “No! Well…yes. But right now, no. I’m not gonna get caught up in my own stupid cupidity. I’m not a goldfish. I do have an attention span.” I continue to twirl the arrow through my fingers like it’s a baton. “And I resent you thinking—Oh, look!” I exclaim excitedly, zooming toward the window. “That fae down there is riding a unicorn!” Okay. I see his point.

“And Emelle?” Sylred says, looking around awkwardly at the empty space in the room. “Send one of us a Lust-Breath when you get there so we know you’re with us. I know that Okot can sense you, but we want to be sure. We can’t do whatever is going to happen without you there.” I force myself to turn away from the window and salute him. “Aye, aye, captain.”

When he finally lets me go, I take a step back so I can see all my guys. But I watch as four faces go from ecstatic to furious. I blanch and take an involuntary step backwards away from them. “What…” Evert is suddenly in my face, his blue eyes flashing dangerously. “Who. The. Fuck. Did. This.” I blink. “Did what?” Then I register all the pain. My face. My arms. My stomach. My wing. “Oh. That.” “Yeah, fucking that.”

“What happened, Emelle?” Sylred asks quietly, touching my arm. “Who hurt you?” Okot asks, his tone furious. I’ve never seen him angry before. The red circles in his irises are pulsing. “It doesn’t matter,” I hedge. “I’ll heal. Besides, I have my bow and arrow again. That’s pretty exciting, am I right?” “Nope. It matters,” Ronak says, ignoring my attempt at distracting them. “He’s right. Tell us, Scratch.”

I start scratching my arm at the spot where my old itch used to be. Thank gods I didn’t get stuck with another itch this time around. Okot cocks his head. “Do you have fleas?” That makes Evert bark out a laugh. I level a glare on him. “No,” I answer Okot primly. “I just like scratching. A girl can never be too careful. You should always scratch right when you feel an itch crop up. Trust me.”

“Is she still anchored to us?” Ronak asks. “Oh yes—can’t undo her anchor. Tried. But she no longer—depends on your—proximity. Only your lives. Should all of you die—she will, too. Much like we depend—on each other,” they say, motioning to one another. “Well, that’s good news,” I smirk. “Nice to know I can get away from these jerks once in a while.” “You’re not going anywhere,” Evert says sternly.

“Come here,” he says huskily. He picks me up and deposits me onto his lap so that I’m straddling him with our faces only inches apart. “Hi,” I say a little breathlessly. He smirks at me, letting his dimples show. “Hi.” “Did you miss me?” I whisper. “You have no fucking idea.” “I didn’t like being invisible again.” I think he can see the anxiety in my expression, because his grip tightens around me. “Stop. The Veil doesn’t have you. I fucking do.”

He chuckles darkly against my mouth. “You want my fingers on your pussy, Scratch?”

I bite his lip hard. He hisses and then chuckles. “Rabid fucking cupid. You’re gonna pay for that.” “No teasing,” I whine. He scrapes his scratchy five o’clock shadow against my neck, making me shiver. “I’ll fucking tease you as much as I like. I’ll get you so worked up that you’ll be panting on your knees, begging me. But I’ll only give you what you want if you’re a good girl,” he says, his fingers still barely flitting over my clit.

Reaching up, I thread my fingers through his black hair and yank forcefully. In response, he slaps my ass hard enough to make it sting. I groan. “Naughty little thing,” he admonishes. He takes hold of my hands and forces them down. “But you like getting punished, don’t you? I can feel how wet you are. Now push your dress down. I want to see those pretty tits.”

He quirks a brow and pinches my ass, making me jump. “I told you. Be good, and I’ll give you what you need. Don’t get shy on me now, love. Let me see them.”

“Mmm. These perfect tits shouldn’t have hidden away from me for this long.” I arch into his palms. He reaches up with one hand and grips my chin, bringing my head back down. “Look at me. This is just me and you, Scratch. I want you to watch me touch you. I want you to see who’s fingering your cunt and making you so wet.”

“That’s right. Fuck yourself on my hand like a good little cupid,” he says against my ear. “Evert,” I moan. He nibbles my lip. “What? Tell me what you want. Beg me for it.” He’s turned me into a hot, tangled mess of need, and he knows it. “More. I want more,” I pant. “Say it,” he growls.

“Fucking asshole,” I snap, earning a painful pinch on my nipple this time. “Fine! I want your fingers inside me. Fuck me with them, please!” “Good girl.” Just like that, his finger plunges inside of me, instantly slick. He growls in satisfaction. “So fucking wet for me.”

“Oh my gods…” “That’s it. So ready, aren’t you?” All I can do is whimper and writhe. “Your pussy is drenched and begging for more.”

“You love me fucking you with my fingers, don’t you?” I grab his shoulders, my nails digging into his back. “Yes!” “Good. Now come for me, Scratch. Let me feel you come all over my hand.”