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  Stealing Cupid’s Bow

  Copyright © 2014 by Jewel Quinlan

  ISBN: 978-1-61333-657-1

  Cover art by Fiona Jayde

  All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work, in whole or in part, in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher.

  Published by Decadent Publishing Company, LLC

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  www.decadentpublishing.com/

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  Stealing Cupid’s Bow

  By

  Jewel Quinlan

  ~Dedication~

  For the dreams inside that refused to die.

  Anything is possible.

  Chapter One

  Alexander rolled the shaft of a glittering gold arrow back and forth between his hands. He had been standing outside the window for about an hour, but the couple never noticed. The glamour his ancient bow cast made him invisible to anyone who might glance in his direction. Which was a good thing, because cheating male mortals had a cunning instinct that made them harder to shoot. He’d been wondering for an eternity how they knew when to duck.

  Sighing, he checked his watch. So far, the couple hadn’t shown the spark he was looking for. The telltale pop of pink in their auras was all he needed to make them fall in love. Even the slightest hint of it would do. But so far, nada.

  After the order had come down from Mount Olympus, he’d had a man on the case for weeks. Watching, waiting for their relationship to grow until it was the right time. It had taken a while though. The target was a classic cheater, and Alexander had had to scrutinize the daily reports, assessing each encounter, until he felt it was time to make his appearance and seal the deal.

  Today was the day.

  There was no doubt. He’d witnessed the synergy of men and women since the beginning of time. This man was a smooth talker. He knew how to flatter women and make physical contact at the right time, in the right ways. But, sadly, his self-importance caused him to interlace those charms with his boasts about work. Which naturally turned women off. It caused a sort of two-steps-forward, one-step-back dance between them.

  Still, Alexander knew what was coming next.

  So far, the man’s girlfriend had almost caught him cheating on three other occasions. And here he was cheating again.

  How could she not know what he’s up to? The man’s lies were pitiful. They had made Alexander want to chuck the transcripts across the room. This man is some great pawn in one of the gods’ games?

  Whatever. What Mount Olympus wanted, they got. And they wanted this particular woman with the man. Not the one the man claimed was his girlfriend.

  Alexander sighed again. Standing around waiting for their synergy to happen made him feel like Peeping Tom. How had he ever liked this job before? He sent a silent prayer to the gods that the signaling flares in their auras would appear soon.

  The couple stood and headed upstairs.

  Spreading his wings, he pushed silently up from the ground to see which room they went to. The bedroom, of course. Maybe now, finally, his waiting would be at an end. With deft thrusts of his wings, he headed around the corner of the house to the tree that conveniently grew on the side next to the master bedroom. He sat on a branch and watched through the window. It happened to be open just the right amount for his arrow to slide through unfettered. Good. He didn’t feel like standing inside the room. The proximity would just make the guy’s sweet-talk even more palpable, more disgusting. He could have followed them, but he preferred to do his work from a distance.

  “You’re the only one for me,” said the man.

  The man had no idea how true that would be in just another minute.

  “You say that all the time. Why should I believe you really mean it? When are you going to tell her?” whined the woman.

  “Tomorrow.”

  Another lie; Alexander could see it in the color of his aura.

  “Come on. You know you can trust me.” He pulled her into his arms.

  “Do you promise? I don’t want our trip to be messed up because of her. Promise.”

  “You have my word.” He nuzzled her neck. “Look, you’re the one here now. Do you even see hints of her anywhere around? I think that says it all.” He gently moved her toward the bed.

  The woman scanned the room. “You know, you’re right. I’ve never seen anything of hers in your house.”

  “Like I told you. It’s been over for a long time now. She’s not my girlfriend, you are.”

  More lies. Alexander snorted in disgust. The guy was terrible at it. How does he get women to believe him?

  But somewhere in all that bull he saw that the man did have some feelings for the woman in his arms because the faintest shading of pink began to glow from him. If only the woman would respond in the short window he had to do his work. He pulled an arrow carefully from the right side of his quiver, notched it, and aimed. The couple was perfectly in line with where he was perched in the tree and the crack in the window.

  The woman gazed up at the man in adoration. “I am?”

  Her voice was tinged with vulnerability. Alexander knew she would be sorry for it later.

  The man kissed her and, as they fell back on the bed, the woman’s aura finally shot through with the pink he had been waiting for.

  He released the arrow without hesitation.

  Bull’s-eye.

  Chapter Two

  The heavy carry-on thunked as it hit each step of the staircase leading up to the plane. Raine Daniels tucked a strand of her dark hair behind her ear and tried not to curse…or cry. The last twenty-four hours had been the worst of her entire life, and it was all she could do to get herself packed and to the airport.

  Clang! Clang! She gritted her teeth as she followed behind an elderly lady making her way carefully upward. The frustration at least helped a little to distract her from the memory of catching her boyfriend cheating on her. Any diversion was welcome to blot it from her mind. She still felt waterlogged from yesterday’s tears. Thanks to the aid of a sleeping pill, she’d finally been able to sink into the sweet relief of sleep. Unfortunately, this morning it had ended up being a mistake. Because of the pill, she’d slept through her alarm and missed her flight. Lucki
ly there had still been room on the next flight. But it was delayed, and boarding was through the far, temporary terminal with no gangways, of course. It felt as though the universe was conspiring against her. After a couple hours wait, she was on her way.

  She would have liked nothing better than to remain curled up on her couch in her pink pajamas patterned with white, fluffy sheep, but this trip was mandatory. If she missed her parents’ anniversary party, she’d never hear the end of it from the family. To them, it was a reunion as well.

  Come on, chin up, Raine.

  She really was looking forward to seeing everyone. Yesterday’s event just happened to be dampening her enthusiasm at the moment. Hopefully, once she got there, it would all distract her from the dull, hollow, throbbing hole in her chest where her heart used to be.

  She adjusted her grip on the handle of the bag as she heaved it up another step. Why couldn’t all relationships be like her parents’? When would she have the same kind of happy and loving home she’d been raised in? What they had really was a lost art. Anyone who made it to forty years of marriage definitely had something special.

  She resisted the urge to pull her cell phone from her purse and check it for the hundredth time. The bastard hadn’t dared to call her since she’d caught him in the act and…it irked her. She knew it was illogical, but not one phone call? Not one text message? And she was very sure he hadn’t made any attempt to reach her. She’d only checked her e-mail and cell phone a few hundred times as she’d packed. A long, frustrated breath escaped her. You don’t care if you ever hear from him again, she told herself sternly, trying to calm her feelings. But the anger rose up anyway.

  Most likely he’d left for his business trip and couldn’t be bothered to spare the time for a call. She snorted. He probably wasn’t even on a business trip! He was off with his new girlfriend somewhere. She wondered how many lies he had told her. That’s what hurt the most, not knowing how long she’d been a fool.

  Finally at the top of the stairs, she set the carry-on down for a moment and glanced at her boarding pass. The seat she’d been assigned was way in the back near the bathrooms, which meant she would have to drag her bag all the way down the long, tight aisle. Her arms already ached from lugging it up the stairs.

  She straightened and drew in a deep breath. Stop whining. It was just a matter of time before she was over him, no use clouding each new minute with yesterday’s pain.

  She did her best to carefully wheel the bag behind her down the aisle. But for some reason, it hooked itself on almost every seat. Finally reaching her row, she picked the bag up and hefted it toward an open spot in the overhead bin. Her complete lack of shoulder muscle became apparent to her all at once when her arms gave out.

  She staggered left to get under the bag as it came down, nearly knocking the lady behind her in the shoulder. Correcting her course with the last of her strength, she tried once again for the space above but she had nothing left. It seemed as though time slowed in that fraction of a second so she could watch as her bag started to fall straight down toward the white head of the elderly lady seated beneath it. Her eyes widened.

  And then, the bag abruptly stopped.

  She expelled a sharp, “Oh!” as she felt it taken from her.

  A pair of strong, masculine hands raised the bag smoothly into the bin and closed the door with a click. She turned her head and was stunned by the sight of the drool-worthy, blond-haired man standing close beside her in the aisle. His blue eyes skimmed over her face, and the corner of his mouth turned up in a sexy grin.

  “There you go,” he said.

  “Thank you so much,” she said.

  He wore a light knit shirt that tapered over his lean muscled form which could only be described as the mythical swimmer “V” every girl dreams of. The waves of his golden hair flowed stylishly back from his face.

  The lady waiting in the aisle behind her coughed subtly, and she snapped back into action. “Oh, um, looks like I’m in the middle seat here,” she said, with another glance at her boarding pass. It was sort of both the aisle and the middle seat. She was seated in an emergency row and it only had two seats. The rest of the plane had three on each side.

  “I’m the window seat,” he said. He brushed by her to slip into the narrow coach seats and she felt her pulse jump.

  “I really appreciate you saving me from injuring that lady,” she said once she was settled into her seat.

  “No problem at all,” he said with a smile. He was stretched out casually in his seat, looking quite comfortable. Strange, considering how small coach seats were.

  “I’m Raine, by the way.” She extended a hand.

  “Nice to meet you. I’m Alexander.” He took her hand.

  His fingers were strong and slim. The contact caused a slight flush to steal over her cheeks. The tips of his fingers seemed a bit calloused from where they touched her, but other than that he had wonderful, supple skin.

  The call came over the speakers to turn all electronics off, causing her to snap out of her reverie. She smiled and pulled her hand back, and then reached into her purse for her phone. As it powered down, she cursed herself for peeking at the screen.

  Again no messages.

  Although she did hate Brad, was it silly to want a call, a message…some kind of communication indicating he was sorry or wanted her back? Something that would give her the satisfaction of knowing she hadn’t been thrown out like yesterday’s trash? But no, she was sure he was too busy with his new girl. The memory of them together flashed again in her mind and she rubbed her eyes to try and stave off the tears that were forming.

  It wasn’t long before the plane took off from John Wayne Airport. As they rose away from the ground into the air, the downward pull seemed to make her troubles press more heavily on her. She wished more than anything for a distraction and bemoaned that she’d forgotten to bring any reading material with her.

  “Are you all right?” Alexander asked.

  She turned to look at him and hesitated over what to say. Fine was several levels better than what she actually felt but she squeaked it out anyway. “I’m fine.” It wasn’t really polite to unload your feelings on a stranger.

  He glanced over her face in assessment. Without a word, he reached into his pocket and offered her a clean, white, pressed handkerchief.

  That’s when she noticed the tears escaping from the corners of her lids and her stuffy nose. His small act of kindness put her over the edge and the tears flowed freely. Accepting the small folded square with a mouthed thanks, she buried her face in it. It was embarrassing to wipe tears, makeup and snot all over the handkerchief. But she had no tissue in her bag and, the seat-belt sign was still on, so she couldn’t escape into the bathroom.

  When she had tidied herself up, she turned the handkerchief over in her hands. It was made of very nice, soft, white cotton. An A was monogrammed on one corner with a little arrow as the crossbar. It struck her as strange for someone like him to have something so old-fashioned. Did men still carry them these days? Maybe it was a returning trend.

  She patted away one last tear and then turned to him, unsure what to do with the crumpled material in her palms. She’d never been offered one before in her life. Did you give it back right away, complete with snot, or offer to clean it first? “Um, thank you so much. If you hadn’t loaned me this, I would have been using my sleeve.”

  “You’re welcome.” He gently curled her fingers back over it with his hands. “Keep it. You might need it again.”

  She smiled weakly and fingered a strand of hair with one hand. She must look a wreck. “I’ve never been able to hide how I feel,” she explained. “I think I gave up trying a couple of years ago. Sorry if I’m disturbing your flight.”

  She sniffled into the handkerchief again, thankful he’d allowed her to keep it.

  “Actually, you’re not bothering me at all,” he said. “I’ve always had a soft spot for a damsel in distress. Is it anything you want to talk about
?”

  Talk about? Was this guy for real? Did he really want to hear about her problems? She couldn’t remember a single time when a man had offered, except her father. Okay, well, maybe a few uncles, cousins, and friends, too. Not all men were bad. She supposed couldn’t just sit here and tell him nothing after he’d loaned her his lovely handkerchief and saved her from maiming an old lady with her bag.

  She took a deep breath. “Well, to make a long story short, I found out yesterday that my boyfriend was cheating on me.”

  “That’s terrible.”

  “I just don’t understand why, you know? I thought everything was great, so it all came as a huge shock. I just don’t know how a person could do that. I mean, if he felt at all about me the way I felt about him, then I really can’t imagine why.”

  He seemed to consider what she said, his gaze never leaving her face. “I’m sorry. How long were you together?”

  “Two years.”

  He shook his head. “You hear stories like that a lot these days. It makes me wonder why people even try to be in relationships anymore. But what can you do? That’s just the way the world is now.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “People just don’t believe in love anymore. They want a temporary rush, then they go on to the next thing,” he stated.

  She frowned and considered for a moment before answering. “Sorry, I can’t agree with you. I’m not like that, and my parents certainly aren’t either. They’ve been married for a long time. In fact, that’s why I’m going to Las Vegas. It’s their anniversary.”

  “Really? How long have they been together?”

  “It will be their fortieth.”

  “That’s rare. You don’t hear of marriages lasting that long these days.”

  “I know. Just goes to show that it’s possible.” She didn’t mean to say it in a firm tone, but that was how it came out.