Authors: Melissa Hosack
Stupid Cupid (6 page)
“It is.”
She glanced at Valen to find him gazing
down at her with intensity in his eyes. She flushed and returned her attention
to the proceedings. “Everything here is so beautiful. The decorations, the
flowers, the wedding dress…”
She’d never thought too much about the
type of wedding she would want. She’d never been engaged and preferred not to
get caught up in something that wasn’t even close on the horizon. But now, in
this romantic city with such an amazing man at her side, the hint of longing
crept into her. She could picture Valen waiting at the alter in a stunning
black tux with his blond hair pulled back in a tidy ponytail, his velvety lilac
eyes trained toward the aisle. A shiver swept through her.
“Cold?” Valen shifted to put his arm
over her shoulder and pulled her in against his side. His free hand took one of
hers, and he lowered them both casually to his lap as he threaded their fingers
together. “Better?” he murmured in her ear.
“Much.” Snuggling in against his side,
on his shoulder, smiling as his thumb caressed along the back of her hand. “Everything
is—”
“Perfect.”
* *
* *
in her life where she’d ever felt happier. She couldn’t remember ever feeling
this in love. Valen had been right when he’d said others in her life hadn’t
been her soul mate. They hadn’t even been close.
Valen was. He’d asked her to give up
her soul mate to be with him, and she’d easily agreed. She never wanted to be
without him. It had been an easy choice.
As he guided her along the dance floor,
he glanced down at her with a wry smile. “What’s put that thoughtful look on
your face?”
She smiled in return. “I’m just
thinking about how happy I am.”
“You gave up your soul mate for me. I
will spend an eternity making you happy.” The back of his hand stroked along
her cheek. “I never expected…”
She tightened her grip around his
waist, feeling tears brim in her eyes. She let her head lower to his shoulder,
and she whispered, “Me either.”
He hugged her close, letting his chin
rest against the top of her head. “We’ve got a Romeo and Juliet type of love.”
She lifted her head to gaze up at him
with a puzzled frown. “I sure hope not. Things didn’t end well for those two.”
He chuckled in response. “I just meant
that it runs deep. I think I would rather die than give you up.
”
Lowering her head again, she smiled
against his chest. She’d never experienced a more secure feeling than being
wrapped in his large arms. As they swayed to the music, her body relaxed more
and more. She began to feel boneless as he twirled her about. She was verging
on euphoria when he suddenly jumped with a shout. “What is it?” she asked with
a surprised gasp.
“One of our couples,” he explained.
“They’re on the dance floor.” He spun her suddenly to face away from him. “Look
at them! There isn’t a more romantic time to act than now.”
his chest for a moment, taking in the comforting sensation of his body heat.
“Okay. Let’s do this.”
Releasing her, Valen bent down to the
case at his feet that always seemed to magically appear whenever he needed it.
He popped the latch and prepared his bow.
She watched him, unable to help her
giggle. “I still can’t believe no one notices you doing this.” She looked
around them at the dancing couples. No one even bothered to look in their
direction.
He glanced up at her with a crooked
grin.
“It’s insane.” She giggled again.
“There’s a grown man on the dance floor, readying his bow and arrow, and no one
is even paying the slightest bit of attention. You’re about to lodge one of
your secret, romance arrows into someone’s chest and no one cares.”
His grin widened as he flipped the case
shut again. “Actually, I want you to do it.”
“Me?” she asked with surprise.
“Yep. You.” He straightened with his
large bow in hand, an arrow already notched and waiting. Reaching out with his
free hand, he pulled her toward him. “It’s easy. I’ll help you.”
guided her hands to the bow. “As far as activities for dates go, this is odd. I
want you to know that.”
His chuckle rang in her ear as he
helped her line up her shot. “Steady,” he advised with a whisper. “Stay
focused.”
“That’s hard to do with your groin
against my backside while you whisper in my ear.”
He chuckled again. “Well, try.” With
his hands on top of hers, he pulled the arrow back, and the string of the bow
tightened. “Before you let go…” His thumb ran along her knuckles. “If you shoot
this arrow, a baby will be tonight’s result.” She felt him smile against her
hair. “You will be helping to make a baby.”
hand was the power to create life. “Will they be happy about it?” she asked as
she gazed upon the couple twirling blissfully along the floor.
“Ecstatic.”
She nodded slowly. “Then I want to let
go.”
“So let go.”
She released her fingers from the
arrow, feeling the sharp sting as the string snapped back into place. She
watched it soar a few yards before embedding in the woman’s heart.
The woman suddenly smiled and stood on
her tiptoes to kiss her dance partner.
The man eagerly responded, his arms
tightening around her waist.
Standing on her tiptoes again, the
woman whispered something in her date’s ear. Then she took his hand and led him
from the dance floor. They exited the ballroom and made their way toward the
stairs that led to the suites.
As the doors swung shut behind them,
amazement. “We just helped make a baby!”
“We did.”
“We made a baby!” As soon as the words
were out of her mouth, a horrible thought struck her. She gave a gasp of
horror. “Oh, my God!” Her eyes widened and she waved frantically between the
two of them. “Did we… We haven’t… Holy crap, we haven’t used protection. At
all. I got so caught up in how hot you were that I wasn’t thinking straight.”
She pressed her hands to her forehead, feeling panicked. “How could we let
ourselves do something so risky?”
Valen took her by the shoulders and
held her eyes with a firm, steady gaze. “You aren’t pregnant.”
Her blue eyes widened even larger at
that. The word pregnant was so terrifying, so…permanent. “How can you be sure?”
she whispered, her words hitched and fearful. She wanted children in her
future, perhaps her near future, but she wanted it to be a conscious choice.
She didn’t want to wind up pregnant because she was thinking with her sex drive
instead of her brain.
“I know a woman’s fertile time of the
month. It goes with the job territory. This wasn’t yours. We were safe.” A
wicked grin suddenly crept up his lips. “But it’s kind of sexy that you let me
fuck you without regard to the consequence.”
She responded with a dirty look.
“I’m serious.” His arms curved around
her waist and he pulled her closer. “It’s very sexy to know I affect you to
such a degree.”
When his lips grazed her collarbone,
her shiver of pleasure. Her belly tightened with need. She moved willingly into
his arms and let her body move sensually along his.
Valen groaned and his hands slid to her
lower back. He pressed their hips together, letting her feel the beginnings of
an erection. “It’s unbelievable how much I want you. All the time.”
Her body heated with a delightful
flush. Tilting her head back, she gave him a devilish grin. “If I was to drag
you off of this dance floor and have my way with you, would it be safe?”
“Not only would it be safe, it would be
exceptionally fun. I promise you that.”
Feeling naughty, she pulled back enough
to run her palm down his solid chest, over his abdomen, and down along the most
sensitive part of his body. “So why aren’t we doing that?”
“Just waiting for you to drag me away.”
His husky tone sent a tremor through
her. Without another word, she took his hand and led him from the dance floor
much like their couple had moments before. They exited the banquet room, where
hallway of the large building, uncertain of where to go. Unlike the guests,
they hadn’t booked a hotel room for the night.
Valen tugged on her hand. He pulled her
behind him as he pushed through a door on their left.
She blinked in the bright lighting and
was surprised to find herself in a bathroom. She turned to him and arched her
brows in question.
“I’ve never had sex in the women’s
bathroom before,” he explained with a wolfish grin.
“But you have in the men’s?”
He playfully pinched her cheek. “Okay.
I’ve never had sex in a bathroom before. Now come here.”
She let herself be pulled against his
chest but hesitated to return his searching kiss as he pressed her up against
the door. “What if someone walks in here?”
Reaching above her head, he flicked the
lock into place on the back of the door. “There. Now we’re alone.”
She smiled up at him, drinking in the
handsome lines of his face. She wanted to memorize every detail about this
remarkable man. “You really are amazing,” she breathed, still having a hard
time believing Valen wanted her. He’d been alive for centuries, yet he’d chosen
her to warm his bed and keep him company.
He lowered his mouth to hers, and this
time she returned the kiss. Her arms slid around his neck and she giggled
against his lips. “I’ve never had sex in a bathroom before either.”
Valen pressed his hips to hers, pinning
her against the door. “How about we change that?”
She bobbed her head, arching against
him. “That sounds…like a…very…very good…idea.” Her words were spoken between
bruising kisses. She let her fingers trail through his long blond hair, loving
the silky feel against her skin.
He ground his erection into her, his
hands pressed flat to the door on either side of her head.
moved her hands to his belt buckle. With determination, she slipped the leather
from the metal prongs. “You have to be the kinkiest holiday character ever.”
She fumbled with the button of his slacks for a moment before it popped free.
She tugged gently at the zipper, being careful not to catch him with it. Then
she was grasping him through his briefs.
“Thank you,” he said with a growl. “I
will take that as a compliment. Though honestly, you’re the only woman to
entice me to behave this way. I’m usually much more reserved.”
“Ditto.”
Valen grabbed her waist and spun her
away from the door. He walked her over to the sink and helped hoist her up onto
the ceramic.
She slipped her legs around his waist,
offering a soft sound of desire as his erection pressed against her panties.
Glancing over her shoulder, he gave a
wicked chuckle. “I must say that I love the placement of this mirror.” He swept
her hair over her shoulder so he could see her bare back around her halter
dress. “I think I’m going to get one of these for my bedroom.”
to see the view as well. The sight of Valen’s tanned hand against the paler
skin of her back tightened things low in her belly. She watched that hand
caress along her spine, his large fingers stroking gently.
His head lowered to her shoulder and he
trailed his lips across it, his violet eyes watching her in the mirror.
She shivered. She was unable to look
away from his captivating eyes. Her fingers tightened on the edge of the sink
as he nuzzled her ear.
With his left hand still pressed to her
back, he slipped his right hand between her legs. He ran his index finger
across the center of her panties and pressed his thumb against her clit.
“You’re wet,” he growled with appreciation. He slipped his hand into her
panties and caressed a finger along her slick folds. “So, so wet.”
She closed her eyes with a soft moan.
“Yes,” she breathed. “More.”
In the next instant, the sound of a
toilet flushing filled the small room and a stall door popped open.
Lincoln and Valen both froze as a woman
came stumbling out of the stall.
She made her way unsteadily to the sink
and began washing her hands.
her eyes wide in shock and embarrassment. They hadn’t thought to check the
stalls. She watched the obviously inebriated woman wash her hands.
