The man stared at her for a moment before he shook her hand. “Aaron Bernhart.”
Catherine’s breath caught in her throat. Her fingers tingled from their brief contact, and she regretted the loss of warmth when he crossed his arms in front of his chest. “Glad to meet you.” Her heart raced and she licked her lips in sudden nervousness. “Have you escaped from an institution somewhere? Do you need some sort of mental help?”
“There’s nothing wrong with my mind. In case you haven’t noticed, I have wings. My brother thinks I’m the new freakin’ Cupid.” The anger of Aaron’s outburst faded as quickly as it came, as if he’d had this argument frequently. He sighed as his shoulders slumped in defeat.
“Complain much?”
“Annoy much?”
“Hey, I’m just looking for the boarding house, but I guess if I had wings and flew like a drunk goose, I’d complain too.” She lifted a brow, fighting a laugh.
“I’m sorry. You’ll find the boarding house four blocks in the other direction, past downtown. You’ve come too far.”
“Thanks.” Catherine hesitated, and then watched in fascination as he folded the wings behind his back. Her fingers itched to touch the feathers to see if they’d be as soft as down. “By the way, I wouldn’t consider you a freak. You just don’t know how to fly, and most likely you’ll never learn with that bad attitude.”
“Oh, thanks for the tip.” Aaron’s face twisted with anger once more. “I’ll take it under consideration.” Without another word, he stormed into the house.
Catherine frowned. Did she really just meet Cupid? Was there such a being? If that were truly the case, he wouldn’t make many matches with such a foul outlook. She shrugged. Maybe she needed to get her prescription for Prozac renewed…
Chapter 2
Aaron frowned as he watched the UPS truck rumble away from the house. What now? He closed the door then dumped the long brown cardboard box on the wood-and-glass coffee table. The return address indicated the package came from The Institute for Magical Instruction. Aaron swallowed the knot of anxiety that leaped into his throat. He had wings. How much worse could it get? He ripped the strip of clear packing tape from the box and carefully rooted through the white tissue paper. A small instruction booklet rested on top but he chucked it onto the coffee table, unread.
“Wow.” Aaron lifted out a quiver made of soft, supple tan leather. On its own, it would have been a fine gift. However, the next thing he pulled out was a bundle of ten arrows. “You’ve got to be kidding me.” Slim, about the width of a pipe cleaner, the arrows had wickedly sharp points and glowed with some sort of pulsing red liquid inside.
He couldn’t deny the evidence any longer. The wings, the quiver full of arrows and the label bearing the name of the Institute all added up to the undeniable fact was he, Aaron Bernhart, would now be known as Cupid.
Damn.
He set the first two items aside then bit off a curse as doubt coated his stomach. Maybe the Institute had the wrong guy. Maybe his wings were a fluke, something that a quick, discreet trip to a plastic surgeon could take care of, but when his fingers brushed over the remainder of the box’s contents, his heart sank. The last item was a bow, the string pulled taut between the tips of finely wrought golden metal cold to the touch, with carved scrollwork down the shaft. Aaron tried the tension of the line. He was sure an arrow would find its mark.
That settled it. The plastic surgeon was forgotten as he frowned at his new toy. Cupid with aching bones. Just perfect. He stretched, hoping to relieve his back, which hurt from the effort of keeping the wings under his skin. Unfurled, they banged into doorways and shelves, which made Landon grouse about the ensuing mess and pester him about returning to work. As much as he wanted to hide at home, Aaron knew at some point he’d have to get back out and mingle with everyone else. That thought depressed him. He didn’t want to share his anomaly with anyone. Seeing horror in someone’s eyes would undermine any confidence he’d managed to store since the wings made an appearance. An image of the woman from the day before flashed across his mind. Did she plan to stay in town?
With a shrug, he stuffed everything back into the box. He couldn’t worry about either issue at the moment. He had vendors to pay and checks to write, especially since he hadn’t been into the bakery in the daytime for a good month.
* * * *
“Mr. Bernhart!” Jenika wiped her hands on a frilly pink apron. “I can’t believe you’re really here!”
“Yeah, I decided not to work from home today.” Aaron rolled his eyes at his baker then continued past the bakery case, through the kitchen and into the tiny room he called his office. “Jenika! What sort of supplies will you need for the next two weeks?”
“Remember, call me Jinx.” When she stuck her red head around the doorframe, her green eyes were alight with mischief. “I’ll need the usual. Flour, sugar, butter and maybe a case of chocolate chips and one of baker’s chocolate.”
“Are you sure that’s enough?”
“Yes.” Jenika shrugged. “It’ll be Valentine’s Day soon, and every couple in love wants treats dipped in chocolate.”
He sighed as his baker popped back into the kitchen. Life hadn’t changed much since he’d been gone. Under Jenika’s leadership, Just Cookies had tripled its business. If he hadn’t been so consumed by his own magical problem, he’d investigate her roots. He suspected she wasn’t your average human.
Aaron had no sooner opened up an Excel spreadsheet then he heard raised voices in the bakery’s kitchen. He’d never get anything done at this rate. With a groan, he scrambled to his feet and strode to the door. “What the hell is going on out here?”
A thin layer of white flour covered the kitchen floor while his baker and another woman stood at opposite sides of the room. Muffins from the day-old basket flew from each corner as the females stood locked in a battle of wills.
“Jenika!” Aaron glared at the baker then transferred his gaze to the other woman. His heart slammed into his ribcage when he recognized his unexpected visitor from the day before. “What are you doing here?”
“Hello? How hard is it to call me Jinx?”
Both Aaron and Catherine ignored the outburst. “I assume you’re Jenika’s boss?” Catherine narrowed her angry indigo eyes. Her chest heaved with exertion.
“Yes, I’m her boss.” He stared at her and tried not to drool, wondering why he hadn’t paid much attention to her before. Apparently trying to stay upright in the sky took precedence over checking out a woman. He made up for lost time now. She was easily the most striking woman he’d seen in quite awhile. Straight jet-black hair hung to the middle of her back and swept from her high forehead. Nearly as tall as him, she wore the same black stiletto boots, but today she chose dark-wash jeans and a crimson V-neck sweater that gave him an enticing glimpse of deep cleavage. His groin stirred in response. “What difference does that make?”
“It means you have the authority to make her do what I ask.” She took a few steps in Jenika’s direction before Aaron laid a hand on her arm. “What are you doing?”
“Preventing a bigger mess.” Yes, in her heels, she was eye level with him. He liked it. He wrenched his gaze from her full rosy lips. “What’s the problem?”
Jenika frowned from the opposite side of the room as she rolled a banana nut muffin in her fingers. “Catherine wants me to sign a deed on our apartment in New York, but I want to read the document first. She doesn’t deal with procrastination well.”
“Just sign the stupid deed!” Catherine raked a hand through her hair and spent a few seconds untangling a few strands snagged in her bracelet. “It’s not that hard.”
“Maybe not for you, but I want to make sure you’re not taking anything but the apartment.”
“I’ve never stolen anything from you!” When Catherine attempted to lunge at the baker, Aaron wrapped his arms around her slim waist and pinned her arms to her sides. He stifled a sigh. The heavy scent of gardenias wafted from her hair to t
ickle his nose as she struggled to be free. “Enough, Catherine. I’ll have to remove you from the bakery if you persist with your threats.”
“Then tell her to sign the deed.” She went limp in his hold then twisted around to look at him over her shoulder. “She lives here now. I want to sell our apartment. I need her signature.”
“Jenika—er, I mean, Jinx, go out and tend to the customers. I’ll deal with Catherine.” He waited until the baker scampered into the dining area before he continued. “Why don’t you just count to ten before you say anything else?” He slowly released the woman in his arms. Desolation crashed over him at the loss of contact. “There is one thing you need to understand about your former roommate.”
Her eyes blazed dark blue fire. “What’s that?”
Waves of desire slammed into Aaron’s gut when her breasts strained against the thin fabric of her sweater at her deep breath. “You can’t make her do anything. She’ll do what you ask, but that’s just it—you have to ask. Trust me. I’ve learned at least that much since she’s been here.”
“That’s the trouble. I have asked her. She’s just goofing around to tick me off.” She chucked a piece of muffin into the trash bin then perched on a nearby stool. “I don’t like to wait.”
* * * *
Catherine eyed the man before her with suspicion. Had she dreamed the wings yesterday? Like before, he wore his jeans to perfection—black denim today. She had just begun to appreciate how his broad upper body filled out his light blue fleece hoodie when his next question pulled her attention into another direction.
“How long do you plan to stay in town?”
Her gaze darted to his eyes: deep, molten chocolate pools. Catherine bit her bottom lip as her stomach fluttered with coils of unidentified emotion. “Not long. Just until Jenika signs the deed.” She stood in one fluid motion. “Why do you need to know, Fly Boy?”
“No reason.” He followed the nonchalant response with an even more casual shrug. “And knock it off with the talk about my wings. Most people don’t know about my…unusual status.”
“But I did see you with wings yesterday, right?” She hated to ask and look like a fool, but she really needed to know, if only to confirm she wasn’t crazy. Her normally rock-solid self-confidence wavered. “Because I thought—”
“You’re not crazy.” He bowed his head briefly before his eyes met hers again. “I’m the new Cupid, but I told you that already.”
“I remember.” Catherine’s lips twitched in amusement. She watched as a faint blush stained his cheeks to creep down into his neckline. “Like the mythical matchmaker Cupid?” A few notes of laughter escaped despite her best efforts. “As in the half-naked guy that wears a diaper, Cupid?”
“Are you finished?” His mouth was set into a thin line of displeasure.
“Just a sec.” She placed a hand over her mouth but still the laughter came. “So you’ll fly through the air and shoot unsuspecting men and women with love arrows?” She wrapped her arms around her middle as her body shook with a fit of the giggles. She sobered when his face puckered with a scowl. “I’m done.”
“I can only hope.” He ran a hand through his golden curls, upsetting them into a tumbled mass. “And no, none of those scenarios apply to me. I haven’t quite worked out the details of the job. It seems my magic in this area is still somewhat clouded.”
“Magic? You can do magic?”
Aaron snorted. “You accept the fact I have wings, but you can’t wrap your brain around the existence of magic?”
“I used to think magic was something out of a children’s bedtime story.” She ran her tongue over her suddenly dry lips and shrugged. “But I’ve seen some weird stuff. I suspect some things about Jenika. I think she’s a—” She broke off the thought with a gasp. “But that’s not my secret to tell.” When his intense gaze didn’t move from her face, she scrambled for something to fill the void. “So, Cupid, huh? You must have a fabulous love life to be given that job.”
The blush that had almost faded into obscurity reappeared. “Ironically, I’m unattached at the moment.”
Her laugh trilled through the kitchen like birdsong, surprising in its blatant, attention-grabbing quality. “Bummer. A single Cupid. You’re right, it is very ironic.” When he quirked a blond eyebrow at her in question, tiny stabs of excitement danced along her spine. She pushed them away, fumbling in her purse then withdrew a business-sized manila envelope “Okay, here is the deed I need Jenika to sign. Please ask her to look it over then sign in a couple of days. I’m still with Mrs. Wiggins since there’s not a decent hotel in town.”
“I’ll make sure she gets it.” Aaron accepted the envelope. “I’ve heard your landlady isn’t a very gifted cook. If you get hungry, Peg’s Place is open twenty-four hours.”
“Are you asking me out, Bird Man?” She grinned when denial swept over his face. “Listen, I’ll tell you what. If I happen to be at the diner the same time you are, I’ll move to your table, all right?”
“Then how about we arrange to be there tomorrow evening around seven?”
Catherine liked that the slow, sexy smile that curved his lips. It promised unsolved mysteries and untold tales. “I could probably do that.” She flipped the curtain of her hair over her shoulder, pleased when his eyes darkened.
“I’ll pick you up.” Before he turned into his doorway, he shot her a look so hot and full of promise she was surprised the paint didn’t curl off the wall, because it sure caused prickles up and down her spine.
Chapter 3
Target spotted at six o’clock.
With a downward push of his wings, Aaron hovered in the air above the First National Bank of Crystal Falls. Steady. Wait for it. He reached over his left shoulder and withdrew an arrow from the sling on his back. Ah, there she was—the woman he’d heard complaining about her love life at the bakery earlier in the afternoon. Aaron smiled to himself as he floated unseen under a bank of low hanging clouds. She’d be perfect for that guy he shot at the post office.
He fitted the arrow’s feathered end to the bowstring, aimed and then pulled the string back to his right ear. Almost. One second more. Aaron let loose his first and second fingers. The arrow flew from the bow with a sharp thwapand the wind from its sudden flight lingered on his cheek, whisper soft. Satisfaction coated his stomach like molasses. He saw the woman flinch and turn to look at the back of her arm. Of course, she would find nothing. His arrows were cleverly designed to dissolve immediately upon impact. They only caused the recipient a brief sharp sting of pain equivalent to an insect bite. The target wouldn’t remember the poke seconds later.
“Sweet!” Aaron grinned then slung his bow over his shoulder. Satisfaction snaked through his gut. This job didn’t suck as much as he thought it would. The woman below looked over her shoulder. She pivoted sharply on her heel and set off in the direction of the post office. Aaron chuckled. Her match had left that building more than an hour ago, but Aaron figured she’d find him eventually. Well-matched pairs always found a way. It was his job to provide a bit of encouragement.
As he winged his way through the thin wisps of clouds, Aaron glanced at the large ornate clock on the City Hall building. Almost seven. He turned sharply to his right, toward Mrs. Wiggins’s boarding house. Anticipation bubbled within him at the thought of seeing Catherine again. Her flippant, aloof, almost irreverent attitude toward love and magic intrigued him, and he wished to probe her mind further. Any woman who looked as stunning as she did deserved to be paired with someone who could love and appreciate her.
He let the laugh that had been building in his chest erupt as he slowly flapped his way through the maze of naked trees that bordered the streets of the small downtown area. Aaron mentally checked off a list of men he knew, intent on finding just the right candidate for Catherine. Yes, it seemed he would slide easily into his new role as Cupid. Matchmaking came like second nature to him.
The gray-shingled roof of the Victorian-style boarding house came into
view. He wished now he had gotten her room number before she left yesterday. As it turned out, Aaron didn’t need it. When he flew around the back of the house, he spotted Catherine. Dressed all in black, her slim, lithe body rested on the wrought-iron railing of a tiny balcony, which wasn’t even wide enough for a chair. Aaron grinned. He would enjoy shocking the woman out of her shell of mockery.
Anticipation tightened his chest as he swooped down to hover just beyond her balcony window. “Good evening, Catherine. Ready for dinner?”
She emitted a small squeak of alarm and dropped the bonbon she was eating. “You cheated.” Catherine untangled herself from the railing and clutched a box of chocolates to her chest. “You said you’d pick me up.”
“I am.” Before she could protest, Aaron plucked her from the balcony and held her against him as he descended to the ground. “I just didn’t tell you how I’d be doing it.” For long moments, his arms remained wrapped around her as he gazed into the deep blue pools of her eyes. He could easily stay there for hours. Desire slithered through his gut when she shivered against him.
The box of chocolates slipped to the ground unnoticed and she pulled out of his arms as he leaned in to kiss her. “Back off, Lover Boy.”
Aaron stepped away, acutely aware she was the one who broke the embrace. “I’m sorry.” By willpower alone, he kept the warmth in his neck from spreading to his face. “So, are you ready for dinner?”
Confusion clouded her eyes. “I’m not going anywhere unless you put those things away.” She glanced pointedly at his wings. “But before you do, can I touch them?”
“Why?” Suddenly suspicious, he retreated another step. Curiosity blazed in her eyes as she closed the distance between them. “Why are you so interested in them? They’re just wings.”
“I’ve never seen anything like them before.” Her eyes sparkled when she smiled. “Did you think I’d be afraid and run away? Maybe call one of the tabloids and sell your story for a couple thousand bucks?” She stretched out her right hand then stroked the feathers of his left wing.
Cupid In Blue Page 2