Bonds of Cupidity (Heart Hassle Book 2)

“And they just popped out?” I ask.

Ronak gives me a look. “No, they didn’t just pop out. The damn things felt like they broke my spine and tore through my shoulder blades. I actually passed out,” he says, pissed off. “Passed out! In the middle of the street like some damn weakling.”

He’s pacing around the room as the three of us stare at the wings protruding from his back. When he passes by one of the tables, his newly emerged wing catches on a vase of flowers, sending it crashing to the floor. He glares down at it.

I push my own wings out and walk over to him. I know he’s in shock, so I need to handle this carefully. I take his hand, forcing him to stop pacing. He looks down at me, his frown fierce.

I lift my other hand and slowly begin to trace the edge of his wing. Trailing my finger over the arch, feeling the soft, downy feathers, I stroke slowly, making him shiver.

I continue my touch on his other wing, watching as the tension slowly leaves his body. I know Ronak well enough to realize that he’s not really pissed at the wings themselves. He’s pissed about the unexpected. He doesn’t like to be taken by surprise. He’s an alpha. He likes control.

This caught him off guard, and since the pain of them emerging made him pass out, his reaction is understandable. It’s my job as his mate to make him see that this isn’t a bad thing.

“They look good on you,” I say. And they do. It shouldn’t be possible, but he’s even sexier with them. “They’re a lot bigger than mine,” I note, taking in his wingspan.

“They’re heavier than I expected,” he admits in a grudging voice.

“Yeah, tell me about it,” I say. “Do you…hate them because they look like mine? Do you wish you had weird furry genfin wings instead?”

“No. That’s not why…I don’t even hate them. It’s just—”

“Unexpected.”

“Yeah.”

I smile. “Admit it though, it’s pretty awesome.”

The corner of his lip twitches.

Now that Ronak isn’t so pissed off, the other guys come closer to get a better look. “Did anyone see you?” Sylred asks.

Ronak shakes his head. “I don’t think so. I think I only passed out for a few seconds. No one was on the road. When I saw the wings, I rushed off the road and took the back way through the forest to get here.”

“So,” Evert says, picking up the sandwich again and taking another bite. “She marked the fucking lamassu with her cupid number, and now you have her wings.” He looks over at Sylred. “Any weird shit happen to you?”

Sylred shakes his head. “No.”

“Huh.”

“It’s almost like she’s imprinting on us,” Sylred says. “Gifting parts of herself to mark us with. To show that we’re her mates.”

Hearing that makes me puff up a little in pride and my feathers ruffle.

Evert shoots me a smirk. “Possessive little thing, aren’t you?”

“Well, you are my mates.”

His blue eyes smolder as if hearing that makes him want to carry me to the bedroom. “You bet your tight ass we are.”

Said ass perks right up because it is tight, and it likes being noticed.

“So,” I venture, looking back to Ronak. “You have wings. You were the one that wanted them the most,” I point out.

He crosses his arms in front of his chest while raising and lowering his wings, testing out their weight. “Maybe.”

“And I gave them to you.”

He snorts. “It’s not like you did it on purpose.”

“I’m just saying, clearly I’m awesome at this mate stuff if I give you what you want, even if it is unintentional. And I also find it…fitting,” I add with a smirk.

He narrows his dark eyes on me. “How so?”

I do my best Ronak impression. Which means I just lower my voice and scrunch my face up into an exaggerated scowl. I also lift my shoulders up to my ears and pretend my biceps are huge and muscled for added dramatic effect. “Oh, I’m Ronak. You landed on my island, and you have red wings. You must be a demon! I better shoot you with an arrow and tie you up and be an asshole,” I say mockingly. I beam up at him and return to my natural voice. “Now who’s the demon?” I waggle my brows.

He gives me another dirty look, makes an, “I’m gonna choke you,” gesture, and then turns to walk away.

“Where are you going?”

“I need to learn how to fly these damn things,” he says over his shoulder.

My lips curve up. “Remember how hard you were on me when I was trying to learn? You’re about to realize how difficult it is. This is the perfect payback.”

He glares at me over his shoulder. His wing runs into a painting on the wall and makes it crash to the ground. He curses colorfully at it.

“Your red feathers are super pretty! They really bring out your scowl,” I call to his retreating back.

“Damn red feathers,” he grumbles under his breath before the door shuts behind him.

Evert chuckles. “You’re probably gonna pay for that later.”

I consider what Ronak would count as a punishment. “Are we talking, like, spanking? Because we did that already and I’m good with it.”

He blinks at me and then looks at Sylred. “I never know what’s going to come out of her mouth.”

“It’s part of her charm.”

“Tying up is okay, too. Except not with rope. You guys already tied me to a tree with rope so that kind of ruined it for me.”

Evert’s lip twitches with amusement. “Understandable.”

“Can we get a pet?”

Confusion washes over his face at my sudden change in topic. “What?”

“A pet. Can we get one? Like a little puppy? I’ve always wanted a pet.”

He arches a brow. “Always? You’ve always wanted a pet, or you just now thought of it and decided you want one?”

He knows me too well. “That part’s not important. Can I get one?”

He pinches the bridge of his nose and sighs. “No.”

“Why not?” I pout.

“Oh, I don’t know, maybe because you’re wanted for treason and you have three genfins and a fucking lamassu bull for mates. We’re all the animals you need, trust me.”

“But puppies are cute.” I look over to Sylred. Why did I ask Evert anyway? Note to my stupid cupid self: Always deal with the mate who most likely will say yes to me. “You want me to have a puppy, don’t you?” I ask, doing my best to give him a half-sexy, half-pleading look.

Sylred’s eyes soften. “Well…”

Evert’s hand comes down, covering my entire face and blocking me from view. “Nope. Don’t even try taking advantage of the nice one. The answer is no.”

I sigh into his palm. “Fine. Party pooper.”

We hear Ronak cursing and the sound of a flower pot crashing to the ground outside. I grin.

Sylred smiles back at me. “You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”

“Of course I am.” I scoop up some berries and head for the door.

“Where are you going?”

“You think I’d miss this? No way. I’m gonna sit and watch him struggle learning to fly. While I’m at it, maybe I’ll build him an obstacle course and start yelling at him, too.”

Sylred’s brows go up and he looks over at Evert. “She’s a vengeful little thing, too.”

Evert picks up some crackers and follows behind me. “Yep. Now grab some drinks and let’s go watch the alpha squirm.”