Page 12 of Incurably Cupid (Moonhaven Cove #5)

Chapter 12

Indie

“Love is merciful.”

Cupid Inc. New Recruit Training Manual

I woke up to the sound of my mum and dad arguing and thought I was hallucinating. My parents didn’t argue. I remembered when they’d sat me down in my early teens and explained, in great detail, that communication was the key to a healthy marriage and that shouting at your spouse was not healthy.

I learned this from their example first and later from instructors in both high school and college. Cupid U offered several communication classes, each tailored for different purposes. My personal favorite had been the one I took during my university years, Healing Your Marriage Through Healthy Communication. We studied couples’ case histories and were graded on how well we could hypothetically help them. Let’s just say that the first time I took that class, all of my couples’ relationships met an ignominious end due to my frustration at not being able to help them how I wanted to. I had to repeat the class over the summer.

At the time, it was a hard lesson for me: in order to succeed in my courses, I had to appear to conform, to do things the way everyone else did. There had been the odd teacher who let me succeed in my own way, but for the most part, my instructors expected a single response, a single way of doing things. I tried not to impose that rigidity on my own students now. There were too many ways to learn something, too many ways to solve a problem, and I felt I would be failing them if I stifled their creativity.

The paranormal couples in that class did receive help from cupid therapists, so thankfully, they got the support they needed.

I finally opened my eyes and blinked at the crowded room. I was lying in a hospital bed—I’d seen the inside of a hospital too often over the last several weeks—and my parents, a vampire in the corner, a shifter sitting by my bed, and a handsome male in doctor's scrubs were all gathered around me.

“Are you guys having a party in my room?” I asked, my voice crackly from disuse and the feeling that I’d swallowed the Gobi Desert. My mum turned away from my dad, her eyes brightening when she saw that I was awake.

She smiled radiantly and reached for my hand. “I’m so happy to see you awake, love. You terrified your dad and me.”

My mum sparkled like Lyrica. Those in the room kept stealing glances at her, even my dad, and I was used to him stealing glances at my mum. I was actually used to seeing much more affection between them, sadly, but it made me happy for them. Their marriage was still amazing and strong, and they still adored each other just as much as they had when they first got married. Or so they told me. I wouldn’t know, as I had not been present for that.

I think my parents were the reason I stayed a cupid in the field. They gave me hope that it was possible for a relationship to last. Huh, I just realized that.

“Glad to be awake too, Mum. Why are you and Dad here?”

I glanced at my dad, but his expression wasn’t giving me any clues. He looked relieved that I was awake, which I took to be a good sign. Then he frowned at me.

“What?”

“Why wouldn’t we come when they called and told us you were in the hospital? You’re our daughter; we love you and wanted to be sure you were okay. Thankfully, we’re still listed in the Paranormal Emergency Contacts Database as your emergency contacts.”

I reached for his hand and squeezed it but frowned. He seemed oddly grumpy—an unusual occurrence, as both my parents were abnormally and perpetually cheerful. “Mum, why is Dad grouchy?”

The shifter I now identified as Dieter shifted in his seat, fell off it, yelped in surprise and pain, then sighed and picked himself up off the floor to sit in the chair again.

Mum nodded at the shifter. “That is the reason.”

My brain hurt trying to follow this logic, and I didn’t think it was just the concussion. I rubbed my temples while the very good-looking doctor started taking my vitals.

“I’m just going to check to see how you’re doing. Is that okay?” he asked.

I nodded at him, thanking him briefly with a smile. “Thanks for your help. Sorry about the madhouse.” Then I hazily remembered that I’d thrown up on him. I made a face. “I’m so sorry I threw up on you.”

He laughed. “This is nothing compared to a tiger pack. You guys are fine. And no problem. It’s not the first time, and it won’t be the last.”

Hmm, he was a tiger shifter. I’d only ever met a few of those. I shook my head, setting aside my embarrassment, and refocused on my mum. “Mum, you’re not making any sense. Please explain.”

Dad crossed his arms over his chest. “They’ve asked for your mum’s help since they broke you.”

The vampire in the corner let out a weary laugh.

“That’s actually a really good idea, Mum,” I said, feeling relieved. “I wasn’t going to be able to stay long to help them—maybe a day or so. But you could stay longer and run them through some skills classes.”

I turned to Dad as the doctor checked the tube running from my arm to a machine beside me. I suspected I was getting an IV that was part saline and part fae potion because my saline was glowing blue, but I remained focused on my parents. “You could both do it if you’re worried about Mum being alone, Dad. You’re both cupids, and you have the unique experience of having been happily married for several hundred years, so they’d also benefit from a few couples’ classes. Would that be okay, Felix?”

I turned to Felix in the corner, and he nodded slowly. “It would be our pleasure to host you and care for you both while you assist us.”

The doctor released my arm just as Mesmer staggered in, carrying Leo, with Mordecai holding onto his wrists, I assumed, to transport him from the ether to here.

Mesmer didn’t even look like a gargoyle at the moment. He was completely ashen white, with no gray on his skin whatsoever.

“Mesmer!” I cried. “Why aren’t you in your wheelchair?” I tried to jump out of bed to help him, but both Felix and the doctor reached him first.

Mesmer swayed, and Felix caught him before the doctor gently lowered him into a chair.

Felix, Dieter, and the shifter carefully transferred Mesmer onto the bed that a nurse and an orderly had rolled in. They placed it next to mine, connecting him to all the same machines I’d been hooked up to—plus a few more.

I turned to Felix as he handed Leo to me. He’d caught my tiny companion at the same time he’d caught Mesmer.

Leo warbled sadly and turned blue. “We couldn’t talk him out of it.”

I exhaled sharply. That sounded about right.

For the first time, I looked at Mordecai. It was sad to say, but he didn’t look much better than Mesmer.

“You okay?”

He sank into a chair he’d pulled up beside me, running a shaky hand through his hair. “My best friend just got kidnapped—what do you think?”

I reached over and gave his hand a squeeze. “That you’re being melodramatic. Same as always.”

He huffed but didn’t argue, slumping in his seat and pressing his palm to his forehead.

Meanwhile, the doctor and nurse worked on Mesmer. He drifted in and out of consciousness during their examination, then finally, his eyes closed, and he was out completely.

Panic tightened my chest. “Is he going to be okay?”

The doctor hesitated a moment, then nodded, letting his stethoscope drop against his chest. “I think he’s just overdone it. The trip through the ether depleted whatever energy reserves he had. Rest should help him, and we’re giving him a few IVs. Obviously no potions, but we have some IVs specifically for injured gargoyles.”

For the first time, I noticed how quiet my parents had gone. I’d caught a glimpse of Dad trying to jump up to help when Mesmer first came in, but now, he and Mum were exchanging one of those silent looks they did sometimes—communicating without a single word. Then, as one, they turned to me, both barely suppressing grins.

A sense of unease prickled the back of my neck. I had no idea what they were smiling about, but I felt a solidarity with all children everywhere, young or old, when I admitted that my parents smiling at me in that way made me very uneasy.

By evening, the room had emptied, leaving only Mesmer and me.

Felix, Dieter, Mum, and Dad had gone to Felix’s pub. He’d offered to put them up at The Grand Rose, the most luxurious hotel in Glacier Falls. Mum had jumped at the offer, convincing Dad that it would be a nice little getaway. Before leaving, they fussed over me, making sure I was feeling better. Thanks to fae potions, I was mostly back to a hundred percent.

Felix had hugged me tightly just before heading out, making me squeak, then casually mentioned that he’d already covered my hospital bill. I hoped Mum and Dad would find a way to repay him.

I wouldn’t recommend that humans warm up to people who kidnapped you, but in my case, it felt... fine. I had never really seen the other two, so I couldn’t even identify them in a police lineup, but Dieter and Felix seemed to be decent paranormals.

I turned to Mesmer’s bed. They had placed him right next to me. Literally, with a little stretch, I could touch his bed. He seemed fine, just still very pale, and he hadn’t woken up again since he had come to rescue me.

I snorted and shook my head. The cavalry had arrived, and then the cavalry had passed out cold.

It was hard to see him like this. He had looked worse right after the night he’d been shot, but not by much. The doctor had assured me he’d regain his strength quickly, but we’d have to stay in Glacier Falls for a few days so he could recover before attempting ether travel again.

Mordecai had returned home as well. He had stayed for a while but had looked exhausted, so I made him go home. He promised to come again tomorrow, but depending on when they released Mesmer and me, we might already be at the Rose.

Leo had powered down for a bit to recharge. I knew he was still shaken by what had happened to me, even if he didn’t outright admit it. He hid it by shouting at my for not paying attention to my surroundings once his circuits had calmed enough for him to speak. Of course, because I'm me, I'd had to remind him that shouting wasn't a form of healthy communication.

For the record, sentient tablets are actually able to growl like a grizzly. Can confirm.

Mesmer shivered suddenly, his body trembling beneath the blankets. I pressed the call button, summoning a nurse.

She checked and shook her head. “No fever.” She patted my hand. “Don’t worry, hun. He’s a strong one. He’ll be fine.”

I nodded, but the reassurance wasn’t very reassuring.

As a cupid, I knew how vital state of mind was when recovering from injuries, chronic illnesses, or even life-threatening conditions. Some of our teams worked exclusively in hospitals, matching patients with companions—friends or sometimes romantic partners—to give them the strength to keep fighting.

It was a job I had always avoided.

As cold-hearted and unfeeling as people sometimes accused me of being, I knew that kind of work would break me. I’d heard from other cupids that it was rewarding, that they loved what they did despite the heartbreak. I admired them for it, but I could never do it myself.

Another shudder wracked through Mesmer. His teeth chattered violently.

I sighed, glancing toward the nurses’ station. She’d said he was fine, just low on reserves. I had to trust that she knew what she was doing.

But I also couldn’t just sit here while he suffered.

I pressed the call button again, and the same nurse returned, her expression patient but amused.

“What can I do for you, hun?”

I gestured to Mesmer’s chattering teeth and deep shivers. “Can you help me move everything so I can get into bed with him and keep him warm?”

That sounded so salacious when I said it out loud, but there were no lustful thoughts in my mind.

Only the fact that my friend was suffering.

The nurse waggled her eyebrows. “I’d try to climb in there too if I were thirty years younger.” She laughed. “Sure, hun. Let's get you situated.” She had to unhook me from the machines so I could quickly use the restroom, then I gently climbed into Mesmer’s bed, sliding under the covers piled on top of him and lying on my side. The nurse reconnected me to everything, moving some of the machines closer to my new position. Then she turned off the light and closed the door so we could get some sleep.

I inched closer, keeping a small gap between us at first, hoping my body heat would be enough.

Minutes passed. His shivering didn’t stop.

I exhaled through my nose, resigned.

“For the record,” I muttered, “I am not trying to feel you up like that nurse was. This is strictly for health-related purposes.”

I studied his face.

“I will not enjoy this at all,” I added. “Promise.”

With that whopper of a lie told, I slid even closer to him and wrapped my arm around his. Then, when that didn’t help, I entwined one of my legs with his. Normally, I would just wrap my arm around him and cuddle—erm, share body heat as closely as possible—but with his chest so injured, I didn’t dare. This was the best I could come up with. I definitely didn’t want to move my arm any l ower than his chest, so I shoved it under my pillow to help support my head. These hospital pillows were really thin.

Slowly, his body began to relax. The shivering eased, the tension melted away, and warmth returned to his skin.

I could almost hear his body sigh in relief.

Exhausted from my insanely long day, I let my eyes drift shut.

And I slept.