Page 5 of Incurably Cupid (Moonhaven Cove #5)

Chapter 5

Indie

“Love serves.”

Cupid Inc. New Recruit Training Manual

I had no idea how I’d been saddled with a gargoyle for the next two weeks, but between this and taking over for Professor Ziesta—who was on maternity leave for the next several months—I tried, as subtly as possible, to scrub off the invisible sucker sign that must surely be written across my forehead in black Sharpie. Meanwhile, Mesmer was getting acquainted with his fae wheelchair, Lance.

Mesmer shot me a deeply suspicious look before glancing at the wheelchair and then back at me. “I’m not sitting in a sentient wheelchair.”

Give me patience. “Why not?”

His expression flattened, as if he was having trouble understanding my confusion. “Because I will be sitting on him. The back of my front will be on him.”

I rubbed my temples and closed my eyes. Had I been put under some kind of bad luck curse? It sometimes happened to cupids, I’d heard.

“Umm, my man, that’s not really how this works,” Lance interjected. “I have a speaker, not a face. And yes, I’m sentient, but my whole purpose in life is to give you wheels and help you get around while you can’t move very well, so I don’t really mind. I’ve had all my shots, I promise.”

Stars and Hearts, I wanted to laugh. But I heroically managed to restrain myself.

“Mesmer,” I growled, “just get in the chair!”

King Draven, who was repacking some of Mesmer’s things before we left for my home, had to sit down because he was laughing so hard. Mesmer glared at him before daintily lowering himself onto the plushly cushioned wheelchair. Lance automatically lifted the bar supporting the footrests, and King Draven helped him position his feet before handing me his duffle bag.

“Thank you, King Draven,” I said with a respectful nod before grabbing hold of the wheelchair’s back.

“Home.”

We dematerialized, then rematerialized just outside my cottage. For security purposes, no cupid could blink directly into a home. The closest we could appear was just outside the front door.

As my cozy little house came into view, I glanced down at Mesmer. He had gone very still, looking a little chalky and suddenly more… solid.

“You can’t change to your rock form,” I warned quickly.

“Then please warn me next time you do that.” His tone was steady despite his words, and as the tension in his muscles eased, his color began to return to normal.

Oh. Yeah, that was a valid point. “Sorry. It’s just second nature for us cupids. I forget other paranormals aren’t used to it.”

He gave a short nod, glancing around as his breathing evened out.

Leo had arranged for workers to install a ramp beside my front steps, so when Lance moved to take it, I held him back for a moment and stepped ahead.

“Lance,” I said, palming my door. The smart house read my biosignature before unlocking. “Wait a moment. As tired as we all are, Mesmer needs to learn how to use you first.”

“10-4, boss lady.”

I grumbled under my breath as I hurried inside, setting my things on the kitchen table before placing Mesmer’s duffle bag in the guest room down the hall from mine.

“Take me with you! I’m dying of boredom!” Leo’s voice rang down the hall from my bedroom, where I’d left him days ago.

Sighing, I changed course to grab him before heading back outside. The crisp winter air was refreshing, so I didn’t bother grabbing a coat.

“Hey, Lance.”

“Hey, Leo. Nice to work with you.”

I frowned. “How do you two know each other? You’re in completely unrelated tech fields.”

Lance laughed. “Leo knows everyone.”

Leo, for once, remained silent. Humility? From Leo? Huh. “I see.”

I moved into Mesmer’s line of sight. He was gazing around Devotion with wide-eyed wonder. It was early morning, and the sky was a masterpiece of pinks, corals, and dusky purples, the clouds thick and puffy, close enough to touch. The grass here was the greenest anywhere, the air purer, the colors more vibrant. Being here was like switching from low resolution to high definition. At least, that’s what others said. To me, it was just normal. The real contrast was when I visited the mortal world.

“This is the Isle of Steadfast, and I reside in the city of Devotion.” I held up Leo. “This is Leo, my right-hand man. He’s a sentient tablet that can essentially do anything.”

Mesmer raised an eyebrow. “Is your tablet blushing?”

“He’s sensitive.”

Mesmer nodded, though he still looked skeptical.

“Okay, moving on. Lance is a fae-built wheelchair. More comfortable and ergonomic than a traditional one, he adjusts to match your frame and is even strong enough to transport you in rock form. He has a built-in GPS—even in the human world—so you just tell him where you want to go, and he gets you there while you rest. His magic-powered parts never need charging, and he’s fully sentient, which means he’ll make decisions in emergencies. If you’re too injured to think clearly, he’ll get you to safety and find help.”

“As mentioned before, he’s sentient,” I added, “so he might talk your ear off. Try to be patient. Sentient tech loves to work. They practically refuse vacation time.”

“I beg your pardon!” Leo huffed.

“Nah, man, she’s right,” Lance said. “You’re a workaholic.”

Leo blew a mechanical raspberry.

I ignored them. “Pick a spot in the distance and ask Lance to take you there and back. You need to get comfortable with him.”

Mesmer nodded, clearly exhausted. Dark circles shadowed his gray eyes, and his pallor had deepened. While he went off with Lance, I went inside to prepare his room.

Leo snickered as I fitted fresh sheets onto the new adjustable bed. “The fae engineers were losing their minds over this thing.”

I finished tucking the sheet in. “Hopefully not literally.”

“They’d never seen anything like it, so they had to go to the human world to study electric models before building a magic-powered one. Lila said they spent all day oohing and aahing over it.”

Lila, the beverage machine in the fae engineers’ creation chambers, was a notorious gossip. Given her lonely post, I didn’t blame her.

When Mesmer returned, Lance wheeled him into the room, and I grabbed fresh towels. He eyed the bathroom warily. “Nothing in there talks, right?”

Lance, Leo, and I snickered. “No. It’s just your average beauty products, walk-in shower, commode, and towels.”

Mesmer nodded and yawned.

“Do you want to get cleaned up first? You can’t shower, but I can help wash your hair, and you can do a sink bath. You just have to keep your bandages dry.”

He ran his hands through his dirty hair and winced, looking wistful. “How would we wash my hair?”

“I can recline,” Lance offered. “I can back you up to the shower and then recline so your head is over the drain. There's a removable showerhead.”

“And this shower doesn’t have a bottom lip. It’s completely wheelchair-friendly,” I added.

Mesmer looked tempted but also uncomfortable. I guessed it was because he would need help with something he'd probably done a million times before.

“Feel free to say no, of course, but I think you’ll sleep better.”

Mesmer hesitated, then finally nodded. I quickly moved to turn on the shower, grabbed an empty water pitcher from the kitchen, then scooted past Mesmer and Lance to set everything on the counter. Once ready, Lance carefully backed into the bathroom, then reclined all the way, positioning Mesmer perfectly for hair washing.

Mesmer’s skin turned about two shades paler, and I winced in sympathy. This must be excruciating for him. “We’ll get you your pain meds after this. Leo,” I called into the next room, “can you order something to eat for Mesmer and me?”

I gently folded a towel and placed it under Mesmer’s head against the cushion of the backrest, wet his hair, and started working shampoo into it.

“What do you want?” Leo called.

I eyed Mesmer. “What sounds good to you?” I rinsed his hair and added conditioner.

“Subs?” He looked like he was actually enjoying this, eyes closed, face peaceful.

I finished and toweled his hair gently, then removed the now-wet towel from underneath his head, trying to soak up the water running down his neck. Thankfully, Lance was waterproof. Sadly, Mesmer was not.

“Sure. Any specific order?”

“Turkey, ham, bacon, avocado, and all the toppings. Maybe soup if they have it as well.”

“That sounds good. Leo, order a twelve-inch for him and whatever soup they have available, and then a six-inch hummus for me with everything, and a six-inch of what he’s having as well.”

“No thank you?”

“Leo,” I growled, quickly moving out of the bathroom so Lance could exit with Mesmer.

“What? It’s common courtesy.”

My left eyelid twitched. “Thank you, Leo, for all that you do for me.”

Leo projected an audio-visual display of fireworks bursting in the night sky. “See! Was that so difficult?”

“If you keep this up, I’m taking you to the fae engineers tomorrow and telling them you’re glitching.”

“They won’t believe you,” Leo said smugly. “You’ve already tried that several times, and they found nothing wrong with me.”

“I find plenty of things wrong with you.”

Leo blew a mechanical raspberry at me.

I got kicked out of the bedroom while Mesmer changed into sweatpants and a tee shirt. By the time Lance wheeled him out to the table, I was setting the delivery bags down and grabbing napkins and plates.

I made sure Mesmer took his pill before he ate, and we ate in silence, exhaustion settling over the both of us. He had to be in significant pain—there were lines of strain etched on his face, and pain in his eyes.

This level of concern for someone was new to me. I didn’t really know what to do with myself, so I just tried to be as efficient as possible in taking care of him.

When he finished, he went to lie down. But before he fell asleep, I made sure he had a water bottle near his bed and that he knew how to use the controls to adjust it up and down. Raising just the top half would help him sit up more easily, and make the transfers to Lance a lot smoother. Then I taught him how to place his hand on the wall to register his handprint and voice with Leo, explaining that afterward, he could communicate with Leo from the wall or just using his voice, and Leo would wake me up if he needed anything.

“What’s the handprint for, then, if I can just use my voice?”

“For the front and back doors. You can only access cupid homes with a full hand scan. Now that your handprint has been stored and you’ve been given permission, you can enter and exit my home.”

He nodded tiredly, his eyelids drooping. “Makes sense.”

I left him to sleep and sought out my own bed after briefly brushing my teeth and yawning through changing into pajamas. Then my head hit the pillow, and I was out like a light.