Accidental Cupid

  Accidental Cupid

  Laura Greenwood

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Epilogue

  Author Note

  Also by Laura Greenwood

  About the Author

  © 2021 Laura Greenwood

  * * *

  All rights reserved. This book or parts thereof may not be reproduced in any form, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means – electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording or otherwise – without prior written permission of the published, except as provided by United States of America copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher at “Attention: Permissions Coordinator,” at the email address; lauragreenwood@authorlauragreenwood.co.uk.

  Visit Laura Greenwood’s website at:

  www.authorlauragreenwood.co.uk

  Cover by Ravenborn Designs

  Accidental Cupid is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  If you find an error, you can report it via my website. Please note that my books are written in British English: https://www.authorlauragreenwood.co.uk/p/report-error.html

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  Blurb

  As a cupid, Pippa does everything she can to avoid setting people up, but sometimes, she just can't help herself.

  * * *

  When her best friends get engaged, she ends up at a Halloween party with the last person she ever expected to see again.

  * * *

  Can Pippa avoid matchmaking and her ex-boyfriend all in the same night?

  -

  Accidental Cupid is a light-hearted second chance paranormal romance with cupids and a central m/f romance.

  One

  I check myself in the mirror, looking at every angle to check my costume. I look great, there's no denying it, but I worry that it doesn't do anything to cover the fact I'm a cupid or a police officer. Neither of those are good things to be at a party, for completely different reasons.

  The door opens and Harper pops back into the room, her white lace dress streaked with fake blood and even a couple of handprints.

  "Will you pass me the veil?" she asks.

  I nod and pick it up, noticing it's been given the same treatment.

  "I have some ground rules for the party," I say as she plumps up her hair and puts the veil in place.

  "Hmm?"

  "I don't set people up. I don't give dating advice, I..."

  "Pip, you do realise it's an engagement party, right? No one's going to ask you for those things," she assures me.

  "They will when they find out I'm a cupid," I mutter. And who has an engagement party on Halloween anyway? I suppose at least it's an excuse to dress up and I have to admit, her choice of costume is rather amusing. I hope her fiancé finds it as funny. Though knowing Elias, I'm sure it was his idea.

  "Then don't tell anyone," she points out. "Most people here have no idea you are one, keep it quiet and they won't know at all."

  "Oh". That kind of makes sense, even if it's not an option I've considered. Somehow, people just seem to know what I am. Especially if they've spent a lot of time around me. "What if they can tell?"

  "If they can, just flash them your agency badge and tell them you're an undercover officer," she suggests, the corners of her lips lifting up into an amused smile.

  "That might work, but it would also be a gross misuse of power."

  "You're no fun," she teases. "But in all seriousness, just make something up. What if you said that you bought some perfume off a cupid?"

  "We don't make perfume."

  "Which is something no one needs to know," Harper points out. "There's almost as much mystery around cupids as there is around harpies, we're both going to be safe from questions."

  "You mean other than when's the wedding."

  She snorts. "Anyone who asks that is going to get their invitation late."

  "That's mean."

  "And totally deserved."

  "What are you going to do if someone asks when you're going to have a baby?" I ask, not doing a good job of hiding the amusement from my voice.

  "Uninvite them," she deadpans.

  I chuckle. "I'll make sure people stay away from that particular line of enquiry."

  "Aww, don't do that, I'd very much like to spend less on food."

  I shake my head in bemusement, knowing she doesn't really mean it.

  "Out of interest, what were the rest of your ground rules?" She picks up a bright red lipstick and applies it.

  "I don't answer awkward sex questions."

  Harper raises an eyebrow. "Does that one come up a lot?"

  "You'd be surprised. And it's never questions I can answer either."

  "Would it be better if you could answer them?" she asks.

  I frown. "Maybe not." She has a point. If I start answering sex questions, the next thing I know I'll be treated like a succubus instead of a cupid. If there's anything worse than people asking to be set up all the time, it's those who assume I'll sleep with them just because I like the taste of love.

  A shiver runs down my spine at the mere thought of it. I'll pass, thanks.

  "All right, next time I have a problem, I won't come your way," Harper promises. She grabs her clutch bag from where it's lying on the bed and starts to check through it.

  "That's different," I counter.

  She stops what she's doing and looks at me, a raised eyebrow asking the question I already knew was coming. "How is it different?"

  "You're asking because I'm your friend, not because I'm a cupid."

  "How do you know? Maybe I friended up to you so I could take advantage of your powerful love powers."

  I wrinkle my nose. "Do you have to say it like that?"

  "After the number of times you've referred to my relationship with Elias as delicious, yes, I do."

  "Fair play." But in my defence, their love is delicious. And it's not like I can help it. It's not like I have to do anything special to be able to taste love, it just hangs in the air like a yummy snack. Though with my two friends, it's sometimes more like a gourmet meal, they're still sickeningly sweet even after all the crime-fighting and seeing one another in weird situations.

  Despite what I say, there's a small part of me that envies them. I want something like that. Someone who sees every side of me and loves me despite that. I even had someone like that once until my meddlesome family got in the way and put an end to that.

  Stupid cupids. They always have to get their way.

  "Pip, you okay?"

  "Hmm?" I respond.

  "I asked if you were ready, the taxi's here."

  "Oh, right. Sorry. I just need my shoes and then I'm done." I pick up the trident from where it's sitting on the bed. "Do I look fearsome?"

  "Positively devilish," she quips. "You'll have the minions of hell eating out of your hand in no time."

  "I've always wanted a minion army."

  Harper chuckles and shakes her head in bemusement. "What would you do with them?"

  I shrug. "Make them do my paperwork? There's always so much of it, and I have better things to do with my time."

  "All right, but if you're resorting to slave labour, then I want my paperwork doing too."

  "You've got it," I promise. "On the off chance I suddenly find myself in control of an abundance of demon minions, I'll make sure they do all of our paperwork."

  "You'd probably better add Elias' to the list too. Can you imagine what would happen if the two of us got away without any and he still had to do his?"

  "You're the one that'd have to live with his complaining," I point out.

  "Pfft. Because you don't think you'll have to hear all about it too?" she counters.

  Hmm. She may have a point there. "All right, all three sets."

  "What happens if it's not a demon army?"

  "We've upgraded from generic minions, I see?" I ask as I push open the door and start making my way to the street where the taxi is waiting.

  She shrugs. "I don't think it matters what you have an army of," she admits. "So long as you take some of the admin off my hands. I swear, I never thought I'd be filling in so many forms as a police officer."

  I chuckle. "You're not the only one. I remember my first week on the job and discover I was spending more time at my desk than out on the streets."

  "And I imagine it only gets worse the further up the food chain you get," Harper mutters.

  "No wonder we've had boss problems," I agree. "Too much paperwork might make me resort to bribes too."

  She shakes her head in bemusement, probably knowing as well as I do that there's next to no chance of that.

  "We're not supposed to be talking about work tonight, though," I remind her. "Elias made us promise that we'd have fun."

  "I have fun working." She pulls open the door to the taxi and slides in.

  I follow behind her. "Even that time you got kidnapped?"

  Harper grimaces. "All right, so it doesn't always go to plan. But I'm fine and we
got the perp off the streets. That's a success in my eyes."

  "I'm starting to see why Elias made us promise to leave work at work." I slam the door shut and the driver takes it as his cue to drive us towards the bar where the event is being held.

  Despite some of my reservations at my friends' choice of date for their party, excitement grows within me the closer we get. It's been a long time since I've been around this many people. Since I actively avoid the cupid community for a whole variety of reasons, I rarely get to go to big events. But this one should be cupid free.

  Other than me. And I'm not about to start trying to matchmake myself.

  Two

  The bar is surprisingly full. I didn't realise Harper and Elias even knew this many people. Yet here they all are to celebrate their upcoming wedding. I still think Halloween is a weird night to have an engagement party, but it's still fun to see how everyone has dressed up. It's always hard to find the right costume as a supernatural. We can't go as something that exists or we risk insulting a real vampire, witch, or magical creature. Which leaves things like angels and demons.

  And sexy nurses, judging from the group of women at the back of the room.

  "There you are, I was starting to worry that you'd got lost," Elias says, pulling Harper into his arms and kissing her swiftly.

  Without thinking about it, I lick my lips, enjoying the taste of the way they feel about one another, completely forgetting they've both asked me not to do that. It's just hard to remember when they're being all coupley right in front of me.

  It doesn't take them long to break away from one another, which isn't surprising. They've settled down into the not-as-public phase of their relationship.

  "Hey, Pippa," he says to me.

  "Your choice of costume is interesting," I observe. "Are you trying to make a statement about your wedding?" I ask.

  His smart suit is ripped with as much fake blood as Harper's fake wedding dress. While it's not exactly my taste, I have to admit that it's a fun choice for the future bride and groom.

  "We thought it would be fun," he responds. "Plus, no one else is going to turn up to an engagement party wearing it."

  I chuckle. "You're probably right there." It would be the height of bad manners, though that wasn't always enough for some people.

  "We'd better do the rounds," Harper reminds her fiancé.

  "I've been waiting for you to arrive," he points out.

  "I'm the bride, I'm allowed to be late."

  He chuckles, but wisely doesn't try and argue about it. "We'll see you in a bit?" he asks me.

  "Of course." I wave them off. I never expected to see a lot of them tonight. They should be spending their time with people they don't see very often, not the person they spend all day every day in the office with.

  I turn in the direction of the refreshments table. I've been hearing about the buffet plans for long enough that I know it's going to be delicious and I plan to take advantage of that.

  The long table isn't very crowded. Most people are probably still saying their hellos, but other than a few people from work, I don't know anyone very well. Maybe I should have asked Harper for a plus one. But who would I have brought? It's not like I've been on a date since I tried to date Steve, a vampire with a foul temper and an inferiority complex.

  There hadn't been a second date.

  A young girl sits alone at the next table with a half-eaten quiche in front of her and an expression that implies she wants to be anywhere but here.

  I'm not sure why she's so against the party, it seems nice. But maybe I can cheer her up a little bit.

  I grab some of the food, piling my plate high with what look like homemade pastries. Sweet ones, naturally. Why should I waste my time on savoury snacks when there are sweet treats up for grabs.

  "Can I sit here?" I ask, pointing to the chair opposite.

  "Sure, if you want," she mutters.

  "I'm Pippa. I work with Harper and Elias. What about you?" I ask as I pull out the chair and take a seat.

  She eyes me warily. "Rebecca, I went to school with Elias."

  There's something about the air around her that tastes bitter, I think it's self-loathing, but I've never really been around many people who feel that way.

  "Do you know anyone else here?"

  She shakes her head. "I don't know why I came. Maybe the idea of meeting new people? I hate it, but I always dream that this is going to be the day I meet my soulmate."

  Oh no, please don't tell me she's one of the people who think fated mates are real. Most supernaturals are well aware that it's not the case, but there'll occasionally be someone who believes differently for one reason or another. Normally because of something an older family member has said to them.

  "Not like that," she says hurriedly, presumably having seen something in my expression that revealed my feelings. "I just mean the person who fits with me. I'm not an idiot, I know fate hasn't got something crazy lined up for me. But I always find myself daydreaming about meeting that perfect person, you know?"

  "Mmhmm."

  "Wait, why am I talking to you about this? I don't think I've even admitted it to my best friend."

  Because I'm a cupid. "I just have one of those faces. And sometimes it's easier to talk to a stranger about these things." At least the second part is true. But the real reason is probably what I am. Sometimes, I can't help that people want to open up to me about these things. Though normally, I don't encourage it. Perhaps the romantic notion of the evening has started to influence me after all.

  Rebecca shrugs. "Makes sense." She sighs. "But don't tell anyone."

  "Of course not." And not just because I actually have no idea who she is. "Tell me what happens in these daydreams of yours?" The words are out before I think twice about them.

  She laughs nervously. "Oh, you know, normal movie stuff that never happens in real life. I fall over and land in someone's arms, our eyes meet and fireworks go off in my head. Something like that."

  Ah. Movie magic. That's always a hard one to work with.

  No, Pippa, what are you doing?

  "Any less likely to injure yourself scenarios?"

  "Just the normal ones. We order a Tropical Twist at the same time and then he tucks my hair behind my ear and puts his umbrella there..."

  That sounds like a euphemism if I ever heard one.

  "That sounds sticky," I say out loud, only making it worse in my head. Why did I think that was a good idea?

  "I know, but in the movies, it's not such a big deal."

  "That's because those umbrellas never have drink on them," I point out.

  "True. But a girl can dream."

  I nod. She's not wrong there.

  "You really do have one of those faces," Rebecca observes. "I feel like I've known you a long time."

  "Maybe it's the alcohol?" I suggest, nodding towards the empty glass in front of her. Based on what she's been saying, I have to assume it was previously a Tropical Twist. Not my choice of drink, but I can see how a lot of people enjoy them.

  "Maybe. I've already had more than I should. It's easy to overdrink when you're trying not to focus on the situation."

  "I hear that." I pick up my own glass and toast her. I haven't had much to drink myself, but I've been in her position before. It was only a couple of years doing patrol work that put me off. Seeing so many drunk and disorderly people and the stupid decisions they made was enough to make me much warier about the implications of drinking too much.

  Rebecca picks up her glass as if to take a drink, only then realising it was empty. "I should get another," she announces, rising to her feet. "Would you like anything?"

  "No, thank you, I'm good." And even if she seems nice, I'm not about to let a stranger bring me a drink. Too much can go wrong, even in a closed party like this.

  From the corner of my eye, I catch sight of one of the guys from work waving me over. I'm not sure what they need me for, but it's more important that I keep my co-workers happy than someone I just met. I'll have to come back for more of the food later.