Cupids Favor, Michelle M. Pillow, author at New Concepts Publishing

© copyright February 2005, Michelle M. Pillow
Cover Art by Jenny Dixon, © copyright February 2005
ISBN 1-58608-267-1
New Concepts Publishing
Lake Park, GA 31636
www.newconceptspublishing.com

This is a work of fiction. All characters, events, and places are of the author’s imagination and not to be confused with fact. Any resemblance to living persons or events is merely coincidence.

Dedication:
To all those who don’t celebrate Valentine’s Day--a Cupid you can love.

Make fun of him, would he? Make the whole court at Lycaon think he was a joke--an incompetent clod that couldn’t make two pigs fall in love! Call him a fairy, would he? Call him a rosy-faced cherub? He accidentally hit a man instead of a goat with a love dart, causing one couple to fall in love four hundred years ago, and he got branded a matchmaker for life.

It was time for the jests to end! Cupid would show them what this squat little cherub could do. He’d have the last laugh. He’d prove to them that not only could he make the whole Lycaon court fall in love--he’d make them fall in love with the same woman!

Oh, and this was his favorite part! He’d not get just any woman. He’d bring one from the mortal realm--the ugliest woman he could find! See how the wolves liked panting after a human--their ancient hunters, the whole reason the realms of mortal and magic were separated in the first place.

His short legs pumped along the dusty abandoned path coming from his cave home. He angrily kicked at little daisies that dared to grow along the side, ruining the look of his taller weeds. He hated flowers! He hated lycans! And he most definitely hated to watch people fall in love!

Cupid paused in his tirade to look at the vial of bright pink philter in his gnarled troll hand. A wide grin spread over his thick, long lips, dipping under his oversized nose. His small black eyes lit with greedy pleasure. This potion was the old magic. No simple blow dart would do this time. Once he doused the mortal woman with this pheromone, the entire Lycan Guard would be brought howling to their knees.

He’d find a woman for them, all right. Then that overbearing Lord Ilar would never doubt his magic again!

Naughty Cupid Book 2:

CUPID’S REVENGE

Michelle M. Pillow

Cover art by Kat Richards, © copyright September 2005

ISBN 1-58608-633-2

New Concepts Publishing

Lake Park, GA 31636

www.newconceptspublishing.com

This is a work of fiction. All characters, events, and places are of the author’s imagination and not to be confused with fact. Any resemblance to living persons or events is merely coincidence.

Dedication: My sisters: Michelle, for having the same name as me growing up and surviving it. Shawna, for always speaking your mind. Emily, for being you. Sarah, for working hard. And my one brother, Brent, the Y chromosome in a sea of X’s.

Author recommends reading books in order of release. For details please visit www.michellepillow.com

Prologue

Damn the lycans anyway! Cupid’s little black eyes flashed with an inner fire. And damn the council of immortal elders! So what if he took his vengeance out on Ilar by entrancing the whole Lycan Guard at Lycaon to one mortal woman? It’s not like anyone had gotten hurt. Besides, Ilar, Commander of the Guard, deserved it for making fun of him--just as he deserved being forced to lifemate to an ugly human woman.

Cupid shivered in disgust to think of how his plan had backfired. Ilar had fallen in love with the hideous mortal and they were living their fairy tale, happily ever after. It was disgustingly romantic. It was hideously repulsive. It was unbearable to think about.

Bah! Ach!

Now he had to listen to the other trolls tease each time he saw them. They called him a cherub, a matchmaker, a rosy-faced babe who spread love and goodness throughout the world. If he had another basket of love darts left outside his cave door, he’d scream so loud the whole realm of magic would collapse in on itself.

Bah! Bah! Double bah!

Cupid hated the elders. He hated goodness and happiness. He hated Ilar and Rhiannon, his ugly human lifemate. He hated the council. He hated the realm of magic and the realm of mortals. He hated everyone and everything.

And, above all things, he hated love!

His humiliation wouldn’t have been so widely known if the council of immortal elders hadn’t been called forth. He blamed Larus, the elected king of the lycans, for that one. It was Larus’ court at Lycaon that had been affected by his small enchantment prank. He merely made the mortal woman irresistible to the lycan kind and brought the whole court howling to their knees with lust.

But, could the lycan king let it go? No! He had to draw attention to the fact that Cupid had found love for Lord Ilar and Lady Rhiannon. He had to tell everyone who would listen to him that Cupid was personally responsible for Ilar’s eternal happiness.

Now he’d never live his reputation down. First, he accidentally hit a man instead of a goat with a love dart, causing one couple to fall in love four hundred years ago, and now this. He was going to be branded for his immortal life as a matchmaker. It was beyond torture, beyond fair and right, beyond tolerable.

And, as far as Cupid could see, it was King Larus who needed to pay for that!

Chapter One

Lycaon Castle, Realm of Magic

King Larus watched Lady Rhiannon with her lifemate, Lord Ilar. They seemed really happy together and he was happy for them. Ilar was his best soldier, a great leader, and a true friend. He deserved happiness. But the fact that Rhiannon was human still made him uneasy.

Even though he liked Rhiannon, Larus hoped she would be the last human he ever saw in his eternity of living. Humans had killed his family--his parents, his brothers and sisters and cousins, until all he had left was his duty to his people. He did his duty with pride and dedication. For nearly a hundred and fifty years he’d been their ruler and, so long as they willed it, he would remain their elected king.

“Did the elders decide what to do with Cupid?” Ilar asked, coming near the head table of the empty council hall. “Will he be punished for opening a portal?”

King Larus looked up, gazing past the giant circular pit of flames that lit the room. He sat atop a long stone table, scratching thoughtfully at the back of his head. Slowly, he lowered his arms to lie on top of his crossed legs. He came to the hall often, especially when he needed to be alone and think. When it was empty, the room was complete silence, aside from the soft rustling of the fire pit.

“Naturally, they aren’t happy with him,” Larus stated after a time.

Cupid was a squat little troll and like all of his kind he had a horrible temper backed by extreme power. Trolls had no real allegiance to anyone, let alone mortals, and only used their magic for self-gain or mischief. They wouldn’t open the portals to humankind just so the mortals could flood into their world. No, they’d only open them for their own selfish reasons. Their stupid, narcissistic ways could end up being the downfall of the entire realm of immortals.

Larus had been outraged to discover Cupid had opened up the portal between the Mortal Realm and the Magic Realm. He didn’t want to relive the wars between the mortal and immortal. They’d fought once, long ago, and there’d been much death on both sides. In the end, it was decided the realms should be forever separated. That was why the portals had been sealed. That was why they had to remain sealed.

Only a few natural portals remained, as they couldn’t be destroyed. The doors on the mortal side were locked with the strong magic and charms of all immortal races. The only way the portals could be opened was from their side. But once opened, the realms could merge freely.

Cupid had broken the pact of the covenants that protected the Magic Realm from human greed for the last three hundred years. The risk of humans wandering back through was too great. It was a risk none of the elders were willing to take.

The lycans weren’t the only ones to leave the world of mortal men. The vampires, who were also hunted because of their ‘unnatural’ ways, had come with them. As did all things of magic--elves, fairies, even the goblins and dwarfs. They left the humans, tired of being trapped and forced to use magic for mankind’s gain. Then it was believed that humans would kill themselves off. It wasn’t to be so. To everyone’s amazement, the humans thrived. And, until Cupid’s little play of revenge against Lord Ilar, the realms had remained separated.

Larus glanced at Lady Rhiannon and smiled faintly. They were the only three in the hall and he knew, since she was lifemated to Ilar, he could speak freely before her. “Though, the outcome is good, what could’ve been is beyond forgiveness. Cupid risked too much over a petty insult.”

Lord Ilar had drunkenly offended Cupid one night by calling him a rosy-faced cherub. That in and of itself was comical, as Cupid’s wrinkled face was anything but rosy and, with the horrible smell he emitted from his foul, unwashed body, he didn’t come close to reminding them of a cherub.

Cupid, however, obviously didn’t see the humor in the jests. Just to get even, the troll had gone to the realm of the mortals, doused Lady Rhiannon in lycan pheromone to magically enchant her, and brought her to their world. The mere smell of her had sent the entire unmated population into a desperate, lustful frenzy.

The males of the Lycaon court had fought like madmen to possess Rhiannon and the women had fought to kill her. Because of the raging emotions, their telepathic mindlink had been blocked. The mindlink was the only way the lycan could communicate in their shifted form and they used it often to warn of attacks. Without it, their defenses were left weakened. Both Ilar and Larus had feared they were under magical assault until they discovered the real reason.

Knowing it was only a troll’s petty revenge that opened the portals and caused the disruption in his guards, Larus frowned. Cupid risked too much, but then trolls weren’t known for their consideration of consequences. As king, he’d been honor bound to report Cupid’s actions to the council. The troll was in some serious trouble.

“Death seems too harsh of a punishment and yet I feel, with Cupid, anything less would fail to make an impact on his troll brain,” Ilar said.

“Well,” Rhiannon offered softly, pushing her long, curly blonde hair over her shoulder. She looked more lycan than human as she wore the comfortable gown of their people--a large square piece of cloth that was wrapped around the body and secured with a brooch at the shoulder. Though, instead of leaving her body bare beneath, she wore an undergarment with long sleeves. Being human, the slight modification allowed her extra protection against the elements. Her wide blue eyes looked first to her husband and then back to Larus. “At least he won’t be opening the portal again, will he?”

“The council has ordered him not to bring back any more enchanted humans,” Larus said. “Although, they’re unsure what to do with him otherwise. Because no troll sits on the council, we can only do so much.”

“Then, he’s agreed not to enchant any more humans?” Ilar asked, his dark eyes steady.

“Yes, he’s agreed,” Larus answered. “I believe him. I think Lady Rhiannon’s and your happiness is punishment enough. By the time I got done telling the council, and everyone else who would listen, about his ‘good’ deed, he was thoroughly mortified. Word of your love has even leaked to the trolls. If I know that race, they will persecute him enough to ensure he never does anything so foolish again.”

This is a work of fiction. All characters, events, and places are of the author’s imagination and not to be confused with fact. Any resemblance to living persons or events is merely coincidence.

Though they can be read separately, author recommends reading the Naughty Cupid trilogy of books in order of release. For details please visit her website (www.michellepillow.com).

Cupid brushed sand off his arms, mumbling to himself. He frowned, not liking what he had to do, but a debt was a debt. His beady, black eyes flashed with an inner fire. He might be many things, but a troll who reneged on a life debt wasn’t one of them.

Lord Malak had pulled him from the quicksand and saved his life. Now Cupid owed him a great favor in return, even if the lycan noble insisted he didn’t want it. If Cupid didn’t give it to him now, he knew that someday Malak could come back to call upon him, and that was something he refused to accept. It was bad enough he’d be forced to help a lycan, but to be in Malak’s debt? No, that would be worse.

So, what to do? No small feat would repay a life debt. He couldn’t simply breed Malak’s goats for this one. He needed something big. He needed something grand.

Cupid nearly gagged as the thought popped into his head. He hit himself on the ear to get it out. A gooey clump of sand fell out instead. Love? Why in all the realms would he think of love? He hated love! He hated the way people looked while they were in it. The way they talked, acted, swooned.

Cupid hacked, spitting sand on the ground. The grains were everywhere, rubbing into every crease, chaffing his flesh. Worst of all, the sinkhole had cleaned him of his most glorious stench. He hadn’t bathed in decades. It would take him forever to get that smell back.

Damn King Larus for throwing him in and Lord Ilar for letting him! So what if the two were bitter about what he’d done to them? The trolls still teased him about helping Lord Ilar and Lady Rhiannon fall in love, and now he’d be teased for King Larus and Lady Mina as well. Could he really allow another blemish to surface on his name?

No, love was no way to repay a debt to the lycan who saved his life. Ah, but hate. Now there was a real idea. Hate was much better than love. Hate made your blood boil and your heart race. It made you feel alive and gave you purpose. Aye, hate! He’d just have to watch Lord Malak very closely and figure out whom he hated the most. Then, Cupid would bring that creature before Lord Malak to destroy.

Hate. Cupid rubbed his gnarled, wrinkled hands together. A smile spread over his flat, wide lips. Now this was a good idea. Besides, what better way to squelch his undeserved reputation as a matchmaker?

Lady Sophia of Aucester looked at the guard, feeling nauseous. He was very tan with dark hair and eyes, and was smaller of build than some of his brethren. His words were a low growl as he said her name, causing her to shiver in revulsion. All the lycans’ words were a low growl. It was as if they were all just on the brink of attacking.

But, it wasn’t only the way the lycans talked that bothered her. They dressed indecently in draping tunics that fell to the tops of their knees. Like the guard before her in the large square piece of brown material that wrapped the waist and was held over one shoulder with a brooch, leaving his muscular calves, arms and a shoulder bare. On his feet were a pair of short boots with leather cross lacing winding up his legs. Even the lycan women wore a floor length version of the garb. There was no mistaking the fact that they could part from their clothing at a moment’s notice.

Even though the man looked human, Sophia knew he wasn’t. He was a lycan, a man-beast, a nieten. It didn’t matter what word she used, they all meant the same thing--men who shifted into horrible, unholy wolves. They were magical creatures in a magical realm. She hated them, hated the realm of immortals and magic. She just wanted to go home to her human world, where men stayed men and animals were hunted for food.

Sophia couldn’t help being bitter. A horrible little troll named Cupid had kidnapped her and her sister, Mina, and brought her to the realm of all things magical. At first glance this realm wasn’t so different from the human world, from her home in Wessex. The landscape was the same, though the sky was a little too purple and the trees were a little too red.

Sophia looked around Lycaon Castle’s inner courtyard. The castle was a lot different than her dilapidated home. Lycaon was a grand palace, rich and fine. The battlements circled around the bailey, disappearing in the distance. Square turrets were built in intervals along the outer face, standing tall as lookout towers. A stone house encased the gated entrance. The gate was up so people could walk through it freely. If she were in her world, she would’ve killed for a chance to live in such a place. It wasn’t as if she had a lot to go back to. Since her father had been murdered for going against his king, she and her sister had been left to ruin.

The lycan palace might look undaunting, but the people of this realm were another matter altogether. The lycans were beasts. Their castle might be nice, but it couldn’t hide the primitives dwelling within the walls. Every time she saw one of them she shook with fright and if they came too close, she had to suppress tears of desperation and outrage at what had been done to her.

“Tal,” Lady Rhiannon acknowledged the guard when Sophia did not. She blinked, realizing the beast man still stood before her, staring as if he would like nothing more than to devour her whole.

Their hostess, Lady Rhiannon, was human. She’d been enchanted by Cupid and brought to the Magic Realm before Sophia and Mina’s kidnapping. Rhiannon’s enchantment was said to have brought all the lycan men howling to their knees in desire for her. Lucky, or unluckily to Sophia’s thinking, Rhiannon had fallen in love with the very lycan she was meant to punish. Lord Ilar, Commander of the Lycan Guard had mated to Rhiannon and they were now living happily ever after.

Sophia glanced over at the woman. Rhiannon was beautiful, with long curly blonde hair and blue-grey eyes. She looked so…normal. Sophia didn’t know why the woman chose to stay in this world.

Next to Rhiannon was Sophia’s sister. Mina had been brought to the realm the same time Sophia was. Cupid, seeking to avenge himself against the lycan king, had kidnapped them. It was a fact Sophia was still bitter about. When Cupid took Rhiannon, he enchanted the lycans to pursue her. When he took Sophia and her sister, Cupid did the opposite. He struck Larus with a magical love dart and Sophia had fallen hopelessly in love with the king. Mina had been unaffected by the whole affair--unless you counted the fact that she’d had sex with the lycan king and was now lovesick over him.

Sophia wished she would’ve been as lucky as the other two as to have kept her wits about her. But, no. She’d been utterly in love with King Larus, mindless and blind to anything else, until every breath she took was for him. Then, to make matters worse, she was kidnapped by a vampire named Devlin and had fallen in love with him as well, mesmerized by his powerful, magical eyes to do so.

Sophia shivered. Twice she’d been in love, neither time her will or her doing. After the enchantment ended, she was left heartbroken. She swore that there would never be a third time. No man would ever touch her heart again.

All three human women were seated on a bench trying to enjoy the afternoon weather--that was until the lycan guard tried to talk to them. All simple pleasures in the day had fled with his presence.

Both sisters were dressed as Rhiannon, who’d adopted the look of the lycans. The undertunic, meant to protect the women’s delicate human skin, was the only difference to the lycans’ garb. The sleeved undertunics were much like the ones they wore back home, but the long rectangle of the overdress was like the female lycans. It loosely wound around the body, pinning at the shoulder. Though Sophia would never admit to it, the gown was comfortable.

Sighing, Sophia turned to look at her sister. Mina could well have been her twin, though she was a few years older and had locks as black as night instead of her own golden waves. Their faces were nearly identical, down to the shape of their pale blue eyes and the tilt of their noses. They were the same height and the same slender build, and even shared the same fullness of lips that had garnered the interest of many men. The men who’d wanted to marry them before their father had been executed by King Henry now wanted the sisters to be their whores.

Sophia frowned. Was she a fool to long to go back to the human world? It wasn’t like it had been kind to her. Lycan or mortal, all men were the same. Rutting pigs. The only reason she preferred mortals was they didn’t possess the added threat of magic and fangs.

“We’d like to tournament to be Lady Sophia’s lover,” Tal stated, bringing her attention back to him. Sophia gagged, unable to help the natural reflex. Mina instantly put a protective hand on her arm. Rhiannon’s smile faded.

“No,” Sophia croaked, pushing to her feet. The sooner she left Lycaon the better.

“But…?” Tal looked confused. His eyes bore into her and Sophia couldn’t meet them, didn’t want to. He looked at her like all the man-beasts looked at her--like she was a piece of meat ready to be torn apart. Rhiannon had said she could have her pick of any of them for a mate. But Sophia didn’t want the lycan men, didn’t want any man. Tal continued to speak, not taking his greedy eyes off her, “She said she wished to judge for the position. It has been decided. Only those with good teeth will compete.”

Sophia stiffened. They’d heard that? She’d been joking, bitterly spouting off at the mouth to shock Mina who’d slept with the lycan king. Mina was enamored with King Larus. Any fool could see it well enough. The idea that her sister had fornicated with the man just made her sick.

Sophia saw the man eyeing her and tried to remember what exactly she’d said. She was pretty sure it had something to do with choosing a lover like she would a good stallion--good teeth, decent bloodline, a fine gait and superior form. Someone wild and strong, but also someone she could bend to her will. Then, when she controlled them, she’d get herself a new one.

It might have been a joke, but the idea had merit. Men used their bodies all the time in battle and for what? Fortune? Glory? Power? Why should she not use her body to survive? At least then it would be on her own terms. Only, it wouldn’t be with a lycan but a human. None of these man-beasts were going to touch her!

Sophia nodded in agreement. As they walked away, Sophia heard Tal say, “Did she not say she wished to pick one out?”

“It’s, ah, flattering they wish to tournament for you,” Mina said when they were alone.

“To be their whore.” Sophia walked toward the stairs that led their shared room. She was fed up with it all, tired of being wanted for her body. Mina moved to follow her. Sophia stopped and held up her hand. She needed time alone to collect herself. “No, Mina, let me be alone for a moment.”

(c) copyright 1998-2007 New Concepts Publishing

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