CHAPTER 1<\/p>\n
A note from Cupid\u2019s diary:<\/em><\/p>\n In my opinion, these subjects needed a hand from me because Kole Trillion was Detective Gage Corwin\u2019s prime suspect in a fraud case. He accused her of being a con artist and fleecing the customers of her shop. He absolutely refused to believe she was really a witch. And a good witch? Not a chance!<\/p>\n To be honest, at first, I only focused on them because Trillion issued me a challenge–not that she realized it–and I\u2019ve never been able to resist a dare. Though, on second thought, I probably would\u2019ve targeted them eventually, because Corwin was such a hardass.<\/p>\n Humans! What a joke they are. They think just because they live in what they call the \u201ctwenty-first century,\u201d it\u2019s acceptable to be cynical and scientifically minded. They don\u2019t even believe in magic anymore.<\/p>\n The other gods tell me this is something I have to accept, I should be used to it by now, I need to just deal with it and blah, blah, blah, ad infinitum.<\/p>\n To them I say: get real! I may have to live with the humans\u2019 lack of faith, but I don\u2019t have to like it. So, when I got the chance for a little payback on Corwin–well, what was I supposed to do? And although they might not admit it, all the other gods would\u2019ve done exactly the same thing.<\/p>\n Corwin not only didn\u2019t believe in magic, he didn\u2019t believe in love. Which meant the arrogant fool didn\u2019t believe in me. And that really stuck in my craw. On top of that, he had the audacity to laugh at me. Which, as any god will tell you, is going just a bit too far. But I\u2019m getting off the track here. I didn\u2019t shoot Trillion. I didn\u2019t need to. The silly little fool was already in love with Corwin. Poor thing.<\/p>\n I also didn\u2019t shoot Corwin–at first. I figured that, in all fairness, I should see if he and Trillion would connect on their own. So before I shot him, I clobbered him over the head with my bow and gave him a monster headache, trying to make him go to Trillion\u2019s Magic Closet for help. It took him three days, but he went. Served him right, too. Didn\u2019t believe in love? Hah! I guess I showed him.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n A small shop in Morro Bay, California, on a Sunday afternoon in early January<\/em>:<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m sorry, Kole, but he\u2019s doing it again.\u201d<\/p>\n Alarmed by the anxiety in her assistant\u2019s voice, Kole dropped her clipboard and spun around. She scanned the interior of her shop but saw nothing amiss.<\/p>\n \u201cJesus, Lynn, can\u2019t you be a little more specific?\u201d Exasperated, she knelt to retrieve her scattered papers. \u201cYou sound just like one of my nephews tattling on his brothers,\u201d she said, fishing for wayward pages under the shelves. She straightened up, documents in hand, and began putting her inventory sheets back in order. \u201cAnd like my sister always tells them, if I don\u2019t know who you\u2019re referring to, I can\u2019t do much about whatever he\u2019s doing again.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m talking about that awful cop. He\u2019s sitting on the hood of his car outside, shooting dirty looks at our store.\u201d<\/p>\n Kole glanced out the window. Sure enough, there sat Detective Gage Corwin. And every gorgeous inch of the six-foot hunk looked hard and implacable. She suffered a sharp pang of longing as he raked his hands through his thick chestnut hair and shifted his exceptionally fine ass to another spot on the car.<\/p>\n \u201cHas he been here long?\u201d<\/p>\n Lynn hesitated. \u201cAlmost an hour. I didn\u2019t say anything earlier because I hoped he\u2019d go away before you realized he was out there. I\u2019m sorry,\u201d she repeated when Kole opened her mouth to protest. \u201cI just hate how his attitude hurts your feelings.\u201d She walked over and rubbed a comforting hand down Kole\u2019s back. \u201cBut since the bastard isn\u2019t leaving, I figured I\u2019d better tell you.\u201d<\/p>\n The scowl on Gage\u2019s chiseled face did more than just hurt Kole\u2019s feelings. It gouged holes in her heart that bled her emotions dry. \u201cHas he been questioning all our customers again?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo, not all of them this time. Just the women.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMaybe he\u2019s looking for a date.\u201d Forcing herself to ignore the pain, Kole went back to checking her stock of love potions.<\/p>\n \u201cOh, sure. Like, he really wants to date anyone who buys products from you<\/em>. He thinks you\u2019re evil, Kole. A true daughter of Satan.\u201d When Kole chuckled, Lynn sighed. \u201cOkay, maybe that\u2019s not entirely accurate. But he definitely sees you as a charlatan and a fraud. A criminal.\u201d Bristling with indignation, she tapped her foot on the pale stone floor. \u201cThe man has no respect for you or for magic.\u201d<\/p>\n With her hands fisted on her hips, she glared out the window at Gage. \u201cHe\u2019s a menace, Kole. Why you don\u2019t just put a spell on him? Or slip him a potion\u2014anything to make him go away and leave us alone?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBecause the first law of white magic is to harm none.\u201d And because her foolish heart had it bad for the mouthwatering detective. But Kole was determined to keep that dirty little secret to herself.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat about the damage he\u2019s doing to us?\u201d Lynn demanded.<\/p>\n Kole swallowed a laugh. Like a dog with its proverbial bone, her assistant just couldn\u2019t let go. Shaking her head, Kole concentrated on her inventory and let the woman rant.<\/p>\n \u201cOur customers don\u2019t like being interrogated every time they come here, and a lot of them are staying away.\u201d Lynn waved a hand around the store. \u201cWe\u2019ve only had a dozen customers since noon. Even our online sales are dropping.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOh, come on, Lynn. That\u2019s not Detective Corwin\u2019s fault.\u201d Kole picked up a bright red bottle of Love Potion No. Two-Fourteen and frowned. The magic was fading. \u201cBeen on the shelf too long,\u201d she muttered. \u201cNeeds recharging.\u201d She looked over at Lynn. \u201cYou know as well as I do business is always slow this time of year. After Christmas, people take a break from the crowds and shopping. Things\u2019ll pick up again by Valentine\u2019s Day.\u201d Slipping the love potion into the pocket of her jeans, she marked its status on the inventory. \u201cDon\u2019t worry. Our customers are loyal. They always come back.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNot if that son-of-a-bitiching cop has his way.\u201d Lynn\u2019s lips curved into a sly grin. \u201cYou know what you need to do, don\u2019t you?\u201d She didn\u2019t wait for an answer. \u201cYou need to slip him some love potion. That\u2019d fix his wagon. He\u2019d be so crazy about you, he\u2019d be willing to do anything for you. Even if what you ask is for him to just leave you alone.\u201d<\/p>\n Kole laughed. \u201cYou can\u2019t be serious.\u201d When Lynn nodded, she groaned. \u201cHaven\u2019t you heard anything<\/em> I tell my customers? Love potions can\u2019t force a man to love you. They can\u2019t take away someone\u2019s choice. The spell doesn\u2019t even work unless there\u2019s already some affection between the two people involved. And then it only lasts for seventy-two hours. After that, the couple\u2019s on their own.\u201d<\/p>\n Finished with the love potions, she moved on to the health remedies. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t have any effect on strangers. And it certainly<\/em> won\u2019t work on enemies.\u201d<\/p>\n She paused, sensing a presence close by. But when she looked around, all she saw was Gage, still leaning against his car, his striking amber eyes glaring at her store, his full, sensuous lips pressed into a hard, thin line. Was it just his negative emotions she\u2019d felt? She shook off her unease, telling herself she was being paranoid.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd in case you hadn\u2019t noticed, Lynn, that man out there really hates me.\u201d<\/p>\n Lynn\u2019s shoulders drooped. \u201cYou\u2019re probably right,\u201d she said, her words coming out in a huff. \u201cToo bad there isn\u2019t really a Cupid with his magic bow and arrow. Corwin would make the perfect target.\u201d<\/p>\n Kole winced. She knew there was<\/em> a Cupid\u2014and her heart would love to have the little God aim an arrow with her name on it at Gage. But her head knew better. Cupid was a capricious God, and He didn\u2019t take requests from mortals. Not that she\u2019d ever ask. She wouldn\u2019t really want Gage to love her unless he chose to do so of his own free will. And that would never happen.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile it pains me to admit it,\u201d she said, \u201cthe man despises me so much, I doubt Cupid\u2019s arrow would have any more effect on his granite heart than my love potions would.\u201d She fought back the tears that threatened to give her away, disgusted with herself for letting Gage get to her like this. \u201cAfter all, Cupid\u2019s not a very big God, and I can\u2019t imagine He\u2019d be powerful enough to overcome all the hostile, male aggression that makes up Detective Corwin. Besides\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n She glanced over in surprise as the bell on the shop door jingled. Strange. The door hadn\u2019t opened. And the windows were closed, so there wasn\u2019t any breeze. Only she and Lynn were in the shop, and neither of them had gone near the front door. So who, or what, rang the bell?<\/p>\n A sudden chill skated down her spine, and she trembled with the knowledge her life was about to change. Irrevocably. She squeezed her eyes shut in dismay. Although she hadn\u2019t gotten a sense of dread to go with the premonition\u2014this time\u2014she was too much of a realist to believe whatever was coming might be a change for the better. Her life just didn\u2019t work that way.<\/p>\n \u00a9 2011 by Pepper O’Neal<\/p>\n BACK TO BLURB\u00a0<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 READ REVIEWS<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" CHAPTER 1 A note from Cupid\u2019s diary: In my opinion, these subjects needed a hand from me because Kole Trillion was Detective Gage Corwin\u2019s prime suspect in a fraud case. 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\nNormally, I\u2019m an easy-going, fun-loving god. But when that narrow-minded, hard-headed, bigoted son-of-a–er, oops. Sorry. Got carried away for a moment. Gods aren\u2019t supposed to swear. It lacks class. And I probably shouldn\u2019t have used that particular phrase, anyway. It isn\u2019t really offensive enough to describe the jerk, and I wouldn\u2019t want to insult the gods\u2019 best friends by comparing them with someone like Gage Corwin.<\/p>\n
\nWho knows, it might even have worked. However, when he laughed at me…well. as they say in the twenty-first century, \u201call bets are off.\u201d<\/p>\n