Fates, Mates & Apple Turnovers Read online

  Fates, Mates, and Apple Turnovers

  A Cupid’s Valentine Spin-Off

  DANI GRAY

  &

  LISA OLIVER

  Copyright © 2019

  Fates, Mates and Apple Turnovers (A Cupid’s Valentines spin-off)

  Copyright © Dani Gray and Lisa Oliver, 2019

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

  Cover Design by Lisa Oliver

  Background images purchased from Shutterstock.com

  First Edition February 2019

  All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying, recording or by any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the authors.

  No part of this book may be scanned, uploaded or distributed via the internet or any other means, electronic or print, without permission from the authors. Warning: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000. Please purchase only authorized electronic or print editions and do not participate in or encourage the electronic piracy of copyrighted material. Your support of the author’s rights and livelihood is appreciated.

  Fates, Mates and Apple Turnovers is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Table of Contents

  Fates, Mates, and Apple Turnovers

  A Cupid’s Valentine Spin-Off

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Epilogue

  About the Authors

  Dedication

  Firstly, I want to give a huge shout out to Lisa. When she suggested this, I almost cried at the thought of working with someone who has not only help mentor me, but has become like a family member. She has offered me so much, for which I feel I give her too little in return.

  Thank you for being the amazing person you are!

  Second, to my family. You put up with me always shushing you so I can type out all the crazy idea’s that are in my head. Thank you for putting up with me, love you guys!

  Chapter One

  Peter Ames knew what he was doing was disgusting, but he was so hungry. He wasn’t able to find work, no one would hire him since he didn’t have an address or any documents. The last time someone beat him up, they stole his backpack with his wallet in it. He really didn’t care about that, but they took the only picture he had of his mom. He still cried every time he thought about losing that picture.

  Peter frowned, his fingers were shaking. Actually, it was more than his fingers, his whole body was wracked with faint tremors. Stealing his nerves, he carefully opened the lid of the dumpster, forcing himself up and over the lip of it which was almost as tall as he was. Peter loved the smells from that emanated from the bakery – unfortunately, the dumpster didn’t smell anything like freshly baked breads and sweet treats. But Peter had no choice. He couldn’t walk through the front door – not without any money in his pocket. As the shaking in his limbs increased, he prayed he’d find something that would sit right in his gut.

  So intent on moving around the dumpster, opening one foul smelling garbage bag after another, Peter didn’t realize someone had come out the back door of the premises until sharp words made him freeze.

  “Can I help you with something?”

  Peter spun around so fast he fell over in the bags.

  “Eww.” Peter shook his hand trying to get the wet coffee grinds off it.

  “Why are you in my garbage?” A blond, really pretty face peered over the edge of the dumpster. He didn’t look angry – more curious than anything.

  “Your dumpster? I’m sorry, just let me get out. I won’t bother you again.” Peter scrambled about, trying to gain his footing, determined not to cry at the thought of not getting anything to eat.

  “I’m not stopping you getting out, but you still haven’t told me why you’re in my garbage?”

  “Cause I’m so hungry, and your shop always smells so good,” Peter said, grabbing hold of his stomach. He was on his feet, out of the dumpster, but the shakiness was still running through his limbs.

  “I always give my leftovers to the shelter, why don’t you go there and get something to eat?” The blond tilted his head as though it was the most obvious thing in the world for a poor person to do.

  “I can’t go to the shelter.” Peter wrapped his arms tighter around his aching stomach.

  “Why not? That’s what those places are there for, to help feed and house the homeless. That’s why all my leftovers go to them every day. Honestly, I can call the guy and let him know to expect you if you like?”

  Peter hung his head in shame. “I can’t be seen around there. It’s not safe for me. There are a couple of guys there who won’t leave me alone, always pushing me around and when I heard what they were going to do to me the next time they saw me, I ran and never went back. I can’t fight them.”

  “What were they going to do.” The pretty blond man asked, and he looked mad.

  Peter took a step back, getting ready to run.

  “They were going to rape me and leave my body in a dumpster just like this one,” Peter whispered.

  “What!”

  Peter cringed at the volume of the blond’s voice, willing his limbs to cooperate as he readied himself to run. But something was stopping him.

  Looking down, he saw the man had put his hand on his arm, but wasn’t trying to hold him. There was no pressure in the grip.

  “Please, let me help you.”

  Moving so he could look into the man’s eyes, Peter could see the honesty in the request.

  “Why would you help someone like me? I just tried to steal from you.”

  The pretty blond snorted. “I don’t consider it stealing when someone tries to take something I’ve thrown away. And as for helping you, I want to. Even though I have never been in your situation, I refuse to stand by and not help.” He took his hand off Peter’s arm and held out his hand to him instead.

  “Hi, I’m Cupid. I own the store. Would you like to come in and get something to eat?”

  Shaking Cupid’s hand, Peter shook his head.

  “I wish I could, but I don’t have any money.”

  “Ah, a proud man. I like it. Would you consider an exchange, I will give you enough food to feed yourself today, and you can do my dishes in return?”

  “Can I do some extra work and maybe get some food for my twin?” Peter asked, his hope rising just a little bit. “I don’t mind working hard, but it’s been days since we’ve eaten.”

  “Sure, I have a lot of dishes that need to be done. The last guy who worked here quit to move with his girlfriend because she had a better paying job offer.”

  “I’ll work as much as you need me to.” Peter knew he had tears in his eyes. “I’m so grateful that you are help
ing me like this.”

  “Come on,” Cupid turned to walk back into the shop. “Let’s get you cleaned up and fed, then you can begin the dishes.”

  Following Cupid, Peter timidly stepped into the bakery to the most amazing smells. When his stomach let out a loud rumble, Peter was sure his face was about to start on fire with how embarrassed he was.

  Looking up when he heard laughter, he was upset at hearing Cupid laugh.

  “I’m going to take that as a compliment to my food,” Cupid said, smiling at him.

  Peter ducked his head, even more embarrassed at thinking that Cupid was laughing at him.

  “Come over here and have a seat.”

  Moving in the direction of where Cupid pointed, he was surprised to see a small table with two chairs.

  “My boyfriend and I will sit here and eat together when he has a chance to come by. We try to eat as many meals together as we can, but our jobs sometimes makes that difficult.”

  “That’s so great.” Peter smiled at his new friend. “I know it’s hard to spend time together when you have time conflicts. My brother and I used to spend a lot of time together, but when we began to work, it became harder and now….” He trailed off. He didn’t want to think about how badly their lives had changed, especially when all he could focus on was the delicious smells of fresh baked goods.

  Cupid came back over to the table with a couple of plates in his hands. Passing one of the plates to him, Peter was so excited at the amount of food on the plate, he quickly grabbed a half the sandwich and began to eat. He had to fight not to just shovel the food into his mouth. He never knew that a tuna sandwich could taste that good.

  “I have my sister, who is my best friend.” Cupid said, in between mouthfuls of his own food. “She runs the front of the store, while I do all the baking and food preparation. We have been talking about hiring someone to help me. Do either you or your brother know anything about baking or food prep?”

  Peter quickly swallowed the bit of food in his mouth, wiping it with a napkin.

  “I used to help in a coffee shop, but in the back like this.” Peter sighed, thinking about how much he had loved that job. “I lost my job when we had to run.”

  “What happened? Why are you guys on the streets like this?”

  Peter hesitated. It wasn’t a story he shared with anyone, but Cupid was so open and trusting and it was almost as though the store welcomed him as he came through the door. “Our mom had been murdered,” he whispered slowly, “and we didn’t know who our father was. One night, the guys who killed our mom broke into the place to kill us, so me and my brother ran away.”

  “What are the police doing about all this? Surely, they have resources in place to help people like you?” Cupid demanded to know.

  “The police have never helped us before, so we didn’t bother going to them. The last time we tried, they told us to stop bothering them.” Peter could still remember his meeting with the authorities and flushed with shame at the laughter he’d endured.

  “Well, I can call my husband.” Cupid smiled brightly. “He’s a detective and he should be able to help you.”

  “I don’t know if he can,” The last thing Peter needed was more people looking into his life. “We’re actually are from a small town in Montana, and I don’t think he can help since I assume he works here. Police jurisdiction and all that.” Peter hoped he used the right words.

  “Hmmm, I’ll have to ask him. After sharing a story like that, I think we can both do with a drink.” Cupid looked around the kitchen. “Ah, there it is.”

  Peter watched as Cupid got up and walked through an open doorway.

  “I knew I had left some here.” A smiling Cupid said, holding up a bottle of something.

  “What is that?” Peter wasn’t sure what was in the bottle, but when Cupid opened it, he smelled something sweet and alcoholic.

  “This is my homemade brew.” Cupid said, handing Peter a small amount of it in the shot glass. “I think you will like this, I found a great recipe for candy cane vodka.”

  Peter grabbed the glass and held it up to his nose. “It does smell really good.”

  Taking a small sip, he was surprised at how he wasn’t able to taste the vodka, but he got a mouthful of sweetness.

  “Oh,” Peter moaned, “this is really good.”

  Slowly finishing his food, he kept sipping the drink until they were both all gone.

  “So,” Peter looked around, “where are the dishes I can help you with? But I must admit, I think I got the better end of the deal, that food was so good.”

  Cupid laughed, “It was a couple of tuna sandwiches. But fine, if you’re sure, come this way.”

  The two men got up and Cupid led the way to the wash area.

  “Here’s where all the remains of my baking ends up,” Cupid said with a flourish, indicating the sink are piled high with plates, bowls, and utensils of all shapes and sizes. “You can rinse the dishes here, and then they go into the industrial dishwasher. Have you used one of these before?”

  Peter walked over and looked at the dishwasher.

  “Yup, this is the same type the other shop had.”

  “Okay then,” Cupid gave him another smile, “I’ll let you get to work, and we can chat later about you possibly having this job.”

  Peter almost danced in happiness. “If you are happy with my work, I would love to keep coming back and working for you.”

  He could hardly wait to get back and tell his twin Harvey about their good luck.

  Chapter Two

  Peter looked around, then pressed his ear to the solid wooden door. One knock, a second one and then three quick taps. The third tap had barely finished when the door opened, and Peter was hauled inside. “Come see what I found for us,” Harvey said with an excited grin. “Three cans of corn, whole cans, just a bit dented. I was so hungry, I ate the fourth can I found, but that was all, I promise. I wanted to share the rest with you.”

  “You’re a good brother, Harvey.” Peter let himself be pulled into a huge Harvey hug. At almost two foot taller and twice as heavy, his twin was a kind simple soul, who’d been crushed by the murder of their mother. When work proved hard to come by, his brother was always telling him he had to eat first, always teasing him about needing to grow more. As an adult, Peter knew he’d never grow any taller than his five foot four frame, and he’d always been skinny. Harvey took after their absent father, while Peter favored his mother. A mother he wasn’t going to think about now.

  “Look what I got for us,” he said, pulling out of Harvey’s arms and holding up the big paper bag. “I was scavenging for food in the dumpster outside that lovely smelling bakery, you know the one that always smells so good. Well, the owner caught me….”

  “Did he hurt you?” Harvey growled. “If he hurt you….”

  “No, no, no, nothing like that, I promise. Cupid is a good man.” Peter was quick to assure his brother. “Look, he invited me in, gave me food in exchange for washing dishes. Even better, he says I can go back tomorrow. Harvey, I’ve got a job. Isn’t that exciting?”

  “A job?” Harvey’s dark green eyes widened. “A real job, with regular pay and everything?”

  “With regular pay and everything, although tonight he just gave me food. But Harvey, think about what this means….”

  “We could save up,” Harvey said excitedly, dragging Peter over to the overturned beer crate they used as a table. “We can save up and rent us a little house, small and out in the country….”

  “Not too far,” Peter warned with a laugh. “I still have to go to work and I don’t want to walk miles to get there. But yes Harvey, we can finally have a small home of our own.” Sitting his butt on the floor, he looked around at the warehouse office where there’d been staying. The entire block of warehouses had long been abandoned and squatters came and went in the huge expanse of space below. Peter knew the only reason they hadn’t been ousted from the office, which offered them some semblance of privacy, w
as because of Harvey’s meaty fists and growl. It was dark, cold at night and the tap in the corner constantly dripped. Peter looked at their two sleeping mats that offered little comfort against the concrete floors. “We can finally get a bed,” he said. “Maybe even one each.”

  “Then we do have something to celebrate.” Harvey beamed. But then his eyebrows came together. “You’re going to be all right, aren’t you? You didn’t feel the need to shift, or get any bad vibes from that place. You know I can work. I just have to find someone….”

  Peter’s heart ached for his brother. Harvey was so sweet, but most people took one look at his size and were often scared of him. What was worse was the people who weren’t scared of him – the ones who looked at his size and saw him as a challenge. Harvey trusted absolutely everyone and had been badly hurt in the past as a result. “Let me get settled in with my job,” he said, patting his brother’s arm. “Then maybe, I can ask Cupid if he knows of any construction crews hiring in the area. But honestly, I swear the place is fine. The bakery is even warded, did you know that?”

  Harvey shook his head.

  “I felt them as soon as I walked through the doors. They just tingled against my skin and then I swear it was like the walls were welcoming me. Isn’t that strange?

  “This Cupid is human?”

  It was Peter’s turn to nod as he pulled out the thick pack of sandwiches Cupid insisted he take, along with a half a dozen donuts and a couple of bottles of soda pop. “He’s definitely human and I didn’t get any sense he knows about the paranormal world the way he was talking. But someone very powerful is watching out for him. Who knows, because the wards let me in, maybe that same person can watch out for us too?” He could tell Harvey was undecided.

  “We take each day as it comes, bro, remember?” Peter said gently holding out one of the sandwiches. “I’m in no danger. Cupid is a really decent human being. All I’m doing is washing dishes there.”