Chapter 5 The Worst assignment Of My Immortal Life
♥ EDWARD'S POV
There were very few things in my immortal existence that could genuinely surprise me.
I had watched kings fall hopelessly in love with commoners, witnessed women leave wealthy men for broke musicians, helped a man propose to the same woman three times because he kept losing the ring, and once spent six months convincing a particularly stubborn prince that the woman he was courting did not, in fact, hate him.
I had seen almost every kind of romantic disaster imaginable.
Then I met Isabel Penelope Miller.
And somehow, this woman had managed to make me question whether immortality was really as wonderful as everyone claimed.
I stood across the street from her bookstore, watching her move behind the glass.
She had already told me to leave.
Several times.
Yet there I was, standing on the pavement like a man who had forgotten how doors worked.
I couldn't blame her for being angry. From her perspective, I had appeared out of nowhere, told her I was a Cupid, shot an arrow at her, and then somehow expected her to listen calmly while I explained myself.
It didn't help that she had actually caught the arrow.
That part still bothered me.
A human shouldn't have been able to see a Cupid's arrow, let alone touch it.
Yet Isabel had done both without so much as a blister.
I had spent the entire morning trying to understand it.
I had failed.
The bookstore door opened, and her friend from last night, Kara, stepped outside.
She spotted me almost immediately. “You're still here?”
“Yes I am.”
She glanced through the window at Isabel, who was busy arranging a display of books.
“Does she know you're still outside?”
“I hope so.”
“And she hasn't attempted to call the police again?”
“Not yet.”
Kara smiled. “Hmm. I guess that's progress.”
She folded her arms and studied me for a moment. “Why are you still standing here, though?”
“Because I need to talk to her.”
“I thought you've already talked to her.”
“Yes. But I need her to listen.”
Kara gave me a look that made it very clear she wasn't impressed. “Edward, you do realize that telling someone you are a magical creature from another world and that they are your assignment isn't exactly the best way to make them trust you?”
Of course Isabel had told her about it.
“I know,” I said.
“Do you?”
“Yes.”
She raised an eyebrow.
I sighed. “Fine. I'm beginning to understand it now.”
Kara laughed softly. “She thinks you're crazy.”
“I've gathered that.”
“She also thinks you're stalking her.”
“I'm not stalking her.”
“Yet you're standing outside her bookstore, watching her through the window.”
“When you say it like that, it does sound rather questionable.”
“Because it is.”
I looked toward the bookstore again.
Isabel was reaching for a book on the top shelf. She stretched onto her toes, failed to reach it, and muttered something under her breath before dragging a small stool toward the shelf.
I smiled without realizing it.
Kara noticed. “Oh, you're in trouble.”
I looked at her. “What?”
“You just smiled while looking at her.”
I stopped smiling completely. “I don't know what you're talking about.”
“Sure.”
She turned toward the door. “Anyway, if you really want Isabel to hear you out, stop chasing her around and give her a reason to believe you're not completely insane.”
“How will I do that?”
“Talk to her like a normal person.”
“I've never been particularly good at being normal.”
“I noticed.”
She looked me up and down before opening the door. “And Edward?”
“Yes?”
“That is your name, right?”
“Yes.”
“I'd stop with the crazy tactics you're coming up with and get yourself some better-looking modern clothes.”
I looked down at my coat.
I had always thought it looked perfectly respectable.
Apparently, humans disagreed.
I nodded.
Kara disappeared into the bookstore.
I remained outside.
For once, I decided to follow someone's advice.
I wouldn't force my way inside her life.
I wouldn't use my magic yet.
I wouldn't shoot another arrow at her.
I would simply wait.
It was surprisingly difficult.
I had spent centuries solving problems with magic, yet now I was being asked to stand still and behave like an ordinary man.
Humans were strange.
After nearly half an hour, the bookstore door opened again.
Isabel stood there.
She still didn't look pleased to see me.
“You're still here,” she said.
“I said I would wait.”
“You didn't say that.”
“I thought about saying it.”
She sighed and folded her arms. “Five minutes.”
I wasn't sure what she meant. “What?”
“You wanted to explain yourself. You have five minutes to do that.”
I smiled wholeheartedly. “Thank you.”
“Don't thank me yet.”
She stepped aside, allowing me to enter the bookstore.
The warmth immediately wrapped around me, carrying the smell of coffee, paper, and something sweet. The rain outside had grown heavier, and the sound against the windows made the place feel even more comfortable.
I understood why Isabel liked working here.
It felt peaceful.
Almost too peaceful for someone with her temper.
She walked behind the counter and sat down.
I remained standing.
“You can sit,” she said reluctantly, pointing toward a chair.
I sat down.
She picked up her pen. “You have five minutes.”
“I understand.”
“And this time, no more lies.”
“I promise,” I assured her.
She nodded. “Good. Start talking.”
I folded my hands together.
“Firstly, I want to apologize.”
She looked up. “For what?”
“For yesterday. I shouldn't have frightened you that way.”
“You think?”
“I also shouldn't have fired the arrow after you told me not to.”
“No, you definitely shouldn't have.”
“I was trying to prove that I was telling the truth.”
“By shooting me?”
“Yes. I'm realizing now that it was a poor choice. I shouldn't have done that. I should have just listened to you.”
She leaned back slightly. “I'll admit, that's the first sensible thing you've said since I've met you.”
“I've said several sensible things, but you've just not been listening,” I muttered under my breath.
“What was that?” she asked.
“Nothing,” I said, loud enough for her to hear this time.
She narrowed her eyes at me.
Which made me smile.
Despite how mean she was, I liked talking to her.
Most people either believed me too quickly or became frightened when they realized I wasn't joking.
Isabel did neither.
She questioned everything.
It was refreshing.
“So,” she said, “let's say, for argument's sake, that I believe you. That you're really a Cupid.”
“Yes.”
“Do you have wings?”
“Yes.”
“Where are they?”
“Hidden.”
“Convenient for you.”
“They aren't visible to humans unless I want them to be.”
“Of course.” She tapped her pen against the desk. “And your job is to make people fall in love?”
“Not exactly.”
“Then what exactly do you do?”
“We help people recognize emotions they are already capable of feeling.”
She stared at me. “So you don't control people?”
“No.”
“Then why use arrows?”
“Cupid arrows don't create love. They encourage emotional openness. Think of them as a gentle nudge.”
She gave me a skeptical look. “That's still a shortcut.”
“Sometimes people need one.”
“Or perhaps people should be allowed to make their own choices.”
“They are.”
“Then why am I your assignment?”
That question was harder.
I leaned forward slightly. “Because you have closed yourself off from love completely.”
Her expression immediately became guarded. “You don't know anything about me.”
“No, I don't.”
“Then don't tell me what I feel.”
“Okay. I won't.”
She seemed surprised by that.
I continued quietly. “My assignment isn't to force you to fall in love.”
“Then what is it?”
“To help you become willing to consider it.”
She looked down at the papers on her desk. “And if I don't consider it?”
“Then I suppose I'll remain assigned to you until something changes.”
“That sounds like a threat.”
“It wasn't meant to.”
“Yeah, well, it sounded like one.”
“I'll work on my wording next time, then.”
She gave me a tired look. “You really don't understand humans very well, do you?”
“Not always.”
“So,” she said, “why me?”
“I don't know.”
That seemed to catch her off guard. “You don't know?”
“No.”
“You're a Cupid and you don't know why you were assigned to me?”
“The Elders don't exactly explain everything.”
“Who are these Elders?”
“The people who oversee our world.”
“And they just send you here without giving you any useful information?”
“They told me exactly enough.”
“What did they tell you?”
“That you were difficult.”
Her mouth fell open.
I immediately realized my mistake. “I'm sorry.”
She stared at me. “They actually described me as difficult?”
“They used different words.”
“What words?”
I hesitated. “Resistant. Unusually resistant.”
She folded her arms. “I don't think I like these Elders very much. They have no right to judge me.”
“I agree.”
Her eyebrows rose. “You agree?”
“Of course.”
She studied me for a moment. Then she sighed. “Fine. Keep going.”
“There's something else.”
“What?”
“Your reaction to my arrow.”
Her expression hardened again. “What about it?”
“Isabel, you caught it.”
“Yes. With my hand. I was there.”
“That isn't normal. You shouldn't have been able to see it. You shouldn't have been able to touch it.”
“But I did.”
I nodded. “Exactly.”
She looked at me carefully. “So what does that mean?”
“I don't know.”
Her shoulders relaxed slightly. “You really don't know anything, do you?”
“I know quite a lot.”
“Except about me.”
“Apparently.”
For some reason, that made her smile.
It was small, but genuine.
I smiled too.
Then I felt something strange.
A faint warmth moved through my chest.
I froze.
I had felt Cupid magic countless times.
This wasn't it.
I glanced down at my hands briefly.
When I looked back at Isabel, she was watching me.
“What?” she asked.
“Nothing,” I said quickly.
“But you just made a face.”
“I was... thinking.”
“About what?” she asked.
I looked at her for a moment.
I wasn't sure why I suddenly found it so difficult to answer.
Maybe because I hadn't expected it myself.
“About you.”
~
