An Unusual Cupid Pamela Caves Smashwords Edition Copyright 2011 Pamela Caves Learn more about this author at www.PamelaCaves.com Cover art editing and design by Pamela Gifford, Creative Services/ www.PamelaGifford.com Smashwords Edition License Notes This ebook is free from Smashwords.com. It is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please go to Smashwords.com and download an additional copy. Message From Pamela Caves: This story is provided free to my readers and supporters. It is my Valentine's gift to everyone who follows me on my social networks and reads my work. My deepest appreciation goes to all of you. Happy Valentine's Day! *** "Pssst, Dude." At first Marcus ignored the man across the aisle of the bus. He refused to respond to someone who referred to him as "dude". But the guy seemed relentless. “Dude!" came the urgent whisper. Then there was a flick of the guy's hand across his arm. "Yo, Dude." Marcus huffed and closed his book. He silently cursed his car. The transmission had died and would take a week or more to get fixed. And of course there were no available rentals nearby so Marcus had been forced to take the bus. If it hadn't been Valentine's day this weekend, he would've canceled the trip to Chicago altogether. It was Mom and Dad's anniversary. Had Dad still been alive, they would've been married for 32 years. He didn't want to leave Mom alone this weekend. But taking the bus had tested the limits of how far he was willing to go for her. He would joke around about it to her once he got there. To make matters worse, the novel he had packed for the bus ride wasn't in his bag. Instead, he'd found a completely different book, a Stephen King novel, tucked away in his carry-on. It wasn't usually his genre but so far the novel was pretty good. However, Yo, Dude man was putting a damper in an otherwise barely tolerable ride. "Can I help you?" The man was a little younger then Marcus's 30 years. He wore a blue button down shirt and khakis; not a badly dressed man at all if not slightly dated. His blonde hair was cut neat and trim and he was clean shaven. Not what he expected from someone who would loudly whisper Yo, Dude. The man had a goofy grin across his face. He leaned over toward Marcus as if to keep the conversation just between them. "See that chic up there? Second row?" Marcus was about the fifth or sixth row back. He sighed, annoyed that the Yo, Dude man had bothered him just for a peek at some woman. He caught a glimpse of the back of a curly, long haired brunette head. Nothing unusual. Nothing spectacular. "And?" Marcus said, a hint of sarcasm cutting into his tone. "And she's quite the eye candy." Despite the irritation that Marcus felt he was clearly portraying, Yo, Dude man was still grinning as if he'd just discovered the secret of farts. "Why don't you go say hi? I think she's reading the same book." "Why don't you go say hi?" Marcus opened the book back up and tried to find where he’d left off. Apparently Yo, Dude man couldn't take a hint. Marcus felt another flick across his arm. "Because, I'm chained down." The guy held up his hand to show off a gold band. He was still grinning like a doofus. The guy leaned over again. "Listen, I have a kind of sense for these things. If you don't like her, I'll pay you $100. Are you game?" Marcus narrowed his eyes at him, trying to determine if he meant it. A stranger was offering him $100 just to go talk to some random woman. He could definitely use $100. Who couldn't? Although Marcus doubted he’d ever see the money, it would be worth the effort just to get the guy off his back. "Fine. And if I don't, will you leave me the hell alone?" "Sure." The silly grin grew wider. Marcus rose and made his way toward the brunette. When he sat down beside her, she jumped in her seat. She was pretty, yes, but Marcus had no intention of staying long. She smirked and her brown eyes glistened. Marcus found himself loving the oval shape of them. "You didn't like your seat?" Marcus snickered at her attitude. "I liked my seat just fine. Just thought I'd say hi." "Oh," she said, seeing the Stephen King novel in his hand. "So you saw I was reading the same book and what? Came to discuss it?" She used sarcasm quite well. Marcus was impressed. "Don't tell me that you somehow stashed this thing into my bag when I wasn't looking." "Excuse me?" "This book," she said, holding up her copy of the Stephen King novel. "I know I packed a James Patterson novel. This was in it's place." Marcus was momentarily stunned. "No, I promise, I wouldn't do such a thing." "Hmmm," she said, clearly suspicious. Marcus looked back over his shoulder. The Yo, Dude man wasn't there. At first Marcus thought that maybe he could've went to the bathroom but an older lady was in the process of scooting out of it. Where the crap did he go? "I'm Emily." Marcus turned his attention back to her but was still clearly confused. "Marcus." *** The two of them spent the next couple of hours conversing about books, celebrities, and they even played an impromptu game of hang man. Marcus discovered that Emily was on her way to visit her brother for the weekend in the same part of Chicago where Marcus's mom lived. To make things even more strange, Emily actually lived two blocks down from Marcus in Moline. When they reached the terminal in Chicago, Marcus gave Emily his phone number and she promised to call. As she stood to get her things from the overhead, a piece of paper fell from her pocket. Marcus picked it up and without really meaning to, glanced at it. His heart caught in his throat. "Emily, who is this?" The picture was of Emily and the Yo, Dude man in front of a statue he didn’t recognize. Emily had her arms wrapped around him, planting a kiss on his cheek and Yo, Dude man had that same ridiculous grin. "Oh," she said, taken by surprise. "That was my husband, Derrick." "Was?" Emily took the picture back and looked at it thoughtfully. "I'm sorry. That must've looked bad." She smiled apologetically. "Derrick died a couple of years ago. Cancer." Marcus felt his stomach flip. "I'm sorry." "Thank you. It was a few years ago so the sting has worn off but I still miss him." Marcus remembered his Dad. "You always miss the ones you love, no matter how long it's been," he said thoughtfully. As they disembarked, Marcus searched over every face but didn't see Yo, Dude man again. "Hey, you wanna share a taxi?" Emily asked. He wasn't sure what had just happened but he knew it was something very special. Marcus smiled at her. "Sure." And he followed her out the front entrance of the terminal. ### Pamela Caves is a content and fiction writer and lives in northern Alabama. Her debut novel, The Influence (contemporary science fiction), will be released mid to late 2012. For more on Pamela and her work, visit www.PamelaCaves.com.