The Alpha's Read online

  “Shit!” Down on hands and knees, she patted along the edge of the entry, hoping to locate her cell. She needed to find the damn thing; if her mother couldn’t get hold of her, she’d go ape.

  A sudden burst of light appeared, lighting the passage and enabling her search.

  “Nice arse,” said a familiar male voice behind her.

  Her first reaction to the man who had affected her so deeply in the bar was to groan at the expectation of further annoyance. Deep down though, she was grateful for a face she recognized. Not that she would be in a hurry to pass on that information.

  Phone successfully retrieved, Ana assumed a more ladylike position when she got back on her feet. “You’re stalking me now?” she asked, and for the first time, saw the ball of fire that seemed to hover in the palm of his hand. “All right. I give in. How do you do that?”

  He held the incandescent globe under his chin to light his handsome face with its unearthly glow. “First of all, yeah, I’m stalking you, but just to make sure none of those other supes try to take advantage of you. And secondly, this is my…er, gift.”

  Ana watched the sphere contract into a pinprick of light before turning into a fountain of what looked like electrical sparks. “I’ll bite. What’s a supe?” she asked, trying to ignore the thrill of excitement crackling along her skin and causing the hairs on the back of her neck to stand to attention at the sight of his impromptu firework display.

  “A supernatural being. Your mates have hooked up with werewolves, vampires, and oh, that was a merman that gave you the time of your life back there with the siren song,” Ana’s human torch casually explained while a shower of fire rained around him.

  “Right,” she drawled. “Supernatural beings. Just ‘cause I’m Irish, doesn’t mean I’m thick, you know. It’s a common misconception.” Ana turned and started the last leg of her journey toward the safety of her hotel room. Clearly, her drink had been spiked, as her mother always warned her about. How else could she be entertaining this conversation and the accompanying light show?

  “It’s true. The bar is a portal to other worlds and its energy attracts supernaturals like an Irishman to a distillery.” The teasing tone of his voice didn’t help his claim at all.

  Now caught up with her and matching her stride for stride, he carried on with the pursuit too. “I’m Zanaan, by the way. I usually go by Zane when I cross over here. You’re the only human who’s ever been able to see me. You know, without my prompting.” He gave an enigmatic smile.

  “Lucky me,” she replied with as much sarcasm as she could muster, hoping he would see she wasn’t so naïve as to fall for this nonsense. “Does that mean you’re a ghost or something? And what does that make me? A psychic?”

  “Not necessarily a psychic or a medium. More than likely, you’re simply sensitive to the presence of other beings. And I’m a Fire Elemental. A Salamander, to be exact,” he said, as if it explained everything.

  “Which is?” She crossed the road and felt some relief when she could see her hotel in the distance.

  “I’m one of nature’s…um, angels. We’re attached to every living thing and obviously, us Fire Elementals have a special relationship with fire.” For the first time since meeting him, Zanaan looked faintly embarrassed.

  “Well, you don’t look much like a lizard, and you certainly don’t act like an angel. In all the films I’ve ever seen, I don’t recall seeing them pick up women in bars.” Ana arched an eyebrow. She might not have had much experience with men using their chat-up lines on her, but surely, this had to be one of the worst. Pity. With his good looks and attempts to impress her, he was starting to grow on her.

  “We’re not your typical angels. More like defenders of the earth,” he said without a smidgeon of insincerity.

  “So, if you’re attached to the fire element of nature, what exactly is it you do?” she wondered aloud. It would take more than his David Copperfield act to back up this load of codswallop.

  “Is this where you’re staying?” he asked when they reached the door of the hotel, deftly changing the subject.

  “Yes.”

  “I’ll say goodnight then.” With a quick nod of his head, he abruptly left Ana on the steps.

  It hit her for six. Unless she had completely misread the situation, this man had been flirting with her and if she was honest with herself she had enjoyed that feeling of being wanted. Given the warm fuzzy feeling in the pit of her stomach, the sparky banter between them had also served as some sort of foreplay to her responsive body.

  So what was it that suddenly made him run for the hills? Perhaps, it was the same flaw in her character that had seen off her Internet friends in record time and the reason she should just slink back home: she bored people. The hasty dismissal at the end of her disenchanting evening brought an unexplainable surge of sorrow to the fore. Tears spilled over before she could stop them.

  Was she really so unlovable?

  Chapter Three

  In the name of Djin, Zanaan needed to get away from Ana for the sake of his own sanity. He had shared too much of his life already without putting his whole race at risk. He might not agree with their way of life, but he would never betray them.

  Only a few steps away from her and a bungee cord of raw emotion stopped him from going any farther, the total misery she emanated yanked him back to comfort her. The strong force put all thoughts out of his head, except the one about kissing her like he’d wanted to do from the minute their eyes had met.

  With long strides, he reached her in moments. He couldn’t bear to see her upset and her vulnerability made him powerless to resist his attraction. Cupping Ana’s tear-stained face in his hands, tentative, soft lips met his and forced him to rein in his usual tendency to go full-steam-ahead in his seduction. Teasing the seam of her mouth with the tip of his tongue, he coaxed her lips apart to slip inside and take a sweet taste.

  Ana shivered under his touch, a reminder that unlike him, she was susceptible to the chill of the night air. He broke off the kiss. “Are you cold?”

  She chewed her kiss-swollen bottom lip and nodded.

  “We’d better get you inside.” He opened the door for her and hesitated. “Do you want me to come with you?” He wanted her, hoped that by sleeping with her he would lose that inexplicable need to look after her. But by her shy demeanor, he could tell one-night stands weren’t her style. Somewhere under his selfish desire, he found his conscience and gave her the chance to back out.

  She surprised the hell out of him with her confident, definite, “Yes.”

  Normally, the emotional ramifications of a hook-up with a mortal female didn’t enter the equation. He was more concerned with his physical release or the possibility that one of these women could hold the key to the Elemental Legend he desperately longed to unlock. But this time, with Ana, somehow her feelings mattered more than all of that, and he didn’t want her to regret anything.

  With the hold she had over him, he followed her across the lobby and into the elevator like a faithful puppy, tongue practically hanging out and panting for her attention.

  Without a word, he pulled the cage-like shutter across the old-fashioned lift, and Ana pushed the button for her floor. Closed off from the outside world, they advanced on each other like too-long separated lovers. Ana tilted her heart-shaped face up to meet him, and this time, Zanaan took her mouth without reservation. Her arms wound around his neck, as he put his hands on her backside to pull her flush against his arousal.

  The ding of the elevator signaled their arrival, and reluctant though he was to call a halt to proceedings, he wanted somewhere private to enjoy the delights of his Irish lass. They detached themselves and emerged into the empty corridor.

  He brushed the swathe of her dark hair over her shoulder to expose her nape and busied himself by kissing the bared skin.

  She swiped the key card through the lock of her room door. “Stupid thing!” she complained when it wouldn’t open.

  “Let me,
” he said, taking the card from her shaking hand. Her actions didn’t quite have the same bravado as her words, another indication for him to take things slow.

  On opening the door, the first thing he spotted was the king-sized bed dominating the room. “You were expecting company?” he asked, a spike of jealousy piercing his ardor.

  The pink tinge to her pale complexion reclaimed her virtue and made her even more endearing. “I…er, wanted to treat myself.”

  Zanaan closed the door behind them and reached out to grab her. “Well, I’ll have to make sure I’m up to par then, won’t I? And make sure you’re one hundred percent satisfied with your ‘treat.’” He kissed her again. A long, hard, passionate kiss expressing his intentions toward her for the night. Ana returned it with an equal amount of lust and longing, all traces of coyness abandoned in the heat of the moment, and Zanaan had never wanted anyone as much in the two hundred and forty three years of his life.

  Infused with the flames of her arousal, he stripped out of his clothes to stand naked before her. Those almond eyes watched him, pupils so dilated they almost looked black. She made no move to undress, so Zanaan did it for her.

  “You’re beautiful,” he murmured, sliding the soft silk from her shoulders.

  Ana pressed into him, her round breasts cushioned softly against his chest, and any ulterior motive he harbored for sleeping with her was lost under the weight of desire. Once he freed her from the rest of her clothes and his limbs intertwined with hers, he eased Ana onto the covers of the bed. Lying on top of her, skin to skin, the urge to join their flesh together completely overwhelmed him, especially when her small hands started to explore the contours of his body. Down his chest, between his thighs, they swept a dangerous path to make his cock twitch with impatience.

  He groaned. “If you keep doing that, I can’t promise to remain a gentleman.”

  Ana smiled. The first genuine one he’d seen all night. “Who says I want a gentleman in my bed?” The light stroke of her fingers brushed the shaft of his cock. Zanaan jerked, his erection coming into direct contact with the soft trail of dark curls leading into her pussy.

  Oh, to be inside her, fucking her until she screams my name in ecstasy.

  But the night was young, and he had lots to discover—like the pert breasts he kneaded and palmed, and the rosy nipple that puckered in his greedy mouth. Ana moaned and spread her legs, rubbing her inner thighs along his hips. If she wasn’t careful, they would both literally go up in flames.

  ***

  When Zanaan came back to kiss her outside the hotel, passion had fought past Ana’s common sense and spoke directly to her burgeoning libido. Even now she wondered where this boldness had suddenly sprung from that found her naked under a stranger, legs wrapped around his waist and loving every minute. Maybe she could blame the alcohol, the flattery of male attention, or the fact that this trip away from home might be the only opportunity she had to enjoy all life had to offer. But one thing was for sure, she didn’t want it to stop.

  Zanaan slipped a finger inside her, and she gasped, her inner muscles tensing around him. His skilled hands soon brought her to that glorious peak she’d already reached once tonight, stroking and delving into the wet folds of her femininity. With his panting breath on her clammy skin and the ever-growing erection pressed against her, Ana pushed further into that uncharted realm of ecstasy until she burst apart. Nails digging into Zanaan’s biceps, she rode out every shudder of her climax, her shrill moans filled the hotel room as she came.

  Not giving her time to come back down to earth, Zanaan lifted her knees and speared her with his cock. She tried not to give herself away by crying out at the brief, sharp pain, but it was too late.

  “Is this your first time, Ana?” he asked, those mystic green eyes flickering with the flames of desire and the struggle of restraint.

  “Ssh.” She put a finger to his lips. “All I want is to feel normal for one night.” To feel loved, she wanted to add but didn’t.

  He braced all his weight on his extended forearms and stared deep into her eyes. Ana’s resolve didn’t waiver. She wanted this trip to be special, and so far Zanaan was fulfilling that wish. Lifting her head to kiss him, she ground her pelvis to his to prove how much she wanted this. How much she wanted him.

  He moved slowly at first, and her body soon adjusted to accept him. That brief pain was replaced by a feeling of completeness every time he drove into her core that she couldn’t get enough of. Ana dug her heels into his taut backside, arching her back to meet his pounding cock. With one last skin-slapping thrust, Zanaan gave an anguished cry, and Ana let go to come with him in the liquid rush of their release.

  Chapter Four

  As Zanaan poured into Ana’s willing body, the significance of the event hit him like a high-speed train. He was her first. The dizzying thought stayed with him even when he left her soothing warmth to collapse onto the cool cotton sheets.

  “If I had known—” He didn’t finish the sentence. He couldn’t so much as look at her, ashamed to have taken advantage of her, covering his eyes with his hands.

  “You’d have done what? Left me weeping in the middle of the street?” Ana seemed unperturbed to have given herself to someone who didn’t believe he deserved her innocence. “Zanaan—” He liked the fact she didn’t shy away from using his given name—”I know my own mind. It might have taken me a long time to realize it, but I’m an adult, and I’m done with people making decisions for me.” She rested a hand on his chest, above his heart. “I want this.”

  He uncovered his face to look at her. Her beauty, inside and out, took his breath away. An unknown surge of…something…swelled in the pit of his stomach.

  “Are you crying?” Ana asked, full of concern.

  “No,” he shot back. What a ridiculous thing for her to say! And then he felt a wet, telltale tear slip from the corner of his eye. Holy shit! “I must have something in my eye.” He leaped from the bed, stark bollock naked, and made a dash for the bathroom.

  Once he had locked the door behind him, he faced the mirror. There they were: genuine saltwater droplets of emotion. “What the fuck?” This wasn’t him. Hell, it shouldn’t even have been possible. Fire Elementals were not in the habit of showing this kind of weakness.

  He turned on the cold tap and splashed his face with water to drown the evidence, but all he could think about was the incredible lovemaking, which made him well up all over again. Lovemaking? Aw, hell! Running his fingers through his hair, he slid to the tiled floor of the bathroom and tried to make sense of his hormonal takeover.

  For years he had bedded woman after woman and walked away without wasting a second thought on any of them. His species didn’t even need to worry about contraception or disease because they were immune from human conditions.

  So why the menopausal meltdown over this one?

  A small knock on the door sounded, followed by Ana’s concerned voice. “Are you okay in there?”

  “I’m fine. Just going through some…stuff.”

  Somewhere in his overloaded system, the spark of awareness dimly glowed. One explanation of his condition jumped up and down with its hand in the air, the very reason he frequented that bar was in the hopes of fulfilling the prophecy. Ironically, that was the furthest thing from his mind when he’d joined with Ana.

  With renewed purpose, he got to his feet and yanked the door open. “I’ve got to go.”

  “Go where?” Ana sat on the edge of the bed and watched as he put his clothes back on.

  If he left her here, now, without an explanation, he would confirm his bastard status. “If you want to come with me, get dressed before it’s too late.”

  “Before what’s too late?” She’d already started picking up her discarded underwear from the floor.

  “You clearly didn’t believe what I told you earlier, so it’s best I show you.” Zanaan pulled up his jeans and buckled his belt, excitement spurring him on. This heralded a new beginning for him, one he’d l
onged for. But he needed to close the door on his old life first.

  ***

  Ana didn’t know if she was coming or going. Okay, she had done the coming and apparently now she was doing the going, but she didn’t have a clue what was happening. And she had to admit she felt a little cheated out of the afterglow she’d read so much about. Not one of her flowery romance novels described the heroine losing her virginity only to find the hero bursting into tears and telling her to get dressed.

  “You ready to go?” he asked eagerly, keeping his plans well guarded.

  “I’m ready.” Well, surely one more leap out of her comfort zone wouldn’t make any difference now. Not when eternal hell surely beckoned for this sinner and keeper of loose morals.

  Zanaan crossed the room to take her in his arms. Maybe he’s changed his mind about going out after all.

  “Hold on tight,” he said.

  Maybe not. Standing almost nose-to-nose with him gave her a clear view of his face and she could have sworn she saw a flash of amber flame in his irises. She would have queried it, but for the extraordinary event that followed. A whooshing wind whipped around their bodies and lifted them off their feet.

  Ana gave a yelp and closed her eyes, her head spinning, and the temperature of the room rapidly rising to scorching hot in a matter of seconds.

  “You can open them now,” Zanaan whispered.

  She didn’t know if she wanted to.

  “Ana, this is something I really want you to see.”

  Reluctantly, she peered out of one eye, then to make sure it wasn’t playing tricks on her, she pried open the other one. And instantly regretted it. Below their hovering bodies, a chasm of molten rock bubbled, the steam toasting the soles of her feet. Orange and red columns of fiery lava spurted from a crater too close for Ana’s comfort. She screamed and buried her head in the crook of Zanaan’s neck, his reassuring masculine scent preferable to the acrid smell of smoke.