Alice's Alpha

by Ann Gimpel

  “You are such an optimist.” Bron rolled his eyes.

  “It’s one of the reasons you love me.” Jed grinned.

  They were pitching horseshoes when the unmistakable sound of a large object crashing through timber made Jed’s head snap up. He took off running for the flat, open glade, where it was relatively easy to cross the creek. Bron and Terin followed. “What are we doing?” Terin asked.

  “Seeing if whoever fell is dead.”

  With Jed’s wolf senses dialed in, it didn’t take long to locate the man’s position. It took a while to get to him, though. The mountainside was a forty-five-degree slope covered with deadfall. At least the body was below the snowline. Terin got there first. He was hunkered next to a tall, unconscious, red-haired man when Jed climbed up to him. “Not dead.” Terin spat into the dirt, lips curled in disgust.

  “He could be,” Bron muttered, panting as he joined the other two.

  Jed knelt next to the Hunter and reached out with his shifter magic. The man was deeply unconscious. Jed probed his skull and found a large lump at its base. “Looks like he banged his head on a rock.”

  “Great. We can leave him here. Since you seem ambivalent about us killing him, the elements will do it for us.” Terin pushed to his feet.

  Jed shook his head. “No. He’s too close to the cabin. Last thing we need is the sheriff and coroner and a bunch of their boys around here. Remember, if any of them are Hunters, they’ll be able to smell us.”

  “We could leave earlier than we planned,” Bron suggested.

  “Yeah, we could, but I have a better idea. Let’s drag him to the cabin and chuck him over a horse. You two can haul him to the cars by Glacier Lodge. From there, it’ll be easy enough to drive him to the hospital in Bishop. That way we come off as Good Samaritans and if bozo here,” Jed thwacked the unconscious man with the back of his hand, “starts raving about smelling shifters up here, no one will suspect it was us.”

  A faint cry caught Jed’s wolf senses. “Brent. Brent.”

  The woman. He’d forgotten about her. Judging from the sound of things, she was still a long way up the mountain. He traded gazes with his lieutenants. “Yeah, we hear her, too,” Bron muttered. “Let’s get moving. We can deal with her later.”

  “Sure. She’ll thank us for getting her brother—or whoever he is—to medical care,” Terin said.

  “Each of you take an arm,” Jed instructed. “I’ll get below you, and you can lower him to me. We’ve got gravity on our side. It shouldn’t take all that long.”

  * * * *

  It had taken longer than he’d anticipated. The man, Brent, was heavy, maybe two hundred pounds. They’d dropped him a time or two but hadn’t managed to kill him. Jed breathed a sigh of relief once the Hunter was bundled across a horse and on his way down the trail with Terin and Bron riding beside him. It was unlikely he’d regain consciousness, but if he did, Bron would handle it. A talented healer, he could use a reverse spell to keep the Hunter quiescent until they got him to Bishop.

  Jed glanced at himself. His clothing was splattered with gore. The Hunter’s hands had scraped over rocks and sharp branches. They’d been slick with blood before the three of them had managed to maneuver him off the mountainside. Jed’s pants were soaked to the thighs. It had been impossible to balance on rocks crossing the creek, so they’d waded, their burden suspended between them.

  Jed sighed and set his jaw in a firm line. Killing the Hunter had been tempting, but their current plan was better. He’d lived long enough to know killing never solved anything. He shucked his clothes and rinsed them in the creek before draping them over the wooden railing that spanned the front porch. He’d move them inside once he got a fire going.

  He scented the air. It was rich with the scents of small rodents emerging from their dens. It had been dark for a while. Time to hunt and be hunted. He ducked inside and pulled on fresh wool trousers, a blue sweater, and a gray, boiled-wool jacket. He tossed kindling chips into the massive stone fireplace, crumpled bits of paper, and lit a match. He fed the fledgling fire larger pieces of wood until he had a respectable blaze going. The heat felt good.

  Even from inside the cabin, the woman’s scent had gotten stronger as she’d worked her way down the mountainside. He’d had to hold himself back. Every instinct he had was on edge. Maybe because he’d indulged himself earlier, her bouquet was intoxicating. Musk and wildflowers and something unique and womanly bombarded his enhanced sense of smell. She was right across the river, had been there for maybe half an hour. He’d heard the subtle sounds of her settling in to rest.

  It was time for him to slip back outside, into the darkness. He wanted to be there when she got close enough to talk with. He wasn’t sure what he’d do if she bedded down across the creek. It would be hard to come up with an excuse for disturbing her camp.

  I’ll come up with something.

  His cock had been hard for the last half hour. It was a long time since he’d been this aroused by a woman. Maybe that meant she was slated to be a shifter mate. Bron and Terin would be delighted. They’d all been lonely. They could share her…

  Stop! What am I going to do, tie her up and rape her?

  If that’s what it takes, a pragmatic inner voice answered.

  Shut up. She has to want me as much as I want her—and accept the mate bond. Otherwise, she’ll bide her time, escape, and bring the hordes of hell down on us.

  Jed shuttered his thoughts. He was desperately lonesome. Had been for years, but that didn’t excuse pretending. Either the mate bond would be there or it wouldn’t. It was never a one-sided affair. If the mate bond were present, she’d want him as much as he wanted her. Of course, it would be difficult for her to accept it, no matter how much she lusted after him. Most humans had been programmed to see shifters as akin to monsters.

  By the time he heard the woman slog across the creek, Jed had a plan. He’d charm the socks off her to keep her by his side long enough to get her to accept the mate bond—if it were there. He’d know about the bond almost instantly. It would take far longer to ease her into the idea. Jed flexed his fingers. Excitement raced through him. If her scent were any indication…

  If there’s no bond, I’ll send her on her way. No point in indulging myself in a fling, no matter how good she smells.

  Part of his magic was telepathic suggestion. It was how shifters managed to elude Hunters some of the time. He’d have to tread softly. She had to come to him of her own accord, not because he’d pushed in any way. And he’d have to tell her about what he was before anything at all happened. She was a virgin. He’d determined that by smell.

  Not for much longer. He grinned to himself. Once she’d had him, of course she’d want Terin and Bron. After all, they were a package deal… The mate bond magic would make her want them just as much as she wanted him.

  Stop! I’m getting way, way ahead of myself. I don’t even know for sure yet if the bond is there.

  Jed couldn’t rein in his hope. It burned like a beacon in his mind. He thought about how to tell her he was a shifter. It would be so much easier if he could bed her first, but the rules were excruciatingly clear. The human female had to know ahead of time what she was getting into. Once he’d had sex with her, she wouldn’t be able to keep her hands off him. It wasn’t fair if the woman’s mind and body weren’t in full agreement.

  “Sweetheart, there’s something I need to tell you,” Jed murmured. “Everything you’ve heard about shifters isn’t really true—” He shook his head. No, too defensive. He tried a few other tacks but wasn’t satisfied with any of them.

  Hold up, buddy. Jed chided himself again. I need to wait until I lay eyes on her and am sure before I plan out how to convince her to stay.

  He held himself in check until she’d made a less-than-stealthy circuit of the cabin before he approached her. Even though he knew her sex beyond any doubt, he called out, “Hey there. You. Show yourself, man,” to make her feel they were more evenly matched—both bein
g men and all.

  She was so tall anyone could have made that mistake. Jed was certain it had happened to her before. He was good at manipulating subtleties. Even so, his mouth was dry. Something about the cautious way she’d worked her way around the cabin told him he didn’t have any margin for error. If he spooked her, she’d flee.

  She was his mated one. Now she was only a few feet away, he knew it without a shadow of a doubt. His cock knew it, too. It was rock hard and straining against his trousers. No matter how much he wanted her, he wouldn’t run her down and hold her against her will. He had to take this slow and help her trust him. His heartbeat pounded against his ears. This wasn’t going to be easy. He wanted to wrap his arms around her and feel her against his body.

  She spun to face him; he saw her face clearly in the beam from his flashlight. It was all he could do to hold himself back. Even exhausted, she was stunning, with high cheekbones and tip-tilted green eyes. Cat eyes. Bulky clothing hid the lines of her body, but he could imagine the swell of breasts pushed against the front of her jacket and lush hips flared below a slender waist. Strands of long, dark hair fell around her face. The rest was gathered behind her. He wondered how long it was. She brandished an ice ax at him, eyes glittering dangerously.

  Good, this one has spirit. “Sweetheart,” he held out his hands, “you don’t have to be afraid of me.” It took a little doing, but she finally followed him inside the cabin.

  Chapter 3

  Alice sputtered. The stranger had just accused her of shoving Brent over a cliff. “How dare you?” she cried. Her face heated from more than the fire. She balled her hands into fists at her sides.

  “Well.” He cocked his head to one side. “I wasn’t there. You’re on your feet, and he isn’t. What is he, your husband?”

  She gritted her teeth. “No.”

  “What then? Brother, cousin—”

  “He’s just a friend and it’s really none of your business. If you’ll unlock the door, I’ll take my chances with the mountain lions.” Alice grabbed her lantern and her pack and strode toward the door, eying the windows as possible escape routes. They could work. She’d have to unlatch the wooden shutters, but still… “You can have my ice ax. I don’t need it anymore.”

  He shot her a blinding smile. His eyes glowed like exotic gemstones. She blinked. Alice had never seen such a gorgeous man. Red-gold hair fell to his shoulders. His face was more than handsome. He had a high, broad forehead and sharply cast cheekbones. His teeth were very white and very straight. What would it feel like to run her fingers through that wonderful hair, to stroke his tanned skin?

  She shook herself mentally. I have to get out of here. Alice covered the remaining distance to the door and rattled the knob. “Let me out. It’s against the law to hold people against their will.”

  “You’re being hasty. I apologize for suggesting you injured your friend. Please,” he gestured toward a carved wooden sofa with colorful cushions in front of the fireplace, “I’m not being a very good host. Have a seat. Let me get you a drink.”

  “I don’t think so.” She curled her fingers around her pack straps. A spicy, exotic scent filled her nostrils. It seemed to be coming from him. A cross between bay rum and musk made her nose twitch. Alice tried to cling to fear and outrage, but felt them slipping away. She took a step closer to him before she realized what she was doing. Her gaze fixated on his lips. She wanted to feel them pressed against hers, needed to lose herself in his arms.

  What’s wrong with me? How could I be so attracted to him? She struggled to regain her equanimity, but her body had other ideas. Her gaze swept lower. When she realized she was staring at his crotch, she got hold of herself. Heat flooded her face. She hoped he hadn’t noticed the direction of her gaze.

  “Please,” he repeated and extended a hand, “I don’t even know your name. Like I said, I haven’t been much of a host.”

  Alice swallowed hard. It didn’t make sense, but she wanted to run into his arms and wrap hers around his lithe frame to see what it would feel like right up against her. Her nipples hardened again, and her breath caught in her throat. It was like he was making love to her from ten feet away. For one wild moment, she wanted to strip her clothes off and…

  “Here.” He walked to her and pried her pack and lantern out of her hands. She tried to hang onto them, but her fingers wouldn’t cooperate. Close like that, his lush scent surrounded her. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. Christ! For the first time she understood the phrase “It smelled good enough to eat.” To her horror, Alice’s lips parted and turned upward, as if she were waiting for a lover to kiss her. What the hell is happening to me?

  She shook her head hard and took a couple steps away from him and her pack. She couldn’t think. Hell, she could barely breathe. Her crotch was wet; it throbbed with need.

  “Your name?” He set her pack next to a chair and moved to her side.

  “Alice.” Her throat was thick. It was hard to talk.

  He tugged her wet jacket off her shoulders and draped it over a chair. “Well, Alice, how about if you sit by the fire and I’ll bring you something to drink. Food, too, if you want. Your boots look pretty wet. Maybe you’d like to take them off.”

  She tried to tell him that no, she needed to leave, but the words wouldn’t come. There was a part of her—the wise part—that wanted to run like hell. The rest of her couldn’t have left if someone lit a firecracker under her ass. She breathed in his scent. It was like a balm, heating her nerve endings and soothing her fears at the same time.

  She watched his graceful form move to the kitchen alcove. He had a high, tight ass and long legs. She wondered again what his skin would feel like beneath her fingers. Alice caught a glimpse of herself in a mirror mounted to one side of the fireplace. Spots of color rode high on both cheeks. Her eyes glowed. Her nipples were fully visible pressed against the fabric of her wool shirt, and so were the curves of her breasts. She bit her lower lip and chastised herself for not wearing a bra. She’d hoped Brent might get … ideas if he could see more of her body. Except she flaunted it right and left, and he never did. And now here she was with a stranger—

  Am I so desperate I don’t care anymore, just so long as someone has sex with me? It didn’t feel like that, though. Not really. It was more like she’d known Jed in some other lifetime and had some sort of bond to him. Alice rolled her eyes. I’m being ridiculous. It’s just nerves and exhaustion catching up.

  “Here you go, sweetheart.” He pressed a glass into her hand and set a plate on the coffee table near the fireplace. “Come on. Sit. You must be exhausted.”

  Alice sat, but it was because her legs didn’t want to hold her up anymore. To her surprise, he knelt and unlaced her boots. Once both layers were loosened, he tugged first one and then the other off. “Just as I thought,” he murmured. “Your socks are soaked.” He stripped them gently off her feet and hung them over the table’s edge nearest the fire.

  It did feel good to get her heavy boots off. Alice wriggled her toes. They were cold. Almost as if Jed could read her thoughts, he rubbed her feet between remarkably warm hands. Her body sank back against the cushions. She took a sip of whiskey; it burned all the way to her stomach. She followed it with another. Her free hand moved with a will of its own. She yanked it back before it buried itself in Jed’s shiny hair.

  He pushed back on his heels and rose in a single, fluid motion. In moments he was back, kneeling by her feet. He wrapped a warm towel around them. She moaned softly. “Where’d you get that? Surely you don’t have electricity all the way out here.”

  He laughed. “It was on a hook by the fireplace. The fire warms the stones so anything hanging next to them gets toasty.” His blue gaze latched onto hers. “Relax. Everything will be all right. Have a bit more whiskey. It’s from Ireland and more than twenty-five years old. There’s bread and cheese on the table.” He winked at her, a slow, lascivious wink, which made her heart beat faster. “Let me spoil you a little.”

/>   “I really shouldn’t.” Her words lacked conviction. She knew it. Worse, so did he.

  He rubbed her feet through the towel and then wrapped it around one while taking the other in his hands. He massaged her weary arches and the ball of her foot with knowing fingers. “Do you always do what you should?”

  The sexual innuendo was unmistakable. Her swollen pussy lips and clit thrummed with tension. She took another sip of whiskey, letting it roll around on her tongue. It was rich and oaky, like liquid gold. “Usually.”

  “What’s that saying? Good girls never have any fun.” His fingers worked her toes, and then shifted to the top of her foot and her ankle.

  “I climb mountains. Most girls don’t do that.” Her head buzzed pleasantly from the liquor. I should eat something. If I don’t, I’ll be drunk in no time. Alice leaned forward and took a slice of cheese from the blue earthenware plate on the table in front of her. She wrapped a piece of bread around it and took a bite. The bread was flaky and fresh. It tasted homemade.

  The longer he worked on her feet, the more she wanted him. Alice was mystified. She’d masturbated her lust away before, but what was happening to her now was in a whole different league. She’d never felt she’d die if she didn’t come. It didn’t take much to imagine those strong hands moving up her calves, settling between her legs, and… Her hips twitched. She covered the involuntary motion by shifting her position on the couch.

  “I was talking about fun, not mountaineering.” He rubbed the spaces between her toes with gentle strokes.

  “But they’re the same.” Her face heated again. The special place deep inside her ached to be filled. She wished she knew more about sex. It just wasn’t the sort of thing people ever talked about, though. She’d hunted down medical texts in the library, but they hadn’t been terribly helpful, other than giving her names for intimate body parts.

  “There’s more than one way to have fun.” Jed wrapped the foot he’d been working on in the towel and switched to the other. “Is it still warm enough, sweetheart? Would you like me to get another?”