Alphas Unwrapped: 21 New Steamy Paranormal Tales of Shifters, Vampires, Werewolves, Dragons, Witches, Angels, Demons, Fey, and More

by Michele Bardsley

“Aye.”

  He eyed her, amused. “Well, I guess it’s a good thing we filled out when we did or all might’ve been lost.”

  “Nah.” She dropped a kiss on his chest. “All that teasing between us was bound to lead to something eventually.”

  “So you hoped.”

  “So I knew.” She winked. “Witchy senses.”

  Cullen flipped her so quickly she released a small squeal. With wicked eyes, he spread her legs and murmured close to her ear. “And what are your witchy senses telling you now?”

  Treasa was about to respond when something over his shoulder caught her attention. Chills of fear raced up her spine. “That we’re almost out of time.”

  Chapter Nine

  WITH A FLICK of his wrist, Cullen had them dressed. This time, Treasa wore boots, modern day skinny jeans, a form-fitting shirt, and a snug, zipped leather jacket. Wings tucked away with magic, he returned to jeans, a t-shirt, and boots. As he pulled her up, he realized why she was alarmed. Bit by bit, their surroundings were starting to fade. Ghosting away like the memories they were built on.

  Her eyebrows perked when she glanced at her outfit, but her expression soon turned grim as the Christmas tree’s lights began to dim. “I’d say it’s getting pretty close to midnight.”

  “Looks like it might be.” His eyes met hers. “Any thoughts on where to head next?”

  “I’m afraid this was the last stop on my Holiday Curse Tour.” She made a loose gesture with her hand, trying to hide the defeat in her eyes behind sarcasm. “Please exit the snow globe at your own peril and expect to meet Death head on.”

  “Enough of that.” He pulled her close. “It’s gonna be okay. We’ll figure this out. Something tells me we’ll have all our facts soon enough and I’ve always been good at thinking on my feet.”

  “I’m so sorry I dragged you into this.” She shook her head, voice soft. “You’ve already been through enough.”

  “You’ve got nothing to be sorry for. You gave me the best gift possible by summoning me.” He tilted up her chin until their eyes met. “I love you, Treasa. If I’m about to meet my end, I’ll go down happier than I’ve been in a long time.”

  Nothing had felt better than having her in his arms and being inside her. They were a perfect fit. That would never change. She meant everything to him and he had no intention of losing her again. How to save her, though? There had to be a way.

  “All right then,” came a voice with a French accent. “I have come to report on Seth’s future.”

  Cullen and Treasa pulled apart, frowning as the Ghost of Christmas Future appeared out of nowhere and snapped his feet together like a drill sergeant. Back ramrod straight, he flipped through a few sheets on his clipboard.

  “What’s going on?” Treasa said, eyes alert as she scanned their surroundings. It was very clear now that they stood in a snow globe. Nothing remained inside and the outside forest could be seen through the dome. “How are you here, Noël?”

  Noël gave her a stupefied look. “Uh, because you summoned me.”

  “Yeah, to help get Cullen here and you already did that,” she said.

  Noël cocked his head and spoke to her as though she were a child. “Yes, but was that summoning not because you wished to be free of this curse?”

  Cullen sighed with frustration. These ghosts might be helping out a lot, but they could rub the nerves raw. “Why did you say you came to report on Seth’s future?”

  “Because after much examination we got to the bottom of it.” Noël made a few slashes on his clipboard before nodding. “As it turns out, he’s run into a few minor problems. But…” He held up a finger. “If you meet him at the backside of the main lodge at precisely 11:58 PM you just might be able to help him.”

  “Could you be more specific about what his problems are?” Treasa said, obviously as exasperated as Cullen.

  “Hmm.” Noël thought about it before shaking his head. “No, I’m afraid not.”

  “Wonderful,” Treasa muttered.

  “Eh bien, pas vraiment si merveilleux. Well, not so wonderful really,” Noël said, taking her literally.

  “I thought we agreed to no brogue or French,” Cullen said.

  Noël offered a stiff, non-apologetic shrug. “I report from Seth’s future. Not yours, Highlander.”

  Cullen shrugged. “Aye then, laddie. What do ye suggest we do next?”

  Noël’s eyes narrowed a fraction as he fastidiously tucked his pen into his smoothly combed hair. “I suggest that you meet Seth in back of the main lodge at the appointed time.”

  “That’s across the entire place,” Treasa said. “There’s no way Death will let us get that far.”

  “But at least we’ve got a sense of direction,” Cullen pointed out. “That’s more than we had before.”

  She was about to reply when the strange suctioning sensation from earlier happened again. The air shifted temperatures before a sizzling sound echoed around them.

  Treasa pointed up. “Uh oh, look.”

  Little sparks shot all around the dome before the entire structure disappeared. They had a split second to register how vulnerable they were before a sleigh pulled by two horses barreled toward them, bells jingling.

  “You’ll want to hop right on,” Noël said, calm as could be as he stepped back.

  Cullen did not like the situation, but he did like Seth so he wasted no time tossing Treasa into the sleigh. With a few long strides, he swung in and plunked down beside her.

  “Who’s that driving the horses?” she asked.

  Tall, well-muscled and done up in full Highland regalia, the driver winked at Cullen over his shoulder. “Now you see things like you should.”

  Cullen shook his head and grinned at Treasa. “It looks like I see my past in a much better light. That’d be Gop.”

  Treasa grinned too as they flew through the forest. “No kidding.” She peered at Gop. “Where’s Ghost?”

  Gop nodded behind them. “You’re never going to believe it.”

  Cullen put his arm across Treasa’s chest to protect her as the Angel of Death swooped after them. Nearly solid, he was dressed in black leather, his huge wings navigating him swiftly through the woodland. His glowing black eyes narrowed on them.

  “She’s mine!” Death roared.

  Hand thrust in the air, Cullen started chanting as the angel came up fast. He was about to whip magic when something slammed into Death from the side.

  “Holy crap!” Treasa said. “What’s happening?”

  Cullen squinted through the darkened forest as Death and another creature rolled over and over in the snow. If he wasn’t mistaken, Death was fighting…Death?

  Gop spurred the horses on and yelled over his shoulder, “That’d be Ghost manifested as what Seth wanted most for Christmas.”

  The clever twenty-first century warlock had wished for the Angel of Death for Christmas. Now the angel fought himself.

  Cullen wrapped his arm around Treasa’s shoulders as the sleigh burst from the forest and rushed through the main establishment. The storm had lessened and a wide array of Christmas lights sparkled through the night. The song Sleigh Ride played softly from the speakers.

  They had just blown past a ten-foot tall gingerbread man when Death came after them again. Within a few yards of the sleigh, Ghost rushed up and grabbed his feet, slamming the angel down. Their wings battered either side of the road so much that a nativity scene went flying.

  Baby Jesus nearly sailed over their heads, but Cullen caught him and tucked him safely beside them. When Treasa arched her brows at him, he shrugged. “Like you, some things are well worth saving.”

  She smiled and squeezed his hand.

  The horses veered to the left and they sailed along a road lined with wax figures of elves doing everything from dancing to making toys. Treasa flinched. “This might’ve not been the best route to take us, Gop!”

  “No choice,” Gop mumbled, his voice far deeper than the pipsqueak it had been at the beg
inning.

  Cullen was about to ask why when he remembered Ghost’s love of elves. “Oh, hell.”

  Sure as heck, though Death and Ghost fought the whole way, the Ghost of Christmas Present came to a skidding halt when his eyes locked on an elf holding out a toy train. Nothing was more peculiar looking than an angel with massive black wings stopping short; his dark eyes alight with glee as he offered the elf a silly grin.

  Though momentarily confused by the odd behavior, it took Death no time to scramble away from the awe-struck ghost. Cullen and Treasa started chanting and threw everything they had at her ex. Black lightning sizzled. Sparks flew. Wind whipped. But as he knew would be the case, there was very little if anything they could do to stop Death. So when he landed in the sleigh, wings spread and eyes venomous, Cullen figured it was over.

  “BFF, snap out of it,” Treasa cried. “I need you!”

  “And I need you.” Death lunged at her.

  Determined to protect her, Cullen flung himself in front of Treasa. Yet it seemed there was no need. The sleigh came to an abrupt halt. When it did, Ghost slammed into Death so hard that they flew over everyone’s heads and crashed to the ground in front of the horses.

  Gop nodded at the snow encrusted tube with the sign, Ride the Slide of Christmas Magic hanging over it.

  It was a long slide that wound down to the area in back of the main lodge. Smart ghost. “C’mon, lass.” Cullen scooped up Treasa and headed in that direction. “Let’s get out of here, aye?”

  “Oh, I dunno.” She shook her head. “This thing isn’t the best place for people like us tooooo…”

  Her words echoed on a wail as he swiftly set her at the base of the slide then pushed. Seconds later, he followed. It was steeper than he expected. Down. Down. Down. Images started to flicker in the icy conclave around him.

  Treasa standing in front of him as he spread his wings for the first time.

  The pain in her eyes as she stood there after he left.

  Then her, speckled in blood as she crouched over the dead.

  Her confrontational attitude when she approached the Angel of Death.

  The look of interest in his eyes as he listened to her rant.

  The tunnel swerved left then right before Cullen slid downhill again.

  This time, he saw images of Death embracing her. The affection in their eyes as they looked at one another.

  Their first kiss, tender and consuming.

  Blood boiled in his veins by the time he shot out of the tube. It took several long moments to realize that he was on an icy pond and virtual reality skaters whirled by him.

  Treasa held out her hand. “We’ve got a few minutes before Death can get down here. The magic of us passing through the tunnel will slow him.”

  “I’m not sure I want a few minutes.” He ignored her hand and came to his feet.

  “I tried to tell you that we shouldn’t go down that slide.”

  “As far as I could tell we had no choice.” He tried to bank his aggravation, but the warlock within was fired up. “Why did I see all that?”

  “It’s Gop’s slide.” Head held high, just as proud as she had been when a child, her eyes met his. “Though created for the kids, he used it to tuck away all the memories I didn’t want to remember while stuck here.”

  “Wasn’t that noble of him.” His eyes narrowed. “Then why did you still have issues with Gop when I showed up here? Seems to me he should’ve been on your A list.”

  “Because he never came back after he dumped my memories in the slide.” Her eyes clouded a little. “Because part of the magic he used when doing so stole away so many that I had of you.”

  Snow fell softly and a joyful ring of skaters circled around them.

  His brows lowered. “What do you mean?”

  “Ghostly yuletide magic, Cullen. It’s like making a deal with the devil.” Moisture glistened in her eyes. “It gives you something but at a cost. In my case, it was us. Or at least a lot of us. So much in fact that I forgot how mad I was at you before I summoned you. Then when you got here, I remembered.”

  Hell, Gop was always up to something, wasn’t he? “Bloody Ghost of Christmas Past.”

  “No.” Treasa touched his arm and shook her head. “I think what he did was likely a blessing. Surviving almost forty Christmases with memories of Death would’ve been unbearable. Too much. I would have never been able to enjoy the children or the spirit of Christmas.”

  Her smile was so soft the corners of her lips barely curled. “Grant gave me enough when he created that snow globe. I had the good memories.” She brought Cullen’s hand to her heart and closed her eyes. “Everything happens for a reason. I’m tired of being angry at Gop. Tired of being angry at you.” Her eyes met his. “Let’s just do our best to shoot for a second chance, aye?”

  How many times had he wished for that? Hundreds of times? Thousands? Millions? No, far more since he ascended, fell then ended up on his motorcycle with images of her face forever haunting him. He would be a fool to turn from that now because of jealousy.

  To hell with the Angel of Death.

  To hell with anyone who meant to keep them apart.

  While he wanted to pull her into his arms and kiss the life right out of her, he knew they were cut for time. “Aye, lass. A second chance for us both.”

  She blinked away the moisture in her eyes, stood up straighter and nodded. “Then let’s go for it.”

  Cullen brushed his lips over hers. “Lead the way.”

  A loud whooshing sound echoed. When they glanced up Death and Ghost fought in the sky. What time was it? He glanced at the clock on the building below. 11:55. “We’ve gotta go.”

  “Yeah, we do.” She pulled him after her as they ran the best they could on ice to the next tube entrance. “This one’s a bit rougher. At least for me. It’s where Gop stored the memories that would be too painful to bear.”

  Too painful to bear? He could only imagine what Death had tried to do to her when she denied him. Outside of the obvious that is. Cullen would find a way to see her rightfully avenged. That thought firmly in mind, he did not expect the images that flashed at him when he slid after her.

  They were of them. Her and Cullen.

  A day long ago.

  A few years after the Christmastide they danced together.

  They swam in a loch near his castle, laughing the whole time before they sat on a rock. Bagpipes played in the distance. He cupped her cheeks as water trickled down their faces and kissed her for the first time. As her cool lips warmed beneath his, he knew that any pre-arranged marriage his parents might have cooked up was null and void.

  This was the lass he was meant to be with.

  So the second their lips parted, he murmured, “Marry me, Treasa MacFearson.”

  She grinned against his lips. “Och, nay, ’tis impossible. Yer set to be Laird and I’m naught but a simple village lass.”

  “Never simple.” They laughed as he pulled her onto his lap. Their eyes held as he stroked her hair. “I mean it. I love ye with all my heart and I want to marry ye.”

  Treasa had stilled, her eyes locked with his as the moment grew serious. They might come from different stations in life, but they knew what they wanted.

  “Aye, Cullen Stewart,” she whispered. “I will marry ye.”

  “Ye promise?”

  “Aye?”

  “Then I promise ye as well. We will be together always.”

  But battles came and went, keeping him busy over the next year. He saw her on and off but never enough. Then war came to her village and he became an angel. The last images he saw before he shot out of the Christmas slide were of her watching him spread his wings and flying away.

  Away from her.

  Them.

  The promise he had made.

  A scream rent the air as he came to his feet. Enraged, he lunged.

  But he was a few seconds too late.

  At approximately 11:59, the Angel of Death got Treasa.


  Chapter Ten

  HORRIFIED, TREASA SQUIRMED as Death wrapped his arms around her and whispered in her ear, “It never had to be this difficult.”

  “I don’t love you. Never have,” she ground out. “Let me go.”

  How had she ever found pleasure in this man’s arms? Yes, he was extremely handsome but that was how Death worked. He would always appear tempting, alluring, even soothing some might say, to those that met him for the first time…and last. He only looked that way because people were so scared of him. Nobody wanted to die.

  And she had not.

  Died that is.

  Then or now.

  She did not deserve this. Treasa looked him square in the eyes as he pulled her higher and higher. “So what are you going to do with me now?”

  “Keep you,” he murmured. “Beyond Earth. With me.”

  “I don’t think so. She’s my BFF,” Ghost bellowed from below.

  Still appearing as Death, Ghost grabbed the angel’s ankle and yanked him down. Death kicked at him but Ghost refused to let go and they started falling. Desperate, she held on to the angel so that she didn’t free fall. Though momentarily twisted up in rolling limbs and wings when they landed, she was soon yanked free when Cullen pulled her into his arms.

  Eyes glowing black, Seth stood nearby. “My future has just about caught up with itself. Time for us to work as a team because Ghost won’t be able to be Death much longer and the angel’s grown far too strong.”

  “En Effet. Indeed.” Noël appeared beside Seth, studiously looking over his notes. “As I read it, everyone’s future hangs in the balance.”

  “Say it isn’t so?” Treasa said as she weaved protective spells.

  Ghost slammed Death’s head into the corner of a glittering stone manger. Death drove Ghost into a heavy, glass snowman.

  “I’ll take the bloody bastard I will!” Gop declared, standing tall, his claymore aimed at Death.

  Noël shook his clipboard at Death. “As will I.”

  “So one of you will take him with a ghostly medieval sword and the other a clipboard.” Cullen’s jaw hitched as he eyed the two. “What a relief.”

  Death slammed his wing into Ghost’s and they both slid sideways taking the snowman with them.