Alpha Temptation: Sanmere Shifters Romance Collection

by Lola Gabriel

  “And you wanted to walk home alone. You could be in the gutter now with a twisted ankle,” Archer said.

  “Yeah. You’re my hero,” Brianna laughed.

  “You know it,” he said, laughing with her. “Just call me Superman.”

  Their laughter chased away the moment they had shared, and Brianna relaxed. Maybe she was imagining the way Archer had looked at her because there was a part of her that wanted him to want her. They managed to get to Brianna’s apartment building without any more mishaps. They reached her door, and she dug in her handbag for her keys. She pulled them out and held them up with a smile.

  “Got them,” she said.

  “You know, for such a small handbag, you had an awful lot of trouble finding them.”

  “Oh, don’t be fooled by its size. It’s like the Tardis in there,” she joked.

  “Yeah, it must be,” Archer said. He shifted from one foot to the other. “Well, goodnight, Brianna.”

  “Come in for a drink,” Brianna said, shocking herself. She hadn’t even known she was going to say the words until they were out. She knew why she wanted him to come in; if he walked away now, that would be the last time she saw him, and she wasn’t quite ready for their time together to be over.

  Archer still hadn’t responded, and she could see the indecision on his face. He was going to say no—he was just trying to find the words to say it in a way that let her down gently. She had shown herself up.

  Then he smiled. “I’d love to.”

  Brianna felt her heart skip a beat. This was a bad idea, but it was a bad idea that she felt would lead her to a good mistake, a mistake she wouldn’t regret.

  “Great.” She opened the apartment building door and stepped in, Archer following. “The elevator doesn’t work,” she said. “But I’m only on the second floor.”

  “Lead the way,” Archer said. “I don’t think a few flights of stairs will kill me.”

  Brianna started up the stairs, conscious of him behind her. She wondered if he was checking out her ass. She kind of hoped he was. She swayed her hips as she walked, a little more than she usually would, just in case he was looking.

  She led him to her front door, opened it, and stepped in, flicking on the light. Her apartment was nothing flashy, but it was no dump, and she was pleased she had had a quick tidy around before she’d gone to meet Archer earlier that night.

  “What would you like to drink?” she asked. “I have vodka, white wine, red wine, or Bacardi.”

  “I see you’re embracing the student lifestyle then.”

  “If you can’t beat them, join them, right?”

  “Exactly. I’ll have whatever you’re having.”

  Brianna made her way to the kitchen. She kicked her shoes off on the way. She poured out two large vodka and sodas and headed back to the lounge. Archer was sat at one end of her small cream-colored sofa. She handed him his drink and sat down beside him with hers. He took a drink and winced.

  “Too strong?” Brianna asked.

  He laughed and shook his head. “It’s fine. I just wasn’t expecting it to be so potent.”

  “Go big or go home.” She winked at him and took a long drink. “I’m already going to be hungover in the morning, so I might as well finish off in style,” she said.

  “Fair enough,” Archer laughed. “And you just want me to have a hangover, too?”

  “Of course. Why should I be miserable on my own?”

  He laughed and shook his head. Brianna took another long swig of her drink, and then she put it down on the glass-topped coffee table before her. She turned so she was facing Archer. She was conscious of how close they were, her leg brushing his.

  “So, how old are you?” she asked Archer.

  “Two hundred and fifty-two,” he replied.

  “Wow,” she breathed. “I think I’ve got my head around this whole immortality thing, and then I hear something like that and I’m just like, what?”

  “I get it. Even to me it sounds crazy,” he said.

  “What’s it like? Living so long. It must be hard to see loved ones dying and always being left behind,” she said.

  “It’s not like that, Brianna,” he told her. “I mean, I’m sure that would be absolute hell, but my pack are my family, and they’re all immortal. Don’t get me wrong, we have the odd fatality, like when a hunter comes along, but it’s not like all of my friends get old around me or anything like that.”

  “It must still be strange, though,” she commented, watching him as he took another drink. He didn’t wince this time.

  “It is strange. So much has changed since I was growing up. Looking back, it’s like a different world, but the changes happen gradually, and as they do, you barely even register it. When I was in my twenties and thirties, cars weren’t even dreamed of, and now we all have them, and we have airplanes and all of this crazy technology.”

  “It sure puts a new slant on the moment when your kids ask you if you were alive when the dinosaurs were,” she giggled.

  “Hey, I’m not that old!” he laughed back. His face turned serious. “But I don’t suppose I’ll ever have any children, so I guess it won’t matter.”

  “Oh, God, I’m sorry. I should have thought before I opened my mouth,” Brianna said.

  “It’s fine. I’ve made my peace with it. I have my pack, and that’s enough for me.”

  “Aren’t they getting to the point where they’re demanding an heir?” he asked.

  Archer raised his eyebrow. “You really do know our world only too well, don’t you? But you don’t know my pack. We’re not like the huge ones that demand this, that, and the other. We’re a real family. If I did manage to find a mate, either a wolf shifter or a mortal who could and would turn safely, they’d be happy. But they’d be happy that I’d found love rather than being happy that we had an heir.”

  “That sounds like a much nicer pack than the ones in other places.”

  “It is,” Archer agreed.

  Brianna felt a surge of anger as she thought of the hunter who had taken one of the pack, a member of Archer’s family, away. It made her blood boil to think that there were people out there who had just decided that immortals were all bad and took them out without taking the time to actually see that most of them were just as human as anyone else.

  “What is it?” Archer asked, frowning at Brianna.

  God, I have got to stop being this easy to read, she thought. Then again, Archer does have an animal instinct.

  “I was just thinking about your lost pack member. It doesn’t seem right that hunters make it their life’s mission to kill immortals with no idea that they’re destroying real families.”

  “It’s always been the way,” Archer sighed.

  “Maybe. But that doesn’t make it right,” Brianna replied.

  He smiled at her. “You know, other humans have found out about us in the past, and I have never met a single one who wasn’t terrified. You’re a special girl, Brianna. A very special girl.”

  As he spoke, he put his glass down and turned to face her. He leaned forward, and their faces were mere inches apart.

  “Which is why I have to do this. Even if it’s just once.”

  He closed the gap between them, and their lips touched. Brianna felt fire surge through her body, and she found herself returning Archer’s kiss with a hunger that surprised her. She leaned closer to him, pushing her hands into his hair and moaning into his mouth as her body came to life.

  Archer ran his hands up and down her back as he kissed her hungrily, and where his hands brushed her, she felt herself lighting up. Finally, he pulled back from her. She looked at him, her breathing coming out as a slight pant, and she saw his was doing the same. She could see the moisture of their kiss shining on his lips.

  “I’m sorry,” he said breathlessly.

  “I’m not.” Brianna glanced down into her lap for a moment.

  “Brianna, we can’t—”

  “Be together. I know,” she inter
rupted him. She looked up at his face. “But maybe we could have tonight.”

  She stood up and pulled her dress over her head, throwing it to one side and looking down at Archer. He made a low moan in his throat and got to his feet. He pulled her into his arms, and their mouths found each other again.

  8

  Even as Archer’s lips found Brianna’s, he knew that what they were doing was a bad idea. They could have no future together. He consoled himself by thinking they were in Brianna’s apartment, away from prying eyes, so him being here now wasn’t putting her in any immediate danger. But he found it hard to justify having a one-night stand with the woman his body felt so drawn to. It felt like he was setting himself up for heartbreak, but at the same time, it had already gone too far for there to be a clean break. Walking away now would hurt him just as much as walking away tomorrow would.

  He forced the thoughts out of his mind, determined to focus only on the here and now. If he and Brianna could only have tonight, then he was going to make damned sure it was a night neither of them would ever forget.

  He pushed his tongue into Brianna’s mouth, wanting to taste every part of it, to explore every inch of her teeth, her tongue. She tasted like wine and sugar, a heady combination that made his body tingle. His cock was rock hard, pulsing with the need to impale Brianna, to claim her as his own.

  She moaned into his mouth as his hands roamed over her back and pushed into her hair. She pressed herself more tightly against him, and Archer felt his wolf responding to her closeness. He fought to control it; the last thing he wanted was for his wolf to burst forth now, but it was hard. The lust he felt awoke the beast inside of him, and his animal instincts told him that Brianna was more than just sex. They told him she was meant to be his.

  He moved his mouth away from Brianna’s for a second, needing to get himself under control, something he couldn’t do while her mouth was on his, while her tongue massaged his. He looked into her eyes, and he could see the lust in her dilated pupils. He didn’t speak, and then he took her by her upper arms and turned her around. He pushed her gently backwards until she was sitting back down on the couch.

  He knelt before her and reached to her hips. Knowing what was coming, she lifted her ass, allowing him to hook his thumbs into the waistband of her panties and pull them down, tossing them to the side. Archer leaned forward, moving his face closer to her center. Her breathing came in ragged gasps, anticipating his touch, and the sounds she was making made Archer’s heart race.

  He ran his finger through her lips, moaning when he felt how wet she was. Brianna made a whimpering sound that told him she was as desperate for this as he was. He leaned down and pressed his face against her mound, finding her swollen clit with his tongue. He pressed on her clit, moving his tongue from side to side, listening to Brianna moan his name. A wave of lust slammed through him as he licked her, tasting her and hearing the effect he was having on her.

  He felt her hands push into his hair, two fists that tugged on his hair making his scalp sting and spurring him on. He could tell by Brianna’s ragged breathing that she was almost on the verge of climaxing. He sucked hard on her clit, pulling it into his mouth, teasing it with his tongue. He felt it pulsing when Brianna let out a long moan that ended in a desperate sounding whimper as her orgasm claimed her.

  She tugged on his hair again, pulling him closer to her, pressing herself against his face, grinding against him. She lifted one leg and wrapped it around his shoulders, holding him in place as he worked his tongue over her. She gasped, and her second orgasm hit her. Her clit was even more swollen now, pulsing in time with Archer’s licks. Brianna screamed Archer’s name, and her body went rigid for a moment. She relaxed again, and her leg slipped from around his shoulders.

  Archer sat back on his heels, taking in the sight of her. Her sweat coated body glistened. Her mouth was slack, her eyes glassy. She had never looked so good.

  Brianna gave him a sated smile, and then she moved forward until her ass was on the edge of the couch. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, pressing her mouth to his once more. She moaned when she tasted herself on his tongue.

  As she kissed him, her arms moved from around his shoulders to the front of his body. She pulled his shirt up, and they broke their kiss long enough for it to come over his head. He raised his arms, wriggling free of the shirt, and Brianna tossed it to one side. Her hands moved lower, fumbling with his jeans until she got them open. Archer came up onto his knees, and Brianna pushed his jeans and boxer shorts down. She didn’t waste any more time. She put her hands on his shoulder, pushing him back down, and then she slid off the couch and onto his lap, wrapping her legs around his waist.

  They kissed again, a raw, passionate kiss that set Archer’s soul on fire. He moved his hands down Brianna’s back and unhooked her bra. He pulled it down her arms and tossed it aside. He kissed down her neck, and as she arched her back, giving him access to the soft, sensitive skin there, he kneaded her breasts, feeling her erect nipples rubbing over his palms.

  Brianna reached down with one hand and wrapped it around his cock. She began to move her closed fist up and down it, and Archer felt fire explode through his body. He nibbled on Brianna’s neck as she rubbed his cock, making lust surge through him. He could feel her sticky juices coating his thighs as she moved slightly on his lap, rubbing herself against his legs.

  His orgasm was building inside of him, threatening to burst through him at any moment, and he knew he had to be inside her, had to feel her around his cock before it was too late. He moved his hands down her sides and kissed her hard on the mouth. Then he took her wrist in his hand and pulled it from his cock. He instantly missed her touch, but he knew if she kept working him, he wasn’t going to be able to hold back.

  Archer grabbed Brianna’s hips and lifted her slightly, pulling her body forward. He moved his hips, lining his cock up with her pussy, and he pulled her body back down, slipping inside of her. She gasped as he filled her, stretching her and claiming her body. He could feel the warmth and wetness of her, the solidity of her muscles clenching around him, and he almost went over the edge.

  He felt fur protruding from his back and legs, and he knew his eyes had changed, darkened as his wolf tried to escape. Brianna gasped as she looked into his eyes, but she didn’t seem afraid; she seemed turned on. Archer threw his head back and howled, slamming his cock into Brianna. He had to rein himself in—he couldn’t give in to the wolf. He wanted to feel this as a man. He forced his wolf back down and felt his eyes return to normal, his fur retracting back inside of himself.

  He leaned his head forward and ran his lips over Brianna’s as he slammed into her again and again; hard, deep thrusts that filled her and made her cry out with each one. She clung to him, her arms and legs wrapped around him, moving in time with his thrusts, urging him on, pushing him in deeper. Fire flooded Archer’s body. Whether she was immortal or not didn’t matter in that moment. Brianna was his destiny.

  He moved his hips, changing the angle of his penetration slightly so his cock rubbed over Brianna’s g-spot with every thrust. She was already panting, but then her breathing became shallower, like each breath was a struggle. He could feel her body going rigid, her back arching, pulling her body away from him. He wrapped his arm around her waist, holding her tightly.

  She clenched tightly around his cock. He saw her eyes rolling back in her head as her pleasure consumed her completely, and he leaned forward and ran his tongue up her exposed throat. He pulled back as her eyelids fluttered open. She sucked in a breath and let it out in a shaky moan that ended with his name as he slammed his cock into her. Her center clenched again, almost pushing Archer over the edge himself, but he held back, wanting this to last as long as possible. Brianna clung to him, digging her nails into his back, once more plunged through waves of pleasure. She pressed her face into his shoulder, her hot breath coming in blasts on his neck.

  She whispered his name against his neck as he moved inside of her, s
till clinging to him. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pushed himself up onto his knees, holding her in place. He got to his feet, still holding Brianna, his cock still buried inside of her. He moved to the couch and laid her down, getting on top of her.

  Brianna smiled up at him, and he leaned down and kissed her smile. Her hands roamed over his back, over his shoulders, in his hair. It was like she wanted to touch every part of him at once, to connect as one with him, body, mind, and soul.

  He kept moving, needing her to be his. He slammed into her, and he could feel his orgasm washing over him. This time, there was no holding back, and he thrust into her one last time before his cock went rigid, his muscles clenching as his orgasm flooded him. He felt it in every part of his body; in every blood cell, every muscle, every nerve ending. He sucked in a breath and closed his eyes, letting his pleasure linger. He felt his cock twitch, his seed filling Brianna. Her pussy clenched as he came, holding him tightly.

  He moaned her name as his orgasm drove everything except for her out of his mind. For the next few seconds, nothing mattered except him and Brianna. The rest of the world ceased to exist, and there was only the two of them and their shared pleasure. They clung to each other, their breathing going back to normal. When Archer felt like he had himself under control, he pushed himself up on his palms and looked down at Brianna. She smiled back up at him.

  “Wow,” she breathed.