Alphas for the Holidays

by Mandy M. Roth

  “Oh,” Janie said as she pulled out a snowflake pendant. It dangled on a silver chain. She held it up, peering at the snowflake but not touching it. Then with a sigh, she clasped it around her neck.

  I frowned. “Are you going to be able to wear that? With magic being irritating to you and everything?”

  She nodded. “I’ll get used to it.”

  “No.” I shook my head and ran my fingers lightly over her chest, forcing a small dose of magic to coat her skin.

  “Hey!” She stepped back, her eyes wide and full of suspicion. “What did you do?”

  I shrugged and grabbed the two glasses the bartender was holding out for us. “I just put a barrier between you and the charmed snowflake. So it won’t bother you.”

  “But my chest is numb!”

  “Better than irritated, right?”

  “How did you know that wouldn’t bother me as well?” She stood with her hands on her hips, staring me down.

  Damn. She looked downright fierce with her eyes shooting daggers at me. She made me so proud.

  I patted her hand. “Because it’s a numbing spell. By definition you shouldn’t feel it. Do you?”

  “No…” She shuffled her feet. “But I feel… a little odd. Like, more alive or something.”

  Should I have told her it was my sex-witch energy? Nah. Better to let her figure it out for herself.

  “It’s just the party. The excitement in the air.” I nodded toward the makeshift stage. “Looks like things are getting started.”

  A tall, sandy-haired, clean-cut guy appeared and slipped his arm around Janie’s waist. She let out a small yelp as she jumped in surprise.

  “Hey, it’s just me, Janie.” He smiled down at her and leaned in to kiss her on her cheek.

  Just a friend? Sure. I hid a chuckle and turned away.

  “Chad,” she said breathlessly. “You made it.”

  The sexual tension radiating off the pair of them was enough to make gooseflesh pop out over my skin. Whoa. Those two had it bad. And in my sex-deprived state, their energy was driving me insane. I took another step to the right, putting more distance between us, only I bumped right into a bronze-skinned god of epic proportions.

  “Excuse me,” I said, glancing up into the clearest blue eyes I’d ever seen. They were hypnotizing. I was caught in his gaze, dumbfounded by their beauty. “Uh…”

  He chuckled and stepped back, giving me a little space. “Hello there, Mati.”

  I stood completely still, trying to place him. My track record with men was pretty long. Before Vaughn, I was a love ’em and leave ’em kind of girl. Emotional attachments weren’t my thing. So my list of sexual partners was longer than your average twenty-two-year-old. But this guy? This long, lean, corded guy of beauty? I’d have remembered him. “How did you know my name?”

  He held his hand out. “I’m Chase. I work with Vaughn.”

  My eyebrows shot straight up. “And you’re here because…?”

  “Routine. Any place full of magical beings is a demon draw. The party is my assignment for the night.”

  “And Vaughn told you to look for me?”

  He nodded. “I’m to be your date so no one else gets any ideas.” His smile was easy and teasing.

  Ideas weren’t exactly the problem, but he was right. With him by my side, the men would think twice before getting grabby.

  “Welcome to Wicca Delta Mu’s Kiss of Magic holiday soiree!” A gorgeous redhead with bright green eyes stood on the stage holding a mic. “We’re so excited you’re all here to share our magical evening. And now it’s time to get this party started!” Her arms flew in the air and the lights cut out, leaving us all in complete darkness.

  There was a cry of excited surprise that shuddered through the room, followed immediately by candles lighting spontaneously on the tables and in the wall sconces. As my eyes adjusted, the first thing I noticed was that each and every woman was wearing a piece of snowflake jewelry that was pulsing with magic.

  My body responded instantly, bringing my sexual energy right to the surface. And there was nothing I could do about it. The sex-witch pheromones filtered out into the crowd.

  “What are you doing?” Chase scowled. “That’s only going to make both of our jobs harder.”

  “I didn’t do it on purpose,” I said, not surprised he knew exactly what had happened. He was an incubus, for God’s sake. “It was the sudden influx of magic.” I pointed to my bracelet. “See?”

  He studied the snowflake charms and then glanced around. “Can you feel it radiating off everyone?”

  I nodded.

  “That’s damned inconvenient.”

  I shrugged. It was, but it was beyond my control.

  “Now here’s the fun part,” Bubbly Girl said, grinning. “Every ten minutes, the candles will flicker, and that’s the cue it’s time to meet someone new. When your magical charms glow bright blue, that means you’ve found your dance partner for the dance-off.”

  “Oh son of a…,” I mumbled as Chase chuckled.

  “You don’t dance?” Chase’s eyes lit with amusement.

  “Oh, I dance. I just prefer to pick my partner… and I don’t compete.”

  He snorted. “Right.”

  I turned and cast a skeptical glance down the length of his body. Then I stared him dead in the eye. “Do I look like a girl who has a hard time getting what she wants?”

  It was a bitchy thing to say. I had advantages other women didn’t because of my powers, but damn it if this sorority mixer wasn’t annoying. Whatever happened to throwing a party, supplying booze, and letting everyone drink themselves into a good time?

  Chase just laughed. “I guess not.”

  I glanced over at Janie. She had her hand on Chad’s chest and was smiling up at him. The look of adoration on his face had me relaxing. Okay, for Janie I could mingle with the frat boys. No big deal.

  Chase was lured away by a sexy little number with wildflower tattoos covering her shoulder. Two other girls flocked to the pair almost immediately. Yeah, incubi had the same gift… or curse… that I did. He’d be occupied for the foreseeable future.

  I turned to the guy on my left, resigned to the fact if I was going to appear to be one of the crowd, I was going to have to participate. “Hi,” I said. “So are you—”

  “Damn, baby,” he said, practically ripping my dress off with his gaze. “You’re the hottest fucking chick in this place.”

  “Well, wasn’t that classy,” I said, sarcasm dripping.

  He laughed as if I’d just let him in on a private joke. “I bet class is the last thing you want when it comes to making you scream. Am I right?” He took a step into my personal space, and just as I was about to zap him with a fiery bolt of magic, I felt someone else’s familiar sexual energy brush against my skin.

  Vaughn—my tall, dark, and gorgeous incubus.

  He was here. Right behind me. I spun and gaped at him. “What are you doing here?”

  “You might want to take a step back, brother.” Vaughn glared at the idiot who’d been ogling me.

  “Fuck off, asshole. My ten minutes aren’t up.” Frat dude’s eyes were narrowed, full of anger.

  Vaughn stepped in front of me, his neck and shoulders stiff with tension. My fingers twitched to soothe them as I held back a chuckle. I was more than capable of defending myself, and Vaughn well knew it. But this he-man display was seriously turning me on.

  “Go,” Vaughn said. “Before I bodily remove you from her presence.”

  Frat boy seemed to grow an inch taller as he stood up straight, his muscles rippling with barely suppressed frustration. I was pretty sure he was half a second from throwing a punch, but one of his buddies came up from behind him and wrapped an arm around his shoulders.

  “Hey, Zen. What’re you doing talking to that pretty boy when the ladies are swarming?” His speech was slurred and it was clear he’d been drinking long before he’d arrived at the party.

  “Zen?” I whispered into
Vaughn’s ear.

  His shoulders shook with silent laughter.

  Frat boy looked over Vaughn’s shoulder at me. “I’ll catch you later, sweet stuff.”

  I couldn’t help it. The laughter bubbled out. I clasped my hand over my mouth and blinked back the tears of laughter.

  “Bitch.” Frat guy glared at me, but when Vaughn took a step forward, his buddy hauled him off across the room.

  Vaughn stood his ground for a moment, watching the pair weave their way through the crowd, then he turned and raised one eyebrow as he stared down at me in exasperation.

  I just grinned and shifted closer, sliding my hand inside his black sports jacket. “Why are you here?”

  He leaned in and pressed his lips to mine. “To kiss my girlfriend.” His tongue slid past my parted lips, and then he wrapped me in his arms and deepened the kiss, claiming me right there in the middle of the party.

  My magic sparked to life, tingling everywhere as I pressed into him, my body heating up to explosive levels.

  He tightened his grip around me, nearly crushing me to him in a delicious display of possession. “Jesus, Mati,” he growled as his hand found the slit in my skirt. His fingers dug into my bare hip, barely maintaining control. “This dress should be illegal.”

  I pulled back and grabbed his hand. “This way.” It was reckless and completely scandalous, but Janie and Chad were in the middle of the room, both engrossed in each other, and the only thing I could think about was touching Vaughn’s bare skin. And that meant we needed a little bit of privacy.

  “Mati?” Vaughn asked.

  I tightened my hold around his fingers and led him to the back of the house to a darkened room full of books. It was a small library, most likely used by the resident advisor.

  “Perfect.”

  Vaughn’s eyes lit with understanding. And without saying a word, he lifted me up, spun me around, and claimed my lips in a punishing kiss as my back hit the closed door.

  I wrapped my legs around him and lost myself to the magic pulsing through my veins.

  He ground his hips into me, his hard shaft pressing against my center, and I let out a small moan of pleasure.

  “It’s been too long,” he said into my neck and bit down on the sensitive flesh at my throat.

  “Vaughn…” My body shuddered with need against him.

  “Tell me you want me, Matisse.” He pulled back, his eyes hot with lust. “Tell me it isn’t just about the magic.”

  My breath came in short, needy gasps. “What?”

  “Tell me I drive you insane, the same way I’m going out of my mind with the need to be inside you.”

  Slowly, I pushed his jacket off his shoulders, watching as it fell to the ground. Then, still pressed up against the door, I lifted his black T-shirt and trailed my fingers over his well-defined chest, leaving a trail of shimmering light behind. “You see this?”

  He stared into my eyes. “Yes.”

  “This only happens when I lose control. Do I need you? Yes. Do I need you inside me? God yes. And the sooner the better.” I dropped my hands to the button of his jeans, stared him in the eye and said, “I want you. Now.”

  Vaughn’s gaze dropped to my lips as we both stayed suspended in the moment, my words hanging between us. Then I popped the button on his jeans and his lips were on me, claiming me once again, feeding the hunger that possessed us both.

  His mouth was everywhere. My lips, my jawline, my neck, my chest. And then his hand was gripping my hip, slowly working the strap of my G-string down. I was completely caught up in him.

  Then magic concentrated at my wrist, grew hot, and pulled all the magic sparking between us straight to the charm.

  “What—?”

  My world turned black and all I saw was darkness.

  Chapter 3

  Noise and chatter filled my senses, followed by the slow fade of darkness to light. My feet hit the floor, and I stumbled backward a couple of steps, trying to regain my balance. I clutched Vaughn’s arm—no, not Vaughn, a stranger—and let out a small gasp.

  The guy chuckled. “First time to a mixer party?”

  I blinked, my eyes finally focusing. I was back in the main ballroom surrounded by people and candlelight. “Uh, yeah. Is teleportation normal?”

  “For the witch sorority? Yes. It’s supposed to be the way everyone gets to know each other. But it looks like you might’ve been in the middle of something.” He swept his gaze over me and smirked.

  I sent him a flat stare as I straightened my dress. “Funny.”

  “I’m Rave, by the way,” he said, holding his hand out.

  “Sorry, Rave. I’m leaving.” And without looking back, I drifted into the crowd, scanning for Janie. She’d been in the middle of the room the last time I’d seen her. But she wasn’t now. Chad was there, glancing around, ignoring the coed desperately trying to get his attention.

  “Chad!” I called.

  He turned around, caught my eye, and moved toward me. The coed stepped in front of him, stopping him. He glanced up, clearly frustrated by the distraction.

  “But it’s a mixer, Chad. You’re supposed to mingle with all the sisters,” I heard her say with just the right mix of teasing and censure. “What am I going to put in my report?”

  “Report?” I asked no one.

  A girl next to me giggled. “At the next house meeting we’re all expected to give a report of who we met. That one is the social chair. If she doesn’t get names, there will be hell to pay.”

  Good gracious. Witches volunteered for this? I was willing to admit the magical decorations were cool and it was nice to socialize with people you didn’t have to hide from, but this was taking things a bit too far.

  Chad’s gaze met mine. He widened his eyes and gave a tiny jerk of his head, practically begging me to come save him. Still not seeing Janie, I squared my shoulders and inserted myself between the coed and Chad.

  “Excuse me, but can I borrow him for a sec?” I asked the girl who was going on about some term paper she just wrote.

  “What? I mean, me and… ah… what was your name?” she asked him.

  “It’s Chad,” I said. “And I really need to talk to him for a moment. I’ll bring him right back.” Clasping my hand over Chad’s forearm, I dragged him toward the back of the house where it was a little quieter. “Have you seen Janie?”

  “That’s what I was going to ask you. She’s not… I mean, this sort of thing makes her very uncomfortable.”

  “Yeah. I know.” Shit. Where was she? “Okay, split up. We need to find her.”

  He frowned, scanning the room. “I’m sure she’s—”

  I’d stopped listening. Vaughn had just emerged from the back of the house, some tall black-haired girl clinging to him. A burning ball of jealousy formed in my chest, and I had to stop myself from snarling in her direction.

  Jealousy was an emotion I just wasn’t familiar with. It was ugly and clouded my senses. “Excuse me,” I said to Chad and moved toward Vaughn, who was headed in my direction.

  “Are you sure you don’t want to go back to the office?” Skank-girl ran one fingertip down his arm. “It was so private there.”

  Vaughn grabbed her wrist and physically removed her finger from his arm. “Sorry. Taken.”

  My jealous monster fizzled out as I watched her eyes go wide with surprise. She’d probably never been so blatantly rejected before.

  “What the hell happened?” Vaughn asked me when I stopped at his side.

  I held up the bracelet. “Mixer magic. Every ten minutes we’re supposed to meet someone new. By force, apparently.”

  He narrowed his eyes and then grabbed the bracelet and pulled, breaking it in one swift movement. The sparkling snowflake charms clattered to the floor. Leaning in, he pulled me to him and whispered, “My heart nearly stopped altogether when you disappeared like that… vanishing right before my eyes.”

  As an incubus demon hunter, he was used to walking between worlds. When people vanished
it could literally be to another dimension.

  “I wasn’t a fan of it myself,” I said. “And I’d like nothing better than to leave right this minute, but I need to find Janie. She was targeted by a few demons earlier this week and I need to make sure she’s safe.”

  “Demons? But then why were we—”

  “She was with Chad.” I waved to her almost-boyfriend. “I had no idea the jewelry was spelled for teleportation.”

  He nodded and glanced around the room. “I don’t see her.”

  “Me neither. Split up?”

  “Sure. Text when we spot her?”

  I nodded, gave him a quick kiss, and took off to let Chad in on the plan. Then I moved toward the grand staircase, which led to the second floor. A giant Christmas tree stood tall at the top. As I got closer, I realized every single ornament from the fluttering doves to the running reindeer to the flickering candles was animated with magic. It was an impressive display of witchcraft. And it called to me. I stopped mid-step, transfixed by the sheer power radiating off the tree. All thoughts flew from my head as I stared at the reindeer running in place. The spell was a perfect piece of magic. Without thinking, I reached for one, needing to touch it.

  “Mati!” Vaughn called from behind me and grabbed my hand before I could snatch the reindeer. “It’s a deflection spell. Don’t touch it.”

  “What?” I was disoriented, had no idea what I was doing.

  “The magic used on the tree. It’s designed to keep anyone from going past it. Probably to keep people out of the rooms.”

  “Huh?” I said trying to digest what he’d said.

  “Mati,” he said again. “Snap out of it.”

  The fog cleared, and I shook myself as the magic tried to grab hold of me again. Vaughn put his hand on my waist. His touch anchored me and everything stopped. The tree was suddenly mundane. None of the ornaments moved and it was just like any other overdecorated tree. “Whoa,” I said. “Are you blocking its magic?”

  He shook his head. “No. You are. I’m just lending you strength.”

  Damn. I was weaker than I thought. “Thanks. Let’s go. Janie has to be here somewhere.” It was clear I wasn’t going to be able to search the second floor without him, considering the repelling tree, but if it was doing its job, it wouldn’t take long to look around. I glanced over my shoulder at the party, scanning again before rounded the corner into the left wing. Neither Chad nor Janie were anywhere to be found. Dammit.