The Alpha's Onyx & Fire (3 page)

A light flicking on in the main house through the window caught her eye. The Alpha?

Just remembering the delicious man she had met earlier set her pulse racing. Sage Ashcroft was a hell of a man, large and fierce looking. And those eyes. Damn, they could make a woman melt.

She had only experienced that exact feeling one other time in her life about a month earlier, after meeting a man who lived nearby her university. Leontis. Even now just thinking about him caused her heart to stutter. They had only been on a few dates when she had heard news of her parents, before her entire life had been uprooted. The mere thought of the sexy, chocolate skinned hunk had her pulse racing. It hadn’t been a feeling she was used to, until now. When she had gazed back into the smooth honey orbs of the Alpha, Tessa had to admit she was affected.

What she wouldn’t give to have that heated gaze pinned on her as those muscular arms surrounded her.

Wait? What?

Oh hell, she should not be having thoughts like that. About any man let alone the Alpha. Not only did she already have her hands full, but there was no way an Alpha shifter would even look sideways at a little human like her. She knew other shifters, and they were all ridiculously gorgeous. Even her friend, Ella, was all tall, leggy, with chocolate brown hair. Whereas Tessa...well...she wasn’t overweight, but she wasn’t model like either, and her hair was red, standing out against her pale skin. To top it off, her eyes were plain brown, nothing special or unique. Two words that would never be used to describe her.

She imagined what it would be like, for even just a second, to have a chance with a man like Sage Ashcroft. Tessa had been amazed Leontis had even looked her way. No chance in hell that she could be that lucky again.

Shaking her head, trying to rid herself of those silly thoughts, Tessa slipped on her boots. Heading for the front door, she unexpectedly heard a knock. Frowning, she swung her gaze to the clock. Nearly midnight. Who the hell?

Fear suddenly gripped her at the thought of someone from her parents past tracking them down. What if they owed more people money? Could someone really come this far for it? With the amount she had been told her father had been in debt, she thought it a possibility.

Another knock came and she jumped. Nerves skittered through her and she reached for her phone.

Unsure what move to make, her eyes fell on the note Sage had left for her by the door with his number on it. Dialing the number quickly, she held her breath as it rang, frowning when she could hear a phone ring outside the door followed by a chuckle.

She groaned, suddenly knowing exactly who was standing on the other side of the door.

Turning the lock and the knob, she pulled the door open to reveal none other than Sage Ashcroft himself.

Crap. He really was handsome.

He grinned. “Sorry to call on you so late, but I saw the light was on so I figured I’d come and say hi...again.”

“Um, hi.” She laughed nervously, her heart still racing from fear.

Tessa noticed Sage drew in a deep breath, a frown formed on his face as he tensed. “What’s wrong?”

She blinked at him. “Um, nothing. Why?”

“You were scared.” His eyes roamed the room behind her. “What happened?”

Her jaw dropped open. “You can smell that?”

His eyes narrowed on her. “So you know? Ella told you?”

“You do realize that neither of us have actually answered each other’s questions, right?” She chuckled, feeling slightly more relaxed. “Come in, it’s freezing out there.”

Tessa bit her lip, struggling to hold in a moan when Sage brushed by her. The man smelled so damn good. Her eyes raked down his large body, hypnotized at the way his muscles moved as he walked. His arms were thick, sprinkled with a fine layer of black hair, and she couldn’t help but wonder again, what it would be like to have those strong, firm bands wrapped around her. She shivered at the thought.

A deep chuckle had her eyes shooting up, heat infusing her face when she realized she had been caught.

“Sorry. Um, yeah...sorry.” She gestured toward the living room. “Did you want to take a seat? Or have a coffee, maybe?”

Damn, she was nervous.

“A bit late for coffee, but I remember stocking some hot chocolate mix in the pantry,” he suggested. She practically felt his eyes trailing down her body. Like the softest caress.

“Yeah, it’s there, I made some for the kids before they went to bed,” she said, making her way to the small kitchen.

She busied herself with making the hot beverages, trying to think of anything but how good the man smelled, or how attractive she found him. At this stage in her life, and with the kids depending on her, she couldn’t afford this type of distraction, and that was exactly what Sage Ashcroft was. A distraction.

They continued this way, in silence, while she made the drinks for them. She’d flick her eyes to him, only to find him staring at her intently, as if trying to solve a puzzle. When his gaze became too much for her, she would look away, only to repeat the process again.

Stirring the ingredients, she finally turned to face him, handing over one of the mugs. Nothing was said as they headed for the lounge room, sitting down on separate arm chairs.

Tessa had grown so used to the silence, that she was startled when he eventually spoke. And what he said, caused her to bristle.

“I was sorry to hear about your parents,” his deep voice rumbled. “Taking care of your siblings is a huge responsibility.”

Her eyes narrowed on him. “Are you trying to tell me I’m not up to the task?”

Sage chuckled. “Not at all. Merely that it’s a very selfless thing, it shows that you’re a good person.”

“Oh,” she said lamely. “Sorry.”

Ever since she had agreed to take on the kids, people had been telling her left, right, and center that she wasn’t up for the job. No one else wanted the responsibility, but they were more than happy to tell her all the many ways in which she was lacking and unable to care for them properly. So it was only natural that she would assume the same from someone else. Christ, the man was Alpha of his own Pride. He had dozens of shifters answering to him, relying on him. And the pressure of it didn’t seem to weigh on him like it did for her, with only five children.

“Something tells me you’ve had a lot of people tell you that you can’t do this, am I right?” he asked.

“Yeah,” she whispered. “Something like that.”

He nodded. “While normally they would be right, they didn’t take into account that you won’t be doing this alone.”

She blinked up at him. “I won’t?”

“No. You won’t.”

Tessa nibbled on her bottom lip. “I know that shifters are pretty tight knit, but I’m not one of you, why would you help me?”

Sage placed his drink on the table in front of him, reaching out to place his hand over hers. She shivered at the sparks that lit up her skin at the contact.

“For starters, Ella sees you as family, which makes you one of us. Second, I’m glad you know about us, I wasn’t sure at first and had been wondering how to tell you.” He chuckled. “And third, you're a good person who has had a lot asked of them, I would never stand by and watch you struggle.”

His words, and the conviction behind them, settled something deep inside her. The part of her that had been screaming out since this had all began. Hell, since she was a child herself and learned early on that she couldn't rely on her parents.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

“Oh, Tessa,” he sighed, slipping out of his chair and coming to kneel in front of her.

He pushed himself forward until she had no choice but to widen her legs and make room for him. Such close contact was making it difficult for her to breathe.

Sage brought his hands up to cup either side of her face, and her pulse picked up in pace. “You aren’t alone, do you hear me? I can see, hear, and smell your sadness, but you don’t have to be. Things will be better now, I promise.”

His words broke something inside of her. “I feel so lost. Like every time I try to catch up, something else is thrown my way. And I’m scared, Sage.”

She felt him shudder as she said his name. “Scared of what?”

“Of someone coming for us. It’s what you could smell earlier when you knocked.” She laughed mirthlessly. “I live in constant fear that someone my father owed money to is going to track us down and demand that I pay. These people killed my parents, Sage. Over money. I mean, who does that?”

Her voice raised at the end, all her fear, anger, and frustration boiling to the surface. “They took a mother and father away from young children, and didn’t even care who found the fucking body. What if it had been one of the kids and not the neighbor? Would they have gone after the kids if they had been there? And what the hell did they think they were doing borrowing that kind of money from people like that? They were goddamn parents, Sage. I sent money home all the fucking time, and for what? So the bastard could waste and gamble it?”

A sob broke from her chest, and that seemed to be what Sage had been waiting for. He gathered her up tightly in his arms, his hand rubbing up and down her back as he whispered soothing words into her ear. They sat this way until her tears finally abated. Her body and mind suddenly extremely exhausted.

Sage slipped a finger under her chin, tilting her head up to his. She gasped when she realized how close they were.

“You’re not alone,” he whispered against her lips. “I promise.”

The kiss that followed was soft and sweet, so unlike anything she had imagined sharing with the man.

*****

The taste of his mate exploded on his tongue as it swept out, seeking entrance into the warm cavern of her mouth. Delicious and spicy, it left him craving more, but Sage knew he couldn’t, shouldn’t push her. Tessa was so strong, and so fragile. He thought she could crumble at any moment, yet pure stubbornness and love for her siblings kept her going long past her breaking point.

“Tessa,” he groaned against her lips. “If only you knew what you did to me.”

Reluctantly pulling back, he smiled at the dazed, lustful look in her gorgeous big brown eyes.

He trailed his thumb across her bottom lip, relishing the shiver that worked its way through her body. “Do you know how very tempting you are?”

Tessa blinked. “No I’m not. I’m plain.”

He chuckled. She was anything but plain, Sage could see the fire that burned in her eyes. “I’m afraid we’ll have to disagree.”

“Why?”

Sage cocked his head to the side. “Why do we have to disagree?”

“No.” Tessa shook her head, as if trying to gain her bearings. “No, why did you just kiss me?”

He studied her, his eyes taking in the clear confusion on her face. “You truly don’t see it, do you?”

“What?”

“There are many reasons why I just kissed you, Tessa. But the most important one...is because I wanted to.”

Tessa grinned. “So arrogant?”

“So honest.”

“And what if I hadn’t wanted to kiss you back?”

“Oh, that wouldn’t have happened.” He knew that for a fact. Even a human mate could still sense the pull. While his new brother-in-law, Evan, may have been able to fight his undeniable connection to Sage’s sister, Summer, he had still felt it. Thankfully the man had done the right thing and given in to what nature knew was a perfect fit.

Tessa seemed to consider him for a moment. “You seem so sure. Is it because you can smell my attraction to you?” she asked curiously. “Because you know, unlike shifters, humans are less likely to act on their baser instincts.”

His cock hardened at the blatant challenge he saw in her gaze. She was feisty.

“Maybe...but what is happening here is very different than two humans deciding they are attracted to one another.”

“Because you’re a tiger?”

Sage laughed lightly, deciding now was as good a time as any to drop the bombshell. “No, because you're my mate.”

Chapter Three

Tessa gaped at the Alpha. There was no way she had heard him correctly.

“I’m your...what?”

Sage opened his mouth, presumably to answer, when the ringing of his phone interrupted. She watched him fish around his pockets until he pulled the mobile out and stare down at the screen with a frown. “Sorry, I have to take this.”

Her shock grew as he moved back, answering the phone as he stood. “What happened?”

The hardness in his tone alerted her to the fact that something was obviously wrong.

“Shit. Are you sure? How long?” He waited a bit longer while the other person spoke. “Fine. No, stay there, I’m on my way.”

He hung up and turned to her. Tessa could see the man was torn. He obviously wanted to stay and finish their conversation, talk about his sudden statement, but there were other pressing matters.

“You need to go?”

“Yes, but…”

Tessa actually felt a little sorry for him.

“I’m not going anywhere,” she offered. And why the hell was she trying to reassure a man who had just dropped a mind-blowing revelation on her?

Sage still seemed to consider his choices, before he sighed. “Shit. I’m sorry, but this—”

“Is important. I can tell. Go, sort it out,” she ordered him. “But remember, you owe me some damn explanations after that.”

Sage’s grin was huge. “Yes, ma’am. I’ll come back when we’re done, in about an hour.”

With a quick, yet searing kiss to her lips that felt so natural it left her stunned, Sage exited her small little home, flipping the lock on his way out.

Tessa raised her fingers to her still tingling lips. “Damn.”

One thing she knew for sure was that she wasn’t going to be getting much sleep that night. The second, she was calling Ella and her friend was going to explain a few things she had obviously held out on. Tessa wasn’t an idiot, had read enough to roughly know what Sage meant by mate...now it was time to get some answers.

*****

The cool wind howled through the trees, the night even darker than before. Dark like his mood because Sage was furious. He had been pulled away from Tessa just as he had blurted out they were mates. And why the hell had he thought it such a good idea to spit that out at that moment, he had no idea. Well, that wasn’t true. Clearly he had turned into a hormonal teenager, thinking only with his cock. The confession had slipped from his tongue so easily. Dammit, he was an idiot.