The Alpha's Challenge (The Wolfes Kinfoyle) [Siren Publishing Classic) Read online

  The Wolfes of Kinfoyle

  The Alpha’s Challenge

  When human Ari Mackintosh lets wolf shifter Jacob Wolfe know she fancies him, fur and sparks fly. Especially as Jacob isn't a mere shifter. He's the Alpha of his pack and a Dom to boot.

  Jacob cannot believe his luck when he discovers that the woman he’s been lusting after from afar not only knows about shifters, but is turned on by seeing him shift. It becomes clear that Ari knows far more than she ought to when she recognized him in his wolf form.

  It challenges Jacob, as it’s his duty to keep the pack safe. There are rules to follow—rules that he breaks one by one, as he cannot resist Ari’s natural submissiveness.

  When push comes to shove and Jacob reveals his secrets, he is fully aware that they might send Ari away screaming.

  He has to take the chance and trust that she will stay.

  Genre: BDSM, Contemporary, Paranormal, Vampires/Werewolves

  Length: 25,481 words

  THE ALPHA’S CHALLENGE

  The Wolfes of Kinfoyle

  Raven McAllan

  EROTIC ROMANCE

  Siren Publishing, Inc.

  www.SirenPublishing.com

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  A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK

  IMPRINT: Erotic Romance

  THE ALPHA’S CHALLENGE

  Copyright © 2014 by Raven McAllan

  E-book ISBN: 978-1-63258-688-9

  First E-book Publication: December 2014

  Cover design by Harris Channing

  All art and logo copyright © 2014 by Siren Publishing, Inc.

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.

  All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.

  PUBLISHER

  Siren Publishing, Inc.

  www.SirenPublishing.com

  Letter to Readers

  Dear Readers,

  If you have purchased this copy of The Alpha’s Challenge by Raven McAllan from BookStrand.com or its official distributors, thank you. Also, thank you for not sharing your copy of this book.

  Regarding E-book Piracy

  This book is copyrighted intellectual property. No other individual or group has resale rights, auction rights, membership rights, sharing rights, or any kind of rights to sell or to give away a copy of this book.

  The author and the publisher work very hard to bring our paying readers high-quality reading entertainment.

  This is Raven McAllan’s livelihood. It’s fair and simple. Please respect Raven McAllan’s right to earn a living from her work.

  Amanda Hilton, Publisher

  www.SirenPublishing.com

  www.BookStrand.com

  DEDICATION

  To Doris and Paul whose encouragement and help are invaluable. Thank you both xxx

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Dedication

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Epilogue

  About the Author

  THE ALPHA’S CHALLENGE

  The Wolfes of Kinfoyle

  RAVEN MCALLAN

  Copyright © 2014

  Chapter One

  “Where on earth can I find a shifter who knows how to samba? That’s this stupid woman’s Christmas wish.” Ari Mackintosh groaned and rolled her hazel-coloured eyes as she looked up at Jacob. As ever, the closeness of her—her individual scent—teased his cock into hardening under his jeans, and he wished like crazy he could adjust himself so the teeth on his zipper didn’t leave their mark. He had better marks in mind than them.

  Her teeth on my dick would be preferable. Hell, her teeth anywhere. I’m not going to argue just where. Followed, of course, by my marks on her. Lots of them.

  “To samba with a blooming wolf,” Ari continued in a mock-moaning voice. “Not just an ordinary samba champion.” She ticked her client’s requests off her fingers. “Oh, no, she wants a shifter. One who is hot in every respect. Does that mean we need a sunny day? There’s a snowball’s chance in hell there then. As likely as me finding an accommodating shifter.” She put one hand in the air. “Ah, hold on. Now don’t I remember an old TV advert from when I was a kid where they called removal men ‘shifters’? Ah ha, do you think she’d go for that?”

  Jacob chuckled. Ari in this mood was hilarious.

  “You may well laugh. But it’s not likely in November, is it now? No doubt then she’ll expect to be ravished and howl at the moon ever after. If she’d asked for frost, or fog, or this everlasting bloody rain, I could have maybe sorted it.” She waved toward the window, where it was so murky you couldn’t see the nearby park. “Some people are bloody stupid,” she continued. “It’s not enough to dance with a hot man. Oh, no, she wants him to shift before they dance, not after… or as… or all three. Oh and she’d prefer him to be a Dom and teach her to behave. Preferably by spanking and biting. Hell she doesn’t want much, does she? I wonder if she wants him to hold a rose between his teeth as well. Some people dumbfound me. A shifter. That’ll be right.” She snorted.

  Jacob whistled between his teeth. His future wasn’t going to be easy.

  “Like one’s gonna pop up in the Trossachs. Gah, she’s been reading too many erotic romances I reckon. Shifters. Lordy.” Ari shook her head. “By god I need to up my charges.” She blushed, looked down at something written on a scrap of paper on the top of the desk, and rubbed her legs together.

  Jacob smelled her arousal and bet her action was to try to halt the steady stream of juices coating her thighs, or at least hide it from him.

  Damn, I wish I could touch and taste. I wish I could tell her and show her now.

  “Shifters, it’ll be flying to the moon on a carpet next. Don’t I say ‘within human reason’ in my advertising gumpf?”

  Jacob squinted but couldn’t decipher the scrawl on the paper she held. It all sounded plausible to him. “So what’s the problem? Say no.”

  “Don’t be stupid.” Ari looked up at him. “It’s my job.�
��

  She still had her legs pressed tightly together. He moved, picked a pen up from the desk, and by dint of pushing her legs apart with his knee, managed to rub his thigh against her pussy as he leaned over her. His chest brushed her breasts and her nipples hardened against him. Jacob gritted his teeth. His cock was now stretching the old and well-worn denim that covered it to its limit. It would have damned zipper marks up its length, no doubt about it, and need a hand session to sort it out.

  “Then it’s simple.” He hoped his voice didn’t sound strained, but it was hell having to restrain himself from taking her over the desk. She’d probably run screaming, or hit him with the wicked-looking umbrella she kept in the corner of the room before asking him if he was right in the head. That’s what came from not showing you were as horny as hell for someone.

  But I had to wait until the timing was right. Now that it is, she’s got this damned complication to throw in the mix. Why was life never straightforward?

  “They ask. You say yes. No?” He put the pen down again, pressed his thigh firmer against her, and bit back the smirk that threatened to erupt as her eyes clouded over and her breath hitched.

  She scowled. “Trust you to reduce all my hard work to five words. It’s not so simple, mate.” She poked him in the stomach. “You try it.” She didn’t move away from his leg though.

  Jacob laughed. He loved her like this. Was that more than a spark of friendly interest in him? He hoped so, because then he’d show her things she’d never dreamt about.

  Slowly. Follow the rules.

  Instead of pushing further he moved back and sat on the edge of her desk and swung his legs in time to the tapping of her pencil on the wooden desktop.

  She sighed and bit her lip.

  “Stop that. The only marks you’ll have are mine.” He rapped the words out and her head jerked up as if he’d slapped her, and not in a nice Dom-sub way either.

  Oh fuck I’ve buggered it now.

  “Er, oh, um… Right.” She blinked and continued the tapping. Her blush covered every inch of flesh he could see. Jacob decided he’d love to discover just how far it went.

  Did the woman ever relax? Since Jacob had met her, on their first day of school, and cemented their friendship with a piece of half-eaten caramel, she’d been a whirling dervish and always on the go. He took the pencil from her. “Enough. Let’s go out for a drink.”

  “I’ll pass. Thank you. I need to sort this wish out first.”

  More’s the pity. His Ari was like a terrier with a rat. His Ari? Jacob howled inwardly. Oh how he wished he was able to make her so, there and then. Nonetheless, should he offer? Something smelled fishy. Never before had Ari been so on edge, and well, decidedly shifty, in his presence.

  Shifty? He wished. Therefore, he’d bide his time.

  Through all those twenty-odd years as friends, they’d been there for each other. Even when Jacob had been sent away to school to learn certain subjects not on a normal curriculum, they’d written, phoned, and then eventually emailed each other. Enforced absence hadn’t spoiled their friendship, nor had boyfriends, girlfriends, or anything else. Even the fact that his twin and Ari were thick as thieves made no difference to their particular friendship. Now he wondered how much Jenissa had told Ari about their likings for all things BDSM. Oh not together of course, but he was an out-and-out Dom, and his twin the female equivalent, and incest had no place in their lives. Most importantly, he knew Jenissa understood the other consequential thing about them was not to be discussed. Not until the time was right, and it had to be Jacob’s call.

  Now Ari had set up some “arrange your fantasy“ business thing, and it seemed she hadn’t expected some of the fantasies, and it was going to fuck up his curriculum big time. Why hadn’t Jenissa told him? Did either of them know everything that could happen? Jacob made a mental note to set up some sort of security for Ari and her business. There were a lot of weirdos out there. Some people might even include him on the list.

  “That apart, how’s the business going?” Jacob asked. They hadn’t met for a month or so. He’d been away on shifter business. Contrary to many shifters, Jacob didn’t generally feel the need to be near a lot of others of his kind. His pack were scattered all around Scotland and lived peaceful and law-abiding lives, unknown for their shifting abilities except to their mates and the pack. They tended to only meet up formally on special occasions. As their head, he did the rounds, as he called it, a couple of times a year, and of course hosted the quarterly mass shifts. This last month he’d been best man at a wedding as a human and officiated at a formalising of a mating partnership as a wolf—and attended two christenings. And of course, been teased unmercifully at his partner-less state. Maybe he was about to change that? Could he? Bearing in mind all he needed.

  Oh hell I hope so.

  “Ari?” He prompted her and she looked up at him and swallowed. The ripple of her skin over her throat seemed oh so sexy, and Jacob’s mouth went dry.

  Oh my, I have got it bad.

  “Oh, er, great. Lots of good things and stuff.” She scribbled something on the sheet of paper and clutched it as if it were a hundred-pound note. “Mostly.”

  For some reason she couldn’t look him in the eye. It was so un-Ari-like Jacob began to worry. Before he had a chance to voice his fears she spoke again.

  “Bloody samba-dancing shifters,” she grumbled. “Seriously, what planet is she on? Where the hell will I find someone to do that crap? Shifters. Sheesh.”

  Jacob made up his mind, bowed, did a twirl, clicked his heels and grinned. “Look no further. Though I deny it’s crap. Jacob Wolfe. At your service.”

  “You? Grief, Jacob, surnames don’t count. She wants a shifter. How do I get round that? Send him behind a screen to shove on a costume, d’you reckon?”

  Why couldn’t she look him in the eyes?

  “That could work,” he said slowly. And help me keep my persona quiet. “However, I’m your man,” he said, and smiled wolfishly. And surnames so do count. “Whilst you were gap year-ing and playing the dim blonde on holiday, I earned my way through uni as a Latin-American-dance teacher. Of course it wasn’t the only thing I taught.”

  “Ha-ha, I’m sure not,” Ari said. “And I have never, ever played the dim blonde.” She rolled her eyes and fluttered her eyelashes. “It comes naturally.” They both knew the last thing she was, was dumb. An M.A. in Chinese and business studies proved that.

  Does she know what else I taught then?

  “But I need someone who can pretend he’s a shifter,” Ari said, with a peculiar intonation in her tone. “I mean, for fuck’s sake, shifters.” She snorted. “Next thing she’ll ask to be carried through the forest and have mad hot sex on a bed of leaves.”

  She blushed, and Jacob swore she was aroused by the thought. He tucked it away to ponder later. Somehow he was sure she wasn’t that naive. Not with his sister as a friend.

  “To say nothing of spanked by a claw or something else,” Ari continued. “But you? Sorry, hon, you so don’t scream shifter to me.” She smiled.

  Was there a challenge in that smile? Jacob began to see a new side to his childhood friend. One that interested and excited him.

  So claw spanks are on the agenda. Oh nice. How he’d enjoy administering that. If I get the chance.

  Jacob noticed her smile didn’t reach her eyes, and wondered just what was wrong. Something wasn’t all right in Ari-land.

  “Ari? You okay?”

  “Yeah, sure. Ah, don’t mind me. Maybe I’m hormonal or something.”

  Nope. Jacob sniffed. Definitely not hormonal. He’d sense that. It was one thing that helped all male wolf shifters in his pack know when to keep shtum and agree with their hormonal mates. Luckily in their pack it didn’t happen unless it was time to mate.

  “But I dread to think what else she’ll think of,” Ari went on. “Riding on his back? Could you even do that? Ride a wolf’s back? Or a man in wolf’s clothing.”

  “Who know
s?” Jacob shrugged, and did his best to look clueless.

  Sometimes, with help, but that’s a whole new ball game. So are the spanking, the claw, and definitely the “something else.” However he didn’t say a word. It was probably a good thing he didn’t look like a shifter. He had to live and eat, and human flesh had never appealed to him. He preferred chicken. However, her ideas intrigued him. As long as he was involved. It struck him he was thinking of her as the client, and no one else. If he was wrong, there could be problems.

  Ari shook her head. “Some people. That reminds me, I’ll need to see where I can hunt out a wolf costume.” She opened a deep desk drawer and began to rummage in it. “Fuck it, where’s that sodding list of costumiers. I’ll have to increase my stock if I keep getting requests like this.”

  Wolf costume? Jacob bit his lip and drew blood. Enough to stop him responding in a way guaranteed to have Ari run for the police and demand the local zoo attend or something. Even without the distraction of a bleeding lip he wanted to close his mind to anything other than the way he could respond to her challenge.

  Don’t shift. Do not shift. He concentrated on Ari’s bum as she left the desk and walked round him to open a tall cupboard, and ignored the way his skin burned and his mind begged for release. He’d shift once he was safe on his own land.

  “Let me know if you want me,” he said and ignored the desperation in his voice. After all, he only wanted her and not some shifter-lusting person. However he wouldn’t see her stuck. “Dinner, tomorrow?”

  Ari turned from the cupboard and stretched her arms over her head. Her skirt hem lifted and the lacy edge of a stocking showed for a second. The action also un-tucked her shirt, and stretched it tight over her boobs. The mesh cups of her bra showed through the fine silk, and her nipples were visible as a dusky shadow. If only he could rip away those coverings and feast his eyes on her tits, before savouring each one in turn.