"Kiera?" Gabriel was standing in the doorway of his office. Despite this house being made for him, his broad shoulders nearly filled the frame. He'd caught me leaving the medical room for the evening and he wasn't shy about letting his eyes roam over me. My breath caught and I shook my head nervously, motioning for him to go away just as Ephraim exited behind me. Smooth as ever, Gabriel stepped back out of sight.

"I think I left my scarf," I said quickly. "I can lock up."

Ephraim grumbled something and handed me the keys. I took them and went back inside where I stood in the dark, eyes shut, listening for the front door to close. After several minutes, there was a soft knock on the door. I cracked it open to find Gabriel standing in the hall, smirking.

"Find your scarf?" He teased.

"I think I liked you better before you found this sense of humor." I turned and locked the door as he stepped close, almost pressing against my back.

Gabriel gave the end of my braid a gentle tug. "So, you did like me?"

I tilted my head to lean back into his presence as it engulfed me. "Maybe," I replied with a slight smile, enjoying the increasing tension between us. His closeness sent a shiver down my spine and ignited a fire within me that spread from the points on my back where I could almost, almost feel him against me.

He leaned in closer, his warm breath tickling my ear. "Good," he murmured. "Because I can't seem to get you out of my head."

"Can't you?" I turned around to face him and our gazes locked with an intensity that made my heart race. His eyes held a mixture of desire and uncertainty that closely mirrored my own conflicting emotions.

A hint of a smile played on his lips as his fingers traced a delicate path along my jawline. "No, Kiera, I can't," he admitted. His voice was husky now and laced with longing.

I leaned into his touch, my breathing becoming shallower. "You're a bit of a smooth talker."

Gabriel studied me, his hand now cupping my cheek. It was warm and his skin was rough against mine. "Is it working?"

God yes. "Maybe," I said coyly, "but don't let it go to your head."

"Too late." He leaned in closer, lips nearly brushing my ear. His smell invaded my senses as it cascaded over me and it was all I could do not to close my eyes and breathe him in. "It's already gone to my head, among...other places."

I couldn't help but laugh, the electricity between us dissipating somewhat. I pushed him away gently. "Who are you and what have you done with that irritable Alpha that used to live here?"

Truly, he looked absolutely at ease. There was no hint of the tension he always seemed to carry in his neck and shoulders. Even when he'd seemed relaxed in the past, there was always an edge to it, always a countdown clock ticking away the minutes until that tension returned. Tonight, he seemed a different person entirely.

He took my hand. "Come with me."

I let him lead me back into his office, transfixed on the way our hands fit together. The feeling of his wrapped around mine settled my racing heart and that feeling of comfort, for the briefest moment, told me that I was making the right decision.

He led me to stand in front of the fire and planted me there before moving to his desk, and my hand felt cold the second he let it go. I watched him curiously as he pulled a paper bag from his backpack that looked suspiciously like—

"I thought you didn't sell alcohol here," I said. He unwrapped a bottle of red wine and a glass and got to work uncorking it clumsily. It looked like this was his first time doing so.

"We don't," he grunted, annoyed with the tedious process. "Victor buys it near the border. He uses it for cooking." The cork popped loudly as he finally managed to yank it out and he scowled when the smell hit him. Carefully, he filled the glass halfway and carried it across the room to me.

"I'm sure that's all he uses it for," I teased. I made sure that our fingers touched when I took the glass from him: since he'd released my hand, I was craving any contact I could get. "You're not having any?"

"Of that poison? No."

I frowned and pulled the glass away from my lips. "Then why did you get it?"

Gabriel shrugged. "You seemed to enjoy it at the gathering."

Using the glass, I tried to hide my blushing cheeks and stupid grin. I'd been sure he hated me then—and maybe he had—but nonetheless, he'd been paying attention. I took a long sip and savored it. It was sweeter than the reds I tended to go for, but it warmed me all the same. He took a step closer, eyes glinting in the firelight with a subtle spark.

"Careful, Gabriel." I leaned back slightly and took another swallow. "You're starting to make me think you're actually a nice guy."

He chuckled mischievously. "I have my moments."

I reached up and pulled gently on a strand of his hair, as he had done to mine, the playful gesture an attempt to mask the frightening depth of my feelings. "It's growing on me," I admitted, a touch of vulnerability creeping into my voice.

His gaze softened, his fingers again reaching for mine and intertwining with them. "I'm glad to hear that." He sounded so sincere that it tugged at my heart.

Our playful teasing gave way to a quiet understanding. We both felt what was forming between us now—some unnamed thing that was as terrifying as it was natural. Familiar. With a gentle squeeze of his hand, I let him know that I was open to it. He squeezed back to let me know the same.

I finished the remainder of the wine and he set the glass on the mantle, his free hand finding the small of my back and drawing me in close. When his lips captured mine this time, it was far from chaste. Everything he'd been holding back came unleashed when I responded in kind and as we collapsed backwards onto the couch, my body landing on his, the quiet groan he loosed involuntarily raised goosebumps down my arms.

His kisses were raw and wanting and the taste of him had me addicted instantly. His tongue moved against mine with urgent purpose, exploring the contours of my mouth, igniting a fire that felt as though it was taking the place of the blood in my veins.

I rose and fell with his chest as it moved with his erratic breaths. Gabriel's hands roamed across my back, tracing the curves of my spine, leaving a trail of tingling sensations in their wake. Each needy touch fanned the flames burning in me. When he worked his way back up to tangle his fingers in my hair, gently pulling at the roots, I couldn't stop the soft moans that escaped my lips.

As our kisses deepened, the boundaries that had stood so starkly between us began to blur and dissolve. When I reluctantly pulled back, our lips still lingering a breath apart, the air between us crackled with electricity. I struggled to catch my breath as I studied his face, conscious of the vibrating sensation against my chest that was his wolf growling softly, content.

"There's no way that was only your third kiss," I panted.

He grinned and planted another on my forehead for good measure. "How'd I do?"

"I think we'll need to practice a bit more before I give you formal feedback."

"There are...other things I can do to help your assessment of me." Gabriel's expression remained one of lust, his heavy-lidded eyes dark and hungry. His wolf was not done with me yet. I chewed my lip, wondering whether I should leave before we got ahead of ourselves. But we'd come this far—what harm could giving in do?

I'd barely nodded my head when he flipped us quickly so that I was laying in his place and he was above me, kneeling on either side of my hips. His hair hung down around me and tickled my cheeks. My insides clenched as my body responded to him in ways I wasn't prepared for. As his teeth softly grazed my collarbone, Gabriel lowered one hand and deftly unbuttoned my jeans. Without thinking, I wiggled my hips to help him slide them off, which he somehow managed to do so smoothly that his mouth barely ever left my skin.

When he sat back to take me in, exposed below him for his own enjoyment, I tried to close my legs. The heat that had collected there, the wetness of my arousal, was on full display and I was drawn out of the moment by self-consciousness. Gabriel caressed my thighs with his fingers before spreading them once more and maneuvering to kneel between them.

"Let me admire you," he whispered before lowering himself to glide his lips over the sensitive skin of my inner thigh. One hand remained there, holding my leg out of the way, while he used the other to open me gently. I gasped audibly and squirmed under his touch, desperate already for the relief of climax.

"Beautiful girl," he breathed against me, the feeling of the warm air just enough to force his name from my lips in a low moan. "You smell delicious when you want me."

A long, slow shiver rolled from my scalp to my toes at his words and at its peak, he sank his tongue between my folds. I arched against him and reached backwards over my head to grip the arm of the couch. Gabriel's lips closed around my clit and he sucked, lightly at first, then more insistently. I could feel him looking up at me but I couldn't open my eyes to meet his gaze. Even if I had, I think I would have been blind for the pleasure he was inflicting on me.

I didn't last long; the pressure building in my core was too much to bear and I bucked my hips up as he dragged his tongue through me one final time before I came. Lungs seizing, I barely managed a strangled cry and my legs trembled violently. Gabriel raised his head, grinning. He made no move to wipe his mouth before he moved back up to kiss me.

My mind was blank, for once not racing with thoughts. My muscles felt warm and fluid when Gabriel shifted me over so that he could lay beside me, both of us pressed together to fit on the couch. Once the frantic pace of my breathing slowed, I turned my head to find him watching me.

"So?" He asked. I laughed.

"Not bad, Alpha."