The Falcon Ridge Series Book 3 If Looks Could Kill

(Chapter song ‘Ain’t Talking About Love' by Van Halen)

ALEXI

The night was high when I pulled the Porsche into the driveway of little out of the way house on the outskirts of Red Rock.

It’s a very humble home, but that’s not surprising considering who lives there. He has never been one for luxurious appearances.

As I approach the average white, screen door, I think of how much I rely on this man. I notice the inner door is open as I climb the three steps and knock on the metal frame.

Nash. One of my father's First Commanders and his confidant right up until his death. He's not his Beta, but close.

He’s an extremely skilled fighter and taught my father how to fight. Though my father perfected his skills to advance Nash in many ways.

I’m not sure how they met, but from what I do know, they go back even before the Dragons existed. You could say Nash was one of the founders under my father.

Nash is also my ex-lover. A secret my father never knew. My father was an extreme believer in purity and he would have taken Nash's life had he known he was the one who deflowered me. That didn’t stop us from secret trysts when my father was out of the house.

After my father's murder, I feared Nash was dead until I ran into him eight months ago in Red Rock. It was a relief to meet him again.

With my position as Alpha Daughter under threat from all sides, it’s been nice to have a trusted, loyal follower at my side.

Nash’s slim, strong body and rugged rough exterior is what I loved most about him. But what really attracted me to him, was his spirituality.

He has this magic, that if you need to forget or just release, he will perform it for you. I've never had it done personally, but it works, so I'm told. My father often had private meetings with Nash. He never told me why. He'd only say that Nash was cleansing his mind for the upcoming liberation from the Alliance.

In the shadows of the interior, filtered through the grey screen, I see a shadow. A smile crosses my lips as I see him come into view and the door opens.

He greets me with bright, brown eyes and a charming smile.

His stark white hair is pulled back into a man bun and he's wearing an open, white shirt with thin white cotton pants. His chiseled chest flexes as he leans on the frame. It's almost comical to see he’s turned himself into a shaman during his isolation.

"I wasn't expecting you so soon." He looks me over as he opens the door wider and invites me in. "When you called, I started to prepare, but I'm not ready yet."

As I step into the tiny house, I look around the very minimalistic state of it. There’s barely anything on the walls. The floor is wood and the furniture is simple. It almost doesn't look lived in. "That's fine. I'll have tea and wait, yeah?"

He bows his head to me slightly. "I know the perfect one."

Fifteen minutes later, he brings out a tea set. He sets it on the table, takes my coat and pulls out a chair.

He sits in the next chair at the round table and pours me a cup and hands it to me. "Drink. It will relax you."

I take the cup and sip. The warmth of the liquid going down my throat fills me with what I’ve been craving for over a week.

"Witch Hazel?" I ask.

"Chamomile." He smirks as he leans back in his chair. "So, tell me your troubles."

I set my cup down. "I don't even know where to begin. I was so focused on revenge for my father now, my thoughts are being bombarded by this man I unfortunately came across."

"Interesting. Tell me about him." He says before raising his cup to his lips.

"He's just a normal man. An Alliance Alpha. Brown hair, hazel eyes. His scent is just…” I look up from my cup. “I need him out of my head, Nash. I need focus. Can you do that?"

He reaches out and grabs my hand. "Alexi. I would love nothing more but to help you. All I can tell you is I'll try. You know my skills do not guarantee complete success, but at the very least, I can calm you. I can set your mind to a point where you should be able to prioritize your thoughts."

"When do we begin?" I ask as I take my hand back.

****

Dressed in flowing white toga, I stand in a back room covered in candles. The dim lighting accentuates the ceremonial decor.

There's a white, fur carpet on the floor. Artifacts, runes, and symbols decorate the walls, ceiling and floors. It’s very ritualistic.

He sits me down on the fur rug that’s surrounded by a ring of candles and herb leaves. He walks around me, pulling out my dress to pool it around my tucked legs. I feel him drop to his knees behind me and I close my eyes when his fingers softly tie my hair back.

I open my eyes when I feel him stand and watch him walk around me to a gap in the ring in front of me. He goes down on his knees and places a gold bowl in front of him. My eyes drop to it and I can see it’s full of blood.

He holds it up at chest level between us. "The blood of the Ancestor."

He dips his pinky into it and draws a snaking shape on my forehead. "The Entrance of the Dragon. The gateway to your mind."

He sets the bowl between us, takes another bowl full of powder and takes some out of it. He sprinkles it into the blood and I watch the white powder spread as it hits the thick, dark red liquid. He holds a candle to it and the blood catches fire.

"Before every battle, your father would come to me to clear his mind so he could focus on his win. I would ask him, what do you want to forget? Every time, he'd answer Cecille." Nash raises an eye to me and I watch the firelight dance across his sharp features.

"My mother." I whisper and my heart fills with pain.

He nods. "Your mother. You're father's love for her haunted him greatly. He'd beg me for relief, but I was only able to grant it to him temporarily. So, you see, this may not work."

"How could this man haunt me if I don't know him?" My brow cinches together as I try to make sense of how the two situations are alike.

My parents were fated, bound by the heart. I don’t even know this man’s name.

"You may not know him, but the mere exposure to him could be enough to imprint on your spirit. If it's early enough, I may be able to erase it, but again, it might not work. Be prepared for that."

I agree and he starts the spell.

"Clear your mind, Princess. Think of the one you wish to forget." He Instructs quietly as he throws a black powder into the flames and the room fills with smoke. "Breathe the air. Let it enter your mind." He throws a red powder in.

I'm starting to sweat and my breathing becomes shallow as I feel my mind open.

As I picture his face, eyes, and body, he appears to me shirtless. I feel a strange sensation in my core and my skin starts to warm.

My breath becomes labored as I hold my dress in my fists at my thighs.

His muscles ripple in my mind and I feel myself being aroused by it. I’m flushed with excitement and his scent is surrounds me. My wolf growls from her cage and I sense something is off.

My body fills with emotions, but I can't quite make out what they are. The longer I view him, the more intense they feel.

My vision turns a deep blue over his muscular body and he starts calling to me.

In my mind, my dress flows around my legs as I step barefoot to him. The blue light coats me as I enter his outstretched arms. The void is filled with grey smoke as his arms enclose me.

I fall into him and kiss him like I crave a drug. He pulls the straps of my dress off my shoulders and it falls to the floor.

As soon as it does, reality strikes and I gasp in a breath. My eyes snap open and I throw a hand to the floor to catch myself before I fell over. Everything looks blue and I stammer as I try to remember where I am.

I thump a hand to my chest as I start to hyperventilate. Sweat beads off my skin and I can still feel his touch. My skin feels pricked with electricity and all my mind wants to do is go back. I’m stuck in the middle of reality and fantasy.

I look around wildly as I try to breathe and make anything make sense.

"Alexi... Princess! Relax!" Nash crawls across the rug and grabs my cheeks.

"Wha... Where..."

My confused eyes look up to Nash, but I don’t see him. I see this damn Alpha.

He brushes the sweaty locks from my face. "You're here with me. Let go of it. Let it go."

"Nash?” My terrified eyes find his as the fantasy starts to dissolve and I’m freed.

His face comes into focus and the blue starts to fade. "Yes. See you're fine."

I searched his face. "What happened?"

"Um..." He sat back. "I can only assume your thoughts are deeper than you're letting on."

My brow furrowed. "Excuse me? No. What I saw... What I think I saw was not what I've seen. Nash, my thoughts, they were almost intimate in ways I haven't even thought about or even experienced. It felt like betrayal, Nash. How can that be?”

He lowers his head then raises it again. "Are you sure you never had any other interaction?"

"Yes." I confirm.

He sits back, rubbing his chin in thought. "I'll have to do some more research. This is beyond my current knowledge, but I can see you’re even less relaxed now."

He hands me a towel and I wipe my face and chest of the sweat. "Definitely not relaxed." I blow out a breath and hand the towel back.

He tosses the towel and cups my cheeks. "Well, I have other ways to relax you until I can find out what's going on." He smirks.

His soft lips find mine and his tongue asks for entrance. My lips part and he explores my mouth as he slides his shirt off his muscular shoulders.

He crawls up over my body, pushing me down onto the floor. I'm dripping with arousal and craving sustenance. He kisses me deep as his hands glide down my body.

My legs wrap around his waist and he runs his hand down the back of my thigh to my calf and back up.

Kissing my neck, he pulls my dress down my shoulders and off my arms then peels it off the rest of my body. He sits up and runs his hands down my chest, around my breasts and down my stomach. He slowly rolls me over and puts me on my hands and knees so my pussy is exposed to him.

He unties his pants and pulls them to his knees, releasing his hard cock.

I softly moan at the feel of the head of his solid dick running softly up and down my wet slit. He lines up with my entrance, places a hand on the small of my back and pushes himself in.

I moan at the feel of his girth filling me, stretching me open. I arch my back and he slides a hand down my spine, softly pushing my head to the rug. He pulls my hip to lift my ass to him.

"Yes..." I moan into the rug.

He pulls out slowly and pushes back in as he runs his hands gently down my back.

"Does this relax you, princess." He breathes.

"Yes...Oh yes."

The feeling of him pulsing inside me has my core building already. His strokes are smooth and slow as my pussy takes his entire length to the hilt.

He goes a little faster and holds my hips, pulling my ass into his thighs. My juices coat him as the strokes get longer and harder.

He thrusts even harder, grabbing my ass cheek and pushes them up to change the angle. He growls as his fingers squeeze the meat of my cheeks.

"Nash...Feels so good...YES!"

He reaches underneath me to the apex of my thighs and plays with my clit. "This should be even better." He grinds as he forces his cock deeper.

I feel my climax build and lift my head, turning it to meet his eyes.

"Yes. Nash...Oh God!"

His penetrations get even more intense as his cock begins to swell. "Alexi...You feel so good. His fingers tighten on my hip and his fingers on my pussy moves even faster. "Come, Alexi!"

My orgasm crashes through with his words. I throw my head back and scream.

He clenches his jaw, grips my hips and pulls me into him as his dick fills me with his release. "So tight!" He growls.

“YESSS…" I scream into the rug as he continues to pound me.

"Yes, Alexi!" He clenches as he thrusts the last bit of his climax into me.

He slows down then pulls himself out. I turn my eyes to him and watch him grab the towel as I heave breaths on my hands and knees.

He cleans me up then himself. I flip to my ass and search for my dressings. He smiles as he pants and wipes the sweat off his chest.

"It may not be spiritual, but I hope that helped a little." He grins as he tosses the towel to the side.

I remove the tie from my hair and fluff out my curls. "Well, it was a nice distraction, anyway." I smirk.

“You still feel clouded?” He asks.

I nod. “Yes, but I think I can function and get back on track. You gave me something else to think about.”

He leans down to my lips. “I’m always at your service, princess.” He drawls before consuming my lips.

****

It certainly wasn't the relief I was hoping for. I can only trust that in time, Nash will find the answers I need to rid myself of this Alpha who is trying to invade my mind.

I keep thinking of his shirtless chest in the smoky, blue light. The feelings I had were not ones I’m used to. What am I supposed to do with this all?

What's worse is, my wolf seems to be directing me to find him. Since our meeting, she’s been insistent on finding the drunken man, but I can't. I need to focus.

The problem is whatever door Nash opened is not closing and my wolf wants me to walk through it when I want to shut it and lock it away. This inner battle she’s kicking up is tiring and I need sleep.

Nash offered me his bed and I gladly accepted. The two of us lay with arms and legs tangled, draped in sheets. It was nice for a time. It may not be the man in my thoughts, but in this moment, my wolf is satisfied enough with the closeness of our bodies to let me sleep.

It was restful until my dreams filled with smoke. In my fantasy world of dreams, I'm in my toga walking through the abandon streets of Red Rock. My bare feet are cold as I walk across the black top. Ahead of me, I see a shadow approach and the breeze blows my dress and hair back.

He comes out of the dark with his head lowered slightly, eyes trained on me. I stop and swallow. Anger flows off him. Immense anger. He turns his head and I look where he's looking. Nash's bed appears on the road with us naked in it then he looks back at me. He looks offended like I hurt him in my position.

"Who are you?" My voice sounds airy and distance.

His eyes glow gold. "The one you want." He growls.

His shirtless chest flexes and his fists ball at his sides. His stalky, thick frame tightens as he takes another glance at Nash. I feel the vibrations come from his chest as he looks away and meets my eyes.

"I don't know who you are." I answer with confusion and offense. He has no right to me.

In my dream, I take a few steps closer.

"You will." His voice is so deep and powerful, I feel the grumble of his words in my chest.

Just then the wind blows and a shadow behind him. I raise my hand and point to it as I open my mouth to warn him, but nothing comes out.

My father comes out of the dark behind him. His red eyes are glowing as his medium length silver hairs hangs off his head.

I watch with shock as my father grabs the man around the neck. "You were supposed to avenge me, Alexi" His deep, angry growl pierces me. I feel a fear run across my skin as I see the disappointment in my father’s eyes.

"I'm sorry, father. I will. I will avenge you." Tears stream down my cheeks as my heart breaks seeing him alive.

My father gives me an evil grin. "Yes, you will avenge me." He looks at the man in my dream then looks back at me. "Starting with him." And with one swift motion, my father snaps his neck and the Alpha crumples to floor.

"NOOO!!" I reach out to the Alpha as I watch his body settle on the road.

I’m pulled back as my mind fills with my father’s anger. “AVENGE ME!!”

“NO!" I jolt up in bed and it takes me a minute to realize it was all just a dream.

Nash sits up in fright. "Alexi? What is it? Are you alright?"

I'm clutching the bedsheets like they're saving my life. I'm sweating and can't seem to breath.

"Bad dream?" He ask as he leans to see my eyes and rubs my back.

I glance at him, bring my knees up and rest my elbows on them. I run my fingers through my hair then rub my nape. "Yeah. Yes. I'm fine." I respond as I try to calm down.

"You want to talk about it?" He whispers.

I raise my head to him. My brow cinches and my eyes fill with concern. "I need to go."

"Alexi, now? It's the middle of the night." Nash says as he watches me get out of bed and get dressed.

I pull up my hood, check my gun and holster it back up.

"There's something I need to do." I lean on the bed and give him a quick kiss. "Thank you."

I leave his house like I'm on fire and jump into the Porsche.

As I drive back toward the highway, my mind is swimming.

If I'm hunting Alphas, I have one right here I should be hunting. My father's right. I can't avenge him with this man in my head.

Once he's dead, I can continue my mission.