Secret Mercy Read Free

her hunger called out to him. For a brief moment hope blossomed within her, and just as suddenly she tamped it down.
    This was what he was made for—to shine a light on dark desires, to make them real. Had it been earlier in the week Alan might have been strong enough to resist the temptation. But now?
    Not a chance.
    If Ashira had any mercy, she would let this poor woman walk by.
    The woman pulled her hand away from the wall to walk around him. She slipped on the wet spot in the sidewalk, and her feet came out from under her. Without thinking, Alan shot out to catch her.
    His arms folded around her a few inches from the ground. Soft flesh beckoned beneath the thin material of her black dress. The last of his resolve slipped away as she rubbed against him. He relished the feel of her body molding against his as he lifted her back up on her unsteady feet.
    “I’m so sorry.” Her voice was breathy. A pretty pink blush tinted her cheeks.
    “No need for apologies.”
    “Paige.” Her friend rushed to her side. “Are you okay?”
    “Yeah, I’m fine, Selena.” She pulled away from him at the sound of her friend’s voice. “I just can’t walk in your ridiculous shoes. I’m taking them off as soon as we’re inside.”
    Selena, a woman who was obviously far more comfortable in her skin, raised her eyebrows and gave him an approving smile. “At least you had a white knight here to catch you.”
    “Yes, thank you,” Paige mumbled. Her eyes were downcast, a pretty pink glow was lighting up her cheeks. She was using her embarrassment to hide her desire. If he had been anyone else, it might have worked.
    But he wasn’t anyone else. He was an incubus. A ravenous one, and he had just had a taste of what he wanted most.
    Alan nodded and stepped back toward the wall. He didn’t need to watch them go to know that they were headed to the door of his club.
    Just like he said, Fate always found a way in.
     
     
    Dear God, this night was going to go down in history as the single most humiliating of Paige’s life. As if tripping and falling into the arms of the hottest guy she had ever laid eyes on wasn’t enough, now it looked as though she was going to be turned away from Mercy Club’s door. If it weren’t for the thought of having to walk back home in Selena’s fuck-me heels Paige might have felt a measure of relief.
    “I’m telling you, we don’t do plus ones here,” the bouncer said for what had to be the twelfth time. Paige almost felt sorry for the poor guy. Selena wasn’t the kind of person to take no for an answer, not even when the guy saying it looked big enough to squash her with one hand.
    “And I’m telling you that Robert told me it was cool,” she said.
    The bouncer just looked straight ahead.
    “Come on, Selena, this is starting to get embarrassing,” Paige said.
    “Is there a problem, Marcus?”
    Paige froze at the sound of the voice behind her. Low and strangely melodic, it was every bit as memorable as his face.
    “No, sir,” the bouncer said.
    Sir ?
    Of course, it was just her luck that he would be Sir around here.
    He stepped out from behind her. Chiseled jaw dusted with stubble, short dark hair with just a hint of curl, crystal blue eyes. Just looking at this stranger’s near perfection made Paige’s heart speed and her nipples harden. That had never happened with Zach.
    “It looks like you’re saved, Paige. Your white knight works here,” Selena said, taking a step forward. “Actually there is a problem. My friend inside told me it would be all right if I brought someone along tonight, and this guy is refusing to let her in.”
    “And he was right to,” he said. “No one is allowed into Mercy Club without a personal invitation.”
    “See, I told you this was a bad idea, Selena.” Paige could feel every passerby staring at her. It would have been better if she’d never come out at all tonight. Hiding out alone in her apartment might be pathetic, but at least it was a private