Tempting My Best Friend's Alpha Father

WARNING! SMUT! SMUT!! SMUT!!

“Open your fucking legs wider, bitch, and stop pretending this isn't what you have always wanted.”

I flinch at the boom of his voice and do as he says.

He drives in three fingers into my pussy as he pounds my ass and all I can do is moan and take it.

“Take it, you filthy fucking slut,” he says, pounding harder into me. “This is what you want right? To be a filthy fucking slut. If this is what you want, you can fucking take it.”

And I can feel his cock hitting my guts.

*****

I am Holly Winterbourne. I am a young girl with a secret forbidden crush on her best friend's father. I shouldn't want him. I shouldn't even think of his touch on my body and most importantly, I shouldn't be FUCKING him.

But fate brings us together during the holidays and I realize I can't resist my best friend's father, no matter how hard I try.

A CRUSH ON MY BEST FRIEND'S DAD

~HOLLY~

My phone buzzes, I lazily stretch my hand to pick up the phone from where it's laying on my bed.

It's a message notification from Troy, my boyfriend. I open the message and instantly, my stomach sink.

“Hey. I think we should break up. Things are not working between us, and I can't force it anymore. I hope you understand. And I'm sorry for breaking up with you four days before Christmas. I know how you're looking forward to spending the Christmas with me. I'm sorry about that.”

I stare at the screen for a solid ten seconds before letting out a soft, humorless laugh. Figures.

I had seen it coming. Not because I was psychic, but because deep down, I had known he was never going to be the one, and I hadn't given my best in the relationship. It's only a matter of time before he got tired of me.

He was easy, familiar, and available—but he lacked the spark that made my heart race every time my best friend’s dad walked into a room.

Sliding onto the edge of my bed, I toss the phone beside me and bury my face in my hands.

“Good. Finally, honesty,” I mutter under my breath.

My reflection in the mirror caught my eye. My cheeks are flushed, a little from irritation, a little from embarrassment.

I give myself a wry smile. Troy wasn’t what I wanted anyway. I hadn’t needed him to break my heart—I had always known he was just… filler. A substitute for the real thing.

Consoling myself, I whispered, “It’s fine. I didn’t need him anyway. I’ve always known… I’ve always wanted him.”

My fingers itched with the memory of my best friend’s dad. The one person I can't have, no matter how badly I want him.

And so I had settled, like I always did. Settled for someone who was convenient, someone safe.

And now, he has broken up with me some days before Christmas. This is going to be the worst Christmas ever.

****

The weather decided to snow later in the day. I have never seen snow fall this heavily my life.

Thick white sheets blanketed the town, swallowing cars, burying rooftops, and turning the roads into glossy death traps.

My apartment building groans under the weight of winter, and inside my small room, the sound of water dripping grows louder. Too loud.

Another droplet falls from the ceiling.

Then another.

Then the whole plaster caved in, sending freezing water splashing across my blanket.

“Are you kidding me?!” I yelp, scrambling off the bed just as another stream burst through the ceiling.

This is not the right time for this…I groan.

Cold, miserable and absolutely ruined, I grab my phone with shaking hands and dial the only person I can think of.

“Holly?” Gabriel, my best friend answers groggily, his voice thick with sleep.

“My ceiling just gave out,” I snap. “My stuff is soaked. I’m freezing. Can I come stay at your place till I figure out what to do about it later??”

A pause.

Then, “You’re staying with me. I’m coming.”

Before I can argue, the call ends.

It takes Gabriel exactly seven minutes to arrive.

“Let’s go,” he says, already moving toward my bags. “Dad won’t mind.”

My stomach drops.

Damien Blackwood.

The stern, cold, devastatingly handsome Alpha of the Silver Thorn Pack. The man whose intense gaze makes me forget how to breathe. The man who lived by rules, structure, discipline.

The man I definitely should NOT have a crush on.

“Gabriel, I don’t think….”

“My dad isn’t even home most nights,” he interrupts. “He’ll barely notice.”

That was a lie and we both know it.

Damien notices everything.

But I am too cold, too tired, and too desperate to argue. I follow Gabriel through the snow, trembling as the icy wind bit into my skin.

When we reach the Blackwood residence, I curse under my breath.

The house is massive…. dark wood, warm lights glowing from inside, smoke curling from the chimney. Cozy, intimidating, and too perfect.

Gabriel unlocks the door.

“Dad? You home?” he calls.

Silence.

Relief loosen my shoulders. Thank goodness he isn't home. I am not ready to face him again.

“See? All good. Come in…..” and then, Gabriel is interrupted.

“Why are you home early? Thought you just left??”

The deep, commanding voice freezes me in place.

Damien Blackwood step from the hallway like a shadow made flesh — tall, broad-shouldered, muscular, commanding, wearing a fitted black t-shirt that clung to muscle and authority. His presence fills the entire room.

I take a look at his intimidatingly handsome face—Strong jawline, Dark hair, neatly trimmed beard, Deep brown, controlled, intimidating eyes.

His eyes lands on me

And for a moment… I stop breathing.

Warmth spread across my cheeks. I suddenly wish the snow outside will swallow me whole.

“Holly?” Damien says slowly. “It’s been a while.”

Gabriel steps forward. “Her ceiling collapsed from the storm. She needs a place to stay until repairs are done.”

Damien’s jaw clenches.

I feel judged. Watched. Stripped bare.

But then…..his expression shifted.

He steps closer, and my breath siezes.

Just then, Gabriel's sister saunters into the room.

“Hey, Holly. It's been a while” she says gleefully, as she walk up to me and pull me into a hug.

“Hi, Ella. Yeah, it's been a while…and a merry Christmas to you in advance” I smile at the eighteen years old gorgeous girl with big brown eyes, chocolate brown hair, pointed nose and cute lips.

I am twenty two, and Gabriel is twenty three. While his father…is forty two.

When I look up, Damien is staring at me.

“You’re trembling,” he says.

I swallow hard. “I–I’m fine.”

He reaches out and brushes melting snow from my hair—an instinctive, protective gesture.

Electricity shot down my spine.

He must have felt it too, because he immediately withdraw his hand, expression tightening.

“You’ll stay here,” he says, not a question. A command.

My pulse spiked.

Damien Blackwood has never spoken to me like this.

Gabriel grins at me. “See? Easy.”

But I am not even listening to him. I am staring at the lips of the man I should never want and I'm wishing to have those cute lips on mine.

And when Ella pulls me away saying that we should take a stroll down the street because she is feeling bored, I'm grateful for the distraction.

I follow her immediately out of the door before I do something very stupid.

MY FORBIDDEN LETTER

~HOLLY~

A soft chill dance through the air as Ella and I stroll down the street. It's the season of Christmas and so, the street is filled with Christmas decorations.

Jingle bells chime from every corner—shop doors jingles open, children shake them playfully, and a distant choir let theirs ring like tiny stars.

Christmas trees line the streets and windows, their twinkling lights blinking in warm, colorful rhythms.

Snowflakes drift lazily from the sky, settling on rooftops and garlands, wrapping everything in a gentle, magical hush.

It feels like the world itself is breathing in joy, except me. I feel no joy at all.

“Christmas season is the best,” Ella says, squeezing my arm.

“Look, Holly.” She points to a massive inflatable snowman in front of a mall. “That's amazing. And look at the little boy over there. Awww, oh my God…he is so cute.”

I don't want to look at the bloody snowman and I really don't want to look at the sweet boy grinning up at it with his parents crouched at his side.

Yeah, it's amazing, and cute. But it's painful because I'm reminded that I won't be spending Christmas with my family because I don't have one.

My parents died a long time ago, leaving me in the hands of my aunt who I so much detest living with and was really glad when I gained admission to a far away university and moved out.

I look around me. People are all dressed up when it's not Christmas yet.

I am in my most comfy black baggy jeans, and my huge bad girl hoodie while Ella looks fresh out of a vogue.

The clothes she's putting on show all her curves while mine hides mine.

Nobody will know that behind my baggy clothes that hides all my curves is a girl with a very curvy shape, perfect round big ass, full breasts with big pointing nipples, very leggy and thick thighs.

Damien really doesn't know what he's missing out on.

I shake my head to remove the thoughts of my best friend's father from my head and look up when Ella points to a big Christmas tree with a lot of people around it in an opened mall.

“Holly, come on, let's see what's happening over there,’’ she says cheerfully, and without waiting for my reply, drags me along with her.

I like Ella because she likes me too, and gives me respect as her brother's best friend. I like her positive energy, and enthusiasm. She's carefree, jovial and fun. And I see her as my younger sister.

We finally get to the Christmas tree.

Everyone around us is laughing, taking pictures, drinking hot chocolate, living inside the kind of warmth I’ve never really belonged to. I’m about to tell Ella I’m getting cold when she suddenly gasps.

“Oh! They’re doing Santa Letters this year!” She bounces on her toes, pointing at a booth decorated with red velvet and candy canes.

A huge sign reads:

WRITE YOUR CHRISTMAS WISH FOR SANTA – BE HONEST OR IT DOESN’T COUNT!

Before I can protest, Ella grabs my wrist.

“Oh come on, Holly. It’s fun! And you seriously need a wish this year.”

I try to pull back. “Ella, no. I don’t do that Santa stuff.”

She just smirks. “Exactly why you should. Besides…” She nudges me with her elbow. “Maybe you can finally confess what you really want.”

My stomach drops.

If she knew what I really wanted—who I really wanted—she’d never drag me anywhere again.

But Ella is already shoving a thick, red envelope into my hands.

“It’s a rule,” she says, grinning mischievously. “You write something, seal it, and hang it on the tree. No lying. No hiding. Just honesty.”

I snort. “Hang it on the tree?? Who made that rule?”

“I did,” she says proudly. “Now sit.”

Before I know it, I’m pushed into a small wooden chair inside the booth. A pen. A blank sheet with Dear Santa printed at the top. A little lantern flickering beside me, casting soft golden shadows.

“Even though I write this, I'm never hanging it up on the tree. I'd rather put it in the mailbox beside the tree” I protest.

Ella stands outside the booth with her arms crossed, watching me like a guard.

“Just write first. I’m not leaving until you write something real,” she says. “Not a joke. Not something safe. Something you actually want.”

Something real.

Something I actually want.

My pulse trips. My fingers tremble around the pen.

Because the only thing I’ve ever wanted….the only thing I dream about….is the one thing I should never write.

But the silence, the lights, the flickering lantern…

and the pressure of Ella’s insistence…all push me toward it.

I inhale shakily.

He’s everywhere in my mind. His voice. His hands. His forbidden presence.

And before I can stop myself, the pen touches the page. The words spill from me, slow and sinful.

And for the first time, I write the truth I’ve never said out loud, the truth that tastes like danger and desire, the truth that no one, especially Gabriel and Ella, can ever know.

Dear Santa…

I can’t believe I’m actually doing this. They said I had to write a wish list—be honest, be specific, ask for what my heart truly wants.

So here I am, cheeks burning, thighs pressed together under the soft glow of Christmas lights… writing the one thing I shouldn’t even be thinking about.

I want him.

Not gifts. Not jewelry. Not a new purse.

Just… him.

The man I shouldn’t touch. The man I shouldn’t crave. The man who makes my pulse trip every time he walks into a room.

My best friend’s father, Damien Blackwood.

Tall, older, confident, devastatingly off-limits.

And yet… when he looks at me, I swear he sees every wicked thing I try to hide.

He’s the one I think about when I can’t sleep.

The one whose voice curls low in my mind, stroking places his hands haven’t touched—yet.

The one whose eyes make me feel seen, desired, undone… even though he has no idea how badly I want him.

Santa, I want him this Christmas.

God, Santa, I want him in ways I can barely admit on paper.

I want his hands—those big, warm, powerful hands—to finally touch me the way I imagine late at night when I can’t sleep.

I want his voice in my ear, low and deep, telling me I’ve been a very good girl… or a very bad one.

I want to feel the weight of him against me, the heat of him behind me, the possessive way I know he’d pin my wrists to the mattress like he’s waited years to claim me.

I want his mouth on my neck, tracing every inch of me like he’s unwrapping something precious and sinful. I want him to touch my skin like he owns it. I want to feel him everywhere.

I want him to lift my chin, look at me with that hungry intensity he tries to hide…and kiss me like he’s tired of pretending we’re not thinking the same obscene thoughts.

Santa, I want the forbidden. I want the fantasy I’ve been denying. I want the man who should be off-limits to be the one who ruins me—slowly, deeply, completely.

They say Christmas wishes are supposed to be innocent. But mine isn’t.

Mine is needy.

Mine is sinful.

Mine is the kind of wish I whisper only in the dark.

So Santa…if you’re listening…if Christmas magic is real… All I want for Christmas is him.

His touch.

His mouth.

His body tangled with mine.

His desire unleashed on me.

Give me him, just for one night…or forever, as a Christmas present, if you’re feeling generous.

This is my secret wish. My confession. My forbidden fantasy. My Christmas sin.

Signed,

Holly

(Your desperately longing girl, who’s been very… very good this year)

I come out from the booth. My hand is still trembling as I try to slip the letter into Santa’s mailbox.

But Ella stops me before it falls inside.

“Not in the mailbox, Holly. Hang it on the tree” she tells me.

“Why??” I ask her.

“For good luck. You need to hang it on the tree for your wish to be granted faster” she says out loud, smiling, teasing.

She has no idea the envelope in my hand contains the most dangerous, obscene confession I have ever written.

After some hesitation, I finally slip it onto a low branch, the red wax seal shining under the lights, and hoping no human gets to read it.

Ella goes into the booth to write her own wish, comes out and hang it too.

She is still distracted, taking pictures of the tree, so I wander a few steps away, needing air—needing space from the truth I just spilled onto paper like a sin.

The snow muffles everything, making the world feel distant, quiet…until a deep, familiar voice breaks through the silence behind me.

“Holly?”

I freeze.

I would recognize that voice anywhere.

Slow. Warm. Male.

Dangerously calm.

I turn.

And there he is.

Alpha Damien.

My best friend's father. Ella's father. My forbidden obsession.

The man I should not want—standing in front of me like a living answer to the letter I never meant for anyone to read.

WHAT DID YOU WISH FOR HOLLY?

~DAMIEN~

Few minutes after Holly and Ella decided to go on a stroll, I decided to go on a stroll too to clear my head of the thoughts of Holly.

Seeing her after a while unsettled me. She's one girl I have always desired, but can't have.

Why?

Because she's way younger. I'm a single father with two kids. And she's my son's best friend.

I can't have anything to do with my son's best friend. It's not right. She should be like a daughter to me. Besides, I don't want to ruin their friendship.

How will my son feel if I eventually fuck his best friend and he finds out?? Not when I know that my son has feelings for her.

Yes, Holly might not know it…but Gabriel is in love with her.

So….no. I can't betray my son that way even though my wolf wants Holly so bad, but I don't want to ruin the relationship with my son. I have no choice than to fight it.

But the thoughts of her, the thoughts of having her wrapped in my arms and kissing her senseless, the thoughts of feeling the warmth of her skin against mine refuses to leave my head…and that is why I'm taking a stroll.

I'm walking leisurely, hands dipped in the pocket of my black coat. My big boots leaves traces on the floor covered with snow.

Then, I feel it…..

My heart starts pounding, my wolf is awake and growling a single word….

Mate.

I instantly feel a strong pull toward something.

My breath hitches as that invisible thread snaps tight around my chest.

Mate.

The word echoes again—deeper, louder, undeniable. My wolf pushes forward, claws scraping against the inside of my skin, desperate. Hungry.

“No,” I whisper, but my voice cracks.

The pull grows stronger, yanking me forward with a force that feels ancient… destined. My heart pounds against my ribs like it wants to escape. I try to resist—turn away, step back—but my feet keep moving.

One step.

Another.

And another.

The world around me blurs. The trees fade. The cold wind brushing against my skin becomes nothing but background noise. All I can focus on is that pull, like my soul is being reeled in by something I can’t see.

My wolf snarls again.

Mate.

I swallow hard, my throat tight, breaths shallow. The air grows warmer, sweeter…the scent wrapping around me slowly. Vanilla. Warm honey. Something soft and intoxicating. A scent I’ve always noticed around her…..always liked too much, but now it hits me with a force that’s almost painful.

“Holly…” I breathe before I can stop myself.

I follow the thread through the trees until the snowy path opens into a small clearing, and that’s where I see her.

She’s standing there alone, a few feet ahead of me, arms wrapped around herself.

Snowflakes kiss her hair, her cheeks flushed from the cold. Her breath fogs the air in soft little puffs. She looks… ethereal. Fragile. Beautiful in a way that makes my chest tighten.

I remember her face when I saw her at the house.

Soft, angelic beauty with warm hazelnut eyes, Long, wavy chestnut-brown hair, Blush-toned lips, and natural glow. She is petite but very curvy in a subtle, feminine way.

She doesn't hear my footsteps or notice me walking to her, until I call her name.

She turns at the sound of my voice.

Her eyes widen when they land on me. And in that instant, the world stops.

The bond snaps into place with a violent, burning clarity.

My wolf howls so loudly inside me I stagger, gripping a nearby tree to steady myself.

Holly’s lips part slightly, confusion and something else flickering across her face. She takes a tiny step toward me instinctively, like she feels it too, even if she doesn’t understand it.

She can't understand it, because she is a human and not a werewolf like me.

The moment her scent washes over me completely, something inside me breaks. Or awakens.

I whisper the word I’ve spent my whole life hoping never to say in a moment like this.

“Mate.”

Her brows knit together.

“Damian? Are you… okay?”

No.

No, I’m not.

And I never will be again.

Because my son’s best friend, the girl I shouldn’t touch, the girl I’ve fought against wanting for years ... .Is standing right in front of me…

And she’s my mate.

~HOLLY~

I'm currently staring at the face of my forbidden obsession.

Alpha Damien.

I had never really believed werewolves existed in real life even though I have seen them in movies—until I met Gabriel and became best friends with him.

We had made a vow not to hide anything from each other, and then he had told me about his family being werewolves.

I had laughed it off and told him he was just making silly jokes till he changed into a big brown wolf right in front of me.

I hadn't believed my eyes, but it was real. My best friend changed into a wolf right in front of me and then changed back to being human.

I was marveled, astonished, and everything seemed to be going well until I met his father–Alpha Damien.

Suddenly, I wanted to experience the feeling of a human like me loving a werewolf like I saw in movies and vice versa.

It was there and then my forbidden obsession for him started.

Now, he's staring at me and he looks unstable.

He’s in a black coat dusted with snowflakes, collar up, hands in his pockets, chest broad beneath the dark wool.

His eyes….God, those eyes…..scan me the way a man looks at something he can’t touch but desperately wants to.

“What are you doing out here alone? Where is Ella” he finally asks, his voice low and rough from the cold… or something else.

My lips part. “I….I just needed some air. And Ella is taking pictures inside the mall.”

His gaze drops briefly to my mouth.

The snow falls slower. The world feels smaller.

And suddenly it’s just the two of us, wrapped in Christmas lights and heavy, unspoken tension.

“You look cold,” he murmurs.

Before I can answer, he steps closer.

Close enough that I can smell his cologne….clean, masculine, expensive.

Close enough that the heat from his body cuts through the winter chill.

He lifts a gloved hand and gently brushes a snowflake from my cheek.

The touch is soft… too soft.

My breath stutters.

“I’ve been looking for you,” he says quietly.

“For me?” My voice cracks.

He doesn’t step back. He doesn’t smile. He just looks at me with that intense, hungry focus that makes my knees feel weak.

“Yes. You left the house so quickly earlier.”

A beat.

“And you didn’t say goodbye properly.”

His thumb traces my jawline….slow, deliberate, as if he’s memorizing the shape of me.

“Damien…” my voice whispers, betraying me.

He hears it. He feels it.

His hand slides beneath my hood, fingers brushing the warm skin at the nape of my neck.

I gasp.

He leans in….not kissing me, not touching my lips, just bringing his mouth close enough that I feel the heat of it, the tease of it, the promise.

“You shouldn’t look at me the way you do,” he says.

My heart pounds.

“I don’t know what you mean,” I immediately deny it.

He exhales a soft, dark laugh.

“Oh, you know exactly what I mean.”

His fingers curl slightly in my hair.

“I see the way you avoid my eyes… and then look again. The way you tense when I walk into a room. The way you stop breathing when I stand close.”

I’m trembling, and he notices.

“Tell me, Holly…” he murmurs. “…what were you writing in that Santa letter?”

My entire body turns liquid.

“You saw me?” I choke out.

“No, I just guessed,” he teases darkly. “But from your reaction, I guess I was right. I would have loved to see you sitting in that little booth… biting your lip while you wrote something you hoped no one would ever read.”

I swallow hard.

“Damien….”

He steps closer until my back is pressed gently against the brick wall of the booth outside.

His chest brushes mine. His breath warms my cheek.

“I shouldn’t ask,” he says, voice low, voice sinful.

“But I can’t stop thinking about it.”

His fingers tilt my chin upward.

“What did you wish for, Holly?”

My knees shake. My lips tremble.

And I whisper the truth…..

“You.”

A KISS I NEVER EXPECTED

~HOLLY~

“What did you wish for, Holly?” Damien asks.

My knees shake. My lips tremble.

And I whisper the truth…

“You.”

Something changes in his eyes. Something dark.

Something starving.

He moves before I can breathe….one hand sliding behind my waist, pulling me against his body, the other cupping my jaw. Our chest brushes, and it's electric.

“Holly…” he growls softly, “you have no idea how long I’ve wanted to hear you say that.”

I exhale a broken, needy sound.

And then……

He lowers his forehead to mine, his lips brushing the edge of my mouth.

Not a kiss. Not yet. Just the warm, burning promise of one.

“Tell me to stop,” he whispers.

I don’t.

I can’t.

Instead, my fingers clutch his coat, pulling him closer, silently begging for what I’ve dreamed of every night.

He groans….low, deep, barely contained.

Snow falls. Christmas lights glow. And Damien finally gives in to the desire we’ve both been drowning in.

His lips crash onto mine.

Hungry. Hard. Starved. Possessive.

His hand grips my waist, dragging me against him, his mouth claiming mine like a man who’s denied himself too long.

And in that stolen moment under Christmas lights…..

I feel every forbidden fantasy comes to life.

~DAMIEN~

The moment my lips crash onto hers, everything inside me explodes. The moment my lips touched hers, every restraint in me snapped like a broken tree from a branch.

Holly is holding my coat desperately and pulling me deep like she’s afraid of me pulling away.

I should. I should.

But I can't.

Her lips taste like all the sweetness I could ever think of in the world. Warm. Soft. Addictive. The kind of sweetness that makes a man lose his mind.

My hand slides to her waist on instinct, gripping her tiny body and pulling her completely against me. She fits so perfectly against my chest it’s almost painful.

She gasps into my mouth, and the sound shoots straight through me like lightning.

My fingers tangle in her hair as I angle her mouth exactly where I want it. Her tiny hands clutch tighter the front of my coat, pulling me closer like she’s afraid I’ll stop. Like she wants this as badly as I do.

Moon goddess.

I’m gone.

The world disappears. The cold. The snow. The rules I set for myself. The promises I made to keep my distance.

Gone.

All that exists is her.

Her lips are soft—too damn soft—and when she gasps into my mouth, pressing herself closer, something inside me snaps completely. I kiss her deeper, harder, letting years of suppressed desire pour out of me in one reckless, hungry moment.

A groan tears from my chest…..low, primal, uncontrollable. My wolf is howling, clawing at me from the inside, screaming in triumph.

Mate.

Mine.

Mate.

Her lips move with mine like she was made to be kissed by me….slow at first, then eager, breathless, innocent and bold all at once.

She rises on her toes, trying to reach me better, and I can’t help the low groan that rumbles from my chest as I cup the back of her neck, angling her exactly where I want her.

Her scent floods my senses and my knees nearly buckle from how good she feels in my arms, how perfectly she fits against me. Every soft sound she makes… every tremble… every breath…

It destroys me.

I kiss her like a man starved….like I’ve been dying of thirst and she’s the first drop of water I’ve ever tasted.

My lips dominate hers, my tongue sliding against hers in slow, deep strokes that make her whimper softly into my mouth.

And moon goddess….that sound almost undoes me.

She’s trembling.

I’m shaking.

My body presses her gently against the cold wall behind her gently but firmly, not breaking the kiss, protecting her from everything except me.

My mouth slides over hers again and again, deepening the kiss, devouring her soft little whimpers.

I’m losing control. Completely. Dangerously.

I’ve wanted her for so long.

Too long.

And now that I’ve tasted her… there’s no going back.

And for one minute…one dangerous, perfect minute…

I let myself have her.

But then…..Reality punches me in the chest.

Hard.

Her hand slides up my chest, innocent, trusting….

and suddenly I see Gabriel.

She’s so young.

Too young.

And she’s Gabriel’s best friend.

My son’s best friend.

The boy who would be destroyed if he ever knew this happened.

Holly makes a soft, breathless sound against my lips….one that should pull me deeper. But instead, it rips me back into myself.

“No…” I whisper into her mouth, tearing myself away. “No, no….”

I break the kiss sharply, jerking back like her lips burned me.

I’m breathing hard, lungs dragging in cold air as if I’ve just been drowning.

Her eyes flutter open slowly, dazed, lips swollen from my kiss.

She looks like something so beautiful, sinful and sweet, like a fantasy…a temptation I was never meant to touch.

And I touched her.

I kissed her like she belonged to me.

And suddenly guilt slams into me so violently I step back again.

“No.” My voice is rough, trembling. “What did I just do?”

She blinks, confused, still breathless.

“Damien…?”

I look away because I can’t look at her. I can’t look at my mate like that…when I know I shouldn’t touch her.

When I know I’ll ruin everything if I don’t stop.

“Holly….” my voice is raw, almost hoarse, “I… I shouldn’t have done that.”

I shake my head, running a hand through my hair.

“I shouldn’t have touched you… not like that.”

“But…” she tries to speak.

“Holly,” I cut in, voice tight, strained, already cracking under the weight of everything I’m fighting. “I can’t…. I can’t think straight when I’m near you.”

My wolf snarls in protest, hating every word.

But I force myself to step back.

I step back fast, breathing hard. Too hard. My chest feels like it’s caving in.

Her scent is everywhere.

On my coat.

On my skin.

On my fucking lips.

I can’t breathe.

Her lips part, and she looks like she’s about to step toward me.

I recoil another step.

“No. Don’t.” My voice cracks. “If you come closer… I won’t be able to stop again.”

Her brows crease, hurt flickering in her eyes.

It kills me.

I force myself to look away.

“I just… I need space,” I say, swallowing hard. “I need to get away for a bit. I need to clear my head before I make an even bigger mistake.”

Her shoulders drop slightly. She nods slowly, even though I can tell it hurts her.

But I can’t stay.

I can’t.

Not when my wolf is still howling her name.

Not when her scent is still wrapped around me like a curse.

“It’s not you,” I say quietly. “It’s me. It’s…everything.”

The bond.

Her age.

My son.

My responsibilities.

My weakness.

All of it crashing down at once.

I step back again, forcing more space between us even though my entire body screams to pull her close again.

“I’m going to find Ella,” I say, voice low. “I just… I need a minute away from you, Holly.”

Her lips part, but she says nothing.

I can’t look at her. Not now. Not when I can still taste her on my mouth. I can't look at her.

Before I kiss her again.

Before I lose myself completely.

Before I ruin everything.

So I turn and walk away fast ... .boots crunching over snow, heart racing in my chest, wolf clawing at the inside of my skin and leaving her standing there with swollen lips and wide, shaken eyes.

And even as I put distance between us…

I already know…..

I’ll never forget that kiss.

And I’ll never be the same again.

THE RED ENVELOPE

~DAMIEN~

The cold air hits my lungs like ice as I walk back into the mall, forcing deep breaths, forcing distance, forcing control I barely have left

Holly’s scent still clings to me….warm sugar and winter vanilla, and every step feels like I’m dragging myself through quicksan

I shouldn’t have kissed he

Moon goddess, I shouldn’t have touched he

But I can still taste her on my lip

I shake my head hard, trying to pull my mind back to where it needs to b

Ell

I need to find Ella

I weave through the Christmas crowd….kids laughing, parents calling, carol music echoing, and I’m barely holding myself together when suddenl

“Dad?

I tur

Ella stands near the center fountain, holding two bags, her hair pulled into a messy bun and her expression frozen in surpris

Her gaze locks on me, eyebrows shooting u

“Dad, what are you doing here? I thought you were at home.” She walks toward me, confusion written all over her face. “Why did you come out

I swallow, trying to keep my voice calm

“Decided to take a stroll. Was passing by and saw Holly just outside. She informed me you're in here” I sa

She opens her mouth to speak. Then she suddenly looks past my shoulder and lights u

“HOLLY!” she shrieks, waving wildl

I freez

My heart stop

I turn slowly, carefull

And there she i

Holly steps out from behind a pillar, her cheeks flushed from our kiss, her hair slightly tousled, trying, and failing, not to look rattled. Her eyes meet mine for barely a secon

Barel

But it’s enough to punch the air right out of my ches

Holly quickly looks away, smoothing her hoodie as she approache

Ella rushes toward her. “Where have you been? I’ve been looking all over the mall for you

Holly exhales shakily

“I decided to step out for a bit for fresh air. So sorry for making you worried” she apologizes softly to Ella. “Besides, you're busy taking pictures

Ella sighs and shakes her head

“It is fine. I would have been out since, but I just went to grab one last thing

“It is fine. It's a season of happiness…you should do things that make you happy and not resist it,” Holly say

And why do I feel she's indirectly throwing that statement at me

I almost snort. She is. And I know wh

Ella links her arm with Holly’s. “Anyway, we’re done, right? Let’s go. I’m starving

Holly nods and forces a small smile. “Yeah… let’s go

She stands close to Ella, but her gaze flickers toward me once….quick, nervous, before she looks away agai

They turn toward the exit, walking together through the glass doors into the cold evenin

I follow behind, giving space. Too much spac

Because if I get close to Holly again, I don’t trust myself not to…

Something catches my ey

A sudden flash of re

A single red envelope is tucked deep in the large Christmas tree near the entrance. I wouldn’t have noticed it if a cold gust hadn’t blown through the open door

Branches shak

Ornaments jingl

And the envelope loosens, slips, and falls…..landing right at my boot

I frow

I bend dow

And then I see it….written in small, neat letterin

To Santa—from HOLL

My breath stop

A heavy, cold shiver runs down my spin

I turn the envelope in my han

It’s sealed. Warm from the lights of the tre

And absolutely unmistakably hers

It must be her letter of wishes to Santa. The one she had written in the boot

What did she writ

Why does my chest tighten like thi

I glance toward the glass doors where Holly and Ella just stepped out into the sno

Then back down at the envelop

And against every logical part of me, against every instinct screaming at me to walk away, I break the sea

And slowly, carefully…I begin to rea

The moment my eyes hit the first sensual lin

I want him. The man I should never want

my entire body goes rigid

As I read further—every erotic detail, every sinful desire, every description of what she wants me to do to her ... .my jaw clenches harder, breath roughens, pupils dilat

And by the time I read the last line

Give me him this Christmas, Santa… just one night to be touched by him

I am not breathin

I fold the letter slowly, deliberately, like a man trying to control a wildfire spreading inside my ches

Then I look u

I see her across the snow-covered courtyar

And something in me snap

~ HOLLY~

I see Damien walking toward me….not calm, not collected, but with a dark, focused intensity that makes the world fad

“Go home now, Ella. Holly and I will join you later. There's something I need to show her,” he tells Ell

It's a command. Her brows furrow in confusion, but she dare not argue…not when he used that ton

“Okay, dad” she says softly, then to me. “See you later, Holly

And then she's on her way back hom

“Damien?” I whisper, confused as I watch Ella go hom

He doesn’t answe

His hand wraps gently but firmly around my wrist, pulling me into the shadow behind the tree, hidden from the crowd and the light

The moment we’re out of sight, he pins me softly against the wooden beam behind us, not rough, but with the unmistakable hunger of a man who’s been pushed past restrain

He holds up the red envelop

“You hung this on the tree,” he says quietl

His voice is deep, dangerous

My heart stop

What the fuck?? Did he just read all my sinful confessions

Damn!

“I…Ella told me to…” I stammer, searching for words to sa

“Ella told you what to write??” He teases, his tone laced with dark obsessio

I shake my head. “No

“You wrote this.” His eyes burn. “You wrote every word

My breath trembles

“Yes

The word barely leaves my mouth before he steps closer….so close that his chest brushes mi

and his breath warms my lips

“You want me to ruin you for Christmas?” he murmurs, repeating my words back to me, sinful and slo

Heat shoots straight through m

I nod shakil

He exhales a harsh, tortured breath—the sound of a man losing the last thread of contro

His hand slides to my waist. The other to the back of my neck. He tilts my chin u

“Then look at me when you say it

My lips par

“I want you

His grip tighten

“Say it the way you wrote it

My knees weake

“I want you to touch me,” I whisper. “To kiss me. To take me the way I imagine at night. I want every forbidden thing….

And that’s all it take

~DAMI

The cold air hits my lungs like ice as I walk back into the mall, forcing deep breaths, forcing distance, forcing control I barely have left

Holly’s scent still clings to me….warm sugar and winter vanilla, and every step feels like I’m dragging myself through quicksan

I shouldn’t have kissed he

Moon goddess, I shouldn’t have touched he

But I can still taste her on my lip

I shake my head hard, trying to pull my mind back to where it needs to b

Ell

I need to find Ella

I weave through the Christmas crowd….kids laughing, parents calling, carol music echoing, and I’m barely holding myself together when suddenl

“Dad?

I tur

Ella stands near the center fountain, holding two bags, her hair pulled into a messy bun and her expression frozen in surpris

Her gaze locks on me, eyebrows shooting u

“Dad, what are you doing here? I thought you were at home.” She walks toward me, confusion written all over her face. “Why did you come out

I swallow, trying to keep my voice calm

“Decided to take a stroll. Was passing by and saw Holly just outside. She informed me you're in here” I sa

She opens her mouth to speak. Then she suddenly looks past my shoulder and lights u

“HOLLY!” she shrieks, waving wildl

I freez

My heart stop

I turn slowly, carefull

And there she i

Holly steps out from behind a pillar, her cheeks flushed from our kiss, her hair slightly tousled, trying, and failing, not to look rattled. Her eyes meet mine for barely a secon

Barel

But it’s enough to punch the air right out of my ches

Holly quickly looks away, smoothing her hoodie as she approache

Ella rushes toward her. “Where have you been? I’ve been looking all over the mall for you

Holly exhales shakily

“I decided to step out for a bit for fresh air. So sorry for making you worried” she apologizes softly to Ella. “Besides, you're busy taking pictures

Ella sighs and shakes her head

“It is fine. I would have been out since, but I just went to grab one last thing

“It is fine. It's a season of happiness…you should do things that make you happy and not resist it,” Holly say

And why do I feel she's indirectly throwing that statement at me

I almost snort. She is. And I know wh

Ella links her arm with Holly’s. “Anyway, we’re done, right? Let’s go. I’m starving

Holly nods and forces a small smile. “Yeah… let’s go

She stands close to Ella, but her gaze flickers toward me once….quick, nervous, before she looks away agai

They turn toward the exit, walking together through the glass doors into the cold evenin

I follow behind, giving space. Too much spac

Because if I get close to Holly again, I don’t trust myself not to…

Something catches my ey

A sudden flash of re

A single red envelope is tucked deep in the large Christmas tree near the entrance. I wouldn’t have noticed it if a cold gust hadn’t blown through the open door

Branches shak

Ornaments jingl

And the envelope loosens, slips, and falls…..landing right at my boot

I frow

I bend dow

And then I see it….written in small, neat letterin

To Santa—from HOLL

My breath stop

A heavy, cold shiver runs down my spin

I turn the envelope in my han

It’s sealed. Warm from the lights of the tre

And absolutely unmistakably hers

It must be her letter of wishes to Santa. The one she had written in the boot

What did she writ

Why does my chest tighten like thi

I glance toward the glass doors where Holly and Ella just stepped out into the sno

Then back down at the envelop

And against every logical part of me, against every instinct screaming at me to walk away, I break the sea

And slowly, carefully…I begin to rea

The moment my eyes hit the first sensual lin

I want him. The man I should never want

my entire body goes rigid

As I read further—every erotic detail, every sinful desire, every description of what she wants me to do to her ... .my jaw clenches harder, breath roughens, pupils dilat

And by the time I read the last line

Give me him this Christmas, Santa… just one night to be touched by him

I am not breathin

I fold the letter slowly, deliberately, like a man trying to control a wildfire spreading inside my ches

Then I look u

I see her across the snow-covered courtyar

And something in me snap

~ HOLLY~

I see Damien walking toward me….not calm, not collected, but with a dark, focused intensity that makes the world fad

“Go home now, Ella. Holly and I will join you later. There's something I need to show her,” he tells Ell

It's a command. Her brows furrow in confusion, but she dare not argue…not when he used that ton

“Okay, dad” she says softly, then to me. “See you later, Holly

And then she's on her way back hom

“Damien?” I whisper, confused as I watch Ella go hom

He doesn’t answe

His hand wraps gently but firmly around my wrist, pulling me into the shadow behind the tree, hidden from the crowd and the light

The moment we’re out of sight, he pins me softly against the wooden beam behind us, not rough, but with the unmistakable hunger of a man who’s been pushed past restrain

He holds up the red envelop

“You hung this on the tree,” he says quietl

His voice is deep, dangerous

My heart stop

What the fuck?? Did he just read all my sinful confessions

Damn!

“I…Ella told me to…” I stammer, searching for words to sa

“Ella told you what to write??” He teases, his tone laced with dark obsessio

I shake my head. “No

“You wrote this.” His eyes burn. “You wrote every word

My breath trembles

“Yes

The word barely leaves my mouth before he steps closer….so close that his chest brushes mi

and his breath warms my lips

“You want me to ruin you for Christmas?” he murmurs, repeating my words back to me, sinful and slo

Heat shoots straight through m

I nod shakil

He exhales a harsh, tortured breath—the sound of a man losing the last thread of contro

His hand slides to my waist. The other to the back of my neck. He tilts my chin u

“Then look at me when you say it

My lips par

“I want you

His grip tighten

“Say it the way you wrote it

My knees weake

“I want you to touch me,” I whisper. “To kiss me. To take me the way I imagine at night. I want every forbidden thing….

And that’s all it take

s..”n..”s..”t..”p.l.y.e.w..ne.”. .”.”n.y.!!??s..y.e.t.s.r.e.e..”e.a.e.

s.d.p.t.g.….….e..…e—d.l.e.w.s?e?h..e.d.e.s.Y.g:n.n.s.e.e.s.d.e..e.g.n..”.”y.??s..”. .”. !”s.t.y.d.s.y.s.e.y.p.y.. ?”p.e.n.!”y….a.e.s.r.r.d.. EN~s..”n..”s..”t..”p.l.y.e.w..ne.”. .”.”n.y.!!??s..y.e.t.s.r.e.e..”e.a.e.

s.d.p.t.g.….….e..…e—d.l.e.w.s?e?h..e.d.e.s.Y.g:n.n.s.e.e.s.d.e..e.g.n..”.”y.??s..”. .”. !”s.t.y.d.s.y.s.e.y.p.y.. ?”p.e.n.!”y….a.e.s.r.r.d.. htens.

“Say it the way you wrote it.”

My knees weaken.

“I want you to touch me,” I whisper. “To kiss me. To take me the way I imagine at night. I want every forbidden thing…..”

And that’s all it takes.