The Mammoth Book of Paranormal Romance

woman stopped. Blinked. Then smiled.
    “Hello, Archer.”
    He frowned as he pushed himself up, swung his legs over the side of the bed and stood. He towered over the small woman.
    Her gaze widened. “Why did you get up?”
    Too real. Everything about this felt real.
    “Who are you?” He slept in the nude, and he and his damned erection faced her.
    “I’m Lilin.” She tried to touch him, but he caught her wrist.
    She moved close enough that her body heat burned into him, her bare breasts brushing his chest. The lower half of him was saying, “What are you waiting for?” But at the same time he was grinding his teeth.
    This Lilin was gorgeous - long silvery-blonde hair and silver eyes glittering in the moonlight. Her scent was like a rain-washed spring night.
    He hardened his grip. “I don’t know what you want, lady,” he growled, “but you’d better get your little ass out.”
    She gave a seductive smile. “I want you .”
    Even though his body was shouting otherwise, Archer said, “I don’t do strange women. And I sure don’t know you.”
    Lilin’s lips curved into a wicked smile. “You will, Archer Dane.”
    She vanished.
    He let his now empty hands drop away.
    Lilin frowned as she sat on the bank of the River of Life in the moonlight. She wrapped her arms around her knees and held them close.
    The human had rejected her. Rejected her !
    She had wanted a challenge and apparently Archer was it. She would make good on her promise and the male would come to know her. Then she would bed him and drain him of his soul.
    No one refused her.
    Lilin rose, spread her wings, and flew. She enjoyed the sense of freedom that accompanied flight. As an air Succubus, she drank in the growing wind like an elixir.
    Soon it would be daylight in Archer’s world.
    Soon she would begin her seduction.
Two
    Archer Dane gripped a set of architectural plans as he strode into Dane Construction’s headquarters and headed towards his office. When he reached his office door, Archer paused to speak to his assistant.
    He almost dropped the plans he was carrying and he was certain his jaw fell to the floor.
    The woman from last night’s dream sat in Cammie’s seat. The nameplate now read: lilin night.
    Lilin. From last night.
    She looked up and smiled. “Good morning, Archer.”
    He growled. “What are you—”
    “Your reports are on your desk, as well as the construction loan papers.” She looked at the telephone and grabbed a stack of white notes. “Here are your messages.”
    Automatically, he took the notes but gave her a fierce glare. “Where’s Cammie?”
    Lilin looked at him with wide, innocent silvery eyes. “On vacation in the Florida Keys. You must have forgotten.”
    No. He remembered everything. Especially last night. He hadn’t been able to go back to sleep, his hallucination playing over and over in his mind.
    But here sat his hallucination. At Cammie’s desk.
    He glanced to see if any employees noticed him and Lilin. Thank God everyone looked busy.
    “In my office. Now,” he said to Lilin in a low voice.
    “Yes, Mr Dane.” She picked up the compact laptop Cammie always used.
    “Leave it,” Archer said.
    Lilin set it on the desk. “Yes, Mr Dane.” The way she said “Mr Dane” in a slightly unusual accent was like a caress that made him so hard he had to grit his teeth.
    Shit. He had to get into his office before any employees noticed how much Lilin affected him. He opened the door for her, then closed and locked it. Talking to this woman was not something he needed anyone to walk in on.
    Archer turned from locking the door and froze. The architectural plans fell from one hand. His messages slipped from the other and scattered across the floor.
    He was face to face with a very naked woman.
    Before he had a chance to react Lilin had her arms around his neck and her body pressed to his. Her diamond-hard nipples rubbed him through his shirt and his erection pressed against her belly. She stood on her tiptoes and kissed him.
    Ah, God. He almost dropped to his knees - they actually went weak. Lilin’s kiss was like nothing he’d ever experienced. He couldn’t begin to resist. His mind spun and all he could think about was laying her flat on his desk and driving deep inside her. His brain turned to mush and his body into one horny sex machine.
    Damn, Lilin knew how to kiss. She tasted of woman and almonds, and her scent drove him crazy — the smell of rain after a thunderstorm.
    She thrust her