Meredith held up her hand. “Enough.”
Several of the males shot her a glare, but subsided. Isaiah was surprised at how all the males deferred to her. She was obviously the alpha female of this little pack. But where was the alpha male?
The thought of another male having the right to put his hands on her made Isaiah see red. A low, menacing growl came from deep in his chest. The younger woman took a step toward the red-haired male. He wrapped his arm around her protectively.
The tension in the room grew until it was so thick it was almost impossible to breathe. He didn’t give a shit. He wasn’t leaving. Not until he talked to Meredith.
The woman in question stepped forward and placed her hands on her hips. She exuded confidence, which was sexy as hell and turned him on even more. “Don’t think you can come in here and threaten my family, wolf.” She spat the last as though it were a bad word.
Having her so near, he could see the smoothness of her skin and smell her delicious scent. Unable to resist, he lowered his head and sniffed the curve of her neck. She smelled like something rare and exotic, a combination of musk, cinnamon and heat that was intoxicating. She shivered and started to lean toward him. He wanted to howl with pleasure. But it ended far too soon for his liking when someone pulled her away.
Isaiah jerked his head up to see who had ruined the moment between him and Meredith. It was one of the younger men. He started toward him, the promise of retaliation stamped on his face, only to have Meredith step in front of him again. “He’s my son.”
That brought Isaiah up cold. If there was one thing he could understand, it was wanting to protect family. He addressed the younger man directly, looking over Meredith’s head. “I mean her no harm.”
“What about the rest of them? Why are you here? Who sent you?”
Meredith was still in front of him demanding answers.
He sighed and rolled his head to work out some of the kinks in his neck. “No one sent me. I didn’t come here to find any of you. I was just wandering the streets, heard a woman singing and came in.”
“I don’t believe you,” said the man Meredith had called her son.
“Michael,” she warned, and he subsided, but not without first giving Isaiah a look that promised death if he made a move toward his mother. Isaiah could respect that.
“There’s nothing for you here. You need to leave.” Isaiah understood her wanting to protect the pack, but he was curious why Meredith was in such a hurry to get rid of him when he obviously meant no harm.
“I’m not sure we should let him leave.” The bouncer from the door spoke up. “What if he’s working with the hunters?”
The menacing growl that came from Isaiah was impossible to suppress. “I kill hunters, pup, and anyone who works with them.”
“So you say,” the other male who’d worked behind the bar countered.
“Are you questioning my word?” He’d never had anyone do such a thing. He was a Striker. Their loyalty and honesty was above reproach.
“Enough.” Meredith tapped the toe of her high-heeled shoe on the wooden floor. It drew his gaze down over her long, shapely legs and back up again. “No one is going to hurt anyone. And you’re leaving.”
It was time to regroup. Things were too volatile with so many males in the mix. They were on a short leash at the moment, but Isaiah had no doubt all the males would swing into action in the blink of an eye if they thought it was necessary. He didn’t want to be put in a position of having to hurt them. That certainly wouldn’t go over well with Meredith. The last thing he wanted was to antagonize her any more than he already had.
“I want to talk to you. Two minutes,” he added before she could protest. “Alone.”
Predictably enough, the males protested, but in the end Meredith was alpha and the rest of them headed toward to the kitchen.
“I’ll only be on the other side of the door,” Michael warned.
Isaiah inclined his head in understanding.
Meredith waited until they were all gone before turning back to him. “We’re alone. What do you want?”
He shifted until they were so close they were almost touching. He could feel the heat from her skin, see the way her pupils dilated and the pulse in her neck beat faster. There was a slight hitch in her breathing as he invaded her space.
They weren’t touching, not quite. He raised his hand and lightly brushed the curve of her cheek with the back of his knuckles. She sucked in a breath and the movement had her breasts touching his chest. Even through the layers of their clothing, he could feel the hard tips of her nipples.
Need roared through him. Raw desire pumped through his veins. He wanted Meredith more than he’d wanted anything in his life, as though she was somehow necessary to him.
He leaned down, his lips practically caressing hers as he answered her question. “You, Meredith. I want you.”
He didn’t give her time to answer, but closed the miniscule distance between them and pressed his lips to hers. They were soft and lush and he groaned as the power of that small caress blasted through him. Every muscle in his body tensed as he rubbed his lips against hers, willing her to part them and let him in.
Then she did. It was slight, but she did move them. He snaked his tongue into her mouth and groaned. She tasted like fine wine and long, hot nights. He explored, learning what turned her on, what made her moan.
She went up on her toes to get closer and he wrapped one arm around her slender waist, holding her firmly against his body. Her breasts pillowed against his chest and her pelvis was aligned with his. His cock pressed against her mound and belly. Heat rolled off him in waves as need raked at his very being.
He had to have her.
Cupping the back of her head with one large hand, he tilted it so he could deepen their kiss. But she was an alpha and not about to be led by anyone. She clutched at his hair, yanking him even closer. The slight sting of his scalp was tangible evidence that she wanted him as much as he wanted her. Their teeth clinked and he tasted blood. It was warm and spicy and fired his lust.
He devoured her, plunging his tongue into the warm cavern of her mouth, staking his claim. He would have her. Had to have her.
More. He needed more of her. Tearing his mouth from hers, he nipped at her jaw and left biting kisses down the slender column of her neck. Her breasts beckoned, firm and full. As he’d longed to do all night, he traced a finger over the lush curve and dipped into her cleavage. “You’re not wearing a bra, are you?”
She shook her head, a long lock of her hair feathering against his face. He savored the touch of her silky hair even as he slipped his finger beneath the fabric of her dress.
She held her breath as he fingered a bare nipple.
Madness. It was pure madness. She’d blame the fact that she was almost in heat, except she’d never reacted to a male like this before. Not even her mate.
An alarm bell went off in the back of her brain, but it was drowned out as Isaiah touched his finger against her straining nipple. Heat flashed from her breast to her sex and she knew her panties were wet. There was no way he wouldn’t be able to smell her growing arousal.
But he was aroused too. The large bulge of his erection pressed against her in a provocative way. He was more than big enough to help ease the seemingly never-ending ache inside her. Sex with him would be mind-blowing. It would be primal and hot. He’d have the stamina to keep up with her, to give it to her long and hard.
She whimpered as a second finger joined the first and he tugged gently on her nipple. The large hand at her back moved lower until it cupped her ass, tilting her hips so her mound was positioned directly against his hard cock.