When an Alpha Purrs (11 page)

He might have blinked as she both insulted and praised him at once. He didn’t know if he should pounce on her and nibble until she apologized or pounce and nibble to thank her. Funny how one solution worked no matter the scenario.

Problem was, any scenario would have to wait. He had business to attend to.

Meowr.
Yeah, the man was disappointed too.

“So, does your dislike of processed food mean there’s nothing in the fridge?”

Beer. Coconut milk, which he preferred to the pasteurized cow kind. Utterly disgusting. As far as he was concerned, the only thing cows were good for was a thick steak, barely singed and slapped on a plate loaded with carb-laden side dishes.

Food.
His tummy rumbled. This was a need he could take care of. He’d call the kitchen and have them whip up two breakfasts, actually, three. He had to remember to take care of his mate now too. “If you can hold on about fifteen, twenty minutes, then I’ll have a proper meal sent to you while I’m at my meeting.” Which he really needed to get to before Hayder returned with a chainsaw to cut through his door.

His beta was excellent at keeping him on track. The bastard.

The water still ran hot, and steam fogged the air. He grabbed the soap to perform a quick wash, at least that was his intent. Kira didn’t make it easy, not when she ran her hands over the soapy spots, a teasing grin on her lips and a cock-hardening excuse of, “Let me help you get clean for that meeting you need to get to.”

She was going to help him lose his mind, and given how dirty his thoughts were when she borrowed the soap and bent over to scrub her toes, no amount of cleanser in the world could help.

I need to leave. Now.
Before he got distracted again.

Some days it sucked being the city’s Alpha.

With a hard kiss and a groan of true regret, he left Kira in the shower and snagged a towel. He dried himself as he entered his closet to look for clothes.

When he exited a few minutes later, properly dressed in a suit, with an impeccably wound tie, he found Kira lounging on the bed, wearing only a towel.

Just a towel between him and—

Such a bad kitty.

Time to put aside thoughts that involved licking, biting, and scratching and to get to work.

The quicker I get done, the quicker I’m back here.

“I’ll return as soon as I can,” he promised, unable to resist running a hand down her leg.

She sat up and hugged the towel to her chest, not that it did much to hide her cleavage. “What am I supposed to do while you’re gone?”

Tell her not to escape because she wouldn’t get far? Forbid her from contacting anyone so she wouldn’t compromise her safety? Should he tell her to not play with herself and save herself for him? Wait, that was only something women did in horror movies before the killer showed up.
I should order her to think of me.
On second thought, no need.
As if she won’t be thinking of me.

Kira was right about one thing. Arik was arrogant enough to know thoughts of him would plague her. Whether those thoughts were good or not, totally different question. “Why don’t you take the time I’m gone to relax? Get a good meal in you. I’ll have food sent up to you from my private kitchen.” Not so private given most of his family used it too, but as alpha, he got priority.

“Sounds good. Have a good meeting.” Cheerfully and only missing a June Cleaver, ‘
dear
,’ to make it picket-fence perfect.

It was also completely out of character.

Almost to the door, Arik paused and turned to face her. “You are taking this way too well.”

Expression innocent, she met his gaze. “Whatever do you mean?”

She didn’t bat her lashes, but it was close. His brows drew together in suspicion. “You’re pretending right now, aren’t you, that you’re okay with all this.”

“Me, pretend?” Such wide, guileless eyes and… Ooh, the towel slipped. Yummy. Berries.

Eyes on her face. Eyes on her face!

He diverted his gaze and fought to regain his train of thought. “I mean this morning you kept trying to escape and telling me how you liked me but couldn’t be with now. Yet now you’re taunting me with your delicious body.” Her smile blinded him. “And you’re tempting me with promises of delights for later.” She licked her lips. “And apparently want me to believe that you’re going to stay here.”

“Isn’t that what you want?”

“Well, yeah. But I didn’t think you’d agree so easily.”

“Would it do me any good to argue?”

“No.” And, yes, he realized his flatly worded reply probably made him sounded irrevocably cavemanish. He didn’t care. He didn’t want her going anywhere. Not without him.

She rolled a bare shoulder. “If it won’t do me any good to argue, then what’s the point? You’ve already proven you’re bigger than me. Besides, I’m starting to appreciate the perks.” She winked, and the towel accidentally slipped again. He almost tore off his tie and pounced.

Bang. Bang. Bang.

Damn Hayder and his awful timing.

Stupid responsibilities. They just had to come knocking at his door when he was thinking of knocking at her door.

Distracted again and, judging by her amused smirk, on purpose.

“Behave,” he said, shaking his finger.

“That’s no fun.”

“Kira.” He said it with a warning tone that his pride knew to listen to.

Except Kira wasn’t one of the pride. “Oh fine, I’ll be a good girl.” Her husky laugh didn’t reassure. “You be a good boy, and just so you know, I’ll be thinking of you while you’re gone,” she threatened as she rolled onto her back, the towel riding up her thighs, parting at her hip.

He took a step her way. Stopped. Growled. He forced himself to turn away from the pretty pinkness he knew waited for him under that towel.

“Later. And you’d better be here, or else,” he warned as he left.

Left with the image of her splayed on his bed. Ready and willing. Alone.

Grrrr
.

Thus it was, with a little more irritation than Jeoff probably deserved, that Arik stalked into the meeting room.

“How the hell did you lose the target?” Arik snapped as he dropped into a sturdy leather-covered chair.

“Good afternoon to you too,
Your Majesty.
” Jeoff’s smirk went well with his sarcastic lilt. A man in his early thirties, Jeoff was alpha to the city Pack of wolves. While strong in character, he was no match for Arik and didn’t have the strength or numbers to make a run for title of city alpha—or concrete king—which put him under Arik when it came to power.

Unfortunately, when it was just the two of them, his old school chum didn’t always show the proper respect. If he hadn’t liked the guy so much, Arik would have torn open his stomach, spilled his guts, and fed him to the sewer rats.

Stupid friend, first ruining his naptime and now starving the local rodent population.

“It was shaping up to be a great afternoon until it was interrupted by incompetence.”

“Which is why I’m here in person to offer my apologies. My guys majorly fucked up, and they got an earful about it.”

“So what happened?” Arik asked, somewhat mollified by the apology.

“The lone wolf we’re hunting isn’t just willfully ignoring the Lycan laws. He’s also wilier than we gave him credit for. Given what we knew of his behavior, we expected someone erratic, easy to spot and corner. I mean, a guy dumb enough to think he can come into our—”

“Our?”

“Your city,” Jeoff corrected without pause, “and threaten violence, especially against a woman, has to be working with a few loose screws.”

“You expected a rabid?”

A rabid being a shapeshifter who’d let their animal consume their humanity. Perhaps they’d spent too much time in fur, or their psyche wasn’t strong enough to control the beast within. Whatever the reason, their thinking was often irrational—to a human—unexpected, and violent.

“Even if he were a rabid, that doesn’t explain how he evaded your men. I paid you guys to be on the lookout for him.”

“And they were. However, he didn’t smell like a wolf. The bastard doused himself in body spray. Add in a shaved head so he didn’t look like his pictures, and the fact he carried grocery bags. My boys didn’t clue in. It wasn’t until they noticed he stopped at the corner of the building and took a big whiff that they realized who he might be. But by then it was already too late. He dropped the groceries and took off running. The guy is fucking fast. He lost us on the subway platform. He mixed into the crowd, and with all the various scents muddying the trail, we couldn’t find him.”

Much like Kira had lost him in the market the day they met. For the first time, he could see the benefits of living more remotely, where the human trails were few and a lion could hunt his prey.

“So he knows we’re on to him.” Not exactly the best news. Gregory would either fade into the background and leave Arik with no one to punish, or his next move would prove more subtle and difficult to detect. Arik needed to draw his attention before the coward went after someone more fragile and human, like Kira’s family. Once he and Kira mated, their safety became his responsibility.

“You’re keeping men posted on her apartment?” Even though Gregory probably wouldn’t return, Arik preferred to keep the bases covered.

“Yes, and my guys are also closely watching her family and their places of work. If he surfaces, we’ll nab him.”

“You’d better.”

“You seem awfully concerned about this guy,” Jeoff stated. “More than a disobedient lone wolf merits. Has he hurt someone in the pride?”

“In a sense. He threatens my mate.”

That was one way to stun an opponent.

“You? Mated? You have my condolences.”

Arik frowned. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It’s always sad when a man gets shackled to a ball and chain. Next thing you know, you’ll be taking ballroom fucking dancing, calling everything ‘ours’, losing your closet to shoes, and having to watch romantic comedies instead of going to the bar with the boys.”

“I’ll also be having incredible sex multiple times a day.”

“You could have had that without having her shackle you.”

“I’m the one who claimed her.”

“Why? Why would you do that?” Jeoff shook his head. “Don’t come crying to me when she makes you wear an ugly sweater at Christmas.”

“I won’t cry because I’ll make sure you and I have matching ones, given to you publicly, so you can’t refuse. I’ll have Hayder take a picture, and I’ll post it on every social media site I find.”

“You’re an evil king, Arik.”

“Thank you.” He couldn’t help a smug smile.

Jeoff laughed. “On another note, I need a favor.”

Arik arched a brow. “A favor? It must be important if you’re actually begging me for something?”

“It leaves me with a bad taste in my mouth too.”

“Are you sure it’s not the brand of dog food you eat?”

“Ha. Ha. King of the jungle, but definitely not of comedy. Seriously, though, this favor is important. I need a safe place for my sister. She’s leaving her current pack, but not without difficulty. They’ve promised retaliation if she dares.”

“They can’t hold her if she wants to go.” The current laws prohibited it. So long as another pack promised to take them in, a shifter could move. It hadn’t always been that way. In older times, the only way to escape was by marriage, a complicated treaty, or death.

“These guys are a rough bunch. But her mate died, and now that he’s gone, she doesn’t feel safe.”

“Why not protect her yourself?”

“Because I can’t afford to start a war. The last alpha of this region, as you well know, decimated the pack with his petty squabbles. I don’t have the numbers to stand against these guys. But my sister needs to leave. I figure if she’s here, surrounded by your family and under your protection, they won’t dare to attack.”

And if they did, they’d regret it. A lion’s pride was sacrosanct and so were those adopted into it.

“I’ll give your sister safety. However, I will expect progress on this wolf running about my city.”

“Done.”

They shook to seal the deal, and then they exchanged a few more pleasantries, which only served to heighten Arik’s impatience to return to Kira.

Jeoff finally took his leave, but Arik wasn’t so lucky. A pair of feuding twins arrived, spitting and meowing at each other, and demanded he settle a dispute—Krista had borrowed her car and left a scratch. But Korey borrowed her favorite blouse and stained it.

Ridiculous squabble. They both got dish duty for the week in the kitchens. No dishwasher allowed. Hand wash only.

That would teach them to waste his time.

But they weren’t the only ones.

Each item only served to delay his return to Kira.

Sweet Kira. He wondered what she did in his absence.

As soon as the door to the condo shut behind Arik, Kira sprang into action.

How right Arik was to suspect she seemed too biddable. As if she wouldn’t try to escape as soon as the opportunity presented itself. Kira wasn’t one to sit back and let a man dictate.

Did she feel bad about lying? A little, although she hadn’t fibbed when she told him she appreciated the perks of being with him.

As a lover, Arik proved amazing. The man oozed sex appeal and didn’t disappoint. She had a happy body to attest to that.

However, great sex, sizzling chemistry, and an unfathomable like for the guy didn’t mean she’d just bow down and turn into someone she wasn’t, uttering, “Yes, master, anything you say, master.”

It seemed they shared one trait in common, stubbornness. Kira also possessed a strong sense of responsibility that meant she wasn’t one to let others solve her problems.

She’d heard enough of his conversation at the door to know Gregory hadn’t left town or given up on his vendetta. From the sounds of it, Arik’s security detail had scared him off from her apartment, but what about the barbershop? Her aunt’s pizzeria? Her uncle’s fish store?

It occurred to her to call and check on her family. However, she didn’t see a phone in the bedroom. Arik did, however, have a touch screen inset in the wall, which, when tapped, told her in a dulcet female voice, “Unrecognized facial pattern and fingerprint. Main menu entry denied.”

Wouldn’t it figure the jerk would have the most innovative technology? How she missed the days of corded phones, and, of course, the cell phone she dug from her purse was dead. Again. She really hated how the darned things required constant charging.

Foiled when it came to contacting anyone, Kira spun on her heel and headed to the bathroom, tossing the towel to the side on the way.

She wanted out of here, but first things first; she needed clothes. The pile she’d folded on the vanity before the nap was still there if somewhat humid from the steamy shower. She didn’t care. She dressed quickly in her things, cringing only a little at pulling on the underwear. They were still fairly fresh since she’d worn them only briefly that morning.

Peering in the mirror, she grimaced at the unsightly mess she presented. A rummage of the vanity drawer netted her a hairbrush, and from within her purse, she scrounged up an elastic. It took only a moment to bun her wet hair, a necessity because she couldn’t bring herself to face the world with scraggly wet strands hanging in her face.

Ready to leave, she faced a dilemma at the door exiting the condo. A tug on the handle showed it was locked. There was a keyhole, however, that required a key, or lock-picking skills that she didn’t have. She eyed the touch screen alongside the portal. She didn’t expect it to work, but she tried anyway, tapping the surface. The stupid control panel chirped its irritating message.

“Access denied.”

“Argh!” She didn’t hold in her scream of frustration. Locked in. A prisoner even if Arik hadn’t done so intentionally. Then again, he probably would have done it on purpose if he saw she intended to leave.

The man really had a Neanderthal streak when it came to a woman’s place, and he seemed convinced her place was with him. She ignored the spurt of pleasure in favor of annoyance.

She couldn’t remain here. She had stuff to do. People to check on. A man to thwart.

Pacing Arik’s living room, a sumptuous man cave of ridiculous dimensions, didn’t soothe her anger. She ignored the most enormous television screen she’d ever seen in her life. She stared unseeingly at the polished bamboo hardwood underfoot. She avoided running into the large and curved, leather-wrapped theatre seating with built-in cup holders. She did pay slight attention to the enormous pillow on the floor that was currently bathed in bright sunlight. Given the few golden hairs she noted clinging to the fabric, she had to wonder if he owned a pet—a rather large one, given the size of the animal bed.

Out of the blue, a female voice announced, “Access granted.” With a click, the door to the condo swung open. Pushing a wheeled cart topped with silver-domed, covered plates was a young woman dressed in black slacks and a white button shirt.

“How did you get in?” Kira gasped.

“Through the door,” the puzzled woman replied.

A door that mocked her attempts to open it. “But how? Who gave you access?”

“Arik did, of course.”

“He’s in the hall?” Kira couldn’t help but crane to peek, wondering if he lurked.

The young woman laughed as she shook her head. “No. I meant he gave me a one time access when he ordered the food.”

So it wasn’t just Arik who could use the touchscreens.  They could be programmed for use by other people—just not her.

“I’ve brought your breakfast, ma’am,” the servant explained with a wave of her hand over the cart.

Room service had arrived, but more important than the food, the woman brought with her a chance for escape.

Kira strode toward her and the open door to freedom. “Thanks, but I’ve got other places to be.”

The waitress positioned herself in front of the door. “I’m sorry, ma’am, but my orders are to deliver your food and not let you leave.”

Kira halted by the service cart. “Oh. But I have an appointment I need to get to.”

“Again, I apologize, but I have my orders.”

With a shrug, Kira sighed and turned to the silver domes. “I see. I guess I’ll have to wait for Arik then. So what’s on the menu?”

The waitress moved forward and leaned to grasp the knobs of the domes, whisking a pair off to reveal the plate underneath.

Not that Kira cared, or spared it a glance. Before the waitress could react, Kira bolted past her to the elevator. It was still open, so she slid inside, only to find herself confronted by the damned touch screen again. How had she not noticed all this technology when she made the trip up?
Probably because someone was distracting me.

Despite knowing it wouldn’t do any good, she plastered her thumb against the screen. It asked her to identify herself.

“Screw you and your access denied,” Kira snarled as the damned thing foiled her plot to escape.

“Come back,” the waitress cried, having deposited the lids and coming at her with determination in her gait.

Kira banged the touch screen in frustration. Screwed.

Or maybe not.

The doors slid shut before the waitress could reach her. Was the tongue she stuck out childish? Probably, but she did it anyhow.

The elevator descended, and Kira watched the numbers as they lit up atop the door, only to groan in frustration as they stopped well short of her destination.

When the portal slid open, Kira pretended nonchalance, staring at her nails, which were in major need of a manicure, given the chipped state of her nail polish.

A pair of young women boarded, both blonde, their hair a wild, long mess in serious need of a hot oil treatment, a decent trim, and layers for proper shaping.

How she itched for a pair of scissors and at least ten minutes with each of them. But she wasn’t here to dispense beauty advice. She was escaping a megalomaniac—with a hot ass and hotter kisses—so she could deal with her psychotic stalker ex-boyfriend. Talk about a more exciting life than a regular hairdresser should experience.

While she feigned disinterest, the new occupants didn’t attempt to hide their curiosity.

The elevator began to descend again, and Kira did her best to ignore the other passengers. They, on the other hand, openly stared until finally Kira couldn’t help but blurt our, “What is it? Why do you keep looking at me like that?”

To her surprise, they didn’t deny their interest. “We’re trying to see why Arik chose you.”

“You know him?”

The query met with giggles. “Of course we do. Everyone who lives in the building does.”

Everyone female at any rate Kira would wager, and not without a touch of jealousy. Then again, who could blame them? Arik’s good looks mixed with his powerful presence made him impossible to ignore.

“So have you two been an item for long?” asked one of the girls.

“We just recently met,” Kira replied.

“And he’s already bringing you home to meet the pride.”

Meet the who? Kira’s brow furrowed.

“I’ve heard that’s how it happens,” the one with split ends replied with a sage nod of her head, which was at odds with the piercing in her nose and left eyebrow. “One sniff and bam. Mated for life.”

Kira blinked. “Excuse me? I’m not sure I understand.” She really didn’t. Both of them alluded to things that made no sense. Perhaps the blonde hair wasn’t natural, and the girls had sniffed more fumes than was healthy.

“I don’t think she knows,” the non-pierced girl said with a tilt of her head. “Oh, boy. Wait until she finds out.”

“Finds out what?” asked the newest person to embark the elevator, which had slowed and opened on yet another floor.

“This is Arik’s, um,
girlfriend
,” snickered the one with the piercings.

“Really?” Amber eyes, much like Arik’s actually, which also resembled those of the girls who’d first boarded, perused her from head to toe.

She resisted the urge to squirm.

“I expected someone…taller.”

Again the sense that she was missing something tickled at Kira, but she really didn’t care enough to pursue it.

When the doors opened again, finally onto the lobby, Kira couldn’t exit fast enough, eager to leave the crazy company she’d just met.

However, they weren’t as keen on letting her go.

Literally.

Piercing girl grabbed Kira by the arm and began tugging her toward the couches in the main lobby lounge area.

“Um, what are you doing?” Kira asked as she gently tried tugging loose. To no avail. The young lady had a firm grip, and she wasn’t relinquishing it.

“You have got to meet the gang.”

“I really don’t have time for this. I have to go.”

“Does Arik know you’re leaving?” The question came from her friend.

“Why would his knowing matter?”

The girl laughed. “Oh, that’s priceless. Wait until the others hear about this. Hey, Lolly, you gotta meet Arik’s new girlfriend.”

Several sets of amber eyes swung her way, and Kira dropped any pretense of subtle as she tried to yank free.

And failed.

“Hey, I never did find out, what’s your name?” Piercing Girl asked, oblivious, intentionally, at Kira’s attempts to extricate herself.

A big sigh left her before she replied. “Kira.”

“Cute name. I’m Zena, and this is my cousin, Reba. And that other lady riding with us was Aunt Kate.”

“Nice to meet you, really, but I have to go.”

“Sure you do. But you can’t leave before meeting the crew. This will only take a minute, or two, promise.”

Against her better judgment, but not really given a choice, Kira found herself propelled toward the avid gang of women lounging. And she did mean gang.

A ridiculous number of amber eyes locked on Kira, the freaky gazes mixed in with a few blue, green, and brown ones. Most of the women sported golden manes, but a few were of a darker mix, and one had a bright red crown of curly locks.

And they were all very unsubtle about their perusal of Kira from head to toe.

Zena pulled her right into the midst of the curious gazes and announced, “Hey, everyone, I want you to meet Arik’s
girlfriend
. Her name is Kira.”

The odd inflection didn’t pass unnoticed, but she didn’t know what it meant. Nor did she understand why so many noses began twitching. She’d showered, and while she didn’t have any deodorant on, she wasn’t sweating and shouldn’t stink. Yet, there was no denying many of the women present were sniffing at her, and a few wrinkled their noses.

“No way,” one of the older women stated, her face wrinkled in a moue of distaste. “I don’t believe it for a second. His mother would never allow it.”

“He did bring her home though,” another mused. “He’s never done that before.”

“And is that his mark on her neck?”

Sudden silence descended as their glances honed in on the love bite Arik had given her that wasn’t hidden by the collar of her shirt.

What she wouldn’t give for a scarf, and a way to escape this really weird bunch. What was with this weird obsession with Arik and his sex life?

“It was really nice to meet you,” Kira said as she took a step back. Then another. Only to stop as she realized she was hemmed in on all sides.

“How long have you been seeing each other?”

“Does he know you’re trying to leave?”

“How did you meet?”

Questions fired at her from all directions. Daunted, Kira answered the easiest one. “We met at my grandfather’s barbershop.”

An “ooh” went through the crowd, along with more than a few giggles and smirks.

Zena ventured to ask, “Are you the one who cut the chunk out of his mane?” The question shut them all up, and silence descended as they waited for her answer.