Without thought, he was on his feet, moving toward her. She saw him coming and hustled to meet him halfway. The guy watched her and frowned.
“What are you doing? You promised you’d wait.”
“He’s touching you,” he growled through clenched teeth.
“Adam, I got this. Go sit down.”
“He should not be touching you.” His vision shifted to a predator’s stare as another growl escaped. Men continued to ogle her in that dress. “We shouldn’t have come here.”
She gripped the front of his shirt, yanking him close, and hissed, “Adam, pull it together. You’re making a scene.”
Nostrils flaring, he drew in an unsteady breath and nodded. “Hurry.”
“Go sit down. I need a few more minutes.”
He didn’t have a few more minutes. The scent of other men, their thrumming curiosity and probing focus... It baited him in a dangerous way. “Anna...”
“I know. We’re almost finished. I need you to give me five minutes, Adam. Please.”
That softly whispered plea undid his coiling possessiveness enough to allow her a brief reprieve. “Don’t let him touch you again.”
Unsteady on his feet and bombarded by the drunken emotions floating through this place, he took a seat by the door.
In a mix of conversation, more lies left her lips. “Upstate. It, um, turns out that I have some family there.”
Every time she made an excuse for her absence, she followed it with a goodbye. His heart raced as he realized, she wasn’t taking time off, but giving her notice—leaving the job for good.
His spine tightened. Why would she do that unless she had no intention of returning? What did this mean?
As he tried to follow her emotions and understand what she planned, he kept getting distracted by the numerous hugs the men offered. At first, she kept her distance, blaming her distance on the flu and claiming she might still be contagious, but some men were more zealous than others.
When a burly fellow wrapped his arms around her and lifted her off ground, Adam nearly flipped the table springing to his feet. His heartbeat pounded in his skull as his lungs burned as though filled with fire.
A growl ripped from his throat, as he saw the lush curve of her bottom peek from beneath the hem of her dress as the man returned her to her feet. He was at her side, before she had her balance, pulling her away from the man.
“We’re leaving.”
The man frowned. “Who are you?”
Adam’s eyes flashed, his glare cutting to the man’s gullet. His claws pressing at his fingertips, threatening to come out. “I’m no one you need to remember.”
“This guy bothering you, missy?” another man asked, and Adam pulled her behind him.
“It’s fine, Gus.” Her nails dug through his sleeve. “But we have to get going.”
“You’ll come back and visit.”
“I’m sure.”
He seethed as she dragged out the goodbyes. One more person laid a hand on her and he’d lose it. His control frayed like a rolling ball of yarn spinning undone.
With her nails still embedded in his arm, she jerked him away from the men and growled, “Could you make any more of a scene?”
“They were touching you.”
“They were saying goodbye.” She pushed through the door and let go of him. “I wanted five minutes to say goodbye and you couldn’t give me that!”
His chest heaved with agitated breaths. Her skin reeked of other men and her breasts were nearly spilling out of that undergarment she called a dress.
“This might mean nothing to you, but it meant something to me, Adam! They’re my friends! Those men are like family to me.”
Her words pelted him, but her voice hummed as if only a distant echo. Sharp ringing vibrated in his ears until he could only make out the movement of her lips and her anger.
She shoved his chest and pivoted. The sight of her marching away snapped a trigger and he pounced.
His hand muffled her scream as he jerked her into his arms and dragged her to the shadows. Her heels kicked into his legs, only heightening his need to dominate her and subdue her struggles.
Hidden by the trees, he dragged her to the ground and pinned her arms with one hand, his legs trapping hers. She screamed again—
“Silence.”
Her voice held with silent panic as he yanked the futile strap of her dress away and plunged his teeth into her frantic pulse. Her body stiffened as he gorged himself. Her blood laced with adrenaline, spiking his own as his hips bucked over her.
She smelled like them.
His fingers gripped the top of her dress and pulled, ripping the front open. Snapping his head back, bearing his fangs, he hissed. Moonlight bathed her naked breasts as blood trickled from her throat.
Her mouth moved, forming the shape of his name, but no sound came out. Releasing her wrists, he cupped her breasts, licking his blood-stained tongue over her flesh and marking her with his scent.