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“Who are you?” There was so much more to this man than just being a friend of a friend who agreed to show him around.

“Isaiah LeBlanc, a security guard for the Bay Harbor Wolves.” He repeated. “Who are you?”

"Aidan Kolly, real estate analyst with Sensor Properties.” Aidan followed suit.

"Let me show you around the property, and then how about I take you to lunch at the dining hall." Aidan was feeling a little overwhelmed, and taking a step back for a minute was exactly what he needed. He held onto Isaiah's hand, not wanting to let go because the contact was something he needed. It wasn’t hurting anyone, so he wasn’t going to analyze it right now.

"Thank you, I'd love that. I am a little hungry." Aidan suddenly felt more at ease. "Is the food good at the dining hall?"

“I eat there most days.” He admitted. “The Alpha did not skimp when hiring a chef. The food is some of the finest in the area.”

"Being close to you helps me relax, and my mind settles and clears, and you smell amazing. I don't know what you're wearing, but I want some." He watched as a gorgeous smile covered Isaiah’s face.

“You smell good to Aidan.” He said with a chuckle.

"This means something, doesn't it?" Aidan asked, and at that moment, Derek happened by no doubt on his way to see his brother, the Alpha. Derek had been instrumental in Aidan’s takedown yesterday, and he wasn't sure how he was feeling about the guy at present.

“Isaiah.” Derek acknowledged with a nod, and then he turned to Aidan. "Aidan, good to see you so calm." He smiled, but it was not a pleasant smile. Aidan had a feeling that the guy was incapable of a pleasant smile. Aidan answered him with an icy stare, which just made him laugh and turn his attention back to Isaiah.

“I was going over your report, Henrik sent me a copy, and I like what you proposed about using the Mage to protect the beach. I agree there is merit in the idea.” Derek stated, and Isaiah nodded his understanding but did not respond. Derek was not one for discussions, but Isaiah took his support as significant. No one had the Alpha’s ear the way Derek did.

"That guy makes me angry just looking at him," Aidan said while they watched him walk away.

“He pisses off most people. It's his superpower.”

“Was he talking about magic as a security measure?” Aidan’s voice was sharp with skepticism, but he couldn’t help it.

"Jake has explained most of what's going on here, and part of me thinks that you’re all insane, but another part is believing what I’m seeing. Magic in the mix is really not a big reach at this point.” Aidan tried for a lighthearted response. He wanted some answers, and he wanted to understand.

What he was feeling for this literal stranger was unusual but not unwanted. He was feeling pulled in an odd way, and he was feeling a familiarity that brought peace and comfort, which were all things he needed to understand. Everything would come together like puzzle pieces in the end once he had a clear picture.

“I spent a week with the Coven observing their security techniques. They use mage magic for a large portion of their border security, and it has worked extremely well. Alpha Henrik has had good and bad experiences with magic and is not necessarily in mind to adopt the measures." Isaiah kept it short but answered his question.

"Sounds like you have Derek on your side," Aidan said and suddenly realized that the conversation was not going where he wanted it to go. Playing around the edges was not going to get to the heart of their matter.

“He rarely involves himself with such things, so he must truly see its worth," Isaiah responded dryly. This subject was definitely dead on arrival, so they might as well get down to basics.

“Okay, sit.” Aidan stopped at a bench by the rose garden at the corner of the property and pointed at it. “We need to talk.”

"I agree; we need to talk." Isaiah sat, and Aidan sat next to him, close enough that their thighs were touching, and Isaiahplaced his arm along the back of the bench behind Aidan. It was a nice touch.

“Why do you make me feel this way?” Aidan burst.

“What way is that?”

“Like I might crawl out of my skin with the need to be near you. The desire to be close to you is coursing through me like a raging fixation." He was laying it out there, and he hoped that Isaiah had something constructive to say.

"We're mates." He said and then left it there. His dark eyes glinted with the presence of his beast trained on him, and Aidan could feel a surge of desire rush through him. If they were more acquainted and if they had even a modicum of privacy, Aidan would definitely jump his bones right there on the bench in broad daylight. That was how much this man was affecting him.

“I feel the same about you.” Isaiah, with his dark, good looks and toned body, sat there in all his gorgeousness and said he felt the same. Aidan was fixating, but there was nothing he could do about it. The feelings were deep, bone deep. He reached his hand over and took Isaiah’s hand once again.

“I like touching you. Your voice soothes me, and your scent is like a refuge and fills me with a sense of safety and well-being. I’m probably saying too much and saying it all wrong, and who knows, maybe it's all just magic." Aidan looked away to his right but held onto Isaiah.

"You're saying everything right, my love. What you are feeling is the pull, just as I am feeling. I assume Jake explained the mating process and the power of the Fated bond when telling you about his infatuation with Hayes?” Aidan nodded. Jake spoke of the Fated bond and the connection that exists betweena wolf and his predestined mate, but was Isaiah saying what he thought he was saying.

“You and I are like Jake and Hayes?”

“Yes, the reason they released your friend, the deputy, is because they brought in a vampire to wipe his memory of seeing the guard shift into his wolf form. They tried to do the same to you, but the vampire could not touch your mind.” Aidan remembered the man who touched his forehead and then got all huffy about some issue. He wasn’t going to think about the vampire aspect just yet.