Gregory's Rebellion (4 page)

“Whoa, slow down a minute. I understand you have questions, lots of them, but please, come and sit down. I’ll make you a coffee and explain everything, okay?”

Hayden only took a second to decide. He gave a sharp nod of his head and followed in Gregory’s wake.

“How are you feeling?” Gregory asked over his shoulder.

“Okay.” Hayden felt far from okay but he didn’t want to give anything away until he knew who Gregory was and what he wanted from him.

Gregory sighed. “I know you’re lying to me. You were seconds away from shifting. The way you fought it…well, that had to have been excruciating. It must have taken a lot out of you, physically and emotionally. I bet you’re exhausted.”

Hayden shrugged. “I’m used to it.”

Gregory drew his eyebrows together. “That’s what worries me. Take a seat.”

Hayden shook his head and crossed his arms over his chest. “No, thanks, I’d rather stand.”

Gregory shrugged but didn’t say anything.

The small kitchen was attached to the living room, a breakfast bar separating the spaces. Gregory set about making coffee. He remained quiet while he worked and, after a few moments, Hayden couldn’t stand the silence anymore.

“I want some answers,” he demanded.

Gregory nodded. “I can understand that. What do you want to know first?”

“Who are you?”

“My name is Gregory Hale and I work for the supernatural council.”

Oh, God
. Hayden’s blood froze in his veins and he couldn’t catch a breath. They knew. They knew what’d he’d done and they’d come for him. How the hell had they found out? Hayden’s hands began to tremble and his forehead broke out into a cold sweat. Maybe he could make a run for it. His gaze shifted to the door. Could he make it in time or would Gregory catch him? What would he do if he got away? He couldn’t go back to his apartment or to the diner, but where else could he go? There was nowhere
to
go, and he’d come too far to start hitching rides from truckers again and scavenging in restaurant bins for his next meal.

His hands started shaking uncontrollably and his knuckles stung, his claws feeling like razors, slicing him from the inside. A sharp pain tore down his spine.
Oh, God, not again
. His eyes shifted and his incisors lengthened, slowly and painfully tearing through his gums. Soon his entire body was shaking, his cat hissing and snarling within, desperate to be let loose. But he pushed it inside. He would not let it win.

“Hayden, look at me!” Gregory commanded.

When Hayden looked up, Gregory stood in front of him. His beautiful blue eyes were looking so deeply into his, it was as though they could see into his very soul. Slowly, Gregory reached out and placed his hands on Hayden’s trembling shoulders.

“Calm down—it’s okay. You’re safe here, I promise you. Take some deep breaths. Try to relax.”

Hayden couldn’t be sure if it was the low, soothing tone to Gregory’s voice that helped ease him, or the way the man’s fingers caressed his shoulders and the back of his neck, sending pleasant tingles throughout his body. It could have been both. When Hayden closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths as instructed, he felt his cat settle within and he pushed it further inside himself until he couldn’t feel its restlessness anymore.

“That’s it, just breathe. Good.”

When Hayden next opened his eyes, they had shifted back to their human form. His teeth had receded too. Jesus, that had been close…
again
. He had to try to relax. He couldn’t afford to get upset, could not afford to shift. Because if he shifted…

“You want to tell me what that was all about?” Gregory asked, snatching him from his thoughts.

“I…”

“Have you had a bad experience with the supernatural council?” Gregory used the same gentle, comforting tone, lulling him into a warm sense of security.

Hayden shook his head, but he couldn’t speak. Gregory still hadn’t taken his hands off his shoulders and the man’s touch was driving him insane.
Please don’t look down.
Hayden grew upset at the way his body was responding to Gregory’s touch, to his proximity. He was hard. Painfully so. He felt the heat of a blush creep up his neck and cheeks. Gregory continued to stare into his eyes and Hayden couldn’t look away. He was drawn to Gregory in a way he’d never experienced. How did the man have such an effect on him? The most surprising thing was that Gregory still wasn’t looking at his scar. It was as though he hadn’t noticed it…or it didn’t matter to him. Couldn’t he see how ugly it made him?

Gregory cleared his throat and removed his hands from Hayden’s shoulders. “I’ll, uh… I’ll get you that coffee.”

Relief and disappointment battled for dominance inside him when Gregory stepped away and busied himself in the kitchen. For a moment it had felt as though Gregory had touched him for his own selfish reasons, because he needed the closeness as much as Hayden did, not merely because he’d wanted to calm Hayden down. It had felt almost as though each had recognised something in the other—a sameness or some sort of bond. But Hayden must have been mistaken because Gregory couldn’t even meet his eyes anymore.

Don’t be stupid, Hayden. What would a man like Gregory ever see in someone like you?

Jesus, Hayden felt beyond embarrassed. Had Gregory seen the desire burning in his eyes? Had his lustful thoughts been obvious? Could Gregory smell his arousal? Hayden needed to be careful. He couldn’t let Gregory see his attraction. He had been beaten up several times in the past for looking at a man the wrong way.

“I won’t hurt you. You’re safe with me, I promise.” Gregory crossed the space and handed Hayden a cup of black coffee. “Here, drink this—there’s lots of sugar. It will help you feel better.”

Hayden nodded and took the drink. He felt stupid suddenly—standing in the middle of the room, nursing his coffee—so he took a seat on the edge of the small sofa.

Hayden took a deep breath. He had to know where he stood. “Are you here to take me in?”

Gregory nodded. “That’s what I came here for, yes. Do you understand why?”

Of course he did, the council knew what he’d done, but he didn’t say that. “Why don’t you tell me?” he asked instead.

Gregory sat in the chair opposite and took a sip from his steaming mug before he spoke. “You’ve been away from your parents for several years now. You don’t have any friends. You haven’t been interacting with other cats. You—”

“How do you know all that?”

“The council keeps a close eye on all shifters. As I’m sure you know, we are all registered with the council at birth. I would imagine you’ve been on their radar since you applied for your social security card when you started working in the diner. I’m certain I’m not the only agent the council has sent here. They don’t send in someone like me to make an extraction unless they have all the facts about a shifter. They need to know exactly what they’re dealing with. You’ve probably been watched for some time to see if you made any relationships with other cats.”

Hayden frowned. He didn’t like the idea that people had been spying on him, but the reason for Gregory’s presence calmed him significantly. The council didn’t know what he’d done.
Thank God
.

“What’s going to happen to me?”

Gregory lowered his gaze. He scrubbed a hand over his eyes and let out a long sigh. “I don’t usually get involved after I’ve handed someone over to my superiors. Some shifters, those with…problems, are able to be rehabilitated. Wolves, for example, are encouraged to join packs. Younger shifters are placed with families. It depends on the individual and their circumstances. But others…” Gregory didn’t finish the sentence—he didn’t have to. Hayden had a fair idea what happened to others.

“Why can’t I stay here? I have my apartment and a job. It’s not like I’m a danger to anyone.” Even as the words came out of his mouth, Hayden knew they were untrue. He
was
a danger, wasn’t he?

“That’s not going to be possible, Hayden, I’m sorry.”

“But I don’t want to leave,” Hayden said quietly. “I’ve got Mac here—he’s been like a father to me, more of a father than my own ever was.”

“But he’s human,” Gregory argued. “You need to be with other shifters, with your own kind. And your cat needs to be able to run and to hunt. The more you fight the shift, the more difficult it will become to resist and then there’s no telling what will happen. You could shift at any time, hurt someone. Cats that shut themselves away from others of their kind can become feral. You wouldn’t want that to happen, would you?”

“No,” Hayden whispered. He never wanted to hurt anyone again.

“When was the last time you shifted?”

“About three years ago.” Hayden had made the statement casually as though he could barely remember, but he knew the exact date of when he’d last shifted. He could hardly forget. That day had changed him irrevocably. It had hardened him, stripped him of his trust and faith and hope. He couldn’t forget that night even if he wanted to. The large angry scar that ran down the left side of his face from his eye to his lip had become a constant reminder.

Gregory pulled in a sharp breath. “Jesus Christ. Three years? But how? Why?”

“I don’t want to talk about it.” Hayden gripped his coffee cup tighter and pressed his lips together. He couldn’t tell Gregory the reason he didn’t shift without revealing what he’d done that day three years ago, so he kept quiet.

“When are you going to take me in?” Hayden asked in a small voice. “I need to collect my things from my apartment first and go in to the diner to say goodbye to Mac.”

Gregory placed his mug on the coffee table beside him and got up from his chair. He crossed the space and sat next to Hayden. “We’ll go right away to collect your belongings, but I’m afraid you won’t be able to go back to the diner to say goodbye to Mac.”

“What do you mean? Why not? I can’t leave without saying goodbye to him.” Panic started rising in Hayden’s chest. Just what the hell was going on? Why did he have to leave without saying goodbye to the man that had become like a father to him?

Gregory reached out slowly and took hold of Hayden’s hand. It was an incredibly intimate gesture for two men that didn’t know each other. Hayden was tempted to snatch his hand back but he didn’t. He liked Gregory touching him… He liked that Gregory
wanted
to touch him. It stirred feelings and desires that he hadn’t realised he was capable of anymore. When Gregory threaded their fingers together, goosebumps rose on Hayden’s arms and his breath came faster. He couldn’t take his eyes off their clasped hands or stop the fast
thud, thud, thud
of his heart. Hayden had never been this turned on. His stomach was tight with anticipation.

“I need you to trust me,” Gregory said. “Do you think you can do that?”

“I don’t know, but I want to.” Hayden replied honestly. “I’ll try.”

Gregory nodded. “There are some things going on in the council at the moment…bad things. I don’t think it would be a good idea for me to take you back there. It wouldn’t be safe for you. But if I were to leave you here, the council would only send in other men and they’d find you. I’m afraid they might already be suspicious. I was supposed to bring you in three days ago, but I couldn’t. I…”

“You what?” Hayden leaned in closer, every nerve ending on edge, waiting for the rest of Gregory’s sentence as though it held answers to questions he hadn’t even dared to ask.

Gregory lowered his gaze. “Wow, this is difficult to explain.”

Hayden gripped Gregory’s hand tighter like it was the only thing keeping him grounded. “You can tell me.”

He was surprised at how husky he sounded when he spoke. He’d never heard that tone to his voice before, never even knew it was a sound he had been capable of making.

“Hayden, when you look at me, when you touch me…do you feel anything?”

Oh crap
. Hayden could feel a whole host of things, especially in the lower half of his body, but he’d be damned if he told Gregory what effect the man was having on his dick. Or how his proximity made Hayden’s head spin, made his heart beat faster and made every nerve ending in his body thrum with anticipation. But why was Gregory even asking him that? Could he tell how turned on Hayden was?

“No,” he lied. “I don’t know what you mean.”

Hayden noticed the bob in Gregory’s throat as he nodded slowly. “Right.”

“What does this have to do with me not being able to say goodbye to Mac?”

When Gregory next met Hayden’s gaze, his mouth was turned down at the corners and he seemed to have lost the little spark that had lit up his pretty, pale blue eyes. Hayden wanted to do or say something to bring back Gregory’s smile, to put the light back in his eyes, but he didn’t know what.

“It has everything to do with it, but I don’t think this is something I’m able to explain,” Gregory said at last. “I think it’s something you need to experience to fully understand.”

Hayden didn’t know what the hell Gregory was talking about but he found himself nodding in agreement anyway. “Okay.”

“You said you’d try to trust me, right?”

“Yes.”

“And you believe me when I say I have your best interests at heart and I wouldn’t do anything to harm you?”

That was an odd question, but even more curious was the fact that Hayden didn’t have to think about his reply. He
did
trust Gregory, and, for reasons he couldn’t explain, he knew the man wouldn’t hurt him.

“I believe you,” he breathed.

“Okay, good.” Gregory scrubbed the hand that wasn’t holding Hayden’s on the leg of his jeans and, while Hayden watched, a bead of perspiration trickled down his forehead. He cleared his throat. “Hayden, I need you to do something for me. I need you to shift.”

* * * *

Gregory watched Hayden hastily shove items of clothing into a beat-up, old backpack. When he stood, his usually lithe body looked stiff, his back ramrod straight, the tension in his shoulders obvious. The only time he chanced a look at Gregory, it was to glare at him.

“Hayden, please be reasonable,” Gregory implored. If he hadn’t asked Hayden five damn times, he hadn’t asked him once.