Chapter 23: 23: Push and Pull

BELLE

“The hunk in the corner booth is checking you out,” Candice whispered to me as she set her tray down next to mine behind the counter.

“He’s been staring at you since he walked in. He even asked to be put in your section.”

I didn’t need to look up to know who she was talking about. I had felt his presence the moment he walked in.

~God, Grayson, why can’t you just leave me alone?~

About an hour had passed since Grayson had found me and turned my world upside down. Customers filed in pretty quickly after that, some coming back from before, although they seemed disoriented.

I didn’t blame them. Grayson was a pretty scary dude—especially now that he looked like a giant on steroids.

When I asked Candice what had happened, she just shrugged and said she had no idea what I was talking about. I found this strange but didn’t have the time to think about it.

We were now just as busy as before, and although that was what I thought I wanted when my shift started, I was finding it hard to keep up now.

All of my energy from earlier was gone, probably because Grayson was nearby.

It was pretty obvious now that I had been so happy this morning because the mate bond was strengthening as Grayson got closer to me.

But now that he was literally less than twenty feet away from me, my body was trying to give me the final push, pressing me to go to him by causing me excruciating pain I knew only Grayson could end.

I hated that my mark burned once again, worse than it ever had before and that my body ached as if I had just finished a vigorous workout.

I tried my best to smile politely at Candice. “You know what? I give you full permission to take his table if you think he’s so cute. He’s all yours.”

“Are you sure?” Candice squeaked, her voice going up an octave with excitement. “He seems way more interested in you than in me.

“Don’t look now, but he’s literally staring at you like he wants nothing more than to throw you down on one of these tables and have his way with you. Definite Christian Grey vibes.”

My cheeks turned bright red. I knew for a fact that Grayson could hear every word that Candice was saying and probably found it all very amusing.

I would bet money that he would be sporting a huge, cocky grin on his face if I were to turn around and look at him right now.

“How long do you think a person needs to spend at the gym to look like that?” Candice continued dreamily.

“I’ve literally never seen a person more perfect than him. He’s lean but huge at the same time, and, oh my god, those green eyes! I could get lost in those suckers.

“And I bet he has some ~insane~ abs under that shirt he’s wearing. Just look at the way it’s stretching over his muscles. I would love to—”

“Okay!” I interrupted before she could tell me exactly what she wanted to do to my former mate’s abs. I hated the uncontrollable jealousy that threatened to consume me.

It almost made me regret giving Grayson’s table to her. “No need to elaborate. You obviously like him, so you go ahead and take his table. I’ll take one of yours.”

“No,” someone grunted behind me. I turned to look at Jerry, who I hadn’t even noticed had walked up behind us. How long had he been standing there? “No switching tables,” he said.

“Why not?” Candice asked, her voice coming out whiny.

“Because Belle needs to prove to me that she wants her job,” Jerry responded. “Which means dealing with difficult customers.”

I gave him a tight smile even as my palms began to sweat at the thought of having to talk to Grayson again. “That’s fine,” I replied stiffly.

“Lucky bitch,” Candice whispered in my ear, smiling as she walked past me.

Jerry was still watching me as I walked over to Grayson who was sitting in the corner booth. Every step I took toward him made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside, and I hated it.

“What the hell are you doing here?” I demanded when I finally reached his table. I was sure to keep my voice low so that no one around us could hear.

Grayson raised a brow. A hint of a smile appeared on his lips. “Come sit, beautiful.” He patted the seat next to him. “Eat breakfast with me. You need food.”

I glared at him. I knew this act. Grayson could be charming and caring when he wanted to be. I wasn’t falling for it. “I’m working,” I snapped. “And I thought I told you to leave me alone.”

Grayson leaned back casually, crossing his massive arms over his equally massive chest. “And I thought I told ~you~ that I wasn’t letting you out of my sight ever again.”

“So you ~have~ been watching me then,” I accused.

Grayson grinned. “Do the mating sparks dancing along your skin from my gaze feel good, baby?” His voice was as smooth as butter. “I know I’m liking the feel of them now.”

My hips abruptly hit the edge of the table I was standing in front of. I looked down, realizing that I had been unconsciously gravitating toward him.

The only reason I hadn’t fallen into his lap was due to the huge metal table separating us.

My attention went back to Grayson. I felt my cheeks turn red, hoping he hadn’t noticed what I just had. But, of course, he had.

His brows raised, his eyes looking down at my hips, licking his lips.

“Stop that!” I chided, shifting uncomfortably.

Grayson’s gaze lazily raked up my form before he met my eyes once again.

My nails dug into the palms of my hands, extremely close to punching Grayson’s stupid smirk off his stupid face.

“What did you do to Liam?” I demanded.

Grayson’s casual expression quickly turned into a scowl. “Who?”

I rolled my eyes. “You know who I’m talking about. Liam, Liam Blackwood. My friend. He’s about this tall”—I held my hand up over my head—“brown hair, obnoxiously charming.

“He disappeared after trying to protect me from you. Tell me what you did to him.”

Grayson shook his head, a muscle jumping in his jaw. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. But any man who you call charming shouldn’t be around you anyway.”

My nostrils flared. He was acting way too casual to be telling the truth.

“If you hurt him,” I started, “I swear I’ll kill you. I don’t care how big and intimidating you’ve gotten. I will not allow you to hurt the people I care about.”

His eyes narrowed at my threat, automatically darkening. “~Care ~about?” he repeated. “Exactly what is the extent of your feelings toward this man?”

I knew at that moment I had said the wrong thing. I didn’t want Grayson to have any more of a reason to hurt Liam.

“As I said before, he’s my ~friend. ~Nothing more. And I would like to know what you did to him.”

“I have done nothing to harm your ~friend,” ~Grayson responded. “I think it’s a good thing that this man isn’t hanging around anymore. I don’t like other men around my mate.”

My temper rose, hot and sharp. I was extremely close to grabbing the silverware on the table and stabbing it into his hand.

“I’m not your mate. You have absolutely no right to act possessive of me. ~You~ gave ~me~ up.”

A low growl left his chest, causing me to take a step back. “I did no such thing. You are mine, Belle. You always have been and always will be. Now, come sit and eat some breakfast with me.

“You look exhausted, and I can hear your stomach growling from across the room.”

“I already told you I’m working.” I quickly peeked over my shoulder, relieved when I saw that Jerry wasn’t watching me anymore.

“And if you think I’m serving you, you’re very, ~very ~wrong. I would rather eat glass.”

His expression softened. “I don’t want you to serve me, Belle,” his voice was much softer than before. “I just want you to eat. When was the last time you had a proper meal?”

“That’s none of your business.”

“It most definitely is,” Grayson retorted.

My jaw clenched. “I seriously don’t get why you even care. You didn’t care when I couldn’t get any food at your pack house. I was starving, too scared to get food for myself and you—you…”

I swallowed roughly, remembering Grayson hitting me and telling me that I was more trouble than I was worth after he found out I hadn’t been eating.

“I don’t even know why I’m telling you any of this. I’m not eating with you. I’m not serving you. I’m never doing anything with you ever again. Now leave me alone.”

I turned to leave but was stopped when Grayson caught my arm. He stood, looking at me with determined eyes. His dark expression only softened when he zeroed in on the unshed tears pooling in my eyes.

I quickly wiped them away.

“You don’t have to serve me. You don’t even have to eat with me, but I’m not going anywhere. As long as you’re here, so am I. You’re my mate. You’re in pain. The closer I am to you, the better it will be for you.”

“I’m fine,” I bit back. I yanked my arm out of his hold, taking several large steps back to prove my point.

What I didn’t tell him was that my mark just burned more and more with every step I took. “I’ve gone several months without you and have done just fine.”

Grayson glared at the new space between us. “You don’t have to lie to me, Belle. I can feel your pain through the bond. And I can see it in your eyes.”

He stepped forward, gently placing his hand on my upper arm. His thumb caressed the skin soothingly. “You’re not alone,” he said quietly. “I’m in pain too.”

I knew I should push his hand off of me, but the sparks that came from his touch felt too good. “You are?” I asked.

Even if I was mad at him, something inside me hated hearing that. I didn’t want him to be in pain. I mean, I wanted him to go jump off a cliff, but…

Grayson nodded. “Of course I am. I may not be experiencing the same thing you are because I’m not human like you, but I’m still suffering just as much.

“You have no idea how much it killed me to be away from you. And it kills me now being so close to you and not being able to touch you—to comfort you. Our mate bond is starving.”

“Keep working on that whole ‘not touching’ thing,” I told him, yanking my arm away from his grasp yet again, even when my body screamed out its opposition.

“I have to get back to work. Leave me alone. I mean it.”

I didn’t look back at him as I walked away, and thankfully, he didn’t fight me as he watched me go.