Following the Feeling Ch. 04

Ignoring the mockery his wolf made of that conclusion Gray buried himself in paperwork. They were in the process of redecorating Moonlight, the dance club, and he spent the morning paying invoices and approving change orders. He was deeply involved when his office phone rang.

"Go ahead," he expected it to be one of the betas with a morning report.

"Hello?"

Looking up at the caller id he realized the call had not come from inside the building. ,

"Hello," the familiar female voice said again, "I received a call from this number and was returning it."

"Kiera? This is Grayson." He kept his voice calm despite the slight shock of hearing a voice he least expected.

"Oh." Then a long pause. "I, ah, you called me?"

"I did." Brilliant, he thought.

"Ok, well…did you want something?" she sounded as surprised and awkward as he felt at the moment.

You. "I was just calling to ask you if you'd reconsidered going out with me. To talk about what happened yesterday or just to talk." Liar, his mind mocked.

"Reconsidered," there was a spark in her voice that warmed him. He was already conditioned to like when she was angry.

"I hadn't reconsidered it, no," she continued. "So if that's all I'll let you go."

Uh-uh, he thought, not now that I have you again. "Come on, at least we could have a meal together, to make up for the used cell phone minutes."

His confidence grew with each minute she remained on the line. He heard her huff and anticipated the next question.

"Should I even bother asking how you got my cell phone number?"

"Probably not, but I'll explain over lunch. What time works for you?"

Kiera was ready to provide a curt refusal, but thought about Jasmine's parting words and replied, "I have to be at work by four and have some errands to run so the earlier the better."

Looking at the time, nine o'clock, Gray suggested, "Why don't we meet at eleven? Should I pick you up or do you want to meet somewhere?"

Kiera bit her lip then answered, "Fine, eleven will work. I'd rather meet you there. I'm not picky, so what are you in the mood for?"

Gray knew he'd get in trouble with his answer to that question. Feeling the rush of victory he offered, "There's a nice restaurant on Brook Street called Sempler's Café. They have a varied menu and outside seating available."

He wanted her at ease and the best place to do that was an open place on neutral territory. He didn't mention that the couple that ran it were pack. He too wanted the option of security, but knew a call ahead could assure discreetness.

"I've seen it, but have never been. Sounds good, I'll see you there."

"At eleven," he said.

"At eleven," she repeated with a muffled laugh.

They ended the call with polite goodbyes. Grayson started at the phone for several moments afterward with a grin on his face. A little step, but one in the right direction. He strolled to his quarters with a jaunty step to prepare for their date.

** ** ** *** ** ** **

At eleven sharp Grayson stood outside Sempler's Café trying to contain his smile. But when he saw Kiera walking towards him it broke free in dazzling force. At any rate Kiera was dazzled and struck with the image of grinning wolf. Her trepidation returned until his smile warmed considerably as he looked down at her.

"You look lovely," he simply said.

Grayson minded her personal space and guided her to a table outside at her nod of approval. They ordered drinks and Kiera pored over the menu while Grayson sat back and watched her. He drank in the way her hair glowed auburn in the sun, the long line of her neck, and the smooth skin exposed by her tank top.

"Do you know what you're going to order? Their salads sound nice." Kiera looked up and caught him staring.

"I'm sure they are, this place has a reputation for excellent food, but I'm going to get my usual burger. You can't find a better one in the city."

He left out that the ranch that provides Grazing their beef also supplied the café and a handful other were-owned restaurants. The ranch was originally a safe hunting ground, but they started raising cattle when most moved within city limits. The wolves' sensitive taste buds were generally offended by the meat offered in grocery stores so raising their own livestock became a convenient solution. The pack still gathered and hunted in the surrounding forest, but Grayson hadn't been out there in several months.

"Of course you're a meat eater," she observed.

Leaning forward he asked, "Do you really want to jump into that topic?"

Kiera blushed at her faux pas and shook her head.

"I think I'll get the grilled chicken salad," she said instead.

"An excellent choice, my dear," a new voice replied. Kiera looked up and saw their waitress had returned. She was a lovely older woman with the kind of smile that could put anyone at ease. She took Gray's order with the same sweet smile and left them alone.

They chatted about the weather and the local news and other safe topics throughout the meal, which Kiera agreed was excellent. She asked how Derek was doing and he assured her he was perfectly fine, explaining that they healed much faster than humans. As time wore on she became more comfortable talking to Grayson and discovered they had a fair amount in common. She tried not to get caught up in how handsome he was when he smiled or lulled by the smooth baritone of his voice, but at some point she realized that he was quite a nice guy, when they weren't arguing. One hour became two, but neither seemed inclined to end their date. After coaxing her into ordering strawberry shortcake for dessert Grayson turned the conversation into a more personal direction.

"So tell me what it's like growing up as an empath."

Kiera smirked. "Have we reached the question and answer portion of our date? No wonder you wanted to sweeten me up."

Gray's answering smile was almost boyish in delight. "I do believe we have unless you have a problem with that."

"No it's fine, but I expect a fair exchange. Question for question." She had a few questions of her own she finally felt comfortable enough to ask.

At his nod Kiera took a bite of her dessert and considered her answer.

"Growing up as an empath wasn't easy. I cried a lot until I learned more control over my filtering techniques. Then there's the mistake of telling someone who couldn't handle it and suddenly being ostracized in school. Few people like being called a freak, you know. But I met people who also had paranormal abilities and once I realized I wasn't alone in the world it made a huge difference."

"Weren't your parents able to help you deal with your abilities?"

Kiera wagged her finger at him, "Nuh-uh. Question for question, it's my turn."

"Follow-up questions shouldn't count as a new question only a request for clarification," he defended.

"Changing the rules already? I didn't realize you were a cheater, Mr. Gray." Kiera licked a dollop of whipped cream off her finger making his eyes darken as they tracked her motions.

"Fine," he replied distractedly, "Your turn."

Kiera hesitated briefly and then asked, "How long have you been…what you are?

Gray's brow quirked at her question. "What do you mean?"

Looking around she leaned forward whispering, "You know, a werewolf."

Gray leaned in as well and whispered back mere inches from her mouth, "All my life, sweet. I'm a natural."

"What's a natural?"

This time Gray shook his head, "I believe that's a follow up question, Ms. Sheppard."

"Okay well then you get to ask two questions next time." Kiera liked this game, it was safe and yet her insides warmed as she bantered with him. She couldn't recall a time when she had had so much fun with someone outside her tiny group. And she was quite certain she'd never told him her last name, it was another question to ask.

Having similar thoughts, Gray replied, "Being a natural means I was born a werewolf, with two werewolf parents, aunts, uncles, and so on. Despite what the myths say very few of our species came to be that way through outside influences." Ignoring her confused expression he continued, "My turn, did your parents help you adjust to life as an empath?"

"No. What's your next question?"

"Wait, that's it? A one word answer? Who's trying to cheat now," he huffed.

"It's not my fault you asked a yes or no question. Maybe you should have put more thought into it. You're not very good at this you know."

They continued to argue, but without the anger that had tainted their previous encounters. He demanded and she pouted and ran verbal circles around him at every opportunity. He knew she was smart, but never guessed how clever or evasive she could be when pressed into a corner. As the afternoon ran on they learned more from each other and the bond that Grayson had suspected was possible grew until he was determined to know not just something, but everything about the woman who sat across from him. Kiera sensed his determination, but was far from feeling threatened by it. Maybe it was because they were so different from the rest of the population, but they just seemed to see eye to eye when it came to being honest and yet discreet. Living in a world within the world they had experienced the same need for secrecy. She respected that Gray didn't push too hard and shared things with him she never expected to like how her parents abandoned her when they realized she was different and how she met Amber in the orphanage when she was nine. She told him how she had trouble sleeping most of the time. He explained how he became Alpha by succession enforced by a victorious challenge against other wolves and how he ran the pack with Lena's help.

For the most part they were left alone to talk, but the waitress, Anita, was sure to keep their glasses full. When Kiera had excused herself to the restroom Anita used the opportunity to express her approval over her Alpha's choice. He tried to dissuade her from thinking he'd made a choice in mate, but even as he said the words something niggled in his mind. He thought he'd like to enjoy Kiera's company, but hadn't considered far beyond that. Choosing a playmate and choosing a lifemate were two very different things, the second being one he'd avoid so far without any criticism. And a human mate was rare among the higher ranking wolves. Still…

** ** ** *** ** ** **

"Oh my God, I'm going to be late!"

Kiera bounded up from the table just about tumbling it over.

"It's almost four, I have to go, I'm late," she repeated with a wide eyes.

"You sound very much like a white rabbit I once read about," Gray replied calmly, also standing.

Not about to be amused by his comments or his nonchalance, Kiera started walking away from the restaurant with a final wave to their attentive waitress. "It's not funny, I'm never late. Even when I haven't slept for 3 days and have the late shift I'm still there on time. I'm never going to hear the end of this if I'm late because of you."

She finished the last word with a poke at Grayson's chest. He held his hands up in surrender (and to resist grabbing her) and walked her dutifully to her car.

As she jabbed the key in the door he asked, "When can I see you again?"

She tried to ignore the longing that resonated from him. "I work all night, inventory and then bartend until closing like last night."

Grayson wrapped his arms around her preventing her from sitting in her car. Against her neck he asked, "What about after closing, you should be free then. We both know you're not going to sleep."

Kiera closed her eyes as his breath warmed from the outside in. She realized she wanted him to kiss her again and the thought both thrilled and terrified her. Her reasons for keeping him at bay were very real and very much her own, but her knees grew weak in the strength of his embrace.

"I…ok," she relented.

He rewarded her with a small kiss just behind her ear. "Two?" he whispered.

Turning to meet his eyes she said, "Make it closer to 2:30."

Grayson leaned forward to brush his lips against hers, desire emanating from his mind into hers. A brief moment passed then he opened her car door and ushered her in.

"Two thirty," he repeated to her shy smile.

Feeling triumphant Grayson watched Kiera drive away before meeting Zack and Zane beside a SUV. Neither made a comment on the drive back to the hub, but all three were quietly pleased in their own way.

** ** ** *** ** ** **

Also pleased was the man who'd watched the whole encounter safely ensconced in shadows. A potentially dangerous job had just become a lot simpler with the Alpha's new infatuation.