Chapter Ten

H enry stared at the empty spot. One second Gray had been sitting there and the next he was gone. If it wasn’t for the way his body felt, Henry could easily assume Gray had never been there at all.

Standing, Henry winced when he felt Gray’s come slip from his ass. He needed another shower and this time he was going to refuse to let that vampire anywhere near him. He didn’t care if it made him feel sick. He was so done with him.

Who fucked his supposed mate and then disappeared the way Gray had done? Talk about making Henry feel like a piece of shit. Like he was good enough to fuck, and that was it. He’d had better interactions when he’d had one-night stands. At least there had been some form of mutual understanding between him and the man he was with. Gray took what he wanted, then disappeared. Literally.

Henry stomped into the bathroom and turned the shower on. Once it was warm enough, he stepped under it and made a point to clean his ass first, removing all traces of his so-called mate. Then he scrubbed his skin all over just to make sure nothing about Gray remained on his body.

“Should have kicked the fucker out, but no. My dick decided it needed another round, and me being the dumb shit that I am, went along with it, and now I’m in the shower talking to myself.”

Henry turned the shower off and quickly dried himself off. In the bedroom, he dressed and grabbed his wallet, then left his apartment. He needed to get out and try to forget all about men and mates and vampires, and hopefully wake the fuck up and realize it had all been a fucked-up nightmare.

Hitting the sidewalk, Henry noticed how dark it was, and smiled. Maybe he should hit a club and find a man. An actual human being instead of a vampire who fucked and ran. It would be nice to be with someone who actually wanted him and not just because he couldn’t fuck anyone else.

Decision made, Henry waved down a cab and told the driver to take him to Mr. Smith’s, a local gay club that was always busy. Henry knew he would find someone there and hopefully they would wipe away any lingering trace of Gray from Henry’s body and mind.

He ignored how his body reacted. Ignored the way his stomach rolled at the thought of a man other than Gray touching him. He was going to do this and enjoy it, too. At the club, Henry paid the driver and walked inside, the music hitting him instantly. Yes, this was what he needed.

Only he didn’t make it more than ten feet into the club before a hand grabbed his arm, dragged him back into the shadows, then teleported him into his apartment. Henry spun around and shoved Gray away. Gray did nothing, said nothing, but simply stared at him.

“Why?” he demanded.

“You’re my mate and only I can touch you.”

Shaking his head, Henry asked, “How did you know where the hell I was?”

“Telepathy.” Gray tapped the side of his head. “We have it, and I picked up about you going out to find another man to fuck.”

Closing his eyes slowly, Henry breathed in deeply. “And when were you going to reveal this little nugget of information to me? Hmm. Or were you going to keep it a little secret only you knew about it so you could listen in whenever you wanted?” Opening his eyes, he narrowed his eyes when Gray shrugged nonchalantly.

“I forgot about it.”

Henry scoffed. “Until now. Right now. As I was walking into a club—”

“You were going to find a human to fuck.”

“So?” Henry threw his arms in the air. “You don’t want me. Not really. You might like to fuck me, but that’s it. You can’t stand to be around me. As soon as you’ve shot your load, you’re gone.”

“You should be pleased I’m not hanging around.” Gray glared at Henry, but he didn’t give a shit how Gray felt.

“Yeah, then I don’t have to see how ecstatic you are to have me in your life. At least those men I pick up in clubs actually want to be with me. Jess wants to be with me. He cares about me. You don’t give a shit about me. As long as you get your dick wet, that’s it.”

“I’m adjusting!” Gray shouted at him as he paced the floor. “I need to figure shit out. This wasn’t meant to happen to me. I wasn’t meant to have a human as a mate.”

“Oh.” Henry sighed dramatically, placing a hand on his chest. “I’m so sorry your life had been disrupted. I’m so sorry you can’t fuck around anymore. I’m so—”

“Shut the fuck up.”

“You don’t get to tell me what to do.” Henry jabbed his finger at Gray. “Disappear. That’s what you’re good at. Go on. Fuck off and don’t come back.”

“This isn’t easy for me. I need time as well.”

“Oh I know. You’ve been very clear that I’m the last thing you want in your life. Makes me feel so fucking great.”

Henry could see Gray working his jaw from side to side, then he nodded once. “I’m sorry.”

Henry opened his mouth, then closed. “Say what now?” Did he just hear the s word?

“I am sorry.”

Henry opened and closed his mouth. “That… must have hurt.”

“Someone may have pointed out what a dick I was being and how this might be difficult for you, being human and having no knowledge of us.”

“I think I want to meet this person.”

“You’ll like his human mate.”

Henry arched an eyebrow. “You don’t?”

“I’m… adjusting.” Gray sat on the sofa and slumped over. “I’m trying… going to try.”

“What did he say to you?”

“Words along the line of idiot, stupid, dick, bastard. The usual.”

Henry sat next to Gray, some of his anger disappearing. He hadn’t forgiven Gray for what he’d done, but he did feel some of the resentment floating away. “And you listened.”

“Not at first, but eventually I did. I can be a little stubborn.”

“You left about an hour ago and you managed to have some sense talked into you during that time?”

“Don’t push it,” Gray growled. “I don’t like humans, but I can adapt.”

“Oh, so you’re adapting to me. Nice.” Henry shook his head and glanced away. Gray made him feel so happy and warm and wanted. Not. Not at all, but he was trying in his own way. Whatever it was that made Gray hate humans must be pretty significant. “Why do you hate us?”

“You’re destructive. Selfish. Twist everything and anything if it will get you ahead. Lie and cheat and say whatever you want to whoever you want and destroy people carelessly. I could go on.”

“True.” Henry did have to accept that, even if he didn’t like it. However, he’d often thought the same thing, but he was human and he tended to stick up for other humans. The world would be a much better place if people tried to be nice to each other, tried to treat each other with respect.

“I’ve had years of watching humans destroy themselves, others, the planet.”

“Yeah. We could be great, but most choose to be the worst instead.”

“I’m tired of watching it, but there are instances when I see the good humans can be. How they come together to save people, places, animals. Why can’t you be like that all the time?”

“And vampires are perfect in comparison?”

“Fuck no, but we’re nowhere near as depraved as some humans. Sure, we have Maxim and his lot, but we can manage them.”

“Maxim?” Okay, this could be something he needed to know about.

“A vampire who wants to rule the world, pretty much. Hates most, if not all, humans and most vampires who aren’t in agreement with his ‘rule the world’ plans.”

“Sounds like a really nice guy to get to know. Remind me to never be on his invite list.”

Gray grunted. “He’s like smoke in the wind. He disappears for years at a time, then resurfaces, only to fucking disappear again. Annoys the shit out of me.”

Henry sucked his lips in, holding back his chuckle. The way Gray spoke was amusing. He was very unhappy about this Maxim person evading him. “Hmm. Can’t have that, can we?”

“Don’t be so smug. He went after a mate, a human mate, and got him, too. We had to find him and rescue him before Maxim made mincemeat out of him.”

“Yeah, keep me off the invite list. I’m more than happy living my life.”

Gray stood abruptly, surprising Henry. “I need to go.”

Standing, Henry faced Gray, narrowing his eyes. “So you do this ‘me vampire you mate’ crap at the club and then leave?”

“You were going to fuck a human, and as my mate, that’s a no. I’m not out there fucking other men, so you aren’t either.”

“You can’t. I can. Go on and fuck off. Just when I think I could actually grow to like you, you pull a stunt like this. What the fuck did I do to deserve a mate like you?”

Gray shoved his face close to Henry’s. “You will stay here.”

“Oh, will I now? Who the fuck are you to dictate to me what the hell I can and can’t do? You are no one. Nothing. I decide my life, not you. This whole mate thing isn’t going to work. I want out. Figure out how to end this.”

“Don’t you think I’ve already tried? Would I be here putting up with you if I had found a way to get rid of you?”

“Oh yeah. The warm and fuzzy feeling you’re giving me is growing. How will I cope without you near me?” Henry shoved Gray back. “Easily! Get out and never come back. See how easy that is? Problem solved.”

“Small problem there, mate,” Gray spat. “You die if I stay away too long and then I could die too and I like living, so I’ll do the bare minimum to keep us going and that will include us fucking.” Gray looked Henry up and down. “We both know you like it when I fuck you.”

“And I’m not denying that, but that doesn’t change the fact that I don’t like you. If this mating thing hadn’t happened, we wouldn’t have seen each other again, let alone fucked.”

Gray nodded. “We can’t change it, can we? We’re both stuck with each other. I’ll be back tomorrow. Don’t fuck any man.” Gray disappeared and Henry stomped right out of his apartment, then stopped. He wasn’t in the mood now, so he turned around and went back inside.

Sitting on his sofa, Henry stared at the wall opposite. Just his luck he’d end up with a man, no, vampire, who he was destined to spend the rest of his life with, and they couldn’t stand each other. They had to work this out because if Henry was going to live a long life, he didn’t want it to be like this every time they met.

It would wear him down and probably have the same effect on Gray as well.

They had to find something in common, something they could build this weird relationship on. If only Henry knew someone who had gone through something like this. Didn’t Gray mention another human mate? Maybe Henry could talk to him and figure shit out. Would Gray let him talk to this other human?

Closing his eyes, Henry sighed. His life was changing, and he had no option but to go along with it. If Gray had been just a man, maybe he could have walked away, but having been ill because Gray hadn’t been around made it apparent Henry couldn’t do the same here.

They were both stuck.