Page 25 of Hayden's Haven
He thrust his hand through his hair again. No one had ever refused running before, except Tess, and even she had joined them despite her inability to shift at the time. “Then consider this an invitation.”
“Thank you for including me, but no. I’m here to work, not run.”
His frustration was building, but he couldn’t let her see how she was affecting him. Then she’d think he cared, which he didn’t. Not really. “Even doctors need exercise, don’t they?”
“Of course.”
“Then I’ll see you there.”
“I prefer other forms of exercise.”
“I can help you with that,” Hayden said, before he realized what he was saying. Her eyes widened. Those beautiful green eyes of hers held a sadness he didn’t understand, but he wanted so desperately to erase. She had a gorgeous smile, though he’d only seen it once, when she was laughing with Kate and Tess at dinner yesterday.
“I need some air,” she said, pushing past him and rushing outside.
He followed her out, delayed when the door wouldn’t latch. The damn place wasn’t secure in the least. One swift wind and all of their equipment and research would be compromised. When he adjusted the bent doorjamb so the door would catch, he looked around the compound. The place was bustling with activity, and Mila was nowhere in sight.
He headed in the direction of the cookhouse, thinking she might be heading to grab a bite with Anna. He found her scent in the wind. Lilac. She had taken a sharp left, down toward the maintenance area. She had no business down there, which in and of itself compelled him to follow her.
Mila was talking with Finley, the pack’s best mechanic. He fixed everything from their one vehicle—now two given that Hayden had stolen one to help them flee Wyoming—to their generators. Hayden never really cared for the shifter, though he wasn’t exactly sure why. The women all seemed to like him. They called him the Norse God, which made sense given his blond hair and light blue eyes, but the male was a weak shifter, not someone a strong female like Mila would be interested in.
He couldn’t hear what they were saying precisely, not with the heavy clanking of chains and the backfire of the truck’s muffler in the workshop. Mila’s hand covered her mouth and her laughter, light as a feather, managed to pierce the veil of heavy machinery. Finley grinned ear-to-ear and his hand. . . The shifter had his damn hand on Mila’s forearm. A light touch, one she wasn’t pulling away from.
Jealousy cut through Hayden, white-hot.
Finley glanced Hayden’s way as he approached from behind the two. Mila spun around. What had clearly been a wide smile slipped from her face, leaving behind a serious, dour look. Hayden had killed the moment for them. Finley andMila’smoment.
“I just wanted. . .” What could he possibly say? “I thought you were lost. I saw you headed in the wrong direction.”
“She knew exactly where she was going, Novak,” Finley said.
Last name. Cold tone. For such a weak shifter, he was risking a lot showing such disrespect. Then again, Hayden was the outsider here, both with him and Mila and the whole damn pack. Unfortunately, Finley hadn’t given him true cause to pound him into the ground like Hayden was itching to do.
“You should go,” Mila said. Her voice and cold stare were enough for Hayden to get the message. She was done with him.
* * *
MILA
As Hayden race up the trail, away from the maintenance area, away from her, Mila felt nauseous. She hadn’t meant to hurt him when she had come down here and found Finley. She had met Finley yesterday when he had come by to fix the generator that had ground to a halt mid-day. He had shown her how to find him again, if she ever needed anything fixed, and he had been the first one she thought about when she needed to put space between her and Hayden.
By no means was she attracted to Finley, though he certainly was a good looking shifter. She knew she’d be welcome among Finley and the other weak shifters who work maintenance. On a whole, they weren’t aggressive or territorial like strong shifters.
She had needed a safe place to run when Hayden had entered the lab unexpectedly. His clean spring scent and broad shoulders had nearly taken her breath away. Concentrating with him standing there watching her was impossible. She had intentionally turned her back on him and stared into the microscope hoping he’d leave. Except the shifter was too focused on the fact that she hadn’t healed yet. Strong shifters healed fast. Her wounds, mere bruises and cuts, should have healed fully by the morning after the attack. That was four days ago.
She’d been avoiding telling him the truth because she wasn’t sure she could handle seeing the disappointment in his eyes. Hayden was as powerful a shifter as she had ever seen, the type that should be alpha, not a second. Alphas were a dangerous group, though. Piss off an alpha and there was nothing that would save you. Truman was like that, though she wasn’t quite sure about Damien yet. If he had a temper, he seemed to hold it in check, or perhaps Tess did. Her mom had always said the right female could make a male stronger with nothing but her support. Then again, her mom had been talking about how she’d be a good match to any of the weak shifters in the pack, that setting her sights on a strong shifter was unrealistic. They wouldn’t want her.
As soon as Hayden left the lab, Mila had finally allowed herself to breathe again. Then he had returned to invite her to the damn Running of the Moon. She had never been a fast runner, and now, after the virus, well. . . If she joined him on the run, he’d finally learn about her. He’d think less of her, and she simply wasn’t ready for that. She liked how Hayden always looked her straight in the eyes as if she had worth. How he allowed her to argue with him too. She could speak her mind, without fearing any backlash. And then there was his touch that stirred a part of her that she had never experienced before. For a moment she thought it was her wolf returning to her, but then she realized this was something more primal than her wolf even.
Of all things to invite her to. . . No, she wasn’t ready to tell him the truth, to lose him just yet. It was selfish of her, but she wanted a little time to get to know Hayden first, maybe even enjoy his company.
“I’ve got to go, Finley,” she said as she raced up the hill after Hayden. She’d seen the hurt in his eyes.
Her chest was heaving as she ran up the hill toward the center of the compound. Hayden was definitely in good shape, with the endurance and speed of a strong shifter.
She wasn’t even sure what she was going to say to him, only that she had to say something. Hurting Hayden was the last thing she wanted. He had done more than save her in the woods. He had taken care of her, watched over her, and whispered to her when he thought she was still unconscious. His voice, his words, the way this thumb had stroked the back of her hand. . . all of it was sweet and caring.
When was the last time someone had truly cared about her? Her parents had been glad to see her leave their house. She had been a disgrace their whole life, an oddity they couldn’t explain. Even having graduated medical school and returning to the pack to ply her knowledge there hadn’t earned her any kind words. From her very first shift at twelve, they’d been embarrassed by her.
