TAMED | FREENBECKY

4

Heart racing, Freen turned from the bathroom and tried to ignore the pain, sorrow, and lingering desire emanating from behind the closed door. She had always been sensitive to human emotion, but never had she experienced such a deep empathetic connection with anyone. Not even her first love,. Something about Becca literally called to Freen, a force that had almost certainly spared Becca from a terrible fate.

Freen had first received a powerful wave of fear. She'd just hung up the pay phone after leaving an anonymous tip about the body in the park, and the transmission had knocked her back a step when terror seized her gut.

For a moment, she'd worried she was finally losing it. The years of keeping secrets, of worrying about what her beast-self was capable of doing, were crashing down around her. Right in the midst of a moon-hangover. In public. As she tried to catch her breath against the rising panic, she concentrated on staying in control and in human form. Strong emotion had once triggered her to shift, a terrifying moment she never wanted to repeat.

Then her perception of the fear had changed. Though Freen experienced it with every bit of her self, she wasn't the source. The source, she realized, was back in West Gate Park. And Freen had to go to her. She had no choice.

As she had sprinted into the park, tracking that fear with an accuracy she never doubted, she realized if someone had discovered that dead body, that might cause her to feel this intense terror. However, it should have ignited a brief flare-up, not the sustained, soul-wrenching horror that rolled through her in waves. It was, however, possible that the woman she'd murdered had been found. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to run in to help.

The possibility hadn't stopped her. She needed to find the source of the fear. Nothing else mattered. Knowing she was drawing close, she had slowed long enough to study her surroundings. Finding nobody within eyesight, she'd shed her clothing and, still moving, shifted into a wolf. It was her go-to shape and would hopefully be intimidating enough to repel a threat. Not knowing what she would find, she wanted to stack the deck in her favor.

As soon as Freen had seen that man on top of Becca, using a viciously sharp-looking knife to toy with her, she had known that shifting was the right choice. She had broken her cardinal rule without thinking, but as Becca's relief at the interruption hit her square in the chest, Freen had no regrets. Well, except that Becca was almost as afraid of her wolf as she had been of the attacker.

Now that she had a quiet moment in the safety of her apartment, Freen reviewed her fight with the man. He had been afraid of the wolf, too. She could smell it on him. Though his fear was strong, his anger about being interrupted was far more potent. Freen didn't want to imagine what plans she'd ruined.

Freen hadn't wanted to let Becca's attacker go but had craved to chase him, to make him pay somehow. But Becca's turbulent emotional state held her back. The woman she had saved, the one who had called her, was on the verge of falling apart. So Freen had slunk into the trees, found her clothing, and dressed so she could run back and care for Becca as a human being.

Now she wondered if that had been the right choice.

Becca was dangerous, no doubt about it. Not only because she was beautiful, the first woman in years to whom Freen couldn't control her attraction, but also because of her profession. She was practically a cop and would probably be the one who examined the dead woman from the park, maybe as soon as later today. Dissecting Freen's handiwork, she would try to puzzle out how an animal that size had found its way into West Gate Park.

Freen shuddered. More than being found out, she hated to imagine Becca seeing her as just another killer. She'd known the woman for only twenty traumatic minutes, but already she cared about what Becca would think.

This was exactly why she'd given up sex: too much emotional attachment. But with Becca, sex wasn't necessary. Freen already felt strangely attached.

Freen turned around at the sound of the bathroom door opening. Becca stood there wearing her shirt and glasses, doing a very good impression of someone who wasn't holding on by a very thin thread. Freen put on a friendly expression and tried to be calm. She sensed that their empathetic link was a two-way street, which had to feel strange to someone not accustomed to the supernatural. Deciding it was probably in her best interest to control her emotions, in case Becca dwelt too long on the notion that Freen was somehow different from other women, Freen centered herself.

Taking a deep breath, she said, "Feeling better?"

"Much." Becca closed the distance between them and handed Freen her cell phone. "The cab will be here in about five minutes."

Relief flooded Freen, then guilt. She was relieved that Becca would be gone before Renee returned to pick up the other half of her money and guilty that she had to worry about that potentially awkward moment at all.

Becca winced. "I...I need to sit down."

"Of course." Freen led her to the couch and perched on the arm, torn between staying close and keeping a safe distance. This confirmed Freen's suspicion. Becca didn't just transmit emotion, she received it and was tuned in to Freen. From Becca's perplexed expression, Freen guessed that Becca had no idea what was happening. That was for the best. Freen redoubled her efforts to stay neutral.

"You said you were planning to file a police report?" Freen marveled at the way Becca kept her face stoic Beccan as she broadcast a wave of shame. "Is that correct?"

"I don't think I'll have much of a choice." Becca looked away. "My ex is a detective. Dasha would never let me get away with not reporting this."

"Well, Dasha's right." Freen spoke in what she hoped was a reassuring voice. She recalled Becca's fear when she talked about her attacker having her purse. Freen didn't like that fact, either. "It'll be okay. They'll find him."

Becca shook her head and shrugged as though it was a nice notion, but unlikely. She was probably right. "Well, I hope so. Unfortunately, I'm not sure they'll have much to go on from me. Chances are they'll have to wait until he tries again. Hopefully the next woman is as lucky as I am."

Freen's jaw tightened as she flashed on what she might have found had she arrived at the scene only moments later. "Yes, let's hope."

"I'm glad you heard me." Becca raised her eyes and met Freen's gaze shyly. "I was so afraid to make him angry, I didn't think I'd called out loud enough to attract any attention. It's a miracle you were so close."

Freen hadn't been close at all. It had taken her a full three minutes of sprinting before she reached Becca. But she nodded anyway. "I'm glad I decided to take a walk this morning."

"I can't say the same. But I am glad I met you." Becca looked surprised as the words left her mouth, and Freen felt her embarrassment like a knife to the gut.

"Me, too." The cell phone buzzed in Freen's hand and she picked it up without breaking eye contact. After a moment she hung up. "Your cab is outside."

Becca nodded. "Well...thank you again."

"Of course." Freen resisted the urge to gather Becca into another embrace. As unnerving as it was to sense Becca's mood so acutely, nothing had ever felt so right as holding Becca in her arms. "You be safe."

"I will." Becca walked to the front door, then paused with her hand on the knob. "Maybe I'll see you again?"

It wouldn't be wise, but Freen wanted nothing more than to say yes. Forcing a casual smile, she said, "Maybe."

Becca's happiness washed over Freen, and she didn't have to try so hard to keep smiling. "All right, then. Good-bye."

Freen stood at the open front door and watched Becca walk to the cab. She didn't allow herself to feel the disappointment of knowing that seeing Becca again wasn't a good idea, or worry for Becca's safety. It wasn't fair to burden Becca with any of the turmoil that churned in her stomach.

As the cab driver pulled away from the curb, Becca gave her one last wave good-bye, which Freen returned politely. Once Becca was out of sight, she withdrew into her house and shut the door.

Freen missed her already.

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