Free Phoenix by Amelia Jade

the first time since they had shared a kiss in the park. He had informed her of the unexpected training mission that Gabriel had foisted upon him, and then proceeded to regale her with pictures or videos via text of how he was putting the men through the paces.
    Her favorite was still seeing the reaction of an unnamed shifter making a fire. The shifter was looking at Uriel in confusion, wondering why he was being filmed, when the Stone Bear had pointed the camera up above the fire. The poor trainee had set his wood ablaze directly below a huge branch covered in snow. Even as she watched, it had melted enough to begin to slip along the bark, where it had deposited itself directly on the trainee’s head.
    She giggled even now at the look of shock and then disgust on the shifter’s face.
    It wasn’t a substitute for seeing Uriel, but it certainly helped keep her spirits up. There was still a battle going on within her about whether she should be seeing him, due to his status as her patient, but it was mostly background noise to her now. Sydney had made her decision when she let him kiss her. It still shocked her to realize the path she was likely headed toward, but she knew Uriel better now. He was a good man. Man-Bear. Shifter.
    Whatever . She rolled her eyes at herself. He was good, and that was what mattered the most. That and the fact that around eleven in the morning he was going to walk into her office. That mattered a lot. She wanted to feel him against her. She had made a promise to herself to be good while on the clock, however, so a hug was all she would limit herself to.
    “Don’t you just have a shit-eating grin plastered all over your face this morning,” a cheerful voice said.
    Sydney blinked and looked over at a car nearby. She hadn’t noticed the person in it as she approached the doors inside, but now she recognized them.
    “Courtenay!” She smiled. “Good morning to you too.”
    “Okay, spill the beans. What happened and why are you so giddy this early?” Her best friend grabbed her arm and they walked inside together.
    “What, I’m not allowed to just be happy about life?” she asked innocently.
    “Do you really think I’m dumb enough to buy that excuse?” Courtenay asked, eyebrows raising. “Be careful how you answer that,” she said as Sydney smiled and began to reply.
    The two of them shared a laugh as they approached the medical wing. Several of the administrative staff gave them a look for making noise, but they ignored them.
    “So maybe I have a reason to be happy. A really, really tall, handsome reason,” she said slyly, enjoying teasing her friend.
    “Does he have a name? Does he know you exist?” Courtenay’s snicker turned into a yelp as Sydney’s elbow lodged itself in her side. “Okay, okay! Mercy!” she exclaimed with a laugh.
    “He does too have a name. An interesting one at that. And the reason I’m happy is because I get to see him today, and it’s been a few days since the last time.” She knew Courtenay wouldn’t betray her confidence to anyone, which was a huge relief. She had been planning to tell her friend shortly as well, because she wanted her opinion and needed to know if she was making a mistake or not.
    “Just tell me who it is already!” Courtenay was getting anxious.
    Although she was tempted to tease her friend even more, they had reached the medical wing and it was likely Courtenay would have work to do that was much more important than what she was doing.
    “It’s Uriel.”
    Courtenay nodded her head, eyes unfocused as she processed the information, thinking it over. “Is that why you had such an embarrassed look on your face when I came into the office the other day? Were you two—”
    “No!” Sydney said emphatically with a slight look of horror. “I had just met him! He actually went off-balance and almost squished me. It put us really close to each other, and I was realizing that I felt something for him, something different. But no,