Free Second Nature by Jae Page A

and set it safely onto the table. For someone so big, she moved with a flowing grace that Jorie hadn't expected. No hint of irritation was visible on Griffin's face. She just gave a gentle nod, took a sip from the cup, and smiled at the waitress.
    Why is she so calm? Jorie thought of herself as a levelheaded person, but she wouldn't have reacted so pleasantly at almost having a cup of hot coffee or tea dumped into her lap. Something about Griffin's body language seemed... off. She's holding back, putting her temper on a tight leash. Does she know I'm here, watching her? The thought rushed through Jorie's mind, but she dismissed it. She can't even know what I look like. Maybe she's just used to strangers being intimidated by her size and wants to show them that there's nothing to be afraid of.
    Probably as perplexed by the intimidating stranger and her unexpected friendliness as Jorie was, the waitress hurried away.
    Okay, Jorie thought. Do I go in, or do I run for the hills too?
    *  *  *
     
    Griffin felt gazes resting on her — and one gaze in particular. As a predator, Griffin was always aware of what was going on in her territory. For now, Osgrove was her territory and the diner her hunting grounds. All her senses came alive, and her skin prickled. For once, the predator was the one being watched. Jorie Price had been sitting in her old car in front of the diner, studying her, for the last ten minutes.
    Ten minutes in which Griffin had done everything to convince her captive audience that she was perfectly harmless. She had smiled at the waitress, had greeted the other patrons with what she hoped was a nonpredatory expression, and had said "please" and "thank you," trying hard to put the people around her at ease. It wasn't easy when you looked like a six-foot-two leader of a street gang. Griffin cursed the scar that the target of her last mission, a renegade bear-shifter, had left behind on her face. It would take a few more changes for it to heal completely and disappear. For now, there was nothing she could do about it, but she tugged her collar-length hair over her left ear that had been injured on another mission two years ago.
    She was careful not to look in Jorie's direction, instinctively knowing that it would scare her prey away. Instead, she focused on her herbal tea. Not that the brew deserved the attention. With every sip, Griffin had to fight against the urge to snarl at the tea or the person who had wasted a hot cup of water on it.
    Outside, a car door slammed, and Griffin suppressed a triumphant purr. She's coming in.
    A concert of bells clattered when the door swung open.
    Griffin recognized the scent of the writer before she stopped in front of her table. Once again, Jorie's scent made her think of a walk through the forest... or through a coconut grove.
    "Dr. Westmore?" Jorie asked.
    Griffin looked up with her most charming Cheshire-cat grin. "Yes. Ms. Price?"
    "Yes." Jorie's smile was polite, but Griffin felt the wariness behind it.
    Like a deer that has stopped grazing and lifts its head to catch a glimpse of a possible predator. One wrong move and she'll run away. I'll need to work harder to get her to lower her head and munch on the grass again. "Then call me Griffin, please," she said, still smiling. Unlike the Kasari, she didn't stand on ceremony, and she had noticed that humans opened up faster when they were on first-name basis.
    Jorie nodded politely but didn't return the offer.
    Either she's a really private woman, or she got into the habit of using her pseudonym and assumes that I'll just use that. That was what Griffin would have to do since she officially didn't know Jorie's first name yet. She vowed to be careful not to let slip any information about the writer that she shouldn't have yet.
    Even though her Wrasa instincts screamed at Griffin to avert her gaze, she forced herself to keep eye contact. Humans didn't find it threatening. They seemed to think it was the polite thing to do. At