Free Weregirl by Patti Larsen

feel his energy adding to mine as I outdistance him by a few feet, then ten, stretching outward and pushing myself so hard I worry I might damage myself if I don’t stop.
    Or be pulled, at last, into full wolf form. So tempting, the enticing draw like a drug in my veins. I understand now why some weres give in to it. Delicious, the feeling of letting go and becoming the pure animal form. But I’ve made my point and I didn’t have to give in to Caine or to the wolf to do it.
    It’s only when I feel his rage, so in tune with my wolf—more than I’ve ever been before—I realize I’ve encountered the touch of this werewolf before. No, perhaps not him specifically, but the odd taint of him, yes. Twice, now. Both times in Wilding Springs. He or one of his people watching Syd’s house the night of the shower. And that same touch followed me to Sage’s dojo.
    A terrible fear grips me, jerks me to a halt to confront Caine. What was he doing there? And how did he make his way here so quickly? He stops a few feet from me, but I’m moving again, in his face, slamming him against a tree with a roar echoing through the woods, raising an anxious flock of pheasants.
    “Why were you watching me?” I don’t give him a chance to deny it. He seems cocky enough not to, though he does nothing to hold me off as I press him into the rough bark of the tree, my werewolf’s snout lisping over the question, the magic Syd has taught me to use crushing him tight. My inner wolf retreats as anger takes over, weakening my magic slightly, a fact I find infinitely frustrating.
    Caine bares his fangs at me before turning his head ever so slightly, exposing his throat. It is a faint effort at respect, but I accept the gesture. “I only wanted to know who you were,” he growls. “To see if you were worthy of me.”
    Worthy? I lower my jaws over his throat, ready to bite.
    “A lovely family of witches you have there,” he says without a trace of fear.
    My hackles rise. “Mind your own business.” I think of Sage and my fear increases. Syd and her coven are perfectly safe. I can’t imagine someone like Caine being a threat to them. But Sage… he’s normal, unprotected. How much did Caine see? How much does he know about the sweet young man to whom I gave my heart?
    I snap my teeth close to Caine’s throbbing jugular, claws digging into his arms. “Stay away from my friends.” He grunts as the power hits him hard in the solar plexus. “If I find you near Wilding Springs again, I’ll gut you and feed your liver to the crows.”
    Caine’s wolf eyes glare, tongue noisily licking over his snout before he nods once.
    I step away, accepting his acquiescence for now. But the moment I’m free of him, I must reach out to Syd and warn her to be wary. And find a way to suggest she check on Sage without alerting her to the fact I actually care.
    Maybe I should have told her about him, about us. But I could never bring myself to do so, knowing she would only look at me with sadness and understanding. She, of all people, would see just how big a fool I’ve been giving my love to someone I could never keep.
    Growling breaks my tense anger and I turn to find my wolf pack, the real wolves of this wood, oozing from the trees. The white wolf and her alpha hunker low, manes bristling, tails low, teeth bared. Caine snarls back at them but the pair of wolves refuse to retreat, inching slowly closer.
    “You have an odd collection of friends,” Caine says.
    I don’t answer, gesturing to the pair of wolves to back down. “They don’t like you,” I say with flat coldness. “And neither do I.”
    The white wolf snaps at him, lunging forward at his leg before pulling back. He swipes at her, a lazy motion I know could have snapped the wolf’s spine had it connected.
    “We’ll see how you feel about me once you get to know me,” he grins at me. “Once you marry me, I’ll even let you keep your little pets.” He laughs this time, chilling, utter