Deadly Call by Martha Bourke

drink and he phased back and sat down in the grass. When she finished drinking, he put out his hand and she gave it a lick before returning to her first form. She lay down on her back with her head in his lap.
    “Hey, female. How’s Nepal treating you?”
    “It’s amazing. Thank you, my male.”
    He dropped a kiss on her forehead. “You’re welcome. Your second form is amazing and also, oddly hot.”
    “Um, don’t tigers generally eat gazelles?”
    “Oh. Maybe I’m mistaking my appetite for my sex drive again.”
    Helen stroked his whiskers and grinned. “Shocker.”
    He smiled and she lay there admiring his dimples.
    “Up for a swim, Doc?”
    She looked over at the watering hole. “Oh, are you sure? It’s kind of cool.”
    Her mate stood up and stripped off his shirt. “Aw, c’mon. It must be at least sixty-five out.”
    “Like I said.”
    He stood in front of her and stripped until that body of his was completely naked. “You can get undressed or get your clothes wet.”
    “You wouldn’t.”
    “See now, I’m pretty sure I would.”
    She stood up, watching her mate jump in as she started to undress.
    He popped his head up out of the water. “See? It’s not so bad.”
    She walked to the edge and put a toe in. It was freezing. As in frigid.
    “Come on.”
    Typical male.
    She started to walk in and stopped at her mid-thigh. Holy. Shit.
    He walked to her and picked her up. At first she thought he was going to throw her in. But he walked back into the water and let her slowly get used to it. Then he gently let her slide in. She leaned back to get her hair wet, then stood on her tiptoes and put her arms around his neck. He leaned down and kissed her.
    And it almost happened.
    She almost told him she loved him. And she did. More than she’d ever thought a person could love another. She wanted to say it, but it just wouldn’t come out.
    She looked into those green eyes of his. “Mm. Do that again.”
    He kissed her again and she suddenly forgot how cold the water was. She let his strong arms hold her halfway out of the water, the warm sun hitting her neck and shoulders. Their tongues entwined and she shivered all the way from head to toe.
    “Are you cold?”
    “A little.”
    “Come on. Let’s get you dressed.”
     
    Diesel dried her off with his T-shirt and they reluctantly got dressed. He still couldn’t believe she’d gone in the water. His mate was totally badass. He smiled to himself. Yeah, she was. He waited while she walked toward the water to get her sneakers.
    That’s when he saw it.
    A Bengal tiger had apparently discovered the same watering hole they had. Son of a bitch. It must have caught her scent while she was in her second form. He smelled the air. It was a male and it was alone. At least it wasn’t a female with cubs. He measured the distance between the cat and his mate. He knew he could make a jump of twenty-five feet. There was no way to know how strong this Bengal was. He couldn’t risk gleaming to her and then gleaming them out. It might not be fast enough.
    “Doc, stay perfectly still and don’t turn around.”
    “What is it?” she whispered.
    “You’re okay. Just do exactly what I tell you. On a count of three, I want you to make for that narrow space between those rocks to your right, as fast as you can. Understand?”
    “Yes,” she breathed.
    The only way he was going to win this thing was if he let his instincts take over. Which wasn’t going to be difficult. The Bengal had nothing to protect. He did.
    No fear.
    “One, two, three.”
    As his mate took off for the rocks, Diesel phased and put himself between her and the other male. The tiger leapt forward and Diesel pushed himself off his back legs, meeting the other cat mid-air and knocking him off balance for an instant. He’d given Doc the time she’d needed.
     
    Helen crouched between the jagged rocks, watching the two animals go at each other. They moved so fast, she could barely keep track of who was