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despite the fact that he'd never said or done anything
inappropriate toward his brother-in-law, Kyle still had a healthy dose of guilt
weighing him down.
    Being attracted to someone who was Tyler's
complete opposite might even be considered healthy in
a twisted sort of way.
    "Come on. If you're not hungry, the
least I can offer you is a decent bed to sleep in."
    Alex glanced around the farm buildings and
Kyle chuckled when he realized what the guy must have been thinking.
    "Sorry, I meant in a hotel about an
hour from here. Kitsunes and I disagree on what is
considered comfortable."
    Kyle turned back to watch the young kitsune as she finished breakfast and settled down in the
dirt next to an older fox.
    "She'll be fine now that she's with her
people," Kyle said. "The fox beside her has been a kitsune for nearly fifty years. She's more than capable of
teaching your girl what she needs to know to function in both human and fox
environments."
    "Are you sure?" Alex asked in a
tone that proved he truly cared about the people around him—even if they did
come in forms he was still trying to understand.
    "Positive."
    "Will she bite me if I try to say
good-bye?"
    "Maybe," Kyle answered honestly,
"but I think it'll be okay. She trusted you even before she found the beef
jerky."
    Alex smiled and nodded, and then slowly made
his way toward the small red fox with three tails. Kyle stayed well out of the
way. The little kitsune had grown to tolerate him
throughout her ordeal, but she was far more comfortable when it was only Alex.
    Kyle smiled at the thought. The man
certainly had a natural charm to him.
    It took a few minutes for Alex to be ready
to go, and it sure didn't help that the fox had decided to half curl up on his
lap, but eventually Alex and Kyle climbed back into the car and headed away
from the farm.
    "So," Alex said with a wry grin on
his face, "if fox people are real, who was the eagle?"
    He seemed more amused than wigged out, so
Kyle hoped it was a good sign. He really had no idea why it was so important to
him for Alex to remember what actually happened tonight and not rationalize
away the memories.
    "The eagle was my brother, Brody."
    "So you're an eagle too?"
    "Ah…no. For a lot of paranormals that's how it works, but well my siblings
and I aren't exactly normal shifters." Kyle had no idea why he was dancing
around the truth. He had every intention of telling Alex what he was. He had no
explanation for the compulsion, but something inside him told him it was
important that this man knew.
    He shook his head hard as he tried to shake
off that weird thought. He was an Alateeka. Their entire
lives—the actual reason for their existence—was to keep paranormal
beings safe from humans. The best thing for everyone would be for Kyle to come
up with a plausible explanation, deliver Alex back to his life, and hope he
rationalized away the memories.
    "So you're not an eagle," Alex
said in a flat tone, "and you'd rather not tell me."
    Kyle reached across the seat and grabbed
Alex's hand. He almost dropped it when he realized what he was doing. The only
consolation was that Alex looked as surprised by the move as Kyle felt.
    "I'm a grizzly bear."
    Alex pursed his lips and nodded casually as
if Kyle had just told him something mundane, like: "Hey, the sky is
blue."
    "Alex?" Kyle asked, because
really, that wasn't the reaction he'd been expecting. "You…um…don't... You
don't have any questions?"
    Alex shook his head slowly. "No, I
think I'm good."
    "You're sure?" Kyle asked.
    Alex gave him a crooked smile and shrugged.
"Is there something you think I should know?"
    "Um…I'm not dangerous… Well, that's
not…entirely true. I mean I am dangerous….in bear form… if I want to be, but I…um…am not if I don't."
    Alex laughed softly. "You don't talk
about this often, do you?"
    "I guess not," Kyle said, vaguely
wondering when the last time was that he'd needed to tell anyone. He loved
running in bear form, but since most of