WILD [JENLISA]

10

"I see a lot of sick, twisted stuff in my line of work," Jennie said, relaxing into Lisa's touch. "I have no illusions as far as what human beings are capable of doing to each other. When that man was on top of me, all I could see was all the murder victims I've examined over the years. Their wounds, their mottled gray skin, those empty, staring eyes. I could so easily imagine myself like that, on a steel table somewhere—"

"Hey." Sensing Jennie's rising fear, Lisa sat up and wrapped her arm around her shoulders, tugging her close. "You're safe now. I promise."

Blinking rapidly, Jennie pressed the heels of her hands against her eyes. "I don't even want to walk outside anymore. One of my favorite things in the world, and..." She swallowed, turning her face away from Lisa. "He took that away from me."

The sadness in Jennie's voice tore at Lisa's heart. "Not forever, darling."

Jennie shook her head. "Just the thought of going on one of my morning walks..." She shivered violently, and Lisa had to close her eyes against the wave of nausea Jennie sent rolling over her. "I barely want to leave the house, especially early in the morning."

Lisa took a deep breath, steadying her own emotions. Besides having to contend with Jennie's residual fear, she struggled to keep her anger at bay. She hated seeing Jennie in so much pain, and, more than anything, she wanted to find the man who had attacked her and hurt him. Taken aback by the fantasy violence that flashed through her mind at the thought of confronting Jennie's attacker, Lisa concentrated instead on projecting calm strength. Staying positive was the best way to bring Jennie's tumultuous emotions under control.

"Tell you what," Lisa said, patting Jennie on the back. "We're going for a walk right now. This morning. Together."

Jennie gave her a look of pure panic. "I don't think that's a good idea." She gestured out the window at the morning sky, just beginning to lighten. "It's still dark. I've got to go to work soon."

"The sun will be up in thirty minutes. When do you need to be at work?"

Hesitating only a moment, Jennie said, "Eight o'clock."

Lisa gave her a reassuring hug. "That gives us plenty of time for a short stroll. We won't go far."

Jennie shook her head. "I vote for staying in and making love again."

Tempting as that was, Lisa needed to help Jennie overcome her lingering fears. Obviously Jennie was an intelligent, logical, self-sufficient woman, and the introduction of unchecked fear into her ordered life had shaken her thoroughly. Even having known Jennie only a short while, Lisa couldn't stand to see her like this.

"Hey," Lisa said, grabbing Jennie's hand between her own. "You can do it. I promise. I'll be right next to you. We won't go anywhere near where it happened. We can stay at the edge of the park, if you want. If it's too intense, we'll turn right around."

"You're going to make me do this, aren't you?"

Worried about overstepping in a brand-new relationship, Lisa shook her head. "Not if you really don't want to. But you'll be miserable until you face this fear head-on. And I very much want to be there to help you do that."

Jennie's eyes shone with emotion. The jumble of love, affection, and surrender Lisa could feel reassured her that she hadn't pushed too hard. "Okay. We'll take a walk."

"Good." Lisa hopped out of bed, offering her hand to Jennie. "Let's go have a quickie in the shower before we leave. There's a coffee shop a couple blocks away. We can get our morning fix there."

That promise brought genuine pleasure to Jennie's face. She took Lisa's hand, allowing herself to be hauled to her feet, then gathered into a tight hug. "I like the way you think."