Leopard's Prey

myself that there’s some kind of Cajun curse on that room, or your brother bit me and instead of the werewolf, I became a leopard.”
    “When I was little, I followed my brothers into the swamp and saw them shift into leopards. I watched them. It was horrible because at first they stripped and who
ever
would want to see their brothers naked? I knew I’d be traumatized for life!”
    Bijou scooped up fluffy scrambled eggs mixed with crabmeat and rice. “You’re talkin’ to the queen of trauma, remember? My father and his band and their groupies thought group sex in the livin’ room was appropriate behavior.”
    “I suppose I can’t top that,” Saria agreed with a slight grin, “
but
I was still
horribly
traumatized.”
    Bijou gave a little smirk. “I’m certain I would have been too.”
    Saria laughed. “You little hussy. You’d only be lookin’ at Remy.”
    Bijou’s smile faded. “I know. He’s all I’ve ever looked at, and a fat lot of good that did me. Maybe if I’d seen him shift into a leopard I would have run for the hills and never come back. How did you feel about the entire leopard business?”
    “I was jealous. I wanted to be like them. The brotherhood, you know. They were so close and I always felt like an outsider,” Saria admitted. “We used to talk about that, remember?”
    Bijou shook her head. “You were crazy about your brothers. You thought they walked on water. You never complained about them.”
    “I didn’t?” Saria added, as she added panfried trout to her plate.
    Bijou took a hot beignet. “The first thing I did when I came back home was go to the Café Du Monde and order coffee and beignets. I missed them so much.” She took a bite. “These are wonderful, Saria. You always were such a good cook. I guess all that cooking for your
pere
really helped. I’m not so good. We had a chef—well, several. Mostly women, and believe me, they didn’t want me in their kitchen.”
    “It should have been
your
kitchen.” Saria was indignant on her behalf.
    Bijou shrugged. “That satisfaction was in knowin’ they wouldn’t last very long. Bodrie would get tired of havin’ sex with them and the way they would cling to him. He’d fire them and hire the next pretty face.” She added the trout to her plate as well. “I took a cookin’ class once. It was a disaster. I’ll have to try some of your recipes when I get in my own place.”
    Saria pressed her lips together for a moment, clearly contemplating how to word her next sentence, putting Bijou on alert. “You know my brother isn’t goin’ to let you out of his sight. He’ll be expecting to share your place or have you move in with him.”
    Bijou forced a casual shrug. “Clearly we’re not on the same page about that. Wild sex might be fun, Saria, but it will never be enough for me. I want a man to look at me and love me the way Drake does you. I’ve waited a long time for that. I can’t help it if his leopard is crazy about mine and that’s why he’s so physically attracted to me.”
    Saria frowned, stopping with a forkful of eggs halfway to her mouth. “That’s not why he’s attracted to you. Where would you get an insane notion like that?”
    “Straight out of his mouth,” Bijou said, forcing herself to admit the truth and trying not to choke on the words. She picked up her coffee cup and took a sip just to give herself time to control the tears burning behind her eyelids. Damn Remy anyway for turning her into a weepy female.
    “No way did he say that!”
    Bijou nodded slowly. “He definitely told me last night, that it was all about the leopards and our uninhibited and wild and crazy sex was just an added bonus.” She blinked rapidly and looked down into the coffee cup. Luckily, Saria made it strong. She preferred tea in the afternoons, but when she first woke up, nothing tasted better than Cajun coffee.
    “My brother is an idiot. I love him, and in most things, he’s right, but when it comes to women, I’m afraid he needs a good smack in the head.”
    Bijou forced another shrug. “He can’ help the way he feels. And I can’ help the way I do. The leopards are just goin’ to have to get over it.”
    “Mmm, sweetie, they won’t get over it. They bond lifetime after lifetime. They seek each other out. If you think Remy is goin’ to let you go easily, you’ve got another think comin’.”
    “I don’ care,” Bijou said, lifting her chin stubbornly. “I’m not goin’ to be his sex toy.