Leopard's Prey (Leopard People 5)

"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. I'm not."

"Are you sayin' you don' have feelings for him?" Saria asked, curiosity in her voice.

"He's my biggest fantasy. He always has been. Maybe I even came back here to see if he was the man I always thought he was. No one else ever lived up to him, but it doesn't matter how I feel. Not now. I'm not goin' to play second fiddle to a leopard."

"It isn't like that," Saria denied.

"Not for you, because Drake actually loves you. I was foolin' myself that a man like Remy would fall in love with me."

"And why wouldn't he?" Saria demanded.

"He knows exactly who he is and what he wants," Bijou said. "The truth is, I'm just findin' that out about myself. It's taken me this long just to realize I don' want to tour or play huge venues. I don' want the kind of life where I have no home or family. I didn't even know until I came here that this was where home is to me."

"You said yourself that Remy is someone you admire and respect--that he's everythin' you want in a man and no one compares to him."

Bijou wasn't going to deny it. She didn't think she would find another man to compare with Remy. She found him the most beautiful man she'd ever come across. He had the heart to go with his looks.

"I'm so much younger than he is and he can't help but look at me like I'm still a kid. I don' blame him. I haven't exactly acted mature. I fell into his bed immediately. Probably every woman he wants does that. I'm nothin' special to him." She managed a smile. "He didn't fall in love with me, how dare him."

"Okay, that's not true. You're leopard, Bijou . . ." Saria trailed off realizing she'd just said the wrong thing.

Bijou nodded. "Sadly, I'm well aware of that. Do you really think my mother was leopard? How would she ever have met Bodrie?"

"Bodrie had a lot of fans from all over the world and he traveled extensively. We aren't the only lair, Bijou," Saria pointed out. "Most of them are in the rain forests. Drake came from one in Borneo, but there are other places. Everyone likes music, and Bodrie, no matter what anyone says about him, was a music man. She probably went to his concert and he somehow spotted her."

"I wouldn't doubt that, Bodrie could spot a beautiful woman miles out. And she was beautiful," Bijou conceded. "I saw a picture of her once. He had it in his room, by his bed, and I went in to get some money for lunch and it was there. He never took women into his bedroom, and he was really mad when he found me there."

"You never went back to his bedroom?"

"Of course I did. The picture wasn't there anymore. But I know there are things in the main mansion. I just haven't gone there. I was hopin' you'd go with me when I finally got up the nerve."

"Of course I'll go. Anythin' you need me to do," Saria said sincerely.

Bijou took a deep breath. She'd been skirting around the subject, but she was going to have to face the truth. "Tell me about being a leopard."

"Drake and Remy can answer questions better than I can, but actually, Bijou, it's really great. I've noticed we all prefer to stay near the swamp and bayous rather than the city, which is probably one of the reasons why you were driven to give up touring." She turned her head toward the door leading to the dining room. Her hand went up indicating the need for silence. "Someone else is here."

Bijou inhaled in an effort to catch the scent that may have alerted Saria to another's presence. Her leopard appeared to be fast asleep and was no help whatsoever, at least until the door to the kitchen was shoved inward. Bijou leapt from her chair and instinctively placed herself between the door and Saria.

The man didn't look familiar; she knew most of the locals--yet everyone had changed so much in the years she'd been gone--but he smelled familiar. He smelled like the golden leopard from the night before--but not quite.

"Dion." Saria stood up, her voice wary. "You didn't call, what's wrong?" She wasn't looking at the man in front of her, but staring past her toward the door. "Where's your brother? Where's Robert?"

The tension in the room went up until Bijou felt as if she was choking on it. Saria was very still, but her hands were curled, almost like claws and her dark brown eyes were now flecked with glittering gold.

Bijou realized Dion wasn't the threat, it was the one unseen. The golden leopard was there in the house, close. She moved away from Dion, circling the table to reach the block of knives Saria kept on the counter.

"Robert's here, Saria. We've come for help. We need Drake."

"You didn't call first," Saria pointed out. "There's just bein' polite. You can't just walk into my house and expect to be welcome."

"We didn't have time for that," Dion said brusquely. "Where's Drake?"

Bijou's hand closed over the handle of the knife, but didn't pull it loose. She stood with her body blocking her actions, just waiting, listening for sounds of the other male.

"Get out of my house, Dion, before I call my brothers."

The tension in the room was definitely escalating. Saria was pregnant and she had to be feeling vulnerable. Bijou hadn't thought of calling for help. She didn't have brothers or a family. She should have reached for her cell phone, not the knife. Silently cursing her own stupidity, she let out her breath and let go of the knife.

"I'm Bijou Breaux," she introduced herself. "I don' believe we met, unless it was back when we were still in school."

Dion turned cool eyes on her. "Oh, we met, but you were too cool to notice my brother or me."

"That's it," Saria snarled. "Get the hell out of my house, Dion. Right now. You're not goin' to break in to my home uninvited and then be rude to my friends. Get. Out."

"Saria, we've been friends a long time," Dion said, "I'm tellin' you, we need help."

"Then act like it instead of bein' a jackass, Dion," Saria replied, not backing down an inch. "I expect this behavior from Robert, but not you. One of you has to be reasonable, and you know it isn't goin' to be your brother. So tell him to either come in here and sit down at my table and explain to me what's goin' on, or both of you get out and wait for my husband."

There was such hard authority in Saria's voice that Bijou could have hugged her. She had that same air of command and confidence that Remy and the rest of the Boudreaux exuded. Clearly she wasn't intimidated by Dion or his brother.

"His brother came after me last night in the swamp, Saria," Bijou advised her. "And he fought with Remy."

Dion's eyes took on a slow glow. "Robert's pretty beat-up," he agreed. "He was drunk last night and he did things he shouldn't have. We need to talk to Drake, or Robert's goin' to be in real trouble, Saria. He's a screwup sometimes, but he has a good heart. I'm askin' you, as our friend, to help us out."

Saria glanced at Bijou. "Remy beat him up? Was it a terrible battle? You must have been horribly frightened."

"I was terrified," Bijou admitted frankly. "I'd never seen anythin' like that in my life. Or even imagined it."

"Bijou was already marked," Saria said. "No other had a claim on her but Remy. You know the rules as well as Robert. Remy was within his rights to kill Robert last night, but he didn't. If you're comin' here to complai

n . . ."

Dion shook his head. "Can I get a cup of coffee?"

"If you make that fool of a brother come in like a normal person," Saria said. "Bijou won't bite him, if that's what he's afraid of."

Dion raised his voice. "Robert come in here, right now. If we're goin' to keep your sorry ass out of jail, you'd better try to get Saria on your side." He dragged a chair from the table and dropped into it, pressing the heel of his hand against his head.

"Remy isn't goin' to throw Robert in jail because he dared to challenge him for Bijou last night. The fight was between leopards, not humans," Saria pointed out, going to the cupboard and pulling out two more mugs. She handed them to Bijou, who was closest to the coffeepot.