“Nope and if you're on my team we won't.”
Julius stomped over to where Gage and Mia were talking. “Mia, mama needs you to help wit' Adele and Auguste while she puts Constance down for a nap.”
Mia groaned. “Okay. Bye, Gage,” she said with a wave before she went to keep an eye on the twins.
“Bye.” Gage watched her go and felt a pang in his chest that confused him. He really needed to talk to his papa about why he felt so funny around her.
“Papa? Can I talk to you a minute?” Gage tried to not fidget as he waited for his papa to respond. He'd been standing there near the small group of men his papa was talking with for about ten minutes before there was a lull long enough for him to speak up.
Landry Delacroix looked down at his youngest and nodded. “Sure. “S'cuse me,” he told the others and moved away from the group. “What's on dat mind of yours, son?”
Gage took a deep breath. “It's...I dunno, it's kinda strange. Ever'time I get around Mia Lafluer I feel funny. Like at da christenin', I couldn't even pay attention cuz I kept lookin' at her. Why is dat?”
A hearty laugh escaped Landry. “Son, dat's just you growin' up. You'll be noticin' dat more and more when you're around a pretty girl. It's just your hormones going all crazy like, you'll get used to it. Just don't go lettin' dem control you because it could make controllin' your leopard harder.”
“Oh.” He felt stupid for not realizing that was all it was. “Thanks, papa.”
“Go on now and enjoy da celebration,” Landry urged his son before he returned to his conversation.
Gage kept an eye out for Mia the rest of the evening but he didn't see her again. By the time he followed his parents and brother home he wondered if he'd embarrassed her when he said her hair would look pretty curled and she was avoiding him. It would serve him right for being such an idiot in front of her.
Mia
Mia kept wanting to get back to the party but Constance was fussing so much that her mama wasn't able to put her down. As a result Mia spent the rest of the evening minding her younger siblings. She kept thinking about what Gage said, that her hair might look pretty curled, and wondered why he said it. Did he think her hair looked ugly braided? She didn't understand why that thought bothered her so much. She pushed the thought away and focused on getting the twins to bed so she could try to get some homework done. Just because it was Saturday didn't mean she could ignore her math homework. Maybe tomorrow would be better.
Mia's plans of joining the ball game just so she could hang around Gage for a while were thwarted when her mama went into early labor. The Lafluer household was in a frenzy as they prepared for the newest member of the family. An early birth could be dangerous, especially since her mama couldn't go to the hospital, so they had to hope the baby was strong enough to survive. She'd half expected Jules and Beau to slink away but they both surprised her by staying and helping to keep the younger kids calm and as quiet as possible while their mama brought their newest baby brother or sister into the world. A celebration wouldn't take place until they knew for sure the baby was going to survive.
By the time her baby brother, Dempsey, was strong enough for them to celebrate his birth, a week had passed and any awkwardness between her and Gage from Constance's christening seemed to have faded. Mia stuck close to her mama in case she was needed but she watched the boys play their game of tag with a bit of longing in her heart. Every time she saw Gage it felt like her heart skipped a beat and it made her want to run out of the house and join their game but she just shook her head and told herself she was being silly. Her mama needed her right now so playing games had to wait.
Caine
Caine wasn't sure how much longer he could wait before he challenged Zachary. He'd pushed himself to get out of school a year ahead of his peers and as soon as he'd graduated he'd started working. He'd looked into the different options out there for decent income and a year after he started working a minimum wage job he got into investment banking. He was starting with small investments. That way, if things didn't work out, he wouldn't be out a large sum of money. How many eighteen year old's were worried about losing a large sum of money via investing it? Not many, he was sure.
He wasn't ready to challenge Zachary, but already he was taking over some responsibilities. It was his money from his investments that provided the food and drink for the party that followed Constance Lafluer's christening. Few were aware that he was the one who paid for it though. Zachary had said there 'wasn't enough' money for there to be a proper celebration and Caine just wasn't going to let that happen.
He stayed in the background while everyone talked, ate, drank, and generally had a grand time. He didn't need the recognition, he didn't need the praise or compliments from the rest of the Pard. He was happy just knowing the party went smoothly.
As the night wore on and people began to return to their homes, he stayed to make sure the bonfire was put out and the area was cleaned up before he finally headed home himself. He had to be up early to check on some of his investments.
Chapter Three
Gage
At fifteen, Gage Delacroix was already tall and broad shouldered. His size was partly due to him working out every day. He and his older brother, (by one lousy year and you best believe Remy didn't let Gage forget), were both on the wrestling team at school. He was also on the football team and man did he like strutting down the hall in his game day jersey. All the girls looked at him and flirted with him.
All but one. The only girl he wanted flirting with him didn't watch him the way all the other girls in school did. Mia Lafluer. She was two years younger than him and they'd known each other practically since birth. She was such a tomboy when they were younger, always climbing trees, playing in the swamps, and fishing right alongside her brothers. He could count on one hand the number of times he'd seen Mia in a dress and have fingers left over. Not that she needed to wear a dress to catch his eye. She did that just by existing.
She still went fishing and still played in the swamps, but she didn't go climbing trees so much these days. Not in her human form anyway. When she was in leopard form, that was a different story. While so many of the other girls in school were curling their hair, slathering on makeup and wearing short skirts, Mia still put her hair in a ponytail or braid, wore a pair of jeans with a t-shirt, and didn't even bother with makeup. She was still the prettiest girl in school as far as Gage was concerned.
“Hey, Mia. You comin' to da game tonight?” Gage leaned against the locker next to hers and flashed her a grin. “You could hang out down near da field and cheer me on.”
Mia rolled her eyes at him. “I'll be dere, I always am.” She closed her locker and arched a brow at him. “You got enough girls cheerin' you on. You don't need me dere, too.”
“A'course I do. I need my number one fan on da sidelines,” he teased. When he told her he was trying out for the football team she'd jokingly told him if he got on she'd be his number one fan and it had become an inside joke between them.
Mia laughed. “Whatever. You've already got a big fan club. Uh oh, don't look now, but Stacy is headed dis way.” Stacy Williams was head cheerleader and had the hots for Gage. The way she looked at Gage made Mia's hackles rise and the look she got from Stacy when she sidled up next to Gage had her biting back a snarl. “See you later, Gage,” she said and made a beeline for the front door.
Gage wanted to groan when Stacy approached because he'd been trying to convince Mia he wantedheron the sidelines more than anyone else. “Yeah, see you later,” he called to Mia's retreating back before he turned to Stacy. He should have expected this, really. Stacy had been trying to get her claws into him for a while now. She was cute but she wasn't a natural beauty like Mia. Still, maybe Mia didn't like him that way. Maybe he needed to give someone else a chance. Someone like Stacy. He turned on the charm and grinned at the blonde at his side. “You goin' to da party after da game?” When she nodded he slid his arm over her shoulder. “Wanna go together?”
