“I'll remember dat, Mamere Eulalie.” Everyone called her 'Mamere' even if she wasn't their grandmother.
Eulalie patted his cheek. “You're a good boy, Caine Bordeaux. You'll do right by da Pard.” With that she made her way to her home. She would return once the bonfire started.
Caine nodded as members of the Pard came forward to congratulate him or greet him as the new Alpha. It would take time to repair all the houses that needed to be fixed, but already he was planning out which ones needed attention the most. There was a lot to do but he was confident that he could achieve his goal with the aid of members of the Pard like Remy and Beau. leopards who were young and strong and not afraid of the hard work.
Mia
Mia was helping Adele and Auguste with their homework when news of the challenge reached them. As one, the Lafluer clan went to watch, each hoping that the younger leopard succeeded. There was no love lost with their Alpha because of the way he mistreated the Pard.
Her mama was six months pregnant with her eighth child. She'd been having some trouble with this babe so Mia carried her four year old brother, Dempsey, so her mama didn't have to fuss over him. Dempsey rested his curly, carrot top head on her shoulder and sucked on his thumb. It was a habit they were trying to break him from. Among the Lafluer children, Mia, Julius, and Dempsey were the only ones to get their papa's red hair. The others had their mama's darker locks.
“Do you tink Caine will win?” Auguste asked in a whisper as they got close to the Alpha's house.
“I don't know but I sure hope so,” Mia admitted. Her gaze went around the circle of Pard members gathered there and her heart ached a little when she spotted Gage. Since the day after the Homecoming dance he'd been more distant than ever. With a soft sigh she forced herself to stop thinking about him. She needed to pay attention.
“Do we gotta watch?” Dempsey asked as he wiggled in his sister's arms.
“Yes, we gotta. Now be still. If you want me to put you down, you know how to ask. You'll still have to hold my hand.”
The little boy pouted then gave a sigh that made it sound like it was such a bother. “Please put me down.” Once he was on his feet he bounced in place but he kept hold of his sister's hand. “I can't see,” he grumbled after a minute.
Gage
When word reached him and Remy that Caine challenged the Alpha, Gage stopped working on the table he was making and headed for the Alpha's house. This he had to see. Remy had told him that Caine was going to do it, eventually. If he'd known it was going to happen today he wouldn't have started on the table. He'd only recently realized he loved carpentry work and wood-crafting. He could carve the most intricate details into a piece of wood and the table he was working on was a birthday gift for his mama.
Out of the corner of his eye, Gage saw a splash of red and his gaze was drawn to it. Mia. Fuck. Ever since he saw her in that dress he couldn't get her out of his mind. He'd tired. He kept his distance, he focused on his wood-crafting, he even tried to get her out of his mind with sex and nothing worked. He wasn't sure what was wrong with him.
While Caine issued his challenge and the fight began, he made his way to Mia's side. He heard Dempsey's complaint and scooped him up to sit him on his shoulders. “How's dat? Better?”
“Yeah!” Dempsey practically squealed with excitement.
Gage chuckled then turned his attention to Mia. “Hi. Dis little guy givin' you a hard time, huh?”
Mia shook her head. “No more den Adele, or Auguste, or Constance did at his age. Mama's been a bit tired lately so I didn't want her wearin' herself out carryin' him like she always does.”
“She should be restin', not standin' out here. Caine would understand.”
Mia rolled her eyes. “You know my mama isn't gonna go do dat when challenge has been made. We've all been waiting for dis day. We didn't know it would be Caine, but someone had to do it.”
“True. Your mama's stubborn. Did she have to pass dat on to you?” he teased. He wanted to distract her from the fight.
Again Mia rolled her eyes. “Better stubborn den a pushover who lets ever'one walk all over dem.” The sound of a dying snarl drew her attention to the center of the yard. When it was clear that Caine was the victor there was silence. Everyone was stunned and relieved that Zachary Eitenne's reign was over.
“Dere will be a party after the pyre. Save me a dance,” Gage said and winked at her before he set Dempsey back on his feet and went to help collect wood for the fire. He didn't know if she would or if she'd find an excuse to not be there, but he was damn sure going to try to get a dance out of her.
An hour later, the sun was set, the fire burned bright, and music filled the air. Gage was a leopard on a mission. He nodded at Pard members he passed but his sole focus was Mia Lafluer. She was perched on a tree stump, heels kicking against the faded bark, while her head bobbed to the music. “I'm surprised you didn't go hide.” There was a teasing tone in his voice and a grin split his face.
Mia flashed him a wicked grin. “I thought about it,” she admitted. “But knowin' you, you'd have hunted me down and dragged me back so I decided to save you da trouble.”
Gage's laughter filled his face with joy. “You're right, I would have. Dance wit' me.” He held a hand out to her and waited for her to slip her hand in his. Once she did he tugged her to where others were already dancing and pulled her close. “We haven't seen much of each other since da dance. How's your paintin' goin'?”
“Okay. It's not like it's a big deal. It's just...someting to do.”
“Bullshit. You're good, Mia. You could sell your paintin's, easy.”
“You're biased. I know where you sleep and I've been known to retaliate when someone makes me mad.” She wasn't being completely serious but she was known to get someone back when they made her mad.
Gage shook his head. “No, cher, I'm not biased. Well, okay, maybe I am about some tings, but not about dis. You're good.”
