6. Lorenzo

SIX

LORENZO

It had been a rough day. One of those days when everything went wrong. Right when I woke up, I'd stubbed my damn pinky toe. Then a squirrel ran out in front of my bike while on my way to work, and I nearly wrecked swerving to miss it. I'd gotten stuck with giving a tubing tour, which consisted of me driving people in the golf cart to the drop off spot at the creek and then waiting around at the pickup area for them. It was the most boring thing about working at the Sporting Goods store. I'd stopped by the diner to see Mia, but the place had been so busy I hadn't been able to talk to her for more than five seconds.

And then there was what Ethan had said to me at the cookout. His concerns about the two of us had looped through my head on repeat all day. While I wasn't one to make decisions based on what others told me to do, that didn't mean that sometimes what people said didn't dig into my head.

Was I too old for her? Should I leave her alone because she was Ethan's little sister? Was that a boundary I shouldn't cross?

My panther roared at me. He wasn't in agreement with any of those thoughts. As I took another swig from my beer, my gaze shifted from the sky back out to the pond.

I understood where Ethan was coming from. He was her brother, which meant he was entitled to have protective instincts when it came to her well-being, but this was me we were talking about. We were tribe members for crying out loud. My panther paced restlessly, feeling irritated with Ethan and his boundaries when it came to Mia, too.

He felt a deep connection with her. Honestly, so did I.

A car made its way down the driveway, its headlight bouncing around as the driver hit each groove and pothole. It was Savannah's car. The girls were back from their fun night out.

I wondered if Mia had enjoyed herself.

Part of me wanted to text her and ask, but another part thought it would be a bad idea. When the passenger door swung open, Miranda dashed to the back door and hurried to open it. She jumped back in time for Mia to lean out and barf in the driveway.

"Sorry," she grumbled, closing her eyes and looking pitiful.

"It's okay. You made it. You didn't get sick in my car," Savannah praised her.

She'd rounded the car to help Miranda get her out of the backseat.

"Let me grab some water, and see if I have crackers," Kiera said, speed-walking toward her camper.

Mia laughed about something. The sound floated across the quiet night. Clearly, she'd had way too much to drink.

"Shit, Ethan is going to kill me," Miranda muttered.

"Yep," Mia said, nodding with more force than necessary. "Because he still thinks I'm like fourteen years old and that he can control my life."

Her words slurred, but they were still audible. It was obvious how much hostility she harbored toward him lately.

"Ugh," Mia grumbled, and then hiccupped. "I feel like dog crap."

"Oh, girl. You're going to feel even worse tomorrow when you wake up," Savannah said, sympathy in her tone. "Good thing you're off for the day."

A sense of fierce protectiveness consumed my panther as I watched them haul Mia toward Miranda and Ethan's camper. He urged me to get up and help. To take care of her and make sure she was okay.

How much had she had to drink, anyway?

Without a second thought, I stood and made my way toward them. "She okay?"

"Other than having a tad too much to drink, she's fine." Savannah grinned. "We didn't feel comfortable dropping her off at the inn to be alone while she slept it off."

Just the thought sent anger rippling through me and my panther.

"Let me help," I offered, taking Savannah's place beside Mia. I snaked my arm around her waist and felt her melt into me. Her body pressed against mine felt good. Too good. "Hey, there. Let's get you some water and something to eat."

"Kiera went to get her both," Miranda said. "I planned on taking her to our place, but I know Ethan will be ticked she drank so much."

"Because he's a jerk," Mia insisted, still fired up about her older brother.

"Honestly, he's probably the reason she drank so much. She's upset with him for trying to scare you off. She really likes you," Miranda whispered, holding my stare.

"I like her too," I said, meaning it.

Mia moaned, and not in a good way. Thankfully, she hadn't seemed to have heard our conversation.

"Let's take her to my place," I offered.

"I don't feel good," Mia muttered half a second before puking in the grass where we were walking.

"On second thought, how about we have a seat over here at the picnic tables," Miranda said. "Some fresh air might be good for you."

"Sounds like a good idea," I agreed.

"I'm going to grab her a blanket," Savannah chimed in, making her way to her camper.

"And I should make sure Ethan doesn't come out and see her like this," Miranda said. "Do you have her?"

I nodded. "Absolutely."

"Aw, thanks, Lorenzo," Mia murmured, her eyes nearly closed as she looked up at me and smiled.

"Let me know if you need anything," Miranda said before heading to her place.

I helped Mia to the picnic tables. Once I had her seated, Kiera came out with a glass of water and a sleeve of saltine crackers.

"This should help," she said. "These too." She passed me two pills.

I didn't question what they were. Knowing Kiera, they would work like magic on whatever hangover Mia might have tomorrow.

"Thanks," I said, and then noticed the way Kiera stared at me. "What?" I asked, flashing her a grin.

"Nothing." She turned to head back to her place. "You're awfully sweet to her."

"Am I not allowed to be?" I replied.

"Of course. I just remember you saying something about how much you enjoyed being single not too long ago," she fired back.

Savannah made her way to us with a fuzzy blanket. "I remember that, too. Have your feelings about single life being so great suddenly changed?" she pried, her piercing blue eyes staring me down.

"Being single is fun," Mia chimed in, oblivious to the eternity of the conversation being about her and I. "But—it can also be lonely in a bone deep kind of way."

I felt that. My panther did, too.

Savannah's gaze shifted to Mia, sadness passing through her stare, before she said goodnight and turned to head back to her camper.

I opened the sleeve of crackers and held one out to Mia. "Want to try eating a cracker?"

"Sure." She took it from me and nibbled a corner off like a mouse. "You know, you're really nice. Like, superhero nice." She giggled at her words, and I couldn't help but laugh.

I'd never been called superhero nice before.

"Superhero nice, huh? I don't know about that. I'm only trying to make sure you're okay," I said.

Mia tilted her head up to the sky, gazing at the stars while she nibbled on the cracker some more. "Why do you care?" Her tone wasn't disapproving or harsh, it was light and curious.

The question, simple as it was, echoed through my head.

Why did I care?

"Is it because I'm Ethan's little sister?" she asked, her gaze never pulling away from the stars.

I frowned. That wasn't it at all.

"No." I paused, considering how much to reveal to her. I didn't want to scare her away by saying something wrong. Even though she'd had too much to drink tonight, that didn't mean she wouldn't remember this conversation come morning. "I feel connected to you."

She shifted to look at me then. "Connected to me?"

Shit. Maybe I shouldn't have said that. Maybe it was too much.

Either way, I couldn't backtrack now. All I could do was press forward.

"Yeah." I smoothed a hand along the back of my neck. "There's something between us. A connection. Chemistry. I'm not sure what to call it. All I know is that it's there. I hope you feel it, too."

My panther was fucking purring. He liked what I'd said to her.

"I do," she replied, causing a warmth to balloon through my chest. "I'm definitely attracted to you, but there's something more. Something deeper."

I knew what she meant, because I felt it too.

"If I hadn't barfed all over, I might kiss you," she said, draping the blanket across her lap as a gentle breeze blew through.

Wait, what was that noise?

That wasn't a breeze—it was wings.

A sharp, menacing screech filled the air above us and my panther's protective instincts flared as he rushed to the surface. I lifted my gaze, scanning the night sky, and spotted an enormous eagle. It dove toward us with its talons outstretched. Before I could react, it dive-bombed, aiming for Mia. I moved to block its path, but a hawk and two ravens attacked me. Their attack was swift but brutal, and so was the eagle's.

Its talons had found their mark—slashing Mia's shoulder to pieces.

A scream tore from her throat, and all the blood drained from my body at the sound. I dove for her, blocking as much of her body with mine as I could while the birds attacked for a second time. When a coyote howled from the edge of the woods nearby, my attention faltered from the sky, and that was when the eagle made another dive for Mia. This time, its talons left deep wounds along the arm she'd lifted to protect herself. She cried out again, the sound piercing through the night air and sending a jolt of fear straight to my heart.

"Mia!" I shouted.

Blood covered everything. Her breathing grew labored as her face paled and pain twisted her features.

"Get under the table," I ordered her. "Wrap the blanket around your arm and shoulder."

She did as I asked, sliding beneath the table with the blanket.

"Press it against your wounds," I said.

Whether she listened or not, I didn't know, because in the next instant I'd given way to my panther. He lunged for the eagle responsible, ready to spill its blood. The tribe had burst onto the scene, taking on the coyote and any others coming from the woods. The eagle passed over top of us, and my panther gripped hold of its talon. He forced the bird from the sky and slammed him to the ground. Before my panther could do any real damage to the eagle, he was ambushed by a fucking skunk. It sprayed my panther, causing his eyes to water and burn so strongly there was a moment of temporary blindness.

The eagle flew away, and the skunk's stench filled my panther's nose. He choked on it, his stomach rolling with nausea that rippled through us both. The attacks from both the sky and the ground dissipated as the animals retreated. However, the skunk's stench lingered. Hopefully, Kiera or Miranda knew a spell that would get rid of the smell. It was awful.

Fucking skunks.

My panther's attention snapped to Mia, his concern for her palpable. She still hid beneath the picnic table, curled into a small ball. Something was wrong, though. My panther could sense it. The scent of blood surrounding her was too heavy.

She'd lost too much.

Acting on instinct alone, my panther sank his teeth into her ankle. I didn't try to stop him. Maybe I should have, but I didn't. We both knew there was too much blood, which meant she needed medical attention immediately—medical attention that wasn't here. The risk of her not making it to a hospital was too high. We both knew this.

Biting her was the only option.

Now, the question was: Would she survive the transition, or would gaining a panther be the thing that killed her?