“You’re rumbling,” Gage cautioned. “Remy, this is turning into a bad situation. Have you thought about asking her to leave with you?”

He’d thought about throwing her over his shoulder and just taking her out whether she liked it or not, but it wouldn’t earn him any points with her. No way was she going to be reasonable if he said he needed to talk to her. The time to talk had been when she woke up.

“She’s only got one more set and she’s done,” Remy said. “If we’re lucky we can get through that, and I’ll get her out of here and have the talk with her.”

Gage snorted. “Yeah, I’m sure you’ll be talkin’ to her.”

“I have to tell her about her leopard.”

“And if for some reason her female never emerges?”

Remy took a deep breath. “Then she’ll think I’m crazy, and I’ll have to prove to her I’m not. Either way, she’s mine and I’m goin’ to tell her the truth about what I am and what she is.”

Gage’s gaze shifted to Bijou. Her profile was to him and she was laughing. Lights shifted over her face as she leaned toward Arnaud and said something. “Are you certain she’s your mate? This isn’t about sex? Because she’s beautiful, Remy, and it would be easy enough to get things mixed up.”

“Damn it, Gage.” Remy’s frustration nearly exploded at his brother. “Quit askin’ the same damn thing every few minutes. Nothin’ has changed and nothin’ can change. I’ve marked her as mine. She is mine. There’s just a little matter of persuadin’ her, and it’s done. I don’ care if her leopard emerges or not, she belongs to me and no one and nothin’ is goin’ to stand in my way. Is that clear enough?”

Gage shrugged, hiding his grin and deliberately goading his brother further. “Lust has a funny way of colorin’ a man’s perspective, brother, but since you’re so certain and all, I’ve got a text from the boys sayin’ they’re on the way, so we should have reinforcements soon.”

“Good. The feelin’ of impendin’ doom is not goin’ away.” And if his brother kept asking him the same question over and over, doomsday was going to start with Gage.

Remy spotted the older couple, Mr. and Mrs. Chambridge, from the café in the crowd seated at one of the tables in the middle of the room. Emile and Thereze were there as well, Emile looking mesmerized.