I jutted my hip out and anchored my fist on it. “We’re all animals, darling. I hate to be the one to tell you this, but family has nothing to do with people. It’s a kinship you share with another soul. She’s my baby, so play nice or I’ll make you cat-sit again for some bonding time.”

“Do you still want to grab something to eat before I go home?” Lexi asked.

Lexi’s favorite place was the Pit, a local barbecue joint. But I always ended up with horrendous sauce stains on my clothes and meat between my teeth. I looked down; my white shorts would never make it out alive.

“Well, I could use a little extra cushion on my hips,” I said.

She arched a brow. “Seriously?”

“Absolutely,” I replied with an enthusiastic nod.

Lexi had grown up among humans, influenced by their perception of beauty coming in only one pretty package. My legs were thick and my hips curvaceous. Most of the human clubs had strippers who looked like waifs. Not Breed clubs. Our men liked all kinds of women. Tall, petite, dark, light, slender, shapely. The variety brought them in and catered to their preferences. Chitah males tipped more for the tall girls, while some of the Shifters threw Benjamins at the redheads. My regulars liked the way I rolled my hips and owned the body my mother had blessed me with.

“Let’s do Italian,” Lexi suggested, lifting her purse off the bar. “I’m in the mood for pasta, and Olive Garden has the best salads!”

“I’ll agree to that, even though being in a room full of humans makes me nervous.”

They had amazing breadsticks; I could devour them by the truckload, so I was willing to suffer through the energy suck.

“Great! Let’s pig out like old times. I’ll call Austin and let him know I’ll be coming home late.”

“Sounds perfect. Let me just feed little Misha before we go.”

***

After we finished our salads, the waiter served the main course. Lexi had ordered the chicken Alfredo and didn’t waste a moment digging in. I leaned over my plate and smelled the heavenly aroma of my tilapia, shrimp, and broccoli. Human restaurants had good food, even though the atmosphere was usually colder and less vibrant. People didn’t talk to or look at other customers, and sometimes they didn’t even talk to the people at their own table if they were preoccupied on their electronic toys. Being around too many humans drained my energy, and I’d often wondered if there was something to that. A Mage had once told me that most of us had higher levels of energy than humans. Maybe that explained why we thrived in the company of our own.

“So how’s work going?” Lexi asked conversationally, slurping up a noodle.

I brushed my dark curls behind my shoulders and then savored a generous bite. “It’s the same old drama. We have a new girl with all these ideas, and it’s ruffling everyone’s goosey little feathers. The bickering is so petty, and sometimes the women act like a group of hungry jackals protecting a pile of bones. I say there are enough bones to go around.”