Seven Days Read Online Free

hand and leading me to the tiny door set into the base of the terminal building. Sweat ran down my back and I struggled to breathe in the heavy, water-soaked atmosphere.
    “You didn’t tell me I’d need gills to breathe here, jerko,” I said.
    Xavier laughed. “It’s not that bad. You’re just spoiled.”
    “Because I believe breathing should take less energy than running a marathon?” I asked.
    “Yep,” he smiled and kissed me. Sweat drops ran down the sides of my face and I cursed under my breath. So much for looking fresh and pretty when I met Xavier’s parents. I'd be lucky if all my makeup hadn't melted permanently into my skin by the time we reached the air conditioning the foggy windows of the terminal promised awaited us.
    The blast of arctic air which hit us as the door to the terminal opened was nearly as painful as the sub-tropical surprise that had awaited us as we disembarked from the plane. I went from sweating the shivering in under a minute. Xavier put his arm around my shoulder and kissed my temple. I clung to his warmth, almost missing the large group of shouting people and the neon "Happy Birthday Xavier" sign which awaited our arrival on the far side of the security barriers.
    Xavier had spent half of the flight from Highland Home to Florida obsessing over how much his family would embarrass him in front of me. I had assured him that no matter what they did, I would still love him. What I hadn't done, however, was promise not to rub it in if the opportunity presented itself. From the look of the size of the crowd and the neon paint on the sign, the embarrassment was going to be epic and I was going to enjoy every moment of it.
    “And you thought they’d forget,” I teased. “I’m glad to see Elise isn’t the only subtle member of your family.” Xavier’s complexion, usually dark from the time he spent in the sun, went decidedly purple with embarrassment and I couldn’t resist kissing his hot cheek. "I love you," I said, clinging to his hand.
    "I love you, too," he said, pushing forward into the throng of waiting family.
    While Xavier was consumed with hugging and kissing various members of his family, I remembered the strange way Elise had behaved as we'd been leaving for the trip. She had changed her mind three times that morning about whether or not she was going to the airport with us. When we'd been about to head through security and make our way to the gate, she'd cornered me and Xavier and insisted on talking with us privately. We let her pull us away from my family, despite the strange and worried looks from both Tawnya and Mairin.
    “I know you two don’t get too far from each other anyway,” she said, “but on this trip, I don’t want you two to be separated. There’s something dark in Florida waiting for you, Xavier.” She’d looked at Xavier, who nodded.
    “I’ll keep Kerry safe, Gram, you know that.”
    “I know you’ll do your best, Xavier,” she’d said, “but I know if you two don’t stay together, something awful is going to happen. We all know what happened the last time you wandered off alone while you were in Florida.”
    I knew Elise could only be referring to the attack that had left Xavier a werepanther. It hadn’t occurred to me to worry that there might be reason to worry about a werepanther attack while we were in Florida. The pride was so protective of me, they made me forget that the reason they were panthers and a pride was because a lone panther had attacked each of them at some point in their lives. The loners were dangerous, murderous in some cases. It was easy to forget that not all werepanthers were like the members of the pride when the pride where the only panthers I saw.
    I caught Mairin's look over Elise's shoulder. I wondered, suddenly, if she had dreamed of other panthers and just hadn't wanted to worry me. I knew she trusted Xavier to keep me safe, but even I had to admit that at one time, he'd been the victim of a vicious attack.