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himself. “I descend from the Tiger Clan.”
    “Oh.” She made a perplexed expression. “But you’re more interested in mountain lions?”
    “In the old days the Seminole referred to mountain lions as ‘tigers.’”
    “I knew that European explorers mistook them for tigers, but I wasn’t aware of Seminole history.” She offered to oblige him. “Would you like to head over to see the mountains lions now? We have two that live here.”
    “I’d rather see the other cats first.” Noah wanted to save the most important for last.
    The tour continued with an introduction to a four-hundred-pound Bengal tiger. She was obviously still thinking about his association to the Tiger Clan, even if he wasn’t connected to the animal in a literal sense.
    They stood on the other side of the tiger’s compound and watched it sleep.
    “His name is Ankal,” Jenny said. “It means ‘whole’ in Hindu. We chose that for him because when we rescued him he was broken, physically and emotionally, and we strived to make him whole. He came from an abusive situation.”
    Noah gazed at the napping tiger. He seemed content, or as content as a captive-bred creature could be.
    “When he first arrived, he used to hide in his den when the keepers approached his enclosure. Now he plays in his pool when they’re around, splashing and showing off.”
    Ankal yawned as if he was bored by the conversation. Noah quirked a smile. Jenny did, too.
    She remarked, “In the wild, tigers hunt between dusk and dawn and consume between thirty to ninety pounds of food at one sitting.”
    “How do they make a kill?” He intended to ask her the same question about mountain lions when the time came, even if he knew as much as or more about them than she did. But that was part of the thrill, of what had led him to her.
    She responded, “Tigers stalk, chase, and attack, then bring down their prey with a bite to the nape of the neck or the throat. They’re considered man-eaters, too. They’ll consume human flesh.”
    “Ankal isn’t as timid as he looks.”
    “None of them are.”
    Noah knew that better than anyone.
    She interrupted the quiet. “Ankal’s best friend is an African lion named Larry. They explore the trails together.”
    “Larry the lion?”
    She laughed a little. “They don’t all have exotic names.”
    He considered the lion and tiger’s alliance. “They wouldn’t get along in the wild, would they?”
    “No. But it’s different when they’re in captivity.”
    He got curious about her social life. “What about you? Who’s your best friend?”
    She tucked a stray piece from her ponytail behind her ear, struggling, it seemed, to answer. Then she admitted, “I don’t have one. I’ve always been more of a loner.”
    So was he. But that was indicative of the subspecies he’d been turned into. There had been a time when he’d enjoyed sharing his life with other people, when he’d felt a gentle connection to humanity. But those feelings were long gone.
    Without further discussion, they proceeded on the tour, where more tigers were contained. They visited Larry the lion, too. After that, they stopped to admire two spotted leopards.
    “They belonged to a Las Vegas entertainer who struggled to give them up,” she said. “He treated them well and loved them. But he couldn’t make ends meet.”
    “Much in the way you’re having trouble keeping this place going?”
    Her blue eyes locked onto his. “Your generosity is making a difference.”
    “I haven’t given you the rest of the donation yet.”
    “I was talking about what you already provided.”
    “That’s not enough to keep you out of the red.”
    “The second half will be.”
    “There are going to be strings attached, Jenny.”
    Her breath rushed out. “What type of strings?”
    He suspected that she already knew it would be sexual, but he wasn’t ready to divulge the details. “We’ll talk about it later. Now, tell me about leopards. What’s unique about the