by Lexi Blake
“Now wait,” Zep began.
Her mother reached out and gently slapped Zep on the chest. “You hush.”
“Well, you got a ring and Sera got a house and money and all I got was a box of condoms.” Zep seemed to take notice of the look on their momma’s face. “For which I will be eternally grateful. Hey, can I cut Remy’s hair and get that twenty?”
“You aren’t touching his hair.” Lisa grinned like she genuinely loved the shenanigans. Sometimes she was sure Lisa viewed the entire town as one big soap opera.
Sera stood up and faced her older brother. Remy had always watched out for her when they’d been growing up. He’d left for a long time, but when he’d finally come home to take over the family restaurant, he’d slid right back into the role of looking out for her. Remy and Lisa were the only people in the world besides her mother and Angela Beaumont who knew the truth of Luc’s birth. She took her baby boy into her arms. “I can’t take this, Remy. It’s not fair.”
“Oh, I think it’s entirely fair.” Her brother stared down at her with soft eyes. “You were the one who went to Aunt Irene’s place three times a week to check in on her despite the fact that you had a job, were going to school, and were also taking care of a baby. You were the one who ran Irene’s errands and picked her up for holidays to make sure she actually got out of that place every once in a while. She wants you to have her home. You always loved it. I’m not saying you should go out there and make it your home, but it’s special and shouldn’t be torn down and made into a fast-food place or some rich Texan’s second-best fishing getaway.”
“But how would I even find the time to work on it? I don’t have the skills.”
“That’s why she left you money,” her mother said. “You do have the skills and the smarts to hire someone. And you can do some of it yourself. You helped Lisa and Remy pull up the carpet at their place and put in hardwoods. You know how to do small things. Sure, you can’t fix that shower of hers that looks like it’s raining blood down on a person, but that’s what you pay for.”
She was overwhelmed and Luc seemed to get that. He put his hands on either side of her face. It was something he’d done since he’d been able to hold his head up. He would put his hands on her cheeks, prompting her to look into his eyes, and he would stare with such love that she would know they could handle whatever came their way.
She hugged her baby tight. She’d done one good thing. She could do another.
“Okay then, baby boy, looks like we’ve got a big project ahead.”
And maybe, just maybe, she could give him the life he deserved.
* * *
***
Harry sat down at the overly large dining room table he was sure impressed guests with its sheer length. He was impressed with the craftsmanship that had gone into the Colonial-period antique, even though it was a bit overwhelming as a breakfast table. But then he wasn’t used to having servants set up a buffet every Sunday morning.
He grabbed a muffin and some coffee and slid into the chair opposite his cousin Angela, who was already up and ready to face the day. He wasn’t sure how they managed it, but in the days he’d been at Beaumont House, he hadn’t caught either Angela or his aunt Celeste looking anything less than perfect. It was like they didn’t ever leave the confines of their bedrooms without the full Chanel treatment.
He would bet that pretty blonde he’d met the day before would look awfully cute all tousled from sleep, with hair flying everywhere.
He’d thought about her all night long. It had been a while since a woman had occupied his thoughts.
“I can’t believe Mother let you bring Shep in the house.” Angela reached a hand out as his big German shepherd lumbered over to greet her. “Growing up, we never had dogs.”
“That wasn’t my fault.” Celeste strode in the room dressed in a chic sheath and sky-high heels he had no idea how anyone walked in. She was dressed for church, a thing that seemed to happen a lot around here. She settled into her chair and the maid brought over an elegant carafe and filled her cup. “Your grandmother believed animals belonged outdoors.” A smile curled up his aunt’s normally placid face. “I’ve missed having dogs. We had several growing up in Texas.”
Shep always seemed to know when someone was willing to give him a pet. He walked over to his aunt and offered up the top of his head. Celeste stroked him. “You’re a pretty boy.” She glanced Harry’s way. “Your mom and I had a big old mutt we called Sparkles. He was the ugliest, meanest-looking thing in the world, but he was so sweet. Scared off anyone who didn’t know him, but that dog was the kindest soul.”
“Mom talked about him a lot. She kept a dog most of the time,” Harry explained. “Sometimes more than one. She would go volunteer at the shelter and come home with some sad-sack mutt she knew no one would want.”
“That sounds like my sister,” Celeste said, nodding to the maid, who slipped out of the room. Celeste straightened up. “Angie and I are going to church and then to a meeting with the florist. It won’t be too long now before she’s walking down the aisle.”
Angie smiled, a soft pink flushing her skin. “Sometimes it seems like it’s coming so fast. I want to remember it all.”
His cousin seemed sweet, and he’d liked her fiancé. Austin was a lawyer in New Orleans. They’d met through a mutual friend and dated for a few years before he’d popped the question. “The church secretary is looking forward to it. I believe she called it the social event of the year.”
“Precisely why we need our Harry to make the gazebo beautiful again,” Celeste said. She frowned briefly Angie’s way. “Darling, don’t forget you have a fitting on Tuesday. You don’t want too many carbs.”
Angie’s face fell so briefly if Harry hadn’t been looking at her, he would have missed that expression of shame that took over before she was right back to placid. As her mother continued to talk about how Harry would save the day, Angie’s napkin made an appearance and she pushed her barely touched plate out of the way.
“So what are you doing today, Harry?” his aunt asked. “I understand you can’t get the raw materials for the project until next week. You should get out and see a bit of the town. Angie, don’t you have a friend who can show him around? Not that little fat one. And not the boring one. Maybe we could ask one of your sorority sisters to come down for the afternoon.”
It seemed like everyone was going to try to set him up. Shep had given up on the human conversation and had settled himself at Harry’s feet. “I think I can take a look around on my own.”
“I’ll take him out this evening, Mother.” Calvin yawned as he walked in and made a heaping plate for himself.
“Maybe you should think about staying in once in a while, son.” Celeste’s tone had gone frosty.
His cousin was wearing the same clothes he’d worn the night before, but Cal didn’t seem to care that he was doing the walk of shame. Cal merely gestured for the maid to fill his coffee cup as he took a place at the other end of the table from his mother. “Why would I do that? You’re the one who told me a young man should have a social life. Thank you, Annemarie.”
The maid nodded and disappeared again.
Harry wondered if she hovered right outside the door, waiting to be called on. It was weird and made him feel awkward since he was perfectly capable of getting his own coffee. It was good to connect with his family, but he was never going to fit in here.
“We have different definitions of that term, son.” A thick layer of frost had come over his aunt’s voice. “When I discussed you having a social life, I meant attending parties and meeting the right people. I did not mean barhopping with lowlifes. You know how I feel about those Guidrys and yet you hang out at that bar all the time.”
“It’s a restaurant.” If Cal was bothered by the ice his momma was sending his way, he didn’t show it. “And Zep is a friend of mine. I know you don’t und
erstand the concept of friends and raised us to view people as chess pieces to use or discard based on their social status, but we can’t all be as perfect as you.”
Celeste leaned forward as though she was about to give her son a full-on lecture, but she seemed to remember they weren’t alone. She gave Harry a tight smile before sitting back in her chair. “Well, you know how best to spend your time. You seem to know everything at the tender age of twenty-seven. Of course, at your age I was already married and had you, but certainly the younger generation knows better.”
A smirk hit his cousin’s face. “Yes, I certainly do since I managed to not get tied down with a whining, stinky kid so far. I can say that because I’m talking about me. Angie was a sweet baby, and we all know Wes was perfect.”
The very name seemed to make the whole room freeze in place. Even Shep seemed to understand something had gone wrong. He lifted his head and Harry reached down to put a hand on the dog.
Cal set his mug on the table. “I’m sorry, Mom. I promise I’ll take Harry out tonight and we won’t go near Guidry’s. And I’ll have him back at a decent hour. I don’t think Harry wants to be set up yet. Let’s give him a chance to settle in before you start parading proper young women in front of him.”
Celeste seemed to take Cal’s words as a peace offering. “As long as you don’t parade improper ones in front of him.” Celeste turned Harry’s way. “I heard from some of my friends that the Guidry girl was sniffing around you yesterday at her own aunt’s funeral. The gall of that girl. It’s no wonder she got herself in trouble. You should stay away from that bit of trash.”
“She wasn’t hitting on me. She warned me that her mom might try to set us up.” What exactly was his aunt’s problem with the Guidrys? After his encounter with the sassy Seraphina, he’d spent some time talking to her brother Remy, who had served in the Navy. He found he naturally migrated to the ex-military crowd. He felt more comfortable with them than discussing small-town politics or gossip. He’d liked Remy and his pretty wife, Lisa. He’d definitely liked the gumbo.
Celeste pushed back her chair. “Well, of course Delphine is trying to catch a man for her daughter. That girl is trouble, Harry. And she’s not smart enough to protect herself. Or she got pregnant intentionally to trap whoever she was sleeping with at the time. What I’m trying to say is Seraphina Guidry is a single mom. She’s not the type you should be around, and you should guard yourself around that whole family. Angie, I’m going to check my makeup. I’ll be ready to go in half an hour. Don’t be late, and you should change your shoes. Open-toed shoes in church is rude.”
His aunt strode out having never touched a bite of food.
Angie sent her brother a glare. “You had to bring up Wes, didn’t you?”
Cal sighed. “I’m sorry. She was pushing me. I had a long night.”
“I’m sure you did,” Angie shot back. “But you’re not the one who has to spend all day with her. She’ll be on edge and short with everyone.”
“Y’all don’t ever talk about Wes?” He’d found it odd. There were pictures of Wes everywhere. His youngest cousin had died roughly three months after he’d shipped out to Afghanistan. He’d been killed in an accident.
“Oh, she talks about him but it’s usually to let me know it would have been better if I’d died instead of Wes,” Cal replied.
“That’s not true.” Angie stood and crossed to the buffet, grabbing a muffin.
“Really?” Cal looked at his sister, a skeptical expression on his face. “And when she said, You know I wish Wes was here instead of you—what do you think that was a metaphor for?”
“Damn,” Harry breathed.
“She was tipsy and she didn’t mean it.” Angie sat back down and turned to Harry. “Mom got drunk on the anniversary of Wes’s death last year. She was harsh on all of us, but she apologized the next day. She certainly doesn’t want Cal dead, just a bit more serious about life.”
Cal smiled, but there was no humor behind it. “When Wes died, Angie became the angel. My mother only seems to be able to truly love one of us at a time. It might have been different if Wes hadn’t gotten sick.”
He knew a little bit of the history. “He had cancer as a kid, right?”
Angie nodded. “He was diagnosed when he was four. My mother pretty much devoted herself to him from that point on. He went through a lot at a young age. It was awful, but he got the best care, and by the time he was seven or eight, you would never have been able to tell he’d been sick at all. He was healthy. Wes recovered from his cancer. Mom never did.”
Cal sighed. “Wes was her perfect child, her miracle baby. Well, with the singular exception of his choice in friends. If you want to know why Mom wants you to stay away from Sera, it’s because Wes was crazy in love with her.”
Angie shook her head. “They were friends. That’s all they ever were.”
“Yeah, well, Wes wanted more.” Cal looked tired as he sipped his coffee. “My younger brother was a good guy, but he was used to getting what he wanted. He chased after Sera for years. My parents sent us to public school at first. Some of the older kids at the school used to bully Wes. Sera stood up for him. She was his only friend in the beginning. I often think he imprinted on her, but she never liked him that way.”
“Like I said, they were friends,” Angie agreed. “She’s not bad. Sera’s actually pretty nice. She’s a little on the unlucky side. She does have a kid.”
“Lots of people her age have kids. It’s not like she’s a teen mom.” He was confused about a lot of things. “Why does everyone treat it like she did something scandalous? We’re not back in the 1800s. Women have kids without getting married.”
“Not in polite society in a small town.” Cal picked up his fork. “Don’t get me wrong. There are parts of this town where no one cares, but the Guidrys are odd. They’re not poor and they’re not rich. They’re mainstays of the town, but you won’t see them at Mother’s parties. She considers them beneath her.”
“Do you?” He wanted to know if the snobbery went all the way through this family he found himself in.
“I hang out with Zep all the time because he’s a good guy and he’s fun as hell. You’ll find that walking on that side of town is way more amusing than this one,” Cal admitted. “Sera’s problem is she wouldn’t tell anyone who the father of the kid was, and that means one thing. He’s married. Every married woman in town is watching that kid to see if it was her husband who cheated. So far he looks more like his uncle than anyone else. If Sera’s serious about taking that secret to her grave, it’ll be best for everyone if Luc continues to look like a Guidry.”
“How old is he?” So that was what she’d meant by baggage.
“I don’t know,” Cal replied with a shrug. “Two or three. I only know that I don’t play around with single moms, so she’s off the table and that’s a shame because she’s fine. Even after she gained that baby weight. I’m pretty sure it went to all the right places, if you know what I mean.”
Something about the words made him sit up taller. “I do not. She seemed like a nice young lady, and honestly, even if she hadn’t been, you shouldn’t say things like that.”
Cal rolled his eyes. “Yep, Captain America is in the house. You’re going to be fun to hang out with, cos. We’ll get some beer in you and see if we can get that stick out of your ass.”
If being polite meant he had a stick up his butt, he was all right with that.
“I don’t know. I like how Harry acts,” Angie said with a smile. “I actually think he and Sera would get along. She needs someone nice in her life. She was dating that Jackson fellow from two towns over. I heard he dumped her when she wanted to introduce him to Luc. Said he was only having fun and didn’t want to raise some other man’s kid.”
Jackson sounded like a moron. Not that he was interested in anything serious. But Seraphina Guidry was intriguing. If
there was a spark, he wouldn’t mind seeing if it grew into something that could be good for both of them. He certainly wouldn’t rule out a relationship because she came with a kid. “Well, she made it clear she wasn’t interested in me.”
Except there had been a definite chemistry between them. He’d been around long enough to know there was attraction and then there was heat. He and Sera had heat. Whether or not that was enough to build a fire, he couldn’t know if he didn’t spend more time with her.
It would be a mistake because he wasn’t staying here in Papillon. He only had a couple of weeks here. Six at the most. Maybe two months. Then he would be on the road again, seeing the country, doing odd jobs. What did he have to offer a single mom who should be looking for someone to take care of her?
Of course, care didn’t mean cash. It didn’t necessarily mean a life of ease. No one really got it easy. Life was about how a person handled the tough times. For his family, taking care meant being around when times were tough. His father hadn’t had money most of the time, but he’d had a hand his mother could hold.
“That’s a good thing because my mom would throw a fit if she even thought you were interested in her,” Cal said, seeming to get his appetite back. “Besides, she’s going to have her hands full. They read the will earlier today and it turns out Old Irene didn’t leave that decaying mansion of hers to the cat sanctuary like she said she would.”
“Mom’s been trying to get that place condemned for years,” Angie explained. “I think it’s beautiful, but Mom thinks it’s an eyesore. Personally, I think Mom just wants the land. It backs up to our property and has way better water access. The rumor is back during Prohibition, the Guidrys were bootleggers and there’s secret rooms all over the place. No one’s been in it for years except Irene and her family, and from what Sera’s told me, a whole lot of the place is boarded up. Who did she give it to? Tell me she left it to the historical society. Mom’s the head and she’ll find a way to snap it up. She might be able to get it for cheap.”