“It’s fine,” Tori said. “We’ve all got each other’s backs. Mitch told us what was up before we even headed over here.” She gave Josh a look. “You have nothing to worry about.”
Josh nodded and gave her a wink. Then he leaned in and took Paige’s hand in his on top of the table. “So, how are things at the yoga-cat café?”
Paige was surprised by the hand holding but she slid a glance at Mitch, knowing immediately what was going on. Mitch was looking at his cousin with his eyebrow arched.
Paige leaned in, closer to Josh too, feeling a touch of that same mischief that was in the air. “It’s good. Very… relaxing.”
Josh grinned and Paige completely understood what Tori saw in him. He was very good looking, but even more, he had a confident, laid-back charm about him that was definitely appealing.
“I mentioned she should look into otter yoga,” Mitch said from across the table.
Josh’s brows both arched. “You have otters?”
She laughed. “No.”
“But we do,” Mitch said.
Josh nodded. “Ah. Got it. Is that something you could do?” he asked Paige.
She shrugged. “I’d have to learn a lot about otters.”
“Otters are not going to lie still and just stretch out like the cats,” Tori said. “They’re pretty active. If your yoga class is distracted by the otters, they won’t be getting much meditation done.”
Paige laughed. “Noted.”
“Now, now,” Mitch said. He moved his hand to rest it across Tori’s shoulders rather than on the chair.
His big hand resting on the other woman made Paige’s eyes narrow and she had to tell herself to relax.
“Let’s not talk her out of things before we give it a fair try. I told her about the otter encounter and just said there wasn’t a yoga studio in Autre. Let’s not get excited about what won’t work.”
Josh looked interested in his cousin’s interest in yoga. He slid his chair closer to Paige’s.
Mitch’s eyes followed the movement and he did the same, sliding closer to Tori.
Paige almost grinned. Tori laughed lightly.
“Well, how do you feel about alpacas?” she asked. “We’re taking four back with us.”
Paige did laugh then, sharing a look with Mitch. “Four?”
Tori grinned. “We went to talk to Drew. The one he thought I should take back with me is just a baby. An orphan. His mom died about a month ago. They’ve been bottle-feeding him but they don’t really have the time to give him.”
Drew and his brother Dallas were young bachelor farmers. They raised the alpacas for their wool. They weren’t doing it because they wanted to spend all their time being fill-in moms, she was sure. They were nice guys but they had a huge farm to run, and whenever they had a runt kitten or found a stray, they called Paige rather than caring for it themselves.
“So, of course, they thought of you,” Paige teased.
She and Tori had absolutely bonded over their love of animals, especially cats. Tori had told her that she’d been called Cinderella in elementary school after her classmates found out she’d had a pet racoon, rabbits, even mice. All animals liked her. And vice versa. When she’d lived in Iowa, she’d collected “special needs” animals, including a pig that was afraid of thunder, an English bulldog that had been born with a cleft palate and had needed to be fed by hand, and a mountain lion she’d saved after it had been shot as a cub, along with a few “regular” animals like goats and dogs and a whole bunch of cats. She’d even had an alpaca that loved it when she sang to him. Paige had no reason to believe that the sweet veterinarian was any different now just because she lived in Louisiana. And clearly Josh was very willing to indulge her.
“So what about the other three alpacas?” Paige asked.
“Well, I said…” Tori’s cheeks got pink and she looked at Josh.
Paige looked at Josh too. The guy who was holding her hand. He was looking at Tori like he thought she was fucking adorable and hot as hell all at once.
“One of them came up and kissed her on the cheek,” Josh said.
“Come on,” Paige said with a laugh.
“Well, pretty much,” Josh said. “Saw her across the pen and came straight over and put his mouth on her cheek. She, of course, was smitten. Then his girlfriend had to come. And their baby girl. Which, if things go well, will maybe be the other little llama’s girlfriend someday, right?” he asked Tori.
Tori smiled at him like she thought he was adorable and hot as well.
Paige rolled her eyes. She hoped no one in the bakery was really paying attention because no way would they not realize these two wanted to tear each other’s clothes off and sit on the porch in their rocking chairs at age ninety together.
Paige looked at Mitch. He was watching her. It made her feel warm and she smiled at him. Even though she knew that her smile didn’t look casual to anyone looking on either. It was mostly tear-his-clothes-off. But there might have been a touch of rocking chair in there.
Dammit.
“Tell her about the whole plan,” Mitch said to Tori. He picked up a strand of her hair and twirled it around his finger.
Josh shifted to put his arm around Paige.
“Well,” Tori said, her eyes on Josh’s arm. “We’re starting a whole petting zoo and animal encounter as an offshoot of Boys of the Bayou.”
“We’re calling it Boys of the Bayou Gone Wild,” Josh said. He grinned. “Totally tongue-in-cheek since otters and alpacas aren’t very wild.”
Paige laughed. “I love it.” She looked at Tori. “That sounds like your kind of thing, for sure.”
“Yeah, otters and alpacas and goats and my pot-bellied pig and who knows what else.” Tori said with a smile. “But I’m not doing it. I mean, most of the petting zoo animals are mine and I’ll help out, but a friend of mine from vet school has joined me in my practice and Gone Wild will be his thing. And we still need someone to run that part of the business. Josh and Owen and Sawyer don’t have time. That’s where Mitch comes in.”
Paige looked at Mitch. He shook his head.
“I’m just building pens and things.”
“No you’re not. You’re going to be great managing it,” Tori said, pivoting on her chair to look at him more fully. “You’re going to do what Josh and Owen do on the boats.”
Mitch grinned and looked at his cousin. “I don’t know what you’re talkin’ about.”
Tori rolled her eyes. “Uh-huh.” She looked at Paige. “The Boys of the Bayou is a fantastic tour of the bayou with a lot of information and great experiences built in. They talk about the plants and animals of the bayou as well as the history and legends of the area. They make sure the tourists see alligators and other animals in the wild, and they take them to see some of the old cabins and talk about the people who settled the area. It’s a great tour. But…” She cast another affectionate glance at her fiancé.
“But?” Paige asked, looking from Josh to Tori.
“But the boys of the bayou are a huge draw. Josh and Owen and even Sawyer are a part of the fabulous reviews. They flirt. They talk hunting and fishing. They turn on the Southern charm and those drawls.”
Paige nodded, but she was looking at Mitch now. “I know exactly what you’re talking about.”
Tori laughed. “Yep. The women think they’re hot and charming when they’re teasing and flirting, and it’s really weird how often the guys end up shirtless and wet.”
“Hmm, that is really weird,” Paige said sarcastically to Josh.
He just grinned.
“And the men think they’re cool. They drive airboats and hunt alligators and all kinds of manly man stuff.” Tori rolled her eyes again, but she was still smiling.
Paige shook her head, fighting her own smile. “That does sound pretty cool.”
Josh nodded. “And then there’s how great we are with kids.” He looked at his fiancé. “Admit it. That makes your panties melt, Iowa.”
Tori
didn’t answer right away, but she didn’t deny it either.
Paige knew that guys interacting well with children were a lust button for a lot of women. A lot of her friends, for that matter.
“So you’re going to manage the petting zoo and otter encounter?” she asked Mitch. She wasn’t going to think about him with kids. That didn’t work with her. She had nieces and nephews. She liked kids fine, but she wasn’t ga-ga over babies or little kids, and her biological clock wasn’t even wound up not to mention ticking.
“No. I’m building the pens and enclosures,” he said again. He gave Tori a look.
She sighed. “You’d be so good.”
“You want me puttin’ up fences with my shirt off?” he asked, giving her a small smile. “I can do that.”
He should absolutely do that. And charge admission, for sure, Paige thought.
But she noted his smile seemed forced.
Interesting. He didn’t want to be more involved with the animal portion of the business? Why not?
“Well, at least that,” Tori teased. “You’d just be so good talking about the animals. You love them. And you’re as charming and sweet and funny as Josh and Owen.”
“Hey, now,” Josh said. But his tone was light.
Tori shot him a smile. “You know what I mean. All the charm you turn on for the tourists. Mitch can do that. I’m not talking about the you-and-me charm.”
The way she said charm made Paige’s eyes widen. It looked like the sweet, small-town farmgirl had been a little corrupted by the Louisiana boy who was now giving her hot looks over sweet, small-town muffins and coffee.
Paige glanced at Mitch. She understood that. She really did. She wanted to be a little corrupted herself.
“There’s no other charm like that, babe,” Josh said, his voice dropping low.
“Okay,” Paige said, squeezing Josh’s hand to remind him not to eye-fuck Tori across the table in the bakery.
Tori fanned her face and gave Josh a wink, but she said to Mitch, “And you love the otters. Admit it.”
“Otters are cute.” Mitch shrugged. “Everyone likes otters.”
Tori blew out a breath.
“I’ve got Fletcher and Zeke helping me,” Mitch said. “They can take care of the tourists.”
“His mom specifically told me we’re supposed to call him Ezekiel,” Tori said with a grin.
Mitch and Josh both laughed. Mitch looked at Paige. “Zeke’s one of my cousins. Fletcher too. But Zeke and Zander are twins. Their mom hates that we shorten Ezekiel and Alexander.”
“But the family’s been doing it all their lives and they’re twenty-six,” Josh said. “You’d think she’d be used to it by now.”
Tori shook her head. “I think she was hoping that since I’m kind of new, she could at least get me to do it right.” She looked at Paige. “In the Landry family, the more something bugs you, the more likely it’s going to continue. You have to learn to roll with things on the bayou.”
Paige couldn’t deny she was fascinated.
The conversation about Mitch’s role with the tourists had gotten sidetracked. She was pretty sure he’d intended that, but the whole topic seemed to be an ongoing discussion. Paige wanted to ask him more about it later. Then realized that it was none of her business what Mitch did with his job and his family’s business. If he didn’t want to do more, that was his choice. She didn’t know what that was about and it didn’t matter.
Paige opened her mouth to ask a question when suddenly there was a murmuring in the crowd and the sound of chairs scraping and people started to pivot in the same direction.
Paige frowned and looked as well.
“I know we haven’t known each other very long, but I’m absolutely crazy about you.”
Elliot, one of the programmers who worked for Aiden, Grant, Cam, and Oliver, the guys who had bought the Hot Cakes factory, was standing in front of the bakery case. He was facing his boyfriend, Max, one of the factory workers, who everyone in town adored.
Max’s eyes were wide and his mouth was hanging open.
“When I bid on you at the bachelor auction, I knew we were going to have fun,” Elliot said. “But I had no idea what I was actually winning.” He dropped to one knee in front of Max. “A chance at everything I’ve always wanted.” He was holding a red velvet cupcake in one hand and a gold band in the other. “Max, will you marry me?”
The entire bakery sucked in a breath all at once and not a single person moved.
Including Max.
He just stood staring down at his boyfriend.
Paige felt herself leaning forward. Holy shit, was Max going to turn him down in front of everyone?
But Elliot didn’t look nervous. He just waited.
Finally Jane coughed from behind the counter. Her cough sounded like, “Max.”
Max shook his head. “Elliot.”
Elliot just kept the ring extended.
“Fuck, yes,” Max said, shaking his head slowly. “Damn.”
Elliot gave him a huge smile and got to his feet.
The big, burly man grabbed Elliot and pulled him into his arms, hugging him tightly.
The whole bakery cheered, and Jane came rushing around the bakery case to throw her arms around both men.
Paige tried to swallow and found that her throat was tight. She blinked fast. What the hell? Were her eyes a little watery?
She sat back in her chair and glanced over at Mitch. He was watching her with a smile. She rolled her eyes at him. He laughed.
“Oh my gosh!” Tori said, then gave a happy sigh. “That was amazing. Do you know them?” she asked Paige.
“I know Max,” Paige said. “Elliot is from Chicago. They just met this past summer.”
“When you know, you know,” Mitch said simply.
She frowned at him. “Watch yourself, Bayou.”
Josh laughed at that. “He can’t help it. He’s a Landry.”
“What’s that mean?” Paige asked, not sure she really wanted to know.
“The Landrys have a long, proud history of big romance,” Josh said, almost smugly.
Paige groaned.
Josh chuckled. “That’s a bad thing?
“Don’t scare her off before I get her down there and can seduce her with beignets,” Mitch said.
“Romance scares you off?” Tori asked.
Paige glanced over to where Max and Elliot were accepting congratulations and she couldn’t help but smile.
“I’m not sure scared is the right word,” she admitted.
“That’s my girl,” Mitch said gruffly from across the table.
“Maybe you just haven’t—” Tori started but she gave a little, “Eek,” and then pressed her lips together.
Paige assumed Mitch had pinched her or something.
Well, good. At least he was getting the message not to talk about it all the damned time, no matter how he felt.
“Paige is gonna be my 'plus one' at your wedding,” Mitch told Tori, his eyes on Paige.
She should say no.
If she went to Louisiana she might not make it to Colorado.
“Oh yes,” Tori exclaimed, her eyes bright. “I was going to invite you anyway. Please come. Mitch will make sure you have fun.” Then she giggled. “I didn’t mean it like that but…”
“Okay, Tor,” Mitch said with a grin. “Paige knows what you meant.”
Paige didn’t care what Tori meant. She was concerned about what Mitch meant.
“It will be a ton of fun. You’ll love Autre and everyone,” Josh said. “Please come.”
Everyone. She was going to meet everyone.
The big, romantic everyone.
Ugh.
Paige looked back and forth between Tori and Josh. They were such nice people. Then she looked at Mitch. Then over at Max and Elliot and then at Kelsey who was standing with Josie and Grant and Zoe and Aiden wearing her new heart necklace.
Everyone was freaking in love.
There was romanc
e and wedding stuff everywhere she looked.
She blew out a breath. Escaping sounded great, but escaping by going to a wedding in another little town with a whole bunch of people who loved love seemed like kind of the opposite thing she should do.
But then she looked at Mitch.
She wasn’t ready to say goodbye to him yet.
Crap.
She felt herself nodding. “Yeah, okay, I’ll come to the wedding.”
Mitch’s smile was definitely pleased. But also a little knowing.
She was going to have to limit the texting and calls between now and the wedding. She didn’t want him to get the idea that they were dating or had a serious relationship going into that romantic weekend.
And she was only staying for a couple of days. Tops.
Twenty minutes later, they were wandering through the town square, stopping at every single booth.
They sampled hot cider—that was very hot thanks to the electricity flowing into the booth—and caramel apples and mini apple pies from Buttered Up and apple cookies and applesauce and even apple wine. It was all homemade and, frankly, delicious.
Most people claimed they wouldn’t touch another apple recipe for weeks after leaving the square but that never ended up being true.
They also checked out the craft stations where you could paint with apple cores and get a temporary apple tattoo along with the booths where people were selling everything from wooden apples to ceramic apples to towels embroidered with apples.
“Wow,” Mitch said when they were through the square and on their way to the yoga studio so Tori could take a look at the cats. “I mean, when you people adopt a theme, you go all in.”
Paige laughed. “For sure.”
“Oh, you bayou boys can’t talk,” Tori said. “There are alligators on everything in Autre.”
“The bayou is a way of life,” Josh told her. “We have to celebrate it.”
Mitch nodded his agreement.
After Tori checked over all the cats, which took a while considering all the ooh-ing and ahh-ing and cuddling that went on while she examined them, Mitch finally got to his feet.
“Guess we’re heading out,” he said.
Oh, Fudge: Hot Cakes Book Five Page 13