One Hot Night: A New Orleans Nights Story

by Devlin, Delilah

  Winston had sat back in his chair, a small smile stretching his mouth. “Not such a waste of an education now, huh, John?” he’d said to her father.

  As for how things were going with Remy…? Well, tonight’s family dinner at the Cyr house would answer that question.

  Her stomach felt a little queasy as they opened the wrought iron gate that led into a lush yard with flowers bordering the fence and the walkway. “It’s so pretty,” she said. “But I wish I’d brought something. You should have let me stop to get a bottle of wine. I should have brought a hostess gift.” She’d planned to shop that morning, but Remy had a day off, and they’d spent too long in bed.

  “Mama’s not gonna care. There’ll be plenty. Stop worryin’.”

  As they approached the porch, an older blonde woman opened the front door. “Remy, bring your girl to me!”

  Stacia glanced sideways at Remy and blinked. His cheeks were reddening. Remy was blushing! She gave a little giggle and smiled over at the slender woman who held open her arms to her youngest son.

  “Thibaut and Amelie are already inside,” his mother said. “So’s your father. Leave me with Stacia, so we can get to know each other.”

  Stacia’s eyes widened, but she kept her smile in place while his mother kissed both of his cheeks then nodded toward the front door.

  When they were alone, his mother swept her hand toward the small seating area at the end of the porch. “Let’s get comfortable. Amelie’s watchin’ the dinner on the stove. Hope you like homemade gumbo.”

  “Love it, ma’am.”

  The older woman waved a hand. “Call me Nanette—until you want to call me Mama.”

  “Family calls me Stace,” Stacia said, feeling uncharacteristically timid.

  “Well, Stace, come sit.” She patted the swinging chair. “Remy’s been a little secretive about you,” she said before Stacia’s bottom met the wood seat.

  Stacia didn’t know what to make of that statement. “We’ve both been so busy since…what happened.”

  “Saw you two on the front page of the paper.” Nanette’s eyes sparkled. “Knew he was smitten the second I did.”

  “Smitten?” Not a word she’d heard in casual conversation—ever.

  “When Cyr men fall in love, they fall fast ’n’ hard, and they stay true. I met Remy’s father at a school dance, and it was love at first sight. Took Thibaut years to realize he’d never find another to replace Amelie in his heart. They’re gettin’ married in the fall.”

  “So I heard,” Stacia said, letting the woman lead the conversation, because she recognized a fellow southern woman’s tactics. Although Nanette’s words were slow and sweet, there was a point somewhere in all of this. She just hoped it wasn’t a sharp one.

  “I’d like to see Remy settled before you two bring babies into the world.”

  Stacia’s eyebrows rose. “Babies? Ma’am?” What the hell was she talking about? They’d only known each other for a little over a week, and they were “dating”—still getting to know each other. Talk of babies was a long way away.

  “I got pregnant with Thibaut when I was on the pill. Cyr sperms are little warriors. Just sayin’. In case Remy didn’t already warn you.”

  Remy had some kind of super sperm? Wait, her boyfriend’s mother was talking to her about sex! Stacia’s cheeks filled with heat. Had Remy told her he wasn’t using condoms?

  Nanette studied her expression, her gaze seeming to take in her entire appearance. Stacia was second-guessing the blue midi dress and espadrille sandals she’d selected. She should have worn armor.

  “I think you’ll do just fine in this family,” Nanette said softly then reached across and patted Stacia’s knee. “I read your story in the paper. How you saved both my boys by distracting those men bearing down on them.”

  “I’m sure they could have saved themselves, ma’am…Nanette. My point in the story was that I wasn’t thinking anything at all. I was scared to death. But I couldn’t sit by…”

  Nanette was smiling and nodding. “You love my boy. You couldn’t be a bystander when someone you cared about was about to be attacked. That makes you my hero, Stacia Rice.” Tears gleamed in the other woman’s eyes.

  When she stood, so did Stacia. Nanette held out her arms and embraced her, pulling her close to give her two kisses—one on each cheek. “Just had to get that out of my system, dear girl. Welcome to the family.”

  After that, Stacia was pretty sure she could climb Everest. She rode a high throughout dinner, smiling and chatting with Remy’s father and mother like they’d known each other for years. And they did know a lot of the same people, even if they had operated in different circles inside New Orleans society.

  “You have to go crabbin’ with me, Stace,” Remy’s father, Arnie, said.

  Amelie’s hazel-green eyes sparkled as she laughed. “I’ll come, too. I’ll handle the bait. It’s pretty smelly.”

  “Well, I’ve never been crabbing, but I’ll look forward to it,” she said, smiling at them both.

  Remy reached across her lap and enclosed one of her hands inside his. When she glanced sideways, he wore an expression she’d never seen.

  He leaned close to her ear. “They like you, baby. Be careful, or Mama will be makin’ weddin’ plans.”

  Warmth suffused her cheeks. Baby plans, too. “I like your family. They’re so…welcoming. Warm. Very different from mine.”

  “We’ll see. We’ll see.”

  Yes, they would. Her mother had sent along an invitation for Remy to join them the following Sunday. She both dreaded and looked forward to the occasion. She was sure her mother would be over the moon having a handsome policeman at her table. Her father…? He was likely to grill him over his politics and where he’d gone to school. Not that she had to worry about Remy’s answers. Not that she cared whether her father approved.

  She loved this man. There were no doubts lingering inside her that she was just feeling the aftereffects of a really intense experience. Like Keanu had said at the end of Speed.

  No, even though it had happened fast, almost instantly, she knew this was the real thing, and she couldn’t be happier that she’d found the one person who could put up with her and liked her smart mouth and stubborn streak. She was one lucky girl.

  After making love to Stacia, Remy lay beside her, reflecting on the fact he was the luckiest guy in New Orleans.

  “We should do a movie night,” she said, holding up their hands to stare at their interlaced fingers.

  “Have to warn you, I don’t have a lot of patience with chick flicks.”

  “That’s good. I don’t either. I’m talking Die Hard or Speed. Or even an Avengers movie.”

  “Really?” he said, reaching for a pillow and stuffing it under his head. Then he pulled her partway over his chest because he liked it when she rested her cheek over his heart. “You like action movies?”

  “I do,” she said, her head nodding against his skin. “I like cops and superheroes.”

  “Good thing,” he drawled.

  “A very good thing,” she said, chuckling.

  “I’ve got somethin’ to ask you. And you don’t have to say yes. Just think about it.”

  She raised her head and settled her chin on her folded hands. “Shoot.”

  “Will you be my plus one at Thibaut and Amelie’s weddin’?”

  She smiled. “I’d love to go. Why would you think I’d say no?”

  He shrugged. “We have a large family, when you include the aunts and uncles and cousins. You come with me, they’ll all be expectin’ another wedding soon.”

  Her eyebrows rose, and her mouth pursed before she said, “I think I can handle any veiled hints.”

  “Won’t be anything veiled about it, cher. They’ll be askin’ what your colors’ll be, whether you like roses or magnolias, whether you think you’d prefer a June weddin’ or somethin’ around Christmas…”

  “And what should I tell them?” she asked softly.

  Re
my locked his gaze with hers. “Tell them the sooner the better.”

  When her eyes gleamed with extra moisture, he worried she might cry, but she blinked, and then nodded. “Sounds like a reasonable answer.”

  “Good,” he said, taking a deep breath. “Because you’ll be needin’ this…when they ask…” He reached sideways into her bedside table and slid open the drawer. When he held up a small velvet box, her eyes widened. “When they ask to see your ring…”

  When she grabbed for it, he held it out of her reach. “If you hate it…”

  “I won’t,” she blurted. “Doesn’t have to be big or fancy. Doesn’t have to be a diamond.”

  “That’s good, because it’s not…a diamond.”

  When he handed her the box, she opened it…and immediately sighed. “An emerald! You bought me an emerald! I always wanted one for my engagement ring.”

  He already knew that. Her mother had told him.

  In fact, she’d insisted on accompanying him when he’d purchased it. Meeting her mother had answered a few questions he’d had about how Stacia had turned out the way she had. Her mother was as sharp as a tack, had assessed his bank account just by looking at him, and had steered him very gently toward a counter she knew he could afford. All without ever making him feel like he was beneath her. Not that he would have felt that way, but Stacia’s family was very well off. He was sure her father would impress that fact upon him when they finally met. Or so her mother had warned him.

  He hadn’t thought about a wedding ring until her mother had mentioned it when they talked about his and Stacia’s future. She’d been the one to say they should do a little recon to see what was “out there”—just a way for them to get to know each other. Before he’d realized what had happened, he was walking out of the jeweler’s shop with the box in his pocket.

  When he’d told her mother he thought it was too soon, she’d waved a hand and told him, “A man should be prepared for just the right moment.” And then she’d winked.

  The way she stared at the ring for so long, not saying a word, he knew it was too soon. Showing her the ring now had been a mistake. Was she hesitating because she didn’t know how to put the brakes on this?

  Stacia handed him back the box. “Would you?” she asked, holding out her left hand.

  With warmth spreading through his chest and certainty for their future steadying his hand, Remy removed the ring. Well, they were both insane. Just another clue they belonged together. “Will you marry me, Stacia Rice?”

  She rolled her eyes. “We’re already past that.”

  “I never asked you.”

  “You asked me to be your plus one. Your mama told me that if you did, you’d be marrying me.”

  He smiled at hearing that. Their mothers would get along famously.

  With all the love he had inside his heart, Remy slid the ring on her finger.

  * * *

  If you enjoyed One Hot Night, be sure to check out Thibaut’s story, New Orleans Nights.

  BRIAN

  A MONTANA BOUNTY HUNTERS STORY

  New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author

  Delilah Devlin

  Chapter 1

  Sweat trickled down the sides of Brian Cobb’s face. His helmet felt heavy on his head, his pack dragged on his shoulders, and his boots were so hot he was walking in pools of water. The transport vehicles his squad had been promised hadn’t arrived, so they were hoofing it back to camp with half a dozen prisoners chained in a line. Still, their plight was better than the infantry platoon’s they’d left a click back. Once they’d given the ISIS fighters into Military Police custody, they’d headed back to continue their sweep for insurgents hiding inside the village with the unpronounceable name.

  “Hey, Corncob,” Private First Class Benny Sanders said as he walked beside him.

  “You know I hate that nickname, Sanders,” Brian muttered.

  “Yeah, I do,” he said, his smile stretching across his dark face. Benny jerked his chin toward the slender figure striding ahead of the chained prisoners, her dog Tessa walking, unleashed by her side. “I see how you look at her. Are you and she…?”

  Brian gave Benny a glare. “No. We’re just friends.”

  “She have a boyfriend back in the States or something?”

  “No, not that it’s any of your business.”

  “Huh. Just thought since you two spend so much time together…”

  Brian shook his head. “We’re friends. We hang. That’s all.” Not that he would mind if their friendship grew into something more. He’d had a thing for Jamie Burke since they’d met during their first drill together back in Kalispell, for what felt like eons ago. Jamie was certainly easy on the eyes with her wheat-blonde hair, lightly tanned skin, and golden-brown eyes.

  However much he might have wished it otherwise, Jamie had assigned him to the “friend zone”—and because he valued their friendship, he’d never acted upon his attraction. Perhaps once they were back Stateside, he’d work up the courage to ask her out.

  He’d played a multitude of scenarios in his mind of how he’d go about doing it without blowing their friendship to hell should she shoot him down. Not one of them felt like the right fit. Sure, they had lots in common—they loved playing basketball and soccer, liked working out, liked animals, were both from western Montana…

  Well, maybe they didn’t have that much in common, but they could certainly build on what they shared now. Maybe he needed to figure out what she liked to do outside of the military, what her hobbies were, whether she liked to dance.

  He liked to dance. He could imagine asking her out for a beer, just buddies going for a drink together. The music would start up, and he’d hike an eyebrow. She’d give him a laugh and say something like, “If you don’t mind me stepping all over your toes,” and he’d lead her to the floor. Once he held her in his arms, maybe then she’d see him as someone she could consider as dating material…

  Ahead, Tessa gave a whine and moved away from Jamie, her nose going to the ground as she searched the trail they walked, moving from one side to the other.

  They’d left the village and were following a well-traveled trail that led through rocky hills. The area had been cleared of enemy combatants, so they’d been ordered to march the prisoners back. Still, the danger didn’t have to come from a sniper on a hilltop.

  Jamie held up her closed fist, and the squad drew to a halt. Brian looked to his left. “Benny, keep an eye out,” he said, indicating the hills behind them.

  The squad leader, Sergeant Milligan, strode up to Jamie. “What’s the holdup, Burke?”

  “Don’t know yet, Sarge,” she said. “Tessa hasn’t indicated yet.”

  Tessa moved ahead of the formation but lifted her nose from the trail and ran back to Jamie, her tail wagging.

  Tessa reached down to give her a pat. “Must have had a whiff of something, but I think we’re cool to move on.”

  However, Tessa gave another whine and sniffed the air. A moment later, she left Jamie’s side again, this time heading down the row of prisoners toward Brian, her nose to the ground, sniffing the trail then moving slightly off it to Brian’s right. She whined and moved closer to Brian.

  Brian glanced around him. Tessa was a trained bomb dog. An IED might be nearby. But where? The rocky outcropping beside him caught his eye.

  “Cobb!” Benny whispered.

  He turned to glance at Benny, whose eyes were large. He tilted his head toward a hillside in the distance. Brian didn’t glance at it directly. “You see something?”

  “A glint. Then some movement. Might be one tango.”

  Brian had a bad feeling. “Jamie, call your dog back,” he said, keeping his voice natural, “I think we’ve got company.”

  Sergeant Milligan began moving his way. Brian smiled and shook his head, trying to act like his heart wasn’t racing and his stomach hadn’t dropped to his boots. “Better keep back, Sarge,” he said, keeping his tone carefree. “I think there
’s an IED in the rocks beside me, and Benny spotted movement at your three o’clock.”

  The sergeant’s gaze betrayed his concern. “We have his buddies chained in a line. Maybe he actually gives a shit about them. How about you move forward, Cobb? Sanders,” he said, calling out to Benny, giving them both a strained smile. “You move, too. Get his friends between you and him. But move slow and natural. Don’t let him know we know he’s there.”

  Although every one of the squad members was now aware of the threat, they began to patter.

  “Man, I can’t wait to get back to my bunk. Mama sent brownies. Got a few left.”

  “No, you don’t, Packer. I snuck the last one when you were showering.”

  “Shithead, you better not have.”

  “Hey, Tessa,” Jamie called to her dog, indicating with a finger toward the ground that Tessa should move back to her side.

  The dog ran back, turned in a neat circle, and sat beside her feet. Jamie’s gaze went to Brian. Her eyes were wide with fear, and her gaze shifted toward the rocks as she said, “Brian, you and I have a rematch to play against Pike and Sherman. Better hurry your ass up.”

  Brian gave her a crooked grin, took a deep breath, and stepped out.

  A shot sounded, and Benny dropped to his knees, his head sagging toward his chest.

  Brian took another step, but sound exploded then went suddenly muffled. He felt something hammer against his lower body, felt searing pain, then he was flying, everything moving in slow motion, clumps of dirt and flares of fire, tumbling head over heels until he dropped with a sickening thud on the trail.

  He couldn’t hear voices, but he saw movement—Sergeant Milligan pointing toward the hill and signaling for two men to move out and engage with the sniper; Pike kneeling beside Benny, who still knelt on his knees, blood gurgling from his chest.