La Fleur de Love: The Series: Books 1 - 4

by Leger, Lori

  “Don’t ruin this for me, Drake. Physical therapists very rarely get to have any kind of physical therapy performed on them.” She sighed. “You don’t realize how much of a treat this is.”

  “Okay, hon. I’ll leave you alone—just close your eyes and relax.” He continued the massage, working his way up her neck as he rubbed in soft, circular motions.

  Annie sat up and dropped her head forward as another low moan escaped from her. “Let me guess, you slept with a massage therapist and she taught you everything she knew.”

  Drake laughed. “Nope, but I know what feels good to me. The trick is to use just the right amount of pressure. If it’s too firm it’s painful, and if it’s not firm enough, it’s ineffective.”

  As soon as the words were out of his mouth Drake recognized the possibility of a double entendre. Annie did also, judging by the soft shaking of her shoulders. The circular motion of his hands slowed as he waited for her inevitable comeback. Stumped by her unexpected silence, he finally spoke. “Well hell, go ahead. I left it wide open for you.”

  “I think I’ll leave it alone, if it’s okay with you.”

  “Really? I didn’t think you had it in you.” He paused before continuing. “Shockingly, I’m disappointed.” He waited, wondering what she’d come up with, hoping she’d reconsider. Eventually, she did.

  “One man’s ineffectiveness is another man’s impotence.”

  “There it is! I knew you wouldn’t let me down this morning.”

  Martin chose that moment to enter the room. Annie put her hand down and made smooching noises. “Good morning, baby! How’s my fat boy this morning?” She stared, wide-eyed, as the feline walked past her to rub on Drake’s leg. “What the hell?”

  Drake beamed and halted the massage long enough to cuddle the huge cat, rubbing under his chin. “Hey buddy, did you sleep well?” Martin purred loudly as Annie watched, open mouthed.

  “How the hell did you do that?” she asked.

  “Do what?”

  “How’d you win over my cat so fast? He usually doesn’t take to strangers that quickly.”

  Drake raised the cat so that he was face to face with him and grinned. “We have an understanding, don’t we buddy? As well as a mutual interest in keeping you safe. Martin and Lewis have agreed to do their parts.”

  “And just what would those parts be?” Her voice thick with sarcasm.

  He shrugged. “I don’t know. Whatever they feel is necessary, I guess. The important thing is they understand that, as the three males in the household, it’s our duty to keep you safe.”

  Annie snorted and shook her head. “Are you done with the paper?”

  “I just glanced through the headlines.” He handed it over to her then watched, amused, as she turned straight to the colorful section of the Sunday comics. She spread it out on the table in front of her and began to scan the cartoon strips.

  After a few minutes of trying to avoid his attentive perusal, she turned on him. “What?”

  He shrugged. “I expected you to dive right into the headline news. I figured you were the type to be up to date on world politics and issues.”

  She shook out the paper and turned it to the next page. “Sorry to disappoint you. I’ve got enough on my plate. I only subscribe to the Sunday paper for the comics, the sales inserts, and the Entertainment section. You’re quite welcome to the rest of it.”

  “Can I have the Sports Section?”

  She turned to the back, pulled the section out, and handed it over to him.

  “Thanks.” The two of them sat there, each perusing his or her section of the paper while sipping their coffee and eating breakfast. Lewis woke up and began making various noises from his cage.

  “I’ll get your breakfast in a little bit, Lewis.” Annie spoke without looking up from her paper.

  Drake put the paper aside and stood. “I’m done here. Tell me what you normally give him for breakfast, and I’ll do it.

  By the time he’d prepared the various fruits and vegetables, Lewis had amped up the noise level. Drake hand fed Lewis and began to work with him. Within thirty minutes he’d taught Lewis to repeat “Drake” when asked, “Who’s the man?”

  Annie shook her head disgustedly. “You’re contaminating my bird. You know, when you leave this place, he’ll drive me crazy asking for you.”

  “Then I’ll have to come visit him often, won’t I?”

  She frowned. “That may not be an option.”

  He begged to differ, but kept it to himself. “So, what do you have planned for today?”

  “Actually, I had planned to go to my parent’s, but I guess that’s out of the question.”

  He looked at her curiously. “Why?”

  “I don’t want to get them involved in any of this.”

  “They don’t know what happened?”

  She shook her head. “If they do, it’s not by me. Dad would move me and my menagerie of pets back home in two hours flat.” She scowled at Drake’s laughter. “He’s been known to do things like that.”

  “Well, if you really wanted to go for a visit, I don’t have anything to do today. I could go with you.”

  “Now, why would I want to bring you along with me?”

  “Well, because then, you could let your parents know what’s going on while, at the same time, assure your father that your welfare is being seen to. We both know that’ll be his main concern. He may not be as worried if he knows I’m in your presence any time you’re not at your office.”

  Annie closed her eyes and rubbed the back of her neck. “You don’t know my dad very well.”

  Drake smiled at her. “I can be very persuasive when I want to be. Just give me a few minutes alone with him when we get there, and I promise he’ll be fine with it.”

  “You mean alone, as in you and I with him, right?”

  “Actually, I mean alone, as in just he and I.”

  Annie turned a suspicious eye toward him. “And why is that necessary?”

  He shrugged. “Just for a man to man talk; nothing for you to be worried about.”

  “Yeah.” Her tone was icy. “Why don’t you just come out and say it like they did two centuries ago, Drake? As in, ‘It’s nothing to worry your pretty little female head about. Just leave it up to the superior males of the species.’ It ain’t happening, big boy.”

  Drake repressed the grin he knew would just piss her off, and changed the subject. “So, how about it? You want to take a trip to see your folks today? It’ll do you some good to get out of this town for a while.”

  Her brow furrowed. “I normally go early enough to attend ten o’clock mass with them. What’ll you do for an hour?”

  He jerked back a little, surprised at her question. “I was baptized and confirmed in the Catholic church, Annie. Grant it, I haven’t been in a few years, but I hardly think the Vatican has changed the mass so much I won’t recognize it.”

  “I should have realized that, since Tiff is Catholic. I never connected you with religion. I guess I thought you were—just …”

  What?” He gave her a wicked grin. “A heathen?”

  Her reply was dry and unamused. “I was going to say non-religious, but heathen fits perfectly.”

  “I’m neither so if you’re up for parental visitation, it’s fine by me.”

  She thought about it for a moment then nodded. “Okay, let me call my mom and warn her.”

  “Your mom’s crazy about me, Annie. You don’t need to warn her.”

  Annie snorted with laughter. “If I showed up with an extra mouth to feed, and she doesn’t have enough prepared, she’ll be mortified.”

  “Why don’t we give her the day off? I could take you all out to a restaurant.”

  Annie waved off his suggestion as she picked up the phone. “That would be an even bigger insult to her, trust me.”

  They pulled into the St. Peter’s Catholic Church parking lot at nine-thirty. The two of them entered the quiet church, joining her parents who were al
ready seated in a pew.

  After sharing several quiet hugs and handshakes, Drake positioned himself next to Annie on the cushioned kneeler. He said a few prayers he remembered from childhood, threw in an extra thank you for helping him get to her on time New Year’s Eve then sat back in the cushioned pew.

  Annie removed a rosary from her pocket and remained kneeling next to her mother. He studied the two women, noting their similarities in build, mannerisms, profiles, even the way they held themselves.

  He caught Pete’s curious gaze on him and nodded as Annie’s dad cocked his head toward the side door. Drake rose from the pew and followed him outside, unlocking his truck so they could get out of the cold and speak in peace.

  Pete McAllister got settled in then turned to Drake. “Is there something we need to discuss?”

  “Yes sir, I think there is. Annie didn’t want you and her mother involved in this, but I think you have a right to know if your daughter has been threatened in any way.” He proceeded to tell him about the events of New Year’s Eve and how it had all turned out. “I can’t help but feel partly responsible because he’s still out there.”

  Pete placed his hand on Drake’s shoulder. “Don’t do that to yourself. She got those migraines from me and I know what it’s like. When you’re in the middle of a bad one, all you can think about is how to stop the pain. Mine finally stopped when I hit my mid-forties but it’s not something you forget. I’m thankful you were there. Have they identified her attacker?”

  “Yes sir, but it’s not much of a comfort.” Pete’s face turned progressively more ashen as Drake revealed more details.

  “Do the local police in Kenton know about this?”

  “The Kenton P.D. has been alerted, sir, just in case he comes snooping around.”

  “I’d feel a hell of a lot better if she were home with me and her mother.”

  “She doesn’t want to put any of her family at risk. I haven’t opened my new practice yet, so it’s easier for me to bend my schedule around Annie’s right now. I’ve moved in with her, sir.”

  Pete’s jaw popped ominously as he fixed him with a stern glare. “You’ve what?”

  “It’s just to make sure she’s safe. Red and I agreed it’s too risky to leave her alone right now. As I said, the local police have been notified, they don’t have the man power to camp out on her doorstep.” When Pete’s glare didn’t abate, Drake added to his statement. “Of course, I’m staying in the guest room.”

  Pete McAllister’s posture relaxed somewhat. “Next time, you might want to lead with the statement that won’t get you an ass-whipping. I don’t imagine my daughter was too thrilled with the idea of sharing her space.”

  Drake grinned. “No sir, she damned near accused me of having something to do with it just so I could situate myself in her home—just before she punched me in the gut.”

  Pete’s eyes sparkled with laughter. “You know, out of all eight of my children, she’s the one that’s tried the hardest not to be like her mother, but Lord Almighty if she isn’t her clone.”

  “I was just noticing the resemblances inside the church, Mr. Pete.”

  “Oh, it’s more than just looks, Drake. Vivi’s got a way of getting people to respect her, whether they want to or not.”

  “Annie’s tough, but she seems a little spoiled,” Drake admitted.

  Pete grunted. “You think so? Well, when you have babies of your own one day, I’ll remind you to raise them without spoiling them. Annie was the last of eight children and stayed longer than most, probably because we weren’t in a hurry to see the last one leave the nest. She was a good kid, too. Never gave us a moment of worrying, until some business with an old boyfriend.” He shook his head. “I have to admit, I worried about her for a while. It changed her.”

  Drake’s brow furrowed. “I’ve met T.J., you know.”

  Pete’s brow rose curiously. “Where?”

  “We met up with him at the mall yesterday. By the way, nobody’s called him T.J. in years, Mr. Pete. He’s Tom now.”

  Pete snorted like a bull seeing red. “He’ll be damned lucky if I don’t call him something worse. So what’s old Tom been up to?”

  He listened quietly as Drake explained T.J.’s reason for being in Lake Coburn. “So, he’s got a fiancée.” Adding under his breath, “Better someone else’s daughter than mine. Once somebody hurts my little girl like that, I don’t care to have him around. California is a good place for him.”

  “She didn’t want to talk about it, so I don’t know what went on. Is there anything you’d feel comfortable telling me about that time in her life?” .

  Pete’s gaze intensified. “That’s kind of personal, don’t you think? Is there any reason you feel I should do that?”

  “Yes sir, there is. There’s a very good reason, and it’s kind of personal, too.” He sent the older man a look, hoping to convey, without words, the message that his intentions toward Annie were honorable.

  Pete studied him long and hard before nodding slowly. “Will you keep my daughter safe until that animal is caught and behind bars?”

  Drake smiled. “For longer than that, once I convince her how crazy she is about me.”

  “I see.” Pete glanced at his watch. “We’d better be getting back inside now, or Vivi will be upset. Trust me, you don’t want Vivi upset with you. Despite what my wife would like people to believe, Annie didn’t get her temper entirely from me. She may be slow to fire up but she’s got a hell of a burn time, and a memory that never fades.”

  Drake followed him back inside to take their respective seats alongside the two women.

  The end of mass had everyone bottle necked at the exit an hour later.

  “Hello Annie, we meet again.”

  Drake and Annie turned simultaneously at the sound of T.J.’s voice. After hearing what Pete McAllister had to say about him, Drake found it difficult to hide his disdain for the man.

  Annie acknowledged him with a nod and a somewhat low-key “Hello, T.J.”

  Drake ignored him completely, instead studied the tall blonde beside him. The woman could have been any one of the women Drake had dated over the last several years—gorgeous, high maintenance, totally unremarkable, and nowhere near Annie’s caliber of natural beauty.

  T.J. gave Annie a grim smile and spoke in a disapproving tone. “It’s Tom now.” He turned toward the woman beside him. “I’d like to introduce you to someone, sweetheart. This is an old friend of mine from high school, Annie McAllister. Annie, this is my fiancée, Britt Holland.”

  Drake placed his hand at the small of Annie’s back, bristling as the busty blonde looked down her nose at Annie.

  “McAllister? Why does that name sound familiar to me?” Britt oozed, stiff-jawed and looking bored to tears.

  Annie’s spine stiffened to ram-rod straight under Drake’s hand. She must be every bit as annoyed with this bimbo as he was.

  “I’m sure I have no idea. I know we’ve never met before,” Annie said.

  “No. I’d have remembered meeting someone from this God forsaken place. I’ll bet there isn’t even an ATM here.”

  Annie stepped over to a woman who stared at the blonde with obvious disapproval. “Mrs. Pat, how are you?”

  “Annie, sweetie, I’m wonderful. How are you?” She embraced Annie in a warm, heartfelt hug and whispered just loud enough for Drake to hear, “My son’s a fool, and don’t think we don’t know it.” Pat smiled as her perusal extended to Drake. “And just who is this handsome young man?”

  T.J. spoke up. “He’s just Red’s new brother-in-law—his wife’s brother.”

  The woman turned on her son, sent him a glare that had him taking a step back from her. Seeming to be satisfied at his retreat, she turned back toward Drake and Annie again. “I’m Patricia Boudreaux—and you are?”

  Drake flashed the woman a brilliant smile, liking her instantly. “Drake LeBlanc, ma’am, and, although I am Red’s new brother-in-law, that’s not to say I couldn’t be somethi
ng else, as well.” He flashed a grin over in T.J.’s direction. “Things happen.” He gave him a sly wink.

  T.J.’s mom touched Drake’s arm gently. “It’s wonderful to meet you, Drake. I know you’re not from around here with that lovely Texas drawl.”

  “No, ma’am. I’m from Houston originally, but I just relocated to Lake Coburn to start my own law firm.”

  T.J. snorted. “You hate lawyers, don’t you, Annie?”

  Annie turned to her ex wearing a brilliant smile of her own. “Well, that was true enough eons ago, T.J., but that was before Drake. I guess I just needed the right lawyer to come along to change my opinion.” She finished by looping her arm around Drake’s.

  Drake never had been the sort of man to waste a golden opportunity, He pulled her in front of him and wrapped both arms around her, grabbing both her hands in his. He bent low to place an affectionate kiss on the side of her head. For whatever reason, Annie decided to play along by laying her head back against Drake’s chest.

  Patricia Boudreaux smiled. “Well you two certainly are the perfect couple, I must say.”

  Britt looped her arm through T.J.’s. “Actually, I think we’re the perfect couple.” She looked at her future motherin-law, her glare challenging.

  “Yes, you two are quite lovely also. But Annie has had a special place in my heart for years. She’s such a beautiful, polite young lady.” The woman was half a head shorter than Britt, but still stared her down, as though daring her to say another word.

  “Well, sweetheart, are you ready to go?” T.J. interjected. “We’re driving to Houston after church to catch a flight back to L.A.”

  “Have a nice flight.” Drake nodded as he turned Annie away and began to walk with her toward Vivienne and Pete, who’d apparently observed the scene from a distance.

  Their group had nearly escaped through the door before T.J. caught up with them.

  “Mr. Pete! Mrs. Vivienne! It’s been a long time, hasn’t it?”

  Pete stared at the outstretched hand with disgust before seeming to reconsider. Drake stifled his laughter as Pete took the man’s hand in a knee-buckling squeeze that had poor old Teej wincing.