The House on Prytania (Royal Street #2)(27)
Author: Karen White

 

“So you and your husband aren’t planning on living here?” Honey asked with a sweet smile.

 

Beau and I stared at each other in mutual horror. “No,” we said in unison, shaking our heads.

 

“I mean, we’re not together,” I explained. “And definitely not husband and wife.”

 

“Such a shame. Y’all make such a cute couple.”

 

“No, we don’t,” I said at the same time Beau said, “Don’t give her any ideas.”

 

I glared at him, but he was distracted by his phone vibrating. While he stepped back to respond, Honey said, “If it’s all right, we’re going to take one last look and then be on our way. It’s time to say good-bye.”

 

“What she means to say is that we’re also hoping that Zeus will finally talk to us. He was the only witness to what happened.”

 

“Let us know,” I said, wondering what sort of bad juju the family had been given for such a tragedy to occur with only a mute parrot as witness. Sort of like being put on a diet and living in New Orleans. Or being a recovering alcoholic. Although this last had been self-imposed, so I had no one else to blame.

 

With the small cage held high to give the bird the best vantage point, the two women headed toward the dining room. Beau slid his phone into his back pocket. “Let’s go out onto the porch. I don’t want the women to hear us talking about what we’re going to be gutting, so we’ll wait until they leave before we do our walk-through. Sunny will be here by then, so we can do it together.”

 

“Sunny?”

 

“Yeah.” He opened the front door and led me outside to the porch steps. We sat at the top, both of us making sure there was enough room between us so that our shoulders wouldn’t touch. “That was Sunny texting me. She heard Mimi and me talking about this project and she thought it would be a great way to get her feet wet and see what JR Properties is all about. She’s eager to learn, and I think she could be a big asset to our team. Besides, she’s got skin in the game. Her name is the company.”

 

“Our team? I haven’t said yes yet.”

 

He gave me that grin—the one I was beginning to suspect he knew had an effect on me. “Was there ever any question? It’s a win-win for both of us. You get more experience, and the company gets more exposure.” His expression sobered. “It’s especially important now, when companies like the Sabatier Group just want to tear down and build new because it’s easier and quicker. Some are companies led by people who aren’t from here but after Katrina saw land-grab opportunities. But others, like Sabatier, are native New Orleanians and have no excuse for erasing our heritage and collective history one building at a time. The bigger JR Properties becomes, the more assets we’ll have to devote to renovation and rebuilding.” He grinned at me again, and I had to look away. “And, as you’ve reminded me numerous times, you’re smart. You graduated number one in your grad school class, so at least you look good on paper. All you need now is more hands-on stuff. So you don’t do things like tile yourself into a corner.”

 

“Seriously?” I stood. “You need to work on your sales pitch, Beau. That was the most backhanded compliment I think I’ve ever heard. Just ask Thibaut and Jorge—nobody can reglaze a window better than me. Or strip years of paint and varnish from wood. I wasn’t good at any of that until I started working with them, and I’ve learned because they’re patient teachers. They never once laughed at one of my mistakes.”

 

Planning to make my grand exit, I took a step down before I realized that we’d come in Beau’s truck and he had the keys. I groaned in frustration, but at least I restrained myself from stamping my foot. “Ask them,” I said. “I am more than qualified to lead this project. And I definitely look better than just on paper.”

 

He stood slowly, his face serious. “Believe me, I’ve noticed.”

 

The front door opened and Honey poked out her head. “Mr. Ryan? Joan and I realize that a building inspection is required before any transaction can be completed, but just in case this is a problem, we thought we might mention this now.”

 

Beau turned his back to me and I saw his shoulder muscles tense through his shirt. “What problem?”

 

“Well, we don’t know if it actually is a problem. There appears to be water on the floor in the rear bedroom, but there’s nothing on the ceiling and we can’t figure out the source. We thought you might come look at it. We’d hate for there to be a water problem somewhere and all the furnishings ruined.”

 

I bit my lip so I wouldn’t make an inappropriate comment about how the furniture was beyond ruining, and water, or perhaps a gas can and a match, might be a good thing.

 

Beau’s muscles remained tense as he nodded. “Sure. I’ll go look.” Turning back to me, he said, “Wait here for Sunny, and you can give her a rundown of the history of the house and any ideas you might have for the renovation.”

 

I opened my mouth to argue, but he’d already followed Honey back inside. A cool breeze swept through the porch, making the palm fronds in the small front garden rustle. An errant leaf dislodged itself from the gnarled live oak near the street, and it swirled in an erratic pattern until it reached the porch, rocking back and forth like a feather before settling at my feet. I bent to pick it up, stopping midway. Next to the fallen leaf sat two puddles of water, perfectly formed in the shape of a woman’s feet.

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER 10

 

 

I sat in the backseat on the drive home, Sunny up front with Beau. I wanted to ask Beau about the puddles of water found in the house and the footprints on the porch, but knew he’d be as forthcoming on those topics as I’d be about my thoughts on what he’d meant by Believe me, I’ve noticed. I was fairly confident that he hadn’t been referring to my brilliant intellect and proficiency in historic preservation.

 

As I climbed out of the backseat, Sunny rolled down her window. “I’m so excited to be working together.” She winked, so I wasn’t sure if she was talking about the Esplanade project or our side game of saving Beau from himself.

 

“Me, too,” I said. I didn’t move away from the truck, a stray thought plucking at my brain. “Just a quick question—when you were at the house today, did you smell or see anything unusual?”

 

“Besides those two women with the bird in the cage?” She giggled. “No. Why? Should I have?”

 

“No reason. Beau and I thought we smelled a woman’s perfume—that’s all.”