The House on Prytania (Royal Street #2)(6)
Author: Karen White

 

“Sorry,” I said, handing him the bottle of water that I’d left with my phone. “I thought you were ready. Are you all right?”

 

He pulled himself up and stood, rubbing the back of his head with his free hand. “I don’t think I damaged the floor, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

 

“Funny. Seriously, you could have a concussion. Are you dizzy? Feeling sleepy?” I recalled when Melanie had been pushed down a flight of stairs by an unhappy spirit and the doctor had forced her to stay on bed rest, but not before he’d made her stay awake for a period of time just to make sure she hadn’t suffered any brain damage. I picked up my phone, noticing that I had five unread texts, and turned on the flashlight. Standing on tiptoe to shine it in his eyes, I said, “Let me see your pupils.” I had no idea what I was looking for, but it seemed like something I should be doing.

 

He gently pushed my hand away, a grin forming in the corner of his mouth. “I’m sure they’re still there. I’m fine—I promise. I’ll probably have a nice knot on my head tomorrow, but that just means I’ll think of you stuck in the corner of your bathroom every time I comb my hair.”

 

I snatched the water from his hand. “I hope it gives you a headache each time.” I turned and walked out to the landing and began making my way down the stairs. “I trust you didn’t drop by to give me another driving lesson. I’m way too tired and annoyed right now.”

 

Since having a disastrous accident with lots of repercussions while still a student driver, I’d been determined to give up driving forever. Until my new job in New Orleans required me to get to places that were too far on foot or by bike, and too expensive to hire a rideshare. Beau had taken it upon himself to teach me, an effort that could only be called heroic—but not by me. His reassuring words had been that New Orleans wouldn’t even notice one more bad driver. And if I got a truck or a big enough car, like Jolene’s, it wouldn’t matter who was the worst as long as I was the biggest.

 

“No, actually. About other things. You left Sunny’s party pretty early, so I didn’t get the chance to talk with you.”

 

I stopped at the bottom of the stairs and glanced down at my phone in an attempt to buy time as I searched for a response. I was surprised to find that one of my texts was from Sam.

 

 

Meet 4 breakfast tomorrow? We should talk. Horns 7:30?

 

 

 

My thumbs hesitated for a moment as I wondered how she’d gotten my number. My phone vibrated as I held it.

 

 

Jolene gave me ur number.

 

 

 

“Great,” I said under my breath, my thumbs flying over my screen as I replied. I said yes because I had a strong feeling that she would keep asking until I did. It wasn’t that I didn’t like Sam. I didn’t know her well, but what I did know, I liked. We might even have been good friends if it weren’t for the fact that she was dating Beau. And it wasn’t as if I wanted to date Beau, either. It was just . . . well, I wasn’t sure. I knew only that Beau and I weren’t a good fit because of reasons I preferred not to analyze. It could be because I didn’t like being beholden to anybody. Or maybe it was because of what I’d overheard him telling his dead mother over the phone. I want her too much. She’s dangerous. I can’t afford to lose my focus. I can’t ever let that happen again.

 

 

Its important

 

 

 

“Is there a problem?” Beau said, indicating my phone.

 

I shook my head, then placed my phone in my back pocket. “No problem. Just . . . stuff.”

 

The pungent scent of pipe tobacco drifted past us, too heavy to ignore.

 

“We need to talk,” Beau said.

 

For someone who was attempting not to cause any drama while she focused on her new job and restored her Creole cottage, I had a lot of people who seemed eager to talk to me. “Okay,” I said slowly.

 

“Mimi wanted me to invite you and Jolene to dinner on Friday night to really meet Sunny. We figured you’d have questions. And we thought you might want to know each other better, considering we’ll all be working together at some point.”

 

“Sure. Just let me know the time and I’ll tell Jolene. Is that all?” A soft exhale came from behind me, enveloping us in a veil of pipe smoke.

 

His gaze drifted over my head before returning to my face. “Not quite. There are a couple more things we need to discuss.”

 

Knowing I didn’t really have a choice, and because I had no plans for the rest of the evening, I opened the front door to the only spot in the house containing chairs. As I stepped onto the porch, I heard two sets of footsteps following me outside into the cool, crisp air.

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER 3

 

 

I settled myself into one of the two worn lawn chairs I’d found beneath the overgrown foliage in the backyard. It creaked in protest when I sat, and I wondered how much longer it would last before someone fell through the frayed plastic onto the floorboards.

 

Beau carefully sat in the other chair, gingerly sliding back as if testing his weight. “You should probably go ahead and get porch furniture now. These chairs are gasping their last.”

 

I met his gaze, wondering if he was aware that he’d read my mind. Again. It was like our brain waves were always moving in tandem, sometimes separating around rocks in their path, then meeting up again. Looking away, I said, “Yeah, well, I guess I got what I paid for.” I wiggled back and forth, making the chair squeak like hungry mice. “Jolene is already shopping around for vendors who are willing to give us a huge discount in return for being featured on our Insta and YouTube pages. She’s got over two hundred thousand followers already, so she’s got a lot of clout.”

 

Beau nodded. “I’m not sure if they tune in to see Thibaut and Jorge’s acrobatic and juggling acts or just to hear what comes out of Jolene’s mouth next, but the combination is gold in terms of free promo.”

 

The deal I’d worked out with Beau’s company, JR Properties, was that he would act as my licensed contractor for my home restoration project in return for publicity. We’d hit the jackpot by putting Jolene, who already worked for Beau, in charge of the company’s social media. As a bonus for Jolene, Jaxson was acting as our photographer and videographer. It was a hobby for him, and he and Beau were childhood friends, so it made sense. Especially because it was easy on the budget, since he was doing it for free, and because nobody else could be hired to come to the house for any amount of money.