And sometimes, maybe a bit too invested in my personal life.
She waved a hand through the air, dismissing my comment about her accent. "You're avoiding my question, sweetheart. What is it about this guy that has you all tied up in knots?"
"I'm not tied up in knots." Not that the idea wasn't an intriguing one. I filed that thought away for later. "I just enjoy spending time with him. We're having fun."
"Every spare minute?"
"Not every minute."
"No?" Jacqui waved a hand in my direction, sweeping it from the top of my head to the bottoms of my boots. "Then why are you back here putting on fresh makeup and doing your hair?"
I tossed the small bag into the tiny cubby that held everything I kept at the boutique, more out of a need to avoid Jacqui's shrewd gaze than a desire for neatness. "We're meeting for dinner."
"Dinner. Again. Weren't you just with him earlier today?"
"Yes, but that doesn't mean—"
"Every spare minute. Hm-mmm."
"It's not like that. We're just having fun, nothing more."
"As long as you're sure that's all it is, Addy."
"Of course it is. What else would it be?"
A shadow flashed in the clear hazel eyes studying me then quickly disappeared with a blink. She leaned back and sighed. "I'm just worried about you. It's not like you to become so involved with someone so quickly."
"We're not involved. Not like that."
"Yet you're getting ready to run off to meet him. Again." She patted the tattered cushion of the lounge then slid over to make room for me. "Come. Sit. Tell me about him."
I hesitated. Not because I didn't want to tell her about Nathan, but because I was worried that maybe I'd say too much. Or maybe I was more worried that Jacqui would take anything I said and twist it to use as evidence that she was right about me spending too much time with him.
The lounge creaked as I sat down and shifted, trying to find a comfortable position on the lumpy cushion. I leaned back and crossed my own legs, deliberately mimicking Jacqui's position.
"What do you want to know?"
"Considering I only know his name, cher, anything."
"Well." I tilted my head to the side, trying to decide where to start. "He moved here two months ago. He lives in those new apartments on Iberville. He's tall—"
"Everyone is tall compared to you."
"Maybe, but he's still tall. Probably an inch or two taller than you without your heels."
"So a little over six feet—which really isn't so tall for a man." Jacqui shrugged then tossed her hair over her shoulder and nodded for me to continue.
"He has dark hair that's a little on the longer side. Gorgeous deep blue eyes. He has the most adorable little scar at the corner of his mouth that makes him look like he's trying to hide a grin and—"
"Yes, he's attractive. I understand all that. I don't want to know what he looks like, I want to know about him."
"What about him?"
"Does he have a last name? Why did he move to New Orleans? What does he do for a living?"
I shook my head, wondering if the sudden frown on my face was as deep as it felt. "I don't know. We've never talked about any of that."
"You don't even know what he does for a living?"
"No. Why would I? It's none of my business."
"How do you know he's not involved in something illegal?"
"Because he's not."
"And how would you know?"
"I just do. Nathan's not like that."
Jacqui snorted, the deep sound completely at odds with everything else about her. "Don't be so naive, cher. Not everyone is as honest or as innocent as they claim."
I had the sudden feeling that she was talking about something completely different, something from her previous life, but I didn't ask. Jacqui had her secrets—some I knew, some I didn't. Whatever secrets she wanted to keep was her business and if she wanted me to know them, she would have told me already.
"There's nothing wrong with Nathan and he's not like that." I straightened as a sudden idea popped into my head and I rushed to get it out before I could think better of it and change my mind. "You should come with me this evening. You could meet him and see for yourself."
"Meet him? Me?" Jacqui's hazel eyes rounded with surprise. A half-second later, her laughter filled the small room. "Sweetheart, you don't introduce a no-strings fling to your friends."
"Why not?"
"Because that moves it from no-strings to something a bit more personal. Something like a relationship."
I dismissed her concern with a wave of my hand. "I told you, we're just having fun. That's all."
"It sounds to me like it's more than that."
"It's not." And it wasn't. Nathan and I were just having fun, enjoying ourselves with no expectations. It could end tomorrow or next week or next month. I wasn't looking for anything more than that and I was pretty sure Nathan felt the same way. Bringing Jacqui along and introducing her didn't change any of that and I told her so.
She watched me for a long minute before a slow smile spread across her face. It wasn't a real smile, more like a sly smirk and the sight made me scoot back an inch or two. "Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Because I'm tempted to take you up on the offer just to see how fast I scare him off."
"Why would you scare him off?" Jacqui's answer was nothing more than a silent quirk of one brow. I rolled my eyes and quickly dismissed her unspoken assumption. "You won't scare him off."
"You're so sure of that."
"I am. And if you do..." Well, if she did, then whatever fun Nathan and I were having would come to an end. It was as simple as that. "Come with me. Meet him. Then you can make up your own mind about him."
"And then what, cher? Are you going to take him home and introduce him to your father?"
"No! Of course not. Something tells me that Daddy would never approve of Nathan."
A knowing look settled in Jacqui's eyes. "Hmm. Is that why you're so interested in him? Because Daddy wouldn't approve?"
"My father doesn't approve of anything, you know that. Nothing is good enough for his little girl." Even though I was twenty-two. Even though my sister Marie was younger. In my daddy's eyes, I was still his little girl. And he was convinced that the only thing I needed for my eternal happiness was to find a nice doctor or lawyer and marry into a family as old and established as ours then start the cycle all over again with my own children. Never mind that I wanted something completely different. Maybe I didn't know what that was just yet, but I should at least have the chance to figure it out. I wasn't even given that though, and hadn't been since Daddy nixed the whole idea of design school and convinced me to pursue something else.
Jacqui tucked her foot back into the high stiletto and stood with a grace that inspired jealousy. She leaned down and offered her hand, helping me stand before smoothing the front of her tight blouse. "Fine, I'll go. I think meeting your Nathan might prove very interesting. Knowing your father wouldn't approve has already elevated him in my eyes."