Authors: Julie Ortolon
Chapter 17
“Oh my God, you didn’t tell me I needed to bring a dish,” Chloe said when she saw the huge crowd gathered behind the old farm house. A line of men moved past her and Luc, carrying ice chests from the cars, trucks, and SUVs parked out front to the people working at the largest of several picnic tables. Children and dogs chased and played on a lawn that sloped past a large barn to the shore of the bayou. Beyond the tall cypress trees dripping Spanish moss, blue sky reflected off the still water.
“Don’t worry,” Luc assured her. “There’ll be plenty to eat, believe me.”
“It’s not about having enough food,” she told him, horrified that she hadn’t thought of this. DeeDee would dress her down royally for such a social faux pas. “I should have known to bring something.”
“It’s fine.” He frowned as if he thought she was being silly in an adorable sort of way. “No one will even notice.”
She glared at him. “They’ll notice, trust me.”
“This really is your first
cochon de lait
, isn’t it?” His expression grew more amused. “All you need to do is relax, have a good time, and let the men do the cooking.”
“Really?” She took in the scene again and noticed the group of people working at a makeshift table near a butane-fired crawfish boiler were all men. Several yards away, another group of men were tending a fire pit made out of cinder blocks where smoke curled around the suckling pig sandwiched between metal grates. The women were either playing with the children, flirting with the men, or visiting around a long picnic table. Except, all those ice chests had to be holding side dishes people had made at home. “I still think I should have brought something.”
“Luc!” one of the women seated at a table called and waved.
“Hey, Ma.” Luc waved back.
“That’s your mother?” Chloe asked, jolted by the thought. “Is your grandmother going to be here, too?”
“Of course,” Luc said, looking confused. Then understanding dawned on his face. “There’s nothing to worry about. She’s not going to ask you about the necklace at something like this.”
“Then she knows who I am?” Chloe worried her lower lip. Yesterday, his grandmother hadn’t recognized her, but the minute he introduced Chloe and said her name, the woman would know.
“It’ll be fine,” Luc assured her as his mother hurried toward them. She looked like a blond gypsy in a multi-tiered skirt and a loose, sleeveless shirt tied at her waist. Several other people glanced over, and Chloe saw more than one eyebrow rise with interest when they saw Luc had brought a guest. A female guest.
She didn’t see Luc’s grandmother among the crowd, however, and wondered where she was.
“You made it,” Luc’s mother said as she reached them, a little out of breath from hurrying up the hill. She reminded Chloe a bit of Aurora with her long curly hair and a love for life that shone on her pretty face.
“Of course I made it,” Luc said, hugging his mother with easy affection.
“There is no ‘of course’ with you,” she scolded good-naturedly. “I know how absentminded you get when you’re playing with your game.”
“You mean that thing that’s my livelihood?” he countered.
“Yes, that.” Luc’s mother turned to Chloe. Undisguised curiosity lit eyes that matched Luc’s in color but had a more exotic tilt. “Hello, I’m Lynnette, Luc’s mother.”
“Pleased to meet you.” Chloe extended her hand. “I’m Chloe. I hope it’s okay that I came,” she added, suddenly wondering if Luc had mentioned to anyone that he’d be bringing a guest. God, was she empty handed
and
uninvited?
“Are you kidding?” Lynnette pulled Chloe into an exuberant hug that caught Chloe off guard. “Any woman who can pull my son’s nose away from his computer is welcome. Besides, what’s one more in a crowd this size.” Lynnette gestured to encompass everyone. “Come on, let me introduce you around.”
As the three of them started down the hill, Chloe eyed the men chopping corn and potatoes for the crawfish boil. “Is there something I can do to help?”
“Oh, I’m sure the men have it under control,” Lynnette said.
“Actually, I enjoy cooking.” The thought of having something to do helped settle her nerves. “I mean, if it’s okay for me to help.”
“I don’t know.” Lynnette looked worried. “My uncles are really particular about their cooking.”
“Chloe happens to be trained by a chef,” Luc said. “I think she can handle chopping some vegetables. That way, she and I can hang together.”
“Oh, no.” Lynnette shook her head, feigning horror. “Otis already said you aren’t allowed anywhere near the cooking this year. He still hasn’t forgiven you for screwing up his gumbo.”
“That was three years ago,” Luc argued.
“Still, if you value your fingers, I think you need to stay away from the cook table. Why don’t you go help with the ice cream?”
“Cranking ice cream is the kids’ job.”
“Then you can supervise,” Lynnette suggested.
“I don’t want to crank ice cream,” Luc complained. “I’ll help with the pig.”
“You really want to get in the way when Charlie’s running the Cajun microwave?” Lynnette cocked her thumb toward the fire pit. Turning to Chloe, she sighed. “Honestly, it’s beyond me. My son is smart as can be when it comes to that computer stuff, but the sad truth is, he can’t cook.”
“Ma, please,” Luc said, his tone asking her to not unman him in front of Chloe. “I’m standing right here.”
“When you should be helping with the ice cream. Now go on, so I can introduce Chloe around.”
“Has it occurred to you that maybe I’d like to introduce Chloe around?”
“Don’t be silly.” Lynnette frowned at him. “You heard Chloe say she wanted to help with the cooking. If you’re standing next to her, her chances of Otis saying yes are about as slim as a mouse’s in a rattler den.” Lynnette patted Luc’s arm. “You go crank ice cream.”
Chloe stifled a laugh at Luc’s petulant expression. Oh, how humbling for the supreme ruler of the universe to be relegated to cranking ice cream. She started to say she didn’t care about cooking, even though she’d love the chance to learn how to do a crawfish boil from a master, but Luc’s mother looped her arm around Chloe’s elbow to lead her away.
“Come on,” Lynnette said. “I’ll introduce you to Otis.”
Luc stood where he was, flabbergasted, as his mother escorted Chloe into the hive of activity, introducing her to half the parish as they made their way to the cooking area. They all greeted her as if she were a long lost member of the family. Even so, he’d wanted to stay by her side and shield her from some of his coarser cousins. Why in the world had he suggested a
cochon de lait
as a way for her to get to know him?
The only thing she’d learn today was that his family still treated him like a dweeb.
Chloe looked a little nervous as she approached the food prep table. Otis gave her a dubious scowl. If his great uncle rebuffed her, Luc was going to swoop in and pull Chloe out of there, no matter what his mother said. Instead, Otis made a gesture, inviting her to show him her skills. Clearly thrilled, Chloe took up a knife and started chopping. Otis grudgingly nodded approval, and went back to his own work. Chloe glanced over to where Luc still stood. Even with the stretch of lawn and crowd between them, she looked straight into his eyes and gave him a beaming smile that said
thank you for bringing me.
That look hit him squarely in the chest, obliterating all doubt. He was glad he’d brought her, and hopeful this would be the first of many experiences they’d share.
“Hey, son,” came a deep voice as someone slapped him on the back.
Startled out of his thoughts, he turned and exchanged a one-armed hug with his father. “Hey, Dad.”
“You brought a date to meet the family?” Mason Renard raised a brow. While Mason’s blond hair had grayed a bit, he still wore it shoulder length. Other than that, he showed few signs of aging. His black shirt covered his still-fit body and leather cuffs protected his wrists.
“Yeah, I guess I did.”
Luc exhaled as the magnitude of that hit him. He hadn’t even thought of it in those terms.
“It’s a little early for beer, so how about I grab us some sodas while you tell me about your girlfriend.” His dad led the way to a washtub filled with ice, soft drinks, bottles of wine, and beer. “What’s her name?”
“Chloe Davis,” Luc answered as he accepted a bottle of cola dripping with icy water. Unlike his grandmother, his parents wouldn’t have any clue about Chloe’s connection to the necklace. Nor did they know he’d once had a crush on her. Only Mémère with her uncanny ability to see inside his head had known about that.
“Is it serious?” His dad took a pull off his own soft drink.
“Dad…” Luc laughed self-consciously. He wanted it to be serious, but did Chloe? “We’ve only been out a few times.”
“Sometimes that’s all it takes. Your ma and I knew by the end of our first date,” his dad told him.
“Yeah, I know.” Luc had heard the story many times, but he’d never expected to find that kind of connection with someone. He’d found it with Chloe, though.
Glancing over, he saw her talking with Otis. The cantankerous old man was actually letting her add vegetables to the pot. Luc’s chest swelled with some emotion he couldn’t quite define. He frowned trying to figure out: Was it pride? Admiration? Or was it love?
“Don’t look so worried,” his father said. “If she’s interested in you, meeting your Cajun cousins won’t scare her off. I just hope she isn’t as freaked out as I was the first time Lynnette brought me out here.”
“Why were you freaked out?” Luc couldn’t imagine his father as anything but confident.
“Are you kidding? Your ma and I had been dating for months before she got up the nerve to introduce me to the family. I thought she didn’t want to hear what they’d say about her getting hooked up with a Texan who prefers beef barbecue to shrimp gumbo. Turns out, she was worried about what I’d think of them.”
“I can relate,” Luc said. “So, what did you think of them?”
“Once I got over being terrified they’d talk her into dumping me, I fell in love with these people.” Mason surveyed the crowd with a look of affection that turned to chagrin. “It took a little longer for them to accept me.”
“They didn’t accept a blues player?” That startled Luc.
“Not one who hails from west of the Sabine River,” Mason told him. “When Otis found out Lynnette was going to marry a Texan, he blamed your grandmother for marrying outside of the bayou and raising her daughter in the city. Having Lynnette make the same decision didn’t set well at first.”
“Having a weirdo like me for a son probably didn’t help,” Luc said wryly.
“What do you mean?” His dad looked confused.
“C’mon, Dad. We both know I never did fit in here, and never will. For that matter, I never fit in with your crowd in New Orleans, either.”
“Son, you’re not making any sense.”
“It’s not important.” Luc sighed. “I’m an adult now, and I’ve found my place where I fit in. It’s not like I ever doubted that you loved me, despite the fact that I was a geek and you were cool.”
His dad stared at him as if dumbfounded.
Luc sighed. “Look, maybe I should go help with the ice cream.”
“No, wait.” His dad put a hand on his arm to stop him. “You’ve got it all wrong. Your mother and I never thought of you that way. To tell you the truth, we always wondered how two such average people could produce such an extraordinary son. You amazed us. You still do.”
Luc felt as if his world had just tipped on its axis. He parents hadn’t been disappointed they’d produced a geek? He’d always assumed they’d loved him in spite of how he was.
Apparently reading his expression, his dad shook his head.
“Come here.” Mason jerked him into a hard hug. “Don’t you know how proud we are of you? We’ve always been proud.”
“Well, I knew that.” Luc assured him, returning the hug. When his father pulled back to hold Luc at arm’s length, the absolute wonder shining on his face made Luc’s eyes sting. He glanced nervously about at the crowd. “Jeez, Dad, you’re going to have me all choked up.”
“I don’t give a shit what they think.” Mason sniffed unashamedly. “And neither should you.”
“Yeah, but you’re a bad-ass blues player.”
“And you’re a bad-ass gaming tycoon.” His dad slapped his arm. “Wear it proud, son. Wear it proud.”
Luc just stared.
“Speaking of music,” Mason said, “I need to go help the band set up in the barn. Be sure and bring your girl by to meet me before the music begins.”
“Will do.” Luc nodded absently as his father headed toward the barn. Wear his geekiness with pride? Chloe’s words from the night of their dinner date came back to him. She’d been so impressed that he’d made something of his life doing something he felt passionate about. They were right. He should be proud, damn it. He
was
proud.
Suddenly, the possibility of Chloe falling for a guy like him no longer felt like an impossible dream.