At this welcoming, Rainey managed to feel just a little lessembarrassed.
The older man stepped aside to let them descend the stairs, but he kept playing his song until Jacques led all of them to the kitchen. Then he ended the waltz with aflourish.
“Mais, bon matin et bienvenu, jolie,”he said, offering her hishand.
Rainey tookit.
“En anglais, Grandpere.Rainey doesn’t speak French,” Jacques said, wrapping an arm around hershoulders.
His grandfather’s twinkling eyes moved from hers to Jacques’s and back. “We might have to fix dat, but welcome all de same,cher.”His thick Cajun accent and warm greeting made her smile because he was exactly as Jacques had describedhim.
“Rainey, this is my grandfather, Albert Gilchrist.” He pronounced his grandfather’s first name with a French accent, and Rainey found it beautiful. “Pal, this is my girlfriend, RaineyReeves.”
At the wordgirlfriend,Rainey’s heart did a little tap dance. Then she remembered his words of love from the night before, and her four-chambered organ dancedSwanLake.
Don’t get carried away,she warned it.Remember where he’s headed.She took a calmingbreath.
“It’s so nice to meet you, Mr.Gilchrist.”
The old man’s eyes flew open, and he held her hand in a grip that belied his age.“Mais,can’t be callin’ me dat. I’m Albert, or Grandpere, or Pal, me, but we can’t be so formal if you de one T-Jacques set his cap fa.” Then he tugged her forward and leaned in as though he were confiding a secret, but his grumbly, old-man voice held the same volume. “He been pinin’ fa you a good, longwhile—”
“Okay, Pal,” Jacques interrupted, grabbing her wrist and freeing her hand from his grandfather’s hold. “I promised Rainey breakfast, and we’re bothstarved.”
He hadn’t promised her breakfast, but she didn’t mind the fib or the interruption. Pal’s declaration had left her speechless anyway. Archie, prancing with excitement and the pointed need to go outside gave her the perfectescape.
“I need to take Archie outside,” she begged off. “I’ll just beminute.”
Jacques led her through the house to the back yard and pressed a kiss to her cheek. “He likes you already. Just relax,” he said, wearing his lopsided grin. “I’ll get coffeestarted.”
And then he ducked back inside the house while Archie set off to explore the yard. Three minutes later when they returned inside, Jacques met them at the kitchendoor.
“Have a seat,” he said, steering her to the table before pulling out a chair. “Coffee’s on, and I started onbreakfast.”
Rainey hesitated before sitting. “I can help with that, Jacques,” sheprotested.
“No,cher,”Pal said, shaking his head. He set down his accordion and took the seat at the head of the table. “You let him show you he can put food on da table, yeah. A man dat’ll cook fa ya be one you can rest easymarryin’—”
“Pal,” Jacques scolded, his expression one of frustration mixed withhorror.
Rainey had to bite her lips not tolaugh.
Pal threw up his hands with startled innocence. “What wrong wit sayin’ dat? You t’ink nobody else was afta Lucille when we was courtin’? If she was alive taday, she’d tell you I was head an shouldas above da res cuz I knew how ta make ma own rice an gravy.” He speared Rainey with a mischievous grin. “And it was good rice an gravy,cher.”
Her laughter won out. How could it not? Rainey officially loved Jacques’sgrandfather.
At her mirth, Jacques’s look of horror eased, but he gave Pal a glower of warning before leaving them at the table and moving to thecounter.
“Pal, let’s try not to scare her off before she even has a cup of coffee, okay?” he said over hisshoulder.
“I’m not scarin’ nobody,” he said, grinning at Rainey. “‘Sides, I t’ink she’s tougha dan shelooks.”
“I knowthat,”Jacquesmuttered.
The words were so low Rainey almost missed them, but she hadn’t, and they sent a column of warmth down herchest.
“T-boy tole me y’all went on a mission, and ya didn’ have much luck,” Pal said, giving her a concerned frown. “He said ya sista has somethin’ likeleukemia.”
His sudden change in topic and his candor left her blinking, but Rainey managed to find her voice. “Y-yes. She has aplastic anemia, which…” She shrugged and nodded. “…has a lot in common withleukemia.”
