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“After I hung up from you, I sat on the porch with a cup of coffee and it came to me. Then like clockwork, Justin showed up on Spooky. I asked him to move in, and he agreed.”
“Of course he did. It was his idea in the first place. Are you going to be okay? I’m frankly a little concerned. That place is pretty small for two people, one who needs a lot of room.”
“Ha! Meaning me. I’m going to make the back part of the living room a space for his TV and computer. I’ll get a recliner for him and make it a real man cave. The guest room is going to become our quasi closet because the master is too small for all our stuff.”
“It looks like your leeching girlfriends straightened out their lives in the nick of time,” Katrina said, laughing.
“Aw, I never felt like you were a leech. You were just passing through. I miss your cooking.”
They arrived at Café Delphine. The few patrons were obviously tourists, still there after the carnival, enjoying the last minutes of a long weekend.
“That used to be us,” Maggie whispered. “Remember? Trying to cram as much fun as we could before we had to go back to hell for a week.”
“I hope I’m not still there,” Katrina confessed. She leaned in secretively. “I’m worried because Alphé and I only had sex once, and it was a quicky in the morning with his kids on the other side of the wall. Now he’s going to be with them around the clock. I don’t see how we’ll ever do it again.”
“Kat, listen up,” Maggie said, getting firm with her. “You’re buying a house. Make that place your love nest. His ex is going to see their kids, right? And two of them from the other dad might even want to visit with the new family, if I’m getting the story right. On the nights Lola has them, you’ll have sex.”
“You’re so rational.”
“I was married to Russ, remember? If I can rationalize my husband bringing his mistress on our honeymoon, I think I can figure out a way for you to have sex with Alphé.”
Laughing, Katrina grabbed her hand. “Thank you, sweetie. I was beginning to despair.”
The familiar sound of Alphé’s pickup got her attention, and she looked out the window just as he drove by, going from the direction of the marina to his house.
“There he goes. It was a big deal for him not to fish today.”
“He’s a real fisherman,” Maggie said gently.
“I think I’m glad I have to travel this week. It will give him a chance to get his routine down without my interference.” Her phone beeped. “It’s Alphé.I’m here and things are relatively calm, if you want to come over. I’m cooking dinner soon, so come hungry.”
“Aw, that sound so nice,” Maggie said, getting out of the booth. “I guess I’d better get Brulee into the boat before it gets dark.”
“I’ll help you,” Katrina said. “I’m not going to run down there right away.”
They paid for their coffee and left the café. At the dock, Maggie got down into the boat and they encouraged Brulee to climb down the ladder, but it wasn’t as easy this time, and the tide was even lower.
“Okay, well, we know now that Justin was right. Going down is harder than going up. Thank you!”
“Let’s talk later,” Katrina said, waving as Maggie started the boat. “I wish I were going back with you.”
“Men intervened,” Maggie shouted, waving back.
The evil eye that she’d painted at the end of the dock came into view, giving her the same comforting feeling it did every time she returned to Bayou Cottage. This was home. Justin’s truck was backed up to the porch, and in the dusk, he had the outdoor lights on and the dock lights for her, as well. It was one of the positive things about an arrival when you lived with someone.
When he heard the boat, he came out of the house and walked down to the dock to greet her.
“What a nice homecoming,” she said, taking his hand after they got Brulee out of the boat.
“I bought clothes. I realized I have things I haven’t had off the hanger since college, so I’ll be doing some culling.”
“I did the same thing,” she said. “And then I inherited a slew of old clothes in the attic.”
“I brought dinner,” he said. “Roast chicken and all the trimmings, compliments of your mother.”
“Oh yum. A real meal.”
He held the door open for her, and she saw that he’d already put things away. The lights were on in the living room, and she saw a box and his computer on the table he’d use temporarily as a desk, and in the kitchen, the containers of food from her mother were arranged neatly on the counter.
