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Armie’s brow rose. “Rene’s right. He’s got a thing for her.”
“I don’t...” Maybe he was going about this the wrong way. Maybe he could use some advice. “All right, I find her intriguing. She challenges me, and it’s been a long time since someone did that. She was right about her sister. Sienna deserves someone taking a chance on her. Like your wife decided to take a chance on Zep. Who would have guessed that Zep Guidry would turn out to be one of the most reliable figures in parish government?”
Zep’s older brother snorted. “Well, definitely not me,” Remy said. “It wasn’t until he got close to Roxie that he got his life together. And I’m not saying Jayna’s a bad person. I’m trying to tell you that I don’t know she’ll stay in town for long. She’ll look for a better opportunity and she’ll take it when it comes around. Unless you believe she can’t come back from this career hit.”
He didn’t think that at all. “She’s smart and good at her job. Once she gets past the bar review, she’ll be able to find some firm willing to take her on. Or she can find government work, perhaps even in a prosecutor’s office. She didn’t specialize in criminal law, but she could learn fast.”
“Then she won’t stay around,” Rene said gently. “And I would hate for you to get your heart broken again.”
“I thought we were going to play poker and drink beer,” Landon said with a frown.
“Hush,” Armie admonished. “It’s not your turn yet.”
“If my turn means talking about my private relationships like we’re a bunch of teenage girls, then I don’t want a turn,” Landon complained.
Remy ignored the deputy. “When did Quaid get his heart broken? I thought he was kind of the player around town since my brother got married.”
Quaid snorted at the thought. “I have never come close to Zep’s level of womanizing. I will admit to a few wild nights, but that was years ago. I’ve been happily single for a long time. I’m married to my work.” Except lately he’d wondered what it would be like to have a family, to have a woman he could talk to. He’d dated around but never found anyone he could connect with here in Papillon. “I believe Rene is referring to the one and only time I asked a woman to marry me. It was back in law school. I thought we would make a good team. She decided she could find a better team to join in New York.”
He’d had visions of him and Alison taking over his father’s firm. She’d taken one look at the town and broken off the engagement.
Just so we’re clear, I’m not crying over the loss of my great love. I didn’t love Todd, and he didn’t love me. We made sense, and his father wanted him to settle down.
That was how Jayna had explained away years of a loveless marriage without shedding a tear. At that moment, he’d wondered if she was as cold as she sounded.
But wasn’t he doing the same thing? He didn’t want to acknowledge the hurt, the weakness, so he made his previous engagement sound like less than it was.
“I’m lying. I was crazy about that woman,” he admitted. “When she left, I ached for a very long time. I threw myself into work, and it might be why I haven’t been serious about anyone else.”
“And that’s why I’m worried.” Rene put a hand on his shoulder. “I think you should be careful when it comes to Jayna because Remy’s right. I don’t think she’s going to stick around. Sylvie said she’s very impressive but that Jayna told her she was absolutely not staying in Papillon long-term. She said she’d be happy to work for the parish as long as she was here, but she intended to get her license to practice in Texas and be there sometime next year.”
Quaid hadn’t expected her to stick around, but this news oddly still felt like a kick to the gut. She wouldn’t want to work in a place that tried to pay her in gumbo and gas for long.
He was more invested than he’d thought. “Well, you should know that I offered her my free office while she’s here. She was going to get kicked out of her booth at the café in a couple of weeks when school lets out and the summer tourist season kicks in.”
“So now you’re taking in her and her sister?” Remy whistled. “You must have it bad, Quaid. Never thought I’d see that happen.”
“All right, fine, I like her.” If he went into a relationship knowing it had an end date, he wouldn’t get hurt. And maybe getting hurt wouldn’t be the end of the world. Hell, it had been so long since he’d felt anything that maybe getting twisted up over a woman was exactly what he needed. He’d watched his friends find what they needed. Jayna wasn’t what he needed, but they might be good for each other in the short term. “But I will think about what you’ve said. Armie, you should also know my brother’s in town.”
Armie’s head fell back on a groan. “I worried that damn Porsche was going to be trouble.” He brought his head up and took a long draw off his beer. “I saw that car rolling around town yesterday and prayed it was one of Major’s new relatives visiting. Is he on anything?”
“When is my brother truly sober?” Quaid asked and then shook his head. “I don’t know. He swears his last rehab took, but I’m almost certain he’s here to get some money out of our momma. And like she always does, she’s taking her baby’s side. So you’ll excuse me if I drown my sorrows in that gorgeous woman. If she’ll let me.”
Rene picked his cards up. “I’ll back off. Just know that I’m here if you need anything. You want to stay with me for a couple of days? I know how toxic your brother can be.”
His brother was toxic but charming as hell, which was precisely why his mother fell for the act every single time. “I’m staying at the office while he’s here. It shouldn’t be long. Our mother will write him a check and he’ll head back to LA and then I’ll pick up the pieces again.”
Maybe that was why he was so interested in Jayna. She was a distraction, and one he could feel all right about. She wasn’t interested in staying around. She wouldn’t expect anything from him, and he would have no expectations of her.
It could be a nice time for both of them.
When they dealt another round, Quaid tried to get his head back into the game.
•••
Jayna sat back on the lounge chair and wondered if Quaid was going to give her keys to the office tomorrow. Would he still give them to her if he knew how much she wanted to sneak back in and get some work done tonight and maybe bring a sleeping bag and her dog and live there for a while?
She could live off ramen noodles and coffee and excellent Wi-Fi until she figured out the rest of her life.
