30. Eric
ERIC
I ’d woken up early with Ambrose. Was my future going to include seeing every sunrise?
I supposed I could think of worse things.
While he took a walk in the bayou, I composed my resignation letter, but before I turned it in, I needed to talk to Remington about getting the right sheriff in place to take over and about the possibility of a position with New Life for Vets.
Remington lived in the middle of the French Quarter, and Ambrose—who’d once again insisted on driving—parked my truck on the next block since there were only a few spots for cars in his driveway, and it was already full.
When Remington opened the door for us, I saw everyone else was already there.
I had a feeling arriving late was a tactic Ambrose always used.
I was surprised to see Corbin. I didn’t think Beau would let him out of bed until he was fully recovered.
The scowl on Beau’s face told me he hadn’t wanted to, but Corbin was happily entertaining Tony by making faces and mocking Tony’s chatter, and Lance was pretending to be annoyed.
Dax looked relieved to see me and Ambrose.
I’m sure he’d wondered if his brother would insist on staying in the bayou, but Ambrose had actually wanted to see everyone today.
I wasn’t sure if he was going to make the announcement that I was moving in with him to the whole family, or if he was just planning to tell Dax, but either way, he hadn’t complained once about the gathering.
Remington had his arm around a beautiful redhead who had to be his boyfriend, Henri.
He got everyone’s attention with a loud whistle, then made sure everyone had full knowledge of what had happened to Carlotti in the bayou.
We discussed a few of the consequences of the power vacuum left by the destruction of Carlotti’s network, then he said, “I heard from X’s friend at The Ranch. Our informant has arrived safely.”
That was good to hear. I still wanted more information about this ranch and the man who ran it, but I’d eventually get that from Ambrose.
When Remington finished asking questions about the operation, Ambrose moved into the center of the room. “I have a few announcements.”
He held out his hand to me, but before I could stand, the doorbell rang.
“I’ll handle it,” Henri said.
Remington looked like he was going to protest. “I’m fine. Carlotti’s gone. Things are quiet.”
“Never tempt fate like that,” Lance said, crossing himself.
Henri returned a moment later. “There’s a woman at the door. She says she’s Eric’s sister.”
I realized then how long it had been since I’d contacted Candace. My phone had spotty service out in the bayou, and I might have missed her calls. I’d been so wrapped up in Ambrose, I hadn’t even tried to check. I was in deep trouble. “Candace?”
“Yes,” Henri said. “Should I send her in?”
“How did your sister?—”
“What the hell are you doing here?” My words and Remington’s collided.
Candace glared at me, then stared down each of the intimidating men in the room. “You didn’t answer my calls or mom’s, and I knew you’d taken up with some questionable individuals, so I came to find you and set you straight.”
“Too late for that.” Lance snickered.
She turned her scowl toward him, and his smile faded. Even Tony, who now sat on his shoulder, remained silent.
“I don’t know who you are, Monkey Man, but?—”
Remington stepped forward and held out his hand to her. “I’m Remington Theriot, and this idiot”—he gestured toward Lance—“is my brother.”
“And this,” I said, looping my arm through Ambrose’s and pulling him to my side, “is Ambrose, my?—”
“Boyfriend,” Ambrose finished, and hearing the word made my heart sing.
Candace narrowed her eyes and looked Ambrose up and down before giving a definitive nod. “He’ll do.”
“He’s amazing. He saved my life and?—”
“I’m honored to have your blessing.” Ambrose executed a graceful bow.
Candace grinned. “Okay, you’ll more than do.”
She focused on me again. “So he really is the one for you? He’s not straight after all?”
“Nope,” Dax said. “And how is it that I’m his twin and didn’t even know?”
“You two are twins?” Candace asked. I understood her confusion since they looked nothing alike.
“We are,” Dax answered. “I’m Dax, the better, smarter one.” Travis rolled his eyes as Dax mimicked Ambrose’s bow
Ambrose snorted. “You’re the younger, dumber one.”
Seeing the twins joke like that still made me smile every time.
Candace looked at Travis then back at Dax. “I guess you’re not straight either.”
Dax shook his head.
“It figures. I don’t think there’s a decent straight man left.”
“We do have a cousin—” Beau placed a finger on Corbin’s lips. “Don’t listen to him.”
Candace turned back to me. “What happened to the man you were going to ‘take down’?” She put air quotes around the last words.
“Gerard ate him for lunch.”
She frowned as she looked at all the smiling faces. “Is that a joke or a euphemism?”
“Gerard is an alligator, and it’s not a euphemism.”
“Oh. Wow. I don’t need to know any more. As long as my brother’s safe, that’s good enough for me.”
“How did you track your brother down?” Remington eyed my sister suspiciously. I wasn’t sure if he was concerned about a leak in his security or looking to hire her for his operation.
“My brother was missing. I did everything it took to find him.”
“What sort of connections do you have that led you here?”
She rolled her eyes. “I’m the one person Eric told about LePlatt. I knew enough to put together what he told me, even if he’d left out most of the names. He’s also shared some of his old contacts, so I got resourceful.” She glanced at me like she was worried she’d get me in trouble.
“It’s all right. Even if Remington is angry, I brought you in on this, Ambrose will defend me.”
Ambrose gave a short nod and glared at his cousin.
Remington didn’t appear angry, but he was clearly not satisfied. “How did you find my house?”
“One of Eric’s connections is good with computers. He helped me.” Candace spoke as if it were nothing to track down a known mob boss.
I jumped in before Remington had a chance to reply. “That is quite resourceful, but I still can’t believe you came all this way.”
She huffed. “I can’t believe you didn’t answer your phone.”
“I was out in the bayou. My phone wasn’t working.”
“That is the lamest excuse I’ve ever heard.”
“It’s true,” Ambrose said. “I had to get a satellite phone.”
Dax huffed. “Not that you check it or respond.”
“I respond more than I did when my phone rarely had service.”
“I’m sorry,” I said to Candace. “I know I scared you and Mom and Dad. Yesterday was probably the craziest day of my life.”
“Then you owe me some more stories.”
“Later,” I promised. “Ambrose was about to make an announcement.”
He looked at me, and I saw hesitation in his eyes. After hugging Candace again, I moved to his side.
That gave him the courage he needed. “I’m in love with Eric.”
Well, there it was, right out in the open. I was so proud of him I wanted to wrap my arms around him and hold him tight, but I knew that was the wrong move for the moment.
“Since him being a sheriff and me being… me isn’t compatible, Eric has decided to resign his position, but in order to make a smooth transition, he needs our help.”
“You proved yourself yesterday,” Remington said. “I’m happy to help you any way I can.” He held out his hand, and we shook.
“Before we discuss that any further,” Ambrose said. “I have something else to tell you.”
“Damn,” Dax said. “I don’t think you’ve talked this much at a family meeting in… ever.”
“Then I deserve all the time I need without being interrupted.”
Dax stuck out his tongue, but he remained quiet after that.
“Dax and Beau will remember Uncle Etienne’s house.
In his last years, he moved out of it and into the cabin where I’ve been living.
The house was already in a state of disrepair when he left.
He and my aunt had never been able to restore it to its former glory, and after she passed away, it deteriorated more and more. I’ve been renovating it.”
Dax’s eyes widened. “Are you serious? And you never told me or asked for my help?”
“You had your own projects. And this was something I needed to do to help me move past my years in the army and my grief over losing Etienne. It still needs a lot of work, but the kitchen, the back parlor, one of the bathrooms, and the largest bedroom are complete. Eric is going to be moving in there with me.”
Shouts and cheers went up from the whole family.
Suddenly Ambrose and I were being hugged by everyone. I found myself at the center of a circle of warmth, and Candace was right there with me.
“I can’t wait to see it,” she said. “I’ll bring Mom and Dad.”
I glanced at Ambrose. “That will happen, but it might take a little while.”
She nodded. I knew she remembered me telling her Ambrose preferred solitude and that I hadn’t thought there was any chance of us being together because of it.
“Maybe not as long as you think,” Ambrose said. “I’ve set some goals for the renovation now that I’m going to be living there instead of the cabin. In a few months, I thought we…”
His voice faltered, and I took his hand in mine. “We can go slow with this.”
He shook his head. “No. I’m all in with you, with this project, with this family. I’m never going to be someone who wants people around constantly, but we’re going to have a fucking housewarming.”
I’d resisted as long as I could. I pulled him into my arms and kissed him.
Everyone cheered even louder than they had before.
My family was going to love him, and I already felt like a part of the Theriot family.
I never imagined I could be this happy, especially not while living in a big old house in the middle of the bayou, but I knew I’d truly found home.