Epilogue
Xavier wandered along Main Street, admiring the way the town had gone all out, stringing lights and hanging colorful banners everywhere for the Annual Frog Leg Festival.
Zydeco music blasted from the pavilion on the square; all the locals were out in force, and a couple thousand tourists had joined them, coming from all over the country to join the fun.
He’d been in Bayou Mambaloa for almost two years.
It should be home to him. He should be happy, not dragging his ass through town, wondering if he’d made the right decision to join the Bayou Brotherhood Protectors instead of picking one of the other more exotic locations like Colorado, Montana or Hawaii.
No, he’d decided to return to his home state of Louisiana. He’d been homesick for the food and music and the sense of family he hadn’t quite found anywhere else in the world.
And he’d been to a lot of places he’d never heard of. Life as a Navy SEAL hadn’t been boring. Always away from his duty station. Deploying with little notice. Never knowing when he’d be back. He’d never been bored.
However, he’d never found a woman who could handle that lifestyle.
Or maybe he hadn’t wanted to subject a woman to the loneliness she’d endure while he was away.
He understood why his buddy’s wives had affairs or left them while they were deployed.
How could they have a lasting relationship when they were never together?
He sighed. Well, he’d give up the excitement and danger of an active-duty Navy career, purposefully choosing a relaxed and happily boring life in the Louisiana bayous.
Yeah, he’d gotten just what he’d wanted. He should be happy.
Maurice and Amelie emerged from the back of the bakery where they lived in the upstairs apartment. They were blissfully happy, newly engaged, and made Xavier want to puke every time he was around them with all their kissing, touching and loving.
He pretended he hadn’t seen them and walked on by.
“Xavier, hold up,” Maurice called out.
Caught, he braced himself for the bliss that oozed out of every one of his teammates’ pores.
Maurice clapped a hand on Xavier’s back. “Dude. You don’t look very happy. What’s got you down?”
“I’m happy,” he said, his lips pressing into a flat line like his heartbeat. “So fucking happy.”
“I thought you liked living in the bayou. Someone piss you off?” Maurice slipped an arm around Amelie and dropped a kiss on her temple.
“No. I’m just wondering if I really belong here. I’m thinking of maybe transferring to the Colorado region or Hawaii. Hell, I might as well go back on active duty.”
“You have friends here. You’re part of the team. We’re brothers, man.”
“What team?” he muttered. “Most of you guys go home to your wives or significant others. I go home to my empty house. I’ve binge-watched every series known to man. I work out seven days a week. It’s not enough. I need a change.”
Amelie leaned around Maurice. “You need a girl.”
In the back of his mind, he knew this. The fuck if he’d admit it to his friends. “I don’t need anyone. I just need a change.”
Maurice lifted his chin toward the pavilion. “Why not join the party? You might meet a woman there.”
“That’s not going to fix everything. I’m just not happy here.”
“When was the last time you asked a woman out on a date?” Amelie asked.
“I don’t know. Six months. A year ago.” Xavier shrugged. “I think I know every woman in town. Either they aren’t interested, or I’m not.”
“Then mingle with the tourists. Ask one of them out,” Maurice said.
As they’d walked, they’d arrived at the square. People were laughing, dancing and eating Cajun food.
“I see Gisele,” Amelie said. “I had a question for her. You two enjoy the fun—but not too much fun.” She hurried off to find her friend, leaving Maurice stuck with him.
“Why don’t you strike up a conversation with that one?” Maurice lifted his chin toward a woman wearing a leopard-print halter-top with short jean shorts and cowboy boots.
“No,” Xavier said.
“There’s a pretty one in pink,” Maurice continued.
“No.”
“How about her? The one in the flowy psychedelic dress and the long straight black hair. She’s pretty.” Maurice squinted. “No, wait. That’s Lissette Gautier. She might be more than you can handle. She’s known to stir up trouble and break hearts.” He turned away. “Moving on.”
Xavier tuned out Maurice as his gaze followed Lissette in her crazy colored dress. On some women, it would look outlandish. On Lissette...? It suited her. Afterall, she was the granddaughter of Bayou Mambaloa’s Voodoo Queen.
Lisette was flirting with a man, batting her eyes and laughing. Her face lit up in the lights.
He’d seen her around town and run into her at the Crawdad Hole a few times and hadn’t given her a second thought.
Maybe she was what he needed to shake the boredom out of him.
As he started toward her, she walked away with the man, leaning on his arm.
Xavier sighed. He spent the next fifteen minutes wandering through the crowd, just not feeling it. He decided he might as well go home.
As he walked back down Main Street, he toyed with the idea of getting a dog. They were good companions. They loved unconditionally and didn’t hog the bathroom in the morning.
He’d just about convinced himself it was a good idea when he heard a scream.
His pulse quickened as he looked around for the source of the scream.
Another scream ripped through the air. It seemed to be coming from the alley between the insurance office and the yoga studio. He ran that direction and had just reached the entry to the alley when a woman ran out and plowed into him.
He wrapped his arms around her to steady her. “Hey, hey. I’ve got you. You’re safe. Are you all right? Did someone hurt you?”
“Yes. He slapped me,” she said, and looked up into his face with deep, dark eyes like pools of indigo. Her long black hair fell straight down her back in inky waves, and the flowy dress she wore lifted in the breeze like wings on a butterfly. “Thank you,” she said. “I think you scared him away.”
“You’re Lizette Guatier, aren’t you? The Voodoo Queen’s granddaughter?”
She nodded. “And you’re one of those Brotherhood Protectors Remy brought in a couple of years ago.”
He nodded. “I’m Xavier, Xander if you prefer. Nice to formally meet you.”
She studied him with a tilt of her chin. “You’re not afraid of being with me?”
“Should I be?” he asked.
“Most people warn men about me. They say I’m trouble.” She straightened her dress and stepped away from him. “Look, you seem like a nice guy. You should listen to those warnings. I’m not for the likes of you. Go home. Pet your dog. Find a nice girl to date.”
Lissette touched a hand to his cheek. “Such a shame. You’re kind of cute.” She leaned up, pressed her lips to his, then turned and walked away.
Xavier watched her hips sway, swooshing the dress around her ankles, and thought that his life might just have gotten interesting.
Waving a warning in his face was like flapping a cape at a bull.
Challenge accepted.
Thank you for reading Maurice.