Chapter 2 #2
Holly studied her least favorite cousin. The one who had always gotten them in trouble as kids and had maintained the reputation of a troublemaker into adulthood. “Secrets. You said secrets.”
“Oh, that.” She waved a hand dismissively. “I was just talking about the secret you’ve been keeping about your relationship with that hottie.” She shot a glance toward Simon. “How long has that been going on? You’ve barely been back. Was it love at first sight?”
Simon’s gaze met Holly’s. Heat flooded her cheeks as she remembered the warmth of his hands on her as he’d lifted her off the floor like she weighed nothing. She was no lightweight at five feet seven inches tall. She dragged her gaze away from his. “There’s no secret.”
“Then you’re all out in the open about your new love toy.”
“He’s not my love toy.”
“Lissette, are you bothering Holly while she’s working?” Gisele appeared on the other side of Holly.
“Not at all,” Lissette blinked innocently. “I heard Rene tell her to take the rest of the night off. So, she’s not working at all.”
“Then let me rephrase my question,” Gisele said. “Lissette, are you bothering Holly?”
Lissette’s pretty brows drew together. “No. I just wanted to congratulate her on bagging one of the hot guys from your man’s security team.”
“I haven’t bagged a man,” Holly said.
Gisele glanced toward the door. “Isn’t that Jonathon Reneau, of the mega-car-dealership Reneaus?”
Lissette’s head spun toward the entrance. “Ohhh. It is.”
“Didn’t he just take over management of their family business?”
“He did,” Lissette said breathlessly.
“I hear he’s the state’s most eligible bachelor,” Gisele murmured.
Holly fought to keep a straight face as Lissette patted her perfectly arranged, long dark hair.
“Pardon me,” Lissette said. “I need to talk to that man.” She hurried across the room, slowing as she approached her target.
“I don’t think there’s a woman alive who loves men as much as Lissette.” Gisele redirected her attention to Holly. “Was Lissette telling the truth? Has Rene given you the rest of the night off?”
Holly nodded. “Not that I’m in any condition to join the party.” She glanced down at her damp clothes that smelled of stale beer and whiskey.
Gisele smiled, slid the bag she carried off her shoulder and handed it to Holly. “I was in New Orleans today doing a little shopping and found the cutest outfit.”
Holly shook her head. “There’s no way I’d fit into it. I mean, I’m an next to you and Lizette. I take after my mother, not the petite Gautier women.”
Gisele smiled. “You’re taller, but you’re slender, and I’ll bet we have the same waist and hip measurements. It’s a dress that comes down to my ankles. On you, it’ll be shorter, but adorable. Try it.”
“But I don’t have shoes to match.”
Gisele studied the ballet flats she’d worn for work. “They’re perfect. The dress is casual, a little Bohemian and will go great with your auburn hair.”
Out of reasons not to join their girls’ night out, Holly accepted the bag. “I won’t stay long. I need to get up early tomorrow to do laundry and clean my house.”
“We’ll take whatever time you’re willing to give.” Gisele turned her toward the bathrooms. “Go. We might need your help with matchmaking for the high school principal.”
“I’m not a match—”
“Just go.” Gisele gave her a gentle shove.
Holly snagged a clean bar towel and hurried to the bathroom, not really in the mood to be social, but resigning herself to the night. Gisele had been there for her when she’d come blasting back into town after being gone for six months.
She’d helped her find a place to live—a place she never would’ve thought of.
Rental property in the summertime was at a premium, but Gisele had friends with a houseboat they weren’t using and had convinced them to rent it to Holly for cheap, with the promise of cleaning it and performing some minor maintenance.
She’d moved out of her grandmother’s house and into the houseboat earlier that day. It was perfect for her budget, which was whatever she made working for Rene and the tips she brought home.
And it came with a pirogue she could use to paddle out to her grandmother, Madam Gautier’s place in the bayou, not too far from town. Not that her grandmother had been available since she’d arrived. She’d been back and forth to New Orleans, stocking up on food and supplies for her business.
She’d promised to be available soon to help Holly work on finding the source of the curse that had followed her from Bayou Mambaloa to Atlanta.
Holly hoped to connect with her grandmother, who also happened to be the friendly neighborhood Voodoo Queen. She helped so many of the inhabitants of Bayou Mambaloa; surely, she could help her own granddaughter vanquish whatever curse was affecting her life before anyone else was hurt or killed.
In the bathroom, she stripped out of her damp clothes. She used the bar towel for a quick wipe down to remove the remaining beer and whiskey from her skin.
Then she removed the dress from the bag and pulled it over her head.
The soft, flowy material floated down her body.
Though loose, it molded to her curves, the hem reaching mid-calf.
A smocked bodice stretched over her full breasts, and the little capped sleeves fit best worn off her shoulders, which meant if she didn’t want to display bra straps. The bra had to go.
She unclasped it and pulled it off, then slid her arms back into the little sleeves.
A glance in the mirror made Holly smile.
This was a typical Gisele dress, light, airy and colorful.
Not what Holly would choose, but Gisele had been right.
The combination of gold, green and blue complemented her auburn hair and green eyes.
With her height she’d gotten from her mother’s side of the family, the dress length was perfect, exposing her trim calves.
The whole effect made her look less tired and more like a girl going to a party.
“All right then,” she said to her reflection. The night was looking up.
She stuffed her damp clothing into the bag, fluffed her hair and added a touch of lipstick. In a hurry to get back out to where her cousin and friends were, she flung open the door and charged out of the bathroom into the dimly lit hallway and promptly bumped into a wall of muscles.
Hands gripped her arms to steady her.
Holly looked up into the ice-blue eyes of the man who’d come to her rescue earlier. “Oh. It’s you.”
He nodded. “Yes, it is. Are you all right?”
“Of course,” she said, suddenly conscious of how low the dress rested on the swell of her breasts. With little effort, the top could be tugged even lower to display all. Not that she’d do that in front of this man. Or that he’d be tempted to do it himself—and certainly not in public.
Her body heated as her thoughts spiraled.
“Excuse me,” she said. “I have to go.”
Before I spontaneously combust.
She turned to run.
His hand reached out to touch her arm. “You know, Remy’s offer stands. I could shadow you for a while. I can help head off things like what happened tonight.”
His fingers, though barely touching her skin, sent sparks throughout her body. Sparks that lit a fire deep in her core.
“Cody is an annoyance I can handle,” she said. I can’t seem to handle what you’re doing to me. “I’m fine. So far, I haven’t received any more messages. And I’m not sure what you could do that would help that problem anyway. My grandmother is the only one who has a shot at it.”
Simon frowned. “Your grandmother is a bodyguard?”
Holly laughed. “No. Of course not. She’s our resident Voodoo Queen, and possibly the only person who can break whatever curse is following me.”
Simon stepped back, his eyebrows rising up his forehead. “Wait...what?”
“I’m cursed,” she said, bracing herself for yet another Voodoo non-believer. “Every time something bad has happened, I find a message. Either written in the sand, on the bark of a tree or the latest…on my mirror in the bathroom of my apartment in Atlanta.”
“And you think it’s Voodoo?”
“Yes. More specifically, a Voodoo curse.” She shook her head.
“I can see you don’t believe in magic. That’s okay.
I don’t need you to. I’ll work with my grandmother, Madam Gautier, to get through this.
In the meantime, it’s best to stay away from me.
The curse seems to take people I care for most.” She frowned, realizing what she’d just implicated.
“Not that I care the most about you, but you never know...collateral damage and all.”
Okay, now she was just blathering and sounding more and more idiotic. “I have to go.” Before I talk myself into another corner.
She ducked her head and marched past Simon and out into the barroom where her friends were waiting.
“Oooo, look at you,” Gisele said. “I knew you’d kill that dress.”
“It’s gorgeous,” Ouida Mae seconded.
“And it brings out the green in your eyes,” Joyce Ashcraft added.
“Thank you.” Holly sank into the chair beside Gisele, glad to get off her feet if only for a few minutes. Hyper-aware of a certain man, her peripheral vision found him settling in at the table with the other members of his team, his gaze on the ladies at her table.
Yeah, fifteen minutes tops, and she was out of there. She didn’t need a bodyguard. Not one who stirred her blood so thoroughly. The last thing she needed was to get involved with someone. Her curse might be his death sentence. She refused to let that happen.
“Are you sure you should be seen with me?” she whispered to Gisele. “It might’ve been better if I’d stayed in Atlanta. I don’t want any more of my family or friends to die because I was selfish and came back home.”
Gisele laid her hand over Holly’s. “Don’t borrow trouble. Besides, I’m not convinced you’re cursed.”
Holly stared at her cousin. “I would’ve expected you, of all people, to be more open to the possibility.”
“Normally, I am,” Gisele said. “It’s just that your situation seems different. I’m not getting a magic vibe.”