Bayou My Love: A Novel Read Online Free

clothing. I didn’t
want him to catch me staring, though, so I looked back to the dog, who had
started to drool on my knee. Apparently she’d decided I was no longer a threat.
    “How
about a glass of water?” he asked, touching my arm.
    “Sure,
thanks.”
    He
stared at me like he thought I might faint. “It’s a hot one today. I’d bring
you inside, but the A/C units have been acting up, blowing fuses every chance
they get. I’m trying to give them a rest.”
    I
leaned against the stair railing, feeling light-headed.
    “At
least out here there’s a breeze,” he said. He disappeared into the house,
leaving me on the porch. I pictured myself sitting in a rocker with Vergie,
sipping tea and eating macaroons. It didn’t seem possible that someone else
could live here now.
    “Here
you go, cher,” Jack said, sitting next to me again.
    Cher. I
fought back a smile, thinking that was likely his way of getting anything he
wanted from a woman. There probably weren’t many that could turn down the likes
of him.
    Jack’s
knee brushed mine, and I instinctively moved my leg away. “You know you have to
leave,” I said. I tried to be as nice as possible while standing my ground.
Being a landlord was not anywhere on my to-do list.
    “Usually
it takes longer for women to tell me that.”
    “Sorry,”
I told him. “I’m no good at evicting people.”
    “Then
don’t,” he said, his voice light. He smiled again.
    “I’m
not in the business of renting. I’m here to fix this house and sell it. I’m
afraid that means you have to leave.”
    “But
I live here,” he said. “You know how hard it is to find nice places out this
way?”
    “Didn’t
you think that when the landlady died, you should start looking for a new
house?” I leaned against the banister, fanning myself. “I’m sorry that this
comes as a surprise to you, but I’ve got no other option.”
    He
shrugged. “I’d paid Miss Vergie up through the next few months. I figured I had
a couple more weeks to worry about moving.”
    I
tried to wrap my head around the logic of that. It was hard to give him a firm
glare when he gazed at me with those woeful eyes.
    Like
a calf in a hailstorm ,
Vergie would have said.
    “How
about if I refund your rent?”
    He
ran his hands through his hair. “How about you keep renting to me,” he
suggested.
    I
laughed but then saw he was serious. “I’m no landlord, Mr. Mayronne. I don’t
have time for that kind of responsibility.”
    “How
hard can it be, cher? You just collect a check now and then.”
    “I
don’t live around here. I can’t keep this place up.”
    “I’ve
been keeping it up just fine.” He sounded insulted. “You think I called Miss
Vergie every time a pipe burst? I’ve been fixing things up all the while. You
wouldn’t need to be nearby.”
    The
place did look OK, but he’d done some half-assed repairs. A couple of boards on
the porch were unfinished, recently replaced. The paint on the door and window
sills was fresher than the rest, making the older paint look dirty. The inside
was probably peppered with spots that needed a matching coat of paint or a few
finishing nails. People were constantly doing do-it-yourself repairs only
halfway, which always meant more work for me.
    “You’ll
have to find another place,” I said.
    The
dog sat up, ears flat.
    “But
Enza, you can’t just kick me out.” His eyes were bright blue, but they flashed
darker as he became flushed. When the light hit them, I saw little flecks of
green, and I wanted to lean in for a better look. I was helpless around
good-looking, charming guys like him, and I knew if he caught on to that, he’d
try anything to stay.
    I
set the glass of water on the ground and stood so I could glare down at him.
“I’m the owner, Mr. Mayronne. I can do whatever I want.” He might have been a
friend of Vergie’s, but that didn’t mean he’d have her roof over his head for
the rest of his life.
    The
dog growled, deep in her throat,