Page 86 of Deadly Misfortunes

“Oh, okay.”

The bodyguards relaxed.

“Are you sure?” Mrs. Landry asked. “They’re supposed to be at a lake somewhere up north.”

“Yeah, they’re in the restaurant eating,” Kat said. “I saw a vision of them.”

“Me too,” Sascha said.

Lucy laughed. “Gregory is worried about you so he’s nearby in case you have any trouble.”

“Oh,” Aunt Meg said, laughing, “Jimmy asked me where we would be. I mean, the actual rental house. I never suspected they would be here.”

Sascha loved that Gregory was worried about her and would be there to make sure she stayed safe, even though they had bodyguards also. “Well,” Sascha said, “we can either go in and eat—they might be in another room where we won’t see them—or if we see them, we can pretend we don’t.”

Kat smiled. “That would be hilarious.”

“Or, we could eat somewhere else,” Sascha said.

“We’re here to support you,” Kat said. “What do you want to do?”

Everyone eagerly waited for her to decide. She didn’t want to mess up the boys’ bachelor party, but since they did come to South Padre Island, she suspected they would run into each other again at some point. Maybe several times because the island wasn’t that big—only less than four square miles.

The island was part of the broader Padre Island, the world's longest barrier island at 113 miles. The resort town itself was relatively small, though it had over seven million visitors a year.

“Well, we all wanted Mexican food, right?” Sascha asked, also recalling that Kat had made a reservation for them.

“Yep,” they all agreed.

“So do we give them hugs if we see them, or pretend they’re not here?” Sascha asked.

“Again, it’s up to you,” Kat said. “I’m sure we all want to go along with whatever you want to do.”

“If we see them, we give them big hugs,” Sascha said, wondering if Lucy would hug Damon. She suspected not.

“If we don’t see them?” Rose asked.

“We’ll have a delightful lunch just like we planned.”

Then Omar got the door for them, and Henry went inside first to get the ladies’ seats.

“Right this way,” Henry said to Sascha and the others, as if he were the host. The hostess hurried to show them the way.

As soon as they moved into one of the main rooms, they saw waiters weaving their way through the labyrinth of colorful tables, balancing platters laden with tacos, quesadillas, fajitas, and enchiladas, the hiss and sizzle of the kitchen grill reaching even the deepest corners of the dining room. The air was thick with the aroma of grilled beef and chicken, cilantro, charred peppers, onions, and avocados, and a waft of tequila.

People at some tables were drinking margaritas and beer; voices were elevated, laughing, conversing, everyone talking over everyone else. Spanish music played overhead. Some walls were made of stone, with plaster covering part of them, as if in an old building where the surface was peeling and revealing the warm brick beneath.

Some walls were painted bright aqua blue, and some green, adding to the restaurant's colorful feel. Archways divided the rooms, and the ceiling and some of the walls were covered in Spanish artwork. Red, green, and blue sombreros were hung up on the colorful walls.

As soon as they walked deeper into the dining room, Sascha and everyone in her party smiled to see Gregory and his party nearby. The guys were so busy eating and talking that they didn’t see the ladies arrive.

But Red saw them first as he was acting as lookout at another table. There were enough seats for the other bodyguards to join them.

“Go,” Sascha said to them. And the bodyguards hurried off to join the others.

Gregory and the other men at his table still hadn’t noticed them, but then Uncle Jimmy saw the ladies and laughed. “We’ve been found out.” He raised a glass of water to them.

As soon as Gregory saw Nick and Red watching Sascha arrive and Henry and Oman join his bodyguards at a table, he turned to see the love of his life and the other ladies with her.