Page 88 of The Cajun Doctor

I wish I knew!

Her grandfather called, too, on another subject. He apparently hadn’t been contacted by Nick. Yet. “Samantha, honey, I’m plannin’ on takin’ Louise Rivard ta that LeDeux pool party on Saturday. It’s her birthday. Will you be there? Luc is your lawyer, isn’t he? Haven’t seen you in ages, honey.” Her grandfather Stanley Starr, founder of Starr Foods, was a good friend of Tante Lulu’s. How good, she did not want to know.

Samantha was putting some linens on the new bed when she heard a ruckus coming from the second parlor. Lots of “Holy shits,” puppies barking, cats screeching. Samantha finished straightening the bed and went out to see what was going on.

Lily Beth, sitting in a lawn chair in the hall, supervised while Angus and Daniel were putting all five puppies in wire travel crates, along with two of the cats, Garfield and Felix. Madeline watched the proceedings from the window seat, her posture daring anyone to try and put her in a cage. Axel, secure in his place with Samantha, bored with the proceedings, gnawed on a rawhide bone. Clarence was squawking so much his expletives ran together in one long scream, “HolyshitHolyshitHolyshit!” Emily emitted several distressed oinks as she kept following after her new best friend, Daniel. Apparently, they’d bonded on the trip to the pet shrink.

“What are you doing?” she asked Daniel.

He didn’t even stop. Instead, he and Angus continued carrying the crate with five puppies out into the hall, through the front door, across the gallery, and down the steps to the waiting pickup truck with the open tailgate. He did explain over his shoulder, though, as she followed after him, “I’m taking matters into my own hands. Decreasing the pet population.”

“How?” She put her hands on her hips and glared at him. “You better not be thinking about putting them down.”

After arranging the one cage in the truck bed, Daniel turned on her, wiping perspiration from his forehead with a forearm. “Oh, you of little faith!” He chucked her under the chin and walked back up the stairs. “Do you really think I’m that heartless?”

“No, but . . .”

“I’m taking the three puppies to those people who already agreed to adopt them. The other two puppies and the two cats will go to folks I know who are in need of a pet.”

“Like who?”

“Let’s just say I’m pulling in some chits.”

“Daniel! You can’t just push pets on people.”

“Wanna bet.”

“Do you want me to go with you?”

“No. It’s best that you stay out of sight. Just give me the addresses. I’ll go myself. On the way back, I might stop at the cancer center.”

What need did he have to stop at the medical center? Did it have something to do with that little girl? Or some work he’s doing there? Or maybe one of the nurses is a girlfriend.

“On the other hand, I’m pretty scruffy. Maybe tomorrow. In any case, if I’m not back by eight, don’t worry.”

“But . . . but I made dinner.”

“Go ahead and eat . . . you and Lily Beth and Angus. Save some for me.” He seemed to think of something else, which caused him to smile. For a man who had been prone to frowning most of the time, he sure was smiling a lot now. “Maybe I’ll bring some ice cream back with me.”

“Uh . . . okay.” She didn’t see why ice cream would make him smile in such a mischievous way. Maybe he had a sweet tooth.

“Peach ice cream,” he elaborated. “Tongue licking good!”

Whatever that meant. “Well, if we’re picking favorites, I choose Ben & Jerry’s Salty Caramel.”

“That’ll do, too.” He waggled his eyebrows at her and licked his lips. More mischief!

Men! Honestly. They put innuendoes on the oddest things.

After a quick shower, she changed into classic black cotton, Calvin Klein boxers and an old, gray silk Alexander Wang tee that she’d had for ages. She would have to wash clothes soon; she hadn’t packed much last night. Oh, God! Had it only been one day that she’d been here, since this whole escapade began? It seemed like a week.

She shook her head to clear it of these reminders of the mess she was in. It was still hot and muggy, which caused her hair to frizz up; so, she pulled it off her face and scrunched the mass into a knot on top of her head, leaving her face and neck blessedly cool, or relatively so.

Samantha ate with Lily Beth and Angus at about six. The gumbo turned out delicious, especially with a frozen baguette she put in the oven (She’d kept the door shut with some duct tape), cold sweet tea (thanks to the new, glorious fridge), and the last of Tante Lulu’s beignets for dessert.

While they cleared the table and washed the dishes, they talked. Lily Beth was worried about Nick finding her, about how big and clumsy she was becoming, about her constant heartburn, about the approaching birth, and about what she would do with the baby once it was born. She still hadn’t decided whether she would keep the baby, which she would like to do but would be difficult if she resumed her education, or give the baby up for adoption. Angus wasn’t worried at all, which was a worry in itself; he trusted that she and Daniel would handle everything.

Lordy, Lordy! as her grandmother used to say. “We should know more tomorrow after Luc and John LeDeux have spoken with the authorities. Why don’t you go rest, Lily Beth,” she suggested. “The new bed is guaranteed to be more comfortable than the air mattresses. I’ll finish up here.”