Page 97 of Crazy Rich Cajuns

And she’d never been more fatigued than she was after sitting all day long in meetings.

All.Day.Long.

Inside.

With a fucking sweater on.

She loved air-conditioning as much as the next girl, but damn, she was almost missing the humidity.They kept things cold in those rooms and hallways.Plus, she was barely moving around, and the only sunlight that hit her skin was in the morning on the way from her hotel to her car and her car to the building and then again when she left to go back to the hotel.

The hotel.The lonely, boring, empty hotel.

She’d so far resisted calling Bennett.She wasn’t sure why.They were together.They’d agreed to date.InBaton Rouge.

But she was waiting for him to make the next move.She’d admit it.That wasn’t really her style.When she wanted something, she went for it.

But the last couple of days in these meetings had been a little tough on her confidence.She was interested in everything they were talking about and she’d contributed a few ideas.Charles had been encouraging and told her more than once how happy he was to have her there.But she was used to ruling the roost and bossing everyone around.The tour schedule was in her control.How Josh, Owen, Sawyer, and Maddie spent their days was up to her.

Here, she was in way over her head.

“You’re doing great.”Charles caught up with her as they waited for the elevator.“I know it’s a lot to take in at first.”

She nodded.“It’s a lot.But I’m excited to be here.”Scared and feeling like a fraud, too, but she didn’t mention that part.

“I promise, in a month or two, this will all feel routine.”

A month or two.Right.She was going to be coming back.“I’m sure it will.”She gave him her beauty pageant smile.At least she had that to get her through until she felt like she knew what the hell she was doing.

They stepped onto the elevator with a small group.Kennedy was the only one in combat boots.But rather than feeling self-conscious, looking down at the shiny-ish toes of her boots reminded her that she was here because the regular people, the ones who lived on the bayou and in the small towns and who wore boots to go to work needed representation, on the tourism task force and in bigger ways.

The elevator dinged and Kennedy stepped off first.

So when she came up short, everyone else did as well.

“Bennett?”

He was sitting in the middle of the main area just inside the front doors.On a stool.

Not just any stool, either.It was Leo’s stool from Ellie’s.The bright yellow seat and multicolored legs made her heart thump and her eyes immediately fill with tears.

“Hi, darlin’.”

Oh, lord, he’d dropped his “g” for her.And he was grinning at her like he’d never been happier to see someone.

She headed straight for him and right into his arms.

She pressed against him, feeling her tears fall.The feeling ofhomewas so intense when he gathered her close that she couldn’t breathe for a moment.

“Did you have any trouble getting everything in?”Charles asked.

Kennedy pulled back, looking at Bennett for a long, happy moment.Then she looked over at Charles.“Everything?”

The majority of the people who had been on the elevator, many of whom had been in the meeting with her today, had also stopped to see what was going on.

“I brought you something,” Bennett told her.

He set her back as he stood and then went over to a silver cart she hadn’t noticed sitting a few feet away.As he wheeled it over to her, she saw that it had a gas burner in the middle of it and a pan on top.

Her heart started racing and her eyes widened.“What’s this?”

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