Page 58 of Landry

Ava laughed and reached for his hand and Camille’s and walked between them to the stairs leading up to the apartment above the store.

Camille walked Ava up to the door with Landry following. Before she could raise her hand to knock, Gisele opened the door. “There you are, my little Ava-Ava, Bo-Bava. Get in here so we can whip up some Voodoo magic and make a frog grow hair.”

Ava’s eyes widened. “Really, can we make a frog grow hair?”

Camille shook her head. “No, of course you can’t. Gisele is teasing you.” Her brow dipped. “You can’t, can you?”

“No,” Gisele said. “Sadly. But wouldn’t a frog look funny with hair? Come in here, my sweet Ava. We’re going to have pizza and ice cream and stay up late watching movies.”

“Yay!” Ava clapped her hands.

“Did I hear my favorite little nugget?” Rafael came out of the bedroom, his hair damp. “Oh, good. I’ve been waiting all day to have pizza with my Ava.”

Ava darted into the apartment and flung herself into Rafael’s arms.

Camille smiled at her daughter’s exuberance. “I’m glad she feels comfortable with you two.”

“I don’t know,” Landry said. “I’m a little jealous.”

Rafael hugged Ava and then straightened and held out his hand to Landry. “Hey brother, on duty tonight?” he tipped his head toward Camille.

Landry nodded. “Taking my client to the fair.”

Gisele elbowed Rafael. “She has a date.”

Rafael raised an eyebrow toward Landry. “With you?”

“No, she has a date with a stranger.” Gisele tipped her head. “How’s that going to work with another man lurking nearby?”

“It’s going to be fine,” Camille said. “I’m going to break my date with the other guy, grab a hot dog for dinner and go back home. Thanks again for taking care of Ava for me.”

“Always my pleasure,” Gisele said. “She’s an angel. And while you’re at the fair, why not enjoy the carnival rides, funnel cakes and zydeco music? Life is short, my friend. Live a little.”

“We’ll see.” Heat filled Camille’s cheeks. She wasn’t sure Landry would want to stay and enjoy the fair activities. “First, I have to break the date.”

“Go easy on the guy. I’m sure he’ll be disappointed,” Gisele said. “But remember, it’s just a date. Breaking it won’t kill him.”

“Right.” Camille’s lips pressed together. She didn’t like breaking promises. Although this wasn’t really a promise, was it?

Landry turned away from Rafael and smiled. “Ready?”

With a short nod, Camille hiked the strap of her purse up on her shoulder. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”

Chapter 11

“What time were you supposed to meet this guy?” Landry looked up from his watch. He stood near the entrance of the fairgrounds, a few feet from Camille, so as not to be too obvious that he was there to protect her.

“We agreed on 6:30.” Camille’s brow furrowed. “It’s only 6:31. He could be parking as we speak.”

In Landry’s mind, the man should have been early and waiting for Camille to show up, not the other way around.

Camille’s cell phone chirped. She frowned down at the screen.

“Is it him?”

“I don’t know. I don’t have his number. There’s no number.” She held up the phone. On the screen was the word UNKNOWN. “It could be a call forwarded from my phone at Sweet Temptations. I usually let it roll over to voicemail.” She stared at the phone for several seconds longer. “Do you think it could be him?” She glanced up and met Landry’s gaze.

“You won’t know unless you answer,” he said.

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