Page 106 of The House on Prytania
“Is Jolene here yet? I’m a little early.”
“Not yet, but I’m sure she’s on her way. You and your friend can come on up and wait. I think I ordered more pizza than we need, so you’re welcome to stay for dinner, too.”
“Thanks,” she said, moving past me with the plastic torso. “Molly and I will be happy to accept.”
“Molly?”
“Molly Mannequin,” Sunny said as she continued up the stairs, the torso tucked under an arm. “Jolene said she’d help me make my costume for the fund-raiser.”
I closed the door and ran up the stairs behind her, then had to wait for her to greet Mardi and play fetch a few times before I could ask the questions burning in the back of my throat. “Jolene’s going?”
Sunny plopped down on the couch. “Uh-huh. I just told her today. Mimi wants her there because she’s always a fun addition to any party. I told her she could invite a date, but she said she’d probably be going solo.”
“Oh,” I said, trying not to sound hurt. “I haven’t talked with Beau, so I don’t know what’s going on, but what did Mimi say about inviting the Sabatiers?”
“She’s all for it. Beau was still on the fence, but I was totally all in, so she agreed.”
I found her nonchalance about the ordeal of her childhood surprising, but then again, she’d been a toddler and then raised in a happy home. I told myself that there was no reason she’d want to hang on to a trauma that she didn’t feel was part of her life.
“I really think it’s a step in the right direction,” Sunny continued. “I’m super excited about meeting them.”
“I’m glad.” And I was. I was just surprised at my disappointment at being excluded. I felt as if I’d just planned a fabulous two-weekvacation but was being left behind on the dock when the ship set sail. Maybe I could convince Jolene to bring me as her date.
“And now that Jeanne’s secret letter is out in the open, we can close that chapter, too,” Sunny said. “I can’t tell you how happy I am that all that messy business is behind us. It’s the one thing that’s been dragging on my happiness since I came back, you know? I’d like to just enjoy being with my family now.”
“I totally get it.” And I did. But nobody seemed to want to address the literal black shadow on the wall. It was still there, lurking, and nobody seemed interested in acknowledging its presence or initiating moves to get rid of it.
Sunny slid to the edge of the couch. “Do you still have the clientele book and any of the stuff in the hatboxes that you didn’t already get rid of?”
I had to think for a moment. “I guess I do—I haven’t taken anything out of it. And Sarah sent back the book after she discovered the hidden letter. I brought it over to Christopher to give to Mimi.” At her raised eyebrows, I added, “Beau isn’t speaking to me right now, so I didn’t want to run into him at the house.”
“Ah, well, that explains it. I figured something was up since I hadn’t seen you. If it were up to me, I’d destroy all of it. So that whole situation is erased. If you want, I could take it back to Beau and let him deal with it.”
I considered saying yes but quickly changed my mind. “Before we do that, let me double-check with Beau. I’ll have to wait until he’s willing to speak with me again, but I don’t want to do anything without his permission. Been there, done that. I don’t think there’s any rush, so let’s just leave it all here for now.”
Wanting to change the conversation, I said, “So, I’m assuming Beau is going to the fund-raiser with Sam? I haven’t spoken with either one of them since the night Beau and I were stranded in Abita Springs, so I have no idea what’s going on at the house on Prytania.”
“Yeah, they’re definitely going—Sam’s so excited about their costumes and has asked Jolene and me to make them. I know there wasthat little disagreement about Sam and you working together, but Beau and Sam have apparently made up, since his bed at home hasn’t been slept in since he returned from Abita Springs.” She waggled her eyebrows, making me feel a little sick. “They’re coming dressed as Saints Timothy and Maura—a young Egyptian couple who were only married for twenty-six days before being crucified facing each other and spent one third of their marriage dying together.”
“How romantic.”
“I know, right? The best part is that so many of these early AD saints’ costumes are basically just draped fabric, so Jolene and I can whip them up pretty quickly. Except I’m going as Joan of Arc, so that will be a little more complicated, since I’ll need a sword. Jolene says she saw a pair of lace-up boots in the window of one of those sex shops on Bourbon Street that I might want to get to complete my outfit.”
“Great idea,” I said. “Are you going solo?”
Her cheeks flushed. “No,” she said slowly.
“Anyone I know?”
She looked up at me with a timid smile and nodded. “Michael Hebert.”
“Michael Hebert,” I repeated.
“Yeah, Michael. I know, right? It was sort of out of the blue when he called and asked me right after his family received their invitations. It was a surprise, but a nice one, since we’d only met that once—outside Audubon Place.” Her smile was quickly absorbed by an expression of concern. “I hope you’re not mad.”
“Mad? Why would I be mad? It’s not like Michael and I are a couple or anything. We’re sort of trying to start over as friends, but that’s it. I honestly don’t care. I’m just... surprised.”
“Good,” she said, her sunny smile returning. “Oh, and Mimi wanted me to let you know that you’re invited, too. She’d assumed that you would know that you were welcome, but she put an invitation in the mail just in case. It comes with a plus-one, so you caninvite Cooper. Beau invited Jaxson, who’s bringing Carly. It will be so much fun!”
