To My Senses The Nicci Beauvoir Series Book 1 (10 page)

My father chuckled and
patted my arm lovingly.

“
Go have fun you two.” Val
ushered us toward the buffet table. “I’ll see you again.” Her gold
dress was immediately lost amid a sea of black tuxedos.

My father pulled me toward
the serving tables overflowing with gumbo, crawfish
étouffée
, stuffed
merlitons, seafood jambalaya, boiled shrimp, and crawfish. Dad set
off for the food while I made my way over to the bar and inspected
the champagne. Val served only the best at her parties. There were
dozens of bottles of Veuve Clicquot and Piper-Heidsieck standing in
oversized silver ice buckets.

I took one of the crystal
flutes filled with the gold liquid from a silver tray on top of the
bar. Relishing a long sip, I realized I had better slow down, or I
would be drunk by the time I saw David. The inevitable meeting
loomed over the entire evening like an approaching
thunderstorm.

From the bar, I observed as
my father wandered his way around the long buffet tables. He saw me
and waved. The orchestra began to play, but it was too early in the
evening for people to lose their inhibitions and hit the dance
floor.

“
You are off in your own
world,” a high-pitched voice said next to me.

I swerved to see Colleen.
She was dressed in a long, purple silk gown that clung tightly to
her ample figure. There were hundreds of gold beads sewn down the
front, and the neckline plunged dramatically below her voluminous
cleavage. Her hair was piled atop her head like a beehive, with
gold and green ribbons woven throughout.

“
Like it?” She twirled for
me.

“
Words cannot express my
amazement.” I couldn’t imagine how my aunt had let her out of the
house dressed like that.

“
It’s neat, huh?” She
lovingly patted the purple fabric. “I designed it, and Mom found a
lady in town to put it together.”

“
Chanel herself would be
mesmerized.”

Her brown eyes lit up. “Do
you really think so?” She searched the room. “Have you seen
Eddie?”

“
No. I’m sure he will be
here soon.” Colleen frantically scanned the hall again, but this
time I knew what she was looking for. “The bar is that way.” I
pointed to the corner of the room.

“
You’re a life
saver.”

As she walked away, you
could hear the clinking of gold beads on her dress.

I had no sooner turned back
around, when I saw Hattie coming toward me.

“
Hello my dear.” She pecked
my cheek. “Where did the girl go off to now? Did you see her dress?
She designed it herself.” Hattie rolled her eyes. “I didn’t want
her to wear it here, but she insisted. You know how difficult she
can be.” She inspected the hall eagerly with her eyes.

“
I wonder where she got
that from?” I mumbled.

“
Is your father here?”
Hattie waved to someone across the room. “Oh, there’s Alicia
McAlester. I have to see if I can get her to join my Garden Club
committee.” She was off before I could get another word in,
waddling away in a tight red taffeta gown with a large green bow
covering her rear.

I reached out to a passing
waiter and deposited my empty flute on his silver tray, then
hastily removed another, filled to the brim with champagne. The
room was starting to fill up, and the lines at the buffet and bar
tables were getting longer. My father soon joined me with two
plates piled high with all sorts of Cajun goodies.

“
The way you’re swilling
that stuff, I thought you had better have something to eat.” He
handed me a plate.

I put my champagne down on
a nearby table. “I guess I’m nervous.”

He looked at me
quizzically, as he forked a large crawfish. “About
what?”

I examined my plate. “Just
all the people.”

He let it go. “The Hoover
sisters make it yet?” he asked, sampling an egg roll.

I pushed some jambalaya
around on my plate. “Yes, Hattie and Colleen are here. Really, Dad,
you need to think of something else to call them.”

The orchestra interrupted
us with a melody from an old Humphrey Bogart film—the one where he
lost the girl but gained the police chief. Just then, Colleen and
Hattie reappeared, champagne flutes in hand.

“
Hello, Bill,” Hattie said,
kissing my father.

Colleen kissed his other
cheek, leaving a large pink lipstick smear. I noticed my father
eyeing Colleen’s dress, but he refrained from
commenting.

“
This has to be Val’s best
party yet,” Hattie chirped. “She goes to such trouble
every—”

At that moment, Colleen
squealed and pointed to the entrance. “Eddie’s here!”

I spun around, nearly dropping my plate.

Colleen was already rushing
for the door before her mother could grab her. Undeterred, Hattie
took off valiantly behind Colleen, chasing her through the crowds.
I strained to see if Eddie had arrived alone or if Sammy was with
him.

“
Don’t tell me you’re eager
to see Eddie Fallon?” Dad commented.

I faced him. “I was just
curious who…who Eddie brought with him tonight. For Colleen’s
sake.”

He frowned. “Colleen and
her obsession with Eddie….” I could not hear the rest of what he
said because the orchestra interrupted him with the theme
from
Star Wars
.

Putting my untouched food
down on a nearby table, I nursed my champagne and nervously glanced
around the room. We stood there for some time as a few friends—more
accurately acquaintances—stopped by our spot and made the usual
polite inquiries. The Hendersons, the Trotters, and the Heberts all
came by, shaking hands and giving us their best. Parker Roy even
came over. He shook my father’s hand and gave me a friendly hug. I
thanked God Colleen was not around to buzz in my ear about wasting
such a great dating opportunity. By the time we had gotten through
all the social necessities, I was on my fourth glass of champagne.
My father kept giving me stern looks with every full flute of
champagne I snatched from a passing waiter. I knew he was
counting.

Colleen breezed by with Eddie in tow. He
looked attractive in an expensive tuxedo with his red hair slicked
back.

“
You look beautiful!” Eddie
shouted to me while Colleen dragged him to the dance
floor.

I watched the two of them
begin dancing to a medley from the James Bond movies. There were
only two other couples on the dance floor and everyone was taking
in the show. My father must have sensed my concern because he
grabbed my hand and led me out to the dance floor to join the bold
and uninhibited.

“
I figured if they were
willing to make fools of themselves…what the hell.” My father
twirled me around as Eddie and Colleen came up beside
us.

Dad was quite a dancer, and
as the music slowed, he swept me away in a sort of waltz. Eddie
brushed by us and yelled something at my father that I could not
hear. Before I could object, the two men had switched partners. I
found myself eyeball-to-eyeball with Eddie.

“
I never got a chance to
say hello,” he mumbled. “I think you look beautiful tonight.” His
thick hands pulled me closer.

“
Thank you, Eddie. Don’t
you think Colleen looks pretty this evening?” I tried to pull away
a little.

He hesitated. “Sure,
but—”

I did not hear the rest.
The orchestra changed tempo again and the music sped up. I broke
free of Eddie’s grip and attempted to jitterbug.

“
I have to speak to you,
alone!” Eddie yelled in my ear, struggling to embrace
me.

I was just about to make some excuse or
another when a hand grabbed my shoulder and spun me away from him.
It took me a moment or two to recover from the dizzying spin and
register the face in front of me.

“
David,” I
gasped.

His gray eyes momentarily
melded with mine. Over David’s shoulder, I caught a glimpse of a
thunderous looking Eddie, standing alone in the middle of the dance
floor and glaring at David’s back. Colleen then came dancing up to
him after having abandoned my father. She was desperately trying to
coax him into her arms.

David seemed oblivious to everything around
us. Laughing, he kept spinning me around and the room began to
blur. I suddenly regretted all the champagne I had consumed.
Mercifully, the music slowed and I was able to catch my breath.
David let me go and stood in front of me, extending his hand and
smiling.

“
Shall we?”

I hesitated, contemplating
extended hand. “What about Sammy?”

His smile faltered, then he
put his arm around my waist, tugging me close. “Tonight, there is
no Sammy. No Eddie. There is no one but you.”

“
Don’t you think you’ll get
bored?” I countered, somewhat sharply.

“
Why are you so difficult?”
His eyes tunneled into mine. “I came here alone. I wanted to see
you again. I knew when you didn’t come to my showing that I would
have to come to you.”

His other hand reached for
mine, and his body moved in time with the rhythm of the music. He
was gliding me around the dance floor with him.

“
I’m flattered, but Eddie
is here. He’ll run to Sammy and she will not be a happy with
your…our conduct tonight.”

“
Why do I suddenly feel as
if I have been called to the principal’s office?” he chuckled. “I
don’t know why Sammy and Eddie bother you so much. I don’t
understand why I can’t dance with an old fishing buddy.”

“
I just know Sammy, and she
is very possessive over things she owns.”

He stiffened slightly.
“Sammy does not own me.”

I looked him squarely in
the eyes. “Not yet.”

He spied the crowds
gathered around the dance floor. “Let’s get out of here.” He nodded
to the gardens.

As soon as he pulled me off the dance floor,
we stepped right smack into my father. He had been standing there
watching us all along.

He had a smug grin on his
lips. “Nicci, I see you’ve made a new friend.”

“
Dad, I would like you to
meet David Alexander.”

David nodded and extended
his hand.

“
David Alexander.” My
father examined him like a meatpacking inspector trying to figure
out what grade to give him. “You’re the painter?”

“
Yes,” David said, a little
surprised. “At any rate, I’m trying to be a painter.”

“
A good one, from what I
hear.” My father glanced around the room. “Lovely party, isn’t it?”
He turned to me and smiled. “Don’t look so worried, Nicci. I’ve
found this to be very…what’s the word, interesting.” He winked at
me and then turned back to David. “You two have fun.”

David nudged me, as we
walked away from the dance floor. “So you told your father about
me? There’s hope for me yet.”

David scooped two flutes of
champagne from a passing waiter’s tray. He handed one to me. I
quickly drained my glass without taking a breath.

“
Hey, I want you sober.”
David took the drink from me.

“
Why? Easier to take
advantage of me the other way.”

“
I don’t need booze to help
me with that.”

“
Don’t get
cocky.”

“
Follow me.” He grabbed my
hand and pulled me toward a pair of arched glass doors leading to
the gardens.

As we stepped out into the
night, I felt a cool breeze brush against my flushed skin. He led
me down one of the dimly lit garden paths, past the pool with its
floating candles, as the din of the party grew softer behind
us.

“
Maybe we should stick
close to the party,” I suggested.

“
Why? It’s quieter out in
the gardens and we can talk.”

“
Talk?” I almost laughed
out loud.

“
Come on. I don’t
bite.”

“
It’s not your teeth I’m
worried about,” I muttered.

I diligently followed him
until finally the path opened up to reveal a large white gazebo
with a small pond next to it. In the center of the pond was a gold
cherub with water spouting from his puckered lips. The pond was lit
with pink and red lights that enveloped us in an eerie
glow.

David took a seat in the
gazebo and patted a spot on the bench next to him. When I sat at a
discrete distance, he arched an eyebrow, but said
nothing.

I gazed up through the roof
of the gazebo into the starry sky. Not a single cloud impeded the
view of the big dipper and the surrounding stars. I gave a heavy
sigh and leaned back against the white railing.

“
It is pleasant out here,”
David commented, as if in agreement.

I turned to him and smiled. He had undone
his bow tie and unbuttoned the first two buttons on his shirt.

“
Ties must be very
uncomfortable,” I mused, attempting some benign
conversation.

David rolled up his tie and
placed it in his jacket pocket. “Yes, they can be.”