To My Senses The Nicci Beauvoir Series Book 1 (2 page)

I spotted Eddie sitting beside the large
open bar near a flowing garden fountain. Colleen was sitting next
to him, trying desperately to attract his attention. She was like a
good bloodhound when it came to finding her man. Her infatuation
with Eddie dated back to grade school.

Eddie sat leaning against
the bar on one of the wrought-iron stools. His thick shoulders
hunched over the bottle of champagne he held in his stubby hands.
His shirtsleeves were already rolled up and his cream-colored shirt
was unbuttoned halfway down his chest. His green eyes were zeroed
in on Sammy and her date.

“
Don’t you think that one
looks a bit like a gigolo?”

I spun around. “Aunt
Hattie! You startled me. And where did you learn such a
word?”

“
Good Lord, child, I’m not
that much of a prude. You know, some of us did have sex in the
eighties! How do you think you people got here?”

“
Aunt Hattie!” My voice
rattled in my throat.

Maybe she’d had one too
many. In all my life, I had never heard my aunt speak about what
she had termed “delicate matters.”

“
Nicci, you’re not a child,
but God knows my poor Colleen is. I was hoping she would find
herself a suitable fellow here.” Hattie shrugged and took another
sip from her champagne glass. “Shame we can’t get the very
prosperous Eddie Fallon interested in my baby. Rumor has it that
Sammy has her sights set on taking over another
company.”

“
Since when have you been
interested in Sammy’s business affairs?”

“
Oh, I just listen to the
gossip.” Hattie frowned as she waved off my angry scowl. “Don’t
look at me like that. I know you hate to gossip. But honestly
Nicci, how do you expect to keep up with half the goings on in
town?”

“
Aunt Hattie, considering
all the rumors that have been spread at our family’s expense over
the years, I’m surprised you still associate with half of these
people.”

“
It’s lucky for our family
that I have listened to the gossip. I’ve been able to keep your
father and uncle abreast of Sammy’s business dealings though the
years. Thanks to me, they’ve been able to hang on to Beauvoir
Scrap.” She peered over at Sammy Fallon standing next to her
mystery date. The two were holding hands and smiling at each other.
“Shame. Sammy did always have a better head for business than for
men.”

I rolled my eyes. “Men are
Sammy Fallon’s business, Aunt Hattie.”

Suddenly, a cacophonous laugh broke out from
across the lawn. It resembled the sucking sound of a vacuum
cleaner.

Hattie sighed. “I wish I
could get my daughter interested in the business of finding a
man.”

“
Leave Colleen alone. One
day, she’ll find someone.”

“
Find someone, ha!” Hattie
slammed her glass on our table. “I can’t trust her to find her way
around Tulane campus and she’s been going there for almost a
year.”

“
Colleen has a lot more
sense than you give her credit for. She will—”

“
She will screw it up, as
usual,” Hattie interrupted. “Forgive me, dear, but the only one
with sense in this family is you.” She nodded to me. “In fact, your
mother used to say that she knew, if you didn’t marry into money,
it was more than likely you would make it yourself.” Hattie stared
off in the distance watching Colleen at the bar, still desperately
trying to get Eddie’s attention. “No,” she continued, “Colleen will
have to marry someone with money and sense.”

It was the same story I had
heard over and over, all my life. I was always treated like
Einstein and Colleen was the village idiot.

Hattie’s voice interrupted
my thoughts. “Where do you think she gets them?”

“
Who?” I asked.

“
Sammy Fallon. Where do you
think she finds those men of hers?”

“
Maybe she calls an escort
agency.”

“
I’m serious,
Nicci.”

“
I was serious. Why does it
matter to you?”

“
No reason.” She reached
for the glasses hanging around her neck on a chain of pearls. “This
one is rather good looking…pity. Uh oh.”

I saw what had made my aunt
grow quiet. Eddie had stumbled out of his chair and was staggering
toward his mother and her date. I knew what he was going to do.
Everyone at the party knew what he was going to do. His tirades
were legendary. The last one cost his mother thirty thousand in
medical bills, plus a hefty settlement with the gentleman’s
attorneys.

Quickly, I leapt from my
chair and ran to intercede. I wasn’t sure exactly what I could do
to stop him, but the last thing Eddie needed was to get into
another fight, especially with all of the old guard watching. I
reached him right before he stepped in front of his mother’s
escort. I placed myself between the two men and smiled radiantly up
at Eddie. I could see the hate roasting in his green
eyeballs.

I took a deep breath.
“Eddie, you don’t come and say hello to your friends anymore?”
Playing the coquettish tease was not my specialty, but I knew it
would have some effect on him.

“
Nicci.” His eyes seemed to
soften. “I didn’t think…I wasn’t sure…I mean, well, uh, hello.” He
smiled weakly, while trying to catch a quick glimpse over my
shoulder.

“
Why Eddie, I thought we
were friends. All this time I’ve been waiting for you to come over
and say hello. I didn’t think it would be proper for me to come
running up to you and…well I just couldn’t wait any longer. So here
I am.” I batted my eyes. “And now I have gone out of my way in
front of all these people and made a fool of myself chasing you
down like some, some lovesick schoolgirl.”

If this didn’t work, I
would have resort to physical force.

“
You were waiting for me?”
A smile as wide as the Mississippi spread across his red face. He
caught himself and peered sheepishly at the ground.

“
Why don’t we go over and
sit at my table, over there.” I pointed across the lawn away from
Sammy and her date. “You can tell me all about your fishing trip to
the Gulf.”

I took his arm and escorted
him to my table, where Aunt Hattie sat staring, her mouth gaping
like a mullet. I seated Eddie strategically with his back to the
crowd. We had just settled into our chairs when I saw Sammy’s
handsome stranger turn, raise his glass to me, and
smile.

Eddie then began to tell me
more than I had ever wanted to know about deep-sea fishing. He
seemed to find great pleasure in describing the torment and torture
he, and a boatload of drunks, had caused some poor fish. His chest
puffed out with pride and his thick hands animated every detail of
his adventure. He was a different person when he talked about
fishing.

I must have spent an hour
listening to him. I kept smiling and looking fascinated while
secretly contemplating the virtues of arming all small animals,
fish included, with handguns. I also managed to keep the champagne
flowing, hoping the effects would allay his interests in his
mother’s companion. Just when I was certain the fishing story would
continue into my old age, I was suddenly rescued by an unlikely
source. Sammy approached the table.

“
Nicci. How’s your father,
dear?” Sammy smiled like a toothsome tigress.

“
Hello, Mrs. Fallon. My
father is well, thank you.”

Eddie’s eyes darted back
and forth between his mother and me.

“
Make sure you give him my
warmest regards.” She turned to her son. “Eddie, let’s go. I want
to go home.”

He slowly and very
unsteadily rose from his chair, while keeping his mother in a
loving gaze. Sammy leaned forward and placed her arm around him,
all but carrying him away from the table. Before they were out of
sight, Eddie turned and waved to me. Then, the two hobbled across
the lawn toward the street.

“
Well done, my girl.” It
was Hattie sneaking up on me. “You should be a psychiatrist or
something like that. A great disaster avoided and Sammy Fallon
can’t even thank you for it. Prancing around here with her toy
boy…or is it boy toy?”

“
I think it’s boy toy,” I
snickered.

“
Yes, that’s it. Well
anyway, she made quite a spectacle of herself.” She surveyed the
empty tables around us. “We have to go. We’re almost the last ones
here.” Hattie gathered up her purse and iPhone. “I’ve got to get
Colleen out of that dress before she destroys it.” Across the lawn,
Colleen was tugging at her dress while she spoke with another of
the debutantes. “Look at her,” Hattie continued. “Dress her like a
lady, and she fidgets like a dog with fleas.”

Hattie kissed me on the
cheek and went running off after her daughter. The sun was just
about to set over the horizon and the crowds seemed to be departing
with the light. Except for the occasional clatter of the caterers
cleaning up, a comforting quiet descended over the area. This was
always my favorite part of any party; the peace that followed after
the guests had gone. Suddenly, I realized I was not alone. There
was someone standing behind me.

“
You were very good.” The
voice was deep and sounded slightly foreign.

I spun around to be hit,
head-on, by a pair of cold gray eyes. I sat stunned for a moment
before slowly taking in the rest of his face. His nose was long,
straight, and came to a point. His mouth was small, with thin lips
that curved in a rather sarcastic grin. Tan skin was pulled taught
over high cheekbones, and a wide jaw complimented by a small scar
on his right upper cheek. A lock of dark brown hair fell across his
forehead like a comma. He looked older than Sammy’s usual liaisons,
perhaps mid-thirties. I realized I was staring and quickly dropped
my eyes.

“
I’ve seen his moods
before. I know how to calm him,” I explained, brushing off his
compliment.

He pulled a chair up beside
me. He had removed his jacket and rolled up his white shirtsleeves.
“I thought I had heard all about Eddie’s women. I don’t remember
your name being mentioned before.”

“
Eddie’s
women?” I shook my head. “I’m
not—
”

“
Nicole Beauvoir, isn’t
it?” He smiled mischievously at me. “I asked Sammy when I saw you
with Eddie. She told me about you.”

I noticed that one of his front lower teeth
turned inward slightly and appeared out of place in his perfect
smile. Looking away from his mouth, I tried to compose myself.

“
Sammy Fallon told you
about me? I’m sure she had nothing good to say.” I let my chin jut
out ever so slightly.

“
No, in fact Sammy is quite
taken with you. She said you were very bright and would go far. She
also said that you and Eddie were very close.” He leered
momentarily.

“
Not that close. We’ve
known each other since grade school. Sometimes I think I’m the only
person he can talk to.”

“
I have to say I have never
seen Eddie quite as taken with anyone. His feelings for you
appeared to me to be much more than just friendship.”

I folded my arms across my
chest and glared at him. “You seem to think you know Eddie pretty
well. Are you a good friend of his?”

His smile dimmed, slightly.
“No, I am just a friend of the family.”

“
I see. Old
friend?”

“
Old enough.” His voice
deepened with anger.

“
Sorry. Look, it doesn’t
matter to me what your relationship is with the
Fallons.”

The sarcastic smile
returned to his lips. “I’m so glad.”

I shifted uncomfortably. He was staring at
me with those penetrating gray eyes. I thought further small talk
was best for alleviating my discomfort.

“
You don’t sound like you
are from New Orleans.”

“
No, I’m not.”

I kept waiting for him to say more, but
nothing came. I think he enjoyed watching me fidget in my
chair.

“
Are you going to tell me
where you’re from?” I asked, after a few moments more of
silence.

“
Do you really need to
know?”

“
Would you be violating
national security if you told me?”

He laughed. It was deep and
harmonious. I liked his laugh. “You have quite an imagination, Ms.
Beauvoir…but no, it’s not a national secret. I was born in Ireland
and raised in New York.”

“
A long way to come for a
lawn party. How did you get from Ireland to New York?”

“
Over water.”

“
Did you walk?”

“
Would it impress you if I
had?” He seemed quite serious.

“
No, but if you turn water
into wine, you’ll be very popular with this crowd.”

He laughed louder than
before and clapped his hands together. “I see I shall have to watch
out for you.”

“
Oh please, don’t. There
are enough people doing that already.”

“
Yes, I noticed,” he
quipped.

“
Did you? I would have
thought your attentions were well occupied this afternoon.” I
waited for his reaction. There was none. “Well,” I went on, “you
didn’t go unnoticed today, either. You put quite a spell on all the
women at the party. Do you usually have that effect?”