I didn’t know why I blurted it out, but I knew if anyone in this town could keep a secret, it was Sugar. The woman hated gossip and wanted nothing to do with it, considering how gossip almost cost her everything.
Walking over to me, Sugar placed her hand under my chin and lifted my head. “Wade’s?”
I nodded.
The next thing I knew, the sweet woman hugged me.
Like really hugged me.
Releasing me, she asked, “Have you told Wade yet?”
“No. I’m still trying to wrap my head around the fact I’m going to be a mom. Plus, there’s the fact that I don’t like him.”
“You don’t like the fact that he’s your equal,” Sugar stated. “I’ve known you my whole life, Devlyn, and you like being in charge. You are not happy unless you are bossing someone around. But I’ve got news for you. Wade may be a pain in the ass, but underneath he’s just a big softy with a heart of gold. That man never takes anything seriously. How he manages the Bourbon Kings and the bar I will never know, but when the chips are down and your back is against the wall, there isn’t anyone better to have at your side. My cousin will move mountains for those he cares about.”
“We have nothing in common, Sugar. I barely tolerate him on a good day.”
“That’s because he’s only showing you what he shows the world. Listen, Devlyn, Wade had a privileged life. My auntie Marabella and uncle Skeeter spoiled him rotten. Trust me, there were many times Auntie Marabella took a switch to Wade. That boy could try the patience of a saint, but at the end of the day, Wade always made amends. When Wade was sixteen, Uncle Skeeter died, and that’s when he changed. It was like all the fun just left him, and he never took anything serious again. Wade loved his daddy. Worshipped the ground he walked on, and when Uncle Skeeter passed, it did something to Wade. The man you know is not the man I grew up with.”
“How did he die?” I asked.
“A man named Eustis Coltraine shot him,” Sugar whispered.
“There’s more to that story, Sugar.”
She nodded and looked away. “Yes, there is, but it’s not my story to tell. You’re gonna have to ask Wade for the rest.”
Groaning, I asked, “What should I do, Sugar?”
“Did I ever tell you there is a curse on my family?”
“A what?” I asked, wondering where the hell she was going with this.
I watched as Sugar wiped down the counter and said, “The La Croix family curse. Blessed with unwavering beauty, descendants of the La Croix family are destined to meet the love of their lives at a young age. But with love comes heartbreak. The trials and tribulations a La Croix descendant will suffer will test the bounds of love, and only the strongest La Croix heart will win. I never understood until Eugene and I got together. When I married John Stanley and everything went to shit, it was Eugene who always stood beside me. From the very beginning, it was always him, but I refused to see what was right in front of me. Don’t let fear stop you from having the life you’re destined to have, Devlyn. It may not be what you envisioned, but it’s a beautiful life.”
The day of the wedding had arrived and instead of getting ready to go watch the festivities, where was I? Hunched over the porcelain throne, praying for mercy when I heard someone banging loudly on my front door. Ignoring whoever it was, I heaved once more, before flushing the toilet and sitting back against the wall, thinking of all kinds of devious ways to kill Gator.
It was because of him I was in my current predicament.
It was all his fault. Gator. That swamp-born, gumbo-loving, fertility-god-incarnate son of a...well, you get the picture.His Cajun sperm, apparently, were Olympic-level athletes in the fertilization games. Not one, not two, but three little parasitic hitchhikers were currently partying in my uterus, a parasitic Mardi Gras I wasn’t invited to.
“Dev!”
Groaning, I hung my head as my sister Henley let herself into my apartment.
How could I forget I gave her a damn key?
Then my stomach grumbled, and I knew the answer.
It was the parasites that Cajun infected me with.
I should have known that someone named Gator would plant a damn litter in my uterus, clearly mistaking my womb for the Louisiana bayou. If I ever saw that fucker again, I was going to rip his balls from his body and serve them up in a damn gumbo!
My stomach growled, a low rumble that sounded suspiciously like a miniature monster truck rally.
They were getting hungry again.
Apparently, growing three tiny human beings required a heck of a lot of sustenance. The image of Gator flashed through my mind and his perpetually grinning face, his ridiculously thick eyebrows, his... everything.
