“Yeah, that’s probably not going to happen,” Owen said.
Maddie laughed.
George nodded. “That’s what I figured.” He gave Maddie a wink. “Welcome back.”
Her eyes stung with tears. Happy tears. She hugged Owen. “It’s really good to be home.”
Epilogue
Four days later
* * *
“Damn, girl, that looks good,” Owen said.
“It really does. Wow,” Josh agreed.
Maddie took a deep breath. Her latest painting, the one that had poured out of her after the huge fiasco at the dock, the one that was full of bright, vibrant colors and people—the first time she’d ever painted people—was displayed in the front window of one of the art galleries on Royal Street in New Orleans.
The gallery was, appropriately, named Crazy Creatives.
Owen had talked her into loading her newest painting into the truck and taking it to New Orleans. “What’s the worst that can happen?” he’d asked. And hey, they were coming to town today anyway. So she’d done it. They’d driven past the gallery and she’d seen the name and immediately ordered Josh to stop. The gallery owner had flipped for the painting and had put it right up front.
The painting was of Ellie’s and all the characters that filled the place with laughter and life every day. Maddie almost didn’t want to let it go. She’d envisioned it hanging on the wall in Ellie’s, straight across from the bar.
But Owen was trying to be supportive, and she knew it would reassure him that there was now nothing she was missing about California. She’d been so amazed when she’d awakened the morning after telling him she was staying and that she was in love with him and had headed to Cora’s and started painting immediately.
It seemed that she could channel happy feelings, too. Perhaps she just hadn’t enough of them over the past few years. Or the ones she’d had hadn’t been so overwhelming that they poured out through her brush.
That wasn’t going to be a problem anymore. She now felt happiness and love and hope and an incredible sense of belonging that was too much to keep inside.
“Okay, we’ll leave it here,” she said, taking a breath.
“It looks amazing.” Owen squeezed her hand.
It did. But she still kind of wanted to keep it.
Josh’s phone dinged with a text message. He looked down. “Bennett’s there,” he said. “We should head over.”
“What did the guy say again?” Owen asked as they approached the attorney’s office.
“Just said that they wanted to make a deal. They thought they had an idea about how to make this all work out for all of us without having to go to court,” Josh said. “The other kids are all still waiting to see a judge, but this one wanted to talk.”
“I’m still having a hard time believing that kid is going to medical school,” Maddie said. “Not sure that makes me feel real secure about the medical system in a few years.”
“He’s from Virginia,” Josh said. “Probably don’t need to worry about him working on you.”
Maddie rolled her eyes. “That guy is a dumbass.”
Owen couldn’t argue. He reached out and pulled the door open for her. Then he swatted her ass as she passed. “Try not to call him that in front of the lawyer.”
She grinned at him. “Guessing the lawyer already knows.”
They crossed the lobby to the elevators. Josh looked around and whistled. “This is nice. Kid can afford high level lawyers.”
“He’s from Virginia?” Maddie asked as they stepped onto the elevator.
“Alexandria,” Owen confirmed.
“Great.” She sighed. “His daddy’s probably a Senator or something.”
Josh nodded. “Possible.”
“Little shit thinks he’s going to get off,” Owen said.
Chase Dawson, aka the little shit, had hired an attorney immediately who had reached out within twenty-four hours of his arrest. Maddie had been willing to listen. Chase was headed to medical school in two weeks. Obviously a jail sentence for stealing their airboat and destroying it and their dock was going to get in the way of him showing up for day one of gross anatomy.
“Well, we already lied to Sawyer about this meeting,” Maddie said.
The elevator arrived on the sixth floor and they stepped off.
“We can’t let this kid off. Sawyer is so pissed already. If this kid doesn’t get something for what he did, Sawyer might have an aneurysm.”
“Oh, he’ll have to do something. Pay for everything at least, right?” Josh asked.
They stopped outside of the suite and looked at one another.
“So the kid has a rich dad who’s going to try to pay us off,” Maddie said. “Are we going to go for that?”
“What’s our alternative?” Owen asked. “Make him sit in jail? That doesn’t get the dock rebuilt and…” He shrugged. “We’ve all made some pretty bad decisions and done some stupid stuff, right?”
Josh and Maddie had nothing to say to that. Because yeah, of course they had.
“Okay, so let’s hear what they have to say,” Maddie said.
Josh pulled the door open and they went inside.
Bennett was already in the conference room with another man in a suit. They both looked completely comfortable in the leather chairs around the mahogany table in front of floor to ceiling windows that overlooked the French Quarter.
“Nate, this is Madison Allain, Owen Landry, and Josh Landry. My partners,” Bennett said, coming to his feet and buttoning the top button on his suit jacket. It seemed like a habit and Maddie smiled. The guy was as comfortable in Armani as Owen was in blue jeans. It was so interesting to see the guys next to each other.
Owen and Josh were both in khakis and button-down shirts today, though. That was as dressed up as they’d likely get, but they cleaned up good.
Nate shook each of their hands and indicated that they should sit. “Chase and Juliet should be here soon.”
“Chase and Juliet?” Owen asked, holding a chair out for Maddie and then taking the one next to her.
“Chase paid his bail but his sister, Juliet, came down and made sure he stayed. She intends to have him make up for what happened.”
Bennett lifted a brow. “Chase’s sister is going to make him make up for what happened?” he repeated. “What does that mean?”
Nate nodded. “Juliet is an attorney in Virginia.”
Maddie remembered him threatening to call her when Maddie had refused his refund. So his lawyer sister was coming to bail him out after all.
“Oh great,” Owen said. “The kid has a lawyer for a sister.”
“So she has an offer to pay for everything or what?” Josh asked.
“I should wait for them to get here,” Nate said. “But…” He trailed off and eyed them each. “I maybe shouldn’t tell you this, but Juliet and Chase are the daughter and son of Wilson Dawson.”
Bennett frowned. “Wilson Dawson?”
Nate nodded.
Bennett shook his head. “Wow.”
“Who’s Wilson Dawson?” Josh asked.
“Billionaire investor,” Bennett said.
“We were right,” Owen commented. “Thought maybe the kid had a rich dad.”
“He does,” Nate said. “But he has an older sister who’s determined that he, in her words, not turn into an asshole.”
Maddie felt her eyebrows rise.
Nate nodded at their surprised looks. ““Juliet’s older brothers both work for their dad. Juliet, on the other hand, is a lawyer who does a lot of work as a patient advocate and a lobbyist for healthcare. Chase is her little brother and she’s determined to make sure he becomes a good guy.”
“It’s important to her that he shows up for medical school on day one then,” Maddie said.
“It is,” Nate agreed. “But she also wants Chase to be held responsible for what happened in Autre. So she wants to talk.”
Just then the door to the conference room swung o
pen and a woman tumbled in. She was juggling an armful including a big leather bag, an accordion file folder, and a coffee cup.
All of which fell to the floor in front of her as she turned her ankle and pitched forward.
Josh, the closest to her, shot up and caught her before she face planted into the table.
“Whoa there,” he said, setting her back on her feet.
Maddie looked around the table. All of the other men were also out of their seats and reaching for her, as if by instinct. Maddie turned her attention back to the woman.
She was…gorgeous. Like, stunningly gorgeous. The type of woman even other women said, “wow” about.
In spite of the fact that the bun on top of her head was falling down, her pale blue suit jacket was hanging off of one shoulder, her black-framed glasses were sliding down her nose, and her cream-colored skirt was now splashed with coffee. But it also looked like maybe it had been spotted with something else—barbecue sauce maybe—even prior to dropping her coffee cup on Nate’s office carpet.
The woman looked up at Josh, then at the others in the room as she pushed her glasses up, straightened her jacket, and patted her hair.
“Um…hi.”
She must have felt that her hair was coming down because she pulled the elastic band from it and shook it out. The dark strands were streaked with blond and red highlights and fell to the upper curve of her ass.
It was a great curve, too. Even Maddie had to admit. It went perfectly with the very…generous…curves behind the cream-colored silk tank she wore under her jacket. In contrast with her curves, she had a tiny waist and had to be only about five-three. She was little and curvy and beautiful. And possibly a bit of a klutz. Then again, maybe she was just having a bad day.
“I’m Juliet Dawson,” she said, giving them all a big smile. She glanced at the organizer—which was still nicely put together because of the tight elastic band around it—and coffee cup—which was not nicely put together—on the floor behind her. She grimaced. “Sorry about that.”
“It’s not a problem at all,” Nate assured her.
“Are you okay?” Josh asked.
“Can I get you another coffee?” Bennett asked.
“Oh no,” Juliet told him with a smile. “Not without my spill-proof cup. Because… well, you see why. But thank you.”
“Of course,” he told her with an unnecessary level of sincerity in his tone.
Maddie smirked at that. No way did Bennett Baxter get people coffee.
“Um.” That was all Owen managed.
Maddie looked up at the man she was crazy about. He was staring at Juliet like a dumbass. But she forgave him. Juliet was just…really hard not to stare at.
Maddie elbowed Owen and he quickly glanced at her. He immediately realized why she’d poked him.
“Sorry.”
Maddie laughed. “I’d be more worried if you didn’t look.”
He ran a hand through his hair. “Quite an…entrance.”
Maddie nodded. “Yeah. That’s what I was thinking.” Right. The truth was, Juliet looked like a lingerie model dressing up as a lawyer for Halloween.
The fact that she was an attorney made Maddie like her a lot. Clearly the woman had brains, too. But there was no way that she walked into a courtroom without every single person thinking, “Wow.” That had to give some kind of advantage in trials.
“Have a seat, Juliet,” Nate said, pulling out a chair between him and Bennett.
Juliet bent to retrieve her bag and the folder and Maddie thought Nate was going to tip over leaning to watch.
She straightened and smiled again. That smile made her seem very sweet.
Maddie hoped underneath it, Juliet was a barracuda.
Then she frowned. No she didn’t. She wanted Juliet to feel bad about what her brother had done and make it right.
Juliet stepped around the table and took the chair Nate had been holding for her. “Thank you.” She set her bag under her chair and then opened the folder on the tabletop, looking confident and poised, even though she’d just, literally, fallen into the room. “Chase should be here soon. We—”
“I’m here.”
They all pivoted to look at the doorway. Yep, Chase was the guy that she’d refused to give a refund. The guy who had been driving the airboat Owen had jumped onto.
Something must have shown in her face because she felt Owen’s hand clamp down on her thigh. “Easy there,” he said softly.
Or maybe Owen just knew her really well.
“Chase,” Juliet said.
Something in her tone made Maddie look over. Juliet was looking at her little brother with a mix of annoyance, worry, and affection.
Maddie knew what it was like to feel all of those things at once for someone. Currently, she was feeling that combination for Sawyer.
“Sorry, I’m late. I couldn’t find parking.”
“I told you—” Juliet started. Then she pressed her lips together and shook her head. “I’m glad you made it,” she said. “Have a seat. Let’s get going on this.”
Chase didn’t make eye contact with anyone else in the room. He rounded the table and took a seat three chairs down from Maddie.
“First,” Juliet said. “Chase would like to apologize.” She looked at her brother. “Go on.”
They all looked at Chase.
“I’m sorry,” he said. He spoke clearly, but he still didn’t look at any of them. “It was really stupid. I didn’t intend to do any harm and I deeply regret the damage I caused to your boat and dock.”
Maddie frowned. “How about the lives you endangered? The people on the dock, Owen, your friends, yourself?” she demanded. “Do you even realize what could have happened?”
Chase glanced at his sister. So did Maddie. Was Juliet going to defend him? Argue with Maddie? Tell her to back off?
Juliet was watching Chase. She lifted a brow at him and said nothing.
Chase blew out a breath. “Yes, I’m very sorry about all of that. It was, as I said, stupid.”
Maddie scowled, but didn’t say anything more. In part because of the squeeze Owen gave her leg. In part because, well, what else was the kid supposed to say, really?
“We have a proposal,” Juliet said, drawing the attention back to herself. “The damage Chase caused must be rectified. However, he needs to report to school in two weeks.”
“The estimated amount to do all repairs was in the report we sent,” Bennett said.
Again, Maddie was grateful to have him. He’d handled a lot of the communication with their insurance company and had pulled strings—or maybe flashed a check—to get three bids on the repairs within twenty-four hours.
“Yes, I got that,” Juliet told him. She started to write something down on the page in front of her but suddenly there was a small puddle of ink spreading over the page. “Dammit,” she muttered, picking up the pen that had, somehow, exploded. She bent to dig in her purse and by the time she sat back up with a new pen and a tissue to blot the leaked ink, there was a streak of black on her tank top. She noticed, started to blot the spot with the tissue, forgot she was still holding the broken pen, and simply succeeded in making it ten times worse.
Maddie shot Owen a look. He was watching Juliet with a confused, but slightly amused expression.
“But we’re not just going to pay the estimate,” Juliet told Bennett without missing a beat. It was almost as if she was used to these things happening.
“You’re not?” Bennett asked, seemingly distracted.
Maddie watched the other woman. Was this just a technique to keep the people around her off-kilter?
“No. Chase is going to work the amount off.”
No one said anything for a moment. Then Josh asked simply, “What?”
Juliet turned slightly toward him in her chair. “Chase is going to work off what he owes you. He can help rebuild the dock for starters. He doesn’t know anything about boat repair, but he can do other things that will add up to what the boa
t repairs come to.”
“Oh.” Josh blinked at her. Then he looked at Chase. Then back to Juliet. “Does he know how to…build things? Use tools and stuff?”
Juliet didn’t seem offended by the question. Neither did Chase, as a matter of fact.
“Actually no. He’ll need some training. And so will I.”
“Or you could…just pay us for it,” Owen said. “We could do the work.”
“We could just pay you,” Juliet said. “But you shouldn’t have to do the work. And it’s important to us”—she gave her brother a look—“that this not be that easy. Chase needs to get his hands dirty. He needs to see what goes into rebuilding what he broke. He needs to help make it right.”
“But he doesn’t know how to do the things we’d need him to do,” Owen pointed out.
“No. But we’re both quick learners and it would be a great chance for us to do something new.”
Owen frowned but Maddie was the one that asked, “You? Both of you?”
Juliet nodded. “I’m coming, too. Having two of us will make the work go twice as fast.”
Josh coughed and Maddie could read that it was a “yeah right” cough.
“But you’ll both need training?” Maddie asked.
“Yes. Though I’ve already started researching.”
“Researching?” Maddie asked.
“How to build docks. What kind of materials are needed, how they go together, that kind of thing.”
Maddie elbowed Owen before he could reply. “Oh, okay, well, great,” Maddie said.
Building a dock wasn’t like building a house or something. It was essentially a bunch of wooden slats hooked together and stuck on posts. The girl would need to know how to use a saw and hammer, but neither took a college degree. Though for some reason the idea of Juliet swinging tools around and using sharp things seemed like a bad idea.
“Like I said, Chase needs to be ready to start classes in two weeks. So we’ll both come and help work off what he owes you,” Juliet said.
Finally Bennett leaned in. “You would have to make something like four hundred dollars an hour to pay off what you owe in two weeks.”
Juliet looked at him, as if expecting him to go on.
Sweet Home Louisiana: Boys of the Bayou Book 2 Page 26
