Then it could be over. Then Sera would leave and she wouldn’t have to think about her again.
But as she walked out, she wondered about that girl who haunted her dreams. Sometimes that face of Sera’s became someone else’s. Her own.
She shook the thought off and began to plan.chapter fourSera hadn’t stopped thinking about Harry all day. Sending him away had been harder than it should have been, and it wasn’t merely because he would have been incredibly helpful.
She wanted to spend time with him. She liked how he smiled and how he flirted with her in a way that didn’t make her feel like he was only thinking of one thing. She flat out liked him. And his dog.
She rocked for a moment, Luc’s little body draped over her torso and shoulder. He was getting so big. One day—way too soon—he wouldn’t be able to lie on her like this. He wouldn’t need her to rock him to sleep.
One day she might not be able to rock her baby while she listened to the sounds of the evening, to the cicadas singing, her mom listening to country music while she did the dishes, the wind coming through the big cypress trees outside their house. One day soon she and Luc would be alone in the city and the only sound that would matter would be the alarm clock telling her it was another day to get through.
She did not want to leave Papillon.
She wanted Luc to be surrounded by family the way she had. Remy had only been home for a year. She wasn’t ready to leave her big brother again. They just felt complete, but she had to consider the fact that Luc was getting older and he would hear the rumors about his birth.
Would it help if she made up a man? Maybe she could find one on Craigslist. He could show up and claim to be Luc’s father, and then they could have a huge fight and break up and he could leave, never to be seen again.
What was she going to tell Luc? Did she have the right to keep the secret of his conception from him?
I love you, Seraphina. I always have.
She could still hear Wes that morning after she’d gotten drunk and landed in the bed of her best friend. When she’d explained it had been a huge mistake, he’d gotten so angry with her. There had been an undeniable potential of violence in him that morning. She’d known Wes Beaumont most of her life, but in that moment, she’d been afraid of him.
The chime of the doorbell brought her out of her dark thoughts. She glanced at the clock on the dresser. Almost eight o’clock. It wasn’t very late, but late enough for her to wonder who would come to their door. Zep had already left for the night.
She stood up and gently placed Luc in his bed, hoping he would stay there for once. Her boy liked to climb and he wasn’t afraid of falling. Nope. That was her fear. She left her sleeping baby and walked into the hall as she heard her mother opening the door.
“Well, hello, Angela,” her mother was saying. “Come on in. Is everything all right?”
Sera sighed. She should have expected a visit. Naturally Angie Beaumont would show up after dark, and she’d likely walked so no one would see her car parked outside. It wouldn’t do for the sweetheart of Papillon to be seen talking to the bad girl.
She stepped out into the foyer, where Angie was standing.
“Not at all, Ms. Delphine.” Angie was dressed in slacks and a blouse. Beaumonts didn’t do casual.
Although one of them did. One of them wore shorts that showed off his legs, and yes, she’d thought the prosthesis was sexy, too. He’d had a scar on his right arm and a couple of whispery ones that ran from his jawline to his shoulder blade. The scars made him real. Without them he would be almost too perfect. With them, she could remember he was more than a pretty face and a masculine body. He was a man who’d been through a lot.
Sometimes she wished the world could see her scars so maybe they would remember she’d been through a lot, too.
“I wanted to pop in and talk to Sera,” Angie continued, glancing to Sera. “I heard you all had a busy day.”
And she was here to make sure that day wouldn’t ruin the secret they kept. “Why don’t you come on into the kitchen and I’ll tell you about it. You want a glass of wine?”
Angie gave her a wide smile. “I’ve been wedding planning with my mother. I could use a whole bottle.”
Sera led Angie back to the kitchen and picked up a bottle of Pinot Noir that Remy had left for them to try. There were perks to having a restaurant in the family. She could always take a shift if she needed cash, and someone always wanted them to try wine. “How are the plans going? Is Austin happy with them?”