you ask him not to?”
“Of course I did, and he said he wouldn’t, but I know him. He’s not going to be quiet forever. At some point he’ll decide it’s for the best and he’ll say something.” Had she kicked him out too quickly? Should she have talked to him longer? Tried to make him understand? “I’m hoping he holds off long enough for me to get Guidry Place finished and ready to sell.”
“I wanted you to keep it,” Zep said with obvious regret. “I really thought you would like running a B and B. Of course, I kind of thought Harry would be there with you.”
She had, too, and that had been the most foolish thing of all. “Well, I’ve got to grow up.”
“This didn’t happen because you’re not a grown-up,” Remy corrected. “You love him, don’t you? We can’t help who we love.”
“And he can’t help who his family is, which is why I should have stayed away.” She stood up. “If you don’t mind setting up a call with Lisa’s brother-in-law, I would appreciate it. I know this probably isn’t his area of expertise, but he might be able to give me some pointers. And tell me how much it’s going to cost.”
“Don’t worry about that.” Remy stood and she was enveloped in a bear hug. “We’ll make it work. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to, and that includes selling the house. I know you’re panicked right now and it feels like you don’t have choices, but you do.”
“I could choose to kill Harry.” Zep was still frowning. “I feel responsible because I talked to him about asking you out. I might have been pulling some strings like the ruthless manipulator I am.”
She rubbed a hand over her younger brother’s shoulder. “I always knew your plots would get me in trouble.”
A forlorn expression crossed her brother’s face. “I thought he would be good for you.”
The sad part was he had been. Harry had been good to her, good for her. He would have been good to Luc, but she couldn’t expect him to choose her over his family. She wouldn’t even want him to. Remy was going on about how they couldn’t kill Harry, and Zep argued that he could take them all out if it meant protecting their sister.
At least she wouldn’t lose them. Her family would have to be enough. Now she had to see Harry one last time and let Celeste know she’d been right all along. She didn’t belong anywhere near the Beaumont clan.
* * *
***
Harry stared at the gazebo. It was almost done and it looked perfectly lovely, ready for the wedding reception. Picture perfect, but then looks could be deceiving. He’d figured that out.
After all, he’d firmly believed he and Sera would make a perfect couple, and it turned out he was very wrong.
She hadn’t been available when he’d gone to pick up Shep. He’d gone to her house ready to sit down and have a long talk about what had happened. He’d spent the entire night working in the shop because he couldn’t sleep. He’d done what he always did when he was restless—he’d worked and let the problem run through his head. But instead of getting to talk to Sera, he’d been left with Delphine, who’d had a whole lot of questions about why he hadn’t stayed the night. Sera hadn’t told her anything, merely left saying she needed to talk to Remy and had to get to the restaurant before the rush.
He’d gotten to see Luc, who’d been toddling around behind Delphine. The little boy had hugged Shep before letting the dog go. Luc had asked him if he was staying and if he wanted to play, and it had taken everything he had to tell the kid he had to go.
What the hell was he going to do if Sera wouldn’t even talk to him? How had things gone so wrong?
“You finished.” His cousin walked out, a smile on her face. “I can’t believe how good it looks. I’ve seen it in old pictures, but this is amazing. It’s everything you promised. You do good work, Harry.”
Yes, he could put this old gazebo back together again, but a relationship was a different thing. He couldn’t patch up what had happened with Sera unless he agreed never to tell his aunt her secret. He wasn’t sure he could do that. And now that he was done, he had no idea how he would pass