Four Weddings and a Swamp Boat Tour - Erin Nicholas Page 0,39
it was the best solution. She knew what he expected from her, and she just needed to stay true to that. She wouldn’t wear that sweatshirt anymore. She wouldn’t sit next to him on the couch. She wouldn’t kiss him on any day but Tuesday, Friday, or Saturday.
She could do that.
She liked it a lot, she’d decided by the time they got to the Boys of the Bayou office. She was determined to adhere to all of the rules.
“Kennedy is going to show you everything you need in here today,” Mitch said as he shut the truck off.
“Okay.” She’d at least already met Kennedy. Though she definitely got the impression not much was going to get past Mitch’s cousin.
“I’ve got a bunch of stuff to do with the enclosure today and have to pick up a couple of busloads of tourists,” he said. “But I’ll be around if you need anything.”
“Okay.” She was studying the front of the tour company office.
The office was a simple wooden building that sat upon the slight hill above a few wooden docks. She could just see the end of a couple of boats. There was a tiny gravel parking lot a few yards to the north with a walkway leading to the deck that surrounded the building. There were three small buses parked in the lot at the moment. They were white with large windows and looked to seat about forty people or so. The side sported the Boys of the Bayou logo. A large bright green cartoon alligator that was walking upright and grinning with BOYS OF THE BAYOU in black lettering across his stomach.
“Hey.”
She looked over at Mitch.
He seemed about to say something. Instead, he leaned over, cupped the back of her head, and pulled her into a kiss. It was sweet. No tongue. No moaning or wandering hands. It was just a kiss. But it made her feel warm.
She was smiling when he pulled back. “What was that for?”
“I’m glad you’re here. I love the idea of you working here. Which is stupid, I know. But just having you around feels good. And—” He gave her a grin that made her feel more than warm. “It’s Tuesday. I’m going to take advantage.”
For just a second, she felt her throat tighten. He liked having her around. That was the kind of stuff that felt like an expectation without it actually being an expectation.
“I haven’t even started the job,” she said. “I might really suck at it and get fired, and then I won’t really be around.”
She felt a flicker of panic that was very unusual. She was laid back and calm. Dammit. But she also didn’t work for other people. She’d been a waitress at the café in Appleby for a short time in high school. She’d babysat for a few kids here and there. But her only real job had been working for herself.
It was those stupid expectations and letting-people-down thing again.
And she’d just now realized it. Sitting in Mitch Landry’s truck, about to go into her new job for his family, she’d just realized a huge reason she hadn’t wanted to work for other people.
Besides being able to set her own schedule. And the cats, of course.
She was going to be working for Mitch’s family. They were going to expect her to help them. To answer the phones and not screw up the schedule and not upset their customers.
Ugh. Why had she agreed to this?
She knew she was being a little ridiculous. Working for other people wasn’t the same thing as saying yes to spending the rest of her life as someone’s wife. And daughter-in-law. And sister-in-law. And mom. Yeah, Garrett had wanted kids. Their moms had talked about their shared grandchildren all the time. That had absolutely added to the pressure.
But this was a job. Answering phones. Booking tours.
The worst thing that would happen would be she’d put someone on a tour that was already full, and they’d have to refund their tickets.
It wasn’t like agreeing to spend the rest of her life with someone and then backing out. And costing two families thousands of dollars. And making it so that a really great guy wouldn’t even go on a date for two solid years after.
“Hey.”
Mitch was frowning when she focused on his face again.
“You okay?” he asked.
Damn, she’d gotten lost in those thoughts for a second. And the regrets. She typically just avoided thinking about all of that.