Rue Toulouse (37 page)

“Caterine, I’d like you to meet my cousin, Diane Thibodeaux. Diane, this is Caterine Doucette.” Remi placed a paper bag and a couple of six-packs of Turbodog in the backseat.

Diane smiled and held out her hand. “Hello. Welcome to Terrebonne Parrish.”

The warm, friendly smile Diane gave Caterine helped calm her unease. “Thank you. It’s nice to meet you.”

“So Remi’s going to introduce you to a Michaud family gathering? You’ve got guts to meet them all at once. Just don’t let them overwhelm you. They’re loud and have a tendency to all talk at the same time, but they’re a lot of fun.”

Caterine laughed. “Thanks, I’ll remember that. Are you coming?”

“Later on. My husband and I are taking turns going over until we close the store. Then we’ll both be there.”

Remi slid into the driver’s seat. “We’ll try and save you some mudbugs.”

Diane stepped away from the car. “You’d better, or no more family discount for you.”

A few minutes after leaving the store, Caterine asked, “I take it we’re almost there?”

“Just around the bend.”

“Ah, Remi, what exactly is a mudbug?”

“You don’t know what a mudbug is?”

She shook her head.

“They’re the same as a crawfish or crawdad. Down here some of us call them mudbugs. I suppose you don’t know the proper way to eat one either?”
 

Again she shook her head.

Remi grinned mischievously. “It’s easy,
cher
. You twist the tail and suck the head ’til the eyes go clear.”

Chapter Thirty-Five

Still laughing at her horrified expression, Remi parked the car behind a line of pickup trucks, cars, and motorcycles.

As they approached the house, Caterine stared in amazement. She’d attended parties, gala openings, and fund-raisers where there had been hundreds of people, but all those events had seemed well-ordered compared to the sight she now beheld. A sea of constantly moving bodies spread out in noisy waves of mass confusion: adults, young and old; running, playing children of all ages; and friendly barking dogs. They flowed across the lawn, up the steps to the house, and down to the dock and the stand of mature black willows that screened the bayou.

Like islands in this seething mass of humanity, there were large pots of boiling water set on charcoal fires. Long trestle tables spread with white paper and coolers of soda and beer rested in the shade of water oaks. Horseshoes were being pitched, and a croquet game was in progress. A hand-built stage held musicians tuning their instruments.

They received greetings of “Hey, Remi where y’at?”, “Whoo-ee, Remi, how’d you manage to get a pretty girl like that?”, “Remi, where you been keeping yourself?”, “Remi, who’s the pretty lady?”, and “Remi, when we going fishing,
cher
?” as they tried to make their way through the crowd to the stairs and the wide, screened porch.

After stopping to acknowledge each greeting and for Remi to introduce Caterine, they finally reached the screened door to the porch. Caterine’s mouth dropped open at the tables laden with food spread out before her.

“Remi, there you are,
cher
. I was beginning to wonder if you’d changed your mind about coming.”

Caterine watched as a smiling plump woman in a snowy white apron, her dark hair pulled back in a bun, rushed out of the house onto the porch and hugged Remi.

“Hey, Maman, how you doin’? I told you I’d be here.” Remi bent to kiss her cheek. “Besides, we’re not that late. Maman, I’d like you to meet—”

“Miss Doucette!” screamed a female voice, breaking into Remi’s introduction.

Caterine blushed to the roots of her hair as everyone standing within hearing distance stopped what they were doing and stared.

Remi’s mother turned horrified eyes toward her daughter. “Mary, Mother of God, Yvette, what’s wrong with you, screaming at a guest like that? You apologize this minute.”

Caterine wasn’t sure whose face was redder, hers or Yvette’s.

Yvette swallowed hard and stammered, “I-I apologize for my r-rudeness, Miss Doucette.” Then, without hesitation, her words rushed out. “I was so excited to see you standing there. I couldn’t believe my eyes! You are actually here. I didn’t know you knew Remi.”

Yvette’s words halted as quickly as they’d begun. Once again, all eyes turned to Caterine, but before she could form a reply, Remi calmly spoke. “Yvette, she didn’t tell you she knew me because she didn’t.”

Caterine couldn’t help but smile. “Hello, Yvette. It’s nice to see you again. Your brother’s right. When you and I spoke, he and I hadn’t met.”

Yvette bit her lower lip, then said, “Miss Doucette, I have an entire book of designs. Would you like to see them?”

“That’s enough, Yvette. Caterine is here as our guest. She’s not to be bothered with your drawings,” her mother scolded.

Caterine’s heart went out to Yvette at the dejected look that came over her face. “Please, Mrs. Michaud, it’s okay. Yvette, I’d love to see your drawings. And please call me Caterine.”

Yvette lit up like a Fourth of July sparkler. “I’ll go get them.”

“Yvette, no, you won’t. If Caterine is kind enough to look at your drawings, she can do so after she’s had a chance to meet everyone and has had something to eat. Now, leave our guest alone and make yourself useful by taking this beautiful cake she’s brought and set it out on the dessert table. Again, my apologies for this rude welcome. As you’ve guessed, I’m Remi’s maman, Annette. Welcome to our home.”

“Thank you, ma’am. Please don’t apologize. Yvette’s welcome was extremely flattering.”

“Hello, Caterine. I’m Remi’s normal sister, Chloe.” Chloe was as petite as Yvette was tall, and as fair as Yvette was dark.

Caterine smiled. “Hello, it’s nice to meet you.”

“And I’m Remi’s handsome brother, John, who would be more than happy to take you away from Remi if you’d only let me.”

Caterine laughed. “Thanks, but for now I’ll stay with Remi.”

John sighed. “I figured as much, but I had to try.”

“You know what, little brother? You can go get the beer and wine coolers out of my car and get them iced down.” Remi pushed John toward the porch door. “And you can forget you’ve ever met Caterine.”

“Hello there, young lady. I’m Remi’s daddy, Samuel, but everyone calls me Sammy. Come with me and I’ll take you away from all this craziness. There’s someone here who’s been waiting to see you.”

Caterine smiled up into dancing brown eyes in a round, friendly face topped by sparse gray hair. She allowed Sammy to take her by the elbow and guide her off the porch and across the lawn to where a strikingly pretty older woman in a huge straw hat sat in the shade of a large live oak draped with Spanish moss.

“Mother, may I present Miss Caterine Doucette? Caterine, this is my mother, Miss Annabelle Michaud.”

Caterine smiled and took the older woman’s hand. “I’m pleased to see you again, ma’am.”

“I’m pleased to see you as well, Caterine. Why, you were only a girl the last time I saw you. Please sit and visit with me for a while. Sammy, I believe Caterine and I could each use a glass of lemonade.”

“I’d be happy to get that for you two lovely ladies. I’ll be right back.”

Caterine sighed with relief as she sat in the chair next to Annabelle.

Annabelle’s deep blue eyes twinkled with amusement. “They can all be rather overwhelming, can’t they?”

Caterine smiled. “Yes, ma’am. Remi tried to warn me, but I must say his description didn’t come close.”

Annabelle’s laugh was light and girlish. “I don’t suppose anything can prepare one for meeting this family for the first time. Now tell me, how is Miss Dauphine? It’s been quite a while since I’ve seen her. We were inseparable at school and college, but once we both married and began having families, well, we became busy with our lives. She was living there in New Orleans and I was down this way at Willows, my family’s plantation. You can’t imagine my delight when she called to tell me you’d be coming with Remi.”

Caterine couldn’t hide her surprise at learning that her grandmother had spoken with Annabelle. “Why, Grandmère is doing well, thank you. She didn’t tell me she’d called you.”

Annabelle studied Caterine’s face before speaking. “Child, even though your grandmère and I haven’t spoken lately doesn’t mean there still isn’t a close friendship between us. She not only called to tell me you were coming, she explained to me what’s been happening with you, Remi, your family, and Ma Chérie.”

“She told you
everything
?”

“Yes, my dear, and I offered to have you come stay with me at Willows.” She pursed her lips. “I have to say, Caterine, I agree with Miss Dauphine regarding your current living arrangements. I love Remi dearly, but he is a man. I know she and I sound like two old fuddy-duddies but as the saying goes, ‘why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free?’ ”

The shock on Caterine’s face had Annabelle laughing out loud.

“You two sound as if you’re getting along just fine,” Sammy said, handing them each a glass of cold lemonade. “I’ve just been challenged by John to a game of horseshoes. For some reason he’s convinced he can beat me. I have to go and set the boy straight.”

Caterine looked toward the horseshoe pits and smiled at John, who was waving at her.
 

“I didn’t mean to shock or embarrass you, my dear,” Annabelle continued after Sammy had left. “Your grandmother and I just have your best interest at heart.”

Caterine hesitated, not wanting to sound ungrateful. “I appreciate both your and Grandmère's concern, ma’am, but due to the unusual circumstances of our relationship, Remi and I feel the safest place for me is with him. And I wouldn’t want to put you in any danger by staying with you, but thank you for the offer.”

“Offer of what?” Remi asked, kissing his grandmother’s cheek before popping the top on a beer and sitting on the grass next to Caterine’s chair. “So what have you two been talking about?”

“I’ve been telling Caterine about my conversation with Miss Dauphine,” Annabelle replied, “and my offer to have Caterine come stay with me at Willows. Caterine was saying that she feels safer living in New Orleans with you.”

“You’ve spoken with Miss Dauphine?” Remi asked in surprise.

“Yes, we had a nice long chat. In fact, I’m considering attending the Doucette Mardi Gras ball. I haven’t been to one in years, and it would be lovely to see Dauphine again.”

“I’m sure she’d enjoy that, Pet.”

Annabelle smiled. “I believe I’ll speak to your father about driving me up tomorrow. I’ll get a room at the Royal Orleans. Then I can visit Ma Chérie and Miss Dauphine on Monday. Now, I believe I’ll go get some of that wonderful-smelling food. Caterine, it was lovely visiting with you. I’m sure I’ll see you again before you leave.”

Remi watched with narrowed eyes as his grandmother hurried off. “Damn it to hell. All I need is both our grandmothers interfering with our plans.”

“They’re both concerned about our living arrangement,” Caterine explained.

Remi snorted. “Is that right? Well, I like our ‘living arrangement’ just fine.”

“What was that you called Annabelle?”

“What? Oh,
Pet
. It’s what we’ve all called her since we were kids. She refused to be called grandma, and she thought grandmother was too stuffy.”

“She really is sweet, Remi.”

“Yeah, well, she needs to stay out of our business.” Standing, he crushed his beer can. “So are you ready to try some mudbugs?”

“Oh, Remi, I don’t know.”

He took her hand. “Come on, Princess. I’ll show you the right way to eat them. If you don’t like it, there’re plenty of other things to eat.”

Reluctantly she allowed him to take her to one of the tables where mounds of steamed crawfish lay in trays.

“He finally going to feed you,
cher
?” asked a handsome man sitting at the table with a pretty redhead.

“Caterine, this funny guy is my cousin, Antoine, and his girlfriend, Suzette.”

“Antoine, are you the mechanic who looked at my car?” Caterine asked.

“That I am.”

“Do you know if it can be fixed?”

Antoine hesitated before answering. “I don’t think so. It was fried pretty bad, but you could have your own mechanic check it out.”

She tried not to let her disappointment show. “Well, thank you for trying.”

Antoine cocked his head. “How do you feel about classic cars?”

“I’ve never really thought about it. Why?”

“Because if I’m right, your insurance company will total that car, and I happen to have a two-seater Mercedes convertible for sale at the shop. I normally don’t handle cars like that, but it belonged to a doctor friend of Chloe’s, and she asked me to sell it for her. It’s a sweet little car, with hardly any mileage and in great condition.”

“Really? I’d love to see it.”

Suzette scowled. “You didn’t tell
me
about the car, Antoine.”

He kissed her. “I wouldn’t want you out driving around in a fancy car. Some rich guy might take you away from me.”

Suzette seemed to be somewhat mollified, but Caterine was taken aback by the hard look she gave her. Tamping down her enthusiasm over the car, Caterine said, “Perhaps sometime next week Remi can bring me in to see it.”