The Pepper in the Gumbo (Men of Cane River #1)(58)

He pulled out his e-reader and opened a book he’d uploaded a few weeks ago. In moments, he found what he was looking for.



Dear Alice,

When you get your alarm system, remember two things: choose the one you think is the simplest because if you’re not comfortable with it, you won’t use it. And when you get the system installed, use it every time. That’s all the wisdom I have on that.

As for the once-lost-now-found niece, perhaps you should stop trying to bend.

An emerald is as green as grass,

A ruby red as blood;

A sapphire shines as blue as heaven;

A flint lies in the mud.

A diamond is a brilliant stone,

To catch the world's desire;

An opal holds a fiery spark;

But a flint holds fire.

I think you should ignore Sara Teasdale (she’s a bit of a moper, to be honest.).

Take Christina Rossetti’s advice and be fire.

Your friend,

BWK, who is still in Natchitoches



Paul sent the message and then stood up, walking to the long window and staring out at the river. The apartment was quiet, the city was hushed. It seemed like the whole world was asleep, except for two lonely people.

He heard the ding of his phone from where he stood but didn’t reach for it. He couldn’t guess her response. Would she ask him to meet her? Would she ask where he was staying? For some reason, his stomach was twisting with nerves.

Picking up his phone, he held it in his hand, feeling the cool metal against his fingertips. If she asked him to meet her, then he’d go through all the emotion and anxiety he’d felt before the dance. And even though he knew it was selfish, Paul didn’t know if he had enough bravery to try and tell her twice in one weekend.

He touched the screen and her response popped up.

Dear BWK,

Yes, be fire!

Tomorrow, I’ll spark the flame.

Thank you.

Your friend,

Alice



Paul felt the huge grin spread over his face. That’s my girl, he thought. And moments later, tried to erase the idea. She wasn’t his girl. She was a lot of things to him but she wasn’t his.

He shut off the phone and fell into bed, a smile still touching his lips. He fell into sleep like falling under water, all at once. He dreamed of bright sparks and her kiss and piles of old books. He tried to keep them apart, knowing even in his dream that it would be a disaster, but in the end, it all merged together into a towering flame.





Chapter Seventeen


We live in a society exquisitely dependent on science and technology, in which hardly anyone knows anything about science and technology. ―Carl Sagan



Alice gave herself a silent pep talk. She was about to do something she could never have imagined just weeks ago. She was going to sue Paul Olivier and her beloved city of Natchitoches. She had only one friend who might be crazy enough to file that kind of paper for her and she quickly looked up his number. A few minutes later, she set the phone back down, her heart pounding in her chest. Randy Rittenberg, an old high school friend who lived in LaFayette, asked her more than once if she was sure she wanted to go ahead with it. Once she’d convinced him she wasn’t backing down, he agreed. By noon, he would fax the papers to city hall. She would have to go down there, sign and file them.

Alice picked up the old rotary phone and dialed again, letting the loud ringing in her right ear act as a sort of wake up call. Two cups of coffee weren’t enough to get her sluggish brain moving after a night of worry. After BWK had given her a pep talk, she’d finally been able to rest, but that had only been a few hours before dawn.

“Mayor Cointreau speaking,” said a gravelly voice.

“Hello, mayor. It’s Alice Augustine, from By the Book. I was hoping we could meet sometime today and talk about that new store that’s going up in the historic district.”

There was a long silence at the other end and Alice could imagine Mayor Cointreau straightening his tie. It was a nervous tic, like other people cleared their throats. “I suppose you can come by, if you like, but everything’s already been approved. I can hear them working on it from here.”

Alice took a deep breath. “I’ve decided to file a petition seeking a temporary injunction with the city to block the construction of ScreenStop in the historical district. And I’m going to sue to seek the enforcement of the zoning laws.”

There was another long silence and this time she couldn’t imagine what he was doing. Finally he said, “I don’t think you could win that case, Alice.”

“I’m claiming undue hardship, since that store will bring down my property prices.” Alice hadn’t been sure what sort of claim she could make but Randy had given her several options, the best of which was that By the Book would suffer.

“I would suggest you rethink that course of action. We went to a lot of trouble to make sure ScreenStop could build quickly and without issues. Whatever has happened between you is no cause for that kind of behavior.”

“What?” She nearly choked on her words. “Nothing has happened. I mean, it’s not what you’re thinking. I decided this before―”

“If you do find someone to file this, I’ll have to come out and say that I’m against your actions and that the city supports Mr. Olivier.” His tone was cold.