The Pepper in the Gumbo (Men of Cane River #1)(7)
He frowned, dark brows drawing down, shading his eyes completely. Most people here thought he was Italian, with his dark skin and angular features. Even when he opened his mouth and they heard a hint of that slow Louisiana drawl, nobody thought to ask if he was Creole. When he conversed easily with the overseas team based in Paris, but struggled to understand the managers from Houston, people assumed he’d been educated overseas. They couldn’t imagine that a quarter million Louisianans speak French at home, and Paul had been of them. To the rest of the United States, his people didn’t even exist. For a while, that was perfectly fine with the awkward nerd from the wrong side of town. He was glad nobody knew anything about his past. But the older he got, the more he realized some things couldn’t be erased. Not in ten years, not in a hundred.
It was time to go home. The question was whether Natchitoches would welcome him with open arms, or treat him like the outcast he once was.
Chapter Three
Men have become the tools of their tools. ― Henry David Thoreau
“Come on,” Charlie called. “Sitting down all day has made you soft.” She threw back a teasing grin but Alice just smiled. She felt her own sagging spirits lift around Charlie. The girl never lacked enthusiasm, that was certain. She came to work every Monday and Wednesday as soon as she got out of her last class at the high school. Employing Charlie, a kid who had read every science fiction and fantasy novel going back to Jules Verne, was like having her very own reference librarian in that narrow field.
“I’ve always been soft. Nothing new about it.” Alice glanced toward the elm trees rising from the grass near the river bank. Across the river, the development was booming. She wished the town would slow down. No more building. No more ugly concrete., But the Cane River region would lose its young people if it stayed a hundred years in the past. She was just glad the historic district didn’t allow the kind of stores that sprouted up overnight. At least her little piece of Natchitoches would stay the same--sedate and sophisticated.
As they reached the corner, Alice hoped to see a Coming Soon sign with the name of the museum or a fancy restaurant. Instead, she saw a banner that read ScreenStop tied to a new chain link fence perimeter. Heavy equipment rumbled off to the side, smoothing the area where parking would be. Most of the building was already completed and workmen swarmed the inside, carrying bales of wire and tools.
“ScreenStop?” Alice searched her memory. “What is it? A movie theater?” DVD rentals were a thing of the past, and they already had two theaters in the mall across the river.
“You’ve never heard of ScreenStop? They’re like, the best game store ever.” Charlie bounced on the toes of her red Converse sneakers, beside herself with glee.
“Games.” That could be better than a theater. “It must have a lot of merchandise for a store that big. I’m betting they’ll have more than Monopoly.”
Charlie stared at her, eyes wide. “Monopoly? Nobody plays that. These are real games. Battle of the Universe, Ninja Masters, Purple Penguin.”
“I’ve never heard of any of those.” She turned back to the chain link fence across the street. The banner was black with red flames forming the title, and what looked like a bunch of angel wings in the background. She felt a wave of unease. Even at the end of the row, a concrete and glass structure would be an eyesore. Alice took a deep breath and tried to think positively. She liked board games as much as the next person. Maybe it would be a good neighbor to have after all. Board games and books. The perfect pairing.
“Of course you haven’t. You don’t believe in this stuff. You don’t even have a cell phone.”
Alice would have been offended except that Charlie’s tone was teasing. “I do have a cell phone. It’s just―”
“Ancient. It doesn’t even have data.” She laughed outright.
“Why would it?” She couldn’t help being a tiny bit defensive. “It’s a phone. You talk on it.” Except that she didn’t, not really. That made twice this morning that she’d been gently rebuked for not being plugged in. “Anyway, have you been in one of these places before?”
“Sure. They’ve got a big one in New Orleans. Five stories of all glass and steel. Sixty-inch screens everywhere. Gaming systems. Walls and walls of games, plus areas to try them out.” Her blue eyes glazed over. “Cell phones, tablets, e-readers, TVs. Everything you could possibly want. I got this cool patch.” She pointed to her Converse high tops, where a matching logo shone back. Red flames on black, angel wings in the background.
Alice felt her mouth form a little ‘o’ as her brain caught up with Charlie’s description. It sounded like nothing she would ever want and there wouldn’t be any overflow from the customer base. Video game players weren’t known for spending their time reading. People buying e-readers wouldn’t come into her bookstore and buy a paper book when they could just download one at a touch. They were night and day, sun and moon. She turned back toward the shop. “Don’t think I’m being a jealous cow because they’re some fancy store. I just don’t know who approved this. I’m on the historic district board and I never heard a thing about the plans. It’s really too bad they’re letting something like that into the area.”
Charlie caught up to her in a few steps. She skipped along beside her, face glowing with excitement. “Too bad? It’s fantastic! I can’t wait to see it. I bet you ten bucks and a Frisbee that they have a huge opening day party with a boatload of prizes. The really big stores have celebrities come in and sign stuff. My friend Jake had his chest signed by Kim Kardashian’s cousin.”