Chapter Five

Remy stuffed his wallet into his back pocket after paying the restaurant bill and winning an argument with Sasha when she tried to chip in for her portion. He would have paid if she’d accepted his invitation to dinner in the first place. Of course, if she’d accepted, he would have found a babysitter for Evie. And he would’ve danced more with Sasha, held her closer, whispered sinful things in her ear, and—

Bon Dieu, Fontenot, remember where you are and who you’re with and think about something else.

He held the restaurant door open for Sasha and Evie, then waited while another couple scooted past him and entered, using those seconds to compose himself.

Evie grabbed Sasha’s hand and pulled her. “C’mon, Miz Honeycutt, I know where the car is parked.”

“Evie, careful. What have I told you when we’re in a parking lot?” he called out.

“To look both ways.” Evie stopped. “But Miz Honeycutt is with me, and she can see over the cars.”

He caught up to them. “But maybe Miss Honeycutt doesn’t appreciate being dragged to our car.”

“But I want to see Henry.”

Sasha laughed. “Don’t worry, Henry’s not going anywhere. You’ll get to meet him.”

Sasha was still smiling when her gaze found his, and he sucked in his breath as that smile zipped through him all the way down to his toes. So much for thinking about something else, because that smile was going to be his undoing. And he needed to handle this situation with caution. He liked to keep the various parts of his life separate, his job was one, his daughter another, and his dates were another. Only this time Evie was smack in the middle.

Evie giggling over something Sasha had said snapped him out of his thoughts, and he frowned. Yeah, no keeping Evie and Sasha separate. They were intertwined, which meant he needed to be careful. Evie had already had too much heartbreak in her short life. He’d die before he caused her more. He sighed and used his key fob to unlock the car.

On the drive to the hotel, he thought about ways to handle the situation. He wanted to give Evie a mom, and Sasha ticked a lot of the boxes he was looking for in a wife. She’d be a great mother and then there was that chemistry between them. Except he needed to get a handle on the way she made him forget everything but her. He needed to maintain control.

He drove across town with Evie and Sasha’s lively chatter as background noise.

Evie’s excitement increased as he turned into the hotel parking lot. “Wow, you live in a hotel just like Eloise.”

“I guess I do. I hadn’t thought about it like that. Only this hotel isn’t anywhere near as fancy,” Sasha said with a smile in her voice.

He eased his foot off the gas to glance over at Sasha’s smile in the glow from the dashboard lights. Yeah, what was that about distractions?

“Do you get to have lots of adventures just like Eloise?” Evie asked.

Sasha shook her head. “No, living in a hotel hasn’t been that much fun.”

“Am I missing something here? Who is Eloise? Is she another student?” Remy asked as he pulled into an empty parking space and switched off the engine. Obviously this was something he was expected to know. Sasha seemed to know all about this Eloise person. When had he gone from being the main focus of Evie’s world to sitting on the sidelines?

“Papá,” Evie said in a tone that projected her utter disappointment. She unbuckled her seatbelt and scooted forward, popping her head between the front seats. “How could you forget Eloise?”

He threw Sasha a helpless glance, but she appeared to be fighting a smile. She took all this in stride. Of course she did, she was accustomed to dealing with seven-year-olds. Widening his eyes, he telegraphed a message for help.

“Did your dad read the Eloise books to you?” Sasha asked as she opened the passenger door and Evie scrambled between the seats into the front.

“Yup. Auntie Charlotte bought them for me, because she said she liked Eloise when she was my age.” Evie jumped out of the car and landed next to Sasha. “Charlotte said Papá and Uncle Ethan didn’t read them because they were boys, but Papá reads them to me when I ask. So does Uncle Ethan.”

Remy got out, shut his door, and quietly exhaled. He’d be sure to thank Sasha later…in private. “Let me guess. Eloise is the girl who lived at the Plaza?”

“You remember.” Evie ran around the car and threw her arms around his legs.

Evie chattered about Eloise while they crossed the parking lot and stepped into the cooled air of the lobby.

He gave Sasha a sidelong glance. Sexy and good with kids. Had he hit the jackpot?

“Welcome back,” the young woman at the front desk greeted Sasha as they entered. “Oh, hello, Sheriff. Good to see you again.”

Remy approached the desk. “How are things going? Is the schedule with my deputies working out?”

The woman nodded. “Yes, thank you. I know it was silly, but I feel so much better.”

“Good.” He tapped his knuckles on the counter. “Let me know if we can be of any more assistance.”

“They haven’t had any trouble here, have they?” Sasha looked concerned.

“Can I press the up button?” Evie danced in front of the elevator.

He nodded to Evie and turned his attention back to Sasha. “Not here. She makes a night deposit during her shift and thought she’d been followed one night and drove to the station instead of the bank. After that, I arranged for someone in the department to accompany her. There’s not as much cash these days, but someone needing a fix might not be thinking straight.”

Sasha didn’t say anything, but the look she gave him had his heart thumping against his chest. He’d love to know what she was thinking.

“Can I press the button again?” Evie stood in front of the small bank of buttons inside the elevator.

Sasha nodded as she stepped in. “Sure. Press two.”

Evie stood on her toes to press the button. “I’m glad you’re not way up on the tippy top floor like Eloise.”

The hotel had three floors. He and Sasha exchanged amused glances, and he got an adrenaline rush. “You’d have to wait to grow some more before you could come to visit Miss Honeycutt,” he teased Evie.

“Gosh, Miz Honeycutt, are you gonna live in a hotel all the time just like Eloise?”

“No, sweetie, just until I find a place of my own.”

There was that irresistible smile he enjoyed. The elevator dinged and the doors slid open and Evie was too eager to get to the room to continue the conversation. She rushed into the hall and stopped, looking both ways, then back to them.

“That way.” Sasha pointed left.

They walked down the hall behind Evie, who skipped all the way. Remy enjoyed seeing Evie happy.

Sasha pulled out her key when she got to the door and slipped it into the slot.

Evie danced on her toes. “I hope he likes me.”

“How could he not?” Sasha touched Evie’s shoulder. “Walk, don’t run, so you don’t startle him.”

A large orange cat looked up from his spot on the bed when they entered. He yawned and rose, stretching his front legs, then arching his back.

Remy gave a low whistle. “Wow, he is impressive.”

Sasha laughed. “He’s mostly fur. How did you know he was a Maine coon?”

Remy shrugged and glanced away. Yeah right, he wasn’t about to confess how he’d looked up “big orange cats” after he’d seen the photo on her desk until he found one that looked like the picture. Yeah, he hated admitting that even to himself. Almost as bad as flashing his badge in French Quarter hotels searching for a mysterious and sexy blonde in a backless dress and heels.

“He’s very fluffy, Miz Honeycutt.” Evie stroked his head, and he rubbed his face against her hand, obviously enjoying the attention.

“Yes, he definitely has lots of fur. I sometimes feel bad for bringing him to such a hot climate, but that’s silly because he never goes outside anyway.” Sasha shook her head and flashed Remy a self-deprecating grin.

Evie continued to stroke the cat. “Is he hot all summer?”

“He hasn’t been here for the summer yet.” Sasha glanced at Remy. “This place you have in mind is air conditioned, right?”

Remy laughed. “Yeah, I wouldn’t do that to you, cher.”

“Miz Honeycutt?” Evie tugged on her sleeve. “If you and Henry moved in with Papá and me, we’d leave the air conditioning on like…all the time so he wouldn’t get hot in all that fur.”

Sasha curved her hand around Evie’s shoulders and bent down. “And I’m sure Henry would appreciate your generosity, but we really need our own place for just the two of us.”

Evie ran the toe of her sneaker over the carpet. “Is it cuz you like Uncle Ethan better than us?”

“Evie,” Remy scolded, though secretly, he had to admit he hoped Sasha’s answer was no.

Sasha gave Evie a hug. “If it makes you feel any better, I’m not moving in with Ethan, either. Henry and I are going to find our own home.”

“But you went on a date with Uncle Ethan.” Evie gave her an accusing look.

“I did, but that’s because he asked me, sweetie.”

Remy wanted to know when and where Ethan had met Sasha. His little brother had a lot to answer for the next time he saw him. Why? his inner voice demanded. Because Ethan had met an attractive woman and asked her out? Jerk much, Fontenot?

“Papá, why don’t you ask Miz Honeycutt on a date? Maybe she’ll go out with you if you asked.”

He ruffled his daughter’s hair. “Now why didn’t I think of that? Good thing I have you looking out for me.”

“I know.” Evie nodded her head. “So you’ll ask her?”

Remy winked at his daughter. “When the time is right.”

“Huh?” Evie scrunched up her face. “What does that mean?”

Sasha eased onto the edge of the bed next to Evie. “It means I can’t date a parent of any of my students.”

Remy reached over and stroked Henry’s head. “So, kiddo, that means you have to get good grades so you can pass Miss Honeycutt’s class or I won’t ever be able to ask Miss Honeycutt for a date.”

A guilty look passed over Evie’s face. “Oh.”

Remy gave her a stern look. “So you’re going to try your best to bring your grades up, aren’t you?”

“I will. I promise.” Evie held up her hand as if making a pledge.

“So there you have it.” He winked at Sasha. “One problem solved.”

After Remy and Evie left, Sasha washed up and brushed her teeth. She glanced at her reflection before turning off the light. “Don’t fall for him,” she cautioned herself sternly. “You came to be your own person, not to fall for the same kind of guy as Jimmy. You’ve already heard everyone calling him ‘our sheriff’ with affection, and you don’t need that if it all goes south.”

But even the reflection looking back at her warned her she might be too late. No, this was just a case of lust. And who could blame her? Five years was a long time, and Remy was hot. No need for Angie Cunningham to check your pulse. Shutting off the overhead light, she went into the other room to read for a while.

Sasha set the e-reader aside when her cell phone chirped. Her heart stuttered as she picked it up to check the caller ID. Ethan. She scolded herself for the initial pang of disappointment that it wasn’t Remy and swiped the screen to answer. Why would she even be thinking it was Remy? He was home putting Evie to bed. Ethan was a nice guy, and she wouldn’t be jeopardizing her job—or her heart—by dating him.

“Sasha? Are you there?”

“Yes, sorry.” Damn. She needed to push Remy out of her head. Yeah, how’s that working?

“I wanted to check in and make sure you got home okay.”

“Yes, I got back a little while ago.” Holding the phone to her ear, she wandered over to the small desk and lined up the folders she’d brought home from work. She noticed the pencils and pens were no longer segregated in the two cups. Remy.

“Sasha? It’s Ethan.” There was a chuckle. “His brother…remember?”

Damn. She must’ve said Remy’s name out loud. “Of course. I’m sorry…he…uh, he left something when he…when he brought me home.”

“Would you like me to let him know?”

“No…um, I mean, that’s okay. I’ll take care of it.” Lame, lame, lame. She squeezed her eyes shut. Ethan could probably hear her guilt over the phone.

“I called to apologize again for ducking out like that. I swear I’m normally a much better behaved date.”

“It’s okay. I understand. Really.” Yeah, that will convince him. She began separating the pencils from the pens. “Were you able to save the mare and her foal?”

“Yes, it was a difficult birth, but both are doing well. I’m optimistic for a happy outcome.” His tone sounded upbeat. “I’m just sorry it spoiled our date.”

“It was worth it to save a life…two lives.” She set the pencil cup next to the manila folders. “I’m glad you were able to help. What you did made it all worth it.”

“And I knew I’d be leaving you in good hands with Remy. He always makes sure everyone and everything is okay.” Ethan sighed. “I may not have appreciated it, but it’s true.”

She wandered over and sat in one of the upholstered chairs. Henry jumped onto her lap and curled up. “Oh? Does that have anything to do with your comment about him being like a father?”

“My parents were killed by a drunk driver when I was sixteen and my sister was fourteen,” he said.

She burrowed her fingers into Henry’s thick coat. “Oh no, I’m so sorry. I had no idea. I know Remy said his sister had lived with him until recently.”

“Thanks.” He cleared his throat before continuing. “It was a rough time, but Remy stepped up. Left a promising career as a homicide detective in New Orleans to come back to Rose Creek and raise us.”

“Wow.” Is that the best she could come up with? But this new information put Remy Fontenot in a whole new light…and a dangerous one to her piece of mind. Now she wasn’t just attracted to him physically but admired his character.

“Yeah, he could’ve made us come to him, but he said uprooting Charlotte and myself would be adding more trauma to what we’d already suffered.” He paused. “He gave up a lot to come here. I thought you should know that.”

What was he trying to tell her? It sounded as if he were recommending Remy to her. “I had no idea.”

“I wanted to be sure you knew what a great guy he is. You like him, don’t you?”

She shook her head even though he couldn’t see her. “Teachers aren’t supposed to date a student’s parent.” Among other reasons…

Ethan chuckled. “That’s not what I asked.”

Oh man, he sounded so much like Remy when he laughed and scolded. But he wasn’t Remy, and that was the problem. “Look, I don’t want to cause conflict between you and your brother. I—”

Ethan snorted. “Don’t worry. We manage to do that all by ourselves. I like you, Sasha, but I think we both know this is going to be more of a friendship thing.”

Sasha released a huge breath. She liked Ethan, but he was right. They were missing that romantic spark. At least she was, and now it sounded as if he agreed. Or was he stepping aside because of Remy? Either way, she wasn’t going to argue. “I’d like for us to be friends.”

“Me, too.”

“And I will need a vet for my cat. Do you do small animals, too?”

“As the only vet in town, I do it all. Bring your cat in, and I’ll see you get the friends and family discount.”

“Thanks, but I wasn’t angling for a discount.”

“I know. And if you need anything, let me know…especially if it involves giving my brother a slap upside that big head of his.”

Sasha laughed. “I don’t think I’ll need that, but thanks for the offer.” Once Remy showed her the place he had in mind for her to rent, she planned to stay far, far away from the man.

…

“Do you think Miz Honeycutt had fun tonight?” Evie asked as Remy set her Eloise book on the nightstand.

“I’m sure she did. She got to spend time with one of her favorite pupils.” And he got the date with Sasha he’d been hoping for.

Remy tucked the covers around his daughter and gave her a kiss.

Evie giggled. “Miz Honeycutt says everyone is her favorite. It must be true, because she didn’t send Bobby Russo to Mr. Drake’s office even when he said he didn’t want to do his homework, but she said if he continued to be incorrigible she would.”

Remy could imagine Sasha’s tone and facial expression when she called poor Bobby incorrigible. “Well, I hope that works and he behaves himself from now on.”

Evie shook her head. “I don’t think so. Bobby says he doesn’t know what that word means.”

He swallowed his laugh. Maybe Bobby was angling to stay in second grade another year, too. Not that he could blame the kid.

Evie snuggled under the covers and sighed. “I wish Miz Honeycutt could come and live with us. Wouldn’t that be fun?”

“I’m sure it would be, but I think she’d rather have her own place. You’ll still get to see her at school even when you’re in the third grade.”

She frowned. “But I won’t get to see her all the time like I do now.”

“Maybe you’ll like your new teacher just as much.” He gave her another kiss on the forehead.

“I’m not sure I can like any teacher as much as Miz Honeycutt.”

Welcome to the club. Remy turned off the light and left Evie’s room. He would have to be careful his daughter didn’t get hurt. His job was to protect her.

Ideally, he would have kept Evie out of the situation until he’d gotten to know Sasha better, introduce them once he was sure the relationship was going somewhere. But Evie was the one who’d brought them together. Whether he liked it or not, she was in the middle of it.

He rubbed a hand over his face as images of Sasha flashed into his mind. Sexy, sultry Sasha from that night in New Orleans, the school teacher with the terribly unsexy outfit, and tonight’s alluring and amusing Sasha. One thing didn’t change—his attraction to her.

In the kitchen, he grabbed a long neck from the refrigerator and twisted the top off. He was going to have to make a decision. Leaning against the counter, he sipped his beer as he mulled over his options. Proceed or end it now. He could call Sasha in the morning and tell her he was sorry but something came up. Or get Ethan to show her the place.

He took a long draw on the IPA. Evie had already decided what she wanted. Now, all he had to do was convince the delectable Miss Honeycutt he was the perfect guy for her.