“You two are twins?” Candace asked. I understood her confusion since they looked nothing alike.
“We are,” Dax answered. “I’m Dax, the better, smarter one.” Travis rolled his eyes as Dax mimicked Ambrose’s bow
Ambrose snorted. “You’re the younger, dumber one.”
Seeing the twins joke like that still made me smile every time.
Candace looked at Travis then back at Dax. “I guess you’re not straight either.”
Dax shook his head.
“It figures. I don’t think there’s a decent straight man left.”
“We do have a cousin—” Beau placed a finger on Corbin’s lips. “Don’t listen to him.”
Candace turned back to me. “What happened to the man you were going to ‘take down’?” She put air quotes around the last words.
“Gerard ate him for lunch.”
She frowned as she looked at all the smiling faces. “Is that a joke or a euphemism?”
“Gerard is an alligator, and it’s not a euphemism.”
“Oh. Wow. I don’t need to know any more. As long as my brother’s safe, that’s good enough for me.”
“How did you track your brother down?” Remington eyed my sister suspiciously. I wasn’t sure if he was concerned about a leak in his security or looking to hire her for his operation.
“My brother was missing. I did everything it took to find him.”
“What sort of connections do you have that led you here?”
She rolled her eyes. “I’m the one person Eric told about LePlatt. I knew enough to put together what he told me, even if he’d left out most of the names. He’s also shared some of his old contacts, so I got resourceful.” She glanced at me like she was worried she’d get me in trouble.
“It’s all right. Even if Remington is angry, I brought you in on this, Ambrose will defend me.”
Ambrose gave a short nod and glared at his cousin.
Remington didn’t appear angry, but he was clearly not satisfied. “How did you find my house?”
“One of Eric’s connections is good with computers. He helped me.” Candace spoke as if it were nothing to track down a known mob boss.
I jumped in before Remington had a chance to reply. “That is quite resourceful, but I still can’t believe you came all this way.”
She huffed. “I can’t believe you didn’t answer your phone.”
“I was out in the bayou. My phone wasn’t working.”
“That is the lamest excuse I’ve ever heard.”
“It’s true,” Ambrose said. “I had to get a satellite phone.”
Dax huffed. “Not that you check it or respond.”
“I respond more than I did when my phone rarely had service.”
“I’m sorry,” I said to Candace. “I know I scared you and Mom and Dad. Yesterday was probably the craziest day of my life.”
“Then you owe me some more stories.”
“Later,” I promised. “Ambrose was about to make an announcement.”
He looked at me, and I saw hesitation in his eyes. After hugging Candace again, I moved to his side.
That gave him the courage he needed. “I’m in love with Eric.”
Well, there it was, right out in the open. I was so proud of him I wanted to wrap my arms around him and hold him tight, but I knew that was the wrong move for the moment.
“Since him being a sheriff and me being… me isn’t compatible, Eric has decided to resign his position, but in order to make a smooth transition, he needs our help.”
“You proved yourself yesterday,” Remington said. “I’m happy to help you any way I can.” He held out his hand, and we shook.
“Before we discuss that any further,” Ambrose said. “I have something else to tell you.”
“Damn,” Dax said. “I don’t think you’ve talked this much at a family meeting in… ever.”
“Then I deserve all the time I need without being interrupted.”
Dax stuck out his tongue, but he remained quiet after that.
“Dax and Beau will remember Uncle Etienne’s house. In his last years, he moved out of it and into the cabin where I’ve been living. The house was already in a state of disrepair when he left. He and my aunt had never been able to restore it to its former glory, and after she passed away, it deteriorated more and more. I’ve been renovating it.”
Dax’s eyes widened. “Are you serious? And you never told me or asked for my help?”
“You had your own projects. And this was something I needed to do to help me move past my years in the army and my grief over losing Etienne. It still needs a lot of work, but the kitchen, the back parlor, one of the bathrooms, and the largest bedroom are complete. Eric is going to be moving in there with me.”
Shouts and cheers went up from the whole family.
Suddenly Ambrose and I were being hugged by everyone. I found myself at the center of a circle of warmth, and Candace was right there with me.
“I can’t wait to see it,” she said. “I’ll bring Mom and Dad.”