“You got it. The guys inside said she just requested a visit with Kyle.”
“Good,” Joe said. “Maybe he’ll talk to her since he hasn’t done much of that since we locked him up.”
As their driver pulled into the parking lot so they could get inside and in front of a monitor, Shelby asked, “What were you saying about fun?”
Chapter Thirteen
Remi dismissed the car and took the same walk through the French Quarter but couldn’t get rid of Simon, who strode silently beside her. She rang the bell and waited while she looked at the throngs of tourists making their way down Bourbon Street and taking pictures every other foot of the decadence that made New Orleans such a fascinating city.
The gate opened and Dallas stood there, still in her casual outfit from the morning, though she’d let her shoulder-length hair down. “What, you couldn’t stay away?” Dallas asked.
“Just wanted to come by and see if you’d changed your mind, and since I’m back early we can go out. It’ll save you the time in the kitchen.”
“And they say chivalry is dead.” Dallas leaned on the open door and smiled up at her. “Would you like to come in and have a drink?”
“You’re drinking already? Bad day?” She followed Dallas back to the courtyard.
“I was having hot chocolate, but if you’d like something stronger I’ll go see what I have.”
“Hot chocolate?” Remi asked, making it sound like something she’d never heard of. “Sounds great.”
“What can I get for you?” Dallas held her hand out to Simon.
Simon shook it briefly and bowed her head slightly. “Simon Jimenez, ma’am, and don’t bother with anything for me.”
“I’ll be right back then.”
“We’ll wait over there.” Remi pointed to the chairs under the trees. She sat and leaned her head and tried to make out the noise from the street, but had a hard time.
“I’ve been thinking about you since you left this morning,” Dallas said when she returned with two more mugs, clearly ignoring Simon’s wishes. “Not the least bit curious?” she asked when Remi didn’t say anything.
“Infinitely so, but there are two possibilities.”
“Which are?”
Remi took a sip, then leaned forward, holding the mug between her knees. “It’s either a good thing or a bad thing.”
“I see.” Dallas folded her legs under her and sat back on the double seat she’d picked next to Remi’s. “Which are you leaning toward?”
“From the welcome I got, I’d go with a good thing, with a little bad mixed in.”
“Is that a description of the situation or of you, Ms. Jatibon?”
“Maybe some of both.”
Dallas nodded and ran her finger along the seam of her jeans. “I
“Ask away.”
“Why is it I’ve never seen you, and just recently heard of you and your family, but you own the studio?”
Simon cleared her throat as Remi put her mug down. The leather of her alligator cowboy boots made a stretching noise as she crossed her legs so she could put her hand on the familiar leather bumps. “My family isn’t the kind that craves attention.”
“You’re in the movie business and you don’t crave attention.” Dallas’s laughter made Remi think she wasn’t being taken seriously. “That’s rare, because usually everyone in this business craves attention.”
“Even you?” Remi said with a hint of humor.
“Once I get to know you better I’ll tell you why I’m in the business, but for now, I’m perfectly content to sit here in my little secret garden and read books that let me escape for a while.” Dallas pointed to the basket filled with books next to Remi’s chair.
“So you only don the dress clothes and fake smile when the occasion calls for it, huh?”
“The dress was a last-minute decision and the smile was real, thank you very much. I see my new boss isn’t easily impressed.”
“After you sign the new contract I’ll be happy to tell you what impresses your new boss, but for now you’ll have to figure out any new information about her over dinner.”
The gate opened again, making Remi stop talking and Simon stand, as was her training, in case the unexpected entry was cause for alarm. “I see more than one person shares the secret garden.”
“Excuse me for a minute, would you? And no, I live alone.”
Bob stopped at the edge of the flagstone and stared at Remi. The hatred she’d seen in his face before appeared only briefly, then was replaced by a smile so wide it made him appear freakish. If he intended to join them or to spend time with Dallas, the heated but short conversation Remi witnessed put those ideas to rest. That is, until they reached the gate again and Bob held the door shut with his palm.
