Louise Ch. 04

"I don't know about you but I'm starved." Patrick said. "Louise, why don't we see what we can cook up?" he asked when they got back to the house.

Nathan knew what Patrick was doing and nodded at him.

"I could eat something." he said.

Kevyn also knew what Patrick was doing and could have kissed him and after second thought, she did. She walked over to him, pulled him down to her, kissed him and then murmured her thanks. She waited until Nathan finished talking to Louise before she sat down. She watched how Nathan was with her and Louise's reaction to him; she was falling for him and didn't realize it or didn't want to.

When she was out of earshot, Nathan sat down across from Kevyn and waited.

Kevyn smiled at him and began her speech.

"First of all, I want to apologize to you for peeking into your head a few days ago. You were right, it was rude and I knew better. In my defense, I was worried about Louise and I wanted to know what your thoughts regarding her were."

"You could have asked." Nathan said quietly.

"True." Kevyn agreed, "But that would have been too easy."

Nathan, to her surprise smiled.

"Apology accepted and I in turn owe you an apology. I overreacted in my response to your peeking. Call it the new mate syndrome if you want but still I apologize."

Kevyn found herself liking her brother-in -law more and more by the minute.

"I assume Patrick told you how hard it is for me not to say anything to Louise?"

"He did and I understand." Nathan said. "I would feel the same way but Kevyn; you have to understand that this is a different world than where you came from. It's far from perfect but then neither is the world that you came from. In your world, you may have been able to talk to Louise about this without it causing any damage but if you tell her before I do, it could hurt her."

"Patrick explained it to me and I understand but still...."

"You feel the need to protect her." Nathan finished for her.

Kevyn gave him a small smile before continuing.

"It's not that I don't trust you. That was never the issue. It's just that I didn't protect her as much as I should have and now I have the chance to do that and I want to even though she doesn't need it."

Nathan considered his next words carefully.

"Kevyn, has it ever occurred to you that maybe Louise didn't need protecting or maybe not as much as you think she did? Let's think about this, how long was she back in Pennsylvania alone with your family before she came here?"

"A few years but I don't see what you're getting at." Kevyn replied.

"In order for her to have survived your family, she had to have been strong. She is shy and she is very unsure of herself but there is strength in her that on occasion shows itself usually when she doesn't think about it." Nathan said.

Kevyn thought about what Nathan said and realized that he was right and wondered why she didn't see it.

"You were and are too close to the situation." Nathan said answering her unspoken question.

"Can I ask a question?"

"Of course."

"Can't I say anything to her? We've never had that time where sisters talk about boyfriends and things like that."

Nathan blew out a breath before he replied.

"Alright, will it help if I tell you what I'm planning?" Nathan asked.

Kevyn listened as Nathan spelled out his plan for telling Louise about the family and then him.

"I want her to know about our family before I tell her about us."

After listening to Nathan, Kevyn realized that in some ways he knew Louise better than she did. She would never have thought to tell Louise things while preparing a meal, the one thing that she was most at ease with. She could now see how she could have ruined things or at least made them more difficult had she told Louise herself.

"It's fine for you to talk about men, me and things like that but please don't tell her any of the things that need to come from me." Nathan said.

"What do I say if she asks?"

"Tell her the truth." Nathan replied, "Refer her to me and tell her that she can ask me anything. I plan to tell her the same thing tonight."

"Alright and thanks for talking with me but I have something that I want to say to you."

She waited for him to indicate that he was listening, when she saw that he was, she continued.

"I know that you care for Louise and I know that you wouldn't do anything to intentionally hurt her but I'm warning you that if you hurt her even unintentionally, vampire or not, your ass is mine."

Nathan gave her a solemn nod and then he spoke.

"I more than care for your sister, I love her and I would do anything and I do mean anything to ensure her safety and her happiness just as my uncle would do anything for you. If I fail in any way then you have my blessing to kick my ass and I will do nothing to stop you." Nathan replied.

"Just so you understand." Kevyn said, "Louise is an innocent but she is far from stupid and more intuitive than you know."

"I know and that's what I'm counting on." Nathan replied with a smile.

"Come and get it!" Patrick called from the kitchen ending their conversation but they had a good understanding and respect for each other.

"Snack" consisted of a breakfast casserole that had a crust made of biscuits that was topped with bacon, onions, mushrooms, and peppers and then topped with cheese with whipped eggs poured over the top. Kevyn and Louise each ate a small piece and watched as Patrick and Nathan demolished the casserole and looked for more.

"You can't be serious!" Louise said as she watched the men split the last piece of the casserole. "How do you not get fat?"

"Genetics." Nephew and Uncle said in unison.

Louise looked from one to the other and didn't believe them.

Before he left, Nathan pulled Louise aside.

"I want you to know that you can ask me anything and I won't lie to you but be prepared to hear the truth when you ask.

Louise started to ask a question and changed her mind. Instead, she thanked him for the movie.

"You're welcome and I'll call you later." Nathan said as she kissed her on the cheek.

*********

Barb woke up early, took a shower and ordered breakfast. She was more than a little disgruntled that she hadn't heard from Kevyn or Louise. She decided that if she hadn't heard from them by the time breakfast was over, she would call them and demand that they get their asses to the hotel pronto. They had some explaining to do.

Barb picked at her breakfast when it was delivered, her anger ruining her appetite. Instead of finishing her breakfast, she called Kevyn's cell phone number. Her anger grew when it went to voice mail and she called Louise's number and got the same result.

Barb stared at the phone in disbelief. Of the two of them Louise was the one who always answered her phone and usually by the second ring.

"Where in the hell are they?" Barb muttered. Kevyn she could understand, she was probably still in bed with that gorgeous rich man of hers but Louise? Where would she be this early and why wasn't she answering her phone? The thought that anyone could be interested in Louise never crossed Barb's mind. To her, Louise was a little mouse whose place in the world was... she didn't really have a place. She didn't see Louise as a wife or a mother; she was just Louise.

A tap at the door made Barb jump.

"Who is it?" she called through the door as she looked through the peephole.

"Ollie ma'am, Hans asked me to stop by and see if you needed anything."

"I'm fine, where's Hans? I want to go out."

"I am at your disposal for the day ma'am." Ollie called back. He didn't want anything to so with the woman who already had the reputation of being a bitch and she hadn't been at the hotel for twenty-four hours.

"I'll be ready in an hour." Barb snapped.

"Finally..." she muttered as she dressed for her shopping trip under the impression that she would be allowed to spend some of Patrick and Kevyn's money. She carefully applied her makeup, took out her best outfit for a day of shopping, and got dressed. Exactly one hour later, Ollie was at the door.

He led her to the front of the hotel and told her to wait out front while he got the car. A few minutes later, a blue 2009 Hyundai pulled up. At first, Barb dismissed the car thinking that it was for someone else, her mouth dropped open when Ollie got out of the car, ran to the passenger side and opened the door for her.

Barb stared at the car in disbelief. The thought that maybe Patrick wasn't anywhere near as rich as she thought he was crossed her mind but then she remembered the rental car that he drove and that he had picked up all of the expenses for the funeral.

"What are you up to Kevyn Morris?" Barb whispered.

"Ma'am?" Ollie called.

"Coming!" Barb snapped.

Ollie helped her into the car not really wanting to touch her but he reminded himself that he was being well paid to keep the woman safe and to take her wherever she wanted to go including lunch, which had a thirty-dollar price limit. From what he could see, the woman didn't even deserve a meal at a fast food restaurant but that wasn't for him to say.

"Where would you like to go?" Ollie asked when he was in the car.

"Where all of the expensive shops are." Barb replied wishing that she knew where Kevyn shopped now that she had money.

"As you wish." Ollie said and headed to downtown LA.

Barb went into the first shop she saw, browsed for almost an hour before she picked a brightly colored red scarf. As she browsed, she made sure to mention the Sinclaire name to the clerk several times. She took the scarf to the counter, set it down and waited for the clerk to ring up her purchase.

"That will be eighty dollars ma'am, will you be paying with cash or credit?"

"Didn't you hear who I was related to?" Barb asked.

"Yes ma'am, several times." the clerk replied.

"Then please but this on his account." Barb said, "He won't mind."

"First of all, Mr. Sinclaire doesn't have an account with us." The woman said stiffly, "second of all, even if he did, we would need approval from him before we would apply anything to his account, so will this be cash or charge?"

Instead of answering, Barb turned around and walked out. When she was outside, her cell phone rang. She looked at the caller ID and saw that it was Kevyn.

"Kevyn? What in the hell is going on?"

"What do you mean?" Kevyn asked.

"The second rate hotel, having to catch a cab from the airport, the car..."

"What's the problem?" Kevyn asked, "You're the one who showed up early and if you will recall, I told you to stay home but you showed up anyway instead of waiting for an invitation. If you don't like your accommodations, you do have options. You could pay for an upgrade or you can go back home, the choice is yours and before you give me that crap about a rich white man, can it. I don't want to hear it. I only called to say that we'll see you tonight for dinner."

Barb was speechless. She really thought that she would be wined and dined and that she could wheedle her way into staying with Kevyn and her man thus meeting the other men of the family. She bit back a retort and changed the subject to dinner.

"What time?"

"Seven." Kevyn replied, "And don't dress up."

Barb's hopes were dashed again. She was planning to wear the clingy little black dress that she wore only when she was hoping to meet someone.

"Fine are you coming to get me or do I need to catch a cab?" Barb asked sarcastically.

"Patrick and I will be there at seven." Kevyn replied her voice filled with amusement that wasn't missed by Barb.

"Fine." she said and hung up. Not one to give up, she asked Ollie to take her to store where Patrick held an account. He didn't argue with her as he helped her into the car.

The bitch was in for another rude awakening.

Ollie pulled up to the valet parking area of ' Bloomington's', got out, handed the keys to the valet and helped Barb out of the car. She looked at the store, nodded at Ollie and went in prepared to spend Patrick's money. She shopped until she found a blouse that she liked that retailed for one hundred dollars. She then found the purse that she had seen on the website and had wanted since she first saw it. It retailed for more than the blouse did by fifty dollars. She went up to the counter and gave the clerk a polite smile.

"Hello! My name is Barbara Simpson and Patrick Sinclaire is my brother-in -law."

The woman didn't reply but waited for Barb to hand her the items that she wanted to purchase.

"I understand that he has an account here and I would like these things put on his account." Barb said as she handed the items to the clerk.

"I see, what did you say your name was?"

"Barbara Simpson but it may be under Barbara Yancy Simpson."

The woman logged on to the computer, pulled up Patrick's name and read through the list.

"I'm sorry ma'am but your name isn't on this list."

"What? Let me see!" Barb demanded as she tried to turn the computer screen toward her.

The clerk grabbed the screen and held on to it.

"I'm sorry but you can't see the list, it's confidential."

"Then look again!"

The clerk looked repeatedly told Barb that she wasn't on the list.

"You're not on the list so how would you like to pay for these?"

Barb's face burned with fury as she demanded to speak with a manager. When the manager came out, he asked Barb what the problem was.

"I am a sister-in-law to Patrick Sinclaire! You do know who he is don't you?" she snapped.

"Of course, but what's the problem?"

Barb explained what the problem was as she saw it.

"I want you to call him right now!" she demanded knowing that she was being unreasonable but not caring. This was another classic case where something that she wanted was being denied her because she didn't have money.

The manager gave Barb a polite smile and looked at the computer monitor looking for her name.

"I'm sorry Ms. Simpson but your name isn't on the list and I will not call Mr. Sinclaire. He is well known to us and he always calls us in advance if he wishes to put someone on his accounts."

"He might have forgotten! I just got here last night and..."

"It doesn't matter." the manager interrupted, "even if you had arrived this morning or if you had just gotten off of the plane, Mr. Sinclaire would have called me on my private number. Now, here are your options, you can purchase the desired items or you can leave them and speak with Mr. Sinclaire when you see him. Is there anything else that we can help you with?"

Barb walked away angry and humiliated, vaguely aware that she had brought the humiliation on herself. As she walked out of the store, she wondered if the manager would call Patrick and tell him what happened. She turned back and went into the store. The manager was still at the counter talking with the clerk.

"That was interesting." he was saying to the clerk.

"Yes, it was... do you think that she really is related to the Sinclaires?"

"She could be but her name wasn't on that list." the manager replied.

Barb's face burned with embarrassment but she needed to do some damage control. She cleared her throat alerting them to her presence.

"Yes? Did you decide to purchase the items?" the manager asked.

"Ummm, yes." Barb said although that hadn't been her intent. "And I wanted to apologize for my behavior."

"It's forgotten." the manager said as he retrieved the items from below the counter and began to ring them up.

"Look," Barb said, "could you do me a favor and not tell Mr. Sinclaire?"

"You have my word that this shall remain between us." he assured her. "That will be two-hundred and seventy dollars. Will that be cash or charge?"

Barb took her credit card out of her wallet and gave it to manager wincing as he ran it through. Fortunately, it was paid off and had several thousand dollars left on it. The thought that she shouldn't have quit her job occurred to her especially given the way things were going but she convinced herself that things would get better once Kevyn got over being pissed that she showed up unannounced.

Ollie was waiting for her by the car when she came out but didn't speak to her, he didn't like this woman who thought that the world owed her.

"Take me back to the hotel." Barb said without looking at him.

"Bitch." Ollie muttered as he walked to the driver's side of the car.

********

Kevyn hung up and laughed at Barb's reaction to hearing her options. She knew when she said it that Barb wouldn't go home but she wanted to remind her that going home was an option. Her thoughts turned to a more serious subject, Louise. The talk with Nathan had helped tremendously so that wasn't her concern; it was Louise's reaction when Barb made a play for Nathan that concerned her. Even though she couldn't directly address the subject of her and Nathan, she could address the issue of Barb and Nathan.

She knew exactly where Louise was. The scent of freshly baked bread filled the entire lower floor of the house making Kevyn's stomach growl. She made her way to the kitchen stopping just outside of it. She could hear Louise talking to someone- presumably Nathan in soft tones. Kevyn smiled when she heard Louise laugh, it was something that she knew Louise did little of but as the days passed, she smiled more easily and became more comfortable with herself. When she heard Louise say goodbye, Kevyn knocked on the door of the kitchen.

"Smells good!" she said.

"Want a piece?" Louise offered remembering that one of Kevyn's weaknesses was bread hot from the oven and smothered with butter.

"Do you have to ask?" Kevyn replied as she walked to a cabinet and took down a plate.

"Nope." Louise asked, "The butter's over there." she said as she continued to knead the bread dough for the next batch of bread.

Kevyn cut off a large chunk of the bread and smothered it with butter. She moaned in pleasure as the hot bread saturated with herb-seasoned butter touched her tongue.

"Oh my god Lou." she gushed as she took another bite and slowly chewed it. "Why are you making so much? Not that I'm complaining."

Louise laughed before replying, "Three reasons, you, Patrick and Nathan. I also thought that I would take a loaf or two to Barb tonight." she added.

"That's nice of you, she'll like that." Kevyn replied and took the opening into what she wanted to talk about. "Lou, I just want to warn you about tonight. Barb is going to make a play for Nathan you know that don't you?"

Lou stopped kneading the bread and looked at Kevyn.

"I know." she said softly and then continued kneading the dough.

"How do you feel about that?" Kevyn asked.

Louise didn't answer for several minutes. It was as if she was debating with herself as to how much she should say.

"I shouldn't care but I do." she said. Her voice was filled with a combination of embarrassment and confusion.

"Why do you think that you shouldn't care?" Kevyn asked realizing that this was how she could help and not tell Louise anything about what Nathan and his family were.

"What good does caring do me?" Louise asked as she put the dough into bread pans so that that could rise.

"Lou, do you think that Nathan is just being nice to you?"

"Yes and that's why I shouldn't care... he's out of my league."

"Oh I see." Kevyn said, "and you think that Barb is better suited for him is that it?"

"No, I mean... Kev, what does he want with me?" Louise asked.

"I can't answer that but what I can tell you is this, trust your instincts and I'm going to tell you something else." Kevyn said. "People will do to you only what you allow them. I know that when you were at home that the path of least resistance was to be quiet and to go along with the program but Lou, you aren't at home and it's time that you stood up for yourself and that means even to me, Patrick, Nathan and anyone else who tries too push you around."