He downed the rest of his beer, setting it beside the stool. He gazed at me, eyes lowered, and his tongue slid across his bottom lip. “Prometiste,” he said in Spanish, this time with a sensual twist of his tongue.You promised.
I stuck my hands out and blurted, “I’m married!”
“Are you now?” His glacier eyes turned to Brando. “Congratulations.”
“I didn’t really promise,” I said, my voice lame. “You wanted me to and I laughed. But it doesn’t matter—I fulfilled my promise to the right man.”
Nick turned back to me. “You still promised me first.” He winked.
“No—” I went to protest, to argue, but I couldn’t finish. I hadn’t vomited since Nemours took his revenge out on my stomach, but tightness of vessels from the cold air and the stress caused the tender area of my stomach to contract. Putting a hand to my mouth, I asked if there was a restroom nearby.
Nick pointed behind him. I flew in that direction, briefly catching Eva’s “I’ll go too”and Nick’s appreciative look as I passed.
A self-revelation seemed to come to me then. Charlotte had probably done me a favor. Nick Stone would've never been able to make me happy. He was cute and good-natured. Real gentlemanly types never did it for me though. I was drawn to dangerous men—and the men behind me could never be described as cute. A golden retriever is cute, not a lethal animal with the strength to snap a neck in two.
Eva was right behind me, offering support.
Lifting my hand, noticing the paleness of my skin in the fluorescent light and smudged mirror, I said, “I’m all right. False alarm.”
Then I thought about what I had to tell Brando—and if coming across someone that I had only danced with made him this upset, how would what Nemours had done go over? I closed my eyes, counted to ten, and then took slow, deep breaths. In and out. In and out.
“Nick?” she said from behind me.
“Knox?” I said, opening my eyes to her.
She nodded. “I left him for my ex-husband. Knox was my boyfriend at the time.”
“You were married…before?” It didn’t seem possible. She and Gabriel were so perfect for each other. Perhaps, I thought, that’s why it didn’t work with her first husband.
“Yes.”
I knew she didn’t want to discuss it. Me either.
“Will Gabriel start something with Knox?” I asked.
“He called me Evangeline. No one calls me Evangeline but Gabriel.”
I reached for a paper towel to wet. “I’m sorry.”
She laughed, but it had less volume than usual. “Men like ours, you have to know how to persuade them. Even then, they’remen.” She shrugged. “We do what we can, but when their minds are made up, it’s a matter of honor.”
If they were going to kill each other, I didn’t want to know about it. But the show must go on. I stepped out of the bathroom like it was laced with bombs. To my surprise, Brando and Gabriel stood in the shadows, talking low, while Nick and his friends laughed and talked amongst their group.
Nick looked me up and down as I passed, but he didn’t make a move to touch me. I kept my face forward as we walked away, squeezing Brando’s hand. The tremble beneath his skin caused my blood to pick up the vibration.
“You were sick,” he said, not looking at me.
“No.” I shook my head. “I’m okay.”
He kissed me, only a contact of our lips, and I knew he did it to taste for mouthwash. He didn’t believe me.
“You kissed him,” he said.
He said the words so nonchalantly that I did a double take. It was as if he were pointing out that the weather had turned colder.
“No.” I brought myself closer to his side. “You were my first. I told you that.”
That was the last we spoke of it. When we arrived at Nouvelle Musique, we took our seats inside, close to the fireplace. It was an eclectic place, the inside a reflection of the French Quarter, with cobblestone floors and brick walls. The outside was a continuation, but with a small stage set up for entertainment. Bulb lights hung from one end to the other, swaying when a breeze would sweep by.
