Page 84 of My Best Friend's Mardi Gras Wedding

“Then to lighten things up, we made a stop at the Museum of Death and the Voodoo Museum,” Josh said with a grin.“And ended up outside the LaLaurie Mansion.”The famously haunted mansion had a grisly history, and the story of the socialite, Delphine LaLaurie, who tortured and killed slaves in her lavish French Quarter mansion in the mid-1800s, was always good for shock factor.

Gabe laughed.“Good lord, these people are never coming back to N’Awlins after all that.”

Josh’s eyes went to Tori again.She had to come back.Had to.If she had to leave at all.

“And then you brought them in here?”Gabe said, looking around.“If their stomachs are queasy, they won’t eat as much.”

“They’ll drink though, to try to get all that crazy shit outta their heads,” Owen said.

“Guess I won’t tell them the bar is haunted too,” Gabe said, pushing back and stretching to his feet.

Owen chuckled.“Good call.”

Josh shook Gabe’s hand as his friend, and technically his boss, headed back behind the bar.It never felt like he was really working for the Trahans though.It was more as if he was helping run a business he loved and cared about.

“And we’ll take ’em to Café Du Monde after this and they’ll forget all about the nasty, horrible stories,” Owen said, popping a crawfish into his mouth.

“Thank you for not telling Gabe that plan,” Josh said.

The famous café sat kitty-corner across the square from Trahan’s and yeah, the Iowans needed a beignet before leaving New Orleans.He’d be shirking his responsibilities as a tour guide if they didn’t have one.But the brown butter pecan pie at Trahan’s beat beignets hands down.Though Josh would never deny a tourist a plate of beignets and a café au lait at Café Du Monde.And he’d never tell them that Café Beignet was even better.Or that his own grandmother could make beignets so good that they could make a grown man cry.Café Du Monde was simply a must-do.

“So why don’t we like Andrew?”Owen asked, taking a huge bite of his blackened redfish, one of the many amazing things on Trahan’s menu.Owen was eating for free since he was driving the bus—a deal Leo had hammered out with Sawyer and Tommy long ago—and was taking advantage of it.“He’s Tori’s best friend, right?Shouldn’t you be tryin’ to get on his good side if you want back in her panties?”

The mention of Tori’s panties made Josh shift on his seat as heat shot through him.“What makes you think I’d be goin’back?As if I’ve been there?”

Owen chuckled.“Because that girl’s glowing.”He pointed his fork in Tori’s direction.

To where she was sitting and talking with Andrew at the end of the bar.Just the two of them.Andrew had been trying to get her alone all day but Josh had kept them moving, spurred on by Tori’s obvious interest and delight in the tour as much as a desire to keep them apart.She asked Josh a million questions and was the last one back on the bus whenever they got off.She’d even wanted to go inside the LaLaurie Mansion.Which got a bighell nofrom Josh.Not even a guy who dealt with gators on a daily basis had big enough balls to go inside that place.

Josh watched Tori with Andrew for a moment.“Glowing, huh?”She looked gorgeous to him.He’d been itching to kiss her all day.But he kind of felt that way constantly around her.

“Well, that and the fact that she was looking at you all gaga all day.”Owen shook his head.“No onethinks your explanation of why we bury people above ground and your history Holt Cemetery isthatinteresting.Trust me.She was thinking about your cock and all the dirty things you did to her last night.”

Josh coughed and shifted on his chair.In the middle of the cemetery?But he’d wanted to kiss her there, too, so maybe.

Oh yeah, they’d gone to a cemetery too.The unique below-ground-burial cemetery in New Orleans.Of course they’d found that interesting.It had been a burial ground for the indigent population back in the day and because of the high water tables there were times that caskets would float up.The cemetery was unique for sure and Josh had always found it charming.The grave markers were homemade—PVC pipe, painted wooden posts, and a variety of other things—and trinkets like beads, photographs, stuffed animals and even beer and bottles of liquor could be found in the branches and roots of the huge oak in the middle of the cemetery.

What could he say?There was a lot of morbid-but-fascinating shit in New Orleans.

“But honestly, she doesn’t just seem well fucked,” Owen went on, as if they were discussing the tour schedule for tomorrow or who’s turn it was to scrub the dock.And as if there weren’t several other people within earshot.“She was looking at you like you were the most amazing person she’s ever met.Like she actuallylikesyou.Even in the middle of the murder museum.Which is not hot or romantic in the least.That’ssomething.”He shook his head.“Freakin’ place makes my skin crawl.”

“It’s the Museum of Death,” Josh corrected, thinking about what Owen had said.

“Yeah, well, it’s got letters from serial killers in it.”Owen shuddered.“That’s fucking freaky no matter what you call it.”

Yeah, it was.Josh grinned.Tori had clearly enjoyed the whole tour but some of the fun of it—and the inspiration for the stop at the Museum of Death—was how queasy Andrew had looked at the cemetery and the voodoo museum.

Okay, so Tori had been aptly listening to everything he said, but that was kind of just Tori.Wasn’t it?Or maybe not.Maybe she did think he was amazing and interesting and charming.Lord knew that standing up in front of newcomers to Louisiana and telling them cool, if slightly twisted, stuff about his home state was one of his favorite things in life.

But man, he loved the idea of Tori being enamored with him.

Owen leaned back in his chair, tipping the front legs up, and lifting his mug of tea again as he looked over to where Tori and Andrew were talking.This was very likely the first time Owen had ever drunk something nonalcoholic inside this building.Trahan’s had become a regular spot for drinks and fun when they were all up from Autre.Gabe and Logan Trahan were great guys and poured awesome local beer and the best Pimm’s Cups in the city.But Owen was off liquor and beer while he was driving people around in their tour bus.

“She doesn’t look at Andrew gaga,” Owen said.

Josh watched Tori.No, she didn’t look at Andrew like she was gaga, but she did look like she was completely comfortable with him.It was clear that they’d sat that close and talked that easily many, many times before this.It had been juvenile to try to keep them apart today.Not just because it could only last so long, but because theywerelongtime friends.He’d thought it odd last night that Paisley clearly wanted Tori out of Andrew’s life.But now, watching them, it was hard not to wonder if there was something more there.Not because of how Tori was looking at Andrew, but because of howhewas looking ather.

Fucking Andrew.

---