Page 31 of Sweet Home Louisiana

“Why?”

“Girls like flavored creamer.”

“They do?”

“Tori does.”

“I think it’s safe to say that Tori and Maddie don’t have a lot in common.”

That came from Owen.So he was here, too.She hadn’t been sure.Maddie narrowed her eyes and strained to hear the rest ofthat.

“You don’t think so?”Josh asked.

“Seriously?”Owen asked.Then he laughed.“Tori’s sweet.Friendly.She’s happy with little things like flavored creamer.”

Maddie frowned.Geez, you tell a guy you don’t want any more of his hugs and suddenly you’re labeled as not friendly.

But shereallydidn’t want any more of Owen’s hugs.Because they made her want a whole lot more.

And this “not friendly” stuff was coming from the guy who, for just a second last night, had almost backed her up against the wall and beensuperfriendly?She’d seen it plain as day in his face.And her entire body—mind, soul,pinky toe—had reacted to it.And he knew it.Heknewthat she would have been super happy with his…okay, not solittlethings.

Maddie put her hands over her face and groaned.

Not even twenty-four hours.She hadn’t even been in Autre for twenty-four hours and she was already feeling hot and bothered.Not just by the weather—though it had taken forever to fall asleep last night in her grandmother’s hot upper level.Fucking Louisiana in June.Who built entire towns onswampsanyway?In what scenario did someone say, “Hey, it’s hotter than the devil’s ball sack.Let’s live here!”

“Maddie’s not that easy to please?”Josh asked.

Maddie could practically hear the smirk on his face.She rolled her eyes and stomped over to her suitcase, making sure they could all hear that she was up.

She grabbed her toiletry bag, the lightest sundress she owned, and stomped down the hall to the bathroom to shower.With cold water.

Forty minutes later, she wondered why she’d even bothered.She was out of the shower, dressed, deodorized and perfumed, and sweating like she’d just gotten back from a run.Well, a run in San Francisco.A run here would probably kill her.

She absolutely could not even think about pulling out a blow dryer and applying hot air to her hair on purpose, so she left it damp and curling around her shoulders.In this humidity it would take a miracle to get it to lay sleek like it should anyway.

Then she stomped down the steps and into the kitchen.

It smelled like coffee, eggs, and yes, Tabasco.Sawyer was sitting at the table, reading the paper.Josh was leaning against the counter, flipping through his phone.Owen, the last one she looked at, wasloungingat the table.His long, denim clad legs stretched out, ankles crossed, his big hands cradling a mug against the Boys of the Bayou T-shirt that covered his hard abs.

She realized that she’d done a thorough inventory of Owen’s body while she couldn’t have even said what color Josh’s shirt was.

She stomped to the coffeepot.“I’m doing the books today and don’t be surprised if your snack budget gets cut.”

“We can’t be expected to work without beef jerky,” Josh said, looking up.“And M&M’s.I’m no good without my M&M’s fix.”

“Then stay the hell out of this house until nine a.m.from now on.”She could smell the chicory as she poured the coffee into her cup and she grimaced.She’d never developed a taste for the chicory coffee that was a staple down here.She hadn’t been much of a coffee drinker when she’d lived here and she now had a taste for medium roasts.And yes, with a splash of flavored creamer, thank you.She reached for the bottle of creamer Josh had apparently brought from home and poured three servings worth into the strong brew in her cup.

She shot Owen a glance as she stirred.He was watching every move and gave her a small smile when she caught his eye.

“I stand corrected,” he said.Clearly he knew she’d overheard him.“One thing in common.”

She flipped him off.

He laughed.“Yep, maybe just one.”

Maddie hid her smile behind her cup.This was all far too familiar.

The first morning and her plan to stay unattached was already going to hell.And she was smiling about it.

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