Loved Bayou (Martin Family Book 1) (4 page)

Chapter 6

"I thought you said you needed a hug," I heard Jacob's deep voice say from behind me as I turned to walk away.

I stopped and threw my hands up, but didn't turn back to face him. "I do need a hug," I said, since I knew I'd be mad at myself if I stormed off like instinct was telling me to do. "And so do
you
," I added without bothering to turn and face him.

"What makes you think you know what I need?" he asked.

I could hear by the tone of his voice that he was still wearing a serious expression, and I had a passing thought that he might not even be capable of smiling. I turned to glance at him over my shoulder.

"Everybody needs a hug," I said. "Even if they don't want one, they need one."

"I don't."

"That exact attitude is all the more reason why you do," I said. I continued to look at him, expecting him to say something, but he didn't. After several long seconds, I turned to walk away again.

"Fine," I heard him say as I took the first step.

I glanced back at him with my eyebrows furrowed. "Fine what?" I asked.

"Fine, we can hug or whatever. You guys are so weird down here."

"You're weird for yelling at me," I said.

There was another slightly awkward silence, and then he said, "So how's this supposed to go down?"

"A hug?" I asked with a sarcastic edge to my voice. "You put your arms around each other and squeeze." I gestured in front of me. "It helps if there's not a screen between you."

"You're talking about physical contact?" he asked.

I nodded. "That's what a hug is."

"Will you sleep at night if we go ahead and do it?" he asked.

This made me let out a humorless laugh like I felt sorry for him. "It's not just about me," I said. "You need it, too."

"Fine," he said. "Let's just do it if we both need to so bad. Then we can get on with our lives."

"Fine," I said. "But you're gonna have to do something about the screen door."

Just as I said that, he reached forward to open it. In one swift movement, he stepped out onto the porch before letting the screen close behind him. He was only a few feet from me now, and I could fully appreciate his size and the brightness of his eyes. He had a few days worth of facial hair lining his jaw, and I stared at it along with the rest of his face. I repented of my sins, past, current, and future as I stared at him. I felt a surge of emotion that I knew was attraction, and it made me feel guilty, like I was lying when I said I just wanted to welcome him into the neighborhood.

I was lost in thought when I felt his arms come around me. He stepped forward, and pulled me into his embrace as if it was the most natural thing in the world. He was taller than me, so his arms wrapped around my shoulders. I put my arms around his middle, and knowing this would probably never happen again, I gave him a good squeeze. I did it tightly at first, but then relaxed to a grip that was still firm but slightly less urgent. I thought he would break away instantly, but he held me there for several long seconds. Being in his arms felt like such a relief—especially with the way he hurt my feelings the day before.

I laid my head on his chest and continued to hold him, giving a little squeeze to his ribs. I felt his body relax underneath me and I smiled to myself as he took a deep breath in and then out. He moved his hand to my head and gave me one last squeeze, holding my head securely to his chest for a split second before pulling back and breaking contact altogether.

"You were probably right," he said as he turned to walk into the house. "I'm sure I did need that." He opened the door, and stood with his hand propped against it as he turned to look at me again, still not cracking a smile.

"I needed it too," I said. "Thanks for not kicking me off of your property. I'll sleep fine tonight, just in case you were worried."

He stood there and looked me over before letting his eyes meet mine again. I swear I saw that same tiny glimmer of amusement somewhere way down deep, like I'd find a smile if I looked hard enough.

"I won't bother you anymore," I promised as I smiled and gave him a little wave.

I slowly turned to head down the steps, which gave him ample opportunity to stop me. He didn't do that. He just let me walk away. I left his property without either of us saying another word to each other. It wasn't as bad as the day before, but it still wasn't the farewell I was looking for. I had to remind myself that Jacob didn't owe me anything. I had probably already said and done too much, anyway.

I wish I could say Jacob left my mind after that, but he didn't. I thought about him in spite of telling myself not to. I knew he didn't care anything about me and it was just a waste of my time and energy, but forgetting about him was easier said than done.

Even though I didn't know all the ins and outs of his story, I sympathized with it. I don't know how to describe it other then I felt personally responsible for making sure he didn't spend the rest of his life in miserable solitude. I'm sure Cole, and aunt Debbie, and everyone else in town felt the same way, which is why we all had a hard time leaving him alone.

Every day, I felt the urge to go over there, but I fought it and made myself stay away. I didn't even ask Cole about him, which was extremely difficult. I resolved not to mention it, and I had stuck by that choice. It had been over a week since the last time I saw Jacob, and I was still doing my best to forget he lived out there.

We were at Uncle Steve and Aunt Debbie's when my cousins brought up his name. My middle sister was about to move back to Lafayette for the fall semester, and Aunt Debbie made hashbrown casserole and fried chicken, which was Wynn's favorite.

My parents and sisters along with Cam and Cole all came over for Wynn's farewell dinner, and that's where I heard Jacob's name for the first time in what seemed like forever. We had already been there for a while, and I had gone outside to give their dog some of the table scraps when I heard Cole talking to Cam in the driveway. He had backed his truck up to their dad's boat and was hitching it up.

"Jacob wanted me to show him where the frogs were." I heard Cole say.

"Is he gonna eat em?" Cam asked.

I had been stooping down to feed the dog, but I stood up so I could better hear their conversation.

Cole laughed. "I don't think so, unless he gets really desperate for food and doesn’t want to go to the store. I think he just wanted to learn how to do it. He hears those frogs at night. He was asking about them, and I told him we catch em."

Cam laughed. "I'll go with y'all," he said, as if his brother had already invited him and he was just now agreeing to it.

I thought Cole was going to say something to deny his brother—something about how Jacob wouldn't want extra visitors. But he didn't—he just kept hitching the trailer to his truck like he was going to allow his brother come along.

"I'm coming if y'all are going froggin'," I said, walking toward them.

Cole and Cam both turned to face me. It wasn't all that unusual for me to ask to go along on one of their boating excursions, so I said it like it was already set in stone.

"It's not just us," Cam said.

"I know. I heard y'all talkin' about Jacob."

"You're not going to try to talk to him," Cole said. "He already told me about you going out to his property when you dropped your mace. I told you not to go out there."

"He likes me," I said, shrugging. It was a bit of a stretch, but I knew there was at least
potential
for him to like me. Cam and Cole regarded me with identical skeptical expressions. "I'm serious, he likes me. Imma ride out there with y'all, and if he says he doesn't want me to come along, I'll leave."

"I don't care if you want to come," Cole said shrugging. "But you better go get sprayed for mosquitos."

Soon after that conversation, we left for Jacob's land. "I'm surprised he doesn't have a boat," Cam said, as we pulled past his house and Cole did a three-point turn to back the trailer onto the ramp.

"He does," Cole said. He gestured to the nearby dock even though it was mostly dark. "I told him I'd bring Dad's out here. He's using the old one Mr. Breaux left, and he's thinking bout getting one like Dad's."

I got out of the truck while my cousins took care of getting the boat into the water. I was watching them work when I heard Jacob's voice from behind me.

"You should have called me; I would have helped you," he said, obviously to my cousins. He hadn't been talking to me, but his words caused me to whip around to look at him. There wasn't much light where I was standing, but I clearly saw him look at me when I turned.

"She said you wanted her to come," Cole said when he saw the two of us notice each other.

"I didn't say that," I said. "I said he would be
okay
with me coming, because I thought you would," I added, glancing at Jacob.

"It's fine," he said to me before looking over my shoulder at Cole. "I appreciate you bringing the boat over," he said. "Can I help you with anything? I thought you would just drive over on the water."

Cole shook his head. "We've got it. Dad had the boat on the trailer, so I decided to just go ahead and pull it over here. He said we could leave it here for a few days, and you can just dock it at his house sometime next week. Our mom's usually at home, so she can drive you home if you don't want to walk."

I glanced at Jacob and watched his wheels turning as he thought about a potential ride home with Aunt Debbie.

"I'll figure something out," he said. "Tell your dad I really appreciate him letting me use the boat."

I just stood there quietly and listened to their conversation. I loved hearing Jacob talk like a normal person. He still hadn't smiled, but he also wasn't angry. They talked for a few minutes while Cole and Cam took care of the boat. Jacob went down there as well so he could see what they were doing. I was content to stand by and take it all in. It intrigued me to hear him having a normal conversation with my cousins.

While they were talking, Jacob said he had a piece of heavy equipment that he needed help moving and asked if they wouldn't mind. They agreed, but didn't ask what sort of equipment it was or any other details about it. I was so curious about his workshop and what he was doing in that living room, that I almost broke my silent streak and asked what he was talking about. I decided to hold it in and just listen to them talk, however. I always seemed to get tongue-tied around him, anyway. Who knew, maybe they would move the mystery equipment tonight, and I would be able to see for myself what it was.

Chapter 7

I had been froggin' plenty of times in my life, so all the information my cousins gave Jacob was old news to me. For those of you who don't already know, you always go froggin' at night, and your only tools are a flashlight, and something to put the frog in once you catch it.

Cole drove us a little ways into the marsh before finding a spot to cut the engine. He used the trolling motor to guide us quietly toward the shore, and Cam began scanning the shoreline with his huge flashlight that was more like a small spotlight. I was sitting in the middle of the boat with Cole behind me doing the driving and Jacob and Cam toward the front.

"Mais, look right der," Cam said, emphasizing his Cajun accent to be funny. We all looked in the direction the flashlight was pointing, and I could see it right away. There were two little round reflectors shining back at us.

Cole and Cam worked as a team. Cole brought us smoothly to the place where we could reach the frog with a net. "I'm gonna keep the light on his eyes," Cam said, looking at Jacob. "Take that net, and get up under him with it."

Jacob swiveled so he could grab the net and do as Cam said. I watched as he carefully roped the frog from underneath and in a somewhat faster movement, he pulled the net out of the water.

There was a huge bullfrog sitting in the bottom of the net when he brought it out of the water. I looked at it for a second thinking it was a big one, and then it crossed my mind to wonder what Jacob thought about such a thing.

I glanced at him, and couldn't believe what I saw. He was smiling as he pulled in the net. It wasn't a huge smile, and I could only see the side of his face from where I was sitting, but there was an unmistakable upward sweep of the mouth. I leaned to the side in an effort to get a better look at his face, but he was too busy checking out their catch, and he turned away as he situated the net so he could look inside.

I knew he was capable of smiling. I stared at the bottom of the boat wondering why I felt bittersweet feelings about it. As funny as it seemed, I was sort of jealous that a stupid old frog had been the one to cause him to smile when I couldn't.

I sighed and smiled to myself knowing these thoughts were ridiculous. Cam let out a Cajun sound of approval, which was a loud, high-pitched, "Eww-wee," as he stared at the frog near his feet in the bottom of the boat. "Dat's a good one!" he said, still exaggerating the Cajun accent for Jacob's entertainment as he gave him a high five.

I watched curiously to see if Jacob would smile again, but his face seemed to remain neutral as he high-fived my cousin—although I couldn't really see that well from where I was positioned.

They repeated this process until we had eight frogs in the container by my feet.

"I'll teach you how to clean them," Cole said once we decided to make our way back to Jacob's dock.

"I thought we'd just throw them back," Jacob said. "I don't want you to show me just to show me if we're not gonna do something with the meat." He paused. "I don't think I need to know, anyway. I don't think I could do the boat and the light and everything by myself."

"We'll go with you, but you can just go out on foot when you're by yourself," Cam said. "It's almost easier that way. Just put on some waders and go out into the marsh on foot. You just need a flashlight and a bag to put your frogs in. You don't need a net or anything."

"So, I just shine the light, and walk right over and pick them up?" Jacob asked.

Cam nodded. "Yep. As long as you keep that light on their eyes."

I had watched this and several exchanges happen between Jacob and my cousins, and I had been tempted to chime in every time, but I never did. I was enjoying seeing him interact with them too much to interject and worry about how he would respond to me.

Cole parked near the dock, and they tied up the boat. Knowing it would have to be done, I started gently tossing the frogs out of the boat one by one. They were all nice sized frogs, and I smiled at my own urge to kiss them before tossing them back into the water.

"What you smiling at?" Cole asked, glancing back at me after he stepped onto the dock.

"These frogs," I said. It had been a while since I said anything, and it took me a second to find my voice. I cleared my throat. "These frogs," I repeated, since it barely came out the first time. "They're happy y'all decided not to eat them."

"I like the idea of it," Jacob said, "and it's fun to go catch them. But I'm not sure I really want to clean and eat them."

"Tastes like chicken," Cam said.

"Not to me," I said, scrunching up my face a little.

"Are you scared of them?" Jacob asked.

"No, I'm not scared of them," I said, dropping the last one overboard. "I just don't like the taste. It's like sandy, fishy-tasting chicken."

"They have frog legs at Ty's sometimes," Cam said. "I'll get you some next time so you can see for yourself."

Cole reached out to help me climb out of the boat and onto the dock.

"I didn't tell you thank you for that," Jacob said. I assumed he was talking to Cole for bringing the boat or taking him frogging, but when I regained my balance enough to look at him, I could see that he was looking at me.

Cam and Cole both turned to head up the dock to the shore, leaving Jacob and me standing there.

"Me?" I asked, feeling completely flustered by our proximity.

"Yeah," he said. "Those fried things were really good. One of them had cheese in the middle."

"Boudin balls," I said.

"Exactly," he said. "It looked like they took that boudin stuff and made a fried ball out of it."

I nodded. "Boudin balls," I said, seriously. "That's what they're called. And you're welcome. I'm glad you didn’t just feed it to your dog." I stared at him for a few seconds before starting to walk up the long dock toward the shore. Jacob fell into stride beside me. We trailed my cousins by about twenty feet, but we were walking slowly, so they left us behind.

"You were quiet," he said as we walked. I hadn't said more than a few words the whole time, so he was stating the obvious.

"I was just watching y'all," I said. There was a slight tinge of melancholy in my voice, even to my own ears. I didn't mean for it to come out that way; I was just taking everything in and trying not to seem to overzealous.

"Something wrong?" he asked after we walked a little ways in complete silence.

I glanced at him, and he turned to look at me. "No," I said, with a little sarcastic smile that said I knew he didn't really care.

"One day, you're trying to hug me and bring me food, and the next, you'll barely say two words to me," he said.

"I'll still hug you and bring you food," I said. I glanced at him and smiled, but I knew he could tell I was being cautious.

"All right, then," he said.

He stopped walking, and I took a couple of steps without him before turning to see what he was doing. We were in a dark section of the dock, but I could still see that he was looking right at me.

"What?" I asked.

"You said you wanted a hug," he said.

"I said I would still give you a hug and bring you some more boudin balls if you wanted. I never said I
wanted
a hug."

"Oh, okay, well never mind, I guess." He took a step forward like he expected us to continue on our way, but I could tell by the way he was talking that he was looking forward to a hug. I reached out to him when he tried to step around me. I took him into my arms, burying my face into his chest and squeezing him tightly. He smelled good, and I felt instantly comfortable and cozy. He wrapped his arms around me, holding me securely in place.

"You can't just stay out here by yourself for the rest of your life," I said without looking up at him. "You need human contact."

I felt and heard him breathe in and out the same as he'd done the last time I was in his arms. I had the distinct sensation that the physical contact was somehow recharging him—like he was drinking my energy in.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said, pulling back after we stood there for a few seconds. "That was for you just now. You were the one asking for that."

I smiled and rolled my eyes at him as we slowly started walking again. "Whatever you say," I said.

"Alex, you all right?" I heard Cam yell from over by the truck.

"Coming," I yelled. I glanced at Jacob. "Did you need them to help you move something?"

He shook his head. "We don't have to do it tonight."

"They won't mind."

"It's out in the yard," he said. "It'd be easier during the day."

"Oh, okay. I was hoping it was something in your house."

"Why?"

"Because I want to go in there," I said in a matter of fact tone.

He glanced at me with some underlying amusement in his expression.

"I saw you smile at that frog," I said.

He looked at me sideways. "I didn't smile at any frog," he said.

"Yes you did," I said, pushing at his arm a little. "You were cheesin' it up at that first frog you pulled out of the water."

"I was not," he said.

I shrugged and shook my head at him. "You can think what you want to think, but I saw it with my own eyes."

"You're acting like I don't know how to smile."

"You don't," I said. "That was the first time I saw you do it."

"Maybe I'm a little rusty at it," he admitted.

We had climbed onto the shore and were making our way to Cole's truck by this point.

"I'm gonna bring the trailer back to Dad," Cole said when he saw us walk up the bank. "Just park the boat on his dock sometime next week, if you don't mind."

"Tell him I'll have it there by Wednesday, and thanks again for letting me check it out."

Cole nodded, leaning over the edge of the bed of his truck as he talked to Jacob. "I'll tell him. Did you need us to help you move something?"

"Thanks, but I think it'll be easier during the day. It's no hurry. I'll get you to help me next time."

Cole gave him a nod before focusing on me. "Are you ready?" he asked.

I nodded and started toward the truck. I had only taken one step when I felt Jacob reach out and gently touch my arm. I glanced at him as we continued walking.

"Thank you," he said.

I gave him a little nod and smile, and focused again on the path in front of me. I felt speechless, like anything I said right then would be inadequate.

"For what?" I whispered before my cousins could overhear us. I needed to clarify what he was thanking me for so I could do it again.

He shot me a sincere but still serious expression. "Human contact," he said, finally.

By the time he said it, we were already close enough to my cousins that I couldn't say anything back without them overhearing.

"Okay, so I'll bring you some of those tomorrow," I said, as if it was just part of the conversation we'd been having.

Jacob glanced at me curiously, but I just smiled and acted natural.

"I'll come by at five o'clock. Open the gate, if you don't mind."

I knew my cousins were staring at us and hearing everything I was saying, but I just stared straight up at Jacob, wondering if he would go along with me or call me out.

"Tomorrow, huh?"

"I thought that's what we said," I said, casually.

"Yeah," he said, nodding.

"Five o'clock?" I asked.

A second's hesitation.

"Yeah."

"Okay, I'll see you then. Open the gate if you don't mind."

Within a couple of minutes, I was on my way back to Aunt Debbie's with Cole and Cam.

"What was all that about?" Cam asked as we drove.

"What?"

"You telling him to leave his gate open and all that."

"I didn't want to have to walk around it," I said.

Cole sighed like he was doing his best to remain patient. "You can't be pushing yourself on him," he said. "Mom's doing the same thing, and I think Mrs. Reeves and Mrs. Simon have both been out there. Y'all just need to leave him alone."

"You heard him," I said. "He said he wants me to come by. I'm gonna bring some boudin balls from Ty's."

Thankfully, Cole didn't say anything else about it. He dropped me off at his mom's so I could get my car, and I went inside to say thank you and goodnight to Aunt Debbie and Uncle Steve before heading home.