Page 49 of Lulu’s Recipe for Cajun Sass

She took care of Adèle and listened to incessant questions about Justin. And her heart hurt so bad....

Tante Lulu, when will Justin come back?

Tante Lulu, is Justin mad at us?

Tante Lulu, why cain’t we call Justin on the telephone?

Tante Lulu, could Justin mebbe be my daddy some day?

When she took her vegetables and fig jams into Boudreaux’s to sell, she fielded questions from Justin’s mother. And her heart hurt so bad....

Mrs. Boudreaux was being extra pleasant to her because she thought Louise might be in contact with her son or maybe because she pictured Louise as a future daughter-in-law. Louise was wary of Mrs. Boudreaux, ever since Justin had mentioned his mother’s gossip about Adèle’s family.

Have you heard from Justin?

Doan you look pretty in that straw hat.

Come, sit a spell so we kin talk.

Is that a new blouse? Very chic.

How’s that niece of yours?

When she lay in bed at night, she couldn’t help but replay in her head all the lovemaking that had taken place there. And it hurt so bad....

His kisses…oh, he is such a good kisser....

The way he smiles when he hears me moan....

The gasp he makes when I touch him there....

How I feel when he first enters me....

The bliss of being held afterward....

Louise didn’t need a calendar to know that time was ticking down, and before she knew it, it was the evening of September 13. Justin would be here tomorrow. And still she worried over certain essential issues. Whether or not she loved Justin was not in question; that was a given.

Could she live up north for a short period of time, let alone years?

Would Adèle suffer in such a confined space, in a poor neighborhood?

Could she sell her family cottage if it became necessary for them to afford a bigger apartment in Chicago, or to get Justin back here?

Did love overcome all these questions?

She thought and she thought and she thought. And her heart hurt so bad....

* * *

I’ll never smile again.… On the other hand…

Justin had taken his medical boards and was fairly certain he’d not only passed, but did so with flying colors, no thanks to Louise and his mind-numbing worries over what would happen with her. On the other hand, she’d said she would pray for him. So, maybe that had helped.

He’d cleared out a massive amount of stuff from his Boston apartment, but he hadn’t needed to take any of the furnishings, which were pretty much yard sale finds, since a pal of his, Harry Olson, would continue with the lease. Heavy books, a medical bag and portable equipment, plus out-of-season clothing had been boxed up and were ready for transit. He’d left two sets of mailing labels with Harry to put on the boxes, only one of which would be used, after he gave him a call…either for Houma, Louisiana or for Chicago.

Now he was back in Louisiana and about to have his big talk with Louisa. Unfortunately, after taking a bus to New Orleans and then to Houma, where he’d picked up his mother’s car, and having to spend an hour showering, shaving, changing clothes, and then talking with his parents, it was almost nine p.m. before he’d got to Louise’s cottage. By now, she probably thought he wasn’t coming. Or maybe she didn’t care.

Mon Dieu! He was anxious as a hooker at a Holy Roller convention.