Love Finds You in New Orleans(61)

“Of course,” he replied, with the same edge to his voice as Gabriel’s—letting Gabriel know that Joseph didn’t believe him any more than he expected Gabriel would believe Joseph. He finished his coffee then buttoned his frock coat. “I know Saturday is a busy day here, but I would like you to come with me this afternoon to look for more materials for the jobs. And that will allow us time to talk. Man to man.”

“I would appreciate that opportunity,” said Gabriel.

“Good. Then I—”

“Are you leaving?” Rosette appeared and handed Joseph a plate of sweet fried rice cakes under powdered sugar that looked like melted snow.

“Not until after I eat these,” he said. “I need to check the progress of the two houses on Dauphine Street. The seasoned lumber was supposed to arrive from Florida this week. But I’ll be back this afternoon. I’d like Gabriel to help me with some materials, if you think you can spare him.”

Rosette smiled. “That won’t be a problem,” she said.

“Then we will see one another this afternoon,” Joseph said.





Chapter Twenty-Six

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As they went down Dauphine Street, Joseph Joubert showed Gabriel two brick cottages with double chimneys and kitchens with upper galleries that were almost finished.

“I wanted to show you the facade on these cottages. It’s called floche. The plaster is scored to resemble stone, and then it can be painted with a washed-out red to make it decorative. I thought about doing this on the addition to your mother’s house. What do you think?”

“I think it’s impressive, but she needs to see this herself. That’s not a decision I want to make for her. Can you imagine her coming home to an exterior she detests?”

Joseph laughed. “I understand. She’d start tearing it down with her bare hands. Or tearing us down.”

Inside one of the houses, Joseph pointed out the cypress pilaster-style mantel with a faux marble treatment, the tongue-and-groove wood ceiling, and the intricate cornices in the main rooms. “I know Rosette respects your opinion, so I thought it would be important for you to see all this before I discussed it with her. Showing you a design on paper isn’t the same as seeing the final product. I want the people I build for to trust the quality of my work.”

Before getting in the cab, Joseph was stopped by one of the men with a question about a wrought-iron fence. While they spoke, Gabriel examined the hand-crafted corbels waiting to be added to the ceiling. He had faith in the quality of the builder’s construction. It was evident in his attention to detail in door moldings and carved ceiling medallions, those finishing touches that set a house apart from ordinary. Gabriel wanted to have the same faith in the quality of the man his mother obviously cared about.

“I have one more place to stop. Do you still have time?” Joseph headed down Dauphine.

“Sure. Rosette isn’t expecting me back until she closes.”

“Good, because I suspect you didn’t agree to this just to look at a few houses. Am I correct? And if so, then be honest with me.”

Gabriel wondered if Joseph truly meant what he said. There was only one way to find out. “Are you married?”

“Whoa, stop,” Joseph pulled the reins. “Married? You think I am married?”

“I do not know that you aren’t. You leave suddenly for days, sometimes longer, and return unexpectedly. This has happened a number of times, and you’ve only lived here two years, and she’s known you for only a few months. It is cause for suspicion.”

“Marriage? I never thought of that.” He looked like a man who’d had a new idea dock in his mind like a ship on the river. “Of all the things someone might conjecture about my comings and goings, I had not considered that possibility.”

“Well, no one in my family did either. Except me. I’m old enough to remember my father leaving. My mother is one of the strongest women I know, but after he left, there were nights she cried herself to sleep. If this is going to end the same way, I do not want it to start.”

Joseph shook his head back and forth, mumbling. Whatever conversation he was having with himself, he seemed to be losing. Still holding the reins, his elbows resting on his knees, he said, “If she knew we were sitting in the middle of New Orleans talking about her, she’d be home making voodoo dolls.”

Maybe Joseph knew Rosette better than Gabriel thought, because he wasn’t going to debate that one.

“I’m not married, and you’re too late for not wanting it to start. I care about your mother. And I respect her. And to explain the comings and goings, well, if you’ve ever made promises to people, then you know how it feels if you have to disappoint them. I didn’t want them to feel that way. That’s going to have to be enough for now. I think the reins are going to freeze in my gloves, and I’m about to be late for my appointment.”