Cajun Magic 02 - Voodoo for Two by Elle James Page A

hadn’t been prepared for. He’d thought for sure Eric would make the right decision and stay clear of Lucie. At least, deep down, Ben had hoped his friend would stay clear of Lucie. Not that he wanted to start something up with her again. But, well…
    What the heck did he want?
    Jason shook his head, his mouth in a serious downturn. “Every decision you make will have a profound effect on how your constituency views you. Going out with this Lucie LeBieu woman will only bring scandal and make your voters question your judgment.”
    “I’ll take that chance.” Eric’s jaw tightened and determination showed in the hard glance he directed at his father. “Lucie’s worth it.”
    Jason stood, the color rising in his tanned cheeks. “Is she worth making her your wife?”
    Ben staggered backward. Neither Eric nor Jason paid any attention to him, so wrapped up were they in their little power struggle.
    Lucie, Eric’s wife ? Wow, that would be a coup on her part.
    She’d turned Ben down flat when he’d asked her seven years ago.
    He studied Eric across the room. His blond good looks were a stark contrast to Ben’s bayou Cajun dark skin and hair. And Eric dressed for success with every item of clothing he put on, probably down to designer boxers. The man wore his success like a second skin. Hell, it probably came easy to him . Manners and diplomacy had been ingrained in him from birth. And what he hadn’t inherited, Jason Littington made sure he’d learned by sending him to the best tutors and universities.
    Lucie would do well to marry a man like Eric. Ben could never measure up to someone so classy.
    Nor did he want to. He’d leave it to his politician friend to carry that ball and chain. He enjoyed living in the comfort of jeans and well-worn work boots. And tact was something he’d never quite mastered, neither here in Bayou Miste nor on the force in Baton Rouge.
    Eric hesitated over his father’s bald question. Finally, he looked straight at Jason Littington. “If I fall in love with her, I’d be more than willing to ask her to be my wife.”
    “It’s a good thing. You might want to take a look at the New Orleans Times-Picayune .” The older man lifted a newspaper off his desk and handed it to his son. “Your opposing candidate is blasting you about not being married, claiming you have no stability in your life and your views.”
    “My marital status has nothing to do whatsoever with my political views.” Eric snapped the paper open and scanned the front page.
    “Dwayne Gasson says it does.” Jason tapped the biggest article splashed across the page. “He also capitalizes on his Cajun heritage and your lack of the same.”
    Ben almost laughed at the irony. For once Eric’s money wasn’t enough, and he had what Eric never could.
    Eric’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Not that I put any stock in Gasson’s mudslinging, but it just serves to reinforce my stand that Lucie might just be good all around for my campaign.”
    Ben held his breath, not liking the way this conversation was going.
    “How so?” Jason asked.
    “If I need a wife, which I don’t concede that I do, Lucie would make the ideal one. She’s beautiful, she’s independent, and she’s Cajun. As far as I’m concerned, she’s perfect. And I don’t care who objects.”
    Jason glared at his son.
    As the quiet stretched into a full minute, Ben shifted on his feet, ready to leave father and son to their argument.
    Then a loud crash shattered the silence—and the huge picture window in the study. Ben spun around as the porcelain vase on the end table beside him exploded into a thousand tiny shards. A rock the size of a baseball rolled to a stop on the carpet inches from his big toe, a crumpled piece of paper tied around the middle.
    “Good Lord!” Mr. Littington dropped to a crouch near the floor behind his desk.
    Eric squatted low, his gaze riveted to the broken window.
    All of Ben’s police training and a strong dose of adrenaline