The Broussard Sisters Ch. 09

----

Elizabeth Baggett pushed the book away and wearily stretched. In the living room, Missy sat and laughed at Jay Leno's monologue.

Elizabeth had a terrible resentment against Missy. The girl did nothing all day long, just sat around the apartment Daddy rented for her, ate all the food and left the mess for Elizabeth to clean up, then sat around all night while Elizabeth busted her ass getting dinner ready, then cleaning up, then doing homework.

If it were not for Teddy's baby, Elizabeth would have kicked the lazy girl out long ago. Missy seemed to sense the bitterness that was radiating from the kitchen/dining room and turned up the volume on the television.

"Turn that down, please," Elizabeth snapped.

Chapter 82

"It is Saturday morning," Daphne playfully complained. "Where do you think you're going?"

"Do a walk-through," Ed said as he tied his work boots.

"Eddie, it's Saturday; none of the workers are there," Daphne said and thrust her chest out, displaying her large breasts, hoping to entice him to stay a while.

"And that's the best time to just walk around, see how it's coming," Ed smiled and looked at her seductive pose. "But, hey, stay like that; I'll be home as soon as I can."

"Or you can go to the work site later," she suggested and undid the bow of the baby doll negligee.

----

"Bye Dad," Elise said cheerfully as Dick opened the front door.

She gasped, horrified, then ran from the living room and dashed up the stairs. Carmen and Dick heard her bedroom door slam shut.

"Go on, I'll talk to her," Carmen said.

He hesitated for a moment, and then nodded his head.

----

Bill Baggett groaned as Jamie knocked on his door.

"Breakfast," she shrilled through the door. "Come get it while it's hot."

"Fine, fine," he yelled.

Clark International had gotten the job to rebuild Dad's mattress factory and Mom had ordered him to get a job with them. He didn't know why; Dad gave her the house in their divorce settlement and paid her a nice alimony. But she insisted he work, and insisted that he put aside money every month.

She also made him pay his own gas, and car insurance and any other bills he might incur.

"But Dad pays for Elizabeth's apartment in New Orleans," Bill had whined.

"Because Elizabeth's in school," Jamie shot back. "If you'd get off your lazy ass and go to school, he'd probably pay for you too."

"Besides that," she went on. "He paid that Simone girl off; you ought to be grateful as all get out to him."

He'd seen Elaine the other day. She was out getting groceries while he was there buying a sandwich for lunch; Mom didn't fix his lunches anymore, telling him he was making plenty of money, he could buy the stuff to fix his own lunches. Elaine had bent over to pick something off of the bottom shelf and the shorts she was wearing crept up and plastered themselves to her ass and crotch.

She straightened up and smiled self-consciously as she pulled her shorts out. She was beautiful when she smiled.

He wondered if she'd be up to dating again, if she'd be willing to put aside the misunderstanding they'd had. Especially after his dad had paid her off.

"Breakfast!" Jamie screamed through the door.

"All right, all right!" he screamed back.

----

Elaine knew she would not get as delicious a chance as this to make fun of Elise. Elise was still highly embarrassed at her slip of the tongue earlier that morning.

Instead, Elaine smiled and gripped Elise's hand tightly.

She had been five when Daddy left them. She had been old enough to remember the screaming, the crying, and the slamming doors. She remembered Elise as a happy baby, her baby sister. Elise was just learning to say 'Lala,' 'Elaine' being too difficult for her.

So Elise didn't remember having a Daddy in the house. All Elaise remembered was the loneliness, the feeling rejected, the resentments and bitterness. All Elise remembered were the birthday parties, waiting for a Daddy that promised to come, but never did. The Christmases that were without a tree, wet with only one or two presents, because Momma couldn't afford anything more.

Elise knew that Elaine could really mock her, really make fun of her. Mom had laughed it off when she told Elaine about it.

"Love you," Elaine said and squeezed Elise's hand again before letting it go.

----

Paul ignored Darwin, his roommate, as Darwin was trying to cajole him into setting him up with either Candy, or Cindy or Pam.

"Aw, come on, Roebuck," Darwin wheedled. "Fuck man! Help a buddy out, huh?"

"Hey, Darwin," Paul finally said as he prepared to leave the small dormitory room. "Two things, dude. It's 'Robichaux,' not 'Roebuck.' Two, we ain't buddies."

"Aw, man, come on!" Darwin yelled. "Sure we are! Man, I let you tag along when me and Skinny went down to Johnny's for pizza, huh?"

"And didn't have any money to pay for your half," Paul reminded him. "Dude, forget it. You want a date with any of them, ask them yourself."

"Fine, prick," Darwin groused and grabbed his crotch. "And don't come whining to me when they don't want nothing to do with you no more."

"Uh huh," Paul smirked and left the room.

They were already downstairs, waiting to go to breakfast. Candy immediately gripped his arm for guidance and he herded them toward the cafeteria.

Cindy saw Celine sitting alone, listlessly putting forkfuls of the food into her mouth. She turned her back on her roommate and told the girl behind the glass partition what she wanted.

When she turned back around, her eyes met Celine's for a brief moment. Celine's eyes seemed to light up momentarily, and then clouded over as Cindy looked away.

"And how would you feel if someone did that to you?" a voice in the back of her mind asked her, but she chose to ignore it.

They found a table and sat down. A few moments later, Paul's roommate, Darwin barged in and tried to monopolize the conversation. He tried to be funny, tried to be derogatory toward Paul, which did not endear him to any of the girls.

"Bye, Paul," the three girls said as Paul glanced at his watch and realized he had less than twenty minutes to get to work.

Darwin seethed as the three girls quickly finished their breakfasts and left him alone at the table.

----

Harold smiled as Ed gingerly walked around the construction site. Most of the CEOs he'd ever worked with before had been blowhards, bullies that tried to threaten or intimidate him, tried to get him to cut corners, cut costs, speed up the work. Ed Baggett, on the other hand, listened to him, asked pertinent questions, made suggestions, and then deferred to Harold's expertise.

"Morning, Big Eddie," Harold called out.

"Damn that woman," Ed laughed. "Now everybody in town calls me that."

"Mister, looking at that woman; she can call me whatever she wants to," Harold said as the two men shook hands.

"I heard that," Ed agreed. "Best thing is, she doesn't seem to know she's the best thing ever happened to me."

The two men walked around on the foundation, looking at the skeleton of iron girders.

"And as you can see, we're about ninety percent done with the frame-up," Harold was saying as he pointed to each of the support joists. "Lay on the sheets, then all that's left is the interior."

"Double insulation, right?" Ed asked as they stopped in front of the chalk outline of the doors sketched onto the concrete slab.

"Yeah, you don't really need it, but..." Harold agreed.

"Hey, I've worked down on the floor in winter; it gets mighty damned cold," Ed said. "When it's cold, we don't work as fast. You know we've got orders from almost everyone on or client list? I mean, I keep telling them, we're not up yet, and they're all telling me, that am okay, we'll wait. That's some good client. I need my men to be comfortable, happy."

Harold watched as a tear formed in Ed's eye.

"I need them to be safe, need them to feel safe working here," Ed said and turned away from Harold.

"That's why we're putting in double insulation," Harold agreed and stepped down off the slab.

----

Elizabeth groaned. The next-door neighbor was practicing his guitar again. The guy was not very good but was very loud. She'd called the landlord several times, but the guy was unwilling to confront the quite large tenant. The police promised to 'look into it,' but never did; loud neighbors were way down on their list of things to worry about.

Missy curled up against her and put a pillow over her strawberry blonde head. Elizabeth laughed; it would take a lot more than a pillow to muffle the guy's twanging and squealing.

"Wouldn't be so bad if he knew how to play," Missy mumbled.

"Come on, our morning's shot to hell, let's go down to Café Du Monde and get some breakfast," Elizabeth suggested.

"You mean it?" Missy asked, green eyes alive with excitement.

"Yeah, but no more than two orders for you, you hear?" Elizabeth said and patted her expanding belly. "Remember? Gives you heartburn."

"Yeah, but it's totally worth it," Missy giggled.

When she giggled like that, Elizabeth didn't hate her so much. They crawled out of Ed and Missy selected a cute top and some stretch pants; her clothing all gifts from Elizabeth. Impulsively, she grabbed Elizabeth and hugged her tightly.

"I love you," Missy murmured.

"Love you more if you'd brush your teeth before hugging me," Elizabeth playfully proclaimed.

"And kissing you?" Missy asked and jammed her tongue into Elizabeth's mouth.

The two kissed for a moment, then slowly pulled apart. Elizabeth smiled, dark eyes looking into Missy's green eyes.

"Ew!" she screeched loudly, then shoved Missy away. "Go brush your teeth!"

"You're such a bitch sometimes," Missy laughed and walked to the bathroom.

"Yeah, but I'm a rich bitch, makes it all right," Elizabeth smiled and pulled on a pair of jeans.

Teddy had played guitar. Surely he hadn't been as bad as the next-door neighbor.

Elizabeth pulled on her bra, and found a light colored top. She'd made the mistake of wearing a dark tee shirt the first time she and Missy had eaten at Café Du Monde. For the rest of the day, she was brushing the powdered sugar from her top.

Chapter 83

"Oh I love having Doctor Charles LaPointe living right across the street," Carmen laughed as Elaine pushed the lawnmower back and forth.

"What's that mean?" Elaine asked.

"Cutting the grass, walking back and forth in your shortest shorts," Carmen laughed. "Hoping he'll come out and notice you. Hell, Honey, I don't care why you're cutting it; I'm just glad it's getting done!"

Elaine stuck her tongue out at her mother, but knew Carmen was right. The only reason she was out there cutting the grass was so that she'd have an excuse to wear her nearly obscene cutoff shorts and crop top with no bra.

He smiled as he looked out the window, then dressing some jean shorts and a tee shirt. He fished around a found his grubby tennis shoes, perfect for cutting the grass in.

When the real estate agent had shown him the house, she'd commented on the three beautiful blondes that lived right across the street. Charlie had not listened to her; he wasn't looking for a house for that reason. He was looking for a house that was far enough away from his work place, a place he could get away from the stress of his job. But he still wanted to be close enough in case of an emergency. Bender seemed to be a perfect little town; almost no one even knew about it, except for the mattress factory.

The house itself appealed to him. It wasn't a large house, but it wasn't a matchbox either. What had sold it for him, though, was the doorjamb. Written in an almost childlike scrawl was 'Wilma and Eugene forever.'

"Yes, Wilma Brown," the real estate agent and agreed. "I think she was almost eighty when she passed away."

Then on the day he moved in, he discovered that the three beautiful blondes across the street were the Simones.

Charlie waved a greeting to Elaine as he opened the garage and got out the lawnmower. He smirked as she busied herself with sweeping the lawn clippings, making sure to bend over a lot.

"We're going to the mall in Lafayette, want to go?" Carmen said as she and Elise came back outside.

"Um, no, no," Elaine said and dragged the black plastic bag to the next mound.

Charlie waved in greeting to both Carmen and Elise and tried valiantly to start his lawnmower. He yanked and yanked, but couldn't even get it to turn over. Finally, Elaine wandered across the street.

"Having trouble?" she asked.

"Yeah," he said, embarrassed. "Stupid thing won't start."

"Mm hmm," she said, looking at it.

It was a brand new lawnmower, have that she was positive; much of the packing tape was still attached.

"Let me see something real quick," she said and popped the spark plug connector.

She squatted down, making sure to splay her muscular thighs apart and tilted the lawn more slightly. She couldn't help but burst into giggles; the strap was still attached to the blade.

The lawnmower, even if he could have gotten it started, would have never worked. She very quickly pulled the nylon tab and removed the packing strap.

"It doesn't need that?" Charlie asked.

"No, Charlie, it's just there to keep the blade from turning when it's in the box," Elaine laughed and put the nylon cord to the side.

She made quick work of cleaning up the tape remnants, then opened the gas tank and looked up at him.

"Um At least you did put gas in it," she smirked.

"Yes, miss smarty pants," he smiled. "I do know that much."

"Okay, let's prime it and see," she said.

"What?" he asked.

She reconnected the spark plug and pushed the rubber nipple in a couple of times. She held in the safety bar, and then gave the cord a healthy yank. The mower started right away. She smiled a sassy little smile, and then released the safety bar and the motor died.

"You have to hold in the safety bar or it won't start," she smiled and pulled her sunglasses back on.

"Oh yeah?" he smiled. "Well, I can pop open a beautiful girl's head and save her life. Let's see you do that."

"Uh huh," she smiled. "Good thing I never saw you trying to cut grass before then; I'd have never let you nowhere near my head."

She was already back across the street, finishing up her raking when it dawned on her. He'd said 'beautiful girl.' At least he did notice her; at least he did think she was beautiful.

----

"Come on, Sleeping Beauty," Bob laughed and pinched Marie's bit toe. "Damn, Honey Bunny, it's almost one o'clock in the afternoon."

"I don't feel like it!" Marie complained.

"Something wrong?" Bob asked, concerned.

"No, no, Baby, I just don't feel like moving," Marie complained and snuggled down in the bed, trying to get comfortable. "I don't get no sleep at night; baby's kicking and all."

"Fine, fine," Bob said. "Want me to fix you something?

"Grilled cheese sandwich, with a couple of tomatoes," Marie decided.

"Cheese, huh?" Bob smiled. "Not stopped up enough, huh?"

"Well you asked," Marie grumbled.

"Fine, fine, one butt stopping grilled cheese sandwich with a couple of tomato slices coming up," Bob cheerfully said.

"And wash your hands!" Marie yelled.

"They're clean," Bob yelled back from the kitchen.

"No, they're not," Marie, grumbled. "They're filthy.

----

"Next weekend," Cindy whispered in his ear. "Next weekend, we're shaving you!"

"You have to shave first," Paul whispered back. "All of y'all."

"No problem," Pam hooted.

"No problem," Candy echoed.

"All right," Paul shrugged and pulled up to the movie theater.

Pam groaned. Just ahead stood Trish and a few of Trish's snooty friends. She prayed silently that the bitch wouldn't turn around and notice them, wouldn't want to talk to them, join them.

"Really?" Candy squealed loudly. "You got to work tomorrow?"

"No, I don't got to, I want to, though," Paul said back. "There's this Cadillac I want to get finished and the main board came in for it today just as we were closing up."

"And you promised my mom and dad you'd make us go to church," Cindy laughed. "Going to be kind of hard for you to do that if you're at work."

That did it, the mention of 'church.' Trish and her friends turned to sneer at the 'religious nut cases.' Trish made eye contact with Pam, then turned and whispered something to her friends. Pam seethed as the group erupted in raucous laughter.

----

Elizabeth groaned; the guy was playing a very loud, very sloppy rendition of 'Whole Lotta Love.' Missy groaned as well.

"God damned ass hole," Elizabeth complained.

"Really," Missy said. "Baby doesn't like him either."

"Really? He doesn't, huh?" Elizabeth asked.

"SHE," Missy corrected. "I'm telling you, it's going to be a girl."

"Nun uh!" Elizabeth playfully argued. "It's a boy!"

"Will you, will you still love me, after the baby's born?" Missy asked, searching Elizabeth's eyes.

Elizabeth sighed. The only reason she begged Missy to come with her to New Orleans, was because of Teddy's baby. The sex was adequate, she was able to have sex with Missy and not feel guilty, feel like she was cheating on Teddy.

But she knew she did not love Missy. Most days she did not even like Missy.

"Elizabeth?" Missy asked.

----

"Um, hey Mom," Elaine nervously began.

"Uh huh?" Carmen responded, turning off the back burner where the rice sat.

"Um, could I, um, it all right if Charlie come over for dinner some night this week?" Elaine asked and glared at Elise, daring her sister to laugh.

"Um, sure, I guess so," Carmen said, turning around and looking at her daughter. "You already asked him?"

"No, I wanted to make sure it's all right," Elaine admitted, blushing hotly.

"Well, yeah, I guess so," Carmen agreed and turned back around to finish cooking.

Dick wasn't going to be home for dinner; he was working the late shift. It was bad enough when he worked the early shift; Carmen always breathed a sigh of relief when she heard his car pull up. Late shift was a hundred times worse; she woke up several times during the night, only to discover that it was not time for him to be home yet. Midnight shift, however, was the worse of all. She would watch him get dressed, watch him check his service revolver, and then watch him leave. She never knew if it were the last time she'd ever see him or not. It wouldn't be until early morning; then she'd let that tight feeling out of her stomach when the car would pull up into the driveway.

"You're in love," she admitted to herself. "You're in love, with a cop."

She turned off the rest of the burners and stood there.

"Then why haven't you told him you love him?" she asked herself.

"Because it would hurt too much," she answered herself. ----

After the movie, they went to McAllister's for sandwiches, and then Paul took them back to their dorm.

Good night," he whispered and kissed Cindy.

"Good night," he whispered to Candy and kissed her.

"Good night, he whispered to Pam and kissed her as well.

----

Trish heard the door open and pasted a haughty look on her face. Pam ignored her, but Trish maintained the haughty expression until the lights went out in their small room.

"Say 'Hi' to Him for me," Trish laughed as Pam knelt by the side of her bed to pray.

"I always do," Pam said.

----

Bobbi smiled and promised to give Jacob another kiss for his big sister, then hung up.

"Candy says 'hi' and she loves and misses us," Bobbi reported. "School's going fine; she hates Sociology, thinks the teacher's a bit butt hole, loves Algebra, loves Biology, has to take Spanish, already forgot everything she learned at St. Thomas."

"And she needs money," Jake followed up.

"And she needs money, but it's not for anything stupid, it's for her cell phone and she needs to get rolls of quarters for the laundry mat; there's one seven blocks away and..." Bobbi said.