She hoped if everything went to hell that she would have a friendship like her momma and Delphine. How much more would she worry if her mom was alone in the world like Cricket was? It was obvious to her that Louis wanted to argue he could take care of her, but his eyes strayed to where Rene stood.

“I’ll head home myself and get ready for work,” Louis said.

“Good. If you get there first, can you tell Jane I’m going to need her to do some inventory today?” Rene asked.

“Of course.” Louis nodded and patted Cricket’s shoulder. “I hope you ladies have a lovely day.”

There was no way to miss how Cricket’s eyes followed him as he walked to the door.

Oh, there was trouble brewing because Sylvie knew what Rene was going to say next. She’d seen it in his eyes, and she was worried she was the one who’d planted the seed by mentioning how Louis’s care for his mom seemed something more than brotherly.

Rene watched as Louis walked out the door.

She followed him upstairs, though they didn’t say a word until he closed the door to his bedroom.

Then he turned, a grim expression on his face. “He was out there and he didn’t show up here until much later. It could have been him. He already admitted he changed his clothes. And if he’d really been looking for us, he would have come up to the cabin.”

“He explained that. He could see the boat wasn’t there. The lights were off,” Sylvie argued. “Why would Louis do this? He has no reason to want to hurt the company.”

“Unless Charles promised him something,” Rene mused. “I don’t know anything about Louis’s finances. He could have taken some losses and needs the money. Charles could have offered him a better position and more power.”

She stood in front of him, forcing him to look down at her. “Do not make Charles your white whale, Rene. Not everyone is in league with him. Has Louis ever been anything but loyal to you and your parents?”

“No.” Rene took a deep breath and lowered his head to hers. “And it’s unlikely he would be wearing headphones out on the water. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen Louis use earbuds, much less those big ones DJs use. You’re right. He could see there wasn’t a boat docked, and our fire had gone out by then. He shouldn’t have been out there any more than my mother. They should have waited for Armie.”

“I seriously doubt you would be able to wait if it was someone you love.” She liked that she seemed to be a calming influence on him. He did listen to her, and that was a big start.

“And your mother is wrong. Your hair is adorable.”