Sarah sat quietly on the couch. I could tell she was beaming with pride but did not want to enter the conversation.

I turned toward Mr. Broussard. He said, “Alexandra, I am Dan Broussard and I — no we — at Bayou Oil are thankful for the great work you’ve done for us. You’ve gotten us out of a prickly situation. You know some of those do-gooder assholes at the Times don’t like me or Bayou Oil. They don’t understand business. Progress is good. Sometimes things go wrong, but that’s the price of progress. Shit happens. If they had their way, we’d all be back in the horse and buggy days.”

I blushed. He was a handsome man with salt and pepper hair, about 6’2’’, with broad shoulders and a broad smile. He was dressed in a navy blue pinstriped suit with a red polka dot tie. He had a handkerchief strategically tucked in the exterior pocket of his expertly tailored suit.

“Thank you, Mr. Broussard, just doing my job,” I said.

“And a fine job you did too. You’ve got real talent!”

I looked at Sarah, and she grinned at me. Jenkins sat there behind his desk with the same “more money for me” look on his face. It was as if his face was present, but his mind was off in another room counting the money he’d make from Broussard.

Mr. Broussard continued, “I’d like you and your date to be my guest at the Rex Mardi Gras Ball. You will sit at my table as our guest of honor.”

I went pale. What the fuck would I wear? Mardi Gras Balls are formal events. I don’t have $1,000 to drop on a dress. Then there were the shoes and jewelry to worry about. Holy shit! I was so fucked!

Before I had time to hyperventilate and pass out, Broussard added, “I’ve asked Sarah to take you shopping at Bayou Oil’s expense to properly thank you for helping us.”

As the blood began to flow again, I looked at Sarah and gave her a relieved smile. I know she was the one behind all of this. She always thought of everything.

“Thank you, Mr. Broussard, what an honor,” I said looking into Broussard’s eyes with my best Cinderella impression.

With that, Sarah stood up, grabbed my arm and escorted me out of Jenkins’ office.