Let The Good Times Roll

Let the Good Times Roll

ISBN: 9798232687762

Find The Full Book Below

Disclaimer: All characters in my story are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

Chapter 1

Camille rushed into the house letting the screen door slam behind her. Her long tan legs carried her up the wooden stairs and into her sister Emmeline’s room. Camille did not have much time to decide which dress she would secretly borrow from her older sister. Her own wardrobe consisted of everyday clothes and a Sunday dress. Tonight was special and she wanted something that looked fancy. She glanced at the clock on the nightstand, noting that she had about ten minutes before Emmie came home from her job at the Parish Council. She sifted through the armoire. Selected one with tiny pink roses that had a laced bodice and ruffled sleeves. Holding it up to herself, she wondered why Emmie inherited their mother’s ample breasts and not her.

She paused her movements and focused on the sound of the screen door slamming shut. Frozen in place for a moment, she realized that it must be the twins returning from school. Clutching the dress tightly, she hurried off to her own room before Angelo and Antonio saw her. After a few minutes had passed, Camille cautiously peeked out of her bedroom door to check if they were home yet

“That you Angie and Tony?”

The boys were already seated at the kitchen table, squabbling over how to divide up the remaining slices of blueberry la tarte from last night’s dinner. Glancing into the kitchen, she sighed and gave the boys a stern warning.

“If you make a mess in here, Emmeline will be furious.”

The boys nodded, their faces covered in blueberry juice as it dripped onto the kitchen table. Camille rolled her eyes and headed back upstairs. She had more important things to do than babysit two twelve-year-old boys. They were old enough to clean up after themselves, and she was tired of picking up after them. As she walked, her thoughts drifted to getting ready for the dance later that night. Her boyfriend Charlie Thibodeau and his band had a gig at a real club called T Bo’s, not just another high school gym where they usually played. She couldn’t help but feel proud of Charlie and the Woodchucks as she twirled around in her room with her dress on.

Chet, Charlie’s cousin, drove up in his Tin Lizzie and honked the horn impatiently. Charlie emerged from the repair garage, wiping the sweat from his forehead with a greasy arm. He raised his voice to be heard over the clunking engine. “Hold on, Chet. I need to let Pa know I’m heading out.” His father didn’t mind that Charlie played in a band with his cousins and friends; he knew it was just a young boy’s dream. But when he graduated this year, he would have to buckle down and join the family business working full time at the garage.

As soon as Charlie hopped into the car, he spread his long weary legs and leaned back to relax. But before he could settle in, Chet blurted out the exciting news.

“Guess what? We landed a gig at La Reux’s Dance Hall in New Orleans for the first week of July!”

“New Orleans!”

Charlie’s blue eyes widened in surprise, a habitual gesture. Growing up in Lake Trowley, he had only left the small town a handful of times – to visit cousins in Baton Rouge and once to New Orleans when he was seven.

“Mon Dieu! How did you manage that? “

” I know people Charlie boy.” Chet replied with a grin and continued to talk about all the details while Charlie thought about how excited Camille would be.

When evening set in Camille lowered the dress on a hanger tied to some string. Carefully she lowered it down from her bedroom window and then closed the window quietly as possible. Dressing in a plain blue sundress, she headed downstairs to where her family gathered as they did every Friday night. The twins Tony and Angie were huddled by the radio waiting for the new Superman show to come on. Their father Aubrey sat in his favorite easy chair talking with her older brother Roberto and his new bride Rene’.

“Pop it was the strangest thing today out of nowhere my nose started to bleedin and bleedin at work. I nearly used my whole shirt to stop it.”

Rene’ patted her new husband sympathetically on the back.

Emmeline sat on the loveseat at a proper distance from her finance’ Joe Bo. Aunt Na and Uncle Luke were just arriving with a bottle of wine and some homemade dessert. Their son’s sixteen-year-old John-Henry and eleven-year-old Frank followed in and took a seat by Tony and Angie. Aunt Na who never missed a thing over heard Roberto’s conversation.

“Your Rene’ has a bun in the oven.”

Roberto laughed. “That’s an old wives tale Aunt Na we are not having a baby yet.”

Aunt Na shook her finger at him. “You laugh, but you will see I’m right. Your bloody nose just told me it is so.”

Camille quietly entered the room and started making her way slowly towards the front door.

“Where are you off to tonight cher?” Her father inquired.

“To see Charlie and the band, Poppa.”

He nodded his approval. He knew one day soon Charlie would ask for Camille’s hand. He liked the boy and his family.

Emmeline was waiting for her moment to pounce. “Poppa, Camille didn’t say where she was going to see Charlie play.”

Camille turned her head quickly, snapping her long dark brown hair around. She shot her sister a look that would have knocked her and the loveseat over. Aubrey waited for Camille to respond; in fact everyone in parlor had her attention now.

With a frustrated breath Camille replied, “At little place called T Bo’s.”

Emmeline shot up righteously from her seat shouting.

“That is a swing club Poppa!”

Camille took a few menacing steps towards her sister “Shut up Emmie you’re not my mother.”

Aubrey raised his hand to stop the quarrel, as he did so many times before. Ever since his wife passed away of the cancer eight years ago, Emmeline had tried to play the role of surrogate mother to Camille and the boys.

Aubrey looked at Emmeline and said, “I’m sure Charlie Thibodeau will look after your sister.” Then he turned his deep-set blue eyes to Camille. “You will be careful and stay close to the band while you’re there?”

“Oh I promise Poppa.”

Camille crossed the room to give her father a peck on the cheek. “May I wait for Charlie on the porch?”

He patted her affectionately. “Go ahead cher and be careful.” Camille walked out the door making sure her sister could see her very smug smile.

As soon as she was out the door, Camille ran around back to the outhouse and changed into her sister’s fancier dress. When she heard Charlie pull up, she ran straight out to the car, but not before Emmeline looked out the window and got a quick glimpse of her leaving. She could have sworn that Camille was wearing something else when she walked out the door just a few minutes ago.

Camille jumped in Charlie’s black Chevy pick up truck before he came to a full stop. “Floor it Charlie!” Camille yelled as she quickly slammed the heavy door shut.

Charlie hit the gas without asking any questions. When it came to Camille, he knew it was better to do as he was told and not ask questions. When they were a fair distance from her house, he told her the good news about the band. Camille threw both of her arms around him while he drove.

“I just knew it. You are the best crooner in all of Louisiana. You are gonna be big some day Charlie boy. They will be asking for Charlie and Woodchucks all the way to New York City. I bet you get a record deal before Christmas!”

Charlie smiled and listened. He loved to hear Camille dream about their future. Even if he knew deep down it was only a dream. He already planned to buy her engagement ring with the extra money he made over the summer.

Chapter 2

Camille sat out on the veranda of T Bo’s sipping a soda pop, while the band set up. There would be a big crowd tonight. The well-known Bebe Courrie would be playing his fiddle as a guest with the band. As the sun started to sink low, Camille watched as the shiniest red car she had ever seen pulled into the parking lot making dust fly all around.

The car was a 1940 Ford Deluxe convertible club coup just off the show room floor from New York. The driver Daniel Dashelle was just like the car sharp, fast and good-looking. Getting out of the car, he checked himself in the side view mirror to make sure his black immaculately groomed hair was still in place. As he walked towards the club, Camille thought he might be a movie star. He walked with long sure strides like he owned the place. Camille kept her eyes down pretending to examine her bottle of pop. She could hear his footsteps walk up and then stop directly in front of her.

Gazing down on her with a smile he said “Say, didn’t we go to different schools together?”

Camille looked up at the towering six-foot man with broad shoulders. When their eyes met, she felt a tingle run up and down her spine and then her heart skipped a beat. She had never seen a man that looked that gorgeous in real life.

Camille stuttered a reply “I’m, I’m not sure I go to Lake Trowley High School.”

Dan nodded and smiled giving her a quick wink before he walked into the bar. He thought to himself he liked country girls, they did not have a lot of clutter going on in their heads

Camille mulled over what he said after she regained her composure. Go to different schools together? How could that be? Smacking her hand against her forehead, she blushed. “How could I be so stupid, she moaned to herself?”

Dan sat back in the bar stool and ordered a whisky straight up. He had just arrived in Lake Trowley yesterday, after high tailing it out of New York four days ago. Someone had pinned him at the murder scene of a local restaurant in the city and the law was looking for him. Dan worked for the Raguli family. He did some numbers-running, drug trafficking and racketeering, but he never would kill anyone, and anyone who knew him knew it was not his style. He would have to lay low, until he could prove an alibi that no one could shake. Salvatore, the head of the Raguli family suggested that this would be a good time to take a vacation.

Camille heard the band start warming up and decided to go inside. She kept an eye out for the handsome stranger and made sure she sashayed past him on her way to her table in front of the band. When she got to the table, Charlie blew her a kiss from the stage as she sat down and then he turned his attention back to the band.

The band started playing Jeepers Creepers, which got the dance floor going, and then the Beer Barrel Polka. Camille loved to dance and was on the floor with someone for every song. In a small town like Lake Trowley, she was usually dancing with a cousin or someone else’s cousin or someone she knew since grade school.

Halfway through the evening the handsome stranger approached Camille on the dance floor and asked her to dance. It was a slow number called If I Didn’t Care made popular by the Ink Spots. As he held her gently to dance, Camille recognized the fresh scent of Burma-Shave.

As they danced across the floor he asked, “My name is Dan. How you like me so far?”

“I like you just fine Dan.”

Dan flashed a smile that showed his straight pearly white teeth “I knew the minute I laid my eyes on you Angel Cake that you liked me.”

Camille stumbled. “I didn’t mean it like that! I have a boyfriend and he’s singing right now.” She nodded towards Charlie on the stage.

Before they could have any further conversation, someone tapped Dan on the shoulder to cut in for the rest of the dance. Dan bowed out graciously. He did not want any trouble with the locals or draw any attention to himself. He would catch up with that piece of angel cake another time.

Camille was curious about the new mysterious man. As the evening wore on, the dance hall became so crowded there was standing room only. She found her best friend Margaret and told her about the new stranger in town. They circled around the bar and the dance hall, so Camille could point him out to her, but he was already gone.

To the reader: I hope you have liked the story so far. If you would like to read on, you can find the continuing adventures of Camille at: Let the Good Times Roll (Unexpected Turns)

https://books2read.com/ap/xooYAm/Rosemay-Armel

Here is the dress Camille stole from her sister.

Here are recipes, pictures and song clips from the book “Let the Good Times Roll”

Blueberry La Tart Recipe:

Serves: Makes 12 Servings

Ingredients:

5 cups (about 1¼ pounds) blueberries
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
½ teaspoon freshly grated or ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Vanilla ice cream or whipped cream, for serving

Sweet Pastry Dough:

½ cup unsalted butter
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon salt
1 egg yolk
2 to 3 tablespoons ice water

Pastry Glaze:

1 egg yolk
2 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon sugar

Berry Glaze:

5 tablespoons top-quality blueberry jam
1 tablespoon Grand Marnier or other orange liqueur
1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest

Procedures:

For the pastry dough, cut the butter into small cubes and freeze for 5 minutes. In the bowl of a food processor, combine the butter, flour, sugar, and salt. Process for 10 to 15 seconds, until the butter is finely chopped. Add the egg yolk and 2 tablespoons of the water and pulse for another 10 seconds, or until the mixture looks like cornmeal. Pinch some of the dough between your fingers; it should hold together, not feel crumbly or dusty. If necessary, add more water, a teaspoon at a time, pulsing once or twice after each addition. Turn the dough out onto a clean work surface. Gather about one quarter of the dough into a small pile and use the heel of your hand to push the dough away from you two or three times, which helps thoroughly blend the butter and flour for a flakier crust. Don’t overwork the dough or it will produce a tough crust. Repeat with the remaining dough, then use a pastry scraper to gather the dough and form it into a disk about 5 inches across. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

I want to thank Sur la table for sharing this great recipe.

http://www.surlatable.com/product/REC-167456/Blueberry-Tart

You can find this story and others that have written at Smashwords.com

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/354669

Here is a link to the first Superman radio show: