As Long As You Love Me

by LuAnn McLane

  The round building had floor-to-ceiling windows to allow diners to take in the view of the ocean and harbor. Jesse had made reservations for them, and Ava wasn’t surprised when their perky hostess—Brittany, as indicated by her name tag—took them to a premier spot overlooking the water that wasn’t far from a small stage where a duo was setting up to sing.

  “Your server will be over in a few minutes to take your drink orders. Enjoy your dinner!” Brittany said brightly.

  Ava remembered her own days of being a hostess and smiled. By the end of the night, perky could be hard to pull off, but it looked like Brittany was doing just fine so far. She looked out the window and then back at Jesse. “This is so pretty. Rustic yet elegant.”

  “I’ve been wanting to get you out here. Tourists sometimes find out about this little secret, but most of the people who come here are locals. Water View has been here for as long as I can remember. My parents would take us here as kids for special occasions, like birthdays. We would go out onto the dock after dinner and feed the fish crackers. And sometimes spot manatees.”

  “What fun memories.” Ava smiled, but felt an ache in her throat for him and for the loss of both his parents. “I’m glad this restaurant continues to be popular. My grandparents have had to compete with the Italian chains back home. Running a restaurant isn’t easy, and it’s the locals who are the ones who keep family-owned restaurants in business. And of course the food. My grandparents serve fresh homemade pasta that’s made daily. Grandpa Gigi has recipes that patrons beg for, but he refuses to give them out,” Ava said as the busboy filled water glasses.

  “Do you have them?”

  “He tells me, ‘Someday, my Ava, you will have possession of the secret marinara sauce,’ ” she said in her best Grandpa Gigi accent. “Several of their dishes are to die for, and Nonna makes the best desserts.”

  “Can’t you go back into the kitchen and take notes?”

  “Are you kidding? The kitchen is a madhouse.”

  Jesse chuckled. “Do your parents get involved?”

  “My father runs the business side and keeps the books, while my mother has always been my grandpa’s girl Friday. She pitches in wherever and whenever needed.” At the thought of her mother running around the restaurant, she felt a wave of homesickness.

  “When are you planning a visit?” Jesse asked, as if reading her mind. “Didn’t you mention you were going back to Chicago after the competition?”

  “Yes, and before the summer classes begin,” she said, and paused when the server arrived. “And I’ll have to take in a few Cubs games. Head out to the Navy Pier.”

  “You a baseball fan?”

  “Big-time.” She smiled, but then frowned. “Or at least I was, until I stopped doing the things I love.” Anthony had thought baseball was boring and never took her to games, but she didn’t want to talk to Jesse about her ex and how horribly he’d treated her. She wondered why she’d allowed Anthony to be so controlling, but then again, arguing with him had gained nothing, so it was easier to simply give in to his demands.

  “Well, we have to remedy your lack of baseball, then.”

  “Good evening,” interrupted their waiter. “I’m Josh and I’ll be your server tonight. Have you dined with us before?”

  “I have,” Jesse said.

  “Then you know our salad bar is the best and comes with your meal. The specials are on a separate sheet in the menu. The catch of the day is grouper. Can I get you a cocktail or something to start with?”

  “I’ll have a glass of Bogle chardonnay,” Ava said.

  “A Manhattan.”

  “Bourbon preference?”

  “Bulleit.”

  “Nice choice. Any appetizers tonight?”

  When Jesse looked at Ava, she shrugged. “I need to take a peek at the menu first,” she said.

  “I’ll be right back with your drinks,” Josh said, and the duo at the front of the restaurant started singing a nice rendition of “I’m in the Mood for Love.”

  “Oh, look,” Ava said, nodding at an elderly couple who had gotten up and started dancing, looking at each other with adoring eyes. Ava took a sip of her water, wondering what it would feel like to spend your life with someone you adored. “Aren’t they cute?” she asked in a voice laced with more emotion than she wanted to show.

  “Yes.” Jesse smiled, but his eyes grew misty, making Ava wonder if he was thinking of his parents. “One of the reasons I like it here is that nothing ever seems to change. I enjoy the patina of the aged wood, the slight slope of the hardwood floor, the smell of so many meals cooked here.” He nodded his head toward the bar area, where a dozen or so patrons sat, chatting, watching a baseball game on a television suspended from the ceiling. “I’m not sure what it is, but I feel a sense of relaxation as soon as I walk through the door.”

  “It almost feels like going back in time,” Ava agreed. “That could be part of it. I can see why you love it here.”

  “I’m glad you find it sweet. It’s not a place everyone would like,” Jesse said. “The food is amazing but not served in the pretentious way that upscale restaurants like to present food. A few of those have popped up in Sea Breeze.”

  “My grandparents feel the same way about keeping things simple. Steaming hot and cooked to perfection: what more do you need?”

  Josh arrived with the drinks. “Ready for an appetizer?” he asked.

  “Ava, do you like stuffed mushrooms? They’re really good here.”

  “I do.”

  Josh made a note of the order. “Anything else?”

  “Ava?”

  “The mushrooms are fine to start with,” Ava replied, giving Josh a smile.

  Jesse took a sip of his Manhattan. “Mmmm, nice. I always have to order a classic cocktail when I’m here.”

  “Hmmm.” Ava raised her eyebrows. “Maybe I should have gone with a dirty martini.”

  “Want one? You can save the wine for dinner.”

  “I’ll stick to the wine for now,” she replied, thinking he was a considerate man. “You’re a good guy, Jesse,” she said out loud.

  Jesse reached across the table and took Ava’s hand. “You bring out the good in me.”

  “How so?”

  Jesse took a sip of his drink and seemed to ponder how to answer the question. “I didn’t date a lot, but you know, I went out here and there. I just didn’t give much thought to a future with someone.” He lifted one shoulder. “I guess maybe I played the role of the jokester for so long that I lost sight of what life should be. I never tried to take life seriously. It’s high time I do some adulting.”

  “I don’t totally buy that, Jesse. Maybe you just didn’t know what you wanted until now.”

  “Seeing my brothers so happy was a wake-up call,” Jesse said, and he seemed ready to divulge more, but Josh appeared with the mushrooms and small serving plates.

  “Need more time to decide on your entrees?” Josh asked.

  “Please,” Jesse replied.

  Ava tried a stuffed mushroom. “Mmmm. Oh . . . so good.”

  Jesse took a bite, nodding.

  “The cheese is all bubbly and toasty,” Ava said. “Yummy.”

  “Something tells me you haven’t indulged in a lot of foods you truly love in recent years.”

  “Mmmm.” Ava inhaled a deep breath. “You’re right. I grew up with pasta, delicious dishes, and then deprived myself for the past few years while I competed. While I think it’s important to make healthy choices . . . I think it’s high time I let loose of all the damned rules I’ve been adhering to forever.”

  “Damned straight!” Jesse picked up his glass and tapped it to hers. “To breaking rules.”

  “Cheers,” Ava said, and then laughed. “Thank you.”

  Jesse tilted his head to the side. “For what?”

  “Showing me how to live again. To loosen up. To have fun.” To take a chance on love.

  “I’m glad to hear it.” Jesse looked down at his drink and th
en back at Ava. “I think we’ve taught each other balance—not that we’re opposites. I feel as if we have the same core values from close-knit families.” He gave her a smile that made her feel warm and fluttery. “And we seem to enjoy so many of the same things. In other words, we’re good for each other. Do you agree?”

  Ava pressed her lips together, nodding. While she wasn’t opposed to where this conversation was going, she did notice out of the corner of her eye that people seemed to be watching them. Of course, she was with Jesse Heart, and although they weren’t in the center of Sea Breeze, he was still easily recognized. It hit her, then, that Jesse would be recognized wherever they went. He seemed to take the attention in stride, casually eating a mushroom, but then again, being stared at in public was old hat to him. She tried not to allow the attention to distract her from the lovely evening, and so she kept her focus on Jesse, who seemed to only have eyes for her.

  “Are you ready to order?” Jesse asked.

  “Mmmm.” Ava took a sip of her wine. “I haven’t really looked,” she admitted. “You’ve had my full attention. Suggestions?”

  Jesse looked at the separate sheet with that day’s specials. “It’s so hard to choose, but I think I’m going with the crab-stuffed grouper. What kind of seafood do you like?”

  “Just about everything, but the crab cakes caught my eye.”

  “They’re excellent here. Filled with tons of lump crab.”

  “Mmmm, decision made.”

  “Go for the scalloped potatoes too, a house specialty.”

  “And we have that massive salad bar over there,” Ava said with a groan. “You might have to wheel me out of here.”

  “Hey, we deserve it after all the rehearsals. We can splurge.”

  “I like the way you think.” She picked up her wineglass and took a sip.

  Josh returned and took their order. “Help yourselves to the salad bar,” he said with a smile.

  Jesse clued Ava in on the best choices from the salad bar. As Ava filled her plate, she wondered how she was going to find room for dinner. “The clam chowder is good too,” Jesse said, but Ava shook her head.

  “I need to save room for my crab cakes.”

  “I’ll give you a bite of mine, then. I want you to taste it.”

  They settled back in at the table, chatting, head-bopping to the music, and offering each other samples from their plates after Josh delivered two huge, steaming entrées to the table. When darkness set in, the candles on the tables were lit. Ava enjoyed the atmosphere, wishing that the night wouldn’t go by so quickly.

  “I can’t eat another bite.” She groaned after finishing her entrée. It had been so good she couldn’t help but clean her plate.

  “Me neither,” Jesse agreed. “Let’s work a little of our dinner off on the dance floor.”

  Ava hesitated just a fraction. Being on display in front of the dinner crowd wasn’t something she relished, especially when she’d already felt eyes on them from the beginning. But the hopeful expression on Jesse’s face changed her mind. “I’d love to,” she said, accepting his hand. “But no showing off,” she whispered.

  “Gotcha,” Jesse answered, but within five minutes of dancing the jitterbug to “Rock Around the Clock,” they were the center of attention, the rest of the dancers having parted. The fast-paced leg kicking had the crowd clapping along, and when Jesse spun Ava around and did a drop move followed by a flip, the onlookers went wild. At the end of the song, the entire restaurant erupted in applause.

  “So much for not showing off,” Ava said in Jesse’s ear. “I didn’t know you could jitterbug.”

  “Learned from watching my mom and dad. I improvised and you followed,” Jesse said with a grin, and they took a bow.

  Luckily, the duo at the front of the stage followed up the fast-paced song with a nice rendition of “Can’t Help Falling in Love.”

  “Ah, a slow dance,” Ava said, following Jesse’s smooth moves. Other couples joined in, but she could tell she and Jesse were still the center of attention. Even with the eyes on her, though, Ava couldn’t help but enjoy herself. As she swayed in Jesse’s arms with her cheek near his, Ava closed her eyes and enjoyed floating across the dance floor with him. He smelled good and felt amazing. There was just something intoxicating about slow dancing with the one you loved.

  Love?

  Jesse pulled her closer, and when he started singing the words in her ear, she nearly melted right on the spot. When the song ended, she dearly wanted a kiss, but not in front of everyone. Ava was pretty sure they’d been captured on many a cell phone already.

  “I want to get you home,” Jesse said in her ear.

  “I need a quick bathroom break.”

  “I’ll pay the tab and then we’re outie, home skillet.”

  Ava chuckled and then headed to the ladies’ room, unable to keep from smiling. What a perfect evening, she thought, and her smile widened as she held the door open for an older woman to enter the bathroom before her. The woman lifted her chin and briskly brushed past Ava to wash her hands without a smile or a thank-you, but Ava shrugged it off, not allowing a little rudeness to spoil her good mood. But as she fixed her hair in the mirror, the same woman gave her a bit of a glare. Tilting her head, Ava smiled at her, but felt confused.

  The woman pursed her lips and then said, “You’d better not do your dirty work on Jesse Heart. He’s one of our own and we don’t take kindly to tarts like you.”

  “Tarts?”

  “You know just what I mean.” The woman pointed a bony finger at Ava, and Ava’s dinner started to swirl around in her stomach. “I saw that interview on that Hollywood Tonight show earlier.”

  “Interview?” Ava asked, feeling silly for repeating. What was Hollywood Tonight doing in Sea Breeze?

  “With that dancer you abused.”

  “Abused?”

  “With that sharp tongue of yours. It’s no wonder he dumped you for that other dancer. Angel, I think she said her name was, and she was so sweet. Same story is in the Hollywood newspaper or whatever it’s called,” the woman added with a shrug.

  Ava felt her blood turn to ice in her veins. She gripped the edge of the sink, glad when the woman tossed her paper towel in the trash and exited the bathroom. For a moment she couldn’t move, and she thought she might get sick. Inhaling a deep breath, she ran cold water over a few sheets of paper towels and pressed them to her forehead. She swallowed hard, realizing Jesse might be getting concerned, but then with shaking fingers she reached into her purse for her cell phone. After taking a deep breath, she googled the interview, and with a wildly beating heart, she pressed the play arrow.

  Oddly, the interview took place in front of the performing arts center, making Ava wonder how the whole thing had come about in the first place. After a brief introduction, a young, blond female reporter named Mandy Marker turned to Angelica. “Angelica, tell me why, as world-class dancers, you and Anthony Grecco decided to come to Sea Breeze for this competition.”

  Angelica smiled, glancing at Anthony, who stood a bit to the side. “Mandy, we adore the arts and decided to come to Sea Breeze to help raise funds for the performing arts center.” She gave her hair a flip. “We were approached by the director of the event and accepted.” She smiled brightly, but then, as if on cue, she pressed her lips together like she was holding back tears. “We didn’t realize at the time that Ava Mayor would be participating as well.”

  The reporter arched her eyebrows and kept the microphone in front of Angelica.

  “Ava and Anthony were dance partners, and they were also . . . once engaged.”

  Mandy nodded slowly and looked at Angelica with sympathetic eyes. “Ah, a bit awkward, perhaps?” she asked, and Ava squeezed the phone harder as she waited for Angelica’s response.

  “To say the least.” Angelica gave Anthony a warm smile. “You see, Ava was . . . abusive to Anthony. Always tearing him down.” Angelica shook her head. “Ava might not look the part, but her sharp tongue cut An
thony to ribbons.” Ava gasped aloud. “She was critical, manipulative . . . cunning, in a way. A bully, really.”

  “Wow,” Mandy said, looking at Anthony. “Commendable that you elected to stay in the competition under the circumstances.”

  Anthony inclined his dark head. “I couldn’t back down from a promise.”

  “Have you had any run-ins with Ava?” Mandy asked. “We hear that she’s involved with Jesse Heart, of Heartbeat.”

  “Unfortunately.” Angelica closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. “We ran into Ava and Jesse at the local grocery store. She was incredibly rude . . .” Angelica said in a tearful tone, making Ava want to stop watching, but she forced herself to look at the screen. “She took some nasty jabs at Anthony, but he took it all in stride until Ava poked fun and laughed at me. Then all Anthony wanted to do was get me away from her.”

  Anthony reached over and took Angelica’s hand, making Ava want to throw up.

  “I just hope Jesse Heart knows what he’s getting himself into,” Angelica whimpered. “He seems like such a nice guy, and Ava Mayor is poison.” Ava felt her dinner churning in her stomach.

  Mandy nodded and then turned to the camera. “And there you have it. This is Mandy Marker reporting live from Sea Breeze, Florida, the home of Heartbeat.”

  “God . . .” Ava whispered, still staring at the cell phone after the interview concluded. After a few moments, she dropped the phone into her purse, wondering how she was going to get through the rest of the night without breaking down, but she couldn’t stay in the bathroom forever. Lifting her chin and stiffening her spine, she pushed the door open and headed back to the table. Jesse took one look at her and his eyes widened.

  “You okay?”

  Ava gave him a jerky nod. “Um, yeah, too much food and then the dancing. I just need some air.”

  “I paid the tab.” Jesse put his hand at the small of her back. “Let’s get you out of here.”

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  I DO (CHERISH YOU)

  Jesse glanced over at the passenger seat of the boat, but Ava kept her gaze to the side, watching through the window. She’d been nearly silent the entire ride back, and he was glad they were pulling into the marina. He wanted to get her home and find out what was wrong, because he wasn’t buying her upset-stomach-from-too-much-dancing story.