CHAPTER SEVEN
TRUE TO YOUR HEART
Jesse walked into the rehearsal room with a smile, but when Ava only gave him a slight nod, he wondered if something was wrong. They’d had a great night—what could possibly have happened between then and now? Immediately, though, he shook the thought off. She was probably just tired—and he could definitely relate. Thinking of Ava last night had robbed him of way too much sleep. And then, once he’d finally been able to drift off, he’d had an incredibly erotic dream about her that’d had him tossing and turning so much that he became tangled in the bed sheets like a mummy. At one point, he’d considered a cool swim in the pool.
Ava went back to stretching, looking incredible in black tights and a snug white tank top. Jesse frowned. Just yesterday, she’d relaxed, opening up to him enough for him to hope she’d let down her guard for good . . . but judging by the tense set of her shoulders, they were back to square one.
“Let’s get to it,” Ava said in a businesslike tone, but when she glanced his way, Jesse noted a slight pink blush in her cheeks.
Ah . . . interesting. So they had made progress.
“Okay, boss.” Even as he walked over to her, more thoughts floated through his head. Could he be lucky enough that she might be as attracted to him as he was to her? Had she tossed and turned as well? “And good morning to you too,” he said cheerfully, but she inclined her head without looking at him. Wait, oh damn, was she angry that he’d sent her that text message late last night? Should he address it? Crack a joke?
“Are you going to stand there looking lost or come over here and start stretching?” Ava asked in a tone Jesse couldn’t quite read. While she didn’t sound angry, he could tell something was off.
“Do I look lost?” Jesse put his duffel bag down and tilted his head in question.
She gave him another brief glance. “A little,” she answered in a bland tone that Jesse didn’t like. He didn’t want her to be upset, especially if he was somehow to blame.
“Although I admit, I don’t always have the best sense of direction. Hmmm . . .” Jesse glanced up at the clock on the wall. “Well, I’m on time, and I got your car here without a dent or scratch.” He dangled the keys in front of her. “If that helps lighten your mood.”
“Thank you.” Ava stood and took the keys from him. She put them in her purse on a nearby hook and then walked back to face him. “Granted, you are on time, but you’re wasting it by standing here chatting with me.” She pointed to the barre in front of the mirrored wall. “And my mood is just fine.” The slight waver in her voice said otherwise.
“Okay . . .” Jesse started stretching as close to her as he dared, but Ava remained silent. He made grunting noises while he went through the moves, trying to get her attention, but she pointedly ignored him. “All right, Ava, I have to ask. Who pooped in your Cheerios?”
Ava stopped stretching, put her hands on her hips, and gaped at him. “That’s just disgusting.” She shot him a glare, but he could see something else in her eyes.
“Yeah, I guess, but at least I got a rise out of you,” he retorted, bending his leg to stretch his hamstrings.
“Is that what you’re trying to do?”
Jesse planted his feet firmly on the floor and turned to face her. “Yes.”
“It’s working!”
“Like a charm?”
“Um, no charm involved.”
“Hey.” Jesse put a gentle hand on her shoulder and was glad when she didn’t pull away.
“What?” she asked in a short tone, but the pain in her eyes went straight to his gut.
“Tell me what’s bothering you. Is this about me? Did I do something wrong?” He wanted to ask about the text message but decided to let her explain. “According to my brothers, I can do things and not realize I’ve pissed them off until, well, I get the cold shoulder.” He pointed to his mouth. “The no-filter thing continues to plague me.”
Ava closed her eyes and swallowed hard. “No, you didn’t do anything,” she finally answered softly. “Forgive me for my mood.”
“Forgiven,” Jesse said quickly.
Ava gave him a ghost of a smile. “Thank you.”
“You can tell me what’s going on and it stays right here.” Jesse pointed to the floor.
Ava blew out a long sigh. “I don’t want to talk about it, but I guess there’s no getting around it.”
“Then spill.”
Ava groaned. “My ex-fiancé called me last night.”
Jesse felt his heart skip a beat. The fact that she’d had a fiancé bothered him for no valid reason, and picturing her with another guy made his stomach do weird things. In all honesty, he hoped he might have a chance with her, but he didn’t know whether she was over Anthony or not. He knew he had to tread carefully. The trouble was, he wasn’t very good at treading carefully. “And?”
“He and . . . Angelica, the woman he left me for, are entering the dance competition.”
“Here?”
“Yes,” she replied hotly. “How shitty is that?”
“As shitty as shitty can be.”
“Uh, yeah.”
“Why?” Jesse asked, and when Ava sat down on the floor, he joined her.
“They’re not doing so hot in ballroom competition, and they want an easy first-place win.”
“Does something like this little unofficial competition really count?”
Ava shrugged. “Doesn’t hurt. And I guess they have their sights set on the five-thousand-dollar first prize. But honestly?”
Jesse raised his eyebrows in question.
Ava gave him a steady look as if trying to decide whether to confide in him. “This falls into the category of staying right here.” She pointed at the floor.
“Of course.”
“Okay, then.” Ava flicked a glance at him and then stared across the room. “Anthony tried to get me back a few weeks ago and of course I flatly rejected him.” She shook her head. “I mean, seriously? Anyway, he called to let me know that he’s engaged to Angelica and that they are heading here today.” She scooted her knees up to her chest.
“And he’s doing this to hurt you?” Jesse asked, and when she nodded he felt a hot flash of anger along with the intense need to protect her. “What a complete and total asshat.”
“Yeah.” Hugging her legs closer, she took a deep breath.
“What else did he say to you, Ava?” Jesse felt a muscle jump in his jaw.
Ava shrugged.
“Please tell me.”
Ava plucked at the stretchy material of her leggings for a moment. “He . . . he belittled my job here. Let me know that they will crush us in the competition.”
“We’re not really competing. We’re hosting.”
“We’re being judged.”
“We can change that.”
“Why?”
“Because I’m not a ballroom dancer. We can tell Nancy we don’t want a score.”
“Do you think that bothers me?”
“I know you want to do well. Like you said, your performance reflects upon your reputation. I get that. But would it bother you to be compared to Asshat and his sidekick?” Jesse asked quietly.
Ava hesitated. “It shouldn’t, but . . .” She pursed her lips. “I don’t know. Maybe.” She paused for a moment. “I don’t want him ever thinking he’s better than me.”
Jesse leaned over and nudged his shoulder to hers. “Well then, that settles it. We’ll dance for a score. We’ll just have to best theirs even if we’re not officially competing.”
Ava looked at him with big eyes. “Jesse, Angelica and Anthony aren’t as good as they want to be, but they’re still world-class. We can’t cram a lifetime of knowledge into the next few weeks.” She leaned back and stared up at the ceiling. “Look, it doesn’t matter. We’re doing this for the center. I need to get over myself.”
“Will he be posting this all over social media?” Jesse asked. “I mean, it seems as if he also wants the publicity.”
“I didn’t think of that.” Ava groaned. “This is exactly what I wanted to escape. It took me a long time to get over what happened, and it’s really difficult to contain my anger right now.” She turned and looked at him. “I didn’t mean to take my mood out on you. I’m sorry, that was unfair.”
“Don’t worry about that.”
Ava shook her head slowly.
“Are you angry at him, or pissed that he can get to you?”
Ava licked her lips. “At him for disrupting my life, for sure,” she said, but then sighed. “And at myself even more. I’m trying not to give him that power.” She wrinkled her nose. “But kinda failing.”
Ava appeared so forlorn that Jesse wanted to reach over and take her hand . . . but then inspiration struck. “Okay, look, I have an idea.”
“Oh boy.” Ava raised her eyebrows. “Should I be frightened?”
“Normally I’d say yes, but hear me out.”
Ava scooted around to face him. “Okay . . .”
“Let’s take a Step Up approach to this routine.”
“Step Up? The movie?”
“Yes. What if we combine the Argentine tango with some sweet hip-hop moves?”
Ava shook her head. “No, the judges will hate it. Give us low scores. Ballroom judges are purists. Haven’t you ever watched Dancing with the Stars?”
“Yeah, but don’t you see? Who cares? The audience will eat it up with a spoon. Like you said, beating them might be impossible, so scratch that. We don’t have to play by the strict ballroom-dance rules. Instead, we’ll break them.”
“I don’t know . . . I’m not much of a rule breaker.”
“I am. Leave it up to me.”
Ava frowned. “I don’t know . . .”
“Ava, bringing down the house will be our victory. Trust me, this is my town. The audience will go nuts.” Jesse tapped his chest with pride. “And then, the day after the contest, nobody will be talking about Anthony and— What’s her name again?”
“Angelica, but believe me, she’s no angel,” Ava said in a flat tone.
“So, what do you think about my plan?”
Ava sucked in her bottom lip for a few seconds. “Unconventional. We’ll catch some serious flak for it,” she warned, but Jesse could tell she was interested.
“ Unconventional is my middle name. Any other concerns?”
“Well.” Ava raised her eyebrows, seeming to think for a second, and then said, “No, actually. I think it’s kinda genius.”
“Thanks.” Jesse inclined his head. “I get that a lot.”
“Really?”
“Why are you so surprised?” he asked.
“I . . . um . . .”
Jesse raised his hands in surrender. “Okay, that was a first.”
Ava laughed, but Jesse loved that she seemed to take to the idea of doing something inventive.
“We need to put our heads together and do some serious choreography,” Ava started, but then she frowned slightly. “I’ve always gone by the book when it comes to traditional ballroom dance. I do interpretative dance, but that’s spontaneous. This needs some choreography, but I’ve never done anything like this, and we don’t have much time. Jesse, I don’t know that I can come up with anything so freestyle in time for the competition.”
“I think that you and Arabella should get together. She’ll be happy to work with you on this.”
“Oh, I don’t know. Can’t you do the choreography?”
“Normally I could give it a try, but the ballroom-dancing-and-hip-hop combo might give me a bit of trouble. And in my opinion, Arabella is the best.” He smiled. Plus, he thought to himself, it’ll give Ava and Arabella the chance to become friends.
“I don’t want to bother her. I’m sure she’s busy.”
“Are you kidding? This is right in her wheelhouse. I can stop over at the house and ask her.”
Ava remained quiet for a moment.
“You’ll like her. She can be full of discipline, like you, but she’s also laid-back and fun, especially when you get to know her.”
“Thanks, Jesse. And I’m sorry this happened. You sure as hell didn’t know what you were getting into when you signed up for this.”
“This isn’t your fault,” Jesse said. His heart rate accelerated when another idea popped into his head. Dare he ask? “And, um, there’s something else I want to toss out there,” he said slowly.
“Is it a good thing I’m already sitting down?”
“Probably.”
“It’s been a crazy morning and the day is just beginning. Fire away.”
“What if we gave Asshat Anthony the impression that we were, you know . . . a . . . thing.”
Ava sat up straighter. “Thing? As in a romantic thing?”
“Um, well, yeah.”
“Why should we do that?”
Jesse cleared his throat. “Well, because it seems to me that he’s trying to upset you by throwing his engagement in your face. Don’t you agree?”
“Yes.”
“Then if you have a boyfriend, his asshat move is pointless. He’s trying to get the gossip going.”
“Which is something I want to avoid. Jesse, if we parade around as a couple, especially during the next few weeks, we’ll be the talk of the whole town and beyond. I don’t want that to happen.”
“It’s going to happen anyway, Ava. So why not do this so you’re not painted as the victim? Let’s beat Asshat Anthony and Non-Angel at their own game.”
Ava frowned as if mulling the offer over. “Jesse, I appreciate your willingness to do this for me, but I don’t want to play games.” She looked at him with stormy eyes. “It’s the last thing I want to do.”
“Okay.” Jesse nodded, feeling a pang of disappointment. His motives weren’t entirely pure. He’d figured that if she was all in and agreed to go out publicly with him, she might eventually consider the possibility of going out with him for real. Even in spite of her protests, though . . . “But the offer still stands. And if we were suddenly a thing, then nobody would pay a bit of attention to Asshat Anthony and Angelica.”
“Again, thank you.” Ava put a light hand on his knee. “I’ll keep your offer in mind.” She chuckled lightly.
“What?”
“Asshat Anthony.”
“I know, it has a certain ring to it, right, home skillet?”
Ava gave his knee a shove. “You’re so bad.”
“You mean that in a good way, right?”
Ava laughed. “You’re totally going to slip and call him that in public.”
“Maybe . . .”
“Jesse!”
“Okay, when I refer to A2, you’ll know who I’m talking about.”
Ava laughed harder. “Oh . . . thank you.”
“What for?”
“For making a shitty situation less shitty.”
It was Jesse’s turn to laugh. “Thank you, I think.”
Ava grinned. “That wasn’t a very eloquent compliment. Should I rephrase?”
“Nope, I’ll take it.” Jesse smiled. “All right, let’s get back to business. Since we don’t have anything to rehearse, I’m going to head over and charm Arabella into getting onboard with this.”
“Hmmm . . .” Ava leaned forward. “What can you offer as an incentive?”
“Well . . .” Jesse nibbled on the inside of his lip. “She’s a busy mom, so we might have to offer to do some babysitting for Ella so she and Grady can have the date night she’s always asking for. Do you think you might be up for it?”
“Sure, I love children.” Ava nodded.
“Ella is adorable.” Jesse could imagine Ava playing with his niece.
Ava smiled. “How could she not be? Okay, then let’s get this ball rolling.”
“You got it.” Jesse pushed up to his feet and then offered Ava his hands. When he grasped her fingers, he longed to pull her into his arms, but he wanted to make sure she wanted the same thing. After gently tugging her to her feet, he looked at her face, searching, trying to decide if he should simply ask her permission to kiss her. “Ava?” Jesse asked, but before he could get the words past his lips, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her mouth to his. For a moment, he was taken by surprise, but then he pulled her closer and kissed her back with the longing he’d tried with zero success to suppress.
Ava threaded her fingers through his hair, and damn, her lips were so soft, so pliant, so sexy but achingly sweet at the same time. But after a couple of amazing minutes, she moved her mouth from his. “I can’t believe I just did that,” Ava said in a low voice. She dipped her head and he heard her quick intake of breath. “Wow . . .” She placed her palms against his chest, and he had to wonder if she could feel the rapid beat of his heart.
Jesse gently tilted her face up so he could try to read the emotion in her eyes. “Sorry, not sorry?”
“You could say that,” she replied in a surprising confession. He braced himself for her to express regret, to take a step away with another this-cannot-happen-again speech. But she didn’t.
Jesse rubbed his thumb over her full bottom lip, still moist from his kiss. “It’s confession time for me too.”
Ava tilted her head and gave him a bit of a trembling smile. “Fess up.”
“Ava, I don’t really want a pretend or fabricated romance to piss A2 off. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m already into you. I’d like the chance to see where this could go . . . for real.”
Something sparkled in her eyes. “Jesse, I pretty much had that figured out as soon as you walked into my dance studio that first day.”
“I’m that transparent?”
“You’re that sincere. I’ve learned to spot the difference.”
“Should I be encouraged?”
Closing her eyes, Ava frowned. “I don’t want to lead you on . . .”
“But?” His heart hammered.
Ava opened her eyes and gazed at him. “I’m feeling overwhelmed right now.”
“I can only imagine. I just had to let you know how I feel.” He sighed. “I don’t want to come on too strong.”
“You’re not.”
“Then?” he prompted, sensing some resistance.
“You already know that I like you, Jesse. And we’ve established the chemistry thing.”
“Uh, yeah.” Jesse stepped away and shoved his fingers through his hair. “Then why do you have to have yet another but?”
“I know what it feels like to have my heart shattered, and I don’t want to do that to you.”
“If this is a we-should-be-friends speech—”
“No . . . it’s an I-don’t-want-to-hurt-you speech. I’m damaged goods. I’ll overthink everything—I’d drive you insane.”
“Like right now?”
Ava nodded. “I can tell that right now you are torn between kissing me and shaking me.”
“First of all, I’d never shake you. And if A2 did that to you, let me know and I’ll knock the shit out of him.”
“No,” Ava said softly, but something in her eyes led Jesse to believe she’d received some sort of bullying from Anthony. Tears brimmed in her eyes, and Jesse knew he was pushing too hard.
“Hey,” he said gently. “I’ll leave you with this: I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m afraid of getting hurt. And I’m still scarred from the early loss of both my parents. But just to let you know, I’m willing to take that risk and see what can come of us. And I’m willing to be patient.”
“Okay.” Ava nodded.
“And one more thing,” Jesse said, stepping closer. “I’ll never be torn between wanting to kiss you or shake you. Kissing you will always win, hands down.” With that, he pulled her into his arms and kissed her tenderly. Stepping back, he said, “I’ve got to bounce. See you tomorrow,” and he turned to walk out the door.
Jesse strode into the bright sunshine, trying to gather his thoughts and rein in his emotions. Usually, walking down Main Street, seeing friendly faces and the familiar storefronts, gave him a sense of peace and settled the anxiety that sometimes caught him off guard. But today, he kept his head bent while walking briskly to I Heart Music, the family music store his parents had opened some forty years ago. The street hadn’t changed much over the years and always took Jesse down memory lane. He used to walk here with his brothers and his mom; they’d stop here and there for errands, and, if the boys were good, they’d get to go in Thelma’s Sweets and Treats and pick out a cookie or a Danish.
Jesse paused when he reached the bakery, deciding he needed a coffee and a pastry after opening up his heart to Ava. Sugar always made everything a little sweeter.
The little bell dinged over the door, capturing the owner, Thelma’s, attention.
“Well, Jesse Heart! Aren’t you just a sight for sore eyes? Come on over here and give me a big ol’ hug, you rascal,” she said in a booming voice. Except for the silver hair, Thelma never seemed to change, and her round face and big smile had Jesse grinning.
“Well, hello, Miss Thelma,” Jesse said, and braced himself for a hug that seemed to squeeze the breath right out of him.
Thelma stepped back and pinched his cheeks. “Cute as a button as always. What brings you in here so early?”
Jesse looked up at the ceiling and back at Thelma. “Why does everybody in this town know that I’m not a morning person?”
“Um, because nobody usually sees hide or hair of you before noon.”
“Oh . . .” Jesse said with a sheepish smile. “Well, I need a large coffee, cream, no sugar, and . . .” He paused to eye the glass cases full of all things delicious.
“I have cream-filled doughnuts—your favorite, as I recall.”
Jesse groaned. “I shouldn’t.”
“Why? You look fit as a fiddle.”
“Only because Arabella has been sending me real food with things like . . . vegetables. She even sneaks some kale in on me.” Jesse made a show of shuddering, and Thelma laughed.
“Surely you can have a little ol’ breakfast pastry.”
“You are such an enabler. Okay, put a cream-filled doughnut in a bag. Actually, make that two, since I’m heading over to the music store. Jimmy will appreciate the pick-me-up.”
“I haven’t seen that twin brother of yours lately. But Grady and Arabella stop in with cutie-pie Ella all the time.” She threaded her fingers together. “That little one melts my heart.”
“Mine too,” Jesse said with a smile. “Of course, Arabella has to be the disciplinarian, since Ella has Grady wrapped around her little finger.”
“No doubt,” Thelma said while putting the doughnuts in a small white bag.
“So, I hear you rented the flat above the bakery.”
“I did! But you already knew that, now didn’t you, sweet pea?”
“Why would you say that?”
“Uh, you were spotted driving Ava’s little Beetle.”
“Does anything go unnoticed in this town?”
“Not when it involves a Heart brother,” Thelma said with a wink. She fixed his coffee and then headed to the cash register. “So, are you sweet on Ava?”
“I’m dancing with her at an event at the arts center designed to raise money for some repairs needed to the building,” Jesse said while fishing in his pocket for his wallet.
“You avoided the question,” Thelma said. “Then again, it’s none of my business . . . but . . .”
“What?”
“I hear a lot of gossip in here, and the word on the street is that her ex is in town with his new lady.”
Jesse frowned. “Wow, gossip travels at the speed of light here.”
“Supposedly, this guy in question stopped in at Daisy’s Diner and made sure everyone knew who he was. I only mention it because I’m quite fond of Ava and I don’t want to see her get hurt. She’s such a lovely girl.” She arched an eyebrow at Jesse.
“Thelma . . . I have no intention of hurting Ava.”
Thelma raised her head skyward. “Oh, child, you’ve got me all wrong. The look in your eye when you mentioned her name said it all.”
“You sure as shootin’ did. I’m hopin’ you’ll look out for her, you know? Seeing as you seem to be smitten.”
“From a look in my eye?” he repeated.
“The look of love.” She held a hand to her heart.
Jesse almost laughed, but then he realized that Thelma wasn’t pulling his leg. He handed her his debit card, a bit floored at what seemed to be acute perception on her part. Jesse didn’t admit to being smitten, not wanting to add fuel to the gossip fire. “I’ll be sure to look after Ava,” he said simply.
“That’s my boy. Now, don’t be a stranger, you hear me?”
Jesse nodded and walked back out the door. He hefted his duffel bag onto his shoulder and paused to take a sip of the coffee. “The look of love,” he mumbled, but then he smiled. Thelma might just be right.