Forsaking All Others. Linda Hudson-Smith

table had ordered their meals.

      Jessica was impressed by the quick service. She had been to restaurants with large groups of people, where it had seemed to take forever to get the orders taken. When she had looked around the place a moment ago, she saw there was no shortage of waiters and waitresses. Under-staffing was a big problem in a lot of restaurants, even the extremely popular ones. It was not a problem here at the illustrious Rustic House Restaurant.

      Conversations flowed with relaxed ease as the diners sipped on hot or cold drinks while waiting for the meals to be served. Roman and Jacque were chatting and laughing to beat the band. Sahara and Sandra were also catching up, talking up a storm.

      Jessica loved seeing her parents so happy. She knew for a fact her father had never been as involved with a male friend as he was with Jacque. He had a few good golf buddies, as well as his bowling-league friends, but his relationship with Jacque was unrivaled. The two men and their wives saw each other three or four times a year at realty conferences or while vacationing in exotic locales. Each couple was often a guest in the other’s home. Her parents loved to visit the Chamberlains in New York City.

      Weston had a hard time keeping his eyes off Jessica. The changes in her were remarkable. Perhaps she had always been pretty. In his adolescence he might not have been able to see it. It had taken him a long time to get interested in girls, period. Most guys had had several different personal relationships by age seventeen, which was the age at which Weston had had his first date. A young lady had asked him to take her to her senior prom. That evening had been one disaster after another. Weston hadn’t bothered to learn to dance, and his date had been furious with him when she had figured it out.

      Weston had tried hard to get it going, though, but his soulful coordination hadn’t come together quite yet. Rhythm didn’t move into his body until a couple of years later. Now Weston could hold up against the best on the dance floor.

      The variety of great music made Weston think about the possibility of dancing with Jessica. There should be plenty of opportunities. The formal New Year’s Eve gala sponsored by their parents was to be held in one of the resort ballrooms. A slow tune worked best for him, though he also loved to dance to faster-paced music.

      Holding Jessica close to his body was right up there on the top of Weston’s list of desires. She had fitted perfectly into his arms when he’d hugged her earlier. His limbs seemed to have wrapped around her of their own accord, holding her much longer than he had anticipated. It had felt good, too. The feelings surging through him had been wild.

      The delicious scents from the food caused Jessica’s mouth to water. She hadn’t realized how hungry she was until now. The family had had lunch right after they had arrived at the resort, eons ago.

      Jessica was a perfect size-six petite, but the girl had a ravenous appetite. However, the only fried foods she ever ate were French fries and the occasional fish sandwich. The weight problems she had had in her youth had one day up and disappeared, without her resorting to dieting.

      Weston gently nudged Jessica. “Pass the salt, please.”

      That little insignificant touch from Weston had Jessica’s heart doing flip-flops. But it was those dark, dreamy eyes that made crazy things happen inside her body. “Sure.” She picked up the saltshaker closest to her and handed it to Mr. McHunk. In her mind she had already referred to him as such a few times.

      As Jessica looked over at Jennifer and Samuel, she had to smile. The two sweethearts had been in love since junior high school. They were the same exact age, twenty-seven. She had often prayed to find the kind of relationship they had, with no immediate interest in forever after. She thought thirty was the perfect age for women to marry and thirty-three or even a bit older for men. That gave her five years to find her Mr. Right. Jessica wasn’t sure she wanted kids, but she hadn’t ruled them out, either.

      The grilled Chilean sea bass Jessica had ordered tasted so scrumptious she closed her eyes to savor the expertly prepared seafood. Her salad greens were fresh and crisp; the tomatoes had to have been grown in the Garden of Eden. They were the most flavorful ones she had ever tasted. The others also seemed pleased with their meals, Jessica noted. Her family were huge seafood lovers, evident by what each one had ordered. Roman and Samuel’s favorite was grilled salmon. Sahara and Jennifer were into the different varieties of shellfish.

      Weston had ordered a huge porterhouse steak that looked grilled to perfection. He had also ordered a Caesar salad, loving the tangy taste of the dressing. His baked potato was stuffed with everything imaginable. He had dug right into his meal as soon as Roman had passed the blessing.

      Jessica would love to eat steak, but she had a hard time digesting beef. The only ingredients she liked on her baked potatoes were butter and sour cream, at a minimum. Jessica could tell that Weston was enjoying what he had put on his.

      “Mind if I taste your fish, Jess?” Weston asked. “It looks good.”

      Jessica was once again surprised. She didn’t object to giving Weston a bite, but how was she supposed to serve it to him? It was out of the question for her to put some on her fork and feed it to him. Weston handed Jessica a small bread plate and indicated for her to drop it there. She was glad he had solved her dilemma. She didn’t have to look up to know all eyes had been on her, anticipating how she might respond.

      On purpose Jessica refused to make direct eye contact with anyone in her family. The look in her eyes might just be a dead giveaway for how besotted she had become with Weston. No matter what her misguided feelings were for him, they just couldn’t happen as a couple. That was like falling right into the trap their parents had set for them as mere babes in arms. No one with any common sense ever walked into a visible trap.

      The small group had moved over into the lounge, where several tables for two had been put together. There was no odd man out.

      Jessica was highly aware that she and Weston were the only two single people in their party. She was sure it had been by design, that both sets of parents were still hopeful they would become an item.

      Jessica had thought about asking her best friend Jarred Wilkerson, to come on the trip with her. Her parents would’ve done their level best to talk her out of it. She and Jarred enjoyed each other’s company tremendously. Each valued their special friendship. He was happily single now after recently breaking off his two-year relationship with Melanie Holt. However, he and Jessica weren’t remotely interested in each other in a romantic way. They just hung out together a lot.

      On the other side of the coin, Jessica had hoped and prayed Weston would bring along a lady friend. That hope had vanished in the same moment her mother had informed her he was coming to Aspen alone. Now she was glad he hadn’t brought along a date and that she hadn’t invited Jarred. She liked having Weston’s undivided attention. Of course, he hadn’t paid her an ounce of attention since his plate had first arrived, other than to ask her for a bite of her fish. It looked as if she had a meaty rival.

      Jessica chuckled inwardly at her last thought.

      Swallowing the lump in her throat came hard for Jessica after Weston had asked her to dance. Jennifer and Samuel were already on the floor gyrating to the funky beats. The four parents hadn’t stopped talking since sitting down in the lounge.

      What was a girl to do? Accept his invitation. She tried to hush the little voice inside her head. Still finding it difficult to speak, Jessica simply got out of her seat. That move should be evidence enough that she wanted to dance with him. She had wondered if he would ever ask her. Now that he had, she was ecstatic about it.

      Four songs later Jessica and Weston were still on the dance floor. A couple of times they had changed partners with Jennifer and Samuel, but only for short periods. When a step-dance tune came on, Weston didn’t miss a beat. He began stepping, glad that Jessica also knew how to. Their laughter rang out as they put on a show.

      Many of the patrons gawked at Weston and Jessica’s spirited moves.

      As Weston’s hands spanned Jessica’s waist through several of the steps, she continued to keep pace with the music, though his deliciously warm