Danita took his hand. “I’m glad to meet you, too, Cameron. But, please call me Danita.”
He nodded. “Then Danita it is. This house is beautiful.”
Danita smiled at Jasmine. “I can’t take any of the credit because my very talented niece is the decorator. Guests who stay here always talk about how they feel as if they’ve stepped back in time because of the furnishings. Jasmine can give you a tour after we eat lunch.”
Cameron’s eyebrows lifted slightly when he met Jasmine’s eyes. “I’m definitely looking forward to it.”
Jasmine gave her aunt a saccharine smile. She could always count on Danita singing her praises as an interior decorator, while her aunt had been responsible to referring several clients to her. Although she enjoyed working as a human resource specialist, Cameron suggesting she consider decorating his new home had her considering resuming her former career.
“Is that who I think it is?” asked a deep masculine voice.
Jasmine turned to find her uncle walking into the entryway. “Yes it is, Uncle Keith.” She wasn’t given time to catch her breath when Keith wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her off her feet. Like his wife, he’d covered his head with a bandana. The man her aunt married had been drafted by the NFL as a second-round defensive end. But his professional football career ended after three years from an off-season car crash in which he broke both legs. When he recovered he sat on the bench for the next season, and once his contract ended he gave up football and enrolled in culinary school where he announced to anyone who would stand still long enough to listen that he’d found his purpose in life: cooking and the woman who would eventually become his wife.
He planted a noisy kiss on Jasmine’s cheek. “It’s about time you paid us a visit.”
She kissed her uncle’s gray stubble. “Some of us do work,” Jasmine teased. Keith set her on her feet. “You’re looking good, chef,” she said truthfully. Although he’d recently celebrated his sixty-fifth birthday, Keith’s golden-brown complexion was still clear and unlined.
“I’ve been working out lately and lost some weight, but I still have to get rid my little friend that doesn’t seem to want to leave me.” Keith patted his rounded belly over a bibbed apron. “Enough about me, Jazz. How about you introduce me to your boyfriend?”
Jasmine wanted to tell Keith that Cameron was afriendand not her boyfriend.
Cameron, who’d been watching the interaction between Jasmine and her uncle, approached them, hand extended. “Cameron Singleton. It’s nice meeting you.”
Keith took the proffered hand. “Keith Moore.” The older man narrowed his eyes. “Who dat?”
Cameron smiled from ear to ear. “Yeah! How did you know?”
“The minute you opened your mouth I knew you were from New Orleans. My college roommate was from the Big Easy. Whenever anyone asked if they’d seen Who Dat everyone knew exactly who they were talking about.”
“Have you ever been to Nawlins?” Cameron asked.
Keith nodded. “A few times. I swore an oath to stay away from that place because it’s detrimental to my health. I ate too much, drank much too much, and definitely didn’t get enough sleep.”
Danita came over to join them, looping her arm through Keith’s. “Whenever we close for the season, my dear husband starts talking about going down to New Orleans, but I manage to overrule him because he knows he can’t eat and drink like he used to when he was younger.”
“I don’t think any of us can,” Cameron said in agreement, “but if you guys decide to visit, I’d like to act as your host and take you to places outside the city. And if you come late-fall, then I’ll be able to get tickets to see the Saints or Pelicans.” He had several clients who had season tickets for the local professional football and basketball teams.
“Hey now,” Keith drawled, smiling. “I like you, Cameron. I’m sure Dee and I will take you up on your offer. Right, Dee?”
Danita kissed her husband’s cheek. “We will definitely talk about it, because we still haven’t decided where we’re going during the off-season. I don’t mean to change the subject, but we prepared lunch, and I’d like to sit down to eat before it gets cold. Cameron, Jasmine will show you where to wash up so we can eat.”
Jasmine took Cameron’s hand. “Come with me.” Waiting until they were out of earshot of her aunt and uncle, she said, “It sounds as if you’ve become the Crescent City’s official host.”
He followed her into a bathroom off the parlor. “I love my city, its history, people, and traditions, so I don’t mind sounding biased when I talk about it.”
Cameron had been truthful with Jasmine. Despite having lived in New York while attending college and vacationing abroad, he still couldn’t shake his infatuation for his birthplace. He equated New Orleans to a woman and he was enthralled with her physical beauty, smell, and the sound of her voice. He found staring out the window of his suite at the slow-moving, muddy waters of the Mississippi mesmerizing. The aroma of fresh fruit, vegetables, and spices filling the stalls of the vendors at the French Market was intoxicating. The sounds of jazz, blues, and funeral dirges were imprinted on his brain like a permanent tattoo.
His mother’s family settled in Louisiana when it was still a swamp and a French colony. The LaSalle family arrived from England in 1814, two years after Louisiana was admitted to the Union, and set up a steamboat business. It wasn’t his mother who talked about her ancestors but his maternal grandmother who had been obliging about those on her family tree who managed to maintain a modicum of gentility while circumventing the law when it came to nefarious activities.
He met Jasmine’s eyes in the reflection of the mirror over twin sinks. “Do you think your aunt and uncle will come down once they close for the season?”
Reaching for a guest towel, Jasmine dried her hands before handing Cameron one. “I’m not sure. My uncle can be very persuasive when he wants to be, but in the end they both compromise.”
Cameron smiled. Even if he didn’t get to see Jasmine again after she came down for her friend’s wedding, he wondered if she would be willing to accompany her aunt and uncle once they closed the B & B and restaurant for the winter season. “When you told your aunt and uncle that you were bringing company, did you tell them it would be a man?”
Turning slowly, Jasmine stared directly at him. “No. Why?”
“Their expressions said it all. It was obvious they were slightly taken aback.”
