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“I need to get back to the hostess station,” I whispered.
“You will do no such thing,” he replied. “That’s why I insisted onsixservers tonight. Zoey is handling the hostess duties now.”
I glanced across the room and saw that Zoey was already behind the hostess podium, waving back at me happily.
“I’ve got to run,” Donovan said. He kissed me, then kissed his mom on the cheek. “I’ll sneak back out here when I get some free time.”
I watched him rush back into the kitchen.
I smiled at the couple seated across from me. “I’m sorry, I’m just so overwhelmed,” I said.
Gloria reached across the table and patted my hand. “It’s not fair to be surprised like this. Meeting your boyfriend’s parents for the first time. And you can’t even drink to soothe your nerves!”
“I know!” I laughed.
“I needed a bottle of wine the first time I met Herb’s parents,” Gloria explained.
“My mother was a pill.” Herbert leaned across the table. “I said we should come a week later, not on opening night. But Donovan insisted.”
“I’m so happy you’re here,” I said. “Donovan said you might come visit for Christmas, but this is wonderful too.”
They ordered a bottle of wine, and I sipped on water. Despite the pressure of the situation, the two of them were absolutely delightful. Sweet, and funny, and loving. I could feel how warm and welcoming they were towards me, a woman they barely knew. It was no wonder Donovan had turned out the way he had.
I kept glancing back at the hostess table, but Zoey had it covered. We were somewhere around half capacity now, too. Things were going well!
The server brought out our food some time later. Three bowls of angel hair pasta, with a creamy white sauce and slices of grilled chicken. Moments later Donovan came weaving through the restaurant toward us.
“Hot back there, son?” Herbert asked him.
Donovan wiped his forehead with a sleeve. “You know what they say about heat and kitchens.”
I frowned down at my bowl. “What is this? I don’t remember this being on the menu…”
“It’s not on the menu,” he said. “This was the very first meal I gave you. You said you were starving, and you traded me a bottle of wine for it.”
“Oh! I remember now!” Memories flooded back to me and my heart swelled with love. “Donovan was cooking this in the room next to mine, and the smell drifted over to my room. It was the best meal I had ever eaten.”
I saw motion to my left. Sara and the girls were two tables over, and Sara had pulled her phone out. She was discreetly taking a video of our table.
“You’re embarrassing me,” I told her. “Put that away. We don’t need a video of our food coming out.”
“She’s not recording the food, Molly,” Donovan said.
“What do you mean she’s—”
When I turned around, Donovan’s face was on my level. He was on the ground.
On one knee.
53
Donovan
The Day He Proposed
I had been a wreck all day. Talking to my parents and making sure their flight got in on time. Coordinating with Molly’s friends behind her back. Mentally preparing myself for what I was going to do tonight in front of everyone.
Fortunately the grand opening gave me the cover I needed. Molly thought I was only nervous about that.
