by Mayne, Debby
"Let's go do something else." He took her by the hand and pulled her back out to the sidewalk where he hailed a cab.
Their next stop was Central Park, where they went straight to the place where horse drawn carriages were lined up. "This is something I've always wanted to do but never got around to it." He helped her into the carriage before getting in. "And we're doing it together."
Sunny shivered, so he pulled her closer. She'd never been so happy in her entire life.
Every few minutes, he dropped brief kisses on her nose, her cheek, and eventually her lips. She couldn't think of anything more romantic.
"I was planning to have a picnic, but it's a little too cold. How about we find a deli and share a sandwich?"
She nodded. "Sounds good." It didn't matter to her whether they ate on a blanket in the heart of Central park or standing up in a busy deli. All she cared about was how she was finally able to give in to this feeling she had for Dante.
Afterward, he took her to 5th Avenue. "I thought it might be fun to have a little shopping spree. Maybe we can find something nice to wear for dinner."
"Sounds good." Living rent-free with Miss Lucille had enabled her to save money, so she had enough to afford even some of the most expensive stores in New York.
After trying on several things and showing Dante, he helped her pick one. By the time she came out of the fitting room, he'd already paid for it.
"You don't have to buy my clothes."
He lifted the bag off the counter. "But I want to. It makes me happy."
She lifted both hands. "Then who am I to deny your happiness?"
They walked around some more, until the sun finally set. "Hungry?" he said.
She hadn't thought about food since lunch, but since he'd brought it up, she nodded. "A little."
"Let's go to my office and get dressed up for dinner."
An hour later, she stepped out of the conference room wearing her new dress, and he joined her in his new suit that he'd paid extra for the tailor to alter that day. As they looked into each other's eyes, Sunny knew that Dante was her destiny. She momentarily closed her eyes and said a prayer. Thank you, Lord, for removing my stubbornness and opening my heart.
When she opened her eyes, he had his closed, clearly saying a prayer of his own. She sighed.
The rest of the evening completed her Cinderella fantasy date. Dante was attentive throughout the romantic meal, and afterward, he brought her back home. As he kissed her goodnight on the steps of Miss Lucille's house, her heart pounded and her legs went all rubbery.
"I'll see you soon, sweet Sunny." He stroked her cheek before turning and getting back into the cab.
*
The next day, Sunny nearly floated into the diner. Dante had sent a cab over to pick Mama up and bring her to the Harlem location, so she went into the original Bubba's Diner alone.
Riley grinned at her as she walked back to the kitchen. "How was your day off?"
She shrugged and gave him a jaunty look. "Not bad."
"So I heard. I don't think I've ever seen Dante so happy." Riley turned his back, picked up a skillet, and set it on the burner without saying another word.
On her way out to the dining room, she passed Estelle. "I have to pick up this order, but as soon as I deliver it, I want details."
Obviously everyone had been in on the plan for her and Dante to have a day together, so she figured she might as well fill them in a little bit. But some of it was too wonderful to put into words.
Sunny helped with some of the beverage prep between breakfast and lunch, answered Estelle's questions when they had a couple of minutes to chat, and waited on tables when they got slammed. By the time the dinner crowd lined up, she didn't think there was anything about her date that Estelle didn't know … except the fact that she was so in love with Dante she didn't know what to do.
And then he walked into the diner. She wasn't even looking in his direction, but she knew he was there based on Estelle's expression and Riley's reaction. She slowly turned around and found herself face-to-face with the man who'd stolen her heart.
"Busy day?" he asked.
She opened her mouth, but Estelle spoke up before she had a chance to say anything. "She has worked her tail off. As soon as we get everyone seated and their orders taken, you need to take her home. The rest of us can finish up here."
Sunny blinked. Estelle was starting to sound like Miss Lucille. "No, that's okay. I'm fine."
"Yes, you are mighty fine." Dante's eyes twinkled, and his lips twitched. "But I'm going to take Estelle up on her offer and take you home."
"You're the boss." Sunny walked toward the dining area. "But in the meantime, back to work, everyone."
The next half hour was busy enough to keep everyone hopping, including Dante who seated people and manned the register while Sunny, Estelle, and one of the younger servers waited on customers. As the crowd died down, Dante told Sunny they'd leave in about fifteen minutes.
Her pulse instantly quickened as she thought about the fact that she'd be alone with Dante during the ride home. Their relationship sure had changed since his brother talked to her.
"Ready to go now?" Dante said. "The crowd is manageable, and Estelle told me I'm starting to get in the way." He laughed. "She doesn't mind telling you what she thinks, does she?"
"A lot of southern women are like that."
He nodded. "I know, and you're one of them … at least you used to be. I'm afraid I might have dampened your spunk."
"Dampened my spunk?" She bobbed her head. "Not in this lifetime. Let's get outta here."
His eyes crinkled as he pointed to her apron. "Take that thing off, or people will think we're going to a costume party."
"Or they might think we just got off work at a restaurant." She shrugged out of the apron. "But I have pride, and this doesn't really do a thing for me."
As soon as they settled in the cab, Dante placed his arm around Sunny's shoulders. It felt good to be nestled up next to him, so she let out a deep breath.
"Ms. Chambray and your mother won't be there when we get back. They went to a Broadway show."
"This late?"
He grinned. "I think they wanted us to have the house to ourselves."
"Okay. What do you want to do?"
"We can play a board game or watch TV or …" He shot her a playful grin. "Or smooch."
She laughed. "Let's watch something on TV. I like the channel that shows different ways to decorate your house."
"Okay, sounds good. We can watch TV."
"And smooch." She gently nudged him in the ribs.
*
Over the next couple of weeks, Dante spent most of his time working on the new Harlem diner and the rest of his waking hours with Sunny. Their relationship was deepening very quickly, and it felt good to finally have her fears and reluctance in the past.
That feeling was shattered when he glanced up at his office door and spotted Ms. Chambray glaring at him. This could only mean one thing: He was doing something wrong.
"Come on in." He stood and pulled out a chair to make it easy for her to sit. "What brings you here?"
"I'm the one asking questions today." She pointed to the other chair that wasn't behind the desk. "Sit."
He did as he was told. "What kind of questions do you have?"
"What is taking you so all-fired long?"
"What do you mean?"
"You know." She inhaled deeply and let it out as she slowly shook her head. "You love Sunny. She loves you. Now what are you gonna do about it?"
He had a pretty good idea of where she was going now. "I'm just waiting for the right time."
"That's just downright silly. You have to make the time."
"But what if—?"
"Don't start giving me what-ifs, Bubba Dante. Just do it." She twisted her mouth as she tilted her head forward and continued glaring at him from beneath her sculpted eyebrows. "In case you're missing my point, I think she'd say yes if you proposed right
this minute."
"I don't want to take any chances."
"You're kidding, right?" Ms. Chambray looked around the office. "You're a successful New York businessman, and you're telling me you don't want to take chances? I don't buy that."
"I plan to ask her in the not-too-distant future, but I want to make sure the timing is right."
As quickly as she arrived, she stood. "You're hopeless. I'm going home now." And she was gone.
Anthony walked into Dante's office a few minutes later. "What was that all about?"
"Did you hear what she said?"
Anthony nodded. "Not that I was eavesdropping or …" He made a goofy face. "Okay, so I was eavesdropping. Are you really planning to propose to Sunny again?"
"Of course. But it'll be a while. I want to make sure she's ready."
"When will you see her again?"
"I'm taking her to dinner tomorrow night."
"Why not then?"
Dante shook his head. "It's still a little soon. I think she has some things to work through."
*
The next day, Sunny was nervous as a long-tailed cat in a roomful of rocking chairs. She had a plan, and in her heart she was pretty sure it would work out, but there was that one little sliver of doubt that kept tugging at her head.
"What is wrong with you, girl?" Miss Lucille took a sip of her coffee and set her mug back down on the table. "I've never seen you this clumsy before."
"I know, right?" Sunny wiped up the coffee she'd just spilled on the countertop. "It's just that—" She stopped as she thought about what she had planned for the night.
The last person she needed to tell was Miss Lucille, or she'd get involved just to make sure everything worked out. This was something Sunny needed to do on her own.
"Maybe you just need to take a long bubble bath to settle your nerves."
Sunny nodded and smiled. "Great idea. I think I'll do just that."
She regretted taking a day off because it dragged by so slowly. All she could think about was being with Dante and the ways her plan could go awry. But she forced herself to stay on task, or she'd wind up wimping out later.
Finally, the time arrived. She heard the doorbell ring as she finished applying her lipstick—a coral shade that Dante had once admired. She took one last look in the mirror before taking a deep breath, squaring her shoulders, and mumbling, "Show time."
The genuine joy on his face gave her tummy a thrill and her heart a jolt. This was the man she'd fallen in love with—the one she'd almost let get away.
Once they stepped out onto the landing, he tilted his head and gave her an odd look. "Something is different about you."
"Oh yeah?" She pretended to be coy. "Different good or different bad?"
"I'm not sure."
She exaggerated a frown. "Not sure, huh?"
He feigned fear. "Oh, definitely good."
"Much better."
They walked down the steps, and he started to hold his hand up for a cab when she tugged at his arm. She'd planned to wait, but there was no way she could last another minute. It had to be now.
"Um, Dante, can you wait just a minute? I have to ask you something." A lump formed deep in her throat. "This is important."
Now he looked worried. "Are you okay?"
She pulled her lips between her teeth and hesitated before nodding. "I just need to do this, or I'll lose my nerve."
As he held her gaze, she took his hand in hers. "Remember a while back when you asked me to marry you?"
He licked his lips and nodded. "How can I forget that?"
"I don't want you to forget it. In fact, I'd …" Her heart hammered so hard she was sure he could hear it. "I'd like for you to … um …" She closed her eyes and asked the Lord to help her out. Finally, she looked directly at him. "If you were to ask me again, I'd have a different answer."
The stunned look on his face was quickly replaced by his understanding. Without missing a beat, he dropped to one knee and kissed the back of her hand.
"Sunny Tatum, will you make me the happiest man in the world and be my wife?"
She pulled him up and threw her arms around him. "I thought you'd never ask."
Epilogue
Sunny was so happy she thought she might pop. As Mama walked her down the aisle toward Dante who stood there looking too handsome for his own good, she thought about how this almost didn't happen.
Mama squeezed her hand and then released it to Dante who grabbed it tightly. He leaned over and whispered, "I'm never letting you go, now that you're about to be mine."
"Same here." Tears stung the backs of her eyes as she soaked up the warmth of his gaze. There was no doubt in her mind that he truly loved her—something she never thought possible. And she loved him will all of her heart.
The ceremony went off without a hitch. As Anthony handed Dante the ring, she saw the exchange of brotherly love between them in the way they smiled at each other. Bethann who stood beside her audibly sighed when the pastor said, "You may now kiss the bride."
On their way out of the church, Dante leaned over. "Is it too early to start talking about having children? We both want a big family, so we need to start soon."
She playfully swatted at him. "Let's enjoy our honeymoon first, okay?"
"Oh, I fully intend to." He put his arm around her and ducked as people blew bubbles toward them. "Let's go get this reception over with so we can be alone."
As soon as they settled into the limo, there was a knock on the window. Sunny looked up and spotted Miss Lucille pointing to Mama, mouthing, "She's next."
Dante chuckled. "With Ms. Chambray involved, your mother and Riley don't stand a chance."
"Isn't that the truth?"
Dante pulled Sunny closer. "I love you, Mrs. Romano." And then he kissed her, making her insides go all squishy.
More books in the Belles in the City series:
Trouble in Paradise
One Foot Out the Door
More books by Debby Mayne:
Sarasota Dreams
Love Finds You in Treasure Island, Florida
For the Love of Pete
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