Chapter Thirty-Five
Thirty-Five
Just as I reached the entrance of my apartment building, Kendrick pulled up to the curb and honked the horn. I turned to meet the glowing smile of the man I loved, and all the dark thoughts of Chevy that had clouded my mind all day disappeared.
“Well, hello,” I said, pleasantly surprised.
“Hey, baby,” Kendrick answered as he leaned over and opened the passenger door. “How about dinner?” he added.
As tired as I was, I should have taken my ass upstairs and straight to bed, but knowing our busy schedules and the lack of time we seemed to have for each other lately, I jumped at the opportunity.
And besides, I needed to talk to someone other than Geneva about what was going on with Chevy and Noah.
“Sure,” I said as I hopped into the car and threw my Gucci handbag into the backseat.
We ended up at Eugene’s, a favorite restaurant and lounge in Chelsea, which we both loved. My mouth was already watering for the goose paté.
The intimate setting and warm lighting always seemed to put me at ease, and as the waiter pulled my chair out for me I could already feel the tension of the day slipping away.
“A bottle of Veuve Clicquot ’95,” Kendrick said as he unfolded his cloth napkin.
“Ooooh, are we celebrating something?” I asked as I perused the menu.
“Well, maybe, if you say yes.” He grinned and folded his hands beneath his chin.
“Yes”?
Oh my God, was he going to pop the question? Our conversations never turned to marriage, even though I mused every chance I could on how it would be. What kind of wedding would I have, and where?
The Caribbean, definitely the Caribbean. On a private white sandy beach, with a steel band playing “Here Comes the Bride.”
My heart fluttered in my chest, and I could barely look him straight in the eye when I asked, “Well, let’s see—what’s the question?”
“I’ve been thinking, baby,” Kendrick began as he reached over and took my hand in his. I could hardly breathe and was so nervous that spots of perspiration were seeping through my blouse.
“Yes?” I croaked.
“That we should take the next step.” He said it so seriously, I felt my head spin. Already my eyes were filling with water and I squeezed his hand in mine.
“Oh, Kendrick,” I moaned. “Yes…I—I’m ready,” I said in a quivering voice.
“Good.” Kendrick smiled. “I’ve started the renovations on my apartment, and I thought I would be able to deal with the dust and noise, but it’s really aggravating my sinus condition.”
Okay, I thought. Okay. Where’s the ring? Why isn’t he on his knee? Well, I really don’t necessarily need him to be on his knee. But where’s the ring, and why the hell is he talking about renovations and sinuses?
“So I figured this would be a good time for me to move in with you. Kind of see if we can live together first before doing anything we might both regret.”
What?
My smile slowly faded and the tears of joy that were brimming in my eyes quickly turned to those of disappointment.
“Live together”? “Regret”?
“I—I don’t understand,” I said stupidly as I slowly retrieved my hand.
“Oh, sure, I could stay in a hotel,” he continued as if my face wasn’t cracked and lying in pieces on my bread plate, “even rent another apartment. But this is the perfect opportunity to see if we’re really a match made in heaven.” He winked.
I was speechless.
“So what do you think, darling?” he said as the waiter stood over us and eased the cork from the bottle.
I thought I was worth more to you than that. I thought shacking up was for people in their early twenties who were too young to commit to any one person. What I thought was This is some bullshit!
But “Of course” is what I said as the waiter filled my glass flute with the bubbling champagne.