Small Town CEO Grump

19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

Ryan

“When can I take the blindfold off?” Jenna asked.

“In just a minute,” I said. “Okay, I’m gonna help you out of the car, and then once we get to where we’re going, you can take your blindfold off. You trust me, right?”

“Obviously,” Jenna said.

I laughed.

“Good. In that case, let’s go.”

I got out of the car, and went around to open Jenna’s door. I helped her out of the car, took her by the hand, and led her to the table that I had set up.

“Where are we?” she asked.

“You will know in just about a minute,” I answered, helping her settle down to the chair.

I lit the candles on the table, and then told her she could take off her blindfold.

She pulled the blindfold off of her face and looked around, a shocked and confused expression on her face.

“We are in the parking lot of your office?” she asked, clearly amused.

“Yes,” I said. “We are in the parking lot of my office. Because six months ago today, in this very spot, right where we are seated right now actually, I asked you out on our first official date.”

“Oh, wow,” Jenna said, softly. She looked at the table in front of her and realized that I had picked up food from Antonio’s.

“You got the food that we had on our first date,” she whispered.

“Yes, I did,” I said. “I figured that this is a very important milestone, and we need to celebrate.”

“You are wonderful,” she said. “This is one of the many reasons I love you.”

“I love you, too,” I said. “But you know that.”

Jenna nodded, smiling. “I do know that.”

“Good,” I said, settling in my chair across from her.

The last six months had gone by so quickly, and had been more wonderful than I had ever dreamed of. Jenna and I spent as much time together as possible, and we often included Tyler in our dinners and different activities. She and I had weekly date nights, and I had dinner at their house a few evenings a week. They also came to my house, and we had developed a fun and reliable routine.

I was still going back-and-forth between Ocean View and New York City. Jenna was thriving at the newspaper, and she had submitted the first draft of her book.

Tyler had gone to a baseball camp during the summer, and I had gone up one day to speak and teach a special clinic. He was getting ready to play soccer in the fall, but we still went out and played catch and had pitching lessons every week.

The fall baseball season was starting at the high school, and I was looking forward to coaching again. The school had also reached out to Jenna and asked if she would be willing to help with the softball team. She agreed and she agreed to be a volunteer coach in the fall, and then to go out to help whenever she could in the spring, as long as it didn’t conflict with Tyler‘s schedule.

I was so thrilled with how everything was going, and I knew that Jenna and Tyler were as well.

“The food tastes just as delicious as it does in the restaurant,” Jenna said, reaching for another piece of garlic bread. It’s just like our first date.”

“I know,” I said. “Except I don’t have a room full of people giving me dirty looks.”

Jenna laughed. “Hey, it’s a lot better now than it used to be!”

“I know,” I said. “And I’m glad. It seems like everyone in town has almost accepted that I’m a decent fella.”

Jenna giggled.

“Yes, you are a decent fella,” she said.

She looked around the parking lot and giggled.

“How did you pull this off?” She asked.” You have been with me all day. Who set this meal up?”

“The people in the office,” I said, smirking.

Once everyone at work found out that Jenna and I were dating, they all said that they knew all along that there was something there. I Insisted that nothing happened until she no longer worked there, and they all seemed to believe me. They were so proud of themselves for having seen the connection between the two of us. When I told them that I was planning a special dinner for her, everyone had volunteered to help out however they could.

“That is so sweet,” Jenna said.

I nodded. “Yes, it is. And it is a testament as to how much they care about you too, and how much of a difference you made at the office. Although things are running smoothly now, you’re still very much missed. Just so you know.”

Jenna nodded.

“I’m glad to know that things are going well,” she said. “But I cannot say that I miss working there. I am so happy where I’m at, and every day I still have to pinch myself to make sure I’m not dreaming.”

“I know what you mean I said,” staring at Jenna until she blushed.

We finished the meal, and topped everything off with cannoli.

“How about a walk?” I asked, once the cannoli disappeared.

“Don’t we have to clean up first?” she asked.

“Nope. There’s a crew that’s coming to clean up! So we’re free to go. It’s not the same beach, obviously, because we’re not at Antonio’s, but we could walk on the beach here.”

“You know I’m always down for that," she said,” excitedly jumping to her feet.

I grabbed her hand, and we walked down the path to the water. As I stood next to her on the shoreline, I knew that I was going to ask her to marry me. I had known from our first date that I was going to ask her to marry me, and although I originally planned to wait until we had been dating for closer to a year, I wanted to do it sooner.

I knew how I wanted to go about it, but there was one piece of information that I needed before I could follow through with my plan. In order to get that information, I had to have a blunt conversation with her.

“Can I ask you a question, Jenna?”

“Always,” she answered.

“It’s about Tyler,” I said.

“Okay,” she said slowly, her expression curious.

“I don’t quite know how to ask this, so I’m just gonna say it, and if it comes off as harsh or offensive, I’m really sorry.”

“Don’t worry about it,” she said. “I know your heart so you’re not going to offend me. What’s up?”

“Okay, well, I know you told me that his dad took off and wanted nothing to do with him, ever. Did he legally give up all of his rights?”

Jenna nodded.

“Yes,” she said. “He did.”

“Okay,” I said, and then awkwardly turned and looked out of the ocean.

There was more information I wanted, but I didn’t know how to bring it up. It was something I wanted to know before I put the next part of my plan into action, but I didn’t know if it was my place to ask her the question I was wondering about, and so I just stood there quietly, not knowing what to say or do.

Thankfully, Jenna seemed to know what I was getting at. This didn’t surprise me, because she and I always seem to be on the same wavelength.

“My hope,” she said, looking out at the ocean, “is that one day he will be adopted by a loving father.”

Tears spring to my eyes and I was filled with emotion. This was exactly what I wanted to know, and exactly the response I was hoping for. I didn’t know what to say, so instead, I pulled her into my arms and held her.

***

“Can I get chocolate ice cream too?” Tyler asked.

“Of course you can,” I said.

I had picked Tyler up from school and taken him to get ice cream. He had already asked for a scoop of caramel, but it had taken him a long time to come to his final decision. The only logical choice was for him to get both.

“Thank you!” he said, smiling as he watched the worker pile the ice cream high on his cone.

Once he had his treat, we walked outside and sat at the closest table we could find.

“How is it?” I asked.

“It’s really good,” he said. “How’s yours?”

I took a bite of my chocolate chip. “Really good.”

Tyler nodded then went back to taking care of his ice cream.

“So,” I said, once Tyler had finished eating. “There’s something specific I wanted to talk to you about today.”

“What is it?” Tyler asked.

“You know your mom and I have been dating for a while now, right?” I started, trying to push away the nervousness I felt.

“Duh,” he said.

I couldn’t help but laugh. “Yeah, okay. That was a silly question. Okay, so here’s the thing that I wanted to talk to you about. I would like to ask your mom to marry me. But I will only do that if you are okay with it.”

Tyler’s eyes widened, and I held my breath, waiting for him to answer.

“You want to marry my mom?” he asked.

I nodded. “Yes, I do.”

“Would that mean you…” Tyler’s voice trailed off, and he looked down at the ground.

“What is it, Buddy?” I asked.

“Um, so would that mean you would become my dad?” he asked, quietly. He slowly lifted his head and looked at me, and I could see the hope in his eyes. ‘

My eyes filled with tears as I nodded, too overcome with emotion to speak.

“Yes,” I said, finally. “I would become your dad.”

Tyler stood up and came and wrapped his arms around my neck, and I hugged him back.

“Does this mean you are okay with me asking her to marry me?” I said after a minute.

Tyler nodded, and slowly let go of me.

“I am so glad,” I said.

“Me too,” he said. “So when are you going to ask her?”

“Let me talk with your grandparents,” I said. “I want to have a party at their house afterwards, so I need to find out when they are available.”

“They’re always available,” Tyler said, confidently.

I loved how matter-of-fact Tyler was, and I couldn’t help but smile.

“That’s good to know,” I said. “I am going to call them in a little bit. But you can keep this a surprise for your mom, right?”

“Of course!” he said, nodding his head excitedly.

“Okay, good. I will know more later when exactly it is going to happen. But let me tell you my plan of how I want to propose. I am going to have you be a part of it, if you are willing.”

“You want me to be part of it?” he asked.

“Yes, I do.”

“Okay, wow. Tell me the plan.”

***

I took a deep breath as I stood and looked out at the ocean. I was standing at the exact spot where Jenna and I had shared our first kiss, and I couldn’t believe that in just a few short moments I would be asking her to be my wife. I was so excited, and more than ready, but I still felt nervous.

As I glanced up I saw Tyler walking down the shore with his mom. The plan had been that he would ask Jenna if she would take him to the beach to look for shells, and then I would be there to propose.

I smiled as I thought about how excited he was to be part of the proposal. I loved the relationship that Tyler and Jenna had. It was such a strong and unique bond, and I was so thankful that they allowed me to be around them and had welcomed me in.

As they got nearer to me Jenna looked over, and her face lit up as she saw me. For a moment she looked confused, and then a huge smile spread across her face as she realized what was happening. She looked down at Tyler and he nodded, then gave her a hug.

She then turned and walked towards me.

“Hello,” I said, once she was standing next to me.

“Hello,” she replied, her voice full of emotion.

“Do you recognize this spot?” I asked, smiling.

Jenna nodded. “Of course. It’s where I had the best kiss of my life.”

I smiled. “What a coincidence. Me too.”

Jenna smiled as I reached into my pocket. I got down on one knee.

My eyes filled with tears as I looked up at her and held out the ring.

“Jenna, I love you. More than I ever knew I could love someone. Would you do me the tremendous honor of being my wife?” I asked.

“Yes,” Jenna said, tears spilling down her beautiful face. “Absolutely yes.”

I stood up and wrapped my arms around her. As I kissed her I heard Tyler cheering.

Jenna laughed and we both turned towards Tyler, motioning for him to come and join us. He ran towards us as fast as he could, and the three of us stood on the sand, hugging one another.

“Did you know about this?” Jenna asked, looking down at Tyler.

“Yes!” he said, smiling broadly. “I have known about it for like a week, and kept it a secret the whole time. See, Ryan? I told you I could keep it a secret.”

“Yes, you told me you could,” I said. “And thank you for keeping the secret. You did a great job! This was absolutely perfect.”

“It was,” Jenna, agreed.

“But the night isn’t over,” I said. “We have some place to be!”

“We do?” Jenna asked. “What else have you planned?”

“You’ll see!” I said, taking Jenna by the hand and walking towards the parking lot.

“Do you know where we are going?” she asked Tyler, as he walked next to her and held on to her other hand.

“Yep,” he said, proudly. “I know the whole plan. I knew the plan before anybody else.”

Jenna stopped and looked at me. “Really? You talked to him first?”

I nodded. “Yes.”

She didn’t say anything, but the smile on her face and the way she hugged me told me everything I needed to know.

We got into the car and started driving, and as we approached her parent’s house Jenna started laughing.

“My parents know, too?” she asked.

“Yes!” Tyler answered. “They kept it a secret too.”

Jenna smiled as she saw both of her parents rush out of their house and make a beeline for her.

“We’re engaged!” she shouted, as they hugged her and congratulated her.

The next thirty minutes were a blur of hugs and activities, as several of our friends came to the house to help us celebrate. The most excited were Kevin and Shanna, who had gotten married only a month earlier.

“I knew it,” Shanna said later that evening, once everyone else had gone home. She and Kevin had stayed to help clean up from the party, and now we were all relaxing on the deck.

“You did?” I asked, happily settled with my arm around Jenna.

“Yes!” she said. “At that fundraiser event we went to in New York. Right, Jenna? I called it.”

Jenna nodded. “You did! You told me that you thought Ryan was interested in me.”

“See?” Shanna said, smugly.

I laughed. “I guess I didn’t hide it too well, did I?”

“No!” everyone said at once, and we all laughed.