She stopped in her tracks as soon as she saw the romantic set up. Then she turned around, her eyes wide with surprise. “You set all this up for me?”
Dylan smiled. “Technically, I asked Chef do it earlier, but I do have to take credit for the idea.”
Bonnie approached him then stood on her tiptoes to give him a quick kiss on the lips.
“You are seriously the best,” she said. “Nobody has ever done anything like this for me before. I feel so spoiled.”
“Just wait,” he said. “I actually have another surprise for you besides all of this.”
“Are you serious?” She asked. She motioned to the candles and flowers. “Dylan, you’ve already done so much.”
“I enjoy doing things for you,” he said.
Her shoulders relaxed, and she smiled. It looked like she might cry.
“Thank you.” Bonnie then placed her hands onto his forearms. She gave him a quick kiss. “Before we eat, can I get that shower that you promised me?”
“Of course,” he said. “There’s a change of clothes in the closet.”
He watched her disappear through the doorway and into his room, then he headed upstairs to the guest bedroom to catch a quick shower of his own.
He stripped down and stepped into the shower. The whole time he was in there all he could think about was how excited he was about having Bonnie in his life.
Dylan knew that these were unique circumstances. Bonnie wasn’t just some girl he had met in a bar and had decided to take home that night. The connection between them was so much more than that. She had confided in him, and he had told her that he could keep her safe. He needed her in his life, and he was going to do everything in his power to make that happen.
When he was done showering, he dried off and got dressed. He normally would have worn something nice for dinner with Bonnie, but since she was going to be wearing workout pants and a T-shirt, he decided to wear the same thing. Once dressed, he headed back downstairs to find Bonnie sitting at the dining room table wearing one of his t-shirts and pajama pants. Her hair was still a bit damp, making it appear darker than usual.
“Feel better?” He asked.
“Much better,” she said. “Thank you. I needed that shower.”
Dylan pulled the food from the oven and brought it over to the table, then took a seat across from Bonnie. He served up the chicken cacciatore and then filled the glasses with white wine.
He held his glass in the air. “We should do a cheers.”
She nodded in agreement. “What should we cheers to, though?”
“How about we cheers to us?” He suggested.
“To us, huh?” She replied as she thought about it. “I like that. Here’s to us.”
They clinked their glasses together, and each took a sip.
Dylan was beside himself as he began to eat. He couldn’t remember the last time he was this excited about a woman or this happy. For the first time in his life, he wasn’t hesitant about the possibility of letting someone get close to him. He was ready to go all in with her, to throw caution to the wind. He was ready to open himself up to her more than he ever had for anyone before. All of this was related to the final surprise that he had for Bonnie that evening.
“How’s the food?” he asked.
Bonnie finished a bite then swallowed it down with some wine. “It’s so good! I can see why it’s your favorite.”
Dylan laughed. “Then we might have to make this a regular thing.”
“I’d like that,” she said, with a smile.
“Me too.” He took a sip of wine and smirked at her. “Now all we have to do is convince Chef.”
Bonnie laughed and raised her glass to cheers once again.
It was starting to get dark outside now. The sun had found its way behind the mountains and the sky was turning a dark shade of purple. The only light in the dining room was coming from the candles, surrounding them in a warm orange glow.