Page 16 of Passion in Store

“Okay, you can open them now.”

My chest swells at the sight of her beautiful blue eyes filled with joy. I clasp her to me.

“Did you do this?” she asks, taking in all the fairy lights, the new table settings, the dozens of bunches of sunflowers. “It’s adorable, Connor.” She kisses me and I kiss her back. It’s so good to have my baby in my arms.

“Welcome to what used to be Roasters Café,” I say to her, angling her so she can see how I’ve thrown a sheet over the café’s internal sign.

“What the hell?” she says, screwing her face in confusion.

I nod at her, smiling. The anticipation is bubbling inside me. I set her on her feet.

“Oh, well, I was just getting comfortable…” She stands upright and pats me on the shoulder, looking around as if expecting the next act to walk through the door, but the whole place is empty. She tips up her hands. “This is all so lovely. Um, thank you?”

Then she sees table twelve is set for two at the back of the café. There are candles lit. It reminds me to start the music, so I grab my phone and get the audio going through the café speakers.

She turns and smiles at me. “Awww, a candlelight dinner? How romantic!”

I do a sweeping gesture to motion her to the table, and as we approach, I sidle in front so I can pull out her chair. I sit opposite her, pull the champagne out of the ice bucket, and pour two glasses. As she takes a sip, I reach for my phone and send a quick text.

“How do you like the new table settings?” I ask her. I’ve spent the afternoon setting out some new things I sourced locally, so they can all be returned if she doesn’t like them.

“I really like the color of the plates,” she says, picking up the appetizer plate that I’ve already set out. It’s got a Japanese ceramic vibe that’s very cool. She turns it over.

That’s when Jimmy arrives, right on cue. He walks in the café door and comes over to us.

“Oh hi, Jimmy!” An expression of surprise is chased off her face by a friendly smile and we both watch as he places a large cooler bag on a table nearby.

“Good evening! I have a special delivery!” He walks over and hands Connor an envelope. “Do you want me to stay for a bit, Con?”

Poor Minnie, she’s handling all this with a lot of patience, and I don’t want to keep her in suspense any longer.

“Sit down, Jimmy, just for a few minutes. Minnie…” I turn to her. “Minnie, I know we’ve been talking about setting up our own café for a long while. I know it’s not an easy transition, but Jimmy suggested something that might be the answer for us.”

Jimmy and I have been talking about how the evening will roll out, so he’s prepped to take over the conversation at this point.

“Minnie,” he says. “Connor really wants to see you shine with your own business, and I need to step back for a while, focus on Harper and getting our lives back together. The gym’s owners are happy for you guys to take over the lease, and they are even fine with you changing the name, branding it as your own business—whatever you want.”

Minnie’s eyes are round and wondering. “That’s so great, Jimmy. Thank you. What a wonderful opportunity.” She looks towards me and cocks her head. “You’re right, Connor, this could be a great transition.” I can see she’s happy, but I know she still has questions.

“Okay. Well, Jimmy, thanks for coming in to show Minnie how much you are behind us, and I’m looking forward to seeing what’s in that hamper!”

“No worries, bro. You guys did so much for me when Harper was sick, so I know that getting you started here is just small compensation to repay what you did. Enjoy your night, we can chat about it all next week.” Jimmy holds out his hand for me to shake and Minnie kisses him on the cheek.

“Well, darling, what do you think?” I look back at her after Jimmy goes. Her eyes are shining in the candlelight and her cleavage is framed by her dress. “You look amazing tonight, did I mention that?”

“Thanks, sweetheart, and thanks for organizing the surprise and setting it all up like this. We’ve really got something to think about. It’s so cute that you’ve dressed up the café too.”

This is the moment I’ve been waiting for. I take a deep breath. “Minnie, there’s another reason I’ve dressed up the café, and it’s much more important.”

Her face is glowing with love. She nods. She’s caught on, I think.

My chest is fluttering. “This is where I first met you. This is where I fell for you.”

She nods again, her smile getting bigger.

“So I wanted this to be the place where I asked you to spend the rest of your life with me. Minnie, will you be my wife?”

I completely forgot that I was going to go down on one knee, so I get up quickly and half-kneel next to her chair. She reaches for my face, putting her hands on my cheeks, and kisses me.

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