Page 51 of Small Town CEO Grump

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.

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