Page 100 of Sweet Somethings

"Don't forget this." She stood up and handed Cecelia the metal box.

"Thank you for these, Juliette. I doubt I would have gone as far as you did to find the owner."

"Roman says I always go too far," she said, as she walked Cecelia out of her apartment and down the stairs.

"Sometimes that's what it takes to be special."

She laughed, thinking special was a nice way of saying pushy, but she'd take it.

As she watched Cecelia walk down the street, she really hoped she'd come to the dance.

What a miracle it would be if Cecelia and Vincent could find their way back to each other. Cecelia was interested. Hopefully, Vincent was, too.

* * *

The Sweetheart's Dance was held in the recreation center, but the usually plain auditorium had been turned into a romantic haven for the evening with pink streamers, bouquets of flowers on high-standing cocktail tables, black-and-white photographs of famous romantic couples through the years adorning the walls, and romantic music coming from a band on the stage. When the people of Fairhope went all in on a holiday, they went all in, Roman thought, as he perused the room.

He didn't care that much about the decorations; he was far more interested in finding one beautiful brunette.

When he saw Juliette, his heart jumped a beat, and he felt a tightness in his chest.

She was standing in the back corner of the room with a dessert buffet bar set up in front of her. Next to her table was coffee from Donavan's, manned by Sara and Donavan. All three women wore cocktail dresses, but he only had eyes for Juliette.

He loved that she'd left her hair down and loved even more the short, dark-red, spaghetti-strapped dress that hugged every beautiful curve. He couldn't wait to get his hands on those curves. It was the main reason he'd come to the dance. He knew he'd have an opportunity to do just that. He wasn't a big fan of dancing, but if it meant he could hold on to Juliette for a while, he was on board.

He made his way to her table, happy to see her gaze light up when she saw him. He waited for her to hand the couple in front of him two chocolate-covered roses and then he stepped up. "How's it going?"

"Wonderful. I'm so glad you came, Roman."

"I can't believe you're here and looking more relaxed than you should be with your workload."

"I'm not thinking about any of that right now. It feels good to be away from the ovens."

Donavan moved over to say hello. "Nice to see you, Roman. You clean up well."

"Thank you. You ladies look beautiful tonight."

"Would you like some coffee?" Donavan asked.

"No, thanks. I'm good for now on coffee and dessert."

"Well, have fun," Donavan said as she went to help a middle-aged couple who had questions about whether the coffee was actually decaf.

"You do look handsome in that suit," Juliette said. "I'm a little surprised you own one."

"Don't get too excited. This is the only one. I usually don't wear it for happy occasions." Her face fell a little, and he mentally kicked himself for bringing down the mood. "But tonight is different."

"It is a happy occasion," she agreed. "It will be even better if your grandfather and Cecelia show up."

"I made my pitch yesterday."

"So did I. Cecelia is still in love with your grandfather. She thinks it's too late, but I say it's never too late."

Juliette certainly didn't have the word quit in her vocabulary. "What else did she tell you?"

"The whole story. Her father wanted her to marry someone in his law firm that would ensure the future of his job, and she didn't say no. Eventually, she called it off, but by then your grandfather was engaged to your grandmother. Oh, and she did tell me that Martha was dumped after waiting years for her fiancé to finish medical school and then the next time she took a chance on love, her fiancé died."

"That's rough. I almost feel sorry for her."

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