Page 86 of The Phyre that Burns
I sent the car for them so they wouldn’t have to worry about traffic or parking, and I’d just received a text from the driver saying they were on their way inside. I spotted them entering the building and rushed over to meet them.
“Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Burns. It’s great to finally meet you in person,” I greeted.
I exchanged a firm handshake with Mr. Burns and was relieved when his wife offered me a hug.
“It’s nice to meet you in person as well.”
“Follow me. I reserved a booth at the restaurant,” I said.
Once we were seated, we viewed the menu, and when the server arrived, we ordered our food and drinks.
“Now that that’s out of the way, I’m sure you’re anxious to know why I wanted to meet with you.”
“Very,” Mrs. Burns responded with a smile.
“Then I won’t hold you. I want to marry Ginae, and I have for a long time. I brought you here to ask your permission, and I want to propose tonight at her party.”
Mrs. Burns smiled, and her eyes glossed over, but she waited for her husband to respond.
“I appreciate you asking our permission, son,” he said. “As her father, it’s my job to ensure that the man she marries not only loves her but cherishes her as well. He must be prepared to protect her, not only physically but also mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Not too long ago, a situation occurred that makes me question whether or not you’re ready to do that.”
“I understand your concern, but I promise you, just as I promised her, nothing like that will ever happen again. I admit I handled that poorly. Ginae and I discussed it, and of course, I apologized profusely. She laid down ground rules and set boundaries, and I’ve adhered to all of them and more. I love your daughter with everything in me, but I’m smart enough to know that love isn’t enough.”
Mr. Burns nodded but didn’t respond for what seemed like forever. Finally, he looked at his wife and said, “What do you think? Is he worthy of being our daughter’s husband?”
“I think so,” she responded with a smile.
“I guess that’s a yes. Let’s see the ring.”
As the day progressed, my nerves settled. After I received permission to propose to Ginae, I felt a hundred pounds lighter. When I got word from Phoenix and Kevin that they’d landed, a few more pounds were lifted, even though they’d be about thirty minutes late to the party and miss the surprise. Lastly, Devyn assured me everything for the party was handled, so that was one less thing I had to worry about.
“You’ve been smiling all afternoon,” Ginae said as we took the elevator down to the lobby of the hotel.
“A man can’t smile?”
“My man can, and I keep a smile on his face, if I do say so myself.”
“You definitely do, but you may have noticed me smiling a little more today.”
“What’s the occasion?”
“Well, besides it being your birthday, and the first one we’ve celebrated together in over thirteen years, I’m about to meet the people you love the most. It’s finally starting to feel real.”
“What? Us?” she asked, and I nodded. “We didn’t seem real before?”
“Sometimes, no. There have been a few times that I woke up and thought I’d been dreaming.”
“Well, we are as real as can be. How else would we explain the baby I’m carrying? By the way, do you think this outfit camouflages my stomach enough?”
“It does, but you’d better not wait too long to tell everyone.”
She wore an oversized hoodie dress, with tights and over-the-knee boots, and a long puffy vest as her coat. Her stomach was still nice and compact, but someone might notice depending on the angle they looked.
“I’m sharing the news before we eat, right after somebody blesses the food.”
“Good plan, Sweetness.”
We got into the back of the truck and didn’t talk much on the fifteen-minute ride to the restaurant. The driver parked in front ofDevyn’s Soul Food,and as I reached for the door, I saw Phoenix and Kevin going inside.
