BACK TO DECEMBER

CHAPTER 3- A WHITE ROSE

DECEMBER 8TH 2014

The Bentley finally halted at my destination, the glass walls of the five star restaurant coming into focus as the door was opened by the chauffer Thomas had asked to pick me up. All I had received were a dozen red roses and a card mentioning we would be going out to dinner. Nervousness and anticipation erupted in me at the thought of what was to come of the evening.

As I stepped out of the Bentley, I smoothened the sides of my dress; It was simple and elegant, the silky texture of the white fabric clinging to my skin before stopping at my knees. A pair of red Louboutin's donned my feet as I walked towards the entrance of the restaurant where I was greeted by a man in a suit.

"Miss Stanton I'm here to walk you to your table", he said. I wondered how he knew who I was but I shouldn't be, it was Thomas after all, he never did things half way. The man led me to a secluded table at the far end of the restaurant and from my line of sight, I could already see Thomas looking gorgeous as ever in his pinstriped black Armani suit. As we drew closer, he looked up and noticed me, a wide smile gracing his features in the process. He stood up, taking me from the man who had soon returned to his position.

"You look lovely", he mentioned while kissing the corners of my mouth

"Thank you, but I'm more curious as to what this whole production is about" I smiled, gesturing to the surroundings.

He chuckled, "Can't I just take my beautiful girlfriend to dinner?"

"Yes you can but this looks like more than just dinner", I replied kissing him fully on the lips, feeling the softness of his lips on mine for a few seconds. He led me to the table, pulling out my chair in a gesture for me to sit down. I did, as I watched him take the seat opposite me. A waiter appeared a minute later with the menus, taking our orders before leaving us alone once again.

"How was work?", Thomas asked. In truth, work had been more stressful, ever since I had taken up position as CEO of Tech innovations, a year ago, from my father who passed away few days after his surgery. Memories of that day flooded my head; the doctor coming to tell us he had fallen into a coma, me breaking down at the sight of his limp body. It was at that moment I knew I had loved him. How ever emotionless he could have been, he was present and that I would forever be grateful for.

"Stressful. The board members think I should issue an employee layoff to cover our losses." I replied

"And what do you think?"

"Honestly, I think reducing the work force could make things worse for the company. There has to be another way", I sighed. "Sometimes I wonder how my father made everything seem so easy"

Thomas placed his hand over mine, which rested on the table before speaking up. "You are not your father and you don't have to do things exactly the same way he did them, just go with your gut. It usually doesn't fail you"

I sighed again. "You're right. Thank you."

"You're welcome" he replied, a beautiful smile taking over his features.

"Anyway, enough about me; you still haven't explained the real reason behind all this set up."

"In time" That was all he said, before the waiter appeared with our hors d'oeuvres. I didn't understand his reason for being cryptic but I decided to drop it and enjoy the appetizer in front of me.

The stress of work had soon been forgotten as Thomas and I indulged in various conversations, our laughter being the only thing I could hear in the restaurant.

"Wait so you called her a man?", I mentioned, unable to hide my laughter

"In my defence, she had a moustache. Lets just say calling a female police a man doesn't exactly help your case when you're being charged for underage drinking" he replied, equally laughing

"You see this is exactly why I don't drink alcohol. Nothing good can come of it" I mentioned before speaking up again. "You'd think after almost two years of dating, I would know everything about you" I laughed.

"Well you know a lot more than most. My rebel days as a teenager is not exactly conversation I particularly love to indulge in."

Our main courses arrived and we ate in comfortable silence, occasionally laughing at the idiotic things we did when we were younger. I stared at the half eaten salmon in front of me, my stomach already feeling full.

"I don't think I could eat anymore, I already feel like a truck ran me over." I mentioned, glancing at his plate which had already been cleared. I laughed at this, but my comment was met with silence.

My gaze shifted from the plate to Thomas and noticed his face filled with concentration. I doubted he had even heard my comment earlier.

Had I said something wrong?

Reaching over the table, I placed my hand in is, finally snapping him out of the trance he was in.

"Are you alright? You were lost in your thoughts for a moment there" I asked.

My question was met with a smile before he spoke up. "Earlier, you asked me the reason for this... 'production' as you called it".

I stared at him, a little perplexed.

Where was this going?

He looked at me for a few seconds, the smile still very much present on his face, before reaching into his coat pocket, and revealing a little black box.

The shock was evident on my face.

It couldn't be.

Yes, we had talked about marriage, but it had always felt like something in the distant future.

This had better not be a joke.

Thomas stood up, the heels of his chair making a little squeak in the process, and walked towards my end of the table, pulling me up from my chair.

I looked around and noticed a few onlookers in the restaurant, staring in our direction, no doubt understanding what was going on. A waiter stood at the corner, with a camera trying to capture the moment.

This couldn't be real. But it was.

At that exact moment, Thomas got down on one knee, opening the little black box in the process.

I gasped at sight of the ring.

A huge diamond rested in the middle with the rest of the ring surrounded by bead-set diamonds. It was beautiful and I knew it had cost a fortune.

He cleared his throat, before speaking up.

"I love you Veronica, with every part of me and as I kneel down here, thinking of the future, it doesn't feel real without you standing beside me, as my wife. Make me the happiest man and marry me?"

Without hesitation, I nodded my head, repeating the words yes over and over again. He placed the ring on my finger, before standing up and engulfing me in a hug, kissing me continuously.

I could feel the flashing lights of the camera, as well as the cheers of those who had a view of the whole spectacle. But all I could think about in that moment, was how much I loved the man standing in front of me.

Everything was perfect.

He was perfect.

The red rose whispers of passion

And the white rose breathes of love;

O, the red rose is a falcon,

And the white rose is a dove.

But I send you a cream-white rosebud

With a flush on its petal tips;

For the love that is purest and sweetest

Has a kiss of desire on the lips

-A White Rose by John Boyle O'Reilly

Hello.
Sorry its been a while since my last update, but i've been really swamped with school. I'll try to update a lot more often :)

Please if you do love this chapter, i'd love to see your votes and comments. It would mean a lot to me.
Until next time.
Hasbi x