Flowers.
Lots of flowers.
Beautiful peach, coral, and white roses were beautifully and elegantly arranged outside my first restaurant.
“Wow! Maybe we have a wedding event right now.” a smile formed on my lips the moment my nostrils filled with its fragrance.
It’s my favorite color, nude, peach, coral, and white. And I always dream of these colors to become my motif when I get married, but sad to say it didn’t happen in my fake wedding.
“Good morning Ms. Madi.”
“Good morning.”
I responded with a sweet smile to the greeting of our guard when I set foot at the entrance. My eyes filled with envy when I saw the elegant arrangements inside because there were lots of hanging flowers on the walls and ceiling too. I wish someone could also give this flower to me every valentines day, on my birthday or whatever occasion.
“Did Ms. Noelle accept a wedding event today?” I asked Tony, our head waiter who has a reservation book in his hand.
He smiled sweetly before answering my question.
“Nope, Ms. Madi, it’s just a normal day.” he shrugged.
My eyebrows scrunched at his answer, then I looked back inside and noticed that nothing has changed with the table arrangements or even with store decorations except the beautiful flowers hanging around inside and out.
“Did she order these flowers? What’s the occasion?” I asked him again.
“I don’t actually know, Ms. Madi. I just came in my shift this morning with these flowers hanging around,” he answered with a smile.
Why do I feel that he’s not telling the truth? I sighed. “Okay, thank you, Tony.”
“Your welcome, Ma’am, and by the way, good morning Ms. Madi, I forgot to greet you when you asked me first.”
I chuckled, shaking my head. “Okay, good morning to you too, Tony.”
And I decided to go straight into our office, but I stopped when I saw Noelle at the counter. She smiled when she saw me walking towards her.
“Good morning, to the ever-beautiful Madi of Maiden restaurant..”
“Huh?” my mouth dropped from her greeting.
She’s grinning widely like an idiot. And I was about to speak when I felt something cold in my left arm. When I glanced at it, I saw a single peach rose. Then my eyes followed the length of the muscular arm with a racing heartbeat inside my chest. Until it landed on Gabriel’s face with the most handsome smile on his lips…
My breath hitched at the sight that came into my view. He’s wearing a waiter’s uniform with a white rose on the front pocket. I was unaware of the smile that crept onto my lips when I noticed how devilishly handsome he was on his clothes. The waiter’s uniform looks elegant on his body. Broad shoulders, muscular arms, and toned chest.
He took my hand and put the single peach rose on it. And in his other hand, there are two more peach roses that he showed in front of me.
“Good morning.” I gulped when I heard his sexy and soothing voice. “To my ever-beautiful, confident, and strong Madi.” then he smiled. But I blinked repeatedly when I heard my tag from him.
How did he know about it?
“Ahh… Uhm… g-good morning?” I bit my lower lip when it sounded like a question. Gosh! What is happening to me? I can feel those stupid butterflies inside my stomach dancing and jumping in excitement.
“For you.” he gave me the other roses too.
But instead of saying thank you, I asked him a question.
“Is this all your idea? The flowers and the arrangements?”
And because Gabriel is Gabriel, he didn’t answer my question directly and just asked me back.
“Do you like it? Those are your favorite colors and flowers, right?”
“H-How did you know about it?” I don’t remember telling him this information before.
He smiled. “Let’s just say… you have friends that are now my friends too.”
Then my head snapped in Noelle’s direction and the woman in her gray coat just gave me a wink.
“Hmm… thank you, but may I ask why you are wearing one of our waiter’s uniforms, Mr. Wilsons?”
“Because I’ll be one of your waiters for today, Ms. beautiful Madi. And also your personal waiter, bodyguard, boy ‘plus’ friend, and I can also be your handsome husband ‘again’ if you’ll give me chance.” he winked at me.
I don’t know but my stupid heart instructed me to laugh, not sarcastically but a kind of comfortable laugh.
“Yes!” he suddenly screamed. “One point for me!” my eyes questioned his actions. “One point for me because I made you laugh.”
I just bit my lower lip to suppress another laugh that wanted to escape again on my lips.
“Wow! Is this what you’ve learned from these past three years… being mushier each day?” I asked as I walked past him and headed for the back office.
But he followed me.
“Yes. I got this from the three years I have wished and anxious to see you again.”
I stopped walking and turned around to look at him. He now has a serious, hurt expression on his face.
“And because I love you, I can do more and crazier things each day, just to show you that I’m serious!”
I gulped when he slowly walked closer to me.
“And that I love you, Madi. I love you and I’m sorry for those times that I haven’t noticed and appreciated your efforts. And I’m sorry for being insensitive to your feelings.”
“Huh!” I snorted and smiled sarcastically. “My feelings, Gabriel? What do you mean by your ‘being insensitive’? Why, did I say I love you before—–”
“No! But I know you loved me before.” he cut me off and my breath stacked inside my throat.
He knew.
“Yeah, you’re right! I ‘loved’ you… past tense! Meaning before I love you, but not anymore!” I turned around biting my lips to keep them from quivering and blinked to get rid of the blur.
-‘I wish you could say that before, the times when I need it most. But no… it’s too late, Gab.’-
“I’m sorry!”
He followed me into the office. I ignored him as I made my way to the mini kitchen to get something to drink and help my throbbing throat swallow the lump that had formed inside.
“I’m sorry, Madi. I have a lot of things to do just for you to forgive me and accept me again, even just for being your friend. And I’m willing….” I brushed past him and walked back to the office… he trailed me behind.
“I’m willing to do everything! I’ll give all my efforts just to have you back—-”
“To have me back?” I faced him. “What are you talking about to have me back? There was nothing an us even before to have me back! And there will be nothing an us, not today… not tomorrow… not ever!”
“Then I’m willing to wait!” he looked at me as I looked at him directly in his eyes. “I waited for you for three years, just to see you, to apologize and start a new life with you. And if I have to wait for you to forgive me and give me the chance to show you how much I love you… I will! I will do everything, Madi!”
“You’re not superman, nor a superhero to do everything, Gabriel.”
“But I can be your super Gabriel!”
My eyebrow arched automatically as a small smile formed on my lips. He smiled at me, which showed his cute and deep dimple.
-‘Gosh! This heart!’-
“Even though I don’t have powers like superman or any other heroes, I have the power on my own to love you, more than any man can do. And whoever will try, I can transform into a monster and eat them alive!”
I remained quiet.. as I tried not to laugh and even smile with his cheesy yet sweet lines. Who would have known, that the famous Gabriel Wilsons, known to be the ‘devil’ of Chicago’s business industry… the ruthless, cold-hearted man inside the WEC office… can be sweet and like this?
“I’ll be right outside. As I said, I’m going to be one of your waiters for today,” he said and walked over to the door.
“Don’t you have work in your office or anything to do in your life, instead of bothering yourself and wasting your precious time here?” I asked before he could open the door.
“I do have, but my wife is now my priority than anything else in this world. And your not a nuisance to me, you’re my strength and now my life,” he said with a wink when he turned around.
I tried hard not to laugh. -‘Ohh goodness! So corny!’-
“I’ll be right outside. I love you.” he smiled before he finally exited the room.
I let out the deep breath that I didn’t know I’d been holding since I saw him this morning. I put my hand over my chest and was about to go to my desk when the door suddenly opened much to my surprise.
“God! Your husband is a total package, Madielyn!” Noelle squealed and jumped in excitement.
Yes, our office is a soundproof room, but my ears are not, so I have to cover them from her screams.
“He’s so damn hot and a real God from ancient history! Ahhhh!” she stated dreamily.
“Huh! He’s a human too, hello!” I rolled my eyes and sat down next to her.
“Hmmph!” she huffed and fell on the couch. “But he’s a man of efforts Madi, in fairness! Do you know that yesterday he talked to me about your favorites in life?”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“Well, he talked to me yesterday, and when I told him about your favorite color, flower, food, drinks.. and so many other favorites… God! he immediately called his florist friend and they delivered the flowers early this morning! I wish you could see them earlier, they were like robots, running around there and everywhere just to finish their work before the shop opened! Whoo!” she exhaled loudly as she caught her breath after her none pausing statement.
I chuckled at her. “You know, you can explain it to me slowly instead of explaining it fast like you’re in a race.”
“He’s so sweet, Madi.” but she just ignored me. “I’ll give him all my votes to pursue you!”
I rolled my eyes as I shook my head.
“Give him a chance, Madi. I can see his efforts just to show you his love. That has been his greatest mistake before for not showing you his feelings. Isn’t a good start for you to move on from the past?”
“But I have already moved on, Noelle.”
“Liar! Moved on your face, Madi! Don’t you love him anymore?”
I avoided her gaze.
“Don’t you dare tell me you’re not, or I’ll put a crown on your head for being in denial queen!”
A chuckle slipped through my lips with her line.
“I’m not yet ready, Noelle.” I sighed as I admit the truth. “I’m honestly afraid.
“What are you afraid of… of continuing your love for him or of being hurt again?”
“Both.” I gave her a half-hearted smile.
“Madi, don’t forget, that he didn’t intentionally hurt you. You’re not in a real relationship before, so the mistakes he made shouldn’t be counted. It was your stupidity and if we’re going to look back on those happenings before, somehow you also have a fault.”
“And why?”
“Because you didn’t tell him your feelings. You didn’t open up to him and I was just thinking, what if you confessed your feelings to him before? Do you think you’re now in a second or third level of your relationship? Because as he said, he learned to love you before, but he’s just confused about his plans and feelings for you.”
I was left deep in thought with what she said and started to question myself and my actions before… starting to ask what-ifs and what-ifs.. what if I confessed my feelings to him instead of running away? What if I waited for him to realize what was his real feelings for me by that time? Maybe Noelle is right.. maybe we’re now in a second level or more in our relationship… but… what about Stacey?
I sighed as I just smiled at her. Whatever happened in the past, it’s in the past. We’re now in the present, so best to start all over again, right?
After our little talk in the office, I decided to go out and check out the dining area or maybe to check him out too. And another smile has formed on my lips as I watched him from the counter. Some customers were taking pictures of him while he’s assisting them, while some literally asked him to take pictures with him. And he granted all their wishes.. selfies, groupies.. and he even posed like a model for them.
And for the first time, a contented and happy sigh break through my lips.