Chapter 69: Chapter 69

He sighs and lifts his head. I can see his eyes almost filled with tears, trying to hold back his cry, “Tell me, Avery. Do you really love me? Or do you pity me? Am I even worth your love?”

He leans back to the chair, I clench my fist,

“What are you talking about babe? Of course, I do. You know that. I am not here just because of pity. I won’t ever do that. You know how I feel for you.”

“Then say it, Ava. Say that you love me,” his voice raises enough to catch some of the customers’ and staffs’ attention.

“Let’s not do this here, please? I am sorry if I did something wrong. Okay?” I apologize, trying to calm him down.

He probably notices so he tones down a little,

“No, you did nothing wrong, but you won’t let me do something for you, either. It’s frustrating. I am a man, too, Ava. I can also give you what you want. I want to give you what you want. But you keep on blocking me.”

His words strike my heart. Why haven’t I noticed all this time that I made him feel that way? I wanted to save so much money that I ignored and invalidated him.

I couldn’t open my mouth. He continues to rant,

“That dress, I see you happy on that dress, happier than wearing those simple clothes. Don’t stop on my account. I don’t want you to change your preference just because I said so.”

My mouth is still speechless,

“And, and this dinner, you’ve been stopping me all night to give you what you deserve. Avery, I work hard for this, for you, because I want to make you feel loved and special. I want to do something for you. I know I am not a billionaire, but don’t take this away from me. I am your boyfriend.”

The tears that he’s been holding finally drop. Why am I such a jerk girlfriend? I experienced that with Sied, why haven’t I prevented it to happen?

“Babe, I am sorry. I didn’t mean to. I-I, you already made me feel special. It’s just that you don’t have to do anything about that. Because your love is enough,” I argue.

“Ava, look at me, this is me. This is all I am, so please accept if I want to give you something or want to do something for you. Please don’t make me feel as if I can’t do anything for you. I would do everything and give everything of me for you,” he holds my hands tightly.

My tears begin to cry. Jeff is the only one who suffices my heart, my soul, and my emotion. He says what I need to hear. He speaks what I want.

He has to know.

“I-I, lo-”, I try so hard to tell him how much I love him, but my mouth just wouldn’t move. Every time I do, flashes of that man’s face rush uninvited inside my mind.

I close my eyes and take a deep sigh, “The reason why I’ve been living a frugal life is that I want to save a lot of money. I want to buy a property here in France, so I, I could stay with you here for good. You and I, we can start anew here.”

His face couldn’t contain the element of a surprise drawn on it. His eyes sparkle and tear up again. He gulps and couldn’t find the right word to say.

But I could feel his hands trembling so bad for some unknown reason.

Then he stands up and looks in a direction of staff, then he walks closer to me, and slowly goes down on one knee.

I cover my mouth with my hands in disbelief. People start murmuring and cheering around us. Some chants, some claps. The tension in the air is so thick. The pressure is real.

My heart is pounding and couldn’t even feel the cold air. My palms are sweating so much. Then Jeff begins to speak after the music is played by the saxophone band.

Jeff, on the other hand, seems surprised but it doesn’t stop him from saying what he wants. With his voice breaking and tears continuously flowing he pours out his heart’s desire,

“Avery ‘Ava’ Anderson, babe, I met you in a not-so-good-circumstance, and our love blossomed as a consequence of a wrecked life, but I stood by you and you stayed by my side. We repelled every bad happening and guided each other to grow together.”

I couldn’t stop my tears. I want to smile, I want to hug him but my whole body’s shaking with excitement, wanting to listen to his voice more.

“I know it’s not easy for you to open your heart again, but you already once bet on me. And we got this far, didn’t we? Now, I would like you to take our chances forever. Would you bet on me again on the road to our eternal love together? I love you, and I want you to be my wife. Will you marry me?”

I could no longer see his face because my eyes are just clouded with tears. I wanted to say a lot of things, to thank him, to show my love for him, but I couldn’t bring myself to say those words.

I gulp as I hear the restaurant’s crowd going wild while waiting for my answer. He has popped the question and now, he takes the ring out of his pocket.

The lights in the restaurant dim, the music grow in my heart, and his voice, his words, I still could hear him. Despite that man’s face appearing in my memory, now I have the man in front of me who’s brave enough to do this.

So without any delay, without any other words, I finally say the word,

“Yes.”

***

(Dmitri’s Thoughts)

I was about to leave the restaurant when I heard the restaurant crew gossiping about something. So I came to them and asked, “What is it? Is there a problem?”

They suddenly become quiet thinking I was mad, when in fact, I was just asking if there was a problem.

The manager responded and pointed to Avery and Jeff, “Uh, sir, the couple, I think they are fighting.”

I furrowed my brows, “I didn’t know gossiping was a necessary skill in this restaurant. Mind your own,” I angrily said.

“But, sir, they, uh, the guy actually planned for a wedding proposal tonight. What should we do?” the manager worriedly asked me.

Hearing the word proposal felt like my heart was hammered. I felt that my heart constricted. But I didn’t want them to see so I held onto the counter.

“Are you sure it’s tonight?” I asked sternly. And she responded affirmatively.

So I instructed her what to do, “Listen carefully. No questions asked. I want you to make the proposal extra special. Call on the saxophone band quickly, and after the girl accepted the proposal, delivered the following.”

“What are those sir?” she asked.

“I said no questions asked. Here, find it immediately, deliver to them this ‘Domaine de la Romanée-Conti year 1560’ and two slices of ‘golden truffle bars’, clear?”

Her eyes widened. “But sir, those are our-”, she hesitates and questions me.

“I am the owner, I do what I want,” I blocked her. So she couldn’t do anything but to follow.

“That’s the least I could do for her after all the pain and misfortune I caused her life,” I whispered to myself and held out my tears.

“Sir? Anything else?” she heard me mumbling.

“And once the last thing, they won’t pay anything. Tell them that it’s on the house and since it was a special night and our opening, that would be the gift. Make sure to follow all my orders. I’ll be watching.”

Then I got my keys and my purse on the counter table, and I took my coat as well.

“Sir, aren’t you going to greet them or talk to them at least?” she inquired a funny joke.

I looked at her and sadly responded, “It’s best not, that’s the best gift I could give.”

I visited the kitchen one last time to assure everything was doing well on our first night, and just as I was about to leave, I heard her say,

“Yes,” she said with her sweet mellow voice. She said yes to another man, a real man.

And before I could even see them kiss or hug, I dashed out of my restaurant and looked at the sky.

The night sky reminded me of our first trip together, “I guess we’ll never get to visit the Ludwigstrasse- pedestrian street together.”

With one last look, I peeped through the corner of the window, but her eyes were already in my direction, so I quickly turned around and said, “Auf Wiedersehen, mein Geliebter.”

___

Auf Wiedersehen, mein Geliebter. - Goodbye, my beloved.

NOTE: BOOK 1 HAS ENDED

Is Dmitri-Avery no more?

Will he come to his senses and take her back?

Will she give him a second chance.

Let's find out on

The Virgin's Cravings BOOK 2