Emma's Story
Chapter 14
Kate was changing jobs the first of August but for now she was still traveling quite a bit. Luckily she was coming home on Thursday night and agreed she'd love to go out for dinner on Friday. Since she'd been gone a lot it had been easier for Jethro to keep his secret to himself. On Friday he picked her up at seven o'clock and they went to her favorite little Italian place for dinner. Since they ate there regularly, Jethro had asked the owner for a quiet table near the back so they could have some privacy.
Over drinks and salad Kate told him all about her trip the previous week. She was glad to be leaving the travel behind with the new job in a month. Jethro was equally glad and hoped she would be happy working in DC fulltime. Their entrees arrived and conversation dwindled. Jethro could barely eat he was so nervous. He kept touching his jacket pocket reassuring himself the ring was still there. Finally, the table was cleared and they were waiting for coffee and a shared dessert. Jethro couldn't stand it any longer. He reached across the table for Kate's hands. Kate looked at him and thought he had a sort of peculiar look on his face. Something was up and she was hoping it was not bad news. Brenda had been off the radar for weeks and she prayed whatever had Jethro so nervous had nothing to do with her.
Jethro took a deep breath and squeezed Kate's hands.
"Kate you know I love you. And Emma loves you."
"Jethro you're scaring me. What is wrong with you tonight?"
"Nothing's wrong."
He let go of her left hand and reached in his pocked for the ring box. As soon as his hand was visible again Kate gasped and looked in his eyes.
"Kate will you marry me?"
He had the ring out and placed on her finger before she could form her answer.
"Oh my god, Jethro! Yes, of course I'll marry you!"
Jethro was out of his chair and pulling her into his arms in seconds. He kissed her again and again and held onto her with all his might. The other patrons figured out what had happened and were applauding. Jethro wasn't the least bit embarrassed. Dessert and coffee were served but Kate could barely take her eyes off the diamond now adorning her finger.
"If you would rather have something else we can exchange it."
"Are you kidding? This is the most perfect, most beautiful engagement ring I have ever seen. I wouldn't trade it for anything. You did good, Jethro."
"Emma helped. It was down to two choices I liked equally so I let her pick."
"That makes it even more perfect. When did you decide about this?"
"At the beach. I watched you and Emma together and knew I couldn't ever let you go. You complete me Kate and you complete our family. I can't really begin to tell you how much I love you."
"Oh Jethro, thank you. Thank you for sharing your daughter with me and letting me love her. I love you more than I ever thought possible. This is the happiest night of my life."
"Me too. Come on let's go home."
As they walked arm-in-arm to the car Jethro's phone rang and his life was shattered.
TBC
A/N: I know I'm a bad person! It's short AND it's a cliffhanger! Next chapter will be up tomorrow, Wednesday. Hang on.