"Thump...thump...thump." My fingers tapped out a steady rhythm, which was muffled by the heavy white tablecloth. My eyes took in the expensive restaurant; crystal wine glasses, intricate silver ware, along with hand-carved figures decorating the walls in rich mahogany wood. I had already been to the bathroom where instead of stalls, separate little bathrooms lined the wall, and an attendant had handed me a towel after washing my hands. I shook my head as the waiter approached me once again asking, "Can I get you something to drink madam?" What in the world was I doing here?
Devon was ten minutes late, and I briefly considered leaving. What the hell did he want, bringing me to this expensive restaurant and telling me only to dress in my best? My thoughts wandered as I thought I spied a celebrity sitting at a table across the room from me, but I tried not to get excited about it. After all, I would probably be kicked out if I did something as stupid as ask for an autograph.
Warm hands clasped over my bare shoulders and I felt Devon's baby-smooth face brush mine as he gave me a kiss on the cheek. "Hey, gorgeous," he greeted me and made his way to sit down in the chair opposite from me. "I'm sorry I'm late," he grinned and as I took him in, I arched an eyebrow. He was dressed to the nines, something that I had never seen him do before in over a year of friendship. His simple suit showed off the muscular cut of his body, and the tie that hung from his neck only emphasized the square line of his jaw. His short black hair was wet and slicked back; his brown skin fairly sparkled and I had to admit, he looked sharp.
"What are we doing here, Devon?" I finally asked, my heart beating a little quicker at the sight of him. There was movement in the corner of my eye and I looked up to find the zealous waiter standing once again at our table.
"Can I get you something now madam? Sir?"
"Could you bring us a bottle of your finest wine?" asked Devon, his voice dripping with honey.
"Very good, sir." The waiter whisked away to do his bidding. I simply stared at Devon. "What the hell?" I thought.
"Devon," I said, drawing his attention back to me because he too had been looking around the room, his eyes immediately fastening on the celebrity across the way. "What..."
"We're just having dinner, Ali. I know I haven't done anything special for you and you've been so nice to me." His soft brown eyes locked with mine and he smiled. "That's true." I thought. Even though we were technically just friends, I had given Devon a gold bracelet with his name engraved in it for his birthday and a gold watch for Christmas. The list of trinkets I had given him went on and on, and I had been a little pissed that I had never once gotten anything in return. But I reminded myself that we were only friends, friends with benefits of course, but he wasn't my boyfriend.
The waiter returned shortly with our requested bottle of wine, but I was so nervous I didn't even feel like drinking. "Would you like to order, or shall I return later?" asked the waiter as he uncorked the bottle of wine and poured a generous amount into both of our glasses.
"I'll have the lamb, with the French cut green beans." Devon said, ordering as if he'd been to the restaurant several times. His voice had taken on a haughty quality as his eyes scrutinized the waiter. "And my lady will have..."
I looked at Devon, my mouth hanging open for a moment before I snapped it closed. My lady? Since when? I had looked over the menu while waiting for Devon and most of the food was too fancy for my taste. "I'll just take the steak dinner, with mashed potatoes. Do those come with gravy?" I asked. "Because I'd like mine with just butter, please." The waiter nodded at me and hurried away from our table once again.
I lowered my voice and bombarded Devon with questions. "Since when am I your lady? And how are you paying for this? The bathrooms alone in this place are fit for a king. What the hell is going on?" He worked at a fish market, for Christ's sake, and unless someone had bought millions of dollars worth of fish, I didn't see how he could afford this on his small salary.
A short burst of laughter escaped his throat, and his brown eyes danced with some new found happiness. "You so nosy, Ali," he laughed and brought his hand to rest on mine that was lying on the table. "I was going to wait till afterwards to tell you everything, but I can tell your not gonna be happy until you've completely ruined the surprise." I said nothing, but cocked my eyebrow at him again. His hand snaked back to his side and he reached into his suit pocket, withdrawing a small package. He set it on the table at my fingertips and said, "Go ahead, open it."
Looking suspiciously at him, I brought the package closer to me, and proceeded to unwrap it. From the size and shape, I could tell it was a jewelry box, but until I actually opened it, I wouldn't know what kind of jewelry it contained. I took the cover off the little red box and placed it gently on the table; my palm opened as I turned the box upside down to shake out the red velvet case that lay within. Devon was looking at me intensely, clearly hoping that I would like his present, and I smiled a little at him as I opened the lid.
"Oh my god!" I gasped as I saw the perfection of two, huge sparkling diamond earrings nestled in the white silkiness of the case. I had quite a few diamond earrings in my collection, but they were a pittance compared to the monsters that lay within the box. My jaw was hanging open and I shut it with a click of my teeth as I looked up to him. "What are these for?" I breathed in admiration. I bit back the second question that was racing around my mind, "How did you afford these?"
He drew back his chair, and stood, long legs bringing him quickly to my side of the table and he knelt beside me, taking my hand. I held my breath at his position, praying that this wasn't what it looked like. I could already feel the warm stares of nearby patrons as they watched the little scene unfolding in front of them.
"Ali," he began taking a deep breath. "I know we're just friends."
