Night Of Romance

Night Of Romance



Joe’s wife was away on a business trip. She was an engineer consultant who oversee the international projects for a major Architect firm. Last month she was in Cancun consulting an engineer on a luxury hotel project. This week she was in New Orleans, consulting on a redevelopment project. I did not get so angry about that New Orleans needed the attention especially after Katrina. I believe she influenced her company to invest the money in the rebuilding of parts of the city. Notably those with the most economic potential.
She was due to return on their anniversary. The previous four years they shared gifts. Last year she brought him some new fishing gear and Joe brought her a jewelry set. The set came with a pair of two carat earrings set in white gold along with a necklace with a two carat diamond tear drop. Joe woke up that morning ecstatic about seeing his wife and wanted the night to be a special one. He had been turning ideas over in his head all week anticipating the night and finally made the decision to keep things simple by preparing dinner for her. He knew she loved shrimp and scallop Alfredo, he thought while in the shower. They had spent a lot time in the local Olive Garden because of it.
He knew his preparation of the pasta was not going to compare with that of the restaurants. Therefore he decided to spice it up a bit by adding some candlelight, soft music and a bottle of red wine, which was also her favorite. Joe ordered some white rose petals from the florist not too far from their house. He scheduled to pick them up after work. Joe looked at his watch “Darn It!” He exclaims as he gathered his things and dart’s out of the door.
He was always running late for work. As he was getting into the car he could already hear his boss, Mr. Franklin, yelling at him simultaneously with the slam of the door. It tickled Joe; he loved knowing that he was the most prominent newspaper journalist in town. To him he could go to any newspaper and become lead journalist. Journalism was in his blood, both of his parents were journalist. His mom retired as an editor for an independent newspaper after working fifteen years as a journalist. Joe’s father was a sports reporter writing column’s for many of the major sport magazines before venturing out and starting his owns, which he called the Sports Report. Joe had memories of tagging along with his dad on tough stories. Chasing down some of the most well known athletes in the world, a lot of them were young then, to get just a few quotes to go along with a story he was working on. Joe felt that no one could get the stories that he could especially in most of the rural areas of the city.
Despite smelling the foul breath of Mr. Franklin, an balding guy who yells a lot and who chase's his coffee with cigarette smoke, the workday was a breeze. Joe finished a story he was working on about a young girl who shot and killed by one her friend while playing with a loaded gun. The mother would not talk to any but Joe managed to get a few quotes out of her which got Franklin off his back. He passed it on to the co-editor then he began chasing down a leads on another story before he ended his day.
He told Franklin he had to pick his wife up from the airport, which not necessarily a in Joe’s eye because he did have to. He also had to stop at a few stores but most importantly he did not want to be late making it to the florist. Katie’s plane was scheduled to land at eight p.m. Joe thought as he looked at his watch. It was 3:30 at the time and there was no way he could be late picking her up.
On his way to the store he ran into a traffic jam caused by a disabled vehicle. Impatiently he waited from a while looking at his watch repeatedly before his tolerance ran thin. “Thirty minutes has passed,” he says loudly. Joe got out of his car and ran up the line of car’s to where the vehicle was stopped.
“What seems to be the problem?” He asked really just buttering the driver up before he volunteered to push the car onto the shoulder of the highway. The driver did not have a clue to what was ailing the old car and gladly accepted the help.
“Finally”. Joe got into his car and sped towards the super market. He gathered the things on his list but the check out line was moving slower than the traffic jam he had just left. The elder woman at the register had to be new because the only way she got someone through her line was by getting help from the a floor manager.
“Time is definitely working against me.” Joe blurts out while leaving the store. He looked at his watch it was a quarter to five before he got into his car.
“Darn It! The florist close at five I got to get there.”
Joe hurried over to the florist shop driving recklessly; when he arrived the clerk was locking the door.
“I almost missed you.” He said, startling the attractive young looking woman.
“Yelp, a second later and you would have missed me. Along with making some lucky woman sad, these are some beautiful petals. However, I see you did not order any roses. Would like to add a dozen? Petals are not anything without the flowers themselves.”
“You think so?” Joe asked
“The clerk answered with a smile looking Joe in his eye’s, who decided to go along with the clerks advice. Really just wanting to make a good impression on the young woman.
“How long would it take for you to get them together?”
“You’re in luck because I have a dozen already prepared.”
“ Ok, let me have them.”
By the time Joe made it home it was six o’clock. He had to leave for the airport by seven-thirty at least to conquer the twenty minute drive. He put the shrimp and scallops on while he sauteed the onions and peppers. Then he mixed the two along with the Alfredo put it on simmer while the pasta cooked to save time. After doing that Joe took a quick shower while the food finished cooking.
When he rushed back downstairs the noodles where boiling over in the pot but the sauce was smelling lovely. Joe proceeded to set the table draping it with a new white table cloth and their sterling dinnerware. He used the candle holders that they used at their wedding reception on the table. To add a bit of a reminiscent aura in the room. In addition he put one of the roses on the table in front of Katie’s plate to give an individual feel from the rest of the roses. Joe then took the vase of the remaining flowers and placed it on a short bookshelf that they had under their bay window in the dining room. He laid the petals creating a pathway from the door to the dinning room around the table over to the bookshelf. Next he searched through his Ipod to find some Whitney Houston. Katie was a big fan he choose “I would Always Love You” her shower song. He knew she would love it.
He looked up at the clock and saw that time had gotten away from him. It was 7:40, Joe ran out of the house and then back in to get another rose to give to Katie when he met her at the airport. He raced in his car down the highway, swerving in and out of traffic. Pushing the mustang to it’s limit arriving at the airport at five minutes after eight. To his delight the gate was just opening and people were flooding through.
There she was looking like snow on Christmas morning. Joe watched her from a distance, containing the urge to run over and grab her. He watched her move through the crowd like a professional traveler. He watched how gracefully she walked in her heels, tell-tale signs that she had rushed to the airport after work which made Joe smile. Dragging her suit case while tossing her hair away from her face periodically as she looked around. Katie’s brown skin was reflecting light as if she was a perfectly cut diamond. Then she spotted him, with a smile that lit up the airport she rushed over to him dropping her suitcase a few feet away from where they embraced.
She was only gone for a week this time but the way she held him tightly onlookers would have thought they had been away from each other for a few years.
Joe presented the rose to her like a Prince courting he soon to be princess, “Happy fifth anniversary, My Love.” Katie blushed “Oh thank you my prince” falling into the medieval character.
They laughed at and with each other before Joe says, “ Come on I have a surprise for you.”
“Really I wonder what it could be.”
Arriving home Joe grabbed the bags and swiftly ran inside. He wanted to get the candles lit before Katie walked through the door.
“Joe you took off so quickly, I was trying to tell you about the...”
Katie was so stunned when she walked through the door she lost track of what she was saying. Joe turned them music on as he looked at his wife’s face, amazed, she stood in the path of the white rose petals baffled at Joe’s surprise. After coming to she walked briskly over to him and hopped into his arms planting a big kiss on his lips. They made out passionately on top of the roses petals they later ate dinner over wine and had a second round of intimacy. The anniversary was everything Joe had planned and that Katie could have ever imaged judging from Joe’s lack of romance. But that day he raised the bar for himself.