“Exactly,” she said, turning to him. Then her eyes widened, clearly seeing what was just beyond his shoulder at the center of the room. “Dinner?”
He turned around to face the simple table for two with two candlesticks and two silver domes covering their food. Giddy anticipation at what he had prepared grew as he pulled her seat back for her. Once she was seated, he lifted the silver dome to reveal a Big Mac, still in its box, and a bucket of fries, ketchup packets on the side. Didi covered her mouth with both hands, looking up at him with complete adoration on her beautiful face.
“You remembered,” she whispered.
He took one of her hands and placed a chaste kiss against her palm before he pulled a cooler out from underneath the table. He produced a liter of soda and presented it to her the way a sommelier at a restaurant would a wine bottle.
“I believe this is the vintage you asked for,” he said in a formal tone.
Didi gave the plastic bottle a quick glance and nodded. She waved at the wineglass beside her plate. “You may pour.”
A soft hiss followed the twisting of the cap. “Would you like ice with that?”
“Please.”
He produced an ice bucket from the cooler and used the tongs to add two cubes to her drink. He did the same for his glass but opted for a bottle of sparkling water instead.
“What else do you have in that magic cooler of tricks?” She leaned toward the rectangular box on the floor.
“One last thing.” He exchanged the ice bucket for a hot fudge sundae, which he placed next to Didi’s fries. “I know you love mixing the salty and sweet flavors while you eat.”
Her beautiful eyes that would forever remind him of golden fireworks in a sky of velvet brown misted over. “Oh, Caleb, this is perfect.”
“Not yet.” He raised a finger. Then he sauntered over to the corner of the room and plugged his cell phone into the speaker jack. After he pressed Play on the list he had put together during the plane ride back, the melodic strains of the Script’s “For the First Time” filled the four walls of the exhibit.
“I love this song.”
When he returned to her side, he stroked his knuckles down her cheek. “This night is for you.”
Awe and wonder flitted across her face. Then, as if she remembered something, hurt settled on her features. His heart broke. “But I thought you left.”
“To be perfectly honest, I did.” He paused, gathering his courage, then tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. He had to keep touching her, to let himself know she was real, that this wasn’t just a dream. “I made it all the way to London, checked into the hotel, and caught myself staring up at Big Ben many days later thinking, This is my life. I ran away when what I should have been doing was banging on your door every day with the purpose of convincing you of how right we are together.”
“But you know that I’m—”
“Didi, being bipolar is a part of who you are,” he said, cutting her off. “But it’s not all of who you are. Let me in. Show me all of you.”
“Loving me will never be easy.”
“Bring it. I’m not afraid anymore.” He shook his head to emphasize his words. “I blamed love for the pain I suffered after my mother’s death. I blamed love when you asked me to go. All that grief had nothing to do with love. Just because my mother died doesn’t mean I love her any less. And just because you asked me to leave doesn’t mean my feelings for you have changed. I never would have shown up at your house that day if I thought you having bipolar disorder changed anything.” He grinned. “The decision was easy to make after I realized I wasn’t willing to lose you. So I got on the next plane back here and organized all this.”
“You did all this . . .” She looked around in utter amazement, then returned her gaze to his face. “For me?”
“It was either this or a prom. But this ultimately won out. I wanted something that’s just you and me.”
“A real date.”
His nodded once, allowing the hope he had been suppressing to blossom. “I should have known from the moment I met you that there would be no going back. That I will never be the same. I know now that I’ll never recover from loving you, Diana Alexander.”
Didi’s eyes misted over as she covered her mouth with both her hands again. It was as if she was suppressing all the emotion that wanted to burst out of her. He pulled her hands away from her face so he could lace his fingers through hers. Then, with a slight tilt of his chin, he indicated the open space near their table where benches usually sat. He’d had them removed for the night.
He let go of one hand and executed a bow. “Will you give me the pleasure of this dance?”