He should have thought this through instead of cockily assuming he could wing it with a ring and a smile. Should he get down on one knee? Should he have worked something out with the server and asked them to bring the ring out with dessert? Hector looked up as the server came over, carrying a plate of chocolate cake. Well, it was too late for that idea.
Hector smiled his thanks when the server placed the delicious looking dessert on the table, accompanied by two spoons. He gestured for Miguel to take the first bite. “Go ahead.”
Miguel picked up his spoon and slid it through the cake. The beginnings of the chocolate lava center spilled out, and Miguel scraped some of it up before he brought the spoon to his mouth. He closed his eyes and moaned. “Oh my god, that is so good,” Miguel said once he swallowed.
“I thought I was the only who made you talk like that.”
His eyes twinkling, Miguel playfully shrugged a shoulder. “Sorry. Chocolate is chocolate. Not even you can compete with it.”
“I’m hurt,” Hector said before he took his own bite of the cake. It was as delicious as it looked. But he still had to tease Miguel. “Hmmm… Not as good as your birthday cupcakes. But it’ll do in a pinch.”
Miguel laughed, and they continued talking as they worked their way through the small cake. When it was gone, the server came back to take the plate away and give Hector the check. Once he handed over his credit card, Miguel reached across the table for his hand.
“Thank you for such a nice dinner. This was a great night.” His dark eyes were still sparkling with happiness as he smiled his thanks.
“You’re welcome.”
After signing the charge slip, Hector tapped his fingers on the table. The plates were cleared, the check was paid. There was no reason for them to linger any longer.
Miguel smiled at him again. “Are you ready?”
Hector bit back a sigh. He’d blown it. “Yeah, let’s go.”
At home, they changed into their lounging clothes and relaxed on the couch, watching a movie. Miguel sat as he usually did, legs folded and half lying over Hector’s thigh, arms wrapped around his calves. Hector had an arm thrown over Miguel’s shoulders, holding him close. The movie was a good one, but Hector kept thinking how he’d blown it at the restaurant. He was trying to figure out how he was going to propose now that he’d missed his shot. What he needed to do was to plan something concrete.
“Hector?”
Hector responded with a distracted, “Hmmm?”
“Can I have my ring now?”
That got Hector’s attention. He snapped his head down to see Miguel looking up at him with a soft smile. “What do you mean?”
“You were going to propose at dinner, right? But you lost your nerve. I didn’t say anything then, because I figured you’d be more comfortable doing it here with just us.”
Hector stared down at his boyfriend in quiet shock before he cracked a smile. “How did you know?”
“I saw the ring box in your suit jacket pocket. Also, the fact that you were even wearing a jacket was a dead giveaway.”
Hector threw back his head and laughed. Then he leaned down to give Miguel a kiss. “Busted.”
He got up to get his jacket from where he’d thrown it over the armchair and fished the ring box out while Miguel straightened and sat with his legs folded and crossed. Once Hector had the ring in hand, he went back to the couch and kneeled down.
“Miguel Antonio Delgado, I promise to always accept you being your own man. But I would love if you agreed to be my man as well.” He took the ring from its bed of burgundy velvet and held it up. It was a simple gold band with a small, pale blue aquamarine gemstone embedded in the metal. “Will you marry me?”
An excited and happy smile on his face, Miguel nodded. He held his left hand out. “Of course, I’ll marry you.”
Hector slipped the engagement ring on his finger. He brushed his thumb over the shiny metal before he looked up into the sweet gaze of the man who had changed his life in ways he could never have expected. “I love you.”
Still smiling, Miguel leaned down and gave Hector a kiss. “I love you, too.”
When Hector returned to work, he played it cool and greeted his coworkers as usual. He sat on the edge of his desk, not saying much until everyone on the team was there. Then he straightened and walked to the center of the two rows of desks.
“Excuse me, everyone, I have an announcement to make.” He waited until everyone was looking at him. “I’m not going to crow about it like Mr. Showboat over there did with his announcement, but you should all know that I’m engaged.”
Clay leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest. “You’re standing in the middle of the Pen, announcing your engagement, but you’re not showboating?”
Hector grinned, knowing he was full of shit. “Nope.”