Two days later, in the early afternoon, Kevin & Morgan, along with a very excited Diana, arrived at Ann’s house. Kevin was surprised that even as excited as she was, Diana obeyed Morgan’s commands without hesitation.
“Good Lord, is that a wolf?” Ann asked as she came outside to greet them.
“Yeah, Mom, it’s a wolf. She’s tame, house-broken & very obedient,” Kevin assured his mother as he hugged her. “I should know; she lives with us,” he smiled.
“She’s my ‘baby’, Ann; unfortunately, my goddaughter & Nick couldn’t keep her this time. I do apologize…” Morgan started.
“Oh, don’t worry about it, dear! I was just a little surprised, is all!” Ann laughed, hugging Morgan. “What’s her name?”
“Her name is Diana. I’ve had her since she was about 8 weeks old. She’s completely tame; she’s never known the wild,” Morgan explained as they made their way into the house, Kevin carrying their suitcase.
Diana stayed close to Morgan and Kevin as they went to the bedroom to put their things away, then followed them to the living room. She whined loudly, nudging & nipping Kevin’s hand to get his attention. “I’ll be right back, ladies; I’m gonna take Diana outside to let her get some of this energy out of her system. When I come back, we can decide what to do for supper.”
“That sounds good, Kev. She should calm down quickly, though,” Morgan said as Kevin bent down for a quick kiss.
Fifteen minutes later, Kevin walked back into the house; Diana started to walk into the living room to Morgan, but Kevin ordered Diana, in Gaelic to stay in the kitchen, “Diana, come here,” and was rewarded with a wet nose to his hand. He leaned down and pet the large black head, getting a very wet kiss from his chin to the tip of his nose.
“Oh, Diana! I didn’t want a kiss, girl! Now, you have to stay here while your mom & I go to dinner. We’ll be back soon. Be a good girl!” he ordered as he closed the kitchen door.
“What happened? Did she give her daddy a kiss?” Ann laughed, as Kevin walked into the living room wiping his face on his shirt.
“Yeah, you could say that,” he laughed. He started to lean down to kiss Morgan, but she leaned away from him. “What?”
“Go change shirts & wash your face, then you might get a kiss!” she laughed. “I get enough kisses from Diana, I don’t want them second-hand!”
“Fine. Have you two ladies decided on where you want to go to dinner?”
“Well, your mother is in the mood for Italian, so why not Olive Garden?” Morgan asked.
“Sounds good to me. I’ll be right back,” Kevin said as he walked down the hall to change shirts. While he was in the bedroom, he called the restaurant and reserved a table in a private dining room. When he returned to the living room, he handed Morgan her purse, and the three left the house. “Ok, ladies, are we ready? Our table should be ready by the time we get there.”
When they arrived at the restaurant, they were shown immediately to their table, a bottle of their best wine chilling in a bucket by the table. Kevin helped Ann with her chair, then helped Morgan as the waiter poured a glass of wine for Kevin.
“Is the wine to your satisfaction, Mr. Richardson?” the waiter asked.
“Yes, thank you,” Kevin assured the young man.
The waiter poured the wine for the two women, pouring Kevin’s glass last. “Do you need a few moments before ordering?”
Kevin looked at the women, who hadn’t even opened their menus. “Ladies?”
“I know what I want, Kev,” Morgan said.
“Me, too,” Ann said. “I’ll have the lasagna, please.”
“I’ll have the fettuccini Alfredo with grilled shrimp,” Morgan said.
“I’ll have the combination platter: lasagna, chicken Parmesan and fettuccini alfredo,” Kevin told the waiter.
“Would you care for soup or salad with your meal, Sir?”
“Salad, please; no onions,” Kevin answered.
“Yes, Sir. I’ll be right back with your salad & breadsticks and turn in this order.”
The meal was pleasant and relaxed. Morgan showed Ann the pictures of AJ & Brianna’s wedding, then excused herself. “I’ll be right back, Kev. If the waiter comes back, tell him I want that strawberry cheesecake, ok?”
“Ok, I will,” he smiled.
When Morgan was out of sight, Kevin reached into his pocket, pulling out the diamond & amethyst engagement ring he had bought two weeks earlier. “Mom, thanks for not letting onto this. I really wanted to give this to her on Valentine’s Day, after the wedding, but it just didn’t seem right. I wanted you to be with us when I asked her.”
“You’re welcome, sweetheart! I couldn’t have chosen a better young woman for you myself,” Ann smiled, kissing her son’s cheek.
After Morgan sat down, the waiter came over and placed their desserts in front of them.
“Thank you,” Morgan said as she smiled up at him.
“You’re welcome, Ma’am. I’ll be back shortly to see if you need anything else.”
After taking the first bite of her cheesecake, Morgan asked Kevin, “Are you ok, Kev? You’ve seemed distracted all through dinner.”
Ann nudged Kevin’s leg under the table, letting him know that it was now or never.
He smiled at Morgan as he got out of his chair, kneeling on one knee.
When Kevin knelt beside her chair, she immediately realized what was about to happen. Tears filled her eyes as Kevin spoke quietly to her.
“I fell in love with you the second my eyes fell on you; I’ve never fallen so hard, or so fast before. I don’t want you as just my girlfriend; I want you as my wife. Will you marry me, Morgan?” he asked as he held up the ring.
“Yes, Kevin, I’ll marry you,” she whispered as he placed the ring on her hand, then leaned up to kiss her gently.
“Welcome to the family, Morgan,” Ann said quietly, hugging her future daughter-in-law.
