Bending down, she lifted it up and saw it was a rose petal.
Knocking on the door, she waited, the rose petal in her fist as Dom opened the door. The room was dark with just the glow of candlelight.
“Welcome home,” he said.
She stepped inside. The floral scent invaded her senses as she looked around the room. It was the most beautiful sight she’d ever seen.
“Dom?”
He took her bag and jacket, before holding her hands and walking her toward the dining room table.
“I made us dinner.”
“You did?”
“Yes.”
“You can cook?”
“I … tried.”
She saw Blue was asleep in the corner, and she sat down at the table. Dom poured them both a glass of wine.
“I will be back.”
“What is going on?” she asked.
Everywhere she looked, it was romance. Dom had put a lot of love and effort into this.
He returned to the table, carrying a tray.
“I hope you like stuffed peppers. I followed the recipe exactly, and it is the first one I have ever made.” He slid the peppers onto each plate, and left again.
It did smell good. Lots of tomatoes, onions, and garlic.
He returned with a bowl of salad. “I may have overdressed this.”
“It is more than fine.”
She was so touched by his shot at romance.
“This is why you left early?” she asked.
“I wanted to do something for you. I know you do all the cooking, and I didn’t want to order takeout or take you to a restaurant. This is personal. I wanted you to know I love you, and I’m willing to do whatever it takes to win you back.”
“Dom, I’m not gone.” Tears filled her eyes as she looked at what he’d done. “This is incredible.”
He held her hand. “I want us to be together, Sage. I want to spend every single night holding you, loving you. Showing you that I was a dick and I shouldn’t have taken that deal.”
“I know why you did, and I don’t blame you. I couldn’t imagine what it was like to live with that kind of stress.” She licked her lips. “I forgive you.”
“You might want to hold off the forgiveness until you try the food. It could be bad. I purchased everything fresh.”
She chuckled, but seeing how nervous he was, she did as he asked and picked up her fork and knife.
Cutting into the pepper, she took a bite. Her plate had filled with the dressing Dom had used, but the flavors, though a little dull, were not bad.
“It’s delicious.”
“It’s not great,” he said.
“Don’t be too hard on yourself.”
“I wanted to wow you with my cooking.”
She chuckled. “Dom, you did wow me with all of this. Cooking, rose petals, candles, this means everything. One day, you will cook me a meal, and it will be delicious.”
“I love you.”
“And I love you too. I don’t want us to fight, or fall out. I don’t want you to keep feeling like you need to apologize. What happened, happened. I love you more than anything, and I do want to make this work.”
They finished eating their dinner.
“I did attempt dessert.” He held his finger up, and she watched him go, sipping at her wine.
He returned with a bowl and some ice cream.
“This is the chocolate cake with fudge frosting.”
The cake was soggy. “You put the frosting on too soon and it melted.” She broke off a small piece, taking a bite. She closed her eyes. “It still tastes good.”
Opening her eyes, she stood up. “How about we take the cake and the ice cream to the bedroom?”
“That sounds like the best idea in the world.”
She took the ice cream from him and followed him into the bedroom.
They put their food on the bed, and then without any encouragement, they began to tear each other’s clothes off.
It had been too long since they were together, and she wanted to feel him inside her, to love him, like only she knew how but to also feel him once again. All people made mistakes. They had both made theirs, but she wasn’t going to turn her back on the man she loved. They could make this work because that was what marriage was about, making it work, and keeping the love alive.
Epilogue
Five years later
Sage laughed as she watched her little girl play with Blue. Their dog was getting a lot older, and he just liked to rest and bask in the sun, but Layla wasn’t having any of it. She was giggling, making those perfect child sounds that always made Sage feel so full of love.
Dom wrapped his arms around her waist, his hands resting on her heavily pregnant stomach.
“Hello, love of my life,” he said, nuzzling her neck.
Five years of married bliss, one girl, and a boy on the way. They had moved out of the city, taking a house in the country where there was a garden for their children to play.