- Aloha, Mr. Steele 4/8
Date: Monday, May 19, 2008
- From: "SusanRS" <myrtlelauragroggins@yahoo.com>
-
- Aloha, Mr. Steele
- Chapter four
-
-
- "Let's take a quick detour
before we go to the restaurant," Remington said as they
left their hotel room.
-
- He took Laura's hand as they walked
down to the beach. There was a warm, gentle breeze as the aroma
of the ocean wafted around them. The sun was just setting. When
they reached the sand, they removed their shoes and carried them
to walk barefoot. As they got closer to the water, she could
see a circle of flaming tiki torches.
-
- "Looks like someone's having
a party," Laura remarked.
-
- Remington smiled. As they reached
the waters edge, she saw within the torches, a table, set for
two. A bucket with champagne was chilling nearby. Remington led
her inside the circle.
-
- "This is for us?" Laura
asked, pleasantly surprised.
-
- "I asked the restaurant manager
for the finest table they had," Remington replied.
-
- He took the plumeria lei that was
lying on the table and placed it around her neck. Then he tipped
her chin up towards his lips and gave her a soft, gentle kiss.
-
- "I'll accept a lei from you
anytime, Mr. Steele," she said, suggestively.
-
- Remington smiled at Laura as he
pulled out the chair for her.
-
- "This is very nice," Laura
said, as she sat down. "Thank you."
-
- Within a few minutes, their waiter
arrived. He looked at both of them and said, "Aloha! My
name is Aliki. I will be your server this evening." Aliki
turned to Laura. "Mr. Steele has already ordered your meal.
The first course will be salad greens and fresh mango with a
raspberry-mango vinaigrette. The main course will be grilled
Mahi Mahi with rice pilaf and fresh vegetables."
-
- "Sounds delicious," she
replied, glancing over to Mr. Steele.
-
- As Aliki walked back to the restaurant,
Remington popped the cork on the champagne.
-
- "Champagne, Miss Holt?"
-
- "Love some, Mr. Steele."
Laura noticed the vintage. "Dom Pérignon `76?"
she asked. "Is this a special occasion?"
-
- "Every occasion is special
when you're here," Remington replied with a smile.
-
- Laura smiled back. "Now I know
what all the mystery was about."
-
- "Which mystery is that?"
he asked.
-
- "What you were talking to the
restaurant manager about this morning," Laura answered.
-
- "You're right, Detective Holt,"
Remington replied smiling. "There's no getting anything
past you."
-
- The food was delicious, the conversation
was delightful, the atmosphere was beautiful and the company
was perfect. The sun had gone down. The only light was from the
tiki torches. Laura's features were soft in the glow of the firelight.
The waiter returned to take their dinner plates.
-
- "Are you ready for dessert?"
Aliki asked.
-
- "Yes, I believe we are,"
Remington answered.
-
- Aliki turned to Laura. "Miss
Holt, Mr. Steele has asked us to prepare a special dessert, just
for you. We hope you enjoy it."
-
- Aliki placed the covered tray on
the table and then left them alone.
-
- "A special dessert? . . . Just
for me?" Laura asked enthusiastically. "Should I be
pleased or afraid?"
-
- "You'll have to decide for
yourself," he answered.
-
- Remington reached over and removed
the lid. In the center of the plate was what looked like a perfect
unopened scallop shell, made of chocolate.
-
- "It's beautiful," Laura
said.
-
- "Take a bite," Remington
said.
-
- Laura reached over and picked up
the chocolate shell, which fit in the palm of her hand.
-
- "Go ahead," he prodded.
-
- Laura raised the sweet confection
to her mouth. She could smell the richness of the chocolate before
she even took a bite. She placed the edge of the candy in her
mouth and bit down. It was incredible. She closed her eyes, enjoying
the intoxicating feeling. As the chocolate began to melt on her
tongue, the flavor overwhelmed her. It was the most delicious
chocolate that she had ever tasted.
-
- "How is it?" Remington
asked smiling.
-
- "Unbelievable," she said,
opening her eyes and snapping out of her reverie. "Would
you like to try it?"
-
- "Yes, I would," he replied.
-
- Laura reached across the table and
handed the chocolate to Mr. Steele. He took a small bite.
-
- "Mmmm, it *is* delicious."
Remington said. "I especially like the filling."
-
- Laura thought for a moment. "I
don't think I got any of the filling."
-
- "You'll have to try it again,"
he said. "The filling is the best part."
-
- Instead of handing the candy back
to Laura, Remington stood up and walked over to her. He reached
for her hand and pulled her up to him. Remington held the chocolate
in his right hand as he held Laura's right hand with his left.
-
- "Open your mouth and close
your eyes," he kindly instructed.
-
- Laura smiled and did as he asked,
trusting him completely. Remington opened his mouth and pressed
his lips into hers. Laura was not expecting his kiss, but it
was immediately welcomed. Their tongues danced as they savored
the flavor of each other, married with the chocolate. After several
minutes they pulled away, breathless. Remington could feel the
chocolate beginning to melt in his fingertips.
-
- "Open your eyes," Remington
whispered softly.
-
- Laura opened her eyes and gazed
at his beautiful face.
-
- "Was that the filling?"
she asked with a smile.
-
- "No," he said. "This
is."
-
- Remington opened up her right hand
and tipped the chocolate shell towards it. Out of the opening,
where they had bitten, a diamond ring tumbled into the palm of
her hand.
-
- Laura gasped.
-
- Remington set the half-eaten shell
on the plate and quickly wiped the melted chocolate off of his
fingers. He took the ring from her hand and held it between his
thumb and forefinger. He grasped both of her hands and knelt
down on one knee.
-
- "Laura, you are the most extraordinary
woman I have ever met. I am so fortunate to have you in my life.
I don't know what I would do without you or where I would be
if I had never met you. I love you more than I ever thought possible.
Would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"
-
- Laura was in complete shock. She
could not believe the words she just heard. All these years of
wanting a commitment from him and here he was in front of her,
down on one knee, proposing marriage. Her beautiful brown eyes
were welling up with tears of joy.
-
- " . . . I was not expecting
this," she said, breathlessly.
-
- "Laura, I was not expecting
a week alone with you . . . But look how great that is turning
out," he said with the most incredible lopsided grin.
-
- Laura chuckled, feeling a little
more relaxed. "You're serious?" she asked.
-
- "Of course I'm serious, Laura,"
Remington replied, a little surprised that she was questioning
his sincerity.
-
- So many thoughts swirled around
in her head. All of her doubts, her fears, her hopes and her
dreams. It was overwhelming. Did she trust him? . . . Yes. Did
she love him? . . . Absolutely! Laura imagined what it would
be like to spend every day of the rest of her life with this
incredible man. She remembered what she told him on the plane,
that she was going to make decisions based on what she felt and
not what she feared. Laura looked into Remington's magnificent
blue eyes.
-
- "Yes," she said smiling.
-
- "Yes?" he asked, smiling
back.
-
- "Yes," she repeated, nodding
her head.
-
- Remington stood up and gently slid
the ring onto her finger. He pulled her close and gave her a
deep, passionate kiss.
-
- Laura smiled and took his hand.
"Let's go celebrate!" she exclaimed.
-
- They couldn't get back to their
room fast enough. Remington Steele was *sure* that he was the
happiest man in the world.
-
- ******
-
- As they lay in bed together, Remington
could tell Laura was admiring her ring.
-
- "Do you like it?" he asked.
-
- "I love it!" she replied.
"It's so beautiful."
-
- "A beautiful ring for a beautiful
woman." Remington placed a kiss on her temple. "It's
a one-of-a-kind," he offered. "Just like you."
-
- Laura knew that they had been together
the whole time they were in Hawaii. She thought back on their
activities since they had arrived and she knew that he had never
left her side long enough to shop for a ring. "Where did
you get it?" she asked.
-
- "When I left you to go and
search for my father and find my name," he answered, "A
lot of my time was spent walking the streets of London. One day
I came upon a quaint antique shop in Notting Hill, on Portobello
Road. I ventured inside and perused the merchandise. When I saw
this ring I knew it was exactly the one I was looking for. I
spent many hours just thinking about you. I could not wait to
get home to you. I knew when I returned to Los Angeles I wanted
to ask you to be my wife."
-
- Laura took note of the fact he said
*home* to you and not *back* to you. "So you have had this
ring since then?" she asked, curiously.
-
- "Yes," he replied. "I
have just been waiting until the time was right and I thought
that you were ready to accept my proposal."
-
- Laura was still curious. "Why
did you bring it here to Hawaii, especially after the way I treated
you this week?"
-
- Remington smiled. "I was hoping
that being in this beautiful setting, even if we *were* on a
case, might give me an opportunity to ask you to marry me."
Remington took her hand. "Laura, I wished I had proposed
to you in London and we had gotten married before we went back
to Los Angeles. Once we returned home, we got caught up in the
distractions of work that always seem to get in the way of our
relationship."
-
- "London does sound like a wonderful
place to get married," Laura said.
-
- "I know the perfect place to
get married," Remington said.
-
- "Where?" she asked.
-
- "Here."
-
- "You want to come back and
get married here?" Laura thought for a moment. "That
does sound nice."
-
- "Who said anything about coming
back?"
-
- Laura was surprised. "You want
to get married now? Here? This week?"
-
- "Sure, why not?"
-
- "Why, not?!" She let out
an exasperated breath. "What's the hurry, Mr. Steele?"
-
- "*Remington*," he corrected,
with a smile and a kiss. "I *am* going to be your husband,
after all."
-
- "What's your hurry, *Remington*?"
she repeated.
-
- "First of all, Laura, I don't
think that any part of our relationship has been hurried. It
has taken us almost four years to get to this point. I don't
want us to wait four more to be married. We've tried adapting
our personal relationship into our business relationship and
it hasn't worked. How much more difficult will it be to plan
a wedding at the same time? I know what it will be like once
we get back to Los Angeles. There will be so many distractions.
I'm afraid that when we get back home WE will get lost. I want
to go back and start our life together. I do not need to be engaged
to you to know that we are meant to be together."
-
- He looked right into her soul.
-
- "Laura, I know that you know
it, too."
-
- She knew he was right. As much as
she may have tried to deny it over the past three-and-a-half
years, from the moment he walked into her life, she knew he was
destined to be a part of it. Even though so much had changed
between them in the past two days, it would be so easy to go
home and fall into old habits. Laura definitely wanted their
relationship to progress. She just hadn't thought they would
be moving so quickly.
-
- "How can we plan a wedding
in a few days?" Laura asked, not believing she was continuing
this preposterous conversation.
-
- "I spoke with the hotel manager,"
Remington answered. "And he told me that they have a full-time
wedding planner on staff for people just like us who come here
and decide to get married."
-
- "Of course you did . . . .
Of course they do," she said with a hint of sarcasm. Laura
smiled and shook her head. "What other surprises do you
have in store for me?"
-
- Remington smiled and kissed her.
"If I told you, it wouldn't be a surprise anymore, now would
it?"
-
- Laura took a deep breath. "What
about our friends? . . .My family?. . . Mildred? . . . Daniel?
Don't you think they might like to be a part of our wedding?"
-
- "We can have a celebration
when we get home," Remington replied. "This is about
US, Laura. It only matters that WE are here." He looked
right into her beautiful brown eyes. "Laura, I will not
make you do anything you don't want to do. Let's go talk to the
wedding planner tomorrow and then we can decide."
-
- "Okay," she agreed.
-
- Remington gave her a kiss. "How
would you like to join me in a bubble bath?" he asked.
-
- "Mmmm, sounds heavenly,"
Laura replied with a smile, "Just give me a minute."
-
- He climbed out of bed and headed
into the bathroom to turn on the faucet.
-
- "Remington," she said
quietly, lost in thought.
-
- "Yes?"
-
- "Remington," she said
again.
-
- "What?" he said back.
-
- "Remington," she said
a third time.
-
- He came out of the bathroom, a little
annoyed. "Laura?"
-
- "What?" She snapped out
of her reverie.
-
- "You've called me three times."
-
- "Oh, I'm sorry," Laura
said, a little embarrassed and then grinned. "I was just
practicing saying your name."
-
- Remington smiled and walked over
to her. He took her hand and pulled her up from the bed. "I
know the perfect way to practice saying my name." He wiggled
his eyebrows. "It seems to come very easily for you."
He kissed her and carried her into the bathtub.
-
- To be continued . . .
- To Part
5
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