Chapter 16

RAINA

^WEEKS LATER^

“Wake up, sleepyhead!” Ronald whispered sweetly in her ear.

“Go away!” Raina mumbled with her eyes closed.

“But it’s your birthday. You have to wake up,” he said.

She groaned, snuggling closer to the pillow.

“Happy birthday, my love,” he whispered in her ear, after which he kissed her.

She smiled as she returned his kiss, her eyes still closed.

“Long life and prosperity, babe. I love you.”

“Thank you, honey. I love you more.”

“Won’t you open your eyes? Let me see how beautiful they are before I leave for work,” he said as he sat beside her on the bed and stroked her long hair.

“But you see my eyes every day,” she groaned, keeping her eyes closed.

She feared that she might get emotional and let it slip if she opened her eyes. But she wanted to tell him tonight.

Raina was given a day off by Uncle Rico. He said she should rest since it was her birthday, but Ronald was already dressed up for work.

Ronald wanted to say something but was distracted when someone opened the door.

“Happy Birthday to you…,” sang Alexa, Adrie, and Clarice as they held the cake.

Raina was forced to open her eyes, and her heart melted at their gesture.

“Happy birthday, Mommy.”

“Happy birthday, Raina.”

The girls made their way to Raina on the bed. She was trying to sit up when they both kissed her cheek.

“Thank you, my gorgeous angels,” she said and kissed their cheek in return.

“Happy birthday, my dear,” Clarice said as she placed a chocolate cake before Raina.

“Thank you so much, Clarice.”

“Go on! Make a wish before blowing off the candles,” Alexa encouraged, her eyes not leaving the cake.

And Raina did just that. She closed her eyes for a second, made a wish, and blew out the candles, which earned a cheer from the girls.

Ronald was recording the moment, starting from when Clarice and the girls walked in with the cake. He remembered he left his camera in his office downstairs, so he used his phone to capture the moment.

The girls encouraged Raina to cut her cake, which she did with the knife handed to her by Clarice. She took a bite of the cake, after which she cut small pieces and fed them to Adrie and Alexa.

“Okay, I’m a little bit jealous here. Where’s mine?” Ronald pouted as he passed his phone to Clarice to continue recording while he went closer to Raina, and she fed him a piece too.

After that, Clarice took the girls out of the room to go have their bath.

“You should be ready by six p.m.,” Ronald said.

“Why?” she asked as she took another slice of cake. She wasn’t a fan of sugary food but guessed her present condition permitted it.

“We’re going out to celebrate your birthday!” he said.

She nodded. “Any specific color of dress that I should wear?” she asked him.

“A package will be delivered for you anytime now. It contains your outfit.”

“Thank you!” She smiled. “What about the girls? Should I get them ready too?”

“Don’t worry. My mom will be coming over to pick them up. I sort of got everything covered,” he said as he playfully scratched the back of his head.

“Okay then. I will be ready by six.”

“It’s time for me to leave. Enjoy your day off,” Ronald said, after which he gave her a kiss on her lips.

***

Raina found herself feeling so giddy. She had almost finished her birthday cake when she decided she had eaten enough. She got up from the bed and arranged the room. She and Ronald now share the same room.

She took good care of herself by soaking her body in the bathtub, after which she washed her hair and rinsed herself. Then she got into some comfy shorts and a shirt, then went downstairs for breakfast.

As promised, she received a package at noon. By then, Clarice and the girls had gone to Magda’s place.

Raina almost cried when she saw the dress. It was beautiful. She was sure the dress was expensive. It was a long sky-blue dress with matching heels and jewelry. Merely looking at everything, Raina felt like a queen.

At four, she proceeded to the bathroom to take a quick shower, after which she wiped her body, put on her underwear, and began doing her makeup.

Raina was not a pro in makeup per se, but she was good enough, thanks to all the YouTube videos she watched.

She finished that and put on her clothes, jewelry, and heels.

She couldn’t help but admire herself as soon as she looked in the mirror.

Soon enough, she heard a car pulling up in the driveway. She knew it was Ronald, so she made her way downstairs.

Ronald opened the door and met Raina. She was waiting patiently by the door for him.

RONALD

This was the moment he knew he was the luckiest man on earth. He was proud to have an amazing woman like Raina by his side.

“W…wow! You look gorgeous!” he stuttered, his eyes not leaving her body.

She blushed. “Thank you.”

She looked him up and down, and he knew it was because he had dressed up too. The suit he was wearing was different from the one he wore to the office in the morning. This one kind of matched her dress.

“You don’t look bad either,” she said to him, and he chuckled.

He would have to thank Jemma, who helped in choosing the outfit.

“You curled your hair,” he said.

She nodded with a smile. “Just a bit.” Even though her hair was down, she curled the tip.

“So, let’s get going,” he said to her and linked his hand with hers. He shut the door behind them, and they proceeded to the car.

“So where are we heading to?” she asked as soon as he started the car.

“A new restaurant. I’m sure you’ll love it,” he replied.

Ronald stopped the car in front of the restaurant, and Raina was awestruck at how beautiful the front view of the restaurant was.

He got out of his car, went to the other side to open the door, and assisted her in coming out. Then he handed the key to the valet.

“Ray’s Restaurant?” Raina read the restaurant’s name aloud, and Ronald smiled at her.

“Yes, I told you it’s new,” he said to her, after which they walked hand in hand.

Her jaw almost dropped at what and who she saw in the restaurant.

She thought he brought her to have dinner, but instead, he planned a party for her.

She could see familiar faces in the crowd—Gabriel, Jemma, Clarice, Elena, the girls, Uncle Rico, Maggie, and some unknown faces. They were seated at different tables.

The whole restaurant was beautifully decorated. She believed Ronald when he said the restaurant was new, but she couldn’t figure out how he got it rented for the night.

The restaurant itself was very big. It looked like one of those restaurants you would see in a five-star hotel. It had VIP sections too.

Raina was brought out of her shocked state when someone hugged her. It was Jemma.

“Happy birthday, babe. You look so beautiful.”

“Thank you!” she smiled.

“How’s Debbie?” Raina asked after her goddaughter.

“She’s fine. Her nanny is watching her while we celebrate with you,” Jemma replied.

Jemma looked so gorgeous in her short dark dress. She had lost all her baby weight and was now looking sexier than ever.

“Does she know already?” Jemma asked Ronald, who shook his head.

“Know what?” Raina asked.

“Oh, don’t worry, darling, you will find out soon,” Jemma said, after which she dragged Raina to a table where they settled down, ate, and made many conversations.

A toast was made to the birthday girl, but Raina avoided drinking the wine.

“Can you please come with me?” Ronald whispered into Raina’s ear, and Raina told everyone at the table to excuse her.

“I want to give you a tour around this restaurant, and please don’t ask any questions till we are done,” he said, and she nodded.

Ronald started the tour from the reception to the kitchen, which includes the baking area, restrooms, the VIP area, the office meant for the boss, the changing room of the workers, and back to the dining area.

Raina admired each and everything she saw, hoping she would own a restaurant like this someday.

“Do you like it?” he asked as they approached the dining area where the visitors were.

“Sure, I do. It’s nice,” she whispered, wondering why he gave her a tour.

He leaned closer and whispered into her ear. “Happy birthday, my love. It’s all yours.”

Raina froze where she stood. “You mean it?” she finally whispered, tears in her eyes.

“I do. The restaurant is yours.”

She tried not to let her tears fall, but couldn’t. But Ronald was fast enough to wipe them away with his thumb. At this point, the restaurant was quiet, and everyone’s attention was on them.

“I don’t know what to say. I never expected this, but thank you,” she said as she looked up at him through her tears, finding it hard to process that she was now the owner of a brand-new restaurant.

“You’re welcome, my love, and I’m happier because you’re happy,” he said to her and pulled her into a hug.

“But what about Uncle Rico? I still work for him.”

“Don’t worry about that. He knew it was just for a while. I’ve been planning to open this for you before you started working for him, and he also helped in the construction of this restaurant,” he said with a smile.

“This is unbelievable. Thank you!”

“Sure, but there’s still one more surprise,” he told her.

“And what is that?” she asked with her eyebrow raised.

Ronald scratched the back of his head, suddenly looking nervous.

Then he went down on one knee and bought out a red velvet squared box that contained a diamond ring. At this point, Raina was speechless, and her eyes were heavy with tears.

“I knew you were the one since the first day I set my eyes on you. And honestly, I can’t imagine my life without you and Adrie in it.

“Throughout the past months that we’ve been together, you’ve become my soulmate, my other half, and most importantly, the queen of my heart.

“I want you to be the mother of our girls and the mother of the future children God will bless us with.

“I want to sleep and wake up beside you for the rest of my life. You really make me a better person, Raina. Please, will you marry me?”

Everyone was quiet for a while. The only sounds were Raina’s faint sobs.

Then she finally gave a response.

“Yes, Ronald, I will marry you.”

Everyone clapped and shouted for joy as Ronald slipped the ring onto her finger, after which he stood, wiped away her tears, and kissed her passionately.

They were interrupted when small hands tugged their clothes. They looked down and saw a very happy Adrie and Alexa.

“We have a gift for you, Mommy,” Alexa said, and Raina’s heart melted. Hearing Alexa call her ~Mommy~ was a blessing.

“And for you too, Daddy.” Adrie grinned as she spoke to Ronald. He smiled too.

The girls gave them a gift wrapped with blue wrapping paper. Raina collected it and opened it immediately.

She came face to face with a framed picture of the four of them. Judging from their outfits in it, she could tell it was one of the pictures they had taken this morning.

“Clarice helped us make the present.” Adrie grinned.

“I love it. Thank you, my angels.” Raina crouched toward them and gave them a hug, and Ronald did the same.

“Can we be the flower girls at the wedding?” Alexa asked her newly engaged parents with pleading eyes.

“Sure,” Raina replied, and the girls cheered.

Everyone congratulated Raina and Ronald. The guests congratulated Raina on her new restaurant and her engagement.