Simone (The Ciprianos of Kellington Book 2) (10 page)

“Listen, Delia, I want
to apologize for having you arrested. I told my mom to not press charges
against you and that you had every right to be mad at me and my mom. Honestly,
I didn’t want it to be this way.”

“Well how did you want
it then? Honestly, I would have thought you would have been a man and stood up
to your parents like you did when you wanted to be out on your own. But when it
came to money, it seemed you wanted to go along with the plan that was
presented to you.”

“I am so sorry, Delia.
I didn’t want this but I do want you in my life.”

“You can’t be serious.”
She got out of the car when she saw Simone walking toward her. He looked
concerned as he listened to her talking on the phone, obviously he could tell that
something was wrong. “After all the bullshit, all the heartache you brought me,
you’ve got the nerve to call and say that you want me back into your life. Give
me a break, Rodger, there is no way in hell that I would ever think of getting
back with you. Why don’t you take those millions of dollars of yours and buy
yourself a trophy wife.”

“I don’t want anyone
else but you Delia. I’ve already told my parents that I want you and only you.
We’ve had too much history together to let something like this go.”

Delia sighed, slowly
shaking her head while Simone watched. He immediately took her into his arms.
She looked up at him, into those brown eyes of his that would make her melt
when she looked at them. “Well, I’m sorry Rodger, but I don’t want to be with you
anymore, not after the way you treated me and made me look like a complete fool
in front of people. Not to mention, giving your mother the satisfaction of
watching someone who she deems lower than her, get torn down. Nope, I don’t
want that in my life, Rodger, and I don’t need you in it either. So please,
from this point on, leave me alone. Don’t bother to call or bother to come by
the shop, much less my place. It’s over with us and I’m trying to move on with
my life after what you’ve done to me.”

Just when she was about
to say the last word, it was Simone who grabbed the phone from her instead.
“She’s going to get her number changed after today so no need to call and if
you bother to try and come by her job or home, I will have you arrested myself.
Who am I? Well, I’m her new man.” Looking at the phone, she saw him hit the
power off button and immediately throw the phone out into the wooded area near
his mother’s home. He looked back at her, and of course she was smiling, and he
kissed her forehead softly. “Let’s go, sweetheart.” They both walked
hand-in-hand toward the back where the garden was. “I called Mom and she told
me that she would meet us in the garden, she’s tending to the flowers.” He
opened the gate to the garden as they walked along the stone path, “Mom, we’re
here!” he shouted.

“Hello, I’m over here
by the roses!” They heard her shout back as they continued to walk toward the
sound of her voice. When they found her, she was sitting on a small folding
chair. Her clothes were kind of worn and Delia knew that these were clothes
that she wore when she was tending to the garden. Her attire was set off with a
big floppy hat to keep the sun off her skin along with some garden gloves. When
she saw them standing there, she smiled and said, “Why, hello, you two. Come,
I’ve made some tea.” Delia watched Simone help his mother rise as they walked
back toward where the table was already set with a pitcher of iced tea and
three glasses. They all sat down and Simone filled their glasses. “Delia,
sweetheart, I am so happy that you are well and out of jail. I was worried sick
about how this would affect you. I would have done the same thing to that
mother of Rodger’s. Honestly, I can’t believe she would condone such things
like this. Anyway, what brings you both here today?”

Delia looked over at
Simone, who was just as nervous as she was. He quickly took a sip of tea,
coughed a bit and then said to his mother, “Well, Mom, I finally told Delia how
I felt about her, we had a long talk about it and we are going to be seeing
each other now.”

A squeal of delight
came from Filomena’s mouth and a smile spread all over her face. She made her
way over to Delia and took the younger woman’s face in her hands as she began
spouting out words in Italian. Delia couldn’t help but laugh a bit as well as
tear up while hugging Filomena.

“This is a blessing
indeed, I knew that eventually you two would get back together. This indeed is
a sign from God that you two were meant for each other. And now it’s coming
true for both of you, I swear I’ve never been happier in my life to see you two
together.” Filomena told them as she motioned for Simone to come over and join
them. Immediately she took both their hands together, cupping the two as she
told them, “I wish you both the best in whatever you do. You have finally found
each other again after being apart for so long. I’ve always wanted you two to
be together because it was meant to be. Now you have this chance to be
together, don’t let it get away again. Again, this is a sign from God, letting
you both know that this was meant to be, between you two. Now you need to
determine what and how you want to go about getting what you both want in life.
I know you both are strong and determined people so I know that you both will
be fine, just as long as you have each other.”

Delia looked at Simone,
who winked at her with a smile that made her smile as well. She knew that
things would be right from now on.

Chapter Twelve

Saturday had finally
come and Simone was nervous about their first date together in years. He had
decided to keep things casual as far as what he wore, nothing more than a pair of
blue jeans along with a red T-shirt. He had called the movie theatre ahead of
time for he wanted this date to be a special one. As he made his way toward her
place, he found himself taking small steps instead of big strides to get to her
door. “Man, you’ve got to get yourself together.” Simone kept telling himself
this as he stepped up his pace a bit. Ringing the doorbell he waited a second
and saw her silhouette behind the glass of the door. When she opened it, she
stood there wearing a pair of blue jeans and a white and blue embroidered
peasant blouse. Her hair was pulled up into a messy ponytail with a blue scarf
wrapped around her head. A sweet smile greeted him when she said, “Why, hello,
let me grab my purse.”

He waited while she
walked over to the side, coming back with her purse and slipping on some flat
black shoes. “Let’s go.” After he watched her lock up her place, they walked
hand-in-hand to his car. He helped her in and they soon made their way toward
town.

The Goodwin Theatre had
been owned by the Goodwin family for over forty years. It was the only theatre
that played the old movies that both Simone and Delia loved. Even though a
newer theatre had opened, playing the latest movies, it was the Goodwin that
many people flocked to in order to watch some of the oldies. They would often
have marathons of either Buster Keaton or Charlie Chaplin movies, which
attracted crowds. The outside looked just the same as it always had, and the
marquee stated above them, “Double Creature Feature” in bright lights.

Simone helped her out
of the car and they crossed the street to the booth where the lady behind the
glass dispensed tickets. After he paid for them, he motioned Delia toward the
door. The scent of freshly popped popcorn immediately hit his senses when they
walked inside and he could see that the place hadn’t changed in years. The
ushers still wore those vintage usher uniforms that were red with golden
buttons going up and down along the chest, also wearing small red pillbox caps.
A long golden stripe ran along the side of the black pants of the young man who
took their tickets, ripped them in two and gave them the stubs. “Enjoy the
show.”

“Want some popcorn,
something to drink?” asked Simone.

“Of course, you know I
want some popcorn along with some...”

“Milk Duds,” He smiled
as he gave their order to the lady behind the counter. “And we will also have a
large popcorn and two cokes, please. This place sure hasn’t changed much.”

“It sure hasn’t by
much. I mean, I’ve seen some changes, like in the carpet out here but nothing
else, really. It’s still very much the same.” The young lady put the box of
Milk Duds onto the counter while another young lady brought the large bag of
popcorn.

“Can you please give me
another one of those large bags?” Delia asked her.

“Sure, ma’am.” She
grabbed a bag, handing it over to her as Simone watched her open it up with a
flick of the wrist. Pouring some of the popcorn into the bag, she grabbed the
box of Milk Duds and opened it to pour some into the bag. Simone had to smile
while paying the young lady for their snacks as Delia continued to layer her
Milk Duds and popcorn together in a bag. “I have to say, you are the first
person I’ve ever seen who has mixed their candy with the popcorn.”

Simone chuckled, “You
know when she started to do that, I thought she was insane, but honestly, you
need to try it because it’s very good, unusual but good.”

“You should try it but
just don’t put any butter in the popcorn, it can get a bit messy.” Delia told
her as Simone grabbed their drinks. They made their way toward the entrance and
when they walked inside the theatre, he noticed her stopping dead in her tracks
and knew why.

There was no one in the
theatre.

“Simone?”

“Come on, let’s grab
our seats before they get taken,” he joked while pushing her down the aisle.

“Taken? Who’s going to
take them? We are the only ones in here.” They both walked to their favorite
spot, middle row, middle seats, and as they both sat down, the lights slowly
dimmed. “I can’t believe you did this again, you got the entire theatre just
for us.”

Giving her a kiss on
the lips, Simone felt her nuzzle up against him while Frankenstein started.
They munched on popcorn, sipped on their sodas and made silly commentary about
the movie itself. He looked over at her, watching her gaze intently at the
movie while her hand slowly moved from the popcorn bag. Taking the popcorn, she
put it into her mouth, and those lips rubbed against each other while she
chewed a bit. He felt her grab her soda to take a sip. “Oh, this is the best
part, here,” she said when the movie came to the part where the creature was starting
to come to life.

He looked up for a
moment to watch the lighting come down upon the instruments that brought the
monster to life. Looking back at her, Simone saw the gaze of wonderment and awe
upon her face, almost child-like. She looked up at him while nuzzling against
his chest. “Are you enjoying the movie?”

“I’m enjoying the
movie,” he kissed her forehead, “but I’m especially enjoying the company too.”

“So am I, glad to be
doing something we both love so much.” Her arm wrapped around his waist and
that sensation overjoyed Simone even more. This was what he had wanted, he
wanted to feel her next to him, he wanted to have her near him and now it was
finally coming true. The evening at the movies continued to be one that Simone
knew he would never forget for as long as he lived and they continued to
snuggle with each other in their seats.

Once they finished
watching the movies, Simone mentioned to her, “I was going to take you to the
drive-in but since that place has been closed for years, I thought up another
place instead.”

“Well, show me the way
then.” They walked arm in arm along the sidewalk, past the shops where they
stopped and window-shopped. They soon stopped at a vacant building which used
to be Murray’s Jewelry Shop but had been vacant for a couple of months now. He
had everything set up inside just for the two of them, and he honestly couldn’t
wait for her to see what he had done.

* * * *

Why in the hell were
they going to Murray’s old Jewelry Shop, she wondered? Delia had to admit that
the evening so far was going rather well. But of course she always had enjoyed
being with Simone. It had been forever since they had gone to the movies and
after dealing with the bullshit with Rodger and his family, this was a welcome
experience. She was shocked that he had gotten the entire theatre just for
them, just like when they had gone there all those years past. The way he held
and cuddled with her made her love the moments they were sharing even more
special.

This was where she had
wanted all along, to be with the man who deep down she had loved since she
first met him. And now they were making a start to something that never should
have ended in the first place.

But why were they going
to this old jewelry shop? “Why are we here, Simone?”

He knocked on the door
and told her, “You’ll see soon enough.” That was when the door slowly opened
and a woman, who appeared to be around their age, stood in the doorway with a
smile. Simone took Delia’s hand and led her into the vacant store, where it was
dark inside after the lady closed the door behind them. Then the woman walked
ahead of them toward the back of the store as they followed closely. She could
see a glow from the back as they continued around the corner and she saw a
blanket on the floor along with two big pillows. Votive candles were scattered
around the room, giving the room a wonderful aura of serenity. When they walked
toward the blanket, she saw a set of plates and glasses along with a big white
box in the middle. He helped her sit down on the floor as he went over to his
side. “If you need me for anything, Simone, just call me and I’ll be back.
Enjoy,” the lady told them with a nod, leaving them alone.

“Dinner in an old
abandoned store I see. This is pretty interesting, to say the least, Simone. What’s
in the box?”

She watched him grab
the top of the box and open it and immediately the aroma of onion rings escaped
from within. Soon, he pulled out a plate which had two burgers wrapped in white
paper and some onion rings in white containers. “Oh my God,” she said
wide-eyed. Those onion rings, she thought, those couldn’t be from way back
then. Delia had to taste them to make sure that she wasn’t imagining what she
pictured. Grabbing a small ring, she put it in her mouth and found herself
immediately moaning. The nostalgic taste of years gone by came back to her mind
when that onion ring hit her taste buds. “Where did you get these from? We both
know that Stokey’s is long gone and this, this is a Stokey’s onion ring.”

All he did was smile
while plating her food with the onion rings and burger. “Wait a minute, I think
she forgot something,” She watched while he went into his pocket to get his
cell, dialed some number and waited. “Yeah, Tina, you forgot the drinks. Yes,
thank you.” He looked back at her with a smile. “I’ll explain everything once
Tina comes in.”

Delia was puzzled, what
did this Tina woman have to do with this meal? Soon she would get the chance to
find out since the woman known as Tina came back in with two tall glasses with
whipped cream and a cherry on top of each one. “That one there is hers,” Simone
told the woman as she handed Delia the vanilla milkshake while she handed him a
chocolate one. “Delia, I want you to meet Tina Monroe.”

“Nice to meet you,
Delia,” Tina told her, moving toward her to shake her hand as Delia nodded and
smiled.

“Tina is Stokey’s
daughter. You know, from the drive-in. She used to help her father cook at the
restaurant and loved to cook so much that she went on to cooking school.”

Delia was shocked to
hear this, “So you used to cook the burgers and stuff.”

“Yeah, I was pretty
much hands-on with everything with my dad. He taught me everything I knew about
cooking. That’s why I went to cooking school and I opened up my own restaurant
in New York.”

“Wow, that’s amazing, I
can’t believe that Simone brought you over here tonight.”

“Well, I was shocked
when he called up my restaurant and told me what he wanted to do. I honestly
thought it was sweet so I came over and Renzo was nice enough to let me use his
kitchen to make the food, even though I had to make him and some of the other
guys’ burgers as well. But I was happy to bring back some good memories for you
both with my dad’s food. I’ll let you all go now, take care.” Tina told the two
with a wave as she left them alone once more.

“I honestly can’t
believe you pulled all of this off, Simone,” She started to feel herself tear
up for it was moments like this that she had missed with him. Moments like this
when he would shock her by doing something spontaneous. Moments which she’d
missed so much and now they were going to be able to relive many more moments
like this together again.

“Let’s eat before the
food gets cold,” Simone told her and they began to eat. Even the burgers tasted
just like they had all those years ago, Delia thought. Taking a taste of the
milk shake, she realized that it was her favorite, butter pecan.

My God, he remembered,
she thought and that was when she found herself crying.

“Darling,” he moved
closer to her as she tried to turn away from him but he pulled her into his
arms. “What’s wrong? Why are you crying?”

“I’m sorry, but
everything has been so wonderful. I honestly couldn’t help but cry,” she told
him, feeling his thumb rub away the tears along her cheek. Delia found herself
warmed by his touch as he continued holding her, touching her, as they sat
there holding one another in that vacant building that night.

“Why did it take us so
long to get to this point of our lives, Simone? I wish that we could have been
a bit more open with our feelings.”

“Sweetheart, it was
mainly me. You always told me how you felt about me. It was just that I had a
hard time expressing my feelings for you. I think I realized that you were the
one even before our first date and even before that incident with your diary.”

“Really, when was
that?” she wondered, because all these years she thought that the reason he
fell for her was because of their first date.

“Do you remember the
football game between Kellington and Evers? The one where we went into overtime
and ended up winning, thanks to Kevin Stratton’s twenty-five yard touchdown?
Well, it was when we went to celebrate back home afterwards and Mom made us
homemade pizzas.”

Delia did remember that
evening as the celebration had gone on for hours on end until Ms. Cipriano had
told everybody they had to leave. “Your mom told everybody that they had to
leave, but told me and Andrew that we could spend the night. I always enjoyed
being included with you guys.”

“Yeah, everybody got
pissed off, especially some of the girls. They kept asking me and the guys why
did you get to stay and they had to leave.”