Adrian

"You called?" Tia raises an eyebrow as she pokes her head into my office.

"Yeah. Is Gio here with you?" I ask, already knowing the answer.

"Um...if I say yes, will I be in trouble?"

"Yeah, I'll fire you."

"Then no, he is not here with me."

I glare at her. "You already know the rules, Tia," I scold her. "Do I have any more appointments for the day?"

"You took your video conference with Mr. Clark already?" she asks me. I nod my head as I look through the file I'd just created on a call with a client. "Then you're all good for the day."

I glance at my watch. "Great! I have to go get Luna's family from the airport so I'm gonna head out."

"They're in town for the opening?"

"Yeah. Luna's cooking dinner for us tonight and then they're staying in a hotel."

"How cute," she smiles.

"I'm coming down to the employee level before I leave so I'll see you in like ten minutes," I tell her. She nods her head and exits my office as I begin to clean up my desk area and organize files into their correct drawers. I shut down my computer and slip my laptop and notepad into my bag. Once I'm fully prepared, I exit the office and head down to the employee level of the building. The loud laughter and chatter of the employees quickly dies down as I step out of the elevator. My eyes widen as I look around at them. "Why are you being so quiet? I'm not going to fire you for having fun."

"How are you doing, Mr. Hafler?" One of the employees asks. "You need something?"

"I'm doing great!" I smile. "I just came to say goodbye for the weekend!"

"You're leaving?"

"Yep!" I nod my head. "The next time I enter this building I will be an engaged man."

"Seriously?!" Another one of the employees asks. "You're proposing to Luna?"

"Yes and I'm very nervous so don't ask me any questions!" I laugh and walk over to Tia, who stands at the snack table, trying to decide on whether she should eat an apple or a bag of potato chips. I sneak up behind her and grab her shoulders, "Get the chips" I say into her ear causing her to jump.

"Adrian! Don't do that!" she squeals, punching me in the shoulder.

I roll my eyes and chuckle. "I'm heading out now. I just came to say goodbye before I left."

"You usually never do this. What's got you in such a good mood?"

"I got all of my work done, and I get to meet my new nephew tonight. I have no reason to not be in a good mood," I grin.

"New nephew?"

"Luna's sister had a baby a couple of months ago. We've seen him over video chat but it's our first time meeting him in person."

"Aw! How cute! What's his name?"

"Noah. He's so cute and apparently he looks just like Luna when he was a ba–"

"Mr. Hafler?" I hear a soft voice call from behind me. I turn around to face, none other, than Josh.

"Hey Josh, what's up?" I smile.

"Um...I overhead you say that you're proposing to Luna and I just wanted to say congratulations..."

"Josh..."

"Seriously. I know I've been a problem in the past but I'm genuinely happy for you and I wish you the best."

With a sigh, I nod my head. "Thanks, Josh. That means a lot."

"No problem. See you around, Mr. Hafler," he says and walks down the hallway.

I cringe and turn to Tia who is trying her best to stifle a laugh. "And on that note, I think it's actually time for me to go. Bye, Tia," I chuckle and head back to the elevator. Soon enough, I'm climbing inside of my grey Jeep and starting the engine. As I'm on my way to the airport, I blast an array of music I'd discovered from Luna, singing and dancing in away I would not dare to do in front of anyone but myself. Due to this, thirty minute drive to the airport goes by quicker than expected and before I know it, I'm pulling up outside of the terminal. I send a text to Alyssa to notify her of my arrival and park the car. To my surprise, it is only about 10 minutes before I spot the Petít's exiting the building, Angelo and Alyssa rolling suitcases while Willow holds a baby carrier. I climb out of the car and rush over to them.

"Adrian!" Alyssa smiles when she sees me approaching. I lean down to pull her into a hug.

"Hey, guys," I say as I give Angelo a handshake. I reach over and pull Willow into a tight hug.

"Hi, Adrian," she giggles and sets the carrier on the ground. I bend down to the carrier and smile at the sight in front of me. "You see Uncle Adrian, baby?"

"Hi, Sweetheart," I coo at the baby staring up at me with big brown eyes. I use my index finger to gently tickle his belly. "He is the cutest thing I've ever seen in my life," I stand up. "I have major baby fever," I chuckle and lead them to the car. I open the trunk and spend a few minutes forcing all of the suitcases inside as they get inside of the car. Once finished, I climb back into the car, flashing a smile at Angelo who occupies my passenger seat. 

An hour later, I'm pulling into the gates of my house and parking my car in the driveway. Angelo and Alyssa grab their suitcases from the trunk and begin to make their way to the front door as Willow grabs Noah's carrier. I grab Willow's suitcase and follow her to the door, taking out my key to quickly unlock it. As soon as we enter, the smell of food hits my nose. "Luna?" Alyssa calls. It takes a moment before Luna is exiting the kitchen, wiping his wet hands on his black sweatpants. He takes a few moments exchanging enthusiastic greetings with his family and cooing over the baby. The next couple of hours are spent eating dinner and having long conversations with Luna's family about our lives. To his surprise, Luna receives loads of compliments from his parents about the quality of the food, to which he blushes and gives them a quiet, "thank you". Before I know it, Luna and I are once again alone in our home and preparing for the night.

"Scared?" I ask as Luna slips under the comforter beside me.

"Of what?" he cuddles into my chest, pulling my arm around his waist as I tangle our legs together.

I rest my cheek atop of his head as he closes his eyes. "For tomorrow, of course," I reply, slipping my hand under his shirt to gently rub the skin along his torso.

"Scared? No. Nervous? Very," he lets out a soft, tired chuckle. "I just wanna make everyone proud."

"Your parents?"

"And you. I want to make you proud, too."

I look down at him. "Me? Baby, you don't need to try to make me proud. I'm already proud of you."

A small smile forms on his face. "You are?"

"Luna, you up and moved to another part of the world to open a restaurant by yourself. That's the craziest—and bravest thing I've ever witnessed in my life. Of course I'm proud of you."

Luna stares up at me with a grin before softly capturing my lips in a kiss. "I love you so much."

"I love you too," I mumble against his lips before pulling away. "Let's sleep. You've got a big day tomorrow," I tell him with a yawn. He nods his head and pecks my cheek before resting his head on my chest. "Goodnight, baby."

"Goodnight."

***

"Gio, if we knew you'd eat all of our appetizers, we would have ordered more than this," Belle giggles as she watches the man shovels yet another bruschetta into his already full mouth. With a roll of the eyes, Alyssa uses a napkin to wipe around his mouth.

"Seventeen years later and we're still cleaning up after you," she sighs. "You've been eating like a pig since you were six years old."

"What's the point of eating carefully when I have a wonderful mother to clean up after me?" Gio grins.

"Adrian doesn't treat me like this, so why do you?"

"Listen, it's only because Adrian is new to this relationship. Eventually he's going to start doing the same," Gio turns to look at me. "And when you do, make sure to let everyone know that I was your mentor."

I take a sip from my glass of wine. "If you were ever my mentor, I wouldn't be nearly as successful as I am now," I send him a wink.

"Everybody shut up, my son is about to speak," Angelo interrupts, watching as Luna exits the kitchen and heads to the small platform in the corner of the restaurant, where a pianist had been sitting, playing gentle music throughout the night.

"You're an evil man," Gio hisses at me before turning his attention to my boyfriend. Luna clears his throat as the packed restaurant slowly begins to quiet down.

The next five minutes are spent with Luna giving a long speech about his time and passion for the restaurant. "And before I let you go, I just want to say thank you to my parents for giving me this opportunity and of course, to my beautiful boyfriend who made my vision come to life. Um...oh! And the kitchen is working very hard so your food should be out shortly. Thank you!" he smiles as everyone claps. He whispers something to the pianist before climbing down from the platform and making his way through the tables, stopping to greet each and every guest.

"He's a natural," Dakota chuckles, sipping from his glass. "He's doing an amazing job."

"Yeah," I nod my head. "He was really nervous earlier."

"I don't know why. He's killing it."

I feel two thin arms slide around my shoulders from behind as a soft kiss is placed on my cheek. "Who's killing what?" a familiar voice asks. I look up to see Luna smiling down at me.

"We're talking about how great of a job you're doing," Alyssa answers.

"Really?! You think so?!" Luna's face spreads into a grin.

Angelo chuckles and nods his head. "You're definitely exceeding my expectations by a long run. I'm proud of you, son."

"You're proud of me?! Aw, Papa!" Luna runs over to squeeze his father in a tight hug. "Thank you!"

"You're gonna pop a lung," Angelo squeaks out, prying Luna's arms from around him.

"Oh, let your son show you some love," Alyssa rolls her eyes. "He just wants you to be proud of him."

"I can be proud of him without having him tou– Luna! No!" Angelo growls as Luna leans forward with puckered lips to place a fat kiss on his father's cheek. "I take it back. I take it all back." Luna flashes him another smile before plopping down in the seat next to me.

"Did you guys enjoy your appetizers?" Luna asks, looking down at the empty platter in the middle of the table.

"Oh, I don't know," Willow shrugs. "Did we enjoy them, Gio?"

"We absolutely did," Gio sends Luna a bright smile. When the food arrives, we all immediately dig into our food, only looking up from our plates to occasionally talk about the quality of the meal. Eventually, everyone finishes wiping their plates clean, immediately sending their compliments towards Luna who blushes and pushes his gratefulness onto the chefs. It doesn't take long after for everyone to begin separating. Gio and Tia make their way to the bar while both of our families head out to the patio for some fresh air.

"You really did an amazing job," I tell Luna when we're finally alone. He leans forward to rest his head on my shoulder as he gently intertwines our fingers.

"Thank you, baby."

"I know I told you this last night but I'm very proud of you," I press a kiss to his forehead.

"Stop! You're gonna make me blush," he pouts, trying to hold back a giggle. As I playfully roll my eyes, I feel a light tap on my shoulder. I turn around to meet the bright eyes of my mother.

"Oh! I didn't even know you were here!" I stand up to give her a gentle hug as Luna looks up at us, confusion evident in his eyes. "Have you been here the whole time?"

"Yeah. I was sitting over there with Rob," she points to her husband who sits at a table at the front of the restaurant. "Dakota told me you were over here so I came to say hi."

"Oh, well, Mom this is my boyfriend, Luna. Luna, this is my mother," I introduce causing Luna's jaw to drop.

"Oh my gosh! It's so nice to meet you!" My boyfriend gushes, standing up to pull my mom into a hug.

"It's nice to meet you too," she smiles. "This place is incredible."

"Thank you so much! I'm glad you like it," he says before he's approached by one of the waiters who calls him to handle something in the kitchen. "I'm sorry, I have to go. But it was nice meeting you," he says once more before he is dragged away by the employee.

"I like him," my mother chuckles. "He's a cutie pie."

"That, he is," I laugh and nod my head, watching Luna maneuver through the guests as he makes his way to the kitchen. "That, he is..."

                     Luna

"This place turned out so well, Luna!" My old coworker, Lucas, exclaims as I walk past his table.

"Thank you so much!" I smile and give him a quick hug. "It's way more perfect than I expected it to be!"

"You did an amazing job, Luna. The architecture of this place is unbelievable."

"Thank you but I can't take credit for that at all," I chuckle. "My boyfriend did the whole thing."

"Ah..." he nods his head. "Speaking of this boyfriend that Anna keeps telling me about, where is he? I need to meet him."

"Um...honestly, I have no clue," I shrug and glance around the room through the dozens of people, putting on their jackets as they prepare to leave. "He seems to be getting away from me faster than I can keep up with," I giggle. "I should probably find him, actually. I'll see you later, Lucas," I give him another hug before making my way back to my table. I plop down next to Gio and Tia who are making small talk as they slip into their coats. "Have you guys seen Adrian?"

A smile forms on Gio's face. "I think he said he was going to the restroom. Go find him!"

I furrow my brows at his odd behavior. "Uh...okay?" I stand up and head towards the bathroom, occasionally stopping to shake hands with the guests and answer questions. Eventually I make it to the restroom and open the door to find my boyfriend standing at the sink, mumbling to himself as he dries his hands. "Babe?" I call softly, causing him to flinch as he realizes he's no longer alone.

"O-Oh..what's up?" he asks, biting his lip.

"It's almost time to go. I just have to finish cleaning up," I walk up to him and slip my arms around his neck. He lets out a quiet cough and nods his head. "You okay?" I cup his face in my hands.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he sighs and leans down to gently peck my lips. "Let's go." We exit the bathroom as people begin to exit the restaurant and make our way back to the table. "We're going to head out," he tells my parents who are sitting, speaking to Anna.

I look at him. "Wait, babe, I have to make sure everything is cleaned up and set for tomorrow after everyone is gone."

"Don't worry!" Anna chimes in. "I got it all under control!"

"Anna, I should be–"

"No! You're fine! Go be with your boyfriend, I can handle everything here. I'm the manager now, remember?"

"O-Okay," I nod, furrowing my brows. "Thank you so much!" I give her a tight hug before turning towards Adrian. "Then I guess we can leave?"

"Have fun!" Willow smiles.

"We're just going home but thanks," I chuckle. I quickly introduce Adrian to my curious aunt who instantly falls in love with him. Eventually, we wave goodbye to our families and head toward the exit, thanking people who shout congratulatory messages towards me. "You're being so quiet, baby," I frown, grabbing his hand, once we're settled in the car.

"What?" Adrian raises an eyebrow and begins to drive home.

"Why are you being so quiet? What's wrong?"

"Nothing, Love. I'm just thinking. I'm okay, I promise," he tells me with a small smile. I lean over the console to softly kiss his cheek before relaxing in my seat, waiting to arrive at home. It doesn't take long before we are entering the gates of our house and pulling into the driveway. We climb out of the car and head towards the front door. I unlock and open the door, gasping at the sight in front of me.

"Adri..." I mumble, looking around at the red rose petals and lit, white candles littering the white marble floors. I turn around to face my boyfriend who stares back at me, awaiting my reaction. "What is all of this for?" I smile.

"I just wanted to do something nice to show my appreciation for you," he says and slides his arms around my waist. "I'm very proud of you, you know?"

"Yeah?" I raise an eyebrow.

"Seriously. Honestly, you're so amazing and it shocks me every single day that I'm lucky enough to have you by my side," he clears his throat. "To be very real with you, I don't believe in love at first sight but from the first moment I ever saw you, at the park, I knew that I needed to have you in my life and now I get to wake up to your beautiful face every single day. Being able to grow and experiencing life with you over this past year and a half has been a dream for me and I cannot wait to make memories with you for the rest of our lives."

"Aw, baby..." I mutter, swallowing the small lump in my throat as I try not to let tears escape my wet eyes.

"Can I ask you a question?" Adrian asks, earning himself a confused nod. Another gasp slips out of my mouth as I watch the man of my dreams back away from me and slowly lower himself onto one knee. The tears I was trying to hold back finally escape my eyes as he pulls a small velvet box from his pocket and pops it open, the diamond ring on the inside, shining brightly in the dim lighting from the candles.

"Luna Stefano Petít," he begins, staring up at me with sparkling eyes. "Will you marry me?"

~~~~~~

Oooh it's been a long time coming. This chapter took wayyyy to long to write and I'm not as happy as I could possibly be with it but it's enough I guess. I hope you enjoyed it though!