(While reading this chapter you can listen to either Chemistry by Simi and Falz or Ololufe by Flavour and Chidinma,I think they both go well with this chapter 🌹)

Catherine

Things were back to normal again in Catherine's life. After being discharged from the hospital, George took special care of her and her friends were there every moment she needed them.

Melody and her aunty and their goons were thrown into prison for kidnap and attempted murder,though Melody's father tried to pull some strings, George used his father's affulence to make sure justice was served.

Though Catherine was happy with George and everything was going fine,she couldn't help but notice that he was a little distant for a week,well he called sometimes but she couldn't still help but have odd feelings.

Something felt off to her. She tried calling her two friends but they were not picking,she sighed. Was everyone avoiding her?

Catherine picked her pen and paper and drew stick figure,she was no no doubt very bored. It was already 4 and she was sure the restaurant was getting filled up but she was not in the mood to supervise anything.

She picked her phone and tried scrolling through her contacts,she was so tempted to call him but she stopped herself cos he had told her about a meeting.

Still lost in her thoughts,she suddenly noticed that someone was knocking on the door

"Come in"

Her petite secretary came in and Catherine noticed the bouquet of flower,rose flower to be specific. They looked so beautiful.

"Who are they for and who brought them?"Catherine inquired

"They are for you ma and I don't know who brought them because Tim brought them to me"she explained.

Catherine collected the flowers and waved her secretary away.
Who could have brought flowers?

She dropped it casually on the table,she was not interested in anybody. Though it was a bouquet tied with expensive ribbons,she was not a flower and chocolate type of girl and moreover,her heart belonged to one man and him alone.

Just as she dropped it on her table,she noticed a pink slip on the flower and on it was an handwriting that she could recognize anywhere.

Babe
I do know you love me but however I want to give you more reasons why you should marry me.
One I'll always bring you flowers when you don't expect. I'll remind you how beautiful you are and how special you are to me.
Yours forever
Ebuka
PS: Come out by 4:30, a Black car will be waiting for you

Catherine grinned at George's cheesiness and as she reread the letter her heart swelled with joy. She checked her time and noticed it was just 2 minutes to four and so she picked her phone and handbag and left her office.

The black car was there under an umbrella tree just right ahead of her. Catherine had her best smiles on, she couldn't wait to hug her man and tell him how much she appreciates the bouquet and cheesy note.

She opened the passenger side and hopped in,she turned to her side and her jaw dropped in both surprise and disappointment.

"Tosin what are you doing here?"She asked her friend who was eating comfortably.

"I came to take you to your next destination"Tosin grinned.

"I don't understand,what destination and why are you in this black car?" Catherine asked her friend.

"Relax babe" Tosin pulled a pink slip from her pocket "He asked me to give you"

Catherine collected the paper with suspicion still looking at Tosin's calm face. The pizza in her hand was already half gone.

Catherine opened the paper gradually and read it.

Hey babe
I love surprises and I love surprising you. I promise to always give you surprise rides. I'll always appear at times you never expect and I'll be more than just your man

Catherine looked at Tosin who had finished taking her pizza

"Babe is he about to propose to me?Please tell me so I'll be prepared"

Tosin laughed at the way Catherine was looking worried and apprehensive.

"Chill babe,let's just take it one step at a time"And that was the only thing Tosin told her throughout the ride. After a ride of about 30 minutes, Catherine noticed that Tosin had packed in front of George's house, Catherine turned and gave her a questioning look.

"Babe,all I know is that George loves you a lot. This is your present destination,enjoy every bit of this while it lasts. And once you get into the house,move to the kitchen"Tosin encouraged and instructed her.

Catherine got down from the car and Tosin left without even waving. She didn't know what to expect,was George going to propose to her in his house? Her palms were already sweaty and she looked at her self properly,why hadn't she reapplied her makeup and worn something much more better to work.

Not that her baby blue gown wasn't beautiful,but she felt underdressed at that moment.

Catherine opened the door of the main house and as Tosin had instructed her,she went to the kitchen and there she saw a very neat place. His kitchen was very modern, painted milk on one part and brown on the other part,it made Catherine think of chocolate. All his utensils were packed away in the cabinet and his gas cooker close to the kitchen island.

Catherine's eyes caught the neatly arranged tray of food on the kitchen island. She uncovered the food and saw the most appetizing plate of Jollof rice, plantain and chicken.

Beneath the glass of water, Catherine noticed another pink slip

Hey babe
I might not be the best cook in the world but I'll make you surprise dishes. I'll help you in the kitchen and I'll try my best to make sure each food is tasty. There'll be no dull moments in the kitchen and everywhere. Trust me babe,I mean every word. Don't forget to come upstairs.

Catherine folded the note and smiled,who knew George could be this cheesy and sweet,she tried imagining him bent over on his table, writing each note, Catherine wondered if he was upstairs. She took spoons of the rice since she was hungry,gulped down the glass of water and headed upstairs.

On each step there was a picture of them on the wall from their secondary school days,each picture brought a lot of memories to Catherine and she tried hard not to sob,she had to reserve her tears till when George would appear.

She was so certain that he was upstairs in his room and so she walked with vigour,opened the door and boom,no George but Natasha was sitting right on the bed

"What is happening?"Catherine asked in confusion, first Tosin, now Natasha,how were they able to pull this right under her nose

"Lots of things babe,first of all,I want you to go inside that bathroom,have a shower and then I'll proceed"Natasha ordered her.

"Babe please put me out of this misery,tell me if his proposing"Catherine begged.

"Well, something like that"Natasha smirked.
"Just go ahead and bath,am waiting"Natasha chased her into the bathroom.

After Catherine finished having her bath, Natasha started with the makeup and brought out clean underwear, they were all her sizes.

Natasha opened the wardrobe and brought out the most beautiful gown Catherine have ever seen and a pink slip fell from it

Babe
You look so beautiful,yes I don't need to see you to tell you. Dresses don't make you beautiful,you make them beautiful. You are my miss world Catherine and I'll always treat you like one.

Catherine grinned widely at the note. The gown was fitted with off shoulder. It was a black gown with gold patterns and touches. Though it clung unto Catherine like a second skin, Catherine loved what she was seeing on the mirror. She was wearing George's diamond necklace and she brought it out from beneath the dress so it could be glaring and evident.

"You look so beautiful Catherine, George doesn't know he has a goddess"Natasha beamed at Catherine who could only hug her.

"Thanks Tasha"

"You are welcome love. You both deserve each other. I'm so happy for you both. However your next ride is here,go on babe"

"Is it George?"

"You'll have to find out"Natasha encouraged her with a wink. Catherine smiled at her friend and then gently walked outside. It was a black Benz and the back door was already open.

Catherine hopped in and well, Vera was the driver and George was nowhere to be found.

"Hey b!"Vera grinned. "You look breathtaking"She complimented.

"Thanks hun,so you are part of this plan,well I feel betrayed"Catherine joked and they both let out hearty laughs.

"No babe,you know I can't trade you for anything"Vera winked at her friend. She turned on the stereo and Chemistry by Falz and Simi filled the car and Vera pulled out another pink slip from the trunk and gave it to Catherine.

Hey babe
I know you are not a huge fan of American songs else I would have played perfect by Ed Sheeran but anyway, Chemistry is also perfect. I want you to know every line in the song playing is real,if we no date o,he go cause trouble o. So take my love Catherine,be my Simi let me be your Falz. I'll play songs for you, I'll sing to you, I'll bring a smile on your face.

Catherine couldn't count the amount of times she had smiled,each note was just as beautiful as the rest. Vera kept playing and replaying the song in the car and Catherine imagined George saying each word to her,it was so sweet and romantic.

So the ride finally came to an end when Vera stopped in front of the most expensive private relaxation center. It was just a small place that could take 50 at a time so people always booked ahead and waited for the date assigned them.

"Good luck babe,just go in and request for your table,it was booked in your name"Vera mouthed and Catherine smiled. She tried not to get her hopes high,maybe he didn't want to propose. She tried to keep her sweaty palms in check,her clutch bag was still with her and in it was every note George had ever given her.

With confidence,she walked into the joint. It was top notch and lived up to it's name. Stepping into there felt like another world entirely. The walls were glassy and then it seemed like an aquarium. The huge light bulbs bathed everywhere with light.

In fact everywhere was made of glass except the floors and then the artworks were out of the world. The eye popping decor was crazy and homely. Catherine told the lady at her counter of the table she booked and she was led to another part of the place that Catherine could figure out it was a VIP area and there was George on the table looking handsome as usual. His tuxedo was also black with gold pin. His hair was restyled and he looked dazed also at the sight of Catherine.

He stood up from the table and hugged Catherine.

"You look beautiful"He whispered dangerously close to her ear. She could feel the goosebumps and her legs going weak.

He drew the chair for her before heading over to his seat. Catherine blushed as his gaze kept traveling from her hair to every visible part.

"Take a picture George,it will last longer"Catherine teased him.

"No babe,my eyes are enough"He smirked.

"I got all your notes George,they are cute,thank you very much sugar"Catherine reached her hands across the table for his.

"I'll do everything to make you happy Catherine, I know they are not enough reasons but I'll give you more reasons hun, more and more each day"

"George I love you and that's more than enough,thanks for being in my life,for everything babe,you mean a lot to me and it's more than just chemistry"Catherine told him sincerely and she watched as his eyes lit up.

A bit more silence before the waiter interrupted their staring competition with the meal he brought.

"I know you are not really hungry and same here,so I ordered just peppered chicken and a small plate of spaghetti,is that fine with you?"

Catherine nodded.

"How were you able to get my friends to pull your plan?"Catherine asked as they dug into their food.

"They are also my friends babe"He grinned.

"Thanks George, you've done lots of things for me,I love you"Catherine had the most dreamy eyes as she stared at him,she knew he was probably shy or flustered with the way he bit his lips.

"I love you too babe and you should stop thanking me babe,you deserve good things in life, only good things"George emphasized and reached out to touch her cheeks.

After the meal, Catherine wondered if he was going to propose at that moment but he didn't,she took her time to sip her drink,in movies,the rings were usually in the wine but nothing seemed metallic in all sips.

"Catherine are you okay,you seem not to like the wine"George commented.

"No,I love it actually"She smiled and watched as he also broke into a smile,like he knew something she didn't.

No moves from him and Catherine gave up,he was probably just acting sweet with all those notes. They finally finished their meal and George took her hands,they got to the center of the room and George paused and before Catherine knew,he was on one knee.

Catherine was already grinning widely,finally her long time dreams,her heart was however shattered when he was only knotting his shoelaces.

Catherine didn't know if she would cry or not,why was this happening? She fought the tears that were threatening to leak from her eyes.

George stood up to her height and then looked at her squarely.

"Babe are you ok?

"Yeah, something got into my eyes"

"I'm sorry love"He had a sympathetic look too. Suddenly he seemed to have remembered something and started touching all his pockets.

"Babe what are you looking for?"Catherine asked confused.

George kept touching his breast pocket and everywhere.

"Catherine did you steal something from me?"

Catherine stared at him,her mouth agape with anger and confusion. Her head was twirling with thousands of thoughts with that simple question,which charm had suddenly taken control of his senses.

"What kind of accusation is that?Why would you say that?"Catherine tried hard not to yell.

"Yes Catherine,you stole my heart but I don't want it back babe,keep it safe"

Just then then the lights went off and was restored almost immediately. George was on one knee with the most beautiful ring she had ever seen.

And then placards went up. Vera was holding one at one table.

Marry Me Catherine

Natasha was at another corner with her own placard

"Be mine Catherine and let me be yours"

Tosin who was hiding behind a newspaper,also raised hers.

"Marry him else I'll shoot you

Typical Tosin,she was even eating probably the reason why she forgot she was supposed to rise her own placard on time.

Catherine turned to face George who was still on one knee.

"Catherine we were meant to be and deep down we both know this. Even after everything, fate still brought us together. I know am not a perfect person, I'll make mistakes sometimes but I know I'll do my best, if you say yes to me,I promise to give you more reasons to stay forever. Be mine Catherine,be mine forever,I know I've proposed at the hospital but you deserve better than that,so tell me yes one more time babe,say yes"

Catherine couldn't hold it back anymore,she let the tears flow freely from her eyes and before George could process what was happening,she drew him up and smashed her lips against his.

More coos and awwns from the crowd before they broke apart.

"Yes George,my answer is yes and even if I'm asked a million times, I'll still say yes" Catherine said looking him straight in the eyes.

She didn't know she could love someone this much. The feeling felt perfect and so beautiful. Her answer would still be yes a million times and she was sure of it.

***

(This A/N might be longer than others)

😭...I swear if you see the way I imagined this chapter in my head,I even felt like getting married 😂

I don't know if I did justice to this chapter but I hope I tried because I took my time in writing it,like I really thought hard of this chapter and just gave myself a nudge to go on and write it

This is my longest chapter by the way,3000+ words.

I'm marking the roll call,so if you enjoyed this chapter, please lemme see you, ok, don't leave without telling me about this chapter,even if it's this once.

For all my silent readers,how market?😂....Biko there's a special roll call for you guys. Don't skip this,I need your names in my roll call

To all my devote readers, commenters and voters,I see you guys,I'll buy you guys two Jets each😁😁

This book has just one chapter left and that's the Epilogue,so the room is open for questions, reviews or suggestions.

Send them in people, I'll always reply even if sometimes I reply late.

Your support towards this book has being overwhelming honestly,the love and everything,am forever grateful guys. Thanks a lot guys.