Page 54 of Love Delayed

“If you insist, but it’s a pleasure to be of service to you and Ms. Zamora. She is a wonderful person.”

“She is, and I’m happy to know everyone has treated her well around here.”

“We love having her,” he expressed.

“Hey, José,” Zamora said, emerging from the bedroom.

“Madame Zamora, hello and good morning.”

“Good morning, and thank you. Everything smells so good.”

“My pleasure. I hope you enjoy,” he said and moved towards the elevator.

Zamora sat across from me at the table, and we helped ourselves.

“The staff loves you,” I said after we said grace and started eating.

“And I love them,” she replied with a smile. “It’s only been a short stay, but I’m loving my time here.”

“That’s great, babe. Growing up here was a lot of fun, and I can say now that I loved it.”

“I bet. I haven’t had a chance to get in the pool yet, but I’m sure I’ll enjoy it as much as I have the rest of this place.”

“I’m going to resign,” I blurted.

She was quiet at first as she buttered her toast, as though she was processing what I had said.

“Are you sure you want to do that?” she finally asked.

I hunched my shoulders. I thought for sure I was until she asked me the question.

“I don’t know, Zee. I never wanted this as a career, but now that I have it, I’ve learned to love it. The real issue is that I danced to the beat of my parents’ drum instead of taking a leap of faith and going after what I truly wanted.”

She chewed and then swallowed. “And what is that, baby? What do you truly want?”

It was an easy enough question, but the answer wasn’t as easy to put into words. I mean, I didn’t hate my role as a hotel owner. In fact, I loved it, my staff, and the overall atmosphere. So, I was now second-guessing my decision to resign.

“I want to continue to grow as a businessman. I was so jealous of your tenacity that I thought I settled, but honestly, I did not. I have grown to love my career in hospitality and enjoy my dedicated staff.

“For a long time, I felt as if I lost myself in my parent’s agenda,” I continued, “but I wouldn’t take a moment back. I thought I wanted to leave it all behind, but now I’m not sure I want to walk away just yet. I honestly love my job––complaining guests, maintenance emergencies, and all.”

“So, continue to do it, Marcus. And when you start to feel like you’ve lost your passion for the job, then you can do something else. However, I think you still should have a conversation with your parents. Express to them how you felt pressured for so long about what they wanted for you, which resulted in you being unable to see what you truly wanted for yourself. Let them know where you stand today, and that if or when that changes, you will be moving on to the next thing. Baby, you can change careers, retire, or do anything else you want when you want. This hotel is not a prison sentence,” she said and reached to touch my hand.

My eyes welled, and I felt better just talking about it. She was right. I could do whatever I wanted whenever I wanted; I wasn’t tied to one thing. She was also right about me needing to share what I’ve been feeling over the years with my folks, and I planned to do that soon.

I grabbed a napkin and dabbed my eyes.

“Thank you, Zamora. Thank you for holding me in your heart all this time. Thank you for coming back to me. Thank you for always being honest and true about everything. I love you.”

“I love you, too, and no thanks needed. Everything I am to you is all you’ve been to me, and it is my absolute pleasure to love you in return,” she replied, flashing her gorgeous, bright smile.

“Marry me?” I said, looking her in the eyes.

The words just jumped out of my mouth. I almost shocked myself, but I knew it was what I truly wanted––to make Zamora my wife.

She paused and looked at me for a moment, then smiled.

“I will marry you,” she answered.