Sneak Peek for Chapter 32 of The Godparent's Bride (The Finale of Act II: The Secret Lovers Arc)
Warning: Mentions of gun violence and body image. Reader Discretion is advised.
Godkid and godparent both laughed at the thought of Doug threatening the little punk with his gun. Before Peri could call for the deceased former owner of the Dimmsdale Dimmadome, Dev did it for him, “Papaw! Can you come in here?! I need you!”
The sound of cowboy boot spurs clicking on the hardwood floor graced their ears before the swirling vortex of balls of white and gold lights emerged. They gave way for the ghostly Doug to appear. Concern for his grandson etched his pale transparent face, “Devin? What’s wrong? What do ya need me for?”
He looked up from his tablet, “Peri wants to talk to you.”
Doug blinked his glowing blue eyes, “You don’t have ta talk for him, Devin. Mr. Periwinkle is a grown man.”
“I know but he’s nervous.”
Before he could ask what his granddaughter’s fairy boyfriend was nervous about, Peri finally spoke, thinking of something to break the ice between him and the old man, “Um, Doug, I’m curious about something.”
“About what? Ask away.”
“Um,” he paused, “Did you ever ask for Diane’s father’s blessing for her hand in marriage?”
Doug smiled from beneath his white mustache as he took a seat beside Peri on the periwinkle couch, feeling excitement bubble up inside him. Does Peri’s question mean, what it’s implying what it probably means? Trying to maintain his self control to keep his inner thoughts at bay, he said, “I did.”
Wanting to include his grandson into this conversation, he continued, “I remember it like it was yesterday.”
Peri, with Dev shifting his attention away from his game, both listened intently, “Devin, would you like for me to tell ya the story of how I got your great-grand Papaw George’s blessing for your Mamaw’s hand in marriage?”
Dev nodded, turning off his tablet, “Yeah. Did you have to talk business with him?”
Peri listened intently as Doug chuckled, “Surprisingly, no. Even though the Masterson Family was and are still very wealthy business savvy people, George was a simple man. Brilliant, the most shrewd and cunning businessman I had ever met, but when it came to family, he put that aside.”
Curious, Peri asked, “So this George Masterson, what did he deal in?”
Thinking about his dearly departed father-in-law, Doug smiled, “Like me, real estate. He was my mentor and a dear friend of mine. He taught me everything he knew and passed his wisdom onto me. I was the son he never had.”
“Is that how you met Mamaw? Did Great-Papaw introduce you to her?”
At Dev’s question, the former owner of the Dimmsdale Dimmadome chuckled, shaking his head, “No. Diane and I met in Vegas at The Sands Hotel and Casino in their famed Copa Room. Frank Sinatra was performin’ that night.” his ghostly blue eyes shimmered, feeling as if he were young again and being brought back in time, experiencing that moment once more, “I heard of her before we met but I didn’t know what she looked like until I introduced myself to her. All I knew of her was that she was the famed young fashion designer, Diane Marie Masterson.”
Doug sighed dreamily, “When I first laid my eyes upon Diane, it was like….like I found a missing piece of my soul. Diane felt it too.” he chuckled, “Of course she heard about me. At the time, I was startin’ to make a name for myself as my real estate empire was beginning to take off. When I introduced myself to her, she made me laugh stating, “Oh, I know who you are. You’re the young real estate mogul who’s taking the country by storm. Doug Dimmadome, right?”
He laughed again, “It made my heart race when she said so genuinely, “I had no idea you were this handsome in person.”” Doug brightly smiled, feeling so giddy as if he were a young man again, “Diane always had a thing for men like me. Manly cowboys who she saw as big teddy bears. She called me her “Dougie Bear”.”
Peri and Dev listened as the old man continued to reminisce, gushing, “I said yes and asked if I could join her and her friends at her table.” His blue eyes twinkled with what he said next, “Being the gentleman I am, I knew it was the right thing to do. Keep that in mind, Devin. It’s wise to ask for a lady’s permission to enter her personal space. Ya know what the meanin’ of the word ‘consent’ is?”
Dev just smiled and nodded, “Yeah, it means you have to ask for someone’s permission to do something with them or to them. It applies to everything in life, not just love and romance, right?”
Doug nodded, “That’s right, Devin. I’m proud of you for gettin’ that concept down at your age. You’re just a chip off the old block. You take after me even though you look like your Daddy. It’s no wonder why Miss Hazel loves ya so much.”
Dev beamed with pride for his grandfather’s words. That means he’s upholding his promise of always being a gentleman. That means that Hazel will want to be his girlfriend if he keeps it up. Still feeling so giddy, Dev listened as Doug continued on, “We talked to each other for what seemed like all night. We became inseparable from that point on.” he sighed, a dreamy expression formed on his pale ghostly face, “We started datin’ not long after.”
“So did you ask Mamaw out or did she ask you out?”
“I asked her out, Devin. I asked her if she would be interested in me treatin’ her to a hearty steak dinner. Imagine my delight when she said yes.”
His blue eyes started to mist, “I felt my heart race from that. I love a woman with a healthy appetite. It was so refreshin’ to see. Your Mamaw knew the importance of eatin’ good. The other women I dated before her were too worried about their figures, but Diane, no, she ate whatever she wanted with no fears of what it did to her figure. I remember she said that eatin’ good gave her the energy to run her fashion empire. Plus, it helped her maintain her gorgeous goddess-like figure. Diane, my Diamond Cowgirl was the picture of female perfection, even in her old age. Hell, she only got better and better with age. Plastic surgery would have destroyed her beauty. It made me thankful that she never chose to go under the knife. Diane felt so comfortable in her skin. Eating, aging and pregnancy never destroyed her confidence. Your Great Grand-Mamaw, Franny and your Great Grand-Papaw, George raised her to love herself.”
“How long did you two date for?” Peri asked, interested and enjoyed hearing the elder Dimmadome just gush about his wife. Hearing Doug refer to Diane as a goddess and the picture of female perfection, it made the fairy’s heart skip a beat. He said the same things to Liz the first night they were intimate.
Guess he might take after the Doug Dimmadome, the former owner of the Dimmsdale Dimmadome in that aspect. Though, they’re not even related by blood. He’s a human, a dead human and he himself is a fairy. Peri softly chuckled to himself, he didn’t think he would be able to relate to another Dimmadome but here he was. Dev and Liz, sure but he didn’t think he’d have many things in common with Doug.