now! We finally meet! What in the world took you so long to get yourself in here for a visit? Trent's had us BEGGING to get you in here to meet us!" she asked.

"Nice to meet you, too!" I replied.

"Have you had dinner yet?" she asked.

"No, I just left the office and headed right over here." I explained.

"Well, then, you came to the right place! Come over here and sit yourself down, and let's get you some dinner," she said, as she led me to a table in the corner of the kitchen.

"No, no. I don't want to intrude. I feel like I'm in the way in here."

"Sweetie, this is a kitchen!" Cassie belted out with both hands on her hips. "We specialize in takin' care of hungry people!" she laughed.

I saw Trent smiling a huge smile in the background, and the kitchen staff was chuckling.

"You like seafood dontcha?" Cassie asked.

"Yes, ma'am, I do." I replied.

"Then, Honey, you have come to the right place!" she exclaimed, as she turned around. "Trent, let's whip your man up some dinner," she said.

Just then, a young professional woman passed through the kitchen door. "How's it going, Cassie? Everything ok?" she asked.

Cassie hurried from behind the counter, turned the woman toward me by the shoulders and said, "Oh, Janet, we have a guest!"

"Janet, guess who this is? This is Trent's partner, Paul!"

"No way! It's great to finally meet you. We were starting to think you were just some fictitious guy Trent had made up. The way he talked about you, you were starting to sound like you walked on water! You are just as handsome as he said you were," she offered.

"He sure is! And, here he is in the flesh!" Cassie exclaimed.

"Janet, Honey, have you eaten yet?" Cassie asked.

"No, I just got back from a Chamber meet-and-greet," Janet explained.

"Well, good. You sit here and keep Paul company, and we'll whip you two up a nice dinner," Cassie directed.

As Cassie whisked off into web of people, food, and utensils, Janet turned to me and said, "I gotta tell you, you are a lucky guy. To find a guy who loves you the way Trent does is a gift. We should all be that lucky."

Now, I knew that Trent loved me, but I sure didn't know that he shared it so openly with other people. I had never really seen him interact with anyone, other than his family. Everything happening seemed surreal. Trent was obviously adored by his coworkers, and even shared his personal life with them. I don't know why, but I always assumed he would keep this close to his chest, although thinking back now, he had never been hesitant about letting people know we were together. Somehow, I always just thought he did it to torment me.

"Sorry if we've overwhelmed you a bit, but we've all been begging Trent to bring you in to meet us," Janet said, jerking me back to the present.

"Wow, no, you all are great," I said.

I looked across the kitchen at Trent, who kept looking over at me and smiling and I could swear he was blushing. Every once in a while, one of his coworkers would nudge him and taunt him, and they would break into laughter.

"Can I ask you a question, Janet? When did you all find