Romance author J Rose Black shares a sweet romantic story about her favorite restaurant, MoMo’s Italian Kitchen in Dallas.

My husband and I both adore MoMo’s Italian Kitchen in Dallas. They used to have a location near our apartment when we were still dating. We’d meet there, choose a couple of dishes to share, and have a lovely, very laid-back, and quiet evening together.

The restaurant’s story goes that the original restauranteur opened the first location on the strength of the book of recipes his Italian mother gave to him. He refused to Americanize the menu at all. In Italy, you order food in courses, and so that was just the way Dallas, TX would have to order our food. And he made the pasta fresh every day.

Aside from the dinner menu being amazing, their tiramisu is rather heavenly.

So, with this being our favorite restaurant, our story goes that on a random(ish) Monday night in September, enter my boyfriend (at the time). He had texted me at lunch, asking me to dinner. Our favorite place, Mondays was half-price wine night was the excuse. I had been in the office all day, in meetings, wearing something like a suit. And he’s often told me how I didn’t need to dress up or wear makeup. I didn’t need to impress him, or whatever.

I just remember deliberately changing out of the skirt and pantyhose and all. Not that it was a big deal, it’s just that I was always a little more conservatively dressed than most. I’ve had employers tell me, specifically, that I shouldn’t feel obligated to dress up quite so much. One was like: suits make people nervous around here.

I dunno, after I’d spent fourth grade wearing nothing but warmup suits every day, and had to listen to my mother gripe…incessantly. I just pendulum swung, I guess to overcorrect and dress up a little. Not necessarily trendier because I was a tomboy through and through. But nicer. I’d wear a jacket with jeans and nice-looking boots. (A favorite pair that I had re-soled at least twice before I finally had to give them up). Honestly, I started wearing suits because they were easy. The stuff already matched. I didn’t have to worry about it.

So back to the night in question…I just remember dressing down. Took off my earrings and makeup and pulled on a pair of jeans and a LOFT lounge jacket over a t-shirt. I was comfy-casual but a little trendy. For me. And so we go to dinner. And I’m like, “I can have a glass of wine but I still have homework to do tonight.” Blah blah blah. I had just started back to school for my master’s.

And right at the tail end of dinner, before we order dessert, my boyfriend leaves the table, saying he has to go to the restroom. And I’m like: what? I don’t think he’s ever gone to the restroom in the middle of dinner at a restaurant before. It was more likely that he’d break out his phone and start playing some game while I was eating. I remember it seeming strange.

A few minutes later, he came back, sat down, and our waiter came around the corner with tiramisu and a candle in it. And now I’m really confused because my birthday’s in January, and we’d been together a year back in June. His birthday was in July. There was nothing I could think of that would require a candle.

He gets down on one knee, asks me to marry him, and reaches for the ring.

On the tiramisu.

With a candle stuck in the middle of it.

And he just looks at it in utter contempt and then back at me, shaking his head. “Will you blow that thing out already?”

I blow out the candle and he fits the ring on my finger. It was too big, but it was beautiful and simple, but elegant. And he’s just so annoyed at the waiter. “Why a candle?!” And then recounts all the times the waiter slipped up and almost gave his game away.

To be fair, I could sit there and as he enumerated them, be like: Oh, I thought it was a little weird when the guy told us that, oh, no your table is this one over here. When we were supposedly just, on a whim, going there for dinner.

Things like that. It wasn’t like I was particularly in a hurry to get remarried. So I wasn’t looking for clues or signs. I’d worked all day and was worried about having enough time to get my homework assignment done. And I thought I was there to have dinner and wine. Silly me.

But it’s a lovely restaurant and even though that location isn’t there anymore (they moved), we do try to go once a year on a special date. Just…no candles.

About J Rose Black

J. Rose Black weaves stories about obsession, redemption, and the transcendental power of love. From her early days writing fanfiction for a passionate following of international readers, to crafting novels with her own characters, Rose has always been drawn to broody protectors and plucky, no-nonsense women ready to fight for what they believe in. 

When Rose isn’t deeply immersed in her latest manuscript, she’s working in cyber security and thwarting the next generation of internet bad guys. Out of the office, she’s #Shipping with friends over her favorite, swoon-worthy couples, heading to the gym to battle the great evil that is Unmovable Baby Weight, or complaining about her husband’s addiction to 3D printing. Also: nagging her children to eat something other than cheese.

About the Book

Losing My Breath by J. Rose Black
Publication date: November 8th 2023
Genres: Adult, Comedy, Contemporary, Romance

A Marine never says die.
Neither does his princess.

Battle lines are drawn when sheltered debutante Meridian Daly moves across the hall from grumpy former special forces Marine Callan Brand. Situated a bit closer than advertised to ‘crime alley’, Meridian’s neighbor finds himself grudgingly guarding the pampered princess out of habit. But with her sharp wit and killer curves, he can’t help but surrender to temptation…

When their relationship evolves from casual courtship to something more, Callan finds that Meridian’s already discovered his closely-guarded secret. But can he let go of his pride, and tell her the whole truth of who he is and what he’s done—in the name of honor and country?

As Callan’s scars start to reveal themselves, his life spirals beyond the careful control that’s helped him survive—and kept those he cares about safe.

From him.

But this tough-in-a-tiara princess won’t back down, even in Callan’s darkest hours. And Meridian just might prove to be more tenacious than a never-say-die Marine!

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