It had been an intimate but beautiful ceremony. The matured couple, Abraham Morgan and the former Fawn Mahoney Ames, presented well. It was Abe's third time around after two failed marriages to, and divorces from, the same woman, Maureen; and Fawn's second after the death of her husband of nearly 40 years, Lyle.

Fawn and Lyle had married shortly after his return from a stint in Vietnam even though they both knew that Abe had held her affections first. She'd loved Lyle but not that special til-death-do-us-part kind of love. That had crept up on her while pregnant with their first child, Tim. It was full speed ahead from there, as Lyle, a retired Navy veteran, liked to say.

Although his GI benefits had allowed him to obtain an AA degree as a Veterinary Assistant, he'd elected to open up a pizza parlor instead. She fondly recalled her initial confusion and his simple explanation: "What the hey? Everybody likes pizza. Ya can't go wrong." She remembered his joking response when she'd asked, "What about the animals"? He'd looked at her, shrugged and said, "Let 'em make their own pizza." Then he'd ducked to avoid her playful swipe at his head and bearhugged her into a passionate kiss.

The one pizza parlor eventually burgeoned into a string of five spread across the Bowery and into adjoining neighborhoods. Her income as a high school history teacher along with his, had allowed a comfortable life for them and their three children, Tim, Jeffrey, and Tina.

From time to time he'd pondered the fate of his boyhood friend, Abe Morgan. Fawn had done the same because even though Lyle was her loving husband of many years, Abe still stood out as the boy she'd shared her first kiss with. The memory, tucked securely into a special part of her heart, slumbered during those happy years with Lyle. When a heart attack had suddenly taken him from her two years earlier, the pain of her loss had done more to deepen the memory's slumber.

The first year after his death, her heart healed enough to allow the memory to gradually peek out through dwindling feelings of guilt. Every once in a while she'd pulled it out and examined it as if it were a beautiful gem. After all, it was a beautiful memory...at least for her. She hadn't seen Abe in years and believed that she probably never would again. Just as she'd resigned herself to a predictable life of work, church, bingo, and a yearly 50's/60's/70's Dance Party cruise, she'd accidentally run into Abe at an open air market.

Phone calls that had at first allowed them to fill each other in on their years apart from each other, led to coffee dates, then dinner dates, and then serious discussions surrounding their growing love for each other. It was a blissful time and made her feel...young again. It was impossible to feel any other way in the face of Abe's energetic nature and adventurous spirit.

Abe, ever the optimist, had finally won the hand of his beloved Fawn. The redheaded girl who'd gotten away from him so many years ago when his parents had suddenly whisked him and a few of their belongings off to Denmark. He'd pouted and sulked for weeks but, as always with one of their impromptu moves, he'd eventually made friends and adjusted to his new surroundings. He'd also gotten a good grasp of the language after nightly sessions with Dad.

After he'd run into Fawn on a chance visit to an open air market, they'd happily chatted with each other and he'd almost forgotten the reason for his visit there in the first place: tomatoes and mushrooms. They were necessary ingredients for the special sauce his deceased mother's lasagne recipe called for. His father had noticed the extra spring in his step and Abe had gushed like a schoolboy with his first crush. She had been...was...his first crush. Then his father had said something to him that he'd never been aware of.

"Abe, Fawn is a redhead, as is Maureen. Is it possible that your two marriages to her failed because ... she wasn't Fawn?"

Abe now recalled the revelation as he looked lovingly at his new bride. 'Mrs. Fawn Morgan.' He beamed proudly as he pulled her close and kissed her. Again.

"Abe, do you think all this PDA from a baby boomer couple is grossing out the younger folks?"

"I don't care if it is." He gave her a quick peck on the lips. "Besides, they can learn a thing or two."

She laughed softly. "Oh, Abe." She followed his gaze to Henry as he approached them and came to stand near them.

He clasped his hands behind his back. "Mrs. Morgan, you look lovely." He smiled as he bowed his head slightly.

"Oh, I love the sound of that, Henry. Mrs. Morgan." The three of them smiled contentedly.

The two men fondly gazed at each other and smiled, their eyes misting over.

"Your mother would be proud," Henry said, his voice thick with emotion.

"Thanks, Henry," Abe quietly replied.

Henry's smile faltered somewhat and he lowered his eyes.

Fawn tugged at Abe's arm and whispered, "There's no one within earshot, Abe. It's okay to...he's your father, Abe," she gently urged him. She'd been made privy to the true nature of their father/son relationship as she and Abe had planned their futures together. He'd told her that there was a family secret he needed to share with her. Nothing illegal or dangerous, he'd assured her. But since it wasn't his secret to tell, he'd convinced his father to join him in the revelation. Some fractured memories from her childhood regarding Abe and his parents suddenly took clearer form which had allowed her to be more receptive than either of them could have imagined.

Over the past six months, she'd managed to fold the two men's unorthodox lifestyle into her own as they both took permanent residence in her heart. And whenever she'd listened with closed eyes to their banter, it was clear to her that Henry's voice weilded the parental authority.

Abe cleared his throat and placed his hand on Henry's shoulder. "Sorry, Dad. And, and thanks."

It took all of Henry's will power not to embrace his son. Instead, he patted him on the back and whispered, "It's alright, Abraham. I understand."

He stepped closer to Fawn and took her hand in his. "And you, young lady." He raised her hand and pressed it to his lips.

She chuckled and looked at Abe. "How charming."

Abe playfully rolled his eyes. "Yeah, a real charmer." He wagged his finger at his father. "Look, why don't you level that im- (he caught himself) - charm of yours at someone else?"

It was Henry's turn to roll his eyes. "Any suggestions?"

Abe slowly tilted his head and his gaze across the well-manicured lawns to Jo Martinez. She stood alone at the edge of a man-made pond as she watched the interplay of a gaggle of geese.

Henry followed his gaze and once he saw Jo, he inhaled deeply and then out through his mouth. "She doesn't want anything to do with me, Abe. She's made it quite clear she ... she ..."

"She said she needed time." He put up a hand to stop Henry from interrupting. "Henry ... Dad ... it's been two months."

"Two and one half," Henry corrected.

"And yeah, who's counting, right?"

Henry frowned and pulled his lips in but didn't respond.

Abe pressed on. "You guys used to flit around each other like bees around honey."

Henry turned his face away from them to hide his blush. "A-Abraham, please..."

"You may have all the time in the world but she doesn't!" Abe wagged his finger at his father again.

"Lower your voice, please, Abraham, and do not take that tone with me," Henry rasped, his eyes dark with disapproval.

Fawn felt it was time for her to add her voice. "Henry?" she gently interrupted.

Both men riveted their full attention to her.

"You may think she's not interested, but it looks to me that she's made sure you've seen her. And according to my book of flirting, she's saying, "Here I am, Baby. Come and Take Me."

"Fawn ... " Abe drew out as he chuckled and shook his head.

Henry frowned in confusion. "I'm ... sorry, but your reference escapes me."

"Just go and talk to her, Dad. Fawn's right; she's not running away." Henry protested and Abe grabbed his shoulders from behind and gently pushed him in Jo's direction. "Go. Ah, Ah. Go talk to her." Henry tried to turn around but Abe pushed a little harder. "Go - Dad." Henry finally took a deep breath and walked hesitantly at first, then more measuredly towards Jo.

Abe shooed him off with one hand and shook his head. "Yeah. Finally."

Fawn came up alongside him and hooked her arm around his. She smiled as she watched Henry, her new father-in-law (immortal father-in-law), close the distance between the female detective and himself. "You guys are too much, I swear." Abe grumbled something about his father being too much, not him.

"You're so cute together," she gushed, squeezing his arm. Abe grumbled that his father's behavior was not cute, and he'd cornered the market on stubbornness.

"Oh, look," Fawn gushed again. "They're talking."

"Yeah, I just hope he doesn't blow it again." But Abe couldn't help but smile as he looked at Fawn and then back at his father and Jo.

vvvv

Jo Martinez stood at the edge of the man-made pond that beautifully reflected the afternoon sun's rays. She was a bit awestruck at the sight of two young geese as they battled each other, only to have an older one swim over and put a halt to it. 'Wow, just like humans: two kids fighting and the parent breaks it up.'

"Geese are waterfowl belonging to the tribe Anserini of the family Anatidae."

The deep, smooth voice was unmistakable with its accent and lecturing tone. She tilted her head upwards and slowly exhaled.

"This tribe comprises the genera Anser (the grey geese)-"

"Henry."

" - Branta (the black geese) and Chen (the white geese)."

She turned around to face him as he slowly approached her with raised eyebrows, his hands clasped behind his back. "A lecture, Henry? Really?"

He slowly stepped closer, a smug smile on his lips. "Some other birds, mostly related to the shelducks, have 'goose' as part of their names."

"O-kay, professor," she said with a smile.

He gesticulated now with that lopsided grin as he continued. "More distantly related members of the family Anatidae are swans-"

She crossed her arms across her chest and tilted her head to the side. "Um-hmm."

" - most of which are larger than true geese, and ducks, which are smaller." He rocked forward a couple of times on his tiptoes, hands clasped behind him.

She squinted at him. "Are we on National Geographic Hidden Camera?"

He faced her now and bowed from the waist, his right arm extended to the side, his smile dazzling.

"Lecture over?" she playfully implored.

He turned his head to the side and with a raised finger said, "Well, I could also add-"

She put up a hand to stop him. "Don't. I'm up to speed on geese now. Okay?"

He dropped his hand and dipped his head. As she turned back towards the geese and the pond, so did he. They both stood and watched for a few moments. Jo was the first to break the awkward silence. She lowered her eyes and studied her hands on the wooden railing.

"I didn't know what to say to you." She licked her lips and swallowed, her throat dry. "I didn't ... "

She took a couple of deep breaths and cleared her throat. "It's all so ... everything you told me, it's, it's - "

"Unbelievable," he finished for her. Looking at her, he added, "I know." He turned his gaze again to the pond and the geese as he gripped the rail to steady his breathing. "I still struggle sometimes with just how unbelievable it all is. If there were some way that I could change things ... " His voice cracked as it trailed off. "But - so far - I haven't been able to do that."

"I know, Henry. I know," she told him softly and placed her hand on top of his. "You're my best friend, you finally opened up to me and shared you great secrets and I, I flaked out on you."

"No, Jo," he interrupted. "I'm the one who flaked out on you for such a long time with all the lies and deception."

"So it's agreed: we're both flakes." She managed a smile and wiped away an errant tear.

He lowered his head and chuckled. He reached into his jacket pocket and took out a handkerchief and gave it to her.

"Thank you," she said. Looking at the cloth in her hand to see the ornately embroidered initials on one corner: H.M., she squeezed her hand around it. "Embroidered initials. Only you, Henry." She shook her head and smiled.

"One must always keep up appearances," he told her with a look of seriousness that slowly morphed into a warm smile which she quickly returned.

"Forgive me?" she sorrowfully asked as she looked deeply into his eyes.

It was enough to undo him. Right there in front of God and everybody, he wanted to, needed to, embrace her and kiss her - until time stopped. He finally found the power of speech again.

"Jo, you have done nothing to warrant forgiveness from me," he said with all sincerity. She opened her mouth to reply but he cut her off.

"However, if you truly mean to make amends, I do have a suggestion." A mischevious smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. Her eyes widened with anticipation.

He held out a crooked arm to her and she wrapped her arm around it as she smiled and shook her head at this impossibly handsome, incredibly charming immortal man. How was it, she marveled, that their paths ever even crossed? And how lucky she was, she told herself, that they had.

They walked towards the valet parking booth as he went into lecture mode, this time about a certain little Italian restaurant that served the best cannelloni he'd tasted since Roosevelt was president. Teddy Roosevelt, that is.

Oh, my God, she thought. But she knew that she'd better get used to more stories like this because she was sure that he had a million or more to share. And she couldn't wait to hear them. She couldn't help but notice how nicely he fit into his perfectly tailored suit. It was more modern than the tux with tails he'd worn earlier in the year to the department's New Year's Eve party. But she had to admit that he looked hot in both. He looked hot in anything. She enjoyed seeing how happy and relaxed he was as he described in detail the restaurant's ambiance and delicious menu items.

While they waited for the valet to bring Jo's car around, his peripheral vision drank her in. He didn't trust himself to face her full on, afraid he'd never be able to take his eyes off of her. And he wasn't sure what his hidden desire for her would lead him to do, either. This liaison, this truce(?) was tentative, at best, and he didn't want to push the boundaries.

A warm breeze gently pushed her long, dark tresses to the side, revealing the swan-like beauty of her neck and bare shoulders. His heart raced as the breeze also allowed her shapely form to emerge from under the whispery fabric of her formal. She was simply stunning. But her soft characteristics melded nicely with her stronger ones. Her explosive combination of beauty and brains both overwhelmed and delighted him. He was a fool, he realized, to have waited so long to tell her. From now on, he vowed to do everything within his power to keep her in his life and enveloped in his love.

The valet finally brought the car to them and right before they got in, he spun her around, looked her in the eyes and throatily declared, "I'm going to kiss you, Jo Martinez. Right here in front of God and everybody. What do you say to that?"

Surprised, she hesitated at first, then said, "Amen."

As their lips met and their arms encircled one another, a luscious excitement warmed them from head to toe. A bevy of onlookers erupted in cheers and applause, including Abe and Fawn and the rest of their wedding guests.

Abe watched them as they finally drove off in Jo's car. He and Fawn waved to them as he whispered under his breath, "Way to go, Pops."

Notes:

Fawn's character appeared in "The Man in the Killer Suit" episode.

Information about geese was found at wiki/Goose