Okay, so this is my first attempt at Hart to Hart fanfiction…I haven't seen all of the episodes, so don't be too harsh. If there are any glaring errors, in grammar or information, please, feel free to IGNRORE them. Consider this a un-betaed, slightly AU story.

Oh, and don't expect super regular updates…or long ones like this.

Thanks,

The Management AKA Agent Striker

The summer of 1968 was hot and dry. The heat wasn't unusual for California, but the raging drought had farmers up and down the state worried. But the drought didn't really play a huge roll in the story that would unfold that summer on a successful Thoroughbred farm in the southern part of the state.

Three people, a runaway, a trust fund baby, and a man with a head for business, spent ninety-one and a half summer days together on that farm, or 'The Ranch' as they called it. Of course, there were a lot more than three people that came and went on the farm, not to mention the seventy some horses, but this trio formed quite a bond.

Two fell in love. One was trusted with a secret so great, it ate at his soul until he shared it. All three grew in more ways than imaginable that summer. When a disaster split them on the final day of August, a sunny Saturday, they would carry the memories wherever they went.

One rose from nothing to a man of power and wealth, but remained solid and humble. The other man spent the rest of that year and much of the next searching for the runaway, but returned home the prodigal son. He kept in touch with the successful one, and they both seemingly moved on. But neither forgot the little runaway. The runaway with the voice of an angle and a talent for verse was the only one who didn't make it anywhere in the world.

Years later, eleven to be precise, these people came back together, bringing their new lives…ones that revolved around that summer in surprising ways.

It started with the runaway, Penny was her name, literally running into the beautiful wife of the man with the head for business.

"Oh geeze, I am so sorry!" The lean, blonde haired, green-eyed woman said in horror as she bent to help the red head she had knocked to the ground up.

With a smile worthy of royalty, the red head dusted off her clothes and stood without assistance, "It's my fault, I wasn't watching where I was going."

From behind thick, black-rimmed glasses, the blonde carefully took in the other woman. Dressed in a simple, but classy and expensive skirt with a bright white blouse, it was obvious she wasn't just some tourist who stopped to look around the barn. "You're one of the people interested in investing in the barn, aren't you?"

"Actually, yes. My husband and I-"

The other woman cut off the finely dressed one, "Oh man, I am so sorry. If my boss finds out I bowled over an investor, I'll be deader than a doornail. Is there anyway that that you won't say anything?"

"Oh, there's nothing to tell. I'm fine, I don't see any reason why he would have to know."

Letting out a deep breath, the blonde grinned, revealing two dimples, "Thanks so much. This job is all I got," she looked past the redhead's shoulder, "And speak of the devil, here he comes. I'd better get going."

Spinning, the woman jogged down the hall and out of sight. Watching her leave, Jennifer Hart's journalist side wanted to follow and question the woman further. Long and lean, her long blonde hair was tied back from her face and what was left of a tattered t-shirt turned tank top (which didn't cover very much), showed off her tanned, muscular arms (and her red bra) and a spider-web like scar on her right shoulder. Long legs clad in faded jeans, she was entirely too tall to be a jockey, so she must have been a barn hand. Considering everyone else she'd met that worked at Levi Lawton's ranch was of Hispanic decent, it was an interesting sight.

Shrugging, she turned back to the approaching figures of her husband and Levi Lawton himself.

"-gonna have close to thirty foals on the ground by this time next year. That's a twenty percent increase from last year. We're a quickly growing establishment."

Jonathan Hart nodded, "And you're mostly involved with the racing industry?"

Lawton nodded, "Yep. We do have a small herd of Western Pleasure Quarter Horses, too. Our goal is to be proficient in both the Thoroughbredand Quarter Horse worlds."

"That's an interesting combination," Jonathan commented as he took in the clean straw smell of the barn.

Levi launched into a long, drawn out explanation that basically said that he liked Quarter Horses and Thoroughbreds, but neither of the Harts were really listening.

Jennifer was thinking that the ranch was very…well, ranch like. It had the sturdy white wood fences that camouflaged the electric fence surrounding the seemingly endless green pastures, which she assumed were irrigated, and the barn was square and red. The horses grazed tranquilly or loped gently in groups of three or four, painting an idyllic picture. Behind the log ranch house where the help slept was a brand new, two-mile track in dirt with a mile-and-a-half grass track inside of it. Everything was spick-and-span and running perfectly. She liked the farm a lot, she could see it would make a good investment.

Jonathan on the other hand, was lost in a memory of a farm that could have been this one's twin. All that was missing was the sound of the radio and a voice singing along with every song…

A loud, pulsing rock song blared out of the radio as a younger Jonathan Hart strolled down the cool aisle of a barn, just out of the throbbing heat of the California sun.

"Hello?" he called out. Getting no reply, he yelled louder, "Hello? Is anybody here?"

A voice directly behind him speaks, startling him, "Why ya' yelling, I'm right here."

Spinning around, Jonathan comes face to face with a young teenaged girl with thick glasses that accentuated her green eyes. Her blonde hair was long, nearly to her waist even with it tied up in a ponytail. Dressed in a snug tank top that showed off her non-existent curves and worn English riding breeches, she was drenched in sweat with bits of hay sticking out of her hair…and she didn't smell overly pleasant.

"What?" The girl's irritated voice cut through his inspection and he realized he was staring.

"Oh, sorry. My name is Jonathan Hart. I was wondering if there was anyone I could speak to about getting a job."

The girl was studying him now, looking at his worn button-down, jeans, boots, and unshaved face. He had a small duffle bag holding all of his worldly positions but nothing else. "Why do you want a job here? Let me tell you, the pay sucks."

Jonathan shrugged, "I need the money and this seemed like the best option."

The girl thought for a minute, "Since the only other job in this metropolis is in the thriving garbage collection industry, you're probably right. Go up to the house and see Joe. He'll find something for ya' to do."

A smile stretched across his handsome face, "Thanks. What'd you say your name was again?"

"I didn't," she snapped. But she glanced at his face and reneged with a deep sigh, "But it's Penny."

Still smiling, Jonathan mock saluted her and turned towards the house, "Just what I need, a lucky Penny."

He didn't know why then, but she had started to laugh, long and hard, almost mocking him. Turning away, she muttered something that he didn't quite catch, but sounded like she said she wasn't any sort of lucky.

Odd, he thought, wonder what her story is.

Half an hour later, the couple bid goodbye to the chatty Levi Lawton and ambled back towards their car in the late afternoon sunshine. "So what do you think?" Jennifer asked, looping her arm through her husband's, who seemed to be lost in thought.

"Hmm? Sorry darling, I didn't catch what you said."

Stopping, Jennifer looked closely at Jonathan's face, "Are you feeling all right? You haven't been acting yourself all afternoon."

Bighting up, more for Jennifer's benefit, he smiled his wide, slow smile, "This place just reminded me of something."

"What?"

Tugging on her arm, Jonathan began to walk towards the car again, "Did I ever tell you about the summer of '68?"

Jennifer shook her head, "No, what about it?"

Smiling wistfully, Jonathan stopped to survey the fields of horses, "It was right before I started the company…

Working part time in Santa Ana after leaving the Navy was not nearly as lucrative as Jonathan Hart had hoped it would be. He was working his way up to his monetary goal, along with some help from a good friend; he was only four hundred dollars from his mark.

But waiting tables would take him the rest of the summer and fall to make that much money. So he'd come up with a plan, one that seemed fool proof. He would take four hundred dollars of his savings and drive the seventy odd miles to Del Mar Race Track and play the ponies.

It seemed so fool proof, he'd been listening to his friend Max talk about betting for eons. It would be easy enough to find a good horse and double his money. He quit his job; gathered up his money, his meager positions and lit off for Del Mar on the eight thirty bus.

It was the first race of the season, right at the end of May. The weather couldn't have been more perfect, clear bright blue skies, fast track, and a slight breeze. Deciding to play it safe for the first set of the races, Jonathan bet fifty dollars on the horse with the best odds.

It paid off, he did double his money. The next four races however, didn't go nearly as well. He ended up loosing it all. Five hundred and fifty dollars lost. Instead of being four hundred dollars from his goal, he was now nine hundred and fifty dollars away.

Head in his hands, he sat on the curb next to his bag, castigating himself for his own greed. If he'd just taken extra tips or gotten another job, he wouldn't be in this mess. What is wrong with me? he'd asked himself. I've really screwed up this time.

He couldn't borrow any more money, his pride wouldn't allow it and nobody's pockets were deep enough to help him out of this jam. The wind picked up then, bringing along with it dark storm clouds and a forgotten map.

Stuffing the map into his pocket, Jonathan started towards the highway in hopes of getting a ride. As luck would have it, an older gentleman on his way to a small town by the name of Tippin picked him up.

After giving the man a shortened version of his plight, the man nodded sympathetically. "Been in tight places like that myself. Maybe I can help you find a job."

"Really?"

The man nodded, "There's a Thoroughbred farm on the outskirts of town, they're always looking for hardworking men around this time of year. The summer is always busy; I'm sure they'll take you. I'll drop you off right at the gate, I drive right past."

And that's how Jonathan Hart ended up at The Double S Ranch the summer of '68.

"You never told me you worked at a Thoroughbred farm!" Jennifer said in surprise after he finished his story.

Jonathan shrugged, frowning again, "It's kind of a bittersweet memory…that summer didn't end well."

The look on her husband's face told Jennifer not to press the subject any further. The two stood next to their car in silence for a few minutes before Jonathan spoke again, "That's how I met Ted, you know."

"Ted Maslow?" Jennifer asked in surprise.

Smiling, Jonathan nodded, "You wouldn't have liked him back then, he was truly a spoiled, daredevil of a trust fund baby."

It was hard to image the gentle, intelligent Theodore P. Maslow III as being a daredevil, spoiled, or a baby. At thirty-one, he was one of the kindest people she knew, also one of the least likely to flaunt his wealth, "Really?"

"Oh yeah. He was a handful. But Penny put him in his place pretty quickly."

"Who's Penny?"

"She worked at the barn and lived on the top bunk in our room. Very musical. She could drum up a song, music and all, without being able to read or write a note of music."

The sadness was back in his eyes as he spoke about Penny. Gently, Jennifer probed a little deeper, "What happened to Penny?"

"I don't know. She- wait, what's that?" Jonathan's head swiveled around towards one of the smaller barns.

Jennifer paused to listen, "Sounds like a radio."

"I know that song," Jonathan said slowly, following the sound of the voice.

"Darling-"

"You do hear it, right?" Jonathan asked, pausing to wait for his wife.

"Yes, I hear it. Jonathan, what is the matter?"

But he wasn't listening any more, he was following the voice. Because it wasn't a radio playing, it was someone singing.

"So I labor for hours 'cause I know the power,

Of a song when a song hits you right,"

It was like a memory coming back to life. Pushing the door open softly, he followed the voice as it grew louder.

"Pouring my soul into stories of life,
Hoping someone'll hear one tonight,"

At the end of the barn, the same blonde haired woman Jennifer had truly run into was cleaning wet, foul, straw from one of the stalls, making it look effortless. She kept singing, unaware that she was being observed by one confused person and one that couldn't believe his eyes.

"Maybe my voice will cut through the noise,
And stir up an old memory,

And out of these piano keys,

Comes the sound, the sound of a million dreams."

"Penny?"

Spinning around, the woman audibly gasped when her eyes found Jonathan Hart's face in the semi-darkness of the barn. She stood transfixed and speechless as Jonathan took a few steps closer.

Across one cheek was a smudge of dirt, and it was almost like the last time he saw her.

The small motel room in town that they were staying at was dark and still reeked of the smoke from the fire. Jonathan lay stretched out on one of the small double beds, Ted on the other, and Penny was sleeping in the bathtub for some unknown reason. He had nearly dozed off when the sound of the door to the hallway opening startled him.

He sat up just in time to catch a glimpse of Penny slipping out to the hall. Sitting up quickly, he silently made his way across the room so as not to wake Ted, who was snoring lightly.

Once outside, he jogged to the stairwell just as Penny let the door close behind her. "Penny, Penny, wait! Where are you going?"

With her jacket slung over her uninjured shoulder and a twenty-dollar bill clasped in her hand, it looked like Penny hadn't planned on coming back. She stopped but didn't turn around to face Jonathan, "I'm leaving."

"Why?" Jonathan asked, stepping forward to put his hand out to her.

Yanking away, Penny spun to face him, tears in her eyes and the soot from the fire still on her face. Her shirt was cut up to accommodate the bulky bandages and cast covering most of her shoulder and her left hand, and she was shaking. "I told you, it's all my fault! It's my fault they're all dead! If I hadn't-"

"Penny, it was not you fault," Jonathan said severely, "don't you dare think it was!"

The emotion drained from Penny's eyes, leaving emptiness behind that scared Jonathan, "If I hadn't run like I did, he would have come after me. Everything I told you about him and my life before was completely true. I have to stop him. No one else can."

"E, he's still your dad-"

Penny's hiss cut him off, "He may have fathered me, but he was no dad. He's a scum, bottom of the barrel. He promised that he'd kill me and take away every thing that I loved if he ever caught me. He kept his promise, now it's time I keep mine."

Jonathan shook his head sadly, "You didn't lose Ted. Or me."

She laughed sadly, "Thanks Jonny, that means a lot. But Ted doesn't give a damn about me. You're like a brother to me, but I have to do this."

"Ted loves you, and you know it."

"Lust and love are two different things."

Turning, Penny turned back towards the stairs, "Next time I see you, I'll pay you back, okay?"

"The money doesn't matter, E, don't do this," Jonathan begged, following the girl.

She stopped and took a deep breath, "Jon, I need to go. I've got to go back home and stop my father from ever hurting anyone again. Then I've got to get my life started. You and 'Trust Fund Baby' need to do the same. He's got a home to go back to, with a family that loves him. You've got the whole world at your fingertips. I know you're gonna make it big," she paused and turned back to him for the last time, "Don't worry about me."

Then she was gone, running down the stairs and out the back exit into the sultry night.

"Penny Coen?"

As if shaking herself from a dream, the woman laughed dazedly, "Jonny Hart, been awhile."

"Eleven years."

She nodded, unsure what to say next. Jennifer cleared her throat, "Penny, is it? So we run into each other again, this time more figuratively."

Jennifer's voice seemed to snap both Jonathan and Penny from their memories. "Penny, this is my wife, Jennifer. Jennifer, this is Penny, the girl I was telling you about."

Penny wiped her dirty hand on her jeans before extending it to Jennifer, "Nice to meet you."

"What are you doing here, E?" Jonathan asked, fighting the urge to pinch him self to make sure this was all real.

"This is where I work," Penny said, looking down at her worn boots. She looked back at Jonathan and shook her head, "Well, I told you that you were gonna be somebody. A real big somebody."

Jonathan laughed, "You were always right about things like that. How've you been, have you worked here long?"

"I'm doing okay. I just moved back to the LA area, I've only been working here for a few months," Penny replied.

Jonathan smiled, "And you didn't come see me? I'm hurt."

Penny shrugged, "I may have driven past your impressive office building…and went inside and poked around a bit…not that that's stalker-ish or anything."

As she talked, Penny grew more and more comfortable, the girl that Jonathan remembered.

"What time are you done with work?" He asked a few minutes later.

Glancing at her bare wrist, Penny screwed up her face, deep in mock thought, "Hmm, five o'clock I think. Why do you ask?"

"How would you like to come and have dinner at our house?" Jonathan asked, glancing at his wife for confirmation, "We can catch up."

Jennifer nodded, as did Penny who said, "That's really nice of you to offer, especially since the cupboards are bare. I'd need to go home and clean up of course…"

"So how does six sound?" Jonathan asked, still grinning.

"Awesome. I will be there with bells on," Penny looked at Jonathan again, shaking her head, "This is all so crazy, isn't it?"

Jonathan nodded, his face solemn, "I never thought that I'd ever see you again."

Penny's face lit up in an expressive smile, "I told you not to worry."

Well there, first chapter! What do you think? Yay, nay, ehh. Review please!

~Striker

P.S. The song is not mine, nor was it around in 1968. It's The Sound Of A Million Dreams by David Nail. I liked it, so it is now in my story. But I own nothing.

~S