Jean-Luc rose early the next morning. He planned to make breakfast for the family and wanted to surprise Beverly with his cooking skills. With the luxury of replicators aboard the Enterprise, Jean-Luc had never needed to cook and so it was nice to be able to show off his culinary flair. Pulling on his dressing gown, he went out into the hallway and tip-toed down the stairs. From Robert's endless moaning he knew that Marie was a light sleeper and would wake at the slightest sound.
As he reached the bottom of the stairs, he could smell burnt toast and wondered if Marie had beaten him to making breakfast. He approached the kitchen and was greeted by a scene of complete destruction. For a moment, he thought Robert had gone against Marie's orders to stay out of her kitchen until he saw his young nephew stood on a stool. Jean-Luc grimaced as his foot stood in something cool, sticky, and wet. He looked down and saw that a egg had rolled off the side, cracking its contents all over the floor.
"Rene," said Jean-Luc as he looked around for something to wipe the offending egg off his foot, "what are you doing?"
Rene whirled around, nearly dropping a glass container of sugar as he did. He gingerly stepped down off the stool and looked down at his messy hands.
"I thought I would take Beverly breakfast in bed," he mumbled as he shifted from one foot to the other.
Jean-Luc smiled at his nephew's uneasiness and sort to put him at ease. "That is very nice of you."
Rene looked up from his hands and beamed at his uncle. He was relieved that it had been his uncle rather than his mother who had discovered him in the kitchen. If his mother had found him, he would have been crashed out there quicker than he could say 'Enterprise'. She would have stopped his pocket money as well.
"Does she like pancakes?" asked Rene.
"Beverly prefers something light for breakfast," answered Jean-Luc as he began to make a start on cleaning the flour-caked surfaces of the kitchen. "We had better clean this up before you mother comes down."
Working together as a team, they managed to clean the kitchen quickly. Jean-Luc came across the breakfast tray Rene had been preparing for Beverly. Two misshapen pancakes had been placed on a plate along with some maple syrup. His eyes fell upon a cup of coffee. On closer inspection, Jean-Luc discovered that it was stone cold.
"Rene, when did you make this?" Jean-Luc asked.
"A few minutes ago," answered Rene.
"It's cold," said Jean-Luc, dipping his finger into the cup to show him.
"Merde!" cursed the young boy.
"Rene, language," warned Jean-Luc, pulling himself up straight.
"Sorry," mumbled Rene. "I forgot to boil the water."
Jean-Luc raised an eyebrow as he watched Rene pick up the cup and throw the contents down the sink. He remembered doing something similar when he had been a young boy. It had involved tea and he had been slightly younger.
"Why don't we prepare breakfast for everyone," suggested Jean-Luc.
"Okay," said Rene, perking up.
"Does Monsieur Du Pointe still come by with the fresh bread from bakery?" enquired Jean-Luc.
"He has a little stall out near the bridal track," replied Rene. "Mother sends me down to get croissants sometimes."
Jean-Luc thought for a moment before disappearing upstairs. He reappeared a few moments later and handed Rene some money.
"Go and get croissants," he said. "I'll set about making the coffee and the rest of the breakfast."
Rene took the money and dashed out of the house. Jean-Luc watched him disappear down the lane before turning his attention to brewing fresh coffee. Unlike his nephew, he made sure to boil the water. Jean-Luc knew that Robert liked a hearty start to the morning so he began frying some eggs, bacon, and sausages while making porridge for Marie. Rene returned carrying a bag of fresh croissants and placed them on the table before he went about setting the table.
"Jean-Luc, you didn't have to do this," came Marie's voice from the staircase.
"Come and sit down," he replied as he set the coffee pot down on the table. "Rene helped."
Marie looked over at her son and smiled softly. She was beginning to like the helpful side he was showing. She would have to have guests more often. Marie reached across and picked up the sugar and sprinkled some on top of her porridge. Beverly made her entrance into the kitchen and greeted them all with a pleasant good morning. Jean-Luc pulled out a chair for her while Rene disappeared to see where Robert had got to. Jean-Luc sat down beside Beverly and whispered his own personal good morning. Robert and Rene joined them at the table and began to dig into the breakfast Jean-Luc had prepared.
"The bacon is a little tough," said Robert as he chewed.
"Don't be ungrateful," warned Marie as she shot an apologetic look towards Jean-Luc.
Jean-Luc didn't seem to be playing much attention to his brothers breakfast complaints as he was in deep conversation with Beverly. Marie watched with amusement as her brother-in-law and his delightful companion filled each other's plate for one another without being prompted. She suppressed a giggle as she watched them share the same coffee cup throughout the breakfast without even realising.
After breakfast, Beverly insisted on helping Jean-Luc with the washing and drying up, leaving Marie with nothing else to do but watch them. She had never seen Jean-Luc so comfortable around another person before. Her brother-in-law seemed to relax and come into his own when with Beverly Crusher. It was a joy to see and Marie only hoped that they would grow closer, more intimate. What they shared was beyond friendship. It was almost like a marriage without the marriage bed. She couldn't but wonder what was keeping them apart. She had learnt over the years to let Jean-Luc come to her if he needed to talk about anything. He didn't call on her much because most of the things he had gone through he had been able to turn to Beverly. However, there was one subject that he could not talk about to Beverly and that was Beverly. Marie had lost count of the times she had tried to pry information regarding the redhead. He would begin to open his heart, but then would suddenly clam up and invent another call coming through.
Maybe it was time to have a girlie chat with Beverly Crusher.
"I promised Beverly a tour of the vines after breakfast," said Jean-Luc as he put a hand on his sister-in-law's shoulder. "Would you like to come?"
"No, you two go," she said with a smile. "I need to make a cake for Cecile Du Maurier's birthday."
"Ah," he said as he dropped a kiss on her cheek. "We'll both see you later on."
Marie nodded and watched them go back stairs to freshen up and change. Maybe they could grow closer during the tour of the vines. She would make sure she would see them as soon as they returned from their tour. Jean-Luc deserved some happiness in his life. He had lived his dream but it was a lonely dream. Maybe it was time for him to find a new dream and share it with someone. That someone was Beverly.
Her thoughts were broken into by the very two people she had been thinking about. They had come back down into the kitchen and said their goodbyes before setting off down the path towards the vineyard.