"You did? What did you buy me?"
"Well, I remembered that you loved this at your dad's house. And now that we have our own house, we can have one too".
"A horse?"
"No, not a horse".
"I have no idea".
"It goes on the porch".
"The porch. It goes on the porch…..". She suddenly turned to him and smiled.
"You got us a porch swing?"
He nodded.
She leaned over and kissed him.
"It will be delivered tomorrow, and we can put it wherever you want".
She rested her head on his shoulder while they drank their cocktails.
"How were things at the office today?"
"Fine. How did it go with the decorator?"
"Great, actually. I only made a few changes."
"Like what?"
"Like I swapped our nightstands in our bedroom with the ones from the guest room because I figured we both needed the drawer space. And I moved my clothes to the closet next to yours, and put our luggage in the closet I was using. And I rearranged my office a little. That's all".
"Sounds wonderful".
She put her hand on his chest.
"What do you want for dinner, honey?"
"Want to take a drive up the coast in your new car and see what we find?"
"Sure".
She went and changed into destructed skinny jeans, wedges, and a cold-shoulder top and was ready to go.
He tossed her the keys and she drove them up the coast, until they found a little hole in the wall restaurant named Fuego Taco Company.
She pulled them in and parked, and they went inside.
They stuffed themselves with tacos and Mexican rice and danced for hours to the live music.
She was a little tipsy from the margaritas, so he drove them home.
On the way home, she saw something on her side of the road.
"Honey, can you pull over? I want to check that out".
He pulled the car over and they walked back to see what it was.
It was a gorgeous open-air church with a gorgeous view of the ocean. She counted the rows and realized it would hold about 300 people, and because it was open air, they could add chairs to the sides if needed.
"Honey, it's perfect!"
"What is?"
"This, this place! This is it. I want to get married here".
"Jennifer, it's dark. We have no clue what this looks like in the day time".
"So, we'll come back tomorrow and see it in the daylight. Promise me we can add it to the list".
"We can add it to the list".
"Thank you!"
She was jumping up and down. She jumped up to kiss him.
She turned and leaned against him, and he wrapped his arms around her chest, and she grabbed his arm with hers.
"See honey, if we have a daytime wedding, we can do a flower arch and maybe hang some flower vines in the windows. And if we have a nighttime wedding, we could wrap lights around the structures and maybe some tulle…."
She was rambling on and on, and he just listened to her do it.
They walked back to the car, and he promised to have one of his employees figure out who to contact about it and they would go from there.
As they climbed into bed that night, she realized that for the first time in a very, very long time, she was truly happy.
***A week later***
Jennifer was at home, waiting on Jonathan to get home from the office. They were flying to her dad's house that night, and staying for a long weekend.
He got home at 11:45, and they headed to the airport.
They were on the plane, relaxing in the reclining seats when she turned to him.
"Honey, we are going to have to abstain this weekend".
"The whole time? We can't sneak away somewhere and…"
"Nope. My dad will flip out. He loves you, but trust me, it would be bad".
"After he goes to bed, we could go to the tv room…."
She shook her head.
"Walter's room is just down the hall".
She laced her fingers through his.
"I want to just as much as you want to, but trust me, we don't want to piss off my father."
"It's ok, I understand".
He leaned over and kissed her forehead.
She leaned her head against his shoulder and eventually nodded off.
He woke her up just before they landed.
About 45 minutes later, they were pulling up to her dad's house.
Walter came out to help them with their bags.
"Miss Jennifer! So glad to see you".
"Hi Walter! You look great".
Jennifer and Jonathan walked into the house hand in hand, and found Stephen sitting in the living room.
"Jennifer, sweetheart!"
"Hi Pa!"
She ran to him and gave him a huge hug.
"I've missed you".
"Jonathan my boy, always good to see you".
They shook hands and then Jennifer and Jonathan sat down on the couch.
"So, any wedding plans yet?"
"Well, I found this adorable little outdoor open-air chapel, in Los Angeles that I want us to get married in. But aside from that, nothing else has been planned".
"Well, I found out today that I will be out of the country until September, starting next month. I will be in London, and France, and possibly Italy".
"Well, then I guess we can have a September wedding".
She looked at Jonathan and he nodded.
"Fine with me".
Stephen got up and went to the desk, and came back with a box.
"Sweetheart, when your mother passed away, she left this box for you. It has some things she wanted you to have for your wedding".
He handed it to Jennifer.
She cautiously opened it and found a pair of diamond drop earrings, a linen hankie, and a bank book.
She handed the bank book to Jonathan, and held up the diamond earrings.
"These are beautiful".
"They were your grandmother's. Your mom wore them on our wedding day as did her mother before her".
"Well, I am happy to carry on the tradition".
"The bank book was money that she set aside before we married, and then after we had you, she wanted it to be added to your wedding fund. Let me give you the rest of your wedding fund".
He got up and went to the desk and got another bank book and brought it to her.
She opened it and raised her eyebrows.
"Whatever you don't spend of the wedding fund is yours to keep".
She showed Jonathan the amount.
"How much is in the other one?"
"Well darling, she put a substantial amount in an account that was gaining 20% annual interest. That was over 30 years ago. If the account is still earning 20% interest, there's enough in this account alone to pay off the national debt".
She chuckled.
"You can't be serious".
"Stephen, do you have a calculator?"
Stephen walked over to the desk and got one and handed it to him.
"Your mom deposited an initial investment of $45,000. It get's 20% interest per year, so that's around $9000 in just interest. So, right off the bat we are starting with $54,000. Multiply that by 30 years, and you have $1.6 million dollars and some change".
"So, we could have as lavish a wedding we want, or we could have a simple wedding and a lavish honeymoon. Or we could have a somewhat lavish wedding, and a somewhat lavish honeymoon".
"Jennifer, I can more than makeup the difference. We can literally have whatever type of wedding and honeymoon you want".
Walter came and told them that dinner would be ready in an hour.
"Splendid. I guess we should get ready".
They all stood up, and walked over to the foyer to get their bags.
"Jennifer, you and Jonathan can take your room. The guest room isn't available this visit".
"Really?"
"Yeah, the roof is leaking in there. Plus, you two are engaged to be married, so you can stay together in your room".
"Ok".
Jennifer had a very skeptical look on her face.
They walked upstairs and went into her room, and put their bags down.
He shut the door behind them.
"I don't know what to think. Part of me is wondering if he hit his head".
"Babe, I think he realizes that you are a grown woman, and he probably realizes that we have already slept together at least once, and I mean, we are engaged to be married. Trying to keep us apart wouldn't be pleasant for any of us".
"That can't be it, though. You remember what he was like when we came home at Christmas. He wanted us to be together but he also told us no hankie pankie".
"Yeah, but babe, we weren't engaged then. I mean, if we were married, he would expect us to knock boots, would he not?"
"I guess you're right. I just never thought he would allow us to stay together. I don't buy that roof leaking bit for one second though".
"You don't?"
"No. Above the guest room is the attic, and there's a crawlspace above that. So, if the roof is leaking, it would have to leak through two floors before it got through the ceiling in that room".
"How do you know that there's a crawl space up there?"
"I used to hide up there when I was a kid".
"Jennifer, do you know how dangerous that was? Crawlspaces aren't meant to hold the weight of a person for a long-extended time".
"You sound just like my father".
"Yeah, well, he was trying to protect you, and if something bad had happened to you, we might have never met".
"You could be engaged to Lindsay".
"Bite your tongue".
She stood on her tip toes and kissed him.
"We better start getting ready".
She opened her suitcase and unzipped the garment bag.
She held up two dresses.
"Which one, honey?"
"You look gorgeous in everything."
"Thank you. Which one?"
"Whichever you pick is going to be fine".
"Jonathan! Lavender or green?"
"Green".
"Thank you".
She quickly undressed and slipped on some black lace panties and a black lace strapless bra, before putting her dress on. It was a simple bright green dress, v-neck with green lace cap sleeves, and a white lace trim.
She paired the dress with black heels, and then stepped over to her vanity to freshen up her makeup.
After Jonathan was dressed, they walked downstairs.
Walter had made them some of Jennifer's favorites- Maryland Crab Cakes, tomato, cucumber and avocado salad, and steamed artichokes with lemon dipping sauce.
"Looks great, Walter".
"Thank you, Walter".
Jennifer turned towards Jonathan.
"Do you like Crab cakes, honey?"
"Yes, actually. Max has one of the best recipes around for crab cakes".
"As does Walter".
They told her father all about the proposal, and the new house.
"And he set me up a home office, so that I can work from home and do freelance".
"Well, that's wonderful, sweetheart."
After dinner, they moved to the living room and had a Brandy by the fireplace.
Jennifer looked through some wedding magazines she had brought with her, while Stephen and Jonathan talked conspiracy theories. She marked a few things she wanted, and made a few lists. By the time they were done talking about conspiracy theories, she pretty much had the wedding planned, she just didn't have any idea of what to do first.
"Well, I think I am going to head to bed. I will see you two in the morning".
"Good night, Pa".
"Good night Stephen".
Jennifer put her magazines on the table in front of her and turned to Jonathan.
"Honey, what did you find out about the church we found on the beach?"
"He's supposed to get back to me later this week".
"Great. As soon as we find out if we can use the church, then we need to set a date".
He leaned over and kissed the side of her head.
"Babe, did you happen to bring that black lace nightgown with you?"
"I might have".
"Want to put it on so we can snuggle by the fire?"
"Jonathan! Are you crazy? What if my dad comes out and catches us?"
"Does he ever come out after he's gone to bed?"
"I don't know. But I'm not taking any chances".
"You are so beautiful". He leaned over and kissed her.
"Thank you, but this isn't going to work".
He chuckled.
"Saw right through me, did you?"
"Crystal clear".
She leaned forward and kissed him.
"Want to go riding with me tomorrow? I can't wait to ride my new horse".
"Certainly".
He started nuzzling her neck.
"Speaking of riding…"
"Jonathan…this isn't the place for that".
"I can't help it… you have this effect on me".
"That's great, but this is still my father's living room, and unlike last time, he's right down the hall".
"That's the exciting part".
"You are so bad".
"And you love me anyway".
"That I do". She kissed him a few times.
She looked over and saw that the fire had died out.
She looked back at him.
"Are you ready for bed?"
"If you are".
She took his hand and they went upstairs.
After they were both changed for bed, she got out another quilt for the bed.
"Do you think one quilt will be enough?"
"For what?"
"To keep us warm".
"We can always use body heat".
"Jonathan, I'm being serious".
"Yes, one should be fine".
She folded it lengthwise and placed it along the foot of the bed.
They climbed into bed and she laid her head on his chest.
"I'm so thankful you and Pa get on so well".
"He's very intelligent and easy to talk to".
"So are you".
She started kissing his chest.
"I can't wait for our trip, just you and me and no interruptions".
"I can't wait to relax with you".
"Relaxation is definitely on the agenda".
"Glad to hear it. What else is on the agenda?"
"Whatever you want".
He rolled on top of her.
"What if I want some of this on the agenda?"
He captured her lips with his as he ran his hands up and down her body.
"If it's not on there, I'm not going".
She started scratching his back.
"Oh, that's definitely on the list".
She kissed him a few times.
"We have to be quiet, we don't want to wake up my father".
"Not a problem".
He planted a few kisses on her neck before lightly nibbling on her earlobe.
He reached down and squeezed her breasts as he kissed her, causing her to moan softly.
He moved his kisses down to her breasts, taking one in his mouth as he squeezed the other.
She arched her back in pleasure and threw her arms around his neck.
She rolled them till he was on his back, and climbed on top of him.
She yanked his pajama pants down his legs and tossed them on the floor. He swiftly pulled the nightgown off her and over her head.
She lowered herself onto him, as he reached up and wound her hair through his fingers, pulling her closer so he could kiss her passionately.
She began to move her hips up and down, as he squeezed her butt, pulling her as close to him as possible.
She leaned down and sucked his nipple, as her long red hair fell across his chest.
"Oh yeah, baby….just like that", he whispered.
He matched the movement of his hips with hers, as he leaned up and kissed her passionately.
"Faster baby".
"You feel so good".
"Oh god, I'm coming…..oh god, I'm coming".
"Come on darling".
He crushed his lips onto hers while he filled her, and drew her to him. She laid on his chest, in his arms, completely sated.
"You're amazing, babe".
"So are you".
She found his hand and laced her fingers through his and kissed his chest.
"I'm so glad your dad trusts us".
"Honey, I know that on the plane I said we would have to abstain. And I meant that. But you see, the truth is, you are just irresistible. And I think, maybe, I would have changed my mind".
"Oh, you think so?"
She nodded.
"So, all that talk on the plane was just…."
"I didn't think that my father would let us stay together. So, I had it in my mind that we might get to be together when we went riding. But, if he hadn't said we could stay together, and you had sneaked across the hall, I don't know that I would have said no".
"So, you find me irresistible?"
She nodded.
"Well, it just so happens that I find you irresistible as well. So, we are the perfect pair".
He kissed her passionately for several minutes before they fell asleep.
