The Next Morning
"Jonathan, it's the crack of dawn. It's so early, it's the crack of yesterday's dawn. Why are we leaving now?"
"Darling, I told you. I have a lot of business to attend to in a lot of different places. Now, I can go do what I need to do and leave you at the penthouse, or you can come with me and we can see each other each day. Your choice".
"I want to come with you, later".
He kissed the back of her hand.
"I'm sorry. I've never been a morning person".
"I know. It's one of the qualities I love the most about you".
They walked out of the lobby doors and got into the car from the car service. Jennifer curled up on his shoulder.
An hour later, they arrived at their first destination.
"Jonathan, this place looks familiar. Haven't we been here before?"
"I'm not sure".
They got out in front of a house and walked down a little path.
"What business do you have here?"
"I promised somebody I would test something for them".
He took her hand and they continued down the path, which Jennifer realized led to the ocean.
"I know where this is! This is the house we stayed in that weekend that Kyle and Lyndy brought us up here to ask us to be in their wedding".
"That's right."
They kept walking towards the beach and Jennifer realized there was a table for two set up on the beach.
"How about some breakfast?"
"Yes, please".
They had a lovely, romantic oceanfront breakfast on the shore, and then headed back to the car.
"What exactly were you trying out?"
"The delivery service that brought us our breakfast on the beach, darling".
"Ahh".
They rode back to the city, and headed straight to the airport.
They boarded Jonathan's plane, and got comfy.
An hour later, they were landing.
"Already?"
"Yes. This is the site of a meeting I have to attend".
"Oh, ok."
They took the car service to the same hotel they stayed at for Mallory and Grant's wedding.
"Ok darling. My meeting will be just down the street. So while I'm in my meeting, you get to enjoy a day at the Spa".
He handed her a gift certificate.
"There's enough on there for a manicure and pedicure, a facial, a deep tissue massage and for you to get your hair done".
She leaned over and kissed him.
"I'll come back and pick you up when I'm done with my meeting".
"Sounds good. I love you".
"I love you too".
They shared a few kisses and then she went right inside the spa.
Eight hours later
Jonathan came back and picked Jennifer up just as she was finished with her spa day.
"Hi handsome. You are right on time".
"Hi gorgeous. Have a good time?"
"The best".
They got back in the car and she was excited he had a meal waiting for them from her favorite Boston restaurant.
They headed back to the airport and boarded his plane again.
She was so distracted by getting their meals set up, that she didn't even ask where they were going.
They landed in California just after dinner time on the West Coast, which was almost midnight on the east coast.
When they landed, Jonathan's car was waiting for them with a note from Max on the dashboard.
Call Susan.
He picked up the car phone and began to dial.
"Jonathan, don't you think it's a bit late to make a phone call?"
"I'll be quick, darling. I have to see what she wants, it could be important".
Susan picked up on the second ring.
"Hey. The soup is hot".
"The pot is cold, but the pot isn't loaded".
"Wonderful. Thank you so much".
They discussed a few details and then Jonathan told her he would talk to her again soon.
"Jonathan, let me talk to her".
"Hang on, Jennifer wants to talk to you".
He passed the phone to Jennifer as they drove towards the house.
"Hey, I'm sorry he called you so late. Are you ok?"
"I'm fine. Everything's fine. I'm a night owl, so it's ok".
"Are you sure you're ok? You sound so strange".
"I'm fine, swear it".
"Ok great. Well, maybe we can have lunch soon".
"I would love that".
They hung up just as Jonathan pulled them up into the driveway.
"I am so tired, I just want to go to bed and sleep for days".
"What? I was hoping we could have some dessert. Max made us some brownies and he picked up those chocolate covered strawberries that you like".
"Oh darling, that's sweet, but I'm tired, honest. Let's save it for tomorrow, alright?"
"Ok, we can do that".
She kissed him and they headed inside.
Jennifer changed for bed as quick as lightning and climbed in. She was sound asleep by the time Jonathan climbed in bed.
He wrapped his arms around her, chuckled to himself about how different things had ended up that day, and fell asleep too.
The Next Morning
Jennifer woke up and went and made coffee. Max was coming in with donuts.
"Hey Miss Edwards".
"Hey Max".
"Where's Mr. H?"
"He's still asleep. We got in pretty late last night and went straight to sleep. We were both exhausted".
"You two went straight to sleep?"
"Yeah, we did."
Jonathan came into the kitchen then.
"Morning Max".
"Morning Mr. H."
"Morning darling".
"Morning".
He gave her a couple of kisses.
"Remember that surprise trip I told you about?"
"Yes, I do."
"We are leaving for it in 2 hours".
She squealed.
"What should I pack?"
"Clothes would be preferred".
"Jonathan! I mean, specifically, what should I pack?"
"Shirts, pants, underwear, pajamas…all the usual stuff".
"Jonathan! Would you be serious? Warm weather clothes, or cold-weather clothes? And no tricks".
"Warm weather clothes will do just fine".
"Thank you. I'm going to go pack".
Jonathan discreetly slipped a note to Max and then took his coffee to the bedroom.
Two Hours Later
Jonathan brought his and Jennifer's bags out of the bedroom and he and Max took them to the car.
"Max, did you make the phone call?"
"Yes. They said they don't do that anymore, Mr. H."
"Ok, I'll think of something".
"You always do".
Jennifer came out of the bedroom with a tote bag.
She quickly made them each a Bloody Mary, and then they hopped in the car.
"See you in a few days, Max".
"Have a good time, you two".
"Bye Max".
They had an uneventful flight to their destination, and when they landed, Jennifer turned to Jonathan.
"Do I get to know where we are?"
"Maui".
She squealed and kissed him.
After they were checked into their hotel, they went downstairs to look around the resort a bit.
"Darling, I want to step into the gift shop a minute".
"Ok, I'm going to talk to the manager about our room. I'll be right back".
He walked over and talked to the manager a bit and then came back to her.
"Hey".
"Hey, is everything ok?"
"Yeah, I guess I had it in my mind that our room would have a plunge pool on the balcony. It doesn't, and he just told me that none of the rooms do. So, it's ok".
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure".
They walked over to the desk to sign up for excursions.
Jennifer wanted to go paddle boarding, and jet skiing. They signed up for those.
"How about one more? Darling, what do you say we take a sunset helicopter tour?"
"That sounds nice".
He paid for all of those and they headed up to their room to get ready.
Sunset
Jennifer changed into a beautiful light green halter sundress, with some gold sandals. Jonathan put on a blue polo shirt that he knew Jennifer loved, and some Khaki shorts.
They were right on time for the shuttle to the location for the helicopter tour.
At the last minute, they were joined by another couple. Jennifer could tell Jonathan was irritated, but there wasn't anything he could do about it.
They had a lovely tour of the island, and their pilot pointed out many places.
They were coming up on the halfway point of the tour, so Jonathan laced his fingers through Jennifer's.
"Sorry folks, there is a light that just popped up on the dashboard and company policy states that if that happens, we are to return to the landing pad immediately. You will be compensated and refunded for the second half of the tour".
Everyone was disappointed, but it was out of their control.
When they got back to the hotel, they headed to dinner.
Jonathan ordered both of them the strongest cocktails they had on the menu.
When the waiter brought them, he passed one to Jennifer and took the other one.
"Cheers, darling".
"Cheers".
They clinked glasses and took a sip.
Jonathan hoped like hell that Jennifer couldn't tell that he was annoyed.
A Few Days Later
It was their last day in Hawaii, and they had made plans for the whole day.
For almost a week, they had enjoyed fabulous meals, fantastic lovemaking, and they had really committed to enjoying each other's company and slowing down and just relaxing.
They had been at the pool all day, and were now showering and getting ready for dinner.
"Darling, our dinner reservations for tonight are in the dressy restaurant".
"Got it".
Jennifer stepped out of the shower and put on a gorgeous violet colored strapless dress and some black flip-flops.
Jonathan put on some khaki pants and a yellow button-down shirt.
After a very romantic dinner, he turned to her.
"One last walk on the beach before the sun sets?"
"I thought you'd never ask".
They walked out to the shore and he laced her fingers through his.
They walked out a pretty good ways.
"This trip has been so relaxing".
"Yeah, it has. And it's been good for us".
"I think so too".
"Jonathan, we need to turn back. This looks dangerous".
They were stepping up onto a raised rock formation in the shore, where the waves come up and over.
"No, no. It's fine. Come on".
They stepped up on the rocks and he pulled a waterproof camera out of his pocket.
"Let's take a few pictures".
They posed for a few pictures, and then he took one of them kissing just as the sun started to sink in the background.
"I love that. Let's frame that".
"We can".
He took both of her hands and held them in front of his chest.
"I love you, more than I have ever loved any woman in my life. You mean everything to me. Loving you comes as natural to me as breathing. We've had some steep obstacles to climb, and we got through them together. I brought you here to Paradise, because every morning when I wake up and see your beautiful face, that to me is paradise. Jennifer Suzanne, will you marry me?"
He dropped to one knee and pulled out a ring box.
She teared up and nodded.
"Absolutely".
He grabbed her face and kissed her, and then opened the ring box and pulled it out to put it on her finger.
Her ring was a platinum band, with a 4.4 carat European cut diamond with diamonds all along the band. It was the most beautiful ring Jennifer had ever seen.
They stood in the sand kissing and holding each other for several minutes.
"Were you surprised?"
"Very. I had no idea you wanted to propose to me".
"I've been trying for days. But everything I've tried has gone awry".
"What do you mean?"
"Darling, think back. We went to the Hamptons and had breakfast, and then we went to Boston and you had a spa day. When we got to California, the phone call to Susan was because I asked her to fill the living room with roses and candles. It was supposed to be a thing like breakfast where we met, a day where we started over, and asking you where we live. But she wasn't able to do it, so she went with my backup plan and put a sign in the bedroom. So, on the way to the house, I figured you and I could have dessert and I would spell it on the plate. You said you wanted to go to bed. But you fell asleep before you saw the sign. So, then I decided I would propose here in Hawaii. So when you were in the gift shop, I asked the manager to spell out "Will you Marry Me" in lights on the roof and the helicopter tour was supposed to take us over the hotel so you could see it. But we had to turn back. So then I was going to rent us a cabana but each day, they were all booked up. And then I decided to do it on the rock with the waves in the background because I just couldn't wait one more second".
She threw her arms around his neck.
"Darling, you could have asked me to marry you anywhere. It would have been perfect, just like you".
She kissed him several times.
They eventually went back to the resort and had a celebratory drink at the bar.
They got their drinks to go, and they took them up to their room.
As they came into their room, Jennifer turned to him.
"Did you ask my father?"
"Yes, I did".
"When?"
"That weekend we visited. While you were helping Walter with the dishes".
She leaned up and kissed him.
"How soon do you want to get married?"
"I don't want to wait forever. But I want to take our time and plan it, so that we have a ceremony that really represents us. I only plan on marrying you once, Mr. H."
"I can't wait till you're officially Mrs. H."
The Next Day
Jonathan and Jennifer arrived back home just before dinner. Max picked them up at the airport.
"Hey, welcome home you two".
"Hey Max".
"We're engaged, Max".
"Congratulations! Welcome to the family".
"Thank you, Max".
"How did you pull it off, Mr. H.?"
"You wouldn't believe it if I told you".
"It was simple and perfect, Max. And very heartfelt".
Jennifer grabbed Jonathan's hand as soon as they arrived and led him to the bedroom.
"Show me".
"Engaged a day and you already can't get enough".
"Very funny! The sign! I want to see the sign you said was in here".
"Max, did you move it?"
"No, Mr. H."
"Darling, lay down on the bed and close your eyes".
She laid down on the bed and closed her eyes.
He climbed onto the bed next to her.
"Now, count in your head to 500 and tell me when you're done".
He grabbed a flashlight and began to shine it.
"497…498….499…500".
Max turned the lights off, and Jonathan wrapped his arms around Jennifer.
"Open your eyes and look towards the ceiling".
"Will you Marry Me?" was spelled out on the ceiling in glow in the dark letters and stars.
She started laughing.
"I love that! We are leaving that up there".
"Whatever makes you happy".
"You make me happy. You make me so happy I can't even put it into words".
"With any luck, I always will".