Chapter 4

Even though she knew what he was referring to, Jennifer turned and looked out the door, following her father's gaze. Then she smiled as she pulled him into a hug. "We are all exhausted."

She pulled him away from the door and turned to shut it for the night. Jennifer flipped the lock before turning to face her parents, "You and Momma included. I do not want the people I love to meet under such strained circumstances. Therefore, I stopped at the guest house and got Jonathan and Max settled in for the night. They will be here at eight tomorrow morning for breakfast and introductions." She turned to face her parents. "I am very much looking forward to watching you grow to love him as I do. However, right now, I only want a shower and my bed."

Her mother stepped up before her father could open his mouth. "Oui, oui, my Jenny! Of course! Your room is waiting for you, mon amour!" Suzanne Edwards slid her arm around her daughter's waist and guided her out of the living room, leaving Stephen standing alone with his thoughts.

He made his way to his study to sit in his chair by the fireplace. His daughter was nothing short of amazing. So much like her mother. Not only in looks did they so highly favor, but in wisdom as well. He was loaded for bear, and would not have given this interloper the common courtesy of proving himself had they met tonight as he had planned. Not because he wanted to be rude, but because he had been stressed and threatened by the announcement made earlier. Jennifer knew him well and knew how to handle him.

And he knew the reality was his only child had him wrapped around her finger. He would give her anything she wanted within his power. Yes, even this intruder, if that's what she wanted. Clearly, she knew him well enough to know he would settle and would greet the young man with a warm welcome given enough time. So she created time. Watching the flames flicker, Stephen could only shake his head. They had been in a chess match, and she put him in checkmate before he even realized they were playing.

Jennifer was, indeed, immensely grown-up.

Jonathan woke with the warmth of the spring morning shining on his face, and the joy of love radiating in his heart. As he laid his head down on the bed last night, he could think only of Jennifer and her father. His thoughts tumbled over and over in his mind until a plan began to germinate and grow.

And this morning, it would be placed into glorious action.

Even though it was only 6 am, he hopped out of bed and made his way to the shower. He was about to walk into his toughest meeting for the most critical merger of his entire life. His opponent would be the most tenacious, resistant, and seasoned one yet. He was not about to step in unprepared.

After a quick shower and shave, he dressed in a blue button-down and a pair of Levis 501 before pulling on his favorite cowboy boots. He was banking on a horseback ride at some point in the day.

When he walked out of his room, he found Max was up brewing some coffee. "Good morning."

"Morning, Mr. H. Coffee?"

"I'd love some, thanks." He sat at the small breakfast table, near the picture window, overlooking hills as far as he could see. "It's gorgeous here, isn't it?"

"Sure is." Max carried over two cups and sat down with him. Together the men sat in contemplative silence and surveyed the land before them.

It was Jonathan who cracked the silence. "I get the feeling my money, and maybe even my hard work, will not impress this man today, Max. So, I'm trying to figure out what I need to do to make sure this goes well." He turned to face the only father figure in his life. "Not that I think Jennifer would suddenly not marry me because of her father." He studied his cup for a minute, "I just think this whole thing will go so much better if we have his blessing than if we have to fight him."

"Yous want my advice, Mr. H?"

"That's why I asked."

"You need to prove to Mr. Edwards you love his daughter as well as he can."

"But money isn't the issue…"

"I ain't talking money…"

"Then what?"

"Show him you are for real, by showing her how much you care…"

"Ok. Here's what I am thinking, you tell me if I'm on the right track. Because if I'm not, I want time to fix it..."

By 7:30, Jonathan and Max were ready to head to the main house and meet up with Jennifer and her parents for breakfast. They weren't sure how far of a walk it would be. However, that was an aspect they needn't have worried about; no sooner were the men off the front porch of the guest house, then Jonathan's Jag crested the hill and pulled up beside them.

"Good morning, gentlemen," Jennifer called to them as she put the car in park, leaving the motor running. "How did you sleep?"

"Fantastic," Jonathan answered as he walked up to the car door. Putting his hand on the doorframe, he kept her from opening the door or getting out of the car. "I kept dreaming of a gorgeous redhead." He bent down to face her, "Hello, woman of my dreams."

"You are a sweet talker, aren't you," she smiled at him. Turning to include Max, she said, "I hope you are hungry. Walter is making pancakes."

"Blueberry? Blueberries are my favorite." Jonathan walked over to the passenger side door and slid in while Max climbed in the back.

"Yes, I believe there are blueberry ones. Let's go see, shall we?"

They chatted about the various sights as they drove the mile to the main house. Jennifer did most of the talking, informing them of all the areas of the farm, and offering to take them on a horseback tour after breakfast. Max declined, and Jonathan agreed it was on his list of things to do for the day.

As they pulled up to the main house Jonathan was in awe, "You grew up here?"

"Yes. Until I went to high school, which I did at Gresham Hall."

"Wow," was all he could manage. Sudden memories flooding his mind of growing up in the orphanage left him feeling a bit lacking.

Jennifer sensed his insecurity. "You know, Darling," she placed her hand on top of his, "the only real bearing where we grew up has now is that it served to make us who we are." He turned to look in her eyes as she spoke, "Your history can not make me love you less. Nor will it make my parents think less of you."

Searching her eyes and finding only the same love that had been there the day before, he admitted, "I was feeling a bit out of my league, but once again, you amaze me, and I love you." He turned to wink at Max, "Now, I need some pancakes!" The trio exited the car and walked up the stairs and into the front door, where Jennifer's parents greeted them.

"Momma, Papa, this is Jonathan Hart, and his friend Max Brennan. Jonathan, Max, my parents, Stephen and Suzanne Edwards."

"Mr. and Mrs. Edwards. It's very nice to meet you. You have an amazing daughter." Jonathan held out his hand to Stephen, who welcomed it with his own. Turning to Suzanne, he said, "It is obvious where Jennifer's beauty originates."

"Jonathan, my boy, it's very nice to meet you," Stephen managed a smile, then turned to shake Max's hand. "Mr. Brennan..."

"Max."

"Max. Welcome to my home."

"It's a great place. Thank you for letting us crash here."

Suzanne was not going to shake the hand of either of the men. "Enchantée Jonathan," she said as she grabbed him and lightly kissed each cheek. "Enchantée Max," again with the cheeks.

"Enchantée, Mrs. Edwards," Jonathan stammered in response, clearly caught off guard.

She smiled at his attempt to speak her language. Sweet boy. "Je suis Suzanne. Please, Come, come," Suzanne encouraged the group, "The food gets cold while we stand. Come. Bon appétit!"

The conversation through the meal was light and pleasant. Laughter was often heard from the dining room, as the Edwards regaled Jonathan and Max with tales from Jennifer's childhood. Awards won, mishaps, and pranks pulled, to Jennifer's chagrin and Jonathan's delight, nothing seemed to be a taboo topic for her parents. Jonathan also told a few stories of his childhood, and he and Max told of their meeting.

As they were finishing, Jennifer stood to begin clearing some of the dishes, Jonathan leaned over towards Stephen and asked, "Mr. Edwards…"

"Please, Stephen."

"Stephen. If you have a couple of minutes, I would like to talk to you… Alone."

"Of course." He stood and ushered Jonathan out of the room, "Let's adjourn to my study." The two headed out and passed Jennifer as she came back in.

She looked at her mother, unsure if she should be concerned. "Je ne sais pas ma chérie."

"They just met, Momma," she looked toward the empty doorway and back to her mother. "Surely, Papa will go easy on him…" In her mind, she recalled the boys she dated in high school and the stories they told her of their meetings with her father, and she was concerned.

Stephen offered Jonathan cigar, which he turned down, and a drink, which he considered, but also turned down. He wanted to be in boardroom meeting form, not little boy form. Before Stephen could say anything else, and for that matter, before he could even sit down, Jonathan started.

"I know you probably have some well-written speech you like to give the boys you let take Jennifer out for a date. I'm sure it scared the high schoolers who liked your daughter. Before you start into that with me, I want to just lay all the cards on the table." He took a deep breath.

"Your daughter and I had a very crazy 48 hours in London. I'm sure Jennifer will give you all the details you need. But I want to cut to the end of most of that adventure. I needed some way to show your daughter I was very serious and not some fly by night guy just trying to get into her pants…" Jonathan took note of the change of expression on Stephen's face but did not stop. "The only way I could think of making sure she knew I was not just jerking her around, but that I meant every word I said, was to tell her the full truth. She is the only woman I want in my life, and I intend to make her my wife. And I stand by that declaration. I did not mean to overstep my bounds with you. I apologize for not seeking your permission first.

"On the flight over here, I also realized I failed to do one more essential aspect of the whole getting engaged thing. I did not get Jennifer a ring.

"So, here is my suggestion to you, sir. I am formally asking you for your permission to court your daughter with the intention to marry her. I am also formally asking you for your daughter's hand in marriage. My plan is to court her over the next two weeks as if we just met and I was asking her out on the first few dates. And then I will get her a ring and propose all over again. I do not plan on telling Jennifer any of this plan. This will be just between you and me."

Stephen listened to him speak. This young man had plans, alright. And nerve. And strength. And Stephen was beginning to see why Jennifer might have fallen for this one. "And if Jennifer says no this time?"

It was a possibility Jonathan had not considered. "Well, then, Sir, if that is what Jennifer wants, I would have to walk away without her."

"As long as you are willing to walk away if she says no, then you have my blessing to court my daughter. And you have my blessing to ask her to marry you. But if she says no, and you put up a fight, there will be hell to pay."

"Yes, Sir." Jonathan reached across Stephen's desk to shake his hand. "And with that, I need to run into town to finish up some business dealings."

Pulling the Jag into its parking spot, Jonathan took a deep breath as he put the car into park. He removed the keys and opened the door. He reached for his package before he slid out — time to put his plan into motion.

Jonathan knocked on the door of the main house, package in his hands behind his back. Walter answered and let him in. "I'll let Ms. Edwards know you are here, Sir."

"Thank you, Walter." He was surprisingly nervous. When was the last time he was nervous waiting on a woman? When was the last time he waited on a woman like Jennifer Edwards?

"Good afternoon, Jonathan." Jennifer, walking into the room in nothing more than jeans and a sweater, promptly took his breath away. She watched him, a bit slack-jawed at seeing her. Good. She rather enjoyed seeing him a bit off his game.

"Good afternoon, Jennifer." He stammered before he found his smile. "You look lovely."

Dang, that grin! It made her ever so slightly weak in the knees. And when he slid his arm around her waist for a hug, it was her turn to catch her breath. That act filled her nose with his fresh and intoxicating scent. She struggled to find words, frustrating! "Um. You left quickly after breakfast this morning."

"I ran into the office to work on a couple of quick finishing touches to the Kingston Motors project. And," he pulled the package from behind him and handed it to her, "to pick this up."

She took the package from him, "What have we here?"

"Do you remember, as we were riding the Tower Pier boat on the River Thames when I said that wasn't exactly the way I wanted to take you sailing?" She smiled at the memory of that crazy day. He finally figured out her identity, they discovered Brooks' body, and they were trying to get away from that demented man, who had been shooting at them, by cruising the Thames. "And you told me…"

She froze, the package still in her hands, "Yes, I was edgy and snippy. I mean, that man was shooting at us! And, that was before you admitted you believed me…"

He laughed at her squirming then repeated his question, "And you told me…"

"I told you to go fly a kite."

"...To go fly a kite." He grinned at her again, "So, I thought, since we haven't had much of a date yet. I mean, I guess we had that first night in London, Louise, but we've been running since then… Well, maybe this might qualify as a second date then… Anyway, I thought, let's go fly a kite."

She opened the package to find just that, a kite. "Oh, Jonathan. What a fun idea! Oh! I know just the place. Let me tell Dad we will be going out for a bit." She started to leave the room.

"And out for dinner, if you'll join me, Ms. Edwards…"

She turned back to him and smiled, "And out for dinner. I'd like that, Mr. Hart."