***A few days later***
Jennifer was upstairs in their bedroom, getting ready for the weekend. She was packing a bag and a garment bag, because she and Jonathan were flying to San Francisco for two nights, to attend the Mission Street Charity Ball.
She was in the bathroom when Jonathan came in.
"Darling, you up here?"
"Yeah, in here".
She came out and wrapped her arms around him.
"Hi honey".
"Hi darling".
They shared a few sweet kisses.
"Have a good day?"
"Yeah, I did. Susan called and invited me to lunch, and had some other ladies with her. You know them-Myra and Kelly and Marlene".
"Yes, I do know them. They are wonderful ladies".
"Yes, they are".
He changed clothes and packed his own bags for the weekend and then they said goodbye to Max and headed out.
"Darling, do you want to stop and get dinner on the way to the airport?"
"No, I want to go eat dinner with you somewhere in San Francisco".
"Perfect".
The flight to San Francisco was only an hour, so they didn't really have much time on the plane.
He turned the news on for them and they just relaxed some.
Before they knew it, they were landing.
"Darling, where are we staying?"
"At the Omni. I got us the presidential suite".
"Oooh, fancy".
She leaned over and kissed him.
He carried their bags down the stairs and they got into the car that was waiting for them.
They checked into their hotel and got settled, and then went to dinner.
"Darling, have you been to the orphanage's charity ball before?"
"Yes. They usually just have dinner, dancing, cash bar, silent auction, red carpet, all that".
They sipped on some white wine while they waited for their food.
"Darling, do you have any happy memories of the Orphanage?"
"A few. I wasn't a very good kid, so I spent most of my time in punishment detail."
"Punishment detail?"
"Yeah. That was the long-term punishment cycle. After a while, they called it the Jonathan".
"What did you do to get punished?"
"When I was 5, I went down to the bay and got a snake. I brought it back and stuck it in Sister Mary Margaret's bed. When I was 5 ½, I pulled the fire alarm during Mass. When I was 6, all the kids had misbehaved, so instead of ordering pizza for us like we usually did on Friday nights, they made us eat leftover beef stew. I was mad about it, so I poured 3 whole bottles of hot sauce into it. Not the small bottles either. The jumbo ones. When I was 7, they got us new uniforms. Old ones were green, new ones were red. I hated them, so I poured an entire bottle of bleach in the washer, and turned them tie-dye. When I was 8, I got ahold of some bottle rockets and lit them inside, sending them down the hallway and out a stained-glass window. That was pretty major-the ceiling and the walls and the floor all had to be repaired and repainted. Plus, the window had to be replaced. When I was 9, I poured bubble solution in the AC vents, so that when the AC kicked on, it would blow bubbles all over the place. And when I was 10, I found an extra microphone and hid up in the rafters during Wednesday morning mass. All throughout the service, I accentuated every statement that was made with a phrase of my own, like "I know that's right", or "You gotta be kidding me!". Everyone was laughing, except the nuns. That one got me 4 weeks of breakfast and dinner dish duty. I used to think I wasn't the hardest child they ever had to raise, but I probably was".
Jennifer was laughing, and sipping on her wine.
"I bet you were the most adorable child they had there".
"I don't know about that. I will say that the head nun told me that I was the only one who ever got the baking pans clean enough for her liking. Makes sense, since I was on dish duty for months at a time".
"Did you straighten up when you were 10?"
"No. On my 11th birthday, they told me that I wasn't going to be a prospect for adoptions, and that meant I had to learn life skills and get a job. So, I got my paper route, but I convinced the boss to let me have a corner. A year later, I met Max. I was in and out of trouble for the next few years, then when I was 15, I got into real trouble and got arrested. I called Max and he bailed me out."
"Bailed you out? Of jail?"
"Yeah. It's a long story, but I had fallen in with the wrong crowd, and they left me holding the bag one time, and the police came. They robbed a convenience store and then ran off. When they ran off, they didn't tell me that they were leaving, so I was still there and the manager identified me. Max came and got me and then talked to the judge and got the charges dropped. He promised to not tell the nuns. But, boy did he let me have it from him. And he made me see that this wasn't the path I wanted to be on, and with a little love and guidance and someone in my corner, I was going to be alright. So, I managed to make it at the orphanage through graduation, and then I moved in with Max the next day. I kept my corner till I enlisted in the Navy a few months later, and then when I got out of the Navy, Max paved the way for me to go to college and get an education. I graduated, and he helped me build Hart Industries when nobody else would. I couldn't get a loan anywhere, except from the bank of Max. Honestly, if it hadn't been for Max, I might not be here right now".
"He's very special".
"That he is".
"I love how close you two are. I kind of wish I had that friendly relationship with my father".
"I think that's exactly why we do have the kind of relationship, because he isn't my father. Not in the traditional sense at least".
He took a sip of his wine.
"What were you like as a kid?"
"Well, I had adventures, but not like yours. I mostly rode my horse, or climbed a tree. One time my mom wanted me to play a sport. I didn't want to, because I wanted to ride my horse. So, I climbed a tree and refused to come down till she agreed to let my sport be horseback riding. Then, after she passed away, what I wanted didn't seem to be important to anyone, ever again".
She looked away, and then looked back at him. He squeezed her hand.
"I'm ok. It was a long time ago".
"Do you ever think about having kids?"
"I used to. And then I realized I don't really want that. I might later, and that's ok. I might not and that's ok too. If I did, I would want to raise them to be mannerly and well-behaved, and well rounded. I want them to participate in the arts as much as they participate in athletics."
"I agree with that, whole heartedly."
"What about you? Do you ever think about having kids?"
"I didn't, till you and I were watching the kids full time. I never thought I liked kids that much, but they changed me, that's for sure".
"They are such special kids. I always dreamed that I would be at their house one day when they were teenagers, and that I would be at their weddings. I never once in my life allowed myself to think that Caroline and Patrick wouldn't be".
"I know what you mean. But I like to think that they are always around them, in some form".
"Yeah, I do too. You are probably going to think I'm crazy, but I have a few solid beliefs. One is that we are never too lost that our angels cannot find us. We cannot exist without a few guardian angels, and at least one of them is always with us. Another is things are meant to happen how they happen, for a reason. Like remember how Savanna called me and I offered to Abby to come give them a break, but she didn't take me up on it? That's because it wasn't meant to happen that way. She tried her best to get us together when she was here, since it didn't work, she did everything she could to get us together after she wasn't here. Just wish I could tell her thank you".
He leaned over and kissed her forehead.
Their food arrived, so they started eating. They chatted about the minor wedding details, like who was driving who when, and who was going to be responsible for bringing certain things.
Jennifer was nervous it was all going to fall apart.
"Baby, listen to me. It will all fall into place. If I have to, I will hire people from the office to do these last-minute things. Whatever it takes, we are going to make this wedding happen".
She nodded.
After they were finished eating, they headed back to the hotel.
He drove them down a side street and parked outside a big stone building.
"There it is".
She looked over and saw a sign that said Mission Street Orphanage for Children.
"This is the orphanage?"
"It is. They've expanded on it a few times, so it's a lot bigger than when I was here. That main part that you see there is all we had. 25 bedrooms, not counting the nuns rooms, a living area, bathroom with shower stalls and sinks, kitchen, dining hall, and a classroom where we did our homework".
"Darling, what if we sponsored an addition?"
"Oh, I have. Once I got Hart Industries off the ground, I got them a new roof, added on a gym and about 30 more bedrooms, and completely redid the showers and kitchen. Since then, I have called the nuns periodically to see what they needed and sent someone to do it, no expenses spared".
She laced her fingers through his and they sat there a few more minutes before they headed back to the hotel.
They came into their hotel room and changed for bed.
Their bed was a California King, 4 poster bed with satin sheets.
Jonathan grabbed them each a bottle of water and climbed into bed next to her.
He stretched out and wrapped his arms around her.
She started scratching his back and rubbing his shoulders.
She got him all relaxed and almost asleep.
"That feels so gooood".
He pulled himself up and put his head on the pillow next to her and pulled her close to him.
"You are the most beautiful woman in the world".
"Aww, how sweet".
She leaned up and kissed him, and then rested her head on his chest.
"Darling, I want you to know that until I met you, the only person I had in my life that cared about me, was Max. I look at him as more of a father figure, parent, whatever you want to call it than anything else. You are the only person I've ever had in my life that has ever loved me like this. I promise you, what you want and how you are feeling will always matter to me".
She kissed him again and he rolled her onto her back. He started nuzzling her neck and running his hands up and down her body.
She grabbed his face and kissed him, and ran her fingers through his hair.
He took her hands and pinned them down on either side of her head.
He started kissing her neck.
He could feel her wanting to move.
"No, not yet."
He kept kissing her neck and jawbone, which drove her crazy.
"I want to kiss every single inch of you".
He released her arms so she could take her nightgown off, and then resumed kissing her all over.
He spent a few minutes on her breasts, nibbling and sucking and making her grip his shoulders.
He seductively hooked the waistband of her lace panties, and pulled them off her.
He kissed his way back up her legs, and felt her quiver as he kissed her inner thigh.
"Baby…"
"In a minute….in a minute…."
He hovered his face right over top of where she wanted him most, and blew a solid breath right at the spot.
She quivered and moaned and begged for him to touch her.
He flipped her over and kissed every inch of her back and neck. She flipped over again, and could feel him pressing against her.
He crushed her lips with his as he buried himself inside of her.
She rocked her hips when he rocked his, matching every movement.
She reached around and grabbed his butt, just before they went over the edge together.
He collapsed on top of her, and she lightly scratched his back as they calmed down.
"That was amazing".
"Only because of you".
They cuddled a few minutes and then he climbed off of her and wrapped his arms around her so they could fall asleep.
***Saturday***
They slept late, and ordered breakfast in from room service.
She fed him bites of her egg white omelet, and he tried to feed her bites of his waffle, but she turned it down.
"I have to fit in my dress, remember?"
"Darling, you will look amazing in anything you wear, I mean that".
"You're sweet. You can feed me bites of a waffle on our honeymoon".
After a leisurely breakfast, they got dressed and went to explore the city some. Jonathan wanted to shop and get some things to donate to the orphanage, and Jennifer wanted to look in a few specialty shops.
They linked hands and walked through the city, and found everything they were after.
Around 3, they headed back to the hotel to get ready for the ball.
Jennifer took a bubble bath while Jonathan shaved. She gazed at him lovingly while he was shaving.
"I just love to watch you shave".
"Well, you can do it anytime you want".
She got out of the bath when the water turned cold, and rinsed off in the shower.
An hour later, she was done drying her hair and putting on her makeup.
"Darling-curls or straight?"
"What do you mean?"
"How do you want me to do my hair-curly, or straight?"
"However, you want to do your hair is fine with me".
She decided on pin curls, and a sparkly barrette. Her gown was long, strapless and very sparkly. It was black on the back, and on the front, it was half blue sparkle, half black, that met together in a zig-zag pattern. It was a sweetheart pushup neckline, and she was going to pair it with a pair of black strappy Manolo Blahnik's.
She was in her dress and switching purses when Jonathan came out of the bathroom.
"Darling, can you adjust this-have mercy".
She chuckled and looked at him.
"What was that?"
"You look spectacular".
"Why thank you, darling".
"Can you adjust this?"
"Certainly".
She walked over and fixed his tie, and then kissed him.
"Cash bar tonight?"
"Yes. Dinner buffet, plus dessert buffet. Last year, wine and beer were unlimited and free, but hard liquor was for purchase".
"What's your drink of choice?"
"I like Manhattans, I like Whiskey sours, I like straight scotch at times".
She leaned up and kissed him a few times and then they headed out to the ball.
They had the doorman hail them a cab, and they had the cabbie drop them off in front of the red carpet.
Jonathan grabbed her hand as they walked up the red carpet and posed for photographs.
"Mr. Hart, who is this lovely lady with you tonight?"
"My fiancée".
"Mr. Hart, when is the wedding?"
"Not soon enough".
Jennifer smiled at him and they posed for a few more pictures.
They walked inside and found their table. He grabbed Jennifer a white wine, and grabbed himself a beer and then they headed to the buffet line.
Jennifer started small, with a salad and some steamed shrimp. Jonathan went all out with prime rib, mashed potatoes, and a salad.
They were sitting at a small table for two, that overlooked the dance floor below.
After they were done eating, they went down to the dance floor to dance. Jonathan introduced her to some of the nuns along the way, and told them he and Jennifer were going to be making a donation before the night ended.
They shared several dances, and everyone could see they were completely and totally in love with each other.
"Honey, they are having a dance contest tonight. Want to enter?"
"We can if you want".
"Are you up to it?"
"Yeah, I think so".
They kept dancing till the nuns came up on the stage and took the mic.
"In 10 minutes, we will have announcements and announce the first event of the night. Get some food, grab a drink, and we will be back in 10 minutes".
They went to the buffet again, and got another drink.
They were eating when the nuns came on stage again.
"Good evening. I am Sister Katherine, and this is Sister Roseanna. We are part of the order at Mission Street Orphanage, here in San Francisco. We want to show you a video about our orphanage, so that you can see where your donations go".
They showed a very adorable video, and Jonathan was in it a few times, playing basketball with the kids, bringing presents to the orphanage, and another one of him reading to the kids.
"Tonight, we are going to have a dance contest, best couple wins a gift card. We are also going to have a trivia contest, and the winner of that contest gets a gift card as well. We are going to start right now with the trivia contest. If you want to enter, it's 5 dollars a person, or 8 dollars a couple, just hold up your glass and the waitress will come sell you a ticket."
Jennifer held up her glass.
Jonathan pulled out his wallet and paid for both of them, and then went and got her some sparkling water with lime.
The trivia round started, and everyone was given a paddle with a dry erase marker to hold up.
"When you know the answer, write it on your paddle, and then turn the green cup over to signal that you are finished".
Jennifer smiled at Jonathan.
"We've got this".
He leaned over and kissed her.
"Ok, first question. An octopus has how many hearts?"
"Oh, that's easy". Jennifer wrote the answer down, and flipped the cup over.
The correct answer was 3, and Jennifer was the only one who got that correct.
The next question was a sports question. Jonathan told her the answer and they got it right.
"Ok, question 3. What chemical gives the blood of a lobster a bluish tint?"
Jonathan leaned over.
"Aluminum".
"No, darling. It's copper".
"Are you sure?"
"Positive".
Copper was the right answer.
"Ok question 4. What is a group of owls called?"
Jennifer wrote down parliament.
"Darling, are you sure?"
"I'm positive".
Jennifer was correct.
"Ok, I am going to trust you".
"Thank you".
They went through about 10 questions, and Jennifer knew the answers to all of them.
It finally came down to Jonathan and Jennifer against two other couples.
"Ok, this is our final round. We are going to ask 5 questions. You are going to write down 5 answers. The couple with the most correct answers will win. If there is a tie, we will have a tie breaker question."
The waitresses brought each couple a bigger dry erase board.
"Ok, here are the 5 questions. Who wrote "Finnegans Wake? Who wrote 'War and Peace'? What is the meaning of the French Expression 'C'est la vie? What is the largest lake in Africa? What is the largest organ in the human body? Please, write your answers down and flip the cup when you are ready".
Jennifer was on a roll. She wrote down James Joyce, Leo Tolstoy, That's life, Lake Victoria, and then she thought for a moment on the last one. Jonathan was telling her it was lungs, but she felt like it was skin. She finally wrote skin, and then flipped the cup. The waitress came and looked at her answers and signaled to the nun that they were all correct.
"Ok, we have a tie. Table 3 and table 7. Final question- what is the full name of C. ?"
They both wrote down Clive Staples Lewis.
"Ok, tie breaker number 2. In English, we say French Riviera. What is that known as in France?"
They both wrote down "Cote D'Azur".
"Ok, this is unprecedented. But tie breaker number 3- Kopi luwak is a type of what?"
Jennifer wrote down coffee. The other team wrote down caviar.
"Ok, we finally have two different answers. The correct answer is…..coffee. Table 7 is the winner!"
Jonathan leaned over and kissed Jennifer and then grabbed her hand as they went to claim their award.
The dance contest started right after that, so they headed to the dance floor. They were given the number 14.
"If a couple stops moving, or leaves the dance floor, they are eliminated. Last couple standing wins".
The music started and everyone started to dance. Jonathan and Jennifer quickly became the couple to watch. He spun her, dipped her, twirled her, and together, they moved throughout the dance floor better than anyone else.
It came down to them and one other couple. Jonathan decided to spin Jennifer again, and she spun off the dance floor, out of bounds.
"Couple 14 is eliminated. Couple 12 is our winner!"
She hugged Jonathan and leaned in close so he could hear her.
"I'm sorry".
"It's ok. It was fun, that's all that matters".
They went to get some dessert and some more champagne.
After they drank some more and finished their dessert, they headed to the donation table.
Jonathan pulled the envelope out of his jacket pocket.
"My name is Jonathan Hart. I was an orphan at the orphanage, and my company raised some donations for the orphanage."
He handed them the check.
"Wow, thank you so much Mr. Hart".
"My pleasure".
Jennifer pulled a check out of her purse.
"And my name is Jennifer Edwards, and I want to make a donation as well".
She handed them the check for her entire 401k.