"This one," Norah said pointing at a ruby and emerald ring, on one of the display cases.

She and Aaron were in one of the best jewelry stores in San Francisco. Aaron had insisted going to buy her an engagement ring just as soon as he was sure that no one was actively looking for him. It had been reported on the news that several people had seen a guy be run over by a car, but there was no more than a general description, that could fit several billion men on the planet basically. All the people who had been present had seen, was basically a tall dark haired man, as they had all been distracted by the out-of-control car. Aaron was grateful, as he would hate to have to change his identity. He would do it if he had to, but this time he had been lucky. Luckily, for Norah's peace of mind her soaps had been fine and showed no damage, as they weren't even a little melted around the edges. The shape of each flower that they represented were still well-defined. Apparently, Aaron had been right, that the trunk was cool and dark enough that the soap had been safe within the confines of the space.

"A very good choice ma'am," said the man behind the desk. "The rubies are three carats each and the emeralds two, the band is made of white gold. The stones are set in a lovely classical style."

"If that's what you want then it's yours," Aaron told Norah. "Can you have it engraved," Aaron asked Mr. Carriger.

"Of course, sir," Mr. Carriger assured Aaron. "I can have it done within 24 hours and if you aren't still in the city I'll ship it to New York by secured mail."

"We'll be back around this time tomorrow," Aaron told Carriger.

"It'll be ready," Mr. Carriger promised.

Aaron told the man quietly what he wanted engraved on the inside of the band. Norah didn't bother to listen in, as she would find out what the inscription was tomorrow.

"Ready to go or do you want something else?" Aaron asked.

"I think you've spent enough money for right now," Norah told him, not entirely joking. "I'm not really one that's big on having a lot of jewelry."

The two of them exited the store and walked towards their vehicle that had been delivered within a couple of hours. Norah was still amazed what Aaron could get done when he threw enough money at the problem. It certainly made people who might normally grumble more cooperative.

"So I was going to take you to lunch the other day but that kind of got derailed," Aaron said.

"Sounds good," Norah said. "My breakfast has certainly worn off."

"We did eat about six this morning, since both of us were already up," Aaron shrugged. "We're both early risers by nature, so that means we eat breakfast at a relatively early hour."

"Which means by lunchtime we are starving or at least I am," Norah finished.

"Especially since you only eat a pastry or muffin for breakfast at least usually," Aaron said. "It shouldn't be any wonder why you're so hungry by the time lunch rolls around. You need a good hearty breakfast to get you through the day."

"I take it you're determined to change my eating habits," Norah said.

"I've already started on that," Aaron smirked.

Norah remembered all those meals on the bench under the oak tree and had to agree. Aaron had often brought out a large tray that hovered in the air filled with such delicious smelling breakfast food that Norah could hardly resist, which had been Aaron's intention. He had subtly been telling her that he didn't think she ate enough breakfast and so had remedied that in his own quiet, unobtrusive way. Norah hadn't realized at the time that's what Aaron was doing, but it was as clear as crystal now. Aaron had been taking care of her in his own subtle way for nearly a year now and shown her more than once how much he cared about her. She had missed most of the signs Norah now thought. Completely.

"Yes, you have," Norah agreed. "I didn't realize that you were taking care of me for a long time. I was totally blind."

"You've realized it now and that's all that matters," Aaron said. "Why bring up the past, as it's over and done with."

"You're such an unusual man Aaron Hotchner, but I understand better now why that is. You've been around for a really long time," Norah said.

"It's our experiences that make us who we are and I've had plenty of those both good and bad," Aaron said. "You however, are my best experience to date."

"So I assume there's a way to turn me immortal?" Norah said.

"Yes, there is and it involves sex. It's why I always used a condom when I had sex with any woman, well other than the fact that I didn't want any children born on the wrong side of the blankets, because they would also be immortal," Aaron explained.

"So you're telling me that I'll become immortal through us having sex without the use of a condom?" Norah asked blinking rapidly.

"Yes, it happened to me once before I knew," Aaron said. "I had this relationship with this lovely lady a few hundred years ago. It was in the 20th century when there wasn't such a stigma about a man and a woman having sex outside marriage, so long as they were discreet though that doesn't mean there wasn't some prejudice."

"So you turned this woman immortal totally on accident," Norah said.

"Yeah, I did. I've been much more careful since. I'm only lucky that the woman didn't get pregnant as having a child outside of marriage was definitely taboo."

"So is your former lover still around?" Norah inquired innocently.

"Yes, she is and she's settled in Paris and has been there for at least the last hundred years. We stay in touch, even though we are no longer lovers, we are friendly," Aaron said.

"She better keep her hands off my man or I'll punch her in her lovely face," Norah told him seriously. "Normally, I'm not one for violence, but us ladies can be very protective of our guys."
"Don't worry sweetie, we haven't been lovers in a very long time and by long time I mean centuries," Aaron promised, even as he gave Norah's hand a gentle squeeze.

"You had better remember that buster, as it took you forever to win me over and get past my feelings of inadequacy and doubt, so you better stay on the straight and narrow, as I'm not like a lot of women that give their husbands second or third chances," Norah told him and it was clear that she meant what she said.

"You don't have to worry sweetie. While Arlena and me are still friendly, that's all it is. We discovered a very long time ago that we just weren't suited to each other in that way," Aaron assured her.

"Alright, I trust you, as you certainly earned it, but you better remember what they say about a woman scorned," Norah warned him.

"I will," Aaron promised solemnly, his lips twitching just a little, as he tried not to smile. He found this aggressive Norah very enticing. Normally, being aggressive wasn't like Norah at all, but he could understand it, as Norah had known that he had been with other women, although most of them were certainly not serious. There had been a few though a very long time ago, that he had been pretty serious about including Arlena. He was still fond of Arlena, just not in a sexual way anymore.

Norah was it for him now and he would never imagine cheating on her.

"Here we are," Aaron said as he pulled up in front of a restaurant.

"You must have been to San Francisco a lot if you know where so many places are," Norah commented.

"I've been here at least a dozen times," Aaron admitted. "I don't know the whole city but I do know some of the best places to eat and this is one of my favorites."

"Well, if you like this place I have no doubt I will to, as you have excellent taste when it comes to food," Norah said.

"Something I've developed over the centuries," Aaron admitted. "Of course, I still love a good pizza as well."

"Definitely," Norah said. "You can't beat a meat lover's pizza, with bacon, ham, pepperoni salami sausage hamburger and extra cheese from Geraldo's."

"Well, I see you are a carnivore of the highest order," Aaron snorted, "but then, so am I, so I really don't have a right to comment.

"When it comes to pizza definitely," Norah said as they entered the restaurant, Aaron holding the nonautomatic door open for her like a true gentleman.

Once they were out of range of the convertible's sensors the automatic doors of the convertible closed and locked and the roof closed, so that the car was secure.

~~~Aaron and Norah~~~

New York

Hotchner Estate

"Congratulations you two," Derek said grinning, as he saw the ring Norah's finger.

"Thank you," Aaron said grinning from ear to ear. It was clear he was very, very happy with his life at present.

"So I'm assuming you told her," Derek said delicately.

"He didn't have to, as he was run over by a car," Norah snorted. "He literally scared the life out of me and it was only when I saw he was okay that I stopped panicking."

"You were run over by a car?" Derek asked with a raised eyebrow.

"The car was out of control and the woman's brakes didn't seem to be working," Aaron explained briefly. "I saw her pumping them and the car refused to slow. I think that either there wasn't enough oil in them or something was blocking the oil from getting to them."

"It could've been a cut brake line," Derek said.

"I had already thought of that," Aaron said, "though why anyone would want to harm the lady driving I have no idea. Really, it's not our business unless trouble comes to our door."

"There's no way we could insert ourselves in to their investigation without cause," Derek told Norah who had been mostly silent.

"I understand, as Aaron explained. While I want to help I understand that's just not possible. Besides, what can I really do? I do feel sorry for her, but I also don't know if the accident is her fault or someone else's."

"Well, it's nice to know you're sensible," Derek said approvingly.

"If I knew her it would be different, but I have no idea who she is," Norah said.

"It will be nice to know I don't have to hide anything from you anymore," Derek said.

"In a way Aaron's accident was a good thing," Norah told Derek.

"In what way?" Derek asked curiously.

"Norah told me that if she hadn't seen what she had she probably wouldn't have believed me, when I told her about immortality," Aaron who had been listening explained. "You and Penny's families have known about me for generations, so it wasn't such a hard concept for you to accept."

"That's exactly right," Norah confirmed, "I would have believed Aaron was feeding me a line. Even if you and Penny had confirmed it, you both work for him and he's responsible for your paychecks so you wouldn't have been a good source. I would've believed you were backing him up just because of that fact."

"I can actually see that," Derek said thoughtfully. "It's a good thing that Penny didn't see anything on the news about your accident or you know she would've been frantically trying to get in contact with you."

"No, it was a good thing that almost all people saw was a dark-haired, tall man. You know people's memories are not the best especially doing something like a car accident. Most of them were watching the car or trying to get out of the way."

"That's a very good thing," Derek said.

"Yes, it is, as I would've hated to have to change my identity. Norah would have to either forget about our relationship or come with me, away from her friends and family."

"I'm glad that didn't happen," said Norah. "I know very well who I would choose, but I would hate to make my family grieve for me, not to mention JJ."

"Well, it's just as well it turned out like it did then," Derek said, even as he gave Norah a hug. "I'm very happy to have you joining the family Norah and Penny will be ecstatic."

"I'm very happy about it too," Norah told him kissing his cheek. "Now I suppose I had better call JJ and my parents and sister and let them know about the engagement."

"A very good idea," Aaron said, even as he put an arm around her waist.

"Penny would love to help your plan your wedding," Derek told Norah.

"So would JJ so I'll have a lot of help. I know Aaron will probably have to invite people that he'd rather not, just because he doesn't want to offend them."

"I don't really care who I offend," Aaron snorted. "I might be respected for my business sense, most of those people are not close enough for me to invite. While I am a part of their social set I've always been a little apart to.

"I'm not inviting anyone I don't want to, especially not those with daughters who act like they have nothing between the ears but air. Hopefully, once we marry it will die down a lot, but I doubt the problem will disappear entirely."

"So most of those women that have been chasing you will respect the fact that you're married but others won't," Norah translated.

"They'll assume I didn't marry for love, but that I married because I was tired of being alone," Aaron said.

"If they really think that they're idiots," Derek snorted making his opinion known, "If you really only married, because you were lonely you could've married one of them and not courted Norah for so long."

"So some of them will assume that they can entice you into at least having sex with them," Norah translated.

"If they do I'll tell them calmly I'm not available, now or ever," Aaron said. "If I really wanted to have sex with them I would've already done it and been finished."

"You know what I see," Norah said.

"What's that?" both Derek and Aaron asked her the same time

"I see a bunch of young woman that have been spoiled to the point of uselessness, young women who were never taught to be anything, except ornamental or great hostesses. At the very least their emotions haven't matured past the point of their teenage years, which means their hormones haven't matured either. I'm assuming that none of the ones that have been chasing you have a strong enough will to break away from their upbringing and forge their own path."

"You know what they say Aaron, out of the mouths babes..." Derek said finally after a few minutes of silence.

"I think you just put your finger on the pulse of the problem sweetie," Aaron told Norah, giving her a hug and a kiss. "The women I've told you about are indeed spoiled and don't seem to do anything constructive with their lives, even if that's just helping out on some kind of committee or charity. I'm not the only one they chase I promise you, as I'm not the only available rich bachelor, even if I'm the one that's the wealthiest. There are plenty of rich young men out there that have enough credit that any woman who marries one of them will be more than comfortable for the rest of their lives."

"But you are the one with the most moolah, and you're always making more," Derek said.

"Even if I never made another penny Norah and me could live very comfortably for the next thousand years," Aaron said.

"But since you provide tens of thousands of paychecks, you can't just abandon them," Norah said.

"I didn't mean it like that Norah," Aaron promised. "I just meant that I could stop buying properties, or buying businesses or making another business deal and the two us would have enough money for a very long time and I would still be getting money from all the companies I do own or even partly own. However, I like buying old buildings and fixing them up, keeping as many of the original features as possible and I'd like to keep doing that as long as I can."

"He's really good at making something new and functional out of an old building," Derek told Norah smiling.

"So I hear," Norah said smiling, kissing Aaron's cheek.

"So when is the wedding? Penny will want to know." Derek asked.

"That hasn't been determined," Aaron said.

"We'll let you know when we decide on a date, but such events take awhile to plan it will probably be sometime next spring," Norah said.

"There's no way I am waiting that long to marry you," Aaron said firmly. "It took me a year just to get you to trust me and then tell you about immortality."

"It wasn't that I didn't trust you," Norah denied. "Just that I didn't want to lose my job and that thought kept warring with my feelings that kept growing against all my attempts to prevent them from doing so. I suspect that I didn't trust that you really loved me, not truly and deeply. Most men of your social status wouldn't consider me appropriate wife material, more of a mistress. I will never be anyone's mistress and be hidden away like some kind a shameful secret. I might have a roof over my head and food in my mouth, but that wouldn't make me any less a prisoner."

"Most men are idiots in general at least about woman," Aaron said. "Particularly men with wealth and status, as they have an image to maintain and the ones that don't give a damn about their image are few and far between."

"So let's say three months from now," Norah said. "You'll have to give me a guest list on who you want invited."

"I'll generate one for you," Aaron said. "Our wedding will still be pretty large, but still small and intimate. I would say no more than 200 people."

"That's certainly a lot," Norah said. "There's going to be a lot of preparations to make in a short time."

"Well for one thing, I offer the grounds as the wedding venue, that way, you don't have to find another place. Besides, I think our wedding taking place right here on the grounds where we're going to live will be really special."

"It'll be something we will remember, forever," Norah said.

"Well, at least now you don't have to pick out a venue," Derek said smiling.

"Why that's true there's still a lot of little details to take care of to make it the perfect day for Aaron and I," Norah said.

"You'll have as much help as you need," Aaron promised. "We can even hire a wedding planner if you want too."

"We'll see," Norah said. "If we go that route she or he had better listen to my, Penny's and JJ suggestions, and not just walk all over us. I won't have whoever you hire take over the preparations and turn it into something that neither one of us would like. Someone who runs roughshod over everybody, because they think they know better."

"If whoever I hire doesn't work out tell her theiy'll fired," Aaron said firmly. "If whoever it is insists on taking over and won't listen to you, then we can always find another wedding planner, someone who will listen to what the bride wants, but also maybe has his or her own suggestions. Really though, a wedding planner's job to make your dreams come true, to make your wedding day special and if they didn't please their clients they wouldn't stay in business."

"You're right, so I probably don't need to worried about getting someone that's going to try to take over. Also, I think I prefer a female wedding planner, though it doesn't really matter so long as they work well with me, as it is my wedding after all not theirs," Norah said. "It's usually the females that plan weddings, not the males. Now, I had better go and see JJ and tell her all about our trip appropriately edited of course."

"Why don't you invite her for dinner instead," Aaron said. "I would love to meet her and I never have."

"Alright, I'll invite her to dinner," Norah agreed. "Nothing fancy, as JJ won't expect it. If she's going to become a regular around here you can introduce her to fancy gradually. We don't want to overwhelm her on her first visit."

"Probably a good idea," Aaron conceded. "How about pizza? I believe there's some pizza in the autochef."

"Sorry boss, Penny and I ate the last of it while you were gone," Derek said.

"That's okay we'll just order some," Aaron assured Derek. "The pizza wasn't just for me it was for all of us."

"Okay, I'll call JJ now, have her come over before dinner, so we can talk," Norah said.

"I'm looking forward to meeting your friend," Aaron told his fiancée.

"She's definitely looking forward to meeting you," Norah returned smiling.

~~~Aaron and Norah~~~