When Penelope got back to her apartment she found Dave waiting on her with dinner already cooking in her small kitchen. She had of course, given Dave her extra key.

"Well, it is nice to come home to a homecooked meal," Penelope joked tiredly.

"I thought it was the least I could do while you and Emily were shopping for the wedding all day," Dave said as he kissed her. "So how did things go?"

"Everything went well, though Emily protested about me paying for her matron of honor dress," Penelope reported. "And also the shoes that go with the dress."

"You knew she would though," Dave said. "Emily has a lot of pride, as she learned how to be self-sufficient at an early age."

"Yeah, I know," Penelope agreed soberly, trying not to think of her friends cold, loveless childhood. "I convinced her and she gave in much sooner than I really expected her too. I think it's because she knew that you and Aaron are two of the most stubborn people that either one of us has ever met. I also reminded her that if she didn't cooperate you'd just hand Aaron a check to deposit in her account."

"Yes, I would have," Dave agreed with laughter in her eyes. "That would've been a more complicated way to do things, but it could've been done. It's nice to know that she gave in to the inevitable. When I said I'd pay for everything the wedding involved, well, except for your wedding dress, I meant it. I was going to pay for your wedding dress to, but your father wanted to pay something and I know a man has his pride."

"Something we should have considered," Penelope admitted. "Or at least I should have."

"It's all taken care of, that's should be all that matters," Dave said gently, as he continued to cook.

"Emily chose a lovely burgundy dress and it is simply perfect. She likes simple when it comes to wearing a dress. She hates ruffles or lace. I think it's because she was forced to wear these things when she attending those parties when she was growing up. I'm sure Emily didn't have a choice in what she wore, as it was probably decided for her. I wouldn't be surprised if her mother made the decision on what she was going to wear and never gave Emily a choice."

"Or possibly the nanny," Dave agreed. "If that's true, it's no wonder Emily likes simple things now, at least when it comes to wearing dresses."

"If it wasn't my wedding and if she wasn't the matron of honor, she probably would have showed up in a nice pair slacks and a blouse and declared herself dressed," Penelope laughed.

"I can see that actually," Dave chuckled. "I know I don't know her as well as you do, but still, I know her well enough to know that she'd do exactly as you described."

"She probably would've done that for own wedding if she thought her mother would let her get away with it," Penelope giggled.

"Probably," Dave agreed. "From all I know of Elizabeth Prentiss she might've gone ballistic, though I know I've never met the lady in question. I've certainly heard enough descriptions of her though."

"I have to agree with that assessment, as I have met her on a few occasions." Penelope said. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

"No, I'm nearly done," Dave said refusing Penny's offer of help with a wave of his hand. "Why don't you just sit at the table and talk to me, as I know you must be tired from being on your feet all day."

Penelope did as Dave requested and sat at the small eating nook. The nook was just big enough for two people, but then, the kitchen itself wasn't very big either, so that was understandable.

It wasn't long before Dave was placing dinner on the table.

"It looks delicious Dave," Penelope said appreciatively.

"I'm glad you think so," Dave grinned. "I can't have you get tired of me already."

"Not going to happen," Penelope promised, as she gave his hand to squeeze. "It's a good thing you can cook though, because as dad told you I cannot. Oh, I can prepare simple things and the crockpot is my best friend but anything complicated..."

"It doesn't matter who does the cooking," Dave said. "You can cook enough to fix yourself a meal and that should be all that matters. I use a crockpot sometimes to, especially if I want to slow cook something like a roast. It comes out nice and tender that way."

"Yes, it does," Penelope said, as she took a bite of her dinner, closing her eyes appreciatively, as the delicious flavors exploded over her tongue. "We can share cooking duties, though I'm sure you're going to be doing the majority of it."

"I don't mind," Dave promised.

"I know you don't and that's what's so amazing," Penelope said, as they enjoyed their dinner. "Well, I am absolutely stuffed," Penelope said as soon as she finished her plate.

"So no seconds?" Dave asked teasingly.

"No, no room," Penelope said patting her full stomach. "If I ate seconds at every meal I'd soon be as big as a blimp."

"Yeah, I would too," Dave agreed, as he cleaned his plate. "If I didn't exercise I wouldn't be able to eat like I do."

"I'll clean up, as it's only fair," Penelope offered.

"Okay," Dave agreed without argument. Penelope was right it was only fair that she did the cleanup, since he had cooked. Dividing the chores was what every normal couples did and Dave knew this from his own parents. His dad would never treat his mother like a servant and force her to do all the cooking and cleaning. The least his father could do was clean up the kitchen after a meal. It was very unusual concept back when his parents had been born, but still, it had worked out. If they had fought about it at first Dave didn't know but it was very possible. It would have taken awhile to have that kind of smooth dynamics, but then, they had basically forever to work on them.

Penelope cleared the table, then made sure the counters were clean, but Dave had cleaned up after himself, as he had been cooking, so there wasn't much else to do other than load the dishwasher.

"So what do you want to do for the rest of the night?" Penelope asked.

"Well, as much as I enjoy making love I think we can just watch a movie instead," Dave suggested. "You can tell me some more about yours and Emily shopping trip if you want."

"Sounds good to me," Penelope said appreciatively. "I enjoy us making love, but we do need to do other things."

"Sounds good to me," Dave agreed repeating what Penny had said just a few seconds ago, causing her to grin. "Now we just need to decide on what movie to watch."

The two picked a DVD and put it into the player and Dave started nibbling at her neck as soon as the movie started.

"Hey! I thought we were going to watch a movie?" Penelope scolded playfully, not really upset.

"Did I say that?" Dave grinned and kissed her soundly. Penelope got lost in the sensation of her fiancé's kisses and didn't complain any farther, not that her one complaint had been serious in the first place.

Soon the movie was over neither one of them remembered any of the script, as they had been too busy making out on the couch like teenagers. Penelope turned off the TV and she and Dave headed directly for the bedroom to continue making love for the rest of the night.

~~~Dave and Penelope~~~

Day of the wedding

"Oh, honey, you look so beautiful," Ivy Garcia told her daughter. Her daughter was dressed in a beautiful white gown, that had high quality lace 3 inches deep, on the hem as well as around the waist and at the neck. The breast was seeded with pearls, that Ivy had no doubt were real considering how much the gown had cost. It was a beautiful gown and she was thankful that Dave was so generous. This was a gown that could be passed from mother to daughter, for generations.

"Thank you, mom," Penelope said blushing at the sincere compliment.

"You're quite welcome honey," Ivy said smiling. "I'm so glad Dave convinced you to get this gown instead of something cheaper. This gown can be worn for generations. It is made out a very fine material, which will last a long time, so long it is stored correctly."

"I know, I've already got that covered. I'm going to wrap it in lots of plastic and then store it somewhere dark. That should stop the silk from becoming discolored," Penelope promised. "I plan on passing it down to my daughter on her wedding day. Of course, I know Dave and I might only have sons, but we'll see."
Ivy was nodding at this, because it was true her daughter and Dave might only have sons, though there was a good chance they'd have at least one little girl.

"I wanted to give this to you," Ivy said passing her daughter a box. "It's a present from your father and me for your wedding day. We know Dave loves you very much and that's all one can expect really."

"Yes, it is," Penelope agreed she tore off the paper off the long box. Penelope finally opened the jewelry box and stared at the pearl necklace. "Oh, mom, it's its exquisite. This is too much though. Dad already paid so much for my wedding dress."

"Don't worry honey, I didn't pay a thing for it," Ivy promised chuckling at her daughter's reaction. She had felt the same the first time she had seen it, as it was a spectacular necklace with a lot of history behind it. "It's a family heirloom that is supposed to be passed from mother to daughter on their wedding day. I never thought I'd be able to pass it on to you, since you didn't seem to want to get married, but I'm glad I was wrong. It's been in our family for generations and I expect you to pass it on to your oldest daughter when you have one on her wedding day."

"And if my daughter doesn't get married?" Penelope asked, as she stared at the lovely pearl necklace.

"Well then, you pass it on to your oldest granddaughter," Ivy said.

Ivy knew that girls didn't have to get married if they didn't want to in this century, so it was quite possible that any daughter of Penelope's wouldn't find someone they wanted to marry.

"Alright, thank you," Penelope said, as she took the necklace from the box. "I will treasure it and pass it onto my daughter or granddaughter on her wedding day."

"Your dad and I know that you'll be very happy with Dave and we're looking forward to those grandchildren," Ivy said. "Here, let me help you put it on you before your father arrives, to escort you down the aisle."

Penelope allowed her mother to pin the necklace around her neck and once it was secure she let the hair she had moved out of the way drop.

"So where is Emily I thought she would be here?" Ivy asked her daughter.

"She will be, she's just taking care of some final details," Penelope explained. "She has a lot of little tasks to take care of, because she is the matron of honor and Aaron, Dave's best friend is of course, the best man, so he's helping her. Dave of course, isn't allowed to see me, before I walk down the aisle, as it's bad luck."

"So I'm hoping I can meet his parents while I'm here," Ivy mentioned and Penelope nodded.

"You will, as they wouldn't miss their son's wedding for the world," Penelope promised. "I will introduce you or if I can't, Aaron can."

"Yes, I remember Dave saying that he was really close to them," Ivy said.

"Yes, he is," Penelope agreed. "They are such a lovely couple though, I can understand why he is. I'm sure I'll be that close one day, once we've known each other for longer."

Like several centuries, Penelope thought, but didn't say.

There was a knock on the door then and Ivy went to open it.

"Ready?" Juan asked his daughter. "You look spectacular Penny. I just know Dave's eyes are going to bug out when he catches sight of you."

"Thank you dad," Penelope said blushing again. "That's the effect I'm hoping to have."

"You're quite welcome, sweetie," Juan said, kissing his daughter on the cheek. "I wasn't sure this day would ever come."

"I just hadn't met Dave before a few months ago," Penelope said with a dreamy expression. "I love him so much. I'm so glad Emily introduced us."

"So are we," Ivy told her daughter kissing her cheek and giving her a motherly hug. "Now, it's time for you to go get married to the man of your dreams. I hope you're as happy in your marriage, as I am in mine."

"I will be," Penelope said with certainty. "This is something I know in my heart. See what Dave gave me as a wedding present?"

Penelope pointed to her pearl earrings. "He knew my wedding dress contained pearls and so he bought these to compliment the dress."

"They're really pretty Penny," Juan said.

Juan's words were an understatement, but then most men didn't know a thing about jewelry, except ones like Dave, who had excellent taste.

"They are exquisite," Ivy agreed. "They too can be passed down as family heirlooms so long as you take care of them."

"I think that was Dave's intent actually," Penelope admitted. "I'm sure he expects me to pass them down to one of my daughters or granddaughters."

Juan took his daughter's arm and escorted her out of the room and down the stairs where the wedding march was just beginning to play outside. All the guest watched, as Juan Garcia proudly escorted his daughter down the aisle where the groom was waiting with a smile that reached all the way to his eyes and then watched, as the couple, obviously deeply in love stood before the preacher who was waiting.

~~~Dave and Penelope~~~

"I'm so happy for you son. Penny is a lovely lady," Jacob told Dave.

"Yes she is," Dave said grinning goofily.

"Well, it's clear to me that you love her very much," Jacob said amused at his son's expression.

"Of course I do, as I never would've asked her to marry me if I didn't," Dave mildly protested. "I never would've told her about immortality either."

"It's been a long time in coming," Jacob said. "But then, I know very well, it's not always easy to find a mate, especially not for our kind."

This was very true, so Dave only nodded in agreement.

"I'm sure you know your mother was ecstatic when she was told that you were going to marry Penny," Jacob said.

"Boy! Don't I know it!" Dave said amused. "I'm sure people could hear her squeals of joy for several miles. She's been wanting to marry me off for a very long time."

"That's all any mother wants for her children son. For them to be happy with a mate of their own," Jacob said. "Finding the right person is not always easy though, as I know very well."

"Aaron meeting Emily finally motivated me to get my rear in gear and find someone for myself," Dave said. "I never imagined that I'd fall in love with Emily's friend Penelope, but I'm so glad she introduced us."

"I'm glad that Aaron's true love was reincarnated," Jacob said soberly. "Aaron's been so much happier since his former wife came back to him."

Most immortals, especially those as old as Jacob and Rebecca, believed in reincarnation, so had no trouble accepting the fact that Emily was Aaron's reincarnated wife. Most older immortals had seen it happen at least once, even if reincarnation was as rare as hens teeth.

"Yes, I know," Dave agreed softly. "It's been said several times lately, but Berenice must've been the love of Aaron's life and vice versa, as I don't see her being reincarnated otherwise."

"I have to agree son," Jacob said nodding. "I'm looking forward to getting to know my daughter-in-law better. Your mother is already very fond of her if only because she makes you so happy."

"She does dad," Dave agreed smiling. "I think I'm going to go ask her to dance, now that her dance with the father is nearly over."

"You go ahead son. Go dance with your beautiful bride," Jacob said smiling, as he watched his son wander out onto the dance floor just as the song ended. Jacob saw Dave and Penelope start dancing together talking softly.

~~~Dave and Penelope~~~