Chapter 6
After making the appropriate arrangements with his nurse and another doctor to take his patients, Todd drove to Jen’s house. He arrived about eleven am. Parked and walked up to the door. The door opened just as he was about to ring the bell. Jen was standing there dressed in a skirt of pale yellow and white blouse. She looked beautiful. “Come in and meet my mother,” she said.
He followed her in and he remarked to himself what a lovely home. It was full of stuff that only mothers acquire and decorate their homes with. It looked a lot like his house when his parents were alive. Put a smile on your face, he said to himself. Stop thinking about them and focus on the present; he chided himself. Mother came in and Jen introduced her to him. June was the very likeness of her daughter. Same blond hair, but now tinged with gray around the temples. A fine figure of a woman who obviously took care of herself, Todd thought. They moved into the living room and sat down. Todd felt he should explain to her what they were doing. Jen sensed he was about to speak when she said, “Todd, I told mom about everything and she understands what we're doing.”
Mom said, “Todd, I can see by your face and my daughter’s that the two of you are very much in love. I only ask that Jen calls me once in awhile so I don’t worry.”
Todd assured June he would make sure Jen called and checked in with her on a regular basis. They then stood up and Jen kissed her mother on the cheek and they moved towards the front door. Jen picked up her bag and Todd took it from her and once more said, “Good bye.”
Todd placed her bag behind the seat, got in and drove off. On the way he said, “Your mother is very pretty. I see where your good looks come from. I’m anxious to meet your father too.”
She just smiled and sat there enjoying his company.
After awhile they pulled into the airport. Todd looked serious as they drove up to a large hanger some distance from the busy airport. A business jet sat out front with Lincoln Corp. on the side and a picture of a penny coin on the tail. She remembered that Abraham Lincoln, the sixteenth president of the United States was on the penny coin. Todd parked in front of an office and they got out and went in. A tall man was standing at the counter with a pilot’s hat on and a uniform that was spotless. Next to him was another man dressed the same. They were talking about the weather and when Todd said, “Good morning.”
They turned around and greeted him with a smile and then they took in the lovely girl standing next to him. “Are we ready to go?” Todd asked. ‘
“Yes, just about ready sir. There is some weather over the Rockies, but nothing to worry about. We will drop down over Arizona into California and up from the LA area to Napa. It will make a smoother flight.”
Todd nodded and took Jen by the arm and led her into an office in the back where a woman was working at a desk. Todd said, “Good morning”, and introduced Jen to Pam. He said, “Pam takes care of this part of the business. A lot of paper work is necessary to own a corporate airplane. However, it’s necessary for our people to have access to quick transportation when needed.”
Jen wondered to herself, what makes up the Lincoln Corporation? At first she thought it was only a vineyard. Now it would appear that is was quite large. Just then the pilot said, “The plane is ready to go Mr. Lincoln. Please board when you're ready.”
He said good bye to Pam and they went out and boarded the airplane. Once inside he said “Take a seat and buckle up.”
The bags had been stored by the co-pilot and all Todd had was his brief case. He stored the brief case and came back and sat down next to Jen and buckled up.
Once up in the air and the buckle up sign went off, he took his off and said to her, “Want something to drink? It’s kind of a long flight and it will take about four or more hours.”
“Yes, thanks you.”
Meanwhile she looked around his airplane and saw that it was quite plush. Not overly so, but from some pictures she had seen from her advertising days, nice but not extravagant. He asked her to move to the sofa where they would be more comfortable. Soft drinks in hand and his other hand on the back of the sofa, he softly rubbed her neck. She fell into him and his arm went around her and hugged her close. Kissing her head and drinking in her scent. A very faint trace of perfume drifted up to him. “Jen, I love you. I know it’s only been a few days, but as God is my witness, I do love you so much.”
Her arm went around his middle and she turned her lips up to his. He kissed her deeply and she made moaning sounds from her throat. She made soft, sweet sounds that drove him a little crazy with desire. Finally, the kiss ended and he said to her, “Now I'll finish the story I began on the boat the night of the storm.”
She pouted a little wanting the joining to continue.
“Let’s see, where was I when we left with the story of my life? Yes, I remember, I was talking about my grandmother and her living in New York and about my great grandfather and grandfather. Well, after my grandfather’s death, grandmother moved to New York where she had some relatives living there from the Old Country. The caretakers ran the vineyard. It was very successful. She invested the money wisely. By the time I was a young adult, the Lincoln family was very wealthy. My father loved flying. He wanted nothing to do with the vineyard. Both my mother and grandmother ran the business. Of course they had help with a selected group of directors. Mostly they were from New York and distant relatives and their associates. By then the vineyard had expanded to more than a thousand acres. The New York real-estate holdings were enormous. Now to tell you the truth, I really don’t know how much I’m worth. We have a foundation that channels money to various needy groups and I have a special love for the conservation portion of the foundation.”
“I told you my parents are dead. They died in a plane accident. My father had a twin engine Cessna. He and my mother would fly around on the weekends and take trips down to Mexico. They both loved shopping around the street markets in Mexico. You will see the results of their shopping at the vineyard. The caretakers took care of our house after they died. Removed the things they thought were necessary and sold off the rest. Anyway, it was on one those Mexican trips that their plane went down in the mountains. I personally took charge of the investigation and we found out that a plugged fuel line was the cause. My father was a stickler for maintenance, but sometimes fate plays a part of life which we don’t fully understand.”
“Well, there you have most of it. Now all that's left of the Lincoln family is grandmother and I. Now, Jen, I would like to change that situation.”
She knew what was coming and her breath came quickly and her heart did something to her to make her shudder. He looked deep into her blue eyes and asked: Jennifer, “Would you marry me?”
“Of course my darling, I would happy to be your wife.”
She jumped up and then jumped back into his lap. Looking into his eyes and said, “I’m the luckiest girl in the world, except maybe your grandmother. Give me a kiss Mr. Lincoln.”
He kissed her quickly and held her so tight she gave a groan and it was not from love, but from pain. “Not so hard, honey, you don’t know your own strength.”
He loosened his hug and raised his hand to the sides of her head and held her inches from his face. Then he slowly touched her lips with his mouth and nibbled on them softly with his teeth. He sucked gently on her lips and she started to breathe harder. He squirmed a little underneath her and she felt his hardness growing. By then they were deep into a heavy embrace. Two tongues playing together each having their own form of love making. His hand started unbuttoning her blouse. She broke the kiss and turned to lay her head in his lap so he could finish unbuttoning her blouse. Her bra was one that connected in front and she helped him with that problem he was having.
About then, the pilot door opened the door and he quickly turned around and went back in. Todd laughed and she moved to button up her blouse. Then she ran to the restroom. Todd picked up the phone on the table next to the sofa and told the pilot to come o
n back, the coast is clear. The pilot told him they were about a half-hour from Napa. The pilot showed no emotion and was very professional. He made no apology. Todd was waiting for Jen to come back and he moved back towards the restroom. She peeked out the door and asked him, “Is he gone?”
Todd laughed and said, “Come out and take your seat and buckle up we are coming into Napa airport.”
He went in to the restroom and soon came back out and sat next to her buckling up and taking her hand in his. He kissed it gently and she leaned against his shoulder and both waited for the wheels to touch down.
After landing and walking to the small terminal, a SUV pulled up with the Lincoln logo on its side. A young Mexican stepped out and ran to help Todd with the bags. A light rain was falling and the weather was a little cool for this time of year in Napa Valley. “Not so good for the grapes,” Todd said to no one in particular. Todd and Jen climbed in the back seat and they drove off. “It’s about a forty-five minute drive to the vineyard.”
She took her pony tail down and brushed her hair. She replaced the band on her pony tail and snuggled up to her man. They held hands all the way to the winery. It was a little dark out from the weather, but still a few hours till dark. She stared out the window wondering what the next few days would bring to her. So many things running through her head: A wedding to plan; her job; and she knew she was missing many things that would have to happen in the next few months. “Jen, just live for the moment and not worry about next week.” she said to herself.
Soon they were driving up a long narrow road that ended at the vineyard. She looked out and all she saw was row after row of grapes. She couldn’t imagine a thousand acres of grapes. They pulled up to the house and it was small compared to the many building surrounding it. Building after building and people coming and going for as far as she could see was very impressive. All the buildings were lined with giant oak trees. A vegetable garden was at one side of the low house. She saw two Mexicans weeding the garden. They waved and Todd waved back.
He said, “Most of the workers here have been with us for a long time. They live here on the property. We have a bus that takes the kids to the main road for the school bus to pick them up. I feel an educated person is much better than an uneducated one. The special ones we send to college. We loan the money to them for school and when they get a job or come back and work for us, we deduct some of their wages and we have a one hundred percent pay back. When they're married, we give them seed money to start a family.”
A group of people were waiting for Todd to arrive. All had somber looks on their faces. They parked and got out. One very old looking woman came running up to Todd and threw her arms around him and she was crying. “It’s ok Alice, I’m here now.”
He stood there and let here cry. He rocked her back and forth while the staff looked on with sad faces. Jen waited and felt very sad for the nice looking lady in Todd’s arms. Finally she broke away and looked towards Jen. She wiped her eyes with a soggy handkerchief and said to Todd, “What do we have here Todd? Nobody said anything about a pretty girl coming with you.” She had a big smile on her face and said to Jen, “Welcome to our home. Sorry it had to be at such a bad time. My name is Alice. Please come in the both of you. John will be happy to see you. He’s been trying to stay awake for your arrival, but nods off now and then.”
They walked into the house and Jen saw right away what Todd had told her about the Mexican things brought back by his parents. The whole house was a Mexican motif; quite lovely, she thought.
Todd turned to Jen and said, “Honey, one of the staff will show you to the guest house. Please make yourself at home. I will go in and see John alone. Forgive me honey I will see you soon in the guest house. Don’t forget to call your mother,” he said with a little smile.
A pretty little girl took her by the hand and led her through a back door and down a cement path to the guest house. The house was small, but very cozy. Their bags were already in the house. She wandered from room to room and the girl said to her, “If there is anything you need, just pick up the phone and press 111 and ask for Maria. Dinner tonight will be around seven. I’ll come and get you when it is time to eat.”
Jen looked at her watch and saw that is was about five o’clock. Maria let herself out the door quietly and Jen looked for a phone. On a desk there was a computer and phone. She just had to call her mother and tell her the news. First she had to use the bathroom to wash her face and hands. Coming back to the phone, she noticed the bed was king size. “Looks like lots of room to play around,” she mused out loud.
Mother answered on the first ring. “Mom, are you sitting down? I have something to tell you.” The excitement in her voice and her mother telling her to slow down brought Jen back to normal. “Todd asked me to marry him and I said yes.”
Mother started crying in the phone. “Forgive me Jen,” Mother said. Then both of them were crying and after a few minutes, mother said, “What is the date?”
Jen told her she didn’t know. “We will talk about it later and I will call you when we set the date.” She wasn’t crying anymore and she went on to say, “Mom, make a list of guests. Of course Beth will be my maid of honor. Father Paul should be made aware of the upcoming wedding. Oh, mom, I’m so happy. I wish you were here. No, I wish I were there with you and dad.”
“Dad is standing right here trying to listen as we talk. Tears are running down his face. We love you very much and dad so wants to meet your man.”
She hung up and went back and washed the dried tears off her face. Jen was busy putting unpacking their clothes. Hanging up her sun dresses and the other things she put in a drawer. The chest of drawers was very old. Beautiful wood and the drawers were deep and spacious. She put her things on the left and his things on the right side. Both had packed light. She was hoping she could do some boutique shopping while they were here. She packed up a negligee from Fredrick of Hollywood. Beth had given it to her for a Christmas present last year. She put it in the drawer for later. She had just finished with putting their things away when she heard the door open and she knew it was Todd coming in.