Once Within A Lifetime (49 page)

“
This is a spectacular gift, as was the ring the previous time,” she murmured through her tears.

“
You should have all kinds of precious jewels, my princess,” he told her.

“
This is why I asked you not to wear a necklace tonight. Even these diamonds will need to really work to outdo your shine tonight. You are simply glowing and beautiful. It is like the first night. Your dress is absolutely gorgeous. I doubt if another exists that can touch it.”

He
thanked the waiter for taking the pictures of this for them.

The
waiter bowed and said, “It is truly been a pleasure. Such occurrences are rare. You have a special love and show it perfectly to the precious lady.”

“
Thank you, sir,” bowed Todd. “We will certainly return to your lovely restaurant when we are in the area. It will always hold a special place in our hearts.”

The
waiter bowed, smiled, and left.

Todd
turned to Triessa and said, “We have many wonderful memories of the past month together and it can add more to everything, for it has been an awesome experience which keeps getting better all the time. We have a knowledge and understanding now that we could not have begun to grasp on that first night. We are at a much higher level and even with all the awe and beauty of that first night it was like an amateur situation. Not that it was not wonderful because you did it in an awesome way and made it the most special night of my life up to that point. But this night takes us beyond that level and into a higher realm of ecstasy as we well might expect. Do you understand what I am trying to say, my darling?”

“
I truly do. Do you remember when I wished it could last forever and you said no, we had more joys ahead?”

“
Of course I do, Precious. It is as you say, I could not put it better. We have come a long way in a month, but as we look back on it a year or more later we will see it in still a greater light with a higher level of understanding and experience. Shall we come back here next year at this time?”

She
smiled and said, “H’mm . . . .”

They
enjoyed the evening thoroughly but all too soon it was time to leave and go back home together this time as lovers and lifetime mates. They got back and entered the house which was very quiet. They went to their room and sat by the window to talk about all the joys of the evening. She told him she had something special to do, got a box and went to the bathroom. When she returned she was wearing the beautiful white nightie for this special occasion. He was overwhelmed; she looked so sparkling and like a special treasure.

He
began to unbutton the little pearl buttons.

“
You really make me work for my treasure,” he said teasingly.

They
soon got ready for bed and lay there a while before they got involved in their love making. He held her close and told her how beautiful she was, like a real princess.

“
All evening I longed to hold you in my arms,” he told her as he kissed her neck, her cheeks and her lips. He got more and more amorous and whispered to her all the wonderful things he could think of to begin to express his love for her.

She
responded in words to her to show her great appreciation for his great and special love. It thrilled her and aroused her passions to greater heights as he talked and held her close. It was a perfect climax to the evening and really sealed it off with perfect bliss. They finally fell asleep in each other’s arms after. They were totally drained emotionally and physically. They slept a totally relaxed sleep, cooled by the gentle breezes coming in the windows. The moon shone across their bed illuminating their bodies as they lay beside each other in perfect peace and joy.

It
was raining when they awoke the next day and their plans for the garden would have to be postponed. They went down to breakfast and sat at the dining room table, had their coffee, and thought about the plans for the day.

“
What do you say if we take the day to do some things inside, like trying to figure out what we will need to change here? What you would like to add or work with to make it ours? We can make a list of the things we’ll have to pick up or change.”

“
All right, we can look around after we finish breakfast. It may clear off during the day and we can go outside after all to look at the vineyard some more.”

“
That is true we can think about that as a possibility. It will be great if it does.”

They
finished eating and he took her into the living room. They began to look around. He gave her a pad and a pen so she began to write some things as they came to mind.

“
We can look at these again later and make final decisions. I would rather not make immediate changes in most things. It is a little early for me to have a feel of the place but I can list some things to consider.”

From
there they went to the other areas of the house and she wrote more notes on her pad.

“
We will go over them later after we have been together a while. I do not want to change your arrangements except as we go along and agree on new things as they appeal to us. Right now, we will just enjoy our present time here and take stock.”

“
Yes, I understand,” he told her. “Maybe I am rushing things a little, but I want you to feel totally at home and I know I will enjoy any changes you make. I love the things you did at your house, though we have a different situation here.”

As
they went through each room he told her of things that had a meaning to him for some reason and she noted them. The things here, after all, had been part of him for a long time and could not be changed too suddenly or drastically without arousing some emotions.

By
the time they finished looking around it was nearly noon. They saw the sun beginning to come out and were overjoyed. They could go out to the vineyard after all. They decided to wait until after lunch because everything was still quite wet and the vines were drippy. They were already dressed for outside work and didn’t have to change. They told Marjolaine they would like a light lunch; they’d been eating too lavishly and must be careful of their health. She was conscious of every pound she gained over a certain limit. She wanted to stay neat, trim and that helped keep their metabolism active.

After
lunch they went outside and looked at the grapevines. There were quite a few of them and they should make quite a few bottles of wine once they got into it. The gardener saw them and came out to talk to them about it. He told them of the special care they needed and what he had have to do to get things going well so they would produce next year. He needed to keep an eye on them to prevent the return of the previous problem. They were fascinated and listened to him. She had her pad with her and recorded some of the things she wished to remember so she could check them further. She wanted to get involved as much as she could in the process.  

When
they were finished there they walked around the grounds and he asked her if there were any changes she would like to think about here. She told him she would look at it and see what she thought might make a difference. After all, it was set up with a specific purpose in mind and all those things had to be considered before she made any plans. They would have to look at everything and talk about it after the honeymoon was over. It was too early to get into it now.

They
went inside and decided to call his family to invite them over and see when they would be able to come. He called his mother first and they were glad to hear from him. He told her they just got back and planned to stay a few days, then go back to her place for a while to make some plans for the rest of their life, their work, and travel.

“
Have you been well, Mother, since your bout before the wedding?

“
I had a recurrence after we got back home, but after a brief period of rest, I am back to my old self again.”

“
I am so glad to hear that. But you need to check to make sure nothing serious is occurring. We’ve been very concerned during our whole trip.”

His
folks could come for dinner tomorrow evening and they’d call Dirje and Cord to see if they could come as well and let them know. They sat in the living room a while and talked about giving them the gifts they brought for them. It would be a good time and they could fill them in on where they had been. Later when they were settled they could show them the videos and snapshots.

His
mother called back and told him Dirje and Cord could come tomorrow evening also. They would bring the children so they could get better acquainted. At the wedding they did not really have time to get to know them. Triessa was pleased for she liked children and looked forward to seeing them.

“
Well, that is settled,” said Todd. “Let’s go tell Marjolaine so she can prepare the things they will need and get everything set up. Maybe we can go into town for her if she needs anything. It will be a good outing. We could go somewhere special for lunch if you would like.”

“
That sounds nice. I am sure you are familiar with the area and will find a really nice place. It will be a pleasant change. I am glad to be able to get to know more about the area here since you have lived here all your life and have your home here.”

They
ate dinner, went into the living room for a while and talked about how long they would stay here. They would leave at the end of the week; that would be three more days. This way they would be back at her place on the weekend and have a glorious time in the Rose Garden. If they left on Friday, they could be there to go out and spend time in their beloved Rose Garden on Saturday. It was on a Saturday, five weeks ago, they got married. They would enter it again on the same day of the week. They could spend some time there deciding what they would do for the future, how and when to begin work again.

“
Let’s go up to my workroom and let me show you some of the things I will be getting into when I get back to work. I had started with some ideas and left them there until I had more time to do them, they still need some added details. You may be able to see some that can liven it up.”

They
went up to the room and he opened the case where he kept his gemstones. They were certainly beautiful. He had them arranged according to types, and in each group he had a certain color arrangement. He knew how he would be looking for the stones and could go right to them.

He
showed her his tools explaining briefly what each one was for. It would take far more time to explain them fully, even a demonstration to help her understand it better. She looked at his designs and had a little understanding about them for designing had some resemblances, no matter what the field. She made a few suggestions and he was really pleased with them.

“
That is great,” he replied. “A fresh eye on something can add details one working on it may not see. I will consider them seriously. Once I look at them for a long time, it is hard to see anything beyond my original plan and design. Thank you.”

They
decided to go to bed, so he closed the door to the jewel case and they left the room. They went into the bedroom to get ready for bed and lay there a while just resting in each other’s arms and talked about tomorrow. They would go in to town about ten o’clock and be ready to have lunch so they could look around a while to see if there was anything she might be interested in. Tomorrow was Wednesday and he’d better call the airlines if they were to leave on Friday. He should have done it today. They really would like to get back to her place no later than late afternoon. Then they could settle down to get ready for the next day when they would go out and see the Rose Garden again, the first time for over a month. She was getting a little excited about it. She hadn’t been away from it this long before. Traveling was fun but there came a time when you wanted to get back home to familiar territory for a while and some sort of routine.

They
soon fell asleep and awoke the next day to get ready to go into town. They told Marjolaine they would not be there for lunch. He showed her some places along the way which were really pretty and gave her a little history on each place some of which he visited often while growing up. They would have to look at them more closely sometime in the future.

They
soon arrived in town and went to a shopping area where he wanted to show her some shops that carried a lot of the local wares. Many people make and supply them to the markets. She was definitely impressed with them. She looked in one shop as they walked along, saw a real special purse and wanted to go in and look at it. She examined it and decided she would get it. He took it, paid for it and gave it to her. She kissed and thanked him. This was something she would have to get used to. It still seemed a little strange to her since she had always done these things herself.

Just
a few doors down was the quaint little restaurant he had in mind, and when they went in she was impressed with the small but charming interior. It was pleasant and clean and had some old-fashioned tables and chairs. He felt she would like this.