by Nancy Adams
As if that wasn't enough, once I was rescued, he actually got down on one knee right in front of my Mom and Dad and proposed. I said an enthusiastic “Yes!” of course, and we began making plans for a wedding.
We decided we would hold it at his family's home in San Francisco. That almost sent my Mom into a heart attack, until we explained that arrangements would be made for a charter flight to bring all of my family and friends out for the wedding, and all at my fiance's expense, of course. That solved a lot of the problem, and a few days later, Nate and I boarded his corporate jet airplane to go and begin the preparations.
Now, this may be hard to believe, but stranger things have happened. While we were on the way to California, the airplane suffered dual engine failure and we crashed in the wilds of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado. The pilot and co-pilot were killed, but they had managed to put the plane down through trees that cushioned the crash enough for Nate and me to survive. Once more, Nate showed what a wonderful man he is, by providing shelter, and knowing how to keep us well fed and in good health as we tried to make our way toward civilization.
Then the unthinkable happened, when we were attacked by a wild grizzly bear. Armed with nothing but a knife, Nate was forced to take on the bear and fight not only for his life, but for mine, as well, and he won! I want to know how many men can do that?
We were found shortly thereafter, and that bear's skin would soon be a rug on the floor of our new home—and incidentally, my father was among those who came searching for us in the wilderness. Like Nate, my Dad is an ex-marine, and if there's one thing they never do, it's give up!
All those adventures were behind us now, though, and I was seriously hoping that the future would be far more mundane! I was ready for some more of that normal life, and Nate agreed with me wholeheartedly.
Once we were rescued, we spent a few days just being together and safe, before going on to San Francisco. And I guess that's where I should pick up the story.
Okay, something I should probably mention is that while we were out in the wilderness, I got to worrying that we might never be rescued, that we might be stuck out there for a long time, or might even die there. The more I thought about that, the more I mourned for the future together that we'd been planning, and so one evening, I told Nate about this story I'd read once.
It was about this couple who were shipwrecked on a deserted island. Like us, they'd been engaged to be married, and had been on the way to some romantic spot for their wedding and honeymoon when the wreck happened. When they realized that there was little hope of rescue, and all they had was each other, they decided to make their own wedding. They said their vows to each other before God, and asked Him to honor them.
In their case, it was a good thing they did, because they were on that island for many, many years, long enough to raise a family. My concern was more that we might die without being married, so I asked Nate if he thought God would honor our vows that way.
He was reluctant at first, but at last he gave in, and we were married in our hearts that night. We went into the small shelter of pine boughs that he had built for us, and that was our honeymoon cottage. My husband made love to me, sweetly, tenderly, and at last I was the wife and woman I had longed to be.
We told no one but our parents, who said they understood, and so we rented a luxury suite for a few days and just spent time together. It was wonderful, and I have absolutely no regrets of any kind.
Well, one thing did occupy my mind a bit; by the time we got to San Francisco, a week after we'd left home, I was about three days late for my.. Granted, that didn't necessarily mean anything, and even if I was pregnant, we were getting married in less than a month; everyone knows a blushing bride can do in eight months what takes every other married woman nine to accomplish, right? I decided not to worry about it, and if it turned out I was already in “the family way,” then I knew we'd all be thrilled when the baby finally arrived.
That was one secret, however, that I didn't share with anyone but Nate. He agreed we should probably keep it between us for the time being, and wait to be sure before saying anything.
When we got to San Francisco, we went to Nate's parents' estate, and they showed us the three other houses—okay, mansions—that they had on their property. At first, when Nate had told me about them, I was a little worried about living next door to my new in-laws, but I loved them to pieces right off the bat, and the houses were all more than a mile or more apart from each other. The estate was bigger than some small cities, so we'd have all the privacy we could ever hope for.
We looked at all three of them, because Nate said he wanted me to make the choice of which one I wanted. Each of them was about five times the size of the house I'd grown up in, and it was considered large by North Platte standards. Each had a minimum of seven bedrooms, and one had nine, each with its own bathroom, plus more bathrooms scattered around the house and property.
For example, each house had a pool and pool house, a garage that would hold anywhere from four to fifteen cars, a “party house” that was probably as big as a major hotel conference room and had its own kitchen, and several other outbuildings. Each and every one of those had at least two bathrooms! No one would ever have to dance outside a bathroom door at one of these places, no matter how many guests we might be entertaining!
The one I chose at the end of the day was absolutely beautiful, and reminded me of an old southern manse, with four huge columns holding up the front porch roof. It was built of brick that was the most awesome shade of purplish red I've ever seen! There was a gorgeous driveway that came to a big circle in front of the place, all made of cement and lined with statues, huge flower pots and even several small gardens! The center of the circle had benches all around, and a beautiful gazebo right in the middle of it all.
Inside, however, it was even more magnificent than I could ever have imagined a house to be. The floors were made of tiles of polished marble, and each room had a different color floor; the walls were done in shades that went with the floors in each room, there were marble accouterments carved right into the walls and ceilings—oh, my goodness, it was breathtaking! This one had seven bedrooms, each of which was bigger than the entire second floor of my parents' home. There was a kitchen that would take a chef and several assistants to understand everything in it, a dining room that looked like it needed a staff of waiters, and so many rooms I didn't even know names for that I was overwhelmed!
Nate said watching me run through the house was like watching a kid at Christmas, and that set me to daydreaming about the giant Christmas tree that could go in the living room, since it had a vaulted ceiling. The double marble staircase was curved along the back wall, and led to a balcony that overlooked the living room and foyer.
Nate had warned me that the house had a full staff. Still, I was not ready to meet two butlers, three housekeepers, five maids, two chefs, and five cooks helpers!
The Chief Butler was a man named Charles, who spoke with an English accent and reminded me a lot of the butler in an old TV show called Mr. Belvedere. He was a tall, slightly heavyset gentleman, and probably one of the most polite and delightful men I had ever met.
Charles told me how happy the staff was that “Mr. Nate” had finally found someone to be his life mate. As he put it, they had all been hoping for several years that it was their house that he would choose for his home. Most of the staff there had been with the family for a long time, and had actually watched Nate grow up. I was assured that they all felt he had chosen just the right girl to be his wife.
The head housekeeper was a woman named Janine, who happen to be Charles' daughter. I was surprised at this, because Charles simply didn't look old enough to have a daughter who would be in her late thirties.
Janine ran the entire housekeeping staff, including the other two housekeepers and the maids. Her job was to make sure that the house stayed clean at all times, regardless of who might leave a mess behind, or how often. One of the first things she d
id was take me up to the master bedroom to discuss whether there were any areas I wanted them to stay out of.
I looked at her blankly. “Stay out of?”
“Why, of course,” she said. “Every couple has things they keep private between themselves. If you will designate a place that you want to be kept private, I'll ensure that no one bothers anything there.”
I think I blushed, because I suddenly got a mental image of a small cabinet full of chocolate syrup. And before anyone asks, do not ask!
Just because I might wish to keep certain feminine things under my own complete control, we chose one small cabinet in the bedroom, and another in the bathroom as private areas. Of course, this meant that the housekeepers and maids would come into our room everyday to clean it up, but those two cabinets were left to me and Nate to take care of.
That made me a little nervous, and I wasn't quite sure how I would handle the idea of someone being in our room every day. However, Janine did everything she could to make me comfortable with the idea, and I genuinely liked her right from the start.
All of the staff were incredibly nice. I met the head chef, a Frenchman, no kidding, named Pierre! He had a very mild French accent, but took great care to speak clearly and plainly so that I could understand him. I was really impressed at some of the things he mentioned that he loved to prepare for dinner, and I was a little embarrassed to admit that I didn't even know what many of them were. He assured me that he would be more than happy to prepare any dish I liked, from hamburgers all the way to tiramisu, and I assured him that we were going to get along very, very well.
I was coming to grips with the fact that I was about to be the wife of a very wealthy man. My father had not been what people would consider poor, but I was entering a world that was so far above the one I had grown up in that it was like looking down upon the Earth from the Moon. I'll confess that I was a little dizzy, just from trying to get used to it all.
All in all, though, getting to know the house and the staff was fun and exciting. I knew that it was going to be quite an adventure, but I think, looking back now, that it was one I had expected to encounter all of my life.
Rebecca
Chapter Two
She's In Love With The Boy
* * * * *
It's been an incredible few weeks. Watching my daughter go from innocent college girl to working girl, and then to fiance and soon-to-be wife has been exciting and sometimes terrifying. The man she's chosen, Nate Simmons, is one that her father and I heartily approved of. He'd proven himself over and over, saving her life more than once. If there was ever a man that we could believe was right for her, that man would be Nate.
After Nate and Katelynn were rescued from the plane crash in the mountains, Jim and I went back home to start preparing to come out to California for the wedding. It was up to us to make arrangements for all the rest of the family and Katelynn's friends to be ready for the flight that was being arranged for a few days before the wedding. Once that was done, we were free to fly out and help with the preparations.
We arrived at San Francisco International at ten o'clock on a Tuesday morning, just a few days after Nate and Katelynn got there. They were both waiting when we came out of the concourse, and ushered us out to the limousine that was to take us out to Nate's parents' estate. They had already chosen their new home from one of the extra houses the family owned, and we would be staying in the guest room of that house. I was a little nervous, because I'd simply never been around really wealthy people, but we'd met his parents when they'd flow out to be there when they were rescued from the crash, and loved them instantly, so I wasn't as nervous as I might have been.
We stopped by their home to get reacquainted, and we hit it off even better. This time, we weren't in a high-stress situation, waiting to find out if our children were alive. We sat down to a wonderful lunch together, just visiting and getting to know one another better, and I came to realize that, no matter how much money they had, they were still just people, like me. I stopped worrying about the impression I might make, and concentrated on just getting to know them and making sure they knew that we considered them family.
Katelynn was so excited to have us there that she was bubbling over, and couldn't wait to show us the guest room in what was about to be their new home. Until the wedding, she and Nick would be staying with his parents in their own guest rooms, so she introduced us to all of the staff in her house so they would know who we were, and basically told them to treat us like royalty!
We all went out for dinner that evening. Nate's parents took us to a very fancy restaurant that Jim and I probably could never afford on our own. Every item on the menu was priced at more than a hundred dollars, and we were told to order anything we wished. I had something strange that I'd never heard of before, but they told me it was made of beef and I felt that was the safest thing I could go for. Whatever it was, it was magnificent!
Nate's mother, Katherine, reached over and took my hand at one point. “Rebecca,” she said, “you cannot imagine how happy we are that Nathanael has chosen such a wonderful young woman to be his wife. And now that we know you and your husband, we can see where she got the qualities that made him choose her. You have done a fantastic job of raising your daughter, and we are so happy that we'll all be family from now on."
I smiled back, and Katherine beamed. “We could never have dared to dream that she would find such a wonderful man,” I said. “Nate has shown himself to be everything we could have hoped for our daughter, and I can say the same. You and Norman have done a wonderful job of bringing up that boy."
"Well, let me throw something into this,” said Norman. "I've always been one who believed that things happen for a reason. I'd personally be willing to bet that, somewhere back down the line, God decided that there would be a young couple born someday who would be perfect for each other. I think he set up a plan that allowed them to meet, and all we get to do is sit back and watch as they become the finest young couple that can be.” He picked up his glass and raised it high. “To Kaitlin and Nathaniel,” he said. "May they live long and happy lives, and bless us all with many wonderful grandchildren!”
We all raised our glasses with shouts of “Hear, hear!" Katelynn and Nathaniel laughed, and we all joined in. The evening was a wonderful one, festive and happy and very comfortable, and when it ended we all went back to the estate to get some much-needed rest.
We woke the next morning and went downstairs to find breakfast ready for us in the house's wonderful dining room. The chef had done an amazing job, and Jim and I enjoyed the most wonderful breakfast we had ever had. While we were sitting at the table enjoying coffee afterward, Katelynn came bustling in with a big smile on her face.
"Okay, Mom," she said, "You're coming with me this morning, and Nate is taking Dad down to his offices to show him around. You and I get go look for wedding dresses, and Nate made the mistake of giving me his credit card and telling me that price is no object!" She was smiling from ear-to-ear,
"Oh, Boy," Jim said, “I'm going to have to teach that boy that you never, ever give a woman a credit card, and tell her she can spend whatever she wants! It doesn't matter how rich he is, if he wants to stay that way, those are words that should never come out of his mouth!"
Katelynn reached over and smacked him on the shoulder, playfully. We all chuckled, and a bit later she and I went out the front door. There was a limousine there waiting for us and the chauffeur opened the door to let us climb into the back.
When Jim was in politics, I rode in limousines fairly often, but none of them ever compared to this one. It was the most beautiful and luxurious machine I had ever seen, and it felt rather exciting to be riding in it with my daughter, knowing that it was hers to command. We were driven into the heart of the city, to where the celebrities tend to buy their clothing. Katelynn said that Nate told her to be sure we checked out certain stores, because of their reputation for providing fantastic wedding attire.
The chau
ffeur knew exactly where to go, apparently, because we pulled up in front of one of those big stores only a little while later. He jumped out and came around the back of the car to open a door, so that we stepped out onto the curb. He handed Katelynn what look like a car's remote control and told her to push the button when she was ready to be picked up. He would be waiting in the same spot once he got the signal.
We went into the store and were instantly overwhelmed by the selection of wedding dresses that were on display. There were simple ones, and complex ones, dresses with trains and without, some with veils that were so beautiful you would consider them works of art on their own. I looked at Katelynn.
“Mom,” she said, “I don't know if I can do this! I mean, I've seen wedding dresses that I thought were expensive, but the lowest price tag I see on any of these is over $10, hundred0! That's just ridiculous!”
I smiled at her. “Katelynn,” I said, “you need to remember that this isn't just about you, anymore. You are marrying one of the most important men in the business world, a man worth literally billions of dollars. You've got to think about what people think of him, and if he did not provide you with an outstanding dress for your wedding, it could reflect badly on him. Today, the money doesn't mean much. He could buy every dress in the store and let you wear them for nightgowns if you wanted to, but if you stand in front of all of those people in a dress that is not up to the standards they expect from him, he is the one whose reputation will be sullied. Suck it up, Girl, it's your day to shine!”
“Oh Mom, I know,” she said, “but that doesn't make it a lot easier. It's like I've been snatched up out of my world into another one full of magic and fairies and elves, and I just don't know how to cope.”