Decisions

I don't own these characters, just invited them down south to play a while. No offense meant to the wonderful creators or writers of The Nanny.

This is the fourth installment in the series. Max takes Fran into the French Quarter, where someone from his past helps him make a decision about his life. Adult version.

The Decision

Max turned the car off Decatur St. ithe the Riverfront parking lot. Fran's eyes lit up as she saw the Mississippi River.

"Oh, can we walk down by the water before we eat?" She reached over and grabbed Max by the arm. He had to laugh. She was like a little girl.

"Of course we can, darling!" "Let me find a parking spot first". Max circled the lot twice, and finally was lucky enough to find a spot right behind La Bella Luna. It would help them find the car tonight, and he was hoping to take Fran to La Bella Luna for dinner. He'd heard it was a very romantic place.

She was out of the car before he had his seatbelt off. She hurried around to meet him as he exited, grabbing his hand.

"C'mon, sweetie!" She pulled him across the parking lot, stepped over the cable barricade and across the railroad tracks. They walked down the newly renovated riverwalk and marvelled at the power of the river. A large tug was struggling upstream, and a tanker was zipping downstream. They walked hand in hand until they reached the crossing to get back on Decatur street. This was the way into Jackson Square and the French Quarter. They crossed Decatur and turned right, walking along the fence surrounding St. Louis Cathedral. They followed the fence up the next ally way, stopping to view all the street art vendors. Fran was about to ask Max to let her get her palm read when she looked up and squealed. "Ben and Jerry's!!!"

"It's eight o clock he mhe morning, Darling! Why don't we go back across the street to Cafe du Monde. Didn't you want some beignets and coffee?"

"Yes, oh, I'd forgotten where it was, we passed it, didn't we?" "Let's go back!" She grabbed his hand and they were off again. They crossed Decatur once again, and walked into the cafe. They sat down and Fran looked at the menu. She remembered this place from the last time she was here, many years ago. She looked at Max. "Trust me?"

"Of course, sweetheart!"

The waiter arrived to take their order. Fran looked up at him and smiled. "We'll have three orders of beignets and two cafe au laits." She grinned at Max. "Three beignets is just never enough!"

He took her hand and kissed it. "So after we're done here, where to first?"

"Oh, I dunno. How about since we're right here, we check out the cathedral first, then start walking up and down the streets looking at shops?"

"Whatever you want to do. I owe you for getting us stranded out on the lake" Max looked at her apologetically.

"You have nothing to be sorry for! I thought it was fun! It was like camping, but on the water!"

The waiter brought their order. "That'll be six dollars, sir"

Max looked down at the tray, then at Fran. "You're going to eat all that?" He handed the waiter eight dollars. "Keep the change".

"Thank you, sir!"

"How long you known me? Anyway, you are gonna help me eat these, mista!" She reached for a beignet, and knocked some of the powdered sugar into her coffee. Max raised his eyebrows. "Trust me, it tastes betta this way".

"Whatever you say, Fran." He picked up a donut and brushed the sugar into his coffee.

He looked across the cafe and he saw someone with a familiar face walk behind a pillar. He shook his head. No way, it couldn't be. He turned back to Fran. "You are absolutely right, these are delicious!"

She smiled and reached for her third beignet. "See why I got three orders?" "It's a good thing we'll be doin' a lot of walking today!" She stirred the sugar into her coffee and took a sip. "Mmmm, betta than I remembered!" "Whatcha lookin' at?" Max was again staring over towards the pillar, trying to get a look at the person standing behind it.

"I don't know, I saw someone I thought I knew, but I guess I was mistaken". He turned his attention to Fran and laughed. He picked up a napkin. "Here, let me get some of that sugar off your face...wait, come here, I've got a better idea." He leaned forward and gave her a long kiss, removing most of the sugar from her face...and putting it on his own.

Now it was Fran's turn to laugh. "Nice thought, sweetie!" She grabbed her napkin and wiped his mouth clean. "There, all better!"

They finished their breakfast and headed across the street to the cathedral. It was beautiful inside. They quietly walked hand in hand admiring the art work, the stained glass, this was a building that survived the Battle of New Orleans, the Civil War...it was amazing. As they were leaving the church, Max saw the same person watching them from across the courtyard. He could tell it was a woman, maybe someone Fran had met on her last trip here? He took Fran's hand and they headed up the street to browse the shops. As they passed a dress shop, Max saw an antique reproduction gown in the window that would be perfect for Fran. It would also make a perfect wedding dress. He led her into the shop and they looked around a bit. He had seen Fran glance at the dress in the window several times, so he asked the salesgirl if she could try it on. Fran went into the dressing room with several things to try on, and the girl also brought her the dress. Max was checking out the costume jewelry when that same woman from earlier came in. This time, he DID recognize her.

"Hi, Max!" "How've you been?"

His jaw dropped. "What...how are you here?"

"I'm here because I knew you needed me. I came to help you make the right decision about your life."

Max glanced at the dressing room door. "You mean, um, about..."

"It's ok, Max. I want you to be happy. She's perfect for you."

"I am happy now, the children are happy. We haven't been so happy since before you...I've missed you terribly. She understands that, she accepts that I'll always love you."

"I know, Max, she's wonderfu, I love her, too! She loves you, she loves the children, you've become a family".

Max looked at the dressing room again. He heard Fran calling to him.

"Are ya ready for this, Max?"

"Answer her, Max."

"Anytime you are, Fran"

"Ok, I'm comin' out!" Fran opened the door to the dressing room and walked out. She was breathtaking. She looked at Max, and the woman standing next to him, and gasped.

"Sarah?"

"Hi, Fran. I just stopped to say hello" She looked at Max "and goodbye". She hugged them both. "Take care of each other, and be happy". She turned around and left the store, disappearing into the crowded street.

Fran walked over to Max and took his hand. "You okay?"

He stood there for a minute, stunned. "Yes, yes, I'm fine." He took her in his arms. " I love you"

"I love you, too."

*************

Max opened his eyes and saw Fran sleeping beside him. Did that really happen? Had Sarah visited them? Fran started to stir, her eyes opened slowly.

"Good morning! Ready to do the French Quarter? I'm ready for some beignets!" She licked her lips and smiled.

It was just a dream, but Sarah's message stuck with him loud and clear. She wanted him to let go and move on. She wanted him to move on with Fran. He took her in his arms and gave her a gentle kiss. "Come on, Darling, let's go get some of those beignets and coffee!"


Fran climbed out of bed and headed for the shower. "I'll shower first, that way while I'm drying and curling my hair, you can shower!"

He kissed her forehead. "Sounds great, I'll make us some coffee." He heard the shower start up smelled the sweet smell of Frans shower gel. The smell sent an immediate jolt through his body. He busied himself making the coffee, trying to keep his mind off what was happening in the shower, just six feet from him. It was all he could do not to join her. Then he heard the water stop.

"Max, could you hand me a towel, please?" Fran stepped around the door to the shower and smiled at him. She was dripping wet and smelled of coconut.

Max reached into the cupboard and grabbed a large towel and walked over to her. Fran reached for the towel, but Max quickly opened the towel and wrapped it around her, drawing her close to him. "You smell delicious!" He opened half of the towel and began to blot her face and arms, never taking his eyes off hers. He then slowly move his mouth to hers, and moved it down her neck, drinking in the sweet smell. A small moan escaped her lips as his mouth travelled further and found her breasts. He closed the shower door and lifted her back into the bed and climbed on top of her. She giggled. "I'm gonna need another shower if you don't stop that!" "So you'll need another shower" His mouth continued to roam her body. He loved the way she tasted, the way she smelled. "Max" She pulled him up to her. "I need you now. Make love to me" He kissed her deeply as he entered her gently. She loved the way he made love to her, so gentle, yet so passionate. They cried out each other's name as they climaxed together, then laid in each other's arms trying to catch their breath. The sound of the coffee perking brought them back to reality. "The coffee's ready. We'd better get into the shower, or we'll never get out of here today." Fran handed him her towel and stepped back into the shower. Max walked over and turned off the coffee, pouring her a cup. After a quick showering, Fran emerged. "I almost hate to ask this, but, um, can you hand me my towel?" wrapped her towel around her and kissed her gently. "I'd better get in there, or we'll never get out of here. He started to move past her into the shower, then looked back at her. "Not that staying here would necessarily be a bad thing". He ran his hand over her wet hair."Your coffee's on the table, sweetheart." It took all the strength he had to close that shower door. He turned on the cold water and stood there for a minute before adding the warm water.

Fran sat on the sofa and began to dry herself off. She wrapped the towel around her head and walked over to the stove to turn off the propane that Max had forgotten. She called out to Max, "So, after you feed me breakfast, what's the plan for the rest of the morning?" She grabbed a mug out of the rack and poured him a cup of coffee, it should be cool enough to drink when he got out of the shower.

"Well, I know how much you love shopping, so I thought we'd just walk up and down the streets and check out all the stores. Didn't you say you wanted some new clothes?" When DOESN'T she want new clothes, he thought. "There's also supposed to be some lovely art galleries we can check out. Maybe we can find something for the house".

"We should try to find some souveniers for the kids, too. And something for Niles!"

Max stepped out of the shower. "Fran, we're going to have to rent our own plane if we buy something for everyone!"

Fran stuck out her lower lip and looked sadly at him. "I don't want to buy something for everyone...but I miss my kids, and I want them to know we were thinking about them while we were here....and Niles is my best friend!"

"And what about Val, your parents, Yetta?"

"We'll ship them some pralines!"

"And what about C.C.?"

Fran frowned, then broke into a huge grin. "How about a nice voodoo doll?"

"FRAN!"

"Just kidding!" She saw the look on his face and knew he was less than amused. Still, she thought a stop at Marie Laveau's shop might be a good idea. She whipped the towel off her head and tossed it at him. Then she smiled and handed him his coffee. "Here, drink your coffee. You've got some time while I dry my hair". She pulled out her blow dryer and ran a comb through her hair. She plugged in the dryer and took it over to Max, and gently ran her fingers through his thick hair. "Here, let me dry yours, first." She turned the dryer on low, and fluffed his hair with her fingers. She loved touching his hair, and this was a perfect excuse. When she was done, she kissed the top of his head. "There, perfect!" She then moved to the mirror and worked on her own hair.

Max opened her suitcase and pulled out her rollers. "I'll plug these in for you, so we can get done faster."

She turned the dryer on him. "Don't rush me, mister!"

"No rush, just thought you'd like to get across the bridge for your beignets, that's all." Max plugged in the rollers and reached into his own bag. "I'm going to get dressed. Take your time, darling."

Fran finished dying her hair and quickly put in her rollers. She grabbed her makeup bag and decided to go with light makeup today. That would save some time. She opened her suitcase and decided on her leopard print skirt with the black top. Wait, black at Cafe duMonde? Let's rethink that, Fran! Ok, how about the lime green and white skirt with the white top. That won't show any powdered sugar spills. She pulled the rollers out of her hair, and pulled it back with a lime green headband. As she pulled on her shoes, Max chuckled.

"Won't your feet be hurting with all the walking we'll be doing?"

"If they do, I'll just have to find some gorgeous guy to rub them for me!" She stood up and smoothed her skirt. She was a vision. Every man in New Orleans would have his eyes on her. "Ready to go?"

"Absolutely!" He helped her climb into the cockpit and off the boat. As they walked down the dock, a handsome boater started walking toward them, with his eyes glued to Fran. As if she sensed what he was feeling, Fran reached over and grabbed Max's arm and put her head on his shoulder.

"I'm so excited! I can't wait to get into the city!"

He put his arm around her. She understood. She was his. The man walked by and gave Max a nod. Max smiled and returned the greeting, Fran looked up and chirped "Good Morning!" and immediately replaced her head on the shoulder of the man she loved.

They got into the car and headed across the twin span bridge. It was a fairly short ride into the city, and Max found a parking place right behind Cafe du Monde. The breakfast crowd had already cleared out, so it was fairly easy to find a seat. The waiter came right over to them.

Max looked at Fran, then up at the waiter. "We'll have three orders of beignets, and two cafe au laits". He was sure she would want more than three donuts.

"Mmmm, you read my mind, sweetie!" She grinned at him...he knew her so well.

Remembering his dream, he scanned the cafe several times, but saw no familiar faces.

"What's wrong, honey?"

Max came back to the present. "Nothing, nothing, Fran. Just taking it all in." He smiled at her. He couldn't very well tell her who he was looking for.

The waiter returned with their order, and Fran dug in to the hot donuts. He loved watching her eat, she put her whole being into it. "Mmmmm these are sooooo gooood!" He was getting aroused just watching her lick the sugar off her fingers.

"So, where to first?" Fran had already gone through four donuts, and was reaching for the fifth one. "That last one is yours" She grinned at him. "If you hurry!"

Max sat back in his chair and sipped his coffee. He'd have bought a ticket to watch this show. And she wasn't even trying to be sexy. She just was. He reached over for the last beignet. "You don't want to get too full, you won't want any lunch".

"You're kiddin' right?" She laughed and reached for his knee. "So, where ya takin' me for lunch?"

Max shook his head. She'd just polished off 5 beignets and was already planning lunch. "Anywhere you want to go, my darling!" "There's plenty of places all over, we'll just shop until we're ready to eat".

"Sounds great! I'm ready to shop! How about", she looked around, "down this way". She pointed to the right down Decatur. "There's an open air market there, I saw it on the way in!"

"Lead the way, Fran!"

She grabbed his hand and practically pulled him out of the cafe.

The walked hand in hand down Decatur toward Esplanade. Fran stopped at every window to look at what ws inside. They could hear a jazz band playing in the distance as they wandered in and out of the stores. When they got to the end of the block, Fran's eyes lit up. "Max, look! Evan's Pralines! Let's go in and send some to Ma and Val! Val will just drop dead when she finds out I'm here!" They went inside, and Fran had to sample evflavflavor before making her decision.

"Fran, you just ate breakfast! How can you eat all that?"

"That was an hour ago! Besides, we've been walking and shopping. And I only took little bites!" She turned back to the sales lady. I'll take two one dozen boxes, mixed. Two of each flavor. There, that gave them all six flavors to taste.

Max sighed. "Couldn't you have done that without tasting all of them first?" He rolled his eyes.

"Uh, no!" She rolled her eyes back at him. "I had to make sure these tasted GOOD!" She popped one more bite into her mouth, rolled it around until it melted before swallowing it. Then she moved to Max and gave him a kiss, letting him taste the maple sweetness. "So, whaddya think?" She batted her eyes at him.

"Definitely tastes good! OH, you meant the praline?" He winked at her. She knew just what buttons to push.

Fran gave the sales girl the addresses where to ship the pralines, and they headed back outside to track down the jazz band, which had gotten louder. They must be getting closer. They looked across the street at a large golden statue of Joan of Arc. As they crossed the street to get a better look, they saw the band. It was at an outdoor cafe. Fran was already dancing.

"Come on! Let's go listen for a while!" She was already dancing her way to the tables. As Max caught up with her, the band began to play a slow song. She turned to see where Max was, he was right behind her. He swept her into his arms.

"Dance with me?"

"Always!" They floated around the dance floor as one. Fran laid her head on his shoulder, enjoying the closeness. The song was shorter thaey wey would have liked, and once the band was back to playing faster songs, they decided to continue on with their shopping. No sense tiring themselves out before lunch!

They walked about a half a block when they saw a line forming on the side of a bright yellow building. The people in line were wearing flowered shirts, grass skirts, and some were even wearing bras made out of coconut shells.

"What is THAT?" They looked at the sign out front. Margaritaville. Max looked puzzled. "Margaritaville?"

"Jimmy Buffett" Fran explained. "You know, the guy who wants a cheeseburger in paradise?" "and there's another one about losing his salt shaker".

"I have no idea what you're talking about". "Do you want to go check it out?" Max had no desire to check it out, but knew this type of excitement thrilled Fra
"
"Do ya mind? The store does look pretty tropical, it might be fun!" "And I wanna know why everyone's dressed up like a bunch of schmegegis!" She headed for the store, Max followed, shaking his head.

Tropical music filled the air as they entered the store. The atmosphere screamed PARTY! Fran was dancing around again. Where did that woman get her energy? Max turned to check out the t shirts. He didn't notice
that Fran had continued walking to the other side of the store until he heard her laugh. She was standing in the middle of a group of young men that could barely be in their twenties. "No, we're not here to see Jimmy, we just came in to see what everyone was in costume for!"

"You should come to the concert with us! Jimmy is going to show up after the intermission, Come on, they're holding a place in line!" One of the young men took Fran's hand.

As Max started to head over to intervene, he paused when he saw Fran pull her hand away and motion over to him. He didn't hear what she said to the men, but he heard one of them respond.

"Oh, sorry. Well, if you change your mind we'll be in line!"The men turned and left the store to return to the line. Fran turned and walked back over to a frowning Max.

"Wha?"

"You just can't help yourself, can you?"

"Maxwell Sheffield, I didn't do anything wrong, I was just looking around, and they were being friendly. A little TOO friendly, if ya ask me. I told them I was with someone, and they left." Fran's eyes filled with tears. She turned and left the store, and crossed the street. Max rushed after her.

"Fran, FRAN, stop, wait. I'm sorry, when I saw him touch you, I just.."

"You just what?" "He touched my HAND! I didn't ask him to,but I DID let him know I was with you. What did you want me to do, punch the guy? Oh, no, wait, YOU wanted to punch him!"

How did he lose control so fast? "Fran, I saw you handle it. I shouldn't have said what I did"

She decided to let him off the hook. "So, you were jealous?"

"Yes"

She moved into his arms. "You have no reason to be. You are all I want"

Max relaxnd hnd held her tight. He leaned down and kissed her head. "I love you"

She had to make her point one last time. "Then ACT like it!" She smiled at him as she playfully slaped his chest. "Trust me!" She lifted her head and kissed him gently. "Now, didn't you promise me a "shop till I drop day?"

"I did"

"Then why are we wasting time arguing, when we should be burning up your credit cards?"

He had no answer to that one. "You don't want to go to the concert?"

"No, not now." I wanna SHOP!" They walked into the open air market and picked up several trinkets for the kids. " Let's see what's on the next block!" With that, they were off again. Fran was now in power shopping mode They turned the next corner and found several jewelry stores in a row. Fran seemed particularly fascinated by the display at Lumina Silver. Max took her hand and led her in the store.

"Let's see if we can find you something in here" The store was filled with one of a kind silver. Pins, rings, necklaces. They looked at all the displays. They decided on a pair of silver hoop earrings, and a silver band with diamond inlay. She slid her new ring on her right hand, admiring how it glistened in the sun.

"It's so beautiful! Thank you so much, Max!" She kissed his cheek! They continued up the street.
"Three Dog Bakery?" "Oh, can we go in?"

"We don't have a dog, Fran!"

"I know, but we can send something home to Chester!"

Max knew better than to argue. Fran loved C.C.'s dog as if her were her own. "Allright, let's go see what we can find".

They picked out several different types of dog cookies and had them sent to C.C.'s apartment. Fran grinned as she thought of the glee that Niles would have when C.C. confronted him about Max being in New Orleans with her.

As they continued walking up the street, Fran noticed that the men had stopped checking her out, and were now eyeing Max. "Uh, oh, no more stopping until we get out of this part of the Quarter!" she laughed. "I feel like we're back in the Village!" They decided to skip Marie Laveau's, and kept moving back towards the heart of the French Quarter.

"What happened to all the shops?" "There's nothing but bars!" Fran was looking up and down the street.

"Maybe we should move one block over. We're on Bourbon now, and I think some of the crowd going to JazzFest is already here." He was right. You couldn't move without bumping into someone. They turned at the next corner, and found the next block was less crowded. "Much better!" He looked at his watch. "Getting hungry, sweetheart?"

"Anytime you're ready!"

"How about this place, it looks nice". He looked up at the sign. Brennan's.

Fran checked out the menu in the foyer. "Are you sure, Max? Do we want nice, or relaxed? This place has a dress code!"

"Let's do nice for lunch, and have a relaxing dinner. How's that sound?"

He led her into the restaurant. They had a wonderful lunch, and when they were through, Max called the waiter over. "What do you recommend for dessert?"

"Well, sir, we are famous for our Bananas Foster."

Max looked at Fran, who was nodding her head yes. "We'll take two of those,then, please."

When the cart came to their table and Fran saw the flames, she looked excitedly at Max. The waiter poured the bananas and syrup over their ice cream and placed the delicious looking dishes in front of them.

"I wonder if we can get Niles to make this at home?" "As long as he doesn't burn the house down trying!" she giggled. She took a spoonful in her mouth and moaned with delight. "Oh, this is so good!" She continued moaning and sighing throughout her dessert, attracting the attention of every male within earshot. Max decided to let it pass. She was just being Fran. Her eyes went from her decadent dessert to him, and he knew that she was oblivious to anything else in the room.

After they had paid the check and were back out on the street, Max leaned over and whispered in Fran's ear. "I'll have to make sure we keep plenty of bananas and vanilla ice cream in the house from now on". He kissed her gently on the cheek. She slipped her hand into his, and they continued their stroll. Max found several galleries to visit, and purchased several paintings, and had them shipped home. "We'll be able to look at them and remember this trip", he said with a smile.

"Oh, Max, I don't need paintings to remember it! This is a trip I'll never forget!" He loved the way her eyes lit up when she was excited. She moved from store front to store front, stopping just long enough to decide if the window dressing was enticing enough to get her inside. As they turned the corner, they ran into a large jewelry store, with diamonds in every window. Fran kept her head forward, but cut her eyes over to Max trying to see his reaction to the store. She kept walking past, not wanting to be too obvious.

"Let's go in and see what they have." Max took her by the hand and led her inside. They walked through the shop looking in all the cases. Max paid particular attention to the wedding and engagement rings. He was ready for this. He was feeling so comfortable with Fran, so relaxed. As if she were already his wife. He wanted to make it official. He watched her carefully as she walked past thngs.ngs. He saw her eyes drawn to one particular ring. He had to find a way to surprise her with it. Now how could he get back into the store without her knowing? He walked over to the earrings and picked out a beautiful pair and showed them to Fran. "Do you like these, darling?"

"Yes, they're beautiful!"

"Then they are yours." Max handed his credit card to the clerk to pay for the earrings, and motioned for her to hold the card. He mouthed to her, "I'l rig right back". He picked up the package and headed over to Fran. "Ready to go?"

Once they got outside, they walked a few stores down, and found a bakery. They went inside and Max sat Fran at a table and ordered two cups of tea.

" I must have left my credit card at the jewelry store. Wait here and start on your tea, I'll be right back." Max hurried out and back to the store. He showed the clerk the ring he wanted. He couldn't wait to propose to her. He couldn't wait to make her his wife. Why did he d sod so long running from a relationship with her?

"She's going to love this ring." The clerk told him. "It's a one of a kind, by a local designer."

Perfect. How perfect to have a token of love as a rememberance of where they finally admitted their love. Max put the ring in his pocket and hurried back to Fran.

"Yes, I did leave it there! Here it is!" He held up the card, then put in his wallet.

Fran looked at him and frowned. It was not like him to be tharelareless. Something was up, and she was gonna find out what it was. She took a sip of her tea. "So, where to next?" "We've still got a couple of hours before dinner. By the way, what IS for dinner?" "Steak? Seafood? Cajun?"

Max thought for a minute. "How about Cajun?" "I saw a couple of places near where we parked".

They finished their tea and continued to walk through the French Quarter. Fran pulled out her camera and took pictures of some of the beautiful old buildings. They stopped at Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop for drinks before heading back up Decatur. Fran saw some people eating dinner up on a balcony.

"Oh, let's eat there! We can watch all the people walk by!" They walked to the door and read the sign. Tujaques. They went in and found there was no menu, you just payed for dinner and got whatever was cooked. They climbed the stairs to the balcony and had a wonderful meal. After dinner they walked down the street and found an outdoor blues club.

"How about dancing off that dinner?" Max took her by the hand and led her inside. They were led to a table next to the dance floor, and spent the next 2 hours in each other's arms, swawying to the music under a full moon. Fran laid her head on Max's chest as they danced.

"Tired, Darling?" Max looked down at her.

"A little." She WAS ready for bed!

"Let's go, then." They headed back to the car, and headed back across the bridge to the marina. When they arrived, there was a soft breeze and the moon was directly overhead.

"Too tired for a moonlight sail?"

Fran brightened. How romantic did THAT sound? "That sounds so nice!" We DO have gas, now, right?" She grinned at Max and playfully slapped his arm.

"Go in and get changed, I'll get things ready."

Fran went inside and changed into her jogging suit, and came up on deck to help Max with the preparations. While he finished with the jib sail, she turned on the blower and the gas. Max started the engine and Fran untied the dock lines. Then she joined him behind the wheel, sliding in front of him and leaning back against his chest. When they got out of the channel, Max turned the wheel over to Fran and hoisted the sails. Fran reached down and turned off the motor.

"Oh, Max, this is wonderful. I could really get used to this!" Max slid behind her and put his arms around her. He leaned over and kissed the back of her neck, causing her to veer off course and lose the wind.

"Max, I can't steer if you are gonna do that!" He took his arms from her waist and put them on the wheel. She turned around to face him, and began to caress his chest and kiss his throat.

"FRAN! Ok, I get your point, why don't you go sit down and I'll drive."

Fran moved to the seat and laid down with her head next to Max, reaching up to rest her hand on his leg. He reached down and took her hand in his. "I love you!" He looked down and saw the moonlight reflecting in her eyes. He thought of the package in his pocket. This would be perfect. Anchor the boat, light the candles. He could do this. Looking at her, he could think of nothing else. He sailed the boat to the deep area near the bridge. "How about we anchor here for a while?" Fran smiled and nodded. Max started the engine while Fran dropped the sails. "Can you drop the anchor, darling?" Fran just stared at him.

"What?"

"Just drop it off the front of the boat". She picked it up and tossed it over the bow, watching the chain and line follow it. Max put the boat in reverse until the anchor held. "Ok, that's it. Come on back here". Max disappeared into the cabin and came back with the kerosene lamps. He would have preferred candles, but they wouldn't work in the wind. He sat back against the cabin and motioned for Fran to sit with him. She sat between his legs and leaned back against his chest. She sighed softly.

"This is so perfect". She was right, the time was perfect.

Max reached into his pocket and pulled out the box. He took a deep breath. "Fran, I love you so much".

" I love you too, sweetie" she turned her head to look at him. What was that look in his eyes?

Her looked her in the eyes. All he saw was total love. "Fran, will you marry me?"

"Wha...?" THIS she wasn't expecting!

"I love you, I want you to be my wife. Will you marry me?"

"Oh, Max...yes! yes, YES!" He opened the box and placed the ring on her finger. She looked down at it, and looked up at him. "I KNEW you'd never forget your credit card!"

Max leaned down and kissed her. They sat there kissing and caressing each other for several minutes until Max broke the silence. "Let's go back". He started the engine and moved the boat to dislodge the anchor, then went forward and pulled it up.

Fran sat there in the moonlight, admiring her ring and her fiance.

"Ready, darling?" Max was behind the wheel, steering them back to the dock. Fran folded and stowed the sails while he navigated them home.

Once at the dock, they set the fenders, tied the dock lines and went inside for the night. Max took his future wife in his arms. "Let's go to bed". He leaned down and kissed her with all the love he felt for her. It felt so good, so right. The undressed each other slowly, then headed for the bed. It had been a perfect day, and tonight was the first night of the rest of their lives.