The next morning, all of Emma's insecurities about their relationship came to the forefront. She woke up first, which was rare, and took a long look at her sleeping fiancé, and then at the remarkable ring on her finger. She still didn't get why she, a middle-aged widow, would be attractive to an international superstar, much less engaged to him. It didn't make sense to her, though she was head over heels in love with him. While she was musing about this situation, she realized he was staring at her.
"Good morning, beautiful!" Prince stretched and put his arm around Emma, smoothing the furrows in her forehead with his other hand. "What could possibly be bothering you this perfect day?"
"I'm still finding it hard to believe that I am who you want in your life," Emma confessed, looking away from Prince in embarrassment.
Prince gently turned her face toward his, cupping the side of her face with his hand. Speaking softly and tenderly, he reassured the love of his life.
'You know, this insecurity thing of yours is starting to frustrate me. Have you considered my feelings when those thoughts come into your head? Because to me, it feels like you're questioning my taste or my honesty. My heart knows what it wants. It has never pulled me to anyone this strongly. So, if you can't trust yourself, trust ME. I KNOW this is right, deep in my bones I KNOW. I think I've known since our first night in Montreux. So do you, if you'll just believe your heart.'
'I do trust you, so I'll work harder at believing. The last thing I want to do is lose you.'
'And the last thing I want to do is lose you. So we're even on that score. Have you taken this off yet?' He asked, moving the engagement ring around on her finger.
'No, not yet,' came her answer as she admired the ring he chose.
'There's a surprise inside the ring. Here, let me show you.' He carefully removed the ring from her finger, and turned it upside down.
'In case you ever doubt what we have, look at this secret stone. It's there to remind you that you're mine, and that I love you with all my heart. Never doubt that.' He slid the ring back on her finger, kissed her hand, and sat up. 'I think it's time for a shower. Coming?' Prince gave Emma a devilish grin.
'Yes, sir.' Emma mentally shook her head, amazed once again at his expertise at details. Then she got up and followed her fiance to the shower. Prince had the best shower skills.
The large, steamy shower was soon filled with intense sounds. Moans, keening, and the sound of wet skin slapping at wet skin were an overwhelming aphrodisiac. As they were drying each other off later, Emma and Prince began laughing as they noticed tile prints on each others' knees. And Emma's back.
'You never disappoint,' Emma smirked up at Prince while bent over, wrapping her hair in a towel.
'I'm very inspired today. I've got me my woman!' Prince growled, as he tore the towel off her head and carried her back to the bed.
Before the girls arrived for breakfast, Prince brought his cup of coffee over to the sofa where Emma was sitting, enjoying her first cup of the day and the luxurious suite.
'I know you're going to ask, so I'm going to tell you now. Can you listen to how I feel about pre-nups?' He sat down next to her.
'I know I'm wealthier than you, but listen, the music business has changed. I'm not making as much money as I did in the past, because people don't buy albums much anymore, they like to buy singles. Your daughters' generation likes to get their music for free, which could hamstring the entire creative process for everyone.' Emma nodded in agreement. She really didn't understand how artists made money in the music business.
Prince took Emma's free hand and started playing with the ring he'd given her the night before. 'I make more money these days by touring, but touring is time consuming and exhausting, even though I confess I love it. I'm not getting any younger, despite my protests to the contrary, and I'm going to have to figure out ways to do this that will work with an older body.' He stopped, took a drink of coffee, and continued.
'I know I don't care about chasing fame at this point. Fame sucks, frankly, except that it's the only way for the world to hear what I want to tell them. Actually, it isn't what I want to tell them, it's what I feel I've been called to tell them.
'That big old recording complex back in Chanhassen takes some serious paper to keep going and in repair. My long term goal is to get it set up as a music and recording school, and do residency concerts there the majority of the time instead of tour. Bring the guest artists to me, have them also be guest teachers, and I believe people will come from around the world to Minneapolis. I'd also like to use part of it as a museum about my career, kind of like Graceland, but with my more funky vibe. So, I also need to build a house for us to live in, since I don't want to go get coffee while tourists are trooping by.'
Emma smirked at the image he described. 'Maybe I should get him some bunny slippers if he doesn't have some already,' she thought, and grinned from ear to ear at the image.
'You wanna share that thought, mama?' Prince quirked an eyebrow at Emma's sudden grin.
'Ummm, not right now. Go on.' Emma settled down to listen some more, picking up Prince's hand and rubbing circles on the back of it.
'That image that made you smirk means I need some sort of recording facilities in the house we build. You know how I get in the middle of the night...about music, I mean.' It was Prince's turn to smirk.
'So, the long and short of it is, I plan to get things set up in such a way that it can all continue long after I've transitioned off this planet. If I can ever get control of my masters back, that will be a huge piece of it, since I'll finally start to receive the compensation I feel I've been owed all these years for my creative output. Then there will be the process of setting up the schools and the residency concerts, and finally the museum. Until the residency idea is pulling in enough consistent income, I'll need to keep touring in some capacity to keep money flowing in to make all this possible.'
'That all makes perfect sense, and it sounds like you'll be even busier,' Emma replied, putting her free hand on Prince's leg. 'You haven't mentioned pre-nups, though.'
'Patience, woman!' Prince growled at Emma while smiling from ear to ear. 'I'm impressed you've stayed quiet this long. Okay, here goes.
'With you, I don't believe in pre-nups. I'm marrying you for life. Although I had pre-nups in the past at the insistence of each fiancee at the time, I thought I would never need them. My plan was marriage for life then, too. Romantic me. Oh, well. Water under the bridge.
'The difference is, I'm marrying someone who knows how to be married, not just how to be someone's girlfriend. You aren't much of a drama queen, though you do tell a good story. You love me with your whole heart, and you really love me, warts and all. So, if you want a pre-nup to protect your retirement and assets for your daughters, I'll gladly sign it, but I'm not sure we need one.' Prince took a deep breath, and waited for Emma's answer.
'You really get frugal me, don't you?' Emma smiled. 'I was going to bring it up, to protect your assets. As far as my assets go, I've already drawn up trusts for the girls for after I'm gone. It helps to go to church with lots of lawyers. I won't push you on that. You're mine until the end of time, as far as I'm concerned. I think your plans are awesome. Let me know how I can help.'
Emma smiled at Prince, who was absently rubbing her thigh while she spoke. They really couldn't keep their hands off each other.
'So, I guess we're set, then,' Emma continued. 'There is one other thing I want you to think about.' Emma took a deep breath before continuing. 'Your religion doesn't celebrate holidays, and my family is all about Christmas and Easter, since traditional church music has been our life.'
Prince frowned. 'You know those holidays are taken from pagan festivals, don't you? And that most of the world isn't celebrating Jesus in any way at Christmas anymore.'
'Those pagan festivals you mentioned are from 2000 years ago. I honestly don't know if anyone celebrates Saturnalia at all these days, or cares why December 25th was chosen as Christmas Day . I admit, I relish the fact that God used man to make those festivals irrelevant. And yes, I do realize that there are many people for whom Christmas only means secular things. We live in a mercenary, fallen world. But my family celebrates the birth of Christ and his resurrection, while also enjoying simple decorations and too much good food. Mostly, our celebrations are based on worship traditions hundreds of years old, and music that is almost that old.
'So yes, we have decorations up, and we give a few gifts, but mostly we're expressing gratitude for the best gift we'll ever receive, because without Christmas we wouldn't have an Easter. I know my girls aren't going to be willing to give that up, so I thought I should give you fair warning. It's the only really big stumbling block I've come up with regarding our future together.' Emma took a drink of coffee. Prince looked thoughtful, but not closed off, which she took as a positive sign.
'You've given me a lot to think about. When I remember Christmas the way I used to celebrate it as an adult, it was always me giving gifts that cost too much money, and receiving no gift in return or even a thank you, which hurt, I admit it. Then I, or someone at our family celebration, would drink too much and the whole thing would go down the tubes and get ugly. The music was good, though.' Prince grimaced at remembered celebrations.
'Well, I know we can figure out a compromise if you're willing. Mya doesn't drink, Marti's still too young, and you know what a lightweight I am. As far as gifts go, the jewelry you've given me, even before this gorgeous diamond, costs as much as 5 or 6 Christmases at my home, total.'
'What did you and your husband give each other?' Prince looked interested in Emma's answer.
'Simple things. I'd make him something that he could use, and he'd give me a sweater and maybe some technology he knew I'd enjoy. My e-reader was one gift. Occasionally I'd go big for a briefcase or new bathrobe. We never were those people who went in debt for Christmas.' Emma stopped talking and looked at Prince, who was looking thoughtful.
He answered, 'You make this whole thing sound pretty simple. I'll have to think very hard. I don't know how my congregation is going to feel about all this.'
'We don't have to decide anything today. It's just now August! I can always go to Atlanta for those holidays. I'd love it if you felt comfortable coming with me.' Emma scooted closer to Prince, and he automatically put his arm around her. 'I just know that together we can work something out. I believe you and I can make anything work, or I wouldn't have said yes to you in the first place.' Emma gave him a quick kiss, and then the doorbell to the penthouse rang.
'That must be your girls or our breakfast. Let me get the door.'
Prince stepped away, thinking, 'This is a lot of change to face. Some of this sounds like falling back into the dogmatic traps of the past. I don't think Emma would ever push me further than I can go. I just need to trust her. Trust has never been my best thing.'
Emma sat back, and thought, 'Well, that went better than it could have. I hope he'll be willing to have an open mind. He is truly worth any compromise I need to make.'
The girls came in, and both Emma and Prince made a conscious effort not to continue the discussion, and focus on the girls and each other.
They had a week until the next performance in Portugal, so Prince suggested they all go to Paris for four days. Then the girls would fly back to America, and Prince and Emma would go to Portugal for the next concert.
Paris was everything Emma had heard, and more than she could have imagined. Prince was happy to share his Paris with her. He had been to Paris many times, and had a fascinating perspective on things. He was able to pull some strings and get them a private tour of the Louvre.
He could move a little more freely in many parts of Paris, though not the big touristy areas like the Eiffel Tower. Emma and the girls went there one day while he stayed in and recorded things that had been rolling around in his head. The amount of music his imagination could conjure up seemed to be inexhaustible, and he was newly inspired by his commitment to Emma. Love songs were coming at a fast pace, in new keys, tempos, and moods. It was one of his most creative periods in some time.
Emma enjoyed time with her girls, and seeing Paris through their, and Prince's eyes, as well as her own. In the evenings she and Prince would go walking in the area near the apartment he had rented for them all to stay in. Walking along the Seine at night in Paris with your new fiancee-how much more romantic can you be?
A/N-Really, could anything be more romantic? And with Prince as your fiance? Hold me back! Vote, Comment, and thanks for reading!