Rubies are Forever - Part 1 

Author:  Ava E-mail:  mmmThatAJ@yahoo.com Rating:  PG-13 Summary: AJ receives a letter from a woman claiming to be his fiancée, so he goes to her home to investigate.   Author's comments:  Once I started thinking about movie remakes, I can't seem to stop! This one is based very loosely on the 1930 movie, "The Flirting Widow". Characters' speaking parts are in double quotes ("text"); characters' thoughts are in single quotes ('text').     Disclaimer:  JAG and all its characters belong to Belisarius Productions, Paramount, CBS, Viacom, and probably endless others.

Thursday, 12 February 2004
1015 EST
JAG Headquarters
Falls Church, Virginia

Petty Officer Jennifer Coates knocked on the open door to her boss' office. Without looking up, Admiral AJ Chegwidden called, "Enter!"

Jen walked inside and placed a thick folder on the Admiral's desk. "Your mail, Sir. And your messages," she added, laying a pile of message slips on top of the folder.

AJ looked at the overstuffed folder and pile of messages. "Is that everything, or did you already distribute some of it?" he asked.

"I wasn't sure who you'd want to handle things, Sir, what with the Colonel and Commander Rabb both out of town," she made her excuse. In reality, she hadn't even tried to distribute the mail. It was all addressed to the Judge Advocate General, so she put it all in his folder. She had enough work to do; why should she sort his mail, too?

AJ sighed. It was times like this when he *really* missed his former yeoman. Petty Officer Tiner had his faults, but at least he knew how to distribute the mail... even when the Colonel and Commander were out of town. AJ decided it was high time this young girl learned a thing or two about her job. "Sit!" he barked.

Jen was just about to turn and leave his office, so his command startled her. "Admiral?"

"I said 'Sit!'. Which of those three letters did you not understand, Petty Officer?"

Jen bit the inside of her cheek to keep from replying with a scathing comment. That wouldn't do her any good; she'd only be reprimanded for it.

"Sorting and routing the mail that comes into this office is part of your job as my yeoman, Petty Officer. I don't have time to be bothered with going through every single item and bucking them around the office. You should be able to do that by now; you've been here long enough to know who does what around here." AJ opened the mail folder and looked at the first letter. He handed it to Jen. "What does the first sentence say, Coates?"

Jen took the letter and lowered her eyes to read. "Regarding your supply order of..."

He interrupted her by repeating her words. "Regarding your supply order. Now who in this office handles ordering supplies? Of anything and everything?" he asked, raising his eyebrows in question and staring at Jen.

She blinked innocently. "Lieutenant Sims, Sir?"

AJ smirked as he nodded. "That's right, Petty Officer. Lieutenant Sims. So to whom would I buck that letter?"

"Lieutenant Sims, Sir," Jen replied.

"Very good." AJ picked up the next letter and began reading. He raised his eyes to Jen and handed her the paper. "Read."

"The Appellate Court of Baltimore, Maryland, has reviewed your office's request for..."

AJ interrupted her again. "Did I make a request of the Appellate Court of Baltimore, Coates?"

Jen shook her head. "No, Sir. I believe that was Commander Turner who..."

AJ nodded, "Then who ought to get this letter, hmm?"

"Commander Turner."

"You're catching on, Petty Officer," AJ said. He picked up the next letter and started reading. He groaned inwardly. This one was just too obvious. He handed it to Jen and raised an eyebrow in question.

She read it and looked up, a slight blush creeping up her face. "This one would be for me, wouldn't it, Sir," she said.

AJ nodded. "You're the one who manages my calendar, Petty Officer. Yes, I'd say that one is for you to handle." As he picked up the next letter, he said, "We'll do one more together, Coates, and then you'll take the entire pile back to your desk and go through it again. Then the ones you really don't know what to do with, bring them back in here." Jen nodded, feeling rather foolish. AJ looked down at the paper he held and started reading... and kept reading. "Good God, what is this?" he barked.

Jen shook her head, "I don't know, Sir. Which one are you reading?" When she saw which letter he held, she said, "Oh, Sir, that's a personal letter. I would never presume to read your personal mail, Admiral."

AJ looked in the file. "Where's the envelope? You're supposed to attach the envelope to the letter, Coates. Where's the envelope?"

"Envelope, Sir?" AJ glared at her. "I believe it's in the trash, Admiral."

"Go find it."

"Yes, Sir!" Jen rose from her seat quickly, closed the folder and picked it up, and hurried out of his office. 'Good thing I didn't dump anything nasty in there this morning,' she thought to herself as she reached her desk. She looked down at the trash can. "Oh no!" she cried in dismay, seeing that someone had dumped the pencil sharpener into her can. "Gross." She laid the folder on her desk and began to dig through the trash.

AJ leaned back in his chair and read the letter from the beginning.

Thanksgiving Day

Darling,

I know this is a difficult time for you; it is for me, as well. I'm sorry I cried when you left me the other night. I know how it upsets you, and I tried so hard not to let my tears leave my eyes until you were gone.

I just wish that the Admiralty had chosen someone else to go on this awful assignment. It isn't fair that it should always be you, my Darling, whom they send into the jaws of death. That we should be separated at Christmas is unthinkable. And now that we are engaged to be married, it is doubly unfair!

But our love will grow stronger while you're away. I look forward to that day when we will be united in our love forever. Be safe, my Darling.

All my love,

Ruby

AJ shook his head in wonder. Obviously, this letter was meant for someone else. "Coates!" he yelled. "You find that envelope yet?"

"Still looking for it, Sir!" she yelled back as she continued to dig through her trash can. "Finally!" she exclaimed as she pulled out the pink envelope. She wiped off the pencil shavings and returned to AJ's office. "Found it, Admiral!" she announced.

AJ took the envelope from her and frowned at the debris that fell out of it. "What is all this?" he asked.

"Oh!" Jen took the envelope back and held it over his trash can. "Sorry about that, Sir." She opened it and shook it out. "Pencil shavings, Sir. Someone dumped the sharpener in my trash can this morning." She handed the now 'clean' envelope back to him. "Here you are, Admiral."

He looked at the addressee on the envelope. "Admiral Alberts," he said in confusion. "There is no Admiral Alberts." He looked at the address next. "Washington, DC" He grunted. "I'm surprised this didn't end up in the dead letter office. Who writes an address of 'Washington, DC' and expects it to be delivered?" he mumbled. He noticed the original postmark date of December 16 and all the forwarding marks on the envelope; this letter had obviously made the rounds at the Pentagon. 'I guess since it was addressed to an Admiral, they sent it there.' He looked at the return address. "Ruby Mae Jones, Onego, WV," he said aloud. "Onego? Isn't that where I ended up last year after that F14 mishap?" he asked himself. "It was just about this time last year, too..."

"I don't believe you ever said, Admiral," Jen answered his rhetorical question.

He hadn't realized she was still standing there. "That'll be all, Petty Officer," he nodded to her. "Close the hatch on your way out." AJ sat in his big leather chair and tapped the envelope on the palm of his hand. "Onego." He thought hard. "Ruby Mae." They both sounded so familiar, and yet he couldn't be sure.

A thought came to him and his left eyebrow lifted, "Could she have been the woman who helped me into the bar?" He tried to remember what one of the men said to her when they stumbled inside.  AJ remembered the man's commenting on her finally having a man... and something about..."That's it! He said, 'Ruby Mae, you gonna take him home to meet your Pappy, now you finally got yourself a man?' Ruby Mae! That was her name." AJ looked back at the letter. "But what the hell is this about?"

Friday, 13 February 2004
0705 EST
Jones Residence
Onego, West Virginia

Ruby Mae tossed and turned in her bed.  She hadn't slept well the night before.  Her mind was preoccupied.  It was time. It was past time, actually. But how in the world would she pull it off? Sure, after she helped that Admiral last year, it was easy enough to fool her family into thinking he was now her fiancé. She had plenty of witnesses at the bar who saw her with him. It wasn't even that difficult to make them believe he was so busy between Thanksgiving and Christmas that he couldn't take the time to come to Onego to visit and meet her family. But how was she going to kill him off? She didn't need a fiancé anymore, now that both her younger sisters were married.

The redhead moaned in resignation as she remembered her father's words at Thanksgiving. Ruby, the oldest at 30, was the only one of her family who'd ever ventured away from the mountains, let alone gone to college.  She had been in Washington for a month visiting a college girlfriend. She arrived home the day before Thanksgiving to find out that her baby sister was now engaged to be married. 

And when 17-year old Ginny Lou announced it to their father at the dinner table on Thanksgiving Day, he stood up and planted his hands firmly on his hips. "Absolutely not! I will not have my eldest daughter proclaimed a spinster! No! It won't do. Ginny Lou, you will just have to wait to get married until Ruby Mae is married. It was bad enough that Maggie Lee went off and got herself hitched in '99 before her sister. But no! You'll just have to wait."

Ginny Lou dissolved into tears and fled to her room. Maggie Lee, the middle child at a very immature 25, rushed after her and tried to calm her. Ruby tried to reason with her father, but when she realized he wasn't going to relent, she followed her sisters upstairs. She heard them talking through the door. "If only Ruby would get married!" sobbed Ginny.

"Ruby doesn't want to get married!" her sister replied, close to tears herself. "You know that. She's never been interested in boys. All she ever does is take care of all of us.  Well, and she went to that silly old school."

"It's not fair! Just because she wants to be an old maid, why should I have to be one, too?"

Ruby sighed to herself. 'Who says I want to be an old maid? I've always been interested in boys; they're just not interested in me... all they ever want is sex, and I'm not going to give it to them.' At the tender age of 13, Ruby had promised her dying mother that she would save herself for the one man she loved... that she would never settle for anything or anyone less. And she hadn't. But no one else seemed to understand, especially not her sisters.

Ruby walked into Ginny's room and sat on the edge of the bed. "Don't cry, Ginny; I'll make Daddy see reason. You won't have to wait for long; I promise." Ginny and Maggie looked up at their oldest sister with hope in their eyes. When Ruby promised them something, she always delivered.  Always.  She'd been more like a mother to both of them than a sister.  "So tell me, who's the lucky guy?"

"Clyde," Ginny sniffed.

Almost instantly, Ruby remembered the last time she'd seen Clyde... and her plan began to form. "Clyde? Clyde Emerson from the Lucky Shoe bar?"

Ginny nodded, but Maggie answered, "Just how many men named Clyde do you know, Ruby Mae?"

Ruby smiled; a perfect segue!  "Only one.  It just surprised me.  I mean, that's where I met..."  She stopped abruptly and bit her upper lip, rising from the bed and walking to the window.  "So, have you picked a date?"  She knew her sisters would bite.  They were so predictable.

Maggie was the first to pick up on it.  "Where you met who, Ruby?"

Ginny blinked a few times in confusion.  "You met someone?  At the bar?  Who?"

Ruby shook her head.  "Oh, that's not important.  Tell me, Ginny... did you set the date?"

"Oh, no you don't!" giggled Ginny.

"Come on, you!  Who'd you meet?  A man?" asked Maggie.

"No, a dog!" Ruby laughed.  Then she remembered, "Actually, he did have a dog with him.  Well sort of."

"What?!"

"Who?!"

Ruby did her best to force a blush up her face.  "My gentleman."

"You have a gentleman?" Maggie squeaked.  Ruby nodded.

"Honest and truly?" squealed Ginny.  "I can't believe it!  This is wonderful!  Clyde and I won't have to wait after all!!"

Ruby cocked her head to one side and said, "Now, Ginny... Daddy doesn't know about him yet.  You'll have to let me break the news to him that I'm engaged.  And we won't..."

"Engaged!?!" both sisters screamed excitedly.

Ruby tried to smile.  This was very difficult for her.  She really didn't like fooling people, especially not her family.  "We won't be able to get married until sometime next year."

"But why?" asked Ginny.

"Because he's in the Navy, and they're sending him away again," explained Ruby.  

Before she could continue, Maggie asked, "And you met him at the Lucky Shoe?  Ruby, you never go to the bar.  How did you meet..."

Ginny protested, "It's not just a bar, Maggie!  It's a bar and grill!  It's very respectable, or Daddy wouldn't let me go there.  You know that!"  Maggie just rolled her eyes at her little sister.

Ruby nodded.  "You remember, surely," she said.  "Back in February?  The man who fell out of the fighter jet on the mountain?"

"Oh, my God!" squealed Ginny.

"You were on your way home from Cooper's and you saw him coming out of the forest, didn't you?" asked Maggie.

Ruby nodded.  "That's right.  And I helped him inside.  Jolene gave him a cup of coffee..."

"And then that other guy came and they took him away to the hospital," Ginny remembered.  "But I thought he was an old man?"

Ruby laughed and tussled her sister's hair, "Anyone over 30 is old to you, Sweet Girl.  No, he's not that old.  Yes, he's older than me... but I don't care.  It doesn't matter."

"So when did you see him again?" asked Maggie, confused.

Ruby forced a blush again.  "I spent a lot of time with him this last month in Washington."

"Oooo" giggled Ginny.

"And just before I left to come home, he proposed."

"He didn't give you a ring?" asked Maggie.

Ruby hadn't thought of that.  Quickly she came up with an excuse.  "He said he wanted to give me his mother's ring.  And it was in a safe deposit box at the bank... and the bank was already closed for the holiday."  Neither of her sisters knew anything about bank hours, so they'd believe that, she knew.  "So I'll get it when he comes home."

"Where are they sending him?" asked Ginny.

"Oh, he couldn't say.  It's top secret," Ruby made up.  

"When does he leave?"

'What would sound really sad?' she wondered.  "Christmas Eve," she replied in her most pathetic voice, willing tears to fill her eyes.

"Oooh, you poor dear!" cried Maggie, hugging her.

"You can write him!" exclaimed Ginny.  "You can write him a letter and he'll get it before he goes away!"

Maggie agreed, "Oh, yes!  Do!  That would be perfect!  He can keep your letter in his chest pocket, close to his heart!"  

Ginny sighed, "How romantic!"  It was all Ruby could do not to laugh.  

Ginny jumped off the bed and ran to her desk.  She pulled out a piece of stationery and a pink envelope.  "Here!  You can sit right here and write to him!"

Ruby decided it would be best to humor her sisters.  She knew Ginny would never doubt her, but Maggie might grow suspicious.  She laughed lightly, "Okay!" and sat down at the desk.

"When did you say he'll be back?" asked Ginny.

"Sometime in the Spring.  And then we'll be married," Ruby lied.

Ginny turned to Maggie.  "Do you think Daddy will make me wait?"

Maggie shrugged, "I don't know, Gin."

Ruby hugged her youngest sister.  "Of course not, Ginny Lou.  I'll convince him.  Now, when is your big day?" she asked again.

And Ruby had convinced her father.  It was enough for him that his eldest was engaged to be married... and to an Admiral in the United States Navy!  What a boon!

Ginny's wedding had gone off without a hitch in January.  And now everyone was concentrating on Ruby's.  The sisters were intent on altering their mother's wedding gown for Ruby.  Her father was intent on reserving the Holiday Inn at Petersburg for the occasion.  "Nothing's too good for my Ruby Mae," he said.

Ruby had thus far been able to put off their attentions.  But it was becoming increasingly difficult.  She hadn't really thought ahead to how she'd get rid of her supposed fiancé when she came up with the idea in November.  And now it was February.  Spring was just around the corner.  And her family expected her Admiral to show up and whisk her away in wedded bliss.  Ruby cringed inside.  She couldn't tell her father that she lied to him.  He'd be brokenhearted.  She would find a way to kill this guy off... for her father's sake.

She rolled out of bed, donned her warmest chenille robe and slippers, and made her way downstairs to the kitchen to prepare her father's breakfast.  'If only I knew what happened to that letter,' she mused, not having any idea that her sisters mailed it the day after Thanksgiving.

Friday, 13 February 2004
1045 EST
US Highway 33 West
Onego, West Virginia

AJ saw an old sign for the Lucky Shoe Bar & Grill.  The name didn't ring a bell, but he turned right anyway.  "Worth a try, though" he decided, still wondering at himself for making this trip.  'What ever possessed me to do this?' he thought.  But he had nothing else to do this Valentine's weekend, now that Meredith was out of his life.  So, after he read Ruby's letter for the tenth time yesterday, he buzzed Coates and told her to clear his schedule for Friday.  He went home that night and packed a bag... and headed for West Virginia this morning.

The trip had taken almost four hours; the roads weren't really bad until he got deep into the George Washington National Forest.  And even then, it wasn't as bad as it could have been.  There was a little snow on the ground, but no ice. He only lost about half an hour.  But if that sky didn't look like a winter storm coming, he didn't know what did.  'This was probably a really bad idea, Chegwidden.'  He glanced in the rear view mirror at the dog, lying asleep in the back of the Escalade.  'Hope it wasn't a mistake to bring her back up here.  Sure would hate to have someone claim her now.'

He saw the old building ahead on the right.  He wasn't sure, but it did look vaguely familiar.  He parked and opened the back for the dog to jump down.  "Come on, Girl.  Do your business," he told her.  She jumped down, wagging her tail.  But then she sniffed the air.  She looked around her, turning in a circle.  Then she looked up at AJ with accusing eyes; obviously she remembered this place only too well.  He smiled at her and rubbed her head.  "It's okay, Girl.  I'm not leaving you here.  You're coming back with me."  She nuzzled his hand and wouldn't move from his side.  "Go ahead.  Go do your business.  I'll wait."

When he didn't move to get back in the vehicle nor go inside, she walked a few feet away... just to the edge of the woods, and squatted.  "That's my girl," AJ praised her.  She stood up again and looked at him.  "Come on.  Come here," he called.  She trotted back to his side, wagging her tail furiously.  They walked to the door of the building, and he gave her an order, "Sit."  She sat.  "Good girl," he petted her.  He put his hand on the door and she stood back up to follow him inside.  He turned and smiled.  "Stay, Girl."  She whined, but she sat back down and stayed put.

AJ walked inside.  "Howdy," he nodded to the young man behind the bar.  AJ couldn't be certain, he'd not really been totally coherent when he stumbled out of the forest last year, but he really thought he remembered a woman behind the bar before.

"Hey, there, Stranger," the young man replied.  "What can I get for ya?"  AJ wanted a beer.  He really wanted a beer.  But he didn't want to have the odor of beer on his breath when and if he found Ruby Mae.  "We got Miller on tap," the man suggested.

AJ smiled, "Sounds good, but just coffee for now."

"Where ya headed?" the bartender asked as he set the mug in front of AJ.

"Actually, I'm looking for someone.  Hoping you can help me find her."  AJ picked the mug and took a sip of the steaming brew.

The bartender raised his eyes in surprise.  "A her?  Sure!  I know most everybody in these parts."

"Her name's Ruby Mae."  The young man's jaw fell open.  AJ wasn't sure what that meant, so he decided to continue.  Of course, he didn't really know much.  All he remembered was her hair.  "Red curly hair, about..."

"You're her Admiral?" the man's voice almost squeaked.  AJ nodded.  "Well, I'll be!"  He slapped the countertop.  "Damn, if she ain't gonna be tickled!"

"You know her?"

"Know her!?  You bet I do!  She's my sister-in-law!"  The man extended his arm, "Name's Clyde.  Clyde Emerson.  I'm married up with Ginny Lou."

AJ smiled as he shook the man's hand.  "Nice to meet you, Clyde."

"Damn, if she ain't gonna be tickled!" he said again.  AJ chuckled.  "She ain't expectin' ya, I know that."

"I'm sure she isn't," AJ agreed.  'And I don't know that "tickled" is what she'll be when I show up either.'  Aloud, he said, "Can you direct me to her home?"

"Hell, I can do better'n that!"  He wiped his hands on his apron and pushed open the swinging door to the kitchen.  "Hey, Jolene!  I gotta take off!  Ruby Mae's Admiral just showed up!  I'm gonna take him out to the house.  I'll be back in a couple hours."

Jolene made an appearance in the doorway.  Now there was the woman AJ remembered as the bartender.  Jolene grinned, "Well, I'll be!  You sure cleaned up better'n I figured you would."

AJ chuckled.  "Thanks.  And thank you for the coffee last year, too."

Jolene nodded.  "Not a'tall.  Hey, you want me to call out to the house and let 'em know you're coming?" she offered.

Clyde was at AJ's side now, his apron hanging on the hook behind the counter.  "No way!  We'll surprise her!"  He looked at AJ.  "I can't wait to see Ruby Mae's face when she sees the likes of you!"

AJ grinned, "Neither can I."  They walked outside; the dog was still sitting exactly where AJ had left her.  "Come on, Girl.  Let's go!"

Friday, 13 February 2004
1115 EST
Jones Residence
Onego, West Virginia

AJ pulled up in front of a small, very old, two-story house.  The paint was peeling, and there were a few shingles drooping in the front.  AJ opened the back of the Escalade and let the dog out.  She took off barking, chasing a squirrel.  At the sound of her barks, two other smaller dogs rounded the corner of the house and took off after her.  AJ turned questioning eyes to Clyde, "Should I call her back?"

Clyde shook his head, "Not if she's friendly.  Those two love other dogs, 'specially the big ones like yours.  Most likely, they'll play like there's no tomorrow."  And that's exactly what they did... after they sniffed each other's rear ends, of course.

With all the commotion outside, the front door opened revealing a young pregnant woman.  She had red hair, but AJ didn't recognize her as being Ruby.  Granted, he didn't see the woman for very long last year, but he did remember that she was striking.  The woman in the doorway didn't say a word; she just started at AJ.

Another redhead, hardly a woman in AJ's eyes, pushed her way around the first.  "Clyde Emerson!  What are you doing here at this time of day?  You're supposed to be working!" she scolded, her hands on her hips.  But her words stopped as her sister elbowed her in the ribs.  That's when she noticed AJ.  "Who's he?" the younger girl asked.

"Close the door!  You're letting out all the heat!!" a third feminine voice boomed from inside the house. 

'Oh, this was a mistake,' AJ scolded himself.  'What the hell ever possessed me to come up here?' he asked himself for the umpteenth time.  

Clyde headed for the front door.  "Come on in, Admiral," he said just loud enough for the women at the door to hear.

Their eyes nearly bugged out of their sockets.  "Oh, my God!"  "It's him!" they cried at the same time.  "Shhh!!" they giggled and hushed each other.

AJ walked up the steps and the older of the two took his arm, almost dragging him inside.  "I'm Maggie Lee."  And before AJ could respond, she giggled, "Oh, this is going to be such fun! Ruby Mae is going to be so surprised!!"  She tugged at his coat until AJ finally removed it and handed it to her.

"I'm Ginny Lou," bubbled the younger, closing the front door behind them.  "Shall I go get her?" she asked her sister.  At Maggie's nod, Ginny darted off toward the kitchen.

Maggie ushered them into the living room and draped AJ's coat over the back of a straight chair.  "Have a seat, Admiral," she urged.

Just as AJ was going to sit down, he heard voices.  "This is ridiculous, Ginny.  Take your hands away from my eyes.  How do you expect me to walk with your hands over my face?"

"Just a few more feet, Ruby Mae."  They rounded the corner into the living room, smiles wreathing their faces.

"Ginny, please!" laughed Ruby.  "What is such a surprise?" she asked as her sister positioned her right in line with AJ.  

"You ready?" she giggled.  Ruby nodded, and Ginny removed her hands.  "Ta da!" she exclaimed.

Both sisters, Clyde, and AJ stared at Ruby as she looked in front of her and saw AJ standing there.  First she smiled, obviously not recognizing him, he knew... but the others didn't.  Then her eyes grew wide as she identified him as being the man she helped last year.  And last her eyes filled with tears as she realized she'd been caught in her lies.  'But how?  How could he have found out?  The letter!  They mailed my letter!!' she suddenly knew without a doubt.

AJ saw her eyes fill with tears and she lowered her head... and he saw the questions in her sisters' eyes.  He slowly moved toward Ruby, a smile growing on his face with each step he took.  When he was toe-to-toe with her, he raised his hand to her chin and lifted her face so she had to look at him.  "Should I have called first, Ruby, Dear?" he asked tenderly.  AJ hadn't decided what he would do when he came face to face with Ruby Mae.  He certainly hadn't expected to do this!  But she looked so... fragile.

She blinked a couple of times in confusion, which sent her tears running down her cheeks.  AJ moved his hand and wiped them away with his thumb.  "Don't cry, Darlin'.  I'm home now.  Safe and sound," he referred to her letter.  Ruby tried to smile, but it just wouldn't come.  'Well, here goes nothing!' and AJ pulled her into his arms and covered her lips with his.

When he released her, she was trembling.  "I can't believe you're here," she whispered.  And it was true.  She couldn't believe it.  What was he doing here?  And why was he playing along?

"Where else should I be, Ruby?"  AJ looked up and saw that her sisters and brother-in-law were still standing in the room.  "Would you excuse us, please?"

"Oh!  Of course!" Maggie blurted.  "Come on, Ginny Lou.  Clyde.  Out!  Let's go the kitchen and make... something!"

AJ nodded his thanks to them and turned his attention back to Ruby Mae.

"Would you like to sit down?" she asked, feeling most uncomfortable.

AJ didn't reply.  He just moved to the sofa and sat.  Ruby sat in the easy chair next to the sofa.  He quirked an eyebrow. "There's plenty of room right here next to me," he winked, patting the cushion.

Ruby blushed.  "Admiral, I don't know how..."

AJ interrupted her.  "I received your letter yesterday."

"Yesterday?" she was surprised it had taken so long to arrive.

He nodded.  "It made the rounds at the Pentagon until it was finally delivered to me yesterday."  At her confused look, he added, "I'm surprised it reached me at all, in fact, addressed 'Admiral Alberts, Washington, DC'."

She laughed, "I'm surprised it reached you, too!"  When he cocked his head in question, she continued, "My sisters mailed it, evidently.  They've never been off the mountain; they have no idea just how enormous Washington is.  I never intended the letter to be mailed, you see."

"You've been there, to DC?" he asked.

"Oh, yes.  In fact, I spent a month there last November... which is partly what gave me the idea of using you..." she glanced around quickly to be sure no one was within hearing distance.  "Of using you as my make-believe fiancé."

"And why would you have needed a make-believe fiancé, if you don't mind my asking?"

"My father is rather old fashioned.  He wouldn't allow my youngest sister to get married until I was at the very least engaged.  And since I had no prospects and won't ever around here," she shrugged, "I decided to make one up.  You."

"What about your other sister?"

"Oh, she eloped in '99.  Daddy was beside himself, but he's finally gotten over it now that she's expecting his first grandbaby. But then when Ginny wanted to get married..."  Her words trailed off.  "He just wouldn't allow it.  So I told them I was engaged."

AJ chuckled.  "I see."

"I hope you do, Admiral.  I really had no intention of bothering you with all of this.  I never expected you to even find out about it; I mean, I didn't even use your real name on the letter!  Admiral Alberts, indeed," she almost giggled.

He grinned, "I wondered about that."

"None of them remember what the envelope said. And all I've ever called you around here is 'my Admiral' or 'my fiancé'.  I never even use your first name."

"That's probably a good thing, since I don't go by my first name."

She smiled slyly, "AJ."  He turned surprised eyes to her.  "Just because they don't know who you are doesn't mean I don't."  

"Oh?"  AJ was entranced by this young woman.  She was all grace and poise... in a completely backwoods setting.  It was most unusual and not at all what he expected to find.

She lowered her eyes and played with her fingers nervously.  "I looked you up online at the library.  And then when I was in DC last year, I took a tour of the JAG office, hoping to see you again."  Then she looked up.  "Not that I expected you to remember me," she hurried to say.

AJ smiled, "I'll admit, I probably wouldn't have recognized you at the time, Ruby.  But I definitely remember how you helped me make it those last few yards from the woods to the bar."  He reached up and laced his fingers through her hair.  "And I remembered your red curls," he said wistfully.  "I dreamed about them.... about you..."  He suddenly realized that he had, indeed, dreamed about this woman!  

She gazed into his eyes.  "I dreamed about you, too.  Often," she whispered.

AJ sensed they were now being watched.  So he reached for her hand and she took it.  He pulled her out of her chair and down to the sofa next to him.  Then he lowered his lips over hers.  When he felt her slight hesitation, he whispered as he kissed her, "We're being watched."  Ruby melted in AJ's arms and soon found her own arms wrapped around his neck.  

Their kiss deepened until they heard a deep growl, "Don't swallow her tongue there, Boy!"

Ruby jerked back and blushed furiously.  "Daddy!"  The pair stood immediately.  "Daddy, this is..."

"It better be your Admiral, is who it better be, Ruby Mae," her father said roughly.  He extended his hand to AJ.  "Welford Jones, Ruby Mae's father," he introduced himself.

AJ was surprised at the man's size. Based on all three of the man's daughters, he'd expected to meet a fairly small man, surely not a 6 foot 2, 250-pounder! "AJ Chegwidden, Ruby Mae's fiancé," AJ returned as he grasped the man's hand in a firm shake.  

Ruby was shocked that AJ had introduced himself thus to her father.  'Oh great.  Now it's going to be that much more difficult to explain all of this,' she sighed to herself.

Jones didn't like a namby-pamby handshake.  And this man of Ruby's certainly didn't have one.  His was a firm, sure grip.  Jones decided that AJ would do just fine for his eldest daughter.  "Come to claim your bride, have you?" he came right to the point.

AJ chuckled, "Well, Sir... I came to..."

"Daddy!" Ruby interrupted.  "AJ and I need to discuss a few things before we..."

"Quiet, Girl!" her father ordered.  "This is talk for men folk.  You get along to the kitchen and get lunch on the table."

"But, Daddy..." she objected.

AJ took her hand in his and kissed it.  "It'll keep, Darlin'.  We can talk later."

Ruby looked helplessly from AJ to her father and back again.  'Oh, I'm in so much trouble!!'

Friday, 13 February 2004
1200 EST
Jones Residence
Onego, West Virginia

Ruby called everyone to lunch. She'd planned on making chicken pie tonight for dinner, but she really didn't want to feed an Admiral cold cuts for lunch. So she used the chicken she'd cooked that morning and fixed an enormous chicken salad. As her sisters took their seats at the table, Ruby noticed that they'd shifted everyone around so that she would be seated next to the Admiral. She thought to herself, 'As silly as my sisters are most of the time, they can be so sweet.' She smiled at them as she sat down next to AJ. Clyde sat at one end of the table, her usual spot, and her father sat at the other end.

AJ took several bites of the chicken salad and commented, "Ruby, this is delicious!"

Ruby blushed her pleasure at his praise, while Ginny gushed, "Ruby Mae is the best cook in these parts! Everybody thinks so. And her chicken salad is the best you'll find anywhere!"

AJ grinned, "I'd have to say it's definitely the best I've ever eaten."

"So, have you two picked a date yet?" asked Maggie.

Ruby's fork stopped half way to her mouth, but before she said anything, AJ replied, "Not yet. We haven't seen each other in a good while. We're still catching up." He turned and winked at Ruby.

"But you're gonna do it soon, right?" urged Ginny. "This month?"

AJ shook his head. "No, this month isn't good."

Rubbing her swollen abdomen, Maggie inserted, "Well, you can't pick April. That's when the baby's due, you know."

Everyone seemed to ignore Maggie's comment, and AJ continued with his explanation. "I want to be able to take my wife on a honeymoon for at least two weeks. And I won't be able to take a two-week leave for several months."

Ruby turned surprised eyes to him. "A honeymoon?" she gulped. "For two weeks?"

AJ smiled broadly. "But of course!"

"What would you do for two whole weeks?" asked Clyde. "Me and Ginny Lou only had the weekend, and we ran out of stuff to see."

Ruby smiled at her brother-in-law. "I think the Admiral has somewhere other than Petersburg in mind, Clyde."

AJ nodded. "I thought Europe or the Caribbean. Maybe Hawaii?"

"Good God, man! Do you know how much a trip like that costs?" barked Ruby's father.

AJ chuckled, "That won't be a problem, Sir."

"Hot damn! Ruby Mae's got herself a millionaire!" Clyde muttered under his breath. "Who'd o' thought?"

"Hardly a millionaire, Clyde," AJ corrected. "But I've lived alone for a good many years, and I don't need that much. I have a good amount saved." He turned to Ruby. "And I can't think of anything I'd like better than to spend it on the woman I adore."

Ruby tried to smile, but it was a teary smile. She wondered who the woman was whom he really adored. Her family thought it sweet that she got teary over her fiancé's words.

And AJ found he really meant what he said; he really would like to spend his money on the woman he loved. Unfortunately, he didn't have such a woman right now. He glanced back at Ruby and felt something stir inside. Could it be? Could he actually be feeling something for her? 'That's absurd!' he told himself. 'I didn't come up here for that.' Then his conscience argued, 'No? Then why did you come?'

Ruby's father monopolized most the conversation through the rest of their luncheon, telling stories about Ruby Mae as a child. Ruby was mortified when her father told AJ about the time she ran naked through the house when they had the minister and his wife over for dinner. "Daddy!!" she shrieked. "I was only three years old!!  I don't run around the house naked anymore!"

AJ laughed heartily at that.  "Not to worry, Darlin'.  I'm sure it'll come back to you when we're married."

Ruby blushed until her face matched the color of her hair. The others just sat in shock at his words. But Jones roared in laughter at his comeback. "Admiral, I like you! I think you'll do just fine for my Ruby Mae."

Friday, 13 February 2004
1505 EST
Jones Residence
Onego, West Virginia

AJ and Ruby bundled up in their warm coats and headed outside to take a walk... where they could talk openly without fear of being overheard.  "Come on, Girl!" AJ called, seeing his dog sitting next to the Escalade.  She wasn't taking any chances on being left behind.

"You still have her!" Ruby exclaimed as the dog trotted over to them.  She reached down and petted the dog.  "Oh, you're a beauty, aren't you?" she cooed.  The dog wagged her tail.  "You look a lot better than you did last year, too."  She looked up at AJ.  "What'd you name her?"

AJ cleared his throat.  "Umm, I, uh..."

Ruby looked up at him.  "What?"

AJ quirked an eyebrow.  "Dammit."  The dog thumped her tail in response.

"You're joking," Ruby said.  AJ shook his head.  "You can't be serious!"

"It just sort of happened," AJ tried to explain.  When Ruby didn't look convinced, he added, "Hey, if you can get her to respond to something else, I'll change it.  Gladly!"

Ruby took on the challenge.  She walked a few paces ahead of AJ.  "Come here, Girl," she called, and the dog went to her immediately.  She looked up at AJ in question.

"Yes, she responds to 'Girl', too.  But that's it.  And that's only been in the last couple of months," AJ explained as he caught up with them. 

Ruby walked ahead again.  "Come here, Lady," she called.  The dog didn't budge.  She did wag her tail though.  "She knows I'm talking to her," Ruby observed.  AJ chuckled.  "Come here, Lassie."

AJ laughed outright.  "Lassie's a Collie!"

Ruby giggled, "Okay, okay.  Come here, Chief."

"Chief is a boy's name."

"Come here, Mollie."

"Mollie?"

"How about Willow?"

AJ laughed again.  "I don't think so." 

The dog looked like she was following a tennis match; first she looked at Ruby, then at AJ, then at Ruby, then at AJ.  "Woof!" she finally objected.

The pair joined Ruby and they headed off together.  "Maybe I'll think of something before we get back," Ruby said.  AJ nodded and casually slipped his arm around her shoulders. 

After they'd walked a good distance in companionable silence, AJ finally spoke. "Ruby, why did you say you would never have any prospects for a husband?"

She sighed, "Actually, I said 'around here'.  But I probably wouldn't have any anyplace else either.  I didn't when I was at college..."

"Where'd you go?"

"Mountain State in Beckley.  It was all I could afford."

"Nothing wrong with a good state school, Ruby Mae."

"I know," she agreed.  "It's just that I'd have liked to go someplace like William and Mary."

"That's a good school, too," he agreed. "But it doesn't answer my original question."

She walked a few feet ahead of him and turned to lean against a tree. "My mother died when I was 13. Ginny Lou was a baby; actually, I found out much later that she died from complications with childbirth." AJ didn't interrupt, but he nodded his understanding. "When she lay there dying, she told me how much she loved my father. How special it was that their love was so deep and strong. And how lucky she was. I didn't understand why. So she told me. Most marriages around here, back then, anyway, were marriages of convenience... or shotgun weddings. One of the two. Either way, most of them weren't because of love."

AJ picked up a stick and threw it for the dog to chase. She wasn't used to taking such a leisurely stroll nor stopping during a walk. Although he kept throwing the stick each time the dog brought it back, his attention was fully focused on Ruby... and she knew it. 'How unusual he is,' she thought to herself. "Mama told me how most of her friends weren't happy in their marriages; they were miserable. But they had no where to go, so they stayed where they were. She didn't want that for me or my sisters. She wanted us to know true love, the kind of love she shared with Daddy." Ruby's eyes filled with tears as she continued, "She asked me to promise her that I wouldn't give myself to a man until I knew beyond any doubt that I loved him more than anyone else in the world."

She sniffed. "Most people around here don't understand that. Nobody did at school either." Ruby bent down and picked up a leaf. She twirled it between her fingers, watching it spin. Then she looked up at AJ. "And besides that, I didn't have much time for dating when I was growing up. I was raising my sisters, taking care of my father, and going to school."

"That's a lot to have on these tiny shoulders," AJ said gently, placing his hands on her shoulders and pulling her against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and whispered in her ear, "I'm sorry you've had such a time of it, Ruby. But I think it's very commendable of you to have kept your word to your mother all these years."

She looked up, startled. "You do?" Never had a man said that to her. They'd always laughed at her if she dared broach the subject with them.

"Absolutely."

Ruby looked down again... and laid her forehead against his chest. "AJ?"

"Hmm?"

"Why did you come here today?"

"I don't really know."

"You don't know?" she repeated. "You drove all this way, and you don't know why? That doesn't sound like something an Admiral would do."

"I agree. It doesn't. But I really don't know why I came."

"Were you angry when you read my letter yesterday?" she asked.

AJ shook his head. "No. I was surprised. Shocked, really. First off, I was confused, though. It took a few minutes for me to even realize the letter was actually for me. But when I did, I wasn't angry. You know, I think I was actually flattered."

"Really?" she brightened, backing away from him.

He chuckled. "Yes, really."

"So you didn't come to expose me?"

He pulled her back in his arms. "No, Ruby Mae. I can tell you in all honesty, I did not come to expose you. Maybe to find out why you were pretending I was your fiancé. But not to expose you."

She smiled up at him. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," he replied, lowering his mouth to hers.

"Is someone watching?" she mumbled into his mouth.

He lifted his lips from hers. "No, why?"

"You mean you... wanted to kiss me?" she asked in disbelief.

AJ smiled. "I most certainly did. Do," he corrected as he claimed her mouth again in a deep, passionate kiss.

"Mmmm, lucky me," she murmured. When the kiss finally ended, she raised glassy eyes to his. "You're an amazing man, AJ Chegwidden."

"Not so amazing," he refuted.

"Very amazing," she contradicted. "And like I said, I am one lucky woman." As she emphasized the word "lucky", the dog barked and ran to her side. Ruby looked down and smiled, "And you are one lucky dog, you know that?" The dog barked again. "Lucky?"

"Woof!"

Ruby grinned. She took a few steps away and said, "Come here, Lucky!"

"Woof!" The dog barked and immediately went to her side.

AJ chuckled. "Well, I guess she has a new name!" He looked at the dog. "Lucky, come!"

"Woof!" And she trotted back to AJ's side.

"She's a smart dog," AJ commented.

"How do you mean?"

"Lucky... that's the name of the bar where we first met," he informed her as he moved back to her side.

"The Lucky Shoe! You're right," she realized. AJ slipped his arm around her waist and they started walking again. Neither of them even noticed when the snow began falling.

Continue to Part 2.