Overlooked Bride Ch. 07

* * *

Dinner at the hotel was very informal. Although now expatriates, Anthony and Jillian Wisenberg had not lost their Kiwi ways. They had met Marty at the college and lunched with him there once and appeared to take an immediate liking to Bianca, so it quickly became 'Tony' and 'Jill' with Tony and Marty choosing the same brand and style of beer to start off and the three women choosing wine; Jill opted for sparkling and Monica and Bianca still white and the group slipped easily into relaxed conversation.

After the main course, all but Jill on to red wine and bubbling alone nicely, Tony asked, "Shall we talk business?" He remained relaxed while Jill and Monica both tensed.

"Why not?" Marty said expansively. Now Bianca was nervous, wondering if Marty had drunk too much alcohol too quickly. But a horse-bite on her thigh pressing against him suggested he was in a playful mood.

"Monica has told you of our interest?"

"Yes," Marty said, topping up the glasses.

"Well?"

"Offer enough and I'm all ears."

"We want it all."

"Fair enough. You are aware of the property holding company details."

"Yes -- and the insurance company is happy about us acquiring your holding; it is not prepared out its interests as a long-term strategic investment but it has agreed to sign guarantees of non-involvement in our on-site developments and agrees to new commercial arrangement that will include a thirty-year lease plus three 10-year rights of renewal."

"I'm surprised the insurance chiefs didn't come to me over this."

Tony smiled. "Why should they -- there's no chance of a price war because they've committed to retain their holding."

"Yes, I suppose expecting a courtesy call from an insurance company on such a matter is expecting too much."

Tony said the proposal was he and Jill would front a multi-million development to proceed within the next five years but a condition was the site must be secured now.

Marty yawned, hand over mouth and apologized. "So, if we do a deal you want me to walk, leaving Monica in charge?"

Monica said yes, but that should not be a problem because current proposals for change would be abandoned.

"So there are plans for a different use of the site?"

"Yes."

"Educational?"

Monica looked at her father and he nodded. She said yes.

Bianca then couldn't believe the rubbish Marty was talking.

"So the wealthy mummy and daddies in China who want their teenies to have the best education in a wholesome clean, green environment like New Zealand where the sport and recreational opportunities are second to none and the crime rate is low would pay big bucks to have their teenies attend a Chinese controlled university in New Zealand where all teaching except the Chinese language and courses on other things Chinese would be in English?"

At Marty was finishing Bianca began realizing what she was hearing had elements of credibility and that was confirmed by the shocked looks on the faces of the Wisenberg's.

"Who's been talking?" Tony demanded. "There's been a leak from within Government!"

"Rubbish," Marty said. "Just relax Tony; it's rather logical isn't it with China wanting to win the hearts of the West without military means in it's long-term goal of world-wide influence to at least equal that of the United States?"

"You seem to know an awful lot about what you shouldn't know," Jill said.

"It's called native intelligence and you two should know that endemic in this country."

Bianca chimed in: "So it's true, a Chinese Government funded university on New Zealand soil is proposed?"

Tony looked aghast and apologized saying he was unable to confirm or deny that comment.

"Offer big money, Tony and I'll sign as soon as the papers are ready," Marty grinned, applying a horse bite to Bianca's thigh.

Tony leant against Jill and whispered something and she replied.

"Okay - $4.5 million and it's a done deal, otherwise we have to bring in the heavyweights to negotiate and commission other people to look for an alternative site. My principles will be interest that Monica became drawn to this site for other reasons; it will be seen as a tremendously good omen. If their proposal falls through, Jill and I will have no worries as we'll end up with an asset providing twin income streams."

"Well who am I to stand in the way of Chinese educational development?" Marty grinned, standing up to shake Tony's hand and to kiss Jill's hand. "I'll call for champagne and you must aim to have the papers to my lawyers at noon Tuesday with the signing late Wednesday at the Royal Orange Hotel where your guys and our lawyers will be my guest."

"Sounds great," Tony said.

Monica said she'd like to pay for the lunch at the Royal Orange. "You guys have just ensured me of a very big job in the years ahead as I'll be liaison director of the development as I speak both Kiwi and Chinese."

"Oh God, this fantastic deal now means you're my business partner, doesn't it," Bianca said as they walked from the hotel, she exaggerating a slight limp because of horse bit bruising to the thigh.

"Yes -- fifty-fifty in everything. Can you accept that?"

"Perhaps but I'm worried about temperamental upsets between us."

"Why don't we look for new premises with an atrium -- one side can be 'Creative' under your direction and on the other side of the shaft can be 'Admin and Business Development' under my direction. Then if you become snotty nosed over me for any reason you can hide in your little empire."

"Darling that's brilliant," Bianca cried, leaping and kissing him enthusiastically. She also dug a hand to grab his testicles and squeezed, quite hard.

"Ouch," he complained.

"Now we both can limp to the car," she grinned.

* * *

It was a small wedding, with no honeymoon to follow until Christmas when the newly marrieds would travel to France to stay in the villa on Bianca's parent's estate.

They were married in the small church near the farm, built seventy years ago and financed substantially by Marty's grandfather. Bianca and her father were taken in a horse and trap to the church, proudly driven by its owner, Dick Joss, husband of Marty's housekeeper Marleen. Bianca's best friend - the pregnant but still not showing - Fiona Bloom was the bridesmaid and Harry Kemp flew in from Australia to be best man. It was decided to have a confirmation of wedding vows in France in January to allow more English and French friends of the bride's parents to attend the re-enactment.

Marty's parents arrived from Boston to act as wedding hosts and to see their son journey down from the altar with a woman who stole their hearts the moment they'd met at the airport. They would be also attending the re-enactment in Dijon. Alice's husband made the wedding with just a day to spare. Although the church could hold only seventy people almost double that number attending the wedding breakfast in a marquee on the croquet lawn of the estate of Sir Archer and Lady Alice Ashton-Jones in Epsom in Auckland city.

As the registry was being signed, Bianca burst into tears and hugged her husband. "As I have told you before, I never felt I'd marry as until I met you; romance always seemed to elude me."

Dabbing the tears, Marty smiled and said something they'd both always remember: "I'm really glad about that because it has allowed me to end up with a treasure -- the overlooked bride."

THE END