***Willow Pond***
Jonathan and Jennifer are lying in bed. It's early morning. He has a full day, but he doesn't want to leave her. Things have been so busy that they haven't had a whole lot of time to spend together.
She is having a hard time waking up also. She didn't sleep well and had horrible dreams about someone pushing her and she just kept falling…
He leans over and tries to wake her up.
"Darling…" He gently shook her.
"Hmmm?"
"What is your day like? We could go out for breakfast if you want".
"Mmmm. That would be nice. But I cannot. I have a meeting on this side of town in 2 hours. We could have breakfast here. I can go make it while you get ready".
"Sounds great".
He kissed her and then headed for the shower.
She went downstairs and made French toast with coconut syrup and bacon.
It was ready right as he came downstairs.
"Where's Max?"
"The note he left said he went fishing and would be back tonight".
"Maybe he will catch something".
"Maybe, maybe not".
They had a nice breakfast and then Jonathan had to get to work.
"See you tonight, darling. I love you".
"Love you too, darling".
She walked him to the door, and then went upstairs to shower and get ready.
About an hour later, she headed to her meeting.
***Jacy Malone's house***
Jacy Malone was the wife of a well-known businessman in town. He and Jonathan were friendly acquaintances.
She had decided to have a meeting of all the wives, with lunch provided.
Jennifer had put on skinny destructed jeans, a long black tunic, and some black and silver sandals.
She looked amazing. She walked into Jacy's house, and everyone was hugging her and telling her how pretty she was.
Everyone was getting their plates and then sitting outside, so she joined them.
After everyone had a chance to eat, Jacy stood up at the head of the table.
"Ok, I called everyone here today because I want to have a fundraiser. I want the charity to be the children's hospital. And we need to plan what we are doing- I have a few ideas already. One is a fashion show, maybe a wife/child in the hospital in matching outfits. Or maybe the child could be a child who was in the hospital and is ok now. You guys can walk the runway separately and together, and you can mentor the child. Another idea is a silent auction, with a wine pull and maybe a live auction to go along with it? I also thought about a date auction. We can get single men to agree to be auctioned off, and we can put our husbands up there and bid on them as well. If you guys have any other ideas, please speak up and we can talk about them".
"I love the fashion show idea!"
"Me too!"
It soon became unanimous that everyone wanted to do the fashion show.
"Great. So, we need to decide who is going to be the showstopper? That means for each collection we show, they will come out in the best possible choice, and they will come out last each time".
"I vote Jennifer Hart. She's the one they will all be looking at".
"I second that".
"I third it".
Jennifer was embarrassed.
"You guys can't be serious. I am not the one they are going to be looking at."
"Yes, you are. You have natural beauty and you really look good on stage".
Everyone kind of talked her into it, so she finally said ok.
They took care of housekeeping details such as picking a date, and finding a venue. They decided that they would contact a few designers and see if they wanted to show their new lines in the fashion show.
"What if we had our husbands companies sponsor us walking down the aisle? That would start the donations off, from the very beginning".
"That is a great idea!"
They worked out the details for another hour or so, and then everyone left.
Jennifer had 8 weeks to get in the best shape. They were planning on wearing 5 pieces-formal wear, daytime outfit, nighttime outfit, workplace casual, and cocktail attire. They would have hairstylists come and do their hair and makeup also.
She was so excited she couldn't wait to tell Jonathan. She called his office, and his secretary told her that he was in the office but he wasn't in a meeting.
"Great, I am on my way, but don't tell him".
She drove straight to the office and parked.
***Hart Industries***
She took the elevator up to his floor, and walked to his secretary's desk.
"Hello, Kelly. How are you?"
"Fine, Mrs. Hart."
"That's good".
She went inside.
"Hi darling".
"Well hello".
She went to him and kissed him.
"What brings you by?"
"Well, we had such a good meeting at Jacy Malone's house, that I couldn't wait to come tell you about it".
"Oh? What's going on?"
"The wives are going to have a fundraiser for the children's hospital. And we decided to do a fashion show, and the models are going to be partnered for one set with children from the hospital. And we decided that the husbands companies are going to sponsor the models. And your company gets to sponsor the best model there is".
"Oh? Let me guess. Cindy Crawford".
"Nope".
"Janice Dickinson".
"Not even close".
"Cheryl Tiegs".
"Try someone more natural looking".
"I give up".
"Me".
"Oh, that's the prettiest one of them all". He kissed her.
"So will you sponsor me darling?"
"I think I can manage to do that".
"Great! I will work out the details and fill you in".
She kissed him goodbye and headed home.
They were meeting again at the end of the week to finalize more details.
***Willow Pond***
Jennifer came in and headed to the study and got a legal pad and pen, and then went to the couch.
She started jotting down ideas, such as for evening wear, their husbands could escort them. And for the set they did with the kids, they could dress the girls up all pretty, and both of them could wear pretty dresses. The women could wear their own gowns for that, but the kids would wear a designer.
She also figured that they could contact area restaurants and see if they would be a food sponsor so that people would have something to eat. Money raised would come from ticket sales plus having the designers donate a percentage of their sales to the fundraiser as well.
She called Jacy and told her about all of these ideas, and Jacy was thrilled with each one.
"Oh Jennifer, you have the best vision. How about you and I co-chair this?"
"Sounds great! I will see you Friday, co-chair".
"Thank you! You are a big help".
They hung up. She went upstairs and threw on some gym shorts and a sports bra, and her socks and tennis shoes.
She started running on the treadmill. She decided to do it with time, and not distance, and just see how long she could go.
It was 3 p.m. when she started running.
Jonathan arrived home shortly after 5, and she was still running, although she had slowed down considerably.
She was dripping with sweat.
"Darling, how long have you been running?"
"Since I got home around 3".
She turned off the treadmill and leaned over to catch her breath.
She stood up and kissed him and then headed for the shower.
He stood in the bathroom and talked to her while she was showering and she told him how Jacy had made her co-chair.
"That's great".
"I had another idea that she loved, and I hope you love it too".
"What is it?"
"Well, one of our sets that we are going to model is evening wear. So, I was thinking, since our husbands are sponsoring us, they could escort us down the runway for that set".
"So, that means you and I would walk down the runway together?"
"Yes".
"Interesting".
"Will you do it?"
"Of course I will do it".
She turned the shower off.
"Yay! Thank you, honey". She kissed him as she wrapped the towel around herself.
"When is this going to take place?"
"8 weeks from now. At the Keystone Club."
"Darling, what do you want for dinner?"
"Why don't we go out? We can go wherever you want".
"Deal".
She put on one of his favorite dresses and some sandals, and then quickly blew her hair dry and put on some makeup. She was ready in 20 minutes.
They drove the convertible to dinner.
"Where do you want to go, darling?"
"Let's go somewhere new".
"How about LA Prime?"
"Sure."
They held hands as they drove, and then got there and parked.
The restaurant was on the 35th floor of a building, so the views were spectacular.
***LA Prime***
They rode the elevator up, and got seated almost immediately.
They ordered cocktails and then looked at the menu. Jonathan decided right away, but Jennifer had a hard time making up her mind.
She finally decided on a trio-steak, shrimp, and lobster. She was trying to be healthy, but she hadn't eaten all day, so she decided it was ok to splurge a little. After all, she had ran on the treadmill for two solid hours.
"Darling, we had another idea for another fundraiser. And the ladies didn't go for it, but I was thinking we could do it for our hospital wing."
"What is it?"
"A date auction. We would get all the single guys at the office to put themselves up for a date and the women would bid on them. Married guys could do it too, if they wanted. That's between them and their wives. And there could be other things, like a dance off or a wine pull".
"I tell you what, I will have each department head ask their employees if they want to enter, and we will see how much interest there is. That might be a fun evening, if we can get enough participants".
"I agree".
"Would you be ok if I was up for auction?"
"Yes, and I would bid anything for you. Nobody will outbid me".
He laughed. "Good, because I don't want to go out with anyone else".
"We could have a live auction too. We could auction off a weekend at our ranch, or a trip anywhere in the US on our plane".
"You are the queen of good ideas today".
"I have some more, but I am going to have to save them for later".
He leaned over and kissed her.
They drank their cocktails and he ordered them some champagne as well.
After a nice dinner, and a few too many glasses of champagne for Jennifer, they headed back to Willow Pond.
***Willow Pond***
They came inside. Jennifer was giggling. Max had just gotten home and was in the kitchen. He was cleaning off several fish.
"You can freeze those, Max. We have dinner parties this week, and probably won't eat them right away".
"Sure thing, Mr. H."
They headed upstairs and Jennifer put on some pajama pants and a tank top. She promptly laid down on the floor and started doing sit ups and crunches.
"Darling, aren't you tired from running earlier?"
"Yes, but I can do this".
He put on his pajamas and climbed in bed to read.
After she finished her sit ups and crunches, she did 100 squats.
She finally climbed into bed and snuggled up to him.
"Darling, why are you killing yourself working out so much?"
"Because, I want to be in the best shape for you and for the fashion show, darling".
"I love you just the way you are, whatever way that is or will ever be. And you are going to be just gorgeous in the fashion show."
"Thank you, darling".
She kissed him.
"If you are really serious about working out, there is something we can do together".
"Oh? Are you going to coach me?"
"Something like that".
He put the book down and reached up and turned out the light.
***A few days later***
It's the day of the second meeting of the wives. Jennifer was up early. Jonathan heard her running on the treadmill at 5. She had run 2 hours at a time every day this week.
She hopped in the shower and was ready just as Jonathan was getting up.
She had some pretty sore legs from all the running and squats, but Jonathan had been wonderful to rub them for her each night.
She made Jonathan and Max eggs and bacon, and herself whole wheat toast, sliced fruit, and scrambled egg whites.
She had given up salt and added sugar, and pasta. Next week she was cutting out red meat, and possibly dairy. She felt like she should cut out alcohol, but she really enjoyed her cocktails with Jonathan and she didn't overdue it, so for now, it was staying.
She had started swimming laps in the afternoon as well. She was determined to look her absolute best for the fashion show.
***Jacy Malone's***
Jennifer arrived at Jacy's around 10:30. Everyone else was due there at 11. She helped her get the lunch stuff ready, and the table set.
After a nice lunch, she and Jennifer stood up and started the discussion.
"I made Jennifer our co-chair, because she had the most wonderful ideas. Jennifer, do you want to share the ideas you came up with?"
"Sure. Ok, so my first idea was that since our husbands are sponsoring us, and there is an evening wear category, we can have them escort us down the runway. They can wear tuxes or suits, whatever the designer wants. That will be easy for them because they do it every day. And we all look better on someone's arm, right? Now, for the set that we do with the girls, they can wear the designer gowns, and we can wear our own gowns, to make it easy for the designer. Or, if we have a surplus of designers, we can all wear one designer, and the kids can wear another one. Also, I was thinking we could get restaurants to be food sponsors and donate food for the guests to snack on".
Everyone loved those ideas.
"Now, we need to come up with a name for ourselves. Something cute and catchy".
They all brainstormed before they came up with "Board Wives".
Jennifer and Jacy started delegating responsibilities. Jennifer agreed to take on finding the restaurants to sponsor the food. Jacy was going to take care of finding designers. The other wives divied up securing the venue for the date they wanted, and decorations, and music, and invitations. They agreed to meet each Friday to practice and catch up on the to-do list.
Jennifer was so excited. She had secured a photographer, so she was taking some promotional shots this weekend.
She helped Jacy clean up, and then headed home.
She decided to go shopping and bought a few new things and some new jewelry. She picked up some new pajamas for Jonathan.
She got home around 4, and was upstairs putting everything away when Jonathan came in.
She came downstairs when she heard him.
"Hi darling". She went to him and kissed him.
"Happy Friday".
"Yes, happy Friday". He kissed her a few times.
"Darling, what about La Scala for dinner?"
"No, no pasta. No sugar, no salt, no pasta, no carbs".
"Well, how about some seafood or grilled chicken?"
"Sounds great. Wanna help me cook?"
"Absolutely".
Max was in the kitchen with Freeway.
"Max, we are going to make dinner, want to join us?"
"No can do, Mr. H. Got a hot poker game in Santa Clarita tonight".
"Well, good luck Max".
"Thanks, Mrs. H."
"Play a few hands for me, will ya?" Jonathan handed Max several hundred dollar bills.
"Sure thing, Mr. H."
He left, and they had the house to themselves.
Jonathan turned on some music, and went and made them each a cocktail, and then came back to the kitchen.
They prepared dinner together, and then Jonathan went and grilled the skewers. She made a pan of vegetables to roast, and put them in the oven.
After a nice dinner just the two of them, they moved to the couch and watched an old black and white movie.
She fell asleep on his shoulder, and he gently woke her up when the movie was over.
They went upstairs and got ready for bed and she told him all about the plans for the fashion show that they had made.
"That sounds great. Going to be a fun evening".
"I think so too. We should find out who we are being partnered with next week, so I was thinking you and I could go meet them and maybe take them to the zoo if they are able".
"That's a great idea".
She snuggled up to him and wrapped her arms around him.
"How was your day, darling? I completely forgot to ask you".
"Well, there is a deal I am working on, to bring a few of my businesses to the east coast. And negotiations on that deal aren't going so well. I sent Stanley to New York to scope it out".
"You sent Stanley? Darling, I love New York. We could have gone together."
"Darling, we wouldn't have gotten anything done, business wise. It's such a romantic city for us, I wouldn't be able to concentrate on business if we were only there for a couple days".
"I do distract you, don't I?"
"In the best way possible".
***The next morning***
Jennifer got up at 5 and ran on the treadmill for 2 hours and then did 100 squats. Jonathan woke up just as she was getting out of the shower.
She went downstairs and made them breakfast- Jonathan's favorite omelet for him, and an egg white omelet with lots of veggies for her. Plus, sliced fruit for the both of them.
She was in a rush, because she was having promotional shots for the flyer taken this weekend.
"Darling, can you and I sponsor a billboard in town for the fashion show?"
"Sure".
She cleaned up the kitchen after they were finished eating, and then ran upstairs to do her hair and makeup, and pick out what she was wearing in the promo shots. She finally decided on a couple outfits and one evening gown. She curled her hair perfectly, and her makeup was flawless. The photographer arrived at 11, and shot several hundred shots of Jennifer. They finally finished around 3, and Jennifer was exhausted and starving.
Jonathan made her lunch while she took a shower and changed clothes.
The photographer had uploaded the first 100 shots to Jennifer's computer so she looked at them as soon as she got out of the shower. She liked them overall, but she hated how her mid-section looked. She didn't love how her legs weren't muscular and she didn't like the flabbiness of her arms.
She had barely eaten two bites of her lunch. She pushed it away and started doing squats.
"Babe, you're beautiful just the way you are. Come on, you gotta eat".
"Jonathan, that is a horrible picture of me. I cannot look like that at the fashion show".
"Darling, you look absolutely beautiful. You do, I swear it".
She finished doing her squats and then took several more bites of her salad.
"I am going to start a strict diet tomorrow, Jonathan. You don't have to join me, but I am doing it".
She kissed him and then went to research what diet she wanted to start.
He cleaned up the kitchen and went to find her.
She was making a grocery list.
"Want to go to the store with me?"
"I can't. I have to make a conference call to Japan."
"Ok, I won't be long, I promise".
She kissed him and headed out.
She loaded up on fresh veggies, and negative calorie foods, and tons of vitamins and minerals.
When she got back, he was finished with his conference call, and suggested they cuddle on the couch by a fire.
"That sounds great".
She started dinner marinating, and then he made them a fire.
They snuggled on the couch for a couple of hours.
"Darling, how did your conference call go?"
"Not well. Takata, the company who ships our freight overseas, is threatening to bow out if we don't agree to the terms in the East Coast deal. If I agree to those terms, then our employees will lose some benefits. If I don't, I lose my freighter. I am so tired of having to play this or that every time, because people don't trust me."
"I trust you, darling. I always have and I always will".
"If that's so, and I believe that it is, then stop killing yourself trying to look good for me and the fashion show. You already do look good. You are absolutely mesmerizing, darling".
"Jonathan, I just want to look my absolute best. That's all".
"And I'm telling you, that you already do".
He kissed the side of her forehead.
"I am going to prove to you that there is room for improvement".
She got up and went upstairs and put on one of her evening gowns.
"Darling….are you coming up?"
"I guess so".
She was standing in front of the mirror in the bathroom.
"Darling-you see right here, this pudge? And do you see this one, on my stomach? And this one, on the other side? That's why I am doing this".
"Darling, all I see when I look at you is the woman I fell in love with. If you want to get rid of pudges, you can also wear a body shaper for the fashion show."
She looked at him with fire in her eyes.
"Jonathan, I do NOT need a body shaper."
"I agree. I am just saying that if you think you have pudges, then put one on for the fashion show".
"So you think I have pudges too?"
She unzipped her dress and then grabbed her robe and stepped into her closet to change, out of his view.
"Darling, I didn't say that."
"I was standing right there when you suggested a body shaper to get rid of pudges. Now either you think I have them, or you are blind".
"Blind. I choose blind. Definitely blind. Can't see a thing except your beautiful eyes".
"Jonathan!"
She had on pajama bottoms and a pajama top.
She went and laid down on the floor and started doing leg thrusts and sit ups.
Jonathan sighed.
After she was finished, he grabbed her hand and led her downstairs.
"Where are we going, Jonathan?"
"To the kitchen, to cook dinner together and have a lovely meal as husband and wife".
"No, I don't want to eat. I am going to start my diet tonight".
She got the chicken out of the fridge for him to grill.
"Grill it to your liking because you are the one eating, not me."
She got out some vitamins and took them with water, and then took 3 tsp of bee pollen.
She made him some rice like he liked it, and poured herself a glass of sparkling water.
She went out and hugged on him while he was grilling the chicken.
"Darling, I get that you think I am the most beautiful woman in the world. And I love that, I do. But do you get that I am doing this for me? I want to look my best for you and for the fashion show, and I want to be able to look in the mirror and feel like I am looking at my absolute best. You understand that, don't you?"
"I'm trying to. I just don't understand why you don't see what I see".
"I can't explain it, darling. I just don't want to see any pudges or flab".
"Do I make you feel beautiful?"
"Yes, all the time."
He nodded.
"If you want to do this, I won't stop you. But I want you to know that I think you are the most beautiful woman now, just as you have always been, and you could gain 200 pounds and I would still love you".
He kissed her.
After the chicken was done, she helped him carry it inside while he turned the grill off.
She made him a plate of grilled chicken and rice, and took it to the table.
She went and made him a cocktail, and then grabbed her sparkling water and joined him.
They talked about plans for their next fundraiser while he ate.
"Did the employees agree to the date auction?"
"Yes, I think we have about 40 men who said they would do it."
"Great! As soon as the fashion show is over, we can start planning it".
When he was finished, she cleaned up the kitchen, and loaded the dishwasher and then poured herself more sparkling water.
They went upstairs and Jennifer picked a movie on TV while Jonathan changed for bed.
She had him lean back against her so she could give him a chest rub while they watched the movie.
He fell asleep about halfway through the movie, so she eased out from under him and laid on the floor. She did 100 crunches and 100 reverse crunches.
He woke up when she was almost finished.
"Darling…come back to bed".
"In…a…minute…"
He sighed.