Jennifer had just changed into her nightgown when Jonathan got upstairs.
"I thought that would wake you up".
She washed her face and brushed her hair, and then put on a fresh coat of baby oil, before joining him in bed.
She snuggled up to him, and kissed his chest.
He reached up and turned out the light and wrapped his arms around her.
He kissed her nice and slow.
She scratched his back, as he moved his kisses to her neck.
"wanna pick up where we left off in the hammock, babe?"
Jennifer felt her eyes well up with tears.
Before she could answer, she noticed that his kisses had stopped, and his breathing was deep and even.
He had fallen asleep on top of her.
She managed to scoot them more to his side of the bed, and then eased out from under him.
She slipped out of bed and changed into a different nightgown that was longer and then got back in bed.
***The next morning***
Jonathan woke up when his alarm went off, and rolled over and kissed her cheek, like he always did.
He got up and headed for the shower.
She got up while he was in the shower, and went downstairs to start the coffee.
He found her in the kitchen.
"Morning darling".
"Morning".
She handed him his coffee without saying anything, and then made herself a bowl of yogurt with sliced fruit for breakfast.
"Hungry?"
"A little".
She made him toast and eggs and sausage and took it to him.
"What do you have planned for today?"
"Working on the auction, and I am taking a spin class".
"I should be home pretty early, we can go see a movie tonight if you want".
"I'll think about it."
He couldn't help but notice that she was being rather curt with him. He was trying to figure out why.
After he was finished, he insisted on cleaning up the kitchen.
"No, Jonathan, you'll be late. I will do it".
She took the plate from him and took it to the sink.
After the kitchen was cleaned up, she started to head upstairs.
He went with her as far as the stairs and then pulled her into an embrace.
"I love you, see you tonight".
He kissed her.
"Love you too".
She turned and headed up the stairs, and he headed for the office.
She emerged a few minutes later in her workout clothes, and headed to the gym.
She took a spin class for an hour, and then an aerobics class, and then a pilates class.
Marcy was at the gym too, and they decided to take a yoga class together. It felt so good to stretch out after all that exercise.
Jennifer's legs felt like Jello.
She decided to run an errand on the way home, and after that was done, she headed to Willow Pond.
She had been at the gym almost 6 hours.
***Willow Pond***
She sank into a hot bath when she got home, and used some muscle relief bath salts.
She relaxed for about an hour, and then went downstairs and made herself a lettuce wrap.
She decided to make Jonathan's favorite shrimp scampi recipe for him for dinner.
She made a piece of baked chicken for herself and some sautéed vegetables.
It was all ready when he got home.
"Hi darling".
"Hi".
He kissed her and hugged her some.
"I stopped and got you some flowers".
"Thank you, they are beautiful".
She put them in water.
"Dinner's ready whenever you are".
"Smells great".
She made his plate and gave it to him, and then took hers to the table.
"Jennifer, you love shrimp scampi."
"I know, I am just not in the mood for it tonight. You get the whole pot all to yourself".
"I was able to secure the murder mystery lady today. She said she will be available whenever we need her, and she will supply everything. She said we can decorate as normal, and that the red, blue and white them works perfect with what she has".
"Good".
They finished dinner somewhat quietly, and then Jennifer cleaned up.
Jonathan came over and wrapped his arms around her from behind.
"Not now, Jonathan. I'm busy".
"Darling, I missed you all day. Here, let me help you do this".
"No thank you, I got it".
He took his arms off her and went to the living room.
She heard him turn some music on.
She finished the dishes rather quickly, and then turned the lights off in the kitchen.
She was about to go upstairs when he came up and grabbed her.
"Dance with me".
He took her hand and led her to the open space in the living room before she could protest.
She danced with him for a couple of songs, and then he got a work phone call. She went upstairs, and by the time he was off the phone, she was fast asleep.
***The next morning***
Jennifer woke up before Jonathan and went to the guest room and started running on the treadmill. She had 5 miles in before he woke up.
She came back and got in the shower, and was just getting out when his alarm went off.
She went downstairs to make breakfast.
His plate was ready just as he came downstairs.
"Morning, darling".
He kissed her cheek.
"Morning".
She was again having plain yogurt with sliced fruit and almonds for breakfast.
She had made him hash browns, bacon, and eggs.
"You busy today?"
"I am taking a class at the gym, and working on the auction."
"Why don't we drive up the coast tonight? We could go to Jean-Paul's for dinner".
"Sure, if you want".
She got up and rinsed her bowl into the sink.
She went upstairs and changed clothes for her gym class, and then came back downstairs.
She was making herself a water bottle when Jonathan finished his breakfast.
They walked out together.
He pulled her into an embrace.
"I love you, Red. More than anyone or anything".
"I love you too".
He kissed her and they each got into the car and drove away.
***Bel Air Gym***
Jennifer took a kick boxing class, and then headed straight to a water cycle class.
After she was done, she headed to the locker room. She changed out of her clothes and into just a towel and headed to the sauna.
She was laying on the top bench when the door opened.
"Jennifer, hey. I was hoping to see you today".
She sat up.
It was Marcy.
"Hey, I'm glad to see you too".
They sat in the sauna and had some girl talk, and then finally decided to leave.
"Want to grab lunch?"
"I need to get home, I am expecting a delivery this afternoon. You can come to my house for lunch if you want".
"Perfect. I will run home and change and then meet you at the house."
"Sounds great".
Jennifer got in the car and headed to Willow Pond.
***Willow Pond***
She had just gotten out of the shower when Marcy got there.
"Come on up, door's open".
A few minutes later, she found Marcy downstairs in the living room.
"Hi. There's a new salad place that is to die for, so I brought the menu in case you want to order in".
"Sounds fabulous".
They placed their order, and then sat on the couch.
"So, what jumpstarted your interest in fitness?"
"I've always been interested in fitness".
"Yeah, so have I. But you are like a machine-I've never known you to take 4 classes back to back".
"I have a goal, Marcy. Nothing wrong with that".
"You are everyone else's goal, Jennifer".
"I am not! That's sweet, but I am not".
"Yes, you are. You are the woman everyone wants to be".
The phone rang and Jennifer grabbed it.
"Hello?"
"Hi darling".
"Hi".
"Listen, there will be a handyman at the house in about 10 minutes. I gave him the code and told him to just come straight to the backyard".
"Ok".
"I made us reservations for 7, is that alright?"
"Yes, it's fine".
"Can you pack us a bag?"
"For what?"
"Well, I cleared my calendar for tomorrow, and I thought maybe we could stay in the bed and breakfast up near the restaurant for the night".
"Oh, Jonathan, we don't have to do that."
"You don't want to spend the night up there?"
"I just think dinner will be expensive enough".
"Jennifer, don't worry about it".
The gate buzzer sounded then.
Marcy ran to get it.
"Oh, darling, I have to go. Marcy and I ordered lunch and it's here".
"I love you, see you tonight".
"Love you too".
She hung up the phone and went to get her purse.
They decided to have their salads out on the patio.
"Oh, I love what you and Jonathan did with the trellis".
"Thanks, it's a work in progress".
Just then, the handyman appeared.
"Hi, Jonathan wanted me to do some work for him. Hope I am not disturbing you".
"No, it's fine".
"I see you're eating lunch. I should warn you, I have to do some sawing, and I would hate for the sawdust to get in your lunch".
"Oh, that's no problem. We can take it inside. What are you going to be doing?"
"Fixing the hammock. He and I talked about it and he thinks it should be fine if we reinforce the hooks, to make them stronger".
Jennifer's face fell. She nodded.
They grabbed their salads and drinks and went inside.
They sat down at the table.
"Jennifer, are you ok?"
"I am trying to be".
"What is it?"
"It's silly".
"Nothing is silly if it upsets you".
"Well, 2 days ago, Jonathan came home for the day at lunch time and we were going to spend a relaxing afternoon together. We ended up in the hammock, and then things started getting hot and heavy, but before we could really get going, the wind and rain picked up. So, we decided to come in, and when we did, the hammock snapped and we tumbled to the ground. I immediately went to take a hot bath, and he brought the hammock upstairs to try and fix it. He made a crack about my weight when he told me that the hammock was toast and we would need a new one. So, I vowed to go on a diet, then and there. And then that night, I put on his favorite nightgown. Trust me, Jonathan gets very lucky when I have this nightgown on. And again, just when things started to get hot and heavy, he brought up the hammock thing again, and then fell asleep on me. So, I decided to kick the diet into high gear. But apparently, it's not working as well as I thought, if he's telling the handyman that I'm fat".
"Oh, how awful. You have every right to be upset at that. I would be pissed as hell if Jake Ryland said any of that to me".
Jennifer tried to finish her salad, but she was upset.
Marcy got up and made her some tea, and Jennifer managed to calm down some and eat about ½ of her salad.
Just as she finished, the gate buzzed again.
"Delivery for Mrs. Hart".
"Come on up".
It was her punching bag.
She showed them to the room upstairs where the treadmill was, and had them set it up in there.
She tipped them well, and then she and Marcy headed to the couch.
"Jennifer, have you told Jonathan how you feel?"
"No, I haven't. I imagine we will talk about it at some point".
"Something must be going on to make him say those things".
"I mean, we have been married 15 years. I know I have put on a few pounds, but not that many. And I thought he still found me desirable, but when he fell asleep and not even his favorite nightgown could get him in the mood, that was the wake-up call to tell me to get it together".
"Jennifer, I highly doubt he thinks you are fat. You are gorgeous".
"Come upstairs with me-I want you to see a gown I'm thinking of wearing".
They went upstairs and Jennifer pulled out a strapless red gown, and a gorgeous blue beaded halter gown, and a white sparkly spaghetti strap gown with a strappy back.
"We are having the auction for the orphanage and we are going with a patriotic color scheme. So, I need to pick a gown".
She put the red one on, and went and stood in front of the full-length mirror.
"Do you like this one?"
"Yes, I love it. It looks amazing on you, because you look amazing in everything".
She tried the white one on next.
"Oh, I really love that one".
"You don't think it shows my pudges?"
"You don't have pudges".
She took that one off and then put the blue one on.
"I like that one, but it looks heavy."
"It is very heavy".
"Honestly, the white one looks the best on you".
"I guess. I just need to lose about 4 more pounds and then I might look good in it".
"Are you crazy? You look good now".
She took the gown off and put on a black pair of wide legged pants, and a strapless top, and her black strappy wedges.
"Where are you going all fancy?"
"Jonathan wants to drive up the coast for dinner. He made us reservations at Jean-Paul's for dinner".
"Fancy!"
"He wants to spend the night in a B and B, but I told him no".
"What? Jennifer, that's so romantic. You gotta do it, come on! You will have the best time".
"You really think so?"
"I do. He loves you and you love him and you two are absolutely adorable together and that place ain't cheap. Your husband wants to take you there, wants to being the key words here. If Jake Ryland ever dropped that kind of cash on a date night with me, I would have him checked for signs of a stroke".
Jennifer was laughing, kind of.
"Jake loves you too, Marcy."
"I know. I just sometimes wonder what could have been. I could have been Mrs. Jonathan Hart".
Before Jennifer could say anything, she heard the door open downstairs.
"Jennifer?"
"Up here".
Marcy turned to Jennifer.
"Thanks for lunch, this was fun. Pack that bag. Trust me".
Jennifer hugged Marcy.
Marcy headed downstairs while Jennifer quickly packed a bag.
***Downstairs***
Marcy came downstairs and saw Jonathan in the living room.
"How did it go?"
"I convinced her to wear the white one. She doesn't suspect a thing. But seriously, she's upset with you-she thinks you think she's fat, and undesirable. And, you hurt her feelings with the comments you made about the hammock-she thinks you were implying it was her fault. I convinced her to stay in the place with you tonight, though. So, maybe you two can talk?"
"Thanks, Marcy. I appreciate it."
He gave her a long hug, just as Jennifer came out of the bedroom upstairs.
She saw them standing there hugging for a few minutes, and finally decided she had seen enough. She turned and went back into the bedroom.