"Hi, come on in".
"Thanks for having us".
"Jennifer, are you ok?"
She shook her head.
"Susan, let's sit down".
They sat down on the couch.
"After our talk a few weeks ago, Fallon left us alone, or so we thought."
"What do you mean?"
"Everything was great, till today".
"What happened today?"
"She sent several things to the house. Jennifer signed for them and opened them. First one was an insurance policy that she took out, but made it look like I took it out on her. In reality, she forged my name on the policy, and on the credit card she opened to pay for it. And there was a nasty note saying that Jennifer should just let me go. Then, she sent a picture frame with a picture of Jennifer and I, and the glass was shattered. And then, the final package was a wedding dress, covered in a red liquid, with knife slits in it and a threatening letter to Jennifer".
"How insane!"
"Now, here comes the bad news. Jennifer contacted the police, and I contacted my lawyer. He told me that I'm her 5th fraud victim, and that the DA was pressing charges for sure. And I'm going to press charges for harassment and threats, as well."
"So, we're sorry, and if you don't want us to come to your party, we understand".
"What does this have to do with the party?"
"Jennifer thinks you'll be mad at us for having her arrested".
"Oh, sweetie, I would never be mad at you for this. This isn't your fault".
She leaned over and gave Jennifer a warm hug.
"I've been noticing some things about her. I think she has mental issues".
"I think so too. Jennifer wants her thrown in with the murderers, but I want her to get the help she needs".
"I never said that. I said that she shouldn't skate just because she needs treatment".
"Well, I think I might go speak to the DA myself. There are some things that I forgave that maybe I shouldn't have".
"Like what?"
"Well, several months ago, I noticed some pieces of my jewelry missing. And then all of a sudden, she claims that she sold some family pieces and took herself shopping. And there was a time a few months ago, that we started getting credit card bills for accounts we never opened. So, we called them and told them it was fraudulent and they took care of it. We never knew who it was, but I'm wondering if it was her. And then, she was asking me if I ever take vacations with you, and begged me to set one up and take her along. I told her I would love to take a vacation with you, but I doubt you would come without Jennifer. And she got very angry when she found out I was having this party tomorrow night, because I didn't invite her out of respect for you, Jennifer. She got so mad she pulled a knife out and chased me out of her house. That was Monday and I haven't spoken to her since."
"Please, press whatever charges you can. I am really fearful of her, and we need to get her the maximum amount possible, even if it is just mental health treatment. And for the record, I do think it would be possible for her to receive that treatment in prison".
"I agree".
"I'm sorry, Susan. I know she's a friend of yours, but I'm afraid of her."
"No apologies necessary. You are a much better fit for him than she is, and you are more fun to have around as well. If she hadn't moved into the neighborhood, I never would have met her".
"Well, apparently, she's going to be moving out".
"Oh, I'm going to force the issue. I'm the HOA president. She threatened me with a knife, so she's out".
"Thank you for understanding".
"Jennifer, I sincerely apologize. If I had known she was like this, I would have never set her up with Jonathan or anyone. And I'm so sorry that she has come after you to get to him".
"I don't blame you for this".
"Are you two still coming to the party?"
"If she wants to".
"Is it dressy, or formal?"
"Dressy, but not dressy-dressy, and certainly not formal".
"Got it".
They walked to the door and Susan and Jennifer exchanged a long hug.
"I'll see you two tomorrow night".
"Thanks for talking to us".
"No problem, at all".
Jonathan followed Jennifer home and then carried her bags inside.
Max was in the kitchen.
She went to him and gave him a long hug and kissed his cheek.
"Thank you for taking care of Jonathan and for what you did for him all those years ago".
"No problem, Miss Edwards. Glad you came back".
"Darling, why don't we order a pizza?"
She nodded.
"Max, can you order us a large meat-lovers and a large veggie supreme?"
"Absolutely".
Jennifer headed to wash her face while Max ordered the pizza. Jonathan was fixing her a glass of sparkling water.
Max hung up the phone.
"Is she alright, Mr. H.?"
"She's worn out, and she's scared of Fallon. But I think we've worked things out. I'm going to press charges, but I'm going to request that she get a mental evaluation and mental health treatment if necessary".
"Good plan".
Just then, the phone rang. Jonathan picked it up.
"Hello?"
"Jonathan, it's Herschel. We need to talk".
***Thirty Minutes Later***
Jennifer had washed her face, unpacked her bags and put on her pajamas.
She came to find Jonathan, and found him on the phone. He handed her sparkling water to her, and she took a sip. She leaned up against him while he talked on the phone and he kissed her head and stroked her hair.
Max went and got their pizza when it was delivered and brought it to the kitchen.
Jonathan hung up as soon as he did that.
"Darling, that sounded serious".
"It was. Fallon was arrested tonight, for the credit card theft and the insurance policy theft. They took her downtown, and on the way, it became apparent to the officers that she needed some treatment, so they got permission to check her into the hospital. She was booked into Los Angeles Regional Hospital. She was only there 20 minutes, before she assaulted an orderly and then assaulted a nurse. They had let her keep her purse with her, and she heard the officer outside talking about how she could be in there for a while, and she took all the pills in her purse. They have given her some medicine in an effort to revive her, but so far, it's not working".
"What a waste".
"I should call Susan".
She nodded.
He picked up the phone and called her, and filled her in.
It wasn't the easiest of conversations, but he made it through and then they hung up.
They decided to eat in front of the tv and took their plates to the living room.
Max found them a game on tv to watch, and they all just sort of zoned out.
Jennifer took their plates to the kitchen, and cleaned up while Jonathan and Max watched the game.
She came back and sat next to him.
"Can I snuggle with you?"
"Of course".
She snuggled up with him, and they watched till the end of the game.
When the game was over, Max headed to bed.
"Night you two".
"Night Max".
"Night Max".
Jonathan took Jennifer's hand and they walked around and checked all the doors and turned out all the nights.
They went into their bedroom, and he closed the door behind them.
He went and changed into his pajamas while she climbed into bed.
He came and joined her and she scooted over towards him.
"Darling, can we talk a minute?"
"Yeah".
"I'm not mad at you. I feel horrible that we fought, because it was my fault. I'm not mad at you at all".
"Ok".
"I will always snuggle with you, darling. You don't ever have to ask. I don't ever want you to feel like I wouldn't snuggle with you".
"And if you ever don't want to, I want you to tell me".
"I promise you, I will always want to".
"I hope so".
"And I was serious about moving us away if we had to. It's not that I didn't value you or respect you or respect or value our relationship. I would feel horrible if I knew that I put someone in prison when there was other help out there available that they would have benefitted from, and that's all I was trying to do. Had Herschel not told me that he was pressing charges, I was going to have Owen call her and ask her to come to Hart Industries. I was going to offer her the chance to go to treatment that I would pay for, in absence of me pressing charges. That was before I knew that it had gone that far. I truly don't think she ever would have stabbed you, darling".
"Why not?"
"Because what she wants is me. And she knows that if she hurt the person I love and that I'm marrying, she's hurting me. And she can't seriously think that I would be in love with her after that. I think she figured that you would think you were in danger and would voluntarily walk away from our relationship and that I would turn to her out of desperation, which I wouldn't. I would focus on resolving things with you".
"Maybe we need a fresh start."
"Like what?"
"Like a new house. And an unlisted phone number".
"Not a bad idea".
"This way, if she does recover and get out of wherever, she won't be able to find you as easily".
"I agree with that. What kind of house do you want?"
"Something spacious, something with privacy, like a gate or in a gated neighborhood where you have to tell them who you are there for".
"I could add a gate here".
"Yeah, so she could stand outside of it? I think the new address is key here".
She got comfy on his shoulder, and he rubbed her back some.
"You still want to go to San Diego with me this weekend?"
"Absolutely".
"Good. Maybe we can have a romantic-ish weekend".
"Romantic-ish?"
"Yes. Packing my townhouse won't be 100% romantic. But we can make it as romantic as possible".
They continued chatting till she fell asleep.
"Goodnight, I love you".
"Goodnight, I love you too".
***Thursday Night***
Jonathan got home around 5, and they got ready for the dinner party. Jennifer had made several appetizers to take with them-bell pepper pizzas, a couple of dips, and some bacon parmesan bites.
She put on one of the outfits that Jonathan had bought her-black pants with a black tank top and a sheer gray top and some black wedges.
"Darling, Herschel called me today. Fallon isn't going to make it. They are keeping her alive until her family can get here, and they are going to donate what they can, but that won't be much since she overdosed".
"What a shame. I'm sad for them, but I'm glad she won't be bothering us any longer".
"I am too. I spoke with the DA. He is going to straighten everything out with the insurance company, so that I won't have to pay anything. Credit card company too".
"That's good".
She went and got the appetizers ready and loaded in the car.
"Ok Max, we'll be back later."
"Have fun, you two".
They drove to Susan's house, and noticed that someone was at Fallon's house.
"Her family must have gotten here".
"Yeah, I guess so".
They parked and he helped her carry the appetizers.
"Hi you two, I'm so glad you came".
"Hi".
"Hi".
"Right this way".
They followed her to the kitchen.
"Does anything need to be heated up?"
"Yes, it does. I can do it, it won't take long".
"Nonsense. Margeurite can help too. What did you bring?"
"Bell Pepper Pizzas, Jonathan's favorite pickle wrap dip, one of my mom's recipes-hissy fit dip, and some bacon parmesan bites".
"The bacon parmesan bites sound interesting".
"Very simple. You take a club cracker, sprinkle some grated parmesan on top, and wrap in a slice of bacon, and then bake them in the oven".
"Yum!"
"Yeah, my mom used to make these at holidays and my dad would eat his weight in them".
"What's in the hissy fit dip?"
"You cook a pound of sausage, and then mix cream cheese, sour cream, Velveeta, shredded Monterey Jack cheese, chives, Worcestershire sauce, onion powder and dried sage together, put it in a well-sprayed baking dish, and bake for an hour".
"So, why is it called hissy fit dip?"
"Because legend has it that a family took this to a tailgate every weekend, and everyone loved it. And then one weekend, they didn't. And when one of their friends found out they didn't make it, she pitched a hissy fit".
"That's hilarious".
"It's that good of a dip".
"So, the DA called me about Fallon today. Such a shame".
"Yeah, it really is".
They headed back to the party and Jonathan had a drink waiting for her.
A few more people arrived, and then Susan called the party to order.
"Ok everyone. Welcome to our dinner party. Jennifer graciously brought several appetizers-we have hissy fit dip, bacon parmesan bites, bell pepper pizzas, and pickle wrap dip-"
"Are you serious?" Jonathan's eyes lit up like a kid in a candy store.
Jennifer nodded.
"And James and Laura brought two kinds of salads-Caesar and Garden with lots of veggies, and Bill and his date Vanessa brought a mashed potato bar, with all the toppings, and then Drew and I are providing the main course-steaks, grilled to order. And Sandra and Kurt and Valerie and Mike, all from Drew's office brought desserts-devil's food cake and coconut cake. So, make your plates, and tell Grant, our grill master how you like your steak cooked. He'll give you a number and your steak will be brought to you".
They all went through the buffet line, and then went and had a seat.
Everyone was raving about Jennifer's appetizers.
The hissy fit dip was a huge hit, and so were the bacon parmesan bites.
For two hours, they danced, ate, socialized and had a wonderful time.
At the end of the night, Jennifer bundled up all of her containers and they took the leftovers home.
"Thank you for a lovely evening".
"Yes, thank you for coming".
"Thank you for having us".
"How about we go have lunch tomorrow and get our nails done?"
"Yes please. Call me in the morning, I'll meet you wherever".
"Looking forward to it".
They headed home, and went straight inside.
"Miss Edwards, I'm glad you're here. I made some of that dip you was making this afternoon. Can you taste it and see if I did it right?"
"Sure Max".
She took a spoon and got some and tasted it.
"Yep, that's it".
"Wonderful. You two can have this one, I'm stuffed from the ones I ate that weren't right".
"Thanks, Max".
"Max, you're one in a million".
"Darling, what do you say we make a plate and take it to bed?"
"Sounds good to me."
She made them plates and then took them to the bedroom.
She quickly changed while he was getting them drinks and napkins.
They climbed into bed and had a feast.
His favorites were the pickle wrap dip and the bacon parmesan bites.
Her favorites were all of them.
"Darling, are you still not wanting us to host a dinner party?"
"I just think it would be a lot of work for you and Max".
"Let's think about it. We could serve chicken kebabs, and I could make a few of these appetizers and a large salad, and if Max feels overwhelmed, we could hire wait staff".
"I see".
"And we could make it casual and just play games with everyone".
"I like that idea".
"Or we could make it not casual, but not formal, and just sit around and talk. Or we could make it not casual, not formal but have a formal sit-down dinner".
"I like that idea too".
"I suppose we could move the furniture and make a dance floor".
"I don't like that idea".
"What? I thought you liked dancing with me".
"I loved dancing with you. But darling, their house is easily 3x the size of ours".
"Good point".
After they finished their plates, they headed to the kitchen and cleaned up, and then refilled their water and headed back to bed.
He snuggled up to her and she scratched his back as she held him.
"Darling, do you know what tomorrow is?"
"Friday".
"No, silly. I mean, yes, but no. That's not it".
"It's not your birthday. Is it your dad's birthday?"
"No…this has to do with you and me".
"I have no idea, but please don't kill me".
She giggled.
"Honey…3 months ago, you saw me at the awards show".
"Oh yeah, that's right".
"And lucky you, you get to spend it working and then driving me back to my apartment to pack it up".
"Lucky is right, because I'm spending it with you".
She leaned down and kissed his head.
"And then we'll have a week, and then Halloween and my birthday will be here. And then we have 3 weeks and it's Thanksgiving".
"Lots of stuff coming up".
He climbed off of her, and stretched out next to her and wrapped his arms around her.
He looked over at the clock and saw that it was 12:01.
"Happy anniversary, darling".
"Happy anniversary".
He leaned over and kissed her and then made love to her before they fell asleep together.