***A Week Later***
Jennifer and Jonathan were back in LA and back in the swing of things.
Work, for both of them, was busier than ever. Her employees had managed to hold down the fort while she was gone, but she had hit the ground running when she got back and had barely stopped.
She was working through lunch, again. Eating at her desk and trying to go over the sales figures usually gave her a headache. But their sales were down in the last month, so she was determined to find out why.
"Miss Edwards, you have a phone call line 1-it's Elizabeth Soren. She says she will only talk to you".
"Ok, put her through".
She took a sip of water and then picked up the phone.
"Hello, this is Jennifer Edwards".
"Hi, this is Elizabeth Soren. I am calling because I would like to hire you to do a story on me. I've been a fan of yours for a long time, and if you are the reporter I'm thinking of, you used to work for The New York Times? "
"Yes, I did".
"And you did that featured interview on Martha Crane, from upstate New York?"
"I remember".
"I want you to do the same for me. Can we meet so I can tell you the details in person?"
"Sure. Where are you located?"
"I flew into Los Angeles last night. At the moment, I'm at the BayHarbor Inn".
"Ok, so we are located on Hunt Street. You can't miss us, we are 2 blocks west of Mead Avenue. I will be here till 6".
"I'll leave right now".
They hung up, and Jennifer got up and went and got some more water and came back.
Her phone was ringing so she hurried to her desk.
"Hello, this is Jennifer Edwards".
"Good, I certainly wouldn't want to talk to anyone else".
"Hi…everything ok?"
"Yes, everything is fine. I have a few minutes between meetings, so I thought I would call and see if you wanted to come to my house for dinner tonight".
"I would love to, but I'm not sure what time I will be able to get there. I have an interview and I told them I would be here till 6, but if we need to keep going, I will, since the person is from out of town".
"Well, Max has a poker game. So it was just going to be you and me anyways. So what if you just go home and change and then come by when you are ready? We can just relax together tonight, just the two of us".
"I'd love it. I'll be there, I'll call you when I'm on my way".
"Perfect. I love you".
"I love you too".
She blew him a kiss and then hung up.
About an hour later, Roxanne knocked on her door.
"Hey, there's an Elizabeth Soren here to see you".
"Send her in, please. And we will be here a while, so you can go on whenever you are ready".
"Ok thank you".
Elizabeth came in, and sat down.
"Hi, I'm Elizabeth Soren, nice to meet you".
"Hi, I'm Jennifer Edwards. Have a seat. Ok, so tell me, how can I help you?"
"Well, my husband is accused of a murder that he absolutely didn't commit. And I am committed to sticking by my husband and keeping my family together no matter what. So, I'm hoping that we can generate some press about the situation, and you are the best journalist I could think of, so naturally you were our first choice".
"I appreciate that. What is it that you want me to do, exactly?"
"Well, I want you to write up an interview piece with my husband and myself, and then print it."
"Where is your husband?"
"At home, back in New York. He was released on an ankle monitor and placed on strict house arrest. He can only go to court and back home and that's all".
"Ok. I can fly out and meet with him, say…Saturday? Does that work for you?"
"Saturday will be fine."
"Ok, so I need you to really hear me. I will be flying in Friday and flying out Sunday. So Saturday will need to be completely devoted to this interview. I will need as much time as possible to get all the information I will need. And then when I get back here next week, I'll type it up and send it to you".
"No, you don't have to send it to me. Just print it. And I promise you will have our full attention Saturday. We will even be available Sunday morning if you need us".
Elizabeth wrote out the address and handed it to Jennifer.
"We are about 35 minutes north of Manhattan. Come comfortable, because we have dogs that like to lay right next to you".
"How sweet. My boyfriend might come with me, but he won't be in the way, I promise. I hope that's ok".
"It's fine. We have a large home and I'm sure he will be able to make himself at home somewhere".
"Great, thank you. Can you tell me anything now?"
"Sure. So my husband and I met in college, dated 4 years and then got married. He wanted kids right away, but I wanted to wait a year or so. 2 years later, our first child was born. By the time our 10th anniversary came around, we had 3 little ones. Tomorrow will be our 12th anniversary."
"That's great."
"So, for almost 14 months, my husband was having an affair with his secretary. Her name was Andrea James and they had worked together for almost 6 years. My husband owns the firm, it's a real estate firm. 3 months ago, we were away at our home in the Hamptons, when our neighbor called us and told us that there were about 14 cop cars on our driveway and in front of our home. So, she took the phone to them, and they informed us that we needed to come back home so that my husband could speak with them. But as soon as we got home, it was clear they had no intentions of speaking with my husband. They arrested him on the spot and hauled him off somewhere. His lawyer brought him home 5 hours later".
"Oh wow".
"Andrea was found dead that morning and my husband was charged with her murder that afternoon, and thankfully, he was able to go before a judge that afternoon and was granted bail".
"First degree?"
"Yes. But the timeline they are giving doesn't add up. Our alarm went off Friday morning at 4:45 and I was the first one to wake up. He was lying next to me when I got out of bed. We got ready, we got the kids up and got them ready, got the car packed and we were on the road to the Hamptons by 5 till 6. We were in the Hamptons by 8. Thankfully, my husband had the bright idea to drop the kids off at his mom's on the way home so they didn't see him get arrested. But they have asked a lot of questions about his ankle monitor and why he can't go anywhere with us".
"Why did they assume your husband did it?"
"They said his fingerprints were on the doorknob. His car was seen in her driveway and her neighbor claims to have been walking his dog and saw him run out of the house in a hurry and get in his car and speed off".
"Mrs. Soren, I'm no legal expert, and I do agree that evidence isn't as strong as DNA, but that's still pretty strong evidence".
"My husband is innocent".
"Can I ask you how she was killed?"
"Strangled, according to the FBI. But I promise you, we haven't seen the body or any photos".
"Do you know what she was strangled with?"
"A scarf that my husband allegedly gave her during their affair".
"So, if she was found Friday morning, your husband would have had to have committed the murder the night before, correct?"
"Yes. And I can vouch for the fact that he was in our home all evening. Her home is about 30 minutes away from our neighborhood. He never left our home that night. He came home from work, we had dinner, he helped our son with his math homework and tossed a few pitches to him and our daughter in the backyard before bed that night".
"Do you have any evidence that proves your husband was home all night?"
"Well, we have an alarm system that records each time the door opens and closes. I contacted them and asked them for a printout to be sent to us. Also, we have OnStar, so my husband's lawyer is getting a court order to subpoena those records. They wouldn't send us or tell us anything without one".
"When you get those, documents, I will need you to send me a copy".
"Certainly".
Jennifer glanced at the clock behind Elizabeth and realized that it was almost 6.
"Great. Ok, well I will start working on this and we can finish the rest this weekend".
"Thank you so, so, much".
"You're welcome".
They shook hands and Jennifer closed up.
They walked out together.
"Ok, see you Saturday".
"See you then. We will be ready around 8".
"Perfect".
***An Hour Later***
Jennifer had packed a bag just in case and changed clothes and headed over to Jonathan's.
"Hi gorgeous".
"Hi handsome".
She leaned up and hugged him and gave him some kisses.
"I ordered us some Espana. Hope you're hungry".
"Famished".
They fixed themselves some cocktails and then he pulled her into his lap on the sofa.
"I missed you today".
"I missed you too".
"Darling-what would you say to us going away this weekend?"
"Going away? Like getting out of the city?"
"Out of the city, out of the state. Going far away".
"Oh, you want to go far away. So, we are talking about a trip that will require us to travel for a few hours at a time".
"Yes, we are. What do you say?"
"Well, that depends. Are there places to eat where you want to go?"
"Oh yes. And shop, and explore, and be adventurous".
"But if we decided we wanted to stay in and be together just the two of us, we could do that too?"
"Yes, we could. Come on, what do you say?"
"I would say we can't do it this weekend because we will be in New York".
"What?! How?"
"How what?"
"I want us to go to New York this weekend. How did you know?"
"I didn't. I was going to ask you to go to New York with me this weekend".
"Great minds think alike".
She leaned forward and kissed him.
"So, why did you want to go to New York?"
"Well, I have a business dinner Friday night, and I thought you and I could go and then spend the weekend in the city".
"I love that."
"Why did you want to go?"
"Well, I got an unusual offer today. I was asked to interview someone and then write an article about them, so I did a short interview today, but the person I have to really meet with is in New York. It's going to mean that I have to work most of the day Saturday, but they said you could come with me if you wanted".
"Well, then I guess we are going to New York".
"I can't wait".
They had a lovely dinner, just the two of them, out on the patio. Neither of them felt rushed to get through dinner and just enjoyed eating together and drinking the bottle of wine that Jonathan opened.
When it got dark, they headed inside and changed for bed.
Jennifer rubbed on a layer of baby oil as she climbed into bed and scooted over next to Jonathan.
He began to rub her shoulders.
"Oooooh, that feels so good".
He gave her a very intense backrub and got her all loosened up.
"Darling, when is Max going to be back?"
"Probably not till tomorrow. His poker games tend to run a little long".
"I see".
After her backrub, she curled up on his chest.
"Where is our dinner Friday night?"
"At a restaurant I have never heard of. It's a steakhouse called Monaco's."
"Hmmm. I don't think I've been there either".
"Where is your interview on Saturday?"
"At their house. She gave me the address. She said it's north of the city about a half-hour".
"How long do you think we'll be there?"
"Most of the day, if my hunch is correct. I only have this weekend to get the story so I need to spend as much time and ask everything I need to ask this weekend".
"And then?"
"And then, I get to spend 1 incredible night with you in my favorite city".
He rolled on top of her and kissed her deeply.
"How about a preview of what's to come?"
"I love the way you think".
They spent a few hours making love and then fell asleep in each other's arms.