***One Month Later***
Jennifer was now working at an architectural design magazine. She was loving the fact that she got to write articles about decorating and how to pull a room together. She had written 3 pieces so far, and her boss and editor had raved about all of them.
Since she just bought her townhouse, she was loving being able to use trends she was seeing at the magazine in her own home as she redecorated it.
Jennifer and Lindsey had phone dates 3 times a week, and were already planning a visit for Lindsey. She hadn't told Jennifer, but she was looking for a new job so that she could move to California one day. Or at least into the same time zone.
Jennifer was at her desk, when her boss Melanie knocked on her door.
"Hey, are you busy?"
"Not terribly. What's going on?"
"Well, we have an assignment and we don't have anyone to cover it and I was wondering if you would be interested".
"What's the assignment?"
"We held a raffle and the winner gets to have their office space decorated for an event. In return, we get to write about it in a future issue. Budget for decorating is $5000, and that could be a point in the article, like decorating on a budget."
"Who won?"
"Oceanview Event Center in Huntington Beach".
"I'll do it".
"Great! Ok, so I was thinking you could go do a before shot, and then of course, an after one. And you can also take tons of pictures of the design process. Wade and his team will do the design and the actual decorating".
"Got it. When is this?"
"Tomorrow. Here's the address".
"Sounds wonderful".
"Thank you".
"No problem".
Jennifer got back to work and Melanie headed back to her office.
She worked till 5, and then headed home.
Living so close to Mexico meant an abundance of Mexican restaurants. She stopped by her favorite one and got a to-go meal and then headed home.
Precisely at 7, the phone rang. Just as she knew it would be, it was Lindsey.
"Hey, I'm so glad you called!"
"Hey, how are you?"
"Good. I think things are finally starting to come together".
"Wonderful. Well, I have some news too. I have been interviewing, and I have a couple second interviews lined up."
"That's great! Where?"
"One in Sedona, Arizona, and another in Sacramento".
"Well, I hope you get one of them."
"Yeah, me too. I'm really hoping for the Sedona one".
"What would you be doing?"
"I would be an advisor for a law firm. For instance, they will bring a case in, and do the deposition, and have a mediator present, and present the interrogatories to both sides. I will observe all of that, and then it's my job to tell the lawyer and the client which side of that case I think a jury will choose."
"That sounds incredibly interesting".
"Yeah, it usually is. I just need to get out of New York. I'm so tired of seeing the same things and doing the same things and hearing the same things".
"You'll love it out here. It's much different from New York".
"So, have you heard from him?"
"No, I haven't. And at this point, I probably won't".
"Are you ok with that?"
"It is what it is. I mean, he put the ball in my court, and I just can't…I miss our friendship, and I sometimes think about what it would have been like if things had developed further, but he obviously didn't want that".
"Well, maybe if you see him now, you guys can have a fresh start".
"He might not want that. And I don't know if I could handle the rejection. I mean, this is hard enough, I already lost a really good friendship through all of this".
"You can get that back".
"Maybe. But if things progress, and then they end, I'll not only lose a boyfriend but I'll lose a good friend too, and that's scary".
"Life is scary. But it doesn't have to be boring".
"Perhaps."
They chatted a little longer, and then hung up. Jennifer went and took a bubble bath, and tried so hard to put Jonathan out of her mind.
***Jonathan***
Jonathan arrived at La Scala at 7. He was meeting his friend Susan Kendall and her husband Drew for dinner. It had been weeks since he had been social; in an effort to move on from Jennifer as much as possible, he had thrown himself into his work. He hadn't given up on finding her, he had just resigned himself to the fact that it would take a little longer than he thought.
He came in and found Susan and Drew. He noticed a very attractive blonde sitting next to them.
"Jonathan! Great to see you! Glad you could join us!"
"Thanks for inviting me".
"Jonathan, this is our friend Fallon. Fallon, this is Jonathan Hart. She's a flight attendant. He owns his own company".
"Hi, it's nice to meet you".
"Nice to meet you too".
They placed their orders and they all ordered a cocktail.
Susan and Fallon were chatting about the menu, and Fallon laughed at herself over not knowing what something was. Suddenly, Jonathan missed Jennifer's laugh more than anything.
"So, Jonathan, Susan tells me you are the town's heartthrob".
"Yeah, I don't know about that".
"I can see it. Dark wavy hair, broad shoulders. Dreamy blue eyes. How do you know Susan and Drew?"
"Drew and I play golf together. How do you know them?"
"Fallon moved in down the street from us".
"I see".
Suddenly, the waitress appeared.
"Dr. Kendall, there's a phone call for you. You can take it at the bar".
"Thank you. If you will all excuse me, I'll try to make this brief".
Susan headed to the bar, leaving the three of them at the table.
"We still playing golf on Sunday, Tiger?"
"Sure. I think that would be fun. Where do you want to play?"
"How about Manchester Country Club? We haven't played there in a long time".
"Jonathan…how often do you play golf?"
"As often as I can, really. It's one of the few things that relaxes me".
Susan came back to the table.
"Guys, I apologize. I have an emergency at the hospital. I spoke with the waitress and she's packing our meals to go. I've paid the check. I hate to cut and run, but it can't be helped. Drew, can you drop me at the hospital?"
"Sure".
"Jonathan, I'm sorry. Fallon, I'm sorry".
"Don't be. Jonathan can stay and keep me company".
As soon as Susan and Drew headed out, Fallon was all over Jonathan, rubbing on him, blowing in his ear.
"Now, Susan told me you were single. And I just don't know how that's possible".
"Well, I guess you could say the right lady hasn't come along."
"Really?"
Jonathan hesitated.
"No, not really. More like I screwed up and let her slip through my fingers. I'm sorry, this isn't fair to you. You seem like a really nice lady, but I'm sorry, I'm just not available".
"Perhaps if you took me back to your place, I could change your mind".
"As tempting as that offer is, I'm sorry, I can't".
He signaled the waitress, and asked for his meal to be packed to go as well.
"Jonathan, I'm only in town a few days a month. I'm not sure what Susan told you about me-"
"Absolutely nothing".
"Good, then let me fill you in. I always get what I want. No matter how long it takes. And I want you. And I'm sure, that if you just give us a chance, you'll see that you want me too".
"I'm sorry, Fallon. I hope you find what you're looking for".
Jonathan took his to-go meal and headed home.
***The next day***
Jennifer arrived at the Oceanview Event Center and got to work. She had borrowed the magazine's digital camera. She took several hundred shots of the event center while Wade and his crew were talking concepts and ideas.
She went and found Margaret, the event coordinator.
"Hi, I'm Jennifer Edwards. It's nice to meet you".
"Hi, thanks so much for doing this".
"No problem. Ok, so can I ask you some questions?"
"Sure".
"What event is this?"
"It's the "Most Loved in Los Angeles". Basically, the newspaper in town has a contest where the readers write in and vote for their favorites. And then the winners are asked to come to the ceremony, but they don't know what they've won".
"Sounds interesting".
"Yes. And I need to give you these-since you are covering it, you get two free tickets".
"Oh, thank you".
"Ok, so I'm just going to walk around and take pictures and a few notes, and then I'll be out of your hair. When is the event?"
"Next Saturday. It's dressy, but not formal. Food will be provided, along with entertainment. Cash bar. Doors open at 6, festivities start at 7".
"Perfect".
***Next Saturday***
Jennifer was at her townhouse, getting ready for the event that night. She put on a gray ¾ sleeve wrap dress with a tie on the side and a pair of black strappy wedges.
She got to the event center at 4, and took pictures of the décor before everyone else got there.
They had gone with an ocean blue and silver theme.
All the table cloths were ocean blue, and the centerpieces were shiny silver vases, with pink and white flowers in them. The centerpieces on the food tables were also ocean blue and silver. The entire place was absolutely gorgeous.
The ceremony started at 7, and it was fun for Jennifer to see the reactions of the winners. Knowing that you won an award, but not knowing which one it was put a fun twist on things.
"And now, we have come to the final award of the evening. Favorite Philanthropist. This award goes to the person or persons that our readers find to be the most philanthropic, the most charitable. The award goes to Jonathan Hart, of Hart Industries".
Jennifer suddenly got a knot in her stomach. He looked so handsome, and she found herself staring at him for several minutes, watching him walk up to the podium.
She couldn't face the chance that she might have to face him, so she decided to sneak out.
"I'd like to thank the readers of the paper for this award. Giving back means so much to me, and I'm happy to do it. Seems silly to win an award for something we should all be doing anyways".
He had just concluded his speech when he spotted her walking across the back of the room. His heart began to pound, and his mouth went dry.
He made his way through the crowd and caught up to her outside, where she was waiting for a cab.
"Hey".
"Hi. Congratulations on your award".
"Thanks."
He wrapped his arms around her and gave her an awkward hug. "Can we go somewhere and talk?"
"It's been 4 months. What is there to talk about?"
"Please, can we just go somewhere and talk?"
"I suppose".
"Where are you parked?"
"I'm not. I took a cab".
"I am more than happy to give you a ride".
She nodded.
He walked her to his car and opened the door for her.
"Thank you".
He went around and slid into the driver's seat.
She suddenly felt so nervous.
"Where do you want to go?"
"Wherever you want to go".
"I know just the place".
They had a quiet ride, and she eventually figured out they were headed to his house.
"So, how long have you been out here in LA?"
"I'm not. Out here in LA, I mean. I live in San Diego. I was only going to be here for the weekend".
"I see".
He pulled them up into his garage and parked.
They got out and he opened the door for them and they went inside.
An older gentleman was in the kitchen.
"Hey Max."
"Hey Mr. H."
"Max, this is Jennifer Edwards. Jennifer, this is Max".
"Hi, I've heard a lot about you. it's lovely to meet you".
"Hi, it's lovely to meet you also. Can I get you two anything?"
Jonathan turned to Jennifer.
"How about some wine?"
"No thank you. I'll just take some water".
"Great".
He got her a glass of water and then made one for himself.
"How was the food at your shindig, Mr. H.?"
"I wouldn't know. I never had any".
"I didn't either".
"How about I make you two a Max special? Grilled cheese sandwich, and some special sides?"
"That sounds great".
"Sure, thank you. Can I help?"
"No, no. Max don't do kitchen help. You two go get comfy and I'll bring it to you".
"Thanks Max".
Jonathan held his hand out to Jennifer and she took it. He led her to the living room.
As soon as they were alone, he set his glass down and then turned to her.
He pulled her in for a hug and wrapped his arms around her.
"I've missed you, you have no clue how much".
"I've missed you too".
They sat down on the couch, and he took her hand in his.
"I was sure you were going to call me the next day, after I last saw you".
"I should have, I suppose. But I just couldn't. I knew it would be emotional and I didn't want you to see me that way".
"I'll take seeing you anyway I can".
She smiled at him.
"What do you want?"
"In what sense?"
"In the you and me sense".
She took a deep breath.
"I want us to be happy, whatever that looks like".
"That's a start".
"I want our friendship back. I want to be able to trust you, I want to know where I stand with you".
"Ok".
"What do you want?"
"Jennifer, the conversation that you and I had at your apartment in New York was very eye opening for me. I've thought about it a lot, and I feel horrible for how selfish I was. Everything I did, the pushing you away, the keeping you at arm's length, all of it was because I was trying in vain to ignore my feelings for you. I've never dated an employee before, and I knew that if you and I started dating, it would put you in an unfair position at the paper, and it would look like I was showing you favoritism, and I didn't want any of that to happen. So instead of being honest with myself and you, I ignored my feelings and that didn't work out either. I want to have a relationship with you. I want to take you to fancy restaurants and for us to take trips together. I want to make all of your dreams come true, but I can't do that unless you forgive me and agree to give us another chance".
"I forgave you a long time ago."
"Glad to hear it".
Just then, Max brought their plates in.
"Ok, so we have the Max-the best grilled cheese you'll ever eat. 4 cheeses, all layered and grilled to perfection. And then we have the sides. Mr. H. recently spent some time back east, and he met a wonderful lady who introduced him to this wonderful concoction of cream cheese, dried beef and pickles. It's delicious with wavy potato chips. And since it's California, we also have some pasta salad with artichoke hearts, tomatoes, bell pepper, and mozzarella cheese".
"Thank you".
"Max, the lady that introduced me to the pickle wrap dip is Jennifer".
"Really? It's amazing! Where did you find this recipe?"
"It's something my mom made when I was a kid and then my father's houseman continued to make it as I grew up after my mom died".
"Well, it's very good".
"Thank you".
They got comfortable and ate right there on the couch.
"So, how did you end up in California?"
"Well, I had to find a job somewhere. And I decided I wanted to do something different. So, I started looking for work outside of New York, even though I love it. And I ended up with two prospects-one in Los Angeles, and one in San Diego. And I picked the San Diego job because I thought it would be too hard on me if I was to run into you somewhere here in LA".
"Well, now that we've gotten the initial sighting of each other over with, we can hopefully get to a place where we want to run into each other".
"I'd like that. I miss our late-night phone calls and our spontaneous meet ups."
"I miss everything about you".
"You're sweet".
She leaned forward and set her plate on the table.
"So how long were you planning on being in town?"
"I have a train ticket for tomorrow afternoon".
"I tell you what. I can take you back to your hotel, and you can get your things and come stay here with me, or I can take you back to your hotel and then come get you tomorrow and take you to dinner, and afterwards, I'll fly you home on my plane".
"Jonathan, I think we need to decide what kind of relationship we are entering. Are we going to be friends, or are we going to date, what are we doing?"
"That's a good point. I say let's go full throttle. We can fly to Reno tonight, get married, the whole works".
She started laughing.
"Nice try. How about we bring the throttle back just a bit?"
"Ok, ok. You are the only one I'm interested in. You are the only one I want to spend time with".
"I can live with that".
"So, do you want to stay here with me tonight?"
"What if you came back to my hotel with me and stayed there with me?"
"I could do that".
He took her hand and started to lead her to the bedroom so he could pack a bag.
"Jonathan, wait".
She picked up their plates and took them to the kitchen instead. He followed her with their glasses.
"How was the grub, you two?"
"Wonderful, Max. The pickle wrap dip was superb. And I especially enjoyed the pasta salad".
"Thank you, Miss Edwards".
"Max, Jennifer and I are going to stay at her hotel tonight, so I'll be home sometime tomorrow, probably late tomorrow night".
"Got it, Mr. H."
They headed to the bedroom so he could quickly pack a bag. His bedroom had gray walls and lots of black furniture.
"This is my room. It's your typical bachelor pad".
"It's lovely".
"It needs a woman's touch".
"Have you ever had a woman's touch?"
"Well, I dated the daughter of a business associate a few years ago, and we were engaged for a few months but called it off. In the house that I lived in at the time, she was always wanting to decorate everything in embroidered flowers and bunny rabbits. My bed had 4 pillows embroidered with roses and bunny rabbits, a quilt embroidered in flower patches and throw pillows for the chair and window seat with embroidered pillows as well. When I sold that house and ended that engagement, I was determined to make this house and this room as far away from embroidered anything as I could".
"I can only imagine".
"What would you add?"
"Pops of color, here and there".
As soon as his bag was packed, he zipped it and sat down on the bed.
He pulled her into his lap. She wrapped her arms around him.
"Since you've seen me last, did you date anyone else?"
"No. Did you?"
"No. Well, I had a friend try to set me up with someone. It didn't go well. It was more like an ambush, and she was way too aggressive."
"Was she pretty?"
"I suppose. The most important detail is that she wasn't you".
Jennifer leaned forward and kissed his cheek and then laid her head on his shoulder.
"I've missed you more than I ever thought possible".
"I missed you too. More than you know".
She stood up and then pulled him up and then they headed out.
"Where are you staying?"
"At the W".
They walked into the kitchen, where Max was making some tea.
"Bye Max, I'll see you tomorrow".
Jennifer walked over to Max and kissed his cheek.
"It was so nice to meet you. Thank you so much for taking care of Jonathan".
"He makes it easy, Miss Edwards. And it was great to meet you too".
They headed to the car, and he put the top down. She leaned against his shoulder as he drove.
They had a short drive to the W, and he pulled them into the parking lot.
They walked in and took the elevator to her room.
She had a lovely room, with a king-sized bed, and a small sitting area.
"Nice room".
"Yeah, it is".
She stepped into the bathroom and changed into a leopard print nightgown, and came back to the bedroom.
After she got her bag packed, she moved it to the couch.
She noticed he had changed into some pajama shorts.
She climbed into bed next to him, and scooted over towards him.
He wrapped his arms around her and just held her for a few minutes.
"You are so beautiful".
"Thank you".
She slowly dragged one of her fingernails across his chest through his chest hair.
They chatted about her new job, his job, what it was like to live in California, till she fell asleep on his shoulder.
He smoothed her hair and kissed her forehead.
"Goodnight, baby".
He reached up and turned out the light and held her all night long.