***Later that afternoon***
Jennifer sat out on the patio while Jonathan and his friends played poker.
She tried to go down to the beach for a walk, but the security guy wouldn't let her.
She came inside fuming mad.
"Jonathan, when you finish that hand, can we speak in the bedroom a moment, please?"
"Certainly".
A few minutes later, he walked into the bedroom to find her pacing back and forth.
"What is it?"
"Call them off."
"Who?"
"The security. I was sitting outside, and everything was fine. And then I tried to go down to the beach for a walk and he freaked out".
"What do you mean he freaked out?"
"I mean he literally told me no, you cannot go down to the beach".
"I'm sorry darling, it's just for a little while longer. Look, when the guys leave, I promise, you and I will go down to the beach and walk as long as you want, ok?"
"Maybe I'll take the Bentley and go for a drive".
"No, that's not a good idea. The tires on it are a little low, I don't want you to have an accident. Just stay here where it's safe, alright?"
She wasn't happy, but she finally agreed.
"I'm going back out to the patio".
"I'll come get you when I'm done. I love you".
"I love you too".
He kissed her and then headed back to the poker table.
"Sorry guys."
"Miss Edwards ok?"
"Yeah, the constant security is getting to her. Hopefully, it won't be too much longer and we will be able to call it off".
They played poker for another hour or so, and then everyone went home. Max was the big winner this week.
Jonathan walked outside to tell Jennifer they were done playing.
"Wonderful".
"Want to go for a walk now?"
"Yeah, just let me go put some shorts on".
She walked inside in her bikini, and came back out in a strapless top and athletic shorts.
They walked for about 6 miles and then turned around and came back.
They came inside and hit the shower together while Max started dinner.
After they were out of the shower, they joined him in the kitchen.
"Mr. H., you had a phone call from that Elliott fellow while you twos was on the beach. He said he wants to talk to you about your offer. He said he can meet with you tomorrow night at La Scala at 8 p.m."
"Perfect".
Jennifer tried to be happy, but she had a horrible knot in the pit of her stomach.
Max grilled them some steaks and made them baked potatoes and a salad.
After dinner was over, they watched a movie on the couch.
Jonathan locked up before they went to bed and set the alarm system.
Jennifer was a little unsteady on her feet as she walked to the bed and climbed in.
"You ok?"
"Yeah, I think I just had too much sun".
"Well, a good night's sleep will take care of that".
"Hopefully. Darling, would you mind terribly running and getting me a glass of ice water, please?"
"Certainly".
He went and got her a glass of water and came back, to find her fast asleep.
He set it down on her nightstand, and then leaned down and kissed her cheek.
"Goodnight, I love you".
He climbed in bed and wrapped his arms around her and fell asleep with her.
***Monday***
Jennifer was ready when Jonathan got home from work. She had put on a yellow spaghetti strap dress with a green vine pattern, and some black wedge flip flops.
Jonathan noticed that she had straightened her hair and parted it on the other side, and that she was wearing bright red lipstick.
"Hi darling".
"Hi gorgeous". He leaned forward and kissed her.
"Love the new lipstick".
"Thanks. Elliott hates red lipstick, and yellow on me, and he can't stand it when I wear wedges that make me taller than him. So, you know…."
"You are so bad".
He kissed her again and went to get ready.
She went and sat in the bathroom while he was changing.
"So, I talked to Lt. Gray on the way home. The undercover cop is going to be our waiter. As soon as he sits down, they will come over and arrest him on tax evasion."
"So we might not even have to talk to him?"
"That's the plan".
"Well, I hope it works out that way".
He was staring at her.
"Did you do something different to your hair?"
She nodded.
"As soon as we get home, I'll fix it back. I just figured, why should he be the only one who's uncomfortable tonight?"
They headed to the restaurant and went inside.
Their "waiter" came over and introduced himself.
"HI, I'm Chip. I'll be waiting on you tonight. The real waiter will be Rebecca. We worked it out that I will take the orders and she will put them together and all I have to do is bring things back and forth".
"Wonderful. We appreciate your help".
Chip went and brought them waters, and they sat there for about 20 minutes.
Finally, the manager came over to their table.
"Hi, I have a message for a Jonathan Hart. It seems as if Mr. Manning is running late. He will be here in about a half hour".
"Thank you".
They waited another hour and then decided he wasn't coming. They told Chip to call it a night and they would be in touch.
They walked to the car and Jonathan opened the car door for Jennifer.
"Thank you, darling".
He slid into the drivers seat and started the car.
"Darling, can we pick up Mexican? I'm dying for a crispy beef taco with extra cheese and tomatoes".
"Certainly. I know just the place".
They stopped and got Mexican on the way home, and went inside and changed. They ate in front of the TV.
They were just about to go to bed when the phone rang.
Jonathan picked it up.
"Hello?"
"Jonathan, it's Elliott. I apologize about earlier, it couldn't be helped. Can we meet now?"
"Sure. Come to my house. I'll turn on the light".
"See you in 20 minutes".
He hung up.
"He's coming here. Don't worry, I won't let him hurt you".
He picked up the phone and called Lt. Gray.
"Herschel-Elliott is on his way to my house. He'll be here in 20, if you want to get here in 25…ok sounds great".
He hung up the phone.
"They are on their way".
He picked up the phone and called Bill.
"Hey-I might need some reinforcements-can you come by the house in about 10 minutes?"
"On my way, Valentine".
"Thanks". He hung up the phone.
She went and put on a yellow t-shirt and her gray capri sweat pants and her yellow terry cloth bath robe. She was trying to make herself as unappealing as possible.
Like clockwork, he knocked on the door right on time.
Jonathan let him in and showed him to the living room.
Jennifer came in from the kitchen and sat by Jonathan.
"Hello Elliott".
"Hello sweetheart."
"Elliott, let's get down to business. How much do you want for the Sunset Hotel?"
"I paid $250,000 dollars for it. So at least that. How about one hundred grand more than that?"
"I can do that. I will have my team cut you a check tomorrow morning".
"Now, I'm willing to drop the price, on one condition".
"What's that?"
"Jennifer has dinner with me".
"No".
"Sweetheart, just hear me out."
"No, you hear ME out. I don't want to be with you, Elliott. I feel as though I've made that pretty damn clear. Jonathan loves me, I love him, there's no denying that. But it's more than that. He respects me, my choices, my ability to make those choices. You were always telling me what to do, he hasn't once done that and I don't think he ever would. He cares about me. You care about being seen with me".
"That's not true".
"Really? Remember the night that we were grilling out at your home? You deliberately poured gasoline on the grill, not caring that I could have gotten burned. Jonathan isn't like that. I wanted to go for a drive yesterday and he knew the tires on the car were low. He talked me out of it because it might not have been safe. That's the kind of guy I want in my life, not someone who only cares about their needs, their wants. And like I've told you before, I am so tired of you seeing me as a trophy-I am not something you can claim, you can win. Jonathan sees me as a person-you see me as the end result of a competition".
"Sweetheart, just give me one more chance".
"No".
Just then, there was a knock at the door.
Jonathan got up and went to answer it.
Bill came in.
"Sweetheart, you know I respect you, I just never got a chance to show you how much. I promise, if you come to Australia with me, I'll catch you the biggest fish you ever saw and I won't even make you clean it".
"No, Elliott. If you truly respect me, you will leave me and Jonathan alone".
"Well Jonathan, since she's being stubborn and denying her feelings, I am going to take full advantage of your offer. I am raising it to $500,000".
"It's a great hotel, it's definitely worth that".
"What time do you want to meet tomorrow?"
"I'll call you".
He stood up and tried to go hug Jennifer, but she moved away from him.
"Oh come on, one hug isn't going to hurt anything".
"Manning, drop the act. The lady said no, and you know what that means".
"Who asked you?"
"I asked me, now drop the act and hit the door".
Elliott started towards the door, and then turned around and punched Jonathan in the nose, catching him off guard. Jonathan fell to the ground and into Jennifer, knocking her onto the couch.
While he fell to the ground, Bill took over and delivered a couple punches to Elliott.
Jonathan got back on his feet and punched Elliott once more, and then Bill held him down while Jonathan went to go check on Jennifer.
All of a sudden, 4 policemen were surrounding Elliott.
"Freeze! Police! Elliott Manning, you are under arrest".
"What did I do?"
"Tax evasion and assault and battery".
"They assaulted and battered me too".
"Yeah, in self defense".
They read him his rights, and then led him out.
Jonathan locked the door behind them, and then came over to Jennifer and Bill.
"Thanks for your help, Bill".
"Darling, are you ok?"
"I'm fine. Are you sure you're ok?"
She nodded.
"Great work, darling. You had him so distracted I don't think he even knew the police were coming".
He embraced her.
"It's over, darling".
"God, I hope so".
"Bill, thank you for helping out. How's your hand?"
"I'm fine, pretty girl. Just fine".
He kissed her on the cheek and told them goodnight.
"We will talk to you soon, Bill".
"Later, Valentine".
They walked through the house and double checked the locks and then headed to bed.
She curled up on his shoulder and ran her fingernails along his chest hair.
"It feels like we got our lives back".
"Yeah, I know what you mean".
"Feel like celebrating?"
He rolled on top of her.
"Always".
She tenderly kissed him, and after a few minutes, his jaw felt better.
They made love and then fell asleep, exchanging 'I love you's' before they nodded off.
***Middle of the night***
Around 2:45, the power went out. Jennifer woke up sweaty and hot.
"Darling, wake up. Jonathan….wake up".
"Oh, I love it when you wake me up in the middle of the night".
"No, not that. Can you help me open a window? The power is out and I'm burning up".
He got up and got a flashlight and they managed to open a couple of windows.
She got a cold compress and put it on her neck and tried to go back to sleep.
An hour later, she was still awake.
"Darling…darling, are you sleeping?"
"Mmmmm"
"The surf is so loud".
"You'll get used to it".
About 20 minutes later, the power came back on, and she got up and closed all the windows and then came back to bed.
It was no use, though. She was unable to get back to sleep.
She got up when Jonathan did, and they had breakfast together. He could tell she was cranky.
Headline on the paper said "Hotel Mogul Elliott Manning Arrested for Tax Evasion and Other Charges".
Max came and joined them.
"That was a great idea you had last night to open the windows, Mr. H. Hearing the surf, I can't remember when I slept so good".
Jennifer gave him a pointed look.
"I think I'll go change".
She headed to the bedroom while Max and Jonathan stayed at the table.
"Miss Edwards ok?"
"She'll be fine. I don't think she slept well last night".
"I didn't mean to throw it in her face that I slept well".
"I know that, it's alright. Don't sweat it".
Jonathan took his plate to the sink and then went to go tell her goodbye.
He came into the bathroom and found her throwing up.
"Baby, are you ok? I was just about to head to the office".
She came out of the water closet.
"Yeah, I'm fine. I made the mistake of taking my vitamin on an empty stomach earlier."
She stepped to the sink and brushed her teeth.
After she was done, she leaned up to kiss him.
"I love you, see you tonight".
He leaned down and hugged her.
"You are awfully warm, darling".
"I'm fine, Jonathan."
"Let me make you a doctor's appointment, so you can be sure?"
"No, that's not necessary. As soon as I eat something and then take a nap, I'll be fine".
"Are you sure?"
"I'm positive".
"Want to have lunch today? My afternoon meeting doesn't start till 3".
"Sure, I'll swing by the office around 11?"
"Perfect. I love you".
"I love you too".
She gave him a few more kisses and then he left and she crawled back in bed.
She slept till her alarm went off at 10, and then got up and got ready and headed to his office.
She walked in and found him on the phone.
He stood up as soon as she came in and held his arm out to her.
"Yeah, Harold, that sounds great. Thank you".
He hung up and kissed her and hugged her.
"Hi darling".
"Hi. You're still warm, you feeling ok?"
"I'm fine".
They headed to lunch at L'Orangerie. He noticed that she practically inhaled her salad.
"Darling, you know that I would do anything for you, right?"
"Yes, I do know that. And I appreciate it".
"And you would do anything for me, right?"
"Why do I feel like I'm about to be sold the Brooklyn Bridge?"
"Nothing like that. But there is something that I want you to do for me. And if I'm wrong, I'm wrong. But I would feel better if you would just humor me".
"What is it?"
"I want you to let me make you an appointment with a doctor friend of mine, just to get checked out."
"Jonathan, I'm fine".
"Darling, you're warm all the time, you've been moody and on edge. I get that some of that was Elliott, but still, it's not like you. You were dizzy last night before we went to bed, and your appetite is all off. Just humor me, please? I promise you'll like her, she's an excellent physician. And if she says nothing is wrong, you never have to listen to me again".
"One appointment?"
"One appointment".
"Ok, I'll go".
"Thank you".
He paid the check and they headed to the car.
As they drove back to the office, he called and made her an appointment on his car phone.
After the appointment was made, he hung up.
"Dr. Kendall will see you at 2, darling. And she says to come with as full a bladder as possible".
"Dr. Kendall from the dinner party?"
"Yes, that Dr. Kendall".
He pulled them into the parking garage and parked next to her car.
He got out and opened her door for her.
"I love you, call me when the appointment is over".
"I love you too. I'll see you tonight".
She got in the car and started it up, and then rolled down the window.
He stood there while she programmed Kendall Medical group into the map.
"Ok, got it."
She looked up at him through the window.
"I love you".
"I adore you".
He kissed her and then she backed up and he headed to the elevator.
***Kendall Medical Group***
Jennifer pulled up to Kendall medical group and parked and went inside.
She was called back almost immediately and placed into an exam room.
Susan came in a few minutes later.
"Hi, how are you?"
"Fine. Thanks for seeing me".
"Sure, what brings you in today?"
"My paranoid boyfriend, honestly."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, the power went out last night, and I was hot, and this morning I was still hot and Jonathan got all weird and insisted that I see a doctor. Now, I feel just fine. But he says I'm moody and on edge, and my appetite is off".
"Ok. Let's take a step back. I'm going to fill out this chart as you tell me things. How old are you?"
"29, I'll be 30 in November".
"What day?"
"November 2".
"Ok. Have you ever had children?"
"No."
"When was your last period?"
"About 5 months ago. Thanks to endometriosis, I don't have them regularly."
"Are you on birth control?"
"Not that I take. Jonathan and I…..well…..we use condoms".
Jennifer looked embarrassed.
"It's ok, nothing you tell me will leave this room, I promise".
She nodded.
"How active are you and Jonathan?"
"Well…. I don't really know how to answer that without betraying his confidence".
"Sweetie, right now, I am only wearing one hat. And that is the hat of your doctor. And besides, we aren't talking about his body, we are talking about yours".
"Ok. So, to answer your question, we are active. I would say on average, once a day? But sometimes, we do it a few times in a row….so whatever that looks like".
"Yowza. You have no idea how lucky you are".
Jennifer smirked.
"Ok, so I want to do a blood panel, since you don't have one on file. And I need a urine specimen, as is routine. And I need to get your weight and your height and your blood pressure and all that fun stuff."
"Ok".
She opened the cabinet and got a thermometer and stuck it in Jennifer's mouth.
She had Jennifer step on the scale while they waited for the thermometer to go off so they could get her weight.
As soon as it beeped, she handed it to Susan.
"100.5".
After she was done with getting Jennifer's vitals, she took a blood sample.
She handed her a gown and told her to put it on, open to the front.
"I'm going to go run your blood screen, I'll be right back. You can use the bathroom across the hall to give your urine specimen".
Jennifer came back to the room and put her gown on, and then sat down.
"Ok, so I have the results of your blood screen and your urine sample. Your blood pressure is normal, your weight is something all women desire to be…but there's something that bothers me about your blood screen. Did you tell me you had endometriosis?"
"Yes, I was diagnosed in college."
"Ok. I just want to double check something. Would you mind if I ran one more test?"
"Not at all".
"Ok, lay back. And before I do that, I am going to do your breast exam. Any tenderness in your breasts recently?"
"Well, they aren't tender, but they are swelling. That happens sometimes when I eat seafood."
After the breast exam was done, she had her put her feet in the stirrups and opened her gown.
"Ok, this is going to be cool to the touch, so I apologize."
She spread some jelly on her stomach and then started moving an ultrasound wand around.
After about 10 minutes, she hit print and then turned off the machine.
She grabbed a warm wipe to wipe the jelly off.
"Ok, you can sit up. It's what I expected".
"Has my endometriosis grown in a new spot?"
"No, sweetie, a baby has. You're pregnant".