Love, Lies & The D.A. (46 page)

“Johnny,
wait.”

I don’t
want him to make this decision in haste. I’m no fan of Sophie, but this could
ruin her life and her business.

“I’m
not sure I want to press charges against her.”

I
gently pull the phone away from him.

“Phillip,
can I think about this for a while? I’d have to press charges against her to
move forward, right?”

“Not
necessarily,” he and Jonathan reply simultaneously.

“Can I
call you tomorrow? I want to discuss this with Jonathan.”

“Sure.
But she will still be arrested.”

“Okay,”
I respond then end the call.

“What’s
there to think about?” Jonathan asks.

“I
know you’re angry, but this could ruin her life. She was your friend.”

“She
was my friend until I stopped behaving and doing what she wanted. Jada, she knew
better. She knew exactly what she was doing, and most importantly, she
intentionally wanted to scare and threaten you.”

“I
know. Everything you say is true, but I don’t want her life to get ruined over
this.”

“She
had no problem trying to ruin yours, and mine for that matter. She should have
thought about that before she made those choices, and she continued to do it
even after I filed the restraining order against her.”

“Can
she go to jail for this?”

“Yes.
Anywhere from months to four years.”

“Is it
a felony?”

“It
could be tried either way. It depends on the evidence, the prosecutor, and her
prior record.”

“She
used to be your friend. Doesn’t it bother you at all that this might ruin her
life?”

“She
stopped being my friend when she threatened and tried to hurt you. She ruined
her life. That had nothing to do with me.”

“You
can be so callous sometimes.”

“Jada,
she tried to hurt you and you expect me to take this lightly?”

I
sigh. “I feel like we’re sending this woman off to jail—”

“For a
crime she committed. Jada, neither the FBI nor the police need your testimony
on this one. They have all the evidence they need on tape. And don’t forget,
she did this several times, even after I warned her and filed a formal
complaint.”

“I
know. For some reason, I’m not feeling happy about this.”

“If
she weren’t my friend, would it have made a difference?”

“I’m
sure it would. But I suspect you’re angry and hurt about it; that’s why you’re
so eager to see her arrested. Think about it, days from now, when those
feelings have worn off, would you want to see her in jail?”

“It
depends on her attitude. But the last time I spoke to her about us, she had a
very nasty one. Unless that’s changed, I’m not sure if I care whether or not
she goes to jail.”

I
exhale.

“Jada,
I wanted tonight to be special. We’ve spent the last forty-five minutes talking
about a woman who tried to hurt you. A woman who threatened your life… among
other things.”

I’m
not sure how to respond, but the mood has definitely changed, and I’m not sure
what I should do to change it back.

“I
wanted the same. I had
big
plans
for later tonight.”

“You
did?” His eyes twinkle mischievously. “You didn’t tell me that.”

I ease
a little. “They’re for later… much later…”

His
lips curve into a smile. “Sounds intriguing.”

“If we
don’t allow this situation to ruin our night, we might still be able to enjoy
it.”

“What
do you have up your sleeve?”

“I’m
not telling. You’ll see when we get home.”

“You
know I don’t like surprises.”

“I
think you’ll like this one.”

“Well,
speaking of surprises… I have one for you,” he says, pulling a pretty red
envelope from his blazer and placing it in front of me.

“What’s
this?” I ask.

“Open
it and find out.”

I feel
something moving around on the inside. As I pull the seal away, a stunning
lapis lazuli and diamond bracelet slips out onto the table.

“Johnny…
it’s gorgeous.” I caress it between my fingers. “Why? What’s the occasion?”

“There’s
more in the envelope.”

I look
inside and pull all the contents out. The first thing I see is a postcard with
beautiful scenery and Chile marked across the bottom. Then a second and a third
with the same. There are probably ten of them, with different sites of the
country, then the last card says:

When
this is all over, will you go to Chile with me?

I look
up at him. Such a sweet sentiment. At that moment, I wonder if he’s been
thinking about a future with me the same way I’ve been thinking about sharing
one with him.

“Thank
you. This is all so beautiful. I’d love to.”

“Really?”

“Of
course… it might be quite the wait, though. You sure you’d want to wait that
length of time?”

“Positive,”
he replies, attaching the bracelet to my wrist. “Did you know that lapis is
mined in Chile?”

“I
might have read that somewhere.”

“Well,
I wanted you to have a reminder that you owe me ten to fourteen days of your
time outside of this country when this is all over.”

I’m
touched that he would go through the trouble of planning months ahead. At that
moment, I realize that no matter what, he plans to see this through with me
until the end. I am a little overwhelmed at the thought. I take his hands in
mine and bring them to my lips and kiss them gently.

“I
promise. You have that. Not that I need this stunning bracelet to remind me,
but I’ll take it. It’s so beautiful.”

“I’m
glad you like it. I’m looking forward to that day.”

“Slip
into some
comfortable clothing, we’re heading out,” I say when we
get back home.

“We’re
going out?”

“Yes,
we are,” I reply as I slip into a pair of jeans and a sweater.

“It’s
almost midnight.”

“So?”

“Jada
McLean, what do you have up your sleeve?”

“You’ll
see… I’ll meet you downstairs when you’re ready.” I put on a pair of loafers
and head to the garage with my luggage in hand to prepare for the night ahead.

He
joins me as I close the trunk.

“Keys,
please,” he says.

“Absolutely
not. You get to relax while I drive.”

He
shakes his head and slides into the seat beside me. Five minutes later, as we
cross the Golden Gate Bridge, he fidgets nervously in his seat.

“I’m
not going to hurt you. Relax,” I say, caressing his thigh.

“I’ll
relax when I know where we’re going,” he responds, his voice filled with
anxiety.

“Well,
make sure your gun is loaded, we’ll be there soon.”

“What!”

I
giggle. “I’m kidding.”

After
crossing the bridge, I get off the highway and start the climb up the hill.
Behind us, San Francisco glows under the night’s darkness. We come upon a dirt
road that’s barricaded, but as planned, my contacts open it up and allow me to
climb what is, in reality, a hiking trail.

“Where
are you taking me? Are we even allowed here? Should we even be doing this?”

“Don’t
panic, Worrywart. I slipped on some fake plates just in case anyone sees us.”

“You
what?”

I am
amused that he’s so serious about this, but before he gets any worse, I better
put his mind at ease.

“I
promise you, Counselor. I’m a law-abiding citizen. I paid good money so we
could be here, so sit back and relax. It’s in the glove compartment if you want
proof.”

He
obviously doesn’t believe me and proceeds to check my papers. I arrive at the
summit, and before us are the amazing vistas of the Golden Gate Bridge in the
foreground and the city of San Francisco in the back. Alcatraz pokes her head
in the distance to the side.

“Welcome,”
I say.

He
finally looks up, taking his attention away from the permits.

“I
seriously considered sneaking in, but I wasn’t trying to get arrested for yet
another crime.”

“You
better not. This time you wouldn’t be so innocent.”

“Come
on, let’s go,” I shout, leaping out the vehicle. For some reason, I feel a
sense of freedom here. We’re alone up here, surrounded by the darkness and
beauty of San Francisco.

“Babe,
I don’t know how you pulled this off, but this is awesome,” he says, holding me
in his arms.

“Contacts…
Remember that conversation about three things we should do before we die?”

“I
remember.”

“Well,
I’m hoping tonight we get to do two of them—sleep under the stars…”

“And
watch the Golden Gate Bridge at sunrise.”

“I
figured there might be too many people here at sunset.”

“Wow.
When you go, you know how to go big.”

“You
like?”

“This
is incredible,” he replies, folding me in his arms.

“I
brought food, some nice wine, and most importantly, an air mattress so we can
take in the beautiful stars.”

“You
amaze me.”

*     *     *

I can’t
believe what Jada went through to get us here. She obviously went through a
hell of a lot of trouble and thought to make tonight happen.

A
while later, we set up on the mattress, sipping on a nice glass of Chablis
while we take in the vistas.

“This
was an amazing surprise, Babe. Thank you.”

“I’m
so happy you like it. I sort of wanted to make up for not being there
tomorrow.”

“It
will be okay. Right now, all I want to do is hold you in my arms and take in
these views.”

She
makes herself comfortable between my thighs as I lean against the fully stocked
cooler. It’s chilly tonight, but she brought blankets, so we’re comfortable. I
have no idea what the weather forecast is for the night, but if things got too
cold, the vehicle and its heater are right behind us.

“How’d
you find this place, anyway?”

“I
came up here with my photography club when I was in college.”

“Have
you been here since?”

“No.
It’s the first time in about fifteen years.”

“You’re
full of surprises.”

“You
know, with all that’s been going on, I can’t believe how happy I feel right
now. You make me so happy.”

“I’m
happy to be with you too.” I look into her eyes and there’s a spark that I’ve
never seen before. I start to wonder if she’s falling for me, the way I have
for her.

We sit
for hours, under the black night’s sky. The stars shine brightly, and for a
while, we sit in complete silence. In the distance, I hear a tad of traffic. It’s
a little breezy, but what surprises me most is that I can hear the waves
crashing against the shoreline below.

I look
down on Jada. She’s fallen asleep in my arms. She is so beautiful. I think back
to when we met, and sometimes, knowing all that she’s been through, I still can’t
believe she’s allowed me into her life. I’m lucky to have her. She’s made
tonight one of those memorable occasions I’ll remember every single time I see
the Golden Gate Bridge.

Drip…
drop… Liquid
hits my face. I open my eyes, and I can’t
really see, but I hear a heavy shower fast approaching us. Jada wakes and we
scramble with as many things as we can and make a run for the vehicle. We leave
behind the air mattress and a few plates, but at least we have the blankets to
keep warm and food for ours stomachs.

“I
don’t remember you saying anything about sleeping under the stars
and
rain
,” she laughs.

“We’ll
look at them as showers of blessing.”

“So
much for sleeping under the night’s sky.”

“I can
take care of that,” I reply, pressing the button to drop her seat back. “We can
make use of this wonderful glass panoramic roof.”

She
giggles. “Not like I can see so much with the rain coming down so hard.”

She
pulls her seat up and climbs over the seats into the trunk.

“What
are you doing?”

“Making
our bed,” she replies, folding all the seats down to convert the back of the
SUV into a flat surface. She pulls one of the blankets, laying it out flat, and
the other, she rolls into a form that resembles pillows.