Friends With Extra Benefits (29 page)

Motioning to Natalie, he continued, "What's
truly amazing here is that many lies have been told during this
trial that have been proven false. You've all watched it unfold.
Miss Brookhart is arguably a man-manipulating, lying, spoiled woman
who's used to getting her way with anything and everything she
desires."

He scoffed. "And she was
anything but a
virgin
during the spring of 2011. It could be argued that Miss
Brookhart was painted in a slightly more positive light within
Jillian's novel than she actually was in reality."

Stanley paused a moment to let that sink in. "As
absolutely ridiculous as that sounds, it's true. The definition of
libel is a false and unprivileged publication, which exposes any
person to hatred, contempt or ridicule. The circumstances in this
case in no way rise to meet this burden. Additionally, the
plaintiff's attorney was required to prove that a reasonable person
reading the book would recognize that the fictional character in
the novel represented Miss Brookhart. They didn't even come close
to proving that. No one would have recognized Miss Brookhart as the
Rebecca character in the novel, without her announcing it to the
world. The only reason we are here is that Miss Brookhart herself
decided to bring this to the attention of everyone who would
listen. In addition, no proof was presented as to the damages that
Miss Brookhart has suffered as a result of this supposed
representation of her in the book."

After taking a deep breath, Stanley added, "Miss
Brookhart is angry that she didn't get a chance to break Brian
Nash's heart for a second time back in the late spring of 2011.
That's when he decided to break up with her, and this is her
desperate way of getting him back. No one breaks up with Natalie
Brookhart... no one."

Stanley glanced at Natalie, who returned an evil
look and the jury caught the exchange. He turned back to the jury.
"Natalie... always gets what she wants... always... but you, you
can put a stop to that."

Stanley's gaze traveled over the twelve jurors
with a determined nod as he repeated, "You can put a stop to
that."

He returned to his seat as the jurors sat in
quiet reflection.

Judge Maxwell read the jury instructions, and
the jurors were led from the courtroom to begin deliberations in
the late afternoon. When no decision had been reached after nearly
three hours, the jury was dismissed and told to report the next
morning.

The next morning, the chosen twelve returned to
the jury room. About an hour later, several jurors (the men)
requested the pictures of Miss Brookhart's photo shoot, but Judge
Maxwell denied the request.

Deliberations continued until just after noon,
when a vote was taken. The results were nine to three on one of the
questions and eleven to one on the remaining question. The jury
broke for lunch and returned for another hour-long discussion.
Afterward, they put in a request to confirm the retail price of
Jillian's hardcover novel. Once this information was delivered,
another vote was taken. This time, a unanimous agreement on both
questions was reached.

All parties were contacted and assembled in the
courtroom. The jury took their seats, and when the room was quiet,
the judge made his way to the bench. The foreman handed the written
verdict to the clerk, who brought it to Judge Maxwell. Maxwell read
it and said, "The verdict appears to be in order."

As the clerk returned the verdict to the
foreman, Jillian sat at the defense table with her heart pounding.
Behind her, Brian rubbed his hands together nervously as Victoria
held her hand over her mouth to hide her worried expression. The
foreman stood and read, "On the issue of defamation, we, the jury,
find in favor of the defendant."

Jillian turned to Brian, and they shared a
smile. The foreman said, "On the issue of invasion of privacy and
appropriation, we, the jury, find in favor of the plaintiff and
award compensatory damages in the amount of $125,000."

Jillian's head dropped in despair as Natalie and
Josh's faces both brightened. Stanley didn't react but listened
closely as the foreman continued to read, "... and punitive damages
in the amount of $26.95."

Natalie's jaw dropped as Josh scoffed at the odd
figure. Jillian lifted her head up, confused. Stanley leaned over
and asked, "Twenty-six ninety five?"

Jillian's eyes widened. "That's the price of the
hardcover." A huge grin spread across both their faces while behind
her, Victoria and Brian shared a hug.

The Judge thanked the jurors and released them
from service. After court was officially adjourned, Jillian jumped
up and hugged Stanley. Brian rushed over, and they shared a kiss.
Next to them, Natalie began letting Josh have it.

Jillian and Brian turned to watch as Josh put
his hand on Natalie's shoulder. She pulled away from him and headed
out of the courtroom. Jillian and Brian turned to one another and
fought to suppress their smiles. Lifting Jillian into his arms, he
squeezed her tightly.

An hour later, Jillian, Brian, Victoria, Rob,
Bridget, and four members of Jillian's legal team were sitting
around a large table at the Sunset Grill in Key Biscayne, just
outside of Miami. The mood was, of course, festive. Jillian stood
and held her glass high. "I realize I've been a bit moody for the
last few months, and I'd like to apologize and thank you all for
your support. And even though it wasn't a complete victory, with
the fact that Butt Girl was awarded damages today, I think this is
the best possible outcome."

Brian lifted his glass. "It's over."

"It is," Jillian added, and then she paused.
"Well, I was thinking of writing a sequel, and—"

"Oh, no. Please, don't," Brian said with a
grimace.

Victoria smiled and shook her head in complete
agreement. Stanley called out, "Brian, we already discussed this,
and there will be no sequel without a signed release from... Butt
Girl."

Everyone cracked up. When they composed
themselves, Jillian lifted her glass and said, "Cheers."

Adam Rawlings, the owner of the restaurant, was
moving from table to table to check on his guests. He stopped at
Jillian's table and smiled brightly. "Excuse me for interrupting. I
hope you're enjoying your evening."

Jillian replied, "Yes, everything is
wonderful."

"I'm glad. If there's anything else you need..."
Adam began and glanced around the table. When his eyes met
Victoria's, he stopped for a moment and then added, "Please, don't
hesitate to ask."

"Thank you," Jillian replied.

Nodding, Adam returned his attention to
Victoria. He moved to her and smiled. "Have we met?"

Victoria smiled up at him. "You do look—"

Adam's eyes brightened. "I know. I met you on a
flight back from Philadelphia."

She smiled. "Yes, I remember."

"Adam Rawlings, and you're... Victoria,
right?"

"Yes." Victoria glanced to
Jillian who returned wide eyes, which screamed,
"
He's cute
."

Victoria looked back to Adam as he added, "You
said you might stop in, but that was, what, last summer? I figured
you would a little sooner."

"Sorry, I've been a little busy." Victoria
looked down to her round belly and pointed.

"I can see that."

"It's great to see you again."

"And you."

Adam glanced down at her hand and noticed the
absence of a wedding ring. He moved closer to her, leaned down, and
said softly. "You look spectacular. I mean, pregnancy really agrees
with you. Just stunning." He shook his head and smiled.

Victoria blushed. "Thank you."

Glancing quickly around the table, Adam said,
"But I'm sure you hear that a lot from your boyfriend."

"No boyfriend."

"Husband?"

She shook her head no.

"Well, you look fantastic."

Victoria smiled up at him. "Thank you."

Adam stood just gazing down at her, wearing
almost a silly look. "It's really great seeing you again."

"You also."

Adam gave Jillian a polite nod and slipped away.
Jillian looked at Victoria and opened her mouth wide. She leaned
over and whispered, "He's gorgeous. Why didn't you grab hold of him
on the plane?"

"I was sorta throwing up."

"Oh... He likes you."

"You think?" Victoria gave her an unsure look.
"I'm huge."

"He's right; you look amazing."

Victoria glanced over at Adam as he chatted with
another party. Her eyes traveled down his body. She took a deep
breath and smiled. God, she missed being with a man, but seeing one
that attractive made her remember exactly how much.

Adam sent over complimentary after-dinner drinks
along with dessert, and when Jillian and her group were ready to
leave, he was working behind the bar. Victoria walked up to him and
smiled. "Thank you for everything."

"My pleasure, Victoria. I would love to see you
again."

"I'd like that."

"Perhaps I could take you out to dinner
sometime?"

She glanced down at her pregnant form and then
back up to his face. "You really want to be seen out in public with
this?"

He chuckled. "I do. You're sure the baby's
father won't mind?"

"No, we have an... understanding. He's a great
guy, but we're not going to ever be together. No..." Her expression
grew solemn until she shook it away and painted on a smile. "How
about I call you after I get settled with the baby and everything
and can actually fit into some normal clothes?"

"Sure, whatever works for you."

"It was good seeing you again," Victoria
said.

Adam nodded as he stared deeply into her eyes.
She looked away, embarrassed. When she looked back at him, he said,
"Sorry, I'm... I'd be lying if I said I haven't been hoping you'd
walk through that door since we met."

The good-looking restaurateur and the single,
hot pregnant woman exchanged cell numbers, and when Victoria
finally made her way to the car, Jillian grilled her all about
him.

Adam called Victoria a few days later, and for
the next week they spent a lot of time chatting on the phone.
Victoria shared the details with Jillian, and Jillian decided to
invite Adam to Victoria's somewhat-surprise fortieth birthday.
Victoria had already been invited to Jillian's under the guise of a
small dinner on that Friday night, but she wasn't told it was a
party until about an hour before the event. They didn't want to
shock a woman in such a fragile state once again, especially after
what they put her through at her baby shower. Rob and Bridget were
leaving for a two-week cruise to the Mediterranean, which they
booked to celebrate her promotion, using the generous donations
sent to Rob by several of Wealth Stone's most affluent and now
grateful ex-investors. All told, he had collected just over one
hundred and fifty thousand dollars.

In New York, Jillian and Stanley Parrish waited
in a conference room in the law offices of Albertson, Wyatt, and
Price. Josh and Natalie entered the room, and the two women
exchanged evil glares. After the lawyers shared polite greetings
and settled down at the table, Stanley began, "We understand you
are considering appealing the decision."

"That's right. I feel that the appeals court
will easily find that there was actual malice under the New York
Times standard, and the ridiculously-low punitive damages award
will be thrown out," Josh said.

Natalie nodded confidently with her arms crossed
over her chest.

"We believe you'll lose on appeal."

Josh shot him an incredulous look. "Mr. Parrish,
then why are you here?"

Opening his briefcase, Stanley pulled out a
document. "If you move forward with the appeal, Miss Brookhart
won't be seeing the settlement money for many years. We would like
to make an offer that will enable both parties to resolve this
matter and move on with their lives."

"We're listening."

Stanley glanced at a document. "The jury awarded
$125,000 to Miss—"

"
And
twenty-six dollars and
ninety-five cents," Natalie shot back sarcastically.

Stanley smiled, "Oh yes,
sorry. You are correct... one-hundred twenty-five thousand
twenty-six dollars and ninety-five
cents
. We're prepared to double that
figure and have a check cut tomorrow if you agree to accept the
jury's decision and cancel the appeal, and if Miss Brookhart will
sign a release to permit Ms. Grayson to publish a second book in
this series featuring the Rebecca character, which, as we know, is
based on Miss Brookhart."

Natalie's mouth shot open, and she glared at
Jillian. "You want to write another book? After all this crap, you
want to write another book?"

"I do," Jillian replied smugly.

Natalie shot back sarcastically, "What does
Rebecca do in this one? Kill someone... or maybe she could screw
the entire—"

"Okay," Josh interrupted, and he put a hand on
Natalie's shoulder. She glared back at him, fuming. "I don't think
a quarter million dollars is going to do it. I'm not going to
permit Ms. Grayson to continue trashing my client."

Stanley slid a stack of papers to Josh. "In this
release, we've outlined the context in which the Rebecca character
will be portrayed throughout the rest of the series. We believe
Miss Brookhart will find it acceptable."

After pushing another document to Josh, Stanley
added, "And here is the settlement agreement. As I said, accept
this, and we're prepared to cut a check immediately, or you can
take your chances with the appeals court and wait years for this to
be over."