Erina Pendleton first appears as a small girl, with Jonathan rescuing her from bullies. When she appeared again, she and Jonathan was going out, and eventually they fell in love. However, after Dio seized her, kissed her, and then brutally beat her, she felt humiliated and stayed away from Jonathan for a long time. She did not appear again until after Dio's first near-defeat, when she nursed Jonathan back to health. After that, Jonathan finally defeated Dio using the Ripple. They subsequently renewed their relationship and got married. They took a ship to go on their honeymoon to America, but the voyage was cut short by the appearance of Dio. The ship went down, and Jonathan stayed behind, trying to kill Dio. Erina took an orphaned infant and escaped. Years later, she and her grandson Joseph Joestar were the last of the Joestar clan, and they traveled to New York on the invitation of Speedwagon, which sets off the events of the second story arc.

(Source: Wikipedia)