Background story

The time is June 1993. The place is Springfield.

Roger Thorpe is involved with the beautiful Jenna Bradshaw and he finally has what he always wanted: the presidency of Spaulding Enterprises. He would be perfectly happy if it wasn't from the fact that his son Hart refuses to talk to him, and that his daughter Blake is in love with one of his oldest enemy, Ross Marler.

And that he can't seem to get his ex-wife, Holly Lindsey, out of his head. Although she made it clear that she wanted nothing to do with him, their last kiss tells him a different story.

This is not a new story of mine, but the first time that I posted it, it was in different parts instead of in chapters, so I'm just reposting it. Please not that there will one rated M part towards the end, but the rest is rated T, so I gave it a general T rating.

Although the sun had set an hour ago, the heat could still be felt inside the house.

Holly lounged on her couch, lost into a book. She stopped reading to fan herself with a magazine that she picked on the coffee table nearby.

Her mind wandered back to the night before, when Roger had stopped by to discuss his problems with his son. She had only wanted to help as a friend, she kept telling herself. But as the thought crossed her mind, she knew it wasn't true. The truth was she just wanted to see him, to talk to him. To see if he still wanted her. And as it turned out, he did. The kiss they shared before she pushed him away still made the blood rush to her head.

She got up suddenly and started pacing trough the living room, trying to shake these thoughts away. Looking absently at her reflection in the mirror, she realized that it was no use; she had to understand why she couldn't let go of the man. After all the heartache he caused her, why did she want to keep him close? Did she still love him? Impossible, she immediately thought, I would have to be raving mad. True, Roger was not the same man that he was fifteen years ago, but he was still the man who had hurt her in the worse possible way. She could never forget that. She would never let him that close, ever again.

Then why was he still in her life? What was wrong with her?

She sighed. If only someone could whisk me away from here, she thought. Away from him.

Standing on the terrace overlooking the grounds behind the mansion, Roger was sipping a scotch. The day at work had been a hard one. Being around Jenna made him feel guiltier by the minute, especially after what had passed between Holly and him the night before. At the thought of his ex-wife, he could not help but break into a smile. She still wants me, he though as he reveled in his victory. His smile briefly faded, however. As fearless as he was, even he was sometimes scared by the intensity of his passion for her. She wanted him, but did she love him?

And if so, it meant giving up all this, he sighed as he looked around. The company, the big house, the money…the power. And giving up was against his nature. He simply had to have it all.

For the next few days, both of them tried to keep out of each other's way. Holly because she concluded that whatever her feelings were, she could not give in to them and Roger because he needed time to think about a way to get Holly without losing everything that he had worked so hard for.

High-strung from yet another scorching-hot day, Holly decided a few days after their encounter that she needed a night out to unwind. After many hesitations, she called and asked her daughter out for drinks at the Towers. Blake could not hide her surprise but quickly agreed. Although the relationship was still strained since Blake had started dating Ross, Holly's ex-boyfriend, both felt that it was time to work, slowly and carefully, towards reconciliation.

As she saw her mother make her way through the crowded room a couple of hours later, Blake could not help noticing the looks of admiration her mother was gathering from the male crowd. She had to admit that she was more beautiful than ever, her auburn curls softly framing her face, her slender body clad in a simple black dress. She had that subtle quality that drove men crazy, Blake thought as her mother finally joined her.

"You look well, Mom"

Holly smiled sarcastically. "Well, I guess I am finally starting to see the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel".

"Mom…" Blake started warningly.

"Oh, I am sorry, Honey, it's just that I'm not used to being nice to you anymore".

"Right, don't be too nice, or I might lose my bearings," Blake deadpanned.

They both stared at each other and started laughing. "You sounded really on edge when you called me, what is going on?"

Holly wondered how much she should tell her daughter. She knew that Blake, even if she was all grown up, still hoped for her parents to get back together.

"Nothing really. My air conditioning broke down and I couldn't stand the heat, that's all".

Blake scoffed. "You mean the heat coming from Dad?"

You little brat, Holly thought, feeling her cheeks turning red. "What are you taking about? Roger already has his hands full with his little British princess and you know it".

"Oh please, Mom, I'm not blind. I see the way he looks at you. And I see the way you look at him when you think no one is looking."

Holly downed her drink and signaled the barman to fix her the same. "Honey, you are delusional. Just keep your romantic fantasies on Ross and we'll all be the better for it."

Blake sighed and started eyeing the crowd. She noticed a handsome man making his way towards the bar and nudged her mother. "Did you know that Josh Lewis was back in town? They say he finally stopped looking for Reva."

Before Holly had time to answer, Josh approached them, a friendly smile on his face. "Holly. Blake. It's been a long time, how are you?"

Holly turned toward him. "Couldn't be better. You seem well".

Josh colored a little at these words. "Well, I am glad to be back in Springfield, with my family." He tipped the barman and added as he was leaving, "It was nice seeing you both".

They both stared as he made his way back to his niece Mindy and her boyfriend Nick.

"He is a nice man". Holly said thoughtfully. "The way he lost Reva, it's just terrible".

"Just like you lost Dad all those years ago, when we thought he was dead".

"Yes, it's exactly the same thing. Except that Josh was heartbroken and I was deliriously happy".

Blake poked her mother in the ribs. "MOM! Don't say that. I know why you say it, but don't".

Holly sighed. "Honey, just the fact that I can joke about it is a miracle, so humor me, okay?"

She finished her drink and picked up her purse. "I have to get an early start tomorrow". She looked at her daughter and her eyes softened. "Thank you for coming with me. It was fun".

As they exited the room, Holly could feel that someone was watching her. She turned and saw Josh glancing her way before he resumed his talk with Mindy. When she was gone, he stared again at the empty doorway.

Twenty minutes later, Holly was on her way back to her house when her car started making ominous noises. Stupid car, she thought. She just had it fixed and it now looked like it was on its last mile. Sure enough, the car soon gave up with a last belch and rested on the side of the road. Holly got out and kicked the door shut.

Now what? It was still a good walk to her house and in stilettos: it just was not an option. Besides, this part of the town was mostly woods and she shuddered at the idea of crossing it alone. As she glanced around in the hope to find a payphone, a car appeared around the bend and passed her by, only to stop abruptly a couple of feet ahead.

Oh no.

Holly scrambled to get back inside her car when she heard a familiar voice call out her name. For a split second, she thought it was Roger, but as she turned to look at the man she realized that he was taller and broader.

"Holly, is that you?"

She let out a sigh of relief.

"Josh. God, am I glad to see you! My idiotic car just broke down, as you can see."

"Do you want me to take a look? I am not an expert but I can give it a try".

"Forget it. The mechanic cries whenever I bring it over." They both laughed.

"I'll have it towed when I get home." She paused, waiting for him to offer her a ride home, which he promptly did. As they got into the car, Holly suddenly realized something.

"I was lucky that you were in the area. It's not on the way to your home…"

Josh shifted in his seat, staring ahead. "You right, it's not. The thing is, Holly, is that actually, I was going to your place".