Chapter 1: A Buchanan Christmas
December 25, 2007
Buchanan Mansion-Llanview, PA
Sarah Roberts glanced around the formal dining room in what had once been her grandfather's home. Nigel had the table all laid for Christmas dinner for seventeen as her Uncle Bo's ex-wife, Nora, had decreed that a big traditional Christmas was just what the family needed. Her great step grandmother, Renee Divine Buchanan, had declared that was a wonderful idea and the perfect opportunity for everyone to meet Asa's newest long-lost son, Jared.
Technically Sarah had already met Jared Banks he had been kissing her aunt, or cousin, Natalie in the hallway outside Jessica's hospital room when she and her father had come back after Jessica had her liver transplant.
July 11, 2007
Sarah Roberts followed her father's long strides through Llanview Hospital. He stopped and turned to her as they reached the elevator. "Honey, if you don't want to come up that's ok. I can call Nora and maybe you and Matthew could go get lunch or something. You didn't touch breakfast."
"No one touches breakfast on a plane dad. I'm ok, anyway it's been over three years I ought to be able to handle seeing the ICU."
Her father pushed the button to summon the elevator and then laid a hand on her shoulder. "Sarah," he began.
"I'm really ok. Anyway, I called Cooper and he doesn't have to work tomorrow so he's going to come up this afternoon. He said you have papers he needs to sign anyway," Sarah said.
"Julia's Norscott stock went to him after her death," her father said as the elevator doors opened.
Sarah followed her father into the open elevator. "Right I guess he mentioned that. I just figured it was Acme related. You know Acme was the name of the company that Wyle E. Coyote used to buy all of his supplies from, you know the ones that always foiled his plans."
"That was because of operator error and misuse not product defect. That is always a very important distinction to make, Sarah."
"You know, Julia said the same thing. Sometimes I swear the two of you shared a brain," Sarah said as they stepped out of the elevator and started down the corridor to the ICU. As they came upon the double doors that lead into the ICU, Sarah saw familiar red hair, and her aunt Natalie ensconced in the arms of an average height man with light brown hair. As their kisses became deeper Sarah heard her father very loudly clear his throat.
Natalie responded to the auditory cue, pulled back from the embrace, and straightened with a sheepish look on her face. "Oh hey, Cord. Jess is doing a lot better, that new drug they tried seems to be working."
"Good," Cord Roberts said. He extended his hand in the direction of the man wearing his sister's lipstick around his neck. "I'm Cord Roberts, Natalie's older brother."
"Ah, you must Viki's son from the first marriage?"
"No, he's dad's son with Maria Roberts well I guess she was Maria Vasquez when they were together right? Cord was basically all grown up before Jess and I were born. Cord, this is Jared Banks, he's my assistant at BE," Natalie said.
Sarah rolled her eyes. Natalie still tormented her every chance she got about the kiss she and Joey had shared which Sarah could admit was messed up but, well, she had been then. She hadn't known what else to do; anyway it was mild compared to some of the stuff that she had seen between Natalie and their mutual uncle Todd Manning. "I thought you were working at the LPD with Uncle Bo," Sarah said.
Natalie turned slightly crimson. "Oh well Grandpa really wanted me to come back to BE. Especially with your dad leaving."
"Oh right," Sarah said well aware of the huge amount of Buchanan spin behind Natalie's words. Basically, once Natalie had compromised a crime scene she had put her Uncle Bo back in the position of arresting a family member or compromising his principles. Sarah figured that dealing with that dilemma repeatedly explained why he looked much older than his older brother, Clint, Sarah's grandfather.
"So how is that going?" Cord asked.
"Pretty good, Grandpa is really showing me the ropes," Natalie said. "Why? Do you want your old job back?" she added.
"Nope, anyway, most of my day to do responsibilities have been assumed by Kevin. He's mostly getting the hang of it, I think," Cord said.
Sarah knew that her dad's response was diplomatic. After Julia Barrett's will had named her father the overseeing president of her company, Acme, which extracted copper from the Pars in Wales and refined that copper into silver outside of London; he had resigned from his Vice President position of BE's London division. His younger brother Kevin had been promoted and, with a lot of help from the new vice-CFO, Alexander Quartermaine, and their technical VP, Pete Thurston, Kevin was keeping things afloat. Of course, BE stock had taken a second nosedive recently and Sarah was sure that Asa and Clint wanted to blame the London division for that.
"I don't think dad was very happy that you hired that finance guy. Kevin is supposed to be finding someone to replace him," Natalie said.
"Well now my BE involvement is over, so I guess you and Kevin can take the company in whatever direction you want, Nat. Asa may not handle that any better than he did when I tried to turn things around though just keep that in mind. But you know I didn't come all the way across the pond to talk about BE. I'm going to go see Jessica."
So basically, in six months Jared had gone from being Natalie's assistant, her boyfriend, and now he was her uncle. Sarah supposed calling him Uncle Jarhead wasn't polite but learning that she shared a common ancestor with him hadn't exactly changed her opinion of him. He was a charlatan and not a very suave one at that. She could see through him and she sensed he knew that. Recently he had been much better about keeping his distance which was fine with her because seeing his true colors didn't mean she wasn't afraid of them.
"Now you're going to stay with Sarah while mommy goes and makes sure daddy looks presentable," Jessica's voice floated through the room interrupting Sarah's thoughts.
Sarah turned to take her twenty-month-old cousin. "Hey, Bree! Cute dress."
"Mom made it. She made Zane a little vest and bow tie that match it too. Kevin wants to get some pictures of the kids under the tree, so we can use them for the BE Christmas Card next year you know since the whole family is on the board. I mean Bree and Zane will take their place someday too."
"Yeah, but I don't know, maybe they should, well, finish kindergarten first," Sarah said.
Jessica laughed. "Well, you never know. Listen, Sarah, I just wanted you to know that I'm totally cool with you inviting Cris to dinner. Really, I mean we were together so long ago."
Sarah shook her head almost involuntarily. She knew that Jessica had grown up as the perfect spoiled Buchanan princess, but she had just turned twenty-nine. Was she ever going to realize that it wasn't always all about her? Sarah wondered about that. Probably not, she decided. "Oh, Cris is out of town anyway," she said.
"He didn't mention that when I saw him at the diner. But, you know, Sarah, he's really a good guy and he loves you and Connor, well, I just don't see that."
"Connor?"
"Yeah, that guy that was hanging all over you in the hospital."
"You mean Cooper? I don't really remember the hospital but I'm sure he wasn't hanging all over me, PDAs make him uncomfortable," Sarah said.
"So, says Natalie about John McBain but let me just tell you that apparently he doesn't consider sex a PDA or something that should only happen behind closed doors."
Sarah clapped her hands over Bree's little ears. "Jessica!"
"Oh, please it's not like I went into details," Jessica said.
"Please don't! Listen, Cooper was there for me when I was sick that's all," Sarah said.
"Does Cristian know you talk to him two or three times a day?"
"I don't talk to him two or three times a day," Sarah said.
"Well it's definitely at least the second time you talked to him today."
"Not that it's really any of your business but he just had surgery and he's my friend."
"I'm just trying to help, Sarah. Us Buchanan girls don't seem to have a great track record with the Vega boys."
"First off, I'm not a Buchanan. My father wasn't good enough to be a Buchanan and I don't think he's ever really forgotten that. Secondly, what happens between Cris and I really isn't any of your business, or Natalie's business. If you regret choosing Nash over Antonio or stringing Antonio along in the first place don't drag me into it. If Natalie still feels guilty about the divorce, well, too bad that isn't my problem."
"But don't you see, Sarah, I've been where you are?"
"You've been where I am? No, you really haven't, Jess, and lets just not go there."
"I just don't want to see Cris get hurt," Jess said sweetly as Nash came into the room wearing a sweater with reindeer.
"There are my three favorite girls," Nash said as he smiled broadly at Bree.
One thing Sarah would say for Nash was that he never intentionally excluded her. She suspected that was because he had felt so excluded himself. But he was often kind to her and she felt safe around him so in spite of being a home wrecker she did like him. She extended Bree to her father and smiled at the little giggle the little girl gave in her daddy's arms.
Jessica, however, made a face. "Nash, you can't wear that sweater! The photographer is coming to take BE pictures before dinner. Give the baby back to Sarah and go put on that suit I put out for you," Jessica whined.
"Honey, I am not wearing your brother's clothes," Nash said. He did pass Bree back though.
"Kevin never wears that one any more. Kelly said he would never know it was missing. Anyway, I picked the tie out myself."
"From Joey's closet?" Sarah asked.
"Well, actually, it's one that Todd left at Llanfair. Mom thought it was Joey's but it isn't. Come on, Nash, Kevin said the photographer would be here in fifteen minutes."
"You know, obviously my mistake was believing that maybe we could have a normal holiday without it having to turn into a PR stunt for BE. Obviously, I was wrong. I'm not even on the stupid board. You go take your family picture and I'll go check on something at the vineyard," Nash said before he stormed out of the room.
"Nash!" Jessica wailed as she trailed after him.
Sarah looked down at her baby cousin. "What do you say we go find you a bib? Your mommy will probably kill me if you drool on your pretty dress."
Jessica must have worked her womanly wiles, because Nash did eventually return in a suit, and the most disgusting tie Sarah had ever seen.
The photo session took over ninety minutes and everyone was cranky by the end of it. Sarah had amused herself by texting to Cooper. He was spending Christmas at his Aunt Brenda's house, without photographers, because his family wasn't insane like hers. Except it was, because, although she hadn't managed to find the courage to tell Cooper the truth, her family was his family. She didn't mean that in a figurative sense either; it wasn't like he considered Logan Hayes a brother. No, she and Cooper Barrett shared a common ancestor too.
