Author's Note- I know that the show hasn't particularly focused on Jack and Holden's friendship in recent years as portrayed in this chapter, but since I'm writing this story the way I imagine the characters would interact with each other, I felt that it was justified :)

CHAPTER TEN: SOME UNSOLICITED ADVICE

Jack yawned as he opened his eyes and groggily looked out the passenger's side window of the moving SUV. Next to him, Holden was singing along to the country song playing on the car stereo and lightly rapping his fingers against the steering wheel to the rhythm as they continued on the freeway.

"Hey there, sleepyhead," Holden greeted when he noticed Jack stirring awake from his sleep.

Jack groaned and sluggishly stretched his arms out over the dashboard. His vision started to come into focus and he noticed a large interstate route sign listing the estimated distances of three upcoming cities: Bloomington 16 mi, Naperville 23 mi, Oakdale 35 mi. Confusion spread across his face.

"Why the heck are we driving back to Oakdale?" he asked raspily. "Don't you have to take a look at that horse?"

Holden chuckled.

"Uh…we already drove all the way to Chicago, I took a good look at the horse and negotiated payment for him, and now we're driving back home," he informed his still dazed cousin.

Jack sat up straight with a start.

"Wait…how…what?" he fumbled, scratching his head in utter bewilderment. "Is this the twilight zone or something? Because I don't remember a damn thing."

"Well, how would you?" Holden asked. "You've been out like a light pretty much since I picked you up this morning. I didn't want to wake you so I left you in the car while I went out into the barn to take a look at the horse. You were so knocked out that you didn't even hear me open or shut the car door or start the engine."

"Yeah, well, about that…tell me again why we had to wake up at seven-thirty in the morning just to drive to and from Chicago when we can easily make the round trip in less than half a day?"

"Listen buddy, you insisted on coming along," Holden said pointedly, momentarily glancing over at his cousin before redirecting his eyes back onto the road, "so you don't get to complain."

"Touché," Jack admitted. "It's just that I barely got any sleep last night."

"Seems to be the story of your life lately," Holden said with a smirk. "So tell me, how many times have you replayed that kiss between you and Carly since last night?"

Jack shot his cousin a dry look while the latter chuckled after posing the question. It's not like he could've given him an answer anyway; how can you place a number on something that has basically been running on 'repeat' through your head nearly every waking moment for the past half a day? He looked at the built-in digital clock on the front console of the car. It read '12:29.'

Holden caught a sideways glimpse of Jack as he looked at the clock and realized that it was time for a rest stop.

"What do you say we grab some lunch?" he asked. "You haven't even had breakfast. There's this really great steak place in Bloomington. How about we stop there?"

The suggestion sounded great to Jack. As the drowsiness began to dissipate, he could feel twinges of hunger hit his stomach.

"Sounds good to me," he informed his cousin.

A nice hearty steak and a cold beer was just what he needed to rejuvenate his senses.

In Milltown, Carly guiltily stared at the number displaying on the small screen atop her still ringing cell phone. She slowly flipped it open after the third ring.

"Hello?" she answered hesitantly.

In the background, Lily and Neal were still chuckling at his joke.

"Hey Cuz," Molly said in her usual lively voice. "Where the heck are you?"

Carly paused for a few moments before responding.

"I'm so sorry, honey. I completely lost track of time," she apologized.

Now there was a pause at the other end of the line.

"Do you have company?" Molly asked, apparently having heard the sounds of Neal and Lily's muffled laughter.

"Uh…yeah," Carly answered slowly, not quite sure how to follow up her basic response.

"Anyone I know?" Molly inquired.

Carly felt stumped. Not only was she late for their lunch date because she'd lost track of time entertaining her guests, but one of those guests happened to be Lily; not exactly one of her cousin's favorite people. Carly had more than an inkling that Molly would be upset if she learned that Lily had been visiting with her, but what worried her more was how she'd react once her ongoing secret partnership with Lily was revealed once their business was ready to go public. One step at a time, she told herself. For now, it was a matter of deflecting the question at hand and making her way over to Molly's without rudely having to kick Neal and Lily out of her house.

"Listen Cuz, I'll be there as soon as I can, okay?" she said, hoping to deflect the question that was just asked.

Fortunately, for the time being, it had been sufficient to get a seemingly unsuspecting Molly off the phone. By now, Lily and Neal were watching her questioningly, having tuned into her conversation at some point after they'd recovered from their moments of levity.

"Were you supposed to be somewhere?" Lily asked.

Carly looked from Lily's face to Neal's before answering Lily.

"Um, yeah, I was supposed to meet Molly for lunch at her new apartment at noon," she said with an apologetic smile.

Carly saw a hint of uneasiness cross Lily's face at the mention of Molly's name, which didn't exactly surprise her. Neither woman was fond of the other given their respective relationships—past and present—with Holden. Still, Lily seemed to understand.

"Oh gosh, I'm so sorry Carly," she said, glancing at her wristwatch. "I've taken up enough of your time. I should get going anyway," she said, quickly standing up.

"I'll get out of your hair as well," Neal said following Lily's cue and standing from his seat.

Carly had done her fair share of throwing people out of her house when the occasion called for it, but this was one she felt guilty about—although technically, she hadn't needed to ask them to leave…but still. If she was being completely honest, she had actually been enjoying herself. Not only had she come across an amazing business venture that was right up her alley, but she'd also be working with two familiar faces she trusted. Aside from those facts, she also realized how much she'd missed Lily's friendship over the last year and a half. It had been fun to just sit there and laugh and share her ambitions with her once more like she used to do before their friendship had suffered a major blow. In any case, she couldn't help but be happy and relieved that things seemed to be getting back on the right track for them. She just hoped that her resurrected friendship with Lily wouldn't come at the cost of losing that of her cousin.

Natalie and Ethan came bounding down the stairs with their empty breakfast plates a few seconds after their mother had called up to them, followed by Sage; and the three of them greeted Neal, who remarked on how much taller the two younger kids had grown since the last time he'd seen them.

"Okay guys, it's time for us to head out," Lily told her children. "Why don't you guys take those dishes to the kitchen, please?"

The kids did as they were told. Once they were out of earshot, Lily turned her attention back to Carly.

"Listen Carly, as soon as I leave here, I'm going to drop the kids off at home with Luke and meet with my lawyer. He should be in his office for a little while longer, so I'll have him draw up all the official papers for our partnership right away. If all goes well, those should be ready to sign sometime this week. In the meantime, do you think you could work on those sketches? Just so we can get things going."

"Are you kidding? All I'm going to be doing this weekend is sketching!" Carly informed her soon-to-be business partner with a grin. "I'm SO excited about this!"

"Me too!" Lily grinned back.

Neal had been standing there watching the two enthusiastic women with a smile.

"Is there anything you'll need from me, ladies?" he asked.

Lily and Carly turned to look at him.

"Not until we've secured the lease," Lily informed him. "But, in the meantime, we could use the moral support and your vow of secrecy."

"My lips are sealed, I promise," Neal assured both of them.

Once the kids returned from the kitchen, Lily led them out the door, only stopping briefly to acknowledge Carly as she called out a quick 'thank you' for breakfast after her. Neal followed right behind them, leaving only Sage and Carly in the foyer. Carly turned to look at her daughter.

"Did you have fun with Ethan and Natalie?"

Sage nodded.

"What was Neal doing here?" she asked curiously.

"Well, Neal and Lily and I are friends, so we were just catching up," Carly answered, half-truthfully. "Are you ready to go see Aunt Molly's new apartment? She's expecting us for lunch, and we're already late."

"Yeah. Let me just grab my coat," Sage said as she ran up the stairs, while Carly grabbed her own from the coat rack and slipped it on. Apparently Sage hadn't realized that they were already running well over forty-five minutes late.

The blonde hostess led Holden and Jack through the crowded restaurant and motioned them towards an empty booth. She handed them a pair of menus and notified them that their server would be with them shortly. The restaurant, Lone Star Steakhouse, was a cozy place with a log cabin-like appearance and an abundant array of southwestern décor.

"I swear, Jack, this place has the best steaks around," Holden alerted his cousin.

"Well, it certainly smells great," Jack said as he inhaled the aroma of charbroiled meat and barbeque sauce that wafted through the air. "So, when are you planning to transport the horse to Oakdale?" he asked.

Holden began filling Jack in on the travel arrangements for the horse until the waitress came by and inadvertently interrupted him to take their orders. Soon after the girl left, Holden resumed where he had left off only to realize that Jack was no longer paying attention to him, and instead, focusing on gently rocking the tip of his fork up and down the table, as if it required all his concentration.

"Jack?" Holden said sharply as he leaned forward.

"Hmm?" Jack said, coming out of his stupor and looking up into Holden's observant expression.

"You're pathetic, you know that?" Holden said shaking his head.

"What?" Jack asked defensively, attempting to play dumb.

"Why don't you tell me?" Holden persisted.

"It's nothing," Jack said with a shrug. "What were you saying about the horse?"

"Forget the horse. Let's talk about you and your mental stability," Holden said teasingly.

Jack scoffed.

"I'm fine. Just tired and hungry."

"…and yearning for someone," Holden added with a grin.

Jack rolled his eyes at his cousin, although he knew full well that the insinuation was completely warranted.

"Do they have a jukebox around here?" he asked lamely as he looked around everywhere but straight ahead, trying to change the subject. The attempt was a failure.

"Look at you. You're an emotional wreck," Holden said as he watched his cousin guzzle down several large gulps of water.

"Well, what do you propose I do?" Jack asked in aggravation as he slammed his glass back onto the wooden table.

Holden looked at him pensively for a few seconds.

"Aside from trying to resolve your romantic entanglements, have you tried talking to Margo about getting your job back again?"

"Not since the last time," Jack said shaking his head. "And as you know, she wants me to get my personal life in order before I return to work full-time."

"But that was before you'd decided to end your marriage for sure and reunite with Carly."

"Yeah, but nothing's changed since then has it? I'm still married to Janet and I'm still not with Carly…if I will ever. So, obviously, as far as Margo's concerned, I haven't made any progress on either front…which is the truth"

"Yeah, but what if you told Margo you've made a decision about your marriage? After all, now you're just waiting to talk to Janet, right?"

"I suppose I could try again," Jack said, biting his lip reflectively. He paused. "You know, I think I've known what I wanted long before I was ever able to acknowledge it. I just didn't have the nerve…and now, when I want to get it over with as soon as possible, Janet's not around."

"Wow," Holden said, slightly overwhelmed by the rawness of his cousin's words. "You do realize that this is hardly going to be as easy as ripping off a band-aid, right?"

"I don't mean to sound insensitive about it, Holden," Jack clarified. "It's just that the sooner it's dealt with, the better. As it is, things have been in limbo for far too long. It's high time we settled everything once and for all."

Holden nodded in comprehension.

"And Carly?" he asked.

"What about her?" Jack asked solemnly. "She's obviously pretty set about where things stand between us, even though I've made my feelings more than clear to her."

Holden watched Jack closely for a few moments before speaking.

"Listen Jack, I'm going to come off sounding like the world's biggest hypocrite here, but let me give you some unsolicited advice."

Jack stared at his cousin searchingly.

"Okay…" he said tentatively.

"But before I do," Holden continued, "Answer a few questions for me."

"Shoot," Jack said, shifting in his seat to focus more completely on his cousin.

Holden sighed and took in a deep breath.

"You and Carly…you've broken up and gotten back together several times over the years, right?"

"Uh, yeah," he said with a meaningful chuckle.

The initial question was capable of producing a novel-sized response if elaborated upon, but given that Holden had been a firsthand witness to the majority of the Carly-Jack saga; those two words and the unspoken sentiment that followed seemed to be more than enough.

"Why is it that you guys kept going back to each other over and over again?" Holden continued.

"Because we realized we still loved each other," Jack said plainly.

"Right. And each time you married her, why'd you do it?"

"Same reason. Because I loved her, and I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her." Jack paused; a melancholy expression visible on his face. "Of course we all know how that's turned out in the long run…"

"And yet, to this day, you still want that, right? With Carly?" Holden asked.

Jack shot his cousin a look of puzzlement.

"What is this? Are we playing twenty questions here?" he asked, casually but sarcastically.

"Just go along with me here," Holden said assuredly.

Jack sighed and did as requested.

"Continue," he permitted.

"So, as I was saying…you still want that with Carly to this day, don't you?" Holden repeated.

"Yes," Jack responded immediately.

"And did you have feelings for any other women when you asked Carly to marry you or when you were married to her?" Holden asked.

"Other than what I felt for the second Julia during the amnesia bug; no. Never. And even that wore off pretty quickly once I remembered Carly and realized the games Julia was playing."

Jack watched Holden cringe at the mention of Nurse Julia Larabee.

"Yeah, not exactly our finest hour, eh?" Holden asked guiltily followed by a nervous laugh.

"I'd rather forget about it," Jack remarked with a frown.

"Ditto. So, other than the Julia Larabee debacle—which I think was an extenuating circumstance given the amnesia—when you were with Carly, she's the only woman you loved, right?"

"Right," Jack confirmed, still wondering where Holden was going with all this.

"Now…the other Julia, Katie, and Janet," Holden continued, "when you asked these women to marry you, did you still have feelings for Carly?"

That was an easy answer of Jack.

"Yes."

"Okay, and while you were married to these women, what was the main cause that led to each breakup? Really think about it. Why didn't these marriages work out?"

Jack mulled over his response, and as he went through his relationship with each woman, only one constant remained.

"Carly," he uttered quietly.

"Exactly!" Holden exclaimed, punctuating it by pointing his forefinger at Jack. "Carly. You were still in love with Carly when you married Julia; you were still in love with Carly when you married Katie; and you're still in love with Carly now while you're married to Janet. What does that tell you?"

Jack was silent for a few moments.

"That I'll always love Carly," he responded quietly a second time.

Holden nodded.

"Not just love Carly, but you'll always be in love with her," Holden clarified. "Jack, I've known you pretty much your whole life. I know you better than anyone—except for maybe Carly. I still remember the day you first met her in Montana. You guys were at each other's throats from the beginning, but there was something underneath it all. I noticed it, Molly noticed it, and everyone else in Oakdale eventually came to notice it. I don't know what it was…chemistry, sexual tension, attraction…maybe a mix of all three, but it was damn strong from the start. So whatever you've felt for her since that day… love, passion, anger, and whatever else…it's still going strong to this day and obviously hasn't changed. And as far as I have seen over the years, no other woman has ever made you feel even a fraction of what I've seen Carly make you feel."

"So, what are you saying?" Jack asked, starting to understand where Holden was going with all this but requiring more elaboration.

"You married nutty Julia to prove that you were over Carly, you married Katie to prove that you were over Carly, and you married Janet to prove that you could live without Carly. Two out of three of those marriages were in retaliation for Carly having hurt you. Still, despite everything Carly has done over the years, you've never been able to get over her or live without her, have you? And I'm not even factoring the kids into this equation. Yes, you guys have to interact with each other because you share three kids, but you can't tell me that it's the only reason you try to stay so involved in her life."

"Okay, guilty as charged," Jack admitted.

"And you broke up with Julia because you realized you were still in love with Carly, Katie broke it off with you because she realized you were still in love with Carly, and your main reason for obviously wanting to end your marriage to Janet is because of that same ongoing love for Carly."

Holden's words were fluidly sinking into Jack's mind, and although his cousin was pretty much reiterating everything he already knew, there was a renewed sense of realization as he continued to lay things down on the table for him.

"Carly is your constant, Jack," Holden stated simply. "She always will be. Even after all the ups and downs the two of you have been through with each other over the past eighteen years, she still is and no amount of running away from her and trying to make it work with someone else is going last in the long-term. No offense, but any woman who gives you the time of day knowing what you feel for Carly is just asking for heartache, as I'm sure all three of those women from your past will attest to."

"Gee, thanks," Jack said with a sarcastic half-frown.

Holden shrugged.

"Just trying to help," he said. "So, do you see the point of this little exercise?"

Jack nodded.

"I think so," he said.

"Obviously it's nothing you didn't already know," Holden continued, "but it's as basic as this: as far as your love life is concerned, it's Carly or no one for you. You might temporarily find womanly comfort in any corner you look, but it'll never last, because when it comes to love, your heart will always belong to one woman and one woman alone. The same woman you keep trying to run away from because you've been so goddamn scared, but can't seem to resist just the same."

"I'm not running away from her anymore, Holden. I've made it clear to her that I want her back. She's the one who's running."

"Do you blame her?" Holden asked pointedly. "You haven't exactly followed through on your feelings, Jack. You almost reunited with her a little over a year ago, and then you ran away."

"I was scared, Holden" Jack replied earnestly.

"And now she's scared," Holden countered.

"Or maybe she doesn't love me as much as I thought she did," Jack said with great distress.

Holden shook his head disappointedly at his cousin.

"You know what, Jack? Sometimes you can be so thick," he criticized. "Do you honestly believe that Carly is ever capable of not loving you anymore? I mean, honestly? Of course I'm no expert when it comes to reading a woman's mind, but if the eye contact between the two of you last night was any indication at all, I'd say that nothing has changed since I stood to your right at the Lakeview and saw the two of you look at each other from across the room before you said your 'I do's.' And from what I saw yesterday, I'd bet all my money that she still loves you just as much as she always has."

A smile crossed Jack's lips at Holden's reassurance before he grew serious again.

"All this sounds good on paper Holden, but if I can't get her back, what difference does it make?"

"Like I said, you fight for her. She's fought for you in the past, hasn't she?" Holden said through his reminiscent laughter. "Maybe she didn't always go about it the right way, but she's done more than her fair share of it, Jack, and I think now it's your turn."

Jack laughed along with Holden at the memories of Carly having fought for him over the years. During all those times she'd tried to win him back, none of her actions had been laugh-worthy in the least, but reflecting back on all she had done to show him that they belonged together; it all had more meaning to him now than he had ever cared to realize before.

"You know, sometimes I almost wish she'd turn into that Carly again," Jack said wistfully.

"Be careful what you wish for," Holden said with a smirk. "In any case, I think this time, the ball is in your court. It's not going to be easy, but like I said, it's either Carly or no one for you. And I think it's high time you recognized that and stopped thinking you can replace her with someone else."

Jack looked at Holden with a gravely concerned expression.

"What if she tries to replace me?" he asked.

"With who? Neal?" Holden joked.

"It's not funny, Holden. She's obviously fond of the guy. What if it develops into something more?"

"Like I said…from those looks I saw between the two of you last night, Neal might as well have been part of the wallpaper in that room."

Jack had just opened his mouth to respond when the waitress brought out their food. Once she had walked away, Jack narrowed his eyes on Holden, fluently flipping the focus of the subject from him to his cousin.

"What about you?" he asked pointedly. "You think you can be happy with Molly with Lily still around?"

Holden looked at Jack and set down the knife and fork he had been working into his steak.

"I knew that was coming," he said with a deep sigh.

"Come on, Holden. You can't tell me you don't still love Lily," Jack said confidently.

"Of course I still love Lily. I'll always love Lily. But our situation is a lot more complicated than your's and Carly's."

Jack couldn't help but scoff at the claim.

"How so?" he asked.

Holden, who had been nothing short of articulate up until that point, now fumbled around for the right words.

"See, this—this is why I prefaced my 'advice' to you by saying that I'd come off looking like the world's biggest hypocrite," he said.

"Damn straight," Jack declared matter-of-factly.

"I had it coming, I know," Holden admitted.

"Because you're with Molly while you're still in love with Lily?" Jack offered.

Holden sighed deeply a second time.

"Things are so much more complicated for me and Lily," he repeated.

"How exactly?" Jack wondered again.

"You know what the difference is between you and Carly, and Lily and me, Jack?" Holden asked rhetorically before continuing. "When you and Carly were together, you never had issues staying faithful to each other. Lily and I, our entire marriage has been plagued by infidelity…on both sides."

Jack cringed at the thought of one particular affair, which Holden recognized immediately and deflected by trudging on with his explanation.

"The thing is; you and Carly, you guys can still work out all your problems. I'm not saying it'll be easy, but you can fix what's broken. Lily and I, we're past that point. We've tried so many times, but we just can't make it work, and in the end, not only do we end up hurting each other, we end up hurting the kids."

"Do you think it's fair to Molly though?" Jack asked.

Holden was silent for a few moments.

"Probably not," he said, struggling as he admitted it out loud.

"So, despite all your issues with Lily, you don't think there's any possibility whatsoever that the two of you might reunite ever again?" Jack prodded.

Holden was having a harder time answering Jack's straightforward questions. He chuckled nervously and shook his head at the irony of their respective situations.

"Boy, it's easy to dole out advice when you're on the outside looking in, but damn near impossible when you're smack dab in the middle of it, isn't it?" he asked, referring to their mutual ability to diagnose the other's romantic problems but being unable to make complete sense of their own. "To be honest, Jack, I really don't know what I'm going to do," he said finally.

Jack listened carefully to his cousin's point of view.

"You don't think that there's any chance that things could be different this time with Lily?" he asked.

"I don't know. I mean, she was set to marry Damian only a couple of months after I was presumed dead, and she still went through with the ceremony once she knew that I was alive. That's not something you can just gloss over the next day."

"Holden, I have no idea why Lily did what she did," Jack said honestly. "I checked in on her a couple of times after you were…you know…and she was really torn up about losing you. There's no doubt that Damian was preying on her vulnerability and manipulated her into marrying him to some degree…I just wish I'd seen it sooner. I'm not saying Lily wasn't responsible for what happened, but part of the blame falls on me."

Holden shook his head.

"No, Jack, Lily knew what she was doing. I guess I just don't understand why…" He paused, unable to complete the sentence. "Not that it matters now anyway," he finished finally.

"You sure about that?" Jack asked, unconvinced.

"Alright, maybe I'd like to find out what the hell she was thinking," Holden admitted. "But really, there's no reunion for us over the horizon."

"Okay, I get that you guys have a thorny history, but are you sure it couldn't be different this time?"

"How many 'this times' can there be before we accept reality, Jack?"

"You've got me there," Jack ceded. "Carly and I; we've had about a hundred of those ourselves."

"Like I said; the difference is that you and Carly have workable issues once you both quit being so damn proud and stubborn—and when I say that, I'm mostly talking about you," Holden said pointedly. "You both know where you went wrong, and while neither of you might've necessarily changed since the last time you were together, you know what you have to lose."

"Point taken," Jack acknowledged. "Listen Holden, I care about Molly, I really do. But if you're ever going to take this relationship to the next level—like marriage—then you have to be completely sure that there's no going back with Lily. Neither one of us wants to see Molly hurt in the long run, right? We both know that this is familiar territory for me, so don't make the same mistake I've made…multiple times."

"I've been thinking about it, Jack," Holden confessed. "I thought about proposing to Molly, you know. But I know that there's a lot I need to think about before I make any life-changing decisions for either of us."

"Yeah, well, if you have any questions, just ask," Jack joked, lightening the moment.

"I'll just refer to your guidebook," Holden joked back.

With that, both cousins focused on the plates in front of them and attacked their steaks; each with a knife and fork in hand. Even as they performed this simple task, each had about a million thoughts racing through his head.

Carly rapped on the door engraved with the house number that Molly had written down for her on a piece of paper. Sage stood next to her holding a book she had decided to bring along, knowing that her mother and aunt would break off into a conversation about topics unknown like they always did at some point during their visit. The book would prove to be a handy distraction when that time came. The door to the apartment opened to reveal a smiling Molly on the other side.

"Hey Cuz, I thought I'd have to eat all that food by myself," she said animatedly as she leaned forward to kiss Carly lightly on the mouth; a practice all too familiar between them.

"I'm so sorry, honey," Carly apologized again.

"Don't worry about it," Molly said good-naturedly with a flick of her wrist and turned her attention to Sage. "Hi pretty girl," she said as she bent down slightly to kiss Sage on the cheek. "Come on in," she said, ushering them both into her living room.

Carly took in her surroundings. The living room was moderate-sized with cream colored walls and dark brown carpeting. The living room set was arranged in a 'C' pattern and consisted of a couch that ran parallel to the length of the room, a loveseat that sat adjacent to the couch on one side, and an armchair on the other side of the couch; facing the loveseat. The matching upholstery consisted of dark blue suede and was accented with intricate white floral designs. Several white and dark blue cushions rested atop of all three pieces. A wooden coffee table stood snugly enveloped amidst the furniture with two side tables positioned on either end of the couch. On the other side of the coffee table stood an entertainment center which consisted of a large flat-screen TV, a DVD player, a cable box, and a stacked, wide collection of DVDs. A variety of artwork hung mounted against all four walls. Carly smiled at the entire landscape, recognizing the 'Molly' touch around the room.

"Mol, it's lovely," she said.

Molly grinned at the compliment.

"Thank you," she said as she looked from Carly to Sage. "How about I give you guys a tour of the rest of the place, huh?" she added, leading them further through the apartment.

As she made her way from room to room, Carly was impressed with her cousin's interior design skills. The whole place had a comfy, homely feel to it; reminding Carly of Molly's last apartment: a place that she had called 'home' for a time herself. Once Molly had given Sage and Carly a walk-through of the entire apartment, she ushered them into the kitchen to brief them on the lunch menu.

"So, the last time I tried to cook a meal, Holden had to run into Emma's kitchen with a fire extinguisher to put out what was left of it, so, I decided that I love you both too much to subject you to that kind of misery and ordered take-out from Beijing Garden instead," she said, motioning toward the white boxes sitting on the granite counter. "Sage, I know how much you love their orange chicken, so I ordered a whole box just for you."

Sage grinned.

"Thanks Aunt Molly, but I don't know how much I'll be able to eat. I'm still full from all the donuts and muffins Aunt Lily brought over this morning. She made sure to bring over a couple of chocolate chocolate-chip muffins just for me."

Carly turned pale at her daughter's revelation, and as anticipated, after Molly had flashed Sage a forced smile, she shot her a look that was an equal mixture of hurt and confusion at the mention of Lily's name.

"Well, whenever you feel hungry, just help yourself, okay?" Molly told Sage, attempting to reconstruct her forced smile once more. "Why don't you go pick out a nice chick flick for us to watch, sweetie? Your mom and I will be right out."

Sage nodded and made her way to the living room.

Once Sage was out of the room, Molly's face grew serious.

"Lily?" she asked, folding her arms and awaiting an explanation.

Carly nodded, hoping she could side-step the issue with minimal tension.

"Yeah. She dropped by with Ethan and Natalie this morning."

"And brought over breakfast?"

Carly nodded again.

Molly paused in thought for a few moments.

"Hold on. Is that who was at your place when I called earlier?" she asked, looking slightly agitated.

"Mm-hmm."

Carly pursed her lips, knowing that the interrogation wasn't over. Under different circumstances, such an interrogation would've been inappropriate, but given that it was coming from Molly, and the closeness between them, it was well within bounds.

"I could've sworn that I also heard a guy's voice laughing in the background," Molly said with knitted eyebrows.

"Yeah. Neal was there too," Carly admitted.

"That's a pretty odd gathering, isn't it?" Molly said with a small laugh.

"Not really. Remember I told you that Lily is the one who officially introduced Neal and me?" Carly reminded.

"Oh, that's right," Molly said, recalling Carly mentioning that bit of information to her after she'd first met Neal at Milltown a couple of days ago. "Did you guys plan this little get-together?"

"Uhh…no," Carly said slowly, "Lily stopped by with the kids early this morning, and Neal dropped by a little later. You know, just to say 'hi,'" she fibbed.

"Since when did you and Lily start hanging out again?" Molly asked in puzzlement.

"Well, we haven't. I just ran into her in the restroom yesterday at the benefit and we got to talking for a little bit. I guess it reminded both of us of what it was like when we used to be friends. So she just stopped by with the kids and we caught up for a little while."

"I see," Molly said, nodding simultaneously. She paused for a few seconds. "Did she ask you about Holden and me?"

"No," Carly said immediately. "No. She didn't bring you guys up at all. Besides, I wouldn't tell her anything about the two of you—you know that."

Molly gave Carly a small smile.

"I know."

"Good," Carly said with a genuine smile. "Besides, you also know how much I love you. No one can take your place in my life."

Molly's smile widened at Carly's words and she affectionately tapped her cousin's cheek a couple of times in response.

"Come on," Carly said quickly. "Let's plate up and see what movie Sage picked out. I'm just hoping it isn't 'Mama Mia' again. I swear, I couldn't sing anything but Abba for weeks after I got her that DVD."

Molly chuckled.

"Yeah, I remember. It was pretty contagious."

The rest of the afternoon went by quite pleasantly. Carly noticed that Molly seemed to have forgotten all about Lily and had loosened up as she reclined on the couch next to Carly with her feet up on the coffee table; a cold can of soda in hand. Carly smiled satisfactorily and refocused her attention on 'The Notebook.'

Once they had reached Oakdale, Jack had Holden drop him off in the parking lot at the Lakeview by his car rather than out in front of main entrance. His conversation with Holden had motivated him to begin taking charge of his life; starting immediately. About fifteen minutes later, he walked through the double glass doors of the Oakdale Police Station, looking for the incumbent chief of police. He made his way past her empty desk and found her sitting at the table in the interrogation room with a pile of files and cases spread out before her. Jack worried at the sight before him. She looked completely overwhelmed by her workload; the bags under her eyes and her tousled short blonde hair accounting for his conclusion. She was so consumed by the paperwork strewn around in front of her that she didn't even notice him walk into the room.

"Margo?" Jack said, making her look up at him. "I want my job back."

There was unmistakable determination in his eyes.