Chapter 10
Early the next day, Brooke came down from her bedroom to have breakfast and was surprised to find her daughter already there, sipping on a cup of coffee.
"Hope? What are you doing here? I thought you'd spend last night and today with Liam?"
"I thought so too."
"What do you mean?"
"I would have done all of that if the man in question had been home last night."
Brooke was more than surprised at that. "You mean he didn't come back home last night?"
Hope shook her head. "At least I didn't see him and I can tell you I waited very late."
"Maybe he returned just after you left?" Brooke suggested, trying to be supportive.
"But I don't see what could have kept him out all this time. I didn't get any sleep last night thinking about it."
"You shouldn't worry so much honey. I'm sure it's nothing. If you're that restless over it just go over there now. He shouldn't be up yet."
"Yeah. That's what I was about to do." She gulped down what was left of her coffee and then kissed her mother goodbye.
Fifteen minutes after her daughter left, Brooke was surprised to hear her front door being opened so she turned around to find it was her sister Katie.
"Katie, hey. How are you?"
"I'm fine thank you."
"So, how did your night out with your family go? You all must have had many things to catch up on, Hope said Liam must have gone back home pretty late because she didn't get to see him?"
Katie felt uneasy at where this was going. "Yeah, about that, is she home?"
"No, you just missed her. She went back to Liam's house, isn't that great?"
Katie's eyes almost popped out of their sockets. "No, it's not great at all. It's even horrible. You have to call her back, now!"
Her tone worried her big sister. What could be so bad about Hope going to see Liam that Katie would get so agitated over it? "What is it Katie? Why can't Hope go see Liam and patch things up?"
"Because it's too late! Call her back here, Brooke!"
"Ok, ok. I'll do it."
She dialed her daughter's cell but the two of them were surprised when a ring tone went off on the coffee table besides them. Hanging up, Brooke went over and lifted the phone. "She must have forgotten it in her hurry to get there."
Katie dropped on the couch, hands covering her face. "Oh no! I am too late."
Brooke came over and sat down besides her. "What is going Katie?"
Katie took a deep breath before talking. "That event Bill and I were invited to, it was at Eric's."
Brooke frowned. "But Eric never organizes that kind of event without inviting all the family there and I know Hope and I weren't; we didn't even know about it!"
"That's because Taylor was the one to organize it."
The blonde got an understanding look in her eyes. "I can see why we weren't invited now. But why were you and Bill?"
"Because it was a reception in their children's honor: Steffy and Liam got married in Paris a week ago."
Brooke froze in shock. So that was the reason why none of them could get a hold of the young Spencer boy for a couple of weeks now.
"There is worse."
Brooke's eyes went back to her sister. How could there be worse news for her daughter than that of the love of her life being married to someone else? And not anyone else but Stefffy of all people!
"Steffy is pregnant."
That was it for Brooke. She couldn't move, only one thought running through her mind: Hope was going to be devastated once she learned of all that. And to think, none of them could warn her of what she was about to stumble into.
She stood up suddenly and grabbed her purse and keys, getting her sister's attention. "Where are you going?"
"To Liam's house. If what you're saying is true and Steffy is there, then Hope is going to need me. She can't go through this alone."
Katie stood too. "I'm coming with you."
"Good idea. She's going to need all the help she can get. God only knows what crap Steffy pulled this time to take her boyfriend from her.