Beautiful lie...

A/N: I still own nothing...

Sunday morning, Jordan and Angela are sitting at the kitchen table. Jordan is adding sugar to his coffee and Angela is eating a muffin. Rayanne is still upstairs.

"I must have been really tired last night. I can't believe I fell asleep on the sofa. I wanted to talk to Rayanne when she came in." Angela is worried about her friends.

Jordan looks down at the table. "Trust me, it was better that you were asleep."

"Why? What happened? It couldn't have been that bad, right?" She starts crumbling what's left of her muffin. "At least they talked."

"Well, yeah. I guess you could call it that." Jordan shrugs and gets up from the table to carry his empty plate and cup to the sink. "They kept talking after they came in the house."

"What do you mean? Did they work everything out?" Angela dumps her plate of crumbs in the trash before heading over to the sink. "They're friends again?"

"Uh, no. Look, it's none of our business, ok? Just leave it alone." He opens the door to the garage and walks out.

Angela follows him out. "Jordan, I just want them to resolve this. They're our two closest friends."

"Babe, it's not our problem." He reaches in to Red and pulls the hood release. Walking around to the front of the car, he lifts the hood. "If Rayanne wants to tell you, that's fine. I'm not talking about it anymore." He walks over to the stereo and turns it up loud, signaling the end of the conversation. He turns back to the car.

Angela turns and walks back into the house with a hurt look on her face, pulling the door closed behind her.

Angela VO: Is it so bad to want your friends to be happy? Now I'm not even supposed to ask?

She heads to the den and sits on the sofa with her legs pulled up beside her. Not even bothering to turn the TV on, she lays her head back on the cushion and closes her eyes. After sitting that way for several minutes, she hears Rayanne come down the stairs.

"Hey, Angelica. I think I'm going to head home today." She sits in the recliner across from Angela. "Thanks for letting me crash here for a few days."

"What? I thought you were leaving tomorrow. Why did you change your mind?" Rayanne looks away, not meeting Angela's eyes. "What happened with you and Shane?"

"Nothing happened, Ang. I just want to go home. I've already packed, so I'm going to like load my stuff in the car." She stands and starts to walk by Angela, but Angela puts her arm out to stop her. "Please don't do this, Angela. Just let me go, alright?"

"Just tell me, ok? I don't even know what happened between you in the first place." She takes Rayanne and pulls her down on the sofa beside her. "I mean, I didn't expect you guys to end up together, but I kinda wanted you to at least make peace."

"Angelica. You won't understand. It's best that I just go." She gets up, but Angela pulls her back down.

"Try me, Raynie." Angela squeezes her hand. "Help me understand why my friend and the guy who is like a brother to me can't be in the same room together. Shane won't tell me, he just says he's sorry."

"Angela, please. It's best that you don't know. I'm just..." Rayanne is crying as she jumps up and runs upstairs.

Angela runs up the stairs behind her and stands in the door of the room Rayanne had been using. Rayanne is gathering the rest of her things. "Rayanne, please just tell me. I promise I'll let it go, if you just explain it to me."

"DAMN IT, ANGELA. You really want to know why Shane broke it off with me? He broke up with me because I told him I was using him so that I could be close to JORDAN. OKAY? Is that what you wanted to hear?" Rayanne walks over to the other side of the bed to put distance between her and Angela.

"I got wasted one night. Shane was pissed because he found out I was using again. He told me that he loved me. That he had loved me for years and he wanted me to get help. I was wasted out of my mind! I laughed at him and told him that I didn't love him. I wanted Jordan and I couldn't have him, so I started screwing the next best thing, Shane." She let out a bitter laugh. "Shane wanted me. He loved me, but still, after everything that happened, I wanted Jordan."

"Rayanne! What the fuck are you talking about? You told me you never wanted Jordan." Angela can't believe what she's saying.

"Oh, please. Angela, even you aren't that naïve! I fucked Jordan in the back of his car. Yeah, I may have been a little drunk, but I knew what I was doing! And the worst part of it? I knew he was almost out of it. He kept saying your name the whole time. I didn't enjoy it at all. I knew he was head over heels in love with you, but I used that to be with him." Shaking her head, she looks down to the floor.

Angela still standing in the doorway, puts her hand over her face. "Rayanne, I've moved past all that. I forgave you. That was all so long ago. I thought you were my friend. Has it all been a lie? All this time, you haven't been my friend?"

"I am, or at least I want to be. I do love you, Angela. Hell, I want to be you. I still wish I could have what you have. You have everything. You have Jordan, you have Maddie and the baby, you have a family that loves you. You live this perfect little suburban life with your rockstar husband and what do I have? I have my gay best friend and his lover and a half ass career as an actress. I have nothing!"

Moving back around the bed to stand in front of Angela, Rayanne continues, "Angela, I would never, ever try to interfere with your marriage. Anyone with eyes can see how much Catalano adores you. He won't even look at another woman. I tried to be with Shane, I really did. I hurt him, not the other way around. Last night, he told me he still loves me. Can you believe that? I don't love him back."

Grabbing Angela by the hands, she looks her in the eye. "Don't you understand? I never wanted you to know that. You and Jordan are happy, really happy. I do love you guys."

"Rayanne, I don't know what to say. Are you saying you're still in love with my husband? After all this time?" Angela pulls her hands away.

Instead of answering her, Rayanne walks over to her suitcase and picks it up. She grabs her purse and heads for the door.

"Damn it, Rayanne. You can't leave like this. You have to stay and face me. What am I supposed to say to Jordan?" Crying now, Angela backs out the door and lets Rayanne pass with her bags. She follows her down the stairs. "Rayanne, talk to me."

"Angela, you don't have to say anything to Jordan. He walked in on me and Shane last night when we were yelling at each other. He heard me tell Shane that I didn't want him because he could never be Jordan Catalano." Turning her back to Angela, she laughs. "Shane looked like someone had shot him. He ran out of here and Jordan followed him. I don't know what happened after that because I went upstairs to bed."

"Angelica, I promise I never meant to hurt you this way. I've been pretty good at pretending over the years, you know. I hope you can forgive me one day." She tries to hug Angela, but Angela pulls away.

"You know what? Shane is better off alone than with someone like you, Rayanne. I can not believe that you would use him that way. I can't believe that he could still have feelings for you after all this time. I was so sure that he did something to hurt you. I thought that's why you ran to New York to live with Ricky. It all makes more sense now." Wiping her eyes, Angela looks right at Rayanne. "I do have something to say to you before you leave my house. You're pining away for something you'll never have. You will never be me." Angela walks to the door and pulls it open. "Leave, Rayanne."

"Angelica, I'm sorry."

Rayanne picks up her bags and walks out the door. Shutting it behind her, Angela runs upstairs and lays on the bed crying herself to sleep.

Jordan, who is completely unaware of what happened, comes into the bedroom to find Angela asleep on the bed. He walks over and sits on the bed beside her. Brushing her hair from her face, he gently kisses her cheek.

Shaking her, he whispers her name. "Angela. Hey, babe, wake up." When she opens her eyes, he can tell that she'd been crying. "Hey, what happened with Rayanne? Did she leave?"

Rubbing her eyes, Angela sits up. "She left. I don't think we'll be hearing from her anytime soon, either." She heads to the bathroom. When she comes back into the room, she goes over to sit in Jordan's lap, hugging him to her.

"So, she just left? Did you talk to her?"

"Yeah, I did. She told me everything, way more than I needed to know. I was so not expecting her to say what she said. Did you know? I mean, before last night?" She lays her head on his shoulder.

"I had no idea. Shane never said a word." Pulling her tightly to him, he kisses her head. "I don't even know what to say."

"Jordan, you don't have to say anything at all. This was all Rayanne's doing. You didn't hurt Shane, she did." Pushing up from his lap, she stands beside the bed. "You talked to him last night?"

"He'll be alright. I think he's just relieved that it's finally in the open. It's been eating at him for years. I still can't believe he let us think their break up was his fault. He said it was better that way, so that it didn't mess with me and you, you know?" Leaning close to her, he buries his face in her now rounded belly and hugs her to him. Looking up at her, he says, "Red, you know I only want you, right?"

"I know." Smiling, she pulls him off the bed and toward the door. "We need to call Tommy and let him know that we won't be cooking out this afternoon, after all. Rayanne is gone and I know Shane won't be up to it. Wanna go to the park with Dani, Brian and the kids? It'll be fun."

"As long as you don't mind taking me out in public. You know how it is, once I get recognized, we won't have any peace." At the bottom of the stairs he pulls her back into his arms. He can't help but tease her. "Think you can share me with the public? The women won't leave me alone."

"Baby, I can't stop women from wanting you. I've watched women throw themselves at you since the first day I saw you leaning against the lockers in the hallway of Liberty High. There's just something about you that is irresistible to the female species. As long as it's my bed you come home and climb into, I'm okay with it. Nothing else matters." Smiling sweetly at her husband, she says, "Just make sure you grab a hat."

"Ok, babe, we'll go to the park. And we're taking Red, too. We can sit in the backseat with the top down and watch the fireworks like we used to. Happy 4th of July, Red."

Review please! ~gagirl29