{Thank you to the guest who let me know that my last post was taken down. I'm not sure why that happened. I hope this time it'll stay up.}
You guys are the best! Oh my gosh, I really appreciate all the kind reviews from my last post.
Those of you who replied said you wanted me to continue the story, and I live to serve. So, here you go.
"What are you doing?" Oliver inquired, returning from the kitchen with two glasses of wine. He handed one to Hope.
"I was just checking in on Steffy." She locked her phone and set it down. "Thank you." She acknowledged, taking the glass from Oliver's hand.
"About her ultrasound?" Oliver clarified.
She nodded and took a sip of her wine.
"That's very nice of you."
"Yes, well, I sort of walked in on them when they were headed out earlier today, so I thought it'd be polite to check in and ask if everything went well." She replied casually.
Oliver tilted his head to the side, carefully assessing that statement. "It's a bit more friendly than polite, but… ok."
"I shouldn't have?" Hope asked, suddenly second-guessing her decision.
"No. No, that's not what I'm suggesting. I'm just…" Oliver paused, searching for the right words to express his thoughts. "…rather surprised by how far you've come. Both you and Steffy. You two seem to be getting along a lot better. I've never seen you on such good terms, and I've known you two for a while." He explained.
It was true. Hope and Steffy's rivalry was one of the first things he had noticed when he started work at Forrester Creations –a rivalry Oliver still wasn't sure he fully understood the origin of. He had always been under the impression that Steffy considered Hope to be her nemesis for no other reason that she happened to be Brooke Logan's daughter. Oliver remembered Hope always trying to remain classy about it and keeping her head held high; that of course was until William Spencer the third came along.
Since that man's entrance into their lives, Oliver had noticed a glaring change in Hope. It had been a rather subtle and shrouded change at first, but knowing Hope the way he did, Oliver saw it. The guy took a breathtakingly beautiful, highly successful, insanely bright, young woman and turned her into an apathetic, unconfident –bordering on insecure –lovesick fool.
So desperate was she on her intent to keep him that she ended up losing herself. Her self-esteem, her self-respect. All that for a boy who never deserved her.
Then again, Oliver really wasn't in any position to blame Hope. He had remained in love with Hope and kept pinning for her for more than two years after they broke up, even though she told him that they were completely over, repeatedly. He knew all too well the struggle of letting someone whom one loved so deeply go. A few things hurt that badly.
The thing though was unlike Liam, Hope was worth it. She was worth the wait and she was worth the pain. She was worth everything, something Oliver was working hard to get her to realize. He still had a long way to go to accomplish that, but he could see that Hope was slowly getting there.
Hope's lovely voice drew him out of his thoughts. "I guess we're trying to put our tortured past behind us?" she said in an almost questioning tone, unsure, a hint of a smile on her face. She knew that she was, and she felt like Steffy was trying as well. "Liam is hers, and I just don't want to fight with Steffy anymore. It's been exhausting!"
The corners of his mouth curled up into a soft smile. "I'm sure it has." Oliver agreed before his features took on a somewhat serious expression. "I'm glad you're finally letting go of all that anger and resentment. It's really unhealthy, and there is no reason you should subject yourself to that."
Hope smiled slightly, knowing Oliver's words weren't low-key criticism but came from a place of genuine concern for her.
"I'm becoming increasingly aware of that." She brought a hand to his face and stroked his cheek tenderly. "…In large part, thanks to you."
/
Liam slyly snuck up on Steffy, wrapping an arm around her waist and giving her a peck on the neck. She started and cried in surprise.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."
Steffy glared at him. "Of course you did."
He picked up a French fry from a plate full of them on the kitchen counter. "Hmm, this is good." He appreciated with exaggeration.
She shook her head then rolled her eyes at his silliness. "They're just fries, honey."
"Delicious fries." He opposed.
She turned to face him and smiled. "Well, thank you."
Liam stroked Steffy's hair tenderly and briefly massaged the nape of her neck. "Are you ok?"
She nodded. Turning down the fire on the chicken, she asked back, "You?"
He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her cheek lovingly before murmuring into her skin, "I'm perfect." He cradled her growing belly from behind. "How's our little buddy?" he inquired.
Steffy smiled. "He's just as perfect as his daddy."
Liam heaved a sigh full of love.
"Did you finish your report?"
"I did. I saw you helped me out there quite a bit. Thank you." he acknowledged quietly. He noticed when he locked back into his account on his laptop and opened his report that more than a couple of paragraphs had been added to the doc file. As he read the words, he almost immediately recognized Steffy's style.
"You're welcome. I know you didn't ask me, but it seemed like you could use a little help."
Liam smiled. He had been stuck there a little bit, and Steffy's input had been more than welcome and helped him get back on track so he could wrap up his report and submit it on time. As always, she had managed to put words to his thoughts with deadly accuracy and in a very eloquent manner. Liam was glad Steffy had taken it upon herself to help him out. He knew he could depend on her for anything –always –but sometimes, it was more satisfying not to have to ask.
"Indeed." He kissed her cheekbone again. "You're a lifesaver. Thank you."
"Anytime."
"Can I help you with anything?"
"Nope, thank you, I'm good. The food will be ready shortly."
"It smells really great." Liam commented before nuzzling her neck. He inhaled her scent deeply. "And you smell even more divine." He complimented, making Steffy giggle.
She moved her face to gaze at him, a warm smile dancing in her eyes. Liam slightly angled his head and leaned down to close the tiny distance between their mouths. Their lips met in a soft kiss, which was interrupted by the sound of Steffy's phone buzzing.
Breaking the kiss, Steffy gave Liam a sorry face. "Can you hand me my phone please?"
Liam exhaled loudly and groaned, "Ignore it." He went to kiss her again but Steffy moved her head away.
"It could be important."
Sighing heavily, he still begrudgingly moved to give her some space and take her phone from the dining table. "Something is more important than me?" Liam brought a hand to his chest and feigned a wounded expression. "You hurt my feelings, Steffy."
Smiling knowingly at him, she took the phone he was handing to her. Her eyes widened in surprise at what she was on the screen. "It's a text from Hope."
He raised a brow, taken aback. "Oh"
"She's asking how the ultrasound went." Steffy told Liam tersely.
"That's sweet of her."
"Hope is a sweet girl, there's nothing new there." She said casually as she typed a reply and sent it to the blonde before setting her phone down on the kitchen counter. "Unlike me." She uncovered the pot and gently stirred the chicken.
Liam frowned and walked over to Steffy. "That's not true. You can be plenty sweet." He placed a strand of hair behind her ear before he added, "…when you want to be."
"Well, don't let the word go around. I wouldn't want my reputation to be ruined."
Liam laughed heartily. "I won't tell a soul."
Steffy smiled back at him. "Care to set the table?"
"Sure." Liam consented and went to do just that.
/
Relaxed in Oliver's arms, Hope heaved a sigh full of love. She always felt so at peace in his arms. He soothed her mind and allayed her worries. Everything was always so simple with him.
Hope didn't have to try to be someone else for Oliver; she didn't have to compromise her moral compass or her beliefs in what she thought a committed relationship should be.
When she was dating Liam, she used to have this inner conflict, this war within herself over her love for Liam and her perspective on right and wrong. It was the most horrible feeling in the world –not feeling true to oneself. Fortunately, Hope was way past that. That was something that she didn't experience at all with the current amazing man in her life. Oliver embraced everything about her: her righteousness, her virtue, her innocence, her sweetness.
He loved her and only her. He seemed genuinely happy with her and satisfied by what she offered him.
Hope slightly shifted her body to look up at Oliver. She smiled tenderly at him. "Have I told you today how much I love you?"
He smiled back at her. "Not really."
"Well, I really do love you, Oliver Jones." She said genuinely.
Oliver's smile turned into a full grin. He cupped her face and leaned down to lay a kiss upon her lips. "Your lips are so soft." He whispered against them, causing her to giggle.
She reattached her lips to his and tenderly ran her fingers against his lips. She pulled back enough to gaze lovingly at him. "So are yours."
"This is nice, right?" Oliver mused, a happy smile lighting up his face. "This is easy."
Hope nodded, agreeing wholeheartedly. She couldn't remember the last time her life had been so simple and she had felt so carefree. "It is." Her features changed into a more serious look as she frowned, which Oliver noticed.
"What is it?"
Her eyes met his and she shook her head thoughtfully. "I'm so sorry, Oliver."
Oliver frowned, confused. "What for?"
"I'm sorry it took me so long to see what was right in front of me all along."
He placed a strand of hair back behind her ear and kept his hand on her cheek as he said, "Hope, everything happens for a reason."
And Oliver truly believed that. He was very well aware that Hope probably never would have even looked twice at Liam if he hadn't broken her heart years ago. He had betrayed in the worst possible way -with her on mother -and that was what had enabled Liam to get so close to her in the first place. He had dampened her light and almost destroyed her soul and Liam had helped her piece herself back together. And for that, Oliver was grateful to the guy.
"I guess so." Hope replied glumly.
"You had to get Liam out of your system, and I had to wait until you did."
Hope didn't say anything and merely stared at him. She simply wished she had been more considerate of Oliver's feelings when she was dating Liam. All along, she knew that Oliver was not over her and was still hoping to get her back, and she had chosen to ignore that fact, and now, she deeply regretted it. Then again, hindsight was always 20/20.
Hope's phone buzzed, signaling a new text message. Oliver seized the opportunity to change the topic of conversation. "Who is it?"
"Steffy." She answered, reading the text. "She says her appointment went well, and the baby's fine."
"That's good. They were finding out the gender today, right?" he recalled. Steffy had told him as much a few days back while they were going through some photographs of her latest photoshoot together.
"They were supposed to, yes." She confirmed before frowning as something occurred to her. "How do you know about that?"
"Everyone at Forrester knows about it."
"Right. It's hard to keep a secret around that place."
"Impossible is more like it." He knowingly commented. "It's only ever a matter of time before they come out. I wonder what the next bombshell is going to be…" he trailed off.
/
By 7 p.m., Liam and Steffy's closest ones had arrived to their home to celebrate the health of their baby and finally learn its gender.
Caroline was the last to arrive, a little later than was expected. When asked about her tardiness, she answered that she was visiting a jewelry boutique and didn't notice the time go by.
"Did you get anything?" Katie inquired.
"No, but ask me again tomorrow." She answered with a smile, and explained herself at Katie's raised eyebrow. "A couple of exquisite items caught my eye. I will mention them to Rick tonight."
Steffy barely refrained herself from rolling her eyes and snorting. And Liam thought she was high maintenance… Right!
Once everyone invited was present, unable to contain his curiosity a second longer, Bill demanded to be told what they were all dying to know that instant. Taylor seconded him on that.
Liam and Steffy exchanged a look, and she nodded at him, giving him the ok to proceed.
"We're expecting twins, a girl and a boy." Liam announced.
Taylor's eyes widened like a saucer as she stared at the glowing pair, mouth agape with astonishment, her expression mirroring that of all the other people in the room.
"What?" Bill was the first to recover.
Liam and Steffy looked at each another and simultaneously burst out laughing. Everyone stared at them, completely baffled and confused, as they practically split their sides laughing.
"Uhh… what is going on here?" Thomas intervened, voicing everyone's thoughts.
Steffy laughed some more and held her stomach as she did.
"It's a joke, it's a joke!" Liam spoke up.
Thomas turned to Taylor and whispered to her, "Are they being for real right now or?"
"I…" she shook her head at loss for words.
"You should have seen all of your faces." Steffy couldn't seem to stop laughing.
Bill looked at his son and his future daughter-in-law as if they had grown a second head. "Are you guys high?" he questioned, starting to lose his patience.
"Oh my goodness, learn to take a joke, Bill. Where is your sense of humor?" Steffy rolled her eyes, aggravated. "We're not expecting twins. We're having a boy." She declared earnestly, her lips curling up into a dreamy smile as she remembered what it felt like to see her baby boy during her ultrasonography earlier that day.
"Really? I mean can we believe you this time?" Bill angled his head and raised a sassy eyebrow at the couple.
Katie scowled at him and was about to intervene when Liam did, "Oh father, come on."
Several moments passed and no one said a thing. Steffy and Liam started to feel uncomfortable at being stared at silently and exchanged an uneasy look. What were they all waiting for to congratulate them?
Mercifully, Caroline stood up and broke the awkward silence. "Steffy, Liam, my dear cousin, congratulations to you both." She glanced at the family members behind her. "Forgive them, they're clearly still in shock." She turned to address the latter. "Would you recover already and congratulate our golden couple?!"
Bill was the first to do just that. He walked over to the pair, followed closely by Katie, and patted Liam on the shoulder. "I'm proud of you son, you did well." He declared.
Liam raised an unimpressed eyebrow in response while Steffy was unable to contain a chuckle. She guessed this was Bill's way of congratulating them.
"So did you Steffy." Her ex-father in law now addressed her.
She smiled graciously at him. "Thank you, Bill."
"You see? I was right. I told you it was a boy."
Steffy laughed before she replied, "Well, I do apologize for not having complete faith in your precognitive talents and needing to hear that from an actual doctor."
"From now on, just remember that I'm always right." Bill said, undisturbed by Steffy's cheeky response.
"Pay him no mind." Katie told her advisedly before congratulating her and Liam. "I'm very happy for you. We're going to welcome yet another little guy in the family." She said cheerfully.
"It's what Spencers do best." Bill declared, smirking.
Katie turned to smile at her husband. "I can attest to that."
"So can I," supported Steffy, smiling at Liam beside her. "That being said, you'd do well to deflate that huge ego of your husband's." She commented only half-jokingly.
Katie smiled. "I am working on it."
Thomas was next in line to address the happy couple. "So we're having a boy, huh?"
"We are." Steffy smiled radiantly, cradling her stomach with affection. Anyone with a pair of eyes could see how crazy in love with her child she already was.
"Aww, how cute, a little Tommy…"
"Whoa, now, wait a second, who said anything about naming him after you?"
"Please, what else could you possibly name him?"
"How about Bill?" Bill suggested, straightfaced.
Steffy's eyes widened. "Don't even joke about that. That is not an option." She spoke determinedly, making herself very clear. Better to nip this ridiculous notion in the bud.
"Why thank you, Steffy. Here I thought you and I got along great."
"We do. I care a lot about you, but not to the point of naming my first-born child after you."
"Your second-born child however…"
"We can discuss that when the time comes." Liam interjected.
"What I was trying to say" Thomas started, giving Bill a pointed look for interrupting him. "…is congratulations, sis." He turned to his former brother-in-law. "You too, Liam."
"Thank you, Thomas." Liam gave him a friendly pat on the back of the shoulder, while Steffy smiled appreciatively at her brother.
Thomas wrapped his arms around her in a fraternal hug. "I love you."
"Love you too."
Just then, Thomas got kicked by Steffy's stomach. He jumped in surprise and looked up at his sister, eyes wide.
"I guess this is your nephew's way of saying he loves you too."
Thomas chuckled uncertainly. "I would prefer a plain old hug in the future."
"Rather than a kick?" Liam raised an amused eyebrow.
"Exactly."
Thomas moved over to Steffy's side, allowing Taylor to come into focus, whom had been silent until then.
"Mom?" Steffy spoke tentatively.
Taylor stood up and walked to the couple. Her lips quirked into a smile, contrasting with the unshed tears hosted in her eyes.
Steffy narrowed her eyes in concern and made a step towards her mother. "Mother… what is it?" she questioned anxiously, worry evident in her expression, tears starting to well up in her own eyes.
Taylor smiled. "I'm just happy for you." She brushed a tear away and extended her hand out to her daughter, who took it. "My baby's having a baby."
"It's an emotional feeling, isn't it?" Bill offered.
"It is." Taylor nodded.
"Mom." Steffy squeezed and shook her mother's hand. "Don't cry. You're going to make me cry." Her voice cracked at the end.
"I'm sorry, honey. They're tears of joy."
"I know." Steffy effectively sobbed, pulling her mom into an embrace.
Liam silently watched the tender mother-daughter moment, moved by the beautiful connection between the two women. Moments like this made him miss his mother even more. Taylor was –simply put –a blessing in their lives. Having her support, knowing that she was there for them for anything provided Liam with great comfort.
/
After breaking the news of the gender of their baby, Liam, Steffy, and their closest family members gathered around the dining table to savor the delicious meal that the mother-to-be had made for them.
As she often did recently, Steffy had kept it light: a healthy salad, along with Alfredo chicken with spinach and pasta. They drank one of the finest champagnes from Armand de Brignac, which Bill brought to the party, safe for Steffy who, in her condition, had no other choice but to settle for orange juice, and Liam who chose to share her lot.
Once everyone was done eating Katie and Taylor insisted on helping clear the table in spite of Steffy's protestations and requisitioned Caroline for the task. The latter grudgingly complied but did so dragging her feet.
Then, they all moved to the living-room area, Bill and Liam having positioned chairs around the couch to make room to accommodate everyone.
"You keep checking your watch, sis." Thomas remarked. "Do you have somewhere to be?"
"No. No, I don't." She shook her head.
"Are we waiting for someone else?" Taylor tried.
"Um..." Steffy briefly hesitated. "Yeah, we are."
Katie arched an eyebrow at her. "We are?"
"Mmmhh." Steffy hummed.
"I thought everyone was here." Katie remarked, taking a look around the room.
"Well, I um, I sort of invited a friend."
Liam turned his attention to his fiancée. "Who?"
Steffy opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out.
Liam grew impatient. "Steffy?"
"Wyatt." Her voice was barely above a whisper.
Liam raised a brow and slightly leaned towards her. "Excuse me?"
Thomas narrowed his eyes at his sister. She caught his eye and fatally noticed the incredulous look he was giving her.
Avoiding his stare, Steffy looked down and heaved a sigh. Part of her was second-guessing herself, but another part of her –a stronger part of her –was compelling her to go forward with what she knew was right. This was just too much anxiety for her to deal with. She needed to get it all off her chest.
"Steffy, Wyatt has nothing to do here." Liam mumbled under his breath, recapturing her attention.
"He does, Liam." She whispered back, earning a disbelieving stare from Liam.
"You cannot be serious, right now!" He exclaimed in a low voice. Although considering the restraint space they were all in, it was clearly a vain effort.
"Steffy…" Taylor spoke in a voice full of implications.
Katie and Bill exchanged a perplexed look, completely clueless as to what was going on, but understanding that a silent conversation was taking place in the room.
"I'm sorry, do you guys need a private moment? Alone?" Bill asked, his words carrying more than a hint of irony.
"Or would you care to tell us who this Wyatt person is?" Katie intervened, sensing that her husband was about to lose his temper.
"He's a friend of mine." Steffy answered tersely.
Caroline frowned. "And his presence here is necessary because?" she inquired.
"Listen, Steffy, I am glad that you're making new friends, ok? But your friend has nothing to do here. This is a family gathering." Bill contested.
"He's right." Taylor agreed.
Steffy took an embarrassed glance at her mother. This situation was giving her such a headache. Whether this was an appropriate moment to disclose everything or not was not relevant: they were all reunited, and Steffy needed to do this and get it over with. "Actually, Wyatt does belong here." She countered.
Katie raised a questioning eyebrow, prompting Steffy to explain herself.
Liam closed his eyes and took a deep breath, endeavoring to keep his calm. He could not believe this.
Once again, Steffy spoke up, "Listen, there is going to be a newest addition to this family."
"Yes." Taylor nodded. "Your precious baby boy, which we're all here to celebrate…" She said, frowning slightly, not entirely sure where her daughter was taking this conversation.
Steffy looked up at her mother and shook her head. "That's not who I was referring to."
"Then who are you referring to?" Caroline intervened for the first time, her eyebrows knit together in utter confusion.
"Wyatt." Steffy replied.
"Wyatt is a part of this family?" Disbelief dripped from Bill's voice. "What? Does king Ridge have an illegitimate child with yet another woman?" he asked mockingly, unable to refrain the smirk on his face.
Thomas tried and failed to maintain his composure at the attack on his father. "You would know." He scoffed.
Bill turned his attention to the younger man. "What did you just say to me?"
"Nothing!" Steffy interjected before things escalated and glared at her older brother. She turned her body towards Bill fully, giving him her full attention. She took a deep breath before bluntly asking him, "Do you know a Quinn Fuller?"
Bill frowned. "What does that have to do with anything?"
She heaved a sigh. She could tell he wasn't going to make this easy for her. "Will you just answer my question please?" she asked, trying not to get aggravated.
"I have come across many people in my life, Steffy. A large majority of them did not make an impression." He replied sternly. Steffy narrowed her eyes at him. He met her gaze and had the intelligence to heed the warning in her eyes. "The name does ring a bell." He reluctantly admitted.
'We're back in business' Steffy thought to herself. "Sounds familiar?"
"That's what I just said."
"So you do know her?" she wanted him to confirm what she thought.
"Possibly… not necessarily."
She knit her brows as he kept evading her question. She was truly seconds away from going off on her fiancé's father, and her hormones were not helping her any in her exertion of restraint.
Not understanding Steffy's innuendo and not appreciating the way she was putting her husband on the spot, Katie got upset, "Steffy, will you get to the point? Who is Quinn Fuller? Why are you associating her with Bill? What is going on?!" She assailed the younger woman with questions.
Sensing her mother's insistent gaze on her, Steffy felt a wave of oppression fill her and briefly turned to her side to glance at her. Taylor was silently begging her with her eyes to reassure her that the conversation was not going where she suspected.
Steffy sighed and began to answer Katie's inquiry, "I think Wyatt Fuller, Quinn's son, is also your son, Bill."
Tell me. How have you all being doing? What's new in your lives? New friends? New boyfriend/girlfriend?
How has 2017 been treating you? What did you think of the chapter?
Let me know. Tell me whatever you want, but please leave a review.
Next chapter, Liam makes a surprising move. What are your guesses?
