Chapter 22
"Why did you come?"
Julian pulled at the tie around his neck and set his mug of coffee down on the plain oak table. "Home?"
Eve shook her head. "To the clinic? Julian.whatever we had between us.we were over so long ago. That night.when T.C. found us.it never should have happened."
Julian leaned back in his chair and studied her. "I'm sorry," he said finally.
She laughed bitterly. "For what? Getting me pregnant and abandoning me? Tearing my marriage apart? Nevermind.I can't place ALL the blame on you, can I?"
Julian stared at her in silence.
"I could have walked away," she sighed. Pushing her chair back from the table. And walking over to the sink to empty her coffee cup. "At any moment.I could have walked away."
"Do you really believe that?"
She had her back turned to him. She gave him no answer.
A picture tacked on the refridgerator door caught his eye, and he rose to his feet to get a closer look. "Handsome boy," he said. Not without a bit of pride. "Do you.are you.how are things between you?" he said awkwardly.
Her eyes were bright as she spoke. "My relationships with ALL my children are practically non-existent. Awkward. We don't know each other. The past.it's always there. Standing in our way. But he tries. He really tries. It's hard."
"At least you get a chance," Julian said miserably. Running a weary hand over his face.
She surprised herself by reaching out to him.
The phone rang in the living room.
"You should get that."
She hesitated for just a second before she removed her hand from his arm.
The sound of her voice was muffled in the other room.
The door clicked shut behind him.
"Julian.Julian.you're not here," she whispered to herself.
Why did he come?
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"Looks like somebody's had an even worse day than I have," Noah grinned when Paloma flung open the door.
"Noah," Paloma grumbled. "I'm warning you right now.I don't even know if I can stand to look at you."
Noah blinked twice and held up his hands defensively. "Okay! Okay! Guess I'll go unload all my troubles on Beth again. She.unlike somebody I know." he raised a brow, "is a good listener."
Paloma rolled her brown eyes and grabbed him by the arm. "Get in here. You need to leave Beth alone. You bug her too much already," she added. Padding past him on bare feet to the sofa and plopping down.
"Graceful," Noah laughed.
"Don't even."
"Geez! What's got into you?" he questioned. Making sure he was out of striking distance as he sat down on the other end of the sofa.
Paloma plunged the silver spoon in her hand into the cartoon of ice cream. "Your brother."
"My brother? What's he done to you?" Noah asked interestedly. Careful to hide his smile when Paloma shoved a gigantic spoonful of Rocky Road into her mouth.
"To my sister! Theresa! You know what? I'm beginning to think the Bennett men aren't too smart," Paloma muttered under her breath.
"I take offense to that," Noah bristled. "On behalf of myself and Uncle Hank.not all Bennett men are dumbasses."
That earned a smile.
"Well.maybe not all Bennett men," Paloma conceded.
"Thank you," Noah smiled. "Now.what did Ethan do to Theresa?"
Paloma shook her head. "It's not my place to tell."
"Come on," he pushed. "He's my brother, you know. And I've known Theresa my whole life. What did he do? I might not like him, and I might not put a lot of faith in his intellectual abilities," Noah smirked. "But I can tell he loves her."
"Oh yeah?" Paloma shot back.
Noah nodded his head.
"If he loved her so much."
"I really believe he does," Noah stated.
"Then tell me this."
"Okay," Noah agreed.
"Why did he sleep with another woman?"
Noah's jaw fell open.
"What did you say?"
"Ethan slept with another woman," Paloma told Whitney.
All the color drained out of Whitney's face.
"And when I find out who she is."
"You'll what?" Noah asked.
"I don't know," Paloma admitted miserably. Tucking her dark hair behind her ears. "How could she? How could she do something so low? Tear a family apart like this? Theresa's devastated. And Matthew. Poor baby. He doesn't understand. Ethan's a bastard. But this woman.words can't even describe."
"Um.Noah? Would you like something to drink? Water? A soda?" Whitney interrupted.
"Soda?" Noah shrugged. Throwing an arm around Paloma's shoulders and pulling her back against him.
"Paloma? You want anything?"
"No," Paloma said tearfully. "I can't believe it, Noah. I can't."
Whitney reached a shaky hand up to open the cabinet. And pulled out two glasses.
"I hate her. I hate her. The worst thing.what if she's someone Theresa knows?"
The glass slipped from Whitney's numb fingers.
And shattered into a million jagged pieces.
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Hank cursed under his breath as he bounded up the stairs. Two at a time. What the hell had gotten into Grace?
Gwen's figure disappeared around the corner. Her auburn hair flying behind her.
"Gwen! Gwen! Slow down!" He pushed the heavy door open just in time to see her shut her apartment door.
"Go away, Bennett!" she cried as his fists pounded on the door. "Just go away!"
Hank sighed and leaned his head against the door's frame. "You might as well let me in, Gwen, because you're not going to get rid of me. Please open the door."
The door creaked open slowly.
And he saw her tear-stained face.
"What are you looking at?" Gwen spat.
He stepped closer, and she took a step back. "Gwen? You're upset. I only want to help."
She scoffed at him. "Help? Nobody wants to help me. Nobody cares about me. Nobody cares that he ruined my life. That he threw me away like yesterday's trash. That he treated me like dirt."
"I care," he said softly. Reaching out to her.
"I don't want to feel this way. After all these years.I want so much to move on. But I can't. I can't," she sobbed.
He reached a tentative hand to her face.
"I'm afraid. I don't know if I can." she whispered.
"What?" he asked gently. Cupping her face in the palms of his hands and brushing her tears away with the pads of his thumbs. "What are you afraid of, Gwen?"
She searched his brown eyes. One of her hands came up to cover his.
"What are you afraid of?" he asked again. His gaze shifting to her lips. One of his hands slid to the nape of her neck. Tangling in her hair. And he leaned his forehead against hers.
She closed her eyes. "To love again."
He pulled her into his arms and let her cry.
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Theresa and Matthew were long gone. With Mama.
Danielle was upstairs. Playing with her new computer game.
Sheridan was wrapped safely in his arms.
"Are you still awake?"
"Yes," she laughed softly. "Luis.it's not even late."
"You were so quiet I."
She lay a finger against his lips. Hushing him. "I was listening to your heart beat."
"Uh huh?" he chuckled.
"And thinking."
"Sheridan."
"I want to go, Luis. I need to go."
He sighed and released him arms from around her. "Sheridan, we talked about this. He tried to kill you. You don't owe him anything."
"Luis," she said softly. Twisting the rings on her fingers. "I can't explain it. I.I just need to do this. Say you'll go with me. You don't have to be okay with this. But I need you there."
He grabbed her hand in his and squeezed. "Okay," he relented. "I'll go. But if he so much as looks at you wrong.And I can't make any promises that I won't deck your nephew again."
She smiled slightly. "Thank you," she breathed. Pecking him on the lips. "I'll call Charity and ask her if Danielle can stay over."
Luis watched her climb the stairs. Every instinct he had was telling him this wasn't a good idea. But he couldn't deny her this.
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"Who are you?"
That question echoed in her brain.
She still didn't know the answer. She was beginning to think she didn't want to.
"Who am I?" she laughed.
It was an ugly, hollow sound that sent chills up her spine.
"Kay.don't be silly. I'm your mother."
Her touch was so cold.
The Amazing Grace rocked underneath her.
"So many questions."
More than she could count.
"You shouldn't ask so many questions, Kay."
The sun was fading.
She needed to get home.
The boat shifted under her feet.
Groaning.
"The answers might be more than you can handle."
Eerie laughter rang in her ears, and she whipped her head around searching the wharf for anyone.
Anything.
"Too many questions."
She stumbled over the coiled anchor rope as the boat rocked harder.
An uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach.
"DON'T QUESTION ME!"
The boat rocked violently.
Pitching her forward.
She screamed as the anchor pulled taut around her ankle and dragged her into the black waters.
Stealing all her breath.
"Why did you come?"
Julian pulled at the tie around his neck and set his mug of coffee down on the plain oak table. "Home?"
Eve shook her head. "To the clinic? Julian.whatever we had between us.we were over so long ago. That night.when T.C. found us.it never should have happened."
Julian leaned back in his chair and studied her. "I'm sorry," he said finally.
She laughed bitterly. "For what? Getting me pregnant and abandoning me? Tearing my marriage apart? Nevermind.I can't place ALL the blame on you, can I?"
Julian stared at her in silence.
"I could have walked away," she sighed. Pushing her chair back from the table. And walking over to the sink to empty her coffee cup. "At any moment.I could have walked away."
"Do you really believe that?"
She had her back turned to him. She gave him no answer.
A picture tacked on the refridgerator door caught his eye, and he rose to his feet to get a closer look. "Handsome boy," he said. Not without a bit of pride. "Do you.are you.how are things between you?" he said awkwardly.
Her eyes were bright as she spoke. "My relationships with ALL my children are practically non-existent. Awkward. We don't know each other. The past.it's always there. Standing in our way. But he tries. He really tries. It's hard."
"At least you get a chance," Julian said miserably. Running a weary hand over his face.
She surprised herself by reaching out to him.
The phone rang in the living room.
"You should get that."
She hesitated for just a second before she removed her hand from his arm.
The sound of her voice was muffled in the other room.
The door clicked shut behind him.
"Julian.Julian.you're not here," she whispered to herself.
Why did he come?
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"Looks like somebody's had an even worse day than I have," Noah grinned when Paloma flung open the door.
"Noah," Paloma grumbled. "I'm warning you right now.I don't even know if I can stand to look at you."
Noah blinked twice and held up his hands defensively. "Okay! Okay! Guess I'll go unload all my troubles on Beth again. She.unlike somebody I know." he raised a brow, "is a good listener."
Paloma rolled her brown eyes and grabbed him by the arm. "Get in here. You need to leave Beth alone. You bug her too much already," she added. Padding past him on bare feet to the sofa and plopping down.
"Graceful," Noah laughed.
"Don't even."
"Geez! What's got into you?" he questioned. Making sure he was out of striking distance as he sat down on the other end of the sofa.
Paloma plunged the silver spoon in her hand into the cartoon of ice cream. "Your brother."
"My brother? What's he done to you?" Noah asked interestedly. Careful to hide his smile when Paloma shoved a gigantic spoonful of Rocky Road into her mouth.
"To my sister! Theresa! You know what? I'm beginning to think the Bennett men aren't too smart," Paloma muttered under her breath.
"I take offense to that," Noah bristled. "On behalf of myself and Uncle Hank.not all Bennett men are dumbasses."
That earned a smile.
"Well.maybe not all Bennett men," Paloma conceded.
"Thank you," Noah smiled. "Now.what did Ethan do to Theresa?"
Paloma shook her head. "It's not my place to tell."
"Come on," he pushed. "He's my brother, you know. And I've known Theresa my whole life. What did he do? I might not like him, and I might not put a lot of faith in his intellectual abilities," Noah smirked. "But I can tell he loves her."
"Oh yeah?" Paloma shot back.
Noah nodded his head.
"If he loved her so much."
"I really believe he does," Noah stated.
"Then tell me this."
"Okay," Noah agreed.
"Why did he sleep with another woman?"
Noah's jaw fell open.
"What did you say?"
"Ethan slept with another woman," Paloma told Whitney.
All the color drained out of Whitney's face.
"And when I find out who she is."
"You'll what?" Noah asked.
"I don't know," Paloma admitted miserably. Tucking her dark hair behind her ears. "How could she? How could she do something so low? Tear a family apart like this? Theresa's devastated. And Matthew. Poor baby. He doesn't understand. Ethan's a bastard. But this woman.words can't even describe."
"Um.Noah? Would you like something to drink? Water? A soda?" Whitney interrupted.
"Soda?" Noah shrugged. Throwing an arm around Paloma's shoulders and pulling her back against him.
"Paloma? You want anything?"
"No," Paloma said tearfully. "I can't believe it, Noah. I can't."
Whitney reached a shaky hand up to open the cabinet. And pulled out two glasses.
"I hate her. I hate her. The worst thing.what if she's someone Theresa knows?"
The glass slipped from Whitney's numb fingers.
And shattered into a million jagged pieces.
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Hank cursed under his breath as he bounded up the stairs. Two at a time. What the hell had gotten into Grace?
Gwen's figure disappeared around the corner. Her auburn hair flying behind her.
"Gwen! Gwen! Slow down!" He pushed the heavy door open just in time to see her shut her apartment door.
"Go away, Bennett!" she cried as his fists pounded on the door. "Just go away!"
Hank sighed and leaned his head against the door's frame. "You might as well let me in, Gwen, because you're not going to get rid of me. Please open the door."
The door creaked open slowly.
And he saw her tear-stained face.
"What are you looking at?" Gwen spat.
He stepped closer, and she took a step back. "Gwen? You're upset. I only want to help."
She scoffed at him. "Help? Nobody wants to help me. Nobody cares about me. Nobody cares that he ruined my life. That he threw me away like yesterday's trash. That he treated me like dirt."
"I care," he said softly. Reaching out to her.
"I don't want to feel this way. After all these years.I want so much to move on. But I can't. I can't," she sobbed.
He reached a tentative hand to her face.
"I'm afraid. I don't know if I can." she whispered.
"What?" he asked gently. Cupping her face in the palms of his hands and brushing her tears away with the pads of his thumbs. "What are you afraid of, Gwen?"
She searched his brown eyes. One of her hands came up to cover his.
"What are you afraid of?" he asked again. His gaze shifting to her lips. One of his hands slid to the nape of her neck. Tangling in her hair. And he leaned his forehead against hers.
She closed her eyes. "To love again."
He pulled her into his arms and let her cry.
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Theresa and Matthew were long gone. With Mama.
Danielle was upstairs. Playing with her new computer game.
Sheridan was wrapped safely in his arms.
"Are you still awake?"
"Yes," she laughed softly. "Luis.it's not even late."
"You were so quiet I."
She lay a finger against his lips. Hushing him. "I was listening to your heart beat."
"Uh huh?" he chuckled.
"And thinking."
"Sheridan."
"I want to go, Luis. I need to go."
He sighed and released him arms from around her. "Sheridan, we talked about this. He tried to kill you. You don't owe him anything."
"Luis," she said softly. Twisting the rings on her fingers. "I can't explain it. I.I just need to do this. Say you'll go with me. You don't have to be okay with this. But I need you there."
He grabbed her hand in his and squeezed. "Okay," he relented. "I'll go. But if he so much as looks at you wrong.And I can't make any promises that I won't deck your nephew again."
She smiled slightly. "Thank you," she breathed. Pecking him on the lips. "I'll call Charity and ask her if Danielle can stay over."
Luis watched her climb the stairs. Every instinct he had was telling him this wasn't a good idea. But he couldn't deny her this.
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"Who are you?"
That question echoed in her brain.
She still didn't know the answer. She was beginning to think she didn't want to.
"Who am I?" she laughed.
It was an ugly, hollow sound that sent chills up her spine.
"Kay.don't be silly. I'm your mother."
Her touch was so cold.
The Amazing Grace rocked underneath her.
"So many questions."
More than she could count.
"You shouldn't ask so many questions, Kay."
The sun was fading.
She needed to get home.
The boat shifted under her feet.
Groaning.
"The answers might be more than you can handle."
Eerie laughter rang in her ears, and she whipped her head around searching the wharf for anyone.
Anything.
"Too many questions."
She stumbled over the coiled anchor rope as the boat rocked harder.
An uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach.
"DON'T QUESTION ME!"
The boat rocked violently.
Pitching her forward.
She screamed as the anchor pulled taut around her ankle and dragged her into the black waters.
Stealing all her breath.