Chap.5
White Lies and Electric Heat
"That's it! I've had enough, Fox! I'm not going to sand here and listen to you complain about what a horrible childhood you had growing up and about how your mother never paid you any attention. Ivy was a fine mother. Just look at how well Ethan turned out. You never see him in any kind of trouble and you certainly never hear him complaining about what a bad mother Ivy was." Jaden's voice trailed off. The look on Fox's face told her she had gone too far.
"Nicky….I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring Ethan up again. I know Ivy paid more attention to him than she did to you, I'm sorry. I just think…"
"No, you didn't think! If you had, you might not have just put your foot in your mouth." Fox turned and opened the door. "You'd do well not to get too closely attached to Ethan. He's been known to break a heart or two."
Fox swept out of the room and slammed the door behind him.
****
Theresa listened as Fox's footsteps faded down the hall. Only moments before Fox had stormed out on Jaden, Resa had hid in the spare guest room one door down from where Fox had emerged. Now she was glad that she had. If Fox would have found her standing outside the door listening, who knows what he would have done.
Fox is on my side! He chose me over Ivy. I knew I could count on him.
Theresa's mind was still reeling from the fight she had overheard Jaden and Fox having when another set of footsteps made there way passed the door. Resa knew they belonged to Jaden.
Theresa smiled as she listened to Jaden descend the mansion steps. Well, I guess she got what was coming to her. How dare she come into my home and look down her nose at my family!
Theresa listened at the door to make sure on one was around before opening it and making her way back down the stairs. Suddenly she felt like rejoining the party and there was a lot of time left before the New Year arrived.
****
"Well, look who decided to join us." Julian smiled mockingly as Resa entered the room. "Welcome back, dear."
"Why thank you, Julian." Theresa smiled at her husband. She was bound and determined not to let him bring her back down.
"Why so enthused?" Julian tilled his head and looked Resa up and down as though she were hiding a secret. "Find another party favor to spend my money on, I suppose."
"No, Julian. I'm just happy. A new year is coming and it's going to be a great year. I can feel it."
"A great year, hum? Why? Are you leaving me? Do I dare to hope? Maybe you'll sign those divorce papers, now that would be a happy New Year. And I know just what my New Year's resolution will be." Julian took a drink from the glass in his hand.
"And what would that be, Julian? Are you going to resolve to stop being such a pig?" Resa smiled bitterly.
"No, my dear. I'm going to resolve to not marry any more trash for as long as I live. I have enough wives and ex-wives to contend to as it is." Julian sneered as he finished the brandy in his hand.
"I'm sure Rebecca won't be too happy to hear that. She was looking forward to becoming the new Mrs. Julian Crane. But, since you're marrying any more trash, I guess she'll be kicked to the curb with the rest of the garbage."
"You never mind about Rebecca and tell me you're giving me a divorce." Julian turned to face Resa. "That is what you're so happy about, isn't it? You'll finally be ride of me?"
"No, no, Julian. I would never dream off leaving you. I'm just fine right here in the mansion. No, this year is going to be different. I can feel it. What with my job at Crane Industries, Ethan is doing so well and Fox is really making progress too. No this year is going to be life-changing, Julian. Even for you." Resa's mind wondered off as she thought of all the things waiting for her just around the bend.
"Fox is making progress with what?" A voice behind Theresa made her jump.
"Ethan! What are you doing back? I thought you and Gwen weren't due back for another week?" Julian said as he turned to face his ex-wife's son.
"Plans changed, Julian. Gwen isn't feeling well and she wanted to come home early. We caught a late fight this evening ." Ethan answered.
"Oh I do hope she's alright." Julian's face held a hint of sympathy as he looked around the room. "Where is the poor dear?"
"She's upstairs resting. I told her I'd be up in a few minutes. I just wanted to tell my mother we were back. But what's this with Fox making progress with something?" Ethan turned his attention to Theresa.
"Oh nothing, Ethan. Don't you worry about anything. You need to just be with Gwen right now. She needs you." Resa patted Ethan's arm and smiled.
"Right, well, Fox had better be behaving himself. I told him before he left that had better keep him nose clean or he'd have to deal with me." Ethan frowned thinking about the things Fox might have filled Resa's head with since he'd left. There'd be time to find out latter, right now he had to get back to his wife.
"Oh not to worry. Fox's nose is clean. I've made sure he blows it every day." Theresa smiled at Ethan with assurance.
"Yes. He's been using money like it were Kleenex!" Julian sneered and walked away.
"I see, well, could you tell Mother we're home if you see her tonight? I need to get back to Gwen." Ethan asked Resa.
"Of course, Ethan. You go on, and I'm sure things will be better in the morning." Resa watched Ethan walk away.
Gwen's not feeling well. I wonder what's wrong. Morning sicknes?? No. She just wanted to come back and rub it in my face that she had Ethan. Gwen had won. Ethan was hers forever now. Nothing could change that. Gwen was carrying Ethan's child and Resa was going to move on with her life. Changes were coming….
****
"I'm sorry you're not feeling well, Gweny." Rebecca brushed her daughter's hair away from her face. "It's just your morning sickness, dear."
"Right. I'm sure you're right Mother. Now if you don't mind, I'd like to be alone with my husband now." Gwen smiled as Ethan walked into the room.
"Oh, of course, dear." Rebecca got up to leave and then turned around. "Gwen. Are you sure you don't want to call the doctor? I'm sure Eve would come over and look at you."
"No! Mother I'm fine. I'm just tired, that's all." Gwen wished her mother would just drop it.
"Fine. But please don't risk your baby's health by being stubborn."
"Don't worry, Rebecca. I'll make sure she's fine. And if she's still feeling bad in the morning, I'm going to call Eve myself." Ethan walked to the bed and sat down next to Gwen.
"Alright then. You two have a nice night." Becky walked from the room, closing the door behind her.
"Gwen. You're really sure? Are you feeling better?" Ethan looked at her with concern.
"Yes, I'm fine, Ethan. I just needed to come home. I think I'll take a shower. Will you be waiting for me when I get back?"
"Can't I join you?" Ethan began unbuttoning his shirt.
"No, I mean…I think I'd like to take a shower by myself. I just need to relax a bit, you understand, right?"
"Of course." Ethan shook his head. "I'm sorry…I shouldn't have asked. Forgive me, Gwen." Ethan looked apologetic.
"It's alright, Ethan." Gwen kissed her husband's head as she got up from the bed. "I'll be back soon."
****
In the bathroom Gwen looked at herself in the mirror. She turned to her side and looked at her tummy. She knew, of course that nothing had changed. Her stomach was just as flat as it had been before. Running her hands over her midsection, Gwen wondered what it would be like to see her stomach growing day by day. To have Ethan's child growing inside of her…
Gwen's mind raced backwards in time. Thinking about everything she and Ethan had been through. Everything they had shared. Would a child bring them closer together? Would it be enough to make Ethan forget about Theresa? It had been enough to win him back this time. But she knew that if she hadn't told Ethan that she was carrying her child, he would have asked Theresa to marry him.
But I won, Theresa. Ethan is mine. He married me. And you and I both knew that once he married, he'd never leave his wife, no matter what. In the back of her mind, Gwen knew the real test was yet to come. Ethan was hers, but would he stay hers?
"I know that you'll never leave me, Ethan. You love me. You'll understand…." Gwen grabbed her stomach as pain rippled through her.
No, not now. I need more time. Just a few more days. I'm not ready for this. Gwen begged as the tears welled in her eyes.
"Please no…." Gwen slid to the floor sobbing.
"Gwen? What the matter?" Ethan opened the door.
"No! Ethan don't come in! I'm fine, just leave me alone!" Gwen tried to get up but her legs gave away under her weight.
"Gwen!" Ethan grabbed her before she hit the floor. Setting her on the toilet he wrapped a towel around her.
"Gwen, are you alright? I'm calling Eve right now." Ethan turned to get the phone.
"No!" Gwen grabbed Ethan's arm. "I'm fine I'll be fine, I just need to walk a bit." Gwen got to her feet and walked a few feet before falling into Ethan's arms.
"Gwen! You need to lay down. I'm calling Eve and that's final!" Ethan scooped Gwen into his arms and he carried her to the bed where he lay her. Picking up the phone, Ethan dialed Eve's number.
"Ethan, please…" Gwen cried.
Ethan paced towards the bathroom as he waited for someone on the other end to pick up. "Come on, Eve, be home!" Ethan turned and what he saw nearly made him drop the phone in his hands. On the toilet cover were Gwen had been setting was a small red spot. Gwen was bleeding.
****
"I don't understand why I couldn't stay in the room with her." Rebecca wined. " I am her mother after all."
"Stop complaining, Rebecca. Eve needs to concentrate on Gwen and she can't do that with you in the room yapping away." Theresa paced outside in the hall, thinking about what this all could mean.
"Theresa's right. Eve needs to be able to do a complete exam on Gwen. I'm sure once she's done she'll let us in." Ethan paced in the opposite direction as Theresa.
"I'm sure everything is fine, Ethan." Fox tried to sound reassuring. "I'm sure Eve will say that it's normal to bleed a little here and there when you're pregnant."
"How do you know, Fox? When's the last time you were a doctor? Or have you been pregnant before and I somehow missed it?" Ethan glared at his half brother.
"I'm just trying to help, chill out, Ethan." Fox glared back.
"You want to help, why don't you just leave the mansion and get on to wherever it is you're going next. Why are you still here, anyways?" Ethan was losing his temper.
"That's right, Ethan. You're the only one welcome in this house, how could I forget? You make it clear every time we see each other that you're the favorite son, but I think you've forgotten something." Fox's eyes were cool as ice.
"And what might that be Nicholas?" Ethan was ready to pop Fox in the face.
" Last time I checked, you weren't even a Crane. So who are you to tell me that I'm not welcome in my own home?" Fox shot a sneer at Ethan.
"Enough! Both of you! You have GOT to stop!" Theresa stopped pacing at stepped between the two young men. "Eve is trying to help Gwen and you're not getting any of us anywhere by fighting. Fox was only trying to help, Ethan. And you.." Resa turned to Fox. "Ethan is very upset right now, so you need to give him some space. He doesn't mean what he's saying right now."
"Things will never change Resa." Fox walked away, leaving Theresa to wonder on his last remark.
****
Eve took Gwen's temperature and her pulse. "Gwen, you're shaking."
"I'm fine. Really." Gwen's skin was covered in sweat and her hair was plastered to her forehead.
"No you're not, and you know it. You're bleeding, Gwen. I need to examine you." Eve got into her bag.
"No, I'll be fine."
"Gwen, is there something you're not telling me? I know that it's difficult to think that you might be losing your baby, but I know you and Ethan will be able to have more children. If you would've called me sooner, I might have been able to do more for you."
"It's too late, Eve." Gwen sobbed.
"No, Gwen. It's alright. A lot of first time mothers have a miscarriage their first time. It's really not uncommon. There's nothing that you could've done, dear. Really, it's not your fault." Eve tried to comfort Gwen.
"No. You don't understand. I'm not having a miscarriage."
"Surly you don't think it's just your period?" Eve looked at Gwen and searched her eyes for the answer.
"Eve…." Gwen looked down at her stomach.
"No, Gwen. You didn't." Eve couldn't keep the shock from her voice.
"I didn't mean for it to go on for so long….I hadn't been feeling well…and I wanted it to be true so bad…." Gwen's sobs grew quieter as her voice became a whisper.
"You mean…." Eve couldn't finish her sentence.
"I took the test, and it was positive. But then I wanted to be sure, so I took the other test in the box. But it was negative. And I knew….I didn't want to admit it, but I knew in my heart…"
"But Gwen….you told everyone that you were pregnant. You told Ethan…" Eve couldn't believe what she was hearing.
"I know, but I wanted it to be true so bad, Eve. I kept thinking that I might be pregnant. One of the tests was positive. And I knew that if there was a chance…Ethan would want to be with me. And even if I wasn't, I could be by the time we got married and then it wouldn't really matter." Gwen's tears flowed over her cheeks.
"Please Eve…. Don't tell Ethan. I really thought there might be a chance I was really pregnant." Gwen pleaded with Eve.
"Gwen. You're asking me to believe that you actually thought you were pregnant…even though one of the tests was negative? And you want me to lie to Ethan about the whole thing?" Eve looked shocked.
"Eve please…he might not forgive me if he knew the truth. I really thought I could be carrying his child. It would only cause him pain to know the whole truth. It's only a little white lie. It can stay just between you and I. Promise me you won't tell anyone." Gwen sobbed as Eve packed her bag.
"Gwen…what you're asking me to do…"
"Please Eve. We'll have children. I can't lose Ethan, Eve, please. I didn't know….I didn't know…"
"Well….technically I can't tell anyone one anything anyways. It's patent confidentiality. I have to keep your secret, or your little white lie as you put it. But strongly urge you to tell Ethan the truth very soon. I'm sure that if you're honest with him, he'll forgive you for not telling him sooner." Eve finished packing her bag and opened the door.
"Thank you , Eve." Gwen smiled faintly as she watched Eve walk from the room.
Her secret was safe…for now. But Eve was right. She needed to tell Ethan the truth. How would he react? Would he really be able to forgive her?
****
Theresa walked outside and picked up a wine glass from the table. The party had broken up aver an hour ago. It was now nearly 2am and the new year had come and gone without her.
"Oh well. 2003 waits for no woman. What a way to start off the New Year." Resa was picking up another glass when she heard someone coming up behind her.
"Don't worry. I'm sure Ethan is fertile enough to give Gwen 30 babies." Fox smiled at Resa in the moonlight.
"Fox, you shouldn't be cracking jokes at a time like this." Resa sighed and sat on the park bench under the tree.
"Who joking? He and Gwen are always going at it like rabbits…." Fox trailed off and sat next to Theresa. "Sorry. I'll shut up now."
"Good."
"Resa…Are you still hoping that Ethan comes back to you?" Fox looked almost somber as he gazed at his step-mother.
"No Fox. I know that Gwen has his heart. I'm over that part of my life. That was my New Year's resolution. A new start, and a new life, filled with happiness and joy." Theresa smiled at Fox.
"A new start, hu? A new start with an old man." Fox laughed at his own joke.
"If you're referring to Julian…." Resa started.
"NO, No…I'm sorry, really. I'm just wondering why you're still married to him. He's not faithful to you by any means and you can't stand being in the same room as him, so why are you still here? You can't tell me it's the money. I know you too well by now to know that it's not my fathers wallet that keeps you here. And if it's not Ethan….than what is it?" Fox looked at Resa with a new interest.
"Julian's money means nothing to me. To tell you the truth, I'm not sure why I stay. Maybe it's because I would rather see him suffer every time I walk into the room, or the look on his face when I'm introduced as Mrs. Julian Crane that keep me here. All I know is that there is nothing for me anywhere else right now." Resa looked up at the stars.
"My mother and Rebecca have it out for you, you know. Not to mention Julian." Fox looked Theresa in the eyes. "You need to be careful."
"I can handle those three, believe me, Fox." Theresa smiled. "Don't worry about me."
"I do worry. I can't seem to help it." Fox trailed a finger down Theresa's bare arm.
Theresa jumped as a bright flash of lightning filled the clear night sky. Was it the electricity in the sky, or was it the electricity in his touch that had made her heart skip a beat?
"Lightning? But there's not a cloud in sight." Resa stood and peered into the night.
Fox stood and walked a few paces ahead of where Resa stood. Looking up at the night's darkness he smiled. "Heat lightning."
"Heat lightning? I forgot about that. I guess it is kind of hot for a January night." Theresa looked up as another flash crossed the sky.
"Yes." Fox walked to Resa's side. "It is hot for January. Maybe you're right, Theresa." Fox touched her face with the back of his hand.
Theresa's eyes locked onto Fox's and she could feel herself being pulled in. The sensation of his bare skin touching hers was enough to make her knees weak. "Right about what?" She could barely get the words out. Her mouth felt dry and her lips seemed too heavy to move.
"Change is in the air." Fox closed the space between Resa and himself. He could feel himself losing control over the situation. She had this effect on him that he just couldn't shake.
Keep your cool. This isn't the right time. Not yet. If I'm not careful, I'll blow it before it's even started. I can't let her get to me like this. I'm the one who needs to be getting to her. How does she get under my skin like this?
Theresa looked up into Fox's eyes. Another streak of brilliant light flashed in the sky. Fox watched as the lightning flashed in Resa's eyes, sending shivers down his back. "Are you cold?" Resa whispered.
"No, why?" Fox couldn't take his eyes off of her. She was beautiful in the day light, but here, underneath the stars with the moonlight shining down on her and the heat lightning flashing in her eyes….She was intoxicating. Fox wanted her so bad, but he knew he had to keep his cool.
"You're shivering." Theresa pressed her hand gently against Fox's chest.
Fox inhaled sharply as his body reacted to Theresa's touch. Quickly he tried to make it seem like he just been taking in a deep breath of fresh air, but he knew it was too late. Theresa had seen his reaction and he knew that she knew how much effect she had over him. He just prayed that she wouldn't use it against him. There was no telling how long he'd be able to control himself if she touched him for much longer.
I might just go insane if she touches me like that again. She knows…I know she does. I can see it in her eyes.
"I'm not cold, I just felt a slight cool breeze, that's all." Fox's eyes followed the curve of Resa's lips as he answered her.
"I didn't feel it." Theresa let her hand slide down Fox's chest and come to rest at his waist. "Are you sure?" She looked deep into his eyes just as another flash of light lit up the sky.
"I'm not sure of anything right now, Theresa." The words came out as a moan as Fox struggled to remain in control of his mind and body. What is she doing to me? I can't think straight. Does she really know what she's doing to me?
Theresa smiled seductively as she watched Fox's eyes fill with desire. The gap between them was nothing more than their clothing and even that couldn't contain the heat rising between them.
"Theresa…" Fox moaned as he fought with every last once of his soul to keep his body in check. His head was lowering and his lips were only inches from hers. If she tilted her head up another inch, his longing would be over but his torture would just be beginning. Fox knew he couldn't hold back any longer.
"Fox…" Theresa could sense his need to end this suffering. She wasn't sure how much longer she would be able to go on denying her body of what she couldn't admit to herself she wanted. She needed to feel his lips on hers. She wanted to feel his hands on her body.
Fox's arms encircled Theresa's small waist pulling her to him in a raw passion that excited her. She knew he couldn't take it any longer. He was going to give in to his desires.
I can't take this anymore. She's driving me nuts. I can regain control later, right now I'm going to show my dear step-mommy what my father never could dream to show her.
"Fox…" Theresa's voice was pleading with him to end the pain in her heart.
Leaning down, Fox tilted Theresa's head up to meet his as he bent to close the small gap between their lips.