Picking Up the Pieces

Chapter One

4-29-2016

Peggy Austin was well beyond anger; she was livid with fury. She loved Steve intensely, and she'd always felt secure about his love for her, except when it came to Jaime. When Steve got home, he found her on the back porch. She refused to even look at him.

"Peggy?"

"You were certainly gone long enough - again."

"I asked you to come along. You're always welcome to come with me."

"To see the daughter you had with her? I'll pass," Peggy said bitterly.

"Peggy, the time I spend with Kelly in non-negotiable," Steve told her gently. "I have every right to get to know my daughter."

"It's not Kelly I'm worried about. Was she there?"

"Jaime? She's Kelly's mother -"

"Was she there?" Peggy repeated.

"Usually she's not; we spend time with Kelly separately. Today, though, as a matter of fact, she was."

"Uh-huh."

"Jaime used to be your best friend -"

"Before she had a daughter with my husband, maybe."

"It wasn't like that, and you know it. Jack Hansen stole a frozen embryo, kept it until he found a surrogate, and -"

"I've heard it already."

"That poor girl went most of her life - all of it that she can remember - with no parent at all."

"So you and Jaime are gonna take her to the circus, for a pony ride and -"

"And now you're being ridiculous," Steve told her, beginning to get angry himself. "We are not going to have this conversation!" He picked up his car keys from the table where he'd set them only minutes before.

"Going to see her again?"

"Kelly got called in to see Stephanie; most likely, she's on an assignment now."

"Not that her - Jaime. You're still in love with her, aren't you?"

"Peggy -"

"This was just the excuse the two of you needed so you could -"

"Peggy!" Steve was almost shouting, out of sheer frustration. "I love you! I married you!"

"Only because she was already married to someone else."

"You don't honestly believe that, do you?" he asked, reaching over to caress his wife's cheek.

She pulled away from his touch. "Steve," she said with quiet fury and deeply-rooted pain, "look me in the eyes and tell me you wouldn't have married her in a heartbeat if she hadn't married Oscar."

"I'm not gonna have this conversation with you. I'll call you later, and if you're in a remotely reasonable mood, maybe we can talk."

"Don't bother."

"Fine with me." Steve got into his car and drove away.

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In Stephanie's office, Steph and James were talking about Kelly, too. "I was gonna ask her out, and now - she's my sister," James lamented.

"Half-sister. Mine, too."

"Yeah, but I don't think you wanted to date her. Or did you?"

"James!"

"Hey...we're not related, are we?"

Steph instantly caught what he was saying. She looked directly at him, about to deliver a sharp retort, and - was that a spark? His eyes seemed to dare her to come closer. Stephanie could stand toe-to-toe with a Hezbollah gunman and not bat an eyelash, but love? Men? Those, she wasn't so good at. She turned and began putting away the papers and files that were scattered across her desk. James grinned and decided to try and get her attention in a more sure-fire fashion. He leaned back in his chair and propped his feet on her well-polished desk.

Stephanie walked quietly around the desk to stand, hands-on-hips, in front of him, staring at the offending feet. "Which one?" she asked.

"Huh?"

"Which one did you want to lose first?" James removed his feet. "Thank you. Don't you have work you could be doing?"

"Did you know you turn red when you're mad, just like your dad?"

"James..."

"Tell ya what - come out and have a drink with me, and I'll quit picking on you. At least for today."

"Tempting, but I can't tonight. Mountains of work to sift through."

"Come on, Steph. It's after 7:00."

"Steph-a-nie."

"Ok, alright - Steph-a-nie - but you do know what they say about 'all work and no play', don't you?"

"In my case, all work and no play makes Stephanie the most powerful woman in the free world."

"I get the message. And I know you think you've got a legacy to uphold, but so do I."

Stephanie laughed. "Yeah, you've got some legacy. Your father told the Secretary of State to take the entire OSI and shove it up -"

"I think I've heard that story once or twice before," James interrupted. He eyed Steph carefully and decided - what the hell - to take a chance. "I'll leave you alone, then, Steph-a-nie, but think about this while you bury yourself in unnecessary bureaucracy." James grabbed his boss tightly in his arms and pulled her way too close. Before she could utter a single word of protest, he kissed her harder and deeper than she'd ever been kissed before until, if you'd asked her, she probably wouldn't have remembered her own name. When he let her go, James grinned at the cute way she blushed, gave her a mock salute and headed out the door. "See ya tomorrow, Steph-a-nie."

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