New start!

The morning after, Taylor had regained her courage. She was looking forward to being released the following day. In the morning, Nick had shown up again unexpectedly. At first Taylor had the faint hope that he had changed his mind overnight, but exactly the opposite had been the case. He had custody papers with him. Nick wanted to divest himself of any parental rights and responsibilities. Taylor had agreed to his request without any argument.

She truly had other issues to deal with. Fortunately, at least there wasn't a problem where she would live with Jack. She could easily move back into her old house. After the breakup with Brooke, Ridge had lived there for a while, but had moved out shortly after because the house was too big for him alone. A few weeks ago, they had talked about possibly selling the house or at least renting it out. Thankfully, they had not yet taken any steps in that direction, so the house was currently empty.

Still, there was a lot of work to be done, the move had to be organized and most importantly, a nursery had to be set up. Taylor realized she wouldn't be able to do all this without help. She urgently needed support. For this reason she called Thomas and the twins and asked them to come to the hospital in the afternoon.

Punctually they all rushed into the room. They had all been there together a few days ago to meet Jack. Also today their attention was first focused on their little brother. Only then they wanted to know why they should come. With short words Taylor told them about the events of the last days. They were all shocked and assured their mother of their support. They all promised to help with the move and to mobilize some more helpers. The move should take place the day after tomorrow.

The next day Taylor was allowed to leave the hospital with Jack. Thomas picked them up, while Steffy and Phoebe did all the shopping Taylor had asked them to do. The three of them had prepared everything for the arrival. The girls had baked a cake and Thomas had decorated the house. He found an old crib in the attic, which he set up in the living room.

Taylor was quite touched by all the attention. With lemonade and cake, they all celebrated together.

Early next morning the move was on. Thomas had arranged a van from Forrester Creation. The moving crew worked in different groups. Taylor packed up her study and her personal belongings from the living room. Thomas took care of the nursery with his friends and the girls cleaned out the bedroom and closet. Jackie volunteered to take care of Jack. By evening, all the stuff was in the new home and Taylor bought pizza for all the helpers.

During the following days Taylor and the kids were very busy. Together they created a beautiful nursery for little Jack and made the complete mansion baby proofed. Taylor was grateful for having her children to help and support her. She didn't know what she would have done without them. She also was very happy how easily they all accept Jack as their brother. They adored the little new family member, especially Thomas who was thrilled.

Taylor was on her way to Nick's place. This morning the annulment papers arrived and Nick had asked her to come over to sign them. At first she had been quite caught off guard. Nick obviously couldn't wait to get rid of her, but maybe it was best for all of them to get this done as soon as possible. Nevertheless, Taylor had a queasy feeling in her stomach. She still couldn't believe that her marriage had fallen apart after such a short time. But she was determined, she had made the right decision. Jack was her top priority. He deserved a happy childhood. Since she had no idea how the meeting would go, she had tried to find a babysitter for Jack, but no one was available on such short notice. So she had no choice but to take him with her. A short time later, as she stood in front of her former home, her heart was jumping out of her chest. She took a deep breath before pressing the doorbell. Nick had been waiting for her impatiently.

"Hey, there you are finally!"

"Wow, that's a nice welcome! Sorry but Jack was hungry and then I had to change him."

"Why did you even bring him with you?"

"Shall I leave him alone at home?"

"Ever heard the word 'nanny'?"

"I'm perfectly capable of taking care of my child myself, besides I'm hardly here to discuss childcare options with you."

"Right, here are the papers and a pen!"

"If you don't mind, I'd like to read them before I sign."

"Please, if you don't trust me anymore!" Taylor just gave him an incredulous glance. As she went through the paperwork, Jack started crying in his car seat. Taylor tried her best to calm him down, just as Jack was about to relax, Nick lost his temper.

"Make him stop, this whining is really annoying!" Jack was yelling even louder and Taylor angrily snapped at Nick.

"Are you out of your mind, yelling like that with a little baby here in the room?" Lovingly, she turned to her son.

"Don't be scared, the evil man didn't mean it like this. We're about to leave and then we'll never come back here again!"

"That's what I'd really like to ask!" replied Nick cold. Taylor just wanted to leave. In a rush she finally signed the papers and grabbed Jack, she remembered something else.

"One more thing, practically a last request. I've been so busy the last few days, I haven't gotten any chance to tell Ridge and the others the truth. So I'm asking you not to talk to anyone about Jack and the paternity stuff."

"Okay, fine!"

"Thank you! Well, I guess that's it. Take care of yourself Nick!

"You too and goodbye!"

As Taylor left the house, she almost bumped into Brooke. Ignoring her Brooke rushed past her and hugged Nick tightly. Taylor walked to her car without taking any further notice of them. She decided not to drive straight home but to make a detour to the park. The weather was beautiful and a walk was exactly what she needed.