Hi everyone! How are you all? Who else is excited to have JMW back on their screen?
Our Steffy is back! I hope Bell treats her right this time around.
Thank you to those of you who expressed their condoleances. I truly appreciate it.
I had to split this chapter in two parts because it was just getting too long.
Individual replies:
Kayla: Thank you very much for your sympathies and for the compliments. Let's hope they do. We shall see.
Guest1: Thank you.
Guest2: Wow. Thank you very much. You're too kind.
Moonie: Thank you. I'm really sorry for your losses. My grandmum and I were just so close... I feel like I've lost a mother. Ah, what Steffy is feeling isn't insecurity. I think her feelings are very much satisfied, as you will notice. Thank you for letting me know about the ring thing. I actually knew that, but it was so late when I was writing. I'm surprised there aren't 100 spelling mistakes in that chapter. Honest mistake. I choose to make Hope an ok designer in this story. I don't care for Rick and Caroline. They just don't interest me. I'm just following the course of the show in this regard, and I believe they were together at the time (early 2013)?
Guest 3/4: Thanks! I'm glad.
bbgold: Thank you. I appreciate it.
RHatch89: Thanks.
Liam was tossing in every way in his sheets. He was struggling in vain to get out of his sleep. Finally, his eyes sprang open as he awoke. He reached out for Steffy on the other side of the bed, but instead of the brunette's soft skin, Liam was met with a cold material.
Rubbing his eyes, Liam drew himself up and picked up the note to read its contents.
Liam,
I have an early meeting.
I didn't want to wake you.
I made you pancakes. They're in the oven.
There's coffee in the French Press too.
Until later,
S.
Liam read the note twice. No "I love you". No "kiss". He dropped the note and put his head in his hands. So much for escaping his nightmare. Five minutes before, he had been dreaming that Steffy was leaving him, and here he woke up, only to find that she had already left for work.
Liam didn't really believe in premonitory dreams, but… one had to acknowledge that all this didn't presage anything good. Though, she did make him breakfast…
Liam glanced at the clock: 8:14 a.m. Wow. He thought it was much later than that.
What business meeting could Steffy have at such an early hour in the morning? Was it possible that she just didn't want to speak with him and was avoiding him once again? That thought hurt Liam, and he didn't want to believe it, but how could he not when the facts were facing him in the eye?
He retrieved his cellphone from underneath his pillow and dialed Steffy's number. It rang. And rang. And rang. Voicemail. Sighing, Liam hung up and threw his phone on his nightstand.
He got up and started walking in the direction of his bathroom when his stomach gurgled. Huh. He guessed he was going to eat before he showered this morning.
/
Liam knocked once, and then entered Bill's office.
"What did I tell you about entering my office without being granted permission?" Bill asked him.
Liam silently turned around and walked out. He knocked at the door and waited.
"Yes? Come in." Bill said.
Liam came in again.
"See? Isn't that better?" Bill commented.
Liam walked up to Bill's desk and handed him a paper. Bill took it. "It's my article for this week's Eye On Fashion. It's been peer-reviewed, and I've made the changes they suggested. This is the final version. In need of your approval." Liam said, and turned to walk out of Bill's office when his father's voice echoed behind him.
"Um, hello. Good morning to you too." Bill said in a reproving voice.
Liam half turned around to look at his father. He tilted his head before he declared, "It's a little late for that."
"What?" Bill asked frowning in confusion.
Liam fully turned around. "I didn't have a good morning."
Bill shrugged and shook his head. "Why?" he inquired.
Liam gave him a significant look.
"Oh." Bill realized. "You and Steffy didn't make up." He stated more than he asked.
"Difficult considering we spoke only three words yesterday and none today." Liam commented bitterly.
Again, Bill frowned in confusion.
"She left at dawn." Liam elaborated. He looked away and sighed, shaking his head. "She's avoiding me."
"This is more serious than I thought." Bill said in a low voice, speaking to himself. Liam looked at him, so he explained himself, "When you told me that something was wrong with Steffy, honestly, I didn't take you seriously." He admitted. "I thought you just had a spat like every couple does, and you were being dramatic. Besides, Steffy's pregnant. Naturally, she is subject to mood swings." He continued, shrugging. "However, it now seems like you do have a problem."
"Thank you for finally acknowledging that. I do!" Liam said emphatically.
"I think you should simply talk to Steffy." Bill declared.
Liam knit his brows, which resulted in creasing his forehead. "That's your piece of advice? Talk to her? You don't think I've tried?!" Liam asked, disbelieving.
"Try harder."
"Thank you for that."
"Liam! Try harder!" Bill insisted. "Steffy is a stubborn person. Be even more stubborn. Do not try to talk to her. Talk to her! Demand answers."
Bill got up and walked to Liam. "Liam, Steffy is your girlfriend. Actually, she is much more than that. She is your fiancée. She is the woman you're spending your life with. She is the mother of your child. You two are partners. She is supposed to trust you. She should be able to confide in you, rely on you when something is troubling her."
"I know! I know. I agree." Liam exclaimed. He shook his head as if to clear his mind. "I thought Steffy did too." He added.
Liam was truly disconcerted. He was seeing less and less clearly. It hadn't always been the case, but ever since he and Steffy got back together, honesty and communication were their mantra. And so far, Steffy had lived by it. For all he tried, Liam didn't understand this shift in Steffy's perspective.
His father's voice pulled him out of his thoughts. "I believe she does, which brings us back to my original thought and frankly, Liam, most probable thing: somehow Steffy found out about what happened between you and Hope."
"No. No, I think that is very unlikely." Liam opposed.
"And how do you know that? Have you finally spoken to Hope?" Bill retorted.
Liam's response was in his eyes. "Liam?" Bill called.
"No. No, I haven't." Liam reluctantly admitted.
Bill crossed his arms before his chest. "In reality, you don't care if Steffy finds out, do you?"
"What?! Why would you say that?" Liam got indignant.
"You are saying it, Liam!" Bill yelled. "Why the hell haven't you spoken to Hope yet?"
"I will! Tonight." Liam replied. At his father's narrowed eyes directed at him, he corrected, "At lunch."
Bill nodded.
/
Hope entered Eric's office and found Rick and Thomas sitting at the reunion table.
"Hey." She greeted them.
"Hi." Rick greeted.
"Hey, beautiful!" Thomas smiled widely at her, earning a cold stare and frown from Rick.
Hope moved forward until she got between them. "What are you up to?" She asked them.
"We are going over some sketches for Hope for the Future." Rick answered.
"You've seen these already." Thomas said.
Hope leaned forward to take a closer look at the sketches on the table. "Yes, I believe I have." She pointed at one in particular. "That one's my favorite."
"Mine too." Thomas smiled. Hope turned to look at him.
Rick watched them with a raised eyebrow and eventually rolled his eyes, exasperated by their interaction. "If I'm bothering you, you can say so."
"You're bothering us, Rick. Leave." Thomas said, not taking his eyes off Hope.
Hope laughed and drew herself up. "Don't." She moved to sit across them on the other side of the table. "I'm really glad I found you both here. I have a few sketches of my own to show you." She retrieved the sketches from a folder and handed them to Thomas.
There were five. He slowly looked over them, one by one.
"So?" Hope waited for his opinion.
"Hmm" Was the only sound that Thomas made.
"What do you think?"
"Hmm"
"Is that a good hmm or a bad hmm?" She questioned.
His eyes narrowed at one design. "Hmm"
"Thomas!" Hope lost it.
"Yes?" He finally looked up to her.
"What do you think of the sketches?"
"Um, I think they're – They look…" He turned to Rick, getting the focus off him. "Rick, what do you think?"
"I'm no designer." Rick responded, giving him a weird look.
"So what? You're entitled to an opinion." Thomas replied.
Rick looked at the sketches. "I like them."
"Yeah?" Hope asked, a smile creeping onto her face.
"Yeah. The clothes are nice. I can picture you in them. Caroline too. I'm sure she would love them. You should show them to her." Rick told her.
"Thank you. I will." She said before addressing Thomas, "Are you thinking of gracing me with your opinion maybe?"
"They're nice."
Hope raised a dubious eyebrow at him. "They are? You didn't seem to think so a minute ago?"
"I like them, Hope. It's just…"
"What?"
"They don't have your signature."
Hope frowned. "My what now?"
"Your signature." Thomas repeated. "Every designer has one. Grandpa has one, Dad has one, I have one, and I've been working with you for a while, and you have one too. And I do not see in these." He gave Hope a pointed stare.
Hope couldn't retain a laugh.
"Uh, I'm sorry. What is funny here?" Thomas asked.
"Okay. I guess you got me. Those designs aren't mine." Hope admitted.
"Whose are they?"
"Oliver's."
"Oliver's? Oliver Oliver? Our Oliver? The photographer?" Rick intervened.
"Uh-huh." She nodded.
"That explains everything." Thomas commented, taking another look at Oliver's sketches. "They're not bad. But they could be better. I can tell what he was imagining and it's good. However, his technique isn't the best."
"Yes, well, he's just getting started. He's a novice. He still has a lot to learn." Hope declared in Oliver's favor.
"Right. So is he… turning into a designer or?" Thomas inquired.
"Oh no, not quite. He only draws on his leisure time. For pleasure, sometimes. His real passion remains photography." She answered.
Thomas nodded.
"But we've been working together a little. I've been teaching him how to draw effectively. You know? Just the basics. Practice makes perfect."
"You two have been spending a lot of time together recently." Thomas remarked.
"Yeah. Yes, we have. He's… a wonderful person to be around."
"Are you hanging out as friends or… is it more than that?" Thomas apprehensively looked at Hope. "If you don't mind me asking."
"No, I don't." She turned to her brother who had his eyes riveted on his phone. "You can stop pretending to be busy on your phone. I know your attention is completely focused on this conversation."
"I'm not pretending to –" Rick started to deny when Hope gave him a look. "Fine." He put his phone down.
"To answer your question Thomas, Oliver is one of my oldest friends, and a really good one at that. You know I've been so caught up with Liam and all the drama that I forgot just how amazing Oliver is, what a great person he is. And these past couple of months, I've been rediscovering that. We've been reconnecting."
Thomas nodded.
"I didn't realize how much I missed him. I feel very fortunate to have him in my life. He's a really good guy." She declared. "So are you!" She quickly added once she realized how insensitive she had just been. Really? Gushing about her potential love interest to her sort-of-not-quite ex-boyfriend? Even though he had sort of asked for it. Anyway, it remained inappropriate.
Thomas gave her a small smile, which for some reason didn't seem very genuine to Hope.
He gathered the designs he had previously been showing to Rick. "Well, I have to go." He said and stood up.
"Okay, can you take these ones too and polish them up? Make them look fabulous?" Hope asked him.
"Oliver doesn't mind?" Thomas questioned.
"No, he's okay with it. Just don't change the designs too much? Just -"
"Polish them up?"
"Yes." Hope nodded.
"Gotcha. I'll catch up with you later." Thomas addressed both Hope and Rick.
"Later. Thank you!"
"See you." Rick spoke.
/
At Spencer Publications, Liam and Bill were still discussing the former's troubles with his partner.
"Bring her flowers tonight, or have some delivered to her at Forrester Creations. Do you want me to -?"
"No, Dad. I don't want you to do anything. Thank you." Liam dismissed.
"Very well. But I think you should be thoughtful towards Steffy. Pregnant women need attention." Bill advised.
"Steffy is not lacking my attention, Dad. I am full of care for her. I made her dinner last night, which she didn't even taste."
"Anyway, my money's on Hope." Bill stated confidently.
"What?!" Liam's eyebrows knit together in confusion.
"Whatever you say about it, I am convinced that the reason Steffy is angry at you has something to do with Hope."
"I highly doubt it."
"I would bet my entire fortune."
"That's a lot of money."
"What else would cause Steffy to pull away from you, Liam Spencer, the love of her life?"
Liam winced. He knew Steffy was pulling away from him. He felt it. But having someone else say it out loud somehow made it seem more real. He couldn't fathom the thought of losing Steffy.
His father had a point though. What else or rather who else but Hope could stir such a reaction in Steffy?
If his father was right and Hope was linked one way or another to whatever was bothering Steffy, Liam feared he was going to lose it. He was more than fed up with the drama. Nobody could live like this. When he was with Hope, Steffy was always an issue, and now that he was with Steffy, Hope had become an issue. When was it going to end?
He heaved a sigh. "I don't know." He shook his head. "I don't know."
Liam rubbed his forehead and turned to leave before he realized he hadn't even excused himself. "I'm going back to my office."
"Son. Wait." Bill stood up from his seat and walked to Liam. He looked at him straight in the eyes and said in a certain voice, "It's going to be okay. Whatever it is, you and Steffy will get through it. She loves you, Liam. She would never leave you."
Liam huffed, brushing his father's words off, almost as if he didn't believe them.
"Hey." Bill put his hands on his son's shoulders. "You are the love of her life. You are her everything." Bill spoke vehemently. "You will figure this out. It will be fine. Have faith in your couple."
Liam looked at Bill intensely, wanting to believe him so desperately, needing to believe him. Nodding, he chose to.
/
Hope got up. "You must have work to do as well. I'm gonna let you to it."
"Hold up." Rick retained her before she reached for the door.
Hope turned around. "Yes?"
"About tonight…"
"Oh no. Don't you dare cancel on me. We planned this a week ago." Hope raised her finger at her brother in a warning gesture.
"But I would not dream of it. No, I just wanted to tell you that one person has been added to the list."
"Huh?"
"Someone will be dining with us."
"Yes, thank you. I had got that part." Hope replied sarcastically. "Who?"
"Oliver."
"Oliver who?"
"Oliver Jones." Rick answered in an obvious voice.
Hope raised an eyebrow, and then burst out laughing. That was a good one.
It was Rick's turn to raise an eyebrow at Hope. Her laugh fit ceased as she took notice of Rick's undisturbed expression.
"Wait, you're not joking?"
"No, not at all. I'm very serious."
"Wait. Why in the world would you want to have dinner with Oliver and me? When did this happen?" she asked him, confused. Why hadn't Oliver mentioned this before?
"He's your boyfriend, or he will be soon enough. I want to have a talk with him. There's nothing more natural. I haven't spoken to him yet, but I will when I see him."
Hope chose to focus only on that last bit of information. "So you haven't asked him yet?"
"No."
"Good. You're not going to."
"What? Yes, I am."
"Nooo. You are not." She retorted pointedly.
"Sis -"
"Rick, this isn't happening."
"Why not?"
"Because there is no reason for it to." Hope raised her voice, upset that they were even still talking about this. She said no, therefore it was no. She didn't understand why Rick was fighting her on this so much. She could only imagine what he wanted to say to Oliver. Whatever it was, Oliver was not going to hear it.
Rick crossed his arms over his chest and gave Hope a serious look. "Hope, you and Oliver are getting closer, you're becoming involved. It is my duty to make sure his intentions are honorable."
"His intentions are honorable. Move on." She sighed and tried another approach. "Look whatever I said to Thomas that inspired this brilliant idea of yours, pretend I didn't say it, ok? Forget I said anything."
"I can't do that, Hope." Rick replied, rolling his eyes. Hope was being so childish right now. She had just gotten out of a very painful relationship, in which her heart had been broken into a thousand pieces. Oliver was her new potential love interest. Rick just wanted to have a chat with the man. What was the big deal?
"Who do you think you are? My father?"
"No, love, I'm your brother. My opinion matters much more than that of Ridge or Deacon." Rick took offense.
"Your opinion about what? Oliver? I don't need it! He's not some stranger I met in a bar last night. I've known him for years. I know exactly who he is: a wonderful man." She affirmed.
"And I will be delighted to see that for myself tonight."
"You won't."
"What are you so afraid of?!"
"Of you! Look, you're my big brother, and I love you. I understand what you're trying to do, and I appreciate it. I do. But I don't want you to. I don't want you to interfere in my relationship with Oliver the way you did in…" She trailed off.
"The way I did in your relationship with Liam." He completed for her.
She looked away.
"Hope, you know how sorry I am about that."
"I do." She spoke before he could say more. "And I forgave you for that. We've moved past that." She added, meaning it.
Hope was not mad at Rick over what he had done anymore. He had lied to her and convinced Athello into leading her to believe that Liam had cheated on her with Steffy the night before their wedding, and he had deceived during months – months during which Steffy and Liam got closer and closer, close enough to conceive a baby.
Hope had been furious at Rick after he finally revealed the truth to her. And furious was putting it mildly. What he did was so so wrong. But with hindsight and after thinking about it, she understood why he had acted the way he had. The act in itself was so cruel, not to mention completely inappropriate, but Hope knew that deep down her brother's intentions were good and she understood where he was as coming from. He saw his little sister get hurt over and over again by the same man, powerless to prevent it from happening. When Liam messed up the night before their wedding, Rick saw an opening: he saw his chance to save his sister from a life of heartbreak and doubt.
And as much as she hated to admit it, even to herself, perhaps things were better the way they were now.
"I truly regret what I did." Rick told her sincerely.
"I know."
"I realize how evil it was."
Hope tilted her head to the side. "That's a strong word."
"I have no intention of meddling in your relationship with Oliver. Believe me, I've learned my lesson. I just want to get to know the guy."
Hope tilted her head from left to right and back again. "I'm not sure it's a good idea." She replied.
"Look at you and Caroline. You two spend twenty five percent of your time together, gossiping and shopping and doing whatever it is you girls do. And I know that you genuinely like Caroline, but be honest, the reason you even started to spend so much time with her is me, am I right?"
Hope nodded.
"Because you were trying to be a good sister and connect with the woman I was seeing. Is it not natural that I want to return the favor?"
She looked at him, and he saw the debate in her eyes. He also saw her resolve faltering, so he pushed her a little more. "I promise to be on my best behavior."
Hope considered it. What was the worst thing that could happen? She would be there.
"Fine."
"Really?" Rick's eyes widened.
"But no interrogatory."
"No interrogatory."
"And promise not to call him a gold-digger or anything of the sort."
Rick opened his mouth in an exaggerated indignant expression. "I would never!"
"Even as a joke?" Hope defiantly raised her brow at him.
He conceded. "Okay. Fine."
Hope chuckled. "Okay, I gotta go. And let me ask him, okay?"
"Okay. I'll see you both tonight." Rick nodded. "And I'll be expecting Oliver to pay." He added a little louder as Hope was about to walk out the door.
She turned towards him, frowning.
"Just kidding." Rick shrugged a mischievous grin on his face.
Hope gave him a warning look matching the finger she was pointing at him before she turned around and shot the door behind her.
/
"Come in." Steffy said as someone knocked at her door. She looked up to see Taylor entering her office. "Oh, hey Mom." She greeted with a small smile.
"Hi, sweetheart." Taylor greeted back, closing the door. "You didn't see my four missed calls?"
Steffy's eyes widened at that. "Nooo." She took a look at her phone on her desk. She winced. Ten missed calls. "Ohhh, I'm so sorry. I had a meeting earlier, so I put it on silent mode, and then I forgot to put the volume back on."
"Mmmhh." Taylor hummed.
"I'm sorry. Did you have something important to tell me?" Steffy asked.
"No. Not really. I just wanted to know how you and my future grandkid are doing."
Steffy laughed. "We are doing alright, thank you. Sorry I didn't pick up."
Taylor moved to sit across Steffy. "That's okay. It gave me an excuse to come and see for myself."
Steffy huffed and rolled her eyes. "Right. As if you needed one."
"Am I the only one who tried to call you?" Taylor inquired.
"No. A couple of girlfriends tried as well, and Liam too." Steffy responded.
"You're not calling him back?" Taylor asked.
"I will. Later." Steffy replied simply.
"Why not now?"
Steffy gently put her pen down, and slowly took a breath.
Why was everybody insisting on talking to her about Liam today? This morning already, Thomas had assailed her with questions about how she and Liam were doing, and here was Taylor getting to it. Could they not tell that Liam was the very last thing she wanted to discuss?
She raised her gaze towards her mother. "Because I am working, and so is he, certainly. And you are here."
"If he tried calling you and you didn't answer, then he must be worried. Just like I was. You should at least text him to let him know that you're okay." Taylor reasoned.
That was Steffy's breaking point.
"I will get in touch with Liam when I feel like it, mom. What is the matter?!" She snapped.
"I don't know. You tell me." Taylor answered back.
Steffy shook her head. "What is that supposed to mean?"
"Why are you being aggressive?" Taylor asked, utterly confused, appreciating her daughter's tone less and less. She didn't even understand how the conversation escalated so quickly.
"I am not being aggressive." Steffy countered, her voice paradoxically increasing a decibel.
"Yes, you are." Taylor assured her, nodding. "And I am not liking it, young lady." She added.
"Well, perhaps, I don't like you telling me what to do."
"Okay."
"Perfect!"
Steffy tried to refocus her attention on her work, but wasn't able to. She sighed and rubbed her forehead frantically.
Taylor stared at her daughter in silence. She knew something wasn't right. She knew her. Better than anyone. It was a mother's role to know her children in all of their aspects. Steffy would learn that soon.
That was why Taylor knew that whatever was bothering Steffy, it was best not to push the issue. Steffy would confide in her when she felt the need to, but in the meantime, there was no point in pressuring her. It would just make matters worse. It didn't mean she liked being helpless and watching her daughter in pain though; she hated it.
Steffy collected her hands together in front of her face in a prayer sign, her eyes shut. She took a deep breath. She needed to get a grip. What the hell was going on with her? Why was she feeling everything so intensely?
She opened her eyes and barely looked at her mother, her face marked with shame. "I'm sorry".
"I know." Taylor said.
"I'm sorry." Steffy repeated.
"Sweetheart, it's okay. You're pregnant. Your hormones are killing you. I understand." Taylor tried to reassure her.
"No, mom, it's not an excuse. I don't get to talk to you like that. I apologize."
Taylor gave Steffy a compassionate and understanding look, letting her know she was forgiven. "Can I ask what got you in such a state without risking being murdered?" Taylor asked jokingly in an attempt to lighten the mood. It worked as Steffy laughed. "Is it me? Did I say something…?"
Steffy shook her head. "No. No, Mom. It's not you at all." Steffy stopped her mother before she got the wrong idea. "I have been kind of mad at Liam." She confessed, gesturing with her hands.
"Why?" Taylor inquired.
Steffy hesitated. Forrester Creations wasn't exactly her chosen place to discuss her private affairs. Walls had ears in this office. She had learned that over time. "This isn't the place to talk about that. Have you eaten yet?" She asked.
"No." Taylor answered. "Do you want to have lunch?" She offered.
Steffy nodded and turned off her laptop. She grabbed her purse on her desk and got up. Taylor, who was already standing, held out her hand to Steffy. They walked out of the office arm in arm.
Next chapter, we finally found out what is bugging Steffy. What do you think it is? Let me know in your reviews.
They put a smile on my face when I need it the most and only take a minute, so please don't hesitate.