Thanks so much for all the reviews gang, I love reading them :D

First things first, these next few chapters are for my girls because without their support, none of the things that follow would be happening.

Now, who's for some drama? Pull up a chair, grab the popcorn and enjoy!

PS: I cannot apologise enough for some of the ideas/things a certain someone comes out with.

x

Chapter Fifteen: An Impending Storm

A darkened hallway greeted Rachel and Eddie upon their return. Neither party expected Phillip to still be awake, so the silence was unsurprising. As Rachel's eyes adjusted to the light, she spotted a note propped up against the phone. She picked it up and read: Welcome back, Rach and Eddie! I'm staying at Bolton's, be back later.

The note brought a smile to Rachel's face, reminding her of how unlike Melissa he was. "What does Phil say?" Eddie queried.

Rachel passed over the note and let him read, "I hope he's not been there all week," she muttered out loud.

Eddie pressed a kiss into her hair, intended to calm any concerns, "you worry too much."

His tactic worked. A deep exhalation from Rachel confirmed as much, "that's who I am."

Eddie understood and wouldn't have her any other way. Sometimes, her actions caused confusion, but more often than not, they made sense. Unlike now as she darted about downstairs, "what are you doing?"

"Checking's everything's as we left it."

"Rach, Phil's a responsible lad, he won't have broken our trust."

"It's not Phillip I'd worry about."

Exasperation clouded Eddie's face as he followed Rachel in and out of each room. "Bolton respects you, there was no trouble at Phil's sixteenth birthday party, and that was because he kept everyone in line. If anything went down, I'm sure Phil would have called on him for support."

Rachel stopped in her tracks and sighed, "you're right."

"Usually am."

At that, Rachel shot a glance upwards while a smirk tugged at the corners of her mouth. "I'm not dignifying that with an answer, your ego needs no boosting."

Eddie pulled a face, "everything's in order. Let's get to bed; it's gone three."

Until that moment, Rachel hadn't realised how tired she was. As he spoke, she yawned before nodding in agreement.

With his last vestiges of energy, Eddie carried their cases upstairs. Rachel followed with the carry-on luggage. They deposited both cases and bags out of harm's way before getting ready for bed. Conversation was sparse as Rachel changed into thin pyjamas. Eddie meanwhile changed his boxers, throwing the discarded ones across the room and into the laundry basket. Rachel laughed at Eddie's accurate shot as she climbed into bed. He followed, settling back against the pillow once she'd gotten comfortable. Both fell asleep soon afterwards. Rachel's thoughts returned to their romantic retreat, wishing they were still there, with just each other for company.

A loud, incessant knocking roused Rachel and Eddie hours later. In their half-asleep state, neither knew what the time was so couldn't tell whether this unknown person was knocking early, or they'd slept late. Given the late hour at which they'd arrived home, Rachel and Eddie hoped for the latter. "Who the Hell could this be?" he muttered grumpily before rolling over.

A sympathetic smile came his way, followed by a kiss to the bare shoulder. "Perhaps they'll go away."

"Hmmm."

The knocking ceased moments later. Both breathed an immense sigh of relief, hoping that whoever knocked had gotten bored and gone away. That hope was short-lived, for the knocking started up again not long afterwards. In a fit of irritation, Eddie leapt up and marched towards the bedroom door. Rachel sat up, rubbing her eyes, "where are you going?"

"Downstairs darling, to answer the door and tell whoever's there to get lost."

"Not dressed like that," she replied, "you're not answering the door in your boxers, so put some clothes on, for heaven's sake."

Eddie pouted, "don't you like my body now?"

Rachel laughed at the childish note in his voice, then bit her lip before uttering a reply. "Course, but only behind closed doors. Besides, I don't reckon whoever's at the door wants an eyeful, do they?"

"Suppose not."

Eddie heeded Rachel's request, rummaging around for a t-shirt and some jeans before going downstairs to answer the door. Upon opening it, someone he'd hoped he might never see again greeted him. "Thought I'd find you here, didn't take her long to dig her claws in."

As Melissa's words registered, Eddie sent a silent thanks upstairs to Rachel for insisting he put some clothes on. Melissa would no doubt have seen it as a come-on had he answered in the manner he'd wished. His eyes widened in shock, eyeing the bump she made no attempt to conceal. Eddie straightaway understood why she was here, "Melissa, what the Hell…"

"Shall I draw you a diagram?"

Eddie didn't appreciate the question, he wasn't naïve by any stretch. He understood the implications this could have on his relationship with Rachel. It was why he wanted rid as soon as possible. Ideally, before she came downstairs.

"Eddie? Who's there?" Rachel called from the staircase.

Too late, Eddie winced. Rachel descended as he turned, shielding Melissa from view. However, Rachel approached the door anyway, foiling Eddie's attempt to hide their unwanted visitor. Her jaw dropped upon seeing the bump, "is it…" she trailed off, not wishing to finish that question.

An eye-roll greeted Rachel's words. "Yes, it's Eddie's, why would you suggest it wasn't? I'm not the whore in this family, remember that."

At that point, Eddie stepped in, separating the warring sister, "hey, we'll have none of that."

He cast a concerned glance towards Rachel, "I'm fine," she insisted, "Eddie, let me deal with this…"

"This?" Melissa exclaimed.

The interruption annoyed Rachel; so much so, she shut the front door on her sister, ensuring an end to the disruption. "You can't shut me out, Rach!" Melissa yelled.

"Just did," Rachel muttered more to herself than anyone else. "I know you're worried about me, and I appreciate the concern darling, but I want to talk to her alone. Melissa's problem lies with me, we need to have an adult conversation, having you around might inflame the situation."

"Can't do that, Rach."

Rachel's gaze softened, "please Eddie, for me?"

He sighed out loud before conceding defeat, "OK, but this is for you, not her."

She grinned, then stretched to press a soft kiss to Eddie's cheek. "Thank you," she responded, resting her forehead against his.

Eddie held on as a deep sigh left her, "what's up?"

"What's she doing back here, Eddie?"

That tiny voice broke his heart, but he had no definitive answer. They could only guess at Melissa's intentions. He shrugged, "gate-crashing our fresh start."

Eddie's choice of words brought a smile to Rachel's face as she hummed an agreement, "sooner I hear her out, the better."

"I'll leave you two to talk but be careful… please."

Rachel's grin widened, "course."

With their conversation at its natural end, she opened the door. Melissa remained upon the doorstep, surprising neither Rachel nor Eddie, "we need milk, so I'll nip to the shop."

He turned towards Rachel, kissing her in Melissa's full view. Rachel, though surprised, reciprocated, albeit briefly. She pulled back and watched as Eddie wandered down the driveway, not daring to move until he'd disappeared from view. Once he had, she surged forwards, dragging Melissa over the threshold. "In there," she said, pointing towards the living room.

"I'd appreciate it if you could not drag me," Melissa snapped, wrenching her arm free of Rachel's grip upon entering the room.

"How else can I deal with you when I'm so mad?"

"Why so angry, Rach? Is it because my return throws a spanner in the works for your cosy set-up with Eddie and my son?"

"As if, I'm angry because you turn up unannounced after months of no contact and expect to pick up where you left off. You didn't even pick up the phone on Phillip's birthday."

Melissa had the good grace to look ashamed, "I was in a terrible place Rach, you must remember what that's like."

Rachel remembered, but fought hard not to, "you can't draw comparisons between our situations because they're nothing alike. Despite what you might think, my life's been a struggle. There's one enormous difference between us, Melissa. I took action to get myself out of my terrible place. Whereas you… you hide from your problems for as long as possible and almost expect someone else to step in when the time comes. Not this time Melissa, I'm too tired, and I don't have the energy to deal with your issues too."

Melissa fell silent as she dropped onto Rachel's sofa, then met her sister's gaze, "it is Eddie's baby, you know."

"So you say," Rachel replied.

"When did your opinion of me get so low?"

Rachel scowled, "around the time you decided that going ahead with another bigamous marriage was better than coming clean. You made Eddie look like a fool."

"Course you'd take Eddie's side."

"Why wouldn't I? He's my partner."

"On that subject, you wasted no time in taking my place."

"We didn't plan this, it just…"

"Oh, don't you dare say 'it just happened'," Melissa spat, her expression freezing in a split second, "please tell me you didn't."

"Didn't what?"

"Tell me you didn't sleep with him before we split up."

Melissa's accusation stung Rachel as she paced the floor, "don't be ridiculous. Where on Earth did that come from?" she questioned.

"Makes sense now, why else would you give me Mum's necklace?"

"Because you were Mum's favourite, and I wanted you to have it."

"Liar! That's not how your mind works. Shall I tell you what I think?"

"I'm sure you'll tell me anyway."

"I reckon you two slept together in a fit of grief over that girl who got shot…"

Rachel shook with anger as she stopped in front of Melissa, "that girl's name was Maxine."

"Yeah, her. The point is, I reckon you both cheated after she died, and the necklace was your misguided way of alleviating the guilt."

Rachel could scarcely believe it, "you're ridiculous, we didn't get together until after you left."

"So you say, am I supposed to swallow that?"

"If you wish to believe I'd do something like that to you, then go ahead. I've been honest, it's on you if you choose not to trust my word."

Melissa couldn't work out which way to take Rachel's words, so asked a question instead of responding. "How serious are you and Eddie?"

"Serious enough," Rachel replied evasively.

"That doesn't answer my question."

"He's living here with Phillip and me now."

"You're living together, eh? Before you and Phillip conspired to spoil it, I lived with him too. Not a proper mark of commitment, is it? You seem to forget Rach, I'm pregnant."

Rachel rolled her eyes in exasperation, "it's kinda hard to miss."

"Why are you having such a hard time accepting this baby is Eddie's?"

"Well, you've lied about pretty much everything else so why not this too? One more lie to add to the list won't make much difference," Rachel paused, "least there's no doubt over who the father of my child is."

Melissa opened her mouth to reply, but Rachel's last statement caught her off-guard, "what did you say?"

"You heard," Rachel said, "but for simplicity, I'm pregnant, Eddie's the father."

It was a bombshell Melissa hadn't expected; Rachel's admission shook her to the core, but she got over that, "you are something else."

"Eh?"

"Look at you, you feel so threatened by my pregnancy, you make up a fictitious one to counteract it. Nice try, Rach, but it didn't work."

Melissa's words came as no surprise; she couldn't blame her sister for her attitude. Aside from the noticeable bump, she had no reliable way of corroborating her claim, "you know what this all boils down to Melissa?"

"No, enlighten me."

"Jealousy. You lurch from one disaster to another, and you're jealous that I've made something of myself."

"Why would I be jealous of the former tart? You've had more men between your thighs than I've had relationships, why will Eddie be different?"

Rachel longed to bite back at Melissa's initial statement; she wanted to argue that at least she hadn't entered an illegal marriage and made her son keep the secret but sensed it would only escalate the situation. "I love him, Mel," she replied, "and he loves me, and it feels… remarkable. That's why I don't believe you ever loved him like you say you did. The only person you've ever loved or cared about it yourself."

"That's not true," Melissa exclaimed, "there's Phillip, he's my son. Of course I love him."

Again, Rachel rolled her eyes, "so you've remembered he exists now? He carried around your secret and almost made himself sick with worry. Then you abandoned him when Eddie chose me, leaving us to pick up the pieces."

"Hypocrite, do you realise what I had to deal with after you disappeared?"

Rachel sighed, "I hoped you'd get an easier time of it if I left, thought the chatter would die down. Sorry if you don't see it that way," she said before dragging a hand across her forehead. "This isn't helping anyone… You should go, maybe come back when you're more amenable to finding a solution."

No words came forth in response, so Rachel assumed Melissa agreed. Upon approaching the living room door, she turned, "see yourself out," Rachel said.

With those parting words, she crossed the hallway and headed upstairs.

Melissa watched her sister leave while planning her next step. She'd never seen Rachel as the maternal type, so her announcement came a little out of left field. Not that Melissa trusted her sibling, she remained convinced it was part of Rachel's plan to keep her and Eddie apart. As she slipped out into the hallway and towards the front door, Melissa wondered whether to do as Rachel asked. She held a hand against the door, opened it but closed it again before stepping outside. No, she wouldn't bow down to her big sister. Melissa wanted answers, and a sense of determination crept over her, she wasn't leaving without answers.

Soon afterward, Melissa hovered in a doorway. Rachel's gaze was elsewhere, fixed upon the hand upon her stomach. Only then did Melissa realise the truth. If she'd been honest about the pregnancy, was there any truth in anything else she'd said? "You weren't lying," she stated, breaking the silence.

Rachel jumped, unaware until that moment of another's presence nearby, "you should go," she insisted wearily.

Melissa shrugged, "I'm not good at obeying orders."

At that, Rachel smiled. A point very well made, she conceded. "What changed?" Melissa questioned, "you'd never spoken about having kids before."

This time, Rachel shrugged, "we never spoke about that stuff," she reminded her sister, "it's part of the reason I became a teacher."

Melissa's brow furrowed in confusion, allowing Rachel to continue. "After I left, I was wary of any man's intentions, so long-term relationships were off the agenda. Sure, I dated but… I never invested myself in what was happening. Until Eddie. As my deputy, he's stood by me through thick and thin, and I realised I didn't just want him there in a professional capacity. Eventually, I want it all, but only with him."

Melissa gave a stiff nod, it was the most in-depth conversation the siblings had ever had, "I don't deserve this Rach but please, give me answers."

Rachel sighed, "no," she said, "we agreed to have this conversation again another time."

"No, you said that, I never agreed. I'm not going anywhere until we've talked."

Rachel wanted Melissa gone before Eddie returned and because of this, she ceded to the demand. "Where shall I start?"

Melissa sighed with relief. Progress, at last. "Did you know Eddie was in love with you before we got together?"

The silence became stifling, and somehow, Melissa realise she wouldn't like the answer. She glanced towards her older sister, saw the guilt etched into her features and lost it, "answer me, Rach."

She nodded, "I think so, yes, can't say for certain, though."

"And did you know you were in love with him?"

"Does it matter Mel?" Rachel asked, exasperation coming to the fore.

"Matters to me, Rach."

Rachel turned away, unable to look at Melissa until she'd answered. "Yes, I did."

"So, to summarise. You let me enter a relationship with Eddie knowing full well you were in love, and those feelings were probably mutual," Melissa shot back, "what kind of sister does that?"

Rachel scoffed, ignoring the question, "you've hardly been the greatest sister, neither of us can say that."

"Understatement."

Rachel sighed, "I was a mess after the fire, worse after that first day. Eddie and I… I wasn't ready for that."

Melissa's brow furrowed, "what do you mean?"

Rachel stared blankly at the wall, only realising what she'd said once it was too late. She had to come clean now, "Eddie propositioned me, I rebuffed him and ran."

Rachel's latest confession hit Melissa hard, "you are the limit," she spat, "that makes what you did more unbelievable."

"I stood aside because he made you happy, and no matter what, your happiness always came first."

"What changed?" Melissa asked.

Rachel gathered up the dirty washing and dumped it into the laundry basket, picking it up before squeezing past her pregnant sister. "Eddie chose me," she said while dropping the basket, "his choice, not mine."

"You didn't turn him away when he came to you."

"I love him, Mel!" Rachel screamed, then inhaled a deep breath, "and he loves me. Which part of what I said earlier are you not getting?"

The event that followed happened in a blur. Melissa grabbed Rachel's arm, spinning her around. Without warning, Melissa unleashed a slap, connecting with her cheek. The force of the slap caused Rachel to stumble backwards, the momentum carrying her towards the stairs. She lost her balance, screamed and then fell, landing at the bottom of one flight and the top of another.

I'm going into hiding, but please leave me reviews! :p

x