Chapter Six

A/N: Thanks to everyone who's read and reviewed! Special thanks as usual to all my wonderful friends over at I-C. Your words and praise make each chapter better!!!!!

3 Days Later

Betty sat on the steps of her father's house, looking up at the twilight sky. After the scene at her office, she had finally stopped crying long enough to finish her article and get it sent off to Daniel. Henry had stayed with her, not touching her or saying much, just being there for her. Betty thanked Henry for being there and tried to apologize for Gio. Henry had quieted her, telling her simply that he was there for her. Betty had wanted him to hold her and tell her everything would be fine. But even she wasn't sure if things would be able to work out. Henry had finally left and Betty had made her way home, only to find their apartment empty. Gio hadn't left any message letting her know where he was. Betty suspected that Gio had gone to visit his mother in Jersey, so she decided to go home for a few days.

If Ignacio had been surprised to see Betty back home, he gave no indication. He merely folded her into an embrace and murmured in quiet Spanish to her when she'd arrived 3 nights ago. As she heard Hilda and Justin bustling around in the kitchen, plates and silverware clattering, she heard the door open behind her and turned to see Ignacio sitting down next to her left.

"Mija, dinner is almost ready. Are you hungry?" Her father asked.

"I am, and I'll be there in just a minute. I'm just doing some thinking." Betty replied.

"Does this thinking have anything to do with the reasons why you've been home for the past 3 nights?" Ignacio asked her. Betty nodded. Ignacio reached over and took Betty's left hand in his. He squeezed her hand gently as she looked down at the rings there on her finger.

"Betty, you are my smart one. Not that your sister isn't, but you've always been the one everyone looks to for answers. I know that's a lot to deal with, but sometimes I know the answers for you aren't always as clear as the ones you give to others. Take Gio for example; I know that you love him and I stood behind you when you decided to marry him. But Betty, I know that you don't love him like you do Henry. But I had hoped that you would find some measure of happiness with him. That's why I chose not to give you any advice when you decided to get married." Ignacio said. Betty stared at her father.

"What would you have said if I would have asked?" Betty said. Ignacio looked at his youngest daughter for a long moment.

"I would have told you not to marry him Mija." Ignacio admitted. Betty stared at her father in shock.

"Dad…."

"Betty, I like Gio. He's a nice man and he loves you. But he's not your other half. Henry is. I saw how you were hurting after Henry had left to go back to Tucson and how Gio had come along at the right time and was a friend for you when you needed one. I knew his feelings even then ran deeper than what you were ready for. As time went on and you started dating, I hoped that time would put you in a place where you were ready to accept the love of another. But I realize that I was foolish for not trying to talk to you about getting married so quickly. There wasn't the spark that should have been there, the all-consuming love radiating from you that was there when Henry was here. I wanted you to have the kind of love that your mother and I had, where every day was something new and special and glorious to share with the one you love." Ignacio sighed as Betty turned to him.

"Dad, I was so wrong to marry Gio. But you're right; I do love him, but not in the way he or I deserves. I've been such a fool and completely selfish to him. I don't want to hurt him after all we've been through, but how can I make things right without hurting him more?" Betty asked. Ignacio put his arm around her and pulled her close. Betty rested her head on his shoulder as he spoke.

"Betty, you have a wonderful, caring heart. I know this is going to be difficult for you, but I know you'll find the right solution. Gio's going to be hurt no matter how you try to soften the blow, but he needs to be free to find his other half. You can't let him settle for being the second." Ignacio said.

"The second?" Betty said.

"The second choice, Mija." Ignacio said, "It's going to be hard, no doubt about it. And Gio will probably be angry for a long time and some very hurtful things may be said. But both of you need to be happy and staying in a marriage that isn't good for either one of you won't do anything but cause hurt feelings and broken hearts on both sides."

"Thanks for coming out here Dad. For talking and listening." Betty said, hugging her father. Ignacio hugged his daughter as Hilda walked to the door.

"Betty, Papi come on! Dinner's already on the table." Hilda yelled. Betty and Ignacio rose from the steps and walked into the house together.

Meanwhile, on the other side of town, Henry was busy trying to finish up his remaining paperwork so he could stop and get Maddie some dinner. Maddie had found a friend named Katie in their apartment building and Katie's mother was letting Maddie stay there and play while Henry finished his work. Katie was just as sweet as Maddie, and Katie's mother was happy to have a playmate for her daughter. Maddie had even spent the night with her friend twice already. As Henry worked on the last spreadsheet, he saw someone out of the corner of his eye. Henry looked up expecting to see someone from the cleaning crew, but was worried to see Gio standing in his doorway. Henry pushed up his glasses and cleared his throat nervously.

"Gio, what are you doing here? If you're looking for Betty, I don't think she's still here." Henry said. Gio shook his head in Henry's direction.

"I'm not looking for her. Hilda called me and told me she's staying at her dad's; I wanted to talk to you." Gio said.

"Look, Gio I……" Henry started before Gio cut him off.

"Look egg….Henry, I'm not going to make this easy on you. There are things I want to say and I expect you to listen. This is all about Betty and if you love her like you say you do, you'll hear me out." Gio said harshly. Henry nodded as Gio approached his desk.

"When you left, I knew Betty was going to be heartbroken. I admired your strength, being able to leave her and do what was right. I admit I had feelings for her long before you left, but I started out as just wanting to be her friend. I knew she needed someone to help her get through all her pain and that's all I set out to do. At first, that is." Gio said.

"But after she started acting more like her old self again, I found the sweet, caring woman underneath it all. She wrapped herself around my heart and I found myself falling hard for her. Sure, I knew that you would always be a part of her and that she still loved you, but I knew she was feeling something for me too eventually. Before I knew it, I was completely in love with her, her smile, her personality; everything that makes her Betty."

"I know Gio. Betty has that effect on people." Henry said quietly. Gio looked at him.

"When Betty accepted my proposal, I was ecstatic. I couldn't believe that she wanted to spend the rest of her life with me. She had this wonderful family and great friends who accepted me, and I thought things were only going to get better." Gio said, running his hand through his hair, "We never slept together until we got married, she told me she wanted to wait. I didn't care about that, all I wanted was her. After we got married, I started wanting to have kids and start a family with her. I thought that was what she wanted too, until you came back with Maddie and I found her pills." Gio stated.

"Her pills?" Henry asked.

"Birth control pills." Gio said sadly, "She had them hidden in her underwear drawer. After that day when Maddie was in her office, I saw the way she looked at her. I thought she was finally ready to try for a baby. But she didn't seem interested when I brought it up at home and we hadn't had sex in a while. After she left the next morning, I started looking through her things and I found them. She never wanted kids, at least not with me." Gio said, his voice breaking on the words.

"Gio, I'm sorry. I didn't know…….."

"I don't want your sympathy Henry!" Gio snapped, "I want to hate you for coming back and ruining my life and my marriage!" Gio sighed and took a deep breath.

"But I can't hate you. That would drive Betty straight back into your arms. If it's over……If we're over…..then it's going to be HER decision to make. I'm not going to stand in her way of whatever she decides, but I'm damn sure not going to make it easy for you to walk back in and take Betty by acting like a complete jerk." Gio said finally. Henry looked at the broken man in front of him for a long while before deciding on the words to say to him.

"Gio, I didn't mean for any of this to happen. When I came back and found that Betty was married to you, I accepted that I needed to step aside and let Betty have her happiness. What I didn't count on was that neither of us stopped loving each other. I know this hurts you to hear, but I do still love Betty. More so than before I left even. I can't breathe when I'm around her, but I can't function very well when I'm not near her. She's the beginning and the ending for me. There's not been anyone for me since her, and there will never be anyone else for me. She and Maddie are my heart, my soul, my very existence. I can't be sorry for how I feel about her, but I am sorry that you are being hurt in the process." Henry said, looking at Gio. Gio sighed heavily and gave Henry a long look.

"I know I'm Betty's second choice and I can live with that." Gio said, "But I also know that she loves you more than she can ever love me. I don't like it and I hate the fact that I'm probably going to lose her, but if I know that she'll find the happiness that she deserves, I can learn to live without her. But I've only got one more thing to say to you; you'd better take good care of her this time Henry. If I ever hear that you've hurt her again or you break her heart again, I'll come after you myself and kick your ass all over New York City! Got that?" Gio said seriously. Henry nodded at Gio. Gio nodded back and headed towards the door. Just as he was leaving, Henry called out to him.

"Gio!"

"Yeah?" Gio turned back to look at Henry.

"I'm through hurting Betty, intentionally or not. You have my word if she decides to give us another chance; I won't ever leave her or hurt her ever again." Henry said firmly.

"See that you don't." Gio replied. He headed for the bank of elevators. As the car opened and he pushed the button for the lobby, Gio fought back the tears that formed in his eyes. As he reached the lobby he strode out the door and headed for the subway that would take him to Queens.

He was finally ready to talk to his wife.

TBC…………………..