"Why can't they just make up their minds," Alexandria Quartermaine muttered, stalking into her bedroom at La Boulaie. Sometimes she felt as though she was being pulled in two. Her mother was so certain that her living with her father would damage her in some strange way that Starr refused to allow Alex to see him.

And now that he was in Port Charles, NY, she wanted to see him more than ever.

A knock on the door made her turn around. Alex frowned as she saw her 'sister' standing in the doorway. "What? Are you going to tell me that mom's right? That I shouldn't see my dad or my grandma or any of my cousins in Port Charles?"

Julia McBain shook her head and walked to Alex's bed. She sat down and patted the spot next to her. Alex huffed a breath and sat. "What?"

"I'm not saying that your mom's right, but she's not wrong either."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Alex glared at Julia.

"I mean, your mom is protecting you. But maybe you don't need protection anymore. Maybe you can make your own decision. But did you try telling Starr all this?" Julia asked logically, which made Alex groan.

"Ugh. She won't listen. She still treats me like I'm a baby. Never mind that I'm sixteen and am perfectly capable of making my own decisions." She stopped and then her eyes widened. "Wait. I have the perfect plan. When you go to Port Charles to visit Mattie, you can take me and I can visit my dad." She looked hopeful, while Julia wore a skeptical look on her face.

"I highly doubt that Starr would go for that. I'll ask and maybe I can try to reason with her, but it's unlikely."

"Please, please!" Alex begged. Julia sighed and stood up. She walked to the door and turned back to look at Alex.

"I will try, but I'm not promising anything."

"Yes!" Alex exclaimed to no one in particular. She stood up and went to her closet for the overnight bag. She might as well make use of her time and start packing for her trip. Starr listened to Julia and Alex knew that Julia could get their mother to agree.

XXXXXX

Starr Thornhart rubbed her temples and tried to refocus her attention to the stack of papers on her lap. She needed to finish these papers before tomorrow. But she just wasn't in the mood to do them.

She looked up as footsteps brought a welcome distraction. Julia appeared in the doorway. Starr smiled and beckoned her in. Julia walked carefully over to the chair opposite Starr and took a seat.

"Hi! Did you just get here?" Starr asked, setting her work aside.

"A little while ago. I was up talking to Alex," Julia replied, glancing at the clock. She had an appointment at the hospital in an hour.

Starr nodded, instantly understanding. "Is she really mad at me?"

"No. She's confused. She thinks that it's her fault that you and her father are on such bad terms," Julia said, then hesitated. "Starr—she really wants to go to Port Charles. She really wants to see her father and personally, I think that she should."

Starr sighed. "I know. It's not her fault that Dillon and I separated. I'll have to talk to her."

"Listen Starr, I'm going to PC this weekend to visit Mattie and I thought that maybe I could take Alex and she could spend time with her dad," Julia replied. She fingered her bracelet. She could only imagine how Starr would react.

"Yes. I think that that would be a good idea. I'll talk to her and make sure she's ready when you leave on Friday. Will you be back on Sunday?" Starr asked, standing up and walking to the window. Even though she knew it was the right thing to do, she still didn't want her daughter to be that far away from her.

"Yes. Listen, I have to go. I have an appointment at the hospital soon," Julia replied, standing up and walking toward the door. As she did, Alex came running around the corner.

Starr smiled at her daughter and motioned her over to the couch. "Come here for a second. I want to talk to you."

Alex looked skeptical. "Did I do something wrong?"

Starr shook her head. "No, no. You didn't do anything wrong—I did."

Alex frowned. "Okay?"

"It isn't your fault that your dad and I divorced. I shouldn't have put you in the middle. I want you to have a relationship with your father so I'm giving you the okay to spend this weekend with your dad in Port Charles. I will call him to give him a heads-up," Starr said, placing a kiss on her daughter's forehead.

Alex smiled. "Really? Thanks mom!" She jumped up and followed Julia to the door. "I'll walk you out."

Julia smiled. "Okay. Bye Starr!"

Starr waved a goodbye as she watched her 'two daughters' walk down to the edge of the driveway. She was always amazed at the relationship between Alex and Julia. Despite the fact that they were twelve years apart and hadn't been raised together, they were the best of friends.

Starr was eternally grateful that she had gotten the chance to be a part of Julia's life—the daughter she'd given up at the age of sixteen. Thank God she had been on good terms with Michael and Marcie McBain—Julia's adoptive parents—who had allowed Starr to watch her grow up.

And now, to see Julia—the daughter she'd had far too soon—and Alex—the daughter she'd given birth to in the midst of a dismal relationship—have that chance to be real sisters was wonderful. Starr was forever grateful that her life had turned out as good as she'd once imagined.

Starr walked to the desk that held the phone. She picked it up hesitantly and dialed that ever familiar number. When he answered, she remembered why she'd once loved him for a brief moment in time.

"Hello?"

"Hi Dillon, it's me," She said quietly. She could hear him in the background sighing.

"Hi Starr."

"I was calling you to apologize and tell you what an ass I am," She said and could almost hear laughter.

"Oh really. Why the sudden change of heart?" He asked haughtily.

"I should have never tried to keep you away from Alex," She began quietly. "I hope that you will accept my apology and try not to take it out on our daughter."

"I would never do that," he admonished.

"I know. And I also know that I should be grateful that my daughter has such a great father," She said quietly. "I was also calling to ask if it is possible that Alex come and stay for the weekend with you. Julia McBain is coming to visit Mattie Drake and she asked if she could bring Alex along. They would be there on Friday night and would come home on Sunday afternoon. I know its short notice but—"

He cut her off. "Yes, that'd be great."

"Oh—okay. Alex is really excited," Starr replied quickly.

"Tell her I'm looking forward to it. Will Julia bring her by the Quartermaine Mansion?" Dillon asked, glancing at the clock. He had a meeting at the Metrocourt in a half an hour.

"Yes, I'll have her do that," Starr replied before saying her goodbyes. After she hung up the phone, she smiled. There, her good deed for the week was done.

XXXXXX

Molly put the phone back on its hook. She'd been on the phone from the moment she'd gotten to the office that morning. It hadn't stopped ringing. Kate had instructed her to deal with the publisher of the magazine and to make certain that the photo shoot with Fusion was set in stone.

And now, after nearly six hours, she was finished.

She stood up and was about to go get some coffee when the elevator door opened and Maxie Jones-Spinelli walked out.

"Is Kate here?" She barked, striding to the closed door of the fashionista's office.

Molly stood there for a moment before she gained her composer. "Uh, no. She's not. She left early—Addy's dance recital. Is there something I can help you with?"

Maxie spun around and faced Molly. "Not really. I just needed Kate's advice. I'm panicking right now. I have two weeks to get fifty new designs out and ready to be made into the gowns. I have no idea how that's going to happen!"

Maxie doesn't do panic so this must be really bad, Molly thought inwardly and smiled on the outside. "Well, I'm sure that you can do it. You've kept Crimson afloat before by yourself."

"Did you not hear me? Fifty new designs. I'm an artist, I don't work well on time schedules," Maxie was practically screaming now. She paced back and forth.

Molly held her hands up in defeat. "Okay, okay. Stop. You are going to wear a path in the floor and Kate will not like that. I'll help you if I can, but I'm not really a designer."

"You are if you're working here. Working here is like being groomed for your own career. Then when you make it big, Kate'll take on some new fashion hopeful," Maxie replied, pulling a stack of folders out of her bag. "Here's what I was thinking…"

XXXXXX

Morgan stepped off the elevator on the fifth floor. He saw Mattie standing at the nurses' station with her back to him. He shifted the tray of coffee cups and crept up behind her.

Mattie was almost finished filling out the last chart. Then she could go home. She was very tired and her feet were screaming. While there hadn't been any major emergencies, she had had a steady stream of patients. That's what she got for going into obstetrics and gynecology, as her father would tell her. He was still hurt that she hadn't chosen neurology as was tradition in the Drake Family.

Morgan came up behind her and dangled the coffee and cookies in front of her face. She smiled as she set the pen down and turned around. Wrapping her arms around him, she suddenly got a second wind and was no longer as tired as before.

"Hi, I was just thinking about you," She whispered.

"I hope that it was only good thoughts," he whispered back.

"Oh of course, and I was thinking about chocolate chip cookies—Kelly's chocolate chip cookies," She pulled back and eyed the white paper bag in his hand.

"They're the best and my favorite doctor deserves only the best. I bribed Lulu into making a fresh batch," Morgan replied, pulling one out of the bag and handing it to her.

Mattie broke off a corner and ate it. She closed her eyes to savor the cookie. "Oh bless her—and you."

Morgan smiled. "How about we go back to your place and order takeout. I hear that Sarah's working the night shift at PCPD."

She eyed him. "Oh really?"

"Yes, really."

"And how'd you hear that?" She took a sip of the coffee.

"A little bird," Morgan replied simply.

Mattie shrugged. "Oh, okay. Well your plan sounds great, just let me get changed and I'll meet you here in fifteen minutes."

Morgan nodded and watched her walk off. How did he get so lucky? Mattie was the perfect girl and he was hoping that she'd agree to become his wife very soon. He had plans to propose at the charity ball at Wyndemere, but he wasn't sure if he could keep a secret that long.

So, how it is so far? I see that there are mixed reactions about Dillon Quartermaine and Starr Manning. But in this story, they are divorced now after a brief, almost loveless marriage because both were still in love with their first loves. Regardless, please keep reading and reviewing. I didn't get as many reviews last time. For my current readers, tell people to read my story! I really enjoy reading the reviews. Enjoy!