Elizabeth decided to go with the violet. It had some nicely patterned dots on it and it went well with her violet nylons and violet hat.

Even her violet eye shadow.

She showed up at the press conference early and stood in the back behind the media corp including Delilah and her photographer Stoner who wore three cameras around his neck and chewed on a wad of gum.

Her former maid of honor looked focused on the story and off to the side, Elizabeth's eyes widened as she saw the heiress Serena dressed to kill in a sleek gown, slit up to her knees as if she were on her way to a soiree afterwards. Damn it, why did she have to show up here and try to steal her thunder? A couple reporters including one from the Juicy Gems social column gathered around her obviously interviewing the socially vapid woman when they were supposed to be circling around her.

She was Matt's former fiancée after all and CEO of his business empire. Then she saw a brunette wearing a fur trimmed outfit standing with what looked like a very distinguished man. Was that…oh great it was Christina…the ex-girlfriend and former model who'd been framed for a pathetic string of murders. Social columnists and upper society watchdogs had wondered if she and Matt might rekindle what they'd shared but it hadn't happened. It wouldn't happen because Matt was so over here, she'd always been pure lightweight.

Yeah they had the nicknames of endearment thing going and she and Matt…well they didn't do that. Some people did call her Lizzie but for the most part they weren't her friends. She hated that nickname back to her time spent in a public school back in Dublin when she'd been waiting for a spot in an exclusive boarding school, and the kids had all made fun of her red frizzy hair. It was Ireland for god's sake yet they still treated her like a pariah.

Then the room hushed as Matt walked into the room and up to the podium followed by what looked like Murray and Chris…and oh god, it was her. His associate, assistant, Girl Friday whatever you wanted to call it. But she certainly wasn't his girlfriend let alone his fiancée like Elizabeth. The "ex" thing she would take care of, merely a technicality.

C.J. looked pretty good…no she looked radiant actually in a grey pinstriped suit? That made her bristle because she thought for sure with her violet dress she'd be the fairest of them all. She needed to be when Matt called her to join him at the podium and all eyes and cameras were on her. But wait a minute why were C.J. and Matt holding hands when she joined him up there?

What was going on here?

C.J. stood beside Matt and he held her hand tightly. The media that showed up filled the room and she couldn't believe their new company had generated so much interest. But then she wondered if it had to do with the fact that the Daily Mirror had done a spread on Matt's…social history with the ladies and his fairytale love story with the love of his life, Elizabeth. She'd rolled her eyes when she'd seen the spread taken of photos from their whirlwind courtship, some photos of her tipsy with the exotic dancer at the bachelorette party and snapshots of their almost wedding.

There'd been a "Who's the Daddy" insert about her and her unborn child, though Delilah had wisely scrapped the part about her so-called conjugal visit with Robert.

Matt started by introducing his staff, one by one after explaining to the crowd that his new company had just acquired a maternity wear store. C.J. glanced at him in surprise over that and he squeezed her hand.

Then he cleared his throat to talk about the most important merger of all.

"My partner C.J. Parsons standing right beside me is my partner in all things…she's my best friend since I was a little boy growing up on my daddy's ranch. She's always been very special to me but I never realized how much so until recently…"

A hush fell over the crowd.

"So we got together and one thing led to another…and now we're having a baby together…"

C.J. glanced over at Matt, a brow raised.

"One thing led to…"

He smiled at her.

"Don't worry sweetheart, I got this all handled…"

Suddenly everyone started talking again amid some gasps and guttural utterances. A woman screamed some unmentionable words in English and some unrecognizable in another language amid the smash of crystal.

Then in the back of the room, someone yelled.

"A woman fainting back here," he said, "Smelling salts or a shot of whiskey back here stat."

C.J. glanced at Matt again.

"Had it all under control?"

He looked a bit taken aback by the sight unfolding in front of him as security guards came out of nowhere to try to restrain Serena who'd been throwing breakables all around her. Murray adjusted his tie.

"I think we should have gone with the press release Big Guy. We're a brand new startup and if this affects share prices…"

Matt put his hand up to placate his corporate president.

"Murray it's going to be all right. People will calm down and see reason."

C.J. just couldn't believe it. She was just an ordinary woman who'd gotten pregnant with her best friend's baby, nothing earthshattering or particularly abnormal about that.

Matt glanced at her.

"You think they'll start asking some questions?"

She folded her arms.

"What do you think?"

Robert smiled as he caught the press conference in the TV set up in the recreational room on his wing of the maximum security prison. Perfect, just perfect in fact it couldn't have gone any better. He knew all along that the spawn that C.J. carried inside her had been fathered by Matt. But then he was so much smarter than most of the rest of the world, including those responsible for the mayhem playing out onscreen in front of him.

He rubbed his hands together as a couple inmates stood up and started fighting over the remote control, one wanting to watch the fights, another a soap opera. Robert looked at them with great pity, why turn the channel when the current programming showed a bit of both?