Shane watched Bo pull Steve out of the room. For a moment, he had wished Steve had broken free so Shane could hit him again, but as soon as they were gone, he took a few deep breaths to calm down. His headache had returned with a vengeance and he shut his eyes, hoping that would stop the pain. When he opened them, he looked around and realized that Kim was still in the library.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
He saw something flash in her eyes, but then she looked down. "I'm fine." She was still holding Stephanie in one arm, and had the diaper bag strap in her other hand. She dropped the bag, and walked over to the couch, still holding the baby.
Through the library door, he could hear Bo and Steve's muffled voices. Obviously, they were still arguing. Steve's out of control, Shane said to himself. He's a danger to everyone around him. Shane stared at the door, debating whether he should go out and help Bo. And to think I protected him from Tarrington, that I put my career on the line for him. That caused Shane to have to fight his anger even more and he began to pace back and forth. Maybe I need to have it out with Steve once and for all.
Kim must have read his mind. "You'll just make it worse."
He turned to her and saw the faint trail of a tear on her cheek. "I'm sorry-"
"Don't," Kim said curtly, her tone taking Shane by surprise. "Don't say you're sorry."
"What are you talking about?" Shane was baffled by Kim's response, but before she could answer, Bo returned.
He looked at Kim only. "Why don't you let me take Stephanie and her bag to him?"
"Are you sure that's wise?" Shane asked.
Bo and Kim exchanged glances before Kim answered. "Steve will never do anything to hurt Stephanie."
Shane started to argue, but stopped. There was no point and, if he tried to stop Steve from taking Stephanie, it would only provided further fodder for Steve's ludicrous fantasies. Still, Shane looked at Bo. "You sure he's okay to take her?"
"Yeah, Gov'nor," Bo said. "I wouldn't let him leave with her if he wasn't." He took Stephanie from Kim and was about to take the bag when she stood up.
"I'll go out with you." She had a determined look on her face.
"You don't have to do this," Shane said. What Steve had said had hurt her; she did not need to be hurt any more. But Kim glared at him, so he shrugged and turned away as she and Bo walked out.
Shane wandered around the library for a couple of minutes, picking up Jeannie's and Andrew's toys and tossing them into the playpen. Then Bo wandered back into the room. He was alone.
"Where's Kim?" Shane asked.
"She's getting Jeannie."
It was only at that moment that Shane remembered that Kim had left the library to deal with the cut on Jeannie's forehead, but had returned without the baby.
"I guess she left her with Simmons when we came in." Bo shoved his hands into the pocket of his jeans jacket. "So is this going to be a regular thing with you and Steve? Maybe we should make sure we have a couple sets of boxing gloves around for family get-togethers."
"Very funny," Shane said, as he set Andrew's toy car on his desk. "But seeing as I'm not a member of the Brady family anymore, you can probably save the money on the gloves. I'll keep my distance."
Bo rolled his eyes. "Come on, Shane, that's just ridiculous. You're still a member of the family."
Shane shook his head. Bo just did not understand. Being part of a family required connections, a bond rooted in something far greater than friendship. That kind of bond no longer seemed to exist now that he was just "Andrew's father." But Shane did not expect Bo to really understand; he had never lived without a family, having always been surrounded by both the Bradys and, more recently, the Hortons. It was different when you had learned to live without a family, like Shane had, following his parents' deaths and Drew's disappearance.
For some reason, Bo decided not to press the issue. Instead, he said, "I hate to do this to you right now, but I could kind of use a favor." Shane looked up, waiting to hear what Bo needed. "I drove Steve over here from the Cheating Heart and left my bike back there. Can you give me a ride?"
Shane wondered why Bo did not ask Kim, but she had not returned and Shane suspected she was deliberately keeping her distance for now. Maybe she did not want to discuss what happened, so there seemed little point in staying at the house.
On the way out, they ran into Simmons who said Kim was still in the back with the baby. Avoiding us - or me - most likely. As that thought crossed his mind, a particularly sharp blade seemed to stab the inside of Shane's skull.
"Hey, are you all right?"
They had just reached the car when Bo asked his question. Shane nodded as he got into the driver's side. "Just a headache. Lack of sleep probably." Lack of sleep and a lot of trouble caused by one Steve Johnson.
"You sure you're okay to drive?" Bo asked.
"I've gone without sleep before, Bo. I'm perfectly capable of driving you a couple of miles." Shane started the ignition and put the car in gear.
"Hey! I was just asking. No need to bite my head off."
"I'm sorry," Shane said. Bo was right. There was no reason for Shane to take his anger at Steve out on Bo. "I shouldn't have snapped at you."
They drove for a little while, until Bo broke the silence. "So what's really goin' on with you and Steve. I know it's not just about Stephanie. Steve said something about having some problems with you, you said something about a 'mess' Steve caused, and both of you look like you haven't slept in several days." When Shane did not respond, Bo asked, "It's Alamain, isn't it?"
Why do all the Bradys have to be so good at reading my mind? Shane wondered. "You know I couldn't tell you even if it was," Shane said, trying to dodge the question. He was not about to discuss Steve's foray into Lawrence's house and the tactical disaster it was for the ISA.
Shane's response seemed to provide all the answer Bo needed. "I figured there was more to it. Not that I would've blamed you for popping Steve for that comment about Kim." Bo chuckled to himself. "Nice punch by the way."
"Thanks," Shane said. "Not that a right cross is going to fix anything. I'm sure when I get back, Kim - well, if she'll even talk to me - will give me a lecture about how violence doesn't help anything."
"I think I got that lecture from her a few times in junior high." Bo studied Shane, who tried to focus on the road. "You know, Gov. . . . when you and Kim-"
"Bo, I really don't think this is the time." Shane could feel the thumping in his head intensifying.
"No, it's exactly the time," Bo said. "What I was saying is that, when you and Kim split, I was in a bad way, a mess." That was true. Hope died only a few weeks before Kim left Salem. Bo continued. "I wish I could've been a little less focused on myself, because I would have told you what I'm going to tell you now. "
"And what's that?" Shane asked.
"You're nuts."
Shane thought his head was about to explode. "Bo, this really-" He saw the Cheating Heart just down the street. "We're nearly there anyway."
Bo shook his head. "Well you might as well park, or come inside for a drink, because you're going to hear me out."
The last thing Shane needed was to return to the house smelling of stale smoke and alcohol, so he pulled the car to a stop and waited. "All right, Bo, go ahead."
"You're nuts because my sister loves you and you love her. Don't even try to deny it. You wouldn't have punched Steve if you didn't care for Kimber."
"Of course, I care for Kimberly," Shane said. "She's my son's mother, and we were together a long time. But just because I reacted to Kim being insulted doesn't mean anything."
"Yeah . . . you try to keep telling yourself that."
"This really is pointless." This was the same lecture Shane had gotten from Roman the day before. Shane started to look away, but Bo grabbed Shane's arm and jerked him back around.
"Don't screw this up," Bo said, sharply. "I pushed Hope away and only managed to get back to her just before she died. I don't go a day without regretting every day I missed out on, because I was a fool who had other things to do than spend time with the woman I loved. Then I turned around and made the same mistake with Carly and nearly lost her. Don't do it, Shane. Don't push Kim away; you'll only regret it in the end."
Shane stared out the front window. "It's not the same thing Bo. Hope loved you more than anything, and so does Carly."
"And that's how Kim feels about you, Gov'nor. If you don't see that, you really are crazy." Bo let out a harsh laugh, and the noise echoed painfully in Shane's head. "You and Steve. . . ."
"What about Steve?" Shane said.
"Neither of you can see what's right in front of you. He acts like Kayla doesn't love him because she got together with you, and you assume Kim doesn't love you because of Winters."
"They're not the same thing." Kayla didn't jump into my bed a few weeks after Steve died.
"Yeah, keep telling yourself that." Bo shook his head. "You and Steve . . . you're both a pair of blind fools. Instead of focusing on what you have, you're both too busy being mad about what you think you lost." He looked over at the bar. "Maybe you should start a brawl too, just to prove it."
Now Shane was confused, and it was not just from the headache. "What are you talking about? What brawl?"
"Nevermind," Bo said. "It was just earlier. Steve kind of went nuts while we were supposed to play pool with some chump. I don't know. Something weird happened with Steve and then the guy got in his face. Next thing you know, Steve's got the guy on the floor, the pool cue's rammed against his throat, and the guy's face is a bloody mess."
"And that's why you drove Steve's car and why you showed up at my place earlier than you should have?" Shane was beginning to put two and two together. "So Steve was already primed for a fight when he showed up."
"You've got a bit more training than that fool earlier." Bo chuckled again. "That really was a nice punch."
"Bo. . . ."
"Okay, okay. I'm done for now." He opened the car door and started to climb out, but then looked back inside. "You think about what I said, Gov'nor. Life's too short to waste being angry at the woman you love."
"Bo!"
"Okay." Bo held his hands up in mock protest. "That's it. Thanks for the ride."
Shane started to nod, but the movement just caused his head to thump again. Instead, in a voice tinged with sarcasm, he said, "You're welcome. I'll consider your words of wisdom my reward for a good deed. Try cash next time." Shane ignored Bo's dismissive laugh as he closed the door, took another deep breath, punched the car into gear, and headed home - to the next Brady lecture that awaited him.