Thank you to everybody who read or reviewed the last conversation. Either this version or the classic. You're all wonderful.

Warning: Allusions to past sexual assault and dubious consent situations.

Chapter 21: Ghosts

"How could you do that to Amanda?" Justin asked the minute they were sitting comfortably in the van driving them to Justin's boyfriend's house. Matt despises uncomfortable conversations that occur in moving vehicles because there is no way to avoid the conversation as jumping out the window was just not an option. Really, there should be a limit on how many uncomfortable conversations you can have in a 24 hour period. He believes this is at least number five. Or maybe six. It depends on how you count things.

"Even though my biological father ignored me for the first 10 years of my life, he never denied that I was his child. You're completely screwed." Justin said as he sent a text message to his boyfriend to let him know that they were on their way.

"How do you even know what happened with Amanda yesterday? I seriously doubt your dad ever worried about raising someone else's child. You're too young to understand." Matt said before he remembered a conversation with Betty about Justin's father being shot to death. He was getting good at putting his foot in his mouth. He wonders how many times you can do that in one day as well.

"Monique showed us the video." Matt winced at that. Maybe jumping out of the window wouldn't be such a bad idea. He was also extra annoyed with Tyler. Maybe it's good they were spending a few days apart.

"Also, DJ is really great at eavesdropping and knows all the juicy stuff and tells me everything." Of course, Justin was friends with Daniel's nephew. "You're right, my father never had to worry about my paternity because he ran away and didn't try to get into my life until I was a preteen right before he died." Justin shot at him bitterly.

"Sorry," Matt mumbled.

"It's fine because now I have a stepdad in Bobby. He is the one raising a kid that's not his. He's been more of a father to me than my biological father ever was. I know he doesn't just care about me because he is sleeping with my mother." Justin told him in frustration.

The teenager obviously had a point. Matt spent more time with his nanny then his actual parents. Breanna was more of a parental figure than his parents were. Was biology really that important in the grand scheme of things? He didn't have time to think on that because Antonella started speaking.

"I'm glad my brother isn't like you. If he were, he probably wouldn't even be marrying Monique. You know Monique can't have kids." He nodded his head. Amanda mentioned it once or twice.

"He doesn't care. Even though I act like a brat half the time, she is a lot better than his last girlfriend. I hate sourdough girl. She tried to convince Gio that I would be better off living with my aunt that I absolutely hate. Monique was the one who wanted to take care of me. She was willing to turn down the job offer in London, just so I wouldn't be uprooted from my life. I was the one who told her to take it." Antonella said this as she started to look slightly nauseous.

Thanks to being thrown up on multiple times by his girlfriend, he knew that look a little too well and seriously hoped that Monique packed some of those special paper bags for such an occasion. It was probably a stomach bug because he doubted a 15-year-old would have morning sickness. Then again, he was supposed to report Monday to a place where that was quite common, so he really shouldn't judge.

"Maybe that's what you really want." Justin mumbled under his breath.

"What do you mean by that?" Matt asked confused by his words.

"Maybe you want this baby to be Daniel's child, so you don't have to grow up. You don't want to be a father, so you are looking for an excuse to run away." Justin explained.

"That's not what I'm doing." Matt denied, but in the back of his mind, he wondered if there was more truth to that than he was willing to acknowledge.

"For some reason I don't believe you. As somebody who had a father who didn't bother to see him for the first decade of his life, I know all the signs. I suggest running away now. It's much easier when you don't know your father at all." The bitterness was very evident in Justin's voice.

"I'm not afraid of being a father and I'm not trying to run away." Matt argued back.

"That's the way it looks. Again, I should know." Justin said trying to conceal his anger as he went back to playing with his phone.

"I think I'm going to be sick." Antonella said just before Monique's almost sister in law threw up on his shoes. He was sure Justin was taking cell phone video of this. This was the worst 24 hours of his life. He can't get any worse than this.

Amanda hated throwing up. That seemed ironic now because she used to do it voluntarily during her bulimia phase. The doctor said the worst of it should be over by now, but nothing in this pregnancy has gone normal. The fact that she was having twins was evidence of that. Her blood sugar was all over the place in addition to her being sick all the time. Now they have her on a stupid pill for the gestational diabetes and she was going to have to watch what she's eating, in addition to poking her finger twice a day.

Her doctor wanted her to stop working, but she said no. The compromise was her staying in New York. She couldn't afford it especially with the puppy money ending soon and she was not even spending half of her income on clothing any more. She was meeting with her biological mother's former lawyer Friday, most likely to be told that now that the dog was dead she wouldn't receive money to take care of him anymore. Therefore, she needed to work. Marc couldn't support both, especially because he had Jade now. Three-bedroom apartments are not cheap, and she would really like to avoid New Jersey if she could help it.

She wouldn't take money from Matt before what happened yesterday, and she surely won't do it now. That would essentially prove the wicked mommy right, and she couldn't do that. Amanda loved Matt, but she wasn't sure that he loved her. He had already left her three times and they haven't even been seeing each other a year yet. Once for Betty, once for Africa, and once because of his own insecurities. Running always seemed to be what Matt was good at. It was obvious that she could not depend on Matt and therefore she had to be ready to take care of her two children herself.

Amanda was used to being left behind, but her children will not be. She knew that Matt doesn't stick with anything. The moment he becomes bored he moves on. She couldn't help but wonder if Matt was merely using the remote possibility that she could be pregnant by Daniel to get the hell away from her. Maybe she should thank mommy Hartley for showing her Matt's true character. It was better that Matt left her now before both she and her children became attached.

If Amanda was being honest with herself, she was always worried about Matt leaving her behind again. It was the number one reason why she wouldn't move in with him. Ever since he came back in April, Amanda has been expecting him to get tired of her and the prospect of being a father and leave her. Amanda wanted to be wrong this time, but apparently, she was not.

At the same time, a part of her still wanted him to be there to hold her hair back as she made effective use of Wilhelmina's toilet. She tried to tell herself that it was just so that her hair would stay as stylish as possible, but she knew it was because she cared about him. Amanda loved Matt even though she wished she did not. She didn't want to do this alone, but she may have to. (Marc says that he will be there, but he has Jade now, and unlike Matt, Marc is not going to be a part-time father.)

Just like she told Betty a few minutes earlier, she didn't expect anything from Daniel and that included money. Amanda wasn't going to use this baby to keep him away from Betty. She will never be Charlie.

Of course, Daniel himself was another story. She knew Daniel wanted to be a dad. He was willing to help her raise this child regardless, in whatever capacity she wanted. He was even planning to be in New York when she went into labor because she asked him to. She didn't want to be pregnant by Daniel, but she couldn't deny him his chance of being a father because he was too good of a friend.

In contrast, the idea of being a father petrified Matt. Just like with Daniel, she wasn't going to use her pregnancy to make him stay. It was his choice. She had a feeling no matter what the paternity test said, Matt would not choose to stay with her.

The tears began to prick her eyes again as she felt her hair be pulled back and a damp cloth pressed against her forehead. It was Marc with baby bag in hand. She was so lost in her thoughts that she did not hear him turn on the water.

"Do you want your ginger ale now?" Marc asked as Amanda fell against the cold tiles of the black marble floor.

"In a minute. I think I might throw up again. I didn't think I had anything left in my stomach." Amanda said, taking the damp cloth from his hand.

"You know you don't have to be here." Amanda told him.

"I totally missed all this with Jody when she was pregnant with Jade, so I get to make it up with you. I'm also here to tell you to back off. Wilhelmina is 30 seconds from planting one of her custom wedding shoes in your skull. That would just be bad for the babies." Marc told her, genuinely concerned.

"I will say what I want, because I hate her and she's evil. If she wasn't trading information about my pregnancy to Matt's mom, that woman wouldn't have screwed up everything." Amanda said angrily knowing that wasn't entirely true. Matt was going to run regardless. It was just a matter of time.

"Do you really believe that? Mommy Hartley has done everything in her power to make you miserable since she found out that you are carrying her grandkid, now grandkids." Marc asked as he handed her a bottle of mouthwash. "Even with Monique's connections, you haven't received a single call for a styling job in over a week. It's obvious you're being blacklisted."

"I'm aware." Amanda told him.

"You realize she would have just served the papers at Mode, if Wilhelmina hadn't told her about the doctor's appointment. Don't be mad at her. Do you really think what happened with Matt yesterday was just caused by the fact you had sex with one other person seven weeks before you two got together?" So maybe he did have a valid point. What happened yesterday was going to happen eventually, no matter what.

"I don't know what to believe." Amanda mumbled as she grabbed the mouthwash. "What is your obsession with my breath?"

"I just don't like the smell of half-digested food. It reminds me of every time I had to wrangle the models before the promotion." Marc said just as she uncapped the mouthwash.

"I know Matt is just looking for a reason to leave. If there was a real chance of me being pregnant by Daniel, I would've had the DNA test done before he left. In my heart, I know Matt is just using it as an excuse to run away. It's what he does. I know that, Marc. I don't need you to tell me that. Why do you think I still have a copy of Oh Fuck, I'm a single parent?" She asked her friend.

"That you already knew about Jade and you were reading the book to give me pointers." Marc joked.

"No, that's why I bought a second copy just for you. I put it in your overnight bag for you to read on the train to DC. I know I will I have to do this on my own and I am fucking terrified." Amanda said with tears running down her face.

"You're not in this alone. You have me." Mark tells her.

"You have Jade."

"So, we'll be the new millennium Brady Bunch with half the kids, but better outfits and a logical reason to sleep in separate beds. We do everything together. How is this any different?" Marc was just about to envelop her in a hug when Wilhelmina started screaming.

Amanda has seen too many Wilhelmina meltdowns to follow behind as Marc scurried off. Instead, she made appropriate use of the mouthwash and the ginger ale left in the bathroom.

"I'm not sorry." Marc told Wilhelmina after enduring 10 minutes of screaming. That was almost tame by Wilhelmina standards.

"Well, now everybody knows about Jade."

"That was going to have to come out eventually. I'm not ashamed of her."

"Even though she exists because Jody forced you to have sex and didn't have the decency to check to see if the condoms were expired." Wilhelmina said pointedly.

"I don't care of how she got here, because she's perfect." Marc smiled at her.

"I love my daughter. I've met her once and I absolutely adore her, so I can't understand why the senator completely ignores you. He's not coming to your wedding, but he has time to stare at the models."

"Familial relationships are easy when the other party is too young to talk back. But eventually they grow up and things become complicated because at least one party focuses too much on their career." Wilhelmina remarked, obviously thinking about Nico.

"I'm going to try my hardest to not be your dad." Or repeat the mistakes you made with Nico and my mom made with me. "He didn't even come to the hospital when you were in ICU. Nico called at least." That part slipped out before Marc could catch himself.

"What?" Wilhelmina asked surprised.

"Yes, and I told her to go to hell. Then I hung up on her when she tried to say something about your sister stopping by. She also sent the lilies, but I threw away card."

"But not the flowers?"

"They were really nice flowers. And it wasn't like your father bothered to send any. Yet, he had no trouble whatsoever turning what happened into a campaign fundraiser solicitation. He did not even send a card. Again, your estranged daughter did more." Marc explained. Wilhelmina looked ready to pull a knife on him. That was not good.

"However, my father was kind enough to get Connor's sentence reduced, which is something I appreciate much more than lilies and cards that will just get thrown away." Wilhelmina stated darkly.

"That is just the way our relationship has always been. He will give me anything I want, except for his time so everyone still perceives him as the perfect senator. He has never been around since he left me with stepmom number one for the sake of his career. Why should now be different?" Wilhelmina asked as she made her way towards the bathroom.

"If we get into the town car now, will you throw up on my shoes before we get to the prison? You're just like your mother." Wilhelmina asked Amanda with an angry glare, but didn't wait for an answer as she sped by. "Marc we are leaving now."

"What happened?" Amanda asked in a whisper as she ran back into the room to get her matching caramel purse.

"I'm not sure. Finish drinking your ginger ale and have a cracker. If you throw up on her shoes, I can't save you." Marc said as they walked to the front door, but they stopped midway due to the screaming.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Wilhelmina screamed at the visitor.

"Is that anyway to greet your only sister? Then again, maybe I'm not your sister. I can never tell if you behaved more like my bossy older sister or an overprotective mom. Nico says hi by the way." Even to Marc that sounded a little strange, but he didn't say anything because Wilhelmina has always had a strange relationship with René.

"Somebody from the family had to be here to give you away? Like dad ever would." René said from the doorway as Wilhelmina continued to look displeased.

"That is Wilhelmina's sister? She was Daniel's ex-girlfriend who tried to fry Betty because she was convinced he was in love with her?" Amanda asked for clarification.

"Yes, but I think it was the other way around. At the time, I thought she was as unhinged as Wilhelmina claimed she was. Given the circumstances, I think she was just crazy enough to see what we didn't." Marc mumbled back.

"This is not good." Amanda told him as she grabbed her cell phone out of her bag. Marc could tell she was already sending an emergency text message to Daniel. That was probably for the best.

"Wilhelmina is making her 'get me the hell out of here' face. This is going to be a long wedding." Marc said with a sigh of annoyance as he pulled out his own cell phone to send his own warning text. He really wished she was still in DC with Cliff or with Jade right now.

After a quick stop to another vehicle and change clothing, they arrived at Austin's apartment. Thank god the hotel in DC was in a mall because Matt seriously needed to go shoe shopping after this. He has thrown away three pairs of shoes this week alone and it was only Tuesday.

He left a still slightly sick Antonella in the van with Justin as he ran upstairs to pick up his third charge. He half expected to see Austin waiting for them on the stairs, but he doubted Mrs. Williams would be okay with that.

Instead, he walked up to the third floor and rang the doorbell only to have a dark hair woman in her early forties open the door. She looked familiar, but maybe Matt had just slept with her at some point during the worst of the sex addiction. Let's just say he didn't stick to his own age group and leave it at that. This may become awkward very quickly.

"Hi, I'm Matt Hartley from Mode magazine. I will be keeping an eye on your son during his time in DC." Matt said in introduction as he extended his hand, but she didn't take it. Instead, she was looking at him in gaping mouth shock. At that moment Matt was 90% sure he slept with this woman at some point. That could be the only explanation for her completely bewildered expression and the fact she seems so familiar. Matt was quickly trying to remember exactly how old Justin's boyfriend was. The first time he saw Austin, Matt swore he had to be a long-lost cousin or something. He breathed a sigh of relief when Matt realized that he didn't lose his virginity until two years after Austin was most likely conceived. Thank God he couldn't deal with any more long-lost family coming out of the woodwork.

"You're definitely not Miss Tannen-Somers, Matthew." The woman said using his real name. Even his mom didn't call him that unless she was ready to explode.

"Amanda was a bit under the weather this morning and I'm filling in." Matt said as an excuse before he asked the real question on his mind. "How do you know my real name?"

"You don't remember me?" She asked with a quizzical expression.

"Did we sleep together? If we did, I am sorry I don't remember your name or called you the next day. I was a complete mess back then and I apologize for my behavior. My therapist said I was using sex with random people to make up for the fact that my parents never actually showed me any love or affection whatsoever." Matt said that part sarcastically.

"I know your parents. I think your therapist may be onto something. No, we never slept together. That would just be wrong on so many levels. I always hoped you would pursue your passion in the arts, but I never thought you'd end up working at a fashion magazine. That was always your aunt's thing." As she said this, that's when everything clicked in Matt's head.

Her hair was much darker, and she no longer wore what his teenage mind referred to as sexy librarian glasses, but this was Tiffany Jagger. If rumor was true, and anything that came from his aunt usually was, this was the woman who was pregnant with his brother or sister before his father paid for someone push down a flight of stairs to induce a miscarriage.

"Tiffany Jagger?" Matt asked hesitantly, still in shock.

"It's Williams now. I got married a couple years ago. We moved to New York last year, against my better judgment, because Richard got a job here." She said in a way that made Matt sure she never wanted to come back to this city. Considering what happened with his father, he couldn't blame her.

"I personally think moving to New York was the best thing ever." Austin said as he moved out of his bedroom carrying just one small duffel bag. Unlike his boyfriend, at least Austin knew how to pack.

"That's because you met Justin and you can take acting classes here. I must agree with you. He's a good boy even if my husband wishes he was a nice girl instead." She said kissing her son on the forehead. His mother never did that with him unless cameras were watching. At that moment, Matt really began to look at Austin again. He could see pieces of Tiffany in him but also there were these features that did not come from Tiffany that matches those that he's seen before. Just like the first time he saw Austin, he still felt like he could be a Hartley. He's pretty sure he has the same cheeks as Alexis Junior.

"When have I ever cared about Robert's opinion regarding anything?" Austin said referring to his stepfather by his first name, an obvious sign that he did not have a very good relationship with the man.

"Never. Just try to behave in DC and do something educational." She said pulling her son into another hug. Austin pulled away like any good 15-year-old.

"I'll try." Austin replied.

Tiffany must have gotten pregnant again immediately after she miscarried, Matt thought to himself doing the math again in his head. That would only make sense if she gave birth to Austin at least three months early. That seems unlikely.

"You will take care of my baby?" Matt barely heard her words as all the pieces slid into place. She never had a miscarriage. She probably lied about it to keep her unborn baby safe after the incident. Said child was currently standing in front of him and again he looks like a Hartley. This meant only one thing, this kid was his half-brother and he was dating his ex-girlfriend's nephew. The thought alone made him dizzy.

"I think I have to." Matt said as he promptly went unconscious.

"Even though she threw up on Matt, she still wants to go to DC?" Monique sighed into the phone as she waited for everyone to show up. She was currently talking to Justin's mom who agreed to not only fill in for their missing hairdresser on short notice, but also agreed to chaperone the interns now that Matt was currently in an emergency room with Mrs. Williams keeping him company. Why is she not surprised that Matt fainted?

Apparently, one of her new interns' mother was the former assistant of Matt's father and knew Matt ever since he was a little kid. Monique personally believes Hilda is only coming to DC to keep Justin from doing inappropriate things with his boyfriend, but Monique would take anything at this moment. She needed all the help she could get.

"I don't think she is that sick, probably just food poisoning. Don't worry we're at the drugstore now. Do you let her spend time alone with her boyfriend?" Hilda asked for reasons Monique could not understand.

"Not if I can help it, but she is too good at sneaking out. Although she told me this morning that they broke up. Regardless of that I'm taking her to see my gynecologist in a couple weeks to have the contraception options conversation."

"It's never too early for that conversation. Although sometimes it's too late. I should know." Hilda remarked nervously. That should probably concern Monique more than it is right now. She blames the wedding.

"Fine, let her come onto DC. Although maybe find something OTC for the nausea. If I say no, she will just show up at the hotel by herself and that is not a good thing in her current state. Do you know why Matt lost consciousness?" Monique questioned.

"Tiffany didn't provide any details when she called me to get the kids. Justin was the one who suggested I bring a suitcase." She replied.

"Thanks again for filling in. I will call Tiffany about Matt later when Amanda isn't due to show up any moment. I'm still in the room where the wedding is supposed to take place waiting for everyone to show up even if the guard took Connor's suit from me 30 minutes ago. They're not here yet and there's only so much decorating I'm willing to do for a wedding that's not mine." She said putting up more crepe paper. She asked for special permission to decorate just to drive Wilhelmina crazy. The room now looks especially tacky.

"They probably would have let me in here earlier if you would have handed over your cell phone." She heard a man say with an Australian accent that she would recognize anywhere.

"Not happening. I have a company to run. Hilda, call me when you get onto the train station. Talk to Amanda about changing the tickets for a later train." Monique said hanging up her phone and putting it in her pocket before turning to Connor.

"Please. You're paying the guards enough that you can probably have your own cell phone." Two of the guards looked at her funny when she said that because it was probably true. "You look good for a guy who's about to get married to the queen of evil at the jail house chapel of love. Do you like? I decorated myself." Monique said pointing to the Party City wedding decoration she picked up. She purposely chose colors that would clash with lots of orange.

It was hard for her to try to get along with someone who used to be a friend, but the other thing Molly asked for her to do was get over her anger, especially that anger involving Connor. Since she accomplished the impossible of getting Daniel and Betty together she would work on Molly's other request. That involved bringing the expensive suit to the jailhouse and not being argumentative with Connor. He was also laughing at the decorations, but that was just his sense of humor. Wilhelmina will hate it.

"No one looks bad in Armani. You are a brave woman to decorate like this. Do you have to call her that?" Connor asked.

"Yes, and I needed some entertainment. Too bad the guards wouldn't let me bring in a chocolate fountain." Monique replied.

"I wanted to wait until my release in December, but Wilhelmina did not. She deserves more than this." Connor told her as he looked at the fake white doves Monique put up.

"That's because she didn't want to have to deal with a runaway groom again. None of us do. You really don't want to know what she did to her subordinates that week, but it involved making someone urinate on themselves during a staff meeting, according to the rumor mill." Monique said slightly uncomfortably. She wondered if she could get away with playing computer games. Where the hell were they?

"Although today it seems like she's the runaway bride." Connor said somehow picking up on her unsaid thought.

"They're probably stuck in traffic." She gave as an excuse even she didn't believe that. "I'll send a text message." Monique said as she took out her phone, her personal phone, receiving dirty looks from the guards in the process.

She didn't need to send Marc a message because there was already something from him in her inbox. She probably missed it because she was busy with everything else or maybe she didn't get it earlier because she was in the middle of a prison. As she read the quick message, she realized this was not the type of thing you want waiting in your text message box for who knows how long. This was not the type of message she wanted to read at all.

Wilhelmina's sister was in town again. This would be bad on its own. The fact that Daniel was flying into New York tomorrow, now practically engaged to the girl his then girlfriend accused him of fooling around with made everything a million times worse. Even though this city is huge, Monique was sure the two would meet up because the universe was evil like that. It must be Fashion Week somewhere for her luck to be this bad.

"Oh fuck." Monique mumbled because that was the only thing you could say at a moment like this.

"Is something wrong with Wilhelmina? Was there an accident?" Connor asked her with genuine concern.

"Much to my own personal displeasure, your fiancé is physically fine. Mentally, I'm not sure." Monique said holding up the phone for Connor to see. She would pass it to him but one of the guards looked trigger-happy.

"This is not good. Meeting the stepdaughter is just what I wanted today." Connor mumbled under his breath confusing Monique.

"Rene is your sister in law and not stepdaughter. Although from what Marc told me, they are both equally troubled. Apparently, Wilhelmina is the good daughter. Wilhelmina's evil schemes usually fall short of attempted murder."

Connor was slightly twitchy when Monique corrected him. This made her suspicious about what Connor said but she didn't have time to ask because an angrier than usual Wilhelmina plowed her way past two guards. Things are bad when Wilhelmina doesn't even notice the tacky decorations as she starts making out with her soon to be husband before the ceremony even starts.

As she sat next to a crying Amanda as Marc officiated, Monique couldn't help but wonder if Connor wasn't just confused. She knew Connor didn't make mistakes. What did that mean? Monique didn't have time to think about that as Amanda burst into tears after Marc announced the happy couple as husband and wife and Connor had to prevent his new wife from hurting her sister. It was a beautiful ceremony.

33 years earlier

"How the hell could you do this to me and your father?" Wanda's stepmother said the moment they stepped inside the house. Wanda is surprised she lasted that long. She was expecting to be screamed at, the moment the doctor came and told them that she was at least three months pregnant. Wanda didn't need to be told that because she knew exactly the moment it happened.

"It wasn't like I was asking to be raped." Wanda said angrily.

"Do you expect me to believe that? You are a skinny 15-year-old girl with no breasts, a big nose, and nappy hair. No one would sleep with you unless you were spreading your legs willingly. It was probably that little friend of yours." Her stepmother said with a vicious snicker.

Wanda wanted to tell her that was impossible because that "little friend" was not interested in any woman, least of all her. However, the vicious woman would just twist it around to make her feel miserable. Instead, she stayed silent.

"It doesn't matter how you got pregnant, the damage is done. Do you know what this will do to your father's career?" Wanda wanted to laugh. Of course, that is the first thing she would bring up. That is all anybody in this family ever cared about. Ever since her father ran for City Council when she was a little girl, Wanda has been nothing more than a prop for her father's political ambitions. Then again, before that she was a prop for his legal career. She was nothing more than a fashion accessory and she had no idea how to function as something more than that.

"He was the first black man elected to the House of Representatives from this district just last summer. He is one of only a handful of black men to be in the House since reconstruction. Do you know what this will do to his career? They will make him resign if this comes out." Wanda tried to respond, but she was cut off by more of her stepmother's self-centeredness.

"Things will be even worse when my friends find out. This can never get out." She said with an angry glare.

"You want me to get rid of it?" Wanda asked hesitantly not sure how she thought about ending the pregnancy. She didn't want to be pregnant, but she didn't want to kill her child either. She was so confused and terrified. She wanted to talk to somebody who would listen to her and explain what options she had, but there was no one.

"No. I could just imagine the scandal if that became public. Your father is pro-life after all. Paris is lovely this time of year. I have been suggesting boarding school for years. However, your father hates the idea." She said but Wanda was confused.

"I seriously doubt he would go for it now that I'm carrying his first grandchild." Wanda replied snidely.

"He will never know. Not like he cares anyway, because he doesn't. He never wanted you. Your father cares more about his constituents, than you and probably me. I could disappear, and the Congressmen wouldn't notice until he needed me to stand by his side at some event. On second thought, there's always my family in Honduras. You and I are going to go visit my great grandmother for the next seven months before we come back with your little sister or brother. I hope it's a girl. I've always liked Renée for a girl's name, but your father will probably want something hideous like Rhonda. She wanted to meet her new granddaughter 'Wilhelmina' anyway."

"Do I have any say in this?" Wanda asked her stepmother.

"No."

To be continued.