Thank you to everybody who read or reviewed the last chapter. I appreciate it.

Chapter 86: Breaking Point

Still September 20, 2010

London Daniel: Now that the show is over, I am catching up on reading all the text messages I missed. I expect my mom to move to Europe in five years. Especially if the grandkids stay in this area. Also, I agree that Matt shouldn't come to London.

London Daniel: Amanda's not sure if she wants Matt here, and that was before Victoria's surprise appearance at the show. Labor is stressful enough. Let's not add anything else.

London Daniel: Marc should come to London because Amanda needs her best friend. Maybe we could split up work duties. However, that depends on the outcome of the check-up tomorrow.

Matt #6: Why doesn't Amanda want me there?

London Daniel: She's worried about you. Being near your mom is dangerous for you. She doesn't want you to take that risk.

Matt #6: That's fine because I'm worried about her. Did my mom do anything? The only thing I can find about the show is that the three of you are apparently a couple?

London Daniel: Don't believe everything you read. Messing with your mom is a favorite pastime of mine. Betty sees Amanda as another sister, so a triad is not on the table. But Betty kissing Amanda to make your mom miserable is.

Breanna: I am all for you messing with my former sister-in-law's head. Mainly because I need to clean the guest room for my potential new sister-in-law. It's okay because Andie is an upgrade.

Matt #6: What happened?

Breanna: Somebody broke into Andie's apartment while she was working. This looks suspicious considering Victoria showed up at her hospital to bribe her to dump my brother before departing for London.

London Daniel: Extremely suspicious.

Breanna: Anyway, Andie finally agreed with Cal that it was best to move elsewhere. However, she still doesn't want to live with your father or on his money, so she's housesitting.

London Daniel: And this is why we don't want you to come to London, especially with your mother here. You know she's extra mad at you for coming out. Don't antagonize her.

Matt #6: I don't want to miss the birth of my kids.

London Daniel: Betty is going to film everything. We'll figure out a way to livestream the delivery of the twins.

London Daniel: Not everything because Amanda is concerned that there are enough pictures of her "kitty cat" on the Internet.

Breanna: As the person on this chain who has undergone childbirth, I must agree. That's the part you shouldn't be filming. I love my daughter, but you do not want photographic evidence of vaginal tearing.

Matt #6: Since I was there for part of that delivery, I will agree. Did anything else happen at the show?

London Daniel: Lindsay and Ms. Sanchez kept Victoria from cornering Amanda in the bathroom.

Fashionista Marc: That is her favorite place for a confrontation.

London Daniel: Christina refused to shake her hand or pose for pictures when Victoria came backstage after the show. She also pointed out that she had an exclusive contract with Mode. Victoria wasn't happy, and Lindsay couldn't stop glaring at her. At least he realized why Christina McKinney wanted nothing to do with any company doing business with Victoria.

Fashionista Marc: My godson has the best mom.

Breanna: Hey, can you give Christina my contact information? Her humiliation of Victoria deserves me trying to help her get into a few stores.

London Daniel: I'll give it to her before our dinner tonight. I think she would appreciate the help. There were a lot of buyers in the audience, I think they liked what they saw. Our profile should help as well.

Breanna: She does excellent work. Did she do baby William's outfit?

London Daniel: It's 90% off the rack, but she made a few embellishments to ensure it matched the rest of the collection.

Breanna: That's what I like to hear. Maybe I can convince her to do some pieces for the next kids' line. It's been brought to my attention that I am not superwoman and need to bring in more designers for the label. Of course, we would also help Christina with her collection as well.

Matt #6: Yes, get outside help. I'm concerned about you overextending yourself.

Monique: Hey, sorry, I was in a meeting. I agree with bringing Christina onto the label to help. All of Christina's work was really good. I also want to carry the Mode UK article in Mode US since she worked with us first.

London Daniel: I can agree to that. I want Christina to have as much exposure as possible.

Matt #6: You can talk shop later. Back to my crazy mother. Why is she doing any of this?

Fashionista Marc: She is rich and bored?

Matt #6: She has an entire fashion magazine to run now. She can do that and get the fuck out of my life. I am so done with her.

Breanna: We all are.

London Daniel: Amanda is doing OK, but she's uncomfortable and feeling a lot of pain every 20 minutes. I have been timing her. So, if you can spare Marc, you might want to have him hop on a plane sooner rather than later. You may also want to move up Spencer's reservations.

Monique: I already convinced him to leave tomorrow. I can get Marc on the same flight.

London Daniel: I'm going to call Amanda's other dad tonight. I will try to convince Amanda's parents to come earlier instead of waiting until November. I will also see if he can help us find a highly rated forensic accountant.

Breanna: Thank you. That's one less thing for me to worry about.

Matt #6: Basically, everybody but me gets to go to London. That's not fair.

Breanna: I will be stuck in Cleveland because Alexis has a doctor's appointment tomorrow. I won't see my new niece and nephew until maybe Christmas.

Monique: I'm not going to London, either, despite Amanda being my friend. Someone has to keep the lights on here.

Breanna: As stated earlier, the situation is too volatile for you to be near your mom in London. Also, Austin needs you right now. After your mom leaves, you and Austin can have a nice vacation there for a while.

Matt #6: He has Justin.

Monique: Per my mom, Justin has been sleeping in Austin's bed for the last two nights because Austin keeps waking the whole house up at 3 AM screaming. He's convinced that Victoria will show up and murder him in his sleep. Austin is nearly certain Tiffany is dead because your mom was trying to kill him. He needs his brother.

London Daniel: Fuck! We'll talk more after the appointment. I'll let you know if Amanda's "not really contractions" start to get closer in time.

Breanna: Keep an eye on that. That's how it starts.

London Daniel: I will.

Xxx

Corbin arrived with her brother's girlfriend 10 minutes before they absolutely had to leave. Breanna appreciated that.

"Thank you for letting me stay here," Andie said as she entered the living room with a backpack. Corbin was behind her with shopping bags.

"It's no trouble at all. It's better if someone stays here. Unlike my brother, I don't have live-in staff. Matt stayed here until he bought his own place a few weeks ago. I was almost considering subleasing since I must be in Paris almost full-time until DJ turns 18 once we're able to leave Cleveland."

That wasn't a lie. She was considering it because Tyler wasn't quite ready to live alone yet. Otherwise, she would offer him the apartment. His next step might be sharing Matt's condo. Too bad Cliff decided to move to Queens. But the house would be better for baby Jade anyway. Alexis Junior loves their backyard in Cleveland. Jordan even put her in a jungle gym and a full playground in the back of the house. Aunt Jordan was spoiling Alexis Junior.

"Or at least until the forensic accountants figure out what the hell my son's grandparents did to his trust fund. Then we can change the custody arrangement permanently." Alexis said from the couch. Her suitcases are sitting beside her, ready to go. "You did hire somebody?"

"Daniel is taking care of it. He's checking with Amanda's dad for recommendations. He'll do it today when he tries to talk him into coming to London early," Brianna explained.

"Aunt Andie," Alexis Junior ran out of her room with a travel backpack on her back. Within seconds, she had her arms wrapped around Andie's legs.

"Well, at least I have completely one over one Hartley." Andie bent down to hug the little girl.

"At least two. My brother adores you. You're definitely an upgrade over the previous Mrs. Hartley," Breanna commented.

"I am not allowed to be around Aunt Victoria anymore." Baby Alexis explained.

"It's necessary because she's being really mean to Uncle Matt because he likes Cory now too. Let me show Andie to her room, and then we really have to get to the airport."

"The car is waiting outside to take you, compliments of your brother," Corbin explained.

"That was nice of him."

"I am sorry for making you guys late. The interview with the private investigator took a while. And then I found out they wouldn't even let me go into the apartment to pack a bag." Andie explained.

"Probably because they were afraid Victoria poisoned your toothpaste." Alexis Senior whispered under her breath. Thankfully, baby Alexis was too busy dragging her new Aunt Andie away to hear that.

"It's OK. The worst thing that would happen is I forced my brother to pay for a different flight. He's going to come back to New York to check on you tonight before leaving for Italy tomorrow." The fact that her brother was canceling half of his DC meetings just to come back to check on his girlfriend was a promising sign that things might work out this time.

"I really could stay at a hotel." Andie offered again. Corbin snickered. He knew his boss wouldn't let that happen, at least not the type of hotel Andie was thinking of.

"This place is going to be empty at least until December, and I rather have somebody here," Breanna told her brother's girlfriend as she opened the room to the purple guest suite.

"I think your guest room is bigger than my apartment," Andie commented.

"Matt stayed with me a lot between various job ventures. Now that he has finally bought a condo, I no longer need to keep this room for him. You can put your things in the closet over there," Breanna pointed to the walk-in closet to her left.

"I have nothing to put in there except for the stuff that Corbin picked up from Duane Reades and my dirty work clothes that I need to wash somewhere. Do you have in-unit laundry?" Andie asked.

"Yes. Just down the hall. Corbin was kind enough to text me your sizes earlier. My assistant Gigi will be bringing you a wardrobe survival kit this afternoon. However, let her know what you need for work. I know better than to try to get the information from my brother." Breanna explained.

"Bless you."

"I like you, and if things fall apart, I want to keep at least inviting you to charity functions." Please, universe, let her brother not screw this up like he did with Claire.

"I am also OK with invites to fashion shows." Andie smiled at her.

"I'm doing a trunk show shortly before the annual Hartley foundation winter ball in December. It's one of my favorite fundraisers. I'm expecting you there no matter what."

"I'll be there." Andie reassured.

"Corbin knows the apartment and can answer any questions you have. I'll call you from when we get to Cleveland. Say goodbye to Aunt Andie."

"By Aunt Andie. I hope Uncle Cal is not an ass hole like he was with Granny Claire." Breanna placed her head in her hands.

"We really need to watch what we say around her," Breanna mumbled in embarrassment.

"So much." Alexis agreed. Thankfully, Andie just found it amusing. Corbin just nodded his head in agreement—her brother's poor assistant.

Xxx

A little later:

Amanda's cousin #2: Thank you for the phone and the clothes. Breanna's team outdid themselves, and I think I will keep dressing better than my boss for the entire week. She hates it when I do that.

Tamika: Not that it would be hard.

Amanda's cousin #2: Lindsay is mad. But cannot make Victoria go to Barbados to do her actual job. He's going to send somebody else from here. I don't know who yet.

Tamika: That's not a surprise.

Tamika: How angry is Victoria?

Amanda's cousin #2: Very angry since her plan to break up Betty's relationship with Daniel backfired spectacularly. The fake poly relationship was a touch of brilliance on their part.

Tamika: I knew something else was behind her decision to switch the test.

Amanda's cousin #2: At least it kept my cousin alive.

Amanda's cousin #2: We met for like five minutes. I can't believe that Victoria hasn't realized that we're related. We look like twins outside of hair color.

Tamika: You both look like your aunt if she never had Botox. Thankfully, Victoria rarely pays attention. It helps that you're seven years older than Amanda and not pregnant.

Amanda's cousin #2: This is true.

Tamika: Did Victoria pull anything at the show?

Amanda's cousin #2: Nothing that I couldn't prevent.

Tamika: That's good. Lucky for you, Amanda is sitting out the rest of London Fashion Week. Per Candy, she's too pregnant to go on. She also put £50 on Amanda going into labor in the next 48 hours.

Amanda's cousin #2: That feels about right.

Xxx

Christina was exhausted when she was seated for dinner with her friends at one of the better restaurants in Betty's neighborhood. Daniel wanted to host a celebratory dinner for her successful show, and Christina couldn't say no. William was currently at Amanda's house with DJ as his babysitter. Candy and Becks were also there, along with at least three security guards outside. Amanda had a lot of security.

"Congratulations on a successful show. You deserve all good things." Betty said, raising her glass in a toast.

"I am sorry that a picture of me kissing Betty is overshadowing most conversations about it," Amanda said from beside her, raising her virgin chocolate martini. Which may or may not be chocolate milk in a martini glass with chocolate shavings and a truffle stuck to the glass.

"It's OK. I've already gotten several inquiries from buyers. There's a chance I might even end up in Harrods." Christina almost wished she could stay the rest of the week in London. Because of the Steward situation, she needed to get back soon to make sure he hadn't burned the house down while she was gone. He would do something like that.

"You deserve it. Brianna also wants to talk to you. She so what you made for William and is interested in your help for her kids' clothing line." Daniel told her. It took Christina a moment to realize he was talking about Breanna West Hartley. Half of William's clothing came from the designer's retail line. The other half were things Christina made herself.

"I know she's a brilliant designer. However, I'm unsure if I want to work with someone else." She liked being her own boss and wanted to see if she could do this independently.

"Breanna is family and would take care of you. I think she needs the help because taking care of Alexis is taking a lot out of her." Daniel explained.

Christina vaguely remembered that Breanna was living with Alexis in Cleveland as she underwent treatment for her heart condition. Christina may still have complicated emotions about the woman who pushed her down a flight of stairs two years ago, but at a minimum Christina doesn't want two innocent children lose their other parent. She also knows firsthand what it's like to deal with a sick partner. She wouldn't wish that on anyone else.

"I would be happy to design Betty's wedding dress on my own to take one thing off her plate." Christina wasn't happy that she would be working with the veteran designer to create her best friend's wedding dress. She wanted to do it on her own. Unfortunately, Justin suggested otherwise.

"I already tried to convince her I could use one of her off-the-shelf dresses, but she refuses to budge. We agreed that you're making my dress for the wedding. Breanna is creating the dress for the reception and the bridesmaid/attendant outfits. Although you're both working with Justin to make sure everything matches." Betty explained.

"We could also do a different dress for the magazine cover, too," Daniel suggested.

"Wait, you're serious about doing that?" Betty asked.

"Yes. Monique did a wedding issue, so I should do a wedding issue." Daniel explained.

"That was agreed to before she took over." Betty shot back.

"Being on the cover of a magazine would be great for Christina." Daniel countered.

"That's true. But it's not something I can do if I'm still working for Lindsay at that point." Just then, Betty's work phone started to ring again. It's the fourth time it's happened during this dinner.

"The fact that he calls us during a celebratory dinner makes me believe there won't be a conflict of interest when the time comes." Daniel was glaring at Betty's cell phone as he spoke.

"I just texted him that I would call back later. Christina, this is your dinner." At least the phone stopped ringing when Betty picked it up.

"I'm just happy it's over, and the response has been so positive." Her business partner sent her some articles that have already been posted. She is sure tomorrow's papers will say more nice things.

"Monique even asked us if the profile we're doing for the November issue can also run in the US version of Mode. Of course, I said yes." Daniel told her.

"Thank you for that. Also, thank you for coming to the show. It means a lot because it was the type of show you could've just sent an underling to." Christina knows there were other big-name shows Daniel could have been at. However, his choice to attend her showcase resulted in more coverage for her. She's hoping that will translate into more sales.

"You're important to both of us," Daniel told her.

"You're important to me, too. I dealt with my ex's evil mother so that I could be at your show." Amanda added.

"I appreciate it." As Christina spoke, Betty's phone started ringing again.

"I should've left the phone in the car." Betty groaned.

"Answer Lindsay. He's just going to keep calling." Daniel handed Betty her phone.

"Hi, Lindsay. This is a bad time to talk. I am having dinner with Daniel and Christina, the designer from today's show. I am seeing if I can convince her to do an interview for London Hub. Although she still refuses to do an interview with Isabella specifically because of Victoria Hartley."

"Tell your boss I will never reconsider doing an article for Isabella. Before getting the job at Mode US, I worked at Isabella for three weeks, which was horrible." Thankfully, she received a call back for the position she applied for at Mode and decided to take that instead of sticking it out with Isabella.

"I've heard things have been inconsistent. There was a reason Monique left for Diversity Business as soon as her Isabella press contract was up, once they moved her there after the breakdown." Daniel explained just as Betty started to get louder.

"Wait, you seriously want me to get on a plane tonight to Barbados to take over a fashion shoot for a magazine I don't even work for?"

"What is he making you do?" Daniel asked, "I regret that we are in the restaurant, so you can't switch to speakerphone."

"I can't leave right now. Amanda could go into labor at any minute. I am also not leaving her with Victoria in the country. She is the one who should be going to Barbados right now. It's her magazine."

"He's trying to make you do Victoria's job?" Daniel asked.

"I am not going," Betty told her boss angrily.

"Of course, he wants Betty to do her job because we all know Victoria won't do it. Marc said they called him again with a job offer." Amanda explained. She was brief this weekend about what Victoria Hartley was doing to Marc and his poor daughter. The woman was a monster.

"I quit." The three turned to Betty as she practically yelled those words at her now-former boss. "I've always wanted to be in charge of my own magazine, but I'm not in charge. You are, and I am tired of you second-guessing my decisions. I don't need this right now. I'm done." With that, Betty ended the phone call.

"Did you just quit?" Daniel asked his fiancée concerned.

"I may have been fired. I'm not 100% sure." Betty answered.

"I'm not sure it matters," Amanda.

"Except for severance pay," Daniel added.

"It also affects my noncompete clause. The length is different if I'm fired versus if I leave voluntarily." Betty explained just as the waiter arrived with their appetizer course.

"Hi, we're going to need more champagne, and I'm going to need a second, I-am-very-pregnant chocolate martini. She just quit her job, and we need to celebrate." Amanda tells their server just as Betty gets up from the table.

"I need a minute. I don't feel very well right now." Betty excused herself to the ladies' room.

"OK, maybe we should get dinner to go?" Amanda suggested as she watched Betty practically run to the bathroom.

"I'll go after her." Christina started to get up from the table.

"No, it needs to be Daniel." Amanda placed a hand on her shoulder to keep her from getting up. Daniel nodded and proceeded to leave the table to find his fiancée.

"She's probably hiding in the ladies' room," Christina remarked.

"That has never stopped him before. Did I ever tell you how Daniel found out I was pregnant?"

"I think I heard bits and pieces when you visited in the spring, but not everything."

"Drink your wine. I have a story." Amanda told her before beginning the story of why Daniel passed out in the ladies' room last spring.

xxxx

"You are aware this is the ladies' bathroom," Betty commented as she flushed the toilet after throwing up the champagne she had consumed earlier.

"You're aware that I never pay attention to that sign. Especially when you're throwing up." Daniel then proceeded to help her up from the floor of the stall. He also passed her the bottle of mouthwash that he kept on hand for Amanda. She is throwing up less, but it still happens.

"How do you feel?" Daniel asked as he started rubbing gentle circles on her back.

"Relieved, but simultaneously, I realize I just gave up my dream." Betty felt like crying.

"No, you stood up for yourself," Daniel reassured her as he led her to one of the couches in the lounge of the ladies' room. "From the bits and pieces I gathered, he wanted you to go to Barbados to cover for Victoria? I assume that was a request too far for you."

"Yes. His request makes no sense unless he plans on sending me back to New York to take over for her."

"That may have been his next ask. You heard Amanda say earlier that they're desperate to get Marc over there. I found out from the group chat this morning that they called him at 5 AM. You do not proposition someone for a job at 5 AM unless you're desperate." Daniel had a point there.

"They would've had a better chance of that happening if Mommy Weiner wasn't trying to get custody of Jade," Betty remarked.

"I'm getting the feeling that Victoria's goals and Lindsey/Isabella's goals are not the same thing," Daniel commented.

"That is obvious. Victoria wouldn't be here this week if they were." Betty laid her head on Daniel. "This entire situation is frustrating. You know how long I have wanted to be in charge of my own magazine. It just hurts to give that up."

"But London Hub wasn't really your magazine. You told Lindsay that he was micromanaging everything. And you were right. You can have the magazine you want after the no-compete clause is over with." Betty realized that her fiancé was essentially offering her a magazine at Meade Publications.

"I'm not taking a magazine from you. Everybody will think I got the job because I'm sleeping with you." She wants to earn her place in the magazine industry. Not receive it just because she will be the newest Mrs. Mead soon. She isn't Wilhelmina.

"Everybody thought that last time," Daniel smirked at her. She found it annoying.

"It wasn't true last time," Betty argued back.

"It wouldn't be true this time either. You would be earning it this time as well. This isn't something that we have to figure out now. Christina leaves in the morning. You should go out and spend as much time as you can with her."

"That's true. I feel awful for being late to pick her up. And for missing most of the weekend because of work. At least that won't be a problem anymore since I'm unemployed. Is that going to be a visa problem?" They both knew they would have to stay in London until DJ was 18. Maybe longer if Amanda decided to stay here long term, but she felt that once it was safe to return to New York, Amanda would return for Marc's sake, if nothing else.

"I will talk to the lawyers tomorrow. Hey, silver lining, at least you can go with us to Amanda's doctor's appointment in the morning now." Daniel suggested.

"That is true." Betty hated the fact that she had not been able to attend regular baby checkups. At least she won't miss anymore.

"Are you up to going back out there, or should we go home?" Daniel asked.

"Home," Betty answered quickly. "I just want to go to bed and forget about today."

"As you wish." Her fiancé replied as he helped her off the couches. If nothing else, she had Daniel, and with him by her side, she knew it would be okay.

To be continued…