A Beautiful Mess
 

She sat numb as she replayed the last four months in her mind. Ethan, her Ethan was engaged to Gwen. He was going to marry a woman she knew he didn’t love. Her best friend Whitney,had been crushed at the news that she was adopted and then to make matters worse, the man she loved, was her mother’s child.
She stared out her window and frowned. Her fairy tale life was over, Julian wanted out of the marriage. He wanted to be free in case Eve Russell of all people decided to give him a second chance. Her life, her perfect life had been shattered, and in her heart she knew nothing would be the same again.
"Theresa!" She heard a voice call out. "Theresa where are you?" The male voice shouted again.
She was glad at least, that her mother’s house had been fixed before Julian called it quits. Standing from her seat next to the window she frowned glancing over at her infant son as he slept. "I’m in here Miguel."
Her brother walked into the room, a frown on his tired face. "What helps morning sickness?" He questioned crossing his arms across his chest.
She lowered her head, yet another thing to worry about she realized. Her brother was having a child with Kay Bennett.
"Crackers?" She suggested walking over to look at Ethan Martin as he slept.
"She doesn’t like crackers." He frowned. "In fact I don’t think she likes anything."
Theresa sighed. "Have you spoken to Charity? Or is she still angry?"
Miguel gave his sister and knowing look. "I got her cousin pregnant, how do you think she’s taking it?"
"But Miguel, you said you didn’t know. Why didn’t she believe you?"
He shrugged his shoulders, and then he looked up at his sister, almost as if he wanted to speak but couldn’t.
"Miguel what’s going on?" Theresa asked calmly. "Why didn’t Charity believe you?"
"Because." He spoke honestly. "She had no reason to believe me."
"But Miguel."
He shook his head and Theresa stopped talking. "Charity said I had feelings for Kay, that I knew in my heart who I was with. She asked me point blank if how I felt about Kay, and when I couldn’t look her in the eyes, she just knew."
"Miguel no." Theresa spoke her hand going to her mouth. "You have feelings for Kay?"
He let out a heavy sigh. "I don’t know what I feel, but I do know I’ve got to do the right thing. Kay is having my child, and I’ve got to marry her, ready or not."
Theresa felt her heart sink as she looked in the hazel eyes of her younger brother. It was over, her dream for her family was finished. Luis’s future with Sheridan still looked bleak, her chance with Ethan was over and now, Charity and Miguel were done forever. There would be no happy ever after for any of them. No wedding with their soul mates. They had all three tasted true love, yet lost it just as quickly.
"Fate doesn’t exist." She suddenly muttered. "It never has."
"Theresa what are you talking about?" Miguel questioned leaning up against the wall.
She frowned. "Look at us Miguel, you, me, Luis." Sitting back down on her bed she lowered her head. "We’re all so unhappy. We came so close to having it all, and we just lost it."
"We’ll find happiness Theresa, honestly we will."
Theresa rolled her eyes, "Sure we will Miguel, sure we will!"
"Listen I have to head back to Kay’s she wasn’t feeling good when I left. Try not to worry to much okay?"
"Yeah sure." Theresa nodded as Miguel walked out of the room. "Easy for him to say." She frowned. "He doesn’t understand."
Her whole life she had dreamed of a life with Ethan. A life of wealth and love, and now those dreams were over. She was a mother, but not a wife, it wasn’t the way she had planned her life, it wasn’t the way she wanted it.
"Resa, girl you in here?" She heard a voice call out almost frantic. She groaned as Ethan Martin began to stir.
"I knew someone would wake you up." She whispered kissing her son on the head. "Its okay sweetie."
"There you are girl!" Chad Harris spoke walking in the room. "Have you talked to Whitney?" He questioned his eyes wide.
"Um no, why should I have?" She asked holding the baby close to her chest.
"You don’t know." He frowned.
Chad had lost Whitney long before he found out Eve Russell and Julian Crane were his parents. Their love had been based on so many lies that it couldn’t stand, and in the end, it just crumbled. Now he knew his mother and Whitney knew Liz, was hers. Nothing was right about it, nothing seemed fair.
"Chad what’s going on?" Theresa questioned.
"Whitney’s gone, she left town with Liz."
Theresa felt weak as she looked up at Chad’s sad brown eyes. His face was sad and she could tell he hadn’t slept in a while.. "She left?" Theresa choked out.
"Yeah, and she’s not coming back."
Theresa lowered her son back into his bed and swallowed. "She can’t be gone. She didn’t say goodbye, Whit would say goodbye." She cried out looking up at Chad.
"She left Eve a note, told her she wanted to get to know her real mother."
"Oh Chad."
"Its almost like this town is cursed." Chad frowned. "I don’t understand it."
"I still don’t understand how she could just leave. I’m her best friend, why didn’t she tell me?"
Chad shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe she couldn’t bare to throw more bad news at you."
"So she took the cowards way out?" Theresa blurted. "That’s much worse."
"That’s Whitney." He frowned. "She’s just like that."
Theresa agreed with a nod of the head. "So that explains the look on your face."
"No, actually it don’t." Chad sighed. "I talked to Julian and the all mighty Al today."
"You talked to your grandfather and father?" Theresa questioned with wide eyes. "What did they say?"
"They want me to take the Crane name, they say its the best thing for all of us."
Theresa let out a angry laugh. "You mean its best for them? It’ll make them look better."
"Yeah, and there’s more."
"More?"
Chad nodded his head. "You’re not going to believe what else Big Al proposed to me."
"What? He offered you money?" Theresa questioned. "Because if he did, you should take it."
Chad groaned. "Oh he made me a offer, but it comes with strings. Big strings."
"What kind of strings?"
Chad ran his fingers through his hair. "If I marry before January, I will become the legal Crane heir, Theresa. I will inherit everything, as the oldest Crane child. I can only do that, if I marry though."
Theresa frowned. "Chad this is the end of December."
Chad sighed. "And that is my wonderful grandfather for you. Honestly Resa, if there was a way I could make that man pay for everything he did, I would do it."
Theresa frowned. "You’re not the only one. That man tried to take my son from me Chad. I hate him for all he has done to me. He’s crazy, honestly he thinks he owns the world and everyone must submit to him." Looking over at Ethan Martin she frowned. "Someone should make that man pay."
Chad’s eyes suddenly got large. "Then why don’t we?" He asked as a smirk fell across his face.
"Chad, what are you talking about?" Theresa asked crossing her arms, her eyebrow arching as she stared up at him.
"Why don’t we make him pay? I deserve to be the rightful heir, and you could be the woman that could help me make it happen."
Theresa gulped. "Chad are you saying what I think you’re saying?"
He nodded his head. "Marry me Theresa, lets show Big Bad Crane that he can’t run over us."
"Marry you?" She coughed.
"You could give Ethan Martin a better life, and I could get what is truly mine." He smiled. "The Cranes have no plans of letting me in on any of that money. What do you say? Lets take that filthy money of there’s and use it for good. We could give it to the needy, help out folks that need it. What do you say Theresa? Be my wife."
With a slight grin Theresa looked up at Chad. "Only if I get a proper proposal Mr. Crane." She smirked. "And a nice big ring to go along with it."