“ Well, well,…if it isn’t the whore done good.”

Eve turned, “ Hello, Elizabeth.”

“ That’s all you have to say. Don’t you want to congratulate me?”, Liz said, sticking her wedding finger out for Liz to see.

“ Oh my, is that a ring. Sorry if I have to ask, when I look at this.” Eve sticks out her wedding finger and a ring the size of walnut is on her finger.

“ How much of your soul did you have to give up for that, Eve?”

” Not nearly as much as I did for my marriage to TC, Liz. “

” You’re nothing but a high-priced whore!” Liz barely got the comment out before Eve slapped her so hard she stumbled backwards.

” You know, I spent time feeling sorry for you. But, no more. You’re a bitter shrew, Elizabeth. I couldn’t see it when we first met up again, but now, it’s as clear as day.”

” Shut up.”

” No, I have to get this off my chest. You think that you love TC? You think he loves you? Puleeze, Elizabeth. You got him by DEFAULT. I know that you haven’t told TC who you REALLY are…because, if you had, he wouldn’t have anything to do with you.”

” You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Eve smiled. “ No my dear, if there’s a subject I DO know about, it’s TC Russell. I know what makes the man tick. After all, I spent 20 years with him. I know why I lied to him…but, why did you? I mean, he thinks you’re this paragon of virtue. Well, you better not ever step out of that box, Elizabeth. TC doesn’t rank high on the tolerance meter. But, I won’t bust you. I won’t let TC know what a liar his wife is. It’s not my concern anymore.  And, to be honest, I feel sorry for you.”

Liz laughed. “ Sorry for me?”

” Yes. I know where you are. I’ve been where you are. I hope you’re as good at the job of being Mrs. TC Russell as I was. TC won’t tolerate mistakes, Elizabeth. He has high standards, and will keep the woman in his life to them. “

” I’ll be fine.”

” I hope you will. You have to deal with his obsession with ‘perfection’. You have to deal with his possessiveness. You have to deal with his temper. They’re all your problems now.”

” I love TC.”

” Somehow, I doubt it. He was ALWAYS about more getting back at me than you loving him. But, that’s no way to lead a life, Elizabeth. I have a life. I have a marriage to a man who knows ALL about me and still loves me. I didn’t know what a gift it was until I got it. So, thank you, Liz. Thank you for freeing me. I was in a prison. Now, I’m free. No lies, no deceptions. No worrying about ‘the truth’ coming out. It’s all come out now, and Julian loves me. He knows the good and bad of me and he loves me. I can be who I am and be loved freely.”

” Julian Crane doesn’t love anyone but himself.”

” That might have been true, once upon a time, Mrs. Russell. But, the love of a good woman can show a man all the possibilities for his life. Eve’s done that for me.”

” You’re a liar! And, she’s a whore!”

” And, you are no longer welcome in my home, Mrs. Russell. I would like for you and your husband to leave my house, never to return. “

“ Gladly!”, Liz barked, on her way out.

Julian went over to Eve. “ You ok?”

” I’m fine. Good to see you.”

Julian hugged Eve and held her. They heard a knock on the door and looked up to see Simone and Nicholas.

“ You have time for that talk?”, Simone asked.

” Sure.”, Eve replied.

Nicholas and Simone stood there, holding hands when Simone spoke up.

” Nicholas and I are in love.”

Julian and Eve looked at one another.

” Ok…”, Eve said.

” And, we’re leaving town in a couple of weeks.”

” WHAT?!” Julian and Eve said simultaneously.

” Show her the brochure, Nick.” Fox took out the brochure and gave it to Eve.

” Year at Sea?”, Eve asked.

” Mom, I didn’t know you were coming back. I only recently decided to go, but I think it’s for the best. Daddy doesn’t know about my relationship with Nicholas. I know how he feels about the Cranes, and I didn’t have the strength to stand up to him and fight him all alone. But, I love Nicholas and he loves me.”

” It’s true. I love Simone with all my heart.”, Fox said resolutely. Fox looked at Julian, “ I just want to be happy.”

Julian nodded. Being a Crane and happiness didn’t often go hand in hand. That his son had found it so young made him feel good for him.

” Well, I couldn’t be more proud of both of you. I’m so happy.”

” Honey, so am I.”, Eve hugged her daughter. She pulled Simone away from Julian and Fox. “ Simone, Whitney’s coming over for lunch tomorrow. Will you come too?”

” Mom..”

” Simone, you’ll be leaving soon. You need to settle things with your sister. I can already tell that you think of this trip as a new beginning. It can’t be that if you’re still carrying around baggage from Harmony.”

” Ok, Mom, I’ll be here.”

” Good. And, Honey, don’t worry about your father. His love for you is stronger than hatred for the Cranes. Trust me.”

” I hope you’re right. I won’t be forced to give up Nicholas.”

” Nobody will ask you to.”

” Simone, how about some more dances before the party ends?”

Simone beamed at Fox and took his hand. Fox leaned in to kiss Eve. “ I said it before, but I do mean it. Welcome to the family. You have an amazing daughter, and I promise you that I love and respect her.”

“ Thank you, Fox. I needed to hear that.”

Fox and Simone left the Library.

” So, what chance do you give them?”, Eve asked.

” They’ll only end if Simone wants them too. This is Fox’s first taste at unconditional love, and I’m happy to see he’s far smarter than his father.”

“ TC will hit the roof.”

” Let him. My son’s a lot stronger than me. He won’t let TC run him off. And, I’m going to support Fox in any way possible. “

” I know. I’ll support Simone too. “ Eve shook her head. “ I turned around and my daughters are adults. They don’t need me anymore, Julian.”

” That’s not true. They need you more than ever. To respect their wishes and desires as young women. To know that there’s someone who will always be there for them. “

“ When did you get so wise?”

” Wise? That was so obvious even Stevie Wonder could see it.”

Eve and Julian laugh.

” So, come on, Mrs. Crane. Give me those last dances.”, and they leave the Library to return to the party.
 
 

“ It was a nice party.”, Eve said, taking off her jewelry. When she got to the dress, Julian was only too happy to oblige, unzipping it and kissing her shoulders. Eve returned the favor and helped Julian out of his shirt. They made their way over to the bed, but Julian stopped when he realized something concerned Eve.

“ What’s wrong, Eve?”

“ Is this really real? Are we really married and in love?”

Julian smiled. “ Yes. Hard to believe it, but we’ve finally made it. But that’s not the only thing on your mind, is it?”

Eve shook her head. “ You know what’s on my mind.”

” Our son.”

” Yes, our son. I can’t believe we have an appointment to see him in a couple of days. Julian…what if he hates us?”

” Don’t go there. From everything my detectives were able to find out, Frank Lomax led a  nice life with his adopted parents. There’s nothing in his file to think that he’s been scarred. I know that’s not what my father wanted, but thank goodness SOMETHING didn’t work out the way he wanted it to.”

” It seems like he has a good life.”

” Yes. The detectives say he’s happily married to a wonderful young woman, and we have a beautiful granddaughter. Can you believe it? We’re grandparents!”

Eve went to her purse and pulled out the picture the detective had gotten them. It was a copy of a family portrait: Frank Lomax, his wife, and their daughter.

” Julian, he doesn’t even know about us.”

” Eve, it will be fine. What gets me is the karma with him accepting the executive position at Crane Industries before we even knew he was our son.”

” Seems like fate, doesn’t it?”

” Yes. Oh I know he doesn’t need parents, and there are things we missed out with him that we’ll never get back. That is something Alistair cost us. But, we can be his friends, and more importantly, maybe we’ll get to be grandparents.”

“ We’ll have to sit down Fox, Simone, and Whitney and tell them the truth, Julian. Before Fox and Simone leave on their trip. “

” I know. They’ll be fine. Once we tell them the whole story, they will understand. Our children turned out well.”

“ Julian…..there’s something I have to tell you.”

” What? Something wrong?”, Julian looked at her with concern.

” No…I hope you don’t think it’s wrong. I’m so happy about it.”, Eve had tears in her eyes.

” Darling, what is it?”

” Sheridan’s not the only one who will be having a new arrival in a few months.”

Julian stared at Eve as he processed it.

” You don’t mean…”

Eve nodded. “ We’re having a baby!”

” No!”

” Yes!”

” Aren’t we too old?!”

Eve hit Julian. “ Bite your tongue.” Eve’s face covered with worry. “ You…you’re not happy about this.”

“ Eve, I’m stunned. I just found out I am a grandfather, and now you’re telling me I’m going to be a father. I’m stunned.”

” But, not happy.”

” No, I’m not happy. I’M THRILLED!” Julian’s face filled with a smile from ear to ear. “We have a chance, Eve. A second chance. I’ve been talking very logically about Frank, but I’m bitter at losing the chance at a family with you. Now, we’ve got that chance.”

Eve looked at Julian and realized he was sincere. “ Well, Julian, if I’ve learned anything in the past few years, it’s that life is full of surprises.”

Julian pulled Eve into a kiss, finally having everything he wanted.