Eve unlocked the door to what used to be her home, as she entered the house, she was not surprised to find that T.C. had already taken the liberty of packing her things and setting them down by the stairs. Whitney who had taken the ride home with her mother narrowed her eyes angrily.

“Who the hell does sassy think he is?” She asked as she dropped her purse on the sofa angrily. “I mean, you have the biggest income, you earn more money than him, and most of our bills come out of your check and he thinks he has the right to kick you out.”

Eve sighed some and smiled sadly. “Whitney sweet heart, I know you don’t agree with his method of doing things,” She stated. “I believe it’s harsh too, but I want you to promise me while I am gone you’ll try to listen to him.”

Whitney’s face fell with a sad expression. “Mom where will you go?” She asked sadly. “I mean, this just is not fair.”

Eve shrugged. “Life is not fair.” She stated. “But look, you've been up al night, go upstairs and get some rest. I’ll talk to your father.”

Whitney hesitated for just a moment, but when he mother reassured her she’d be fine, she let her sleep over take her and kissed and hugged her mother and headed up the stairs to get some rest. Eve watched her go, a small smile playing on her lips. “I love you baby,” She said softly as her daughter fell from her sight.

“It’s about time you showed up.” T.C entered from the kitchen with the most unfriendly look upon his face. “Your things were in the way.”

Eve folded her arms over her chest as he glared at her. “First of all T.C.” She said with an edge in her voice. “This is my house too. I pay more bills than you, and I provide more than you. Now I have never thrown it in your face before because I did not want to hurt you are your pride, but after the way you did not think twice about hurting me last night, I am willing to make a few exceptions.”

“I’m not staying in the same house as a tramp like you Eve!” T.C. snared angrily.

“Then maybe you should be the one to leave!” Eve said as her hands fell to her waist. “T.C. we have been married over twenty years and for twenty years I have been silent about your bullying tactics to not only me, but the girls too. Whitney barely has a life outside of tennis and I know she wants you, and you have Simone so afraid of you that she won’t speak that mind that I know she has.”

“I don’t have to listen to this!” He said snatching his jacket off the rack.

In a fury Eve grabbed a near by vase and sent it spinning at the door before T.C. could exit. He turned back to her in shock. “YES YOU DO!” Eve screamed back at him. “Yes you will, you will stand here and listen! Finally the same crap that you put everyone else through, is about to returned to you!”

T.C folded his arms. “And what golly is that?” He asked. “Providing for my family, teaching my daughters morals instead of trashy behavior like yours!”

“Morals!” Eve asked in shock. “You think you teach them morals by trying to murder a man last night!” She asked. “T.C. you say that family means every thing to you, but the number of times you attacked Julian which can’t be counted on any hand is not only unbelievable, but it could have cost you the family you loved so much. You were not alas thinking about me and the girls. When you go after Julian it is to fulfill your own lust for revenge, not to take care of us!”

“Alright so I make mistakes....”

“Oh. you admit that?!” Eve asked mocking shock. “The great T.C. who holds himself up on a pedestal admits he’s not perfect!”

“I never said I was.” T.C. stated. “But I also never lied to my family.”

“Your right, I did that!” Eve snapped. “And I have been paying for months with Liz in town and breathing down my neck, and tip toeing around you to prevent you from going off the deep end and making things worse for every one else.” She shook her head with a heavy sigh. “You know what, I am just tired T.C.” She stated. “Too tired. Last night I may have lost every thing. I mean my job is up in the air, God knows what I did to Liz, and the way Whitney and Simone got hurt breaks my heart. But I just need to rest. Away from you. Away from Harmony.” he walked to her bags and picked them up. “Thank you for packing my things.”

T.C. watched as she went to the door with out looking back. “So where are you going?” He asked suddenly. “I mean... the girls may want to know.” He quickly corrected his self.

“The girls have my cell phone number.” Eve stated, she then turned back to him. “Unless there is another reason you want to know?” She asked.

T.C. only looked back at her. He had to admit he was in shock. He expected begging and pleading, but she was actually willing to walk out on him. Was he really willing to let her go though? Let more than twenty years of marriage just leave them?

“T.C.?” Eve called him, so hope in her eyes. “Is there some thing you would like to say to me.”

T.C. looked back at his wife, his eyes unreadable, his expression unreadable. “Goodbye Eve” He said with a heavy sigh.

Eve felt all her hopes and dreams crashing around her, but did not let tears get the best of her. She held her head high, as she looked at her husband. “Good bye T.C.” With that said, she turned around, and twenty years of marriage, was erased.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 

Bennett Home.
 

Sam watched as Grace through her clothes in a bag and ignored the tears falling forming in her eyes. “Grace stop this.” He said in a broken voice. “Honey I had to let Kay go. You know she would have just left any way.”

“Right because she hates me!” Grace snapped. “And you must too to just allow her to leave and through away the family we have worked so hard for.”

“I didn’t just let her leave!” Sam stated. “This is a special situation, she’s pregnant for God’s sake.”

“Oh pre marital sex, I wonder which parent she got that from!” Grace snapped facing Sam angrily.

Sam shook his head. “You are not putting this on me!” He stated. “:Maybe if you treated her more like a daughter and not some red headed step child she would have come to us much earlier about her crush on Miguel, and we could have fixed things then! But no you were busy playing mommy to Johnny! No, you were trapped in a life that wasn’t even real!”

“Shut up!” Grace screamed back at him. “Just shut up and leave me alone!”

“Fine Grace, may be I....”

“Aunt Grace!” Charity suddenly burst through the room in teras and ran in her aunts arms.

Grace clung to Charity nervously seeing the girl was in obvious pain. “Charity honey what happened?” She asked. “Are you alright!”

“It’s over!” Charity said crying ion her shoulder. “He....he picked her over me! Miguel picked Kay and the baby over me!”

“Oh sweet heart.” Grace said rubbing her hair softly and sitting with her on the bed. “Honey I am so sorry.”

Sam watched in utter shock. He could to believe it. “Charity are you sure?” He asked. “Miguel loves you ,ore than life itself, maybe you just misunderstood.”

“He told me he couldn’t!” Charity said crying on her shoulder. “He said he could not just abandon his child and her mother no matter what the circumstances! I’ve lost him forever!”

“Oh, no baby, no you have not!” Grace stated. “Miguel loves you, and I know you guys will find a way back to each other!”

“But he’s so noble aunt Grace!” She said in a sad voice. “What if he decided to marry Kay!”

“I doubt that sweet heart.” Grace stated. “Besides, Kay is a Crane now. and look at all the trouble Cranes have with Lopez Fits Gerald’s. I doubt Alistair would allow that to happen.”

Charity’s swollen blue eyes showed off some hope. “You think so?” She asked.

Grace smiled some. “I am sure.” Grace answered. “And soon enough, Miguel will come around, and he will marry you, and your love will be strong.” Her eyes fell on Sam. “Not like some others.”

Sam shook his head some in anger, then grabbed his own jacket, and left the bedroom and the house, leaving Grace to deal alone.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kay smiled as she looked at the room Pilar led her in Ivy behind them. “My God!” She said in shock. “This is like the size of the living room at my old house if not bigger.”

“Well I hope that it accommodates you.” Ivy stated she looked to Pilar. “Will you excuse us?” She asked.

“Yes, I’ll be back later.” Pilar stated leaving the room.

Ivy looked to Kay studying her features. It was amazing how she only now realized so much of herself in the younger woman. Not only did they hold a certain resemblance, but in her posture as well. She had a certain strut in her walk. A positive any thing you can do I can do better, I’m all that radiant glow about her. Then of course, she was pregnant.

“So, Mom” Kay spoke up. “Or is it Mother, I’ve heard Nicholas call you mommy dearest but that doesn’t seem right. I could just call you......”

“Why don’t we just start off however you feel comfortable.” Ivy suggested. “I mean, we have been on a first name basis for years so how a bout Ivy.”

Kay smiled brightly. “That is so cool.” She stated. “Mom would never....I mean, Grace would never let me call her Grace.”

Ivy smiled softly some. “Well that was pretty much a rule around homes like this.” She stated. “Julian may call Alistair father now, but before he was called Alistair, and his mother Katherine. I called my father Dominic and my mother Celeste, it is a pretty natural thing when your young and, well, not to sound snobbish, but rich.”

Kay smirked some. “Man, I’ve missed out on a lot.” She looked to Ivy. “So, now what?” She asked. :”Do we have brunch, or interviews, or will cameras come in a tape us, because I read an article some where and it said that you guys were taped for like hours and...”

“Rule number one.” Ivy held up one finger. “Every thing is always heavily exaggerated. Never forget that. We may be in the spot lot every now and then, but the cameras don’t ever tell you who we really are.”

Kay nodded her head. “So, what else do I need to know?” She asked. “I mean, I really am anxious to learn every thing I can about the Crane name.”

“I think we can discuss that later.” Ivy stated. “Right now, you have a child to think about.”

“Indeed you do.” Julian Crane entered the room smiling as sweetly as he could muster in his case. Behind him Katherine walked stiffly in. Elizabeth with her.

“Oh darling,” Ivy sad hurrying over to the girl she still considered her daughter. “Should you be up?” She asked. “Julian why is she up?”

“Well because she is helping trim the tree down stairs.” Julian informed. “And I was thinking perhaps lovely young Kay would like to help us get ready for the holidays, Crane family style.”

“You should come.” Katherine quickly spoke up. “You would make one extra girl, and this year when we get into the fight with Ethan Nicholas and daddy, now that Mother’s up and walking we can kick ass!”

Suddenly, what seemed like string came shooting directly at Ivy, Katherine and Kay from the door way. “Don’t count on it darling!” Nicholas approached with Ethan, both of them holding cans of spray string.

“Oh my God.” Kay said shivering in shock. “What the hell....”

“It’s tradition!” Katherine stated reaching in her pocket and spraying her own can of spray string at Nicholas and Ethan.

“Hey, wait I have a better idea!” Elizabeth said suddenly, all eyes fell on her. “Since Kay is new to the family, I’m feeling a little initiation.”

Kay looked up at all the Crane children and Ethan and Katherine holding their cans up at her and playfully evil in their eyes. “Oh no,” She said in horror making a break out the room, down the stairs.

“GET HER!” Nicholas yelled leading the way out of the room to catch he newest heir to the Crane family.

Ivy smiled as she listened to the sounds of children running and screaming playfully down stairs. She looked to Julian. “You know, the holidays may be the best they have ever been around here.” She stated. “I really did not expect this kind of a reaction from them.”

“You don’t give them enough credit Ivy.” Julian said turning to her with a small smile. “Times have changed Ivy, so have the people within those times.” He said stepping closer to her. “So, how about we play our own little Christmas games?” He asked hopefully.

Ivy shook her head. “No Julian.” She stated. “I am not Rebecca, I don’t play games.”

“But after last night...”

Ivy’s soft, but sensuous feeling lips cut him completely off as they came in contact with his. Wrapping his arms around her, Julian pulled Ivy’s body tighter to his as the kissed depended and they became lost in one another, as they did the previous night before.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 

Sam Bennett stood out side the Crane Mansion, his heart swelling with pain as he looked up to find Ivy and Julian locked in a deep, passionate kiss. “My God,” He said looking away from her. “Have I really lost her?”