Episode 149

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Episode 149

Scene 1:

"Kevin? Did you hear me? I interviewed someone to replace that Stafford girl this morning," Gina was saying at his side. "This girl will be terrific... Okay. Where are you?"

Kevin nodded at the door where Piper had just entered the room. He hadn't spoken to his youngest much since their falling out over her college decisions. He still didn't think acting as a career was worthwhile but he missed Piper. He missed all of his kids, he added, mentally kicking himself for letting them get so far away from him emotionally. Luke was a mess with his Hallie troubles. Maura was angry with him and moving out. Jory was still at home but was angry and bitter most of the time. And Jillie...well God knew where she was keeping herself these days.

"So go talk to her," Gina pushed, catching sight of Piper. "Go on."

He stumbled forward a step or two, catching himself before continuing on to where she stood in the entry chatting with Joanie. "Piper. How are you?" He asked awkwardly.

Piper drew back at her father's words, openly startled, but quickly shielded over with contempt. "Fine," was her short return. It was the first time he had asked her in quite a few months, so she felt no need to go into detail about how she had really been. Joanie sensed the tension and quickly disappeared. Piper frowned as she scurried off. Okay, now Noah was supposed to show up and save her. Anytime now....Noah would come in and they could make a swift exit...Noah was nowhere in sight.

"Have you seen Noah?" she finally asked, a little impatiently, breaking the silence.

"No. He's not scheduled today," Kevin replied. "Meeting him for lunch?"

"No, I thought he worked today. Is Maura around?" Piper asked, clearly wanting to end the conversation.

"You don't know do you?" He raised his eyebrows in surprise. Well, he shouldn't be surprised he thought. Why should any of the kids talk to each other if they didn't talk to him.

"Apparently not...," Piper trailed off, puzzlement crossing her face.

"Maura isn't going to be managing the restaurant anymore. I am. In fact, she's not going to be living at home for much longer either," Kevin told her with a trace of sadness in his voice. "She and Jude are planning on moving in together."

Piper's eyebrow shot up in surprise, but that was about the only expression her face conveyed. Now who of the children were left in the Conlan home? Jory? "Oh, well, that'll be a good change for her," Piper stated plainly. "I guess then there's no need for me to be here, I'm going to leave, because this awkward conversation isn't really working for me." Her words were harsh, but she stood unwavering in her conviction. Kevin had had no right to condemn her for her choice of majors and she was not about to play the nothing-ever-happened game. With her chin held up defiantly, Piper began to leave.

"Wait a minute, Piper. Let's talk about this for a minute," Kevin said, reaching out for her shoulder as if to hold her back.

Piper spun around, "I have nothing to talk about with you. What you did was irrational and uncalled for and...and...well...entirely shocking...I never would have expected...that from you!" Piper snapped. If he was ready to apologize she didn't want to hear it because she wasn't ready to accept and if he wasn't ready, well she didn't want to not hear an apology because it would only break her heart even more, so that left her with only one possible option, hearing nothing at all. "Goodbye."

"I thought you were better than acting like a spoiled brat!" Kevin snapped, his anger getting the better of him. "Really, Piper. Did it ever occur to you that I might have changed my mind? Gina says-" He paused at the look on her face. "What?"

Piper just shook her head, a sardonic smile on her face. "I'm not going to hear this from you and yes, I have every right to act like a spoiled brat to better off set your extreme narrow-minded irrationality!" Piper's tone gradually increased with each word until the last word came out in a screech of anger. She gave her father the worst look she could muster before pivoting on her heel and hurrying out the door.
Piper drove halfway to her house before pulling over and crying.

Scene 2:

Maura flipped through the paper, bored with it without reading it. She was impatient today. There was a lot to do and not quite enough time in the day to finish it. First things first though, she had a lunch date with Noah. She saw him approaching the table she had saved for them outside of Cardigans, a small college hangout that she was certain they wouldn't be interrupted while eating. She waved him over and stood to give him a hug, which he returned turning a slight shade of pink.

"Thanks for coming," she said sitting back down.

"Why not? Free meal and all," he shrugged. "What's up?"

"Does something have to be up?"

He rolled his eyes and grinned at her. "Well, let's see. You called me at home, you never do that unless you want me to work. You asked me to have lunch with you. No big deal but kind of out of the ordinary for you. And you asked me to meet you here instead of Connie's. Very big deal," he said ticking off his reasons. "Something's going on."

"Well, you got me then. Okay, well I wanted to tell you...let you know I guess, that I'm stepping down as manager at Connie's. I'm giving it back to Dad," she said without preamble. No need to sugarcoat it. Besides, Noah was a big boy. He could handle a change like this one, even if she was still having trouble with it herself.

He raised his eyebrows questioningly. "You are? Why?"

"Are you surprised?" Maura asked as the waited approached. She ordered an iced tea and waited while Noah placed his own drink order. When he had moved off, she continued. "I guess you would be, wouldn't you? I just...well, Dad wants it back," she said simply.

"Does he? Hm."

"Yes, he does. So, I'm going to let him have it. I used Connie's to keep me out of my own life, Noah. But it seems that my life doesn't want me to use it anymore."

Noah grinned suddenly, his eyes lighting up. "You mean Jude Fontaine."

She couldn't help but smile back at him. He always did know what she was thinking. It was one of the reasons she had relied on him so heavily at Connie's. "Yes, Jude. But me too. It is time to move on, I just needed someone to prod me in the right direction."

"And Jude is the right direction?" Noah asked seriously.

"Yes, he is," Maura answered honestly. "I'm moving in with him. In fact, he's supposed to be here in a little while so we can go look at houses."

"It's as serious as that? God, Maura, I had no idea!"

"No, you wouldn't. It's okay though, Noah. You've had your hands full with my sister...and Dinah, too, I assume?"

His face clouded for a moment at the mention of Dinah's name. "Yes, Dinah too. She's a mess, Maura. Have you seen her?" Maura shook her head. She had meant to, the day of the funeral but hadn't managed to get there after all. "She's staying with Galen. Maybe if you have a chance you could drop by and say hello to her. I think she'd like that."

"I will. After I finish all my errands today. But, let me ask you something Noah and then I'll drop all the depressing talk." Noah nodded, thanking the waiter who deposited their iced teas in front of them. "Will you stay on at Connie's if I'm not there?"

Noah blinked in surprise. "I hadn't thought about it," he replied chewing his lip thoughtfully. "But you know, I think it might be a good time to look around. I'd really like to find something that pays enough to get me through college without having to work three jobs."

"Don't use me as an excuse to leave though, okay?"

"Nah." He flicked his hand impatiently. "I was getting tired of it anyway. But...do you think you might be able to help me with something?"

"Sure. Anything, Noah. Just name it."

"Do you think Jude would help me get a job at the hospital? I mean, his brother does run it and..." He trailed off turning an interesting shade of pink. Maura laughed aloud and patted his hand affectionately.

"Won't hurt to ask him, will it? Don't worry, Noah. I'll see what I can do."

Scene 3:

Luke rolled over on his side, groaning as sunlight from the window filtered through the heavy curtains. His body ached at the effort of turning and he groaned again, wishing that the throbbing he felt in his skull would cease and desist. How much had he drunk last night to leave him in such a miserable state, he wondered. Too much was the answer that floated to his consciousness. Way too much. It had started with Maggie, Gwen Mason's all too flirtatious secretary, and ended with....

He sat up in bed as the fragmented but frightening memory became reality. He had ended the night with Hallie. She had found him in the bar and she had propositioned him. Just as she had done years ago at the beginning of their relationship. This time though, he wasn't some dumb kid ready for a roll in the sack with a beautiful woman. This time, he was drunk and hurting over the woman he really cared for. God what had he done?

He glanced around the room for a sign of Hallie as he eased himself out of bed. His own clothes from the night before lay in a forgotten heap by the bed, wrinkled from being wadded up and tossed aside. Hallie and her clothes were both gone, thankfully, leaving him to relive the night before on his own without her commentary.

They had come back to the house they had bought together. From Stephen Roth. He wished he'd known that one upfront. Apparently, she had put some thought into the seduction as well from the state of the house. She had left the downstairs dark and led him upstairs to the room they had only shared once or twice where she lit some candles and poured a glass of champagne for him, already chilled. Too perfect, too planned.

What had happened next was anyone's guess though. He certainly didn't remember. He'd had a little too much to drink after all and anyone in his state would have passed out. Had he actually had sex with his soon-to-be ex-wife? No, he would have remembered that. Or at least felt the physical after effects of it. Their sex life had always been what Luke would have called overly enthusiastic. He held a hazy memory of Hallie watching him fumble at his clothes, a smile on her face. But it was exactly that. Hazy.

Struggling into his clothes from the night before, his muscles aching at every jostling movement, Luke shook the uncertainty of his actions away. What did it matter if he slept with Hallie? He had nothing to lose after all. She had taken everything that mattered. An image of Liza came to him unbidden. God, he missed her. Somehow, he would make it right with her. Hallie had played a part in Liza's decision. Of that much he was certain. But what she had on Liza was a mystery. All he had to do was find out what it was.

Scene 4:

Jude pressed through the crowd of college kids to where Maura sat flipping through a magazine. She lifted her head as if sensing his approach and smiled in greeting to him. He waved in return and stepped around a group of girls loitering outside the cafe. They gave him a sidelong glance as he passed. He could see their question in each of their eyes and grinned. "Who is this old man in our territory?" Their looks said. He didn't feel so old just now.

He stopped by Maura and leaned over her to kiss her head gently. "I hope you haven't been waiting long," he murmured into her hair. She laughed brightly and shook her head as he dropped into the chair next to her.

"No. In fact up until about ten minutes ago, I had company anyway," she replied.

"Oh? Should I be worried?" He teased waving over the waiter. "Have you eaten?" He asked dismissing any notion of jealousy between the two of them.

"No. Just drinking tea waiting for you. Don't you want to know who it was?"

The waiter arrived and offered Jude a menu. He skimmed it for a second before handing it back to the young man. "I'll have the chicken breast sandwich. That is served on sourdough right?" The waiter nodded in the affirmative and turned to Maura for her order.

"I'll have the same," she said with a shrug. The waiter departed leaving them alone once more. "Well? Don't you want to know?"

"All right," Jude grinned. "I'll bite. Who kept you company while I kept you waiting?"

"Noah. I told him I was leaving Connie's," Maura said. A shadow crossed her face but disappeared behind her eyes as quickly as it had appeared. "He's going to leave too."

"Because of you?"

She smiled despite herself. "As much as I would like to think so...no. I think I'm just the impetus for him leaving. He wants a new job. Something where he can make enough to live and not worry about how to pay for school."

"And does he have anything in mind?" Jude asked absently while he studied her face. She was quite beautiful and the fact that she belonged to him was a new and exciting prospect for him.

"He does. Jude, can you talk to your brother and see if you can get him something at the hospital?" She asked in a breathless rush. "It would mean a lot to him and to me if you would. Noah's a great kid. Really. He's just been handed a lot of bad turns what with his father dying before he moved here and then his sister in the fire at ME..."

Jude stopped her mouth with a firm kiss. Maura returned the kiss after a surprised second. A small knot burned in his chest. If they weren't in public, he would continue this kiss properly, he thought. as it was though... He broke the kiss and grinned. She had turned the most amazing shade of pink.

"What was that for?" She demanded trying to ignore the giggles of the girls nearby.

"You were babbling. Of course, I'll help Noah. If it means that much to you, I'll talk to Jamie. And if Jamie can't help, maybe Stephen and I could find something for him."

Maura's face lit up and she threw her arms around his neck, kissing him thoroughly. "You really are a wonderful man, Jude Fontaine. Thank you." Jude's skin flushed hotly at her sudden embrace. Damn the lunch, he thought pulling away from her. They could eat anytime. He started to rise from his chair, pulling her with him.

"Ahem. Excuse me, Mr. Fontaine?" The stranger's voice stopped him cold. It wasn't so cold after all. He knew it but it had been a while. Maura released his hold on him and turned with him towards the owner's voice. "I'm sorry to...interrupt. But I was wondering if you had seen the morning paper?"

"Mr. Fleming, isn't it?" Jude asked, remembering the man from his days in Washington. Dan Fleming had been a thorn in his side during the whole scandal with Cynthia and Derek Mitchell. In fact, it had been Fleming's expose that had forced Jude to leave Washington so suddenly last year. "What brings you to Conlan's Glen?"

Fleming's mouth curved into an innocent smile that Jude doubted was anything close to innocent. "Well, actually, I came looking for you. I was hoping to get a comment from you about today's editorial in The Observer."

"Editorial?" Jude repeated blankly. "I haven't read it. Sorry, Fleming."

"Perhaps you should then," the man replied smugly offering the newspaper to him. Jude stared down at the paper in Fleming's hand but it was Maura who took it and looked at the headline. She let out a small gasp and turned her gaze and the newspaper towards Jude. He let his eyes travel across the headline and skimmed the first paragraph of the article. Rearranging his face into one of blank indifference, he returned his gaze to Fleming.

"What was it you wanted again?" He asked calmly.

Fleming's eyes narrowed into narrow triangles. "Do the accusations Mr. Upton made against you have merit? Aren't you rather surprised that a newspaper owned by your...family would allow such accusations like fraud and embezzlement make it to print?" He asked making the word 'family' sound less formidable than the Masons really were.

"I'll tell you what I told you the last time you questioned me about wild accusations, Mr. Fleming," Jude returned evenly. "No comment."