Previously...

Alex hired Eddie to dig up dirt on Renee & Sierra.  Eddie discovered that Sierra was Renee's biological daughter, and Alex happily revealed the information to a devestated Sierra, hoping to stick it to Renee.  Sierra ran off into Nathan's arms before Alex got the chance to tell her Nathan was her father.  Heather continued to push Brett away, despite his proclomation that he was falling for her.  Brett informed Seth that Kenny denied the variance on a piece of land he was interested in.  Brett dodged Marilee's advances.  Ethan blasted James for his devotion to Nathan.  Jordan and Alex slept together again. Jordan issued Nathan a stern warning.  Fed up with James not believing her about the attack, Brooke moved out of the mansion, just as Leigh showed up.  

Episode 64

"Explosions"

James handed Leigh a glass of red wine and then poured himself a bourbon and branch.  They were in the library at the Blackthorne mansion, the fireplace roaring and the sun beginning to set through the enormous floor to ceiling windows. 

“James, your home is beautiful,” Leigh Purcell said, taking in the richly decorated room.  “It’s all so stylish and old Hollywood, exactly the way I pictured it.”

James smiled and sat down in the chair across from her.  “Thank you,” he said, unable to take his mind off of Brooke.  She’d packed her bags and left an hour ago.  He was determined to go after her, but Leigh had shown up at that very moment, a surprise that proved extremely distracting.  How was he going to make things right with her?  Never in a million years did he think that Nathan’s return to Hollywood would spell the downfall of his marriage.  Or that Leigh’s return to his life would make it so much easier. 

“James?” Leigh asked, crossing her legs and leaning forward on the cognac leather sofa.  “Are you with me?”

He smiled again and tried suppressing his worries over Brooke.  “Leigh, you still haven’t told me you’re doing in Los Angeles.  When we left the energy conference you were on your way back to Acapulco.”

“Business,” she replied casually and without further explanation.  “And to be honest, I was hoping I’d get a chance to see you while I was here.”

James got up and moved restlessly around the room.  “I hate to say it, but this isn’t exactly a good time,” he said.  “That was Brooke leaving when you showed up earlier.”

“I thought it might be.  I also saw her carrying suitcases.  What happened, James?  Did you tell her about what happened in Rio?  Is that why she left?”

“I never got a chance to tell her,” James replied.  “I fully intended to.  Thought I’d never see you again.  I wanted to be honest with her, but-“

“What happened?” Leigh asked and moved across the room toward him.  She put a delicate hand on his shoulder and caressed it gently.

He didn’t want to get into the whole mess so he shorthanded it as best as he could.  “She made some accusations about someone in my family.  I questioned her, so she left, and took our child with her.”

“James, I’m so sorry.  Is there anything I can do?”

“No, but thank you,” he finally said, his eyes twinkling as he gazed at her.  “Things are a mess right now, but I hope that you’ll stay in Los Angeles for a while.  That is, if business doesn’t take up all your time.”

She grinned and licked her jammy red lips.  “Oh, I’ll make time for you,” she said.  “We had such a good time in Rio.”

James nodded.  “I just need to get things settled with Brooke.”

His devotion only made him even more attractive to her.  “Just as long as you know that I’ll be here when you need someone. Think about it, James.  It can be just like that night in Rio.”

He smiled fondly, growing slightly flushed when he thought of that night and how passionate and intense their lovemaking had been.  He’d be lying if he said he didn’t want it to happen again.  But for now, he’d have to control himself.  If there was a chance of repairing this mess with Brooke then he had to take it.

Ethan knocked on the door of room 829 at Hotel Terranova, digging his hands in his pockets and offering a sympathetic look as Brooke opened the door.

“Hi,” she said, dejected, and stood clear of the door.   “Thanks for coming over, Ethan.”

“Are you okay?” he asked as he rushed inside the suite.  “Where’s Michael?”

“He’s in the bedroom,” Brooke replied and sat down on the sofa in tears.  “I left James.  I told him that if he didn’t believe me about Nathan then I didn’t want to be anywhere near him.”

Ethan sighed and sat down beside her.  “I’m so sorry.  I know how hard this must be for you.”

“How could he have done that?  I’m his wife.  We have a child together and-“  She paused, realizing that that wasn’t even true.  She could see the hurt in Ethan’s eyes.  “I’m sorry.  I didn’t mean that.”

But he was used to the lie now.  Maybe not comfortable with it, but he knew it was Brooke’s choice to continue leading James to believe that he was Michael’s father.  He had no right to interfere in that.  Besides, right now the issue was the insulting way his uncle was treating her.  It wasn’t fair.  He wanted to put his arms around her and hold her forever.

“What are you going to do?” he finally asked after the moment of awkwardness had passed.

She looked into his eyes and shook her had in despair.  “I don’t know.   But I do know that I can ever forgive him for what he’s done.”

Brett walked into Miranda’s office downstairs, tennis racket in hand and perspiration beading down the sides of his tan face.   She looked up and offered a look of frustration, standing up with her purse in hand.

“I’m on my way home, Brett, so whatever you want to talk about will have to wait,” she said and switched off her desk lamp

“I came by earlier but you weren’t here,” Brett said with a frown.

“That’s right, I had an appointment with Dr. Mitchell.”

“Is everything okay with the baby?” Brett asked, springing to attention and placing a hand on her shoulder.  “What did she say?”

Miranda shrugged his hand off of her and sighed heavily.  “Relax, it was just a monthly checkup.  Everything’s fine.”

He threw his hands up in resignation and looked at her in disbelief.  “Did you ever think to ask if I wanted to go along?”

“Why would I?”

“Because I’m the baby’s father, that’s why,” he insisted.  “I told you I wanted to be involved, and now you’re trying to cut me out again, well I’m not going to let you get away with it, Miranda.  I’m going to be part of our baby’s life whether you like it or not.”

She rolled her eyes and started to the door.  “I don’t like it,” she said and started out into the lobby.  Brett followed fast on her heels, pulling her back angrily.

“I have rights, you know,” he said, his eyes challenging her.

“All right, relax,” Miranda said with irritation.  “Yes, you have rights, but does that mean you have to tag along to every single doctors appointment I have?  Seriously, Brett, you need to chill out.  You can be involved with Biff but you’re not going to suffocate me for the next six months.”

He folded his arms and turned just as Heather stepped out of the elevator and made her way across the lobby.  She turned and saw Brett, immediately tensing up and picking up her languid pace so she wouldn’t have to talk to him.

Brett frowned, hurt that she was going out of her way to avoid him lately.  Since their night of passion she’d quickly made it clear that she wanted nothing more to do with him.  They had nothing in common but sex, she’d said.  For the first time in his life he felt that he couldn’t have something that he desperately wanted.

“Did it just get cold in here?” Miranda asked as she came up on Brett from behind.  “I warned Heather to stay away from you, and from the looks of it, she listened.”

He turned around and shot her a look.  “What is it with you and your brother?” he demanded irately.  “You divorce your spouses, but you don’t want anyone else to be with them either?”

“I don’t care who you use as your next victim, just as long as it isn’t Heather or anyone else that I care about,” Miranda said, a warning tone in her voice.  “Heather has been through a lot during the last year and she doesn’t need you causing more trouble for her.”

“Who says I’m causing her any trouble?”

She leveled a you’ve got to be kidding look on him.   “We are still talking about you, aren’t we?” she asked, her tone dripping with sarcasm.  “Everything you touch you manipulate and destroy.  I just want to make sure that Heather isn’t next in line.”

“Well it looks like you got your wish because she’s not talking to me now.”

“Good,” Miranda said before starting away from him.  “Just stick with your secretaries and your bimbos and leave Heather alone.  You’ll have to answer to Stormy and to me if you don’t.”

He exhaled deeply, irritated that they had gotten to Heather.  He meant what he’d told her the other day, he was falling in love with her.  Hopelessly in love.

“I can’t believe that he attacked Brooke Blackthorne,” Renee said as she and Jordan stood in her suite at Hotel Terranova.  “That poor woman.  How many more women is he going to do this to?”

Jordan regarded her carefully, almost afraid to tell her of his latest fears.  “Renee, I think you may want to consider telling Sierra the truth.”

She shot him a look of disgust and placed a hand on her heaving chest.  “Jordan, are you crazy?” she asked.  “How am I supposed to tell my daughter than Nathan Blackthorne, a known rapist, is her father?”

“He didn’t rape you,” Jordan considered.   “Sierra was conceived through love, or whatever it was you felt for him at the time.  You have nothing to be ashamed of.  A lot of women get pregnant out of wedlock.”

“But don’t you see?” Renee asked.  “If Sierra learns what kind of man her father is she’ll be destroyed.  Not to mention the fact that I’ve lied to her for her entire life.  Her whole existence is a product of fiction.  No, I can never tell her the truth.  It will destroy her.”

Jordan rubbed the sides of his head.  “But what if he does the same thing to her?” he asked.  “Nathan is just as in the dark about who she is.  He could try to seduce her, Renee.  His own daughter.  How would you feel if he succeeded?”

Before she could reply to the horrifying thought, the door burst open and Sierra entered, her eyes still glazed over and a look of despair on her pretty young face.

“Sierra,” Renee said with surprise.  “Darling, where have you been?  You look upset.  Has something happened?”

Sierra glared at her, then turned to Jordan and spoke very slowly.  “Jordan, may I speak to my mother alone for a minute, please?”

He looked at Renee and waited for her to give him the OK.  Grudgingly, he grabbed his jacket and headed for the door.  After he’d gone, Renee approached Sierra and attempted to pull her into an embrace.  Sierra quickly and violently pushed her away.

“Sierra, what is it?” Renee asked, alarmed by her reaction.  “I’m your mother, you can tell me anything.”

She laughed.  “My mother.  Yes, you are my mother.”

“What is it?  Tell me what’s bothering you.”

“For my entire life you’ve lied to me,” Sierra cried, tears streaming down her cheeks.  “Kept me away at boarding school to hide me, only coming when it was convenient or when I begged you to.  I was the poor orphan who you adopted nineteen years ago.”

“Sierra, what are you talking about?”

“You lied to me!” she shrieked, pulling the birth certificate from her pocket and thrusting it at her.  “You’re my mother!  My biological mother!  You said you adopted me but you didn’t!  You gave birth to me!”

Renee closed her eyes tightly, horrified that the truth had gotten out.  She looked at the birth certificate and shook her head in disbelief.  “Where did you get this?”

“Alex Reynolds showed it to me,” she said.  “She told me that you’ve been lying to me all this time.  Why would you do it, mother?  Why would you pretend that you’d adopted me instead of admitting that I was your true daughter?  I don’t understand!”

“Sweetheart, I’ll explain it to you, just come sit down,” Renee said and floated across the room to the sofa.  “I’ll tell you everything.”

“Were you ashamed of me?”

“No!” Renee exclaimed.  “Baby, don’t ever think that!  I’ve loved you since the day I first held you in my arms.”

“Then why?  Why go through all this trouble just to hide the fact that you’d given birth to me?”

Renee placed a hand on her forehead.  The room was spinning and she felt nauseous.  “It’s complicated.  I was young.”

“That’s not a reason.  Help me to understand, Mother.  Was it because of my father?  Is that it?  Does he even know I exist?”

The reality that she still didn’t know about Nathan was of minor comfort.  At least she had that going for her.   “No, he doesn’t.”

Sierra shook her head in disgust.  “So all right, who was he?”

“What?” Renee asked in a lame attempt to stall.

“Who was my father?  I have a right to know.  I just found out that you’re my biological mother and I’d kind of like to know who my father is.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Renee said, refusing to admit the truth.  She didn’t care what Jordan said, she would never reveal that Nathan was her father.  “He didn’t mean anything to me.  You’re better off without him, Sierra.”

“Well where is he?” she demanded.

“I don’t even know,” Renee lied, throwing her hands up in resignation.  “He was a graduate student and we had a weekend of romance and then the next thing I knew he was gone.  It’s as simple as that.”

“Simple?” Sierra asked angrily.  “There’s nothing simple about this.  I don’t even know who I am thanks to you.  Because of your lies, my entire life has been taken away from me.”

Renee shook her head adamantly.  “You’ve always known me as your mother, and that hasn’t changed.  If anything our bond is stronger now that you know the truth.  Sierra, I love you so much.  If only you would realize that.”

“You don’t know what love is,” Sierra spat hatefully as she backed up to the door.  “All you care about are appearances and what people think of you.  I was the child that you didn’t want to acknowledge so you wrote me off as some charity case!”

“No!”  Renee cried and ran after her.

“I hate you!  Do you hear me?  I hate you!”  With that, she turned and bolted out into the hallway in tears.

Renee sunk to the floor in the doorway, burying her face in her hands and wishing that this nightmare had never started.  She’d never felt so defeated in her entire life.

It was almost midnight and Brooke was still awake, her mind racing.  She checked in on Michael in the bedroom and tucked him in gently before walking out into the living room of her suite.   A knock at the door sent butterflies tripping through her stomach and she timidly started across the room.

“Brooke, it’s James,” he called from the hall.

She backed up instinctively, in no way ready to talk to him so soon after leaving the mansion that night.  She needed time to think and to put things in perspective. 

“It’s late, James,” she called through the door.  “Please go.”

He dug his hands in his pockets, shaking his head in despair.  “I want you and Michael to come home.  Please, Brooke.  We can work this out.  We’ve been through worse together.  We can get through anything.”

A tear trickled down her cheek and she shook her head.  “Not this,” she said quietly.

“I love you, Brooke.  I need you.  Just open the door and talk to me.”

She grew angry by his insistence.  “No, I told you that I don’t want to talk to you and I meant it.  You hurt me, James.  I don’t think that anyone’s ever hurt me as much as you have.  I want you to leave.”

There was a moment of silence where James tried desperately to think of something he could say to make her understand.  But sadly he knew that there were no words that would make it all okay.  The damage was done.

“Please call me tomorrow so we can talk,” he finally said before turning and starting down the hall.

After she was sure he’d gone, Brooke turned and wrapped her arms tightly around herself.  She was so confused.  She did love James but his betrayal was something that she couldn’t get over.  It was like a thousand knives sticking in her back.

There was nothing that tomorrow could fix.