Previously…
– Trevor and Alex rushed back from a romantic weekend away after Trevor’s father, Patrick, was struck by a car and killed while pushing his grandson, Chase, to safety.
– Brent was by Molly’s side after she had a health scare and was advised to rest for the duration of her pregnancy.
– Diane struggled with the shocking revelation that the late Therese DeLuca was actually her biological mother.

The bottle of wine lets out a gentle sigh as its cork is popped. Jason Fisher sets the corkscrew, with the cork still speared on it, down on the black granite kitchen island.

“Who wants a glass?” he asks as he holds up the bottle of red.

“I think everyone could use one,” Alex Marshall comments from the other side of the island. “Or two.”

“I can get glasses,” Sabrina Gage says. “Where are the best ones to use?”

Alex turns and opens one of the upper oak cabinets. “Up here.”

He and Sabrina take down several large wine glasses. Jason fills five of them, and between the three, they carry them into the living room of the Brooks family home, where Trevor Brooks and his sister are sitting side-by-side on the couch with a photo album spread over their laps.

“What was going on with Mom’s hair here?” Lauren asks with a laugh.

“It was the 90s,” Trevor says. “Is that a good enough explanation?”

“If I think about some of the style choices I made back then… then yeah, I guess it is.” Lauren rests her elbow on her knee and sets her chin on her curled fist. “They looked so young here.”

“They were so young here,” Trevor replies, his tone turning solemn. “It’s so weird to look at Mom and Dad in these pictures and think that they’re gone. Just… gone.” 

His observation sets itself in the center of the room like a giant industrial vacuum, selfishly sucking up all the available air.

Alex finally breaks the tense silence.

“We thought everyone could use some wine,” he says, as he and Sabrina hand Lauren and Trevor their glasses.

“Thanks,” Trevor says distractedly.

Lauren takes a sip of her wine before saying, “Thank you guys for coming over. It’s nice to just spend some time here today.”

“There’s a lot of history in this house,” Jason says. “Even when your parents were traveling, this place always felt like a home.” 

“They’d be happy we’re all hanging out here,” Alex adds.

Trevor shakes his head. “Dad should be here.” 

Alex and Jason exchange uncomfortable, uncertain looks, while Sabrina stands politely to the side. She takes a drink from her wine glass simply to keep busy.

“I wish he were,” Lauren says softly. “I really do. But we can’t change what happened.”

“No, we can’t.” Trevor’s face hardens. “We never should’ve gone away. We never should’ve left him to take care of Chase.”

“Trevor,” Alex says, “it’s not–”

“Dad and Chase would never have been in that crosswalk if we had just stayed in town,” Trevor plows on, almost as if he didn’t hear his husband at all. “I never should’ve agreed to go away. Never.”

—–

“The old place looks good,” Josh Taylor comments. With his hands stuffed in the pockets of his black suit pants, he strides through the dining room and into the kitchen of his brother’s house — the same house that, years ago, he shared with his old friend, Scotty Young. After Brent’s separation from Molly, he moved in with Josh, and then he took over the lease after Josh left King’s Bay; the house has slowly been transformed from a pseudo-frat house for 20-somethings into a family home.

Brent leans against the kitchen counter and folds his arms. “It’s crazy to think how many years we’ve had this place, between the two of us. I really never expected it to be, you know, such a permanent home for the twins and me.”

“Think you’re planning on staying here?” Josh asks.

“What do you mean? I live here.”

“I mean,” Josh says, with eyes widened for emphasis, “you and Molly are about to have another kid. You’re gonna keep up this two-households thing?”

Brent tenses and then chews the inside of his cheek for a long, contemplative moment.

“I don’t see why we wouldn’t,” he finally says. “We’re not, you know, together.”

Josh cocks his head to one side, as if to say, Come on, bro. 

“We’re not,” Brent insists.

“You’re having a baby. Another baby. That part usually comes after a couple gets back together. And you’re not with Claire anymore.” 

“And I feel like crap about that.” Brent kicks the toe of his shoe against the tile on the floor, and then he turns and opens the refrigerator. “You want a beer?”

Josh thinks about it for a split-second. “Yeah, I can have one before I head back over to Lauren.”

Brent busies himself with taking out two bottles of beer and using the bottle opener to pop off their caps.

“But I’m serious,” Josh continues. “You and Molly are about to have another kid. You admitted you still love each other. So what’s the hold-up? When are you two gonna get your act together?”

—–

Samantha Fisher steps aside as she holds open the front door of her father’s house.

“Dad! Aunt Sarah’s here!” Samantha calls in the direction of the staircase.

“Actually,” Sarah Fisher Gray says as she stands in the entryway, “I’m here to see you.”

“Really? Why?” Samantha asks.

“It’s about your mom,” Sarah explains.

“Oh. Yeah.” Samantha closes and locks the door. “Did you talk to her at the funeral?”

As Sarah is nodding, Tim Fisher appears on the staircase.

“Sarah! What’s up?” he asks. He still sports the black suit that he wore to Patrick Brooks’s burial, though the white dress shirt underneath it has several buttons unfastened now, and his tie has been discarded.

“I came to talk to Samantha,” Sarah says, “but maybe you have some insight, too. Have you talked to Diane at all?”

Tim shakes his head. “Not really. We said hi at the cemetery.”

“That’s about all I managed to do before she blew me off,” Sarah tells them. “Sam, what happened in Sun Valley? Whatever you found there has got your mom totally off-kilter. She’s barely even responded to a text since then.”

Samantha’s gaze drops to the hardwood floor; the silence is suddenly loaded.

“Is Diane okay?” Tim presses.

“She’s okay,” Samantha says, still focused on the floor. “Mostly.”

“What does that mean?” Sarah asks.

Samantha hesitates. “I don’t feel like it’s my place to say.”

“So it is something big,” Sarah says, her tone growing more intense. 

Tim stands back, not wanting to be quite as forceful as Sarah is being, though he is just as concerned about Diane.

“Sam, if something is going on and your mom needs support, we need to know,” Sarah adds. “The way she’s shutting down on me — that’s not normal for her. And the only times she’s done it, bad stuff was going on. Need I remind anyone of the time she and Ryan eloped? Or the fiasco at Jimmy’s bookstore?”

Still, Samantha is quiet, her eyes darting nervously between her dad and her aunt.

“I’m going to agree with your aunt,” Tim says. “Whatever’s going on with your mom, it sounds like she needs support, and that shouldn’t all fall on you. Please, tell us what happened in Sun Valley.”

—–

Alex keeps a careful eye on the amount of wine in his glass. He listens to the stilted conversation in the Brooks living room at a remove, biding his time until he has an excuse to escape back to the kitchen for a refill. As soon as the crimson liquid in his glass hits an acceptably low level, he bolts for the kitchen.

Once there, he takes a few seconds to catch his breath. He hadn’t even realized that he was holding it, waiting tensely for Trevor to lash out again with some comment or another about Patrick’s death having been avoidable — if only the two of them hadn’t taken a trip for themselves, leaving Trevor’s father to watch Chase.

He is refilling his glass when he hears footsteps, in the form of heels clacking against the floors, approaching. When he turns, he sees his sister-in-law entering the kitchen, her own  half-full glass in hand.

“Need a refill?” Alex asks.

“I’m good. But thanks,” Lauren says.

“How are you doing?”

“I’m okay. I’m…” She pauses, her throat constricted. “I’m okay. It’s weird, you know? We didn’t have any time to prepare or to say goodbye. I was going about my life — I was trying to keep my cool because the kids were being stubborn about eating, and all I wanted them to do was have a few more bites of hot dog so I could feel like they’d eaten and I wouldn’t be a total failure as a mother–”

“You are not a total failure as a mother. Nowhere close to it.” 

“Thanks. But I’m sure you know the feeling. It’s like, whether they have three more bites or not, they’re not going to die. They’ll be okay. But somehow, just being able to check off that they ate the meal…” 

“I get it.”

She’s lost in thought for another moment before refocusing on him.

“My point is,” she says, “I was having this completely normal, average day, with completely normal, average worries, and I get this phone call, and everything’s different. No warning, no heads-up, just… Dad is gone.” Her voice breaks a little. “And that’s that.”

“I’m so sorry, Lauren.” Alex sets his glass on the counter and embraces her with the ease of old friends who have become family. “He was a great father. And grandfather.”

“He was. And I know that the idea that he saved Chase from being killed or hurt by that car — Dad would’ve thought it was all worthwhile. I can almost hear him explaining it, telling us that it’s okay.”

The distant chatter from the living room fills the air as they linger in their embrace.

“Trevor is only trying to make sense of it,” she says as she steps back. “The suddenness, the randomness — he’s trying to assign reason where there isn’t any.”

Alex nods. “I’m trying to give him room for it. Even if it sounds like he’s blaming me.”

“He isn’t.”

“He isn’t not. It’s like he’s saying that if I hadn’t dared to want a weekend for the two of us — for literally the first time since we adopted Chase — then your father would still be alive. And I know he’s hurting, but…” 

“You’re doing a good job at giving him the space to feel that right now,” Lauren says. “Keep doing that. The shock will wear off. I remember when my mom died, it felt like it never would, and then…” She makes sharp eye contact with him. “I’m sure you remember that feeling, too.”

He bobs his head up and down almost obediently. On a logical level, he knows that everything she is saying is correct, and yet emotionally, he doesn’t know how many more of Trevor’s jabs — intentional or not — he can withstand right now.

—–

Brent grimaces at his brother.

“Get our act together?” he parrots. “This situation Molly and I are in — it’s a little more complicated than that.”

“Is it?” Josh asks. “Seriously.”

“Yeah. Seriously,” Brent replies with a mocking tone, a callback to his youth, that he doesn’t often use with anyone other than his siblings. “Right now, our focus has to be on getting Molly and the baby through this pregnancy as safely as possible.” 

“Okay. I get that. Obviously.” 

Brent practically forces one of the beers into his younger brother’s hand. Josh sips on it in thoughtful silence.

“It’s just pretty clear to me that, all things being equal, you guys want to be together,” he finally says. “Why drag your feet on that? It’s only gonna waste more time.”

“Making sure our son or daughter is healthy isn’t a waste of time.”

“I didn’t say that, Brent.”

“What’s with you coming in here trying to play matchmaker like some nosy aunt?” Brent asks.

“Because,” Josh says, jabbing out his index finger, “like any good nosy aunt, I can tell when you’re full of shit. And I think you’re holding yourself back.”

“Huh?”

“You’re doing your whole stoic, above-it-all thing. Police commander Brent, immune to emotion.”

“Emotion is what got me into this situation in the first place,” Brent says before emitting a loud sigh. 

“And there we go. It’s that– that guilt. You’re punishing yourself for what you did to Claire.”

“I’m not punishing myself.” 

“You are. You’re not being honest about what you want with Molly because you don’t feel like you deserve it after how things went down with Claire.”

Brent taps the beer bottle rhythmically against his chin.

“I know you won’t admit it, but I can tell it’s what you’re doing,” Josh says. “Someone had to point it out.”

“Yeah. Thanks.”

“So you do admit it.”

“I’m not admitting anything,” Brent says, “except that I’m going to be there for Molly and this baby in whatever way they need me. Right now, that’s by keeping things simple and not piling on anything that’ll complicate the situation.”

“Okay. Then I’ll drop it,” Josh tells him. “But think about what I’m saying. Because if what happened to Lauren’s dad shows us anything, it’s that we never have as much time as we might want to think we do.”

—–

“I really shouldn’t,” Samantha tells her father and aunt.

“Diane isn’t in danger, is she?” Tim asks, sounding exasperated.

Samantha shuffles her feet uneasily. “No. Nothing like that.”

“That’s good. That’s something,” Sarah says. “Sam, I respect that you don’t want to speak out of turn. If this is solely your mom’s news, then we can’t force you to tell us anything.”

“That’s the thing.” Samantha pushes her glasses, which have slipped a bit, back up her nose. “It is and it isn’t.”

“What do you mean?” Tim asks.

“It does affect me, too. It’s about our whole family.”

“Like, all the Bishops?” Sarah questions.

“Sort of. Mom and I, definitely. So if I were to tell Dad how it affects me, that isn’t really like I’m sharing my mom’s private info… right?”

“Only if you feel comfortable telling me,” Tim says.

Samantha draws a deep breath, the tension of things still unspoken weighing clearly and heavily upon her, and then lets it all out in a nervous rush of words:

“Therese DeLuca is my mom’s real mother– biological mother, I mean. Grandma Claudia and Grandpa Henry were supposed to get married, but he was in love with Therese, and when she got pregnant, my great-grandfather paid her off to go away.”

“And Henry and Claudia raised Diane as their daughter,” Sarah finishes. “Wow.”

“So Diane’s in a tailspin because she’s been lied to her entire life about who her mother is,” Tim says. “I can’t say that I blame her.”

“I think it explains a lot about why Grandma Claudia has always been so hard on her,” Samantha adds. 

“Wait,” Sarah says. “What was in that safe?”

“Mom’s original birth certificate. Therese named her Ann Marie when she was born. I guess Grandma Claudia wanted to change it, like that would…”

“…would erase Therese from the story even more,” Tim says. “Sam, how are you feeling about this? You’re right — it does effect you, too. And this is kind of a bomb.”

“I’m okay. It’s strange.” The younger woman shrugs, though it is clear that she cannot simply set the revelation aside so easily. “I’ve never been that close to Mom’s parents — because she wasn’t — so it all seems kind of abstract. Except the fact that I have this biological grandma I’m never going to meet.”

“That has to be a weird thing to consider.” Tim wraps an arm around his daughter’s shoulders. “You have all of us. Remember that.”

“Thanks, Dad.”

“And thanks for telling us,” Sarah says. “I know it wasn’t easy, but your mom is going to need all the support she can get. I’m not going to let her throw her entire life into chaos because her parents thought it was best to lie to her.”

Tim raises a skeptical eyebrow. “I don’t know if anyone ‘lets’ Diane Bishop do anything.”

“I’m going to try my damnedest,” Sarah declares. “Considering how often Diane has pulled me down off the ledge, it’s the least I can do.”

—–

Back in the living room of the Brooks house, Jason and Sabrina sit across from Trevor. A photo album rests open on the coffee table.

“It’s so weird that this house is going to be empty now,” Trevor says. “It’s always just been… here, you know? Whether I was off at college, or modeling in Europe, or living on the other side of town, I always knew that I could come here and check in.”

“The house isn’t going to disappear into thin air,” Jason says.

“No, but we probably can’t sit on it forever.” Trevor stares down into his wine. “The thought of putting it on the market…”

“You don’t have to do or decide a single thing right now,” Sabrina says. “Give yourself time to grieve.”

Trevor looks up. “It’s hard not to think about the future — a future that doesn’t have either of my parents in it.”

“Don’t feel like you have to rush into any decisions, though,” Jason tells him. “This house has been a huge part of your life.”

“Just know that we’re all here and we’re all praying for you and your entire family,” Sabrina says softly. “It’s times like this when we have to find our strength in the people around us and in God.”

Lauren and Alex, having just returned to the living room, stand in the entryway and nod along. Lauren allows a few seconds to pass out of reverence.

“Josh just texted me,” she announces. “He’s on his way back from Brent’s now.”

Trevor turns his attention toward Alex. “Do we need to get going?”

“Tempest said Chase is already zonked out at her and Claire’s place,” Alex says. “We can hang out here as long as you want.”

“Thanks,” Trevor says with a grateful smile, as Alex moves to join him on the sofa.

Sabrina places her wine glass on the coffee table and stands. “I can give you guys some space. I’m sure you want to take some time to remember things the way they were.”

“And you should stay for that, too,” Lauren says. 

Sabrina looks around. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah. Definitely,” Trevor says. “Our parents would want it. This is a very ‘the more, the merrier’ house.”

Jason takes Sabrina’s hand and draws her back down to her seat.

“Stay. Please,” he says.

“As long as it’s okay with everyone. Thanks.” 

As she settles back in, they hear the sounds of the front door opening and closing, followed by brisk footsteps.

“What’d I miss?” Josh asks as he appears in the living room.

“Go into the kitchen and get yourself a glass,” Lauren says. “We’re going to tell stories about Mom and Dad until we can’t keep our eyes open.”

“What was that dessert your mom always used to make?” Josh asks.

Trevor’s eyes flare. “No–”

“Her Better Than Sex Cake!” Lauren shouts.

“Don’t remind me!” Trevor exclaims with a groan.

“Was it really called that?” Sabrina asks.

“Roz said the name every single chance she got,” Jason says through a chuckle. The sounds of chatter and laughter and glasses clinking fill the house, and for a few more hours, Trevor and Lauren are able to experience the house in which they grew up in exactly the way they remember it, wild and alive and full of love.

END OF EPISODE 1033

Will Trevor be able to work through his grief?
Can Sarah and Tim help Diane cope with her new reality?
Should Brent be more direct with Molly?
Talk about all this and more in the comments below!

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