AN: Double update, because I love you all so❣️❣️

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The next day they all went to visit LeeAnne at the hospital, including little Sienna, who was dressed in a blue dress with flowers embroidered on the collar and sleeves for the occasion. The nurses made a fuss over her, and LeeAnne seemed happy to see her also.

It was a short visit, filled with superficial pleasantries. They agreed in the car that they wouldn't discuss anything unpleasant while she was hospitalized, and wouldn't bring up the miscarriage, the marriage contract, or any of her subterfuge or deception until she came home.

"I talked to Nicholle on the phone, and she's on her way," LeeAnne told them. She looked pretty, as usual, with a full complement of make-up and a new nightie that none of them had seen before.

"It will be nice to have her close," Gary said, holding her hand.

LeeAnne nodded. "Thanks for coming to see me, you guys," she said, lying back against the pillows and handing the baby back to her father.

So they took the hint and left, heading back home to spend the afternoon working, the boys on their music and Chiara doing some work on the property. Drew desperately wanted to talk to her and find out where they stood, but he could tell she needed some time to come to terms with what all that had happened, so he was trying to give her space. She didn't come in to eat with them, so he just left her alone.

After dinner, Drew was working out how to tell his brother what had happened when Gary came into the lounge and sat down, looking decidedly odd, for Gary. Normally he had an insouciant air and a carefree manner, much like a little boy on the first day of summer holidays. Now he looked like the weight of the world was on his shoulders.

Drew set his phone aside and looked at his friend. "What up, Gars? Where's Sienna?"

"Mara and Luke have her in the garden," he said, gesturing behind himself. "They're going to be good parents, I think."

Drew nodded, waiting for more. Gary definitely had something on his mind.

"Listen, Drew, I have to talk to you," he finally said.

"I was just going to call my brother," Drew said, gesturing to his phone.

"No, I should talk to you before you talk to him," Gary said.

"Oh? What's this about?"

Gary took a deep breath. "Look, mate, there's no easy way to tell you this, so I'm just going to say it, okay?"

Drew nodded.

"That baby? That LeeAnne miscarried? It wasn't your brother's, it was mine."

Drew stared.

"What?" he finally said, his face a study in confusion. "That can't be--I mean, why would she--I mean, how could it--" he finally stopped talking, unsure of what he wanted to ask or how to ask it.

"How do you know that?" was the question he finally came up with.

Gary took another deep breath.

I know because she told me," he responded simply.

"When?"

"Before she told you."

"What? Why didn't you say something? You could've saved me so much misery--you could've saved Chiara so much misery!" Drew's voice was full of fury and anguish. "What's the matter with you?"

Gary looked miserable himself as he faced his friend. "Please let me explain. She told me it was mine, but she told me that she wouldn't put me through any of what she'd put me through before if I'd keep my mouth shut--and she said she'd let me have Sienna."

Drew, who'd been getting ready to blast Gary with his words again, shut his mouth to stare.

Gary nodded somberly. "She said that she'd been with someone else, and she was going to run a bluff, but she knew it was mine, because every woman knew her cycle. I didn't know about all this business with Noah, so when everything happened, I thought it was you as well. I was surprised that you'd do that to Chiara, though, I thought you'd really changed, you know?"

Drew just nodded and didn't say anything.

"So she told me that I could keep my mouth shut, get custody of my little girl, be quit of her forever, or I could speak up about screwing her and deal with everything all over again with this second baby like I had with Sienna.

"You have to understand, Drew, I didn't want to go through it again, it was hell," Gary said, his head in his hands. "The solicitors, the paperwork, the negotiations, the money I didn't have. 

"Then, after I found out it was you, any reservations I had just went away. I mean, other than Luke or Neddy, who could be a better father? You are the best blokes I know. I couldn't think of anything better than for you to raise my child as your own. I mean, I'm a fuck up, everyone knows it, the truth is you'd be a better father than me anyway, yeah?"

"Oh, Gars, don't say that," Drew chided. "You've changed, maybe even more than I have. You're going to be a brilliant dad, I know it."

Gary waved his words away. 

"Anyway, my point is that, surprise surprise, I took the easy way out again. I kept my mouth shut and let LeeAnne put the screws to you and nearly wreck yours and Chiara's lives. And I'm sorry, man, I really am.

"And, after all that, I thought maybe Chiara and Ned would make a go of it, and they might be happy together," Gary continued. "I think Ned's really in love with her."

"Oh god, bite your tongue," Drew said. "I really think I would've died."

"I know," Gary said quietly. "After I saw you, and after I saw her, I knew it wasn't going to happen.

"What I'm trying to say is that I'm sorry," Gary said. "I'm sorry I was selfish, and I'm sorry I was weak. I hope you can forgive me someday, mate."

At that moment Mara and Luke came in with the baby from the garden, and Ned came down from upstairs.

"She wanted her daddy, we think," Luke said, handing her over to Gary. Sure enough, Sienna settled right down in his arms and began gurgling happily.

Drew looked at the two of them together.

"About the other, Gars? Already forgiven. I might very easily have done the same thing in your position, if I'm being honest. There's probably not much a person wouldn't do for a child. I understand that."

Gary looked from his daughter to Drew with gratitude. "Thanks."

"What are you talking about so seriously?" Ned asked.

Drew was just getting ready to tell everyone when the French doors opened and Chiara walked in. "Hello? Sorry to just barge in, but I just saw Noah pull up with a driver out front. Did you call and tell him about LeeAnne? Is that why he's here?"

"No," Drew said in surprise. "I was just getting ready to call him when Gary and I got started talking. Could he have somehow heard from someone else?"

"Who, though? LeeAnne wouldn't call him about something like this, surely?" Mara asked the room at large.

They weren't left wondering for long, as Noah pushed the front door open a moment later.

"Oh good, you're all here," he said. He looked very upset, and was still in his school clothes. "I need to say something, so just let me talk, and don't relegate me to the sodding kitchen or shush me or any of the usual rubbish, yeah?"

He looked at Drew.

"I can't do this, brother," he said without preamble. "I simply can't. I know I'm only fifteen, and am a child still, and you're older and wiser and that, but I don't fucking care." He began to pace around the lounge. Sienna watched him with round eyes from Gary's lap.

"Chiara, LeeAnne's baby? It's not Drew's. He only said that to protect me. It's mine." He looked around to see the effect of his words, and even though this was news to no one, everyone still looked surprised because they knew Noah wasn't supposed to disclose this.

"Noah, I should tell you that yesterday--" Drew began, but his younger brother cut him off.

"No! Sod it, I'm not going to be interrupted this time. I'm bloody well going to have my say, dammit!" He looked around as if daring anyone to interrupt him again.

"Anyway, it's mine. I was only with her the once, but that's all it takes sometimes, and she threatened to rake my name and our family through all kinds of mud if Drew didn't marry her and shower her with money and jewelry and the like, if you can believe it. She knew that the kind of future I wanted wouldn't hold up to that kind of pressure, but that Drew lived in the kind of world where that sort of thing wouldn't matter much. She threatened to ruin me if we didn't give her what she wanted, so we stupidly agreed.

"It cost me nothing but my self-respect," he continued, beginning to get emotional. "It cost my wonderful brother everything that ever mattered to him, but I let him do it, because I have no backbone, apparently, but that has changed."

He turned to Drew. "I don't care what happens to me, and I know once she thinks about it, mum will agree with me, Drew. We can't let you do this, and I can't do it to you or her." He gestured to Chiara. "I couldn't live with myself." He wiped away a tear.

"So okay, I'm finished talking now, okay?" He sat down next to his brother. "I know I've broken the contract, and now LeeAnne can sue us and you're probably going to lose all your money, and I'm sorry for that, but Drew, I couldn't live with that, I couldn't." And he leaned into Drew and proceeded to cry.

"No, little brother, it's okay," Drew assured him. "And as I was going to tell you, LeeAnne broke the contract yesterday." He sighed. "She took a fall down the stairs and had a miscarriage."

Noah sat up to stare at Drew.

"And," Drew continued, gesturing toward Gary, "it turns out that the baby she was carrying wasn't yours, anyway. It was Gary's. She was lying to us. She told him he could have custody of Sienna if he'd keep mum about sleeping with her.

"So, she was lying to everyone, as usual," he concluded, kissing the top of his brother's head and releasing him.

"Where is she?" Noah asked. "I kept waiting for her to interrupt me and start arguing."

"She's in hospital," Ned said. "She comes home tomorrow. I guess you're going to have to have a long talk with her when she returns."

"Oh my god, I guess so," Noah answered. "My head's still spinning." He turned to Drew. "Can I spend the night? Tomorrow's Sunday."

"Of course," Drew answered comfortably.

"I don't know why I'm still crying," Noah said, confused, as he felt the tears still falling on his cheeks.

Chiara came and sat next to him, putting an arm around him. "You thought you were going to be a father for a few months, but you couldn't tell anyone. Then, in the space of five minutes, you first thought the baby you were going to have had died, and then you found out it wasn't your baby at all. And you're only fifteen years old! If anyone's entitled to a good cry, it's you, darling Noah. And your mum's not here, so I'll stay by you instead, okay?"

"Okay," Noah responded, and he cried into Chiara's shoulder with no embarrassment whatsoever. Chiara shooed everyone out of the lounge, with her hand, so they went into the kitchen to order something for dinner.

Chiara and Noah joined them about twenty minutes later, and no one referred to his crying jag at all, knowing he'd rather not talk about it.