Episode 20

As his secretary greeted Susan, she left a message for him.

"Mr. Cooper, Mrs. Susan called. She needs you to urgently contact her at her house."

David was surprised; Susan was supposed to be in New York. Or maybe Joanne just wanted to bother him, which he had to admit she had succeeded in doing.

He picked up the phone and called Susan. She was surprised to see that he returned her call right away.

"Susan, is something wrong? I thought you were in New York," David asked. Susan smiled; he could almost hear Joanne's temptation.

"No, I need us to meet. We need to talk about Ava. As you know, her birthday is coming up and I want to know what happened with the apartment."

"It's impossible for me right now, I have some meetings. How about we meet tomorrow morning? I'll be leaving for a trip at noon," he informed her.

"I was planning on taking Ava to Vancouver and I don't think I'll be back before noon," she said.

"Ava is at your house! he exclaimed. I would have liked to see her."

"She arrived unexpectedly on Saturday, I'm sorry I should have let you know she was here. But she had a fight with her boyfriend and one thing led to another, and it slipped my mind."

"What is going on with my daughter? That idiot didn't take advantage of her, did he?" he asked.

"No, of course not," she replied, softening the situation. So, I'll see you when you come back. You can't keep being distant from your daughters and I want us to resolve this once and for all,"she informed him."

"Alright, Susan, I'll call you on Thursday. Would you prefer to come to the office or should I come to the house?"

"I prefer you come to my house, no need to call. I'll be waiting for you on Thursday, she told him."

"Alright, Susan, I'll come on Thursday. Take care, he responded. David contemplated the view of Seattle from his office."

Steve Tremon entered the office.

"David, I came so we can review the numbers before the meeting," Steve said, but David was lost in his thoughts. David, what's wrong?"he asked."

"Nothing, I was thinking about Susan. I just finished talking to her."

"I thought she was in New York, commented Steve."

"So did I, and that idea has been torturing me all weekend. I didn't realize it until she told me she was with Ava at home."

"Are you regretting it?" Steve asked.

"It's not that, but I admit the idea of Susan being with another man tortures me. Let's get to work. What's the problem with the numbers?" David replied.

...****************...

After having breakfast with her daughter, Ava packed her bag.

"I almost feel embarrassed with you, I've taken half of your closet, Ava commented."

"Yes, you could have raided your sister's closet," Susan replied jokingly.

"Can you imagine how it would be to go to work every day with that punk look?" Ava said, and they both started laughing.

Finally, around noon, they left the house. First, they went to have lunch and then they visited some stores, buying some perfume and lingerie. They were in the lingerie store when, while browsing, they ran into Chloe.

"Good afternoon," Susan said.

"Good afternoon," Chloe replied. Ava looked at her with hostility.

"Come on, honey, I don't want to be on the road at night," Susan said to Ava, and they continued on their way, entering a shoe store to buy some shoes.

"I don't like her, Mom, apart from her divorce and all that comes with it. I know she's going to make you suffer, Ava worriedly commented to her father."

"Let's hope not, honey. I really wouldn't want it to be that way."

It was two o'clock in the afternoon when they embarked on their journey to Vancouver.

...****************...

Meanwhile, Alexander Cavelli was going through his suitcase. He had spent the weekend with his children.

He read the note they had written once again. He couldn't believe what he had to endure.

The truth was that Jennifer would leave the series, but not because he fired her. It was because the foolish woman got involved with a man on a drunken night, and now she was pregnant. She still didn't want to announce her pregnancy.

That's why he was burdened with the label of a jilted lover, the age difference, and so on.

She took her suitcase and left the hotel. As she entered the elevator, the memory of the elevator woman came to her mind. That would be a good chapter for her series: two men in an elevator, a woman enters, one masturbates. Hours later, the woman is found dead. Who did it, the pervert or the observer? At least she could get back at that crazy woman. On the way to the airport, she went to say goodbye to her children. While at the airport, she wondered if someday she could stop saying goodbye to her children. For now, she was happy knowing that Adam would be studying at the University of California Berkeley, closer to her. In contrast, Emily was studying medicine at Harvard in Boston. And Brandon swore he would dedicate himself to directing and producing series. He enjoyed sneaking onto the sets. Her flight was delayed due to a storm.

...****************...

That night, when David arrived home, Chloe told him what had happened. "I thought your daughter was going to hit me," Chloe commented. "I don't think so, Ava is not like that, and besides, Susan would not have allowed it," he replied. "You still have a high opinion of her, don't forget that she hates me," Chloe said. "Maybe she hates you, but she would never allow one of her daughters to behave like a savage. Susan had a different upbringing," David replied. "True, I forgot that Susan belongs to the high society of Seattle," Chloe said disdainfully. "In a way, yes, her father was very important. Let's leave Susan and my daughter alone. Now, tell me, what did you go to buy?" he asked. She smiled, approached him, and kissed him.

...****************...

As soon as they arrived in Vancouver, they settled in the hotel where the production was staying. Ava left her suitcase in her room and went to her mother's room on another floor. Susan would be staying there that night. They explored Vancouver a bit, had dinner at the hotel where there were several people from the production. Everyone spoke highly of Ava—hardworking and talented—which made Susan extremely proud. At the same time, they praised Ava's resemblance to her mother and how young Susan looked. The next day, Ava went to her mother's room to pick her up. Susan handed her daughter an envelope with money before saying goodbye. Susan took Ava on a tour of the studios, where they were getting everything ready to start filming. Alexander Cavelli was sitting in the taxi, headed to the studios. His plane had just landed. Susan admired the rehearsal before the filming. "It's time for me to go," Susan said. "I'll walk you to the car, Mom. My boss hasn't arrived yet, and I would have loved to introduce you to him," Ava said. "It will be another time," Susan hugged her daughter. "I'll see you in a few days. I love you, darling." A taxi stopped behind them.