Split Reflections

What we do for love

I was the "best man" at Todd and Blair's fake wedding today. Well, it was real in the sense that they really did married--I signed a marriage license, but no matter what Todd tells me, I know he did this to get his son back from  Marcie and Michael. I've been so wrapped up in excommunicating Jared from my life that I haven't stopped to process that Tommy, Bree's playmate, is actually my cousin. All this time, we thought Todd's son was dead, so we should be overjoyed that he's alive ... only I know how much Marcie and Michael love Tommy. I don't know what I'd do if I had to give Bree up ... I almost did, to Tess. Still, no matter what I thought about Todd's actions, I stood up for him today because I love him. Nash and Natalie are putting up with Jared because they love me, but like Todd, I will have to do something to get rid of him. I feel bad for what Tess did, but it still doesn't mean I like having Jared in my life... or give him the right to blackmail my sister.

Fallout

Yet again, here I am dealing with the fallout of Tess' past. No truer words were said when I told Nash that sometimes dealing with Tess' past is worse than dealing with Tess herself. Jared wants a job at B.E. or he'll call the Atlantic City cops. I don't want to do this to Natalie ... Nash is determined to beat Jared, and I agree, but how?

Payback

Payback is a bitch and in this case, the bitch is me -- Tess.  Jared wants retribution big time and I can't blame him. I thought Tess pulled a stupid prank on him, a few days in jail, then Jared moved on with his life. I had no idea he spent two years behind bars and lost his job, his degree and basically his future. I see the look in his eyes and it scares me because I've seen it before -- in Tess'. Tess wanted retribution for what Norman Leeds did to us. Tess used men, the way Leeds used us. That was her way of getting payback--to try to punish as many men as she could.  It was her main goal in life, until she met Nash. Now I see Jared's purpose is to make me and my family pay ... and pay and pay until he's satisfied. The question is: what does he want?

Can't avoid the past

As much as I want to resist bringing up Tess again, it's here, slapping me in the face in the form of Jared Banks.  I really don't want to tell Nash or Natalie or anyone what I did to him ... I'm not proud of it, obviously, and would really prefer for it to stay in the past. But when I tried to convince Natalie to hire Jared, she saw right through me. (I admit, I didn't do a very good job hiding my own agenda, but I was just so rattled!) So now we're on our way to Rodi's where she expects me to spill the whole stupid, sorry story. I think I better buy her a round of drinks before I start talking. Then maybe, after Natalie knows everything, she can help me think of a way out of this mess.

The leech is now a snake

How many more animal names can I give Jared Banks? He's definitely not human, especially after his latest scam: blackmailing me into convincing Natalie to give him a job. I can't do that to her or my family's company. And I can't change the past, and what she --  I--  did to Jared ranks up there with bad pranks, but it was hardly earth-shattering.  I would think Jared wouldn't remember me after all this time ...  just when I thought life was settling down, here I am having to clean up yet another of Tess' messes.  I should come clean with Nash, but I hate (and resent) having to bring up my craziness yet again, when we thought we had dealt with it.

Like a leech

Jared thinks he has everyone fooled ... Nash doesn't want to be in business with him, but doesn't mind it either. It's the whole, "Keep your enemies close" mindset. Then Natalie goes and gets drunk with Jared, spending the night in his hotel room. Nothing happened, but still, she was vulnerable and I'm sure Jared isn't gentlemanly enough to recognize a broken heart when he sees one. His involvement in the lives of my family has to stop--now. I'm going over there to take care of him once and for all before he leeches onto another person I care about.

Putting an end to it--now

I got the biggest shock when Natalie told me Jared Banks applied for a job at B.E.  What does he want? First he buys 51 percent of my husband's vineyard and now he tries to get a position at my family's company by trying to con my sister.  I think he's trying to get to me. Well, if he wants me, I'll give him a piece of me--a freakin piece of my mind.

Jared Banks

I thought I'd never see Jared Banks again ... but here is he, in my house and Nash's new business partner. Having him involved with the vineyard is definitely worse than Antonio. I'd take a vengeful ex-husband any day of the week.  Jared has some sort of agenda. I could tell when I met him that he's the kind of guy who likes to work every single angle to his advantage. I'm shaking just thinking about what his angle would be now ... The person I was when I met him doesn't exist anymore, that was a lifetime ago. How the hell did he manage to track me down to Llanview? And the look on his face when he saw me ... smug arrogant S.O.B. He knew what this would do to me. I need to get rid of him before Nash learns the truth. 

Him!

Jared Banks in my living room ... how the hell did he find me?!

Getting to the heart of the matter

I knew it. Turns out Nash had a good reason for sounding weird on the phone. He lost big time in a poker game and now some stranger has a share in our vineyard.  Things could be worse, at least this guy's not Antonio. Being with Kelly and Kevin made me realize I couldn't keep feeling guilty about Antonio forever; they make it work, and so will Nash and me. Nash was afraid I would be angry or ashamed of him. How could he think that, especially after what I, as Tess, have done in the past? I told Nash we'll work this out no matter what. As long as we have each other and our daughter, we'll be fine. We'll figure out a way to keep our vineyard. Who knows, maybe this new investor will be more of a hands-off kind of guy.