*****

"Tee, I knew you'd come back!" Starr shouts gleefully, squeezing her former stepmother. Téa's thankful for the embrace, it helping to keep her from collapsing at the sight in front of her. This, finding Todd and Blair and Starr in the penthouse, was the furthest thing in her mind when she had decided to come back to Llanview. She didn't even know he had come back to town, much less shacked up with his ex-wife. The scene...it had been so familial, it physically hurt her, because it was what she had wanted so badly. She fights back a sickening wave of nausea as she squeezes Starr tighter.

For his part, Todd couldn't quite comprehend what was happening. He could see Téa in front of him, but he couldn't convince himself that she was really there. A tornado of emotions ran through him...confusion, relief, fear, hurt, anger, love, passion, pain...he couldn't really discern between them anymore. And he couldn't speak...all he could do was stare.

Blair, on the other hand, was grinning like the cat who ate the canary. Oh this had so many possibilities, she didn't even know what to do with herself. But one thing was for sure, she was gonna have a hell of a lot of fun.

"Where have you been Tee?"

Finally tearing her eyes away from Todd's, she kneels down, pushing Starr's long blond hair back.

"Here and there, mijita," she replies, her voice hoarse as she struggles not to let her emotions show.

"I missed you, why didn't you come back with Daddy?"

Téa's eyes flicker to Todd. Gotta love kids, their frankness, honesty, and directness. "I couldn't sweetheart."

"Why?"

Téa swallows hard, trying to figure out how to put it into words....when Blair jumps in.

"Now sweetie, Téa just walked in the door! You know what, why don't you and I go upstairs to the bedroom and play, and let Daddy and Tee talk. We can finish our family tea party another time," Blair says, sickeningly sweet, with a sideways glance at Téa.

"Okay, will you come back and see me Tee?"

"Sure, Starr, I promise," she says quietly, a sad smile on her face.

"K!" Starr says, heading towards the stairs. She stops by Todd, who is still sitting near the coffee table. She tugs on his shirt and leans towards him to whisper in his ear.

"Be nice to Tee Daddy, k?"

Todd looks at Starr, seeing the hope in his daughter's eyes. She adored Téa, and wanted nothing more than to have her friend back in her life again. It was Starr's dream to have her mommy, daddy, and Tee all around at the same time for her to love. And to love her. He turns back to Téa as he hears Blair and Starr head upstairs.

Slowly, he stands up, his eyes never leaving hers.

"Look who's back," he says, his voice cold.

Téa stares right into his eyes. "Yeah, I'm back. Although I didn't expect to find you here, and certainly not with Blair."

Todd thinks he catches a note of jealousy in her voice, but tells himself he's imagining it. Why would she be jealous if she was the one who left him?

"What did you expect to find?"

"My niece Todd. We gave her the penthouse, remember?"

"Yeah, well I took it back."

She takes a few steps towards him. "You took it back? You signed over the deed to her Todd, you couldn't have just taken it back."

"Yeah well your crazy little niece couldn't cough up the deed, so ...I kicked her out. But don't worry, I made sure she got plenty of money."

Téa shakes her head, a wry grin on her face. "Can always placate a Delgado with money huh?"

"Hey, I thought you'd appreciate that I made sure your niece was taken care of," he snaps back.

Téa rubs her face with her hands. "Whatever, look, I'm sorry okay? I didn't even know you were back in town, and I certainly didn't know you were here," she says, turning to leave. She needed to get out into the fresh air, clear her head. Needed to get away from his penetrating gaze.

"Sorry for leaving me, or sorry that you saw me again?"

Téa stops cold at his words. She turns to face him again. "I'm sorry for a lot of things. But leaving you? That's hardly fair."

"Let's see, I woke up, you were gone. I'd say that's a fair assessment."

"Fair? You walked out on our relationship weeks before I physically left you Todd. When you gave up on yourself, on me, on us, on your life. When you did that, YOU left ME," she states, eyes shiny with tears. She notices Todd's eyes widen at her words, the way they do when she's hit a nerve with him. Shaking her head, allowing a tear to slip down her cheek, she turns and leaves the penthouse, leaving him standing there, stunned.

*****

Meanwhile...upstairs

Starr busies herself playing dress up in Blair's closet while Blair hunts for her cellphone. She glances at Starr, who has dug into the jewelry. Finally finding her phone in her purse, she picks it up and presses the first number she has on speed dial. When she gets the machine, she rolls her eyes and moves to the other side of the room, out of Starr's earshot.

"RJ...it's me. Listen, call me on my cell as soon as you get this. You will NEVER believe who is back in town."

She clicks the phone off and tosses it on the dresser. Smiling at her reflection in the mirror, she brushes her bangs off her forehead.

"Let the games begin," she purrs.

*****

Téa leans against the back wall of the elevator, the emotions rushing her just too much for her to handle. The tears were now streaming steadily down her cheeks, she not being mentally or emotionally prepared to see him, and the added whammy of seeing him playing house with Blair....well it made her feel like she had been sucker punched.

Almost immediately, the old insecurities and jealousies began to creep into her head. Had he ever loved her? Deep down, she believed he had. And why was she jealous? She was the one who had put an end to their relationship, he had the right to do whatever he wanted with whoever he wanted. But it still hurt like hell, because as much as she tried to deny it, she still loved him more than she could express.

Great homecoming, she thinks morbidly. After wandering around for a few months, she had decided to come back to Llanview and see if she could put her life back together. Roseanne was here, Carlotta was here, some friendly faces for her to count on. She had never even considered that Todd would have come back to Llanview, what with the tremendous distaste he had showed the idea of returning home everytime she brought it up. She should have figured though, because of Starr.

There was another reason, one she almost didn't want to admit to herself. She felt that one day he would come back there, and she wanted to be there. But she didn't expect to find him there now, much less living with Blair.

Roughly wiping at her tears, she stands up, pushing down all the pain she felt inside her. No time to go soft. If you're gonna stay here, you're gonna have to deal. Straightening her shoulders, she exits the elevator and heads for Carlotta's.