"How nice." "To be home, that is." "Dex, darling, you're looking a little bit pale." "He should, he's just come out of the hospital, Mommy." "And you've obviously been taking great care of him." "Thank you, Amanda." "I was just feeling faint, Alexis." "Yes, of course you were." "Well, what are you doing here, Michael?" "He is combining business for his father with the pleasure of experiencing Denver and its wild and wicked ways." "And I look forward very much to my visit." "Dex." " I'm fine." " No, you're not." "You look as if you're about to collapse." "I'm fine." "Well, now that your wife is back, I'm sure she can take care of you." "I'm leaving." "Amanda." "Darling, I specifically asked you to join us for dinner with the prince tonight." "Well, I'm sorry, but I have other plans." "So nice to see you again, Your Highness." "I would appreciate your reconsidering dinner, Amanda." "I thought of nothing but seeing you all the way here." "I'm sorry, I can't." "Well, my apologies." "But I'm sure that you're exhausted from the trip in any case." "Lin, would you show His Highness to his suite?" "Yes, Mrs. Dexter." "Your Highness, this way, please." "Thank you." "Why did you bring him back, Alexis?" "Can't you see that Amanda isn't interested?" "No, I can't see that, Dex." "And I also can't see that it's any of your business." "Now, if you don't want to end up in the hospital" "I suggest that you get yourself into bed." "That's a big word in your vocabulary, isn't it?" "Bed, as in "to lie"?" "Or is it "to lay"?" "I've never been good at conjugating verbs." "This is wonderful." "Did you just win a lottery?" "I may be able to buy an Arabian stallion I've had my eye on." "He'll be up for sale in Albuquerque in a couple of days." "I'll be going, Blake." "Blake?" "I heard what you said." "Fine." "Excuse me." "There's a telephone call for you, Miss Amanda." " It's Prince Michael." " Thank you, Gerard." "Yes, Michael?" "I not only missed you at dinner last night, Amanda." "I missed dinner myself." "In fact, I actually made a last will and testament." "And the one thing I asked for was the pleasure of your company at dinner." "Tonight?" "I'm sorry, I can't." "You never gave me a chance to finish explaining." "And I would like you to understand why I behaved as I did in Acapulco." "Won't you at least let me try to redeem myself?" "All right, I'll meet you at 7." "Michael asked me for dinner and I accepted." "Yes, I gather that." "You would rather I didn't go." "Well, he did behave pretty badly in Acapulco, as I remember." "Daddy, believe me," "I have no intention of sharing anything more than dinner with him." "He wants to apologise, and I suppose I ought to give him a chance." "I'm gonna be late for my still-life class." "I think I'll do a croissant this morning, so I can eat it as I paint it." "I'm curious about him, Blake." "What's he like?" "Well, he's intelligent." "You might even say brilliant." "I think he's too sophisticated for my daughter." "He's been around a lot." "Shall I open it?" "Of course." "Go right ahead." "I have nothing to hide." "When is this going to end?" "These pictures of you and Ashley and Daniel and me." "Blake, please, do the same with any you get from now on." "Even the ones that I get from Albuquerque?" "I'll be in Albuquerque alone, whether you believe it or not." "Well, according to the last report, at least we know he's alive and he's still in Paraguay." "Damn it, Charles, he should have been out of Paraguay by now." "I'm going back in." "Dex, would you trust someone in your shape to carry out a rescue mission?" "I mean, you can hardly cross the street, never mind flying back to a jungle to try and pull out a guy who can handle himself." " He's okay, Dex." " No, he's not okay." "He's stranded in a place where people would like to see him dead and I'm the damned fool who agreed to leave him behind." "Dex, has something happened to Daniel?" "I asked you something." "I want an answer." "He's okay." "You just said people wanted to see him dead." "Now, who, why?" "Where is he?" "You sound like you should be a reporter on one of Daniel's newspapers." ""Who, what, when, why."" "Krystle, telling you would complicate things." "Now, if you don't mind..." "If you don't tell me exactly what's happened to him," "I'll go to some newspaper Daniel doesn't own and I'll see what they make of this." "I guess that's a threat of some sort." "I'll do it, believe me." "All right." "Daniel and I and a few others, we've been working underground for years." "Trying to get people in trouble out." "This time it was Paraguay." "My job was to smuggle an American across the border." "His was to stay behind and mop up." "But he'll be back, Krystle, soon." "You don't really believe that." "Can't anybody help him?" "He has been in tougher spots and he has come out of them." "He'll be all right, don't worry." "But you're worried." "Maybe I'm just feeling guilty that I'm home safe." "He'd kill me if he knew I'd told you what we've been up to." "Just like he'd kill me if I told you that he cares about you very much." "Talks about you all the time." "I thought you might wanna know that." "Daniel's a good friend." "Thank you for telling me that." "And, please, if you hear anything, let me know." "All right." "Buy you a cup of coffee?" "Oh, Dean, I..." "I'm sorry, I'm kind of busy." "I hear you and Steven have separated." "Yes, we have." "But that has nothing to do between you and me." "Maybe not, but it does mean there's no reason now for us not to see one another." "Lunch, walks in the park, skiing together on a Sunday." "We could have a great time." "And no expectations?" "Well, there's not life without hope, Claudia." "I don't think it would work, Dean." "How do you know?" "We didn't have that much time together." "But what little we did really mattered to me." "I'd like to take that small brick and start building with it." "Oh, Dean, you're a kind man." "You really are a caring man." "But I just don't have room in my life for you now." "I don't think that I ever will." "Promise me something, would you?" "If things change, would you call me, please?" "Okay." "Bye." "What's the matter?" "You look upset." "It's been a tough day." "Mrs. Harrison phoned to say how disappointed she was in her daughter's shower." "What was wrong?" "Not enough rain for her?" "What's really wrong?" "Is it this simple?" "You're still upset about Steven and Blake." "Adam, I will talk about anything except Steven." "He's the one thing you've got to deal with, Claudia." "Divorce him, get off this emotional see-saw you're on." "Divorce?" "I hate the thought of it." "I see." "I see." "Blake's finally managed to do what he does best." "Intimidate." "And you are intimidated." "You don't have to be." "Not with me here." "Amanda?" "There's something I want you to know." "Don't tell me." "Your country is bestowing you with yet another medal for your tenacity above and beyond the call of duty." "I'm serious, Amanda." "I've called off my engagement." "I want you to be my wife." "I want you to marry me." "This is all rather sudden, isn't it, Michael?" "Whose plan was this?" "Mine." "I love you." "Is that all there is to it?" "That is everything." "Oh, no, Michael, there's more." "And I want the truth." "My mother flew off to see your father." "And then you and she came back together?" "Tell me, what plot did they hatch?" "I won't lie to you." "They talked." "And they came to a business agreement, didn't they?" "Go on, tell me the whole thing." "Tell me how you're buying me, because that is what you're doing, isn't it?" "Amanda." "Listen to me." "Believe me." "I swear that I love you." "And this negotiation by our parents is a blessing." "Don't you see that?" "No, I don't." "Well, it is." "Because it allows me to have what I want more than anything in life." " You." " No, Michael." "Never." "I love you." "I loved you the first moment I saw you." "Get out of here, Michael." "Get out." "You'll change your mind, Amanda." "You'll have to." "Oh, I didn't mean to disturb you." "I left some papers in here." "Well, wait, Steven, you're not disturbing me." "Son, I would like you to know how happy I am that we're gonna have the chance to work together again." "Now that Colbyco and Denver-Carrington are partners in that South China Seas deal." " It's a good business move." " Yeah, it's good for the family too." "Oh, by the way, are you gonna have dinner with us tonight?" "I won't be there." "Why not?" "Because you and I would probably end up arguing and I'd rather we didn't." "There's no point to it anymore." "Steven," "I promised you at the hospital that I would accept any way you chose to live." "I'm sorry, but I have a hard time believing you on that particular issue." "Then I guess I'll have to prove it to you, won't I?" "Come to dinner tonight." "Bring Luke with you." "Do you mean that?" "Yes, I mean that." "All right, I will." "What did you trade me for?" "More oil leases?" "Tell me, how much does a daughter go for on the open market these days?" "That's enough, Amanda." "Now, what was negotiated is not the issue." "What I got in return is." "A dream, not for myself but for my daughter." "A dream that comes once in a lifetime." "Where do you shop for your dreams?" "Look, I am not Grace Kelly." "Can you honestly say, darling, that you don't feel anything for him?" "I can honestly say I don't know what I feel." "You haven't given me a chance." "You've just taken over my life." "Amanda." "Now, before you walk out of here, listen to me." "Even if I were the monster that you think I am, even if Michael's father was as manipulative as you think he is, don't let that obscure your real feelings." "Don't throw away the chance of a lifetime because you feel it was pushed a bit by others." "A bit?" "You're pushing me into a marriage with a man that I hardly know." "Amanda, he's kind, he's intelligent, he's a prince." "What more do you want?" " What is it?" " Excuse me, Mrs. Dexter, but the bank meeting is about to start." "Tell them I'll be right there, Peter." "All right, we'll talk about this later when you've calmed down." "And don't reject Michael just because of me or his father." "Dex, I have to talk to you." "Amanda, I've got a meeting to get to and five minutes to get there." "Well, what about tonight?" "Please, it's important." "All right, I'll meet you at 11 in front of the Shearing lndustries building." "Good." "My meeting is confirmed?" " Oh, yes, at 10 a.m., Mr. Carrington." " Good." " File these contracts for me, please." " Certainly." " Hello." " Hello, Blake." "Blake, do you have a few minutes?" "Yes, of course, if we're brief." "Busy man, it will be just that." "Thank you for lunch, Jeff." "I had fun." "Well, good." "How about dinner tonight?" "Oh, I'm sorry." "I've made plans for tonight." " Bye-bye." " Okay." "Hold my calls for me, will you, please, Barbara?" "Now, what is it you wanted to see me about, Ashley?" "I visited Dominique at the hospital this morning, and I'm really worried about her." " Well, nothing happened, did it?" " Oh, no." "The doctor said that she's fine, but she seems to lack the will to recuperate." " That worries me." " Yes, me too." "I was with her for a while last night, and she smiled for part of the time, but it wasn't the real Dominique smile." "And as I was leaving, one of the nurses said to me that she spends all of her time" "listening to those tapes of herself singing." "Between losing Brady and the fear of losing her voice there doesn't seem to be anything anybody can do to keep her from living in the past." "You know, I used to spend a lot of time with Dominique in Paris, and I know her really well." "I know the stuff she's made of." "All she needs is a little push, and she'll land right back on her feet." "We need to give her that push." " Will you help me, Blake?" " Well, yes, of course I will." "Shall we talk about it over dinner this week?" "All right." "How about Thursday night?" "Krystle's gonna be away." "We can stop by at the hospital and then eat somewhere, and plan some sort of action." "Thursday will be perfect." "It's a date." " Thank you." " All right." " Bye." " Bye." "Kristina's asleep now, but she may wake up during dinner." "I'd like to see her." "Amanda, why don't you sit here." "Steven, sit there next to Krystle." "Adam, over there if you will." "Luke, why don't you sit next to me here." "Oh, with pleasure, Mr. Carrington." "Luke, I hear you're originally from Connecticut." "Born and raised." "Beautiful state, Connecticut." "With some of the country's finest universities and newspapers." "Is your family in the newspaper business, Luke?" "No, I was a copyboy on the paper while I was in high school." "Before I went on to Yale." "Yale is Adam's alma mater." "I know, I chaired the political debates for two years." " Bring back any memories, Adam?" " As a matter of fact, it does." "I chaired those debates for two years as well." "And with a reputation that's still the talk of New Haven." "You were quite an act to follow." "I'm sure you did very well." "This all sounds so intellectual." "Didn't either of you have any time for any fun?" "You know, as in sports, and going to the movies and dating girls." "I did." "Dating girls especially." "I did too." "Well, one girl, anyway." "We dated, and got engaged and married." "Unfortunately, it didn't work out." "You were divorced?" "Yes, sir." "Well, a lot of young people get married, find themselves unhappy and then get divorced." "Look, I understand what you're all trying to do." "Trying to make me feel as if I'm just any other guest in this house." "Well, I'm not, am I?" "Well, be that as it may," "I just want you all to know that I'm happy and honoured to have been welcomed here tonight." "And I want to thank you especially, Mr. Carrington, and Mrs. Carrington, for inviting me." "Well, you're..." "You're my son's friend." "You're welcome here, Luke." "I would say things relaxed at the table after a while." "Yes, after you let up on him, Adam." "I didn't mean anything, Father." "Conversation was difficult at first." "I can't help wondering if all this would have happened with Steven if Claudia hadn't been seeing that fellow from the gallery." " What fellow?" " Dean Caldwell." " You didn't know?" " No, I didn't know." "Well, it probably meant nothing." "A few dinners while Steven was out on business." "I shouldn't have mentioned it and I wouldn't have." "I just thought you knew." "It's getting late and you're far too good for me this evening, Father." "I'm off to bed." " Good night." " Good night." "What's the emergency?" "Michael wants to marry me." "I see." "That's not a problem unless you don't want to marry him." "Don't you?" "Dex, how can I marry him when it's you I love?" "Amanda, listen to me." "I'm already married to your mother, to a woman that I love very, very much." "You don't really mean that, do you?" "I do." "I love Alexis." "Marry Michael, Amanda." "It's for the best." "No." "Whatever I feel for you, I won't give up Alexis." "Marry your prince." "Oh, God, how I hate you." "I'll show you, Dex." "I'll show you." "Dex, as soon as you hear anything about Daniel, let me know, please." "Thank you." "It's time for us to get some air, Mrs. Carrington." "Oh, okay, Marcia." "I'll be with you in a minute." "That's to say good morning and to thank you for your support with Luke last night." "You don't have to thank me." "He's bright, he's charming, he's your friend." "And, well, that makes him mine." "Krystle, is everything all right?" "I mean, I don't want to pry, but I've noticed some pretty heavy tension between you and Dad lately." "It's not that." "It's Daniel Reece." "We have to tell him about Sammy Jo when he gets back." "I've agonised over that one for weeks." "But we have to tell him." "It's wrong for a man to live and die without knowing he has a child." "It's going to make some huge changes in their lives." "Yes." "But if it were you?" "I would wanna know." "Where do you think you're going?" "Well, I've decided to take a bike ride to Utah." "Maybe as far as Kansas." "I'll see how the weather holds out." "Dex, you refuse to listen to the doctor's advice and rest." "And you refuse to tell me who you were with last night." "Oh, the tall and oh-so-silent cowboy." "very mysterious these days." "Straight out of a John Wayne Western." "Well, I'm sure this has got something to do with Daniel Reece." "And I'm not gonna let you kill yourself on his account." "I was with Amanda last night." "We met, we talked." "That simple, Alexis." "Well, I'm not usually intrigued by life's simplicities." "But do go on." "She wanted my advice about whether or not to marry Prince what's-his-name." "His name is Prince Michael." "How sweet of her to ask for her stepfather's advice." "Or does she call you step-daddy?" "And what advice did you give her?" "I told her to marry him." "Good." "But I couldn't say much about why a mother would want to sell her own daughter." "Couldn't you?" "Really?" " I want to thank you, Dexter, for allowing me to stay here." "I promise I won't take advantage of your kindness for too long." "Let's say that you're welcome to stay here for as long as it takes you to accomplish what you're here to accomplish." "You don't approve of my marrying Amanda?" "I can see its advantages." "For all concerned?" "Amanda's young." "She's vulnerable, very vulnerable." "I don't want to see her hurt." "It's clear that you care for her very much, don't you?" "Let's put it this way." "Don't hurt her." "Oh, I don't think we have to worry about my hurting her, Dexter." "The man she thinks she's in love with is much more likely to do that." "Assuming I'd let him." "You know, we Dexters are usually real happy to oblige anybody looking for a fight." "But not this time, Your Highness." "At least not right now." "So if this international conference goes as well as I expect it to, it could be a new direction for us at La Mirage." "Fine, fine." "It all looks and sounds just fine, all of it." "Great." "Blake, I heard that you invited Luke Fuller to dinner at the house last night." "Yes, yes, I did." "It's strange, but I'm glad that you did." "I need to know that it's really over between Steven and me." "And knowing that you've finally made peace with the situation, well, it helps me." "Claudia, do you know someone named Dean Caldwell?" "Yes." "Why?" "Well, I heard something very disturbing yesterday." "What?" "That you and he had some kind of a relationship." "What you're really saying, Blake, is that did whatever happened between Dean Caldwell and me push Steven into his relationship with Luke Fuller, isn't that right?" "That's right." "Steven is my son and I love him." "There's reason for me to be concerned, wouldn't you say?" "Blake, you should know that a wife's infidelity, alleged or otherwise, does not usually turn her husband gay." "Well, usually doesn't apply here, Claudia." "Steven is a special case, and you knew it when you married him." "I refuse to accept responsibility for this from you or anyone." "What Steven is has nothing to do with me." "It has to do with choice." "With Steven's choice." "And there is nothing wrong with that choice." "It's just, I can't live with it." "Can't you understand that, Blake?" "Michael, I told you I would give you my answer at dinner." " Couldn't you wait?" " No, this is far too important." "I love you, Amanda." "I love you." "Then you would be willing to have me on any terms?" "I would." "Yes." "All right." "Then my answer is yes." "Yes, Michael, I will marry you." " Amanda" " I haven't finished." "What do you mean?" "Well, that it be a picture-book marriage." "But only for the picture books." "That it be a marriage in name only." "You don't mean that." "Yes, I do." "You either agree or you don't." "All right." "I agree." "I thought you would." "My mother must have offered you half of her empire for my share of yours." "I agreed because I want you, and I intend to have you." "As for these conditions, it will be you who won't live up to them, Amanda." "Because you want me." "You know you do." "Do I?" "Really?" "Uh-ha!" "Good shot." "Hi." "I was walking by, saw you both and couldn't resist stopping to watch." " I hope you don't mind." " No, no, not at all." "No, I always do better when there's a great-looking audience." "I'll buy the winner a drink." " Did you hear that, Blake?" " All right." "You know, without your input, we would never have been able to get publicity for the home." "I guess you're getting the benefit of my public-relations background." "Well, I have another meeting to go to." "Thanks, Krystle." "Bye-bye." "Are you sure this is what you want, Amanda?" "Yes, Daddy." "I'm going to marry Prince Michael, with your blessing." "Won't you give it to me?" "What's wrong, Daddy?" "Maybe it's just that we already have spent so much of our lives apart without really having been father and daughter." "Now you're leaving for a faraway place with a young man that you hardly know." "I know this." "You wish he were from Denver, so I could be nearby." "You wish he were an American." "Yes." "As a matter of fact, I do." "Then all of this is making you very unhappy." "Darling, I'm happy if you're happy." "I am." "He's a marvellous young man with wonderful plans for the future of his country." "But, Amanda, do you love him?" "Of course I do." "I'd have to be totally insane not to." " He's" " He's what?" "A prince." "Did Alexis have anything to do with this?" "And what did Amanda say to that?" "She said, "No."" "Well, shouldn't a loving father such as you are believe his little daughter?" "Not to mention me." "I may have encouraged this relationship between Prince Michael and Amanda but believe me, Blake, she is marrying him because she's deeply in love." "I don't think she is in love with him." "I think you're madly in love with one of your celebrated ulterior motives, whatever it is this time around." "Oh, God." "Why do you always presume that my intentions are to manipulate the children for my ends and not for theirs?" "You want a memo on that?" "I don't have time to stand here and give you a list of the many times you have done just that." "Oh, Blake." "You accuse me of trying to manipulate the children." "But what about you?" "You are the one that insists that they live in your house under your roof and living under your control." "My control?" "All I'm trying to do is to make up to my children for their having a scheming, manipulative mother." "It may be too late to undo that damage." "Adam goes on obsessively trying to gain power." "Steven abandons his wife for a man." "A man?" "Yes, Luke Fuller." "Don't tell me you don't know about that." "No, I didn't." "Well, it may be too late for our sons, Alexis, but I want you to know that I'm gonna do everything I can, everything, to make sure you don't push Amanda into throwing her life away." "Mother, come on in." "What's the matter?" "Steven." "It isn't pleasant to be humiliated by Blake telling me about my son's problems in his personal life." "Darling, I told you you can always come to me." "I know that." "I don't have a problem." "Is your marriage over, Steven?" "Darling, are you involved with Luke Fuller?" "Mother, Luke seems to understand me in a way that Claudia can't." "In a way that nobody else can." "I'm sorry if that hurts you." "That's the last thing I want." "I love you too much for that." "Steven, I love you and I always have." "From the moment you were born, you were always special to me." "I'd had Adam and Fallon." "Oh, but when I first held you in my arms, and I looked at you," "I found myself whispering that I would never leave you, that I would always love you and comfort you and protect you." "And I will, darling." "Especially from Blake." "Just leave me alone." " Oh, that's cute." "I'm gonna have to think about that one." "That was our favourite photographer calling from Denver." "He said the two of them are having dinner." "Looking real romantic." "Candlelight, the works." "So if you want some more pictures, all I got to do is call him back." "No, what good would it do, Morgan?" "We've hired photographers all over the world." "Paid off members of their household staffs, taken pictures and sent them." "Nothing has worked." "Blake Carrington and my darling Auntie Krystle." "They'll split up the day the North Pole has a heat wave and melts." "Wait, I'm not finished saying to you what I wanted to say." "Fred." "My God, that woman." "What about her?" "She reminds me of my Aunt Krystle." "So what?" "I don't know so what." "Not yet, anyway." "Blake, do you really think our plan is gonna work?" "I do." "It will be so wonderful to see Dominique smile again." "I mean, really smile." "It's not gonna be easy, but I am going to pull this off." "You don't agree?" "No, no, I was just shaking my head because I was thinking what a marvel you are." "Why?" "The way you put yourself out for people." "The way you care about your friends, like Dominique and me." "I knew that you were a beautiful, vastly intelligent woman with a rare talent for business." "I saw that at work in Paris and Acapulco, but I never realised that you were such a caring person until now." "And..." "And?" "Well, it's no wonder that Jeff finds you so attractive." "And what about you, Blake?" "That's not really fair." "Anyway, there's time for that later on." "Krystle, I thought you were in Albuquerque." "I was." "But the horse I had gone to bid on was withdrawn from the auction, so I came home." "I was just about to call you at the office." "I thought something might be wrong." "You're working so late." "I wasn't at the office, I was at La Mirage." "I was having dinner with Ashley Mitchell." "I see." "Now, look, there's no reason to be upset." "She's my friend." "We had something to talk about." "It was a very pleasant evening." "I go out of town one night and you have to be with Ashley Mitchell?" "No, I'd" "Krystle, you are upset and it's late, and I don't think now is the time to continue this." "Well, I do." "Continue it and finish it." "Now for these past few months, everything I've done has been wrong, wicked and sinful." "But not you, no." "It's always just harmless and pleasant." "Well, I'm tired of it." "Krystle." "What are you doing?" "I'm leaving, and I'm taking Kristina with me." "Please." "Please, don't do it." "You can't." "You mustn't." "No, no, we've got to talk." "We've talked." "I'm going." "Krystle."