The Sophia & C.C.'s story

A favourite love :
The Sophia Armonti & C.C. Capwell 's story

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In the late 1950s.
The young actress Sophia Wayne meets the successful industrial Lionel Lockridge on the set of one of her films. She becomes his mistress without knowing that he is already married to Augusta Wainwright, who is on vacation with her mother in Europe at this time. Sophia falls deeply in love with him, hoping that this love would last forever. Lionel gives her a lot of expensive presents, like some old gold coins. When she finds out that Lionel betrayed her all this time, she is very upset and breaks up with him. Not able to forget, she follows him to Santa Barbara, trying to meet Lionel again.

One day she is introduced to another successful and rich industrial in Santa Barbara: C.C. Capwell, Lionel's rival. Sophia has an idea. She starts to fancy C.C. to make Lionel jealous - and it works. Lionel has to see that C.C. Capwell is fascinated by the young beauty and that he decides to divorce his wife Pamela to be free for Sophia. When C.C. makes a marriage proposal to her, Sophia agrees; by now she noticed that there is more than just playing a game with C.C.. There is a kind of love. But there are also still strong feelings for Lionel, so she can’t deny when he seduces her.

By the time the wedding is going to be arranged Sophia finds out that she's pregnant with Lionel's baby. Not able to tell C.C. the truth, she confesses to a priest. Lionel's mother Minx Lockridge hears her confession and decides to do everything to avoid her grandchild being raised as a Capwell.

Sophia and C.C. marry in 1961. They spend their honeymoon in the romantic Brugge, in Belgium. Soon she tells him that she is pregnant and C.C. is happy when Sophia explains that it is her wish to name the baby after him if it is a boy. C.C. has no doubt that this baby is his. After the boy's birth, Minx changes Sophia's baby with the new-born Brick Wallace, son of circus artists. Sophia starts to feel lonely in her marriage. C.C. has to work a lot and forgets to give his young wife the necessary attention. Although they have three more children – Eden (1962), Kelly (1964) and Ted (1966) – Sophia is unhappy. She starts to see Lionel again and soon they end in bed again. But this time it's a different situation for Sophia. Now she is in love with two men. Not able to leave one of them, only in1968 she asks a lawyer to get the divorce documents ready - but never signs them.

In 1969, eight years after her marriage with C.C., Sophia decides to break up with Lionel again. She wants to be with C.C. only, because he is the one giving her love and certainty. The day C.C. leaves for San Francisco for a business meeting is the chance for Sophia to meet Lionel on his yacht. He is not willing to give her up. Trying hard to change her mind, they start to fight and Sophia goes overboard. While Lionel knocks his head on the ground and becomes unconscious, Sophia tries to save her life in the sea, but gets run over by the boat. When Lionel gets conscious again Sophia is gone. In shock and believing that she is dead, he turns back to the harbour. Sophia can reach the coast, badly injured by the boat and not able to remember who she is. In this situation a young Italian doctor, Marcello Armonti, comes along and brings her to Italy to help her. Back from San Francisco, C.C. searches for Sophia, not able to find her. Lionel is too afraid to tell the police about the circumstances and keeps silent. After a few days the police give up and C.C. has to tell his children that their mother will never come back. His world breaks into pieces without Sophia and he tries to kill the pain by working harder and harder, not seeing that he neglects his children. He believes that he had a perfect marriage and a perfect mother for his children. He tries to find Sophia in every little piece, like her perfume or her clothes.

Years are passing by.
In Italy, Sophia stays in a sanatorium for four years, because she still can not remember who she is. When Marcello finds her a place close to Milan and personally takes care of her, her situation slowly changes. He takes her to the Armonti residence, where she meets the young Count Armonti, Marcello's adoptive father. Searching for love and understanding, she marries him and becomes the Countess Armonti. More and more she remembers her family in Santa Barbara, but she's afraid to go back. When she gets to know that her daughter Eden is on the way to study in Paris she follows her and watches her from far away. After the Count's death, Sophia decides to go back to Santa Barbara, disguised as a man. But before she can tell her firstborn son Channing that she's alive, horrible things happen. Trying to shock Lionel, whom she held responsible for her suffering, she shoots Channing by mistake. This shocking experience brings her a nervous breakdown. Marcello, who followed her, gets her to Alaska before someone finds out who is responsible for Channing's death and that it is his own mother. In Santa Barbara, Kelly Capwell's friend Joe Perkins is arrested and is sent to jail for years. After a few weeks, Sophia can return to Italy where she recovers. Believing a lie Marcello told her, that Lionel is Channing's murderer.

During the same time, C.C. Capwell is not able to let another woman into his life or bed. He concentrates on his business and on Channing Jr, who will become his successor. When Channing gets shot, C.C. is shocked loosing his favourite son. Not over loosing Sophia yet, he puts all his hate on Joe Perkins, the supposed murderer. C.C.'s mood turns when his daughter Kelly decides to marry her new friend Peter Flint and his housekeepers' daughter Santana Andrade arrives back in Santa Barbara. He learns to live again and Santana is becoming the first woman in C.C.'s life after Sophia. Their friendship breaks up when Santana finds out that C.C. sent her and Channing's son Brandon away to take care of him alone and to keep him away from his mother. C.C. wants to make him become another Channing Jr. When Brandon's adoptive father dies, he also takes care of his widow Gina DeMott. First they become good friends, later a pair that wants to marry.

1984, fifteen years after her disappearance, Sophia comes back to Santa Barbara. Again disguised as a man, Dominic. She helps Joe Perkins to prove that he is not guilty, because she still believes that Lionel killed her son. She can arrange for the police to suspect him for murder and set Joe free. When C.C. needs a pilot, she can even get the job and fly him to Los Angeles without him recognizing her. Her disguise as a man holds till the day Santa Barbara gets shocked by an earthquake. Sophia - not having her male clothes on - and her daughter Kelly getting buried alive in the basement of her house. Joe can save Kelly, but "Dominic" is gone before he can reach "him". Believing that Lionel is staying in prison, she decides to leave Santa Barbara again. Not knowing that Lionel could escape and tries to find "the man" that brought him into that situation. Following "Dominic" onto a train, Lionel is shocked, but also happy to find out that Sophia is alive. They agree not to talk about it before Sophia can tell her children herself. She goes back to Santa Barbara, this time in disguise as the Comtessa Armonti – her official title.

When Sophia arrives at the Capwell hotel, she meets C.C., who doesn't recognise her. This gives her a feeling to be safe. In another costume, Susan Carlyle, a reporter, gets into contact with Eden and Kelly. Soon Eden finds out about her mother and gets upset. She asks her to stay away from C.C. and the family. They would be over her and she wants to keep this situation a secret. Sophia doesn't listen to her and joins Kelly at her wedding with Joe. Before Eden can avoid it, she talks as Miss Carlyle also to C.C. and finds out that he is still in love with her. But knowing that she will never return makes him ready to marry Gina DeMott, soon. Sophia has to see that she lost C.C..

Marcello turns up in Santa Barbara and supports his step mother. He doesn't like that Sophia still tries to get Lionel in prison for killing Channing. He cannot stop her to set false hints for the police to make Lionel a suspect. Lionel gets arrested. As a witness in court, C.C. learns about Lionel's affair with Sophia and is deeply hurt by that.

Kelly's husband Joe gets shot by Peter Flint. Sophia takes the chance to go back to her family. First she tells Mason, then Ted and Kelly that she is alive. Mason tries with Eden and Lionel’s help to get Sophia out of town, but she decides to stay.

C.C. wants to marry Gina when they find out that Sophia is officially still "alive" and that they have to delay the ceremony until law calls her officially "dead". Augusta, Lionel's wife, takes this chance to show C.C. the real identity of the Comtessa Armonti and he finds out that Sophia is alive – and in town. Not willing to forgive her, he wants a divorce. Sophia has to give up and agrees. C.C. marries Gina.

C.C. was responsible for Marcello's Dutch parents being shot by Nazis in Second World War. When Marcello tries to kill him without success, Sophia and C.C. get closer to each other. After a fire in the Capwell hotel, he invites her to move into the Capwell guesthouse. His wife Gina is not happy about that, she is afraid of loosing him back to Sophia. Inspector Cruz Castillo, Eden's future husband, gets to know more details about the Channing's case and finds out that it was Sophia who shot her son and that Marcello did everything to cover her. Getting to know that it was himself loading the gun, C.C. turns to Sophia and promises to help her in every possible way if she gets in court. It helps her to get punished without going to jail. And it also brings C.C. back, when he discovers his wife Gina in bed with his son Mason and kicks both out of the house. The doctor tells C.C. that he has small dangerous bleeding in his brain and this makes him confessing to Sophia that he wants her back. Sophia can return.

But their happiness doesn't last very long. Sophia's secret about her firstborn is discovered and gets to C.C.'s ears. Before he falls into a coma, he breaks up with her. While C.C. lays in a coma, Sophia is always around him and builds up her a new life in Santa Barbara. She hopes that he will forgive her again when he wakes up, but her dreams don't come true. Awake again, C.C. confirms his break up with her and asks her to keep out of his life.

Sophia finds out that she has breast cancer. Not sure that she will survive she tells Lionel about her fears. Seeing that Sophia suffers fighting this illness alone without C.C.'s support he tells him about Sophia's illness. It opens C.C.'s eyes and heart. Afraid of loosing her, he tries to get into contact with Sophia again, with success. After a candle lit dinner, Sophia and C.C. spend their first night after sixteen years together. Again, their happiness doesn't last. When Sophia finds out that C.C. knew about the cancer before she told him, she is very upset and denies his proposal to marry him again. She doesn’t want to build up a new life with him on lies. But C.C. is not giving up. After months of trying, he has success: Sophia is willing to live with him again.

This is the moment for Gina to turn up again and to blackmail C.C.. She won't tell the police about an accident Kelly had, if he marries her instead of Sophia and if he signs a contract which pays her a fortune if she catches them both in flagrant having a date. Saving Kelly, C.C. confesses his true and endless love to Sophia and signs the contract. Shortly after that, Gina and C.C. marry a second time. With a lot of tricks, Sophia and C.C. manage to see each other secretly. They have a lot of fun and this brings them closer together than ever before. When Kelly is able to prove that she is not guilty, the nightmare is over. C.C. can divorce Gina and can be officially together with Sophia. The months pass by and no one remembers that they had planed to marry again. Only the children do and organise a surprise wedding for them.

1987 : Sophia and C.C. are married for the second time. Pamela Conrad, C.C.'s ex-wife, turns up in Santa Barbara and tries to break up their marriage. Sophia, afraid of her rival, tries to get her out of town by sabotaging Pamela's oilrig. When C.C. finds out, he is very disappointed and looses his trust in Sophia. He turns away from her to Pamela and Sophia is comforted in her loneliness by T.J. Daniels. No able to talk to each other anymore, they decide to divorce – not even finishing their first year together – although they are still in love. When their relationships with new partners break up again, they realise what they had done, but now it's too late. Trying to remain friends brings them close very often.

Sophia starts to develop her own company the Armonti Industries, a fashion agency. C.C. discovers her as a business woman and is very proud of her. He would love to be with her again, but Sophia is happy with the life on her own. Nevertheless, they spend all family holidays together, like Christmas and New Year. Devoting their love to each other makes them happy, but doesn't bring them any further. Sophia is not sure of what she wants and has to watch helpless, when C.C. falls in love with Megan Richardson, the mother of his illegitimate son Greg. Although she tries to separate them she has no success: C.C. plans to marry Megan. Wishing him all the best, she leaves them both alone. Suddenly Megan explains that she is going to die soon and disappears. Sophia is there to comfort C.C. who wants her back now. He seduces her, but Sophia is still not willing to come back.

By surprise, Hollywood calls for Sophia, telling that they want to cast her for a new film. Sophia agrees. C.C., afraid that she will be disappointed, is always around her and when he gets the chance to produce the film, he takes it without telling Sophia. The movie is becoming a complete chaos and Sophia's only help during this time is C.C., who turns out to be a wonderful friend. Together they can find evidence against the director, Stephen Slade, and find out that the movie is only to cover a plan against the Capwells. Sophia is very upset but agrees to finish the movie. Before the première, C.C. has to confess that he gave the money for the project and makes Sophia very upset. But this time they can manage to remain friends.

Another year has passed by and they celebrate Christmas together. Their children have made a special gift for them: a New Years Eve party – including the marriage of Sophia and C.C.. Both gladly agree and so they say "I do" for a third time on New Years Eve 1990. This time, they say, it's going to last forever. Really? The next obstacle is already waiting for them.

Eden gets sick and builds up new personalities. The reason for that has its roots long ago: she knew about her mother's affair with Lionel and watched them when Sophia had the accident. The shock, deeply buried inside her, comes out and, in her confusion, she falls off a rock. Sophia and C.C. have to watch it from their yacht while Eden's husband, Cruz, is not able to rescue her. Feeling guilty for Eden's death, Sophia searches for help from C.C., but he is painfully hurt and accuses her to be responsible for the accident. Not able to think or to forgive her, he separates from her. All by herself, Sophia fights against her fears and guilt. Just when she manages and gets closer to C.C. again, a strange young woman turns up in Santa Barbara and she looks like Eden. Confused by her daughter's look a like, she tries to pay her to leave the town. Too much pain it brings to her and the family. But suddenly she has to discover: the woman is Eden. She is alive, but still sick. As another personality, Channing, her mother killed her brother, she shoots Sophia and disappears for good. Found by Kelly and Craig Hunt, Sophia survives.

C.C., afraid of loosing Sophia, stays at her bedside and promises to change their lives if only she would come back to him. He feels sorry for everything he had done during the years and wants her back at any price. Sophia is in a coma, but able to hear all the people that come to her bed. Knowing that Eden tried to shoot her and hearing people saying that she is responsible for all the tragedies that happened in the family, solids a decision in her. For the happiness of her family, she is willing to leave the people she loves – and this includes the love of her life: C.C.. awake again, she moves out of the house and asks C.C. to sign the divorce papers. Lionel helps her as a friend to get over C.C., who desperately tries to hold her. After weeks he has to give up and lets her go, broken hearted.

While C.C. moves on with his life and starts a relationship with Santana, Sophia is fighting against her loneliness. Everyone can see that both are still deeply in love with each other, but no one can bring them together again. Eden writes letters to C.C., Sophia and Cruz to explain her situation. She feels better already, but doesn't want to return. Her wish is that her parents would come together again and she tells Sophia that she forgave her the past. This changes Sophia's mind and she decides to win C.C. back. Her chances are good until Santana gets pregnant with C.C.'s child. Against his heart, C.C. decides to support Santana and to marry her. His children do not agree with his decision; they want to see him back again with their mother. Also, when Sophia tells them that she gave him and Santana her blessing, their opinions do not change. To show her support, they decide to live separate lives – making the situation easier for the new Mrs Capwell.

Sophia feels alone and starts to work out in a fitness club. There she meets an attractive younger man called Ken Mathis. Soon she is seduced by his charm and dates him regularly. Meetings with the couples Sophia/Ken and C.C./Santana are more than embarrassing. Both try to play a person deeply in love. On the day of their wedding, Santana has a miscarriage. The same evening, Sophia spends her first night with Ken and promises that her and C.C. are over. Santana believes that she has nothing in her hand to hold C.C. and leaves town. C.C. is free again and tries to get Sophia back. He arranges for Ken to get a job in Far East and clears the field to give him chances to seduce her. Now it's Sophia's turn to choose the wrong partner, when she decides to be with Ken. C.C. gets comfort by Angela Raymond while Sophia marries Ken.

Ken tries to get control over the Armonti Industries and to hide a dark secret: he has a young mistress, Andi Klein. Not knowing who that is, Sophia gives her a job in her company and gives Ken the chance to go on with his plan. In the meantime, C.C. and Angela become a couple. To have time for Andi, Ken gives pills to Sophia, which start to poison her. She gets into hospital. C.C. and Kelly are alarmed. They try to find out who's responsible for that. Sophia doesn't believe her family who suspect that Ken wants to get rid of her. She loves Ken and trusts him, what nearly costs her life – she gets poisoned a second time. Connor McCabe, a friend of Kelly, gets Ken into jail, where Andi gets the chance to kill him. Sophia, a widow now, recovers quickly and agrees to move into the Capwell house for a few days. Again C.C.'s feelings for Sophia come out and so he tells Angela that he can't marry her because he is not in love with her. Also Sophia finds her way back to C.C. and finally they decide to take it as their destiny to be together forever.
A favourite love for eternity...

Text written for this site by Daydreamer, as a tribute to Judith McConnell and Jed Allan