"Well if it isn't my favorite nurse."

Elizabeth Webber rolled her eyes when she walked into the room and shook her head. "I'm your only nurse."

"That's not true," her patient shook his head. "There's the one on night duty."

"Alright," she clarified with an unrepentant smirk, "I'm your only female nurse. I really didn't think that Tony was your type."

"I'm not sure there are many who are Tony's type. If he was a woman I'd call him Nurse Ratchet."

She appraised the man lying in bed, his leg in traction and said, "If I didn't know better, Mr. Morgan, I'd think you were afraid of Tony."

"Jason," he said automatically, as he had every day for the past week since he'd ended up in the clinic down here and under her care. "And you'd be frightened too if he was shaving you with a straight razor."

"Would you like me to get you an electric razor?" she smiled at him. "Although I'm sure you could have just asked one of the guards to get you one. I mean, you are their boss."

"Sonny's their boss," he corrected without malice. "And yes, I could have asked them to get me one, but I was kinda hoping that you would volunteer to shave me."

She paused as she was making notations in his chart and peered over her shoulder at him. "Now why would I do that?"

"Because I'm charming?" he grinned with a waggle of his eyebrows.

"Is that what they're calling it these days?" she mused. "I was under the impression your unnaturally cheerful disposition was due to the copious amounts of painkillers pumping through your system. I've heard the guards outside commenting that they've never heard you laugh so much and would it be possible for them to get a little of whatever you're getting to keep on hand in case they need to lighten you up."

Jason Morgan shrugged his shoulders in a decidedly loopy and pleasant way and Elizabeth couldn't help smiling at the gesture. The man had a compound fracture in his leg, in two places, and had undergone surgery, and now was in traction flat on his back. The painkillers the doctor had prescribed were strong, and since she had heard the guards assigned by Mr. Corinthos to protect the convalescing man comment that they had never seen him so relaxed, almost carefree, she didn't give much credence to her patient's flirtatious manner. She figured once they cut back on the painkillers, he wouldn't be propositioning her every chance he got and she would continue to take care of him.

After all, that's what Sonny Corinthos was paying her to do. The mobster - everybody down here on Sonny's private island knew exactly what he was - had told her that Jason was his right hand man, the most important man in Sonny's organization, the one the Latino depended on for everything. He'd impressed that upon her when he hired Elizabeth to be Mr. Morgan's nurse at the private clinic in the Corinthos compound on the east end of the island. Her job at the hotel, nurse to the house doctor would be secure, but he'd heard she was the best and his best friend deserved nothing less. Mr. Corinthos had hired her to do a job, and was paying her beyond anything she ever imagined, and she wasn't going to do anything to mess that up.

Even if it meant ignoring drug-induced pickup lines that she would really love to acknowledge and act upon. Elizabeth wasn't a blind nun; she knew that Jason Morgan was a handsome man. She'd seen him in passing at the hotel, as she was walking through the lobby and he was heading into the casino. Half the women on the island were lusting after him, and the other half were somehow faithfully loyal to their husbands and Elizabeth thought they deserved medals for their steadfastness. She wasn't sure she would have the willpower if she was married. But they'd never spoken before, and now that she was his nurse she knew she couldn't act on the things he was suggesting.

She figured somebody in Heaven better be keeping score and she should get double bonus points for her ethics. Because after turning down the Adonis coming onto her, she deserved something. Life really could be unfair sometimes.

"How are you today, Mr. Morgan?" she asked, now that his vitals were dutifully noted. "Are you in any pain or discomfort?"

He got a decidedly wicked glint in his eye and before he could open his mouth and chip away at her resolve she held up a hand and quickly clarified, "In your leg?"

"No," he said with an adorable pout. "My leg is fine. Actually, I can't really feel my leg. Why is that?"

"The pain medication," she informed him. "I'll make a note to talk to the doctor when he comes today. Maybe we can reduce your dosage. See if the pain's going down."

"I have a high tolerance," he told her. "Can withstand practically anything."

Elizabeth looked down and felt the pen in her hand crack as she clenched it. Did the man have to turn everything into a double entendre? "I'll let the doctor know," she said.

Then she slipped his chart into the slot on the end of the bed and turned for the door. He called out from the bed, "Leaving so soon? You're one of the few women I know who actually runs from my bedroom."

She swallowed with her hand on the doorknob and turned to look at him over her shoulder. "I'll be back in a little bit to check on you, Mr. Morgan."

Then she stepped into the hallway, gave a polite smile to the guard outside the door, and headed down to her office. Maybe she should offer to switch shifts with Tony. She didn't know how much longer she could continue to go into Jason's room and remain seemingly impervious to his comments. Of course, being able to watch him while he slept probably wouldn't be much better. The man was already invading her dreams, she probably shouldn't be in a position where she could potentially maul him in his. She hoped that Jason's bragging of high pain tolerance and quick healing actually held some truth, because while the money was great, she wasn't sure how much longer she could remain Jason Morgan's private nurse.

She didn't know which was better, Jason Morgan on less painkillers and not propositioning her every time she walked into his room, or worse, Jason Morgan on less painkillers and not propositioning her every time she walked into his room. On one hand, she was glad she no longer had to fight her ethics, or a desire to blush at his comments every day, but on the other hand, she missed it. It was a nice little boost to her day. Sure he didn't know what he was saying to her, but for just a little while, she had one of the handsomest men she knew making her feel like she was pretty. That she was desirable, that she was sexy and wanted. It had been a long time since she'd had that and it had been nice while it lasted.

As she figured, Jason's behavior was due to his medication, which was why she never reacted to it. He didn't remember what he'd said, never repeated it once the doctor began cutting back his dosage, and the only person who would ever know about it was her. And in the long run, that was better. Nobody would ever mention it, they'd never have to be embarrassed by it, and considering that she might run into him occasionally at the hotel, or in a repeat situation of the one they were in, there wouldn't be any awkwardness between them.

Or at least that's what she told herself.

The truth is, the week and a half of his flirtatious dialogue got to her. She missed it. She found it hard to go into his room and not wish he was back on the drugs and talking to her like he used to. Instead of sitting there sullen and grumpy and barely speaking to her when she checked his vitals.

Of course, it could just be the fact that he was stuck in a hospital room inside when he was used to being outside. She gave him sponge baths, and she knew that his golden tan was pretty much all over. A person didn't get that, especially in upstate New York, by sitting inside all day. He had muscles and calluses that came from hard work, not being able to do something was probably grating on him. Despite the physical therapy they were giving him, he didn't seem happy. He wanted to do more, for longer than they were willing to let him push himself.

So her happy ray of sunshine had become a black thundercloud. The man who called her his gorgeous little Nightingale and asked her to warble him a tune in the morning to wake up to, had now become a reticent curmudgeon who seemed the happiest when she was leaving the room. Now she knew why the guards wanted a supply of the happy pills. Jason Morgan was a grump.

"You're a jerk."

She paused and looked around, wondering if she'd said that out loud, but then shook her head. The hallway was empty, so it wasn't somebody else. The voice was familiar though...

She approached Jason's room and realized that the door was open the guard who normally stood stoically outside was in her patient's room. And apparently berating him.

"Watch it, Enzo," Jason growled.

"No, I won't," the guard declared, his hands on his hips. "You're acting like a jerk. An a-"

"You don't want to finish that thought," Jason warned.

"And why not?" Enzo asked. "It's not like you can get out of bed and make me take it back. Besides, I've already reported your attitude and behavior to Sonny, and he agrees with me."

"You talked to Sonny?" There was a world of disbelief in the question. "Why?"

"Because I was worried your nurse was going to quit thanks to your sunny disposition and I figured he should have a heads up in case she did."

Quit? Elizabeth would have never quit. She'd dealt with surlier patients than Jason Morgan. Besides, she was too professional to just walk away from a job unless there was a really good reason for it. And personal disappointment was not a good reason.

"Why would she quit?" Jason asked. "Sonny's paying her well."

"Good pay doesn't make up for a crappy attitude," Enzo shook his head. "You went from hitting on her every second of the day to ignoring her and biting her head off for doing her job. She tried to take you temperature, you'd snap at her. She'd ask if you were in pain, you'd snap at her. She'd try to do her job and you were acting like a bear who just woke up in the spring. All because you were disappointed."

"What?" Jason asked in shock.

Elizabeth was right there with him. However, she wanted to know what Enzo was talking about.

"You're disappointed," the guard repeated. "You like her. You more than like her."

Elizabeth pressed a hand to her throat. Could have fooled her.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Jason said, almost with disgust in his voice.

"Right, so that's why you were hitting on her the moment you got here. Thought you'd play it off as the drugs."

"I was on drugs. You know how I hate them," Jason said, this time there was no mistaking the disgust.

"And now that you're no longer on the drugs, that's why you watch her butt every time she leaves the room?" the guard pressed. "You won't give her the time of day, or even be polite to her, but you ogle her backside like a starving man who just saw a T-bone steak."

Elizabeth didn't know whether to be offended, or flattered, and so she decided that she definitely needed to hear more.

"You would shoot any one of us men for treating a woman the way you're treating her. You snarl, you pout, you growl, but you can't wait for her to come into your room. In short, you're acting no better than Michael when he throws a temper tantrum."

"Enzo," Jason warned. There was a definite lethal tone to those two syllables. It reminded Elizabeth of just who her patient was.

"I'm done," he said. "But I want you to think about it, Jason. Because snapping at her is no way to let Nurse Webber know you actually like her. She's not a mind reader. And I'll let you in on a little secret."

"What's that?" her patient huffed.

"I've caught her staring at you as well," Enzo said, and Elizabeth felt her face flame with embarrassment. "When you're asleep, she lingers in your room, watching you. Her face gets softer, a little wistful, and a whole lot lustful."

"Watch your language," Jason commanded.

"Yes, Mr. Morgan. But I'm just saying."

"Yes," the man confined to the bed conceded. "I understand."

Footsteps clicked over the linoleum and Elizabeth hastily backpedaled so she wouldn't be caught right outside the room. By the time Enzo stepped out into the hallway, Elizabeth hoped she looked composed and like she was on her way from her office to Jason's room.

"Miss Webber," Enzo smiled brightly, his voice a little louder than normal. Perhaps he was doing that for Jason's effect. "How are you this morning?"

"I'm fine, Enzo," she smiled, unable to express anything but genuine delight towards the guard who had always treated her kindly. It wasn't just because he'd been championing her cause with Jason. Really, it wasn't. "How's the patient this morning?"

"Why don't you see for yourself?" the man smiled. "You might just be surprised."

There was no doubt about it, Jason Morgan was a fool. And that was putting it mildly. He was certain Enzo would put it another way, and at this point, Jason wouldn't really argue with him.

Because he had the chance of a lifetime, a perfect opportunity for uninterrupted time alone with the woman who had filled his thoughts, and fueled a fair amount of his lust-filled fantasies, and he was blowing the whole thing. To be honest, he had been pretty doped up when he woke up after his surgery and realized that Sonny had abided by his request and left him down on the island after he'd crashed his motorcycle and broken his leg. Jason, in his haze of pain when he'd been found by the guards after not coming back in time for a meeting, had told his friend he would recover better down on the island where Carly couldn't come in and out and torment him to death. His friend had, thankfully, agreed.

What Sonny hadn't known, and probably no man in the organization aside from Enzo even suspected, was that the real reason Jason wanted to stay down on the island was because Elizabeth Webber was here. And he knew that Sonny would hire her as his personal nurse for recovery because after all, she'd come highly recommended when she'd applied to the position as nurse and office assistant for the in house doctor at the hotel and casino. Neither man had understood why a woman of her medical training and background would choose to walk away from a prestigious position at Cedars-Sinai Hospital and want to work at a resort clinic. Then they'd learned that the young woman was orphaned, and had just nursed her grandmother - her last remaining relation - through two years of horrific hospice care before sitting with her at the end and holding her hand when the elderly woman finally succumbed to cancer.

No wonder Elizabeth wanted to be away from the mainland, away from big hospitals and big cities. She wanted, no, she needed a break. And the hotel's clinic certainly provided that. Most days they treated sunburns and upset stomachs with the occasional fevers and sinus infections. She'd once assisted on an appendectomy for a casino guest and Patrick Drake, their sawbones for both sides of the island business, said he'd never worked with a more efficient, more competent nurse. She could have done the surgery herself, and in fact had done a fair amount of the cutting and suturing, and done a very good job of it.

The island had agreed with her after her arrival, the relaxed atmosphere, the lack of stress and complicated cases and patients, and the nearness to the ocean had all helped revive her spirits and help her find peace after her grandmother's death. Jason had been sympathetic towards her when she first applied for the position at the new casino and hotel, and had been pleasantly surprised when he returned three months later and saw the young woman who had been pale, thin and withdrawn slowly emerging from her shell and finding life again. After that, Jason took every assignment to the island that he could. And sometimes he came down just to be able to see her from afar. He hadn't wanted to intrude on her time of mourning, and then he hadn't known what to say.

As her technical boss, even though he was a silent partner in the hotel and casino, Jason hadn't known how to approach her. Sonny had just been sued by Alexis Davis, his former attorney, for sexual harassment due to Sonny's constant flirting with her and attempts to seduce her into bed, and Jason had suddenly not wanted the same thing to happen to him. Plus, Elizabeth was a bit of a recluse like himself, and when she wasn't on duty, she spent the time in her private bungalow on the beach. He sometimes saw her out on the beach painting, or reading, or sometimes going for solitary walks. Since his private residence was the opposite direction from hers, he couldn't work out a way that would realistically have them bump into each other, and he hadn't wanted to intrude.

So he watched her from afar, enjoyed the moments when they might pass each other in the lobby or hallway, and on the one occasion when he'd sliced his thumb while working on his bike he kept down on the island, he'd been happy to come up to the hotel's clinic in the hopes of having her care for his wound. Unfortunately for him, she'd just stepped out to lunch and the doctor didn't have nearly the same appeal as the brunette nurse did. He'd endured the stitches Patrick put in, ignored the man's smirks and references to Elizabeth, and hoped he didn't end up punching the man in the nose when the lothario stated that while he and his nurse weren't playing doctor, he hoped it was only a matter of time.

None of that seemed to matter now, because he was in the private clinic that Sonny had on the island for men who had to escape the U.S. to recuperate from wounds they would have had to report to law enforcement back in Port Charles. He was the only one here at the moment, and he had first thought that things would be great since Sonny had arranged for Elizabeth to manage his case personally. The pain medication had lowered his inhibitions and he'd flirted shamelessly with her, even when he began to recover his senses. He'd been desperate to get her to notice him and thought he could detect a hint of attraction in her eyes whenever she came in to check on him. He thought he'd had a sure thing.

That had been his first mistake, and probably his greatest one. He had underestimated Elizabeth Webber's professionalism, and in doing so had probably insulted her as well. She wouldn't take advantage of her position as his nurse and molest a man recovering from major surgery who was acting so out of character because of pain medication. He hadn't seen it at the time, though, and had felt rejected. So when Patrick began cutting his pain meds, he'd taken out his disappointment on Elizabeth in the form of a churlish disposition.

Enzo was right; it was amazing Elizabeth hadn't quit and left him to the full time care of Tony. While Elizabeth was still polite to him whenever she came in, she was coolly aloof. She took his vitals, made her notes and left. She didn't smile at him beyond a professional twitch of her lips that never reached her eyes, and she didn't try to engage him in conversation like she had when he first arrived. Jason couldn't blame her, he wouldn't want to be in a room for any length of time with someone like him.

If things were going to change in their relationship, professional and personal, it would have to start with him. He had to make an effort, to stop sulking like Michael and treat Elizabeth Webber with respect. While he normally bristled when the guards presumed to lecture him, he knew Enzo was right. He would have busted anyone else's chops if they'd treated Elizabeth, or any other woman, the way he'd disrespected the nurse. Plus, if it was true that she had been lingering in his room and watching him while he was asleep, then maybe there was a chance yet. And it looked like he was going to get an opportunity to start setting things to rights as Enzo called out a greeting to Elizabeth.

Elizabeth walked into his room, a slight blush on her cheeks, adding to the beauty that Jason already admired in her. "Go-good morning," she said, looking briefly at him before immediately darting her eyes to the chart at the end of the bed and picking it up. "How are you feeling today?"

"Bored," he told her honestly. Honesty, instead of biting her head off or ignoring her questions, seemed like a good place to start. "I hate being forced to sit around and do nothing."

A ghost of a smile fleeted across her face, before she forced her eyes back onto his chart. "I imagine this has been tough. Patrick thinks in another couple of days we can take your leg out of traction and then you'll be able to move around with a wheelchair. He doesn't want you putting weight on it yet, so crutches are out."

That wasn't the news that Jason wanted to hear, but maybe if he smiled more and played his cards right, she would agree to accompany him around in his wheelchair instead of Enzo. He could hope, at least.

"I'd love some fresh air," he admitted. "I've never really liked hospitals. It's all too clinical, too sterile."

Elizabeth looked up and around at the stark room and a bit of a frown creased her face. "It is rather bleak in here, isn't it?"

Most of the time, Jason wouldn't care. Hospitals were the same, no matter how the decorators or family tried to disguise that fact with balloons and flowers, but he found himself nodding. It was the first conversation he'd had with Elizabeth in days, over a week, and he would do anything he needed to prolong it.

"Hmm," she mused, "I'll see what I can do. In the meantime, I need to make a note of your vitals so I can call Patrick with an update."

Jason submitted to her examination, liking when her fingertips brushed over his skin as she set the blood pressure cuff and then removed it. He didn't distract her while she worked, because maybe if his readings were good, Patrick would agree to letting him get out of bed and into a wheelchair sooner. Finally, she was done and she stuck her pen into the pocket on her top and tucked his chart under her arm.

"I noticed you haven't eaten breakfast yet," she said with a bit of chiding to her voice.

"I don't really eat breakfast," he answered with a shake of his head.

"Breakfast is the most important meal of the day," she pointed out with a smile. "A body can't heal without proper nourishment."

"Does that line really work?" he laughed.

"It used to work with my peds patients," she laughed back before her smiled slipped slightly. Then she looked down briefly and took a deep breath. Her smile was force and her eyes were overly bright when she looked back up and tried again, "It doesn't actually have to be breakfast food. I'd let you have a sandwich if you want, maybe even some chili since I know you don't really like soup."

Her dimmed look had pierced Jason, wormed its way into his heart and he knew that if he agreed to eat it would make her happy. Genuinely happy, and not a forced smile. "Think you could find some juevos rancheros?"

"Really?" she asked, her deep blue eyes lighting up. Jason felt dopey like he was back on drugs simply for being the one to make her smile instead of scurrying from the room.

"Yeah," he nodded.

"Alright," she agreed. "I'll call the hotel's kitchen before I call Patrick with your update. You'll have juevos rancheros for breakfast. Any requests for lunch?"

He bit back the 'you' that popped into his head and instead asked for a pastrami sandwich on rye. She nodded in agreement and said she'd be back in a bit to check on him, then left his room, not in anger or frustration, but with a little bounce to her step. It added a nice little something extra as he, true to Enzo's observation, stared at her butt as she left.

"Well, well, well," Enzo smirked as he walked in a few minutes later. "Looks like Mr. Sunshine is back. Well, maybe not Mr. Sunshine, but at least you're no longer snapping her head off."

"Watch it, Enzo," Jason warned, the effect being ruined by the smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. "I'm still your boss and when this is all over, I can put you on warehouse duty, or assign you to watch Carly for a month when she goes over to Paris to shop."

Instantly the guard sobered and Jason was pleased to see he still had it, at least, to cow the guards. The man turned for the door, but then stopped and looked back with a wolfish grin. "I see you learned the old adage."

"What?" the enforcer snapped. Being cheerful was tiring and it felt good to be surly once more.

"You get more flies with honey than with vinegar. You should have seen the smile on Nurse Webber's face as she left your room. I wondered if the two of you had gotten into the happy pills; instead, I see you took my advice."

"Go away, Enzo," Jason ordered.

"I'm leaving," the guard sighed. Then asked, "Do you think Nurse Webber will join you for breakfast?"

"If Patrick finds out what we're doing, he's going to fire me."

"Patrick can't fire you," Jason shook his head. "Sonny and I own the casino and the hotel; we're the ones who hired you. Although, I'm more of a silent partner, so it's really Sonny's who's your boss."

Elizabeth frowned even more at that news. She had met the Latino on occasion and while he had been polite and cordial, thankful and respectful, there had also been an air about him that had - quite frankly - scared the bejeezus out of her. She knew that he was a powerful man, she knew the rumblings, knew he didn't just own the casino or sell coffee, she knew he was a mobster. He was not someone she wanted to run afoul of, and some how, she thought if he knew what she was about to do, especially with his partner Jason Morgan, he would not appreciate it or approve.

Funny how she was more scared of a man who was hundreds of miles away and from every mob movie she'd ever watched and every crime show she'd ever seen knew he was only the one who ordered the hits. It was actually the man in the same room with her, the man that she saw every day, that carried out those hits. He was the killer; he was the enforcer. This man had probably taken more lives than Elizabeth had ever saved, and yet, she wasn't bothered by that information. She wasn't scared to be with him, and it wasn't just because of the cast on his leg that currently prevented him from standing.

Ever since the day Enzo had chewed Jason out and then he had completely changed his behavior towards her when she went into his room, Elizabeth had enjoyed being around Jason Morgan. He wasn't hopped up on pain pills like he had been at first, he was no longer surly and biting her head off. He talked to her, he listened to her, and he acted like he enjoyed having her around. Of course, she had the advantage of knowing that - at least according to the guard - he was attracted to her. He had no such knowledge, and she kinda liked it that way. She liked that he had no idea - again, aside from Enzo's one comment about how she watched him sometimes while he was asleep - that she liked him.

She tried to keep things professional between them, while letting down her guard and being friendlier towards him. She took his vitals, she watched to make sure he didn't over do things, and when he seemed to grow fatigued, she told him it was time to rest. In no uncertain terms. When he'd balked the first time, she told him he could either voluntarily rest and she would see him again in a couple of hours, or she would be forced to tell Patrick he needed a sleeping pill prescribed and if he didn't take the pill she would quite happily inject the liquid form into his IV or directly into him. Then he would sleep for a good six to eight hours, feel groggy and unable to do things afterwards and it could be half a day before they could once more do what he wanted to do.

When faced with the two choices, Jason had grudgingly given in and rested. When she stopped by in a couple of hours, she smiled to see he was still asleep and she told Enzo that she would be back in a bit to check on him. Getting out of traction and being able to move around had tired her patient. He'd been confined to a bed for weeks and even though he'd done PT to keep up his arm strength, it still was a vastly different thing to lift a few light weights in a hospital bed as opposed to maneuvering up and out of bed into a wheelchair and then navigating around inside and outside of the clinic. Pushing a wheelchair, especially loaded down with a heavy cast, was tiring. Some people never truly realized just how much so until they were faced with it.

The fresh air had done a world of good for Elizabeth's patient. He was not a man who enjoyed, or handled very well, being cooped up indoors. After a couple of days of merely going up and down the hallways, she'd taken control of his wheelchair one morning after Enzo, pinch hitting as orderly had helped Jason into it, and said they were doing something different that day. Then she walked towards the exit sign, waited for Enzo to open the doors, and taken him out into the walled courtyard. Jason's face was immediately graced with a smile.

They enjoyed a late breakfast out there, and then had lunch as well, before Enzo took Jason back to his room and helped him back into bed. Every day after that, Elizabeth would come for him in the morning and they'd spend several hours outside. Patrick was pleased with Jason's improved color, and improved cooperation with the treatment, and had told Elizabeth to keep up the good work. She'd wanted to tell him that it was really no work at all, that she enjoyed spending time with Jason, but she'd merely nodded and had seen the doctor off back to the hotel. Really, some days she almost felt guilty accepting the obscene amount of money Sonny was paying here for spending the day talking to a man she considered extremely handsome and fun to be around.

Sometimes it was hard to remember that he was her patient, that he wasn't just a friend she was hanging out with. He didn't need much in the way of medication, or other care, so most of the time she just watched from the bench as he pushed himself around the concrete pathways and further exercised and built up his shoulder and arm muscles. She brought him books to read, ordered in his favorite meals on occasion so that he didn't eat just a strict healthy diet, and listened to him talk about his sister and grandmother who lived back in Port Charles that he missed. They were the only ones in his family he really cared about and so he'd been surprised, but also touched, when one day she came in with some postcards from one of the tourist shops on the corner and told him to write them and she'd make sure they got mailed off.

If asked, Elizabeth would freely admit that she had come to view Jason first as a friend, second as a patient. Maybe other hospitals or clinics would frown on such a distinction and a relationship, but Patrick didn't care and she somehow figured neither would Sonny. He would merely see that his friend was happy and so long as Jason accepted the situation, then Sonny would too. Which made it dangerous sometimes when Jason would start flirting, because she wasn't sure that was a path their relationship should take. At this point.

And by the time he was no longer a patient and she might contemplate dating her silent boss, he would no doubt head back to Port Charles so there was really no hope for them and thus no reason to over think what was happening between them. Jason might find her attractive, and it flattered her that he did, but did attraction on his part necessarily equal a relationship? She'd worked at the hotel for a while now and he'd never talked to her before. These were the thoughts she'd tell herself when she'd toss and turn unable to sleep and most of the time she was successful, but not always.

"I really don't think we should do this," she shook her head and Jason laughed and tilted his head to the side.

"You're not wimping out on me are you?" he teased. "I thought you were made of stronger stuff than this."

"What if Tony comes in to check on you?" she asked.

"Tony's not going to come in," he told her. "He checked on me, I told him I was going to sleep, and unless an alarm sounded I didn't want him coming in to harass me. He might have scared me earlier, but Tony and I worked out an agreement. He knows that Enzo will break his kneecaps. Man supposedly has a very low threshold for pain."

"I sincerely hope you're joking about that," she admonished him with a smile, "but it's probably best I don't ask too many questions. Right?"

He merely shrugged in reply. "If you're really that nervous about this, you could have just switched shifts with Tony."

"Oh, that wouldn't have been suspicious," she rolled her eyes. "Especially if you spent the day sleeping. At least with me, I knew why you were resting more today and-"

"And now no one's the wiser," Jason finished for her.

"I hope so."

"Elizabeth," Jason said, his voice dropping slightly and he reached out, snagging her hand. "Relax. Everything's going to be fine. Enzo and Raul will be with us. Nothing will happen."

"Alright," she agreed. "You're right. You ready to go?"

"I'm sitting here in my wheelchair, aren't I?" he teased.

"You are such a brat," she huffed at him and then walked around behind his chair and placed her hands on the handles. "Enzo, get the door."

The guard pushed the door open the door and Elizabeth maneuvered Jason's chair through the door and out into the hallway. She looked down the hall towards the office she knew Tony would be sitting in, and then quickly turned in the opposite direction. Raul opened the door leading outside, but this one didn't lead to the courtyard where she and Jason spent most of their time, instead, they went out into a parking area behind the clinic where a car was waiting for them. There had been giggles and grumbles as Jason stood from his wheelchair and then got into the car, trying to figure out the easiest way to do it with the cast, but soon they were situated.

Once they were, Enzo closed the door and then climbed in the front seat where Raul was already sitting behind the wheel. The guard drove away from the clinic and towards a house on the southern point of the island. They wouldn't be disturbed here, or run off, because the property was owned by Jason. It was his retreat when he wanted to get away from the flash of the island and he said that when Patrick removed the cast that went from his toes to his hip and put on the smaller one and he could actually start using crutches, this is where he wanted to finish his recuperation. With her remaining as his nurse.

Elizabeth wasn't sure how she felt about that. Alone with Jason in his own house without the machines and medical supplies of the clinic to remind her that she was his nurse and he was her patient. It sounded too much like a set up, an effort to get time alone with her, and she wasn't sure if that was wise. But she also knew that she would find it hard to say no to him.

"Here we are, Mr. Morgan," Enzo said unnecessarily as the car turned onto a private driveway. "Everything was set up as you asked."

When they reached the house, Elizabeth found herself surprised by the place. She had expected something big, sprawling, and somewhat overbearing. Maybe that's because of the vibe that the casino gave off and that she'd heard Sonny's private villa was like. But Jason Morgan's place wasn't at all like that. The house blended in with the woods on this part of the island, and it didn't stick out and scream I'm a trophy house, it was rich without being overbearing. And she found herself completely enamored with it.

"Go around back," Jason called to the driver and Elizabeth's eyes widened as they approached the area where he'd instructed.

A nice pool, big enough to really do laps in, was softly lit - that would be good rehab for Jason once his cast actually came off - and a large area that had probably once held a tennis court but was currently under reconstruction was off to the side.

"What's this?" she asked. "You just said you wanted to get away from the clinic for a while, sit out on your back porch and relax a bit."

"I do," he countered. "But I also thought we could do something else."

She looked at him with raised brows. "What?"

"Since you wouldn't agree to race in the clinic's hallways claiming they were too narrow...."

"You set up a course in your backyard?" she laughed. "You...you're like an overgrown kid."

"No," he shook his head. "I have a wager for you."

"A wager?"

"We race and we each have our own prizes that we want if we win. Mine is, if I win, I move to my house when my new cast comes on and you come along to help take care of me."

She narrowed her eyes at him. Sneaky man; he must have known she would have tried to say that between the guards and a housekeeper, he would be fine on his own. That she could check on him but there was no reason for her to be there all the time like when he was at the clinic. Besides, she really didn't know how much longer she could continue to give him sponge baths and act like she wasn't affected by it.

"So," he asked, "what do you say? What's your prize if you win?"

"I don't know," she said. "You've got me at a disadvantage. Both with the wagering and with the wheelchair race. You've been maneuvering for weeks and have clearly had a lot of time to think about what you want."

He gave her a look, a challenge that said she could just capitulate now, but Elizabeth Webber didn't give in so easily. "But don't worry. I'm sure by the time we actually race, I'll think of something."

Important Note: In a previous chapter I had Elizabeth previously working at Cedars-Sinai...please disregard that. For purposes of this chapter, it suddenly happened that she was working in a "wintery" city and so I have chosen Johns Hopkins as her previous place of employment. There are obviously no blizzards in Los Angeles.

Nights like this were why Elizabeth loved living on the island. A soft breeze was coming off the water, but it wasn't so cold that it was impossible to sit outside at 11 at night to look at the stars and listen to the water. When she first arrived on this small island after her grandmother's death, she'd escaped from a harsh Atlantic winter to a sub-tropical climate. It had been a shock at first, but it was probably what saved Elizabeth's sanity.

It was so different than where she'd been, working a twelve hour shift during the day and then sitting by her grandmother's beside at night, catching a few hours of sleep until her day off when her gram and a really opinionated and pushy shift leader would force her to go home and get some decent rest. Once she no longer had black circles under her eyes but only faint smudges, she'd start the whole process all over again. It kept on that way for months until one night as Elizabeth sat beside her bed holding her hand, Audrey Hardy passed away.

The day she was buried was steel gray and bitter cold, and as they left the cemetery a blizzard blanketed the city. Stuck in her apartment for days on end due to the storm and forced PTO, she'd wandered around the internet until she somehow found a posting for a job opening at a hotel and casino. Numb with grief, desperate to escape the memories and the pain, Elizabeth had submitted her resume and then flown down for an interview. Two weeks later she was closing up her apartment and escaping to the Caribbean.

The island pace was definitely slower and while she'd hated it at first because she was used to keeping busy with traumas and surgeries in order to not think about her grandmother, the break had allowed her to put everything into perspective. She remembered the good, the bad and everything in between. She escaped outdoors to wander around, and soon she fell in love with the place she now called home.

She had been thinking a lot about her grandmother lately. Stuck in the more clinical medical facility in Sonny's guarded area instead of the state of the art and highly decorated clinic in the hotel, Elizabeth had remembered the nights sitting by her grandmother's bedside. She had gone into medicine to honor the woman who had raised her from when she was a preteen and her parents had taken off to help the underprivileged and then died in a third world country. Her gram had kept working long past the age she could have retired because she wanted to provide a better life for Elizabeth than she thought she could living off her pension.

Elizabeth had learned hard work, compassion and medicine at her grandmother's side, and had implemented those ethics in her life. They were now coming back to bite her in the butt.

Believing that once she gave her word to someone she actually should follow through, Elizabeth was now living in Jason Morgan's home. He'd won the wheelchair race, as she knew he would, though she liked to believe she gave him a decent run for his money. And so she packed up her bag the day Patrick removed the hip to toe cast and put one on that only went up to just below his knee. While Jason had broken his leg in two places, the nastier break hadn't been the one in his thigh bone, but in his tibia. He now had a titanium rod in his leg and he'd set off the metal detectors for the rest of his life wherever he went.

Patrick had wanted to keep that portion of his leg casted still, so Jason had been downsized, as Elizabeth liked to say, and finally released to crutches and his home here on the island. If Elizabeth thought her patient had improved simply by getting out into the courtyard of the clinic, it was nothing to the changes that occurred when they arrived here. In familiar settings, and no longer in a sterile, soulless building, Jason became even more relaxed.

He really didn't need much care, and Elizabeth oftentimes wondered what she was supposed to do. Jason didn't want her to cook for him, he didn't want her to clean up; he had a lady who came in and cleaned and fixed meals that they could take out and heat up. He really wasn't on any medications, he didn't need to have his vitals taken daily, and if he was worrying about falling or being unable to navigate around because of his cast, there was Enzo. Although when Elizabeth had mentioned that to Jason, he said that the guard wasn't paid to sit inside and babysit him, he was paid to protect him from anyone who may find out about his immobility and think it was a good time to come after him. Though he hadn't said it exactly like that, Elizabeth was smart enough to read between the lines and understand what he was getting at.

So basically she was getting paid to sit around, bring him his plate of food and make sure he ate, bring him a glass of water or the occasional beer to make sure he stayed hydrated, listen to make sure he didn't fall over on the way to the bathroom, and wrap his cast in the morning so that it would stay dry while he took a shower. And she was getting paid an obscene amount of money to do so. It felt...at times, really wrong.

She was getting paid to sit around and talk to Jason. To keep him company. It hardly seemed like the proper use of her medical skills, especially since Sonny had hired a temp to help Patrick out at the hotel clinic. It seemed to her that the temp could work here, and Elizabeth could go back to her real job. But that wasn't what Jason wanted, and since he was her boss, she was here while Patrick was stuck with someone else.

In these moments, it was getting harder to remember that Jason was her boss, as she knew would happen if she came out to stay at his place. He didn't overtly flirt anymore, he just talked to her. He listened. He was constantly there. He filled up her senses, he was almost always in her thoughts, he'd long since invaded her dreams, and Elizabeth wondered if it was real, or was it all just part of some plan Jason was working on. She knew his wager of her coming to work for him was definitely part of some plan. The glint in his eye when he'd named his prize, and then the smirk on his face when he'd claimed it, had alerted her to that.

She just didn't know what it was that Jason Morgan truly wanted. A quick island conquest? A friendship? A relationship? It was beginning to drive her crazy, and it was what drove her outside more frequently at night after Jason headed to his room for a nightly check-in with Sonny and a folder of papers that the night guard delivered. He was off to take care of business and she was free to have some time by herself.

She looked over at Jason's window, and was pleased to note that his light was off already. He'd had several late nights recently, disappearing several times during the day for phone calls with Sonny and Elizabeth knew enough that something had happened back home. Or was about to happen. And while she got the impression that Jason didn't need a lot of sleep to function, the man was still recovering from an injury and the body needed sleep in order to be able to heal quickly and properly. His light was still burning long after midnight when she finally dragged herself off to sleep and once she'd woken up at three in the morning to hear him shuffling around in his room, and heard the murmur of his voice drift through the wall.

Hoping that either the situation had resolved itself, or that he'd finally answered his body's demands, Elizabeth was mostly just glad to see that he was getting some sleep. It would help her worry less and be able to sleep easier herself. She had a hard time turning her back on her responsibility and sleeping while her patient was still awake and up. She knew Jason would want her to sleep, that he would tell her he was fine, but the only times Elizabeth had fallen asleep at her grandmother's side was when exhaustion had finally overtaken her. She was nowhere near that point at 10 in the evening when Jason would tell her he was heading back to his room to take care of some things before going to sleep.

She'd tried watching TV, she'd tried reading a book, or doing a crossword, writing a letter to her older half-brother even though she knew she'd never send it. Eventually, she'd taken to heading out onto the back deck and listening to the ocean hidden just beyond her sight and trying to let its rhythm lull her into relaxation. She'd even tried swimming laps sometimes. That had finally been the solution to her problems, pushed to physical exhaustion, her mind had no choice but to comply.

Now Elizabeth found that she enjoyed swimming. She'd never been one who cared for it much before; she'd never even been someone who liked to sit out and lounge by the pool to see and be seen. But maybe that had something to do with where she'd first learned to swim. Her parents had always been too busy when she was younger, although they dutifully took her to the YMCA until she learned to at least safely paddle her way to the side of the pool should she ever fall in. They felt they would have been remiss if they hadn't taught her how to protect herself. But she never was a child who loved to spend countless hours in the pool.

And forget swimming in a lake or the ocean. Things lived in such water. She might encounter a creature on a swim and, thank you very much, she would just as soon avoid such a moment. Patrick, after learning that she'd never been snorkeling, had tried to convince her to learn so that she could see the amazing sights under the water. The closest she got to that was standing in a lagoon where she could see the bottom and even then she hadn't enjoyed it because what if a ray was lurking under the sand for her step on?

But faced with nothing else to do or sheer boredom, Elizabeth had been glad she'd packed her swimsuit on a whim. At first, she'd merely bobbed around in the water, not really capable of swimming masterfully, but after a few nights, all those lessons her teachers had tried to instill in her had made their way to the surface and Elizabeth had ventured out. She was still a little clumsy, and she was glad that the night guard stayed on the perimeter and only came to make sure she wasn't floating face down in the water, but she was learning to enjoy her time spent in the water.

Knowing she wouldn't need to push herself as hard tonight, but feeling like the evening wouldn't be complete until she swam a couple of laps, Elizabeth stood and pulled off her shorts and shirt and then walked to the pool and down the stairs. The water was heated so that it was like stepping into a warm bath and she sank down for just a moment to bask in the sheer pleasure of the moment. She swam several laps, not working as hard as she did on other nights, this was more of a dip than a swim. As she reached the wall to turn around, she gave a wave to the guard on perimeter patrol and decided to wait until she was sure he was around the corner of the building until she climbed out.

None of the guards, or even Jason really, overtly ogled her, but she still didn't want to climb out of the pool in front of the man. If she happened to run into him while wrapped up in her fluffy bathrobe, that was one thing, but she didn't need to try for the whole Sports Illustrated swimsuit model pose of rising out of the water just in time for the guard to see. Once she was sure the man was around the corner, she dipped her head back into the water to draw her hair away from her face and happened to open her eyes to look up.

What she saw caused her to gasp before stealing her breath away.

Elizabeth Webber was going to kill him. Slow and painful, he was going to be tortured to death. He was, as Enzo had succinctly put it, a glutton for punishment. Maybe he was a sadist. What else would account for him all but blackmailing the woman into being his private nurse in his private house when he knew it was going to be torture to be around her every day. This wasn't the clinic where she could be detached and remote and disappear back into her office while he was hooked up to machines that gave her his vitals. This was his home. This was a cozier, more intimate setting.

Which helped his frame of mind not at all. He kept wondering what it would be like to have her here all the time. Especially when he wasn't hampered by a broken leg. Would she like his boat? Would she like his motorcycle? Would she like to turn one of the spare rooms into an art studio to continue on with the painting he knew she kept quiet from everyone? Would she like to sit in the evenings next to him on the couch and talk about the day or nothing at all? Jason knew he would like it, and it was getting harder not to tell her that.

But the worst came at night. When he went back to his room so he could talk to Sonny about things connected to the business and what was going on back in Port Charles, she would wander around his house. He heard her sometimes watching a movie, he smelled the baking she sometimes did, and certainly got to reap the benefits of her baking spree the next day. She seemed more relax, more at home, that it was doing things to him. He normally didn't envision things, or wish for things, but he couldn't help hope that this would be repeated in the future. Maybe with a kid or two helping her mix up her double chocolate brownies. He curled his hands into fists; he was envisioning kids.

It was hard not to think about such things when she walked around his house all day in casual clothes. She was a gorgeous woman and her figure had been completely obliterated by the shapeless scrubs she'd worn at the clinic. And if seeing her in form-fitting jeans and a button up shirt hadn't been bad enough, he'd seen her in a bathing suit. It was probably a good thing he wasn't hooked up to monitors anymore because there would be no disguising the accelerated heart rate he got every time he looked out his bedroom window and watched her swim laps. The suit was a modest one piece, and she was always quick to climb in and out of the pool when the guards weren't around her, but he had an unobstructed view from his window.

He would try not to ogle her while on the phone with Sonny, and sometimes he'd have to turn his back on the window and focus on the papers that his friend needed to talk to him about. But tonight had been different. Things had cleared up back home and Sonny was determined to get more than a few hours of sleep next to his wife, so the call had finished early and Jason thought that maybe he should do the same. The house was quiet, hopefully Elizabeth had gone to bed as well, and so he'd turned off the light and maneuvered himself down onto his mattress and propped his foot up on the pillow at the end of the bed.

It all seemed to be going well until he heard the sound of water sloshing in the pool. Elizabeth obviously wasn't in bed; she was swimming. Like a sailor unable to resist the siren call, Jason reached for his crutches and got up, walking across the darkened room to the window. He stood and stared shamelessly, watching her backside as she swam away from him and then trying to catch glimpses of her face as she made the return trip. She was a beautiful woman, and his hands flexed around the handgrips of the crutches. He was not going to go out there and disrupt her private time. He was not going to make her feel uncomfortable. He would not.

But when she stopped at the side of the pool and watched the guard disappear around the side of the house and then dip her head backwards, thrusting a certain part of her anatomy he worked hard not to be caught staring at up into the air, he was nearly a lost man. But what sent him out of the room was the startled look that appeared on her face and froze her in the pool. Had someone snuck onto the property? Would the guards come back and find the man, or had they been taken out? Jason might not be the swiftest on his feet right now, but he wasn't going to sit inside and wait for the guards to come back and protect her.

He turned, stopping only briefly to grab his gun and tuck it into the back waistband of his shorts, and then he swung the door open. He quickly maneuvered through the hallway, forgetting about trying to move quietly on the tile, and reached the backdoor. The French doors were open, only the screen doors were closed to keep the bugs outside. Those would be quieter than the heavy double doors. He moved slower now, not wanting to slip, but also not to give himself away. He couldn't see the pool right now and he really hoped that when he cleared the foliage, he didn't find Elizabeth being held by one of his enemies who had decided to make a move against Sonny by coming after the injured enforcer.

However, when Jason finally came to the pool area, he saw Elizabeth alone. She was no longer in the pool, she was up on the deck, her bathrobe draped over her shoulders and she was staring up into the sky. He scanned the area, letting go of one of his crutches and reaching for his gun; he wasn't going to take a chance.

"Elizabeth?"

She spun around, her bathrobe flaring behind her until she grabbed for the sides and pulled it closed. "Jason? What...what are you doing out here?"

"I...I wasn't asleep," he told her. "I...I heard you gasp and I wondered what had happened. I thought maybe there was someone on the property."

Her eyebrow went up and she looked down at his gun, then quickly looked away. He made sure the safety was on and then tucked the gun back into his waistband. Grabbing the handgrips of his crutches, he moved closer to her. "What happened?"

"Nothing," she shook her head. "I...look up."

He frowned slightly, then followed her gaze back to the heavens. "A meteor shower."

"I've never seen one so clearly before. I've heard of the Persids and the Leonids, but I've never seen them so brightly before. I guess it's the lack of light pollution out here."

"Yeah," Jason nodded, watching as a meteor streaked across the sky. "I like being away from the crowds."

"Your house is beautiful," she whispered, still watching the night. "And I...I'm kinda glad I'm here right now because I get to see this."

That made him frown. "You don't like being here other times?"

She looked over at him briefly, then away. "I didn't say that."

"It was implied," he said. Why did that make him feel bad?

Elizabeth sighed and then turned slightly to face him. "You should sit down. It's better to be off your foot, and I don't want you to look back so far you lose your crutches."

"Elizabeth," he returned her sigh. "Could you for once stop being my nurse and answer my question?"

"But I am your nurse," she answered, her eyes skittering away slightly. "It's what I'm being paid to be. No matter how obscene the money is for a pretty superfluous position, I am being paid to take care of you."

He rolled his neck and then turned, heading for the chaise lounge. If she wanted him to sit so that they could continue to talk, fine, he'd so.

"Jason," Elizabeth gasped and he froze in place. Her delicate hands whispered across his bare back and then suddenly he felt his gun sliding out from its place of confinement. "Are you an idiot? Do you know how many stupid gang-bangers shot off part of their butts by sticking their guns in their waistbands like they were all some kind of big, bad movie star? At least you had the brains not to stick it in the front of your pants. I'll spare you the details of the case I dealt with in that instance, but let's just say that Darwin took over and made sure the idiot wouldn't be reproducing."

Jason winced and then watched as Elizabeth walked around him and set the gun down on the metal and glass table by the lounge. She aimed the barrel away from them and then turned around to glare at him. "Sit."

He complied and sat down, biting back his frustration when she retrieved a seat cushion from a chair and gently placed it under his cast-enclosed foot. When he was situated, although he distinctly got the impression she was stalling for time, because she kept fussing over his foot, she finally sat down and then pointedly looked away from him and fixed her gaze back on the meteor shower.

"Are you unhappy here?" Jason asked after several long minutes of icy silence.

"No," she shook her head. "I just feel bad taking money for a job that doesn't really seem to need to be done. You could have your housekeeper come in more and make sure you have your meals and you're not getting up for every little thing. It just seems like a waste of money and time to have me here."

"I want you here," he told her.

Turning to look at him, she asked, "Why?"

"Why?"

"Yeah," her eyebrow went up in challenge. "Why? Clearly I get that you want me here, it was your win for the challenge. But why is it so important that I be your nurse here? That I stay here instead of just checking in a couple of times a day? It just...I feel bad taking money when I'm not doing that much. I sit around reading and I'm getting paid for it."

"You're keeping me company."

"I know you don't mean it to sound this way, but that's almost insulting. I'm your paid companion."

His eyes widened and he hoped he didn't blush. "No. No, that's not..."

"If you were really that lonely, didn't you have a friend who could have come stayed with you? Or a family member?"

"I...I don't really get along with my family," he shook his head. "Except for my sister and she's in college and needs to stay there."

"Friends?"

"Most of my friends work with me."

"And one of them couldn't have taken some time off?" she pressed.

"I...I wanted you here."

"Why?"

"Because I like you."

"You hardly know me," she shook her head. "Until I started taking care of you, we never talked."

"Not for lack of wanting on my part," he sighed as he leaned his head back to look at the meteors still streaking across the sky.

"Well wanting and doing, are two different things," she huffed. "So you took advantage of the situation? And that made you have to pay me to stay here with you?"

"You're making it sound worse than it really is," Jason winced.

"So Enzo didn't accuse you of looking at my butt when you were in the clinic?" she asked him, and he jerked his head over to look at her. "You weren't flirting with me every chance you got until the meds were reduced or I wasn't drooling all over you, and then you were grouchy and surly. Then once your guard chewed you out and accused you of liking me, suddenly you were friendly once again."

She stood and walked towards the pool, making sure her bathrobe was wrapped tight around her. "I don't get what you want, Jason Morgan. Look but don't touch? Have me play Goodnight Nurse with you? Keep me here in your house for a little island fling whenever you come back down here? Or shall we go back to seeing each other in the lobby and just walking past each other whenever you're down here on business?"

"I...I was hoping we could start off as friends," he stated, realizing that wasn't exactly going to work since she'd obviously overheard Enzo that day in the clinic and his secret crush wasn't really a secret anymore.

"Friends?" she asked. "You pay women to be friends with you?"

"No," Jason shook his head, wishing he could get up, but he knew as soon as he reached for his crutches she would bolt for the house and lock herself into her room. "It's not like that. I...why shouldn't you be paid for helping take care of me when you're not working at the casino?"

"If we had any chance of being friends," she stated, "you would realize that I would help out my friends without them having to bribe, blackmail or pay me to be with them. But you just wanted what you wanted, and so you challenge me to a race you knew I'd lose and then make me feel like a heel for suggesting that you don't really need someone with you full-time."

"I just wanted the chance to get to know you," he tried to defend himself. "I realize I didn't go about it a very good way."

"You think?" she laughed dryly.

"So what happens now?" he asked.

"Now? I think you need to get another nurse. I just...I don't know that I want to stay here anymore. I just...I feel like you weren't fair to me and it's time to take control again. I want to go back to the clinic, provided I still have a job there."

"You do," Jason assured her quietly. "You have a job there as long as you want it."

"Thank you."

She turned to go, but Jason called out to her. "Elizabeth?"

"What?" she asked softly.

"Would...do you think that you might stop by while I'm still here? I...I really would like to get to know you. Not as a patient/nurse thing, and not as your boss at the casino and hotel, but as...as friends, maybe. And maybe more one day."

"I don't know," she said honestly. "I just need some time to think. I've gotten to know you, but I just...I don't know if getting involved in anything besides casual friends is right."

"Is it because you technically work for me?" He'd sell his share of the casino to Sonny."

"It's not that," she corrected him. "It's I don't know if I can really trust you. If there won't be another angle or you trying to get what you want."

She once again started for the door and as she reached the French doors, she paused and then twisted around. "You know how you asked me what I would have asked for if I'd won the wheelchair race?"

"Yeah," he sighed, cursing his impetuousness.

"I didn't choose anything that night because I knew I'd lose and I'd be coming out here. But when you kept asking, and we talked, I thought of something."

"What?" He was almost afraid to ask, but clearly she wanted him to know since she brought it up.

"I was going to ask you to take me out on your motorcycle when you got your cast off. But now...now I'm not sure if I'll ever want to be that close to you again."

"Well, there you go," Patrick smiled as he removed Jason's cast. "Good as new."

"You sure?" Jason asked.

"Well, you probably should do some physical therapy," the doctor admitted. "Build your muscles back up since they were out of use for so long. Swimming, elliptical bike to start. Don't start out with a five mile run. Take it easy as you get used to your regained mobility."

"Yeah," Jason nodded. "Okay."

"Alright then," the doctor stood and began putting things away. "You're free to go. Hopefully I won't see you again for a while."

The doctor seemed to understand Jason's distaste for hospitals and medical personnel and didn't take offense when Jason wasn't interested in socializing or seeing much of the man unless he had to. Jason waited until the doctor left, and then got dressed in his jeans and boots he'd brought to the clinic with him and then stood, testing out putting full weight on his newly healed leg. It did feel weaker and he knew he was going to have to do some work to get it back in shape.

That could be done in Port Charles, though. Sonny owned a gym where the guards worked out, and Jason could just as easily use it after hours as he could swim laps in his pool here on the island and have an exercise bike brought in. It was time to head back to Port Charles. He'd been away for a while, people needed to see he was still with Sonny and that his boss wasn't having internal strife. He wanted to see his sister and his grandmother, especially since when he'd spoken to Emily last week she said that Lila had been hospitalized with a mild case of pneumonia.

Though, when he was really being honest, Jason knew that he wanted to get away from the island. Now that he could get around easier, it was time to go. He didn't want to run into Elizabeth since it was clear the nurse wanted nothing to do with him. She hadn't stopped by once since she left, and after a couple of weeks of hoping, Jason had forced himself to stop. She was upset, she wasn't going to forgive him, there was no sense in hanging around here or going to the hotel to try to speak to her. He'd been honest...or as honest as he felt he should be, with her, and told her he wanted to get to know her. To start with friends and see where they could go. He didn't think she would take kindly to hearing about his fantasies of her, so he'd kept those to himself.

A knock on the door broke him from his self-pitying thoughts, and he walked forward and reached for the handle. "Yeah, I'm coming, Enzo."

But it wasn't the guard on the other side of the door, Elizabeth, wearing a pair of pants and a scrub top, stood hesitantly in the clinic's hallway. "Hi," she said softly, almost shyly.

"Elizabeth," he breathed out, leaning against the door. "What...what are you doing here?"

"Patrick said he was taking your cast off today," she shrugged. "I...I wanted to come see you. I would have been here sooner but," she gestured to her top, "some kid ate too much ice cream and ruined the shirt I was wearing. I had to take a quick shower and grab this."

"Sorry the kid got sick on you," he said. "But I'm...I'm glad you're here."

"Me too," she admitted, a little smile quirking her lips. "Do you...do you need to do something?"

"I was just going to have Enzo call the airport to get the jet warmed up, but there's no rush. Did you want to get a cup of coffee?"

"I...I was hoping maybe I could buy you lunch," she said as her shoulders fell in dejection. "But if you're leaving."

"There's no rush," he repeated in assurance. "I've got time for lunch."

He had all the time he needed. Sonny wouldn't care when he got back. In fact, his friend would probably have been surprised if Jason had shown up in Port Charles today.

"You're sure?" she asked. "Patrick gave me the rest of the afternoon off, but I can just go back if you need to leave."

"Elizabeth," he smiled at her, taking her elbow and leading her towards the door of the clinic, "there's no place I'd rather be than having lunch with you."

He'd told himself he wasn't going to bring it up. He wasn't going to mention the fact that he'd hoped to see her at his house after she left, and had instead been left hanging. It was enough that she had shown up at the clinic he'd recuperated at after his surgery, and had wanted to come see him. She had made a conscious effort to get there and would have been there sooner but for some little kid getting sick on her. He told himself that was all that mattered.

Not that he'd been lonely without her in the house. That Tony, the former night nurse, was nowhere near as a companionable roommate as she'd been. That Jason didn't want the other man to make himself at home, and didn't want him using his pool. He had wanted her there. Had hoped she'd call, or just stop by.

She directed Enzo to some hole-in-the-wall, mom and pop eatery that looked like it was run out of the front room of their house, but was some of the most amazing food Jason had ever had on the island. The couple seemed to know Elizabeth, and he laughed at her attempts to converse with the pair in Spanish, earning him a slug in his shoulder. They ate, and when lunch was over, and she'd snatched the bill out of his hand and paid for it in spite of his protests, they then headed back outside and Elizabeth asked if he needed to leave.

"No," he shook his head. "I was going to go because I had nothing else to do, but I've gotten a better offer."

She looked away, a faint blush coloring her cheeks. "Come on," she tugged on his shirt sleeve. "I want to show you this place just up the street. I don't know if you've ever been here before or not..."

"I've never been in this part of town. I found a good place to eat a couple of miles from the casino and I usually go there. I guess I fell into a habit and never really tried other places. Usually when I'm down here I'm in meetings, or I'm relaxing at my place. I like to ride my bike, but we both know what happened the last time I did that."

The corners of her mouth tipped down, "You should be more careful next time."

Next time he hoped he'd have her as a passenger, and then he would take extra precautions. But he didn't say that. He didn't want to push her or make her uncomfortable. The fact that she'd sought him out was a start, and he wasn't going to set them back by drawing attention back to their last conversation when she declared she didn't know if she'd ever want to be near him again. So, instead, he merely nodded, and let her continue to lead him.

"I love this shop," she breathed out as they stopped in front of a pane glass window. "This guy is an artist and his work is just amazing. He does everything. Paintings, carvings, he even does furniture. I want to see what he has that's new."

Jason felt like he was being allowed a glimpse at the real Elizabeth. Not the professional who took care of him and spoke friendly to him while tending him. This was the woman he'd always wondered about, hoped he'd get the chance to see after he'd read her resumé and she interviewed. The woman he hoped she'd emerge into after hearing how withdrawn and depressed she was after her grandmother's death.

The shop was small, Jason felt that his head would brush against the ceiling if he stood up too tall, but Elizabeth seemed to fit right in. "You should probably sit down," she told him once they were inside. "You just got your cast off and you're probably not used to so much walking."

He wasn't, but he wasn't going to say anything to her; however, Elizabeth directed him towards a chair and told him to take a seat. She was just going to look around quickly. Jason had been dragged along shopping by women before, and he knew there was nothing quick about it. Especially when they were just looking.

It seemed, though, that Elizabeth was a frequent visitor to the shop, because she could spot the new items immediately. She glanced over the other items, but spent the most time inspecting the new arrivals. Some she dismissed almost instantly, not rudely but they just didn't intrigue her. Others she seemed to linger over, but nowhere near the extent that Carly would have. Of course, Carly would have just whipped out Sonny's credit card and bought whatever it was she wanted. His friend didn't seem to understand the concept of not buying everything she saw.

"Oh," Elizabeth's soft voice carried through the room. "I like this."

That caught his interest, and Jason stood up from the surprisingly comfortable chair. Apparently this craftsman really knew his trade. He walked over to where Elizabeth was holding a carving of the beach made out of what looked like a piece of driftwood. Waves were captured in the process of breaking on the sand, not far from the edge of the jungle. It was intricate, it was amazingly detailed, especially for its size.

"What do you think?" she asked when he joined her.

"It's nice," he said.

Her face scrunched up and she looked over her shoulder. "Nice is the kiss of death to any artist, Jason."

"I like it," he clarified. "I do. I can't see paintings, but this...I like this. It looks like the section of the beach I can see from my kitchen window."

"I like it, too," she nodded and Jason was wondering how he could buy it for her without offending her. "I'm going to get it."

At these words, an older man seemed to materialize out of the back room. "Good day, Elizabeth."

"Hello, Guillermo," she smiled at him. "How are you today?"

"I am doing much better," he answered. "Thank you for bringing el doctor."

"You're welcome," she answered, her smile brightening. Jason wondered what this was about. She was having Patrick make house calls?

"Did you find something?" Guillermo asked.

"I like this," she handed over the carving. "I'd like to buy it."

She didn't haggle over the price, maybe because what he'd named was so reasonable, almost unreasonable for the level of detail and time the carving must have taken. Instead, she opened her wallet and handed over the amount, waiting patiently for the man to wrap it. Once the purchase was complete, she stepped aside.

"And you, señor?" Guillermo asked, turning to Jason. "Did you find anything you like?"

"I like the chair over there," Jason said, pointing to the one he'd sat on. "It was very comfortable."

"Gracias, señor," the man smiled in gratitude.

"I'd like to order some, if I could. Six to go around my table. Is that possible?" Jason liked to support local crafts and tradesmen where he stayed or visited, and while he didn't really need six new chairs, he was prepared to purchase them to help the man, and also because he did like them.

"Six?" Guillermo asked in surprise. "Sí, I can do that."

Jason placed his order, giving the man his delivery address and making a deposit of half the payment. Guillermo had insisted he didn't need to be paid until the order was complete, but Jason had been equally insistent. When the details were complete, Jason and Elizabeth left the small shop and Enzo drove Elizabeth back to the clinic so she could retrieve her car.

"I'm glad I made it in time to see you," Elizabeth smiled at Jason as she stood by her car. Enzo was standing a discreet distance away and Elizabeth had laughingly told Jason there was no need for him to get out, she could walk to her car by herself. He'd insisted, however.

"I am, too," he told her honestly. "I...I missed you. Tony just wasn't the same to talk to."

She looked away briefly, discomfort showing about the turn of the conversation. "I thought you knew how to handle Tony."

"I do," he laughed. "He just wasn't as fun to talk to."

"Sorry," she whispered. "I...I hope you have a good trip, Jason. And...and the next time you're back down on the island stop by the clinic. Even if you're not sick. It...it'll be nice to say hello."

Then she climbed into her car and drove away and Jason walked slowly back to the car where Enzo was waiting. She had just told him that he could say hello the next time he was here. She wasn't closing the door completely, she was in fact, leaving it open for him. Jason was determined that he'd be back at the next available opportunity, even if he had to contrive something.

As he climbed inside and told Enzo to take him to the airport, he frowned when he saw Elizabeth's package sitting on the seat. He picked it up and was about to tell Enzo to find out where Elizabeth lived, or to take him to the casino so he could leave it for her at the clinic. But he didn't when he saw a note on top with his name. Elizabeth must have written it while Jason was talking with Guillermo.

Jason-

I thought you might like to take this with you. A piece of the island to remember.

E.

Elizabeth never realized just how often Jason came down to the island, until he wasn't there. Of course, she learned while she was his private nurse, that he came down often merely to try to catch a glimpse of her. Each time hoping that he might get the chance to say a few words to her, but being content to merely see her from afar. It was such a hard concept for her to fathom. A gorgeous man, one whom half the female staff of the hotel and casino seemed to drool over, had come down to see her. She'd gone to bed in The Romper Room and woken up in The Twilight Zone. It simply didn't seem possible.

But as each day passed without Jason, she began to think that maybe it had. For someone who never came to the hotel's clinic, she sure saw Jason Morgan an awful lot. Passing through the lobby, walking down the employee hallway, out on the beach at sunrise, and other places. Given the fact that he had his own place on the other side of the island, she realized that she'd seen him around more than seemed normal. Had he really been trying to catch glimpses of her? Instead of creeping her out in a stalker kind of way, she found herself oddly touched by it.

It also made her miss him more. She'd missed him once she left his place and was no longer his nurse, but she forced herself to stay away. She went back to work at the hotel's clinic, and when she still found herself with time on her hands and the burning desire to drive back out to Jason's house, she volunteered at the free clinic on the island to help the locals. She'd even brought Patrick down there once when the local doctor couldn't discover what was wrong with Guillermo and had him diagnose the artisan.

She'd kept up her busy schedule not just because it kept her occupied and kept her from thinking of Jason Morgan and wondering where he was and how he was doing, but also because she'd liked it. When she'd left Johns Hopkins after her grandmother's death, she'd been happy for the slower pace of the clinic. After years of working and taking care of her grandmother, she was happy to be able to sleep, to recover and regain her sense of peace and sanity.

It was a bit of a marshmallow job, though. Treating sunburns, minor fevers and the occasional heart murmur just wasn't the same caliber as the rotations through the ER and assisting on surgeries. Working down at the local clinic and dealing with people's every day, real life conditions made her feel like she was doing something worthwhile. Made her feel like she was giving something back to the island that had given her so much. It wasn't nearly as taxing as the hospital, but it was more than dealing with someone's irritated bikini wax.

Elizabeth had just finished one such day of work at the clinic and she said good-bye to the staff and then ducked out the side door to the street where her car was parked. She had her keys out and was approaching her car, when she slowed, then stopped all together. Someone was leaning against her car and since dusk was falling and she couldn't see the person too well, she took a step backwards, intent on going back inside and asking one of the men to come back out with her. She wasn't a fool, she'd worked in Baltimore, she took her safety seriously. Even on the island where everyone knew she worked at Sonny Corinthos' hotel and had personally tended Jason Morgan.

"Elizabeth."

The voice stopped her and she squinted, shifting slightly so the setting sun was hidden and not shining in her eyes. She knew that voice, and now that she could see, she knew that profile. "Jason? What are you doing here?"

"I was going to ask you the same thing," he said as he took a step towards her. "When I stopped at the hotel clinic, Patrick said you weren't there but were volunteering down here. I..."

He paused, seemed to swallow what he was going to say and then said, "I didn't mean to startle you. I just wanted to wait, especially since this isn't the best neighborhood."

"Yes," she arched a brow. "Patrick's told me that a few times. But a free clinic isn't really necessary in the high end neighborhoods, now is it?"

"Probably not," he conceded. "And Patrick was quick to assure me that you usually leave before it gets dark."

Patrick was telling tales on her? Or was he hoping that Jason would somehow be able to talk her out of this volunteer work as Patrick had tried on a couple of occasions. The area was alright during the day, but she knew enough not to stick around after dark. Patrick just seemed to think that since he was older, a doctor, and a man, that he could become her protector and try to tell her what to do. If Jason was going to try to do the same thing, he was in for a surprise.

"Sometimes emergencies come up," Elizabeth said, crossing her arms over her chest and daring Jason to lecture her. If this is what he was going to do, showing up suddenly after being gone for over a month, then perhaps he should have just stayed back in Port Charles. No amount of missing someone was worth this. Not even for Jason Morgan.

"Is the patient alright?" he asked after half a beat.

"New mother and baby are doing fine," she smiled. "She came in for her check-up and her water broke. She refused to go to the hospital, hates them; it was hard enough for us to get her to come to the clinic and get pre-natal care. She refused to have anyone but us deliver her baby."

"A baby." A small smile crossed Jason's face and she was glad she was standing close enough to see it. She hadn't seen many smiles with Jason, although she'd heard from Enzo that he did more in her presence than the guard had ever seen before, and this was one not to be missed. There was just something about babies that seemed to bring out the best in people. "I can see why you wouldn't leave. You're too dedicated to do that."

"Thank you," she replied, glad he seemed to understand that side of her. She may have left him, but they both knew why and that he wasn't as in need of medical assistance as the young mother had been.

Now that she no longer felt she had to defend her right to be here, she relaxed, and began to wonder why Jason had suddenly shown up leaning against her car. He'd obviously stopped by the hotel clinic like she'd told him to when he left, but what did it mean? What exactly was he looking for?

"Are you hungry?" Jason asked, breaking the silence that had formed between them.

"Yeah," she answered, too hungry to try to lie. Besides, she figured at any moment her stomach would betray her anyways; there hadn't been time for anything to eat while they'd been helping with the delivery.

"Would you like to get something?" he asked, a little uncertain hope tinting his words.

"I'd love to," she answered, then gestured towards the scrubs she was wearing, "but I'm not really dressed for anywhere."

"You look fine," Jason told her. "Besides, there's no dress code where we're going. The waves don't care if you're in scrubs."

"The waves?" she arched a brow at him.

He took her arm and gently led her to the driver side of her car. "Follow me and find out."

She hadn't seen this side of Jason before, mischievous, almost playful. He had been high-handed before with the whole private nursing at his house, but this was different. He was challenging her in a teasing, non-threatening way and she found herself following along. Once she was in her car, he walked towards the car in front of hers and climbed in. Apparently, no motorcycle for him today.

They drove back towards the casino, but then turned onto a service road that went along behind the structure. Not the main road that went down to the private cabanas that dotted the beach's edge. She didn't know if they were still on hotel property or not, but suspected they were. Sonny Corinthos did not strike her as the kind of man who would be lax on security, and buying up as much space around his casino so he could station his men and his own security systems there seemed the kind of thing he'd do.

Eventually, Jason stopped on the side of the road and she followed suit. He climbed out, reached into the back, and then walked towards her door. She was just stepping out when he joined her, and he gestured towards a path that led down to the beach. Since he knew where they were going, she was content to follow behind him, and pretty soon came out near some tidal pools. She knew these were hotel property, the activities director often coordinated day trips here for the children of the hotel guests and she'd helped patch up more than one skinned knee as eager and excited children crawled over the coarse rock to get a closer look at starfish and sea urchins.

"I thought after a day of working at the clinic that you probably wouldn't feel up to going to a restaurant," Jason said as he stopped at the area that had torches set up in a loose semi-circle. "I know that you like the beach and thought that..."

He trailed off with a shrug and she decided that he didn't need to actually voice what he he'd planned. The fact was, despite her earlier anger at him, he did know her likes and dislikes. She did like the beach and often times would take a picnic lunch down to eat while sitting in the shade of the tree line. She didn't feel like going anywhere, certainly wasn't dressed for some place fancy, but she was starving. And the idea of a simple picnic dinner with Jason was appetizing for more reasons than mere hunger. He had done all of this for her.

"It's perfect," she told him with a smile. "A perfect unconventional first date."

She kept her smile in place long enough to give him hope, but also hoped that she hadn't made a fool of herself. Hopefully this was the beginning of them trying to figure out where this went, and not just him repaying her for taking him out to lunch on his last day here.

With a dip of his head and a relieved smile, Jason answered her unspoken questions. This wasn't just dinner, this was unconventional, but it was certainly more than two people just happening to share a meal together. The knot in her stomach released, only to be replaced by a swarm of butterflies. It had been so long since she'd been on a date, done anything that could remotely even be considered having a social life - because sharing a sandwich with Patrick didn't really count, and the realization that Jason had done this because he wanted to get to know her made her feel like she was back in high school for a moment.

He was making an effort. He had taken her criticism to heart and wasn't just pushing for what he wanted, he was taking it slow. It thrilled and confused her because a part of her really believed that Jason would take off back to Port Charles and she wouldn't see him again. The fact that he'd come looking for her, that he'd put together dinner for her and put in some effort, she sensed that this wasn't just a one time thing.

"So how's your leg been?" Elizabeth asked as they sat down and Jason passed her a turkey sandwich with provolone, lettuce, tomato and basil mayo - just like she would fix at his house. It may not have been the best question to ask, but she was a nurse, and she couldn't stop herself from caring about him and wondering how his recovery had gone.

"It's been fine," he answered. "I've been working on getting my strength back and Sonny has threatened to give me a chauffer if I go out on my bike too soon. So we're compromising."

She laughed at that thought, because she didn't exactly picture Jason as the kind of man who compromised on much, especially when it came to things he liked. And from what she'd heard, the man liked his motorcycle.

"But I don't want to talk about my leg," he said as he set his plate down on the blanket. "I came back because I wanted to see you."

Elizabeth was glad she'd already swallowed, because she was sure she would have choked after his straightforward admission. He may be taking the effort to get to know her better, but he was going to be honest and clear about everything. He didn't just happen to stop by when he was down here on business.

"I wanted to come back a week after I left, but I things I needed to do in Port Charles and this was the soonest I could get away."

She looked away and let out a breath. "You don't beat around the bush, do you?"

"Elizabeth?"

She slowly returned her gaze to Jason and found him looking at her with open intensity. "Yes?"

"I made a mistake before, but nothing's changed on my end. I still want to get to know you, and I'll do whatever it takes to make that happen. I just felt that you should know that before this goes any further."

She had to be crazy. She was, for lack of a better word, dating a mobster and there was a part of Elizabeth that said she was absolutely insane to do such a thing. The man was a criminal. He broke the law. She was a nurse, she helped heal people, had helped put people back together after they'd encountered criminals, and yet...she was dating one.

She supposed it could be classified that way.

It wasn't like she and Jason had ever labeled it. He'd never actually called her his girlfriend; she'd never actually stated he was her boyfriend. Yet, there was no denying how it looked like to other people and how it felt to her. There was no way of trying to say they were merely friends. Friends did not routinely go around kissing each other. Often. Deeply. Passionately.

Elizabeth wasn't quite sure how she felt about Jason Morgan, but she knew that friends was woefully inadequate. She liked him, she thought he was nice, he had a dry sense of humor she found herself appreciating more and more, and he was easy to be around. She also more than liked him. He was certainly easy on the eyes, he could set her pulse on fire and often she ended their dates with her heart pounding so fast she wondered if it'd ever return to a normal rhythm. And they'd never gone beyond some heavy make-out sessions.

It wasn't from lack of mutual interest. She wanted to, she was certain he wanted to, but it hadn't happened yet. She wasn't entirely sure why, but she suspected it might be because Jason was intent on proving to her that this was more than just about getting in her pants. She wanted to tell him she had the message loud and clear, now it was okay to move beyond it.

Yet, she'd remained silent. Mostly because of the unpredictability of his appearances on the island. He tried to call her while he was away, but he didn't work the most predictable hours, and sometimes when he could call she was in the middle of a shift at the clinic or she was actually trying to get some sleep. When she tried to reach him, she either got his voicemail, or she could hear people in the background and she knew it wasn't the best time to talk. He would try to tell her when he was coming back, but given the unpredictability of his work, it didn't always happen as planned.

So when he finally did arrive, he would simply materialize wherever she was, and she'd be so surprised to see him she'd feel awkward all over again. They'd grab some food, they'd talk, and it would sometimes take them a little bit to get back to the level of comfort and ease they'd had before he'd left last time. Because his trips sometimes only lasted a couple of days, they'd barely get back to those kisses that left her toes curled and her lips on fire before he had to leave. It didn't leave a lot of time for anything more.

Yet, there was no doubt in Elizabeth's mind that it would happen some day. They'd move into the next phase and then she'd have a whole new set of emotions to deal with. She'd probably also have to endure a whole new series of lectures from Patrick. Despite the man knowing exactly who his employers were, and patching up bullet wounds that hadn't come from hunting accidents, he was amazingly disapproving of Elizabeth's relationship with Jason. She'd more than once come upon the doctor giving an earful to Jason about how the mobster should just stay away from her.

The first time it happened, Elizabeth thanked him for being a friend, but told him she knew what she was doing. The second time it happened, Elizabeth grabbed Patrick by the scruff of his shirt and dragged him away telling him in no uncertain terms to butt out of her life. She was a grown woman, she knew exactly who Jason was and this was her decision. She didn't lecture him about chasing after and sleeping with everything in a skirt, he needed to return the same favor. And if he didn't, she was going to start going around and giving a heads up to those staff members and guests he hadn't yet seduced. The next time Jason came down to the island, Patrick merely dipped his head, narrowed his eyes at the other man, but stayed quiet.

At least to Jason. She wasn't so lucky. About once a week, he made an attempt to make her see reason and tried to talk her out of dating Jason. As they finished irrigating and cleaning out the wound of a college kid who slipped and tore up his knee while rock climbing, she could tell that today was going to be another attempt. The college boy had seen her necklace as it slipped out of the neckline of her top and asked her about it. When Elizabeth replied that it was a gift from someone special, Patrick had bit his lip so hard that she expected to see blood by the end of the procedure.

Once the kid was patched up and sent on his way and Elizabeth was cleaning up the used supplies, Patrick closed the door and turned on her. "So, now Morgan's buying you jewelry?"

"He bought me this necklace," she confirmed.

She knew the doctor hadn't gotten a good look at it; he'd rolled his eyes in disgust while Elizabeth had slipped it back inside her shirt. Even if he had seen it, he probably had no way of knowing that it was a piece of shell on a leather strap and had cost Jason less than ten dollars at a corner street vendor. He kept trying to buy her things as a thank you for the sculpture she'd given him and she insisted that he didn't need to. She certainly didn't need something that cost hundreds of dollars. As they'd walked along after dinner one afternoon, Elizabeth had stopped to look at what the vendor was selling and when she saw the necklace, Jason had recognized that she liked it and before she could say 'no', he bought it for her. She allowed him to because it was too late to stop him, but also in the hopes that he would now stop trying to buy her things all the time.

"Is that why you're going out with him?" Patrick asked. "Looking for expensive gifts."

"I'm sorry," Elizabeth snapped at him, "I think you've confused me with some of the tramps you go out with. If that's what you really think then it's clear you have a very low opinion of me."

He at least had the grace to look a bit sheepish as he apologized, "I'm sorry. You're right, that's not who you are. I just...Elizabeth, I don't think you should be seeing Jason Morgan."

"I know, Patrick," she sighed with a weary smile. "You've made yourself quite clear on the matter. Numerous times."

"He's not safe," her friend tried again.

"Patrick, I was in danger every time I went to work in Baltimore. You know where Johns Hopkins is. Do you know how many gang bangers I worked on while I was there? Do you know the number of times we had police come into the hospital to keep the peace in the ER? What about the shark that was sighted off the coast last month and the resort had to tell everyone to stay out of the water? Danger is everywhere."

She pushed her hair out of her face and softened her voice. "I'm not naïve about who Jason is or what he does. But I also refuse to live my life in the fear of what if. Jason and I have spoken about this and I'm cautious."

"Why don't you have a guard?" he pressed.

"Who says I don't?" she countered. "Who says that Jason doesn't have people looking out for me when I leave here, or when I'm at home or especially when I'm down at the clinic? Jason isn't being irresponsible."

"And you're okay with that?" the doctor asked in disbelief.

Rolling her eyes, Elizabeth turned to gather her purse and umbrella. It was raining today and she didn't want to get soaked as she headed to her car. "Patrick, you need to make up your mind. First you're ready to string Jason up because you thought I wasn't protected, and now you're incredulous that I haven't objected to guards. You can't have it both ways."

"I wouldn't have to worry about this at all if you'd just stop dating him," Patrick pointed out as she reached for the door.

"Since I don't see that happening any time soon," she informed him, "you need to find a way to make peace with it. Because this is the last time I'm having this conversation with you. If you don't let up, I'm going to quit. And what do you think is going to happen when Jason finds out the reason I'm no longer working here is because you kept harassing me about seeing him? I'm not going to lie to protect you."

Then she stepped out into the hallway and headed towards the elevator. A quick stop in the staff room to sign out and meet up with her guard and then she was heading home. She'd put a long day in at the clinic since it was her day off at the hotel and she was looking forward to curling up in bed and going to sleep. With the rain beating down outside, she had no doubts that she'd sleep well tonight.

Maybe it was petty to threaten Patrick like she did, but she was tired of hearing the same arguments over and over from him. She wasn't exactly thrilled about the danger aspect of Jason's lifestyle, but she knew who she was when she got involved with him. Since it was her choice to make and it was only affecting her, she wasn't going to listen to Patrick lecture her any more.

"Hi, Rafe," she smiled at the guard as she walked into the staff room.

Jason had introduced her to several guards who would rotate through on her detail and she found them all pleasant enough men. They were polite, they didn't encroach on her space, and she knew that when she did see them, they were merely making a show of force to get some street punk to move along a little quicker and not even think about trying to pick her pocket. Given the different laws down here on the island as opposed to the States, not many people messed with Sonny or Jason here. While she wasn't ignoring the possibility of a threat, she also didn't worry about it as much as if she were somewhere else.

As she and Rafe stepped off the elevator in the parking garage and headed towards their cars, their attention was immediately drawn by the sound of raised voices. Rafe took hold of her arm and pulled her behind him as they slowly appraised the situation. Three men were circling a man on the ground who was clutching at his side and Elizabeth saw a flash of steel in the overhead halogen lights that indicated that at the very minimum a knife was involved in this fight.

"Hey," the guard shouted, his voice loud and full of command. His gun was out and he waved it at the trio. "Get out of here!"

The group paused for a moment, and then finally scattered, all heading in different directions. Rafe grabbed his phone and called back to the security office, alerting them to what happened and then grabbed Elizabeth's arm when she'd started towards the man still lying on the ground.

"What are you doing?"

"What does it look like I'm doing?" she snapped at him. "I'm a nurse, he's hurt. I'm going to see how bad he is. Have someone call Patrick, we may need to stitch him up."

"Elizabeth," Rafe warned, his eyes still darting around in the directions the attackers had gone. "It could be a trap."

"Rafe," she raised her eyebrow. "What if it's not? Do not expect me to stand by and watch a man bleed to death. You have a gun, you'll be right beside me; we'll be careful."

"Alright," he sighed, and together they approached the man on the ground.

As they got closer, Elizabeth could see the cut on the man's side, it was easily identifiable to a nurse who had seen plenty of knife wounds in her time. The man's fingers were stained with his blood as he had them pressed against his side and Elizabeth called to him softly as she neared him, informing him she was a nurse and she was going to take a look at his side. She slipped off her lightweight sweater and balled it up to press against him and knelt down beside him.

"Tell Morgan this was just a warning," the man said, as he suddenly reached out and grabbed her neck, squeezing her airway.

Surprise and panic had her scrambling at the man's fingers, trying to fight him off and Rafe shouted and reached for the man. A different shout echoed in the garage and she was aware the guard falling to the ground as she struggled to breathe and pry the man's fingers off her neck. Then as suddenly as the attack began, the man released her, and she fell forward, her hands braced on the concrete and gasped for breath. Footsteps echoed off the concrete and the world went gray around her.

When the phone rang, Jason was filled with apprehension the moment he recognized the number as the security detail for the island. Things had rapidly become dangerous and frantic in Port Charles and he and Sonny had feared it would spread to their holdings on the island. It couldn't have come at a worse time, considering the attack just last night on their warehouse.

Sonny looked at him with his own look of weary dread as he flipped open his phone and said, "Morgan."

"Mr. Morgan, you need to come to the island. There has been an attack on Miss Webber."

Jason's eyes widened and he clutched the phone, "What happened?"

"There was an attack on her and Rafe in the hotel parking garage. She was not seriously injured, but her attacker said to tell you this was just a warning."

"I'll be there immediately," Jason informed the man and then snapped the phone shut. At Sonny's questioning look, he said, "Elizabeth was attacked today in the parking garage. They said to tell me this was just a warning."

"Is she hurt?" the older man asked, concern evident in his voice.

"They said not seriously, although I don't know anything more."

"Go," Sonny instructed him, as if Jason hadn't already decided to leave. "Take as long as you need to find whoever did this. I'll put Johnny and Max on things here."

"Thanks," he said, as he reached for his jacket and keys and then grabbed the doorknob.

"Jason," his friend called out, stopping him. "I...I hope Elizabeth is alright. And I'm sorry that she was hurt."

"Me too," he said heavily and then pulled open the door.

"Jason."

He was startled to see Max standing there, looking decidedly uneasy. "Max."

"This was delivered," he said, holding out a package. "Courier was one a homeless guy. Said someone paid him two hundred dollars to come into the building and hand over the package. We're talking to him, but he's so toasted we'll never get any clear information from him. We've checked it out, it's clean."

He had a strong desire to not take the envelope, as if that would somehow keep the bad news he was sure it contained at bay. However, that was a ridiculous notion and he reached out, accepting it from Max. Sonny had edged closer and looked over his arm as Jason pulled the two contents out.

The first was a note, typed on what he was sure would turn out to be a generic word processing program and printed on a cheap dot matrix printer. There wouldn't be any fingerprints and there wouldn't be any identifying watermarks that would give them any clues. Except that it obviously came from the same people behind their troubles here. It appeared Anthony Zacharra was branching out.

"We could get to her any time we wanted," Sonny read softly. "What's the next thing?"

Jason slid the note away and saw a picture. It was grainy, no doubt due to the cheap digital camera it was taken with or the way it was transmitted up here. Their tech guys would study it. For now, Jason knew all he needed to know.

"What is it?" his friend asked.

"It's a picture of a necklace I bought her." The necklace was draped over the island's paper, dated today. It said they'd gotten close enough to take it off her; they could have just as easily taken Elizabeth herself.

Sonny reached out and gently took the package out of his hand and handed it to Max who quickly nodded and left. "We'll get out guys on it, Jason. See if we can find anything. Right now, you get to the airport and get down to the island. I'll call the pilot; everything will be ready when you get there."

Jason nodded, and then left the room. He was angry, yet he also felt numb. Angry at the men who had gone after Elizabeth because it was just another move in a line of indirect attacks from a coward who had yet to actually identify himself or make any demands. They only suspected it was Anthony Zacharra because of the rumbles they'd heard on the streets and from other families. He was angry at himself for bringing this danger to Elizabeth. If he'd just continued to admire her from afar instead of getting involved with her would have spared her this. He never should have been selfish. Yet he couldn't deny that he wouldn't rest easy until he saw Elizabeth for himself, held her and could see for certain that she was alright.

The reality of seeing Elizabeth was worse. Instead of reassuring him, he realized that the guards had woefully underplayed the attack and he knew that Elizabeth could have died in the garage. When he'd made it down to the island, he'd been taken to the same clinic he'd recuperated in after he'd broken his leg. Instead of moving around tending to him, she was in bed with Patrick fussing over her like a hen.

She'd tried to tell the doctor she was fine, having not seen Jason come in, and he'd heard how raw and hoarse her voice was. Then Patrick moved and Jason saw red. Red, angry impressions on her neck, each one distinctly the shape of a finger where the man had squeezed her throat, nearly crushing her larynx. Her attempts to assure him that it looked worse than it actually felt weren't very convincing and Jason had wholeheartedly agreed with the doctor when the younger man insisted that Elizabeth stay in the clinic overnight.

Jason had sat beside her bed that night, watching over her as she fell asleep due to the sedative Patrick gave her despite her insistence she didn't need it. He'd compared his fingers to the marks left behind, trying to get a sense of the size of the man, and had also seen the bruising on the back of her neck where the leather strap of the necklace had friction burned her as it was pulled off.

Her beautiful skin that captivated him had been marred because someone wanted to send a message to him. They knew Jason was attached to the nurse, they were able to get onto Sonny's private island, and they could have taken her life if they'd chosen to. He knew she was alive only because whoever had ordered the attack also spared her life. It left a sour taste in his mouth and he knew that it couldn't happen again.

"Jason?"

Elizabeth's voice drifted softly over his shoulder and he sighed softly and lifted his hand to cover hers as it was wrapped around his waist. He twisted and looked at her, attempting to smile, but suspecting he failed due to the confusion that bloomed on her face.

"What's wrong?" she asked, accepting his help to climb off his motorcycle and waiting for him to join her. "Normally you fly down the road, but tonight...tonight you..."

Tonight he had wanted to prolong their ride. Because it was going to be their last. Once he'd thought he'd never get her to trust him enough to be near enough to him to take a ride together, but she had. And she had loved every moment they spent together. She loved the speed, the rush of the wind and the way he would open the throttle on the straight-aways and then slide into a turn. Her screams and laughs of delight were the biggest turn-on he'd ever heard and he had a hard time controlling himself around her sometimes.

Maybe it was torture, but he'd wanted to take one last ride with her before he told her that he was going back to Port Charles and did not intend to return to the island again. It wouldn't be fair to her if he did.

As Elizabeth slipped the key into her lock, she turned and asked, "Did you want to come in?"

"I...I don't think I should," he shook his head.

She left the door partially open, abandoning her task and turned to stare at him. After she searched his face, she crossed her arms over her chest and the search turned into a glare. "You're trying to figure out a kind way to break up with me, aren't you?"

He was surprised, and a bit taken aback, by her demanding accusation, but he nodded.

"Look," she huffed. "I'm sorry I screwed up."

"What?"

"I'm sorry I didn't listen to Rafe. He warned me that it might be a trap and he wanted me to wait to look at him, but, Jason..." Her eyes were large and moist in the moonlight. "Jason, I'm a nurse. I took an oath to protect people. I've seen knife wounds before, I've watched a man bleed to death in the ER after being slashed in the abdomen, and I saw blood coming out of his side. It wasn't fake...I could see the blood moving, coming out of his side. I could not stand by and watch him possibly bleed to death while we waited for back-up to arrive. That's not who I am."

"I know," he said softly. Her compassion, her caring for others was one of the many things he liked about her. But it had nearly gotten her killed. "I don't want you to have to change who you are, Elizabeth. I wouldn't ask you to do that, just like I've never asked you to stop going to the clinic even though I worry about you every time I know you're there. But they used that part of who you are against you, Elizabeth, because of me. I can't let that happen again. That's why we can't see each other anymore."

"I don't get a say in this?" she demanded of him. "I don't get to say if I'm willing to still see you?"

"I won't take a chance of having you get hurt again," he shook his head.

"You're a coward," she hissed at him and he widened his eyes in response to her attack. "You're such coward I can't even believe it. It's okay that I worry about you. It's okay that I worry each time I can't get a hold of you, each time you don't show up on a date you tell me you're going to be here, leaving me to worry that one of the guards will tell me you were killed. It's okay if I live like that, but Heaven forbid you have to deal with that."

She looked ready to fight, but instead, he watched her deflate and she tipped her head back exposing her throat he could still picture with bruises, even though they'd healed. Her voice was thick as she said, "It's okay that because you don't want to see me hurt physically by someone else, you're hurting me emotionally. I...I love you, Jason, and you're willing to just spit on that and throw it away because you're nothing more than a coward."

Opening the door, she stepped inside, but didn't turn on the light. "Fine. You don't want to see me anymore, then leave. Run away with your tail tucked between your legs and don't ever show your face down here. Because I don't ever want to see it, or the rest of you, ever again."

Then she slammed the door in his face and left him standing on her porch.

The one consolation Jason had in this entire situation with Elizabeth, was that she hadn't ordered the guards away. She no longer spoke to them like she used to, she no longer smiled at them, or really anybody anymore, but she understood enough to realize that she could still be in danger and so every day she quietly accepted the guards' presence around her and went on with her life. The guards kept him informed about her, but not intrusively. He didn't know what she did when she arrived home and stayed there after work. She didn't go out, she didn't have friends come over, she simply stayed indoors.

She was safe, but Jason knew - even without the guard's hints - that she wasn't happy. She used to go for walks on the beach, had always told him that the sound of the ocean helped clear her head and calmed her. She hadn't been near the beach since they rode to it the night he ended things with her. He didn't know if she was painting, there certainly hadn't been any stops at any art supplies stores. She went to the hotel, she went to the clinic, she went to the grocery store, and she went home. That was the sum total of Elizabeth Webber's life on the island, and he was the person responsible for it.

He could still remember her anger that night. Her hurt. Her words that she'd flung at him, and the tears in her eyes. She'd called him a coward, and she also told him she loved him. In one fell swoop she'd wounded him and awed him, and there were times he couldn't figure out which emotion to focus on.

It was better, he repeatedly told himself, that she was away from him. That she would be safer, that she couldn't be targeted and used against him, especially if he stayed away from the island and she never left it. They were getting ahead regarding the situation with Anthony Zacharra and once the rival mob boss was dealt with and eliminated, the looming threat to her would be gone. Someone might hear a murmur about her occasionally, but when they saw that Jason no longer went to the island, they'd hopefully dismiss the information as faulty and leave her alone. That's not to say he wouldn't have people still watch out for her, but he hoped to keep her safer this way.

Other times, the only thing Jason could focus on was the admission that she loved him. She'd said it so casually he sometimes wondered if she was even aware of it. She loved him. Or at least she had. Despite the hurt and betrayal she'd felt when he confessed his feelings for her and that he'd done all he had to keep her as his private nurse, despite threatening that she would never want to see him again, she had. She'd given him another chance. She'd let him close to her. She'd let him kiss her, and he was pretty sure she would have let him do more than that if their timing had ever worked out. Perhaps it was better that it hadn't, because it was hard enough walking away from Elizabeth after only kissing her.

While she may have forgiven him once, he knew there was no way she'd forgive him again. Especially not this time. He'd hurt her deeply, and this time when she said she never wanted to see him again, he believed her. There hadn't been any hope, there hadn't been any possibility, there had been the final pronouncement of good-bye.

It soured Jason's stomach and caused his heart to ache. For a moment he'd had something wonderful in his life, and now it was gone. He doubted he'd ever find anything close to it again. But again, it was probably better that way. This way he'd never endanger anyone again, and if he vowed to never love again so as to not go through the pain he currently felt then he was protecting others and himself. He had to do it.

A soft knock on his door brought him back to the present and he sighed as he contemplated ignoring it for a brief, blissful moment. It wasn't Sonny, he could tell that by the knock, and it wasn't Carly because she would never bother knocking in the first place, she'd merely open the door and walk in. Very few people would get by the guards, but unless it had to do with business, Jason had little desire to talk to anybody. Business kept him focused and working and not thinking about Elizabeth as much. He liked business.

There was another knock and then a soft voice floated through his door, "Jase?"

Scrubbing his hand over his face, he opened the door for his sister and despite how physically and emotionally weary he felt, he was happy to see Emily and a small smile touched his lips for the first time in days. "Hey, Emily."

She walked inside, setting her purse down on his desk and turned to him, her arms coming around him in a hug. His own lifted in response and he closed his eyes for just a moment, before regrouping and pulling back. "What was that for?" he asked with a confused frown.

"You looked like you needed it," she unabashedly admitted.

Then his sister walked past him, sat down on his couch and pointedly looked at him. He shuffled over and sat down, feeling slightly uneasy under her intense scrutiny. She let out a sigh and he couldn't stop himself from rubbing his palm over his jeans, looking away from her.

"Jason?" she asked. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," he denied with a shake of his head.

She lifted a brow and said, "I don't believe you. I know you're my big brother and you don't want me to worry about you-"

"That's right."

"-but I am, Jase. I haven't seen you in weeks. You haven't returned my phone calls, and I know enough that things are a little unsettled at the moment, but you've been avoiding me, Jason. And it has nothing to do with business."

When he didn't say anything, she sighed once more and admitted, "I saw Sonny at the hospital yesterday and I asked him about you. I wondered if you were out of town again, and he said that you weren't. That you were here, and had been for several weeks. And so then I realized that my big brother was here in town and ignoring my messages, and that wasn't like him. Something was going on."

Jason sighed and scratched his cheek with his thumb. "Emily..."

"The last time you ignored me, Jason, was when I was dating Sonny. You didn't like my relationship with him and you refused to talk to me unless I broke up with him. Since we both know that I'm not dating Sonny anymore…what's going on?"

"Things aren't really safe right now," he hedged.

"Don't give me that, Jase," she chastised him. "You're shutting everyone out. Sonny admitted he hardly sees you and he's worried about you. Carly was nearing us and he looked like he wanted to say more but couldn't, so I decided once my shift was done that I was going to come see you. I'm not leaving here until you talk to me, Jason. Nikolas is in Montreal for a couple of days and he took Spencer with him, so I have no reason to rush home."

"Emily," he tried once more to put his sister off. He didn't want to talk about this. Not with her, not with anybody. He'd made his decision.

"Jase," she said softly, and this time reached out and picked up his hand, holding it between her two smaller, delicate ones, and stroked the top of his wrist ever-so-slightly. "You need to talk to someone; I can see it in your eyes."

Her kindness, her compassion, and her faint resemblance to Elizabeth were his undoing. He found himself opening up to her, starting at the beginning of how he'd noticed Elizabeth, talking about his accident and how she'd taken care of him, getting to know her slowly, the attack and his decision to walk away from her. When he was done, Emily's eyes were large and moist, full of empathy when he'd expected to see anger or exasperation.

"You love her, don't you?" she asked softly, almost respectfully.

Jason sighed and then nodded, "Yeah."

"She doesn't know, does she?"

"No," Jason answered with a shake of his head.

"But she knew you liked her, right?" When he nodded, his sister continued. "And then you went and pulled the great noble routine, and pushed her away because you didn't want to see her hurt."

Emily sighed and paused for a moment, looking down and rubbing her head. Finally, she reached out and took his hand in hers and looked up to meet his gaze. She looked troubled and a little anxious.

"Jase," she began cautiously, "I love you. But I don't think you're going to like what I'm about to say. Do you want to know why Sonny and I wouldn't give into your demands that we stop seeing each other?"

Jason's jaw ticked; he didn't like thinking about that time when his best friend, and boss, was dating his baby sister. To know that she'd been shot at while with Sonny, it brought back all the anger he'd had during that time.

"We refused to let safety dictate what we felt for each other. I know you don't like thinking about that time or knowing that we were together, but Sonny and I cared about each other very deeply. Would it have been safer if I wasn't with him?" she asked with a shrug of her shoulders. "Perhaps. But you could also say the same about Nikolas. His grandmother is a psychopath who has threatened me on more than one occasion. Should I stop seeing Nikolas just so that Helena doesn't slit my throat in my sleep one night?"

"Emily," he said, closing his eyes slowly. He didn't like thinking about his sister being hurt by anyone, and he knew that her fiancé's grandmother was just as dangerous - or more - than some of his and Sonny's enemies.

"What about what happened to me before I even became involved with Sonny or Nikolas? Do you remember when I was on drugs, when I stood on the roof and thought I could fly and would have killed myself trying if you hadn't shown up? What about what happened to my birth mother before I ever joined the Quartermaines? She died of a horrible disease that they couldn't do anything to stop. Pain and danger, death and hurt aren't exclusive to yours and Sonny's world," she told him heatedly. "I knew that, and I understood that and I accepted it. That's why I refused to stop seeing Sonny.

"It killed me," she whispered, "killed me to know that my big brother, the man that I adored, that I looked up to, that'd I'd idolized since a child was upset with me. That he was disappointed in me. There were times that I nearly walked away from Sonny just so that I could have you look at me instead of through me like I was someone you hated."

"I never hated you, Emily," he told her, his voice ragged as she beat at him emotionally. "Never."

"It felt that way, Jase," she said sadly. "And then I decided that this was my life. And while I loved you, I also loved Sonny. And I couldn't walk away from him just to make someone else happy; even if he was my big brother. I decided that you would just have to accept it, or I'd just become another Quartermaine you refused to talk to. I was living my life for me."

She swallowed and licked her lips tentatively, "It sounds like Elizabeth was doing the same thing. She knew the dangers of your life, she accepted the guards, she tried to deal with her worry about you and not overwhelm you with it, and you're the one who changed the rules. You're the one who decided how, not just your life, but both of your lives, were going to go. You never even consulted her, you never even talked to her, you just decreed it, in your slightly annoying high-handed manner that you get, and then you just broke up with her."

Jason looked away, feeling worn down, and defeated by his sister's brutally honest assessment of his behavior. He'd known Emily hadn't been happy with him, hadn't liked him trying to tell her what to do about her and Sonny, but he had no idea she had quite such strong opinions on the subject. When she and his boss ended their relationship, it had been hard and awkward to get their relationship back as friends and siblings. But they did, and mostly it was accomplished by simply not talking about her time with Sonny.

"I can't fault Elizabeth for being upset with you," she said. "I don't even know her and I'm upset with you on her behalf."

With a raise of her brows and a pointed look he wanted to avoid but couldn't turn away from, she dealt the final blow. "You are a coward, Jason. You are so afraid of having something good in your life that sometimes it seems like you screw it up deliberately. I don't care what Tony Jones, Grandfather or even our own mother says, you are not a monster, you are not some heartless person, and most of all, you do deserve happiness.

"Elizabeth made you happy. I may not have known that you were seeing her," she tilted her head to the side, "but I can recognize, looking back now, that you were happy. When I saw you, you seemed to smile more, you seemed like you weren't weighed down by everything, you seemed...almost at peace. And now that's gone. Because you turned away, deliberately hurt, someone you claim you care about. All in some ridiculous notion of thinking she's better off without you. That she'll be safer away from you."

Emily let out a breath and then asked, "Did you take the guards off her?"

"No," he shook his head. "I wouldn't leave her vulnerable like that."

"So she's still guarded, so people will know that she once meant, and still means, something to you, but you're not with her?" Her tone let him know just how stupid she thought his actions were. "That's great, Jason. You're miserable, she's probably miserable, and yet you persist in this. If she died of a car accident tomorrow that had absolutely nothing to do with you, would you be sad?"

"Of course," he told her.

"So then why not grab today and take what time you have and be with her?" his sister said, almost pleading with him. "Take a chance and find some happiness."

"She might not forgive me," Jason shook his head. "She was pretty mad."

"Well, you'll never know unless you try," Emily said as she stood up. "I love you and I just want to see my brother happy. So think about what I said, Jase."

He knew as she left, that he would. Whether he really wanted to or not.

"Uh-huh." Patrick shook his head when Elizabeth walked into the hotel clinic and stood from the chair behind his desk, came around it to grab her shoulders and push her back towards the door. "No. You're not working today. You're going to go home."

She crossed her arms over her chest and looked up at the doctor. "Excuse me?"

"You're not working today, Elizabeth. And maybe not even tomorrow. I mean it. You need some time off."

"No, I don't," she shook her head. "I need to work."

"Well, it's not going to be here. And it's not going to be at the free clinic either; I've already spoken to the head doctor over there."

"Really?" she questioned him. "And what exactly am I supposed to do, Patrick? Sit at home and watch telanovelas? Or maybe I should go out with Jason? Is that what this is about? He get to you, tell you to send me home so that he can try once more to convince me to go out with him again?"

"No," he shook his head. "Frankly, I never liked you dating him the first time. I told you that. You were the one who told me you were a big girl and you knew what you were doing and you accepted the risks. Look where that got you."

"Oh, and I suppose you would have stood back and let someone bleed to death while a guard checked out that it was okay?"

She had him, and she knew she did by the way he hesitated just a bit before saying, "I know what Jason and Sonny do for a living, Elizabeth. And I listen to the people who take me wherever I need to go because I know they're keeping me safe."

"Yeah, but by the time you get to a body, the threat's already been eliminated. You've never stood there and thought you were going to watch someone bleed to death. Tell me in that situation that you would stand by and let some guard tell you what to do?!" She was indignant, but she was desperate for someone to understand her position and say that he would have done the same thing. She needed to know that she hadn't truly been stupid.

With a sigh, Patrick agreed, "You're right. I probably would have done the same thing. But I can also understand why Jason was worried. The guy's crazy about you and you were nearly choked to death, because of his profession."

"It wasn't that dire," she shook her head. "The two of you overreacted."

"I don't think you're taking it seriously enough," he snapped at her.

"I'm not taking it seriously enough?" she demanded. "I can't wear necklaces anymore because no matter how loose they are, they're not loose enough. The other day when it was raining again and the temperature dropped, I was going to put on a button down shirt. I couldn't wear it, because the collar touching my neck freaked me out. I was the one with fingers wrapped around my throat! I think I understand just how serious it was."

"Then you can understand why Jason did what he did."

"Yeah, I can understand that he's a coward and he tucked tail and ran. And now he's suddenly back with big ol' puppy dog eyes and begging me to talk to him and let him explain things and maybe we can try again." She stopped and took a breath. "I understand that it's on his terms. When I begged him not to do this, when I called him a coward and told him that he was being a hypocrite, he still went ahead and did it. I don't know what changed his mind, but frankly, I don't care."

"Really?" Patrick asked, tilting his head to the side. "Or are you just upset and you want to make him suffer a little."

"If I wanted to make him suffer a little, I'd call the cops on him like you keep telling me I should do."

"The guy's harassing you, Elizabeth."

"He's not harassing me. He's being persistent. If it was harassment every time a guy kept asking out a woman after she said no, you'd be in jail more than you practice medicine. How many times did Robin say no before you finally wore her down with your harassment and she agreed to go out with you?"

"That's different," he said with a smirk and a shake of his head.

"Right," she rolled her eyes. "I forgot. Rules don't apply to Patrick Drake."

"They apparently don't apply to Jason Morgan either," Patrick pointed out. "And I'm not talking about his extra-curricular business. I'm talking about the fact that the guy's been down here for over three weeks and you haven't slapped him yet. You're not over him, despite what you say and so you don't want to do the one thing you know would get him to leave you alone."

He held up his hand and conceded, "Alright, so the cops probably wouldn't do much. Sonny and Jason own the island; they employ the security forces and the police. The guards aren't going to go against their boss, but they would put you in contact with Jason's boss. And if you told Sonny Corinthos to call Jason home and make him leave you alone, you know it would happen. The fact that you haven't done so..."

He smirked and shrugged his shoulders. "I think you still like him. In fact, you might even love him. And that's why you haven't played your one card that you know would make him leave you alone. Because even though you're upset at him, and rightly so, you also still think about him. And you're happy to see him, and it touches you - on some level - that the guy is being persistent and hasn't given up. He knows he threw away a good thing, Elizabeth, and he's working hard to try and get it back. With someone like you, the man would be a fool to give up after only a few weeks."

Narrowing her eyes at Patrick, Elizabeth said suspiciously, "I thought you said you weren't trying to encourage me to go back to him? 'Cause from where I'm standing...you just gave him one heck of a sale's pitch."

"That's not..." He stammered to a stop and then shook his head. "No, I wasn't trying to encourage you...that's not what that was supposed to be. I'm just saying that you're a special lady, Elizabeth, so of course Jason wants you back. But you can do better than him."

"You mean someone like you?" she asked with a teasing smirk.

"You can definitely do better than someone like me," he smiled back. "And better than Jason."

"I know," she agreed with him. "The problem is, despite the fact that I am furious with him...he's the only guy I want."

Patrick sighed and put his hands on her shoulders and said, "Well, Elizabeth, then I guess you have to ask yourself whether you want to stay mad at him, or if you want to try to find a way to forgive him and see if you can make it work."

She sighed sadly and turned for the door, "Yeah...I was afraid you'd say that."

When Elizabeth stopped in front of her house, still shaken by her conversation with Patrick, she knew that sooner or later she was going to have to deal with this. She was going to have to decide whether she wanted to, and could, forgive Jason for all that he'd done. Ignoring him wasn't going to make him go away. So it was time to deal with this, one way or another.

Climbing out of her car, she didn't head to her house, but turned for the path that would lead her down towards the beach. As she passed the position of one of the guards she knew was watching her, she said, "You can tell Jason I'd like to see him."

Then she headed out onto the beach, sat down to watch the surf break against the sand and waited. She didn't suspect it would take very long; the island wasn't that big and as soon as Jason heard from the guard he would drop whatever he was doing. So she wrapped her arms around her legs, rested her chin on her knee and watched as sea birds swooped and dipped towards the water. Maybe she could restore her equilibrium before he arrived.

Some time later, she didn't check her watch but she knew it hadn't been that long since she sat down, she heard his voice float towards her. Turning her head to rest her cheek on her denim-clad legs, she watched his cautious and wary approach.

"Elizabeth?" he repeated as he stopped a few feet away from her, tucking his hands into his pockets. "Is everything alright? Leo said you wanted to see me."

"I do," she admitted. "I wanted to talk to you."

"About what?" he asked, his brow wrinkling slightly.

"Sit down, Jason. I'm not going to talk to you standing up and towering over me."

He immediately sat down, "Sorry."

"I don't know why you're here, Jason," she said, tearing her gaze from his and looking back out over the water. "I told you I never wanted to see you again. For nearly a month you listened to me, but then you suddenly show up. Why?"

"I made a mistake," he told her. "I thought it was safer for me to stay away, that you were better off, but I missed you."

"Ah, so because you were unhappy, you decided to come back. Well, what about me, Jason?" she asked him, turning her head towards him, but not really looking at him. She could see him out of the corner of her eye and that was about all she could handle. "I was miserable, Jason. Not only after you left, but even before it. I was scared, I was shaken, and I needed you. And you walked away from me."

She licked her lips, knowing they were going to be chapped before this conversation was over and continued. "I tried to put on a brave front; I tried to let you know that I didn't blame you. You were doing enough of that for the both of us, plus you had Patrick giving you a hard time every time you turned around. But I was shaken, Jason. I'd been attacked, I needed you to comfort me. Unconditionally and not take everything I said and use it as a reason why you should have stayed away, or I should have listened to my guard, or anything else. I just needed someone to hold me when it got to be too much, and help me as I tried to deal with it. Instead, you started pulling back from me. And I tried to not let it bother me, and I tried to just go with the flow and not cling to you and make it harder when the inevitable happened. I thought if I acted like I was unaffected, you would realize I could handle your life."

"Elizabeth," tried to cut in, his voice low and pained.

"Please just let me finish," she requested. "I tried to do everything I thought might make a difference, but nothing mattered. When I needed you the most, you walked away from me. Do you know how that made me feel? Someone attacked me, and while you rushed down here, you also began the process of walking away from me. After what just happened, after everything I put up with for you, it was like I just wasn't worth it."

"That's not it at all," Jason said sharply. "I didn't want you to ever go through that again and the only way I could ensure that was to not be around you."

"Yet, you left the guards on me."

"It wouldn't have been safe to take them off," he answered.

"So, everyone could know that I still meant something to you, just not enough to be with. Or maybe I was right when I said you were just a coward," she shook her head.

She was quiet for a moment and then she stood, brushing the sand off her jeans and turned to look at him. "I don't know what to do, Jason. I'm still so angry with you for hurting me, for leaving me just because you got spooked. But I also think about you every day. I think about every moment we spent together, everything we talked about, every kiss we ever shared. And there is a part of me that wants nothing more than to take you back so I feel your arms around me again."

Pausing to let out a shaky sigh, she dropped her head, feeling weak and defeated. "But I don't know if I can ever trust you again. How do I know that the next time something happens you won't cut bait and run once more? What happens if I let you back into my heart and fall deeper in love with you and you walk away because it's not safe anymore? You've burned me twice, Jason, and there's a part of me that wants nothing more than to try again, but I'm afraid. Not of the danger, but of you breaking my trust again.

"I don't know what to do, Jason," she slowly shook her head. "But until I figure it out, you've got to give me some space."

"The problem is, despite the fact that I am furious with him...he's the only guy I want."

Who knew that one little line would end up haunting her so much? In the days, that turned into weeks, after her conversation with Patrick and then talking to Jason on the beach, that line kept running through her head. Despite her anger, Jason was the only man she wanted. He was the person she kept thinking about. He was the man she loved, and as time passed, it was that love - and not the anger - that she kept thinking about.

He'd respected her request to give her space after their encounter on the beach. He hadn't left the island, oh no, but he kept his distance. And knowing that he was close, but he was staying away, was absolutely killing her. Jason didn't do grand, romantic gestures, not in the classical sense anyways, but his efforts had been heartfelt all the same. Wildflowers, that she'd mentioned she enjoyed the smell of one day as they were walking along the beach by his house; a carving from driftwood, from the same artist who made his chairs and the carving she'd bought for him before he left; a meal for the entire clinic made by the restaurant they'd gone to one of the times he came down to visit her. Each gesture was designed to show he remembered what she'd said, what they'd done, and to let her know that he thought of her.

Now that he was keeping his distance, at her request, she missed those little deliveries. She saw him on occasion at the casino, but he kept talking to whatever employee he was dealing with and didn't say hi to her. He'd acknowledge her, quietly, and then quickly head off to something else. She could have been just any other employee, but it was worse. Because everyone knew that something had happened between the nurse and the co-owner, and where once he used to stop in and talk to her, now he barely even made eye contact. She was practically invisible to him, and she was absolutely miserable about it.

She was, her grandmother had oftentimes told her, too stubborn for her own good. She'd been hurt, and she had held onto that anger and pain. It hadn't been to punish Jason, it was simply she didn't know how she'd ever trust what he said again. Not when his actions spoke louder than any quiet whisper against her skin. But now that she'd gotten what she'd asked for, what she thought she wanted, it turned out she'd been wrong all along. She didn't want Jason out of her life, not ever again.

The problem was, how did she tell him she'd changed her mind? She'd been pretty definitive, not to mention harsh, and she was scared. A couple of weeks ago he said that he cared about her, that he'd walked away to keep her safe, but he'd come back. He said he wanted to try again, but how he'd wanted to do that, she didn't know. Because she'd never given him the chance to talk. She'd just shut him down and walked away. Repeatedly. After all of that, what if he decided that enough was enough? He'd tried, she'd rejected him, he didn't want to have to deal with the hassle anymore.

"Oh man," she sighed as she dropped her head onto her folded arms, "I screwed up."

"No, you didn't, Elizabeth."

Her head shot up quickly at the sound of Patrick's voice and she stared at him. He was supposed to be gone for the day. She'd volunteered to stay late and check their supplies, see what they needed to reorder, simply because it gave her something to do besides sitting around her house feeling miserable and worried that she'd truly and really blown things with Jason.

"What are you doing here?" she asked. "I thought you left for the day."

"I did," he nodded. "But I called your house to talk to you, and you didn't answer. So then I tried your cell phone and it went straight to voicemail. I decided to swing by here to find out what time you'd left and if anyone knew where you'd went and I saw your car still in the parking garage."

"Why...that's a lot of trouble," she shook her head in confusion. "Couldn't you have just left a message?"

"No," he sighed. "Because I figured if I left a message, you wouldn't return my call. And since you try to avoid talking about things at work, I figured I needed to catch you on your time off."

"Okay," she said slowly and even more confused now. "What's so important?"

"Jason," he said bluntly and shocked her completely. "I wanted to talk to you about Jason."

"I...I think you've said all there is to say on this," she shook her head and stood to gather her purse. "I don't see what-"

"Go talk to him, Elizabeth," Patrick encouraged her softly.

"I did," she replied.

"I mean again. Look, I know you talked to him. The fact that he suddenly stopped sending you things, started avoiding you at work or going out of his way to not talk to you, and the fact that you've been moping around miserable tells me you talked to him. It went badly and you wish it was different. So go talk to him."

Elizabeth stared at her friend, raising one brow and parroted, "Go talk to him? You're actually encouraging me to talk to him?"

"Yes, because whatever you said, whatever you decided, you're miserable with that decision. And even more than you were when he left. You're not angry like you were when you first came back, you're miserable."

"Thanks," she laughed humorlessly.

"Look, I'm not saying you need to be Pollyanna all the time, but Elizabeth, you're practically depressed. So, whatever decision you made, it isn't the right one. Right should be this hard, it shouldn't make you miserable. You're my friend and I want you to be happy. Clearly Jason Morgan, for all that I don't like about the situation, makes you happy. So go tell him you changed your mind."

She sat down in the chair and said sadly, "It's not that easy. I gave him an earful and I told him that I didn't know if I could ever trust him again. That while I still wanted him, I didn't know that I could let him have my heart again. I asked him to give me some space, and he has. What if he's changed his mind and decided that this is for the best?"

Patrick rolled his eyes as he sat down on the desk and looked at her. "Do you really think he's changed his mind?"

"Maybe," she said timidly. "If I was him, I'd wonder if I was worth it."

"You're worth it, Elizabeth," Patrick stated definitively. "And I'm not the only one who thinks so. When you walk out of a room, he stares after you like...like you're a brand new motorcycle, or whatever exactly it is he likes. If it was me and I had that look, I'd be drooling over a race car. I don't know what he likes except for bikes. He'd not exactly happy either, but he's trying to give you what you asked for. No matter how miserable it makes him."

She felt rather skeptical, but she also knew Patrick well enough to know he wouldn't lie to her about this. He had done everything he could to get her and Jason to stop dating, and now he was telling her to go after the other man. He would not make this up. Not about something like this.

"You're really being honest with me?" she asked, just because she needed to make sure.

"Yes," the doctor smirked.

"What should I do, then?" she asked.

"Oh, no," he shook his head. "I've done enough here. I just encouraged you to go after a mobster I tried to prevent you from dating earlier. I'm not getting involved any further. But I'll just say this...men love lingerie."

"Men love lingerie"

Stupid Patrick and his stupid ideas. She hadn't decided to come see Jason so she could seduce him; she'd come to apologize, to tell him that she'd made a foolish mistake and see if somehow, some way they couldn't fix what both of them had broken. She no longer blamed this all on Jason; she knew she'd done her fair share of screwing it all up.

But as she'd gone home to change and plan what she was going to say to Jason when she showed up at his house unexpectedly, her friend's last advice kept running through her head. And she remembered the passion of Jason's kisses, and the fact that they'd never gotten beyond them, and she was left feeling very nervous and a tad frustrated. So it wasn't really a seduction plan if she just happened to put on a pair of her nicest lingerie, was it? And if she threw a bag in the back of her car, just in case, it could just be her planning ahead in case they stayed up half the night talking things out and she was too tired to drive home.

Yeah, and Patrick might suddenly decide to become celibate. She was hoping. But she certainly wasn't expecting. There were a lot of things she and Jason needed to talk about. Mostly she just hoped she got the chance, that he didn't decide he'd really rather not be bothered any longer.

She turned her car onto the long, winding road that led up to Jason's house, and knew that if he was home, he already knew she was coming. Between the guards following her and the guards at the road, he would be aware of where she was. It was both good and bad, because if he decided to turn her away a guard could stop her before she ever got out of her car and she didn't have to see his rejection in person. Of course, it did take away her element of surprise and gave him plenty of time to steel himself for whatever was to come.

As his house came into sight, she clenched the steering wheel in her hands and her breath caught in her throat. Jason was standing under the portico in front. He was too far away to make out the features of his face, but his mere presence had to be a good sign. Right?

Waiting until she'd parked her car and turned off the engine, Jason walked towards her, his face neutral and Elizabeth felt her spirits begin to flag a little. Maybe he had decided to give her the brush off personally. She was already unbuckling her seat belt when he opened her door, and she stepped, out, nervously fumbling with her keys and faced him.

"Elizabeth?" His voice was full of uncertainty, but also with a little awe mixed in.

"Hi," she said, giving him a timid smile. "I...I'm sorry to just show up, but I wanted to see you."

"You could have asked one of the guards to tell me," he told her.

With a shake of her head she dismissed that idea. "No, that makes it sound like I was summoning you. I'm sorry about that last time; that wasn't very polite of me."

He tilted his head slightly to the side, but remained quiet. Possibly out of confusion. She played anxiously with her keys and then asked, "Could we take a walk?"

"Sure," he agreed, stepping back so she could close her door. He gestured towards a familiar and favorite path of theirs and then fell into step beside her.

As soon as they were out of sight of the house and the guards Elizabeth took a deep breath and jumped into the reason why she was here. "I'm sorry, Jason. I...I came to apologize to you for the way I treated you. I let my anger fuel me and keep me from giving you a real chance to talk to me when you came back. I...I wasn't really ready to listen and I kept snapping at you and I understand if you've decided this is all too much trouble, but I wanted to come see you."

Jason reached out gently and stopped her, holding her in place as he walked around her so they were facing each other. It was the first time he'd touched her for any real length of time since he'd returned, and she felt the heat of his touch blaze through her.

"Elizabeth," he said, his voice low and soft. "You are not too much trouble."

Bolstered by his declaration she relaxed and her smile was a little brighter. "I was worried," she admitted.

"That I'd give up?" he asked.

She pulled in her bottom lip and nodded. "Yeah."

"I'm not giving up on you, Elizabeth," he vowed. "I don't care that you were angry. I understand why you were. My..." he chuckled slightly. "My sister gave me an earful when I told her about you and how I'd ended things. She said I was...well, I was a lot of things; most of them you said to me."

"Your sister?" she asked softly. He'd told his sister about her? He'd told his family?

"Yeah. Her name's Emily and some day...some day I'd really like to introduce her to you."

"You would?" He wanted her to meet his family. That did very funny things to her stomach as she began to finally see that he really wasn't giving up. And he was thinking about the future. Introductions to family were huge.

"I would," he smiled softly. "I think you'd like her. I'm pretty sure she'd like you, too. Although she might try to steal you for herself; she kinda likes that you called me a coward."

Eyes closing in shame, Elizabeth sighed heavily. "I'm so sorry, Jason. I...sometimes I lash out unfairly and I know you just wanted me to be safe.

"No," he shook his head. "I understand. I made a decision for you and I wouldn't listen to you. I hated when people made decisions for me and treated me like I wasn't capable of choosing for myself, and I did that to you."

He took a step towards her, and cautiously, as if he expected her to reject his advance, he lifted his hand towards her face and brushed back a strand of hair clinging to her cheek. The back of his knuckles rested on her skin and she found herself tipping her face into his touch. "In my defense," he offered softly, "I thought it was better to love you from afar and know that you were safe. I didn't count on how much it would hurt the both of us. Emily helped me see that, and so did you."

"Jason." His name whispered over her lips and she closed her eyes against the overwhelming flood of emotions.

"Do you think there's a way, Elizabeth?" he asked hesitantly, but hopefully. "Do you think there's a way you can forgive me and give me a chance to prove to you that I want you in my life?"

She nodded, feeling his thumb catch the tear that escaped her lashes. "But only if you will forgive me, and let me prove to you that I want you in my life as well."

Jason Morgan was a rich man. Maybe not necessarily Bill Gates rich, but close enough. On paper, and officially to the IRS, he was plenty comfortable. In hidden bank accounts scattered around the world his wealth went beyond comfortable.

Jason had never cared about the money. It wasn't why he worked for Sonny. If one of their investments went bad, Jason didn't react the way of his friend who seemed to take the loss of every penny as a personal affront. Jason was able to travel where he wanted, help out his friends if they needed it, and buy what he wanted. He didn't care if Sonny looked down on him for buying shirts from Wal-Mart; Jason preferred t-shirts to silk suits and what did he need with a wall of Italian leather loafers when his motorcycle boots worked just fine? If Sonny wanted to live a life of obscene opulence, then he could. Jason didn't have any interest in it.

The simple things of life mattered to him. His friends, his sister and grandmother, and Sonny's children were the important things in life. It was people, and not possessions, that he cared about. And now Elizabeth was at the top of that list.

Slowly, she'd moved into a position of prominence, without any effort on her part. She hadn't pursued him like other women had, eager for the chance to date him and get a shot at his money. She didn't make it easy on him, and as Emily had told him in his apartment that night, that's probably why he couldn't stop thinking about her. Jason had to actually work to make a relationship with the nurse. She wasn't impressed with his wealth, and she certainly wasn't going to put up with him trying to make decisions for her.

She challenged him. In a very good way. He knew now, as he held her close to him, breathing in the fresh smell of her shampoo, that he would never take her for granted again. He'd been so sure that all he had to do was get her to spend a little time with him and she'd fall at his feet and he'd have everything he'd ever wanted since he read her application to the hotel's clinic. He now was grateful for all that they'd gone through, because he had truly gotten to know her - the real her - instead of just falling into bed with her and discovering who she was later.

He knew that one conversation was not going to fix everything between them, but he had hope now. Hope wasn't something he was familiar with. He didn't wish for things, he didn't dream about the future. He took life as it came and lived in the moment. Because of his accident, and because of his profession, he'd never believed in making plans for the future. Who knew if he'd be around tomorrow, let alone two months or two years from now?

Everything had changed, though. As he stood with Elizabeth in his arms, feeling her heartbeat against his chest, feeling every breath she took, marveling in the sensation of her actually being close to him, he knew he couldn't just take life as it came. He didn't want to. He didn't know everything he wanted from life, but he knew that he wanted her to be a part of it. If she agreed, he wanted to build a life with her; he wanted to make a family with her. Not just have her become part of his, but to create one of their own complete with children.

He closed his eyes and forced himself to turn his thoughts in another direction. If he kept on thinking about children things were going to get out of control very quickly, and there would be no way to disguise it from Elizabeth. He took a deep breath, letting her essence fill him, then placed a kiss on her head and stepped back from her.

Elizabeth looked up at him with deep questioning eyes and asked, "What?"

"Nothing," he shook his head. "I just..."

She looked at him as he trailed off and then suggested, "Wanted to make sure it was real?"

"I...I guess," he hedged.

A timid smile curved her lips, "It feels surreal, doesn't it? This morning we weren't talking, I was certain I'd lost you because I'd screwed up and now...it feels like we were hardly apart. That's how..."

She looked embarrassed as she trailed away, and eventually turned her head, refusing to look at him. In spite of himself, he stepped closer to her, his eyes troubled as he gently placed his hand on her cheek and tried to redirect her gaze. "What is it?"

Stubbornly refusing to look at him she admitted on an embarrassed whisper, "That's how I know this is right. It feels right. I don't feel angry or hurt or confused anymore; I feel like this is exactly where I'm supposed to be."

Her cheeks were stained with a blush as she finally looked back at him, but her eyes were bright and moist. "I know that probably sounds silly, but it's the only way I can describe it. I know that it won't be easy, but this is right, Jason. I don't hurt anymore when I'm with you."

He closed his eyes briefly, guilt lacing through him that he was the cause of the pain she had suffered. But then he pushed it aside. They would deal with everything as it came, and they could talk more, but right now he didn't want to talk. Not when she was this close, and she was this beautiful and she was in his arms.

The hand that was still on her cheek, now slid down her jaw to brush against the side of her neck before coming to rest under her hair. With a gentle tug, one that wasn't really necessary because she was moving forward on her own, he brought her to him as he lowered his head. Their lips met, not hesitantly but gentle. A firm, steady pressure that grew as the moment stretched. Her arms came up around him pulling him closer, and Jason allowed himself to indulge in her presence. The guards would make sure they were safe; right now his focus was completely on Elizabeth.

Being noble wasn't easy. In his attempt to prove to Elizabeth that he was willing to truly work on their relationship, to listen to what she was saying, Jason had tried to push aside his physical desire for her. After their kiss along the path, he had suggested they continue walking. He asked if there was more she wanted to talk about, and was prepared to let her have her say.

The main thing that she wanted from him was his trust in her, and his promise that they would talk about things. No, she didn't want to know about his business, and yes, she accepted that a situation might come up where he would tell her she needed to leave immediately, but she wanted him to talk to her instead of just making decisions for her. It was like Emily had told him; he had decided to leave Elizabeth and never let her have a say. Somehow Jason felt that it might be a little more difficult than the simplicity of merely talking that would repair their relationship, but then again, maybe it wouldn't. A solution didn't have to be complicated.

Thrilled with her presence and the fact that she had sought him out, Jason had prolonged their walk until darkness fell and he knew they couldn't safely walk the paths any longer. She didn't seem anxious to leave, and he certainly didn't want her to go, so he invited her back to the house with the promise of food. There he'd surprised her by fixing them dinner, insisting that she sit down and let him do the work. She had fixed so many meals for him while he was recuperating and she certainly wasn't a bad cook, but he was better now and he also knew how to fix a meal. He wanted to do this for her.

She sat in the kitchen talking with him while he cooked, and before the meal was ready, she somehow ended up standing beside him, helping. It was a new experience for him, and one he found he liked. Other women that he'd dated were either completely helpless in the kitchen, or they thought that a home cooked meal was ridiculous, especially since he had the money to take them out to expensive restaurants or order take-in all the time. Standing beside Elizabeth, reaching around her to get what he needed and sometimes bumping into her as they worked out a rhythm of working together felt more intimate than any night of passion.

Once dinner was over and the dishes were put away, they had gravitated out onto the patio where they sat and talked again. This time it wasn't about the things that had tripped up their relationship, Elizabeth talked about the time she'd stayed here taking care of him and the moments they'd spent before she'd been hurt. When she started spending more time at his house, he'd ordered a two person lounge chair so they could sit together instead of being separated by individual chairs. She'd sat down immediately in that chair, and held out her hand to him, inviting him to join her. Once again, nobility was going to kill him.

Holding her in his arms and trying to keep things restrained wasn't easy. Especially when Elizabeth turned in his arms, drew his head down towards hers and kissed him with a passion he hadn't felt from her before. He forced himself to respond only, to take his cues from her and not push for something she may not be ready for.

His nobility and restraint vanished, though, the moment she pulled back just enough to whisper against his skin, "Should I go home? Or...should I-"

"Stay," he managed to say. "Stay."

Last night when Elizabeth showed up at his house, no longer angry with him, but afraid he would decide she wasn't worth the hassle anymore, Jason hadn't been sure things could get better. After worrying that she would never forgive him, that she would never let him get close to her again, he was relieved and happy that she'd come to him. And while he didn't think she had anything to apologize for, he understood that she felt the need to. So he let her apologize, for her sake - not because he needed it.

However, he'd been wrong. Things could get better. Not only was she willing to listen to him, she let him kiss her. She stayed, they talked, they fixed dinner together and then she allowed him to hold her. He told himself he would be content with the amazing progress they'd made. And he was. Once again having the feel of her in his arms, he wasn't sure how the night could get better. He'd started out the day unhappy with the knowledge she didn't want to see him because she was angry and hurt, and ended it holding her in his arms and reacquainting himself with her lips.

Apparently not having dreams hadn't set him up for disappointment; it has set him up for wonders unimaginable. He hadn't tried to seduce Elizabeth last night. No, he didn't want to let her go, but if she'd announced it was time for her to return to her house, he would have let her. At this point, in their early reconnecting, he was determined to let her set the pace. She'd already given him so much, made huge strides in how she dealt with him, he hadn't even thought of asking her to stay.

But when she voiced it, when she wondered if she should go or if she should stay, he realized she wanted his input. She wanted, needed, to know that he was desperate for her to stay as much as she apparently wanted to. So he was somehow able to get his brain to work and he told her to stay. He wanted to tell her she could stay forever, but he at least had the capacity to realize that might have been a bit too much. He'd save that request for another time.

After that, all restraint and hesitation disappeared between them. They gave in to their mutual desire, to their mutual love, and also their mutual frustration at never being at this point before, and finally lived in the moment. Jason hoped the guards had been discreet last night and kept their distance, because he and Elizabeth certainly hadn't been. He wouldn't want her to be embarrassed by a guard's inadvertent comment or untimely blush. He wanted her to be comfortable with what happened last night.

Never one to need much sleep, Jason had been awake for a while, relishing in the simple pleasure of holding Elizabeth as she slept. Half-fearful that this peaceful moment could be shattered when she woke, he didn't move and resisted the urge to trace his fingers over her skin that called to him. He merely focused on the skin he could feel as well as the soft movement that accompanied every breath.

Air puffed over his arm as she sighed in her sleep, and then he held himself still as she shifted against him. He knew when she woke up because her breathing pattern changed. Gone was the rhythmic motion, instead she was holding her breath. He felt his catch as he wondered what her reaction would be. Would she regret everything in the cold light of day? Or was she merely disoriented for a moment because he'd taken her to his room last night and she hadn't woken up in this bed when she'd stayed here before?

He felt his own shoulders relax as she let out the breath she'd been holding and relaxed against him. She didn't turn, but he felt the softest touch whisper over his arm that was enfolding her. Then she leaned forward and placed a butterfly kiss against his skin.

Emboldened by her movements, he squeezed her back towards him to signal that he was awake, but also so that he could place a kiss on the nape of her neck that had been beckoning to him the entire time he'd been awake. As his lips drifted away from her skin he smiled and whispered, "Good morning."

He could hear the smile in her voice as she returned it, but he was once again focusing on the section of skin where her shoulder and neck joined and he knew she'd forgive him if he didn't answer her question as to how long he'd been awake. As she tilted her head, granting him better access, he doubted she truly wanted, or required him to speak. Besides, speaking would mean that his attentions would have to stop, and based on the delicious purr that echoed up from her throat, she'd probably be unhappy if he stopped now.

Oh, he ruminated as he continued his mission, he could get very used to waking up like this.

Sometime later, Jason attempted once more to wish Elizabeth a verbal good morning. He was now lying on his back and she was pressed up against his side, her fingers splayed over his chest. Looking up and gracing him with the beautiful sight of her smile, she rose up on her elbow and said, "And good morning to you."

He lifted his head to meet her kiss, and then settled them back against the pillows and wrapped his arm around her. "I'm glad you stayed last night."

"Me too," she grinned against his chest. "Thank you for asking me to. I...I thought it was too much to hope for, but now I'm glad that I brought a bag along just in case."

Turning his head towards her, he tried to give her an incredulous look, but it was no doubt lost in the pleasure he felt that she wouldn't have to leave any time soon if she wanted to freshen up. "I'm glad you thought ahead," he teased her. "Although, if you'd really been thinking ahead you could have told the guards to bring your bag in here. Now I have to send someone out to get it."

"Jason," she huffed, pushing at his side. "You'll do no such thing. I can run out and get it."

"You will do no such thing," he told her, wrapping his arms more firmly around here. "I don't have anything I have to do today, and unless you have to leave to go to work I really wasn't planning on letting you out of my room anytime soon."

She turned an adorable shade of pink before her head dropped against his side. "What will everybody say?"

"The guards?" he questioned. "Nothing. It's not their job to comment on our personal lives, and they're discreet and respectful of my privacy. Nobody's going to table talk around you, Elizabeth."

Enzo might have a thing or two to say to Jason, but even the more personable guard knew better than to say anything to Elizabeth that might embarrass her. Brushing his hand over her back, Jason tried to assure her, "Nobody's going to say anything."

"Okay," she said softly. "I'm being silly, aren't I?"

"No," he smiled at her as he shook his head. "It's okay to be unsure. But the guards have never given you any problems before, have they?"

She was quick to assure him, "No. They've always been unobtrusive. I'm used to them."

"I'm glad. Because they'll still be around. Depending on what the situation is at times, I may temporarily have to assign more to you."

"I understand," Elizabeth told him, "but do we have to talk about this right this moment?"

"No," he agreed. "We don't."

At the sound that reached his ears he chuckled and said, "Although it sounds like we need to talk about breakfast."

He gave her a kiss, and then extracted his arm from underneath her. "Stay here," he requested as he retrieved his pants. "I'll be back in just a moment."

When he reached the door, he paused and grinned at the sight of her in his bed, his sheets tucked around her. "Elizabeth? There's no reason to get dressed."

His morning briefing was quick, done by Enzo while Jason fixed breakfast for two. He'd sent a guard out to Elizabeth's car to retrieve her bag and told the man to place it in the hall by his door; Jason would take it in with him. Enzo had a ghost of a smile playing about his lips as he spoke, but the guard was smart enough to realize to keep his comments to himself for the time being. Especially on this first morning, and most definitely while Elizabeth was still here.

"Sonny wanted you to call him when you had a moment," Enzo said in conclusion. He'd already delivered the morning's preliminary accounting report on the casino's business from the night before and mentioned a couple of guests that might be problematic, but assured Jason that the hotel security, and the guards, were keeping an eye on things. If something developed, they'd let him know.

"Call him back," Jason directed as he finished pouring his mug of coffee and placed it on the tray. "Ask if it's something that needs to be taken care of right away, or if you can handle it. Tell him..."

He sighed and dreaded this next order but knew that he needed to be honest with his friend and boss. "Tell him that I'm with Elizabeth. So unless it's urgent, I'll call him when I get the chance."

"You got it, Jason," Enzo assured him quietly. "I'll call right now."

"Thank you, Enzo," he replied, then left the kitchen. When he reached his room, he opened the door, and gently nudged Elizabeth's bag inside with his toe, before entering himself.

"Patrick," Elizabeth sighed into the phone. "I'm not sick and I don't need you to examine me. I'm simply saying that I won't be into work today unless an emergency comes up and you need me. Otherwise..."

She looked up at Jason and smiled, "Otherwise I'll see you tomorrow."

Then she replaced the receiver in the base on Jason's nightstand and grinned at him as she sat up against the headboard, taking care to tuck the sheets under her arms. "I hope you don't mind that I used your phone."

"To tell Drake that you wouldn't be in until tomorrow?" he laughed as he sat down beside her and placed the tray on the bed. "Why would I mind?"

It was the best of times; it was the worst of times.

Yeah, her life became a Charles Dickens novel after sleeping with Jason Morgan. Welcome to Elizabeth Webber's world.

Or maybe it was a Clint Eastwood movie; the good, the bad and the ugly.

The good was definitely Jason. Putting the past behind them - now she was apparently channeling Disney movies - and working together to move forward. They talked, they dealt with issues that still gnawed at them, and they honestly tried to find solutions and compromises. Sometimes they did, and sometimes they didn't. But because they were being open and talking, Elizabeth felt better than she had in months.

It wasn't just because of the sex. It really wasn't. Although that was a nice little bonus.

They went through that idyllic phase all new couples go through. Reveling in the freedom to kiss and touch when they wanted to, figuring out whose place they were going to stay at that night, taking every moment they could to lounge together in bed. When the world did intrude, they grumbled about the fact that one of them had to leave, and they looked forward until they could be reunited. And then made up for it most enthusiastically.

Most of their time was spent at Jason's place because it was out of the way, they didn't have to worry about neighbors, and most of all it was safe. After nearly being strangled to death, Elizabeth took Jason's precautions very seriously. They'd all but moved in together; she had a key to his place, she kept bringing over things that she needed, and even when she had time off work and Jason had things he had to take care of, she still spent her time at his house. One of the spare rooms was slowly being converted into a studio and she took advantage of the amazing light and wide open spaces that showed off amazing scenery and loved the creativity she'd been hit with.

They talked more about their pasts, and Elizabeth had even had a very strange conversation with his sister Emily who absolutely insisted on talking to her one day. The woman was a non-stop chatterbox and Elizabeth understood a bit better how Jason put up with her ramblings; his sister had trained him already. Emily said that she was glad Elizabeth had given Jason a second chance, but had also made her brother work for his forgiveness. He got a little thick-skulled sometimes and needed someone to remind him that he couldn't arrange everyone's lives the way he wanted them to go. Then she said that if Jason let her come down, she'd love to meet Elizabeth. Or maybe Elizabeth would come to New York with Jason for a visit and they could meet then. Either way, the woman talked about their meeting like it was inevitable, instead of a wish.

But even during that wonderful honeymoon phase, Elizabeth knew that it wouldn't last forever. And not just because the intense joy couldn't last in any relationship and sooner or later someone was going to get annoyed with the status of the toilet seat lid and the way the toothpaste tube was squeezed from the middle instead of the bottom, but also because Jason's job would intrude. Whether it was from the people who had sent someone to strangle her, or Jason's boss and friend Sonny Corinthos, eventually Jason would be summoned back home and she would have to deal with a separation from him. She was not looking forward to it, but knew it was better to prepare herself for it.

And like all things that are inevitable, Jason's job intruded on their cozy little setup. That was the bad. The rival faction that was causing problems, the Zacharras, stepped up their harassment. Jason spent more time at the casino in secure offices, on secure lines, talking to people. But because enforcers don't enforce over the telephone, Jason began to leave. He tried to keep the trips short, but such things are nearly impossible. He had to make a presence, show a solidarity of strength.

At least Elizabeth could only assume that's what was happening. Because things got so tense and harried that days would pass by before Jason could get a few minutes to call her. And then came the day when Jason hung up in the middle of their conversation, after Elizabeth heard what she was certain was gunfire. Her guard detail doubled overnight, Enzo said that it would be better if she continued to stay at Jason's, and he tried to give her encouraging smiles when he could. They weren't very encouraging.

Knowing she'd signed on for this, and had fought to stay in this life because she loved Jason, she did what she was asked to do. She kept the guards in sight, she didn't ask them a lot of questions, and she tried to be as cooperative as she could be. And when Jason did get a spare moment to call, she didn't ask him about the gunfire, she didn't act like a wimp, she merely told him she loved him and she told him to be careful because she'd seen enough GSWs in Baltimore, she didn't want to have to deal them on the island.

And then things went from bad to worse. Sonny was shot. He was in the hospital in a medically induced coma and Jason was now running things. He had even less time to talk. But he did call to say he was coming down to the island for a day. The plane was about to take off, so he couldn't talk any longer, he would see her in a few hours. Elizabeth worried her lip raw as she waited for word of his arrival. His conversation was too cryptic, too harried, too short, even for a man of few words. There was something definitely wrong.

And then a hurricane blew onto the island.

Jason arrived escorting his sister, who happened to be Sonny's ex-girlfriend; Carly Jacks, who happened to be Sonny's ex-wife and mother of his two children - who also came along; and Kate Howard, Sonny's current girlfriend. He looked decidedly unhappy and when the motley crew showed up at Jason's house, she was rather surprised when he wrapped his arms around her, lifting her off the ground while he buried his face in her neck. Before she could even process that her normally reserved boyfriend had just done a huge public display of affection, he set her down and then kissed her soundly. There were a couple of amused chuckles, a snort of disgust, and the unmistakable sound of children crying ewww, but Jason didn't stop until he was ready.

"Let me guess," Carly Jacks said in disgust, "that's why the boys and I can't stay at your house. You're tossing us aside for some local who's managed to sink her claws into you? Are you kidding me? Let me guess, she used to clean your house and one day when you came home you just happened upon her in some skimpy, little outfit."

"No, Carly," Emily cut in, with a pointed look at the two children in the room. "Elizabeth happened to save Jason's life. She's a nurse.

"Besides," she smirked, "I'm staying here with Elizabeth. You and the boys are going to stay at Sonny's villa, and Kate's going to stay at the hotel. We discussed this on the plane. The boys already have rooms at Sonny's, they have toys down here, and they're used to being there. Why would you disrupt their normal routine when they come down to the island by making them come to Jason's? He won't be here; he has to go back to Port Charles."

Carly huffed and crossed her arms over her chest, but the oldest boy said, "Yeah, Mom, we like going to Dad's. We've got all our swim gear there already. Uncle Jason doesn't have that stuff here for us."

"Fine, fine," she agreed very grudgingly. "We'll go to your father's."

"Good," Jason sighed in relief. "Your things are already in the car. The detail's set up at Sonny's villa, I'll have Russ and Carlos take you over there."

"Will you come by before you leave?" she asked, dropping her voice low and pleading. "Say good-bye to the boys before you do?"

Elizabeth could see the tension in Jason's shoulders as he rubbed his hand over his face and said, "I don't know if I can. I've got to get back. Hopefully nobody will realize that I'm gone, but the longer I'm missing, the greater risk there is."

"We understand, Uncle Jason," the oldest boy said sagely, sounding like a child desperately wishing to be older than he was. "Morgan and I know that you have to take care of things while Dad's in the hospital."

The boy gave him a hug, and his brother did as well. Then Carly hugged him, glaring all the while at the three women standing behind Jason, and then followed her boys out of the house. Once she was gone, the other two women seemed to relax slightly. Before Elizabeth could completely process everything, she was blindsided by a hug from Jason's sister.

"I'm so glad to finally meet you," she squealed. "Don't worry about Carly, her bark's usually worse than her bite, but in case she does take a nip at you, she's up to date on her shots."

"Emily," Jason sighed wearily.

"Oh, come on," his sister returned. "She was being difficult just to be difficult. She doesn't want to stay at the villa because she's no longer married to Sonny and because he brought me there. She thinks he probably took Kate there, even though he hasn't. She wants to stay here because she wants to try to be closer to you, despite the fact that she's married. When she heard Kate planned to stay at the hotel, then she wanted to stay at the hotel despite the fact that Michael and Morgan's things are at the villa. She's a spoiled brat who demands to be the center of attention and she hates when she's not."

With a pointed look, she continued, "You deliberately didn't tell her about Elizabeth because you didn't want to have to deal with her sounding like a jealous fishwife over the fact that you have a girlfriend who's living at your place. So don't act like her behavior is completely new and unfathomable to you."

Elizabeth looked over at Jason, not because she was upset about Jason not telling Sonny's ex-wife about her, but because she was already fearing the experience of being down on the island with her. She'd heard enough gossip and rumors around the casino and hotel about Sonny's ex-wife, but they were already divorced by the time Elizabeth started working for the hotel and she'd never met the woman before. She was beginning to think that the rumors hadn't been exaggerated.

"Now," Emily smiled brightly with a delighted clap of her hands. "Since I know you told the pilot to fuel up and get some rest so you could leave early in the morning, I figured out you're planning to stay here for a little while. I'll have plenty of time to get to know Elizabeth after you're gone, but for tonight, the two of you need a little sister hanging around like Eli Love needs to release a greatest hits album. So I'm going to hitch a ride with Kate over to the hotel, she's even said I can stay in her suite tonight."

She hugged Elizabeth and then Jason, giving her brother a kiss on the cheek. "Elizabeth, I'll see you tomorrow. Jase, be careful. And have fun tonight."

Then she gave a little wave and headed for the door.

"Jason, thank you for bringing us down here, and running interference on the plane," Kate said in a perfectly polished voice, that just barely betrayed the irritation and annoyance she must be feeling. "Elizabeth, forgive me for not staying longer, but after a plane ride with Carly, I'm rather anxious to get a hot stone massage at the hotel's spa. I'm sure we'll have plenty of opportunities to talk some other time."

"Yeah, sure," she nodded absently.

Then she left, and Elizabeth knew things were going bound to get very ugly with Carly Jacks on the island. She just hoped things didn't turn violent. Patrick would never let her hear the end of it if he had to stitch them up after they'd all gotten into catfights.

"I'm sorry," Jason sighed, wrapping his arms around her once more and drawing her close. "Carly can be quite...opinionated, and high-strung. Hopefully watching over the boys will keep her occupied and out of the way."

She could tell he didn't really believe that, but Elizabeth wasn't going to dwell on it or ask any questions. She hadn't seen Jason in weeks. He was leaving in the early morning and she had several hours with him. She wasn't going to waste that time talking about Carly Jacks.

"You know that Jason loves Michael and Morgan, right?"

"Yes," Elizabeth answered. "He was even Michael's father for the first year and helped raise him. It killed him to give him up."

Of course, Elizabeth also knew it was because of the blonde beside her who had been sniping and attacking her since she'd walked into the house with her two boys that Jason had lost Michael. Due to some stupid plan of hers in which she accused Jason of kidnapping the little boy and forcing her to keep quiet about the true paternity an ugly and hurtful custody battle was waged. After seeing Michael's confusion and pain, Jason had decided it was best to step out of the little boy's life so that he wouldn't be hurt worse than he already had been. Somehow, Elizabeth figured Carly believed Jason hadn't already shared that with her.

"He's also Morgan's godfather, and the little boy is obviously named after Jason," she continued. "Jason's told me this, because he loves those little boys so much."

"If he loved them so much, then he would be with them, protecting them and taking care of them," Carly huffed. "And not down here playing house with you."

"I thought that Michael and Morgan already had parents," Elizabeth mused innocently, "as well as, from what Emily and Kate both tell me, a wonderful stepfather who loves them and takes care of them. Why would they need Jason to raise them?"

Now affronted because she'd questioned Carly's parenting skills, or lack thereof, the blonde forcefully said, "Jason doesn't raise them, of course not. But he is their uncle and it's Jason's job to make sure we're safe."

"And that's what he's doing," Elizabeth said. "But I think even Sonny realizes that Jason's allowed to have a life aside from your family. And if you want to talk about someone not being there for your children, why aren't you more upset with the boys' father or even yourself who apparently think nothing of dropping those two at a moment's notice to suddenly jet out of town?"

"You know nothing about me," Carly hissed lethally. "And anything you hear from Emily is obviously biased because she's never liked me."

"Oh, I picked up on that," she agreed. "But my information comes from Jason. Are you saying he's biased?"

The older woman pressed her lips together and looked away. No, Elizabeth surmised, she wasn't going to say anything negative about Jason. And it had to sting to hear that Jason was questioning her parenting skills, and to an outsider no less.

"So you're a nurse?" Carly sneered, apparently deciding to change topics.

"Yes," Elizabeth answered succinctly. Despite the fact that she'd talked openly with Emily, and to a lesser extent with Kate Howard the day the three women met at the hotel for lunch, she had no desire to share her background with Carly.

"And you work down in a hotel clinic? You must not be a very good nurse."

"Oh, I don't know. My supervisor at Johns Hopkins was disappointed when I turned in my resignation. It meant she had to train another shift leader."

"Then why'd you quit and come here?" Carly asked. "Hear about Sonny and Jason and figured you'd try to get your claws into one?"

"I quit for personal reasons," Elizabeth answered. "My last remaining relative had died after a long, protracted and painful battle with cancer. I needed to regroup and recover."

Then looking at Sonny's ex-wife and Jason's friend, she said pointedly, "And considering how you came to town and glommed onto one rich man after another, I don't think you're in any position to make a comment about someone else getting their claws into anyone. You know nothing about me, you know nothing about my relationship with Jason, and I don't have to answer any more of your questions or justify anything to you. You won't believe a word I say anyways, and I'm not going to waste my breath. Why exactly did you come over here today?"

"Michael and Morgan were coming," the mother answered definitively.

"Michael called and asked if he could spend some time with Emily since she's his aunt. There are guards everywhere. You don't like Emily, you certainly don't like me, so why exactly did you feel the need to accompany them when Emily made arrangements with their nanny and the guards to bring them over?" Elizabeth raised her brow and asked, "Was it just to cause trouble and go around attacking people in front of your children? Wow, stellar role model you are there."

"Listen here, you little priss," Carly raised an angry finger and leaned towards her. "You've got no right to judge me since you're the person keeping Jason from his family. If you were so in love with him, you would want him to be near us, you wouldn't be keeping him down here in your little bubble away from everybody who's important."

With a shake of her head, Elizabeth said, "You really don't understand Jason at all, do you? I'm not making him do anything. Nobody makes Jason do anything he doesn't want to do. And if you think that I'm somehow manipulating him, then you must have a very low opinion of Jason and think he's not capable of thinking for himself. I didn't tell Jason to stay here or not do his job. He made that choice. And when things started to get bad, he left and did what he could to take care of things. From what Kate told me, Sonny's the one who ignored Jason's warnings and went to a meeting without his guards."

She paused and then continued on softer, "I'm sorry that Michael and Morgan's father is hurt and I hope for everybody's sake that he gets better. But don't you dare blame what happened on Jason or me. If you're scared, I understand that. Not a day goes by when Jason's gone that I don't worry for him and hope that he's safe and doesn't get hurt. But I also know that chances are, one day one of the guards is going to tell me that Jason did get hurt."

"If you can't handle that, then you should get out now."

"Who said I couldn't handle it?" she asked. "I don't think that fear and worry exclude the ability to handle it. It's human to be scared and to worry and hope for the best. You obviously are worried about your ex-husband and Jason, are you saying that you can't handle it?"

Obviously caught, and wanting to deflect, Carly went for a new attack. "If you can handle it so well, then how come you're hiding out down on the island? If you want to be with Jason, you'd see a lot more of him if you came to Port Charles. But no, you're hiding down here and expecting Jason to keep running to your side."

"Who said I wasn't thinking of coming to Port Charles?" Elizabeth asked off-handedly. "My reasons for being on this island are changing. My desire to be with Jason already had me looking at hospitals and clinics in the area and I was starting to update my resume while he was gone. But I also wasn't going to make a move while things were so unsettled there, so I was waiting until things were under control before I mentioned it to Jason and applied anywhere."

Standing, Elizabeth looked down at the blonde and stated, "Don't presume to know me, Carly. Don't think that I'm weak or hiding or keeping Jason away from any place he really wants to be. I was nearly killed by the people Jason is fighting against right now, and I didn't run or cut Jason out of my life. In fact, I fought to stay in it."

She dusted her hands off and gathered up her unused art supplies, a sketch of Michael and Morgan at Jason's house would just have to wait until another visit, and turned for the patio door. "Enjoy the rest of your visit here with your children, Emily's already put lunch together for the boys, I hope you enjoy it. I need to head to the hotel and check in with Patrick, so I'll say good-bye now."

Then she called out to Emily and the boys, telling them she'd see them all later and left. She had expected this interrogation from Carly and out of respect for Jason and the fact that there were children present, she wasn't going to get into a screaming match with the blonde. But she wasn't going to sit back and just let someone who clearly didn't know her and wasn't interested in taking the time to do so, attack her and question her place in Jason's life. She knew where she stood with Jason, and if Carly couldn't handle it, then it wasn't Elizabeth's problem.

"The thing about Carly," Kate said as she and Elizabeth sat in a private lounge at the hotel having lunch, "is that deep down, she's a very insecure woman."

The younger woman raised a disbelieving brow at the fashion editor, who nodded very seriously. "It's the truth. Her bluster and in-your-face attitude is nothing more than smoke and mirrors to cover up some very deep seated issues of abandonment. She was given up for adoption by her birth mother who was unable to care for her, and her adopted mother, from what I understand, wasn't terribly affectionate. Carly is terrified of being left alone, so she does everything she can to hold onto people in her life which can end up driving them away, thereby fulfilling all her worst beliefs."

"I'll be honest," Elizabeth admitted, "I've never really read Couture. Do you have an advice column, or have you been in therapy yourself to pick all that up about Carly?"

"I'm a studier of human nature," the other woman smiled. "I understand people. Carly has to be the center of everyone's world, Emily wasn't that far off the mark, and for a very long time she's had the majority of Jason's undivided attention. She is not going to react well to your presence in his life because she'll automatically assume that you'll try to make him choose between the two of you. It's what she would do and she automatically ascribes her actions and thought processes to everyone else, not realizing that normal people don't act or think that way. She's a very...unique individual."

"That's one way of putting it," she said. "She has blocked every attempt I've made to get to know her boys. If Emily wants to see her nephews, she now has to go to Sonny's villa. She won't let Michael or Morgan come over to Jason's anymore."

"Of course not," Kate agreed as if it was the most natural thing in the world. "Because you getting to know her children means that you'll have a bigger place in her world. She won't be able to bad-mouth you to her children like she'll undoubtedly try to do with Jason, and if her children know you, then she thinks she'll have a harder time trying to get rid of you. It's part of the reason she doesn't like me, aside from the fact that I'm dating her ex-husband. I spend time with her children, and she hates it. But she'll let Jax be around them, even though it used to upset Sonny and sometimes cuts into things he wants to do with his boys."

The fashion maven took a sip of her perfectly sweetened iced tea and continued, "You just want to get to know Michael and Morgan because, despite their mother, they are sweet children. And Jason adores them. You love Jason; you want to get to know the people in his life. For you, it's nothing more than that. Carly sees it as a threat, that you'll somehow usurp her place in her children's lives."

"I would never-"

Kate held up a hand and nodded, "I know. Like I said, Carly thinks differently than the rest of us. But what Carly is really afraid of is you taking Michael and Morgan's place in Jason's life. She views any woman in Jason's life as a threat, not just to her, but to her children. Because if the two of you stay together, get married and one day have children of your own, Jason's priorities will shift. He'll no longer put her children first; he would put his own children first. It's natural and what should happen, but Carly simply lives in fear of that day coming."

Kate continued talking through the remainder of her lunch with Elizabeth, but the nurse didn't register it all. While she tried to draw the younger woman out, asking questions about her art and expressing an interest to see it, and also the local artisans, Elizabeth could hardly remember what she'd answered. She thought they made plans to get together with Kate promising to call, but she could really only guess. Because Elizabeth was still stuck back on the conversation of children.

More specifically, Jason Morgan's children.

And Elizabeth having those children.

It was something she'd never really thought about, despite thinking about plans for the future with Jason. She had been seriously contemplating moving to Port Charles, because she hoped it would make it easier to be with him. They wouldn't be separated by hundreds of miles and only getting together when they could somehow arrange it. There was nothing keeping her at the island, despite what Patrick might think about his appeal as a doctor to assist. She wanted to be with Jason, and she felt she was ready to work in a hospital again.

But Kate had sent her mind in a completely different direction. Children, with Jason. Would he want that? Because she was suddenly very open to the idea.

Jason had known that introducing his sister to Elizabeth was an invitation for disaster. He feared that Emily would take his girlfriend under her wing and make Elizabeth her newfound shopping buddy and Jason would be subjected to shopping bags everywhere and endless fashion displays as Emily pulled out item after item and told him all about it and what she'd insisted Elizabeth buy because it was so cute. What he never thought was that he'd have to fight his sister to get time alone with his girlfriend at night.

Of course, to be fair, neither Emily nor Elizabeth knew that Jason was here. They both thought he was back in Port Charles dealing with the threat of the Zacharra family and running the organization while Sonny was hospitalized. They had no idea that Jason had slipped down to the island because he wanted to check on everyone here, but also because he desperately wanted to spend some time with Elizabeth.

Things were about to be dealt with permanently back home, but because not everything was completely lined up, he was forced to sit and wait. He hated waiting. Especially since he knew his girlfriend was waiting for him. He found himself thinking about the last time he was on the island, and how Emily had been so accommodating then to stay at the hotel so he could have uninterrupted time with Elizabeth. If only she'd be so good as to do that now.

It was after one in the morning, he had expected Emily and Elizabeth to have gone to bed before now. He was waiting in his room, knowing Elizabeth slept here, ready to surprise her. Instead, he was here alone while the sounds of laughter drifted down the hall, signaling that Elizabeth and Emily were still together and had very little intention of calling it a day.

Pulling out his cell phone, he dialed Elizabeth's and hoped that she hadn't put her purse in their bedroom. It was time to stop waiting for things to happen, and give them a definite nudge. As the phone rang, he was grateful to not hear the corresponding ringtone echo through the room.

"Hello?" Elizabeth's voice sounded unnaturally bright, and slightly tipsy when she answered.

"Elizabeth."

"Jason!" He heard her squeal of delight through the phone but also carry from the living room. "I wasn't expecting you to call tonight."

Most of the time when he called, she always headed to their bedroom so she could talk without Emily hovering in the background and making teasing quips. He hoped she followed form tonight, especially when he heard Emily call out a greeting to him.

"I hope it's not too late," Jason said, despite knowing it wasn't. "I just wanted to talk to you."

"Oh," she said softly, and then came a distinctive rustle that he hoped indicated she was getting up. "No, Emily and I weren't asleep. We were just hanging out talking, but since I don't have to work tomorrow, we can hang out then."

Her voice was sounding closer, both through the phone and in the house and Jason held his breath in anticipation. She confirmed it a moment later when she asked him to hold on a second while she went to another room. He didn't want to scare her, so he stayed off to the side as the door was opening, and after she stepped into the room, he stated softly, "Elizabeth, don't be frightened. I'm here on the island."

She froze just inside the doorway, and then looked around. He switched on the lamp beside him so she could see, and he was grateful that she'd had the presence of mind to shut the door before launching herself across the room and into his arms. Her exclamation of surprise was muffled as his mouth descended over hers and he let his phone drop to the ground so he could wrap her tighter in his arms.

Several moments later they were sitting on the chair in the room, Elizabeth in his lap and she pulled back just enough to look at him. "I'm not dreaming this, am I? I'm not drunk and this is all just a hallucination?"

"I'm real," he told her with a smile. "But I can taste the alcohol on your lips, so only you can tell me whether or not you're drunk."

Her head dropped to his shoulder and she sighed, "I don't think there's enough alcohol in the world to drown out today and make me forget."

Instantly tense and alert, he tightened his hold around her and asked, "What happened?"

"I hit Carly," she admitted. "In front of her children. I am...I am so ashamed, Jason."

Closing his eyes in frustration, but not with Elizabeth, he asked, "What happened?"

"Carly has..." She trailed off and tucked her head more firmly into his shoulder at his neck, hiding her face from him. "I know that she's your friend and I would never tell you to stop being friends with her, but I hope you'll understand that I don't want to be around her very much. So anytime you want to see her or her boys, you go ahead and do that. I'll just stay home."

He frowned slightly at her wording, but didn't have time to process it as she continued. "She doesn't like me very much. But given the way she acts to Emily and Kate and everyone else on this island, I would say she doesn't like many people. The first day Michael and Morgan wanted to get together with Emily, Carly brought them over here. And then stayed, despite Michael telling her to go ahead and go to her spa appointment. She...she was combative and insulting, but I took it as par for the course. Besides, I didn't exactly sit back and let her walk all over me."

Jason wanted to laugh at that statement; he couldn't imagine Elizabeth letting anyone walk all over her, not even Carly. But he stayed quiet, running his hand over her arm while anchoring her close to him with an arm around her waist.

"After that, she wouldn't let Michael and Morgan come over here. If Emily wanted to see them, she had to do it at Sonny's villa. And I was made perfectly aware that I wasn't invited. I may be 'warming your bed all in a plan to trap you and trick you', but I was not going to be allowed near her children. She knew sooner or later you'd wise up, kick my trashy butt to the curb and she wasn't going to confuse her children or waste their time by having them get to know someone who would be gone soon enough."

Jason sighed and closed his eyes, leaning his head against the chair's back. He knew Carly was territorial, but this was ridiculous. He loved Elizabeth, and sooner or later she was just going to have to accept that Elizabeth was part of his life.

"I'm sorry to say this, Jason," Elizabeth continued on, her voice sounding timid as if she truly was regretful about what she was saying. "But she has an unhealthy obsession for you, especially as someone who claims she is happily married. I know a long time ago you two were lovers...but there is just something not right in the way she still tries to claim you as her own."

"Is that why you hit her?" Jason asked, not really believing it even as he did so. He didn't think Elizabeth was the type to get jealous over something like that; he didn't think, at least he hoped not, that she doubted how he felt for her.

He felt her shake her head, "No. I understand she's a bit of a nut, so I just tuned her out whenever she went off on me claiming that she knew you better than you knew yourself and she would make you realize that I was all wrong for you. I'd laugh about it later with Emily or Kate if I thought about it at all."

"So what happened?"

"I worked part of the day at the clinic," Elizabeth sighed. "Then I met up with Kate and Emily and we were sitting around the pool talking. We'd had a few drinks, and we were just relaxing...enjoying ourselves. Then Carly and the boys showed up."

She fell silent and Jason shifted, turning his head to try to look at her as he questioned, "Elizabeth?"

"Your sister is like a dog on a bone, and once she gets an idea in her head she just won't let it go. I'd mentioned to her and Kate that I was thinking of moving to Port Charles in order to be closer to you."

Warmth and pleasure slammed into Jason at her unexpected admission. He'd planned to ask her to come visit him once everything quieted down, but to hear that she was already thinking about it, in fact thinking about moving there, surprised him. And made him feel ridiculously happy.

"And then...I don't even know how it all started. You know, your sister really lets loose after a few drinks."

"So do you," he said with a soft laugh. She also rambled more than usual, and sometimes it was hard to follow her conversations. Like now. All he wanted to find out was what happened, but he knew that Elizabeth was getting to it, in her own round-about way.

"And she teased me about maybe one day you and I would give her a niece or a nephew and then she wouldn't have to put up with Carly every time she wanted to play with children. And when I blushed bright red because something Kate had said had already had me thinking about having your children, Emily just kept on it."

Jason's eyes opened wide and felt that same warmth hit him again. Elizabeth didn't sound opposed to the idea of children, and he'd already thought about children with her. It was something that had caught him off guard long before they ever got together, and when they finally did work through everything, the idea hadn't really gone away. But with all the recent danger and seeing how Sonny had been worried for his children, Jason had begun to have second thoughts. Hearing Elizabeth's admission suddenly shifted everything again in him.

"Well Carly and the boys walked up right at that moment and she heard Emily talking about you and I having babies and she just..." Elizabeth sighed. "She flipped out. Started screaming at me for being pregnant and how dare I use a child to try to trap you and how could I even be sure it was yours, I was no doubt a tramp who slept around and Michael and Morgan were looking at her and Kate and Emily were trying to get her to calm down. It was a disaster."

That was one word for it. Jason was sure it was actually worse than Elizabeth was admitting.

"Emily tried to take the boys somewhere else and Carly started yelling at her. I told her let's go somewhere else and talk and she just..." Running her hand over her face she said, "she just flipped out and she slapped me and looked like she was going to do it again. And I...I just reacted. I remembered you telling me how to defend myself and I just...before I realized what I was doing, I'd hit her. And I think I broke her nose."

She turned to press her face deeper into his neck and she sniffled, "Jason, I hit her in front of her children. Their eyes went wide and I just...I stared at them and then I ran. What kind of person hits another person in front of her children?"

"Elizabeth," he said softly. "It's alright. You're not a bad person. You didn't set out to attack Carly, she hit you first. And don't forget, she did that in front of Michael and Morgan. I think you need to get some sleep, and in the morning we'll talk again."

In the morning he was also going to have a talk with Carly, that neither of them were going to enjoy very much. But it was apparently time he made a few things clear to her. And then he was going to have to call Jax and tell him to stop being a fool and come down to Sonny's island to corral his wife and take care of his stepchildren. Then Jason was going to have to call Sonny and let him know that Carly was out of control and even if everything wasn't perfect, they needed to set this plan into motion as soon as he got back because Carly needed to leave the island soon.

By the time Jason got to Carly's house at 10 the next morning, he was feeling a headache forming between his eyes from everything he'd done so far. It wasn't a good way to start a meeting with Carly, but maybe she needed a little dose of him being irritated. For the sake of Michael and Morgan - and for Sonny since the Cuban always seemed to gravitate back to her - he had always tried to be civil with Carly and put up with a lot of her crazy nonsense. He knew he'd never change her and he didn't want to be antagonistic towards her every time they saw each other, and because of the boys they would see each other often, so he'd sigh, get annoyed and then just ignore most of her ramblings.

But not this time. She'd gone too far this time and he was tired of it and he was going to let her know.

Of course, before he could talk to Carly, he had to talk to Sonny. The older man needed to be aware of what his ex-wife was doing with, and in front of, his children. Sonny had been annoyed and after hearing what happened, and a few other things Jason discussed with him, agreed to put things in motion in Port Charles. He also strongly urged Jason to get back soon before anyone realized he was gone, but also cautioned the enforcer to come at night when it would be less noticeable. Jason liked that order, it would give him a little more time with Elizabeth, and since the next few weeks were going to be intense and he had no idea when he'd be able to call her, let alone see her, he would happily take what time with her that he could.

Jason's next call was to Jasper Jacks. The Australian businessman hadn't been thrilled to be woken up early in the morning by his second least favorite person, and he'd been even less thrilled with what Jason told him. But frankly, Jason didn't care. The tycoon needed to swallow his pride and get down to Sonny's island and stop pouting over the fact that his wife and stepsons were on his arch-nemesis' private retreat. Michael and Morgan needed a stable adult in their lives, and as much as Jason never thought he would admit it, Jax actually filled that role admirably. He loved the boys because they were Carly's, and he was doing what he could to try to teach them that Sonny and Jason's world wasn't the only acceptable way of dealing with things.

Jason told him that Carly was out of line and either Jax came down and got her under control, or Michael and Morgan would be staying on the island with Leticia and Carly would be going home. Since Jax loved Carly and wanted her safe, he wanted to keep her where she was. Jason told the other man then he needed to come because he was tired of his sister and his girlfriend being harassed by Carly simply because she had no self-control. Jason was quite clear and Jax assured him that he would arrive on the island today.

Once he was done with his conversation with Jax, Jason checked on Elizabeth and saw that she was still sleeping. Deciding to let her get some more rest, especially since she'd had more than normal to drink the night before, Jason went to the kitchen to start some coffee for himself and figure out some breakfast to fix for Elizabeth when she woke up later. It was there that he met a very surprised Emily who hugged him fiercely and admonished him for not telling them he was coming down, and then she proceeded to tell him everything that Elizabeth had glossed over last night about her encounter with Carly.

After Jason assured his sister that he was going to deal with Carly, she grinned, clapped her hands and then said that she would just grab a bag and head over to the hotel so that he and Elizabeth could enjoy what time he had down here. She was full of sly winks and innuendos, but Jason knew it was just an unfortunate part of her personality and didn't take offense to it. In fact, he was rather grateful he didn't have to kick her out of his home. At least she was accommodating.

Once Emily was gone and Jason called Carly's guards to make sure they kept her at the villa, but told them to get word to Leticia that the nanny should take Michael and Morgan down to the beach, Jason put everything aside so he could enjoy his morning with Elizabeth. She'd been groggy and slightly hung over when he finally coaxed her awake, but then she became rather lively and they eagerly and enthusiastically made up for last night and all the weeks he was gone. He'd at least have something good to help sustain him through his encounter with Carly.

"Mr. Morgan," Carlos greeted him as he approached the private villa on a secluded section of the beach near the hotel and casino. Sonny always wanted to be close to the hotel, but also have some privacy from it. Guests were warned away from the area by posted signs and the presence of guards. "Mrs. Jacks is inside."

"The boys?"

"With Ms. Juarez down at the beach," he assured.

"Does she know I'm coming?"

"No, Mr. Morgan."

"Good," Jason answered, squaring his shoulders and steeling his jaw. He opened the door without knocking and walked inside. He knew Carly would be here, he wanted to catch her off guard before she had time to somehow paint this to be all Elizabeth's fault.

She was sitting on the chaise, wearing a sundress she'd never dare get sand on and flipping through a fashion magazine. Jason stopped under the archway from the foyer to the main room and his voice was hard as he said, "Carly."

The magazine fluttered out of her hand as she stood up and spun around to face him. "Jason?! What are you doing here?"

She rushed forward to hug him, and then she immediately launched into her attack. Gesturing to her swollen nose and the bruised skin around her eyes she demanded shrilly, "Do you see what your little tramp did to me? She hit me. Dr. Drake says it's not really broken, just deeply bruised. I think he's wrong and I want you to fly someone in for a second opinion. And then I want you to know that I don't care if you and Sonny own this island, I'm pressing charging against that slut. She attacked me without warning in front of Michael and Morgan. I can't believe you're actually dating that woman. If we were back in Port Charles I'd wonder if you picked her up after mud-wrestling night at Jake's. She seems like the kind of trash that would hang around that place."

Jason let her go on until she finally seemed to temporarily run out of steam, or maybe she just needed more than a short breath. He took a step forward which she countered by backing up, crossing his arms across his chest and asked, "Do you really think that I came here before talking to Elizabeth? I've seen the bruise on her cheek where you hit her. First. After yelling at her. In front of Michael and Morgan. I heard what you called her. I know what you accused her of. I also know what name you used to label the non-existent baby you thought she was carrying. As for whether she would fit in at Jake's and be the kind of trash that hangs around in such a place, you must have forgotten that's where I met you."

He took a deep breath and then another step forward. "So from where I'm standing, Carly, you shouldn't really talk. If you were so concerned about Michael and Morgan, you wouldn't have yelled at another person in front of them. You certainly wouldn't have hit another person in front of them. So don't act so indignant that she hit you back in front of your children. At least she has the grace to be remorseful over the fact that they witnessed it. I doubt you feel bad they saw you, and I doubt you've told them that you shouldn't have done that."

She looked sheepish and then instantly it vanished as she once again started talking, "Alright, I may have hit her, but that was only a slap. She punched me in the nose. I was bleeding. Morgan was scared."

"I'm sorry he was scared, and so is Elizabeth," Jason told her. "But what did you really think Elizabeth was going to do to, Carly? You called her a slut and a whore and a worthless piece of trash and then you hit her. You said that if she was pregnant with some poor guy's bastard she should do the world a favor and get rid of it instead of trying to pass it off as mine. Don't forget that you weren't married to A.J. or Tony when you didn't know who Michael's father was, and you weren't married to me when I agreed to be his father."

She gasped and on cue the tears formed in her eyes and began silent treks down her cheeks. He knew it was cruel to remind her about Michael, especially since he loved that little boy then and still did now. But he was tired of Carly coming into his life and steamrolling over everything and just expecting him to put up with it. If Elizabeth ever had his child, he was never going to put up with anyone - not even Carly - saying anything bad about the baby.

"I'm sorry," she said brokenly through her tears. "I shouldn't have said she was carrying a bastard. I'm sorry. It's just, Jason...I love you so much and this Elizabeth Webber is not the right person for you."

"And who would be the right person for me, Carly?" he demanded. "Who? Because you didn't think Robin was and you did everything you could to drive a wedge between us. It worked. You pushed her right out of my life and then she pushed me out of Michael's in retaliation. You haven't liked any woman I've dated except for Sonny's sister Courtney and I kept telling you I was never actually dating her. I was guarding her because she was being stalked. So who is the right woman for me? You?"

She shook her head, "I'm married to Jax."

"But if you weren't, or even if you were, and I gave you the slightest hint that I wanted you, you'd jump at the chance, wouldn't you?" he shook his head roughly in disgust. "You always go on and on about how you love and how you know me so well, are you hoping that I'll change my mind?"

"No, Jason, that's not...you're my best friend. I love you like a friend and I just want...I want us to be happy. All of us. You, me and Sonny...but something always gets in the way."

"You're right," he said and then swallowed. "Usually it's you."

More tears streamed down her face and she covered her mouth to stifle a sob. He knew he was being cruel, and he didn't like it, but she needed to see that he was serious. She needed to realize that she had to stop trying to run his life, and inflicting painful, hard truths was the only way he thought he might reach her.

"You always say that Sonny and I have to accept your choices, even when we don't like them. You told me that I should be happy for you when you married Alcazar, even though he was Sonny's enemy. You told Sonny to just accept that the man who was trying to put him out of business by killing him would now be stepfather to his two children. You got mad at me because I wouldn't come to your wedding. Then when it blew up in your face and you realized that Alcazar was only using you, you got mad at Sonny and I for being right."

With a rough sigh and a quick roll of his neck to release the tension forming under his shoulder blades he continued, "You tell me and Sonny that we have to be happy for you and let you go. That it's your life to live and we don't get a say. Well, it works both ways. You're not Sonny's wife anymore and so if he wants to date Kate, then it's his right. You don't get to tell him that he can't be with her just because you don't like her. And you don't have the right to attack my girlfriend and badmouth her to Michael and Morgan because you're so sure it won't last and try to get me to break up with her, just because you don't like the thought that I'll actually have a life outside of you."

"That's not-"

"That's exactly what this is about," he snapped. "You constantly drag me into your life, even when I tell you I don't want to know about it. You tell me that Jax is being unreasonable by caring about his brother. Yes, he was stupid to run after him the second time, but how many times have you taken off on him to stick your nose into Sonny's or my life where it doesn't belong? You call me over to talk about Michael and Morgan instead of talking to Jax - your husband - or Sonny - their father. You expect me to talk to them, or to pass messages along to Sonny like I'm your gopher. You're afraid that if I have a girlfriend, or a wife, or a family of my own, then you might actually have to deal with your own problems instead of dumping them all on me.

"You want to know why the three of us are never happy, Carly? It's because you won't let us be. You always say that you and Sonny are no good married, but you keep trying to be the most important person in his life. You're parents, not lovers anymore. And you and I are only friends, so that doesn't give you the right to tell me what to do."

She was shaking her head, looking at him pleadingly as she said, "I'm sorry, Jason. I'm sorry. I just...I heard Emily talking to Elizabeth about you and her having children and I just...I couldn't believe that you would have a child with this little milkmaid. That you would do something like that and not talk to me about it."

"Why would I talk to you?" he asked as he narrowed his eyes. "You wouldn't be the baby's mother. So you wouldn't need to be involved in the decision process."

"Jason, I just want you to be happy," she said, trying to get him to understand her. The problem was, he never really could, but he would just accept it. But not this time.

"If you want me to be happy, then butt out of my life. Leave Elizabeth alone. Pay attention to your own marriage and have a baby with Jax if you feel the need to control someone. But stay out of this because it has nothing to do with you."

He turned to go and she desperately called out to him, "You're leaving?"

"I have nothing more to say, Carly. I've told you what I want. If you're really my friend like you proclaim to be, you'll actually listen this time."

Then he left Sonny's villa and instructed the guards to keep an eye on Carly and not let her leave until her husband arrived. On his way back to his house, he called Sonny and told him what happened, and that Carly wasn't going to be happy, but he was serious about this. If Jason and Elizabeth were going to have a chance in Port Charles, Carly had to butt out of his life.

Then he hung up the phone and tried to calm down. The guards knew how to reach him if it was important, but he'd told them that unless the warehouse had been blown up, or Anthony Zacharra was spotted walking down the street, to handle things until he returned. He was heading back to Elizabeth and he hoped he'd stayed in bed. He'd told her to get some more sleep while he went out briefly and if she woke up, there wasn't any point getting up. Because once he got back, he planned to join her and he didn't have any plans for leaving the master bedroom until he had to catch his flight.

"It's over."

Elizabeth sat in the chair in the corner and pulled her knees up to her chest. Things were about to get really ugly.

"Now, Kate," Sonny said, holding his hands out to the side and giving her a smile that showed off the dimples Emily had said were the reason half the women in Port Charles had fallen in love with Sonny Corinthos.

"Don't you Now, Kate me," the fashion magazine retorted angrily. "I thought you were in a coma. A coma! Jason came to me, told me I needed to leave everything behind and get to safety. And now I find out that you were awake the entire time. Was that day in the hospital room just a lie?"

"We needed people to think that I was incapacitated," Sonny tried to explain. "That Jason was running things."

Elizabeth glanced over at her boyfriend who stood on the other side of his living room and saw the nervous set of his shoulders. The ruse had worked; Elizabeth had no idea that his best friend wasn't in a coma cared for by a private nurse and doctor. Part of her wanted to be upset that she'd been lied to as well, but as she watched the various women in the room react, she took the time to really think things through.

She didn't really know Sonny. Sure she'd seen him in passing at the hotel, and she'd talked to him briefly once, but she didn't know the man. It wasn't like she had a vested interest in his well-being. She wasn't fretting over him while he was supposedly unconscious. Her interest in the whole affair centered on Jason. She had missed him; she had wished that they could talk longer when he called, or that they could talk more frequently.

But, as she sat unobtrusively in the corner, she realized that this was Jason's life. He'd explained quite clearly to her that there were things he wouldn't be able to say. That something might seem one way, then she would later find out that it was completely different. He wouldn't lie to her if he could avoid it, and he would certainly never lie to her about anything important - like how he felt about her, but sometimes he would have to lie by omission. He asked that when that happened, that she please give him the chance to explain before she got upset and did something like declaring she never wanted to see him again.

Her eyes widened as she thought back to the night they'd had that conversation. It was the last time he'd been down on the island before he had to leave and then had to stay because Sonny had been shot and was in a coma. He'd known. He'd known then; he and Sonny had already been planning this. He was trying, in his own way, to tell her that something was about to happen that wasn't what it would seem. And he was asking - after she'd already once shoved him out of her life - to please not react rashly before he got the chance to explain.

The corners of her lips turned up in a smile. He'd been trying to prepare her for today. Was that why he hadn't talked to her since he and Sonny had walked into his house, after asking the guards to get Kate and Carly to come? Was he afraid she was going to be mad at him? If only he'd look at her long enough, she would try to assure him that she wasn't. That she was trying to be understanding.

But Jason was currently occupied. By Carly. As she yelled and ranted and completely ignored her husband as he tried to calm her down. Elizabeth didn't understand how someone like Jasper Jacks had become involved with Carly; the man was definitely too good for her. And how he put up with Carly's obsession with Sonny and Jason, she would never know.

"I'm going back to the hotel," Kate declared in a huff. Clearly Elizabeth had missed part of the fashionista's conversation with Sonny during her musings.

"Kate," Sonny said, his tone clearly plaintive and pleading.

"I need to calm down, Sonny," she told him in a calm, clipped tone. The more Kate became upset, the more controlled her speech became. "I need to calm down before I do or say something neither one of us can forget or get past. Give me some time to see if I can accept the fact that my boyfriend, the man who claims to love me, lied to me and let me worry myself sick thinking that he was lying unconscious in the home we share. Call me to tomorrow at my suite and I'll tell you if I'm ready to talk to you."

"Alright," he sighed. He looked like a little boy who was pouting over not getting the toy he wanted and frankly Elizabeth thought he should be happy Kate hadn't demanded to go back to Port Charles tonight. She was asking for some time and space, and Elizabeth believed that by tomorrow Kate would be in a better mood, more willing to listen.

Sonny turned and got the attention of one of the guards that were standing just inside the entryway. It was the man who had brought Kate over from the hotel and he nodded at the unspoken directions. Kate gathered up her purse and turned, ready to leave when Emily called out.

"Wait," she pleaded, rushing out of the hallway with a bag. "Can you give me a ride to the hotel?"

"Emily," Jason said with a shake of his head. "You don't need to go."

"Um...yeah, big brother," she said pointedly. "I do. I'd rather not be around for your reunion with Elizabeth."

Carly made a sour face of disgust and Jason dipped his head in uncomfortable embarrassment. "Okay," he said, "I'll call you tomorrow?"

"Or the next day," Emily said airily with a wave of her hand. "There's no rush. Bye, Elizabeth!"

She waved her hand in quiet farewell, her cheeks burning from her new friend's bluntness. Carly looked at her and then turned away, a retort surely on her tongue, but Elizabeth knew that she'd swallow it. When Jax had come down to the island he'd laid down the law with Carly. He'd told her to get over the fact that Jason had someone in his life and to stop acting like a child. Then he called up Emily and asked if the boys could come over for an afternoon. Alone.

Elizabeth had gotten the chance to meet Michael and Morgan and get to know them. She at first was uncomfortable, and wondered if she should apologize to them for hitting their mother. But Michael had beaten her to it. He said that his mom acted that way about anybody in his dad or Uncle Jason's life, but if Uncle Jason and Aunt Emily liked her, then he was willing to give her a chance. He turned out to be a nice boy, despite some moments when he clearly showed he was Carly's son.

"I can't believe you, Sonny," Carly turned on him once Kate and Emily were gone. "How could you not tell me what you were doing?"

"Like I told Kate," he said wearily, "everyone needed to think that I wasn't in charge."

"But I'm your wife," she protested.

"Ex-wife," he returned pointedly, looking at Jax. "You're married to Jax now, remember? I have to accept that and stay out of your life. Well, you have to accept my life is no longer your concern and stay out of it."

"Not my concern?" she challenged, raising her eyebrows. "We have two boys, Sonny. Remember them? They thought their father was gravely injured. They were worried about you. Michael kept asking why he couldn't go back to Port Charles and help his uncle find the man who had hurt his father. I should have known the truth so I could help them."

"So you could tell them the truth?" Sonny asked and took a step towards her. "So that if anyone was watching you they would wonder why my children didn't seem to be acting like their father was hurt?"

"The island is supposed to be safe," Carly shouted. "Who could be watching?"

"Someone got close enough to attack Elizabeth," he said. "I wasn't going to take any chances. So I'm sorry you don't like it and I'm sorry that I couldn't help you get one up on Kate, but I made the decision not to tell you and you're just going to have to accept it."

She looked ready to say more when Jax put his hand on her arm and spoke for the first time since they'd arrived at Jason's house. "What are you planning on telling the boys?"

"I wanted to come over tomorrow and tell them that I'm better. Spend some time with them," the father said. "I...I think we should just stick to the story with them. I was hurt, but now I'm better. It'll be better than trying to explain."

"You mean explain to them why you lied," Carly seethed.

"They're children, Carly," he said. "I didn't like that I had to do it, but I don't think they're old enough to understand the truth."

"I agree," Jax stated, clearly shocking the other three adults in the room. Emily and Kate had told her that Jax and Sonny didn't agree on much, but that he was probably the best influence in Michael and Morgan's life. Elizabeth could see Sonny's face twisting slightly, but he did seem grateful to have support.

"How can you side with him?" she demanded angrily of her husband.

"Because he's right," Jax stated simply. "The boys are better off thinking he's healthy now and just spending time with him. And he's also right, and so is Jason, you need to get over this Carly. You aren't married to either of them, stop trying to control their lives. Worry more about our life and your sons. How exactly do you expect me to want to have a baby with you when you run off constantly to help Jason and Sonny all the time? I'd like for us to more important than them. And don't tell me that this is because Sonny is Michael and Morgan's father; I'm your husband."

She looked taken aback and he took advantage of her silence, "We're going home. In the morning, Sonny will come see Michael and Morgan and spend some time with them."

Then looking at Sonny he said, "Tomorrow Carly and I will rent a suite at the casino and you can have your villa back. It's just that the boys are asleep right now and we don't want to wake them up by packing our stuff."

"I understand," he said. "And you don't need a suite; you can have one of the cabanas. That way the boys will be close to the beach."

"I thought we'd leave them with you," the other man said, once again surprising everyone. "You haven't seen them in a while and all their stuff is already unpacked in their rooms."

"What?" Carly demanded. "When were you going to ask me about this? I'm their mother."

"And Sonny is their father," he stated, steering her towards the door. "Let's go."

They left, a guard trailing behind them and then there were just three. Jason looked at the closed door, and then at Sonny, before letting his eyes drift over to Elizabeth. She smiled at him, trying to let him know that she supported him after this crazy storm. Sonny followed the younger man's gaze and then gave Elizabeth a smile.

"Elizabeth," he said, his voice now softening from the harsh, annoyed tone he'd had with Carly. "It's a pleasure to meet you. I've heard a lot about you from Jason. I'm glad he's finally found someone who makes him smile again."

She found herself blushing as she stood. "Thank you. It's nice to meet you. I've heard a lot about you as well these past few weeks."

He chuckled and said, "I believe it. Just give me a chance before you decide whether or not to keep your initial impression of me."

He turned to Jason and said, "Well, I'm going to have Marco take me to the hotel. Kate's in the owner's suite, but I'm sure that somewhere in that great big place they'll manage to shoehorn me in."

"You don't have to go," Jason shook his head.

"Stay here?" the older man asked. When Jason nodded, he shook his head. "I think I'll follow Emily's lead here and say that the two of you should have your reunion in peace. Nobody needs a third wheel at a moment like this."

He turned to smile at Elizabeth, "I look forward to seeing you again and getting the chance to know you."

"Yeah," she said softly. She didn't know whether she was looking forward to it or not, but she knew that it would certainly be interesting.

"I'll walk you out," Jason said, with a look at Elizabeth.

"I'll be in our room," she told him. "Bye, Sonny."

Then she walked down the tiled hallway to the room she'd come to think of as hers. Her home near the hotel didn't feel right anymore. Jason's place had definitely become her home.

Walking into the bathroom, she took a deep breath and then pulled open the drawer next to the sink. She'd been in here when Jason called and said that everyone would be arriving soon and she'd hastily exited. Now she stood there feeling nervous and wondering what Jason would say.

"Hey," he smiled at her, standing in the doorway to the bathroom. He'd arrived much sooner than she'd expected. "I thought maybe you'd be waiting in bed."

When she didn't say anything, just looked up to meet his gaze in the mirror, he frowned and stepped closer. When he was behind her, he looked down at the object in her hand that held her fascination. "What's that?"

"A...uh," she licked her lips and felt her hand tremble. "A pregnancy test. I took it from the hotel clinic as I was leaving today."

"Elizabeth?"

Her eyes filled with tears as she looked up and met his in the mirror. He looked stunned and she had no idea what he'd say, if he would be happy or upset but it never crossed her mind to hide the truth from him.

"I'm...I'm pregnant."

"You..." Jason swallowed and licked his lips, staring at the test in her hand, then looked up to meet her gaze in the mirror. "You're pregnant?"

Elizabeth dropped her gaze away from his and pulled her bottom lip in between her teeth, worrying it raw. She only stopped when Jason put his hands on her shoulders and turned her to face him, then lifted her head by placing the knuckle of his finger under her chin and forcing her gaze up. "Elizabeth?"

"I...according to this test I am," she said. "I...I planned to have a doctor examine me tomorrow. Or later today...or whatever."

He frowned, "Patrick?"

"No," she shook her head. "One of the doctors at the clinic. They, uh...they'd be more circumspect than Patrick. They also wouldn't lecture me like I'm sure he would. I...I didn't want anyone to know I was taking a test before I found out and got the chance to tell you."

"But you suspect you are," he clarified. "That's why you took the test."

She nodded. This discussion seemed so cold, so impersonal. She knew they hadn't really talked about having children, this certainly wasn't planned, but she couldn't figure out what Jason was feeling and it was making it hard for her to decide what she was feeling. "I...I realized I was late and I...I was feeling tired and slightly nauseous. I thought it better to take a test before looking for other reasons. Hoofbeats don't have to mean zebras, they're often just horses."

He frowned slightly, then shook his head. "So...so these are accurate?"

"For the most part," she confirmed. "These are what we use at the clinic for a first answer."

She sighed and then asked, "Jason, what...what are you thinking?"

"What are you thinking?" he turned the question on her.

"I think I want to know whether you're mad or not."

He blinked, almost as if the concept was foreign to him. "Why would I be mad?"

"Because we hadn't planned this," she pointed out. "I mean the closest we got to discussing children was me saying that Emily and Kate had said some things that got me thinking and that one day I...I would like to have your children. But we never talked."

"We're talking now," he answered simply, almost maddenly in his calmness. "But I...I'm not mad, Elizabeth. Surprised, yes."

She closed her eyes and sagged against him, feeling relieved when his arms came up around her. "I didn't really think you'd be mad, I just...I just needed to hear it. I...oh, man."

"What is it?" he asked, concern touching his voice as his hand rested lightly against her back. "Are you feeling ill?"

"Only at the thought of what others are going to say," she confessed.

"Others?" his voice now holding confusion. "Emily's going to be thrilled. You know that. She'll..."

He chuckled and sounded resigned and frustrated as he continued. "She's going to buy this baby everything it could ever need before it's even born. She likes you. And Sonny...Sonny will be happy for us. He likes children, loves his. Kate...she'll be happy for you."

He paused and Elizabeth knew he had arrived at the one person that was causing her worries. But he surprised her when he said with a sigh, "My family is probably going to see this as an opportunity to try to get me back to ELQ."

She had heard all about Jason and Emily's family from the young woman and knew the tension-filled relationship Jason had with them. Emily had already warned Elizabeth about Edward, the siblings' grandfather, saying that if Elizabeth moved to Port Charles Edward was going to try to become close to her in an attempt to get close to Jason. In her teasing and joking way, Emily had been quite informative. Elizabeth was now having horrible visions of stocks and hovering and Edward seeing her baby as a chance to have a different outcome than had occurred with Michael.

"Emily had warned me about your family, especially your grandfather, when I was talking about moving to Port Charles," she admitted. "But Jason...I...I'm actually dreading Carly finding out."

He sighed and tightened his hold on her. "Yeah. She's...she's not going to react well."

She wanted to say Jason was the king of understatement there, but didn't want to fight with him. She knew that he was having enough difficulties with the blonde and had gone to talk to her to tell her to stop verbally attacking Elizabeth. After Jason returned to Port Charles and Carly's husband Jax arrived, the two women had been strained and coldly polite whenever they were unfortunate enough to run into each other. But Elizabeth had always felt the other woman's bubbling hatred for her just under the surface. This news would cause it to erupt.

"She's going to accuse me of getting pregnant on purpose to trap you," she said, feeling that it had to be said because forwarned was forarmed. "After that day by the pool, when we had our fight, she's going to think that I did this deliberately. That I either lied to you about being on the pill or poked holes in the condoms all so that I could have your baby."

"Listen to me," Jason said, smoothing his hand over her hair and then rubbing small circles on her back. "I'll handle Carly. I'm not going to let her attack you and I don't want you fighting with her. It's not good for you or the baby."

"You can't be with me every second," she pointed out. "Especially in Port Charles. She's going to see me, one way or another, and she's going to hate me. I'm already an evil person who's taking you away from your real family - meaning the boys. Now that I'm having your child? I'm going to be evil incarnate, one step below the devil. There's no point denying it."

"There's also no point getting upset about it, Elizabeth," he tried to calm her down. "I'm going to make it quite clear to her that I won't tolerate her attacking you. And if that means that we have to stay here for your entire pregnancy, then that's what we'll do."

She pulled back and looked at up him, "What?"

"We'll stay on the island," he repeated. "If that's what it takes so that you're not attacked during your pregnancy."

"Wow," she breathed out. "Like that won't make her hate me worse. But I was actually looking forward to moving to Port Charles. I want to be with you, Jason."

"We would be together," he told her with a smile. "I don't want to miss this experience with you; Sonny will understand and we'll work something out."

"But you shouldn't have to," she shook her head. "Besides...Port Charles is your home. The island...it's been my home only because I needed it to recover. I don't need to hide away from the rest of the world here anymore. This place will always be special to me and I hope we can spend more than just a few days or weeks here, but I don't need to live here. What I need is you, because I love you, and I want to be where you are. Not have you rearrange your life to be with me."

"Okay," he smiled placatingly, "we'll talk about it. Tomorrow. Right now, you look like you need sleep. I need sleep. So come on; we'll talk again in the morning."

Apparently confirmation of her pregnancy was enough to trigger morning sickness. Jason had accompanied Elizabeth to the clinic this morning, not just because the medical building was in a dangerous part of town, but because he wanted to be there with her. He'd meant it last night when he told her he wanted to experience this pregnancy with her. When he'd taken care of Michael, he had done so because Carly showed up on his door in trouble and needing his help. Not because he'd known from the beginning that the child growing inside her was his.

Elizabeth had fallen asleep easily last night, a byproduct of the pregnancy she told him, but Jason had lain awake for hours. He was stunned, and just a little shaken, at hearing Elizabeth tell him she was pregnant. He would never consider their child a mistake, and he would hurt anyone who dared to make such a statement, but it was true that they hadn't planned on getting pregnant. The night their child was conceived, he had been caught off guard when she said that she'd been thinking about having children with him and wanted them.

Once he had thought about children, but after everything that happened with Zacharra and the threats, especially knowing that Elizabeth had nearly been strangled to death, had doused all such thoughts. His life was dangerous, and while Anthony Zacharra was mad as a hatter and Jason had happily dispatched the man to his death, the older mob boss had said something truthful. Jason wasn't the boss like Sonny was; Jason was the man sent out to kill on orders and so was a target all in his own right. Any child of his would have a bulls-eye on his back and would be in danger from the moment anyone found out about him. Would the guards in the organization protect his family as diligently as they protected Sonny's?

It was something he was going to have to discuss with Sonny, and then do everything in his power to ensure his family's protection. The security system at the penthouse was going to be upgraded and overhauled, Elizabeth was going to be assigned guards, and he knew she wouldn't like it, but he was going to have to talk to her about her desire to work in a hospital. He was not going to leave her vulnerable there to some psycho walking in off the street and using the staff's compassion against her in an attempt to send a message to Jason and Sonny.

All these thoughts had rolled around and around in his brain until he finally fell asleep beside Elizabeth, determined that whatever happened, he would spare no expense and would willingly go to any length to protect his family. Because that's what she was now. He already felt that way simply because he loved her. But now they had transcended that. She was having his child; she was giving him something that nobody else had, that nobody could take away. He couldn't find all the words to describe what he was feeling, all he knew was that he wanted to be there however, and whenever he could.

And that began by going with Elizabeth to the clinic to get her pregnancy confirmed. All they'd done was perform another pregnancy test, but it came back positive as well, and Jason didn't know whose smile was broader. Elizabeth's or the doctor's. Clearly the man was pleased for his colleague. As they were leaving, Elizabeth had begun to feel queasy, and they had to stop twice on the way back to the villa so she could throw up on the side of the road.

All she wanted to do was go to sleep when they returned and she told him to go ahead and meet with Sonny if he wanted. He could even tell his friend and Kate the news, but she wanted to be there when he told Emily - if possible. She also left it up to him to tell Carly however he wanted; she wanted no part of that conversation.

With a call to the guards, Jason knew that Sonny was at his house with the boys and Leticia. Jax had apparently kept true to his word and ushered Carly off to another place this morning so that Sonny could reconnect with his children. Kate and Emily were at the hotel, so while Jason didn't want to interrupt his friend's time with the boys, he wanted to tell his friend the news so he could call the guards back home to get started on the upgrades.

"Uncle Jason!" Michael cried as he looked up and spotted Jason standing on the patio looking out over the beach. "You're here, too?"

Jason accepted the boys' hugs and listened to them talk about their excitement in having their father back. Finally they sensed that their uncle had things to talk about, and so they headed down to the beach along with a guard and their nanny.

"What's up?" Sonny asked, looking relaxed and relieved to see his children again. "Is something wrong with you and Elizabeth?"

"No," he said, tugging on his ear. "Actually... I wanted to tell you that...that Elizabeth is pregnant."

The older man turned and looked at Jason in surprise. "Pregnant?"

"Yeah," he breathed out, letting a smile play over his face. "I...I'm going to be a father and things...things are going to change."

Jason knew that things were about to get ugly. Sonny had actually been understanding when Jason told him about the baby. He'd been happy for his friend and once the older man was assured that Jason didn't plan on trying to get out of the organization, he agreed that things would have to change. Jason had a family now of his own and a woman he loved that he needed to protect.

Jason would continue to take care of business, but he wasn't going to be saddled with the petty stuff that other guards and employees could take care of. And most of all, Jason had said pointedly and firmly to Sonny, he was tired of getting pulled into the middle of things between him and Carly. Sonny needed to deal with his ex-wife on his own, to stop pawning her off on Jason simply because Sonny was too busy chasing after Kate. Business was one thing, personal lives were another. Sonny had narrowed his eyes slightly, but then nodded in concession and said that he understood. He had been relying on Jason way too much to handle things instead of dealing with them himself. It wasn't fair to Jason, and now that Elizabeth and the baby were in his life, it wouldn't be fair to them.

There was a part of Jason that wondered if Sonny had agreed too easily. If his friend truly meant what he'd said, or if Jason would have to remind the older man about this several times. He would if necessary, but he didn't want there to be tension between them. They'd had enough of that in the past when Sonny had dated Emily and Jason had taken over the business in an attempt to get his boss to stop dating her. He had been certain that the Cuban loved the power of business more than he loved Jason's baby sister, and had been disappointed when Sonny stayed with her. Eventually the relationship ended and they got their friendship back, but things had been strained for a while. Jason didn't want to have to go through that again.

He liked working for Sonny, it was all he really knew how to do and his loyalty and honor demanded that he do his best. But in the years since the accident, Jason was coming to learn that he could have things he wanted as well without it needing to be labeled disloyalty. Jason deserved the right to be happy with a family just as Sonny was with his and he was determined to fight for it. He just didn't want to have to fight his best friend on it, and he was glad that Sonny hadn't challenged him from the beginning. Maybe the older man was trying to show his conciliatory side to Kate in an attempt to win her back, or maybe he just finally had realized that Jason had interests outside of Sonny's. Whatever the reason, Jason hadn't pushed his luck by pressing the matter with Sonny.

He joined Sonny and the boys down at the beach and told them that when they got back to Port Charles things were going to be different. Elizabeth was going to be moving there and staying with him, and they were going to have a baby. Morgan hadn't seemed very interested in the news, but Michael asked if this meant Elizabeth would be his aunt now and if the baby would be his cousin. Jason tried to answer the boy's questions as best he could, considering there were some answers he had only begun to formulate himself, and then left Sonny to answer any other further inquiries.

It seemed only fair. Jason had handled the little boys' questions in the past; it was time Sonny had to tackle the tough ones. Like Morgan's inquiry of where babies came from. Jason had been anxious to leave, because there was a stop he needed to make before he got back to Elizabeth. Sonny understood without him actually voicing it, and as Jason left he knew his friend's 'good luck' was not directed at dealing with Elizabeth's morning sickness.

With a call to the guards, Jason learned that Carly and Jax were at the villa Jax had arranged for them to occupy for the remainder of their time on the island. He thought about calling ahead, but then decided that he didn't want to have to deal with Carly any sooner than he had to. She was not going to take the news well; Elizabeth had been correct in her assessment there. But Jason was determined deal with the situation head on and let Carly know from the beginning how things were going to be.

He wasn't surprised to have Jax open the door, Carly was probably pouting because her husband had sided with Sonny and this was her way of punishing him. Jason had never fully understood his friend's relationship with the Australian, but the more he observed their interactions, the more he was beginning to think he'd underestimated the businessman. Jax dealt with Carly's impulsive and sometimes destructive behavior better than Sonny ever had, and he actually had a calming effect on the blonde. He didn't belittle her like Sonny had at times, and he genuinely loved Michael and Morgan, and was actually a good presence in their lives. Hopefully, he would be so in the next few months because Jason knew that Carly was about to go over the edge here.

"Hey, Jason," Jax smiled at him after opening the door. "I didn't expect to see you today."

"Yeah," he sighed with a roll of his shoulders. "Is Carly around?"

"She on the back porch," the Australian told him. "You can go on out."

"Actually," Jason said slightly uncomfortably. "I...I was hoping to talk to both of you."

Jax appraised him for a moment and said, "In other words, you want me there so that when you talk to Carly I can help rein her in."

He grimaced at the accurate assessment and then nodded. "Yeah, I think she's going to need you there. I...I have something to tell her and she's not going to like it."

"Well, let's get it over with," the businessman sighed and led Jason through the house. "In a situation like this, Morgan, it's best to just rip the band-aid off all at once as opposed to pulling it back a little at a time."

Carly looked up as the men stepped out onto the patio and she crossed her arms over her chest as she sat on the chaise lounge. "Come to yell at me some more?" she demanded of Jason. "Tell me to stay away from your precious little china doll because I might hurt her feelings?"

"Actually, I came to tell you something," Jason stated, looking around the shaded area uncomfortably. He waited until Jax sat down beside Carly and then took a cushioned chair across from her.

"What?" she asked, lifting a brow in pure disgruntlement.

"Elizabeth is going to be moving to Port Charles," Jason began.

Carly closed her eyes and he saw her mouth working, even though it remained closed. Finally with a heavy breath through her nose she said, "Let me guess, that was her idea. Move closer to the money train."

"It was her idea," Jason agreed. "Because she loves me."

"She loves your money," his friend hissed.

"Carly," he sighed in warning. "Elizabeth is not like that. You don't know her, you haven't attempted to get to know her and I'm getting really tired of you attacking her just because you have some stupid notion in your head that she's taking me away from your boys. They have a father, they have a stepfather, I'm just their uncle. I won't stop being their uncle, but it's not like I'm over at your house every day playing with them in the first place. So knock it off."

Her eyes widened and then she leaned back petulantly against the chair and tightened her arms over her chest. "Fine. Is that all? Your little girlfriend will be moving to Port Charles? What's next, you going to propose, expect the boys to call her Aunt Elizabeth? Should we plan where we'll have Easter and Fourth of July and Christmas like some big happy family?"

Jax placed his hand on Carly's arm and said softly, "Carly."

She jerked her arm out of his touch and then looked at Jason. "Well? Is there more?"

"Actually," Jason admitted. "There is. Elizabeth is pregnant."

"I knew it," she spit out. "I knew she was going to try to get pregnant in order to trap you. When I heard her and Emily and Kate talking, I knew she was planning it. She's nothing more than a tramp who's using a child to tie you to her because she knows she'll be set for life. Are you even sure it's yours?"

"That's enough!" Jason bellowed as he stood up. "I knew you be like this and I thought about letting you find out from someone else, but I figured it was better to deal with this now."

He held up a hand and said very firmly, "Let's get some things straight right now. Elizabeth did not get pregnant on purpose. She was just as surprised as I was. She didn't do this to trap me or because she's trying to get my money. She doesn't care about my money. She's not you!"

Jax lowered his head and Carly gasped in immediate and well-practiced hurt. Jason shook his head and said, "We had this conversation before, Carly. I told you you shouldn't go around saying things about other people using their children or trying to get pregnant to trap a man. I told you to stop attacking her, I told you I didn't want to hear you badmouthing her, but you never listen to anything I have to say. If you don't like what you hear, you just pretend you never heard it and continue acting how you want to act.

"I'm not going to put up with it," he nearly shouted at her. "I will not have you attacking Elizabeth and I won't tolerate you saying anything bad about my child. I'm happy that Elizabeth is pregnant. I love her, and I already love my child."

She swallowed and stood, approaching him slowly. "You'll be a wonderful father, Jason. You...you were great with Michael."

When she tried to touch his arm he stepped back away from her. "Don't, Carly. Michael hasn't been my son for a long time. I will always love him just like I love Morgan, but don't start talking about the past and how great of a family we made. He doesn't remember that time and he has other people in his life now. Because of you. This is my child and I...I'm glad Elizabeth is going to be its mother. I'm glad."

"So this is it then?" she asked. "I either accept Elizabeth in your life or lose you? Will she even let me around your child?"

"I'd like you to know my child," Jason told his friend. "But I won't put up with you disrespecting Elizabeth, Carly. I'm not going to let you be around either one of them when your hatred rolls off you in waves. Don't think you can pretend, because I'll know and so will my child and if I have to tell the guards to keep you away like the Quartermaines then you'll have no one to blame but yourself."

She stepped back, dashing at the tears on her face. "So I'm just a horrible person, that's what you're saying?"

Jason rolled his eyes and was grateful when Jax stood up and approached his wife. "Carly, that's not what Jason is saying, but he is right. You've never given Elizabeth a chance. You were using your boys against her, you badmouthed her in front of them, and you can't pull out the best friend card now and expect Jason to let you be around his child when you hate that child's mother."

"You're supposed to be on my side," she told him. "Last night and now...it's like you're all siding against me."

"We're not attacking you, Carly," the Australian shook his head, "but we're also not going to support you on something when it's not right."

She looked away from Jax and over at Jason, "So when is she moving in with you?"

"I don't know," he shook his head. "She's got to pack up her stuff here and she's not been feeling well. I'm not going to rush her. If we have to stay here through her first trimester, then we'll do that."

"I see," Carly said, running her tongue over her teeth. "Well, then. I guess we'll see you whenever you and your girlfriend decide to grace us with your presence back home. Now that the threat's over and Sonny's not injured, I suppose there's no reason for me and the boys to stay down here any longer."

"Aside from letting them have some time with their father," Jax said softly.

"Fine," she hissed. "Let them stay here with Sonny. I want to go home. I'm tired of my family, my friends, treating me like I'm some horrible, awful person. If Sonny wants to stay here and bond with the boys and you," she flung at Jason, "want to shack up with your baby's momma, then why should I stick around for that? I've got a hotel to run."

"Fine," Jason nodded, knowing that anything further was only going to make Carly angrier and he simply didn't want to deal with her any longer. If she wanted to leave, then she could go. "Then call Sonny and make the arrangements with him."

He looked at Jax and then turned to head back into the house so he could leave. He was in the living room when the businessman called out to him, "Jason."

Turning, he arched a brow and looked at the other man in question. Jax gave a shrug as he tucked his hands into his pockets. "Give her some time. She doesn't want to lose your friendship, and as much as I don't always like it or understand it, I know how important it is to her."

Jason nodded in understanding but said, "I'm not going to allow her to attack Elizabeth or ignore her. She has to learn that I have a life of my own. A life I want."

"I know," the other man nodded. "And with some time, hopefully she will. But I think for now, it's probably best we head back to Port Charles. I'll have her call Sonny, and I'll call to get my jet ready."

"Alright," Jason nodded, somewhat impatiently. "Do what you want. I want to get back to Elizabeth."

"That's understandable," Jax smiled. "And Jason?"

He paused at the door and turned back, "Yeah?"

"Congratulations to you and Elizabeth."

"How could you not tell me before this?" Emily pouted as she sat down across from Elizabeth. The only thing that had stopped Emily from giving her a bone-crushing hug like she'd given to Jason was that it was quite clear the slightest jostling would probably make Elizabeth throw up all over the younger woman.

"How come Carly found out before me?" she asked, turning to glare at Jason as he sat down carefully on the couch next to Elizabeth. He didn't crowd her, didn't even lift her feet to settle into his lap.

"Because I wanted to be with Jason when he told you," Elizabeth tried to explain to the younger woman. "I know he's your brother, but you've become a friend to me while you've been down here and you were the only person I cared about enough to want to be there when he broke the news."

Apparently, her explanation worked. Because Emily beamed brightly, even as her eyes moistened. "Oh, this is so great. I liked you from the first time I met you because it was obvious Jason loved you and you made him happy. Then as I got to know you, I was going to stop at nothing to make sure you moved to Port Charles. Jason would like it, and I would have someone there I could hang out with as well. But you were already thinking about moving there, so then I just wanted to make sure that you and my brother were happy."

She giggled and Elizabeth half-expected her to clap her hands. "I knew you guys were going to be a family and have children. And your kids are going to be gorgeous. Forget Shiloh or Suri winning the gene pool, those kids are gonna have nothing on yours. 'Cause you guys aren't stopping at one, are you? I mean, you're going to give me lots of nieces and nephews, right?"

"Emily," Jason groaned.

"Let's just make it through this first one," Elizabeth requested. Her head was already spinning and she knew by the time she delivered, Emily was probably going to make her wish they'd just stayed here on the island. Forget the Quartermaine family breathing down her neck about the heir to the empire; Elizabeth was more worried about Emily.

Because if she was already talking about siblings for this baby, it would only be a matter of time before she started talking wedding plans. And it wasn't that Elizabeth was opposed to the institution of matrimony, she just didn't want anyone putting pressure on Jason to do something simply because she was pregnant. Elizabeth had wanted the time in Port Charles to really get to know him. She knew she loved him and it wasn't like they were complete strangers, but their relationship had been different than most because of the long distance aspect of it.

She wanted to face the reality of the situation with him. To see how they dealt with annoyances over socks not tossed in the laundry basket or dirty dishes left in the sink because someone was too tired or too lazy to stick them in the dishwasher. How would she handle Jason being gone for business when she was officially living with him? She knew that it was going to be different from when he left the island to take care of things. And how would he handle the reality of her having to pull a double shift at the hospital because someone was sick or an accident happened and all personnel where needed to deal with the crises?

Elizabeth had been looking forward to that adjustment period before having to deal with new things. Of course, now they were going to have to adjust to both their new circumstances and a baby. Wasn't that enough? Was everyone going to now start hinting at marriage and future babies and everything all at once?

Jason was an honorable man and she knew that he would give this baby his name and love his child. Would that honor demand that his ring be on her finger before the baby was born? Should it matter to anybody but them what their legal status was when she was perfectly content and happy in her heart?

"You're right, of course," Emily agreed with a nod of her head. "I'm just so excited for you two. Jason...I know how wonderful you are with children. And now you'll have one of your own. Grandmother is going to be so happy for you. And Elizabeth, I've watched you with Michael and Morgan and I've seen you at the clinic and I figure anyone who has the patience to become a nurse is going to make a great mother. I just...I'm thrilled."

"We noticed," Jason said with just a hint of laughter in his voice.

"So is this why Carly left in a snit yesterday?" the brunette asked as she leaned back in her chair.

"It was a big part of it," Jason admitted and Elizabeth closed her eyes. He had told her about the blonde's reaction and while she was glad that the older woman was gone, she was not looking forward to encountering her in Port Charles. Somehow she didn't think that just because Elizabeth was pregnant that Carly Jacks was going to stop her verbal barrage. "She's also upset with Sonny and Jax and so she just wanted to go."

Emily tilted her head to the side and asked, "Do you think she's going to inform the family about your news? I can see her accidentally saying something, or deliberately talking about it to Jax when the family's around. You know how Grandfather is going to be when he finds out, and I wouldn't put it past her to let them know just because it would make your lives harder when you arrive."

"I don't know," Jason sighed. "I don't know what Carly's going to do."

"Well," his sister shrugged. "You'll just have to deal with it when it happens. When I get back to Port Charles, I'll see how things are, and I'll keep an eye on Carly, try to keep her from announcing the news out of spite. You know that Grandmother will try to keep Grandfather in line and even if you get annoyed with them, Mom and Dad will be happy for you, Jason."

"I know," he admitted, this time his sigh wasn't quite so annoyed. More like resigned.

"I should go," Emily said. "Elizabeth looks ready to fall asleep."

"Sorry, Em," she apologized, her voice slow and muffled against the pillow on the couch.

The brunette waived an airy hand, "Don't be. You just take care of yourself and the baby; Jason you take care of her. I'll have a guard take me back to the hotel. I'm going to head back with Kate tomorrow, but I'll call you before I leave."

"I'll walk you out," Jason said as he stood and headed towards his sister.

"Bye, Em," Elizabeth said, watching the younger woman go. She was asleep before Jason returned.

A week later, Elizabeth and Jason said good-bye to the last of the island visitors. Sonny flew back home with his children, knowing that he'd already lingered too long. Just because the Zacharras were gone did not mean his empire was safe. Since Jason had requested to stay on the island with Elizabeth until she was ready to move to Port Charles, and Sonny had agreed to it, both men knew that Sonny had to get home. Elizabeth knew there would be regular phone calls where Jason cloistered himself in his study, and he might have to fly back for a brief trip, but she also knew that she had him to herself once again.

Too bad she really couldn't take full advantage of it. Despite doing everything she had counseled other expectant mothers to do, fatigue, and worst of all, nausea plagued her. Frequent small meals didn't do anything except give her more to throw up, and lemon water, ginger ale, ginger tea and mint tea did nothing for her. It was getting to the point that the doctor at the clinic was becoming worried and told her that if they didn't find something soon, they might have to admit her. There were certain drugs they could give her to stop the nausea, but the medical profession liked to keep those as a last resort. She was apparently reaching the threshold.

Just her luck, she would end up in the small percentage of women who became violently ill while pregnant. If this kept up, Jason was bound to run off and get a vasectomy just to prevent the possibility of this ever happening again. She was of two minds as to whether she'd stop actually stop him. All she wanted was a little relief. And she knew the situation was getting bad when Patrick no longer chided her on her unplanned pregnancy but spent the majority of his house call frowning and looking decidedly worried.

"I think you should consider leaving the island," he suggested to her and Jason at the end of his exam. "This has been going on for weeks and I agree with Dr. Miguel at the clinic. She needs more treatment than the two of us can give her. I want her in a hospital with OB nurses monitoring her."

He looked at Elizabeth and said, "As great as the island is to work at and especially to visit when you're a tourist, this is not the place to try to treat a high risk pregnancy and that's where you're rapidly heading, Elizabeth. I could suggest several hospitals on the mainland, but I know Jason's from Port Charles and you were planning to move there, so I suggest you go now. General Hospital is a good one and I've researched the obstetrics staff. There are a couple of doctors I would feel good about taking over her case."

"What about the plane ride?" Jason asked.

"Yeah," Elizabeth agreed. "I really don't want to spend the entire time throwing up at cruising altitude."

"I uh...I had planned on going along to monitor you, fill your doctor in on all the specifics and then head home. So if it gets really bad, I can give you something," Patrick told her. "Dr. Miguel said he'd watch over the hotel clinic while I was gone. I really think it's better to have you go now, Elizabeth than wait and hope you feel better only to have you get worse."

Elizabeth looked up at Jason and was grateful that Patrick had the grace to step back and give them some privacy. Her boyfriend brushed her off her face and said, "Between me and the guards, we got most of your stuff packed up. We know what you wanted to take to Port Charles and what you wanted to bring over here. I agree with Patrick, Elizabeth. I want someone at General Hospital to take care of you. Emily's already given me a couple of names of OBs she knows and thinks will be good."

"I'm really not looking forward to the trip," Elizabeth said in self-indulgent misery, "and I don't want drugs unless it's a last resort."

"Elizabeth," he sighed softly, "You can barely get out of bed. I think we need to do something. I know you don't want to do anything that might harm the baby, but I'm not going to spend the next few months watching you be absolutely miserable."

She knew it was hard on him because this was out of his ability to do anything. And it wasn't like she was enjoying the situation either. With a weak nod she agreed, "Alright. Arrange it with Patrick."

"I will," he promised her, leaning down to brush his lips over her forehead. "We'll probably leave in a day or two. There's just something I need to take care of before we go."

Of all the ways Jason envisioned bringing Elizabeth to Port Charles, this was never on the list. He had hoped to one day be able to convince her to move from the island, and then thought it was amazing he had a girlfriend who thought the same way he did by bringing it up herself. Then when she told him he was going to be a father - the idea still left him breathless and amazed sometimes - he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that one of them would be moving. There was no way he was going to be a part-time father, showing up occasionally to see his child.

Once again, he hoped Elizabeth would want to move to Port Charles, and he was happy to see that they were on the same page still. She didn't want to stay on the island, she didn't need to hide there and try to recuperate. She wanted to be with him, she wanted him to be with her while she was pregnant, she wanted him to be there from the very first moment of their child's life. It was as important to her as it was to him and because there was never any discussion of any other options, he loved her all the more. He knew she truly understood him, because she felt the same way.

And then she became ill. As each morning dawned and she sometimes didn't even make it into the bathroom - having to utilize a bucket placed by the side of the bed - before she became ill, he grew worried. As the day would progress and her nausea didn't wane and she only continued to feel, and look, miserable, he knew that this wasn't right. This wasn't just normal morning sickness. And when Patrick and Dr. Miguel confirmed that and said that she needed to leave the island to get treatment at a better hospital than a hotel's doctor office or a free clinic, Jason vowed that he would do whatever it took to make sure Elizabeth and their baby were okay.

So he ordered the jet to stand by, he talked to Patrick about what the doctor wanted or might need on the flight, he gathered all items that Elizabeth sometimes found comfort in and temporary relief from, and he even put up with Patrick's presence. Because nothing mattered more than making sure Elizabeth was comfortable and taken care of. After all, she was the one who was carrying their child and being miserably sick in the process, the least he could do was make sure there was everything on hand for her.

So instead of slipping quietly back into town and settling into his penthouse, taking time to familiarize her with it and enjoy those few blissful days until someone who irritated him realized he was back and had brought his girlfriend along with him, Jason announced his arrival in a manner one notch below a marching band and a parade of elephants. The private jet touched down at the airstrip, where it was met by an ambulance that would take them straight to General Hospital. There was no way that would somehow slip under his family's radar. Elizabeth was being admitted, Jason didn't plan on being away from her side, and so news would travel to his parents who would then just happen by.

They would be curious, they would ask questions, and then they would find out exactly who Elizabeth was and why she was there. As soon as his family discovered she was pregnant, their quiet existence would be shattered. Monica would try to hide both her tears of happiness and her disappointment over the thought he would no doubt keep them out of the baby's life; Alan would ask questions, trying not to be too obtrusive, but no doubt succeeding in irritating Jason; and when Edward found out...Jason was already cringing about the way the older man would no doubt carry on. He hadn't been exaggerating when he told Elizabeth that his family would try to use her and this baby to bring him back into the fold. The only person who wouldn't irritate Jason would be Lila, but she didn't leave home very much anymore and he knew better than to count on her calming influence at the hospital. No matter how much he might actually want it.

"Don't frown so much," Elizabeth murmured tiredly under her oxygen mask as he sat beside her in the back of the ambulance. She insisted she didn't need the thing and was annoyed with Patrick's unwillingness to listen to her. "It's going to be alright, Jason."

"I hope so," he said, rolling his shoulders and trying to let go of his anxiety so he could focus on her.

"Jason, we're arriving in the middle of the night," she said with a bemused laugh. "I think we'll get a few hours respite from your family before they descend. So I expect you to sleep as well; even if that means you go to the penthouse."

"I'm not leaving you," he stated firmly and was pleased when she didn't pursue the subject any further. "I'm staying right by your side the entire time."

"That'll make exams interesting," Patrick chuckled from his seat.

Shooting a glare at the doctor, Jason growled, "Shut up, Drake. I appreciate everything you've done for Elizabeth and the baby, and for coming with us, but that doesn't mean I'm going to let you say such things about my-"

"Jason," Elizabeth tugged on his sleeve to get his attention. "Calm down. Patrick is just being Patrick."

"Well, he can go be Patrick somewhere else."

"Jason," she said once more, this time with a laugh. "Leave Patrick alone. He'll be going back to the island in a couple of days, and then..."

She paused and took a deep breath, her usual technique when she was hit with a large wave of nausea and he immediately forgot about Patrick and instead focused on Elizabeth. Brushing her hair back from her forehead he talked to her quietly, telling her about the time he visited the pyramids in Egypt in the attempt to distract her.

While Jason had never liked the place, he was grateful for the staff at General Hospital. Especially since they were currently taking care of Elizabeth.

When the ambulance arrived, despite it being in the middle of the night, they were met by a young doctor named Kelly Lee who told them that she was going to be Elizabeth's doctor throughout the pregnancy. Jason had initially been hesitant because he'd remembered Dr. Meadows from when Carly had Michael and had expected to see her, but when Dr. Lee said the older doctor had retired and she had absorbed a large number of the older woman's patients, Jason began to relax. If Dr. Meadows trusted Dr. Lee with her patients, then clearly the young doctor was good.

Within minutes, Jason could see that Elizabeth was comfortable. The doctor was constantly talking, sometimes bawdily, but it seemed to help. Elizabeth didn't look as tense anymore. Dr. Lee assured them both that she would examine and monitor Elizabeth, doing all within her power to keep the expectant mother comfortable, and would only use drugs as a last resort. But improvements had been made in medical care and drug therapy and the drug cocktail that could provide some relief to Elizabeth wasn't as risky as it once was. The doctor was confident they could help Elizabeth with her unceasing nausea without compromising care to the baby.

With Elizabeth's mind greatly relieved, she was able to settle into her private hospital room - one thing Jason had insisted on - and looked like she may actually sleep soon. Patrick went to give Dr. Lee Elizabeth's medical records and inform her about her new patient's care, and Jason took the opportunity to close the door and dim the lights.

"See?" Elizabeth smiled at him, reaching out her hand. He sat down on the bed facing her and took it, sweeping his thumb over her skin. "That wasn't so bad. We managed to sneak in without your family descending on us."

"Yeah," he agreed with a chuckle. "But it's still early. Trust me, they'll get wind of it and will be by later today."

"And you'll deal with them and it will all be okay," she said with perfect trust in him.

"I just don't want them bothering you," Jason insisted. "You don't need to deal with the stress they'll bring. Not right now."

"I'll be fine, Jason," she tried to assure him. She brought their joined hands to rest lightly on her stomach, her own thumb sweeping a pattern on his hand. "We'll be fine."

"You should rest," he told her.

"I will if you will," she replied back.

"I'll rest in the chair once you're asleep," he told her, and wondered if she might actually believe him.

The arch look she gave him told him maybe she didn't. She pulled her hand back from his, and then slowly shifted on the bed, leaving one side open. "Come on."

"Elizabeth," he shook his head. He knew what she was offering.

"Jason," she said firmly. "Lay down. I'm tired, I want to sleep, and I'm not going to be able to do that if I'm worried about you. Maybe it's just a side effect of the drug Patrick had to give me on the airplane, or maybe I'm just having a good moment, but I don't feel totally nauseous right now. Since I'm not currently worried about puking all over you, I'd like to actually feel your arms around me. I miss you holding me, probably as much as you miss being able to touch me without worrying about making me ill."

He did miss holding her. "Are you sure?"

"Come on," she coaxed him. "We both need some rest for the circus this place will probably turn into tomorrow."

Carefully, as if he expected her to change her mind at any moment and reach for the plastic basin on the table beside her, Jason toed off his boots and then stretched out on the bed beside her, taking care not to crowd her too much. She sighed and leaned her head against his shoulder and he closed his eyes. It was so wonderful to be this close to her again and he was going to take advantage of it while he could.

"Good night, Jason," she said sleepily.

"Good night," he replied and kissed the crown of her head. Somehow he suspected she never even heard him.

Life fell apart in five minutes. Jason left Elizabeth's side to use the bathroom and make a quick call to Sonny to let his friend know that they had arrived safely, and by the time he was closing his phone, he could hear chaos out in her room. Stepping out into the room, he glared at his family surrounding Elizabeth who was trying to sit up and wipe the sleep from her eyes.

"What are you doing?" he demanded harshly and everyone quieted and turned look at him.

"I'm sorry, Jason," Emily apologized. "Dad heard one of the nurses talking this morning and he searched the hospital records. He was talking to Mom when Grandfather arrived for the weekly board meeting. Grandfather insisted on coming here. I tried to stop them, but I couldn't."

"It's alright," he told her, all the while giving Edward a look that said how clearly not right the old man's behavior was.

"Jason, my boy," Edward smiled, pretending not to be flustered by the glare he was receiving. Or maybe he was just too stupid to realize how unsteady the ground was beneath his feet. "Of course your family is going to be curious when we hear you've returned to town and you're with some obstetrics patient who is claiming to have your child. Especially when you insult all of us by signing her in under the name of Morgan."

"First of all," Jason said with fury simmering under his words as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Elizabeth isn't claiming to have my child. That makes her sound like she's lying. She is pregnant with our baby."

Edward's eyes went wide and a calculatory gleam entered them.

"Second," Jason continued on, his voice firming. "It's not an insult to you at all if I sign her in under the name of Morgan, because you're not my family."

He held up one finger, silencing the old man. "And third, Morgan is her name because Elizabeth is my wife. So I'm telling you all right now, to get out of her room because she is in a high risk pregnancy and she doesn't need any of you making it worse."

"I can't believe that once again I didn't know anything about this," Emily said with a huff as she sat down beside Elizabeth's bed. If the nurse didn't know that Jason's sister wasn't truly upset, she would be offended at the entitled tone the other woman projected. After dealing with Jason's family, she could understand why he'd been so worried about them finding out she was in the hospital. That was quite a wake-up from people who were supposedly in the medical profession.

"Once again, I'm the last to know something so important about my brother. But," Emily smiled brightly, "you can make that all up to me by giving me every last detail about your wedding."

"You aren't actually the last to know," Elizabeth deflected. "I'm pretty sure Sonny knows and so maybe Kate does, but this time you can at least lord it over Carly's head that you know about the wedding before she did. That should help take the sting away for her knowing about the baby before you."

The intern's eyes widened and she said, "Carly doesn't know you're married?"

Elizabeth closed her eyes, leaning her head back against the scratchy pillowcase and said, "No."

"Oh," her sister-in-law breathed out. "She's going to have kittens when she finds out."

"Yeah," she answered dryly. "I'm pretty much resigned to it."

"I have to ask," Emily leaned forward and Elizabeth opened her eyes to look at the other woman. "Are you really married, or was it just something Jason said to shut Grandfather up and make it easier for you to get a private room and him to be with you?"

"Do you really think your brother would lie about something as significant as marriage?" She wasn't offended on behalf of her husband, she was just a little surprised that his sister would actually ask such a question.

"No," Emily immediately shook her head. "You're right. Of course he wouldn't lie about something like that. So how did it happen? Come on, Elizabeth, I want details. I was hoping that you and Jason would get married some day and not just because of the baby - it wasn't just because of the baby was it? - but I was hoping that I would get to be there."

"First," Elizabeth assured her, "no, it wasn't just because of the baby and it wasn't just because we were coming to Port Charles. Although that did factor into your brother's thinking. He knew that it was going to be tough enough when people found out I was pregnant; he said he refused to let anyone say anything about our child being illegitimate or anything like that because we weren't married."

She sighed and smiled wistfully at the memory of Jason's argument as they pulled up at the simple white chapel on the north side of the island on their way to the airport. "He knew that the families would be more apt to not cause problems if I was his wife, and he knew that your family and the hospital would be easier to deal with if I wasn't just his pregnant girlfriend. When he put it so romantically, I refused him."

Emily's eyes went wide and she coughed, "You refused him?"

"Yeah," Elizabeth nodded. "Because so far, everything he said was all about the baby. It was about making things easier and protecting me and being responsible. That's not what a marriage should be based on. I love Jason and I do want to be married to him, I'm happy that we are. But at the time, all I heard from him was anything but love. Our baby was not going to be a responsibility, and I wasn't going to marry him just to keep people from talking or any other reason like that. And I told him that quite bluntly."

"Wow," her sister-in-law breathed out. "That would certainly shut grandfather up. He thinks that you're after Jason's and the family's money - although he'd completely prepared to give you massive amounts of ELQ stock if you'll agree to make Jason come to the monthly board meetings and vote as proxy for the baby - or that Jason only married you to keep you safe from other nuts like Anthony Zacharra. Aunt Tracy is of course livid and demanding a paternity test because she's afraid of some illegitimate brat getting ELQ stock - Father's promised to rewrite his will and leave all his holdings to Jason's children - and trying to find some way to declare your marriage invalid."

Now it was Elizabeth's turn to breath out, "Wow. I had no idea so many people so unconnected to Jason would have such strong reactions."

"Despite what the family may say about Jason and despite what he feels about them, they do love him. Or," she shrugged, "maybe they just want to try to find another angle to control him. The only people genuinely happy are Grandmother - she's declared that she's going to come down to see you just as soon as I assure her you're not quite so sick anymore and that you're up for a visit - and I honestly think that Mom and Dad are happy for Jason. They have an odd push-pull relationship with him. They want to be closer, they try to respect his boundaries, but they push, he pushes back, they all get upset, they all lash out...it's twisted, but it's your family now."

"Yeah," she nodded. "I've come to realize that."

"So if you refused him," Emily smirked at her, "how did Jason convince you? 'Cause you are signed in as Elizabeth Morgan."

"After I refused him and he stopped looking so shocked, he quickly scrambled into action. First, he told Patrick to shut up and go away."

"Patrick was there?"

"We were on our way to the airport and we needed another witness besides the driver," Elizabeth shrugged. "He was there by default. And he thought it was quite funny that Jason was turned down. He really wasn't helping the whole situation."

"So he left?"

"The driver dragged him away by the scruff of his neck and I think threatened him with bodily harm. Patrick was quite subdued after that," Elizabeth said. She knew what her husband did for a living, but she still found it disconcerting to think about sometimes.

"And then?" Emily asked with wide, excited eyes. "What did he do?"

"He told me he loves me. And that he wants me by his side. He loves our baby and he's not doing this just to make the baby legitimate. He doesn't care about that. But he cares about me and he would do anything for me. Marrying me wasn't a sacrifice, it wasn't just a calculated move, it was because he wants us to be a family, he wants to know that we'd be protected and taken care of and that everyone would know just how much he loves me and our child."

Elizabeth smoothed her hand over the blanket and tilted her head to the side. "Your brother isn't a romantic in the traditional sense, but he was honest and he was sincere and I knew that this wasn't just about doing right by me. He wanted to marry me, truly wanted to marry me. It was just his timing was pushed ahead a bit. When he finally said it that way, I agreed. We were both becoming pretty emotional and I was about to throw up."

"So he basically badgered you into marriage and sent your doctor away until you agreed," Emily laughed. "That sounds like my brother."

"What sounds like me?" Jason asked, coming back into the room. He had stepped out for a few minutes to give Elizabeth and Emily some time alone and also to speak to Sonny who had stopped by to solidify the guards' rotation outside Elizabeth's room and just check in with his friend. It appeared that Sonny had kept true to his word that they weren't going to discuss any real business, because Jason was back before she had expected him and he looked decidedly relaxed and untroubled.

"That you kept Elizabeth's doctor away until she agreed to marry you," Emily teased him. When he frowned, she laughed and stood. "I'm happy for you, Jason. I really am. And so is Grandmother. She understands why you haven't stopped by the house, 'though she did appreciate your call last night. She says when Elizabeth feels up to it, she'd like the opportunity to meet your wife."

"When Elizabeth feels up to it," he confirmed. "I want them to meet."

"She knows," Emily assured her brother. Looking between the couple, she smiled and said, "Well, I better get back to work and I'll leave the two of you alone."

"Bye, Emily."

"Bye," she said warmly to Elizabeth. "I hope you start to feel better."

"I already am," Elizabeth answered.

"That's good. You just rest, take care of yourself and my niece or nephew and don't worry about the family. Grandmother told them in no uncertain terms to stay away. I know Sonny's not going to bother you. So the only person you have to worry about-"

"Is someone the guards are under strict orders not to let through," Jason said succinctly. "Weren't you heading back to work?"

"I'm going, I'm going," she huffed, and then gave him a hug before slipping out the door.

"How are you feeling?" Jason asked as he claimed the chair Emily had just vacated.

"A little better," she said, reveling in the feel as he took her hand in his. "Honestly, Jason. These past two days that I've been here...I don't know if it's just residual from the drug Patrick gave me on the plane or what, but I don't feel as bad as before. I'm still queasy, but not like I was."

"That's good," he told her. "That still doesn't mean you're getting out of here anytime soon."

Rolling her eyes, she huffed. "I know. I just feel ridiculous. Taking up a bed just because I'm nauseous."

He leaned forward and looked at her seriously, "Elizabeth, nothing is ridiculous about making sure that you and our baby are healthy. And we'll stay here for however long Dr. Lee wants to keep you here."

"But if all the nurses are doing is changing my IV bag and they're not even administering any medication, why can't that be done at the penthouse?" she asked. "I know we could hire a private nurse. You hired me after all."

The corners of his mouth twitched up slightly to mirror hers and he nodded. "Yes, but I just had a broken leg. You're staying close to twenty-four hour medical personnel so stop complaining."

"I hate being a patient. I'm used to working in hospitals. Not occupying a bed."

"That's why I'm staying here to keep you company," he told her. "To help take your mind off things."

"But you hate hospitals more than I do," she protested

"Nothing matters but you, Elizabeth," he told her so tenderly, so warmly that tears sprang to her eyes and she felt ridiculous for them.

Hoping to distract herself from her out-of-control emotions she asked, "Is everything okay with Sonny?"

"Everything's fine," he assured her. "He wouldn't even answer any of my questions about the warehouse. I offered to look over the ledgers and he said no. I'm off-duty unless something catastrophic occurs and he's not going to risk the wrath of my pregnant wife by giving me the warehouse's books. My only job is to make sure you don't try to leave before Dr. Lee says you can."

He suddenly stood and reached into his pocket, pulling out a small teddy bear that had obviously seen better days despite the new ribbon around its neck and the attempt that had been made to clean it up. "He brought this for the baby. It used to be Morgan's; Michael helped his brother clean it. Morgan thought the baby needed a stuffed animal and this was a good size for it."

The tears came back, flooding her eyes at the thought of the sweet little boy giving one of his baby toys to his uncle's baby. Elizabeth knew that if Carly discovered what her son had done she would have puppies to go along with the kittens Emily declared she would have when she found out Elizabeth and Jason were married. Reaching out and taking the well-loved and heartfelt gift, Elizabeth laid it on her chest before swiping the tears from her eyes. "They really do love you, don't they?"

"Nearly as much as I love you," Jason smiled. Then turning, he picked up the book about Egypt off the bedside table and asked, "So, where did we leave off?

"Are you kidding me?"

Dr. Lee smiled, leaning her hip against Elizabeth's bed. In the weeks that she had been a patient, Elizabeth had come to like the Asian doctor and if Jason allowed her to work she would have enjoyed being her colleague. But that wasn't going to happen. While Elizabeth's nausea was improving, and she was apparently going to get to go home today, she knew that there was no way her husband was going to let her go to work.

It wasn't that Jason was going caveman on her and demanding she stay home, it was just that there was no way she was going to be able to reasonably convince him that it wouldn't be detrimental to her or the baby. Jason simply wouldn't believe it, he wouldn't accept it, and Elizabeth was going to have to accept the fact that for the next six months she was going to be at home in a penthouse she hadn't actually seen but which Emily had told her Jason had gone to great lengths to make it a place for both of them.

Elizabeth apparently now had an art studio. While painting may not be feasible due to the fumes making her nauseous, she could do chalks and charcoals and maybe even watercolors. She would apparently have lots of time to experiment to find a new preferred medium. And apparently she could redecorate if she desired.

"You're actually able to eat and keep food down. I'd say you're no more queasy than any of my other OB patients, and in the next few weeks, that could even clear up more. You know all this," her doctor smiled. "Being a nurse."

"Yeah," she nodded. "I have been feeling better. Almost since I arrived here. Sure, I've had some bad days, but who's to say I wouldn't have had them anyways. It was certainly nothing to what I felt before."

"And that's a good thing," Dr. Lee agreed. "We just wanted to keep you here to make sure everything was fine with you and your baby. You lost quite a bit of weight in the first few weeks and while it's not necessarily harmful, there was certainly no harm in letting us take care of you."

"Aside from wanting to die of sheer boredom?" Elizabeth asked with an arched brow. "No. There was no harm."

"How could you be bored when your husband was by your bedside nearly the whole time?" her doctor grinned. "He was a very attentive husband, and it certainly couldn't have been a hardship to look at him."

Elizabeth knew it was just part of her doctor's personality, but Jason was her husband after all. She didn't need her OB drooling over him. Especially since being stuck in the hospital had really put a damper on their time together. Back when she was so extremely nauseous, Jason was lucky if he got to put his arm around her. He certainly couldn't lie right next to her in bed and sex was completely out of the question. Once she started feeling better, the hospital setting quite effectively stifled any thoughts of romance. Now she was going to be allowed to go home and there was definitely a question Elizabeth needed to ask.

"Once I'm home am I going to have any restrictions?" she began.

"You mean like stairs or bed rest?" the doctor questioned. When Elizabeth nodded, Dr. Lee shook her head. "No. We'll see how your blood pressure is at your next visit and how you're feeling in general, but I don't see any reason to declare a pre-emptive ban on anything right now. You know the importance of listening to your body. If you're tired, rest. If you feel something is wrong, call me. But in general, I'd say that you can do everything you used to do before you found out you were pregnant. With very few restrictions."

The other woman paused and then said, "That includes sex with your husband."

Elizabeth swallowed and felt her cheeks warm. "Are you always this blunt, or am I this obvious?"

"I'm blunt with those I know can take it," the doctor smiled. "And your husband is a handsome man. It's quite natural you'd wonder. So...enjoy that you can go home. Enjoy being with your husband. Try to avoid stress where possible, and set up an appointment with my office for two weeks from now. I'd like to see you more often than normal, just so I can make sure you're doing alright."

"Okay," Elizabeth agreed. "Thank you Dr. Lee."

"No, I should be thanking you. Because of you I met Dr. Drake. If there was any way you knew of to bring him back up here for a visit, I certainly wouldn't mind that at all."

Elizabeth laughed and shook her head. "I don't know what Patrick's travel plans are. We weren't that close of friends."

"Pity," the doctor lamented. "Well, I have other patients to see. I'll get your discharge papers sent for you to sign and your husband can take you home."

"I can't wait," she said honestly, watching the doctor leave. "Now I just need my husband."

It was one of the few days that Jason had to leave for a couple of hours. Something came up at the warehouse and after several phone calls he said it would just be easier if he went down there for an hour or two. After nearly a month in the hospital, Elizabeth understood when he had to leave. She knew that there were things he had to take care of and Sonny had been amazingly understanding about Jason's lack of availability. She certainly couldn't begrudge those rare moments when her husband had to leave.

The door opened and Elizabeth wondered if it was the nurse already with her papers. She was really going to have to get a hold of Jason; she didn't think he would be able to live with himself if a guard ended up taking her home because he was busy. Instead of the expected nurse, Elizabeth smiled at the sight of her sister-in-law and friend. Emily wasn't in scrubs so it must be her day off. It would be nice to have her keeping Elizabeth company while waiting for Jason to arrive.

"Hey," Emily smiled, peeking her head around the door. "Are you up for a visitor?"

"Absolutely," Elizabeth nodded, sitting up straighter on the bed.

"Good," Emily grinned, coming in and pushing the door open wide. A few moments later, Lila appeared, Reginald the butler pushing her wheelchair.

"Hello, Elizabeth," Lila smiled warmly as Reginald maneuvered the older woman near Elizabeth's bed. "Emily and I decided to surprise you this morning."

"A wonderful surprise indeed," Elizabeth replied. "It's a good thing you came this morning and not this afternoon; apparently I'm getting released today."

"Oh, that's wonderful," Jason's grandmother delighted. "That must mean you're feeling better."

"I am," she stated. Lila had been a delight to get to know; she really came to understand why she was one of the few people Jason still called his family. And the older woman's concern for Elizabeth's health and that of the baby had been clear and genuine. It wasn't calculated or said merely for politeness; Lila had helped Elizabeth not feel so restless and anxious to leave after talking with her.

"I don't know if it was just getting continuous care, or maybe I was merely allergic to the island while pregnant," she said with a laugh and a shrug. "But I really began to feel better once I arrived in Port Charles. Maybe I was already getting over the worst of it. Whatever the reason, whatever the why, I'm grateful for it."

"We all are," Lila said, reaching out her hand and placing it on the bed. "I know Jason's been quite worried for you and I'm sure he's delighted to know you're well enough to leave the hospital."

Elizabeth looked at Emily and lifted her eyebrows in unease. "He doesn't know yet. He had to go down to the warehouse this morning and I just talked with Dr. Lee. I haven't had a chance to call him yet."

"I'll do that," Emily volunteered, standing up from the end of the bed where she'd perched. "I'm sure between the guards and me we can get a hold of him."

"Thank you, Emily," she said, grateful her friend had caught her silent plea.

After her granddaughter slipped out of the room, Lila smiled and said, "Are you nervous about going home?"

"Nervous?" Elizabeth asked. "No. I'm anxious to go. I may have worked in a hospital, but I've never liked being a patient. I figure I can rest on the couch and watch TV just as easily as I can lie in a bed here and watch TV. I might actually get more sleep if there aren't people constantly going by and the intercom sounding all the time."

"I know what you mean, dear," the older woman nodded her head. "I've never liked being a patient. I figure with a two doctors and an intern in the house and the ability to hire a private nurse, I can get just as good of care there as I could here."

"I agree. Jason feels the same way, that's why I was his private nurse while he was recuperating. He was a much more cooperative patient when he was at his house as opposed to the clinic."

"No," Lila shook her head. "Jason's never liked being stuck in the hospital. It's not entirely from his accident, even a child he was never a very good patient. Thankfully, though, he was healthy."

"I hope this little one is," Elizabeth said softly, letting her hand rest on the slight swell forming under her navel. "I worked emergency rooms, sat with my grandmother as she was dying from cancer, but I was never that good with Peds patients. I don't like seeing sick children. It just seems...so unfair. They should be out playing, not sitting in sterile environments worrying about white blood counts. I did like rotating through the nursery, though."

"I think you're going to be an excellent mother, Elizabeth," the elderly woman smiled warmly. "And Jason will be a wonderful father. Back when we thought Michael was his, it was amazing to watch the transformation that came over him. I'm glad my grandson found you and started a family with you."

"So am I," she said, fidgeting with embarrassment. She and Jason had not been conventional at all, and she never regretted it, until she was speaking with Lila. It was somehow unsettling to have Jason's grandmother know that their child had been conceived before they were married. Maybe because Lila reminded Elizabeth of her own grandmother and Audrey had been the person who gave her the talk and Elizabeth wasn't sure she would ever forget that mortification.

"Don't you worry, though, about the rest of the family," Lila said brightly. "I know how to keep Edward in line and Tracy has moved onto other battles to fight."

Elizabeth nodded, knowing as well that Jason's guards would keep those family members away that would harass her. Monica and Alan had stopped by a couple of times while Elizabeth had been in the hospital and while the visits weren't entirely as relaxed as this one, it was clear they were trying to be respectful to the boundaries Jason exuded in silence.

"But I know that you're not worried about them. The person you're worried about is Carly."

Letting out a breath, she once again nodded. Jason had spoken to his friend and told her that he was married. When he came back, he didn't say much beyond a simple "it didn't go well; she wasn't happy" and then the guards had kept her away any time she came by the hospital. She knew she couldn't avoid Carly forever, and sooner or later they would come face to face. But she wasn't looking forward to the encounter.

"Don't you worry, Elizabeth," Lila stated. "With everyone surrounding you, there is very little that Carly can do to you."

He knew this day would come. As much as he hoped that it wouldn't, he inevitably knew that it would. There was no way to avoid the brewing confrontation between his wife and his friend.

From the moment he went over to Carly's house to inform her that he was back in town, he knew they would end up here. She never asked about Elizabeth or the baby, just automatically assumed that because Elizabeth wasn't at his side that he'd ditched the little twit and left her on the island where she belonged. When he informed her that Elizabeth was in Port Charles and had been admitted to General Hospital because of her severe morning sickness, Carly had reacted only slightly. There was little concern for the baby, a whole lot of scathing insults for Elizabeth for being unable to carry a baby without making a big production out of it. In fact, his so-called friend even went so far as to insinuate Elizabeth was merely faking her condition in order to get Jason's attention undivided.

He'd worked hard to keep his composure during the conversation. He'd been grateful for Jax's presence, but apparently Carly had decided that she was tired of being treated like a child by her husband and she refused to listen to him or anybody. She was unhappy and she was going to make sure everyone around her knew it. The object of her ire was Elizabeth and no amount of explanations or even pleadings from Jason was going to sway her from her intended course of hatred.

It exploded when Michael and Morgan came home before he could tell Carly he was now married. The little boys, excited from spending the afternoon with their father, spilled into the house with all the rambunctiousness of young children. It escalated with their delight at seeing him and after getting a hug from Morgan and a manly nod of the head from Michael, the little boy inadvertently blew his mother's life apart by asking about his aunt.

Jax had ushered the boys upstairs, but there was no doubt Carly's voice had carried. She had raged, she had begged, she had pleaded with him to forget this foolishness and insisted to him he didn't have to be tied to Elizabeth just because she was pregnant with his child. She wouldn't believe that he loved his wife and that he wanted to be married to her. In true Carly fashion she insisted that he didn't know his own mind and she knew better. He'd left that day and hadn't been back to see her.

Being in Elizabeth's hospital room had been a convenient way to ignore her. He had his phone turned off, he spent most of his nights on a cot in her room, and when he did go home, he didn't bother taking the time to check the machine. If Sonny needed to talk to him, he came by the hospital or had a guard pass along a message. And since Carly was kept away from Elizabeth's floor and room, he was able to avoid dealing with her there.

He knew such actions were only going to make her angrier. But at this point in his life, he wasn't going to spend his time worrying about her. He had more important things on his mind wanting to make sure that Elizabeth and the baby were alright. Their comfort, their needs, their wants were placed ahead of any rantings and ravings Carly might want to hurl at him. And part of making sure Elizabeth was taken care of was keeping Carly away.

And that meant that when he brought Elizabeth home from the hospital, a new rule was instituted at the Towers. Carly was stopped in the lobby and not allowed to just board the elevator and head up to the penthouse. She didn't live in the building anymore, she wasn't married to Sonny, and since Sonny didn't live here any longer, she couldn't claim she was going to see him to talk about the boys. The only reason she came to Harborview was to see Jason or Elizabeth. Since he didn't have any desire to talk to the blonde and was not going to let her harass Elizabeth, he declared she had no business just walking in like she owned the place.

It hadn't gone over well with her. She tried numerous times to sneak past the guards, she yelled, she screamed, and once when she was escorted out of the building she'd kicked and hit at being treated like a common enemy. Jason had given the guards who dealt with her that day a bonus, and then told Sonny that he better find a way to get through to Carly because he wasn't going to put up with it anymore.

Elizabeth suggested he just go see his friend and talk to her again. Or even have her come to the house where they could control the meeting. But Jason refused. He was not going to give into Carly's demands. He'd told her how she needed to act in order to keep him in her life and she refused to listen to him. If he gave in now, it would only get worse.

Not that the reality of the situation was pleasant to deal with. But Jason chose to focus on his life instead of his friend. He wanted to make sure Elizabeth felt comfortable in the penthouse and he helped her unpack all the boxes they'd brought up from the island. He looked through catalogues with her to see what styles of baby furniture they liked, and then one day they went to Wyndam's to order the crib, the dresser, the changing table and other necessary furniture, accessories and bedding. Emily had offered to go with Elizabeth, and Elizabeth said that since he looked like he'd rather have root canal than go shopping, she didn't mind if he did something else. She had a good idea of what they both liked and she was sure she could find something, or at least bring him with her for the final selection.

Jason hadn't been swayed. This was his baby. This was his wife.

This was different than when he suddenly had to get a crib and everything else for Michael because Carly delivered early. He figured that Carly would want the most expensive one, and as long as it was safe he didn't care too much about it. Michael was already born, he was coming home from the hospital, and Jason chose availability over desirability. This time was different; they had months to shop and choose and he wanted to do this with Elizabeth. He'd happily let his sister and his wife choose blankets and clothes, but he'd asked for this one thing.

Elizabeth may not have completely understood his desire, but she conceded. And when she dragged him over to the infant section to look at blankets and onesies, he'd given into her whims and picked out which ones he'd liked. He chose bunnies over some cartoon bear and Jason was left with the sudden feeling that bunnies were going to feature heavily into the theme of the nursery decorations.

Gradually Elizabeth insisted that he get back into a more normal routine. She would be fine at home since she didn't have any health restrictions, her check-ups showed she and the baby were doing well and besides, she'd need him more in the final months and after the baby was born than she did right now. So he went to the warehouse, dealt with issues that came up and Jason could tell Sonny was glad he was coming in more. His friend was understanding if Jason called home a little more frequently, or suggested that someone else cover a shipment, but they'd worked out a system and an arrangement that worked for them.

If only he could have done the same with Carly. Even as the months passed from Elizabeth's release from the hospital, his friend did not give up in her pursuit to talk to Jason or get him to see reason. His voice mail on his cell phone contained several messages each day. She still stopped by the Towers several times a week, and Sonny admitted that she wouldn't listen to him or Jax whenever they tried to get her to see reason or calm down. It was getting to the point where Michael and Morgan left the room whenever she began talking about Jason and Elizabeth.

And tonight it had all come to a head.

Excited about feeling well and wanting to get to know the town she'd moved to, Elizabeth had begged him to go to Sonny's Fourth of July party. His friend was throwing a bar-b-que, they'd sit in the backyard and watch the fireworks over the harbor and she'd get to see the guards in a slightly less formal setting. It wasn't the park where it would be a nightmare to ensure her safety, it wasn't the MetroCourt where they would inevitably run into Carly; it was Sonny's home with a few of his friends and the people she was getting to know. Emily would be there for a little while since Kate was a much more secure woman than Carly and could accept her boyfriend's ex-lover's presence especially since she was Jason's sister and Elizabeth's friend.

Carly must have gotten wind of the situation, though, because she and the boys showed back up at Sonny's even though they were supposed to be at the hotel watching the fireworks from there. She breezed into the room claiming that Michael and Morgan decided they'd rather be at their father's house where they could run and play in the backyard instead of stuck on a balcony with a bunch of adults. Jax was dealing with their guests so Carly decided to bring the boys by.

The tension immediately began to rise, especially since her gaze wasn't on her ex-husband and father of her children as she spoke, but on Elizabeth as she sat on a chaise lounge. Sonny and Jason had both tried to talk to her, but Carly ushered the boys out into the back yard and followed after them. Jason was determined to stick close to Elizabeth, and he saw that Emily appeared poised to do the same.

But Carly proved once again not above using her children to get her way. Michael and Morgan wanted Jason to come down to the area the guards set up to light some sparklers and pinwheels and Elizabeth encouraged him to go. Emily was by her, the look Sonny gave him said he wasn't moving from the patio, and so after giving Carly a stern look and telling her to behave herself, he went down to join Michael and Morgan.

Once the fireworks were exhausted and the city sponsored ones were about to start, Jason headed back up to the house to sit with his wife. Except she wasn't present. Nobody was. Curious, and also knowing that Carly only needed a small opening and a few minutes to launch into her diatribes, Jason went in search of his wife. He found her standing in Sonny's living room, maintaining an amazingly calm façade in the face of Carly's attack.

"You may think you've won the war," Carly hissed at Elizabeth. "But I've known Jason a lot longer than anybody and I know him better. And I'm telling you right now that you won't win and you certainly won't be on top forever. Just because you gave him a baby doesn't make you special. Any bitch in heat can lie down and have a baby."

"Carly, that's enough!"

Jason looked over to the side in surprise, and watched as Sonny stalked towards his ex-wife. For a moment he was ready to step in between the ex-spouses until he realized that Sonny was furious, but he wasn't out of control.

"Stay out of this," Carly ordered. "This is between me and the muffin."

"I will not," Sonny declared. "This has gone on long enough. You will apologize to Elizabeth this instance and then you will get out of my house."

"You can't kick me out," she shook her head, "Michael and Morgan are here."

"I'll drop them off at home when the fireworks are over," he stated. "Now apologize and go."

"The day I apologize to her," Carly began.

"Is the day I might think about forgiving you," Jason said, stepping further into the room and causing everyone to turn towards him. "I've asked you to be nice for me. I never asked you to be her best friend, I merely asked you to respect her because she's my wife and she's pregnant with my child. I asked you to respect me, and you've proven unwilling and unable to do that."

He stopped beside Elizabeth and leveled a look at Carly. "I heard what you said, and I'm not sure I'm anywhere near ready to forgive and forget. So get out of my sight before I forget that Michael and Morgan are outside. You don't come near me or my family again, Carly, or you will not like the consequences. From now on, the guards will be under strict orders regarding you."

"Jason," she quickly tried to do damage control, but he turned his back on her and looked at Elizabeth.

"The fireworks are beginning, do you want to go watch them?"

"I think I've had enough for one night," she shook her head tiredly. "I just want to go home."

"I think pregnancy's addled your brain."

Elizabeth looked at the woman across from her and rolled her eyes. "Thanks, Em."

"I'm serious," her sister-in-law insisted. "If you actually feel sorry for Carly then clearly your hormones have turned your brain to mush. I've heard about this. Pregnancy makes you forget things, become scatter-brained. Clearly it's turned you stupid."

Now feeling slightly offended, she sat up straight. Well, straighter. Straight had disappeared along with her feet about a month ago when she hit her seventh month and suddenly her cute little belly ballooned up to epic proportions. "I am not stupid."

"You feel sorry for Carly," Emily said slowly and loudly. "You remember her, right? The woman who insulted you, insulted your baby, refused to give you or my brother any respect, and in general made herself a nuisance to everyone. The woman who-"

"I know what she's done, Emily," Elizabeth interrupted. "I was there, or I heard about it. It's not like I'm unaware of the things she's done."

"Then why on earth would you feel sorry for her?" her friend demanded.

"Because of all that's she's lost," she replied simply.

That made her sister-in-law sit back slightly and say, "Oh."

"Yeah. I mean, I'm not sure I'm ready to just forgive and forget all the nasty things she's said and tried to pull, but I look at what's happened to her and I just..." She trailed off and shrugged. "Jax left her and is in the process of divorcing her. Her children told her point blank that they don't want to live with her anymore; they want to live with their father. Sonny's offered a very generous shared custody arrangement; it's Michael and Morgan who keep coming up with excuses to not see her. She's lost her business because Jax is playing nasty in the divorce and he doesn't want her to have the hotel because it was his idea and he's not going to just give it to her as a settlement."

With a sigh, Elizabeth leaned back against the couch. "Your family is making her life miserable in the community, so is your boyfriend Nikolas. Jason won't talk to her; Sonny only talks to her when he take the boys to Kelly's to turn them over for the weekend, otherwise he just passes messages to her through his lawyer or the nanny. She's pretty much looked on as the town pariah, and even her mother isn't supporting her."

"And your point is?" Emily asked, arching her brow.

"She's lost so much."

"Through her own behavior," her friend pointed out. "All she had to do was accept the fact that Jason is an adult and can make his own decisions. He fell in love with you, he married you and he's having a baby with you. She didn't have to like it, she didn't have to become your best friend, but she did need to respect my brother and you enough to stop badmouthing you and trying to come between you. Jax is divorcing her because he refused to stay with someone so obsessed with another man who would resort to tactics that could have hurt you or your baby. She lost the hotel because of that. Michael and Morgan decided they were tired of hearing their mother talk bad about their father, their uncle and their aunt. Sonny didn't steal those children from her, despite what she's claiming, she drove them away."

The young intern lifted her shoulder, "As for the rest of it? Well, Carly's hasn't exactly endeared herself to this town. She broke up her mother's marriage, has pulled schemes and blackmailed people, and been nasty to tons of people. She thought she could get away with it, and for a large part she has, because she was Jason's friend and Sonny's ex-wife. When they pulled their support of her and let it be known that they weren't going to put up with her insulting Jason's wife, then people in town who have hated her or just want to see her fall gladly jumped on the bandwagon and went after her."

"I just hate that it's happened because of me," Elizabeth sighed.

"It didn't happen because of you," Emily said pointedly and in all seriousness. "It happened because of Carly and because she was unwilling to look beyond her petty jealousy and actually be a friend to Jason. She brought on everything herself, and she's the only one to blame."

"I know all that," Elizabeth said, "but I still feel bad. I...I overheard her and Dr. Lee one day at the hospital. I was coming for my appointment and as I rounded a corner the two of them were talking."

"About what?" her friend demanded. "If she was trying to get Kelly to talk about your condition I will-"

She shook her head, "No. Dr. Lee was telling Carly she got the test results back. They could try in vitro if Carly wanted, but it was unlikely to take. But it was also her best shot at getting pregnant."

"She can't get pregnant?" Emily asked, lifting her brow.

"I guess not."

"Honestly, that's a good thing."

"Emily," Elizabeth hissed in a scandalized voice. "That's an awful thing to say."

"You've seen her mothering skills to Michael and Morgan, right?"

"Look," she said, "I agree that she's an annoying pain in the butt and no, I don't want to be friends with her. But it is sad that she can't have kids. Clearly she wanted to. Clearly she's been trying. That's a hard thing to do. The shots, the procedures, the way the meds make you feel."

"I know," Emily nodded. "I did my OB rotation. It's not all cute little babies."

"Not being able to get pregnant doesn't excuse what she's done," the expectant mother continued.

"I'm glad you realize that."

"But it's not an easy thing to accept. You feel betrayed by your body. You start looking around at the world and all you see are pregnant women and happy families with babies."

Her friend nodded her head, "And here you suddenly came into her life through Jason and you're pregnant with his child. And she can't get pregnant. So you think she's taking her anger about the situation out on you?"

With a shrug Elizabeth sighed. "I don't know. Maybe. Not that it's right."

"You're right there."

Rolling her eyes at the heated interjection she said, "But I guess I just feel bad that she's having difficulties and I got pregnant unplanned."

Emily tilted her head to the side and regarded her for a moment. Then she said, "Yep, your pregnancy's turned your brain to mush. You're a good woman, Elizabeth. But nothing about the situation is your fault. If Carly was just honest about what's going on instead of running around town attacking you for something that isn't your fault and saying things that aren't true, then maybe I would be more sympathetic. Maybe Jason would be as well. But she didn't do that."

With a smile, the other woman said, "I'd tell you to stop feeling sorry for Carly, but I doubt you suddenly will. I will say this. Nothing is your fault, so whatever guilt you're feeling, there's no need. You didn't cause this, and it's not your fault that Carly can't accept the situation. Like I said, she brought this all on herself through her actions. So let it go."

"I'm trying," she said wistfully.

"Try harder." Then her sister-in-law laughed and said, "I know just what will take your mind off things."

"What?" Elizabeth asked warily. "Not more shopping. Please, don't say more shopping. I don't think this baby is going to be able to wear all the clothes we brought it before outgrowing them.

"Besides," she insisted. "I'm tired. My feet are swollen and I really don't feel like traipsing around stores today."

Emily shook her head. "I wasn't going to suggest shopping. I can see your feet. Jason would kill me if I took you out and kept you on them. He told me you need to rest and relax."

"So we're leaving?" she asked. "That doesn't seem very resting or relaxing."

"It is when we go see Grandmother," her friend smiled. "We'll sit out in the rose garden. Cook will make you all your favorite treats. She might even let you have a glass of chocolate milk. Grandmother will insist Reginald move the cushioned lounge chair to the gazebo so that you're in the shade and can put your feet up. Grandfather's gone to New York City today on a business trip so he won't be around to bother you."

Elizabeth smiled longingly. "That's a very pretty picture you're painting there, Emily, and you're right. That would be restful and relaxing and I would love to visit with Lila. But I think we're going to have to make a different stop."

Frowning, her sister-in-law asked, "Where?"

"I think we'd better go to General Hospital."

The frown morphed into concern. "Why?"

"Because I think my water just broke."

Emily's eyes went wide. "But it's too soon. You're not due for another month."

"Nevertheless," she insisted. "I'm pretty sure it just happened."

Emily hurried over to her and did a quick assessment of the situation. "I think you're right. Okay...we'll be okay."

"Emily," Elizabeth said, "Please don't freak out on me."

"I'm not," the intern insisted. "I'm just...I'm going to open the door and have the guard get a car. Then we're going to call Jason. And then we're going to call Kelly. See...cool as a cucumber."

"If you say so," Elizabeth chuckled.

But as her sister-in-law hurried over to the door and instructed Enzo that they needed a car brought around because Elizabeth's water broke, she was glad to have Emily here. She could remain relaxed while her friend did the scurrying around and made all the phone calls. After hanging up the phone with Jason - Emily didn't even give her the chance to ask to talk to him - she laughed while looking at Elizabeth.

"I think someone's going to have to drive Jason to the hospital. He said he was fine, but didn't really sound like it."

That was because Jason was going to be beating himself up about the fact that he was at the warehouse instead of with Elizabeth when she went into labor. Forget the fact that she wasn't due for another month, or that he'd agreed with both her and Emily that it would be fine for him to go in for a couple of hours since Emily would be there; he was going to feel that he should have been with her.

"Alright," Emily said, closing her phone once more. "I talked to Kelly and she wants you to come in. She's getting a room for you, so we can go straight up to the tenth floor."

Enzo knocked on the door and then stepped inside. "Mrs. Morgan, the car is ready downstairs. Are you going to be alright?"

"I'll be fine," she insisted. She'd felt a few contractions, but didn't think he needed to carry her as he was no doubt ready to offer. "Just help me up and we can go."

"Do you want your hospital bag?" Emily asked.

"We can get it later," she shook her head. Standing wasn't very comfortable and frankly she didn't want to wait for her friend to run upstairs.

"Okay," her sister-in-law smiled, taking one of Elizabeth's arms and motioning for Enzo to do the same with her other one. "Then let's go have a baby."

Jason sat in the chair to the side of the bed and watched as his wife slept. The room was quiet now; the medical staff had completed their tasks and returned to their other duties. Family and friends had stopped in briefly to congratulate the new family, but left after only a few moments because they knew Elizabeth was tired. No doubt they would be back tomorrow, with gifts, and anxious to see the new family. For tonight, though, they were alone.

A bed, similar to the one Jason had used for a month when they first arrived in Port Charles, was off to the side for him to sleep in, but he'd spent most of the night in the chair near Elizabeth. The nursing staff was familiar with Elizabeth and Jason and knew to slip quietly in and out of the room when they had to come in. A guard was stationed outside Elizabeth's door and one was outside the nursery to watch over everyone. Jason was not going to take any chances with his family, and his father - as the Chief of Staff - had authorized the guards' presence just to eliminate any complaints.

Elizabeth stirred slightly and he leaned forward. Her eyelids fluttered once, twice, and just when he was sure she was going to settle back into slumber, she opened her eyes and looked around the room. He smiled as her gaze fell on him and she returned the gesture.

"I didn't dream this," she said, her voice still thick with sleep. He had prevented the nurses from waking her earlier; going instead down to the nursery to feed their daughter when they informed him she was awake. He wanted Elizabeth to have her rest, because he knew how important it was and how little she would get once they went home.

"No," he shook his head softly, moving closer to her bedside.

"We're back in the hospital," she sighed.

"Yeah."

She blinked and pushed herself up slightly and looked around the room. "Where is she?"

"She's down in the nursery," he was quick to assure her. "Because she was early they wanted to keep her in there under the warming lamps just to help her."

His wife closed her eyes and then nodded, "That's right. I remember. I don't know that I'm quite awake yet."

"It's alright," he murmured as he smoothed his hand over her hair. It was a gesture he had performed for hours yesterday as she'd labored. It seemed to sooth her, or maybe it was him, but being this close to her brought out the habit again.

"Has her pediatrician stopped by?" she asked.

"Not yet. Just the on-staff doctors who tended her last night. When I went down about one this morning to feed her they said she was doing good."

"I was almost to thirty-seven weeks," Elizabeth stated. "I was almost full term."

"That's what they told me. They said she's a little small since she would have grown and put on weight this month, but she wasn't really in any danger from coming a little early."

"That's good," she sighed, leaning back against her bed. No doubt she needed to have the reassurance from medial professionals, just as he had. "I was caught off-guard when my water broke."

"I'm sorry I wasn't there," he apologized, looking down.

"Jason," she said firmly, despite her soft voice. "We had no idea I was going to deliver early. I'd only been having a few Braxton-Hicks contractions and my due date was still weeks away. Besides, I knew you had things you needed to do and it seemed like the perfect time to do them when your sister was there."

She smiled tenderly at him and squeezed his hand. "Besides, you were here at the hospital and that was the important part."

"I'm glad I didn't miss it," he grinned, then leaned down to kiss her forehead. "You were amazing. When Michael was born it was an emergency C-section and I sat out in the waiting room. I knew he wasn't my child; I'd just agreed to help Carly out. But this...this was our daughter and watching her be born. There are...there are no words to describe that. Or to describe how much I love you both."

Twin tears crested and then began slow trails down Elizabeth's cheeks and Jason quickly wiped his own eyes before capturing her tears with his thumb. She turned her face into his hand and closed her eyes.

"I love you, too," she said, her voice thick and husky. "I'm glad that you're the father of my daughter and my future children."

The room was silent as he rested his forehead against hers, love flowing between them. He was overwhelmed at the knowledge that he was a father to a child that could never be taken away from him and Elizabeth was already talking about the possibility of more. He wasn't in any hurry to contemplate more; he wanted to enjoy his wife and child being healthy and safe.

When he'd first seen Elizabeth on the island, he'd thought she was a beautiful woman. He'd wanted to get to know her, in a purely male way. But as he came to know who she was, before ever talking to her, his feelings towards her changed. She wasn't just someone he wanted to have a bit of island fun with; he wanted to make her happy. The sadness that stemmed from the loss of her grandmother had been evident to anyone who saw her and he found himself affected by it. His injury had finally given him the opportunity to talk to her, but their relationship certainly hadn't been easy. He was grateful to have her in his life and he intended to make sure she always knew that.

He sat back, reaching up once more to wipe her eyes and smiled at her when she finally met his gaze. "How are you feeling?"

"Tired, sore," she answered. "But I want to see my daughter."

He looked down at his watch. "It's almost five; she's probably going to be hungry soon. We could go down to the nursery if you want."

"I'd like that," she nodded. "I want to get cleaned up first. I've definitely begun to sweat out all the extra fluid and I want a shower."

Jason had never realized just how sexy it was to watch a woman hold her child. He'd loved watching Elizabeth grow in her pregnancy, knowing it was their child that caused her waist to expand. He didn't think she looked fat or bloated, he thought she glowed beautifully. But watching his wife hold their daughter and feed her a bottle affected Jason in a way he hadn't been expecting. His heart burned with such emotion for his family that he could barely speak.

Elizabeth, ever the nurse, had peppered the staff with questions and comments. She understood the terms and equipment used and she was determined to ascertain for herself that their baby was healthy. Once she was satisfied, she thanked the nurses but made it quite clear that she wanted to be alone with her family. The nursing staff understood and didn't seem to take offense because they went about duties in other areas and left the Morgan family alone.

"We need to come up with a name for her," Jason said, his fingertips drifting lightly over the small wisps of hair on their daughter's head as she ate from the bottle her mother offered. "The nurses kept asking me if we had decided on one and I told them we hadn't."

"I wanted to meet her first," Elizabeth stated. "I didn't want to set my heart on a name only to discover that it didn't really suit her."

He smiled. It wasn't the first time he'd heard this. They had discussed names they both liked, but they'd never chosen one. "And now that you've met her?"

"I still don't know," she admitted with a shake of her head. "I...I'd like her middle name to be Audrey after my grandmother. But...but I want her to have her own identity. What about you?"

"I liked the name Hailey" he offered.

Elizabeth tilted her head to the side and gaze down at the little girl who was beginning to grow sleepy. "I like it," she finally agreed. "It fits her."

"Then we'll let the nurses know," he smiled. "And they can begin using it."

Gently she eased the bottle from Hailey's mouth and then lifted their daughter to her shoulder to burp her. Once the bubble was out, Elizabeth continued to hold her. No doubt she'd hold Hailey for as long as the nurses let her.

"I was thinking last night," Jason said softly, his hand covering Elizabeth's as it supported their daughter's head. "I was thinking about how much I love you and how grateful I am you're my wife."

She smiled, "I'm glad I'm your wife, too. Because I love you."

"I didn't give you a real wedding," Jason shook his head. "And the proposal wasn't that great. You were in sweatpants and I was in jeans."

Elizabeth frowned and asked, "What are you saying?"

"I want to marry you again," he told her. "Give you everything you didn't have the first time. Everything the woman I love deserves."

"Oh, Jason," she sighed, her eyes shimmering with moisture. "I had everything I needed the first time. I knew you loved me and wanted to marry me not just because I was pregnant. You don't need to make anything up to me. I don't care if our wedding pictures came from Enzo's cell phone or a professional photographer. I had everything I could have ever wanted that day...because I had you."

Elizabeth loved Jason and she knew that despite what his tax returns said, her husband wasn't really a coffee importer. Guards were a necessary part of their lives and after Elizabeth's experience down on the island when she was nearly strangled she definitely listened to her guards. Just because things were relatively quiet, did not mean that things could be relaxed.

Her guards were kind, she got along with them, and she felt safe with them. It was just that sometimes their presence was a little unwieldy. Like when she wanted to go to the Quartermaines to visit Lila, or take Hailey for a walk in the park. Sometimes the presence of a man in a suit with a gun strapped to his side took a bit of the beauty out of the day.

Today, though, she was grateful for the guards. Because her pregnancy stupidity, as Emily had called it, was gone, and Elizabeth was angry. She was done playing nice, but at least her daughter wouldn't have to view her mother this way. Even if two month old Hailey wouldn't understand everything Elizabeth said.

"Enzo," she said as she stood from the bench she was resting on for a moment, "I want Hailey taken to the car."

The guard looked at her, then around the park. When he saw what had prompted Elizabeth to make the request, he looked over at Mark, Hailey's main guard, and instructed the man to take the baby to the car. He then informed Elizabeth that under no circumstances was he leaving her alone.

"Fine," she conceded. "But I don't want you interfering, either. I've got a few things to say and unless she suddenly beats me down to the ground and sits on me, you stay out of this."

The guard arched his brow, and then nodded. Lifting one side of his mouth in a grin, he said, "Since I know you could take her, I'll stay out of the way."

"Thank you," she said, then went into interception mode. Reaching out, she snagged the other woman's arm and said, "You're not going anywhere, Carly. You're especially not going anywhere near my daughter."

The blonde yanked her arm out of Elizabeth's hold and turned her angry gaze on her. "Keep your hands off me."

Elizabeth held her hands out to the side, and then put them in the pockets of her light-weight coat. Fall was turning colder, and today was turning windy. It was another reason she would have sent Hailey off to the car.

"You and I need to have a talk," she told the older woman firmly. "Get a few things straight."

"Like what?" Carly jeered. "I think you've already made things perfectly clear when you told Jason he couldn't be friends with me anymore and then ruined my life."

She looked at the blonde incredulously. "You really think that I'm responsible for the way your life is? Grow up, Carly, and take a look in the mirror."

Carly huffed and Elizabeth continued. "I never told Jason he couldn't be friends with you. He made that decision on his own because of your behavior. No, I didn't like you and I didn't want to sit in a room and have dinner with you, but I understood that you were one of Jason's oldest friends and I was certainly never going to tell him that he had to disavow you. You're the one who couldn't respect him enough to accept that he makes his own decisions and he's his own man and he fell in love with someone and started a family."

"Jason had a family."

"He was an uncle, and he still is," she clarified. "But you're acting like a scorned lover just because he got married and had a child with someone else. And that is why Jax left you. I didn't seduce your husband away; I certainly have no sway over Jax and I didn't tell him to dump you or I was going to destroy his life or his business. You drove him away with your petty jealousies."

"You know nothing about my marriage," Carly insisted.

"I know what Jax has apologized to me for," she pointed out. "Despite the fact that he divorced you, he still felt the need to apologize to Jason and me about your behavior. And I didn't make Sonny choose me over you and I didn't help him steal your kids. You drove them away, too, with your bitter attitude."

Elizabeth took a step closer and lifted a finger in warning, "And I'm sorry that you're not with them. And I'm sorry that you can't have more children, but that does not excuse anything that you have done. Especially this latest stunt."

"How did you know?" the other woman demanded angrily. "Did you break into my files?"

"I overheard you and Dr. Lee talking in the hallway," she answered. "You could have been overheard by anyone; I just happened to be the one who did. But I don't want to talk about that. I want to talk about the people from CPS who came to my house to investigate me and Jason because they'd gotten a claim of possible child neglect."

Carly was good and barely reacted. But Elizabeth caught just the slightest change in her eyes. A flicker of fear she'd been discovered, but also triumph that her scheme had been put into motion.

"Do you have any idea how angry Jason is?" she asked, taking another step forward and tilting her head to the side. "Our marriage was questioned, Hailey's paternity, our home life...it was all dragged through the mud. We brought our daughter home from her christening, and found some mean-spirited, vindictive pencil pusher waiting on our doorstep who has done her best to rip our lives apart and take our child from us. Jason is furious."

Carly swallowed and licked her lips. Clear tells she was uneasy. But then she tried to cover it with bluff and bravado as she demanded, "What makes you think I had anything to do with that?"

"Because you've obviously forgotten who you're dealing with," Elizabeth said with a shake of her head. "Jason and Sonny have unlimited resources, and so do the Quartermaines. See, Jason first suspected Edward, and I'll admit that I did as well. And when he went over there to confront his grandfather, Lila was suspicious as well. But you know that Edward can't stand up to Lila or bear to disappoint her, and he swore that he had nothing to do with it. He's begun his own investigation into the charges, and he's also become mine and Jason's biggest supporter. He met with the CPS worker and testified on our behalf."

Tilting her head to the side, Elizabeth dropped the bomb, "But it was your ex-husband Jax who gave us our first real break in the case. See, his ex-wife Alexis is the D.A. and he sweet talked her somehow and she let slip that the person who made the call was a woman. The person knew an awful lot about Jason's house, his personal life, and his business interests. She claimed that no child should be raised in an environment like the one he and his partner exist in."

With a sigh, and a tsk, she said, "That's where you messed up, Carly. You thought that by calling Jason's parenting skills into question, then it would only be natural that Sonny's would be investigated as well. And then you would get your boys back. You are so selfish and petty that you would willingly blow apart Jason's life as a means to an end with your own children."

Elizabeth swallowed and narrowed her eyes, "But see, you didn't just blow apart Jason's life. You impacted our daughter's life, and that's what we can't forgive. Our daughter has had strangers in her home, she's been taken to doctors to be examined, she's been watched by CPS workers while Jason and I have had to deal with petty questioning and a court hearing. And that was your biggest mistake."

"I didn't have anything to do with that," Carly insisted. But it wasn't very strong, and it wasn't very convincing.

"But you did," Elizabeth declared. "Because we've investigated the call. And while it was made on a disposable cell phone that was purchased with cash, the sales clerk identified you as the one who bought it. He remembered you quite distinctly. Jason's still trying to decide what he's going to do with that information. Because despite everything you've done, you're still Michael and Morgan's mother and he doesn't want to hurt them. But he and Sonny are wondering whether they wouldn't be better off with you out of their lives."

Her eyes flared and she took an angry step forward. It was only when Enzo shifted and made Carly aware of his presence that she stopped and didn't advance further. "Jason and Sonny would never kill me."

"Who said anything about killing you, Carly?" Elizabeth asked.

She looked at the woman she no longer held any sympathy for and said, "It's a well-documented fact that you've been committed twice to mental institutions. You shot a man in open court in front of dozens of witnesses. Of course, that was after you abandoned your child due to post-partum depression. You were committed again several years ago. Who's to say you haven't had another breakdown?"

Looking down, she picked a piece of lint off her jacket and straightened a button. "I mean, look at all the stressors you've had recently. A nasty divorce, your children living with their father, the loss of a job, the inability to find another one."

With a heavy sigh dripping in false sympathy, Elizabeth shook her head. "It's a terrible thing, really. Clearly there is a history of mental illness. Your ex-husbands and friend would only naturally worry about you and wonder if you truly were rooted in reality or were in the middle of a complete psychological break-down. If you were, then the best thing for you would be to put you in a facility where you weren't a threat to yourself."

She frowned gravely, "And what would your mother say? She's a nurse, after all. Of course, so am I. And my in-laws are doctors and they've been around to witness your behavior. The courts could commit you for seventy-two hours observation, and then just as easily decide that you need to be sent to a permanent, long-term care facility. Maybe you could end up in the same hospital as your aunt. I'm sure that would be a comfort to you; to be near family."

"You wouldn't dare," Carly insisted shrilly, but genuine fear was in her words.

"You messed with my child," Elizabeth said without remorse. "All bets are off. So I'd be careful if I were you. You never know when the cops might show up to your house to escort you away."

Then Elizabeth turned and headed towards the car and her daughter knowing Enzo was right behind her.

Sometimes, despite all her savvy, Carly Roberts Spencer Quartermaine Corinthos Alcazar Corinthos Jacks just was not a smart woman. Despite the warnings, going from subtle to downright blunt, she continued to push. She was desperate and Jason knew that desperate and Carly was not a good combination. Determined to believe she was right in the face of everything that proved she wasn't, and desperate to hold onto something, she ended up driving everything away.

Including the person she most wanted to keep in her life.

Jason had not been pleased when Elizabeth returned from the park with Hailey and informed him, before Enzo had the chance to, that she'd had a run-in with Carly. She recounted what was said, and that she told Carly to back off before something happened that Carly really didn't like. While Jason was less than thrilled that the conversation had taken place, he didn't become angry. He accepted that Elizabeth wasn't in any real danger, especially with Enzo right by her side the entire time and given that Hailey was in the SUV, and he also accepted that his wife was incensed and there was no way, short of the guard throwing her over his shoulder, that she would have left the park without talking to the other woman.

There was a part of Jason that eventually came to believe that perhaps it was a good thing that this had happened. He didn't want to have to commit Carly. While Michael and Morgan didn't want anything to do with her right now, the fact remained that she was still their mother. And one day they might choose to reach out to her. Sending her off to a mental institution was not something that Jason wanted to do to them. Maybe hearing what he and Sonny were considering would make her realize that she couldn't keep acting this way and she would back off.

Even as Jason thought that, he knew that it wasn't going to happen. Carly was Carly. A fact that he had long accepted, even if it frustrated him to no end. She never did things maliciously, they were always part of some plan that she was certain would work. The only certainty was the way they always blew up in hers and others' faces and left people with their lives in ruins.

This time had been different, though. The call to the CPS may have had elements of wanting an investigation to be started on Sonny so she could get her children back, but there was a definite edge of malice in it. She'd meant to hurt Jason for choosing his family over her. She'd wanted her revenge on him and the possible expulsion of his daughter from his life. And if that blew apart his marriage with Elizabeth, then that was just a bonus.

For that, Jason would never forgive Carly. This wasn't like the time when she'd gotten scared and run off to the Quartermaines and said that he'd kidnapped Michael. The only thing she was scared of was being all alone and never having Jason as her fallback guy. She had deliberately called his parenting skills, his daughter's welfare and everything about his marriage and home into question. He'd been subjected to questions, but he didn't mind that. What made him see red were his wife's tears as she sat through humiliating inquiries about her life, her relationship with Jason and so many other things that the CPS worker asked merely because she could.

For that, and for the fear and distress Hailey had gone through, Jason would never forgive and forget where Carly was concerned. She had crossed a line that she could never come back from. And there was a part of him, despite telling himself that she was suffering already given everything she had lost, that wanted to make her pay. She had gone after his wife and his innocent child in her petty games and she was going to learn that she'd messed with the wrong person.

And that was why he gave the go ahead to Sonny and Jax.

Two weeks after her conversation with Elizabeth in the park, Carly opened the door to her house to be greeted by two unknown police officers and a doctor she'd never met. She was given five minutes, with a female officer with her the entire time, to get dressed and pack a bag. She was then given a cursory examination and questioning in her living room and then escorted from her house to the squad car that took her to Mercy Hospital. She was held for seventy-two hours in observation, merely as a formality to fulfill the legal requirements.

At the end of the observation, the doctor that Jax had found and bought off, declared her unstable and claimed that she needed to be held longer. She was a danger to others, but most of all to herself. Her assets were frozen, a state conservator was appointed to manage her affairs, she was ordered to not see her children, and she was held for at least another week. That week turned into two which then turned into three. And all the while Carly grew more erratic.

While she wasn't unstable when they brought her in, her three weeks of forced isolation at Mercy Hospital with very little contact and access to others, had driven Carly to the point of enraged. She yelled, she screamed, she verbally abused the hospital staff, and then she lashed out physically. That landed her in restraints which only angered her more.

Her behavior fit perfectly with the bought diagnosis the doctor was giving, and so it was determined that she needed more care than she would receive at a hospital. She needed to be committed to a long-term psychiatric facility. Something similar to the two facilities she'd already been committed to before in her life.

And just like that, Carly was gone from their lives.

Yet, her specter still hung over them, and that was why Jason had come here today. To exorcise her once and for all.

Jason followed along behind the doctor in charge of Carly's treatment. While she wasn't allowed other visitors beyond her mother and a few select others, a definite exception had been made for Jason. His name, and his money, carried great weight, and he definitely was utilizing them today. He was shown to a small room, and then the doctor said that he would have Carly brought in.

Normally the doctor, or at least a nurse, remained with patient and visitor at all times, but as soon as she was shown into the room, all medical personnel left. Jason and Carly were alone. When the door closed, she broke into a wide triumphant grin and flew towards him for a hug.

"I knew you'd change your mind and come for me."

He stopped her before she could touch him, physically holding him away from her and when she persisted, he shoved her back by her shoulders so she would get the message. Her grin slipped and she looked at him, "Jason."

"I came to say goodbye, Carly," he told her, his voice low and firm. "Just so there would be no lingering questions or any chance of misunderstanding. We are through."

"No," she shook her head insistently. "You don't mean that. I know you're upset with me and I really am sorry, Jason, but you have to know that I never meant to hurt you."

"Did you mean to hurt my daughter?" he asked. "Or were you just hoping to hurt my wife?"

She swallowed and licked her lips nervously. One of her dead giveaways. "It wasn't like that," she insisted. "I knew they would never take Hailey away from you. You're a wonderful father."

"And yet you claimed that my daughter's life was in danger because her father was a brain-damaged, unfeeling, emotionless professional killer who was part of the mob. That was the quote the CPS worker read to us from the anonymous caller.

Her eyes grew moist with a light sheen of tears. "Jason," she whispered. "I didn't mean it. You know me-"

"Yes," he sighed heavily. "I do. I do know you, Carly, and I know how you operate. I wouldn't listen to you, I wouldn't let you control my life, I wouldn't give up the woman I love and the child she was carrying all because you didn't like her. I wouldn't help you when your life blew apart because of your actions and I wouldn't let you continue to manipulate or blackmail me. I chose someone over you and that was unforgiveable for you and I had to be taught a lesson. So you thought you'd take my daughter away from me."

"I knew it wouldn't work," she insisted. "And then I figured they'd investigate Sonny because he'd no doubt testify on your behalf and I'd get my children back."

"That may have been a byproduct or your actions," he said, narrowing his eyes in pure hatred at her, "but it wasn't your primary motive. You wanted to hurt me. To punish me."

"No," she repeated, pleading with him to believe her as tears slowly slid down her face. "You deserve to be a father. You most of all deserve that. But..."

"But you didn't like the mother," Jason surmised. "Or you wanted Hailey's mother to be you. Or maybe," he tipped his head to the side, "you figured I would kick Elizabeth out of my life and take Hailey away from her and then I'd let you help me raise her and then we'd get to play house again and you'd have your fantasy life back."

By the way she looked away from his hard gaze, he knew there was some element of truth there. Carly had never completely gotten over the idea of them together as a family, despite all her ex-husbands and children with other men.

"It would never happen," he told her, not caring if it didn't sound kind or not. "Because even if something were to happen to Elizabeth, I would never give you her daughter to raise and I would never be with you."

The barb struck home and Carly turned soulful, tearful and pleading eyes on him. "Jason, please. I know I made a mistake. I know I hurt you. But can't you find it in your heart to forgive me?"

She reached out for him once again and he sidestepped her, bringing up his hand to block her grasp. Her hands fell limply back to her side and she continued, "We have been friends for so long. Longer than nearly anyone else in your life. I know you better than you know yourself and I was only trying to do what was best for you."

"No," he shook his head. "You were doing what was best for you, as you always do. And I've forgiven you before because there was nobody besides me who got hurt. But you went too far this time, Carly, and there's no coming back from it. When I walk out of this door, I will never return here again. I will never have anything more to do with you. If you ever get out of this place and try to contact me or my family again, if you do anything that hurts Elizabeth or Hailey or any other children we have, then you better run. Because I will kill you, even if I have to hunt you down to the ends of the earth."

He leaned towards her and saw genuine fear in her eyes. "Are we clear?"

Her chin wobbled and tears cascaded in never-ending waterfalls down her face and she let out a shaky breath as she said, "Yes."

"Good," Jason said firmly. "Just as long as we're clear. Because I won't have this conversation again, and I won't give you anymore warnings. You had them, you disregarded them, and it's over now, Carly."

Then he turned and knocked on the door. It opened from the outside and without looking at the orderly he stepped past the man and out into the drab, institutional hallway. Carly was crying and begging for him to come back, and then screaming at the orderly when the man tried to take her back to her room. Jason closed everything out of his mind and when he stepped out into the sunshine and walked towards his bike, he knew that Carly was out of his life for good. No matter what happened to her in the future, he was done caring about the blonde and her messes.

From now on he was going to focus on his family.

Elizabeth had not expected to come back to the island so soon. Once she moved to Port Charles with Jason, she figured it would be many months, if not years, after her child's birth before she came back here. Jason was an important man and his place was really by Sonny's side, not down at the island overseeing the casino. She knew why he'd done that assignment before; he was trying to get together with her. Once that mission had proved successful, she'd thought he would not be able to come down here as often as he had before. And Elizabeth really had no desire to return to her former home without her husband.

But here they were, enjoying the tropical warmth and thawing out after escaping the New England winter blanketing their home. Hailey wasn't even crawling yet, but Elizabeth could tell that her daughter loved the island. Maybe it was because she'd been conceived here, or maybe it was just because she had her father's undivided attention, or maybe she enjoyed the feel of the sun's warmth on her skin after having been bundled up in snow suits back home.

Whatever the reason, Hailey Morgan was definitely an island baby. She was also a water baby. Wearing a swim diaper and plenty of sunscreen, and clinging to her father's broad chest, she went first into the pool to get used to being held in the water, and then into the gentle waves not far from the house. Jason was always safe, talking to her in a low, soothing voice as they entered the water, and he kept her close to him, secure in his strong arms. Hailey laughed and splashed and Elizabeth knew that there would never be a problem getting her to take swimming lessons in the future. Her daughter would not be frightened of the water.

Elizabeth had filled countless sketchbooks with scenes of Hailey and Jason. There were moments on the beach, moments when Jason was down on the floor helping the little girl explore her world on her blanket, and dozens of pictures of her daughter sleeping peacefully and content. After once being afraid that her daughter would be taken away from her because of Carly's cruel machinations, she couldn't stop filling pages with her love and relief for her daughter being safe with them.

She also had dozens of pictures so that they could have plenty to show their little girl of her first time to her island home. Among one of Elizabeth's favorite pictures was one taken by Patrick on the day they'd stopped in at the hotel's clinic just so that the doctor could see the little girl he'd help keep safe and healthy. Hailey was in a brightly woven shoulder sling Elizabeth was wearing, the little girl's face peeking out of the cloth folds. Jason was standing beside them, but he didn't look at Patrick's camera. His gaze was on Elizabeth and Hailey, and the love he had for both of them was clear. When Patrick gave her the picture, he said that he almost felt bad for taking the snapshot because he felt like he was intruding on a private moment every time he looked at it.

She looked up when a shadow fell across her and slid over, making room for Jason to sit beside her on the double chaise lounge on their patio. Setting aside her untouched sketchbook, she turned just enough so that she could lean against his side and rest her head on his chest. A small smile of pleasure twitched her lips when his arm automatically came around her shoulders and he pulled her just a fraction of an inch closer until she was situated just the way he wanted, which coincidentally suited her just fine.

"She asleep?" she asked, even though she knew Jason wouldn't be out here if Hailey wasn't.

"Yeah," he told her. "Fell asleep before she finished the bottle."

"Well of course she did," Elizabeth laughed lightly. "You wore her out, Daddy. I'm just an old fuddy-duddy compared to you."

His chuckle rumbled under her ear as he answered, "Trust me, Elizabeth. You are anything but an old fuddy-duddy."

She shifted slightly, looking up at him, "Oh really?"

It was a challenge he was willing to accept and he lowered his head, capturing her lips. She yielded to him easily, allowing him to pull her closer while sliding down on the chair. Just when she would have forgotten about the guards on the perimeter of the property, he stood and scooped her into his arms. His mouth never left hers, and in the end she was grateful for the short distance between the patio and their bedroom.

"So when do we have to go back?"

Jason frowned as he stepped back into their room, closing the French doors against the evening rain and the bugs looking for dry shelter. Elizabeth was sitting up in their bed, his discarded T-shirt kissing the tops of her thighs.

After spending Hailey's naptime loving each other, Elizabeth had retrieved their daughter when she woke and the family spent the rest of the afternoon lounging in bed. He watched her nurse their child when Hailey grew hungry, and then together they tickled the little girl's toes and told her stories. When Jason laughed at Elizabeth's off-key nursery songs, she retaliated by telling Hailey stories of how Daddy met Mommy and really bungled the first meetings. It was casual, it was peaceful, and neither of them had any desire to leave the room.

Dinner was brought in to be eaten amongst the covers. Hailey took her evening bath with Elizabeth in the Jacuzzi tub, and if it wasn't for the fact that Jason hoped to be able to coax his wife back in there, Jason would have put their daughter to sleep in the portable crib in the corner just so they could continue the afternoon of family togetherness. Once Hailey was asleep and Jason was back in their bedroom, they'd been interrupted by an inopportune phone call from Sonny which Jason stepped outside under the eaves to answer.

"We don't have to go back," he shook his head, hoping to put her fears to rest that they were being called home. "Sonny was just calling to check in."

When she lifted a brow he continued, "Really. He was just seeing how we were doing."

"Okay," she said with a nod. "How are he and the boys?"

"Still playing with their Christmas toys and getting along," he answered, stretching out on the bed beside her and letting his hand rest on her leg. "I guess the boys enjoyed having Jax bring by toys for them and Sonny said that it wasn't so bad having him stay for Christmas dinner. The boys like him, and he seems to be good for him. They don't seem to be bothered by his presence even though he was married to Carly."

Her brows shifted slightly at his mention of his former friend. It wasn't a topic they discussed often, and she mostly let him control how much they mentioned her. Once Jason left Carly's hospital, he had worked hard to put her out of their lives. While Elizabeth reminded him gently that he'd never fully forget the woman, she also didn't pressure him to discuss things he clearly didn't want to.

"Have you heard anything on her?" she asked hesitantly, looking down at his hand as it glided over her knee.

Jason shook his head. "I haven't asked Sonny about her, and he knows I don't want to hear anything. She made her choices and I just...I can't forget what she tried to do to our family."

"I know," she said gently, placing her hand on his cheek and lifting his face to look at her. "I know she hurt you, Jason."

He shook his head, "She hurt you and she hurt our daughter, and she did it deliberately."

"Shhh," Elizabeth murmured, sliding down on the bed so she reclined on the pillows. "We don't have to talk about her. Let's talk about Hailey and how we're going to get all the presents home that Santa brought her."

"The jet will hold them," Jason insisted, his hand traveling up her leg and under his shirt to rest on her stomach. "The beach toys can be left here for the next time we come back. You're relaxed here, and she enjoys it, so it seems a shame to have this house down here and not actually use it."

His wife smiled at his reasoning. He knew that she claimed to no longer need the island because she'd recovered from the loss of her grandmother, but he didn't intend for them to be strangers here. This is where he'd met Elizabeth and this is where he'd fallen in love with her. Yes, there had been mistakes and there had been fears, like when he'd walked away from her after she'd nearly been strangled, but there had definitely been love. Their daughter was living proof of that.

He let his hand rest on her stomach as he thought of Hailey. Maybe it wasn't as flat and toned as it had been, but Elizabeth was still just as sexy. Maybe even more. She had given him a daughter, a treasure no one could ever match. Unless they had more children. Elizabeth had given him love, understanding and a family.

While she didn't need this place to hide away from her pain, he did want to return here often with her. To remember their love, to share their lives in a more relaxed setting, and to make new memories with her. It was everything she deserved, and he would do everything he could to give it to her.

The End