Elizabeth is a Giambetti. She has shunned love due to her past and comes to town with a lovesick Johnny O. in tow. What happens when she meets Jason and is finally forced to deal with her issues?

A/N: Elizabeth is definitely Lizzy in this one. She 21 and has a backbone and attitude and this is a story about her having to deal with her past in order to have a future. Initially, I had Nathan in Johnny's "role". But I switched it after writing a few chapters. I'm a little nervous to post this one. Liz is more sarcastic then you guys are used to her being. It's just because of the walls she has up. This story is definitely more about Elizabeth's journey.

Chapter 1 - New in Town

Elizabeth Giambetti was furious. Her overbearing father, Maximus, was shipping her off to the United States to finish her last semester of college and she wanted to stay in Paris. She was tired of having her whole life dictated to her. Guards followed her everywhere unless she managed to ditch them. Violence was a part of their life and she understood that and knew how to protect herself. But sometimes, she just wanted to be left alone and her father just didn't understand that. He was beyond over protective; there was a deeper reason for it, that Liz was painfully aware of, but she felt like she was being punished for the sins of someone else; someone she tried her best not to think of.

Sliding into the limo, she contemplated running away again, but they always found her. It was her vanishing skills that had gotten her sent away this time. She swore that her father had her chipped at some point.

"Don't even speak to me." She said to Francis who sat in the front passenger seat.

Francis sighed. Elizabeth was way more than a handful and that was why Nathan was going to be her number 1 guard when they got to the states. He was tired of chasing her around. Don't get him wrong, he loved Elizabeth and would die for her. But right now, she was rebellious and cantankerous. The Giambetti and Corinthos organization had a peaceful co-existence. Milo and Max Giambetti were a part of the Corinthos/Morgan organization and would eventually be groomed to lead the Giambetti family in Italy.

Maximus wasn't sure what would happen with Elizabeth. He wasn't fond of having women involved in the business, but he had to admit that Elizabeth was a force to be reckoned with and probably had more cajones than both her brothers combined. She had a knack for business and being stealthy and it had not gone unnoticed by her father. He respected her. But she was too stubborn for her own good and she needed to grow up and stop shutting everyone out.

He sighed. There was a lot of pressure from the five families in New York to form a more permanent alliance between the two families. But, he didn't want to do that. Not only was Sonny not the man for his daughter, but he knew that Elizabeth's skills would be wasted there. She didn't want to be a mob wife. Instead, she wanted to be a player. And he wasn't sure what to think about Jason Morgan, Sonny's enforcer and partner. His temperament concerned Maximus; even though he understood that Jason had to be cold in order to do his job. But how that would translate in a relationship was unclear and he didn't want to put Liz in a bad position. He popped a couple of tums into his mouth. His daughter was killing him.

IiIiIiIiIiIiIiIiIi

Max watched his little sister come down the stairs of the private plane and gasped. She had on a black pantsuit with heels and her hair was pulled back into a bun. Maybe he wasn't expecting her to look older. Clearly, she was trying to make an impression.

"Buongiorno." She said grinning as she picked up her pace and threw herself into his arms. It had been a year since her brother had come to visit and she missed him.

"Buongiorno bella." He said pulling back to look at her more closely. Looking up, he frowned at the guard standing behind her.

Elizabeth smirked. "Max, you remember Johnny O'Brien don't you?"

Max nodded. When Johnny was first hired on, they had hung out a little when he had visited.

"He's been my main guard for the last few years."

"What about Francis?"

"Francis is still around but he didn't blend in at college as well as Johnny."

Max noticed the look that was passed between the two and he didn't like it at all.

"Where's Milo?" She asked looking around.

"He's at the coffee shop working."

"Can we go see him?"

Max nodded. "Come on."

Johnny got into the front of the limo with Enzo.

"What's the deal between you two?" Max asked curiously.

"What do you mean?"

Max frowned. "I'm not stupid Elizabeth. I don't like the way that he looks at you."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "Don't even try that overbearing big brother bullshit on me Max. I'm not a baby anymore."

"You still didn't answer my question. Does dad know?"

She gave him a look. "You really don't think I discuss my sex life with my father? Do you?"

Max turned red. There was no way in hell that his sister was sleeping with Johnny.

Liz started to laugh. "It's just sex Max. A girl has her needs too. What am I supposed to be a nun?"

Max stuttered and turned red—not sure what to say. His sister was definitely growing up and he really didn't know how to handle that. In fact, he wanted to put a stop to it immediately. Maybe he could stunt her growth.

IiIiIiIiIiIiIiIiIi

Elizabeth and Max walked into the coffee shop and everything stopped. Sonny walked out of his office and was floored by how beautiful she was.

"Boss, this is my little sister, Elizabeth." Max said proudly.

Elizabeth smiled and reached out her hand. "Mr. Corinthos, it's a pleasure meeting you."

Sonny smiled and shook her hand. "You are nothing like Max described you."

Liz grinned. "Well, my brother still thinks of me as a little girl with pigtails."

"And snot coming out of your nose." Max muttered as Liz momentarily glared at him.

Sonny nodded. "How was your trip?"

"Too long but it's really nice to see my brother." She said putting his arm around Max's waist before she pinched him.

"Ow." He growled.

Milo came walking through the double doors and broke out into a huge grin. He ran towards her and spun her around as Elizabeth laughed and hugged him back.

"I missed you so much." He said looking her up and down. "When did you get so old?"

Elizabeth grinned. "That's what happens when you abandon your little sister."

Sonny smiled at their closeness. "Milo and Max, why don't you bring Elizabeth over for dinner at my house tonight?"

"Mr. C., you don't have to do that." Max said.

"No, it's my pleasure. You know I love to cook. I'll invite everyone over so Liz can get to know them."

"Okay."

"Where are you staying?" He asked Elizabeth.

"My father is renting a house for me."

"It's actually the one next door to your house Mr. C." Milo added.

Sonny smiled. "Good. Why don't you two take her to get settled?"

Elizabeth smiled at him and then Max and Milo walked her to the car.

IiIiIiIiIiIiIiIiIi

Milo helped Liz get unpacked as they caught up.

"So, Ellie huh? I can't wait to meet her."

"She's smart and quirky." Milo said blushing.

"Are you in love with her Milo?"

Milo nodded yes.

"What's that like?" Elizabeth asked softly.

Milo detected a hint of sadness but Liz quickly hid it. "I don't know how to describe it. But, I just know that I never want to lose the feeling."

Clearing his throat, he looked over into the hallway to make sure that Max was still talking to Johnny. "I know there has been talk of an alliance."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "There has been."

"Sonny is not right for you. If it comes down to it, I'll help you run away. I won't allow it."

Liz's eyes filled with tears. God she had missed her brother. "Milo, I don't want to marry Sonny. But, if father ordered it, I don't think I could defy him."

Milo hugged her. "I'm so sorry. I've spoken to pops about it and I really don't think he wants it either."

She pulled back, surprised at his statement. "Really? Because he hasn't given me that impression."

"I think he's just covering his bases. He has to make it look like he'd consider it and I also think he likes to test you."

She sighed. "Well, I don't think anything will be discussed before I finish college anyway."

"I can't believe that you are going to graduate soon."

Liz grinned. "So, what's there to do around this town?"

Milo rolled his eyes. "Not a lot."

"Great. I'm stuck in hell."

"If someone didn't disappear again for two weeks, you would still be in Paris studying."

Liz stood up and walked over to the window. "I just needed some space."

"You ditched your guards and disappeared, Elizabeth. You know you can't do that."

"Why not Milo? Is it because I'm a girl? I know how to take care of myself. I had a gun on me and no one even bothered me."

Milo sighed. He understood that she was going crazy but she could have been kidnapped or killed by a rival. "After what happened to you in high school…"

"What the hell does that have to do with anything?"

"You were almost raped."

"And? I wasn't. Yes, it was traumatic at the time. But if you'll remember, I had guards and I still wasn't protected."

Milo got up and grabbed her hands. "I just don't want to see anything bad happen to you again. I love you squirt."

"I know that you all love me but you can't smother me or dictate my life. It's not fair."

Milo hugged her. "I'm sorry. Maybe we go a little crazy but perhaps you need to consider our point of view."

She pulled back and looked at him.

"I will be forever haunted by how you looked when we found you. I held you at night when you screamed in your sleep. And I can seriously say that I just can't ever see you like that again." He said quietly.

"I'm sorry. I guess I didn't think about that."

"Will you please be more careful?"

She nodded. "Okay."

Liz hadn't really given their perspective much thought. It had taken her a year before she felt okay to be alone or didn't jump at every little movement, although she really didn't think about it anymore. Shortly afterwards, she had started to rebel because she had this innate need to be in control. Nothing scared her anymore which made it even more dangerous that she liked to ditch her guards. She went a little wild. And when it was time to go to college, she drank and partied. Francis would rescue her but he soon grew tired of it all and then came Johnny. The minute Liz saw him, she wanted him. He was charming, sexy, and safe. She made it her mission to have him. And Johnny did put up a fight at first because of her father. But, Liz was beautiful and smart and eventually he caved. It took a month of sexy outfits and constant flirting and then one night he called her bluff. He hadn't admitted it, but he fell in love with her; a woman that he could never truly have and that didn't love him back. He believed she cared about him but Elizabeth was shut off. She had done it to survive. God knows he had tried to penetrate the wall around her heart, but he couldn't reach her like that. So, he settled for whatever he could; doing whatever it took to keep her safe.

IiIiIiIiIiIiIiIiIi

The Giambetti's walked into Sonny's house.

"Elizabeth, welcome to my home." He said smiling.

Liz smiled. "Thank you for having me. It smells really good in here."

Sonny grinned. "I like to cook. This is Nathan West. He's going to be overseeing your security detail."

"It's nice to finally meet you." Nathan said as Liz smiled at him.

"Nice to meet you too."

"This is a business associate of mine, Lorenzo Alcazar."

Lorenzo smiled and shook her hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you Ms. Giambetti."

"And this is my girlfriend Carly." Lorenzo said pulling Carly out from behind him.

Carly smiled. "Hello, love the shoes."

Liz smiled back. "Thank you."

"Make yourself comfortable." Sonny said disappearing into the kitchen.

"So Elizabeth, what are you studying?" Lorenzo asked as they all sat down on the couch.

"I am studying Business Administration with a minor in Finance."

Lorenzo smiled. "Impressive. What do you plan on doing when you graduate?"

Sonny had come back into the room with some hors d'oeuvres.

Liz smirked. "I hope to help run my father's business."

Jason had come into the room unnoticed and just stood off to the side listening.

Lorenzo's eyebrows shot up. "Really?"

"What, you don't think it's a woman's place?"

"No…no…. I didn't say that. I'm just a little surprised. You have to admit, it wouldn't be the standard answer for someone in your situation."

"True but I'm very good at what I do. I've already helped my father with some acquisitions and I can be quite ruthless when I need to be."

Jason smirked.

"Good to know." Lorenzo said smiling.

Elizabeth wasn't sure if she liked him or not. She thought he was patronizing her.

"I say go for it." Carly said glaring at Lorenzo.

Sonny rolled his eyes which made Liz get a little defensive. She hated not being taken seriously.