Chapter 1
Lulu Falconeri was getting ready at the loft for the big New Year's Eve party at the MetroCourt. She and Dante were going to announce to friends and family that they had gotten married over Christmas in New York City. Dante had to return right to work so they didn't have time for a honeymoon. She was disappointed but understood. She hoped sometime soon they would be able to take a trip. At least tonight they would be able to have some fun and just enjoy being out together, celebrating the New Year as man and wife. Lulu put on her sparkly dress with the red sash, blew out her hair and secured it on one side with a clip and carefully applied her make-up. She really wanted to look her best for her debut as Mrs. Dante Falconeri. Dante was supposed to be home by 7pm to quickly shower and throw on his suit so they could head to the party. Lulu had a bottle of champagne on ice to have a little toast before they left and his suit that she picked up from the dry cleaner was laid out on the bed. She just really wanted tonight to be special.
At 7:30pm, Lulu was starting to get annoyed. She had received a text from Dante at 7pm that he was running late working a crime scene with his new partner Delores. At 8:30pm, she received another text telling her just to go on without him and that he would meet her there. So far this night was not going well. She didn't want to disappoint Olivia by skipping the party so she put the champagne back in the fridge, grabbed her wrap and headed out to the party.
She arrived at the MetroCourt and got out of her car at the valet stand. She felt awkward showing up to the party alone as she saw people entering the hotel in groups of twos or fours. She wasn't sure if Maxie would be there because she had been fighting with Matt all day. She knew Olivia would probably be very busy since she was the party planner. Lulu entered the ballroom where the party was in full swing. Trays of champagne were being passed around. People were dressed to the nines, mingling and dancing. She spotted Olivia talking to one of the waiters near the bar. As soon as she noticed Lulu come in, Olivia excused herself from the waiter and made a beeline for her. "Honey, I was beginning to think you weren't coming. You look great! Where is Dante?"
"Dante got stuck at work. He and Delores were working a crime scene so he told me just to come by myself and he would meet me eventually." Lulu said, trying to sound upbeat and not as disappointed as she felt.
"Oh honey, I'm sorry. I'm sure he will be here as soon as he can." Olivia tried to reassure her. Despite Lulu's best efforts to appear not phased, Olivia could tell that she was crestfallen that the night wasn't going as planned.
"It is okay. I have to get used to it right? I am the wife of a cop." Lulu decided to change the subject before she started crying. "The room looks so beautiful and what a great turnout."
"It is a great turnout if I do say so myself." Olivia agreed. "Oh, excuse me honey, I need to go tell them to bring more food out." Olivia rushed off and Lulu was left alone once again. She debated just going home now that she had made her appearance and Olivia had seen her there. She spotted her cousin Carly but decided against going to talk to her. They still weren't on the best of terms after everything that happened last year. She also spotted Sonny in another corner with Kate Howard but she wasn't on the best of terms with her new father-in-law either. Lulu decided to go have one drink at the bar and if she didn't find someone to talk to when she finished it, she would leave.
She settled on a bar stool and ordered herself some champagne. She noticed Diane Miller and the ex-Mayor Preston Floyd were also sitting at the bar. The ex-Mayor had recently purchased the Port Charles Chronicle and started going by his middle name instead of his first name of Garrett. Diane was writing the gossip column for the newspaper. Diane turned to greet Lulu. "Hello Lulu, where is that handsome fiancée of yours tonight?"
"Husband actually, we got married over Christmas." Lulu didn't see the harm in letting the cat out of the bag. People were going to find out eventually. "He got stuck at work so I'm flying solo until he gets here."
"Congratulations! Let's see that ring! Tell me all about the wedding." Diane asked thinking this could be some good stuff for her column. The eldest son of Sonny Corinthos marries the only daughter of Luke and Laura Spencer. It had to be a who's who at the wedding.
"Actually, there was no big wedding. It was just the two of us and Dante's mom at a church. We haven't even told everyone yet." Lulu explained beaming with thoughts of the intimate wedding. "It was very spontaneous. We just wanted to be husband and wife."
"Isn't that romantic Preston?" Diane asked.
Preston Floyd finally noticed Lulu sitting there. "Have we met?" He introduced himself as he looked her up and down. "Preston Floyd. Ex-Mayor of Port Charles, current owner of the Port Charles Chronicle."
"Lulu Falconeri. We have met in passing. My husband is a detective at the PCPD." Lulu explained, remembering the few run-ins Dante had with the ex-Mayor.
"Your husband is Sonny's son? Detective Falconeri?" Preston Floyd asked, suddenly intrigued.
"Yes, that's him." Lulu confirmed. "We just got married last week."
"Congratulations. So tell me Lulu Falconeri, what do you do for a living?" Preston wanted to get to know her better. With all of her connections, she could be a great source for the paper.
"I'm between jobs at the moment. Up until the summer, I worked for Kate Howard at Crimson magazine. I took time off for some family matters. I'm looking for a new job now."
"Any interest in continuing in journalism? I have some entry level openings at my paper and with your connections in town, you could be a valuable asset." Preston was trying to charm her.
"You don't even know if I can write." Lulu thought he must have been joking. Who offered a perfect stranger a job at a newspaper just like that?
"If you worked for Kate Howard, you can write. A job with her is like a crash course in all things publishing." Preston knew this to be true. Kate Howard was a woman who knew what she wanted and put out a great magazine. Lulu's experience there would be plenty for her to write some pieces for the newspaper. "You could start out writing a few stories and see if you like it and if you have a talent for it."
"I'm very flattered. Would you mind if I think it over? Maybe we can meet next week to discuss it further? Do you have a card?" The wheels were already spinning in Lulu's head. This sounded like a great opportunity but it seemed far too easy. The ex-mayor also had a bit of a sleazy reputation. She wanted to make sure the offer was legitimate before she accepted.
"Sure, here is my card. Let's have lunch on Monday at noon in the restaurant here at the hotel to hammer out the details." Preston wasn't taking no for an answer. "Diane, let's go mingle and get some more gossip for the column. See you Monday Lulu."
"See you Monday!" Lulu said excitedly. She couldn't believe how her night was turning around. At least if she couldn't have a nice evening with her husband, she got a job prospect out of the deal. She realized it was already 10:30pm and Dante wasn't there yet. She checked her phone and there were no messages. She decided she had hung in there long enough and could reasonably throw in the towel now and go home. She went over to say goodbye to Olivia who was talking to Sonny and Kate.
"Excuse me" Lulu said to Sonny and Kate. "Olivia, I just wanted to say goodbye. It looks like Dante isn't going to make it so I'm just going to head home. Thank you for a nice evening."
"Oh Lulu, don't go!" Olivia exclaimed. "We haven't told everyone the big news yet."
"What big news?" Kate asked.
"Dante and Lulu got married over Christmas!" Olivia said bursting with excitement.
"Congratulations Lulu! What great news!" Kate gave her a hug.
Olivia and Kate started gossiping about all of the wedding details and the whole Falconeri clan crashing in after the ceremony. Olivia was beaming with pride.
Sonny and Lulu stood awkwardly not sure what to do. Finally Sonny spoke. "Lulu, I know we have had our differences but I hope you and Dante will be very happy together."
"Thank you Sonny." Lulu said cordially. She had made a pact with herself to try to keep things nice and civil with Sonny for Dante's sake. Their relationship was already troubled without her causing further strife between them. If Dante wanted a relationship with Sonny, Lulu would support him every step of the way just like he supported her when she went running after her dad.
Finally she saw Dante arrive and make his way over to her. He looked sheepish knowing how late he was and that he didn't call. He put an arm around her waist and gave her a kiss, then he acknowledged the group.
"I had just about given up on you." Lulu couldn't help but get a dig in there. He at least could have texted to give her a timeframe on his arrival.
"Sorry about that. I got caught up processing a crime scene and lost track of time. You look beautiful." He knew she was upset and was hoping to distract her by announcing their marriage. "Did you tell everyone the big news?"
"Olivia just did. Though I did tell Diane earlier so it is probably going to be in the newspaper tomorrow" Lulu laughed. She wanted to tell Dante about her job offer so she hoped they got a few minutes alone. It was hard to stay mad when he looked so handsome in his suit. He leaned to whisper in her ear. "Baby, you look amazing in this dress. I can't wait to get you alone later." Lulu blushed at her husband's words
"Everyone. I need your atteshion pleazzzze"
Everyone turned toward the stage where the band was set up and saw Michael up at the microphone, clearly extremely drunk.
"I have an announcement to make. My mother is a fucking liar. Jax is still alive. I saw him. She lied to make everyone hate my dad for killing him even though he didn't and she sent Morgan away to military school." Michael rambled his confession. Everyone turned to look at Carly who just stood there with a shocked and horrified look on her face.
Michael took this opportunity to run out of the room. Dante went chasing after him to prevent him from getting into his car and driving. Everyone else turned on Carly and Lulu was once again alone. She didn't feel like dealing with the firestorm that was about to ensue between Sonny and Carly so she decided to just go home. What a disaster this night had been. She hoped Michael was okay and that Dante would at least make it home by midnight so they could ring in the New Year together.
An hour later, Lulu was sitting on the couch, still in her party dress waiting for Dante. It was almost 12 and she knew she would be ringing in the New Year alone.. Even though she understood why he had to go after Michael, she was still extremely disappointed he didn't make it home. A tear slipped down her cheek as the clock struck midnight. "Happy New Year husband" she whispered. She changed out of her party dress and into pajama shorts and a tank top to sleep in. She climbed into bed and fell asleep alone, wishing she were ringing in the New Year with the man she loved.
The next morning she was still alone in bed. She had a text from Dante saying he found Michael and was staying with him at Kelly's to make sure he didn't hurt himself or someone else. Lulu was relieved that Michael was okay. She decided rather than mope in bed all morning about not starting the New Year off celebrating with her new husband that she would go buy a newspaper and prepare for her lunch with Preston Floyd tomorrow. She texted Dante back saying she would be hanging at the Haunted Star and went out to buy her paper. She bought herself some breakfast and coffee on the way and set herself up at one of the tables with the Sunday paper and a pad. She was going to bring some story ideas to the meeting in the hopes of impressing her potential new boss. She worked all morning and came up with a whole list of ideas for the paper. By lunchtime she still had not heard from Dante so she decided to go have lunch with Maxie. She never made it to the party last night so she knew Maxie was having a hard time with Matt. Maxie never missed a party if she could help it.
They met at their favorite Mexican restaurant for lunch and Maxie unloaded about Matt. Lulu sympathized because Matt was following Liz around like a puppy and Lulu knew from experience with her two brothers that nothing good came from being involved with Liz. Lulu thought Maxie should just cut her losses now but tried to be supportive. Once Maxie was done, she asked Lulu how her Christmas was in NYC with Dante. Lulu broke the news about the quickie wedding. Maxie was upset not to be invited to her best friend's wedding but understood doing something spur of the moment. Lulu debated telling Maxie about her potential job offer but decided to keep that just for herself for now. She wanted to talk it over with Dante but he still hadn't called or texted.
After lunch, Lulu went grocery shopping and then went home to clean up the loft and do laundry. She wanted to have a fresh start to the week with a clean apartment, stocked fridge and no piles of dirty laundry. She made a pizza using one of those ready made crusts that could go in the oven as soon as Dante came home and a salad to go with it. She hoped he would make it home for dinner. She missed him and really wanted to talk to him about the potential job before the interview tomorrow. Finally at about 7pm, he came in wearing his suit from last night still.
"How is Michael?" Lulu asked before she even said hello.
"He is okay now. I stayed with him to make sure he didn't try to drive or do anything stupid." Dante explained.
"I can have dinner ready in about 15 minutes. I just have to put the pizza in the oven."
"I'm sorry baby but I can't stay for dinner. I just came home to change my clothes. I have to go back to the station. We are just working on this case." Dante looked apologetic.
"Okay." Lulu said, trying her hardest not to get upset. "I did laundry so you have some clean shirts in the drawer." She turned away and went into the kitchen. Dante went into the bathroom and took a quick shower. He came out dressed and ready to go back to work. He came up behind her in the kitchen and wrapped his arms around her. Despite herself she melted in his arms.
"I'm sorry about the party last night." He said in her ear. "I promise we'll do something special to make up for it once I'm done working on this case."
Lulu could feel herself getting angry. "Don't make promises you can't keep Dante. There will always be another case waiting in the wings to replace the one you solve." She said as she pulled away. "You should get to the station, Delores is waiting."
Dante looked hurt but he knew he deserved her anger. He hadn't been good about keeping her updated and he got so lost in working on the case that he had come to the party much later than he planned.
Lulu went to sit down on the couch and stared at the TV. Dante looked at her for another minute trying to decide if he should try to talk it out with her or just give her time to cool off. He had to get back to work so he decided to try talking to her later.
"I love you." Dante said as he walked to the door. He waited, hoping she would at least say she loved him back. Without looking at him she said, "I love you too."
Lulu ate the salad she made but left the pizza in the fridge. She wasn't that hungry and figured Dante could heat up the pizza later if he needed something to eat. She picked out an outfit for her lunch with Preston Floyd the next day. She knew there was no sense in waiting up for Dante and she wanted to be well rested for her meeting so she went to bed early.
Dante came home hours later and found Lulu fast asleep in bed hugging his pillow. She looked so beautiful and peaceful. He really missed her these past few days. He wished he could have spent the evening at home having dinner with her instead of following leads on this case he was working on. He stripped down to his boxers and climbed into bed. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close, breathing in her scent. In her sleepy haze she forgot she was mad and instinctively turned over and tucked her face into his neck.
"I love you." He whispered in her ear.
"I love you too." She mumbled into his neck and fell back asleep.
The next morning, Dante was gone by the time Lulu woke up. He left a note on the pillow saying he had to go to the station early and maybe they could meet at Kelly's for lunch later if he had time to take a break. She realized she never even got a chance to tell him about her lunch with Preston Floyd. She texted Dante that she already had lunch plans and would hopefully see him later for dinner. She got dressed in the outfit she had picked out the night before, grabbed her purse and headed to the interview that could change her life.
She arrived at the MetroCourt right on time. Preston Floyd was already there waiting at a table for two. He stood up to greet her and shook her hand before motioning for her to sit down. "Thanks for meeting with me today Lulu."
"Thank you for this opportunity." Lulu said nervously.
The lunch went great. Preston loved her story ideas for the paper and her writing samples from Crimson. He hired her as a reporter for the newspaper on a trial basis. If she turned out good stories then they would make the position permanent. Her first assignment was to write a story on the assaults on exotic dancers happening at Vons, the strip club that Johnny owned. She would meet with Preston every couple of days so he could assess her progress and figure out when the story would run. Lulu was so excited and couldn't wait to tell Dante her news. Her first day at the paper would be tomorrow.
That night, Lulu was excitedly waiting for Dante to get home from work. He texted her that he would be home to have dinner with her but that he would have to go back to work right after. Lulu was trying not to let her annoyance that he couldn't even take one evening just for them without rushing back to the station get in the way of her excitement over her new job.
Dante arrived home a little while later and Lulu served dinner. She was too distracted to worry about cooking so she ordered take-out from Kelly's. Things were still a little frosty between them so they made polite conversation while they ate as Lulu waited for the right moment to bring up her big news. Dante practically inhaled his food and got up to put his coat on.
"Dante, you weren't even home for a full hour. I have something important to tell you, can you please take your coat off and stay for a little while?" Lulu pleaded.
"Baby, I'm sorry. I just have this case I'm working on." Dante said as he grabbed his badge and keys.
"Ok, I'll make it quick then since you need to know this. I got a new job. I'll be working at the Port Charles Chronicle for ex-Mayor Preston Floyd. I start tomorrow."
Dante was stunned. Preston Floyd was a sleaze. The thought of Lulu working with him made Dante's skin crawl.
"When did this happen?" Dante asked.
"The details aren't important. You can go to work now. I just wanted you to know about the job since I won't be around all the time anymore to wait for you to have time to spend with me." She busied herself cleaning up from dinner.
Dante grabbed her arm to stop her. "Lulu, this guy is a sleaze. You don't want to work for him."
She yanked her arm out of his grasp. "I know just the type of person he is." Lulu was well aware of the ex-Mayor's reputation. She could handle him. "I still took the job anyway because it is something I think I can do well and it interests me. My first assignment is to write a story on the stripper assaults."
"Lulu, you cannot be getting involved in this! It is too dangerous. Why would you take this job without talking to me first?" Dante said raising his voice.
"Dante Falconeri, I have been trying to talk to you since the moment he approached me. You do not get to tell me what I can and cannot do." Lulu yelled back.
"I'm sorry, that wasn't my intention." Dante said.
Lulu finally couldn't hold back any longer and started to cry. "I thought you would be happy for me. I finally found something I'm excited to try."
Dante felt terrible. He tried to embrace Lulu but she pulled away. "Baby, I'm sorry. I love you and I want you to find something you love to do. I'm just worried about your safety. If this is the job that you want to do then I'm behind you. Just please promise me that you will be careful. Both with Preston Floyd and poking around about the case."
"Of course I will be careful." Lulu said as she wiped her tears.
"Good because I couldn't take it if anything happened to you." Dante embraced her again. This time she didn't pull away and buried her face into his neck. "I love you Mrs. Falconeri. I'm sorry that I haven't been around these last few days."
"I love you too Dante. I just miss you." Lulu whispered into his neck.
"I miss you too." Dante said before leaning down to kiss her sweetly.
He reluctantly pulled away. "I have to go."
Lulu nodded and released her hold on him.
Dante gave her one last look before he left to go back to work. Lulu took a deep breath and busied herself with cleaning up from dinner. She prepared her outfit for the next day. She wanted to look professional but still young and fresh. She settled on a black knee length Calvin Klein dress with a grey jacket over it, black spike heels and silver jewelry. She took a nice relaxing bath and went to bed early. She wanted to be well rested for her first day as an investigative reporter.
Dante came home hours later completely exhausted. He saw Lulu's outfit all prepared for her first day at work and felt terrible about how he had acted when she told him her news. She was obviously very excited about this job and he had rained all over her parade. Dante washed up and climbed into bed. He wanted to wake Lulu up to apologize but knew she needed her rest for her big day tomorrow. He settled for wrapping his arms around her and whispering his love into her ear. She sighed in her sleep and cuddled closer to him. Dante fell asleep wondering how he got so lucky.