Dante&Lulu: Sonny-Free Zone

Hello, got a challenge fic request from Lulufan29 at the board. Here are the parameters:

Dante is staying at Carly's to help with the boys' protection while she and Jax are on the outs. Carly talks Lulu into staying over for a weekend while she & Josslyn go out of town or something. Then the boys suddenly have sleepovers and Dante & Lulu find themselves all alone in a house with a lot of bedrooms. Maybe throw in a game of high stakes (strip) poker?

So I tried. I'll be honest this got a lot longer and angstier (is that even a word?) than I planned but that's how it came out. Small adjustments – Lulu is coming over to give Maxi a Lulu-free weekend with Spinelli (started this before the reveal), Carly and Josslyn have already left when she arrives. Sonny takes the boys for the weekend instead (no sleepovers, Michael is almost 18 so I assume any sleepovers at that age involve girls) and that also takes Sonny out of the mix for investigation for that weekend. Rated M for Danlu naughtiness because once you go there, it's hard to go back. (Takes ages to get to the M, tho ;-))

Needless to say, unbeta-ed, weak spell check and apologies for the fact that I really can't remember my Strunk and White Grammar rules.

Prologue

Dante stood at the window watching the rain pour all over his perfect weekend break. It seemed like it rained ever since Lulu found out his secret, and if Dante were superstitious, he might see an omen in that. A half hour ago, this weekend had promised to be the best one he'd seen in a year. Carly and Jocelyn had taken off early in the AM and then Sonny had called to ask Michael and Morgan to come stay for the weekend.

"Go ahead, take the weekend off Dominic," Sonny's voice had sounded weary on the phone, and Dante totally understood that because it had been a helluva week for both of them. "Call some friends - enjoy yourself -" Like any healthy 25 year old, Dante had gotten excited at the idea of a weekend free from responsibility and care. There was only one small problem.

He didn't really have any friends in town. It was hard to really be friends with people when you knew if any of them knew who you really were, they'd shoot you without hesitation. The other citizens of Port Charles, the ones who would appreciate him taking down a major crime organization-they all avoided him because they thought he was a mobster and a killer. Other than his mother, and an increasingly questionable Ronnie, his only possible friend was the angry young woman currently on the telephone behind him.

Lulu paced behind him, armed with her cell phone. There was no WAY she was spending this weekend with him. The whole point of coming here was to get away so she could think the situation through. She needed to make up her mind about Officer Falconeri. She hated that he'd put her in this position. Okay, to be fair, he didn't exactly "put" her in the position, but - if he'd just left her alone when she'd asked him to, she wouldn't have to think about all the people who were going to hurt by his actions.

She'd been so excited to get away and have a nice uncomplicated weekend; she'd forgotten to check the weather. Consequently, she'd caught the brunt of the storm, and after a thirty minute drive spent fighting to keep the car on the road, she'd finally arrived at Carly's house, grumpy and soaked. She'd unlocked the front door and surprise, surprise, there was Officer Falconeri, settling in with a nice glass of red wine in front of the Jax's state-of-the-art fireplace. He'd barely been able to contain his delight at seeing her, but Lulu was appalled. She was on the phone immediately.

"Maxi, come on - " Lulu shivered from the damp as paced around the room. This was the second time she'd been soaked around Dante in a matter of days. If she didn't know any better she would say there was an omen in that. Maxi's whine got a little louder.

"I know I promised, but – "Lulu sighed with frustration and glared at Dante. He was standing very still, staring out into the storm but Lulu knew he was listening. "Yes, Carly did say it was okay, but I didn't know she wouldn't be here."

She could only see the back of his tousled head, but she knew he wasn't missing anything. He was always alert, always poised for action. That should've been a dead giveaway that he was a cop, but, NO she had allowed herself to be distracted by his cheesy pick up lines and sexy smiles. 'And the kiss, Lulu don't forget about the kiss,' she reminded herself ruefully. That horrible day - the day she'd thought she'd given him away to Sonny - he'd given her a passionate kiss that had knocked her world off its axis. That kiss had left a burn that had her aching for him. Which was unacceptable, because not only did Lulu Spencer not believe in love, she'd never felt that out of control with anyone. Which made her only made her more furious with him.

There was an annoyed chirrup at the other end of her phone and Lulu realized she'd lost track of what Maxi was saying. He'd done it again. Lulu stuck her tongue out at his back.

Dante saw her reflection in the window and sighed. He was just trying to do his job – a job that he took pride in, by the way - and everyone he cared about was giving him grief. Sonny was a bad guy. Jason was a bad guy. Dante didn't know much but he knew that for sure. He appreciated Lulu's loyalty, in fact it was one of his favorite things about her, but she would never lure him over to the dark side. He couldn't just ignore the pain they both inflicted while they did their "business."

Dante should've been furious with her. She was thinking about blowing his cover with Sonny, which he knew meant death, no matter what Lulu thought. He knew he should also ask himself why he was hanging around a woman who had no respect for the law, and was willing to cover up for gangsters. But Dante could forgive Lulu Spencer anything. No one kept up with him like she did. They were meant to be together. Pity Lulu wasn't on the same page.

"I know I promised -" Lulu realized she was getting perilously close to begging. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction. "It's just that no one's here! NO - ONE at all." Offended, Dante glared back over his shoulder, but his inherit good manners kicked in and he turned back to the window.

'Ha! Take that! Mr. I'm-so-charming-she'll-go-along-like-a-nice-girl-if-I-flirt-with-her-long-enough, Falconeri! ' Lulu thought gleefully. If she could just stay angry with him – things would be fine. She just had to keep reminding herself what he was doing to the people she loved. That's all she needed to do, just stay mad.

"Yes, I know there's a huge storm outside." Lulu dug around inside her purse for her keys, steadfastly ignoring the figure by the window. Maxi repeated something impatiently on the other end of the call. Lulu sighed.

"Yeah but I'm a better driver than you…." That statement unleashed a shrill flurry of protests as Maxi's exasperation became audible, even to Dante. Lulu winced and held the phone away from her ear.

"Okay! I get it - you've already got Spinelli tied-up, and TMI – I didn't need to hear about the whipped cream. Forget I called - " Lulu quickly hung up the phone. Suddenly appalled, she realized she was so aware of Dante, she could feel his smile even before she saw it. She looked up. Yep. Wide and sexy, and his beautiful dark eyes ('beautiful', was she out of her mind?) were twinkling.

"Whipped cream, huh?" Dante chucked as he realized Spinelli was fast becoming his idol. "I'm in, provided Carly has the real stuff - " Silence. The look Lulu gave him was deadly. Crap, he was truly in the doghouse.

"That's funny, coming from a professional Fake. How would you even know what's real?" Lulu gave him an angry glare. She didn't realize how vicious her slam was until she saw his smile fade. The warmth was gone from his eyes and Lulu suddenly hated herself. He looked away abruptly and nodded.

"I think that's my cue to leave." He turned to go. "I'll just grab some stuff." There was a loud crash as lightning struck outside and they both jumped.

"Wait " Lulu instinctively grabbed his arm. Dante stopped, but didn't turn to face her. "You can't drive in this storm - "

"You were going to." Dante was suddenly tired. No, he didn't want to drive in the storm, but he didn't want to spend all weekend sniping at each other, either. His pride demanded that he brush off her hand, but Lulu rarely touched him and he couldn't help but linger. His family was tactile and affectionate, and as a consequence he craved contact like others craved sweets, or alcohol. 'Pathetic and sad, Falconeri', he told himself, but the truth was the truth.

"No." Lulu protested. Dante cocked an eyebrow at her, skeptically. She felt a guilty blush creeping up her face.

"Oh yeah?" Dante knew that he made her nervous, despite her confident demeanor. He felt a slight tremor in her hand, and he didn't want to do anything to spook her.

"I knew she'd say no." Lulu felt herself flush as she realized she still had her hand on his arm. She pulled it back, abruptly. Dante pretended not to notice. "I love Maxi, but she really is one of the most selfish people I've ever met. She was thrilled to have me gone for the weekend."

Dante felt his entirely justifiable frustration start to melt. A contrite and guilty Lulu Spencer was just as irresistible as a drugged up one, and he could tell that she was regretting her impulsive comment. He made a decision, and put on his best negotiating voice.

"Sonny gave me the weekend off. He's got the boys with him, so he won't do anything criminal. That means, I'm really truly off – from both my jobs - " he approached Lulu hesitantly. "I don't see any reason why you shouldn't have a weekend off too. Maybe we can forget about Sonny, just a for a couple of days."

"He's a friend and almost family – I can't just forget -" Lulu gave him a sad look.

"I'm not saying forget completely, but why not give ourselves a little time off? You can yell at me all you want on Monday but this weekend, let's declare this house a Sonny-free zone. You seem like you could use a break and I know I could." Dante gave her his most persuasive smile.

It was his usual charmer, and normally Lulu was impervious but she could see that something was off. His smile was a little shaky - not nearly as cocky as it normally was. He was telling the truth, he needed a break. As horrible as the situation was for her, Lulu knew that, for him, the situation was even worse. She was surprised to discover she really wanted to do this for him.

"A Sonny-free zone..." Lulu gave him a mischievous smile as inspiration hit. She knew a way it she could make this weekend extra fun for both of them without getting into dangerous territory.

"Yeah, for this weekend – he just doesn't exist. We can pretend we've just met and that you stalked me to this house because you can't get enough of me – " Dante ignored the snort of derisive laughter from Lulu. He gave her a knowing wink.

"How about this…" With a sigh of relief, Lulu set down her soggy bag and headed over to the warm fire. "Much as I love the idea, I don't believe you can go a whole weekend without mentioning…you know who. I think we need a little incentive. Whenever someone mentions…Him, they owe the other a forfeit."

"Loser is the one who has the most forfeits over the weekend?" Dante inquired smoothly, suddenly VERY interested in the potential ramifications of this little competition. His imagination went immediately into overdrive, even though he knew there was no way in hell Lulu would ever agree to the ideas racing through his head.

"Deal - " Lulu grabbed his hand to seal the agreement and just for a moment, she was breathless. She had forgotten how warm and strong it was. She stepped back and they nodded at each other like old adversaries.

"You're so going down." Dante taunted.

"Oh I don't think so." Lulu was smug.

"Aren't you the same Lulu Spencer who admitted that she can't let anything go?" Dante smirked as he Lulu shucked off her jacket. Then he noticed the rain had rendered her light blouse nearly transparent and he could the lacey black bra underneath. Dante noticed the cold had her nipples into two tiny peaks and suddenly it felt like someone had punched him in the gut.

Lulu swung around caught his hungry stare. Her first instinct was to clutch at her jacket and hide from his gaze, but he averted his gaze before she could. She was surprised to see a sudden flush of color across his cheeks.

"Um…sorry about that" Dante caught his breath roughly, "I just wanted to ask what our forfeits should be." He looked up, carefully avoiding looking at her chest. Oddly enough, that piqued Lulu more than anything. Maybe it made her contrary but she didn't like Dante pretending to be oblivious to her. It made her want to push his buttons – a little.

"The forfeits are whatever the winner chooses." Lulu deliberately crossed her arms, underneath her chest instead of in front. Dante's eyes went wide and then he turned his head to the side. Lulu wasn't sure, but she thought she heard him mutter "Wow" under his breath. She smirked and stepped closer.

" When you slip and name HIM, which I know you will do, because nobody talks as much as you do - I get to name your forfeit, for example; you slip and I may decide to have you clean the bathrooms." Lulu dropped her voice into a low and sexy register. Dante looked a little dazed, but he tried to recover

"Oh yeah?" Dante's laugh was more confused than sexy. "So when YOU slip, I can say give me a kiss – "

"Nope, no kissing." Lulu was firm. She knew she was sending mixed signals, but she didn't want to open that door. Ultimately she was trying to keep their relationship under control, and if their game got out of hand, she was worried they both would too. She would stick to the mission that brought her here. No funny business. She moved her arms to cover her chest.

"Oh come on. It has to be something you fear." Dante was slightly confused by Lulu's shyness, but he'd go with it. "Otherwise what's the incentive?"

"I'm not afraid of you" Lulu shot back. "I just expected you to be a little more creative, that's all."

"Well, you don't need to worry – do you? Don't say Sonny's name and you'll be fine." Dante said slyly. He gave her that one. Quite honestly, he was more intrigued with the forfeits than their fragile truce. Lulu didn't disappoint.

"Hah HAH!" She pointed at him and did a triumphant little dance that made Dante smile wider. She was adorable when she was rubbing his face in it. "Not even five minutes and you're already down one!" Lulu was delighted.

"Alright. You got me." Dante spread his hands in defeat. "Name your forfeit."

He watched in anticipation as she paced around him.

"Hmmm…I'm thinking – "Lulu grinned, as she looked him over, head to foot. He clearly was anticipating something risqué. She smiled. "You know what? I'm hungry. You said you could cook, right?" Lulu could barely contain her giggles.

"Yeah, I can." Dante sighed. Of course, his weekend off and Lulu was putting him to work.

"Great. I want a gourmet, home cooked meal with all the trimmings, except for that awful stuff."

"Offal." Dante said wryly. "Don't worry, I doubt Carly has any cow's brains or sheep's tail in her larder."

"Oh good, and just to make it really special… I think you need to wear Carly's apron – you know, the cheerful one, with all the happy faced lemons on it?" Lulu smiled widely. "I would hate for you to get your clothes dirty."

"These clothes? They're nothing, just a sweater and jeans" Dante tried to mollify her. Lulu shook her head. He sighed. "The cheerful one."

"Yeah. I think it's pretty. You're not afraid of looking pretty, are you?"

Lulu rolled her eyes at him. Dante laughed.

"My Mom always said I was adorable" He grinned charmingly, "I just don't think yellow's my color." Lulu laughed loudly and shook her head.

"Oh no you don't! It's a cool yellow, perfect for olive-skinned brunettes." Lulu told him triumphantly. "You'll look lovely."

"A cool yellow - yes, Ma'am." Dante bowed low. Well, someone once said that the way to a man's heart was his stomach. He figured that was true for women as well. He would dazzle her with his Falconeri culinary skills.