The Boss's Deal
SNEAK PREVIEW!
Elizabeth and Jason Q. are caught in a bad situation. How they get out of it will cause a lot of ramifications. When it's all said and done, will it tear them apart and if so, can they find a way back to each other? T for now. AU/AH
A/N – Jason is 30. Liz is 22. It's a bit snarky at first. This is a story request by 999shotgun999. Thanks for the idea Deb!
Chapter 1 – Desperate Measures
Jason looked up and caught Elizabeth's panic-stricken eyes and then gazed back down at the body lying on the ground in between them. The lights had gone out in the parking garage and then he had heard someone struggling. When they came back on, a body laid in between them with a knife stuck in the man's throat. Jason's mind went into hyperdrive. Could Elizabeth have done this? Oh my God. This couldn't be happening. Not to him. He really took a look at the face and almost had a heart attack. It was Warren Bauer, one of their biggest competitors. Shit. This could ruin the Quartermaine name. He had to think fast.
Elizabeth looked at the blood pooling under the body and wanted to wretch. She couldn't believe that Jason would do something like this; that he was capable of killing a man in cold blood. But, when the lights came on and she saw the dead man lying there she couldn't help but wonder what he had ever done to deserve that kind of ire. Considering what a pain in the ass Jason was, she was sure that he probably had enemies; many of them.
"We need to get out of here." Jason said suddenly.
She fixed him with her stare. Now he wanted to go on the run to cover his crime? Hell no. She crossed her arms. It wasn't happening. There was no way in hell she was going anywhere with him.
"Elizabeth." Jason said impatiently. "We need to move or we'll both go to jail."
"We'll just tell them what happened. I'm sure we won't get blamed Jason."
"I'm not willing to take that chance are you?"
She sighed, hoping she didn't regret leaving, and walked around the body and followed him to his SUV. They got in and he made a call as he sped out of the garage. "Spinelli, is the security system back up?"
"Not yet."
"Something happened in the garage. I need you to look at it right before the lights went out and tell me what you see."
Spinelli finally accessed the system and then gasped. "An evil doer is battling with someone but I can't make out a face."
"Can you see me or Elizabeth?"
He zoomed in. "Yeah."
"Can you get rid of us?"
Spinelli was confused. "Seriously?"
"Just do it Spinelli and this stays between us." Jason demanded.
"Your wish is….."
He threw his phone aside before Spinelli could finish.
"Where are we going?" Liz asked curiously. Truth be known, she didn't want to go anywhere him. Someone would inevitably take a picture and due to the internet, she'd be forever linked with Mr. God's gift to women.
"To the courthouse."
"Why?" She asked frowning.
"We need to get married." He muttered.
Liz's mouth dropped open. "What the hell for?"
"So we can't testify against each other."
"No fucking way." She blurted out.
He glared at her. "Nice mouth. Do you have another idea? Because I can guarantee you that even with Spinelli's help, it would not be good for either one of us if the police figure out that we were there. They could say it was some kind of conspiracy and we were a part of it. If we're married, we can't testify against each other."
Liz crossed her arms in front of her.
"Call Diane." He demanded through his blue tooth.
"You rang?"
"I need to get married fast. I need a prenup and you at the courthouse like yesterday."
"Holy Shit." Diane said. "Did you do knock someone up?"
Liz rolled her eyes. Now that wouldn't surprise her. Jason Quartermaine was a manwhore and had new eye candy on his arm almost weekly. He went through women faster than she went through a box of chocolate fudgy bonbons.
"No, I always use protection. Besides, I've had a dry spell."
Liz looked over at him. How could that even be possible? That idiot probably had no idea what a real dry spell was. That was more her reality.
"I'm on my way." Diane said hanging up.
Jason sighed. He had never really wanted to ever get married. Marriage was for suckers and deeply disturbed people. There was no way in hell he was spending the rest of his life with one woman. It was downright suicidal. He had known Elizabeth for a while. She was friends with Emily. He was surprised when after she had graduated from college, that she was willing to take a job in the mail room. Who does that? Elizabeth Webber was an uptight little brat who had no concept of having fun and letting go. She was wound so tight he probably could squeeze a diamond out of her ass.
Liz was seething. Jason Quartermaine had always been an arrogant man. Sure he was good at what he did and that is why he was made Vice President of ELQ. But, he was so smug and self-indulgent. He thought he was all that and she was proud that she had never succumbed to his charms. And yes, he was gorgeous but it would take a lot more than a pretty face and a wallet full of one hundred dollar bills to get into her pants.
She started to think about how to get something good out of all this and a great idea popped into her head. Slightly smiling, she cleared her throat and spoke. "I will agree to this on one condition."
Jason briefly looked over at her. Here it comes. She wants money.
"I want a marketing position. That is what my degree is in and I'm damn good at it. I'm wasting away in that stupid mail room and if I'm your wife, then I should have an appropriate position that matches my skills."
He rolled his eyes. "You don't care that people will accuse you of getting the position on your back?"
"I don't give a shit about what any of them think. I'll let my work speak for itself." She said firmly.
"Fine." He growled. "You'll get your precious position Ms. potty mouth. You do realize you'll have to move in with me right?"
"Absolutely not. There is no way I am living in that den of iniquity." She said dramatically.
"It will be better than a 4 by 5 cell." He quipped.
She made a noise and fired back. "Fine, but I insist on you sanitizing it before I get there. I don't want to catch any random diseases from the skanks you bring back there."
"Somebody seems a little jealous." He sneered. "For your information, I don't allow women to come back to my place. I go to theirs when need be."
She was actually surprised by that and didn't have a comeback.
"And the last thing is that we're going to have to pretend we're in love. Do you think you can pull that off?"
Liz rolled her eyes. "It will take a miracle but I'll do the best I can."
She was going to need intense therapy once this was all over and she knew exactly where to send the bill.
"My family can spot a lie a mile away. Tracy will be on you like white on rice. So, I need you to not just try but do. You need to be convincing. Pretend I'm someone else. I don't care. But, we have to pull this off."
Jason looked over at her, the anger was practically pouring off her body in waves. She always seemed to look her nose down at him and he was frankly sick of it. He couldn't understand why she despised him so much. It wasn't like he did something to her directly. She definitely needed an attitude adjustment.
The car came to halt. "Showtime." He muttered.
Francis, who had been following in another car, opened the door and Jason stepped out and then held his hand out and Liz reluctantly took it. Once they started walking, he grabbed it again and they walked up the steps to the building.
Jackass. She hated being bossed around. But, if he wanted the perfect little wife, then she would turn on her fake Jason adoration even if she had to excuse herself to go puke afterwards.
They walked into the room where Diane was waiting. They sat down across from her and her eyes darting back and forth between them.
"So, are you ready for this sweetie?" Jason asked Liz.
She smiled brightly. "Of course darling." She said sweetly.
Diane tilted her head for a second watching the amount of strength it was taking for them to pretend that they liked each other. Tapping her pen on the desk for a minute, she finally said, "Do either one of you want to tell me what the hell is going on?" She asked loudly.
"What do you mean?" Jason asked.
"If you two think you're fooling anyone, then you have both lost your minds. I see right through whatever this is." She said waving her hands in front of her as she looked at Jason warily. "You practically have the words I will never marry engraved in your damn forehead." She yelled before she turned to Elizabeth. "And from what I remember, you can't stand Jason and you had seemed like a reasonably intelligent person. So what gives?"
"We found common ground." Jason said.
"We ate some poison berries and we're hallucinating?" Liz snarked.
Jason let go of her hand. "God dammit Elizabeth. You couldn't last for five minutes." He said exasperatedly.
"Oh shut up. She wasn't buying it at all." She yelled back.
Diane pursed her lips. "Now that is more like it. Now spill."
Jason groaned. "We can't say. Now let's sign the prenup and get this show on the road."
Diane pushed the paper and pen towards him. "Far be it for me to stand in the way of faux love." She said sarcastically. "This is going to be a disaster. I'll start preparing the divorce papers as soon as the ceremony is over."
"Annulment." Elizabeth said. "That would be more appropriate."
Diane sighed. "Should I tell him to skip the kiss part?"
Liz nodded. "Definitely. God only knows where those lips have been." She said shuddering.
Jason rolled his eyes. At this point, he was ready to just let her take the fall for the murder. The only reason he was going along with this was for his kid sister anyway. Emily, for some reason, loved Elizabeth. He was thinking of calling Patrick and getting her brain scanned. Clearly, there was a screw loose.
They both signed the necessary papers. Diane pulled out a box and handed Elizabeth an engagement ring.
Elizabeth was stunned at how beautiful it was and made a mental note to find out how Diane had gotten it on such short notice. Why would Jason have an engagement ring lying around?
"Alright, let's get to it."
They walked down the hallway and went into a room. There was a judge waiting for them.
"Hello Diane." The man said smiling.
"Barry." She said before kissing both cheeks. "This is Elizabeth and Jason. You'll be marrying them and Francis and I will be the witnesses."
Francis stepped forward. He had been Jason's driver and guard for two years now. He watched out for him and made sure he stuck to his schedule and got where he needed to go. He didn't know what the hell was going on, but he went with it. Usually, Jason didn't take his car but for whatever reason he had today.
"Let's begin then."
The judge began and they both said I do. When it came time for rings, Jason was a little taken off guard, but Diane had it covered and handed him Elizabeth's. Liz watched him slide it on as she held her breath. The eternity band consisted of small diamonds and perfectly accentuated the engagement ring. The set was gorgeous. Diane then handed Liz a ring and she slipped it over Jason's knuckle. Suddenly, the enormity of the situation hit her full blast and she was stunned. This was not how she saw her life going. This was just so wrong. Jason saw the emotion in her eyes and was a little taken aback. She almost looked human for a second before the uppity mask quickly slipped back over her face.
"I now pronounce you man and wife."
When he didn't continue, both were surprised yet relieved since they didn't think Diane meant what she said.
"Okay, just sign here." The judge said.
They signed all the paperwork and then he left the room.
Liz stared down at her finger. Holy shit. She was married to Jason freaking Quartermaine.
All Jason was thinking was that he needed a drink and perhaps a back massage. He had a kink in his neck that hurt like a bitch.
His phone rang and he took it. "Edward?"
"Where are you?"
"Downtown why?" Jason asked.
"There was a murder in the garage at ELQ. The cops are here and they wanted to know where you were."
"Who was it?" He asked pretending that he didn't know.
"His name was Warren Bauer. I have no idea why he was on our property. Jason this is bad. They are a direct competitor. This will bring lots of unwanted press."
Jason sighed. "Do you need me to come there?"
"No, just go to the mansion. I'll meet you there." Edward said hanging up.
"What happened?" Diane asked.
"There was a murder in the parking garage."
"What?" Diane said loudly.
"It was a competitor. Edward is worried about the stocks probably."
Diane sighed. This meant a lot of work for her and Justice tonight.
"He wants me back at the mansion." Jason said.
"Should I wait for you at the penthouse?" Elizabeth asked.
Jason eyed her. "Oh no, you're coming with me. The family has to find out about this sooner or later and I'd rather not face the vultures alone."
Liz shrugged. It wasn't like they didn't know her. She had spent a lot of time at the mansion over the years.
Diane smirked. "I'm coming with you. Francis can take me." She wasn't going to miss this for the world.
They walked outside and started walking down the steps when they were swarmed by the press.
"Mr. Quartermaine, did you hear about the murder?" A reporter asked.
Jason sighed. "I just did. My grandfather is very upset that something this tragic happened at ELQ. I don't have all of the details, but we'll do everything we can to cooperate with the authorities. My condolences go out to the family of the deceased."
"Is that a wedding ring on your hand?" One of the reporters asked.
For a second, you could hear a pin drop and then all of a sudden madness ensued.
"Did you just marry her?" Someone yelled as they noticed Liz's hand.
Elizabeth didn't know what to do. The reporters were like sharks and Jason and Liz were their last meal. Gone was any mention of the murder because everyone was yelling out questions about their marriage and feverishly taking pictures.
"You said you would never get married." Someone yelled out.
Jason smirked and looked down at Elizabeth. "Sometimes, love finds you when you least expect it."
"Why the quickie wedding? Is she pregnant?"
Liz's mouth dropped open. "No I am not pregnant." She said indignantly.
"What's your name?" Someone yelled.
"Elizabeth Webber Quartermaine." Jason said smiling.
"Elizabeth, what's it like to be married to such a hunk and the heir to such a huge fortune?"
She fought her urge to make a snippy remark. "Jason is a remarkable man. The rest really doesn't matter to me."
"Sure it doesn't." Someone yelled. "Was there a prenup?"
"That's the end of the interview people." Diane yelled before slipping into the car.
Jason held the door open for Elizabeth and then quickly got inside. It wasn't how he wanted to be outed but it sure did take the focus off of what happened in the garage.
They finally made it through the sea of people and headed towards the lion's den.
A/N – Let me know what you think! I'm almost done Triduum Forces so this will start posting on Monday.