This is a sequel to "First Love Lost" and "Crimson Dreams". I have tried to make this one self-contained, so you don't need to read the previous stories.
Timeline Issues: This is an old story. In this timeline Courtney hasn't arrived. Helena has escaped from jail, but has not contacted Nikolas. Carly is in Puerto Rico, for her own protection. If she were in this story, she would be dead inside the first 1000 words.
____________________________________________________________
Come in from the cold for awhile
Everything will be alright
Come in from the noise for a time
Everything will be alright
Dave Matthews Band - untitled final track of "Before These Crowded Streets"
Johnny cracked the door of penthouse four open and peered inside. It was 9am and Benny had an appointment with Sonny. All was silent except for the sound of even breathing coming from the two people sleeping on the couch. As he approached, he was surprised to see the two of them sleeping in each other's arms. He wasn't sure which surprised him most, the sight of Sonny Corinthos and his lawyer cuddled on the couch, or the fact that his boss was still asleep at 9am. He wasn't sure which pleased him most.
Sonny's insomnia was notorious. He usually went to bed late and woke up before sunrise. Yet here it was well past sunrise and his boss was sound asleep with his arms around his attorney. Ms Davis was curled up against Sonny's chest with her head resting on his shoulder. His head rested on hers and his arms were wrapped around her shoulders. Johnny had never seen him so relaxed.
Ms Davis seemed comfortable and secure. When he left the night before, even though she was sleeping there was tension in every part of her body, now all the tension was gone. She looked as if, in Sonny's arms, was the most natural place in the world for her. They both looked that way, as if it were natural for them to be together.
Johnny smiled as he approached the couch. He placed a hand on Sonny's free shoulder. "Boss, wake up. Benny's here."
He expected Sonny to wake with a start, as he always had every other time Johnny had to wake him. On more than one occasion, Sonny had grabbed him, ready to fight, before sleep fully left and he realized where he was. Johnny was in for another surprise.
"Mmmm." Sonny yawned and slowly stretched his arms out. He looked like a contented cat. He gazed down at Alexis. A tiny smile teased the corners of his mouth. His hands returned to her shoulders and he stroked them gently. She snuggled closer. His smile grew and he kissed the top of her head. Johnny felt like a voyeur.
Sonny didn't want to move. He knew this time was precious. He had Alexis in his arms and she was comfortable there. Soon she would wake up and would insist that they were just friends. Soon she would pull away from him and he would let her. He promised to be whatever she needed and right now she needed him to be her friend. But until she woke, he was going to take advantage of whatever time he had, to hold her, to smell her sweet floral scent, to feel her breath against his chest. Now while she was asleep, his touch was welcome. When she awoke, it would frighten her.
"Benny's here. You have a nine o'clock appointment." Johnny hated to disturb him.
Sonny sighed. "Okay Johnny." He began to position the throw pillows against the arm of the couch. Sonny gently moved Alexis off his shoulder and onto the pillows. His hand reached out and touched her cheek and he smiled. He motioned to the blanket that fallen to the floor. "Could you get that?"
"Sure boss." Johnny covered her with the blanket.
"You stay. I'll meet Benny in the hall" Sonny backed away from the couch and headed out the door. He never took his eyes off Alexis.
Benny was expecting another normal day, but it wasn't starting out that way. He expected to be in Sonny's penthouse right now, giving him an update on Helena Cassadine. They had a 9am meeting. Sonny was usually very punctual, yet it was already quarter past and here he was still standing in the hallway. He looked up as the penthouse door opened and stared at his boss. The man who exited the penthouse was not what he expected. He expected the facade of perfection that Sonny usually wore, perfectly combed hair, dressed in one of his expensive monochrome suits. Sonny was wearing a gray suit, with a black shirt over gray slacks, but it was rumpled, and his hair was tousled. And the most surprising thing about his appearance, he looked rested and relaxed. No, things were not going as expected.
"What have you got?" Sonny was all business. At least that was normal.
"We've discovered Helena Cassadine's whereabouts." Benny was glancing at his notes. "She's on her yacht, in international waters. That puts her out of the reach of the PCPD, but it means she's less likely to cause any problems in the short term."
Sonny took in the information. He glanced at the floor and his thumb rubbed his lower lip. He couldn't make effective plans in a vacuum. He needed more information, if he was going to neutralize Alexis' wicked stepmother. Sonny looked up, making direct eye contact. "Keep up the surveillance of the yacht."
"Yes sir."
"And Benny, I want you to get me every piece of information you can about Helena Cassadine. I want to know more about her life than she does."
"Okay, but she's from Russia. Information from there is hard to come by. It could get expensive."
"I don't care Benny! Get the information. Use the accounts we have in the Caymans. Call me if you need more money."
Johnny took a seat across from the couch and regarded Ms Davis. She seemed much more relaxed this morning. He didn't know exactly what happened the night before, but whatever it was, affected her physically and mentally. When Sonny brought her over from penthouse two, she was emotionally detached and almost literally freezing. The kind, self-assured lady he had come to know, was nowhere to be seen. Johnny couldn't imagine what happened to her to put her in such a state, but it must have been horrible. When he left last night, Ms Davis was asleep on the couch wound up in a tight ball. He didn't think an adult could possibly make herself so small. He didn't think sleep was possible with so much tension in a body, but she certainly looked relaxed now.
Alexis opened her eyes to Johnny's concerned gaze. She brought her hand to her face.
"Am I drooling, Johnny?"
Johnny blinked. "Huh?" He had been lost in thought and hadn't noticed she was awake. "What?"
"Good morning Johnny. Am I drooling or something? You're staring rather intently."
"Ah no Ms Davis, you're not drooling." Johnny moved to sit at attention.
"Not drooling, well that's one good thing and could you please call me Alexis?" She began to stretch as she moved to a seated position on the couch.
"Oh no, I couldn't do that Ms Davis. It's not . . . "
"It's not professional, I know. We can't mess with the bodyguard's code of professional conduct can we?" She smiled displaying full dimples.
Johnny couldn't help but smile himself. She was in good humor this morning and she was teasing him. That was good. That was very good! There was no sign of the trauma of the night before. It was as if the previous night hadn't happened at all. "No ma'am. We can't mess with the code."
Alexis looked toward Sonny's balcony. "The sun's been up quite a while. What time is it?"
"It's 9:25."
"9:25! I slept here all night?"
"Yes ma'am"
"I suppose you were assigned to watch me?" She tilted her head and gave him a pitying smile. "I'm sorry Johnny you had to pull such lousy duty."
"I would have been honored had I been asked Ms Davis, but I wasn't. Mr. Corinthos was with you, right here, all night."
"He was right here?" She pointed to the couch. Johnny nodded. "All night?"
"Yes ma'am, I found him here this morning, when I woke him for the meeting with Benny."
Alexis was staring at the empty spot next to her on the couch. "All night?"
They were on the couch together all night. Her dreams flashed through her head. She had dreamed of Christian, a passionate dream of her first love. He had been dead for more than 15 years, yet the thought of him still sent an electric thrill through her. Her hand traveled to face. The rings Christian had given her so long ago caressed her cheek. Last night's dream had been vivid, more real than any dream in recent memory. She could still feel his arms around her.
Then she remembered Sonny. She had dreamed of him too. One minute she was with Christian, holding him close, and then, suddenly it was Sonny her hands were touching. She was shocked to discover that her feelings for Sonny were as strong as those she felt for Christian. She had never felt that kind of passion with anyone else, until last night. She and Christian were electric together. A strong current flowed between them that elicited sparks whenever they touched. She never tired of his touch. She still missed it, missed him. But last night with Sonny, she felt flames. She had dreamed of Sonny before, many times before, but she never felt anything so intense. She had never felt the flames before. It was a white heat that drew them together. They could not get close enough. Oh this was not good. She was having trouble controlling her feelings before, and this was not going to make things easier.
"Ms Davis?" Johnny interrupted Alexis' contemplations. She blinked and gave him a questioning glance.
"What Johnny"
"Mr. Corinthos is in the hall, meeting with Benny." Johnny repeated. "I thought you'd want to know where he was."
"He's taking a meeting in the hall? I suppose I'm the reason for that huh?"
Johnny nodded.
"Well we should vacate the premises then, shouldn't we? We can't have Sonny Corinthos conducting his business in a hallway. He has a reputation to protect." She pushed the blanket aside and rose from the couch and headed toward the door. "I'm supposed to meet him at 10:00 to discuss some contracts, but since he let me oversleep he's going to have to reschedule. I think I'm going to be busy with my sister this morning and I have court all afternoon. You'll explain for me won't you Johnny?"
Johnny moved to follow her. "Yes ma'am" Sonny was going to be disappointed.
Timeline Issues: This is an old story. In this timeline Courtney hasn't arrived. Helena has escaped from jail, but has not contacted Nikolas. Carly is in Puerto Rico, for her own protection. If she were in this story, she would be dead inside the first 1000 words.
____________________________________________________________
Come in from the cold for awhile
Everything will be alright
Come in from the noise for a time
Everything will be alright
Dave Matthews Band - untitled final track of "Before These Crowded Streets"
Johnny cracked the door of penthouse four open and peered inside. It was 9am and Benny had an appointment with Sonny. All was silent except for the sound of even breathing coming from the two people sleeping on the couch. As he approached, he was surprised to see the two of them sleeping in each other's arms. He wasn't sure which surprised him most, the sight of Sonny Corinthos and his lawyer cuddled on the couch, or the fact that his boss was still asleep at 9am. He wasn't sure which pleased him most.
Sonny's insomnia was notorious. He usually went to bed late and woke up before sunrise. Yet here it was well past sunrise and his boss was sound asleep with his arms around his attorney. Ms Davis was curled up against Sonny's chest with her head resting on his shoulder. His head rested on hers and his arms were wrapped around her shoulders. Johnny had never seen him so relaxed.
Ms Davis seemed comfortable and secure. When he left the night before, even though she was sleeping there was tension in every part of her body, now all the tension was gone. She looked as if, in Sonny's arms, was the most natural place in the world for her. They both looked that way, as if it were natural for them to be together.
Johnny smiled as he approached the couch. He placed a hand on Sonny's free shoulder. "Boss, wake up. Benny's here."
He expected Sonny to wake with a start, as he always had every other time Johnny had to wake him. On more than one occasion, Sonny had grabbed him, ready to fight, before sleep fully left and he realized where he was. Johnny was in for another surprise.
"Mmmm." Sonny yawned and slowly stretched his arms out. He looked like a contented cat. He gazed down at Alexis. A tiny smile teased the corners of his mouth. His hands returned to her shoulders and he stroked them gently. She snuggled closer. His smile grew and he kissed the top of her head. Johnny felt like a voyeur.
Sonny didn't want to move. He knew this time was precious. He had Alexis in his arms and she was comfortable there. Soon she would wake up and would insist that they were just friends. Soon she would pull away from him and he would let her. He promised to be whatever she needed and right now she needed him to be her friend. But until she woke, he was going to take advantage of whatever time he had, to hold her, to smell her sweet floral scent, to feel her breath against his chest. Now while she was asleep, his touch was welcome. When she awoke, it would frighten her.
"Benny's here. You have a nine o'clock appointment." Johnny hated to disturb him.
Sonny sighed. "Okay Johnny." He began to position the throw pillows against the arm of the couch. Sonny gently moved Alexis off his shoulder and onto the pillows. His hand reached out and touched her cheek and he smiled. He motioned to the blanket that fallen to the floor. "Could you get that?"
"Sure boss." Johnny covered her with the blanket.
"You stay. I'll meet Benny in the hall" Sonny backed away from the couch and headed out the door. He never took his eyes off Alexis.
Benny was expecting another normal day, but it wasn't starting out that way. He expected to be in Sonny's penthouse right now, giving him an update on Helena Cassadine. They had a 9am meeting. Sonny was usually very punctual, yet it was already quarter past and here he was still standing in the hallway. He looked up as the penthouse door opened and stared at his boss. The man who exited the penthouse was not what he expected. He expected the facade of perfection that Sonny usually wore, perfectly combed hair, dressed in one of his expensive monochrome suits. Sonny was wearing a gray suit, with a black shirt over gray slacks, but it was rumpled, and his hair was tousled. And the most surprising thing about his appearance, he looked rested and relaxed. No, things were not going as expected.
"What have you got?" Sonny was all business. At least that was normal.
"We've discovered Helena Cassadine's whereabouts." Benny was glancing at his notes. "She's on her yacht, in international waters. That puts her out of the reach of the PCPD, but it means she's less likely to cause any problems in the short term."
Sonny took in the information. He glanced at the floor and his thumb rubbed his lower lip. He couldn't make effective plans in a vacuum. He needed more information, if he was going to neutralize Alexis' wicked stepmother. Sonny looked up, making direct eye contact. "Keep up the surveillance of the yacht."
"Yes sir."
"And Benny, I want you to get me every piece of information you can about Helena Cassadine. I want to know more about her life than she does."
"Okay, but she's from Russia. Information from there is hard to come by. It could get expensive."
"I don't care Benny! Get the information. Use the accounts we have in the Caymans. Call me if you need more money."
Johnny took a seat across from the couch and regarded Ms Davis. She seemed much more relaxed this morning. He didn't know exactly what happened the night before, but whatever it was, affected her physically and mentally. When Sonny brought her over from penthouse two, she was emotionally detached and almost literally freezing. The kind, self-assured lady he had come to know, was nowhere to be seen. Johnny couldn't imagine what happened to her to put her in such a state, but it must have been horrible. When he left last night, Ms Davis was asleep on the couch wound up in a tight ball. He didn't think an adult could possibly make herself so small. He didn't think sleep was possible with so much tension in a body, but she certainly looked relaxed now.
Alexis opened her eyes to Johnny's concerned gaze. She brought her hand to her face.
"Am I drooling, Johnny?"
Johnny blinked. "Huh?" He had been lost in thought and hadn't noticed she was awake. "What?"
"Good morning Johnny. Am I drooling or something? You're staring rather intently."
"Ah no Ms Davis, you're not drooling." Johnny moved to sit at attention.
"Not drooling, well that's one good thing and could you please call me Alexis?" She began to stretch as she moved to a seated position on the couch.
"Oh no, I couldn't do that Ms Davis. It's not . . . "
"It's not professional, I know. We can't mess with the bodyguard's code of professional conduct can we?" She smiled displaying full dimples.
Johnny couldn't help but smile himself. She was in good humor this morning and she was teasing him. That was good. That was very good! There was no sign of the trauma of the night before. It was as if the previous night hadn't happened at all. "No ma'am. We can't mess with the code."
Alexis looked toward Sonny's balcony. "The sun's been up quite a while. What time is it?"
"It's 9:25."
"9:25! I slept here all night?"
"Yes ma'am"
"I suppose you were assigned to watch me?" She tilted her head and gave him a pitying smile. "I'm sorry Johnny you had to pull such lousy duty."
"I would have been honored had I been asked Ms Davis, but I wasn't. Mr. Corinthos was with you, right here, all night."
"He was right here?" She pointed to the couch. Johnny nodded. "All night?"
"Yes ma'am, I found him here this morning, when I woke him for the meeting with Benny."
Alexis was staring at the empty spot next to her on the couch. "All night?"
They were on the couch together all night. Her dreams flashed through her head. She had dreamed of Christian, a passionate dream of her first love. He had been dead for more than 15 years, yet the thought of him still sent an electric thrill through her. Her hand traveled to face. The rings Christian had given her so long ago caressed her cheek. Last night's dream had been vivid, more real than any dream in recent memory. She could still feel his arms around her.
Then she remembered Sonny. She had dreamed of him too. One minute she was with Christian, holding him close, and then, suddenly it was Sonny her hands were touching. She was shocked to discover that her feelings for Sonny were as strong as those she felt for Christian. She had never felt that kind of passion with anyone else, until last night. She and Christian were electric together. A strong current flowed between them that elicited sparks whenever they touched. She never tired of his touch. She still missed it, missed him. But last night with Sonny, she felt flames. She had dreamed of Sonny before, many times before, but she never felt anything so intense. She had never felt the flames before. It was a white heat that drew them together. They could not get close enough. Oh this was not good. She was having trouble controlling her feelings before, and this was not going to make things easier.
"Ms Davis?" Johnny interrupted Alexis' contemplations. She blinked and gave him a questioning glance.
"What Johnny"
"Mr. Corinthos is in the hall, meeting with Benny." Johnny repeated. "I thought you'd want to know where he was."
"He's taking a meeting in the hall? I suppose I'm the reason for that huh?"
Johnny nodded.
"Well we should vacate the premises then, shouldn't we? We can't have Sonny Corinthos conducting his business in a hallway. He has a reputation to protect." She pushed the blanket aside and rose from the couch and headed toward the door. "I'm supposed to meet him at 10:00 to discuss some contracts, but since he let me oversleep he's going to have to reschedule. I think I'm going to be busy with my sister this morning and I have court all afternoon. You'll explain for me won't you Johnny?"
Johnny moved to follow her. "Yes ma'am" Sonny was going to be disappointed.