Authors Note:

First, where I crushed on the Valentine Day scenes I sadly am taking artistic license and omitting them from my story. I know, I know they were awesome scenes, that reduced me to a giggling little girl. But for this story it didn't happen. Second, I swear I am not trying to draw this out. I don't want to have one of those rambling stories that just don't go anywhere, but I also don't want one of those instant relationships with nothing to support them. I'm not a professional writer so give me a break. lol

Also, as I mentioned earlier I have a site, not a great site, but a place for AJ and Elizabeth groupies to gather. Everyone is able to post their stuff there and one of the posters added a phenomenal (and I mean outstanding read everyday) piece. Now since FF hates people putting up links, I think the easiest way to find it is to Google Quiz Fanfic and my story pops up with the link.

I want to end by saying I am floored by the wonderful responses I am getting. Being an avid reader I have to admit I sometimes forget to leave feedback. Why? I don't know, perhaps I'm lazy. So I do appreciate the kind supportive words everyone is leaving.

Chapter Eight

Swinging open the door, Elizabeth heaved a sigh of relief. "Thank god."

"So what's the emergency?" Waiting as the boys rushed in, Laura took in Elizabeth's frazzled appearance and suppressed a grin.

"Wardrobe issues." Closing the door, Elizabeth looked pleadingly at her former Mother-In-Law. "I have less than an hour."

"Last minute plans?" Laura asked sympathetically.

"Very." Nodding, Elizabeth crossed her arms across her chest. "As in a few hours ago."

Taking off her jacket, Laura pushed up her sleeves. "Okay then. I suggest you scamper off to the shower, get scrubbed and buffed. I will tackle your closet." Ushering Elizabeth up the stairs after telling Cameron to entertain Aiden, Laura ticked off a few questions. "Casual or formal?"

"I don't know." Elizabeth admitted. "I'd assume formal."

"May I ask with whom?"

"AJ Quartermaine."

"A date with AJ Quartermaine?" Her tone sounded intrigued, and Elizabeth was relieved Laura didn't hesitate. She knew there were still many people in town who didn't think highly of AJ, but having learned from years of defending Jason, it was a waste of time trying to change people's minds once they were set.

"Yes." Making a face, Elizabeth looked slightly confused. "No."

"Well which is it?" Laura's heart went out to the younger woman.

"I don't know. He asked me to join him and a few other people for dinner to celebrate ELQs return to the corporate world." Biting down on her lower lip, Elizabeth sighed. "See why I'm so confused? I mean I don't know where we're going. If AJ asked me casually or if he asked me on a date."

"It's fun, isn't it?" Smiling, Laura patted Elizabeth on the shoulder.

"Fun?" With a look of total disbelief, Elizabeth shook her head in the negative. "No, I can't say feeling this level of panic is fun."

"Oh sure it is." Getting busy with the closet, Laura went on. "The butterflies in the stomach, the rush of adrenaline, it's the best part."

"But I don't even know if this is a date. What if I am reading things into this and end up embarrassing us both?"

"You laugh it off." Looking over her shoulder to where Elizabeth was still standing, Laura shrugged. "I think the biggest question is do you want this to be a dinner between friends, or something more? No, don't bother answering that question young lady. You can think about what I said while you're showering, times a wasting." Pointing to the adjoining bathroom, Laura's mockingly stern expression told Elizabeth not to waste her time arguing.


"Well don't you look dashing." Reaching the bottom step, AJ rolled his eyes at his mother as he adjusted the buttons on his cuffs. His mother still had a way of making him feel like a ten year old.

"I guess that's better than the somewhat mediocre I saw in my bedroom mirror." He mocked as he reached the bottom step, shaking his head at his mother's beaming smile. "You act like you've never seen me in a suit. I wore one this morning."

"And you looked handsome this morning as well." Monica countered, "But you didn't have that I'm going on a date look about you this morning." Stepping forward to fix his collar, she patted him on the shoulders before stepping back. "Anyone I know?" Like she didn't already know.

"Perhaps." He answered a bit smugly. "Met her at the hospital."

This made Monica's already inflated smile explode. "Really?"

"Yup." Nodding, he ducked his head down, pretending to dust off some lint. "Dr. Westbourne, pretty little thing."

"Real -." Hearing his mother falter, her words dying at her lips, AJ kept going.

"Bumped into when I was dropping off Elizabeth's uniform." Rendered speechless, Monica stood eyeing her son, her mouth hung open in shock. "I gotta say, she's really something."

"Yes." She barely croaked out. "She's something."

"Yeah, kind of like a mix between a rabid honey badger and Aunt Tracy with the flu." Looking back up at his mother, a devilish grin on his lips, he laughed when her brain caught up and she reached out to swat at his shoulder. "You couldn't pay me to take that vile woman out on a date."

"Alan James Quartermaine Jr." Narrowing her eyes at her son's apparent enjoyment at her expense Monica let out an exasperated groan of defeat. "You're horrible."

"Perhaps." AJ chuckled. "I'm sure you already assumed I asked Elizabeth to dinner."

"That's wonderful." Monica exclaimed, practically patting herself on the back.

"What's so wonderful?" Standing in the entryway, unwinding a turquoise scarf from her neck, Tracy eyed the two suspiciously. "Is your felonious son getting sent away? Or perhaps the town is coming with pitchforks, feathers and tar to do what they should have years ago?"

Turning to her sister-in-law, a smug little smile on her lips, Monica motioned her hand toward her son, ignoring his pleading look not to take Tracy's bait. "AJ has a date with Elizabeth Webber."

"What's he blackmailing her with?" Tracy sneered as she sent them both a disbelieving look. When her only response was a smirk from Monica and silence from AJ, Tracy made a face of disgust. "Are you implying Ms. Webber is doing this on her own free will?"

"Tracy, nothing you say is going to ruin this for me." Giving his Aunt a level stare, AJ didn't feel as confident as his words portrayed. Seeing the look of revulsion on Tracy's face only served to remind him it would probably be just the first of many he would receive if he were to continue his pursuit of Elizabeth.

"Well, she does have that compulsion to jump from one sibling to the other." Still trying to crack the protective wall around her nephew, Tracy shook her head. "I mean if you stand back and squint really hard you do have a smidge of a resemblance to Jason."

Her words hit their mark, causing AJ to wince, a huge gaffe under the Quartermaine roof during a verbal war. With a toothy smile that closely resembled a shark before an attack, Tracy knew she found the crack in his defenses. "And I suppose you've always had a thing for Jason's sloppy seconds."

"Tracy!" Monica's voice bounced off the walls, as anger radiated through her frame. "How dare you cross the line like that!"

"All I did was speak the truth." Tracy snapped back. "Are you seriously going to stand there and tell me this schlub is in the same league as Elizabeth Webber? Sure the girl has made a few errors in the past few years, but its hand grenades and puppies when you compare them to the damage your idiot son has inflicted."

Turning to her son, seeing the doubt in his eyes, Monica placed her hands on his upper arms. "Don't listen to her. Elizabeth wouldn't have said yes unless she really wanted to go with you tonight."

Shifting his gaze to his Aunt's victorious look, he held her gaze for a moment before looking back down to his Mother. "Don't worry. Tracy's been biting at my heels for longer than I can remember. It's not like I didn't know she'd be like this."

Moving past Monica to the hall closet he pulled out his coat. "As much as I'd love to stand here and exchange insults, I have a beautiful woman to pick up."

"She's not seriously going to let you drive is she?" Tracy's last remark bounced off AJ's back as he slammed the door behind him.


"Are you sure?" Looking at the finished product reflected in the mirror, Elizabeth looked to where Laura stood in anticipation behind her.

"Absolutely." Nodding, Laura reached out to rearrange a curl.

"I don't look . . .?" Turning to one side to the other, Elizabeth eyed her reflection critically. The empire waist, sleeveless dress had been a splurge during a last minute shopping trip a week before Christmas. The deep navy blue, material had felt heavenly against her skin as it lightly hugged her body before flaring out a little above her knees. Apparently when she'd tried it on, she'd over looked how it seemed to enhance her chest a little more than she was used to. "Slutty?"

Throwing her head back laughing, Laura shook her head. "No. You sound like you're wearing a leather catsuit with a matching crop, instead of an alluring dress that flatters your figure."

"There's just so much skin showing." Trying to yank the neckline of her top up, Elizabeth gave up in frustration when Laura swatted her hands away.

"Someone's been spending way too much time in their scrubs." Giving her a look telling her not to bother arguing, Laura held up two necklaces for Elizabeth to inspect. "Personally I love the pearls."

"My Grams gave them to me after I had Cam." Reaching out, Elizabeth took the pearls. "I always thought they'd someday go to Sarah."

"Well they're perfect. Do you have earrings to match?" Pointing to the crystal bowl on top of her dresser, Elizabeth fastened the pearls around her throat. "You don't think I'm overdressed do you?"

With a knowing smirk, Laura rummaged until she found both pairs of earrings. "If you say one more word I will come over there and throttle you."

"Who says throttle anymore?" Elizabeth tried to tease but fell short as she gave her reflection another once over.

"You know, you're being a little over critical for a dinner you're not quite sure is a date." Laura reflected breezily as she handed Elizabeth the earrings. "Do you always get this worked up before meeting with a friend?"

"No." Her brows puckered as she quickly snatched the objects from Laura's palm, and tried to get the post through the hole in her ear with shaky hands. "I hate this. I mean what if I'm standing here secretly hoping it's a date, when really I was the only person AJ could think to ask who didn't want his head on a stick? What if I read the signals wrong, and AJ only thinks of me just as a friend? As the girl who used to hang out with his baby sister?"

"Elizabeth breath." Taking the earrings back from Elizabeth's hands when it was apparent she was in no shape to secure them, Laura brushed back Elizabeth's hair to do it herself. "So what if this is just a dinner between friends? You can't have a something more without being friends first. Not unless you're just looking for . . ." Raising her brows before swinging her eyes to Elizabeth's bed to indicate her meaning.

Catching on rather quickly, Elizabeth shook her head. "No. I'm done with the flash in the pan hook ups that end before they even really start."

"So relax." Soothing her hands down Elizabeth's arms, Laura's soft eyes held for a moment until some of the tension eased from Elizabeth's frame. "Just be yourself Elizabeth. Bring back a little bit of Lizzie Webber."

Making a face, Elizabeth didn't look too sure. "I'm not sure that's a great idea."

"I'm not saying you should go all native on me and rush out to the nearest biker bar and pick a fight." This got a laugh out of Elizabeth just as Laura had planned. "Just borrow some of her bravado. The Lizzie I used to know didn't crumble at the thought of a date. She would've glammed it up and rocked the outfit."

"While trying to come up with a plan to skip curfew and sneak back in before the sunrise."

"Well aren't you lucky you don't have a curfew anymore?" Seeing that most of Elizabeth's color had returned to her cheeks, Laura knew the younger girl would be fine. "Are we done with your little attack of the nerves here?"

Licking at her lips Elizabeth let out a struggled laugh. "Yes, but I reserve the right to have a mini melt down in the future."

Before Laura could respond, the doorbell chimed and Elizabeth felt her stomach knot.

"I'll go get that while you get your shoes on." Laura grinned. "Oh, and if I see you coming down those stairs in the pumps I'll strangle you."

Watching as Laura breezed out the door Elizabeth felt her lungs start to burn from holding her breath a smidgeon too long. Slowly letting out the air, she told herself to calm down. She was a mature woman and mature women didn't have complete melt downs over a dinner.

Unable to stop the giggle that escaped her lips, Elizabeth couldn't ignore how she had channeled Sabrina. She'd been reduced to a fluttery, stuttering bashful girl who was all a bundle of nerves and little spine. While almost cute on the other girl, Elizabeth knew she was long past that stage in her life. Amazing what a simple request and an overactive imagination could do to a person.

With a shake of her head, Elizabeth muttered under her breath as she slipped her feet into the stiletto heels and buckled them around her slender ankles. While her fingers were busy with the last one, Elizabeth mentally promised herself to relax and have fun. There was no reason she had to over analyze the situation or but a label on whatever was going on between her and AJ. For once she was going to just let things fall where they landed. And if she had to borrow a little bravado from Lizzie the terror then so be it.


The last thing he expected after knocking on Elizabeth's door was Laura Spencer on the other side. He'd known she was back in town, had seen her at Kelly's talking to Elizabeth, but faced with another person from the past he felt his insides shrink as he waited for her to pass judgment on him.

It was impossible not to expect some sort of backlash from his past deeds; he'd done some truly hideous things. No matter how he or his own mother justified his actions, it all boiled down to bad judgment calls on his part that he was going to have to live with for the rest of his life. Even if by some divine miracle the entire town forgave him at once, his past would always be there at the back of his mind.

Not that he was some kind of masochist, but the open hostility toward him did serve a higher purpose. It kept him from getting too comfortable. Made him stop and think before reacting. A firm believer people didn't change, he knew it was more of a daily exercise of monitoring natural instincts and behaviors, to keep his darker instincts in check while working to be the man he wanted to be.

He just wished there was a way of lining everyone how wanted a piece of him up in one long line so they could do it all at once.

"AJ." He did not anticipate her bright welcoming smile or her soft laugh. "Come in, it's way too cold to stand outside."

Ushering him inside, she firmly shut the door behind him. "Elizabeth should be down shortly. The boys and I stopped by so they could pick up a few toys. Hotel suites apparently get a little boring, or at least that's what I'm told." As if on cue, the sound of feet from overhead could be heard before racing down the steps.

"AJ!" Cameron was the first to hit the landing, Aiden was working his way down the steps his tiny hand gripped the banister till he made it safely down. Once on level ground he rushed over to hug AJ around the knees. "Snowman?"

Unable to help himself, AJ grinned down at Aiden's upturned face before scooping him off his feet. "Sorry little man not tonight." Feeling his heart hurt just a little at the boys pout, AJ suggested. "Maybe if your Mom agrees we can go sledding at the park this weekend."

"You promise to let us go fast?" Cameron asked. "Last time you made us go down the small hills and they're too slow."

Blushing when Laura lifted a brow, AJ knew he'd been busted by a nine year old. "Your mother would've killed me if you got hurt." Shifting Aiden back to the ground, AJ stood, feeling as though he had to defend his manhood to the two boys. "And between you and me she's a little scary when she's mad."

"I know." Cameron nodded. Aiden nodded too, mostly because his older brother was. "She gets really mad when you draw on the walls."

Pinching his lips so not to laugh at the boy's serious expression, he almost failed but was rescued when Laura told them to get the toys they wanted. Watching as they scampered up the stairs, Cameron telling Aiden they weren't bringing any baby toys, AJ shook his head.

"You're good with them." Laura acknowledged, as she gathered up their tiny jackets.

"They're good kids." AJ answered honestly. "Elizabeth's a great Mom."

"So where are you two going tonight?" Trying to read Laura's body language, still not able to accept that she didn't think badly of him, AJ couldn't find any judgment or sensor.

Knowing she was waiting for answer, and truly appeared interested, he answered. "The Metro Court." His ears scanning for any indication that Elizabeth would miraculously appear, AJ cleared his throat nervously. He was pretty sure if she didn't take pity on him soon, he was going to sweat through his dress shirt. There was nothing attractive about sweat stains.

"AJ why don't you have a seat." Laura offered compassionately, as she gave him a gentle shove toward the couch before he could decline. "Elizabeth shouldn't be much longer, but I'm scared you're going to bolt and I'd hate to be the one to explain to her."

Sinking down into the couch, AJ huffed out. "Am I that transparent?"

"Are you asking if you look like a ball of nerves?" Laura took a seat and folded her hands on top of her lap. "Would you hold it against me if I were to say yes?"

"No." With a half laugh, that was ruined as he gulped at the same time, AJ shook his head. "I must be all sorts of macho right now."

"I think it's charming that you're anxious." Laura grinned. "What's the worst that could happen? You dump a bowl of soup in her lap?"

His head shot up and found her silently laughing at him. "Note to self, no soup." The corner of his mouth curved up, until his ears heard the telltale sign of heels at the top of the stairs.

He already knew Elizabeth was a beautiful woman. But as his eyes took in her radiance as she descended the stairs he felt the air get sucked from the room with each step she took. The delicate strappy heels snaking around her ankles alone should've been outlawed, not when they put very inappropriate images in his head. Her dress hugged in all the right places, and AJ reminded himself if he didn't want to get slapped stupid he needed to keep his attention glued to her eyes.

"You look . . ." Nearly gulping AJ couldn't keep his pride from bursting through his chest. How in the world had he ever managed to get someone like Elizabeth to agree to come with him to dinner? "Wow."

"I'll take that to mean I meet your approval." Her voice teased, as her eyes skimmed over his attire.

"You wash up well." With a smile that could warm the sun, she took his offered hand to assist her from the last step. "Laura I think the boys are packing their entire rooms to take to the hotel."

"Why don't you two take off?" Laura offered already heading toward the door. "I'll rein the boys in and lock up for you." Eyeing the two as they blushed at one another Laura wondered if Elizabeth heard a word she said.

Watching as AJ assisted with Elizabeth's jacket, she didn't miss the way he seemed to let his hands linger on a stray curl. Or the bashful little peeks Elizabeth would take when she didn't think AJ was looking. The entire scene was too cute for words, but even from her position from five feet away could feel the undercurrent of sexual attraction.

Waving them goodbye as AJ escorted Elizabeth out the door, then offered her a hand down the steps Laura shook her head and muttered under her breath as she closed the door.

"Friends my left foot."