A/N: Happy Easter! Sorry, this is posted a tad later but you all know how the holidays are. :D
On a review note... yeah, Sonny is just a dog. haha. I was trying to think back and I may be mistaken, but I think Brenda has been the only girl he's never cheated on. ::shruggs:: Thanks again for the reviews!
Edit: 12-04-18
Musical Inspiration:
I'm Yours - Jason Mraz
Once Upon A Dream - Lana Del Rey
Time To Say Goodbye
.~*~.
Chapter 9
No More Hiding
A few days had passed and Jason still hadn't heard from Sonny. The enforcer tried to conduct business as usual and spent most of his days at the office. It wasn't until Carly stopped by voicing her concerns for her ex that Jason decided he would have to pay Sonny a visit later. But first, he had to have a little chat with Johnny Zacchara.
Jason was informed of a meeting Carly initiated with the kid, and when he confronted her as to why, she said she was just trying to protect Lulu. Apparently, Carly switched phones with Lulu and was texting Johnny under the guise she was her. She set up a meeting in the park with him to try to get answers if he killed Leticia. Jason demanded she stay out of it and he would handle the situation. Now, that's what he was doing.
He found Johnny wandering alone on the docks. Jason forced his rival to come back to the penthouse with him so he could question him properly. When he pushed Johnny through the door he found Brenda and Spinelli inside hysterically laughing on the couch. The enforcer internally groaned— the one day they decide to hang out here.
Brenda had her hand around her stomach doubled over in laughter. "Oh my God, Jason—" she began while trying to catch her breath, "I just mugged that guy, then kicked the shit out of him." She wiped tears from her face and pointed at the TV. "Then, I stole his car and ran him over with it— like three times." She laughed out again. "It's so wrong, but it's so funny."
"Venus is a beast at Grand Theft Auto." Spinelli chuckled and slapped his knee.
Jason rubbed his face while Johnny Zacchara stood there with a smirk on his. Brenda calmed down a bit. "This game is awesome!" she declared in a tone louder than normal while putting the controller to the side.
"I need you two to leave," Jason stated giving the occupants on the couch a serious look.
Brenda looked from Johnny to Jason. "Okay." She stood up. "Spin, grab the games, we'll play at my place. Oh, and bring my special ops rifle attachment, I am better with that if we play Call of Duty. But— I gotta say, it's still not the same as firing off Suzie, I am a better shot with my real gun."
Jason pinched the bridge of his nose. "Brenda, please stop naming your guns."
She walked over to him and rolled her eyes. "I only have two, Jase— it's not like the Brady Bunch arsenal you've got going on."
Johnny winked at her. "Hey, Sweetheart, who might you be?" Johnny held out his hand to shake hers.
Brenda looked from Jason to Johnny and shook it. "I'm Brenda."
Johnny grinned. "And I'm in heaven."
Brenda laughed and flicked her thumb in Johnny's direction before addressing Jason. "Cute kid." With that, she left the penthouse with Spinelli.
Johnny let his eyes linger as he watched her leave. He ignored the glare Jason gave him. "Any chance you can get me her number?"
"You won't be going near her," Jason threatened.
Johnny crossed his arms and formed a cocky stance. "Why not? She's hot."
"She's my wife." Jason stared him down.
"You have good taste," Johnny mumbled before leaning against the wall. "How about you tell me why you dragged me up here so I can go and my father won't feel the need to hurt anyone you care about— like that sizzling wife of yours."
Jason wanted to wipe that smirk off his face with his fist but refrained because he didn't want to start a mob war. He needed information. He would take the rest of his time with Johnny to question him about Leticia and his motives for being in Port Charles.
.~*~.
Jason drove over to the Greystone and walked inside. He gave a nod to Max and went through the living room doors. There was Sonny, sitting in his chair with his decanter of scotch just like Carly said he would be. Depressive Sonny was worse than angry Sonny. At least when his boss was angry he would throw things and yell to get everything out of his system. Him like this though, that meant he was going to be out of commission for a while and Jason had to try to get him to stop drinking so he would take his pills.
"I questioned Anthony's kid," Jason informed as he sat in the chair across from Sonny. "He denies he had anything to do with Leticia's death and he was pretty convincing. He says the main reason he has been hanging around Port Charles is because of Lulu." He watched if there was any reaction from Sonny. When there was none, he continued. "I think we need to start branching out our search and not concentrate so much on the Zacchara's for this. Have you had any more texts from the killer?" Jason questioned him.
The Cuban just shook his head and sat there in silence. Jason waited and stayed quiet with him. Sonny poured himself another glass of alcohol and took a large gulp. He made a soured face due to the burn of it going down. "Was that the first time with Brenda?" he asked staring steadily at Jason.
Jason sighed knowing this conversation was going to happen. "No," he stated.
"Have you both been sleeping together all these years?" Sonny asked slowly.
Jason shook his head. "It didn't happen until she came back."
His boss slid back into his seat and took another sip. "Is it just sex?"
"No," Jason replied instantly.
Sonny let out a bitter laugh. "Of course you would fall for her— everyone does." He held up his glass. "Welcome to the club." Jason didn't comment so Sonny continued. "I always knew she could move on, but there was still that hope that I held out someday we would get another shot. I would get to right my wrong. But now— for my best friend to be the person she moved on with—" He shook his head. "You don't get over a girl like Brenda. To know what it's like to have someone make you feel like you are the most important thing in the world— when that's gone, nothing ever fully fills that void."
Jason rocked forward in his seat resting his elbows on his knees. "Sonny," he breathed out, "she's not that 19-year-old girl you fell in love with anymore. She grew up, back then, you were her whole world. Now, she's a woman who has lived through so much pain she became stronger for it."
"But this life Jason—" Sonny began but Jason stopped him immediately.
"Is her choice, and I will not take that away from her. I am not doing that again to anyone— and you know as well as I do, she can't run from what was set in motion all those years ago. No matter what, she would be in danger and I choose to have her by my side than not," he stated in determination. Looking at Sonny, he could see the man looked miserable.
Jason had no intention of giving Brenda up just to make Sonny happy. She was his wife and even if Brenda didn't know it yet, Jason was not going to be giving her a divorce. He was in love with her and no one was taking that away.
"You need to let her go, Sonny."
Sonny didn't agree or disagree with friend's comment. "Let's not talk about this anymore."
Jason nodded and got up to walk over to the desk. He opened the drawer and took out a bottle of Sonny's bipolar medication. He brought them to his boss and put them on the table next to him. Jason patted him on the shoulder before leaving the Greystone.
.~*~.
The month of October was almost at its end and Brenda stared at the clock from her bed. It was just about noon and she forced herself to get up. She decided that after the 'Black And White Ball' she was going to go to the doctors to get some antibiotics for this flu bug. After a quick shower, she did her hair in a side braid. Getting herself dressed, she threw on some leggings, a long blouse, and some ankle boots. The guards followed her out the door and down to the limo.
Since the Jerry incident, Francis retrained the guards and apologized incessantly for not being on the island with her. When Brenda arrived at the coffee shop, she made her way toward the office.
The guard stood up straighter when he saw her. "Go right in Mrs. Morgan," Milo said, giving her a wide grin.
Brenda walked into the office and saw Jason with his head down busy writing. He looked up and gave her one of his amazing smiles. "What are you doing here?" He stood quickly to greet her.
Brenda wrapped her arms around his waist and gave him a quick peck on the lips. "I thought I would get my husband to take me to lunch. I'm starving."
"Mm," he hummed out as he kissed her again. "I think that sounds good and after that, we can take a quick trip to the gun range for practice."
Brenda scoffed. "I don't need practice."
"Bren, just humor me. I told you the other night about the warehouse getting blown up, it's a good assumption Zacchara is trying to make a play for the territory. Plus— there is still a killer on the loose. It's not a bad idea to be prepared."
"Fine," Brenda gave in. "But after I prove that I am still an awesome shot," she poked him in the ribs, "you are buying me some ice cream."
Jason nodded. "Deal."
The pair left the coffee shop on Jason's motorcycle and ended up at Kelly's. When they entered, Brenda spotted Mike and went running around the counter to hug her old friend. While the two were conversing, Jason found a table and ordered drinks from the waitress. When the model finally sat down, she looked at the menu. After picking out their food and ordering, Jason took her hand on the table.
A surprised Brenda smiled at Jason. "This is nice."
Jason rubbed the top of her hand with his thumb. "It is, and there is really no reason to hide anything anymore."
The bell on top of the door rung out. "Jason!" a loud young voice yelled out. The couple turned to see Elizabeth standing there staring at them while holding Jake in the carrier. Cameron ran over to the pair and began to hug Jason.
"Whoa— hey, Cam," Jason greeted the child while patting him on the back.
Cameron backed up and looked at Brenda curiously. "Who's that? She's pretty," he whispered shyly with his arms behind his back.
Brenda giggled. "Hi, Cameron, I'm Brenda." She gave him a little wave and recalled she didn't get to really meet him the day they brought Jake back.
"Are you two married?" Cam asked, catching them off guard.
"Yes, Brenda and I are married," Jason replied with a smile.
Cameron grabbed both of their hands. "Where are your rings?" he innocently asked, still inspecting both their fingers.
Before Brenda could say anything, her husband answered, "They are home, we just didn't wear them today."
After responding to Elizabeth's oldest son, Jason caught a glance of Jake. Brenda grazed the side of his wrist with her thumb when she heard him swallow down air to quickly.
"Cam, let's pick up our food so we can let Jason and Brenda enjoy their lunch," Elizabeth urged, trying to get away from the couple.
When Liz and the kids were out of an earshot Brenda moved forward. "Is there anything I can do?" she asked in a sympathetic tone.
"Just you being here is enough." Jason gave a slight smile before the waitress came and placed their order down.
Brenda finished her food in record time, which gained a surprised look from Jason. "What?" she asked offended, "I didn't eat breakfast. Don't judge."
Jason shrugged and went back to eating.
"So— Spinelli is really going to father Robin's child?" Brenda questioned taking a sip of water. She still couldn't wrap her head around the idea of Robin deciding to be a single mom and getting artificially inseminated.
"He's at the hospital now to do the procedure," Jason confirmed between bites.
"That's crazy, their kid is going to be like Doogie Howser on speed." She shook her head causing Jason to chuckle. While he laughed, she decided to be stealthy and steal some of his food. Jason grabbed her arm just as she popped a ketchupy frie in her mouth. Before he could comment, an annoying voice from behind them caught their attention.
"Look, Lucky— it's the couple with the open marriage." Sam pointed, leading Lucky over to Brenda and Jason's table.
Brenda wiped her mouth with a napkin. She noticed Sam and Lucky hand in hand. Jason had told her about Elizabeth's divorce from the cop and his suspicions that it was due to Sam. Now, she could see for herself that was, in fact, the case.
Brenda smiled sweetly at Sam. "Well— we are quite happy with our marriage." She thoughtfully nodded her head. "I think most people rather get married once and stick with it then get married over and over and over again. Don't you think, Sam?" Brenda could feel Jason placing his hand on her knee. "Oh, Lucky, I have been meaning to ask you— have you been able to find out anything on the guys who threatened Elizabeth and the children, in the park?" The model felt her husband's hand squeeze tighter.
Sam looked taken back and with panic in her eyes, she looked back and forth between the married couple. Brenda just continued to grin at Sam while Lucky explained they still hadn't.
"We should get going Lucky," Sam insisted before pulling him away.
Jason sighed. "Why are you trying to make trouble?"
"She doesn't scare me, Jase, and I don't appreciate her attempt to act like she's better than us. She needed to be knocked down a few pegs," Brenda said, stacking their plates for the waitress to take them away. "I wonder if she will be at the ball— then again," she stared at Jason, "I am still wondering if I am going to be dateless."
"There is too much going on right now for me to give you a straight answer. I am still waiting to hear back from Sonny since he left for Puerto Rico. Honestly, I wish you weren't going at all," he said, his tone resigned.
"Emily wants us there, besides— one of has to go to represent the Morgans." She smiled with a twinkle in her eye. "Also, just so you know, I think it's very sweet you kept your ring. I was sure that after we signed the annulment papers, you would have chucked it off the dock."
"The wedding band that you picked— the one that cut off circulation to my finger— yes, I still have it," he admitted with a smile before leaning across the table and giving her a quick kiss on the lips.
The sound of dishes falling to the floor echoed in their ears. They looked to the noise to find Mike staring at them. "Hm," Brenda hummed out, "I have a feeling we might end up getting that reaction a lot."
"I think you're right," Jason agreed as he noticed his phone vibrating. He picked it up to hear a very frantic Spinelli on the other end. With a few 'Okays' the enforcer closed his phone and told Brenda they had to make a detour to the hospital.
.~*~.
When Jason and Brenda walked onto the 10th floor of GH, Spinelli immediately ran to the couple. He grabbed a hold of Jason's arms. "Stone Cold, the Jackal is in urgent need of your assistance."
"Spinelli, first, calm down and then tell me what the problem is," Jason said to him before looking curiously at Brenda. She was noisily searching through her purse. "What are you trying so hard to find?" he asked her.
"My sanitizer," she replied and smiled when she pulled it out. She looked from Spinelli to Jason. "Do you know where his hands have been?"
Jason jumped back quickly and yanked the sanitizer from her fist. With amazing speed, he wiped some on both of his arms.
Jason glared at Spinelli and pointed at him. "Don't touch me again," he ordered before taking a long breath. "Now, tell me what's wrong."
"The Jackal was attempting— to retrieve the sample for Doctor Robin, but thoughts of Lulu— they deemed it impossible," Spinelli stuttered out.
Brenda tilted her head to the side. "Spin, we can get you some magazines, I hear Hustler is pretty popular with guys," she stated calmly.
"Brenda," Jason began as he pinched the bridge of his nose.
"If Stone Cold will just take the Jackal's place for the deposit, we would not disappoint Doctor Robin." Spinelli fidgeted in place.
Brenda made a shocked face. "Wait— you want Jason's swimmers?"
"Brenda," Jason bit out more forcefully as he began to rub his face.
"Well, Jase, I am just trying to figure out if he's having performance anxiety or if he's asking you to take one for the team," she explained, crossing her arms.
Jason eyed his wife. "You stay here."
He went to grab Spinelli before stopping himself. Instead, he tilted his head toward the waiting area. "You," he gestured to Spinelli, "over there." The two males walked away.
Once Jason and Spinelli were talking in private, Robin paced her way over to Brenda. "I am so sorry. I had no idea he would call Jason to fill-in for him."
"Don't worry about it. I'm just sorry this didn't work out for you." Brenda put her hand on her friend's shoulder and gave a slight frown.
Robin shrugged. "I am sure I will find the right donor." She gave a half smile. "I better go over there and defuse this situation," she said before joining Spinelli and Jason.
After five minutes, Jason came over and took Brenda's hand to lead her to the elevator. "I guess with all the excitement of the day we are going to have to skip the range, huh?" Brenda questioned hopefully.
"Nice try," Jason said as the elevator doors opened.
.~*~.
The day of the 'Black And White Ball' came and Jason was under a lot of pressure. There was still no word on Sonny and Ric had informed him this morning that there was an attempt made on Sonny's life. He had Spinelli pestering him about going to the ball and Carly jumped on that bandwagon too. Carly wanting him to go, that made Jason more nervous because it seemed she was up to something.
Jason was tired of the office so he came home to have something to eat and make his calls. When he reached the top floor of Harbor View Towers he heard orchestra music coming from Brenda's penthouse. He gave the guards a perplexed look but instead of asking what was going on, he slipped through the door to see for himself. He saw the couches had been moved to the side of the room. Brenda was in a loose skirt, dancing around the room, in her bare feet, with Spinelli. Jason moved to the side unnoticed.
The model ended their dance and stopped the music. "You're doing better, Spin," she insisted with a little smile.
The hacker frowned and rested himself against the wall. "Venus is kind but the Jackal knows he is a bumbling fool who will surely embarrass his Faithful Friend."
"I'm sure Georgie will enjoy being there with you more than anything, she was so excited you asked her," Brenda stated. She could see he still looked doubtful. "Let's try something different."
The brunette walked over to her iPod and scrolled a bit. "Have you ever seen sleeping beauty?" Brenda asked him and he nodded yes. "Great." She glided over to Spinelli, pulled him to the middle of the room, and placed both hands on his shoulders. "I want you to think of the ambiance. Think about the prince dancing with Aurora in the woods. Feel what the music says to you— it's romantic, it's magical. This time you are going to lead. You twirl and dip me when it feels right." She smiled at him before going over and hitting play.
Resuming her position in front of Spinelli, she had him put one arm around her waist and took his hand in hers. The music began and they started the waltz. Brenda sang along lightly. "I know you, I walked with you once upon a dream— I know you, that look in your eyes is so familiar a gleam."
Jason watched on while Brenda continued sooth Spinelli as he danced with her. He smiled at the fact it was working. The kid was actually getting into it and was dancing a lot better. When it came to the end of the song, Spinelli dipped her down causing Brenda to give him a huge grin. When his mouth began to get closer to Brenda's, her eyes widened and the grin left her face fast.
"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!" Jason yelled out, rushing over to the two.
Spinelli quickly lifted Brenda upright and blushed. "The Jackal's most humblest apologies. I'm afraid I may have been dazed into another world."
Jason gave him a stern look. "Yeah— your whole body is going to be in another world if you don't keep those lips of yours unpuckered."
Brenda slapped Jason on the shoulder before bringing her attention to Spinelli. "It's fine, Spin," she reassured him. "No harm done. You did great dancing— you should be proud of yourself. You are going to knock Georgie's socks off," she promised excitedly.
"Did I hear my name?"
Everyone glanced over at the door to find Georgie, Maxie, and Robin entering the penthouse. A guard walked past them with dress bags which he took upstairs.
Spinelli ran over to the three by the door. "Fair Georgie, the Jackal is surprised to see your presence so early," he declared and looked over her companions. "I see you have brought Doctor Robin and—" he wrinkled his nose, "the Hostile One," he finished while Maxie rolled her eyes at him.
"We are just dropping our dresses off, Spinelli. We came to get Brenda because we all have appointments for the salon and then we are coming back here to get ready," Georgie explained.
Jason looked to Brenda who was slipping on flip-flops. He arched his brow at her. "Isn't it a little cold for those type of shoes?"
"I'm getting a mani/pedi." She shrugged and gave Jason a quick kiss goodbye. Brenda then grabbed her purse and walked over to the girls.
"Oh, good—" Maxie got out in a long exaggerated breath. "You two are finally out of the closet." She pointed to each of them. "For the record, we all know the both of you had wild crazy sex in Vegas," she announced before Robin pushed her out of the penthouse.
Georgie helped a stunned Brenda leave and Jason began to narrow his eyes at Spinelli. "The Jackal must ready himself," the hacker squeaked while running out the door.
.~*~.
When the girls arrived back from the salon they instantly dressed and began putting the finishing touches on their makeup. Brenda ran her fingers through her loose large curls one more time. She walked over to the mirror and twirled in front of it, watching the fabric spin outward. The model was in love with the dress she picked. It was strapless and empire waisted, the black silk fit snugly around her chest and down above her bellybutton. It then flared out with white silk pleats and a flowy white chiffon overlay. It came to the floor and moved like the wind when she walked.
"Admiring your dress again?" Robin laughed out.
Brenda smiled and nodded excitedly. "It's officially the most favorite dress I have ever owned."
"It is gorgeous," Maxie agreed as she felt the fabric. "Gotta love couture. The whole look you worked out is perfect too. It's like 40's glam meets A Midsummer Night's Dream."
Brenda pulled the rest of the girls in front of the mirror. "I have to say, Ladies, we look pretty damn good."
Robin put her arms around each of her cousins. "At least you two have dates."
Georgie put her head on Robins' shoulder. "Do you know who Patrick is bringing?"
Robin released them and sat on the bed. "Leyla," she bit out with contempt in her voice.
Brenda sat down next to her and grabbed her hand. "Don't worry about Patrick Drake."
"Yeah," Maxie chimed in, "there will be loads of sexy single guys there."
"And it's a big castle with lots of shadowy corners," Brenda said wiggling her eyebrows causing the rest of the girls to laugh. Brenda stood up when she heard her guard announcing her brother was there. Coop was going to take them all over to the island. The model didn't want to impose on Emily and Nikolas by bringing her security with her, so having her cop brother near her was the only way Jason would let the guys have the night off. The girls all stood and went downstairs. She saw Cooper standing in her living room.
"Hey, Sis," he walked over to her and gave her a hug, "you don't look half bad."
"Coop, we really need to work on your compliments," she replied and leaned into his ear. "Tell Maxie she looks gorgeous," she whispered before watching him walk over to Maxie and repeat her words. Brenda faced her guests. "I am going to let Spinelli know we are all ready."
.~*~.
Jason was pacing his penthouse on the phone with Benny until he heard the door open. When he saw Brenda he stopped. He had heard the expression before about something taking your breath away but never understood it till just now. "Benny— I— I'll call you back," he stuttered out.
Brenda linked her fingers in front of her. She tilted her head and gave Jason a smile. "I came to let Spinelli know that Coop is here and we're all ready to go."
Jason positioned himself in front of Brenda. He looked her over again and let the outside of his hand brush down her bare arm. "You are breathtaking," he complimented while being awestruck and looking into her eyes. "Now, I really don't want you to go." He smiled and placed a finger under her chin. Lifting her face, Jason placed a simple but passionate kiss on her lips.
After opening her eyes in a bit of a haze, she smiled up at him. "I'll miss you tonight."
"If things turn around I'll try to meet you there but I can't promise anything." He ran a hand through her hair wishing he didn't have to leave her side.
"I understand." Brenda nodded. "Just do me a favor, keep yourself protected."
"The Jackal is ready to escort the Fair Georgie." Spinelli came down the stairs dressed in his tux. "Are we all ready to depart?" he asked.
"Yup," she replied, "The girls are waiting at my place."
The hacker walked off the last step and opened the door for Brenda.
As she spun to leave Jason held onto her hand. When she looked to him surprised, he kissed her wrist. "You be safe too," he implored as he let go and watched her leave.
Sneak Peek: Because I am freaking insane, I decided to write the ball. So... up next, is part one of two. Fav/Follow/Review. :D
