13

For the past week, Elizabeth had been at the Greystone. She'd tricked them all and cloistered herself in the mansion that belonged to her husband while Jason remained behind at Harborview Towers.

Personally, Max was amazed that they'd fallen for it. When she had gotten enough rest and replenished her fluids, Elizabeth finally emerged from Penthouse IV and said that there were a few things she needed that she hadn't seen across the hall, meaning that they were still at the other house.

Max and Milo had readily agreed to drive her over there so that she could gather them personally – they had learned their lesson about poking through a woman's belongings and being totally traumatized for life back when Sonny was dating Brenda – and the three of them left immediately. He and his brother waited in the foyer while Elizabeth went upstairs to presumably collect her things, but had gotten suspicious when they heard the shower running.

They waited around in the upstairs office until they heard Elizabeth come out of the bathroom and when they confronted her, she calmly informed them that she would not be returning to Harborview Towers and that they could just go soak their heads.

It was the first time they'd been given such a directive, so the brothers immediately called Sonny and explained the ordeal. Sonny had wisely decided not to aggravate the situation and had instead ordered that extra guards be posted at the Greystone. Elizabeth could remain there as long as she wanted and if Jason ever chose to come out of his penthouse, he could deal with her decision then.

But in the end, it was the wife that came to see her husband first.

Jason had finally emerged from his bedroom, showered, shaved, changed into something clean, and actually came downstairs. His first order of business, after putting on a pot of coffee, of course, was to get Max to call up Elizabeth and let her know that she was expected at his penthouse in an hour.

He had barely made it out of the kitchen on his way to go find his top guard when there was a knock at the door. Max poked his head in, saw Jason, and gestured behind him.

"Boss, uh, Mrs. Morgan is here to see you."

"Thank you, Max," Elizabeth smiled tightly, slipping out from behind him. "If you don't mind, I'd like to speak to him alone."

The guard nodded, even though he seemed reluctant to leave them alone together, and managed a small smile in return. "Sure, sure. I'm right outside if anyone needs me."

Elizabeth waited until he had pulled the door securely shut, and then turned toward her husband. He looked as he always did: insufferably put together from his freshly washed hair to the toes of his scuffed boots. He didn't look one bit like he'd spent the last week agonizing and stressing and then stress-vomiting.

Bastard.

"Hi."

He was staring at her as if he hadn't seen her in years. "Hey."

They stood in silence for a long moment, neither one wanting to give too much away. It had all just gotten too hard; they'd never even had a chance. And the only way to deal with this situation now was to do so as adults.

"I came because there was something I needed to show you," Elizabeth started, reaching for her purse. She pulled out a stylish pocketbook and flicked the snap open, withdrawing a stapled packet of folded papers.

Jason watched curiously as she smoothed them and held them out. "What's this?"

"Blood work," she replied, positioning her thumb by the pertinent part. "Brenda and I went to General Hospital for my check-up and we asked Robin to put a rush on it. I'm not pregnant."

It shouldn't have felt like a sucker-punch to the gut – after all, they hadn't talked about children and given their marital circumstances, they both knew in the back of their minds that children would have been the worst possible addition to an already dismal situation – but it did. And as Jason stared at the clinical notes and numbers and Robin's chicken-scratch little signature, all he could hear was Elizabeth crying on the couch at Sonny's the night she'd been rescued.

According to Brenda, she'd prayed to every higher power out there that night not to be carrying his child, and she'd gotten her wish. She was free, unspoiled, safe. They were both free and safe, ready to move on to the next chapter of their lives.

Elizabeth's eyes widened when his fingers tightened, causing the paper to crackle audibly. Something in Jason's eyes had changed, and his expression was tight and stormy. He clenched the papers in his hand, fisting them, and slowly took a few steps toward her.

By the time she realized that he was going for the desk drawer, she had already recoiled in fright. The gesture only made Jason's expression fiercer, and his eyes glittered like steel as he pulled a file out of the drawer and held it out to her.

"Here."

She eyed him and the papers suspiciously, scarcely daring to hope. "What is this?"

"Our divorce papers. All you have to do is sign where Diane marked it."

Her lips parted in surprise, and all Elizabeth could do was stare at him as he offered her salvation.

His expression grew angrier, if at all possible. "The hell are you waiting for? Take it!"

She reached out and gingerly took hold of the file, the reality of the situation sinking in only when she felt its solid weight in her hand. "I…Oh."

He watched sternly as she carefully opened the file and stared at the papers, wide-eyed. Her astonishment and speechless, disbelieving delight were hardly complimentary. "You can have someone look them over if you want, but there's not really necessary."

Jason cleared his throat and glared darkly at her as she continued to skim the settlement. "Just drop them by Diane's office and she'll file them as soon as possible."

Elizabeth had found the exact dollar amount. He knew she had by the way her eyes widened in surprise. "Alimony – Jason, you don't have to-"

"I don't want to hear it," he growled.

But his soon-to-be-ex-wife wouldn't be cowed and she lifted her gaze to his without flinching. "I don't want this much. I don't want any. I've earned my own keep since I moved out of my parents' house – well, except for during our, er, never mind – and I'm not comfortable taking your money this way, Jason."

His expression didn't change. "It's already done."

"What?" Her brows furrowed in confusion. "No, it's not, not until I sign and we file these. You can still change your mind."

Jason didn't even have anything left inside him to smile at the irony of her remark. "The first payment's already been wired and will continue to be wired at the first of every month. And I don't want to hear anything else about it."

"But-"

The damn fool little woman had no idea what was good for her.

"I don't want to hear it!" he snapped, unable to take it any longer. "You wanted the divorce – you got your damn divorce! Everything's been cleaned up, everything's been taken care of, and everything's been settled. There is nothing to talk about anymore!"

She had gone at least two shades paler. Good. Served her right. "But I just wanted to say-"

He let out a snarl and resisted the urge to throw the balled-up blood report at her. That was what he did sometimes when things got out of hand: he threw things. But no matter how his temper raged now, he'd never be able to physically lift a hand – or anything else – to her.

"There's nothing left to say! What the hell are even doing here still? It's done!" Now that he had started, there was no stopping him. "It's over. You wanted your divorce, you got your divorce. The last thing I need is you standing here talking about it. Get out! Just – just get out!"

Her eyes glistened, and the sight only made him feel worse inside. "Jason, I-"

"Get out!" he bellowed, his voice so forceful and enraged that Max threw open the front door in a panic and almost collided with Elizabeth. "Get the hell out of here! If I can't have you, I don't want to see you, understand? Get out!"

Fat tears clung to her lashes, and Elizabeth whirled around and darted past Max and into the hallway. The guard stared at his boss but upon receiving a positively murderous glare, quickly backed out and shut the door behind him.

And while Elizabeth soon-to-be Webber punched the elevator button furiously in her haste to leave Harborview Towers far, far behind her, Jason Morgan picked up his bottle of scotch and began to drink in earnest.