Reluctantly Billy opened his bleary eyes quickly closing them as the bright light of morning assaulted him. He felt his foot resting on the cool floor and absently recalled how the night before he thought that that simple action would put a stop to the room spinning around him. Apparently it must have worked because somewhere between the time he fell into his bed and morning he had thankfully plummeted into the abyss of sleep. He laid there quietly taking deep deliberate breaths doing his best to bring the events from the previous night into focus. He licked his parched lips and tried to swallow but his mouth felt as though it was stuffed full of cotton. Billy rolled over and immediately regretted even that slight movement and the reaction from within it caused him – man he had one hell of a hangover.

He steeled himself for the next wave of the tom-toms that hammered away from inside his head and pushed himself to a standing position. Holding his head in his hands Billy walked across the room and pulled the roller shades down darkening his room in the hopes that that would elevate the stabbing pains the vivid sun caused behind his eyes – no such luck. The pounding resonating through his head continued to assault his senses. He ran his hand through his rumpled brown hair and gently lowered his body to the edge of his bed again trying to get his bearings – how he hated hangovers.

Billy looked around his bedroom trying to gauge what had had happened in the wee hours of when night ebbed into morning. There were little signs if any to reveal to him what he might or might not have done. As a matter a fact looking around it appeared nothing out of the ordinary had taken place. There were clothes strewn around the room as usual, his fire suit was in a heap in the corner yet it was the sight of that black flame retardant article of clothing that brought it all crashing back to him. He had been knocked out of the previous day's race and Jason Morgan had won the feature. Billy was pummeled by the images of Jason standing in the winner's circle lapping up all the praise and attention Pat Ryan could lavish on his newest star.

Forgetting the ever constant thumping in his head, Billy lifted his body off the bed and reached for the crumpled fire suit on the floor. He held the heavy black fabric in his hands studying it almost mesmerized as his gaze came to rest squarely on the signature Ryan Racing emblem stitched just above his name. Ryan Racing – Weston, he read it again. Prior to his arrival Ryan Racing had been nothing but a mere shadow of what it was now and that was all thanks to him Billy reasoned with himself as he continued to stare around his bedroom which resembled a shire to himself. Muck like Pat Ryan's living room and office Billy's bedroom housed every trophy, ribbon he had won and every article ever written about him was framed and mounted covering his walls like wallpaper. All of it was a sheer testament that without him Pat Ryan's team was nothing. Billy was Ryan Racing and Pat Ryan had proven that to Billy time and time again. He paid every one of Billy's fines for whatever misconduct or sneaky trick he pulled out on the track that inevitably had garnered him and the team a first place finish. Pat had even taken Billy's side against his own daughter when it had come to their break up. If that didn't speak volumes to what he meant to Ryan Racing, Billy wasn't sure what else would. Yet the thoughts of Jason Morgan and the way Billy watched Pat fawning all over him the day before left Billy seeing red not to mention the kiss he had witnessed between Elizabeth and Jason was an image burned in his memory even though he did his best to push it from his mind and focus on what really mattered – his head of the pack standing on the team.

It should have been him standing in the winners circle with Pat Ryan while the photographers snapped picture after picture of the pair. He should have been the one talking to the reporters celebrating his victory -- not Jason Morgan. The idea of Jason standing in the spot light while he stood on the sidelines waiting for his smoking car, a car that hadn't even finished the race, to be pushed back into the garage made Billy's blood boil over. There was no way in hell Jason Morgan was a better driver than him – no way Billy thought. He had just gotten lucky that race. So what if Morgan had found a way to beat him – it was only once. It would never happen again Billy silently reassured his wounded ego. However the more he tried to convince himself that all would be right with his world again after he placed first in the next race there was a niggling voice in the back of his mind he couldn't silence. It was one that kept chanting Jason's name and the thought even as miniscule as the possibility might have been what if Pat had decided that Billy wasn't all he had once thought him to be and he went about backing Jason Morgan as the next big thing at Ryan Racing. That notion froze Billy's once boiling blood in his veins. The emotion that was coursing through him at the moment was a new one for him. It was fear and Billy didn't like it one bit. He hadn't feared anyone, especially not a fellow racer, in he couldn't remember how long, probably not since before his dirt track days. "Damn you, Morgan!" Billy shouted as he wadded up the suit in his hands and threw it hard at the wall across the room. The large ball of material bounced off and 8x10 photo of Pat and Billy standing arm and arm taken after Billy's first big win for Ryan Racing sending the picture careening to the floor with a loud crash. Billy looked at the broken glass and tried not to think it was an omen of things to come.

He stepped over the chards of glass closing the door to his room with a heavy thud. He needed coffee – black coffee before he could even begin to gather his thoughts and try to come up with a viable way to rid himself of Jason Morgan once and for all.

"What the hell?" he said shocked to see none other than Theresa Kennedy sitting at the breakfast bar in nothing but one of his NASCAR t-shirts.

"Morning," she smiled holding up the half full pot of coffee. "You look like you could use a cup," she mentioned as she reached for a large mug and filled it up.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he questioned while he readily took the cup she offered still trying to remember what in hell he had done the night before. It was more than obvious that whatever it was Theresa had been a part of it.

"I spent the night sweetie. At your request I might add," she stated slyly. "You don't remember do you?" She pouted as though she was disappointed yet she would have been shocked if he had remembered. By the time she had caught up with him at the bar he had drank his way through three fourths of a bottle of tequila and at least two dozen drafts. "You tied one on pretty good last night."

"Oh God," he moaned again holding his pounding head in his hands.

"Here honey let me get you something for that." She put down the newspaper and went to grab the bottle of aspirin from the cabinet. "You have to have one hell of a hangover."

She laid the two aspirin just above the newspaper forcing Billy to look at the large headline sprawled across the sports page. 'JASON MORGAN HAS HIS FIRST OF MANY WINS FOR RYAN RACING'. Theresa stifled a giggle as she watched the vein in Billy's neck begin to throb as he ignored the medicine she offered and reached for the newspaper crinkling the thin newsprint in his angry hands.

Billy stared intently at the large color photo of Jason and Pat that accompanied the article that nearly consumed the entire front page of the sports section. He could hear his heavy breaths in his ears as he clenched his jaw tightly his ire growing deep from within. Quickly he scanned the article written by a reporter that over the years Billy had come to think of as a fan and friend yet reading the praises he lavished on Jason Morgan about not only his racing techniques but what the reporter termed as his god given talents Billy felt completely betrayed. Suddenly it was like the name Billy Weston meant absolutely nothing on the circuit. There was barely a mention of him in the whole sports section. It was just a mere blip stating that due to a spin out in the final turn he hadn't been able to finish the race. However Jason had not only garnered a front page spot but another near half page article about how he had lost his crew chief to a heart attack midway through the season and that his move to Ryan Racing was fraught with a few less than stellar showings but it looked like now he had found his mark again and would be just what Pat Ryan's racing team needed to gain the coveted Winston Cup.

Billy's rage got the better of him and before he knew what he was doing the newspaper was a pile of scrap paper lying in shreds on the clean white counter. When the hell had Jason Morgan become the darling of NASCAR? Suddenly it was like he was something special just because his crew chief might be out for the rest of the season. Who gave a damn about any of that Billy thought to himself but he knew the answer and he knew it well. Pat Ryan gave a damn. This was a fairy tale story in the making and if Billy knew nothing at all about Pat he knew that he would use that to his every advantage. The head of Ryan Racing certainly knew good publicity when he saw it.

Again Billy found himself searching his brain for some way to get rid of Jason Morgan. The several sentences in the news article dedicated to how close he was to reaching Billy in the points standing fueled Billy's already raging inferno. He couldn't allow Jason to catch him – he just couldn't. Yet a way to stop it from happening eluded Billy at the moment and that pissed him off all the more. Normally he was quick with a plan to get what he wanted no matter the cost but that was when he knew he would have Pat Ryan's one hundred percent support. As much as Billy hated to admit it from the looks of his owner's beaming smile at Jason he wasn't all that sure that unconditional support would be a given anymore. "Damn it!" he cursed banging his fist against the counter causing Theresa to jump at the sudden break in the silence.

It was more than a little apparent to Theresa how anything having to do with Jason Morgan frazzled Billy. In a way it was more than a little amusing to watch him stew about it all. Hell she had been an eye witness to the same scenario when less than a year ago as she watched Billy dethrone another driver much like Jason Morgan was beginning to do to Weston. It looked like it was time for her to pull up stakes and move on to NASCAR's latest rising star. It was almost like a ritual of sorts for her. She had spent the better part of her adolescence and adult life moving from driver to driver depending upon their winning streak. Yet the determined look that Billy carried told her that she might be better off hedging her bet for a little while longer. She was sure that he wasn't about to go down without a fight and she was just as determined to come out a winner as well. Besides it wasn't like she hadn't juggled two men before she thought to herself.

"What the hell are you staring at?" Billy barked at her.

"Nothing baby," she purred reaching around kneading his tense shoulder muscles. "What do you say to us relieving a little of that tension?" Instinctively she rubbed her body against his bare back. Billy could feel her erect nipples through the thin fabric of his shirt she was wearing and as she reached down and cupped his semi hard form in her hand he almost gave into the impulse.

"Get dressed and get the hell outta here," he ordered as he tossed her hand aside leaving her only to watch his retreating form before disappearing behind the door of his bedroom.

Billy flipped on the television that sat in the corner of his room hoping its droning sound would drown out the voices in his head chanting Jason's name. Absently he scanned the channels stopping cold when Jason's face flashed across the 25 inch screen. Not wanting to yet unable to stop himself there he sat listening to the announcer extolling the great up and coming racer and all of the adversities in his life from the heart attack Jake Russell, his crew chief, had suffered to how his father Erik Morgan had crashed and died from the injuries sustained on the very track that Jason had just won on. It was at the mention Jason's father that sent a light bulb clicking on in Billy's mind. He suddenly recalled several pictures of Erik Morgan that Jason had placed around his area at the Ryan garage. Something told him that Jason's father was his adversary's accellies heal. Billy just wondered how much so.

Alison fidgeted anxiously as the waitress poured her another cup of coffee. She should have been relaxed later that morning she and Jake would be on a plane headed back to Texas. However she was anything but relaxed. Alison felt as if she was about to jump out of her skin. Every time the door to the airport coffee shop swung open she nearly leapt from her seat holding her breath waiting to see if the person entering was her son. Why she had let Jake talk her into having breakfast with Jason she hadn't a clue then again Jake hadn't given her much of a choice. She knew how it would turn out – badly – as it always did when they were together. Deep within her she knew she was to blame for the better part of it. She never failed to say one thing or another that ended up provoking her son. She just couldn't seem to help herself though every time she thought about how she lost her husband and Jason's incessant need to be just like his father Alison lost all sense of reason.

She wanted to be happy for Jason's accomplishments and deep down there was a part of her that truly was. Jason was a living breathing version of his father and perhaps for Alison that was the trouble with it all. She missed Erik so much. He had been her life. She had given up everything for him – her family, her way of life and she had been happy to do it she loved him that much but when she lost him it was like the world had played a cruel joke on her and instead of taking refuse with her son she pushed him away because he reminded her too much of the man she'd lost. How foolish she had been back then but the damage had been done and much to her dismay she relentlessly continued piling it on.

"I don't think you need anymore caffeine Jake," she said as the waitress began filling his cup when she finished with Alison's.

"It's decaf, Ali," Jake stated nodding to the young woman to continue filling the white and blue cup.

"Oh," she remarked absently eyes still riveted on the door. "I'm just looking out for you."

Jake shook his head and gave her a half smile. He knew her intentions were good but he had had just about enough of them. He had half a mind to chuck his ticket and stay right there in North Carolina if for no other reason than to show Alison Morgan she wasn't his boss. Jake chuckled to himself thinking how childish that thought was. He was beginning to think like Jason he thought. "I know you are," he said finally.

Jake looked down at his watch wondering when his breakfast guests would be arriving. It didn't surprise him that Jason was late. Jake almost expected it. He was sure he was tempting fate by even thinking that Alison and Jason could be in the same room without sparks flying but he had to give it one more try. He hoped that by inviting Elizabeth Ryan to join them as well it would keep things on some sort of civil level not to mention that Jake Russell had a soft spot when it came to Pat Ryan's daughter. He had felt an immediate connection to her even before he knew who she was but when that realization came to light the pull towards her was even greater.

He remembered the day Elizabeth entered the world. At first it had been the happiest day for Pat and Colleen. Jake still had the video tape of Colleen waddling into the garage announcing to her husband that it was time just as her water broke gushing to the already stained concrete floor. Pat Ryan stared at her with only a dumbfounded expression on his face as if he didn't know what to do next. It took a little coaxing on Jake's part for the man to finally snap out of his trance and whisk Colleen to the hospital. All the guys in the garage were taking bets that day as to how long it would be before Pat fainted in the delivery room. So that was the first thing Jake asked him when he arrived at the hospital later that evening. Yet the deadpan look on Pat's face silenced his friend Jake came to learn that Colleen Ryan died due to complications of childbirth. Pat was devastated.

Jake felt sorry for his friend but even sorrier for the little girl who made an entrance to this world on her mother's exit. In the first few years of her life that Jake had been around for he watched Pat Ryan barely even look at her. No one dared to mention how much she looked like Colleen for fear of incurring Pat's wrath. Elizabeth spent her formative years in the care of one nanny or another and by the time Jake and Pat had parted company he had still never seen the young father so much as touch his daughter. That thought tugged at Jake's heart even now. He couldn't even begin to imagine the life that Elizabeth must had have at the hands of her father. To say it must have been difficult would have been an understandstatment of cataclysmic proportions.

"What's she doing here?"

Alison's voice pierced Jake's thoughts of yesteryear. He looked up to see Elizabeth weaving her way through the crowded tables. "I invited her," he stated.

"What on earth for?" Alison questioned. It wasn't like she didn't have a hard enough time dealing with Jason she certainly didn't need another NASCAR fan in her midst.

"Because I did." He turned away without giving his companion a chance to say more. "Elizabeth, it's so nice to see you. I'm so glad you could join us." He smiled kissing her quickly on the cheek.

"Thank you for the invitation. Mrs. Morgan," she said nodding in Alison's direction. There was something about Jason's mother that still irritated her to no end but now after knowing how she had lost her husband Elizabeth found herself cutting the woman just a little slack. She knew what it felt like dealing with her own loss all these years so she couldn't find it in her heart not to try to understand the other woman's loss as well.

"Nice to see you Elizabeth," Alison said all the while gritting her teeth.

"Would you like a cup of coffee?" Jake asked as he summoned the waitress to their table.

"Yes. Black please," she said the young woman.

Alison looked up at the clock on the wall the hands inching closer and closer to the time they were to check in for their flight back to Texas. "Perhaps Jason decided against joining us," she said.

At the mention of Jason's name Elizabeth nearly choked on the gulp of hot liquid she had just put in her mouth. Jason was supposed to be joining them – of god she thought to herself. What could she have been thinking when she said she would meet them for breakfast? Of course Jason would be there where else would he have been. The memory of the kiss they shared the night before replayed in her head again much like it had a million times as she lied in bed last night trying desperately to get some sleep. Yet each time she closed her eyes all she could see was Jason's handsome face inches from her own.

"He'll be here. Never once known him to be on time," Jake laughed.

The three of them made small talk as they waited on Jason to arrive. Elizabeth did her best to keep her head in the conversation but that was more than a little difficult. All she could think about was Jason and the feelings she wanted nothing to do with when it came to him.

Jason took a deep breath and ran his hand over his mouth. He knew just beyond that door would find his mother – not a person he was all that anxious to see. He wished that lately Jake and Alison Morgan didn't come as a package deal. Yet that was the way it was at least for the time being. So to see the man who was like a father to him it appeared he would have to deal with his mother as well. With determination Jason pushed open the door and suddenly stopped dead in his tracks. There sat Elizabeth Ryan along side his mother and Jake.

Physically Jason shook his head trying to clear the fog from his mind. All of the sudden he felt like he was reliving one of his many dreams from the night before. No matter how hard he tried he wasn't able to remove Elizabeth Ryan and the sweet kiss they shared from his thoughts. Over and over again it replayed like a part in his favorite movie. He was so torn by the desire he felt for her and the logical part of his senses that told him to steer clear of her. Hell he had been telling himself that for months now without much success and last night he finally allowed himself one moment of weakness. Not that he regretted it for even a minute but staring at Elizabeth sitting there totally unaware of his presence Jason knew there was no turning back no matter how much he knew he should.

Rubbing his hands against his faded jeans he pushed off with one foot and snaked his way through the crowded coffee shop. He could hear his heart pounding in his ears as he got closer. "It's about damn time you showed up," Jake said with a laugh as Jason tried to sit down across from Elizabeth without knocking the chair over in the process – how he hated being nervous.

Elizabeth felt her breath hitch in her throat as her gaze came to rest on Jason. The memory of how his lips felt against hers, the taste of his tongue and his touch besieged her suddenly almost rendering her speechless. Finally she was able to eek out a slight smile unsure she could find her voice to actually speak.

"When have you ever known me to be on time?" Jason innocently asked looking directly at Jake his gaze avoiding each of the women at the table for completely separate reasons.

"True enough," Jake agreed patting the younger man on the shoulder. He was already missing him and hadn't even gotten on the plane yet. Damn heart attack he muttered to himself. "How about we order? Breakfast is on us," he announced as he motioned for the waitress to again return to their table.

"Good morning Jason," Alison finally said as Jake began placing his food order.

"Mom," he returned in a monotone voice. He could barely even look at her. Alison's words to him after yesterday's race still played on in his head like a skipping record. Hell he knew what she said was true. It was true for any driver. They cheated death almost on a daily basis and he knew it but that wasn't about to stop him from doing something he truly loved. His first instinct was to get behind the wheel to make something of the Morgan name – to do what his father hadn't been able to but now it was all about him. He loved it and it showed in the way he drove and on the tally sheet.

"And what can I get for you?" the young woman addressed Jason for his order.

So far Jake was pleased with the behavior of both Alison and Jason perhaps inviting Elizabeth had been the right thing to do after all. His eyes again were drawn to Pat Ryan's daughter. What a lovely young woman she had grown into. He hoped that somewhere in heaven both Colleen and Erik were beaming with pride over the children they had left behind. He did his best to keep the conversation going even though it was a little on the difficult side. He tried to steer clear on taboo subjects and with this group there were quite a few so Jake was more than a little thankful when the food arrived giving way to no longer have the need for conversation.

Elizabeth was grateful to see their orders arrive. While she loved her vantage point sitting across from Jason, she was beginning to become more than a little unnerved. She felt every muscle in her body tingle when his foot accidentally grazed hers under the table. Yet when they both reached for the same package of grape jelly Elizabeth felt an electric shock surge through her spine when their fingers met. They both pulled away as if they had been seared by a branding iron an action that wasn't lost on Jake Russell. He had been watching the pair for the better part of their breakfast and if he didn't know better he could have sworn that something was going on between the two of them. Jason wasn't one to get caught up with one woman or another most of the time he did his best to stay away from women yet Elizabeth was different. She was from his world and Jake knew it maybe just maybe Jason had finally found someone who would understand him. For the rest of their time together Jake paid particular attention to the pair smiling all the while.

"That was the call for our flight," Alison said glad that her torturous morning had finally come to an end. She was grateful that she and Jason hadn't had words but sometimes the strained silence between them was even worse. That morning it had been one of those times. "We better get to the gate." Jason rolled his eyes at his mother's remarks. She was in such a damn hurry to get Jake back to Texas he thought. He bit his tongue just before the smart remark he had been toying with saying could fall from his lips.

"Lord woman that was just the first call. We still have twenty minutes or more before we have to board. Won't you walk with us to the gate?" Jake asked as he threw the money for their breakfast and a generous tip on the table.

"I really should get going," Elizabeth stated. Her stomach was already tied in knots and she was ready to jump out of her skin at any moment. She needed to get behind the wheel of her chevelle and put peddle to the metal just to clear her head.

"Please sweetie, walk with me," Jake said again. "I did have a few questions about my rehab and thought you might be the best person to ask," he added slyly knowing full well that she wouldn't be able to refuse him now.

In the back of her mind Elizabeth knew that Jake was playing her yet she went along suddenly not wanting to leave Jason's side. She wished like hell her warring heart would just pick a side and stay there. "Is everything all right at the center?" she asked getting up and following Jake to the door.

Jason stood against the large bank of glass starring out at the plane as it began to taxi away from the gate. The lump in his throat had been growing ever since Jake gave him a bear hug just before departing up the ramp then disappearing into the plane. He pressed his fingers against his eyes to hold the tears at bay. Unconsciously Elizabeth reached for his other hand that hung loosely at his side something inside of her guided her actions. Grateful for her touch Jason laced his large fingers through her small ones and stood there until the plane carrying Jake away was nothing but a figment of his imagination.

"He'll be back sooner than you think," she said trying to sound reassuring.

"I know," Jason agreed even though he sounded less than convinced.

With that said the two fell into an almost awkward silence until they both realized that they were standing there holding hands and suddenly as if with the same thought coursing through them both they dropped their grasp instantaneously. "I really should get going," Elizabeth announced feeling the need to run like hell away from him yet her feet weren't about to cooperate. They seemed to be rooted in place.

"Me too," he said yet made no attempt to move either. There he stood beside her wanting so desperately to kiss her again. His desire to wrap his arms around her tiny waist and get lost in the scent of her was intoxicating. Deep down he knew that he was already a goner. He had fallen for her no matter how gradual the process might have been he had fallen just the same.

"See you around the garage?" she asked as she turned to leave his side finally.

"I'm sure," he agreed.

"Okay bye now," she said hesitantly almost wishing he would stop her as she took a few steps away from him.

"Elizabeth, wait," he called her retreating back.

Inwardly she felt her body tingle and she smiled slightly before turning around to address him. "Yes?"

"I think we should talk about what happened between us yesterday," he said as she gave him a quizzical gaze. "Our kiss," he paused momentarily, "I think we need to discuss that." He held his breath waiting for her response.

She was more than a little surprised at his willingness to just come out with it. She was always so good about skirting things that she didn't want to acknowledge like Billy's cheating on her, the lies he had spread about their break up and even the kiss she shared with Jason and the budding feelings that went along with it. She had been burying them for a while now even though it was getting more and more difficult a thing to do. It was strange to have someone approach her head on to the point that she wasn't sure what to say. Her heart wanted to come out with all of the feelings it was harboring for Jason Morgan. So many so that it was just about to burst but the logical side – the side that Elizabeth used to protect herself spoke first. "I'm sorry about that. I think we just got so caught up in the excitement of you winning the feature we let our emotions get the better of us."

Jason looked at skeptically. The kiss they shared certainly felt like more than just a congratulatory one. It held passion he knew it and from the way she was unable to look at him now she knew it too. "I think there's more to it than just that. We really should talk about what's happening between us," Jason pressed knowing he was going out on a limb. He himself was venturing into uncharted waters as well. No matter what the world thought his love life hadn't been all that prosperous. In fact most of his time was spent under the hood of a car which left little if any time for a date much less a girlfriend.

Elizabeth felt her chest tighten as he spoke not knowing what to say next. So rather than spilling her true feelings she found herself making a lame excuse and a hasty exit leaving before she could let Jason stop her.

There he stood watching her tear through the airport terminal as if she was on fire. Jason was torn on what to do. Every cell in his heart told him to chase after her and force her to talk about what was happening between them yet there he stood not moving an inch fearing if he caught her he would only drive her further away. But as she disappeared out of sight he wished he hadn't let her go.

Elizabeth slammed the door to her chevelle and turned the key in the ignition allowing the engine to roar to life hoping to drown out Jason's voice as it played and replayed his question about what was happening between them. She turned up the radio letting the blaring music add to the noise in her head but it was no use all she could hear was Jason's question. Why the hell had she run away? Why was she always running? Would it have been so hard to admit her feelings and just let herself be happy for once? Why couldn't she just do that she thought. Suddenly the answer to her question popped into her memory as a picture of Billy Weston danced across her mind. He was the reason. No matter how different Jason Morgan might have been there was no way she could lull herself into thinking that going down this road again would work. It just wouldn't. It just wouldn't she thought sadly.