A/N – Thanks for the comments! I had a wonderful overnight. Took the most amazing pictures it was so beautiful. I went to Pt. Sur Lighthouse for the evening. If you're interested, ,see my profile for the link to the pictures. They are stunning! * lol glad you guys like EJ. * Liasonisthebomb – It won't be too soon because it's a whole story arc. Once it's over, I'll be wrapping up the story. * Dreamlover – I liked that they weren't because usually it's just implied or accepted. I liked building towards their friendship.

Chapter 38 – Making Plans

Elena and Maximus sat in the room as they slowly eased Zander off the medication he was on. The process would take time and Patrick assured them that it was necessary so that they could make sure that Zander's body was functioning correctly.

It took hours for them to wear off and then finally Zander started to stir a little. His legs shifted and he moved his head.

"Zander, can you hear me?" Patrick asked.

Zander moaned.

"I need you to listen. You have a tube inside of you helping you to breathe. Once you're awake, we can take it out."

It took a few minutes but Zander finally opened his eyes and looked up at Patrick.

"Are you with me?"

Zander nodded, he just wanted the tube out. It was really uncomfortable.

Patrick had a tech come in and do some tests and they determined that Zander was breathing sufficiently on his own. "Do you want to step out?" He asked Maximus and Elena.

"We'll stay." Elena said stoically.

Patrick looked over at the tech and then he talked Zander through the process. They finally had it out and Zander was breathing well on his own.

"You still have a feeding tube in. We'll leave that in for a bit."

Zander hoarsely said, "Okay."

"What is the last thing that you remember?"

Zander thought for a moment and then he got a little agitated.

"It's okay Zander." Elena said moving to his side. "You're okay."

His eyes filled up with tears. "I can't believe what he did."

The nurse gave Zander some water.

"I'm going to leave you alone for a while. The nurse will be monitoring you closely for the next hour. If you do well, we can move you out of the ICU tomorrow." Patrick said before leaving.

Maximus stood up. "We were all really worried about you."

"I don't know what to say."

"We'll just take things slow okay? I had already thought of you as family because you were part of Elena. Now, you are also my blood….." Maximus said pausing for a moment. "It just makes me very happy."

Zander nodded. "I think it will take some time to get use to this. But, I'm glad that you are my father instead of Frank. I'm happy to be a part of this family."

Elena wiped a tear away. Now, she knew wholly that her family would be fine. She wasn't sure what state of mind Zander would be in when he woke up, but he seemed to be coping better. When he was up to it, she was going to ask Elizabeth to suggest some counseling to him.

"Elizabeth?"

"She's okay. She's taking care of Jason. He was shot in the leg but he's healing fine."

Zander nodded. "I feel like I've been asleep forever. What else did I miss?"

Elena looked at Maximus and then back at her son. "Well, we have a new place to live."

"What happened to the old place?"

"Julian blew it up."

Zander's eyes grew wide. "Was anyone hurt?"

"No, we all got out just fine. You have a room waiting for you at the penthouse across from Jason's."

"Jesus, I can't sleep for a couple of days without my world blowing up."

"I went shopping for you. Hopefully, I didn't do too badly." Elena said.

Zander smiled. "I'm sure it will be fine."

"Hope you like skinny jeans." Elena said trying not to smile.

Zander frowned. "Seriously?"

"Nope, just messing with you."

He chuckled. "Great, pick on the sick person."

Maximus smiled. "Get used to it in this family."

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Spinelli walked into the penthouse. Johnny told him to go upstairs so he hurried up the steps to Jason's room. Knocking softly, he pushed it open and smiled when he saw Liz curled up next to Jason sleeping.

"Should I return at a more opportune moment?"

Jason shook his head. "It's okay. She'll probably sleep through it."

Spinelli nodded and sat on a chair. "I have procured quite a bit of information on the Conniving one."

"How long has she been in town?"

"A month."

"And with Sonny?"

"Since the day after she arrived."

Jason took that information in for a moment. "So, she probably planned to seduce him then."

"It looks like her nefarious intentions were premeditated."

Johnny tried not to smile as he stood in the doorway. Spinelli was an interesting kid.

"What else?"

"She seems to have an unnamed benefactor in the mix; one I'm still trying to locate."

"Anything else I need to know?"

"She has a daughter named Kiki who lives in New York. And, the last traceable contact with Julian was six weeks ago."

"Who the fuck names their kid that?" Jason asked.

Johnny chuckled.

"It's a nickname Stone Cold." Spinelli added.

"It sounds like something you'd name your bird."

"She could have possibly had something to do with the bombing." Johnny said.

"I wouldn't put it past her." Jason said. "I need to speak with Sonny."

"You want me to call him?"

Jason nodded. "It's pretty telling that he hasn't had the balls to stop by on his own yet."

"I agree." Johnny said stepping away to make the call.

"Spinelli, does it look like Kiki was working with her mother?"

"No, but she is most certainly comfortable with displaying her assets." Spinelli said turning red.

Jason smirked. "Keep an eye on her movements. We'll wait and see what Francis finds out before moving."

"I will get back to my inquiries. I'm glad that you are doing well." Spinelli said standing up.

"Thank you Spinelli."

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Sonny stood outside the penthouse door. He knew that eventually he'd have to see Jason, but part of him was dreading the conversation. By this time, Jason would know all about Ava and he just didn't want to hear his shit. Sighing, he knocked on the door and Johnny opened it up.

They nodded at each other and Sonny went upstairs. He took a deep breath before entering the room. Elizabeth was downstairs making Jason something to eat.

"Sonny." Jason said evenly.

"I'm glad to see you're okay."

"Really? Because I haven't heard a word from you since I've gotten back to town."

"I figured you needed your privacy."

"Let's just cut to the chase. What the hell are you doing with Ava fucking Jerome? Have you lost your fucking mind?" Jason asked loudly.

Sonny growled. "Do not speak to me like I'm some child. I can date whoever I want to. You get no say."

"Tell me something, if I brought home someone like Ava, whose family had just tried to take out people you love, would you be so forgiving of my choices?"

"Look, Julian had nothing to do with the business. It was a personal vendetta."

Jason's jaw clenched. "I don't give a shit what it was. Ava and Julian were working together. She is dangerous and she's going to want revenge."

"Then I suggest that you watch you back." Sonny deadpanned.

If Jason was healthy, he would have beaten the shit out of Sonny for that comment and Sonny knew it. He could see the glare in Jason's eyes; a look which was usually reserved for their enemies.

"If she even looks at them funny, she will meet the same fate as her brother."

"Even if I forbid it?"

"Wow, so you'd choose that manipulating whore over me and the company?"

"Jason, stop being so dramatic."

"Get the fuck out of my face Sonny before I get up and make you leave." Jason growled.

Maximus stepped into the doorway. "Is there a problem?"

Sonny's jaw ticked a few times and then he broke the stare. "No, I was just leaving."

Whether Sonny wanted to admit it or not, his personal relationship with Jason was over.

Maximus stepped into the room. "You okay?"

Jason was seething.

"Jason, I think we need to talk."

Jason took a deep breath. "I want you to know that I will end Sonny before I ever let him cause any pain to Elizabeth or any of you."

Maximus nodded. "You're a good man Jason and I know that somewhere inside it hurts that Sonny is taking this path."

"It doesn't matter."

"But it does because ending Sonny will fuck with you regardless of the reasoning behind it. I know what he meant to you."

"Well he just stomped all over that. I'm not going to let his stupidity hurt Elizabeth."

"I didn't realize how much you loved my daughter."

"Maximus, I am going to marry your daughter someday and hopefully give you at least a couple of grandchildren. She means everything to me."

A soft smile grew on Maximus's face. "And when you're ready, you'll have my permission. The question is what is going to happen to the organization and how you're going to take care of my daughter and grandchildren."

"I have enough money in the bank to take care of them for several lifetimes. But, I understand what you are asking. I don't think that the five families would appreciate me leaving the business at this point. They do see Sonny for who he is and realize that I am the one who had been keeping the peace."

"Do you want to run it?"

Jason sighed. "When it was just me, that question wouldn't even have needed to be asked. But now I have Elizabeth to consider and I don't want to make a choice like that without her."

"Elizabeth will be happy wherever you are. Would you want to work for me in Italy?"

Jason shrugged. "I wouldn't be opposed to it."

"If you run everything, then you get to set the rules. What if we merged the organizations? You would be my presence here and run it. Of course, it would require you to come to Italy from time to time which Elizabeth would enjoy. And it would also mean that Elena and I would travel here frequently as well."

Jason nodded. "That might work actually."

"I want you to think about it and discuss it with Elizabeth. If you agree, then we'll start planning Sonny's demise and we'll approach the families together."

"Deal." Jason said holding out his hand. Maximus shook and then went to go find Elizabeth.

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Elizabeth walked back into the bedroom. She had a bowl in her hand and she placed it on the nightstand.

"What's that?"

"It's soup."

Jason made a face.

She rolled her eyes. "My mother made it from scratch and it's really good."

"What's in it?"

"Chicken, pasta, and veggies."

She lifted up a spoonful of it to his mouth and he chewed for a few seconds and swallowed it.

"Not bad." Jason said before Elizabeth fed him another.

She continued until it was gone. "We have to get your strength back up."

"There's something I need to talk to you about."

"Is this about Sonny?"

"Yes. He's made his choice and it's Ava, so I'm done with him."

"Explain."

"Your father and I talked about the future. I need to make sure that you are safe and we agreed that maybe the best thing would be to bring Sonny down and then merge our organizations. I would run it here and between us, we'd make trips back and forth between here and Italy."

"That actually would work." Elizabeth said.

"I really do want a future with you Elizabeth. Are you with me baby?"

Elizabeth smiled. "Always."

They hugged and Jason savored the feel of her body against his. Now, he just had to deal with Sonny.

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The next day, Zander was moved to a regular room. He'd have to stay there for a few more days and then he could come home and finish his recovery.

Jason was finally up and around; albeit a little slow.

Nathan let Francis into the penthouse.

"How did it go?"

Francis shrugged. "We tracked her until she came back. She met with her daughter and some other friend but unfortunately, they met in public areas and the friend wore a disguise. Sean tracked her but then she hopped into a cab and we ended up losing her in a sea of yellow.

Jason nodded. "Spinelli has been tracking her too. One way or another, we'll figure out who she has in her corner."

"Sean is going to shadow her now that she's back."

"We all need to keep our eyes and ears open."

"How are you doing?"

"I'm okay. I'm still not 100% but I'm getting there."

"It will take a while before the wound heals fully. If you need something done, call me."

"I will. How's Cody?"

"He's okay. He'll be released today. We hired a nurse and hopefully, he'll be back on his feet soon."

"Good."

"I'll be in touch." Francis said before leaving."

Elizabeth walked inside.

"Did you sign up for your classes?"

"Yup. I'm good to go."

Jason smiled. "I know you'll be happy to get into a routine."

"Yeah, it will be nice to take a few art courses as well."

"We'll need to finish converting the room for you."

Liz smiled. "I'll start working on that."

"Come here." He said softly.

Elizabeth stood in between his legs and gave him a kiss. "Why don't we take this upstairs?"

Jason smirked. "You'll get no objections from me."