Two hours later, Emily and Nikolas were sprawled out on Nikolas' bed, still
steadily drinking. Emily glanced down at her watched and gasped when she
realized what time it was. She sat straight up, dislodging Nikolas who was
resting his head on her lap. "What?" He asked groggily.
"It's after three! Sly is going to be *so* mad!" Emily cried. "Where are my
shoes?" She sprang off the bed and went in search of her shoes. Suddenly
there was a thump and she fell out in the middle of the floor, having
tripped over her shoe. Nikolas tried to hold in his laughter.
"I think you just found one of them." He doubled over laughing. Emily,
laughing too, climbed back up on the bed. She clutched her shoe in her
hand.
"This isn't funny. I have to get home." She waved her shoe in his face.
"But the launch master… guy…person…whatever," Nikolas tripped over his
words, "is probably sleeping. But don't worry! There's a rowboat I could
use to get you back to the docks."
Emily laid back and tossed the shoe back onto the floor. "I don't think so.
You shouldn't drive drunk and you definitely shouldn't row drunk either."
"Who said I was drunk?" Nikolas glared at her.
"All these empties." Emily held up an empty bottle and then dropped it onto
the thick carpeting. She rolled onto her stomach. "What am I going to do?"
She buried her face into the comforter and groaned.
"You can stay here tonight… today… whatever. I'll just get Mrs. Landsbury
to fix up a room for you." Nikolas told her.
Emily swatted at him but only ended up hitting the air. "You dolt, it's
after three in the morning. We can't wake her up."
"Fine then, you can sleep here. I don't care." Nikolas shrugged.
"And where are you going to sleep, on the floor? The carpet's nice but it's
not that nice."
"My bed is big enough for the both of us. Don't worry, Em, I won't bite."
Nikolas wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.
I didn't know he could do that, she thought. "But I like it when they
bite." She teased. They both laughed over that for at least five minutes.
"Okay, it's time to hit the hay. That means go to sleep." She clarified for
Nikolas when he just gave her a confused look.
"Jeez, you've been here for how many years? You'd think you'd know the
lingo by now." She muttered.
Emily took off the sweater top since she was still wearing her black tank
under it. She yawned and crawled up to the head of the bed and drew back
the covers. She was just getting under the covers when Nikolas came up and
started to get in with her. "No way." She said crinkling her nose.
"What?" Nikolas didn't know what was going on. He thought it was okay with
her.
"You stink!" Emily cried.
Somehow Nikolas had managed to get what smelled like a ton of vodka all
over him. Emily reached out and pushed him back. Not knowing that he had
been balancing on the bed, she ended up knocking him on the floor. He
landed with a loud thud.
"Oh my God!" Emily squealed. She looked over the edge to see Nikolas
sprawled on his back. The sight of him got her giggling. "I am soooo
sorry!" She tried to say through the giggles.
Nikolas threw her a hard stare. "Yeah right. I'll just get rid of the
shirt. I spilled vodka on it." Nikolas unbuttoned his shirt, revealing a
well-shaped physique that made Emily's mouth go dry. He calmly threw the
shirt onto the floor and slipped into the bed next to Emily.
Emily turned on her side, her skirt sliding up around her thighs. Nikolas
turned on his side and moved closer to her, spooning her. He reached out
and wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him. "I
thought this was a big bed. Why are you so close?"
Nikolas rested his forehead on the top of her head and shrugged. "I'm more
comfortable like this, aren't you?"
"I guess." Emily decided not to make a big deal about it and the two fell
silent. After ten minutes of listening to each other breathe, Emily guessed
that he was asleep. She started to inch forward when his arm tightened and
pulled her back.
"Why is it that every woman I love, loves a Spencer more than she loves
me?" Nikolas suddenly asked softly. Emily didn't know what to say to that.
She just assumed it was some sort of drunken babble.
Nikolas continued on anyway. "My mother adores Luke Spencer, I think that
Liz is still in love with Lucky…"
"No, oh no, that's been over, Nikolas." Emily hastened to assure him.
Nikolas shook his head. "No, she still loves him. And Sly's his cousin so
by default he's a Spencer also."
Confused, Emily looked over her shoulder at Nikolas. "What does Sly have to
do with this?"
Holding her gaze, he said simply. "You love him."
Emily quickly looked away. What did he mean by that? She didn't say
anything and neither did he. They lay there again in silence. Emily jumped
slightly when Nikolas' hand landed on her bare leg.
"Did you know, I've always thought you had the most perfect legs?" He
murmured as he brushed the back of his hand down her leg.
"No, I didn't know that." Emily shook her head.
She shivered as Nikolas lazily trailed his fingers up the back of her leg,
under her skirt, and higher up her thigh. She reached down and tried to
gently push his hand away. He was making her feel things that she shouldn't
be feeling with someone other than Sly. Nikolas just placed his hand on her
upper thigh and left it there.
"Well, now you know." Nikolas said huskily. "Why do you always cover them
up with these long skirts? You should show them off to the world."
Emily tried to laugh a little and change the subject. "We had a lot to
drink tonight. And you know what happens when people get drunk."
Nikolas nuzzled the side of her neck and breathed. "They do things they
normally wouldn't or they do things they've always wished they could."
Emily bit her lip and tried to move away from Nikolas but he kept his grip
on her. "No, don't you leave me too." He whispered. "Everybody leaves me."
Emily didn't have anything to say after that so they lapsed into another
moment of silence. Nikolas shifted, burying his face into her neck and then
said, "I remember that you used to have a crush on me."
Emily wondered why he was bringing that up. It was something that she
wished she could forget all about. "Don't remind me, I was such a kid."
Nikolas' arms tightened around her. "I use to think it was sweet."
"It was embarrassing!" Emily blushed as she thought of her childish
behavior. "You only saw me as your 'little sister'."
"But not for long." Nikolas said mysteriously. Then changing the subject
suddenly, he said, "Do you remember that summer before Lucky and Elizabeth
broke up?"
Emily sighed, thankful that he had picked an innocent subject. "I remember.
They were always having those horrible fights or they would go for days
without speaking to each other at all."
"Yeah, do you remember when we had that last big get-together right before
they broke up?"
Emily nodded. "We had that End of Summer party." She smiled at the memories
and for some reason snuggled back into his arms. Nikolas smiled slightly.
"You were with Sly then, I think."
"When have I never been with Sly?" Emily laughed a little.
"When you wanted me." Nikolas said quietly.
"I was a kid then." Emily reminded him.
"You're not a kid now." Nikolas whispered into her ear sending shivers down
her spine. Then he reached down and started to gently stroking her thigh.
"That was the day I realized that you had the world's most perfect, most
sexiest legs. You made a leg man out me for life that day."
"I, uh, I did?" Emily mumbled.
"Uh-huh." Nikolas nodded. "You were wearing that teeny-tiny white tank top
and those short- shorts. I loved those shorts. They made your legs look
like they would go on forever. That was the day I realized that you weren't
a little kid anymore, that you weren't my 'sister'. Talk about my
bad-timing, you were all ready with Sly and didn't even think about me
anymore."
"I grew up, Nikolas." Emily said simply. I couldn't wait forever, she
thought.
"I know." Nikolas pressed his mouth against her neck for a second then
raised his head. "I remember how I threw you into the pool and you ended up
soaking wet. When you came out, you weren't a kid then."
Emily swallowed hard and Nikolas continued. "You yelled at me, called me a
bastard and was about to chase me around the pool when you noticed that you
shirt had become completely see-through." Nikolas laughed low. "I had
noticed way before you did and I enjoyed the view."
Emily decided it was time to get out of Nikolas' embrace. "Listen, Nik,
it's late and all that alcohol has made me sleepy so…"
Nikolas propped himself up on his elbow and stared down at Emily. "Do you
really want to sleep?" He rested his hand on her stomach.
"Nikolas, I don't know what you think you're doing but this isn't something
you should be doing. You're drunk, you're hurt over losing Elizabeth, and
I'm with Sly. I'm just here to be your friend." Emily tried to say
forcefully but her voice trembled a little as Nikolas slipped his hand
under her silk tank top.
"If all you want to be is my friend, why are you trembling at my touch?"
Nikolas playfully walked his fingers up her abdomen. He cocked an eyebrow
in surprise. "No bra, Miss Quartermaine?"
"I was in bed when you called." Emily said defensively and she reached out
to grasp his hand.
"I don't mind." Nikolas said with a crooked smile.
He squeezed her lightly before removing his hand. Emily gasped in shock. He
reached up and stroked the side of her face. "Emily, why are you fighting
this? Our timing is finally right. I'm not with Elizabeth anymore and
you're obviously having problems with Sly, problems that you can't work
out…Emily, this is our chance."
Emily just looked away.
Nikolas gently turned her face back to his and said softly. "Don't you
leave me too, Em."
Good old Nik, Emily thought, always playing that sympathy card. I shouldn't
be doing this, she told herself. But he's so adorable. "Nikolas…"
"Was that a yes?" He asked before bending his head closer to hers. Emily
held her breath as she waited for him to kiss her.
"Was it?" He whispered when their lips were barely inches apart. He quickly
licked his lips and Emily almost groaned out loud when his tongue grazed
her lips. "Was it?" He demanded again.
Emily knew what she was about to was wrong but she was blaming it all on
the alcohol. She wrapped her arms around him and pulled closer to her.
"Yes, it was…"
~*~*~
Carly was in a dark room with just a soft light glowing down on the wide
bed that she lay on. The bed was covered with diamonds. Carly grinned as
she said the tired cliché. "Diamonds are a girl's best friend."
She ran her hands through the shiny hard rocks and smiled. "You really
are!" She grabbed a handful in each hand and threw them up in the air. She
giggled to herself.
There was a low laugh behind her and Carly looked up. Out of the shadows
walked in Sonny. He was dressed in only black silk pajama bottoms that rode
low on his waist. Carly looked down and realized that not only was she now
dressed in a black satin negligee and the bed was covered in deep burgundy
sheets.
Sonny reached out his hand to her. Carly accepted it and let him draw her
off of the bed. He drew her into his arms and said. "This is where you
belong. With me, cupcake."
He started to sway softly to music only he could hear. "We belong together,
never forget that." He whispered seductively. He gazed deep into her eyes
and Carly couldn't tear herself away. "I can give you everything, you know
that. I *want* to give you everything."
"Sonny…" Carly wasn't sure what she was going to say. But then she felt a
hand on her arm pulling her away from Sonny.
She turned around to see Alex standing there, looking comfortable and
relaxed in a sweatshirt and jeans. Carly saw that she was now wearing a
long-sleeved shirt and jeans.
"Why are you even wasting your time listening to him? I'm the one you
should be with. I'm the one who loves you. He's still in love with Brenda.
He's only using you as a replacement for her." He said earnestly.
From across the bed, Sonny shouted. "Don't listen to him. You know I will
always love Brenda the way you will always love Jason but what we had--what
we *have*--is bigger than that."
Carly looked from Sonny to Alex and back. "Alex…Sonny…I…"
"Make a decision, Carly." Sonny demanded. "I want you to be happy but I
know he can't make you happy. Come back to me." He reached out to her and
Carly started to take a small step towards him, dressed once again in the
negligee.
"Carly, he will hurt you. He lives in a dangerous world where people will
kill you over the slightest thing." Alex tried to stop her.
"Stop exaggerating." Sonny snapped.
"I'm not. Carly, you will never be safe with him. He could be killed at any
moment." Alex insisted.
"So could you, Detective." Sonny shot back. "Come home Carly."
Alex tightened his hold on Carly's hand. "He can't keep you safe, Carly, I
can. I can give you security."
"So could I." Sonny said. "Carly, you know I will keep you and Michael
safe. You know I will give you the security that you need."
"I meant more than financial security." Alex clarified.
"So did I." Sonny said quietly. He looked lovingly at Carly. "Cupcake, you
know who you want to be with so why don't we just stop all this and you
just come with me."
"She's going nowhere with you." Alex said suddenly whipping out a gun and
pointing it at Sonny.
"Oh my God, Alex!" Carly shouted. "What are you doing?"
"Eliminating the competition." Alex said coldly.
"I don't think so." Sonny returned and withdrew his own gun and pointed it
at Alex. "I don't scare that easily."
Carly stood, horrified, watching the two men aiming guns at each other.
Carly started to back away. "I can't believe this, I can't believe this is
happening. This is not happening." She mumbled.
"It is happening, Carly!" Alex shouted. "Now choose! Him or me?"
Carly shook her head. "Oh my God, I can't…this is wrong, just wrong." Carly
started to back up. She ended up bumping against someone. Carly whirled
around to see who was now invading this dream.
Jason stood there, dressed in his leather jacket, T-shirt and jeans, the
last thing she ever saw him in. He was wearing a look of displeasure on his
face.
"Jason? Jason!" She smiled happily. She was vaguely aware of the fact that
Alex and Sonny were still behind her demanding that she choose.
"You couldn't wait, could you?" He asked coldly.
"Wait? What?" Carly frowned.
"All you had to do was wait and you couldn't do it." Jason said.
"I…don't understand. Wait for what?" Carly reached out to touch him. "Jase,
what's going on?"
Jason recoiled from her touch and shook his head. "All you had to do was
wait." He turned and started to walk away.
"Jason? Jason come back!" Tears started to run down her face. "Wait for
what?" Jason continued to walk away from her. Carly tried to follow him;
tried to reach for him but he all of a sudden he began to disappear.
"Jase!" Carly cried out. She sat up in bed in a sweat.
"What a vivid dream." She whispered.
She quickly looked over to see if Alex had woken up. He was still asleep,
stretched out on his stomach, arms and legs everywhere. Carly gave a quick
sigh of relief. The last thing she wanted was for Alex to wake up and start
asking her about her dream.
Carly rubbed her face as she thought about her dream. She knew what the
Alex and Sonny part meant but why was Jason there? Carly groaned. It was
too early in the morning to be trying to figure out the psychological
meanings of her dreams.
Carly looked over to see what time it was. It was barely six in the
morning. She knew that if she went to sleep now she would end up over
sleeping and be late for work. Carly flung the covers back and sighed.
Might as well get up now and save myself the trouble, she thought.
Alex stirred. "Carly?" He mumbled as he raised his head slightly to look
for here. "What's wrong?"
Carly smoothed back the hairs that were sticking up all over the place.
"Nothing's wrong. I'm just getting up early. Go back to sleep." She pressed
a gentle kiss on his lips and looked down on him.
~*~*~
Emily yawned loudly as she stretched out her legs and arms. It's too early
for me to be up, she thought as she snuggled back under the covers. Emily
started to turn over and say good morning to Sly when she realized that
there were three things wrong. First of all, she wasn't in her room,
second, she was naked, and third, this wasn't Sly next to her!
Emily sat up with a gasp, clutching the sheet to her neck as she remembered
where she was. She was in Nikolas' room so that must mean that…Nikolas was
the naked guy beside her.
Emily took a quick look at him. He was still sleeping. She tried to slip
out of the bed without making any noise. But just as she was stooping down
to pick up her discarded clothing, Nikolas rolled over on his side and
propped himself up on his elbow. Emily yelped and snatched up the pillow
she had lain on and tried to cover herself.
He yawned and rubbed his face. "What are you doing? It's too damn early to
get up. Come back to bed." He reached out an inviting hand.
Emily backed away, still clutching the pillow. "What am I doing? I'm
getting out of here! I can't believe I…you…we…" Emily shook her head,
trying to deny what had happened the night before.
Nikolas sat up in bed finally noticing that they were having different
reactions. "What are you babbling about?" Nikolas scratched his head. "And
why are you carrying that pillow?"
"Because…because, I'm…*naked* and you're not supposed to see me naked."
Even to herself, Emily wasn't making much sense.
"What? Emily, I saw you naked last night, now come back to bed." Nikolas
smiled invitingly. Emily felt her knees go weak at that smile. Damn him,
she thought, damn him for being so sexy, so irresistible, so…Nikolas-like.
Emily raked her fingers through her head. "Look, Nikolas what happened last
night was a mistake. You were drunk, I was drunk, you thought you were
broken up with Elizabeth, I had that fight with Sly…"
"Why all the excuses, Em?" Nikolas asked. "You wanted it as much as I did
and you know it."
Emily shook her head vehemently. "No, no, you're wrong, I didn't want this.
I was out of my mind last night."
Nikolas sighed. "Keep denying it all you want. We both know the truth."
"And the truth is, I didn't want this." Emily denied again. She grabbed up
her clothes and holding them behind her to shield herself, she dashed into
Nikolas' bathroom.
Nikolas stretched out on the bed and waited for her to come back out. He
had a slight headache but he had a feeling that if Emily would just get
back in bed, it would all go away. Minutes later, Emily returned, mad as
hell.
"What is this?" She demanded. She marched up to the bed and pulled down her
sweater to show off the hickey that Nikolas had left on her chest.
"Hmm, let me think. Looks like a… how do you say? A hickey to me." Nikolas
said playfully. He reached up to touch it. Emily smacked his hand away.
"This is not funny! You marked me!" Emily was outraged.
"Yes, I marked you." Nikolas said with satisfaction. It was like branding
her and showing everyone that Emily Quartermaine was his.
"Get that smug look off your face." Emily sneered. "What if Sly sees this?
Oh my god, he's going to kill me!"
"Why are you worried about what he thinks?" Nikolas asked pushing back the
covers and getting out of bed. Emily turned beet red and turned her back to
him. "You two are over."
"Please put some clothes on." Emily mumbled. Then she whirled around, as
she fully comprehended what he'd said. "Sly and I are *not* over. Just
because we had a fight doesn't mean we're breaking up. Nikolas, I love him.
I've loved him since I was 17."
Nikolas shoved his legs into his jeans and frowned. "So last night meant
nothing?"
"Right, it meant nothing. It wasn't supposed to happen, it was wrong, and
if I could do it over again, I would have slept on the floor last night."
Emily told him. "Sly's my fiancé and I've betrayed him."
"Your fiancé?" Nikolas asked accusingly.
"Yes, ever since high school. But that doesn't matter. He's never going to
forgive me." Emily sat down on the edge of the bed and buried her face into
her hands.
Nikolas stood for a second, clenching his jaw and squeezing his hands
tightly. He fought a battle for control and won. He knelt down before Emily
and gently brushed her hair back from her face.
"You want to pretend that this never happened? Well, okay then, it never
happened. I won't say a word to anyone." He whispered as he stroked the
side of her face knowing that this would probably be the last time he would
ever get a chance to.
"But what if he asks were I've been?"
"Just tell him… tell him whatever you want. He loves you, he should trust
you."
"But that's just it. After last night he shouldn't trust me…ever." Emily
said sadly.
steadily drinking. Emily glanced down at her watched and gasped when she
realized what time it was. She sat straight up, dislodging Nikolas who was
resting his head on her lap. "What?" He asked groggily.
"It's after three! Sly is going to be *so* mad!" Emily cried. "Where are my
shoes?" She sprang off the bed and went in search of her shoes. Suddenly
there was a thump and she fell out in the middle of the floor, having
tripped over her shoe. Nikolas tried to hold in his laughter.
"I think you just found one of them." He doubled over laughing. Emily,
laughing too, climbed back up on the bed. She clutched her shoe in her
hand.
"This isn't funny. I have to get home." She waved her shoe in his face.
"But the launch master… guy…person…whatever," Nikolas tripped over his
words, "is probably sleeping. But don't worry! There's a rowboat I could
use to get you back to the docks."
Emily laid back and tossed the shoe back onto the floor. "I don't think so.
You shouldn't drive drunk and you definitely shouldn't row drunk either."
"Who said I was drunk?" Nikolas glared at her.
"All these empties." Emily held up an empty bottle and then dropped it onto
the thick carpeting. She rolled onto her stomach. "What am I going to do?"
She buried her face into the comforter and groaned.
"You can stay here tonight… today… whatever. I'll just get Mrs. Landsbury
to fix up a room for you." Nikolas told her.
Emily swatted at him but only ended up hitting the air. "You dolt, it's
after three in the morning. We can't wake her up."
"Fine then, you can sleep here. I don't care." Nikolas shrugged.
"And where are you going to sleep, on the floor? The carpet's nice but it's
not that nice."
"My bed is big enough for the both of us. Don't worry, Em, I won't bite."
Nikolas wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.
I didn't know he could do that, she thought. "But I like it when they
bite." She teased. They both laughed over that for at least five minutes.
"Okay, it's time to hit the hay. That means go to sleep." She clarified for
Nikolas when he just gave her a confused look.
"Jeez, you've been here for how many years? You'd think you'd know the
lingo by now." She muttered.
Emily took off the sweater top since she was still wearing her black tank
under it. She yawned and crawled up to the head of the bed and drew back
the covers. She was just getting under the covers when Nikolas came up and
started to get in with her. "No way." She said crinkling her nose.
"What?" Nikolas didn't know what was going on. He thought it was okay with
her.
"You stink!" Emily cried.
Somehow Nikolas had managed to get what smelled like a ton of vodka all
over him. Emily reached out and pushed him back. Not knowing that he had
been balancing on the bed, she ended up knocking him on the floor. He
landed with a loud thud.
"Oh my God!" Emily squealed. She looked over the edge to see Nikolas
sprawled on his back. The sight of him got her giggling. "I am soooo
sorry!" She tried to say through the giggles.
Nikolas threw her a hard stare. "Yeah right. I'll just get rid of the
shirt. I spilled vodka on it." Nikolas unbuttoned his shirt, revealing a
well-shaped physique that made Emily's mouth go dry. He calmly threw the
shirt onto the floor and slipped into the bed next to Emily.
Emily turned on her side, her skirt sliding up around her thighs. Nikolas
turned on his side and moved closer to her, spooning her. He reached out
and wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him. "I
thought this was a big bed. Why are you so close?"
Nikolas rested his forehead on the top of her head and shrugged. "I'm more
comfortable like this, aren't you?"
"I guess." Emily decided not to make a big deal about it and the two fell
silent. After ten minutes of listening to each other breathe, Emily guessed
that he was asleep. She started to inch forward when his arm tightened and
pulled her back.
"Why is it that every woman I love, loves a Spencer more than she loves
me?" Nikolas suddenly asked softly. Emily didn't know what to say to that.
She just assumed it was some sort of drunken babble.
Nikolas continued on anyway. "My mother adores Luke Spencer, I think that
Liz is still in love with Lucky…"
"No, oh no, that's been over, Nikolas." Emily hastened to assure him.
Nikolas shook his head. "No, she still loves him. And Sly's his cousin so
by default he's a Spencer also."
Confused, Emily looked over her shoulder at Nikolas. "What does Sly have to
do with this?"
Holding her gaze, he said simply. "You love him."
Emily quickly looked away. What did he mean by that? She didn't say
anything and neither did he. They lay there again in silence. Emily jumped
slightly when Nikolas' hand landed on her bare leg.
"Did you know, I've always thought you had the most perfect legs?" He
murmured as he brushed the back of his hand down her leg.
"No, I didn't know that." Emily shook her head.
She shivered as Nikolas lazily trailed his fingers up the back of her leg,
under her skirt, and higher up her thigh. She reached down and tried to
gently push his hand away. He was making her feel things that she shouldn't
be feeling with someone other than Sly. Nikolas just placed his hand on her
upper thigh and left it there.
"Well, now you know." Nikolas said huskily. "Why do you always cover them
up with these long skirts? You should show them off to the world."
Emily tried to laugh a little and change the subject. "We had a lot to
drink tonight. And you know what happens when people get drunk."
Nikolas nuzzled the side of her neck and breathed. "They do things they
normally wouldn't or they do things they've always wished they could."
Emily bit her lip and tried to move away from Nikolas but he kept his grip
on her. "No, don't you leave me too." He whispered. "Everybody leaves me."
Emily didn't have anything to say after that so they lapsed into another
moment of silence. Nikolas shifted, burying his face into her neck and then
said, "I remember that you used to have a crush on me."
Emily wondered why he was bringing that up. It was something that she
wished she could forget all about. "Don't remind me, I was such a kid."
Nikolas' arms tightened around her. "I use to think it was sweet."
"It was embarrassing!" Emily blushed as she thought of her childish
behavior. "You only saw me as your 'little sister'."
"But not for long." Nikolas said mysteriously. Then changing the subject
suddenly, he said, "Do you remember that summer before Lucky and Elizabeth
broke up?"
Emily sighed, thankful that he had picked an innocent subject. "I remember.
They were always having those horrible fights or they would go for days
without speaking to each other at all."
"Yeah, do you remember when we had that last big get-together right before
they broke up?"
Emily nodded. "We had that End of Summer party." She smiled at the memories
and for some reason snuggled back into his arms. Nikolas smiled slightly.
"You were with Sly then, I think."
"When have I never been with Sly?" Emily laughed a little.
"When you wanted me." Nikolas said quietly.
"I was a kid then." Emily reminded him.
"You're not a kid now." Nikolas whispered into her ear sending shivers down
her spine. Then he reached down and started to gently stroking her thigh.
"That was the day I realized that you had the world's most perfect, most
sexiest legs. You made a leg man out me for life that day."
"I, uh, I did?" Emily mumbled.
"Uh-huh." Nikolas nodded. "You were wearing that teeny-tiny white tank top
and those short- shorts. I loved those shorts. They made your legs look
like they would go on forever. That was the day I realized that you weren't
a little kid anymore, that you weren't my 'sister'. Talk about my
bad-timing, you were all ready with Sly and didn't even think about me
anymore."
"I grew up, Nikolas." Emily said simply. I couldn't wait forever, she
thought.
"I know." Nikolas pressed his mouth against her neck for a second then
raised his head. "I remember how I threw you into the pool and you ended up
soaking wet. When you came out, you weren't a kid then."
Emily swallowed hard and Nikolas continued. "You yelled at me, called me a
bastard and was about to chase me around the pool when you noticed that you
shirt had become completely see-through." Nikolas laughed low. "I had
noticed way before you did and I enjoyed the view."
Emily decided it was time to get out of Nikolas' embrace. "Listen, Nik,
it's late and all that alcohol has made me sleepy so…"
Nikolas propped himself up on his elbow and stared down at Emily. "Do you
really want to sleep?" He rested his hand on her stomach.
"Nikolas, I don't know what you think you're doing but this isn't something
you should be doing. You're drunk, you're hurt over losing Elizabeth, and
I'm with Sly. I'm just here to be your friend." Emily tried to say
forcefully but her voice trembled a little as Nikolas slipped his hand
under her silk tank top.
"If all you want to be is my friend, why are you trembling at my touch?"
Nikolas playfully walked his fingers up her abdomen. He cocked an eyebrow
in surprise. "No bra, Miss Quartermaine?"
"I was in bed when you called." Emily said defensively and she reached out
to grasp his hand.
"I don't mind." Nikolas said with a crooked smile.
He squeezed her lightly before removing his hand. Emily gasped in shock. He
reached up and stroked the side of her face. "Emily, why are you fighting
this? Our timing is finally right. I'm not with Elizabeth anymore and
you're obviously having problems with Sly, problems that you can't work
out…Emily, this is our chance."
Emily just looked away.
Nikolas gently turned her face back to his and said softly. "Don't you
leave me too, Em."
Good old Nik, Emily thought, always playing that sympathy card. I shouldn't
be doing this, she told herself. But he's so adorable. "Nikolas…"
"Was that a yes?" He asked before bending his head closer to hers. Emily
held her breath as she waited for him to kiss her.
"Was it?" He whispered when their lips were barely inches apart. He quickly
licked his lips and Emily almost groaned out loud when his tongue grazed
her lips. "Was it?" He demanded again.
Emily knew what she was about to was wrong but she was blaming it all on
the alcohol. She wrapped her arms around him and pulled closer to her.
"Yes, it was…"
~*~*~
Carly was in a dark room with just a soft light glowing down on the wide
bed that she lay on. The bed was covered with diamonds. Carly grinned as
she said the tired cliché. "Diamonds are a girl's best friend."
She ran her hands through the shiny hard rocks and smiled. "You really
are!" She grabbed a handful in each hand and threw them up in the air. She
giggled to herself.
There was a low laugh behind her and Carly looked up. Out of the shadows
walked in Sonny. He was dressed in only black silk pajama bottoms that rode
low on his waist. Carly looked down and realized that not only was she now
dressed in a black satin negligee and the bed was covered in deep burgundy
sheets.
Sonny reached out his hand to her. Carly accepted it and let him draw her
off of the bed. He drew her into his arms and said. "This is where you
belong. With me, cupcake."
He started to sway softly to music only he could hear. "We belong together,
never forget that." He whispered seductively. He gazed deep into her eyes
and Carly couldn't tear herself away. "I can give you everything, you know
that. I *want* to give you everything."
"Sonny…" Carly wasn't sure what she was going to say. But then she felt a
hand on her arm pulling her away from Sonny.
She turned around to see Alex standing there, looking comfortable and
relaxed in a sweatshirt and jeans. Carly saw that she was now wearing a
long-sleeved shirt and jeans.
"Why are you even wasting your time listening to him? I'm the one you
should be with. I'm the one who loves you. He's still in love with Brenda.
He's only using you as a replacement for her." He said earnestly.
From across the bed, Sonny shouted. "Don't listen to him. You know I will
always love Brenda the way you will always love Jason but what we had--what
we *have*--is bigger than that."
Carly looked from Sonny to Alex and back. "Alex…Sonny…I…"
"Make a decision, Carly." Sonny demanded. "I want you to be happy but I
know he can't make you happy. Come back to me." He reached out to her and
Carly started to take a small step towards him, dressed once again in the
negligee.
"Carly, he will hurt you. He lives in a dangerous world where people will
kill you over the slightest thing." Alex tried to stop her.
"Stop exaggerating." Sonny snapped.
"I'm not. Carly, you will never be safe with him. He could be killed at any
moment." Alex insisted.
"So could you, Detective." Sonny shot back. "Come home Carly."
Alex tightened his hold on Carly's hand. "He can't keep you safe, Carly, I
can. I can give you security."
"So could I." Sonny said. "Carly, you know I will keep you and Michael
safe. You know I will give you the security that you need."
"I meant more than financial security." Alex clarified.
"So did I." Sonny said quietly. He looked lovingly at Carly. "Cupcake, you
know who you want to be with so why don't we just stop all this and you
just come with me."
"She's going nowhere with you." Alex said suddenly whipping out a gun and
pointing it at Sonny.
"Oh my God, Alex!" Carly shouted. "What are you doing?"
"Eliminating the competition." Alex said coldly.
"I don't think so." Sonny returned and withdrew his own gun and pointed it
at Alex. "I don't scare that easily."
Carly stood, horrified, watching the two men aiming guns at each other.
Carly started to back away. "I can't believe this, I can't believe this is
happening. This is not happening." She mumbled.
"It is happening, Carly!" Alex shouted. "Now choose! Him or me?"
Carly shook her head. "Oh my God, I can't…this is wrong, just wrong." Carly
started to back up. She ended up bumping against someone. Carly whirled
around to see who was now invading this dream.
Jason stood there, dressed in his leather jacket, T-shirt and jeans, the
last thing she ever saw him in. He was wearing a look of displeasure on his
face.
"Jason? Jason!" She smiled happily. She was vaguely aware of the fact that
Alex and Sonny were still behind her demanding that she choose.
"You couldn't wait, could you?" He asked coldly.
"Wait? What?" Carly frowned.
"All you had to do was wait and you couldn't do it." Jason said.
"I…don't understand. Wait for what?" Carly reached out to touch him. "Jase,
what's going on?"
Jason recoiled from her touch and shook his head. "All you had to do was
wait." He turned and started to walk away.
"Jason? Jason come back!" Tears started to run down her face. "Wait for
what?" Jason continued to walk away from her. Carly tried to follow him;
tried to reach for him but he all of a sudden he began to disappear.
"Jase!" Carly cried out. She sat up in bed in a sweat.
"What a vivid dream." She whispered.
She quickly looked over to see if Alex had woken up. He was still asleep,
stretched out on his stomach, arms and legs everywhere. Carly gave a quick
sigh of relief. The last thing she wanted was for Alex to wake up and start
asking her about her dream.
Carly rubbed her face as she thought about her dream. She knew what the
Alex and Sonny part meant but why was Jason there? Carly groaned. It was
too early in the morning to be trying to figure out the psychological
meanings of her dreams.
Carly looked over to see what time it was. It was barely six in the
morning. She knew that if she went to sleep now she would end up over
sleeping and be late for work. Carly flung the covers back and sighed.
Might as well get up now and save myself the trouble, she thought.
Alex stirred. "Carly?" He mumbled as he raised his head slightly to look
for here. "What's wrong?"
Carly smoothed back the hairs that were sticking up all over the place.
"Nothing's wrong. I'm just getting up early. Go back to sleep." She pressed
a gentle kiss on his lips and looked down on him.
~*~*~
Emily yawned loudly as she stretched out her legs and arms. It's too early
for me to be up, she thought as she snuggled back under the covers. Emily
started to turn over and say good morning to Sly when she realized that
there were three things wrong. First of all, she wasn't in her room,
second, she was naked, and third, this wasn't Sly next to her!
Emily sat up with a gasp, clutching the sheet to her neck as she remembered
where she was. She was in Nikolas' room so that must mean that…Nikolas was
the naked guy beside her.
Emily took a quick look at him. He was still sleeping. She tried to slip
out of the bed without making any noise. But just as she was stooping down
to pick up her discarded clothing, Nikolas rolled over on his side and
propped himself up on his elbow. Emily yelped and snatched up the pillow
she had lain on and tried to cover herself.
He yawned and rubbed his face. "What are you doing? It's too damn early to
get up. Come back to bed." He reached out an inviting hand.
Emily backed away, still clutching the pillow. "What am I doing? I'm
getting out of here! I can't believe I…you…we…" Emily shook her head,
trying to deny what had happened the night before.
Nikolas sat up in bed finally noticing that they were having different
reactions. "What are you babbling about?" Nikolas scratched his head. "And
why are you carrying that pillow?"
"Because…because, I'm…*naked* and you're not supposed to see me naked."
Even to herself, Emily wasn't making much sense.
"What? Emily, I saw you naked last night, now come back to bed." Nikolas
smiled invitingly. Emily felt her knees go weak at that smile. Damn him,
she thought, damn him for being so sexy, so irresistible, so…Nikolas-like.
Emily raked her fingers through her head. "Look, Nikolas what happened last
night was a mistake. You were drunk, I was drunk, you thought you were
broken up with Elizabeth, I had that fight with Sly…"
"Why all the excuses, Em?" Nikolas asked. "You wanted it as much as I did
and you know it."
Emily shook her head vehemently. "No, no, you're wrong, I didn't want this.
I was out of my mind last night."
Nikolas sighed. "Keep denying it all you want. We both know the truth."
"And the truth is, I didn't want this." Emily denied again. She grabbed up
her clothes and holding them behind her to shield herself, she dashed into
Nikolas' bathroom.
Nikolas stretched out on the bed and waited for her to come back out. He
had a slight headache but he had a feeling that if Emily would just get
back in bed, it would all go away. Minutes later, Emily returned, mad as
hell.
"What is this?" She demanded. She marched up to the bed and pulled down her
sweater to show off the hickey that Nikolas had left on her chest.
"Hmm, let me think. Looks like a… how do you say? A hickey to me." Nikolas
said playfully. He reached up to touch it. Emily smacked his hand away.
"This is not funny! You marked me!" Emily was outraged.
"Yes, I marked you." Nikolas said with satisfaction. It was like branding
her and showing everyone that Emily Quartermaine was his.
"Get that smug look off your face." Emily sneered. "What if Sly sees this?
Oh my god, he's going to kill me!"
"Why are you worried about what he thinks?" Nikolas asked pushing back the
covers and getting out of bed. Emily turned beet red and turned her back to
him. "You two are over."
"Please put some clothes on." Emily mumbled. Then she whirled around, as
she fully comprehended what he'd said. "Sly and I are *not* over. Just
because we had a fight doesn't mean we're breaking up. Nikolas, I love him.
I've loved him since I was 17."
Nikolas shoved his legs into his jeans and frowned. "So last night meant
nothing?"
"Right, it meant nothing. It wasn't supposed to happen, it was wrong, and
if I could do it over again, I would have slept on the floor last night."
Emily told him. "Sly's my fiancé and I've betrayed him."
"Your fiancé?" Nikolas asked accusingly.
"Yes, ever since high school. But that doesn't matter. He's never going to
forgive me." Emily sat down on the edge of the bed and buried her face into
her hands.
Nikolas stood for a second, clenching his jaw and squeezing his hands
tightly. He fought a battle for control and won. He knelt down before Emily
and gently brushed her hair back from her face.
"You want to pretend that this never happened? Well, okay then, it never
happened. I won't say a word to anyone." He whispered as he stroked the
side of her face knowing that this would probably be the last time he would
ever get a chance to.
"But what if he asks were I've been?"
"Just tell him… tell him whatever you want. He loves you, he should trust
you."
"But that's just it. After last night he shouldn't trust me…ever." Emily
said sadly.