Carly was in the middle of putting away the groceries. Carly finally gotten
herself mobilized after standing in her doorway for what felt like hours.
She had no idea what the little display of Sonny's meant and she didn't
want to think about it anymore. Mindless housework always helped keep her
mind off things.
Carly was trying to carry the turkey for the Thanksgiving feast over to the
refrigerator when she heard her door open. Hoping it was Bobbie she called
out. "I'm in the kitchen and I could I use a little help!"
"Hey baby, I'm home!"
Carly turned to the kitchen door with her mouth open. "Alex!" She exclaimed
and promptly dropped the turkey on her foot.
Alex dropped his duffel bag and rushed over. "Are you okay?"
Carly bit her lip hard and tears sprang to her eyes as she eased the frozen
turkey off her foot. "Yeah, I'll live." She tenderly flexed her foot.
"Nothing broken."
Alex chuckled to himself. He picked up the turkey and placed it on the
counter. "Why did you drop it?"
"I was just surprised to see you, that's all." Carly threw her arms around
his neck. "Welcome home!"
He staggered back from the force of her exuberant embrace. He regained his
footing and kissed her deeply. Lifting his mouth from hers, he murmured.
"Remember that suggestion of yours before I left?"
Carly's mind was a blank. "Uh…"
He reached into his suit pocket and pulled out a pair of handcuffs. He
dangled them from one finger and arched his eyebrow in silent question.
She gasped. "Oh my—you didn't!" She smacked his shoulder. "I was just
fooling around."
He laughed at her. "I just wanted to see what your reaction would be. But
to tell you the truth, all those nights away from you, it started to seem
like a really good idea." He started to go in for another kiss but Carly
leaned back.
"Alex, we need to talk." She placed her hands on his chest and pushed back.
"About what?" Alex stiffened up. It was never good when anyone, especially
a woman, started out with the words, 'we need to talk.'
"Let's go into the living room." Carly tried to smile. "Get comfortable,
you know."
"No, whatever you want to say, you can say in here." Alex folded his arms
and leaned against the counter. He crossed his legs at the ankle and
concentrate on the floor. "Well?"
"Uh…You know how upset I was after the ambush a couple of days ago?" Carly
waited for answer.
Alex didn't say anything. He continued to focus on the floor.
This wasn't going to be easy, Carly thought. She sighed heavily. "Well I
ran into Sonny and he offered me to let me stay at his place for a few
days. I just needed to get away from everything. And Sonny's was the best
place to go. Nobody could touch me there."
"When did you see him?" Alex asked softly.
"Huh?" That was the last thing she expected him to say to her.
"When did you see him?" Alex repeated. "Was it after I left town or was it
before?"
"Um…"
Alex raised his head and held her gaze. "Before or after?"
This time it was Carly's turn to stare at the floor. "I, uh, I…it was
before."
Alex frowned and looked back down at the floor. Carly fidgeted as she
waited for him to speak again. After minutes of strained silence he finally
spoke. "I'll…I need some time alone." He pushed away from the counter and
started to walk out the kitchen.
"What? Where are you going?" Carly gaped and started to follow him. This
was not how she thought this would go.
He turned around. "Give me a little time, alright?"
"Time for what?" Carly asked. "I just told you I was with Sonny while you
were gone. You hate Sonny, remember? Get mad. Yell at me. Do something!"
"Is that what you want?" He asked. "Do you want me to be mad? Because I am,
believe me I am. Do you want me to yell and scream and whatever else you
feel this situation warrants? Because I won't, I'm not like that and you
know it. What do you really want me to do about this?"
"I don't know what I want you to do." She said quietly.
"Then just let me handle something." He said before walking out.
"Handle what?" Carly muttered after him. "What are you handling?"
*~*~*
Sonny was sitting alone in the penthouse. He sat on the couch with his face
buried in his hands. He was rehashing that scene at Carly's. He had no idea
what prompted him to make that little gesture. All he knows was that he was
angry with her. Angry that she could tell him she loves him, make love to
him and then run out the next day.
If she thought he was that easily discouraged then she had another thing
coming. That kiss at her door only showed her that he was just as
determined as ever to get her back. He wasn't to give up because of a minor
setback.
The door to the penthouse opened suddenly and an angry Alex stormed past
Johnny, who was unsuccessfully trying to keep him from getting by. Sonny
stood as Alex came to a stop by the couch.
"Corinthos, stop bothering her."
"Ah, Garcia, I didn't know you were back in town." Sonny's smile was wide
and charismatic.
"I'm warning you to leave her alone."
"You were not invited into my home nor do you have a warrant. So I suggest
you leave peacefully before I have you thrown out or maybe I'll just have
you arrested for trespassing. Yeah that would look good, wouldn't it?"
Sonny didn't have time for his b.s.
"Why can't you just leave her alone?" He shook his with disgust before
heading for the door.
"I would if that was what she truly wanted. But you and I both know that's
not it."
"If you really loved her you'd let her go." Alex said sincerely.
"Here's a suggestion, Alejandro. Why don't you be a man and step aside. She
stays with you out of some misguided sense of loyalty. This situation with
you isn't making her happy."
"And being with you would?" He scoffed.
"I believe it would." He said seriously.
"Well that's not what she believes." Alex said. "If she wanted to be with
you, she wouldn't be waiting for me right now. She'd be with you. But she
isn't is she?" He fired back before walking out the door.
~*~
Carly was going out of her mind with worry. Alex had been gone for a long
time now and she had no idea where he was and what he was doing.
"Why did I tell him?" She frowned as she remembered. It was because of
Bobbie. "Thanks, Ma." She muttered.
She decided it was time to go tell her mother exactly how grateful she was
for her sticking her nose where it didn't belong. She stormed out of her
apartment and went to Bobbie's. She banged on the door. "Mom? Mom!"
A half-sleeping Lucas opened the door. He liked to sleep late on Saturdays,
the later the better but now his sleep was being disturbed. "What?" He
slurred.
"Where's Mom?" Carly growled.
Lucas widened his eyes and backed up. Uh-oh. "She's inside. Mom! Carly's
looking for you and she's ma-ad!" He yelled.
Bobbie came out of the kitchen with a worried smile. "Lucas, go take a
shower. It's pass time for you to get dress and face the day. What
happened, Carly?"
"Ah, man." Lucas muttered. He was hoping to get a little more sleep. The
only reason he got up in the first place was to use the bathroom. Then he
suddenly brightened. Maybe he could go out to the Quartermaine Docks
Complex and see if he could run into that Melinda girl again. And this time
he'd go alone and not have to share her with anyone, especially Thomas
Hardy. He quickly shuffled off to the bathroom.
"You is what happened." Carly snapped. "If you hadn't threatened to tell
Alex about me staying with Sonny then we wouldn't have fought and he
wouldn't have walked out on me and I would know where he is right now!"
"Alex walked out on you?" Bobbie gasped.
"Yes!" Carly nodded. "Isn't that what you wanted? Him to leave me?"
"No, no, that's not what I wanted at all." Bobbie denied. "I just wanted
you to be straight with him."
"I should have never told him. It would have been fine. He didn't need to
know."
"If you want a lasting relationship with him, you have to be straight with
him." She advised.
"Mama, could you *not* lecture me right now?" Carly heard the door open and
Alex call out. "Carly?"
She whirled around and headed for her place. She paused and looked back at
Bobbie. "We aren't finished you know?" Then she rushed back to her
apartment.
"Carly?" Alex was saying again.
"I'm right here." She said nervously. She felt foolish standing there,
waiting for him to forgive her or not. She had done nothing wrong. Okay,
nothing really wrong. Nothing illegal at least.
"I was upset when you told me." Carly resisted the urge to roll her eyes
and say, "Well, duh!" She waited for him to continue. "So I left to clear
my head and think about things."
"And?" She prompted him. If he was going to dump her she wanted him to get
it over with and if he wasn't, well, she still wanted him to get it over
already.
"I've thought things over and I see no reason to change things. We might
not be the same after this but it doesn't mean we have to be over."
"I, uh, I, great." Carly hesitated before hugging him. She should be
overjoyed that he didn't want to break things off but she wasn't. Deep down
inside she had an odd feeling of disappointment.
*~*~*
The Next Day
Nikolas helped Emily down from the launch. She was dressed in a long black
skirt with slits up each side. She paired a deep green twin set with it. He
searched her face and saw the bags under her eyes. He'd only saw her the
other day and if it was possible she looked worse.
"Hey." He said softly as he took her into his arms. "Are you okay?"
She shook her head. "Not really. I've been avoiding Sly and Elizabeth for
the past couple of days. Sly keeps calling, trying to figure out what's
wrong. Elizabeth was easy to deal with; she's been floating in and out of
the apartment in a daze. She's leaving town for a week."
"I know, she called me. She wants to talk about 'us' when she gets back."
Emily winced at what he was implying. "Alright that's enough talk about
them. Today is for us. From now on, it's just about you and me."
And that's how their afternoon went. They walked along Spoon Island talking
about anything and nothing. They seemed to be rediscovering each other.
Even though they had stayed friends through the years they had managed to
drift apart and their friendship ceased to be as important as it used to
be.
They held hands while Nikolas talked about how much work it took being head
of the Cassadine Empire and how sometimes he wished he could chuck it all
and be a normal guy. He talked of how he envied Lucky sometimes. He envied
his easy life, nothing to do but run Kelly's and play music. Emily pointed
out that running Kelly's wasn't exactly how Lucky wanted to spend the rest
of his life and that his music career wasn't lifting off the way he'd hoped
it was. Nikolas decided that she was right and that Lucky's life did have
it's set of disadvantages.
They moved on to the subject of family. Nikolas didn't tell Emily about the
possibility of Carly being Stefan's daughter. He wasn't sure how many
people knew at the moment and he didn't want to betray any confidences. He
mentioned that an old family friend was in town and that he would love for
them to meet. He had a feeling that Emily might like Layla and vice versa.
Emily thought it would be a good idea also.
She was reluctant to talk about her family. The Qs were always an
interesting bunch. Monica was still on her back for being Carly on the
anniversary of Jason's death. Edward was still pitting Ned and AJ against
each other. Neither man put as much effort into the battle but they went
through the motions to keep Edward entertain. There wasn't much for him to
do after Lila had died.
Emily talked of how much she loved photography instead. Nikolas watched her
animated face as she told him of the day she went into the park and spotted
a group of kids playing on the playground. She explained how hard to she
worked to capture the look of freedom and pure bliss on their faces as they
played on the swingset and the seesaw.
They were standing on a peak. Nikolas had his arms wrapped around her from
behind and his head rested on hers. They watched the sunset. "I wish I had
my camera with me. That was just spectacular." She breathed.
"Yeah." He agreed. "Are you hungry?"
"Oh, you're going to feed me too?" Emily teased. "I thought you were going
to walk me around until my feet fell off."
He took her hand and led her to the guesthouse. He didn't want them to be
interrupting and if they were at Wyndemere he knew they would be. "You
didn't enjoy today?"
Emily immediately shook her head. "No, I enjoyed it very much." She smiled
at him.
"Good." He smiled back.
They walked into the guesthouse and Nikolas took her into a room where he
had set up a table. He pulled out her chair for her and poured her a glass
of wine. They continued their pleasant conversation over dinner and wine.
Nikolas noticed that Emily had her glass refilled many times. When Nikolas
saw that the bottle was nearly empty and he had only had a glass and half
he decided that it was time for dinner to be over.
He stood. "How about we go into the other room? I think we're finished
here."
Emily smiled and nodded. She shrugged out of the shell to her twin set and
then let her lead her into another room. Nikolas sat down on the small
couch that was in it. He took Emily's hand and dragged her onto his lap.
Emily curled up and rested her head on his shoulder. She was slowly
starting to feel the effects of the wine. Nikolas lightly stroked her hair.
"Emily? Did you fall asleep?" Nikolas asked softly after a few minutes.
He knew she said she got sleepy when she drank a lot but this was
ridiculous.
Emily slowly shook her head in response. "Just thinking."
"About what?" He asked curiously.
She hesitantly started to answer. "About…about…"
"About what?" He asked again. She was being evasive for some reason so now
he really wanted to know.
Emily blushed and bit her lip. She couldn't believe what she was about to
say this but it's been bothering her for some time now. "I wanted to know
why you haven't kissed me yet."
Nikolas couldn't help but grin wickedly. "Is that what you want me to do?"
Emily ducked her head and admitted. "Yes...why haven't you kissed me?"
"Because I'm always the one going what he wants and this time I thought I'd
let you be the one in charge. So tell me what you want, Emily."
Emily couldn't believe she was about to do this. She whispered. "I want you
to kiss me, Nikolas."
Nikolas smiled again. "All you had to do was ask."
He lifted her hand and pressed a kiss on her wrist. He pressed another
higher up her forearm. Next her took her face in his hands and lightly
kissed her on the forehead and on the tip of her nose. His mouth hovered
over hers and Emily closed her eyes in anticipation. Just when she thought
he was finally going to kiss her, just as his mouth descended towards hers,
he changed directions and gave her a sounding peek on the cheek.
Emily opened her eyes and nearly growled in frustration. Nikolas had to
stifle the laughter that was bubbling up inside of him at the look on her
face.
"What," Emily snapped, "was that?"
"You said you wanted a kiss, you just never said where or what kind."
Nikolas teased.
"You know exactly what sort of kiss I meant." Emily glared at him.
"Well, maybe you should just…show me." Nikolas tossed out a challenge.
"Maybe I will." Emily said. She warmed up to the challenge.
She took his face in between her hands and pressed her lips against him. At
first the kiss started out hard and bruising but Emily slowly relented and
softened the kiss. Nikolas sat back and let her take full control of the
kiss. Her tongue swept into his mouth searching out his. Their tongues
lazily tangled with each other as Emily shifted his head to get the better
angle she sought. Emily started to break the kiss but couldn't help going
back for another taste of him. Finally she raised her head and looked at
him, her eyes bright with desire.
She leisurely licked at her lips and said. "Now that was what I wanted."
Nikolas looked her through heavily lidded eyes. "Was there anything else
you wanted?"
"Yes." Emily was thoroughly enjoying this. She had never had this sort of
freedom before. "I want you to touch me…and no more games."
Nikolas only had one question ask her. "Where?" He asked her huskily.
Emily answered by rising up from his lap. Nikolas was going to protest her
moving but she surprised him by gathering up her long split skirt and
straddling him. She looked him dead in the eye and said softly.
"Everywhere."
*~*~*
Layla was in the General Hospital Gym working out with the punching bag.
She was practicing her kickboxing and trying to keep her mind off the
Cassadine case since Rina was determined she not be on it. She was dressed
in black leggings, a blood red sports bra, and her black leather holster.
All day she had the eerie feeling that she was being watched and she wasn't
going to be caught without protection. Usually she went without her gun
but today she felt she needed the extra insurance.
The gym was closed for the day due to some minor renovations but she coaxed
Stefan into letting her use it. Ah, Stefan was such a sweetheart, she
thought as she lashed out with her left foot, too sweet for his own good.
At least with her he was. Sometimes she thought she was the only who got to
see his sweet side.
In another life she could she herself falling for him and convincing him to
settle down with her. Layla had to stop and lean against the punching bag.
Stefan and her married. Her pregnant with his children. She let a small
smile flicker across her face before she frowned and pushed the image out
of her mind. Her, the forever wanderer, settle down and have children? Yeah
right in a fairy tale maybe.
"But this," She muttered as she punched the bag twice, "is real life. And
real life sucks."
She had decided long ago that the WSB was her life and it was too late to
change that decision. She was in too deep. She couldn't get out just
because Stefan Cassadine had a great smile and was a wonderful kisser.
Layla sighed. He *is* a wonderful kisser though.
Layla shook her head to free up her thoughts and attacked the punching bag.
Maybe after the Cassadine case was wrapped up and if she was still in Port
Charles she would see if Stefan would like to go on a trip to the French
Rivera. Two or three months out there could do them both some good.
She nodded as she warmed up to the idea. Yeah, just one more big trip
before saying goodbye forever. That would be the perfect way to end things.
And things had to end. Twelve years after the last time she saw him and the
feelings were still just as strong. If she wasn't careful she would herself
in love with the guy and that can't happen.
"That definitely can't happen." She said as she started to punch at the bag
again. Only this time she whirled around and punched the guy who happened
to be standing behind her with his hands up like he was about to grab her.
Instead he grabbed his bleeding nose. He reached for her again but Layla
quickly followed up with a punch to the gut and a knee to the groin. Before
he could grab either she took hold of his other arm and twisted it up
behind his back. She hooked her leg under and pulled it back, making him
fall to the floor.
She squatted over his body, still holding onto his arm with one hand. She
placed one foot on his back, balancing half her weight on him and the other
half on the floor.
"Alrighty, we're gonna a nice little talk." Layla purred. "This is how it's
gonna work. I've got some questions for you and you better have some
answers for me. Understand me?'
The man remained silent under her. Layla jerked on his arm causing him to
groan. "I'll take that as a yes." She sneered. She was not in a good mood.
"First off, who are you and what are you doing here?"
Once again he didn't say a word. Layla tossed her head back, shaking her
hair out of her face. "That's all right. Who you are is not important. And
I think we all know that Victor sent you. Why did he send you? Were you
supposed to kill me or abduct me?"
Again he didn't answer. By now Layla was extremely angry and in no mood for
games. She sighed and reached for her gun. "If you don't start answering my
damn questions right now I won't be adverse to blowing your pitiful little
brains out across this floor."
She leaned forward and placed the gun against the back of his head. Her
soft whisper was laced with steel. "No one would ever know. The gym is
closed today. I could have your body disposed of and this place cleared of
any evidence in an hour. I do not *need* your information and I can do
without it. But if you want to live and not be hurt you'd give it up. Now.
Do not test me any further."
The man on the floor could tell that she was deadly serious. And what other
choice did he have? Be killed by her or tell Cassadine that he failed and
be killed by him. It was a lose-lose situation. Might as well screw over
Cassadine before he died.
"I was supposed to drop you off a few miles out of town at an old abandoned
gas station. I was to be met by one of Cassadine's men. I don't know where
they were taking you. All I know was that I was to deliver you gagged and
tied up and I would get my money. That's all."
Layla smiled and tapped his cheek with the gun. "Why thank you. That was
ever so helpful."
"You're not going to kill me right?" He couldn't help but asking.
"Of course not. That would mean I have to clean up all your blood and bits.
And I hate cleaning up." Layla made a face. "But I do have to take care of
you though."
Effortlessly she snapped his arm, breaking it cleanly. While he was howling
in pain she turned her gun around in her hand and smacked him in the back
of his head with the butt, knocking him out cold. She stepped across him
and re-holstered her gun. She looked down at his unconscious body. "I
wasn't going to make it easy for you though."
Layla wondered if she should shower or debrief Blondie on the latest
happenings. She caught a whiff of herself and nodded vigorously. "Oh yeah,
shower first. Definitely first. Oh yeah."
herself mobilized after standing in her doorway for what felt like hours.
She had no idea what the little display of Sonny's meant and she didn't
want to think about it anymore. Mindless housework always helped keep her
mind off things.
Carly was trying to carry the turkey for the Thanksgiving feast over to the
refrigerator when she heard her door open. Hoping it was Bobbie she called
out. "I'm in the kitchen and I could I use a little help!"
"Hey baby, I'm home!"
Carly turned to the kitchen door with her mouth open. "Alex!" She exclaimed
and promptly dropped the turkey on her foot.
Alex dropped his duffel bag and rushed over. "Are you okay?"
Carly bit her lip hard and tears sprang to her eyes as she eased the frozen
turkey off her foot. "Yeah, I'll live." She tenderly flexed her foot.
"Nothing broken."
Alex chuckled to himself. He picked up the turkey and placed it on the
counter. "Why did you drop it?"
"I was just surprised to see you, that's all." Carly threw her arms around
his neck. "Welcome home!"
He staggered back from the force of her exuberant embrace. He regained his
footing and kissed her deeply. Lifting his mouth from hers, he murmured.
"Remember that suggestion of yours before I left?"
Carly's mind was a blank. "Uh…"
He reached into his suit pocket and pulled out a pair of handcuffs. He
dangled them from one finger and arched his eyebrow in silent question.
She gasped. "Oh my—you didn't!" She smacked his shoulder. "I was just
fooling around."
He laughed at her. "I just wanted to see what your reaction would be. But
to tell you the truth, all those nights away from you, it started to seem
like a really good idea." He started to go in for another kiss but Carly
leaned back.
"Alex, we need to talk." She placed her hands on his chest and pushed back.
"About what?" Alex stiffened up. It was never good when anyone, especially
a woman, started out with the words, 'we need to talk.'
"Let's go into the living room." Carly tried to smile. "Get comfortable,
you know."
"No, whatever you want to say, you can say in here." Alex folded his arms
and leaned against the counter. He crossed his legs at the ankle and
concentrate on the floor. "Well?"
"Uh…You know how upset I was after the ambush a couple of days ago?" Carly
waited for answer.
Alex didn't say anything. He continued to focus on the floor.
This wasn't going to be easy, Carly thought. She sighed heavily. "Well I
ran into Sonny and he offered me to let me stay at his place for a few
days. I just needed to get away from everything. And Sonny's was the best
place to go. Nobody could touch me there."
"When did you see him?" Alex asked softly.
"Huh?" That was the last thing she expected him to say to her.
"When did you see him?" Alex repeated. "Was it after I left town or was it
before?"
"Um…"
Alex raised his head and held her gaze. "Before or after?"
This time it was Carly's turn to stare at the floor. "I, uh, I…it was
before."
Alex frowned and looked back down at the floor. Carly fidgeted as she
waited for him to speak again. After minutes of strained silence he finally
spoke. "I'll…I need some time alone." He pushed away from the counter and
started to walk out the kitchen.
"What? Where are you going?" Carly gaped and started to follow him. This
was not how she thought this would go.
He turned around. "Give me a little time, alright?"
"Time for what?" Carly asked. "I just told you I was with Sonny while you
were gone. You hate Sonny, remember? Get mad. Yell at me. Do something!"
"Is that what you want?" He asked. "Do you want me to be mad? Because I am,
believe me I am. Do you want me to yell and scream and whatever else you
feel this situation warrants? Because I won't, I'm not like that and you
know it. What do you really want me to do about this?"
"I don't know what I want you to do." She said quietly.
"Then just let me handle something." He said before walking out.
"Handle what?" Carly muttered after him. "What are you handling?"
*~*~*
Sonny was sitting alone in the penthouse. He sat on the couch with his face
buried in his hands. He was rehashing that scene at Carly's. He had no idea
what prompted him to make that little gesture. All he knows was that he was
angry with her. Angry that she could tell him she loves him, make love to
him and then run out the next day.
If she thought he was that easily discouraged then she had another thing
coming. That kiss at her door only showed her that he was just as
determined as ever to get her back. He wasn't to give up because of a minor
setback.
The door to the penthouse opened suddenly and an angry Alex stormed past
Johnny, who was unsuccessfully trying to keep him from getting by. Sonny
stood as Alex came to a stop by the couch.
"Corinthos, stop bothering her."
"Ah, Garcia, I didn't know you were back in town." Sonny's smile was wide
and charismatic.
"I'm warning you to leave her alone."
"You were not invited into my home nor do you have a warrant. So I suggest
you leave peacefully before I have you thrown out or maybe I'll just have
you arrested for trespassing. Yeah that would look good, wouldn't it?"
Sonny didn't have time for his b.s.
"Why can't you just leave her alone?" He shook his with disgust before
heading for the door.
"I would if that was what she truly wanted. But you and I both know that's
not it."
"If you really loved her you'd let her go." Alex said sincerely.
"Here's a suggestion, Alejandro. Why don't you be a man and step aside. She
stays with you out of some misguided sense of loyalty. This situation with
you isn't making her happy."
"And being with you would?" He scoffed.
"I believe it would." He said seriously.
"Well that's not what she believes." Alex said. "If she wanted to be with
you, she wouldn't be waiting for me right now. She'd be with you. But she
isn't is she?" He fired back before walking out the door.
~*~
Carly was going out of her mind with worry. Alex had been gone for a long
time now and she had no idea where he was and what he was doing.
"Why did I tell him?" She frowned as she remembered. It was because of
Bobbie. "Thanks, Ma." She muttered.
She decided it was time to go tell her mother exactly how grateful she was
for her sticking her nose where it didn't belong. She stormed out of her
apartment and went to Bobbie's. She banged on the door. "Mom? Mom!"
A half-sleeping Lucas opened the door. He liked to sleep late on Saturdays,
the later the better but now his sleep was being disturbed. "What?" He
slurred.
"Where's Mom?" Carly growled.
Lucas widened his eyes and backed up. Uh-oh. "She's inside. Mom! Carly's
looking for you and she's ma-ad!" He yelled.
Bobbie came out of the kitchen with a worried smile. "Lucas, go take a
shower. It's pass time for you to get dress and face the day. What
happened, Carly?"
"Ah, man." Lucas muttered. He was hoping to get a little more sleep. The
only reason he got up in the first place was to use the bathroom. Then he
suddenly brightened. Maybe he could go out to the Quartermaine Docks
Complex and see if he could run into that Melinda girl again. And this time
he'd go alone and not have to share her with anyone, especially Thomas
Hardy. He quickly shuffled off to the bathroom.
"You is what happened." Carly snapped. "If you hadn't threatened to tell
Alex about me staying with Sonny then we wouldn't have fought and he
wouldn't have walked out on me and I would know where he is right now!"
"Alex walked out on you?" Bobbie gasped.
"Yes!" Carly nodded. "Isn't that what you wanted? Him to leave me?"
"No, no, that's not what I wanted at all." Bobbie denied. "I just wanted
you to be straight with him."
"I should have never told him. It would have been fine. He didn't need to
know."
"If you want a lasting relationship with him, you have to be straight with
him." She advised.
"Mama, could you *not* lecture me right now?" Carly heard the door open and
Alex call out. "Carly?"
She whirled around and headed for her place. She paused and looked back at
Bobbie. "We aren't finished you know?" Then she rushed back to her
apartment.
"Carly?" Alex was saying again.
"I'm right here." She said nervously. She felt foolish standing there,
waiting for him to forgive her or not. She had done nothing wrong. Okay,
nothing really wrong. Nothing illegal at least.
"I was upset when you told me." Carly resisted the urge to roll her eyes
and say, "Well, duh!" She waited for him to continue. "So I left to clear
my head and think about things."
"And?" She prompted him. If he was going to dump her she wanted him to get
it over with and if he wasn't, well, she still wanted him to get it over
already.
"I've thought things over and I see no reason to change things. We might
not be the same after this but it doesn't mean we have to be over."
"I, uh, I, great." Carly hesitated before hugging him. She should be
overjoyed that he didn't want to break things off but she wasn't. Deep down
inside she had an odd feeling of disappointment.
*~*~*
The Next Day
Nikolas helped Emily down from the launch. She was dressed in a long black
skirt with slits up each side. She paired a deep green twin set with it. He
searched her face and saw the bags under her eyes. He'd only saw her the
other day and if it was possible she looked worse.
"Hey." He said softly as he took her into his arms. "Are you okay?"
She shook her head. "Not really. I've been avoiding Sly and Elizabeth for
the past couple of days. Sly keeps calling, trying to figure out what's
wrong. Elizabeth was easy to deal with; she's been floating in and out of
the apartment in a daze. She's leaving town for a week."
"I know, she called me. She wants to talk about 'us' when she gets back."
Emily winced at what he was implying. "Alright that's enough talk about
them. Today is for us. From now on, it's just about you and me."
And that's how their afternoon went. They walked along Spoon Island talking
about anything and nothing. They seemed to be rediscovering each other.
Even though they had stayed friends through the years they had managed to
drift apart and their friendship ceased to be as important as it used to
be.
They held hands while Nikolas talked about how much work it took being head
of the Cassadine Empire and how sometimes he wished he could chuck it all
and be a normal guy. He talked of how he envied Lucky sometimes. He envied
his easy life, nothing to do but run Kelly's and play music. Emily pointed
out that running Kelly's wasn't exactly how Lucky wanted to spend the rest
of his life and that his music career wasn't lifting off the way he'd hoped
it was. Nikolas decided that she was right and that Lucky's life did have
it's set of disadvantages.
They moved on to the subject of family. Nikolas didn't tell Emily about the
possibility of Carly being Stefan's daughter. He wasn't sure how many
people knew at the moment and he didn't want to betray any confidences. He
mentioned that an old family friend was in town and that he would love for
them to meet. He had a feeling that Emily might like Layla and vice versa.
Emily thought it would be a good idea also.
She was reluctant to talk about her family. The Qs were always an
interesting bunch. Monica was still on her back for being Carly on the
anniversary of Jason's death. Edward was still pitting Ned and AJ against
each other. Neither man put as much effort into the battle but they went
through the motions to keep Edward entertain. There wasn't much for him to
do after Lila had died.
Emily talked of how much she loved photography instead. Nikolas watched her
animated face as she told him of the day she went into the park and spotted
a group of kids playing on the playground. She explained how hard to she
worked to capture the look of freedom and pure bliss on their faces as they
played on the swingset and the seesaw.
They were standing on a peak. Nikolas had his arms wrapped around her from
behind and his head rested on hers. They watched the sunset. "I wish I had
my camera with me. That was just spectacular." She breathed.
"Yeah." He agreed. "Are you hungry?"
"Oh, you're going to feed me too?" Emily teased. "I thought you were going
to walk me around until my feet fell off."
He took her hand and led her to the guesthouse. He didn't want them to be
interrupting and if they were at Wyndemere he knew they would be. "You
didn't enjoy today?"
Emily immediately shook her head. "No, I enjoyed it very much." She smiled
at him.
"Good." He smiled back.
They walked into the guesthouse and Nikolas took her into a room where he
had set up a table. He pulled out her chair for her and poured her a glass
of wine. They continued their pleasant conversation over dinner and wine.
Nikolas noticed that Emily had her glass refilled many times. When Nikolas
saw that the bottle was nearly empty and he had only had a glass and half
he decided that it was time for dinner to be over.
He stood. "How about we go into the other room? I think we're finished
here."
Emily smiled and nodded. She shrugged out of the shell to her twin set and
then let her lead her into another room. Nikolas sat down on the small
couch that was in it. He took Emily's hand and dragged her onto his lap.
Emily curled up and rested her head on his shoulder. She was slowly
starting to feel the effects of the wine. Nikolas lightly stroked her hair.
"Emily? Did you fall asleep?" Nikolas asked softly after a few minutes.
He knew she said she got sleepy when she drank a lot but this was
ridiculous.
Emily slowly shook her head in response. "Just thinking."
"About what?" He asked curiously.
She hesitantly started to answer. "About…about…"
"About what?" He asked again. She was being evasive for some reason so now
he really wanted to know.
Emily blushed and bit her lip. She couldn't believe what she was about to
say this but it's been bothering her for some time now. "I wanted to know
why you haven't kissed me yet."
Nikolas couldn't help but grin wickedly. "Is that what you want me to do?"
Emily ducked her head and admitted. "Yes...why haven't you kissed me?"
"Because I'm always the one going what he wants and this time I thought I'd
let you be the one in charge. So tell me what you want, Emily."
Emily couldn't believe she was about to do this. She whispered. "I want you
to kiss me, Nikolas."
Nikolas smiled again. "All you had to do was ask."
He lifted her hand and pressed a kiss on her wrist. He pressed another
higher up her forearm. Next her took her face in his hands and lightly
kissed her on the forehead and on the tip of her nose. His mouth hovered
over hers and Emily closed her eyes in anticipation. Just when she thought
he was finally going to kiss her, just as his mouth descended towards hers,
he changed directions and gave her a sounding peek on the cheek.
Emily opened her eyes and nearly growled in frustration. Nikolas had to
stifle the laughter that was bubbling up inside of him at the look on her
face.
"What," Emily snapped, "was that?"
"You said you wanted a kiss, you just never said where or what kind."
Nikolas teased.
"You know exactly what sort of kiss I meant." Emily glared at him.
"Well, maybe you should just…show me." Nikolas tossed out a challenge.
"Maybe I will." Emily said. She warmed up to the challenge.
She took his face in between her hands and pressed her lips against him. At
first the kiss started out hard and bruising but Emily slowly relented and
softened the kiss. Nikolas sat back and let her take full control of the
kiss. Her tongue swept into his mouth searching out his. Their tongues
lazily tangled with each other as Emily shifted his head to get the better
angle she sought. Emily started to break the kiss but couldn't help going
back for another taste of him. Finally she raised her head and looked at
him, her eyes bright with desire.
She leisurely licked at her lips and said. "Now that was what I wanted."
Nikolas looked her through heavily lidded eyes. "Was there anything else
you wanted?"
"Yes." Emily was thoroughly enjoying this. She had never had this sort of
freedom before. "I want you to touch me…and no more games."
Nikolas only had one question ask her. "Where?" He asked her huskily.
Emily answered by rising up from his lap. Nikolas was going to protest her
moving but she surprised him by gathering up her long split skirt and
straddling him. She looked him dead in the eye and said softly.
"Everywhere."
*~*~*
Layla was in the General Hospital Gym working out with the punching bag.
She was practicing her kickboxing and trying to keep her mind off the
Cassadine case since Rina was determined she not be on it. She was dressed
in black leggings, a blood red sports bra, and her black leather holster.
All day she had the eerie feeling that she was being watched and she wasn't
going to be caught without protection. Usually she went without her gun
but today she felt she needed the extra insurance.
The gym was closed for the day due to some minor renovations but she coaxed
Stefan into letting her use it. Ah, Stefan was such a sweetheart, she
thought as she lashed out with her left foot, too sweet for his own good.
At least with her he was. Sometimes she thought she was the only who got to
see his sweet side.
In another life she could she herself falling for him and convincing him to
settle down with her. Layla had to stop and lean against the punching bag.
Stefan and her married. Her pregnant with his children. She let a small
smile flicker across her face before she frowned and pushed the image out
of her mind. Her, the forever wanderer, settle down and have children? Yeah
right in a fairy tale maybe.
"But this," She muttered as she punched the bag twice, "is real life. And
real life sucks."
She had decided long ago that the WSB was her life and it was too late to
change that decision. She was in too deep. She couldn't get out just
because Stefan Cassadine had a great smile and was a wonderful kisser.
Layla sighed. He *is* a wonderful kisser though.
Layla shook her head to free up her thoughts and attacked the punching bag.
Maybe after the Cassadine case was wrapped up and if she was still in Port
Charles she would see if Stefan would like to go on a trip to the French
Rivera. Two or three months out there could do them both some good.
She nodded as she warmed up to the idea. Yeah, just one more big trip
before saying goodbye forever. That would be the perfect way to end things.
And things had to end. Twelve years after the last time she saw him and the
feelings were still just as strong. If she wasn't careful she would herself
in love with the guy and that can't happen.
"That definitely can't happen." She said as she started to punch at the bag
again. Only this time she whirled around and punched the guy who happened
to be standing behind her with his hands up like he was about to grab her.
Instead he grabbed his bleeding nose. He reached for her again but Layla
quickly followed up with a punch to the gut and a knee to the groin. Before
he could grab either she took hold of his other arm and twisted it up
behind his back. She hooked her leg under and pulled it back, making him
fall to the floor.
She squatted over his body, still holding onto his arm with one hand. She
placed one foot on his back, balancing half her weight on him and the other
half on the floor.
"Alrighty, we're gonna a nice little talk." Layla purred. "This is how it's
gonna work. I've got some questions for you and you better have some
answers for me. Understand me?'
The man remained silent under her. Layla jerked on his arm causing him to
groan. "I'll take that as a yes." She sneered. She was not in a good mood.
"First off, who are you and what are you doing here?"
Once again he didn't say a word. Layla tossed her head back, shaking her
hair out of her face. "That's all right. Who you are is not important. And
I think we all know that Victor sent you. Why did he send you? Were you
supposed to kill me or abduct me?"
Again he didn't answer. By now Layla was extremely angry and in no mood for
games. She sighed and reached for her gun. "If you don't start answering my
damn questions right now I won't be adverse to blowing your pitiful little
brains out across this floor."
She leaned forward and placed the gun against the back of his head. Her
soft whisper was laced with steel. "No one would ever know. The gym is
closed today. I could have your body disposed of and this place cleared of
any evidence in an hour. I do not *need* your information and I can do
without it. But if you want to live and not be hurt you'd give it up. Now.
Do not test me any further."
The man on the floor could tell that she was deadly serious. And what other
choice did he have? Be killed by her or tell Cassadine that he failed and
be killed by him. It was a lose-lose situation. Might as well screw over
Cassadine before he died.
"I was supposed to drop you off a few miles out of town at an old abandoned
gas station. I was to be met by one of Cassadine's men. I don't know where
they were taking you. All I know was that I was to deliver you gagged and
tied up and I would get my money. That's all."
Layla smiled and tapped his cheek with the gun. "Why thank you. That was
ever so helpful."
"You're not going to kill me right?" He couldn't help but asking.
"Of course not. That would mean I have to clean up all your blood and bits.
And I hate cleaning up." Layla made a face. "But I do have to take care of
you though."
Effortlessly she snapped his arm, breaking it cleanly. While he was howling
in pain she turned her gun around in her hand and smacked him in the back
of his head with the butt, knocking him out cold. She stepped across him
and re-holstered her gun. She looked down at his unconscious body. "I
wasn't going to make it easy for you though."
Layla wondered if she should shower or debrief Blondie on the latest
happenings. She caught a whiff of herself and nodded vigorously. "Oh yeah,
shower first. Definitely first. Oh yeah."