The first thing Jason noticed when he returned to Isabelle's hospital room was Elizabeth's smile. It reached her eyes. "She woke up," he surmised.

Elizabeth nodded swiftly as the tears spilled from her eyes. "About five minutes ago," she told him. "The doctor has already come by and he said things look okay. No concussion." She let out a sigh of relief.

"Then why was she out for so long?" Jason queried. He took the seat on the opposite side of the bed from Elizabeth. Isabelle stared up at him with curious eyes. "Hi, Isa," he greeted her. "You scared us, baby."

"Dada," Isabelle pointed. Her chubby fingers lifted into the air pointing at him. "Dada."

Jason took her hand in his and kissed her fingers. "Daddy's here. Mommy and Daddy are both here." He looked up at Elizabeth and smiled. He touched her hand that lay on Isabelle and smiled. "And we're here to stay," he promised.

Elizabeth nodded in confirmation. "They want to keep her under observation for a little while longer before we take her home. If that's okay?"

"Yeah, that's fine." To be honest, he was a bit disappointed that he couldn't tell Elizabeth now about Abby. Now that Mike had confirmed that their daughter was alive he couldn't wait to share the news with Elizabeth. He wanted to tell her before he told Sonny. Jason turned his attention back to Isabelle and watched as her eyes drooped. "Is it normal that she's sleepy?"

"Dr. Thornhart said she might be sleepy. Even though she's been out for the last few hours, she wasn't really resting. And well, she hasn't had her nap today. Since they ruled out the concussion, it's okay for her to sleep." Elizabeth smiled down at her daughter again. "Besides, I think you and I need to talk. About what I said this morning."

Jason nodded. "I have news of my own. Sonny has men out looking for Stryker."

"Where is Sonny?" Elizabeth asked. She hadn't seen her friend since they'd arrived at the hospital. "You called him, right?"

"I'm here," Sonny said from behind them. He slipped inside the curtain and smiled at the young woman. "I've been here, but I didn't want to be in the way."

Elizabeth stood to hug the man. "Nonsense Sonny. You wouldn't have been in the way."

"Okay then, I didn't want to intrude. It seemed like a family matter." Sonny squeezed Elizabeth one last time before he released her. He took the seat opposite from the couple that Jason had vacated.

"You are family," Elizabeth reminded him and he knew her words were sincere.
Sonny opened his mouth to protest but Jason cut him off. "She's right, Sonny. You've always said we're like brothers and we are. And you've taken care of Elizabeth and I know she feels like you're family. You're the godfather to both of our children. Blood doesn't make family, Sonny. Love does." Jason hadn't meant to let the children comment slip out, but when it did he knew now was the time. The three most important people in his life were together and he wanted to tell them all at once.

Elizabeth turned to him and smiled through her tears. It was his speech that moved her, but also what he said. "Both?" she questioned. "Both of our children? As in plural? Alive?" She couldn't contain the feeling of pure joy that bubbled up inside of her. "Is it true, Jason?"

Sonny turned to his friend and gazed at him with hopeful eyes. He awaited his friends' answer. He'd stopped himself several times from asking Mike for the truth. Sonny knew that this was Jason and Elizabeth's news and they should be the first to absolutely know.

"Yes," Jason admitted. He reached inside his jacket pocket and pulled out the most recent picture of Abby they had. "This is our daughter, Elizabeth."

A sob came from deep inside her as she jumped from her chair into his arms. Jason effortlessly picked her up and held her close. "That's right," he whispered in her ear, "they're both alive, Elizabeth. I promise we'll get her back. Nothing will stop me from bringing her home to you."

Sonny watched as his best friend whispered promises to his wife and couldn't help but feel he was intruding. Despite Jason and Elizabeth's insistence that he was family, he knew this wasn't his place. This was an intensely private moment between a husband, a wife, and their daughter. This was news they would share over coffee and doughnuts, not something he should witness firsthand. This was, Sonny realized, something he really wanted.

Jason was aware when his friend slipped out of the hospital room. A part of him wanted to stop Sonny and ask him to join the celebration, but a larger part wanted to hold on to Elizabeth even longer. His need to be with his wife and his daughter drove his decision to not stop Sonny. He knew his oldest friend would understand the decision. Jason also knew that he shared in their joy.

"She's alive," Elizabeth broke into his reverie. "I knew it, Jason. I knew it."

"I know you did," he murmured. Jason stepped back from her and smiled. He reached up to wipe one last tear away. "You told me last night and I didn't believe you at first. I'm sorry for that, Elizabeth."

"No," she whispered. As if she could stop the words from coming out of his mouth, Elizabeth pressed her fingers to his lips. "No apologies, no excuses, no more hiding, Jason. Abby is alive," she told him. "She's alive," she whispered again.

He wondered if she kept repeating the words because she was trying to convince herself it was really real. Her hysteria from the previous night was now gone and it was like she was really believing in it for the first time. Jason kissed her palm before he gently moved it away. It came to rest on his chest. "She's alive," he repeated. "You know what this means?" he questioned.

Elizabeth nodded. His vague question could only mean one thing: They went through all of this for nothing. Because she was alive. Abby was alive.

"Don't even think it," he ordered. "We did not fail at marriage. We didn't fail at being parents, Elizabeth. We're here, we're together. Our children are alive. You and I still love each other. I don't think that's a failure."

"But look at what we went through," she reasoned. "We missed two years together and with Abby because some psycho wants to play with us." Elizabeth stole a look back at Isabelle and sighed. "You missed eighteen months with Isabelle and she doesn't even know she has a sister. All she has is that one picture, Jason. How is she going to take this?"

Jason ran his hands up and down her arms in a reassuring gesture. "She's young. I doubt she'll even remember it," he promised. If he was honest with himself, the thought had plagued him too. He knew children knew more than they were given credit for. He wondered if Isabelle would remember a time when he wasn't there. And he also wondered if Abby would ever accept him as her father. Not liking that thought, he turned to Elizabeth again. "We love our daughters, Elizabeth. More than it's humanly possible. And sometimes, love has to be enough."

"I hope you're right," she said in a low voice. And she did. The entire time he'd been back she'd told him that sometimes love wasn't enough. His response was that sometimes it was. For the first time she needed to believe in him. She needed to believe that sometimes love did fix all wounds.

"I am," Jason tried to assure her again. Needing to feel her, Jason tugged her forward again. She melted into his body. She still fit against him perfectly. Her head tucked neatly under his chin, her arms wound tightly around his waist, and they pressed together in all the right places. Even if the embrace was chaste, it was intimate in some ways. More intimate in any of the ways they'd touched so far.

When they separated Elizabeth's eyes widened when she saw Monica Quartermaine standing there. She discreetly cleared her throat alerting Jason to his mother's presence. Elizabeth couldn't help but wonder how long her mother-in-law had been standing there. "Monica," she said enthusiastically. "I'm glad you could drop back by."

Monica timidly nodded her head and turned to face Jason. Don't overdo it, she told herself. Don't push to far and have him draw back. "I'm glad you asked me."

Suddenly feeling ashamed for his earlier behavior, Jason gestured to the chair on the other side of the bed. "Will you sit, we'd like to talk to you."

Monica didn't say anything, just went to the chair and sat.

"And we know you have questions," Elizabeth continued, "We'll try to answer some of them. But you have to know we can't answer all of them." Elizabeth stole a glance at Jason before she continued. "There are certain things we can't tell you."

Monica nodded. She smothered her smile when Elizabeth sat on the bed and Jason in the chair and their hands instantly linked. Elizabeth's free hand took Isabelle's and she began to rub it soothingly. "How is she?" Monica asked.

"Dr. Thornhart said she'd be okay," Elizabeth told her. "No concussion."

"That's great," Monica enthused. "I'm really glad to hear that."

Jason cleared his throat before he spoke. He didn't really trust himself with this conversation. "I'm glad you were here when Elizabeth arrived. Thank you, Monica."

The Quartermaine patriarch nodded, not trusting her voice any longer.

"I guess you want to know about Isabelle?" Elizabeth queried. She waited for Monica's nod before she continued. "When I left town I was pregnant." Jason's family had known what happened between the couple. Elizabeth's confidant was Lila and the older woman had encouraged her to embrace the whole family. She'd known the truth about Isabelle and knew that she'd need the family if Jason did not return. "I didn't tell you and I know that was wrong of me, but I only told Lila." Elizabeth felt Jason's hand squeeze her own. She smiled at him. "In truth, Jason didn't know."

Monica gasped. "You mean…" she began, "You mean you haven't been together?"

It was Jason who answered his mother. "No, we haven't, Monica. Elizabeth was living in Buffalo."

"Where were you?" she questioned.

Jason looked at Elizabeth before he tugged on his ear. "That's one of those things I can't tell you."

Even if she wasn't satisfied with his answer, she accepted it. "Are you together now?" As soon as the question left her mouth, she regretted it. It wasn't really her business, she reasoned. They were here and they were obviously friendly. Jason knew about his daughter, so it didn't matter if they were no longer together. But she had noticed he still wore his wedding ring.

"We're working on it," Elizabeth admitted. She exchanged glances with Jason before she continued, "We love each other, Monica. And with a little work, we both believe we could work it out. But other things have needed our attention right now."

Monica accepted the answer. Before she could ask another one, her pager went off. She grabbed it from her belt and studied the number. "It's Alan, I have to get this."

Jason nodded and stood. "Thanks for coming by, Mom. And again, thank you for what you did for Elizabeth."

She nodded and slipped out of the room. Monica had resisted the urge to hug her son for the time being. But she dipped her head back in the curtain and said, "I'm glad you're home. Both of you. And I really look forward to meeting my granddaughter. I already know she's beautiful."

Elizabeth smiled at her warmly. "I'll bring her by the house sometime, if that's okay."

"I'd love that," Monica told them. "It's kind of quiet there with just me and Alan. It'll be nice to have a child around, even if it's just for a minute. I really have to go." And she was gone before they had a chance to say goodbye.

Elizabeth stood and linked her hands with Jason's. She leaned into him and smiled. "I love you," she whispered. "Have I told you lately?"

His eyes shined with love as he looked down at her. Her diamond caught his eye and he frowned when he realized her wedding band was still in his jean pocket. Using the hold he had on her hands, Jason backed her up until she was sitting on the edge of the band. He moved the chair so he was sitting directly in front of her. "There's something I want to give you," he told her.

"What is it?" she wondered. Her hands dropped into her lap as he dug into his jean pocket. When he unfolded his palm, her wedding band sat there. "Jason," she gasped.

"I want you to have this," he told her. "It's yours and it belongs on your finger." He held the small ring out to her and waited for her to take it. When she didn't, he frowned and looked up at her. "What's wrong?"

"I can't take that," she told him.

"Wha—what do you mean? You can't take it? Of course you can, it's yours Elizabeth." Jason pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration.

"When I gave that–"

"When you gave this to me," he interrupted, "it was because you wanted me to remember you. And I did. I couldn't forget, Elizabeth. But you're here and we're together, so I don't need it. This ring belongs on your finger."

"No," she argued. "We're not together, Jason." She gestured between them and said, "This is not together. Do we love each other? Yes. Do we have a chance? Yes, Jason, we do. And this is the first time I've admitted it to you out loud. Yesterday we were talking about getting a divorce, and now we're not? What changed Jason?"

"Nothing," he answered her. "Nothing changed Elizabeth."

" Exactly," she whispered. " Nothing has changed Jason. So we're going to stay together for the same reasons we were getting a divorce?"

It was his turn to argue with her. "You said you didn't want the divorce," he reminded her. "This morning–"

Elizabeth pressed a finger to his lips to stop him. "I know what I said, Jason. And I don't want a divorce. I love you." To emphasize the meaning of her words she leaned forward and pressed her lips to his. The brief kiss was meant to let him know she did love him. "And while I think we can work this out, it's definitely not fixed."

Elizabeth took his left hand in her own and traced his wedding band with her finger. "When you and I married, we were so in love."

"We still are," Jason interrupted.

"Let me finish?" she requested. Jason nodded and she continued, "When we married, we were unstoppable. The dangers didn't matter to either of us and nothing mattered more than being together." Her voice grew softer as she continued to speak. "But we brought a child in this world and we messed that up. We couldn't protect her. Does that make us bad parents? No, it doesn't. We love Abby, Jason. And we thought she was dead."

"I don't understand, Elizabeth. What're you getting at?"

Elizabeth slipped his wedding band off his finger and sighed. Jason looked down at his empty finger as his head screamed at him how wrong it looked. It was, he realized, only the third time it'd ever been off his finger. "I'm trying to tell you that I don't want a divorce," she finished.

"Neither do I, Elizabeth."

"But I'm not ready to be married," she hurried on. Silently Elizabeth took his right hand. She slipped the platinum band on his ring finger and it rested snugly there. "So I'm going to put this here as a reminder to us both. We do love each other and we're still legally married, but I'm not ready to be your wife again."

"What does that mean?" he asked. "You're not ready to be my wife?"

"You were gone for years Jason and you've only been back weeks. While some things have changed, others haven't. I'm not ready to jump back in the b–"

"When did this become about sex?" he asked.

"It's not," she argued. "This is about us," Elizabeth insisted. She looked down at her own left hand and tugged her ring off. She put it on the matching finger of her right hand. "I'm yours, Jason. Till the day I die, I'll love you. So all I'm asking for is a little time, will you give it to me?"

Jason searched her face and knew she needed this. He silently folded her wedding band back into his palm and returned it to his pocket. "I will. And I'll hold on to this until you are ready to have it back."

She nodded softly. "Thank you," she whispered.

Jason leaned forward and rested his forehead against her stomach. His arms wrapped around her waist as he held her close. "I love you," he whispered into her skin.

Elizabeth's fingers speared into his hair as she held him there. They stayed that way until she heard Isabelle call her name. Their daughter's blue eyes were wide awake and she knew she'd witnessed the whole scene between her parents. And she also knew Isabelle would one day understand.

"Hey, sweetheart," Elizabeth whispered. Elizabeth shifted so her body lay next to Isabelle's. Jason moved the chair towards the top of the bed and linked his fingers with Elizabeth's. His other hand went across her stomach and he took Isabelle's tiny hand in his. Jason waited until Elizabeth closed her eyes before he closed his own.

He knew Johnny, Francis, and Andrew were all standing guard outside. The more experience guards had arrived with him and he'd tried sending Andrew home. Elizabeth's guard had refused to leave without Mrs. Morgan. Jason could only respect a man who took his job so seriously.

As he lay with his head against her body, Jason could feel Elizabeth surrounding him. And he made a silent vow to himself that he'd get it right this time. He knew they would reunite, and he promised her, Isabelle, and Abby that he wouldn't screw it up. But more than anything, he promised himself.

"I love you," he whispered again before he drifted off to sleep.