Hospital coffee is the most disgusting drink on earth, Nikolas mused the
next morning as he waited his turn. He was seated in the waiting area next
to Helena. Her manservant hovered behind them as always. He cradled a cup
of the offensive liquid in his hands. After the first couple of sips he
learned that it was better for his health to just hold the cup between his
hands and let the warmth seep through.
Suddenly it all hit home. He was in the home stretch. Soon he would know
for sure and then no one could deny him. His foot began to twitch from the
anxiousness. He couldn't wait. It spread upwards until his whole leg was
shaking. Helena placed her hand on his knee, stilling his movement. She
flashed him a smile meant to be comforting but it only served to make him
nervous. To calm himself he took another sip of the coffee, forgetting
about the taste, He grimaced and placed the styrofoam cup on the floor.
"It will be soon." Helena promised him. "Andreas, go see what is taking so
long."
Nikolas watched as Andreas quickly carried out Helena's order. Nikolas
shrugged. "They are probably just backed up or something."
"No, this is deliberate." Helena said.
Nikolas nodded, going along with her rather than wasting time arguing. He
glanced around, looking for anything to take his mind off the wait. That's
when he noticed Luke and Laura coming down the corridor with a redheaded
nurse. He started to rise out of his seat but Helena's hand pulled him back
down.
"No." She hissed.
"Why not?" He challenged her.
"Now is not the time nor the place. Beside do you think Luke will let you
within ten feet of her?" Helena told him. Nikolas knew that she was right
but it didn't stop him from gazing longingly at his mother.
Luke had watched the whole exchange. He murmured. "That's right, keep the
boy on a tight leash."
Barbara glanced at what he was staring at. She absently touched her cheek
and remembered her encounter with Helena the other day. "Must you use the
word leash?"
Luke narrowed his eyes. "Did something go on with you and the queen of the
damned?"
Barbara shook her head. "I don't want to talk about it."
Luke focused all of his attention on her. "Barbara Jean...What aren't you
telling me?"
"Nothing that matters, Luke. It was done and it's over."
"When the results are in, you promise you will call me." Laura interrupted.
She was trying hard to not look in Nikolas's direction. All she wanted to
was run over to her son but in doing so she would end up fighting with
Luke. And she was so tired of the fights.
"As soon as they are in, you'll be the first to know." Barbara promised
with a gentle smile.
Across the room Andreas returned. He bowed in front of Nikolas. "They are
ready for you."
"Finally." Helena huffed, standing up.
"Uh, I can do this alone. I don't need you to hold my hand." Nikolas told
her. "Which way?"
Andreas pointed him in the direction. Nikolas left before Helena could
voice her objections. Seeing that she was alone, Luke knew he couldn't
resist the opportunity.
Luke said to Laura. "Why don't you and Bobbie go down to the cafeteria
without me."
"Why?" Laura asked, instantly suspicious.
"What's going on?" Barbara asked.
"I'll meet you down there. I have to visit the little Lukes's room." He
grinned. He ushered them towards the elevator. "Now don't worry about me.
Go on."
The two women stepped into the elevator, still eyeing Luke with
uncertainty. He reached in and pressed the button for them. "See you in ten
minutes."
He then walked over to where Helena, sat waiting. He sneered at Andreas
then winked at Helena. "It's almost over."
"Yes, finally." She smiled. "The first thing I will make sure that my
grandson carries out is his revenge on you for killing his father."
Luke cocked his head to the side and studied her. "You know, it's amazing
how you can sit there, calmly, even as the guillotine is coming down on
you."
Helena gracefully rose from her chair to stare straight into Luke's eyes.
"Laugh while you still can. I suggest however, that you speak with Stefan.
I'm positive he has quite an interesting story to tell you that he learned
on his trip home. Come Andreas."
Luke watched walk down the hall, away from him. He scratched his chin as he
thought about her parting line. Was there something that Stefan was keeping
from him and Laura?
Meanwhile, Nikolas prowled around the small room they'd placed him in. The
nurse that brought him there said that another nurse would be with him
soon. That was fifteen minutes ago. Just then the door opened and another
nurse came in.
"About time. Are you here to take my sample?"
The nurse glared at him. She snapped. "Get on the table."
Nikolas did as she said, frowning as he went. It obvious that she was in a
bad mood and that Nikolas would bear the brunt of it. "Is uh, is there
something wrong?"
" Yes, there is. And it's you. Roll up a sleeve." She instructed.
"I was told that you did this taking a sample by mouth swab or from a hair
follicle." Nikolas said even as he quickly rolled up one sleeve.
"Sometimes. And sometimes we can draw blood. It was requested that we draw
blood." Amy smirked as she prepared the needle.
Nikolas kept one eye on the needle. "I'm sorry for whatever it is I did.
Though I have no idea what I did to you."
"Oh you know exactly what you did. I'm Laura's sister, Amy Vining." Amy
took a small cotton ball and wiped clean a small area on his arm.
"You're my aunt?" Nikolas stared at her. There was no mention of this woman
in his files.
"Correction, I'm Lucky and Lulu's aunt. I don't know who the hell you are."
Amy then poked the needle into a vein without warning, causing Nikolas to
gasp.
"Look, I know that no one believes me cause I'm with Helena but listen, I'm
really Nikolas Cassadine." He said earnestly.
Amy rolled her eyes. "Whatever. We're done." She pulled the needle out and
turned her back on him as she finished putting the sample away.
Nikolas angrily unrolled his sleeve. "Fine, don't believe me. I don't give
a damn. All I care about are the results of that test."
~*~*~
Carly walked into Kelly's scanning the crowd for her uncle. She'd called
his club and Claude said that Luke had gone over to Kelly's to fix a broken
stove. Instead of just calling she decided to go and grab a lunch from the
family diner. She took a seat at the counter and waved over a waitress who
immediately turned over a cup and filled it with coffee.
Carly accepted it. "Is my uncle still around?"
The waitress jerked her thumb towards the kitchen. "He's still back there."
"And?"
"Looks like Kelly's will be serving a limited menu." She smiled wryly.
"Want me to get him?"
"Yeah, save the kitchen before he blows it up. Oh and pack me up a chinese
chicken salad and ice tea to go. Throw in a slice of pie if you have any."
Carly told her.
The waitress disappeared in the back to fill her order. A moment later Luke
showed up. He poured himself a glass of water. "Something up?"
Carly shook her head. "I just wanted to see how everything went today at
the hospital. I stopped by only long enough to drop off Stavros's sample."
Luke shrugged. "It went. They took the sample. We left. That was it."
"Okay..." Carly said slowly. It felt like he was hiding something but it
was probably personal so she didn't want to push it. She waited until Luke
had started to drink his water before saying casually, "So I was thinking
about getting Lulu a puppy. Maybe a poodle."
Luke choked on his water. He slammed the glass down, spilling water all
over the counter. He bent over coughing. Carly laughed and mopped up the
spilled water with a handful of paper napkins.
Luke recovered long enough to glare at her, causing Carly to laugh some
more. "Don't you dare. I'm letting you bring one of those shi-shi frou-frou
mutts into my house."
"Aw calm down. I was just joking." Carly handed over the wad of wet napkins
to him. He accepted them with a growl. "Go finish killing off the stove."
"I'm *fixing* it."
"It's that's what you call it." Carly rolled her eyes. "It'd be cheaper in
the long run to get--"
Luke cut her off. "I don't need some so-called professional to come in here
and charge me an arm and a leg just to fix the damn thing. I'll do it
myself."
Carly nodded solemnly. "Right, so the repairman is on speed dial still?"
Luke muttered something under his breath. Carly cupped her hand around her
ear. "What was that? I couldn't quite hear you over the deaththrows of the
stove."
Luke shot her a murderous look before stomping back into the kitchen. Carly
chuckled. It was fun pushing Uncle Luke's buttons.
"You run into all sorts of people in diners." An accented voice drawled
behind her.
Carly glanced over her shoulder. Once she realized who it was she turned
all the way around to face him. There standing in front her, tall and
golden, was Jasper Jacks. She smiled slightly. "Jasper Jacks."
He held up a finger in correction. Carly nodded and amended herself. "I
mean, Jax. What are you doing in Port Charles?"
Jax shrugged. "I've heard some good things about the place. Thought I'd
take a look around. If Cassadine Inc. and ELQ can be based here, it can't
be all that bad, right?"
Carly stared up at him in disbelief. "You came all the way here just to
sight-see?"
"Okay, you got me." Jax placed his hands on the counter, effectively
trapping her between him and counter. He lowered his face to hers until
they were inches apart. "You know how that line goes? Keep your friends
close and your enemies..."
Carly cocked an eyebrow and smiled slightly. "You're not as dumb as I
thought you were."
"And you're not just the pretty face playing with Daddy's company, like I
thought *you* were." Jax said pulling back.
"Oh, I'm that too." Carly smirked.
"No, lady, you're a little more dangerous than that." Jax told her. He slid
his hands into his pockets. "We have a lot to talk about you and I."
"About what?" Carly asked. "You've already removed most of the pretenses.
Let's finish the job. You'll tell me to stay away from your company. I'll
tell you to stay away from mine. Neither of us will respect the other's
wishes and things will continue from there."
Jax threw his head back and laughed, surprising her. "I like you, Carly.
From the moment we first met face to face at that Gala in Manhattan, I knew
there was something about you. Are you free for lunch?"
The waitress returned with Carly's lunch just then. Carly told her, "Put it
on my tab. Thanks." Carly smiled ruefully at Jax. "I'm all ready booked for
lunch."
"Then had dinner with me." Jax urged.
Carly held up her left hand, showing off her engagement ring. "Sorry,
I'm..."
"Wait, wait, wait." Jax shook his head. "I'm just suggesting dinner, I'm
not trying to give my heart or something."
Carly winked. "But that's how it always starts with me and guys."
"I bet it does. Look, it's just a simple dinner. Nothing more. We can even
call it a business thing. We'll discussion strategies to get our companies
to work together and not in competition."
"Hmm." Carly thought it over. Hey, what would it hurt? It was just a
dinner. She was going to stay up in her room and work through dinner since
both Jason and Sonny were busy that night. "Where are you staying?"
"The PC Hotel."
"Good choice." She said. "Meet me in Caroline's at eight."
~*~*~
Stefan drank from his water glass then carefully place it back on the
dining table. He was aware of Barbara watching his every move. Since he'd
returned from the trip, she'd been unable to keep her eyes off of him. Any
other time he would be flattered and aroused by it but this time he knew
what was causing her close scrutiny.
He picked up his fork and contemplated continuing with his dinner. Knowing
that he couldn't go on without first saying something, he laid down his
fork. "I will not break, Barbara."
Instead of playing dumb, Barbara pushed aside her uneaten dinner and folded
her hands on the table. "Can you blame me for being worried?"
Stefan reached across the table and covered her hand with his. He squeezed
it gently. "Not at all. But I made it through."
Just as he picked up his fork and was about to go back to his dinner,
Barbara said softly, "And when you close your eyes?"
"I still see him." Stefan said with quiet anguish.
Barbara immediately went over to him. She leaned over to embrace him. He
wrapped his arms around her waist and buried his face in her stomach. She
rubbed his back in an effort to comfort him. Though she and many others
felt that Stavros was a monster Stefan didn't. He loved the man and mourned
his death. This was a side of himself that he never showed anyone but her
and Carly. Now, she realized, wasn't the time to tell him about her run-ins
with Carly and Helena, like she'd planned earlier.
Slowly his lock on her loosened and she was able to slide down until she
was squatting between his legs. He stared into her eyes. She said
throatily, "Stefan..."
He didn't say a word as she ran her hand up his chest and around the back
of his neck. She massaged it slightly. "Don't let this get to you. That
wasn't Stavros, not in the way that counts. You know that."
He stood up and pulled her up with him. He pushed back a strand of hair
from her face. "Let's go upstairs."
"But Stefan--"
He placed a finger against her lips. "No, let us not discuss this anymore."
~*~*~
"Karen!" Jason exclaimed when he threw open his apartment door to reveal
Karen. He frowned. "What are you doing here?"
"I was in the neighborhood." Karen smiled slyly. Jason tilted his head and
just looked at her. He knew her better than that. She threw her hands up
into the air, "Okay, I have an ulterior motive."
"At least you're admitting it. Come on in." Jason stepped aside to let her
in.
"Is Carly here?" Karen glanced around as she walked in. She'd brought the
pictures with her, all of them, and tonight she was going to drop a bomb on
Jason.
Jason disappeared into his kitchen. He called out to her. "No, our wires
got crossed and she thought I had to be at the hospital tonight. So she
made other plans. Make yourself comfortable out there."
"And you don't mind that?" Karen asked. She shrugged out of her coat and
draped it over the back of the couch. She sat down and waited for Jason.
"Why should I mind?" Jason asked as he returned. He carried two wineglasses
with him. He offered one to Karen, who quickly accepted. "It's just a
dinner with a business associate."
"Are you sure about that?" Karen murmured.
Jason sighed and stood up. "If you're going to start that again you can
just leave. I was hoping that you'd come over to apologize for your
behavior lately."
Karen's mind worked furiously. In Jason's current mood he wouldn't listen
to a word about Carly and Sonny. He probably wouldn't even give her a
chance to show him the pictures. She was going to have to get back on his
good side. Karen put her glass aside and stood up also. She grabbed Jason's
hands and stared earnestly into his eyes.
"Jason, I'm so sorry. It just slipped out. You've been right all along.
This whole thing...it's been about Jagger and me the whole time. I miss him
so much and I guess I was jealous of what you and Carly had. I've been
trying to destroy your happiness because *I* was unhappy." Karen's stomach
turned from what she was saying but it was worth seeing the soft smile on
Jason's face. She finished up with, "I'm really sorry for the way I've been
acting. I came here tonight to see if we could go back to being friends the
way we use to be."
Jason gently cupped the side of her face. Karen leaned into his touch. He
said softly. "Of course, Karen. That's all I've ever wanted."
"Thank you." She smiled at him. She couldn't believe he actually bought
that.
"Would you like to stay for dinner? There's more than enough for two." He
offered.
"That would be great, thanks. And after dinner I'll show you these really
funny pictures I just had developed."
"I didn't know you were interested in photography."
She shrugged. "It's a hobby I just picked up."
"Well, I'd love to see them."
~*~*~
Jax and Carly met by the maitre d' stand. Jax grabbed Carly's hand and
pressed a kiss to it and then, throwing her off balance, he pulled her
towards him and kissed her cheek. He grinned at her, knowing that he'd
probably pissed her off. Carly started to scowl but ended up just laughing.
Tonight might end up being fun after all. Lately with Jason, she was always
worried about letting something slip. And with Sonny, she was always on her
guard because unexpected things happened with him. She slipped her arm
through his and the two of them followed Henri to the Back Room.
Halfway across the room, Carly spotted him. Sonny was seated at a table
with three other men but his attention was solely on her. There was a
strange look in his eye that unnerved Carly. She frowned slightly. What was
wrong with him?
Carly must have stopped because Jax tugged on her arm. "Carly? Something
wrong?"
She shook her head to clear it. "No, I'm...it was nothing."
Jax looked at her once to make sure then escorted her into the Back Room.
Jax held out her chair for her and waited until she was settled in it
before taking his own seat. Carly spread out her arms. "So what do you
think?"
"Of you? Fantastic." Jax grinned.
"No, the hotel, the restaurant." She gestured around the room.
"Oh? This is all yours?" Jax said, feigning surprise. Carly rolled her
eyes. She knew that he already knew about her owning the hotel. That was
why he was staying there in the first place. "Eh, it use a little work."
Carly lifted her eyebrow. "Don't push it." She picked up her menu and
looked it over.
Jax followed suit. "So what's good here? Wait, don't tell me. Everything
is, right? You'd only hire the best chefs. Isn't that right?"
Carly leaned across the table and said in a conspiratorial tone, "That was
cute like five minutes ago. Give it up Jax."
Jax put his menu aside. He said, his tone serious, "I've done research on
you and I think you'd be willing to go into my new project with me."
"Me and you, working together?" Carly asked. "I don't really see the two of
us doing that. What's this new project?"
"ELQ. I want it." Jax said simply. "I've been putting out a few inquires
here and there. I've been in contact with Tracy Quartermaine and she might
be willing to sell me her shares."
Carly quickly shook her head. "Tracy will never sell. They are her only
ties to the family even though they desperately want her out. She'll hold
the shares over her father's head until the day one of them dies. She may
act like she's about to sell them but it's only to toy with Edward's head.
But she won't go through with it."
Jax nodded knowingly. "You've tried, I see."
Carly smiled slyly, "Of course not. I would never do that to my fiancee's
family. And that's why I can't help you."
"But you are in the perfect position. You're about to marry into the
family. No one's going to even think about you doing such a thing." Jax
pointed out.
"You just want me to stay away from your company." Carly shot back.
"Yeah and hey, this could fun. You, me, constant secret meetings to discuss
the 'mission'." Jax grinned.
"As much 'fun' as that might be I'm going to have to pass but thank you for
offering me the opportunity."
"And that's it? No threats to stay away from ELQ? And I suppose right after
this you're going to warn them about me?"
"Why should I? Ned Ashton and Edward Quartermaine are big boys. It's not up
to me to protect them."
"And what Jason?"
"Jason has little to do with ELQ. He'd much rather just be a doctor and
help people. As long as I'm not in on this, this will not destroy our
relationship."
~*~*~
"Sonny?" Carly paused just as she was coming into her hotel room. Sonny was
sitting in a chair facing the door. She closed the door behind her with a
soft click. She slipped out of her shoes and dropped her purse on a small
table by the door. "I didn't know you were going to come up."
"Last minute decision." Sonny murmured.
Carly walked over to him and leaned down to kiss him. He moved his head
slightly so that instead of his lips she grazed his cheek. She frowned down
at him. "What's the matter?"
"Who was that guy with you?" He demanded with a whisper.
Carly straightened up. "Jax?"
"Jax." Sonny repeated.
Carly stared at him for a second then started laughing. "Oh My God, are
you...*jealous*?"
He stared back at her, his eyes cold. "I'm not jealous I just wanted to
know if I had to share you with yet another man. Three at one time,
Caroline? That's kind of hard to juggle even for you."
"Get out." Carly pointed at the door. "Get out, Sonny, and don't come back
until you can get over whatever this *attitude* is. Because I don't know
where the hell you get off calling me a whore."
He shook his head and stood up. "I can't...I can't do this anymore."
"Do what? Stand there and insult me? Get the hell out then, Sonny."
He ran his hands through his hair. "You and I aren't working."
"Wait a second, back up. Why don't you fill me on so I can actually know
what this fight is supposed to be about."
"When I saw you with that Jax guy I wanted to kill him. And you." He said,
looking at her.
"So this *is* about your jealousy?" Carly frowned. "Because really, you
have no reason to be jealous of Jax. Believe me."
"It's not Jax, it's Jason. When I have to see the two of you together it
just...seeing you with Jax just brought it all to the surface for me. You
and I can never been seen out in public."
Carly was confused. "You want to take this public? We can't do that. And
neither of us has ever wanted to know. Sonny, you're confusing me."
"Believe me, I'm just as confused as you are. All I know is that I can't do
this anymore with you. We both know that this thing was going to end soon
so why not now?"
"A few days ago when I pulled this same stunt on you, you fought tooth and
nail to keep up together. So why is it okay for you to end things now?"
Carly demanded to know. "Or was that your 'plan' or something. You wanted
to be the dumper and not the dumpee?"
"That's not what I meant at all."
"Then what do you mean? Because yesterday everything was all good and now
tonight, you see with some other guy and you freak." Carly placed her hands
on her hips and glared at him. "What is this? Do you want me to break
things off with Jason and then what? Share *you* with your wife cause you
already told me that you aren't getting a divorce."
Sonny just held up his hands. "You and I can't be together any more and
that's the way it has to be."
"No, that's way you want things to be. Just go, Sonny. Call me when you
figure what the hell is really going on with you."
Sony walked to the door. He looked over his shoulder. "I mean, Caroline.
This is done."
Carly folded her arms and tapped her foot. "Fine, sure, whatever."
Once the door closed behind him, Carly dropped her nonchalant pose and
paced around her living room. She couldn't believe the way things just
ended. It was over just like that. And with a whimper of all things. It was
too much. She couldn't concentrate on it or she'd go nuts. She needed to
get out of her hotel suite.
She marched into her room and threw open her closet door. She scanned
around until she found exactly what she needed. She pulled out a short
skirt that she hadn't worn in forever and a tiny shirt that she brought on
impulse a few months ago but never wore. She threw them on the bed and
headed for the shower.
After she was dressed and fully made up she tried to figure who she could
hang with. She couldn't go to Jason after breaking things off with her
secret lover. It just didn't feel right. She needed to go out with someone
she really didn't care about nor have an emotional investment with and just
have some fun. Then it hit her. She knew exactly who to go to. She grabbed
a wrap and a purse and quickly left her suite.
She knocked lightly on Jax's door. There was no answer. She slammed the
flat of her hand against the door a few more times. Finally he answered.
"Carly?" He took in her outfit and smiled. "Carly."
"Do you want to go out?"
He blinked twice. "Excuse me?"
"I said, do you want to go out? Now."
~*~*~
"That was a delicious dinner." Karen complimented Jason as they moved from
the dining table and back to the couch. She carried he wineglass with her.
"When did you learn to cook?"
"I didn't. Cook gave me a bunch of frozen dinners that she'd prepared for
me a couple of weeks ago. All I did was pop the lasagna into the oven and
heated it up. I did make the salad though."
"Well, the salad was fantastic." Karen giggled.
Jason studied her closely. "I think you had too much wine tonight." He took
her glass from her and placed it on the floor.
"Like you haven't been matching me glass for glass." Karen smirked.
He laughed and shrugged. "You're probably right about that. I have to admit
this...this has been nice."
"Dinner?"
"You, me, tonight, everything." He explained. "It's been a long since the
two of us could just be together as friends. I use to be able to count you
as one of my good friends and I want to do that again. Do you know what I
mean?"
"Yes, I really do." Karen stared into his eyes.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to get all sentimental on you. Didn't you say
earlier that you had some pictures you wanted to show me?"
"Pictures?" Karen repeated. "Oh! Those pictures. Yes, they're in my purse.
Let me get them."
Karen grabbed her purse. She couldn't believe that she'd almost forgotten
her reason for coming over in the first place. The whole evening had been
so nice. They'd reminisced about old times, laughed over old jokes; they'd
been so comfortable together that Karen didn't want to spoil the mood. The
pictures would definitely change everything.
Karen took a deep breath. She laid the envelope that held the pictures in
her lap. She didn't want to just toss the pictures at him without an
explanation. "Jason, um, remember when I--"
Jason grabbed the envelope from her lap. He tore into them, "Keep going I'm
list--what the hell is this?"
"That's what I was trying to explain. When I told you that Carly was
cheating on you, you didn't believe me because I didn't have proof. Well,
there's your proof." She gestured towards the pictures in his hands.
Jason stared at the pictures with wide-eyes. He whispered harshly, "Did you
do this?"
"Are you implying that I forced them into those poses? No. That was all
them. They didn't even know they were being photographed."
"You were there?" He demanded to know.
"No." She shook her head. "I had someone follow them. A private eye."
"You hired someone to follow them? Why are you doing this to me?" Jason
stood up and threw the pictures to the floor.
"I'm not doing anything to you." Karen grabbed a picture from off the floor
and put it in his face. "*They* are the ones doing this to you. Carly
claims to love you so much and then she turns around and betrays you. I'm
just bringing it to your attention because I can't stand to see someone I
care about be played for a fool."
Jason took the picture from her. "How long have you had these?"
"I just got them yesterday. They were taken the day before that."
"The day before that?" Jason repeated. He thought back. That was the night
Carly said she was tied up in a "business thing". He wondered briefly how
many times Carly's business dinners was really nights spent with this other
guy. He studied the picture, blocking out Carly's naked form. "Who is this
guy? I know him, it's...it's Sonny Corinthos?"
"I told you, I saw them together before."
Jason shot her a cold look. "I don't need your 'I told you sos'."
He was right. It really wasn't the right time for gloating. "I'm sorry. I
didn't mean to."
He sank down onto the couch. He tossed the picture aside and brought his
hands up to cover his eyes. Karen sat next to him and laid her arm across
his shoulders. She whispered softly. "I'm sorry that this had to happen to
you."
"How could she do this to me? To us?"
"Carly doesn't know anything about love. Jason, she didn't really love you
or she wouldn't be with Sonny." Karen took a chance and began pressing soft
kisses across his face. "You're better off without here. You deserve to be
with someone who won't treat you the way she has."
Jason pulled away from her caresses. "Karen, no. Not now."
"Jason, please, let me comfort you." She insisted. She covered his mouth
with a kiss.
Jason responded to it, threading his fingers through her hair, and kissing
her harshly. He broke away breathing hard. "I can't."
"You can't be feeling guilty about Carly. After what she did to you? Forget
her Jason. Just forget about everything." Karen framed his face between her
hands. "She did the same to you without a second thought. Did she look
unhappy in any of those pictures? She wanted to be there, Jason."
Jason removed her hands from his face. "I'm not going to use you as some
sort of revenge against Carly."
"You can't tell me that even after those pictures, you're going to forget
everything and stay with her!"
"I didn't say that." He said. He stood. "I just...I just need to sort
through this all. Think about it, figure out what I'm going to do next."
Karen jumped up. "Don't. Don't think about it. Do what any normal person
would do. React."
"I am reacting." He swore.
"No, you're bottling it all up. Let it out. Just once, Jason. Just let it
all out."
Jason took several deep breaths. "She lied to me over and over. Every time
I asked her point blank if she was happy with me and with our relationship
she swore she was content. If she was so damn happy, why the hell did she
have to turn to Sonny Corinthos?"
"See? That was good, real good." Karen breathed as she pressed closer to
him. "Now let it out again."
Jason stared down at her mouth. He struggled with his conscience. He knew
if he did anything with Karen, he would be using her. But here she was
offering herself to him. Being noble got tiresome after awhile.
Karen whispered. "Let go."
~*~*~
"There is something troubling you." Stefan decided later that night.
Barbara, who was lying across his chest, mumbled, "No there's not."
"I can tell." He insisted. "What happened while I was gone?"
Barbara pushed herself up. She knew that she could no longer hide the truth
from him. "I had a little run in with Carly...and your mother."
"After I expressed my wishes that you stay from them?"
"Oh, don't talk to me like some disobeying child." Barbara snapped. "I
couldn't just like Helena go by without telling her what I thought about
her and what she was doing to you and Carly."
"I understand the effort behind it, but it was unneeded." He said softly.
Barbara trailed her finger across his jaw. "Can I help it if the woman
makes me see red?"
"You must learn to control these impulses." Stefan advised. "And I assume
the confrontation with Carly went just as badly?"
"Actually it wasn't that bad." Barbara admitted. "She defended me to Helena
but then we got into a fight. During it, she revealed something. I'm not
even sure she's aware of what she said."
Stefan watched as a smile crossed her face. "You're not going to use that
against her."
"Not *against* her." She clarified. "To help me get closer *to* her."
~*~*~
Jax insisted on walking Carly to her hotel door. Their night out hadn't
lasted that long. Carly couldn't seem to be able to concentrate and Jax had
to keep fighting for her attention. They had hit only a few clubs before
Jax had called their evening to a halt.
Once they got to her door, Carly turned to Jax with a lopsided smile.
"Thanks for going out with me. I needed to clear my head."
"It was no problem. I got a taste of the Port Charles night life. It was
interesting." He smiled gently. "But you didn't seem to do a good job of
getting your mind off whatever it is that's bothering you." He tenderly
touched her cheek. "What did he do?"
"I don't know what you're talking about." Carly denied.
He fixed her with a knowing look. "It obviously wasn't your fiancé, so who
is he?"
"How did you--" Carly quickly caught herself before she spilled anything.
He tapped her on the nose and grinned. "I can always tell with these
things."
"You have a talent for figuring out when people are involved in secret
affairs?" Carly said doubtfully and raised her eyebrows.
"I kind of figured it out from the way you talked about Jason. There was
something missing."
Carly leaned against her door and folded her arms. She could smell the b.s.
a mile away. "Oh really."
"Okay, okay. I was just about to knock on your door earlier and I heard you
arguing with someone named Sonny."
Carly covered her eyes with her hand. "Oh God."
"Now, don't worry. I didn't make out much other than his name." Jax hurried
to reassure her.
"You know what, I need to go to bed and forget that this whole night
happened." Carly turned and unlocked her door. Jax touched her shoulder,
getting her attention again.
"Look, I'm not the type to go around town spilling your business. I won't
say anything...if you promise to actually keep your hands off of J&J
Jacks." He winked.
"Stooping to blackmail? Talk about desperation."
"Like you wouldn't pull the same stunt on me." Jax pointed out.
Carly thought it over. "Yeah, you're right. Goodnight Jax."
Jax nodded at her and left. Carly closed the door behind her and slipped
out of her shoes. As she walked to her bedroom she shed her clothes. Once
she reached the bed she collapsed onto it, pulling the covers up over her.
Once again the feeling of escape came over her.
"I have got to get out of here." She whispered to herself. She had four
weeks before the DNA tests came back, maybe now was the time for her and
Jason to go away like he wanted.
~*~*~
The next morning Jason woke to see Karen draped across him. He covered his
face with his hands and groaned.
"What did I do?" He whispered. He couldn't blame it on the wine, or the
pictures, or Karen. This was all his fault. He got himself into this mess
and he had to get himself out of it.
He slowly tried to slip out from under Karen without waking her but she
began to stir the second he moved. He lay still and she went back to sleep.
He was still lying there when he heard his front door open and Carly call
out, "Jason? Hey, are you there?"
He closed his eyes. God, don't let her come in here. Please don't let her.
His prayers were ignored because he could hear Carly getting closer.
"Wake up Jason. Pack a bag and call in sick. Let's go to Morocco for the
weekend." Carly said loudly. She twisted the bedroom doorknob. "Jason, are
you up?"
Jason had just thrown Karen off of him, which woke her up. He was about to
jump out of bed and lock the door when Carly opened the door.
"Baby I—What the *hell* is this?"
next morning as he waited his turn. He was seated in the waiting area next
to Helena. Her manservant hovered behind them as always. He cradled a cup
of the offensive liquid in his hands. After the first couple of sips he
learned that it was better for his health to just hold the cup between his
hands and let the warmth seep through.
Suddenly it all hit home. He was in the home stretch. Soon he would know
for sure and then no one could deny him. His foot began to twitch from the
anxiousness. He couldn't wait. It spread upwards until his whole leg was
shaking. Helena placed her hand on his knee, stilling his movement. She
flashed him a smile meant to be comforting but it only served to make him
nervous. To calm himself he took another sip of the coffee, forgetting
about the taste, He grimaced and placed the styrofoam cup on the floor.
"It will be soon." Helena promised him. "Andreas, go see what is taking so
long."
Nikolas watched as Andreas quickly carried out Helena's order. Nikolas
shrugged. "They are probably just backed up or something."
"No, this is deliberate." Helena said.
Nikolas nodded, going along with her rather than wasting time arguing. He
glanced around, looking for anything to take his mind off the wait. That's
when he noticed Luke and Laura coming down the corridor with a redheaded
nurse. He started to rise out of his seat but Helena's hand pulled him back
down.
"No." She hissed.
"Why not?" He challenged her.
"Now is not the time nor the place. Beside do you think Luke will let you
within ten feet of her?" Helena told him. Nikolas knew that she was right
but it didn't stop him from gazing longingly at his mother.
Luke had watched the whole exchange. He murmured. "That's right, keep the
boy on a tight leash."
Barbara glanced at what he was staring at. She absently touched her cheek
and remembered her encounter with Helena the other day. "Must you use the
word leash?"
Luke narrowed his eyes. "Did something go on with you and the queen of the
damned?"
Barbara shook her head. "I don't want to talk about it."
Luke focused all of his attention on her. "Barbara Jean...What aren't you
telling me?"
"Nothing that matters, Luke. It was done and it's over."
"When the results are in, you promise you will call me." Laura interrupted.
She was trying hard to not look in Nikolas's direction. All she wanted to
was run over to her son but in doing so she would end up fighting with
Luke. And she was so tired of the fights.
"As soon as they are in, you'll be the first to know." Barbara promised
with a gentle smile.
Across the room Andreas returned. He bowed in front of Nikolas. "They are
ready for you."
"Finally." Helena huffed, standing up.
"Uh, I can do this alone. I don't need you to hold my hand." Nikolas told
her. "Which way?"
Andreas pointed him in the direction. Nikolas left before Helena could
voice her objections. Seeing that she was alone, Luke knew he couldn't
resist the opportunity.
Luke said to Laura. "Why don't you and Bobbie go down to the cafeteria
without me."
"Why?" Laura asked, instantly suspicious.
"What's going on?" Barbara asked.
"I'll meet you down there. I have to visit the little Lukes's room." He
grinned. He ushered them towards the elevator. "Now don't worry about me.
Go on."
The two women stepped into the elevator, still eyeing Luke with
uncertainty. He reached in and pressed the button for them. "See you in ten
minutes."
He then walked over to where Helena, sat waiting. He sneered at Andreas
then winked at Helena. "It's almost over."
"Yes, finally." She smiled. "The first thing I will make sure that my
grandson carries out is his revenge on you for killing his father."
Luke cocked his head to the side and studied her. "You know, it's amazing
how you can sit there, calmly, even as the guillotine is coming down on
you."
Helena gracefully rose from her chair to stare straight into Luke's eyes.
"Laugh while you still can. I suggest however, that you speak with Stefan.
I'm positive he has quite an interesting story to tell you that he learned
on his trip home. Come Andreas."
Luke watched walk down the hall, away from him. He scratched his chin as he
thought about her parting line. Was there something that Stefan was keeping
from him and Laura?
Meanwhile, Nikolas prowled around the small room they'd placed him in. The
nurse that brought him there said that another nurse would be with him
soon. That was fifteen minutes ago. Just then the door opened and another
nurse came in.
"About time. Are you here to take my sample?"
The nurse glared at him. She snapped. "Get on the table."
Nikolas did as she said, frowning as he went. It obvious that she was in a
bad mood and that Nikolas would bear the brunt of it. "Is uh, is there
something wrong?"
" Yes, there is. And it's you. Roll up a sleeve." She instructed.
"I was told that you did this taking a sample by mouth swab or from a hair
follicle." Nikolas said even as he quickly rolled up one sleeve.
"Sometimes. And sometimes we can draw blood. It was requested that we draw
blood." Amy smirked as she prepared the needle.
Nikolas kept one eye on the needle. "I'm sorry for whatever it is I did.
Though I have no idea what I did to you."
"Oh you know exactly what you did. I'm Laura's sister, Amy Vining." Amy
took a small cotton ball and wiped clean a small area on his arm.
"You're my aunt?" Nikolas stared at her. There was no mention of this woman
in his files.
"Correction, I'm Lucky and Lulu's aunt. I don't know who the hell you are."
Amy then poked the needle into a vein without warning, causing Nikolas to
gasp.
"Look, I know that no one believes me cause I'm with Helena but listen, I'm
really Nikolas Cassadine." He said earnestly.
Amy rolled her eyes. "Whatever. We're done." She pulled the needle out and
turned her back on him as she finished putting the sample away.
Nikolas angrily unrolled his sleeve. "Fine, don't believe me. I don't give
a damn. All I care about are the results of that test."
~*~*~
Carly walked into Kelly's scanning the crowd for her uncle. She'd called
his club and Claude said that Luke had gone over to Kelly's to fix a broken
stove. Instead of just calling she decided to go and grab a lunch from the
family diner. She took a seat at the counter and waved over a waitress who
immediately turned over a cup and filled it with coffee.
Carly accepted it. "Is my uncle still around?"
The waitress jerked her thumb towards the kitchen. "He's still back there."
"And?"
"Looks like Kelly's will be serving a limited menu." She smiled wryly.
"Want me to get him?"
"Yeah, save the kitchen before he blows it up. Oh and pack me up a chinese
chicken salad and ice tea to go. Throw in a slice of pie if you have any."
Carly told her.
The waitress disappeared in the back to fill her order. A moment later Luke
showed up. He poured himself a glass of water. "Something up?"
Carly shook her head. "I just wanted to see how everything went today at
the hospital. I stopped by only long enough to drop off Stavros's sample."
Luke shrugged. "It went. They took the sample. We left. That was it."
"Okay..." Carly said slowly. It felt like he was hiding something but it
was probably personal so she didn't want to push it. She waited until Luke
had started to drink his water before saying casually, "So I was thinking
about getting Lulu a puppy. Maybe a poodle."
Luke choked on his water. He slammed the glass down, spilling water all
over the counter. He bent over coughing. Carly laughed and mopped up the
spilled water with a handful of paper napkins.
Luke recovered long enough to glare at her, causing Carly to laugh some
more. "Don't you dare. I'm letting you bring one of those shi-shi frou-frou
mutts into my house."
"Aw calm down. I was just joking." Carly handed over the wad of wet napkins
to him. He accepted them with a growl. "Go finish killing off the stove."
"I'm *fixing* it."
"It's that's what you call it." Carly rolled her eyes. "It'd be cheaper in
the long run to get--"
Luke cut her off. "I don't need some so-called professional to come in here
and charge me an arm and a leg just to fix the damn thing. I'll do it
myself."
Carly nodded solemnly. "Right, so the repairman is on speed dial still?"
Luke muttered something under his breath. Carly cupped her hand around her
ear. "What was that? I couldn't quite hear you over the deaththrows of the
stove."
Luke shot her a murderous look before stomping back into the kitchen. Carly
chuckled. It was fun pushing Uncle Luke's buttons.
"You run into all sorts of people in diners." An accented voice drawled
behind her.
Carly glanced over her shoulder. Once she realized who it was she turned
all the way around to face him. There standing in front her, tall and
golden, was Jasper Jacks. She smiled slightly. "Jasper Jacks."
He held up a finger in correction. Carly nodded and amended herself. "I
mean, Jax. What are you doing in Port Charles?"
Jax shrugged. "I've heard some good things about the place. Thought I'd
take a look around. If Cassadine Inc. and ELQ can be based here, it can't
be all that bad, right?"
Carly stared up at him in disbelief. "You came all the way here just to
sight-see?"
"Okay, you got me." Jax placed his hands on the counter, effectively
trapping her between him and counter. He lowered his face to hers until
they were inches apart. "You know how that line goes? Keep your friends
close and your enemies..."
Carly cocked an eyebrow and smiled slightly. "You're not as dumb as I
thought you were."
"And you're not just the pretty face playing with Daddy's company, like I
thought *you* were." Jax said pulling back.
"Oh, I'm that too." Carly smirked.
"No, lady, you're a little more dangerous than that." Jax told her. He slid
his hands into his pockets. "We have a lot to talk about you and I."
"About what?" Carly asked. "You've already removed most of the pretenses.
Let's finish the job. You'll tell me to stay away from your company. I'll
tell you to stay away from mine. Neither of us will respect the other's
wishes and things will continue from there."
Jax threw his head back and laughed, surprising her. "I like you, Carly.
From the moment we first met face to face at that Gala in Manhattan, I knew
there was something about you. Are you free for lunch?"
The waitress returned with Carly's lunch just then. Carly told her, "Put it
on my tab. Thanks." Carly smiled ruefully at Jax. "I'm all ready booked for
lunch."
"Then had dinner with me." Jax urged.
Carly held up her left hand, showing off her engagement ring. "Sorry,
I'm..."
"Wait, wait, wait." Jax shook his head. "I'm just suggesting dinner, I'm
not trying to give my heart or something."
Carly winked. "But that's how it always starts with me and guys."
"I bet it does. Look, it's just a simple dinner. Nothing more. We can even
call it a business thing. We'll discussion strategies to get our companies
to work together and not in competition."
"Hmm." Carly thought it over. Hey, what would it hurt? It was just a
dinner. She was going to stay up in her room and work through dinner since
both Jason and Sonny were busy that night. "Where are you staying?"
"The PC Hotel."
"Good choice." She said. "Meet me in Caroline's at eight."
~*~*~
Stefan drank from his water glass then carefully place it back on the
dining table. He was aware of Barbara watching his every move. Since he'd
returned from the trip, she'd been unable to keep her eyes off of him. Any
other time he would be flattered and aroused by it but this time he knew
what was causing her close scrutiny.
He picked up his fork and contemplated continuing with his dinner. Knowing
that he couldn't go on without first saying something, he laid down his
fork. "I will not break, Barbara."
Instead of playing dumb, Barbara pushed aside her uneaten dinner and folded
her hands on the table. "Can you blame me for being worried?"
Stefan reached across the table and covered her hand with his. He squeezed
it gently. "Not at all. But I made it through."
Just as he picked up his fork and was about to go back to his dinner,
Barbara said softly, "And when you close your eyes?"
"I still see him." Stefan said with quiet anguish.
Barbara immediately went over to him. She leaned over to embrace him. He
wrapped his arms around her waist and buried his face in her stomach. She
rubbed his back in an effort to comfort him. Though she and many others
felt that Stavros was a monster Stefan didn't. He loved the man and mourned
his death. This was a side of himself that he never showed anyone but her
and Carly. Now, she realized, wasn't the time to tell him about her run-ins
with Carly and Helena, like she'd planned earlier.
Slowly his lock on her loosened and she was able to slide down until she
was squatting between his legs. He stared into her eyes. She said
throatily, "Stefan..."
He didn't say a word as she ran her hand up his chest and around the back
of his neck. She massaged it slightly. "Don't let this get to you. That
wasn't Stavros, not in the way that counts. You know that."
He stood up and pulled her up with him. He pushed back a strand of hair
from her face. "Let's go upstairs."
"But Stefan--"
He placed a finger against her lips. "No, let us not discuss this anymore."
~*~*~
"Karen!" Jason exclaimed when he threw open his apartment door to reveal
Karen. He frowned. "What are you doing here?"
"I was in the neighborhood." Karen smiled slyly. Jason tilted his head and
just looked at her. He knew her better than that. She threw her hands up
into the air, "Okay, I have an ulterior motive."
"At least you're admitting it. Come on in." Jason stepped aside to let her
in.
"Is Carly here?" Karen glanced around as she walked in. She'd brought the
pictures with her, all of them, and tonight she was going to drop a bomb on
Jason.
Jason disappeared into his kitchen. He called out to her. "No, our wires
got crossed and she thought I had to be at the hospital tonight. So she
made other plans. Make yourself comfortable out there."
"And you don't mind that?" Karen asked. She shrugged out of her coat and
draped it over the back of the couch. She sat down and waited for Jason.
"Why should I mind?" Jason asked as he returned. He carried two wineglasses
with him. He offered one to Karen, who quickly accepted. "It's just a
dinner with a business associate."
"Are you sure about that?" Karen murmured.
Jason sighed and stood up. "If you're going to start that again you can
just leave. I was hoping that you'd come over to apologize for your
behavior lately."
Karen's mind worked furiously. In Jason's current mood he wouldn't listen
to a word about Carly and Sonny. He probably wouldn't even give her a
chance to show him the pictures. She was going to have to get back on his
good side. Karen put her glass aside and stood up also. She grabbed Jason's
hands and stared earnestly into his eyes.
"Jason, I'm so sorry. It just slipped out. You've been right all along.
This whole thing...it's been about Jagger and me the whole time. I miss him
so much and I guess I was jealous of what you and Carly had. I've been
trying to destroy your happiness because *I* was unhappy." Karen's stomach
turned from what she was saying but it was worth seeing the soft smile on
Jason's face. She finished up with, "I'm really sorry for the way I've been
acting. I came here tonight to see if we could go back to being friends the
way we use to be."
Jason gently cupped the side of her face. Karen leaned into his touch. He
said softly. "Of course, Karen. That's all I've ever wanted."
"Thank you." She smiled at him. She couldn't believe he actually bought
that.
"Would you like to stay for dinner? There's more than enough for two." He
offered.
"That would be great, thanks. And after dinner I'll show you these really
funny pictures I just had developed."
"I didn't know you were interested in photography."
She shrugged. "It's a hobby I just picked up."
"Well, I'd love to see them."
~*~*~
Jax and Carly met by the maitre d' stand. Jax grabbed Carly's hand and
pressed a kiss to it and then, throwing her off balance, he pulled her
towards him and kissed her cheek. He grinned at her, knowing that he'd
probably pissed her off. Carly started to scowl but ended up just laughing.
Tonight might end up being fun after all. Lately with Jason, she was always
worried about letting something slip. And with Sonny, she was always on her
guard because unexpected things happened with him. She slipped her arm
through his and the two of them followed Henri to the Back Room.
Halfway across the room, Carly spotted him. Sonny was seated at a table
with three other men but his attention was solely on her. There was a
strange look in his eye that unnerved Carly. She frowned slightly. What was
wrong with him?
Carly must have stopped because Jax tugged on her arm. "Carly? Something
wrong?"
She shook her head to clear it. "No, I'm...it was nothing."
Jax looked at her once to make sure then escorted her into the Back Room.
Jax held out her chair for her and waited until she was settled in it
before taking his own seat. Carly spread out her arms. "So what do you
think?"
"Of you? Fantastic." Jax grinned.
"No, the hotel, the restaurant." She gestured around the room.
"Oh? This is all yours?" Jax said, feigning surprise. Carly rolled her
eyes. She knew that he already knew about her owning the hotel. That was
why he was staying there in the first place. "Eh, it use a little work."
Carly lifted her eyebrow. "Don't push it." She picked up her menu and
looked it over.
Jax followed suit. "So what's good here? Wait, don't tell me. Everything
is, right? You'd only hire the best chefs. Isn't that right?"
Carly leaned across the table and said in a conspiratorial tone, "That was
cute like five minutes ago. Give it up Jax."
Jax put his menu aside. He said, his tone serious, "I've done research on
you and I think you'd be willing to go into my new project with me."
"Me and you, working together?" Carly asked. "I don't really see the two of
us doing that. What's this new project?"
"ELQ. I want it." Jax said simply. "I've been putting out a few inquires
here and there. I've been in contact with Tracy Quartermaine and she might
be willing to sell me her shares."
Carly quickly shook her head. "Tracy will never sell. They are her only
ties to the family even though they desperately want her out. She'll hold
the shares over her father's head until the day one of them dies. She may
act like she's about to sell them but it's only to toy with Edward's head.
But she won't go through with it."
Jax nodded knowingly. "You've tried, I see."
Carly smiled slyly, "Of course not. I would never do that to my fiancee's
family. And that's why I can't help you."
"But you are in the perfect position. You're about to marry into the
family. No one's going to even think about you doing such a thing." Jax
pointed out.
"You just want me to stay away from your company." Carly shot back.
"Yeah and hey, this could fun. You, me, constant secret meetings to discuss
the 'mission'." Jax grinned.
"As much 'fun' as that might be I'm going to have to pass but thank you for
offering me the opportunity."
"And that's it? No threats to stay away from ELQ? And I suppose right after
this you're going to warn them about me?"
"Why should I? Ned Ashton and Edward Quartermaine are big boys. It's not up
to me to protect them."
"And what Jason?"
"Jason has little to do with ELQ. He'd much rather just be a doctor and
help people. As long as I'm not in on this, this will not destroy our
relationship."
~*~*~
"Sonny?" Carly paused just as she was coming into her hotel room. Sonny was
sitting in a chair facing the door. She closed the door behind her with a
soft click. She slipped out of her shoes and dropped her purse on a small
table by the door. "I didn't know you were going to come up."
"Last minute decision." Sonny murmured.
Carly walked over to him and leaned down to kiss him. He moved his head
slightly so that instead of his lips she grazed his cheek. She frowned down
at him. "What's the matter?"
"Who was that guy with you?" He demanded with a whisper.
Carly straightened up. "Jax?"
"Jax." Sonny repeated.
Carly stared at him for a second then started laughing. "Oh My God, are
you...*jealous*?"
He stared back at her, his eyes cold. "I'm not jealous I just wanted to
know if I had to share you with yet another man. Three at one time,
Caroline? That's kind of hard to juggle even for you."
"Get out." Carly pointed at the door. "Get out, Sonny, and don't come back
until you can get over whatever this *attitude* is. Because I don't know
where the hell you get off calling me a whore."
He shook his head and stood up. "I can't...I can't do this anymore."
"Do what? Stand there and insult me? Get the hell out then, Sonny."
He ran his hands through his hair. "You and I aren't working."
"Wait a second, back up. Why don't you fill me on so I can actually know
what this fight is supposed to be about."
"When I saw you with that Jax guy I wanted to kill him. And you." He said,
looking at her.
"So this *is* about your jealousy?" Carly frowned. "Because really, you
have no reason to be jealous of Jax. Believe me."
"It's not Jax, it's Jason. When I have to see the two of you together it
just...seeing you with Jax just brought it all to the surface for me. You
and I can never been seen out in public."
Carly was confused. "You want to take this public? We can't do that. And
neither of us has ever wanted to know. Sonny, you're confusing me."
"Believe me, I'm just as confused as you are. All I know is that I can't do
this anymore with you. We both know that this thing was going to end soon
so why not now?"
"A few days ago when I pulled this same stunt on you, you fought tooth and
nail to keep up together. So why is it okay for you to end things now?"
Carly demanded to know. "Or was that your 'plan' or something. You wanted
to be the dumper and not the dumpee?"
"That's not what I meant at all."
"Then what do you mean? Because yesterday everything was all good and now
tonight, you see with some other guy and you freak." Carly placed her hands
on her hips and glared at him. "What is this? Do you want me to break
things off with Jason and then what? Share *you* with your wife cause you
already told me that you aren't getting a divorce."
Sonny just held up his hands. "You and I can't be together any more and
that's the way it has to be."
"No, that's way you want things to be. Just go, Sonny. Call me when you
figure what the hell is really going on with you."
Sony walked to the door. He looked over his shoulder. "I mean, Caroline.
This is done."
Carly folded her arms and tapped her foot. "Fine, sure, whatever."
Once the door closed behind him, Carly dropped her nonchalant pose and
paced around her living room. She couldn't believe the way things just
ended. It was over just like that. And with a whimper of all things. It was
too much. She couldn't concentrate on it or she'd go nuts. She needed to
get out of her hotel suite.
She marched into her room and threw open her closet door. She scanned
around until she found exactly what she needed. She pulled out a short
skirt that she hadn't worn in forever and a tiny shirt that she brought on
impulse a few months ago but never wore. She threw them on the bed and
headed for the shower.
After she was dressed and fully made up she tried to figure who she could
hang with. She couldn't go to Jason after breaking things off with her
secret lover. It just didn't feel right. She needed to go out with someone
she really didn't care about nor have an emotional investment with and just
have some fun. Then it hit her. She knew exactly who to go to. She grabbed
a wrap and a purse and quickly left her suite.
She knocked lightly on Jax's door. There was no answer. She slammed the
flat of her hand against the door a few more times. Finally he answered.
"Carly?" He took in her outfit and smiled. "Carly."
"Do you want to go out?"
He blinked twice. "Excuse me?"
"I said, do you want to go out? Now."
~*~*~
"That was a delicious dinner." Karen complimented Jason as they moved from
the dining table and back to the couch. She carried he wineglass with her.
"When did you learn to cook?"
"I didn't. Cook gave me a bunch of frozen dinners that she'd prepared for
me a couple of weeks ago. All I did was pop the lasagna into the oven and
heated it up. I did make the salad though."
"Well, the salad was fantastic." Karen giggled.
Jason studied her closely. "I think you had too much wine tonight." He took
her glass from her and placed it on the floor.
"Like you haven't been matching me glass for glass." Karen smirked.
He laughed and shrugged. "You're probably right about that. I have to admit
this...this has been nice."
"Dinner?"
"You, me, tonight, everything." He explained. "It's been a long since the
two of us could just be together as friends. I use to be able to count you
as one of my good friends and I want to do that again. Do you know what I
mean?"
"Yes, I really do." Karen stared into his eyes.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to get all sentimental on you. Didn't you say
earlier that you had some pictures you wanted to show me?"
"Pictures?" Karen repeated. "Oh! Those pictures. Yes, they're in my purse.
Let me get them."
Karen grabbed her purse. She couldn't believe that she'd almost forgotten
her reason for coming over in the first place. The whole evening had been
so nice. They'd reminisced about old times, laughed over old jokes; they'd
been so comfortable together that Karen didn't want to spoil the mood. The
pictures would definitely change everything.
Karen took a deep breath. She laid the envelope that held the pictures in
her lap. She didn't want to just toss the pictures at him without an
explanation. "Jason, um, remember when I--"
Jason grabbed the envelope from her lap. He tore into them, "Keep going I'm
list--what the hell is this?"
"That's what I was trying to explain. When I told you that Carly was
cheating on you, you didn't believe me because I didn't have proof. Well,
there's your proof." She gestured towards the pictures in his hands.
Jason stared at the pictures with wide-eyes. He whispered harshly, "Did you
do this?"
"Are you implying that I forced them into those poses? No. That was all
them. They didn't even know they were being photographed."
"You were there?" He demanded to know.
"No." She shook her head. "I had someone follow them. A private eye."
"You hired someone to follow them? Why are you doing this to me?" Jason
stood up and threw the pictures to the floor.
"I'm not doing anything to you." Karen grabbed a picture from off the floor
and put it in his face. "*They* are the ones doing this to you. Carly
claims to love you so much and then she turns around and betrays you. I'm
just bringing it to your attention because I can't stand to see someone I
care about be played for a fool."
Jason took the picture from her. "How long have you had these?"
"I just got them yesterday. They were taken the day before that."
"The day before that?" Jason repeated. He thought back. That was the night
Carly said she was tied up in a "business thing". He wondered briefly how
many times Carly's business dinners was really nights spent with this other
guy. He studied the picture, blocking out Carly's naked form. "Who is this
guy? I know him, it's...it's Sonny Corinthos?"
"I told you, I saw them together before."
Jason shot her a cold look. "I don't need your 'I told you sos'."
He was right. It really wasn't the right time for gloating. "I'm sorry. I
didn't mean to."
He sank down onto the couch. He tossed the picture aside and brought his
hands up to cover his eyes. Karen sat next to him and laid her arm across
his shoulders. She whispered softly. "I'm sorry that this had to happen to
you."
"How could she do this to me? To us?"
"Carly doesn't know anything about love. Jason, she didn't really love you
or she wouldn't be with Sonny." Karen took a chance and began pressing soft
kisses across his face. "You're better off without here. You deserve to be
with someone who won't treat you the way she has."
Jason pulled away from her caresses. "Karen, no. Not now."
"Jason, please, let me comfort you." She insisted. She covered his mouth
with a kiss.
Jason responded to it, threading his fingers through her hair, and kissing
her harshly. He broke away breathing hard. "I can't."
"You can't be feeling guilty about Carly. After what she did to you? Forget
her Jason. Just forget about everything." Karen framed his face between her
hands. "She did the same to you without a second thought. Did she look
unhappy in any of those pictures? She wanted to be there, Jason."
Jason removed her hands from his face. "I'm not going to use you as some
sort of revenge against Carly."
"You can't tell me that even after those pictures, you're going to forget
everything and stay with her!"
"I didn't say that." He said. He stood. "I just...I just need to sort
through this all. Think about it, figure out what I'm going to do next."
Karen jumped up. "Don't. Don't think about it. Do what any normal person
would do. React."
"I am reacting." He swore.
"No, you're bottling it all up. Let it out. Just once, Jason. Just let it
all out."
Jason took several deep breaths. "She lied to me over and over. Every time
I asked her point blank if she was happy with me and with our relationship
she swore she was content. If she was so damn happy, why the hell did she
have to turn to Sonny Corinthos?"
"See? That was good, real good." Karen breathed as she pressed closer to
him. "Now let it out again."
Jason stared down at her mouth. He struggled with his conscience. He knew
if he did anything with Karen, he would be using her. But here she was
offering herself to him. Being noble got tiresome after awhile.
Karen whispered. "Let go."
~*~*~
"There is something troubling you." Stefan decided later that night.
Barbara, who was lying across his chest, mumbled, "No there's not."
"I can tell." He insisted. "What happened while I was gone?"
Barbara pushed herself up. She knew that she could no longer hide the truth
from him. "I had a little run in with Carly...and your mother."
"After I expressed my wishes that you stay from them?"
"Oh, don't talk to me like some disobeying child." Barbara snapped. "I
couldn't just like Helena go by without telling her what I thought about
her and what she was doing to you and Carly."
"I understand the effort behind it, but it was unneeded." He said softly.
Barbara trailed her finger across his jaw. "Can I help it if the woman
makes me see red?"
"You must learn to control these impulses." Stefan advised. "And I assume
the confrontation with Carly went just as badly?"
"Actually it wasn't that bad." Barbara admitted. "She defended me to Helena
but then we got into a fight. During it, she revealed something. I'm not
even sure she's aware of what she said."
Stefan watched as a smile crossed her face. "You're not going to use that
against her."
"Not *against* her." She clarified. "To help me get closer *to* her."
~*~*~
Jax insisted on walking Carly to her hotel door. Their night out hadn't
lasted that long. Carly couldn't seem to be able to concentrate and Jax had
to keep fighting for her attention. They had hit only a few clubs before
Jax had called their evening to a halt.
Once they got to her door, Carly turned to Jax with a lopsided smile.
"Thanks for going out with me. I needed to clear my head."
"It was no problem. I got a taste of the Port Charles night life. It was
interesting." He smiled gently. "But you didn't seem to do a good job of
getting your mind off whatever it is that's bothering you." He tenderly
touched her cheek. "What did he do?"
"I don't know what you're talking about." Carly denied.
He fixed her with a knowing look. "It obviously wasn't your fiancé, so who
is he?"
"How did you--" Carly quickly caught herself before she spilled anything.
He tapped her on the nose and grinned. "I can always tell with these
things."
"You have a talent for figuring out when people are involved in secret
affairs?" Carly said doubtfully and raised her eyebrows.
"I kind of figured it out from the way you talked about Jason. There was
something missing."
Carly leaned against her door and folded her arms. She could smell the b.s.
a mile away. "Oh really."
"Okay, okay. I was just about to knock on your door earlier and I heard you
arguing with someone named Sonny."
Carly covered her eyes with her hand. "Oh God."
"Now, don't worry. I didn't make out much other than his name." Jax hurried
to reassure her.
"You know what, I need to go to bed and forget that this whole night
happened." Carly turned and unlocked her door. Jax touched her shoulder,
getting her attention again.
"Look, I'm not the type to go around town spilling your business. I won't
say anything...if you promise to actually keep your hands off of J&J
Jacks." He winked.
"Stooping to blackmail? Talk about desperation."
"Like you wouldn't pull the same stunt on me." Jax pointed out.
Carly thought it over. "Yeah, you're right. Goodnight Jax."
Jax nodded at her and left. Carly closed the door behind her and slipped
out of her shoes. As she walked to her bedroom she shed her clothes. Once
she reached the bed she collapsed onto it, pulling the covers up over her.
Once again the feeling of escape came over her.
"I have got to get out of here." She whispered to herself. She had four
weeks before the DNA tests came back, maybe now was the time for her and
Jason to go away like he wanted.
~*~*~
The next morning Jason woke to see Karen draped across him. He covered his
face with his hands and groaned.
"What did I do?" He whispered. He couldn't blame it on the wine, or the
pictures, or Karen. This was all his fault. He got himself into this mess
and he had to get himself out of it.
He slowly tried to slip out from under Karen without waking her but she
began to stir the second he moved. He lay still and she went back to sleep.
He was still lying there when he heard his front door open and Carly call
out, "Jason? Hey, are you there?"
He closed his eyes. God, don't let her come in here. Please don't let her.
His prayers were ignored because he could hear Carly getting closer.
"Wake up Jason. Pack a bag and call in sick. Let's go to Morocco for the
weekend." Carly said loudly. She twisted the bedroom doorknob. "Jason, are
you up?"
Jason had just thrown Karen off of him, which woke her up. He was about to
jump out of bed and lock the door when Carly opened the door.
"Baby I—What the *hell* is this?"