Her arms still wrapped around him, Gia said to Lucky in amazement, "Say that again. How are you even here? I thought I was supposed to be here by myself."
"I always planned on joining you out here. I needed to take care of some things in Port Charles first." Lucky suddenly frowned as he looked around. "Are you just getting here? You should have been here yesterday."
"The plane was delayed. By the time we actually got here it was so late I decided to stay in town for the night." Gia stepped back, propped her hand on her hip, and looked at Lucky. "If you were going to come with me why did you even send me out here by myself?"
"Like I said, I had some things to take care of. I figured it was better that I get you out of town first." Lucky clipped his sunglasses on his shirt collar. He picked up two of Gia's suitcases. "We should get you settled into a room. You probably want a nap. Mom took lots of naps when she was pregnant with Lulu."
He walked out of the living room, leaving Gia to either follow him or stay behind. She hurried after him. Lucky strode down the hallway past several doors before coming to the last one.
"What were you taking care of in Port Charles?" Gia asked out of curiosity.
"I think this would be a good room for you." Lucky said instead, opening the door and showing her the big room. Two huge windows poured sunlight in. There wasn't much furniture but there was a king-sized bed that faced the windows. Gia barely glanced at it.
"Why aren't you answering my question?" Gia asked worriedly.
"You don't like the room?" Lucky asked.
"It's nice." Gia said distractedly. "Did something happen in Port Charles that you don't want to talk about?"
"Nothing happened." Lucky said. He walked into the room and laid her suitcases by the bureau. "I set up a workable situation for the next campaign with my mother and I told her that you needed some time away. She's not asking questions. She knows I'm with you and she won't tell anyone."
"Thank God." Gia muttered. "So whose room was this?"
"My parents." Lucky said. "You should have it."
"No, it's your family's house. You should have it." Gia said.
Lucky shook his head. "I'll bunk down in my old room."
"I want you to take this room." Gia insisted.
They looked at each other and started to laugh. Lucky smiled. "We're being silly."
"Fighting over who gets the big room and neither of us want it." Gia agreed.
"And that's why I want you to have it. It is the big room. It gets the most sun. There's plenty of room for a crib…" Lucky trailed off.
Gia toyed with a braid and stared at the floor. Lucky tilted his head to the side. "Have you thought it yet?"
"I still don't know what I'm going to do." Gia sighed. "I'm trying not to get too attached but just now? I was actually talking to it. I can't get attached if I'm going to give the baby up. It would be so hard to do then."
"Then don't." Lucky said, coming across the room to her. He crouched down in front of her. He took her hands in his. "Don't give the baby away."
"And who said I was ready to be a mother?" Gia said harshly. "All the responsibility? If you haven't noticed Lucky, I can be pretty selfish. Who knows if I can actually put a child a first."
Lucky stroked her arm. He said softly. "Hey. You're not making sense. You don't have to have this baby and give it up in secret. If Stefan tries to come after this baby I'll help you fight him."
"I think I should take that nap." Gia looked away. She was hoping to not have this conversation so soon. She wanted to wait a while before making her final decision about the baby.
"Gia…" Lucky said.
"So you said I could have this room right?" Gia said, hoping he would get the hint and drop the subject. "I think I'll wait until after I nap to unpack. I am kinda tired."
Lucky sighed and dropped his hands. He looked down at the floor for a moment. He looked back up at her but she stared over his shoulder at the windows. Lucky stood slowly and said, "Fine. While you sleep I'll toss together some lunch. I'll wake you when it's done. I broke some supplies with me and we can head down the grocery store later if there is anything you really crave."
"You don't have to wait on me hand and foot, Lucky." Gia said.
"I'm not." He smirked. "Lunch is on me, dinner is your turn."
~*~*~
Laura glanced up at him. "Is this a habit now? You just barge in here without a simple hello, demanding I answer your questions about Gia? You are talking about Gia aren't you?"
Nikolas pressed his lips together. He didn't have time for this. He'd been trying to reach Gia for weeks. The afternoon after their meeting on the docks he'd gone to her hotel room just like he promised he would. He'd been filled with the hope that maybe this time they would be able to make their way back to each other. That maybe she'd finally forgiven him.
Only when he got to her hotel room, she wasn't there. He'd gone down to the front desk hoping that maybe she'd stepped out and left him a note. He couldn't believe it when the desk clerk told she checked out early that morning. He made the man repeat himself twice before he allowed it sink in. Deep inside Nikolas knew that something was wrong.
He immediately sought out her brother hoping that maybe she decided to stay with him. But Taggert had been closemouthed, only telling him that Gia wasn't with him and if she wasn't staying at the hotel then he had no idea where she was. That didn't stop Taggert from "advising" Nikolas to stay far away from his little sister and to keep his nutty family away from her too. He didn't let that stop him from searching her out at all her regular Port Charles haunts and any other place he could think she might go. He even went to Carly Corinthos's house on the hope that maybe she might be there even if it didn't make any sense. But she wasn't there. She wasn't anywhere.
Nikolas forced himself to calm down and take a seat on Laura's couch. Snapping at Laura wasn't going to get him the information he needed. He said slowly and carefully, "If you know where Gia is, please tell me. I'm worried."
Laura glanced down at her desk to avoiding looking at Nikolas. She said hesitantly, "Why would I know where Gia is?"
"Because she wouldn't just skip out on Deception without telling you." Nikolas said, leaning his head back and closing his eyes.
"Well, where she is, I'm sure she's safe."
Nikolas suddenly sat up and stared at Laura. "You know where she is."
"W-What?" Laura stammered and stared back.
Nikolas rose from the couch, staring at her accusingly. "You know where she is. You let me run around for weeks trying to find her and this whole time you knew."
Knowing she was caught, Laura sighed and shook her head. "I honestly don't know where Gia is but I do know that she's safe. She needed some time away."
Nikolas stopped and frowned. "Because of me? I pushed her too many times."
"No, it wasn't you. She has…she has a lot of things going on right now." Laura herself wasn't sure but Lucky had hinted that Gia's reasons for leaving were many.
"You say you don't know where Gia is—"
"I really don't." Laura interjected.
"Is she with Lucky?" Nikolas asked.
Laura blinked. "Why would you think that?"
Nikolas flexed his hands in frustrations. "I—I don't have time for these games, Laura. Seriously. The two of them disappear at the same time? And I'm not supposed to notice anything's weird."
"If Lucky's with Gia, which I'm saying he is, then she'll be safe. And isn't that what you're most worried about? Her safety?"
"Just because she's with Lucky doesn't mean she's safe."
"You're being paranoid and jealous for no reason." Laura pointed out. "Gia will be back soon. I'm sure of it."
Nikolas just shook his head. "If you hear from either of them, let me know."
~*~*~
"Oh Lucky, what is all this, hmm?" Gia called out in a highly amused tone.
Lucky paused in the act of tasting the chili Gia had bubbling on the stove. He'd been pleasantly surprised to find out that Gia could cook. However it turned out her cooking talents didn't extend much further than chili and a good grilled cheese sandwich.
Lucky called back. "What is all what?"
"I don't know…bunch of boxes, wrapped up in pretty paper, hidden in the back of this closet…"
Gia barely got to the end of the sentence before Lucky dropped the spoon on the stove with a clatter and went running down the hall to where Gia stood staring in the closet.
"What are you doing back here?" Lucky demanded.
"I was just—hey!" Gia propped her hands on her hips and glared at him. "Don't get all pissy with me just cause I busted your hiding spot. So…what'd you get me?"
Lucky eased around her to quickly shut the door. He leaned against it further block her access. "Those aren't for you."
"Then who are they for?" Gia waited for him to come up with a plausible excuse.
"They are for," Lucky flashed a quick grin, "the baby."
"The baby?" Gia raised an eyebrow. "So you hid all these gifts so that the baby wouldn't find them?"
"Yeah, those babies are nosy little devils, you know. I think the chili's ready. Let's go eat." Lucky placed his hand on the small of her back and gently steered her towards the kitchen.
Once in the kitchen, Gia grabbed a potholder and pulled fresh baked cornbread from out of the oven. She moved it over to the counter then grabbed a knife and two bread plates. She sliced up two generous portions for them. She blamed her more than healthy appetite on the baby's cravings and Lucky well, Lucky just liked to eat a lot. She carried the plates over to the table and took a seat.
"The same baby who won't be here until next spring?" She laughed.
"Yup." Lucky grinned. He ladled up two bowls of chili and placed them on the table. "Milk?"
Gia nodded. Lucky poured two large glasses of milk for them and without asking he plopped two ice cubes in Gia's. He brought the glasses over with him and passed Gia hers.
She took a long drink before saying, "Lucky, if you got those gifts out of guilt really you shouldn't have. It's perfectly understandable that you'd want to spend the holidays back in Port Charles."
Lucky was just about to take a bite of cornbread. He put it back down and looked at Gia seriously. "I told you. I'm spending Christmas and New Year's with you."
"You should be with your family." Gia said.
"I'm not going to leave you out here alone. Do you know how depressing it is to spend the holidays alone?"
"You stayed with me for Thanksgiving when you should have gone home. I don't want you to miss out on anything because of me." Gia said stubbornly.
"I'm not." Lucky said honestly. "Mom will understand and give my excuses to everyone."
Gia looked at him. "If you're sure…"
"I'm positive."
"What about Lulu?" Gia tried one more time.
"I'm going to send her something really nice, it'll soften the blow." Lucky smiled. "Hey, if you have any gifts you want to send to your mother and brother give them to me and I'll send them out for you."
"Lucky…"
"No matter what you say, I'm still going to be here." Lucky warned her.
Gia glanced down at her bowl for a moment. She knew she'd be lying if she said she wasn't happy that he was staying. He was right. Holidays alone were hell. And she'd gotten used to having Lucky around. She finally said, "Fine."
Lucky grinned at her then went back to eating. They ate quietly for a while before Gia remembered something she wanted to tell him.
"One of the neighbors came over today. Her name's Joanne. Kinda nice I guess. She recognized me but didn't make a big deal of it. Nosy. The first question out of her mouth was when was I due?" Gia said aghast.
""What's wrong with that?" Lucky asked.
"It's just weird for people around here to know that I'm pregnant."
"Well, it's not something you can keep secret." Lucky laughed. "You're going to get bigger."
Gia made a face. "I brought a book. It told me all about it. I'm going to have swollen ankles! And I'm going to have to buy all those ugly maternity clothes. And the worst part about it is, how did Joanne know I was pregnant?"
"You didn't tell her?"
"No, she just looked at me and she knew. I haven't gotten that big yet, have I?"
Lucky hesitated. He wasn't sure just how to answer this question. It was a trap. He knew that much. But the truth was, at four months along Gia did have a noticeable bump to her stomach. Luckily for him he was spared answering that question because Gia kept barreling along.
"Joanne also thinks you're my husband, someone I married in secret, which I thought was hilarious."
"What?" Lucky laughed.
"She said she's seen you a few times. I tell you, she's really nosy that woman. Anyway, don't worry, I corrected her."
"You said she recognized you?" Lucky asked.
"Yeah, but like I said, she's not making a big deal or anything. She figured with the pregnancy I was looking for some down time."
Lucky chewed on this for a little while, then asked, "Did this Joanne have anything useful to say?"
"She told me her husband's an OB/GYN doctor at the hospital here and that they have one of those Lamaze classes that she teaches. Somehow during the course of our talk she managed to get me to agree to see him and to sign up for the class. What yourself around her or she'll have you spilling your whole life story."
"Good, I've been meaning to suggest you see a doctor here. And a Lamaze class? When do we start?"
"Lucky, you don't have to be my coach." Gia said.
Lucky shook his head. "How many times do I have to say this before you get it? Gia, I'm here for the long haul. I want to be with you through every step of this pregnancy. I'm not going to let you go through this alone."
Gia scowled. "I hate when you pull that Sensitive Man crap on me."
"What? Are you saying I'm not?" Lucky winked.
"Let's see how long you pretend when I start complaining of back problems and swollen ankles and all the crappy stuff I read that comes along with being pregnant." Gia threatened.
"What ever you dish out, I can take it." Lucky tossed right back.
"Are you sure you're ready for me?" Gia smirked.
~*~*~
"Yet another holiday and here you are with me." Gia sighed from her position lying on her back on the couch with her feet propped up a pillow. Another pillow rested under her head. An impossibly thick book that she was determined to finish some day soon lay within arm's reach but she ignored it in favor of cheesy daytime television. She yawned widely.
"What?" Lucky mumbled from the armchair he was curled up in, studying the latest contact sheets he'd developed in the basement he'd converted into a makeshift darkroom.
"I was talking about how pathetic we are." Gia said. "Well, you anyway. I've sworn off all men. But you, your girlfriend's off in another country and you're stuck spending Valentine's Day with a knocked up model."
"First off, Elizabeth's well, we're really call her my girlfriend anymore." Lucky said.
Gia raised an eyebrow. "It's over over?"
Lucky shrugged. "Basically. The last time I was home I got some letters from her. She sounds happier, she's probably better off without me."
"Lucky…" Gia said.
"Don't start with the pity, please." Lucky said. "It's understandable, really. And I'm happy that she's happy. Port Charles never really was the place for her."
"Okay…" Gia murmured.
Lucky tossed the contact sheets on the coffee table and slid out the armchair. He kneeled down next to the couch and tugged on one of Gia's braids. "And who says I'm stuck with you. Maybe I like being here with you."
"On a romantic day like this? You should be with someone you really care about." Gia sighed.
"Hello, I care about you, you know." Lucky said exasperated. Then he got a knowing look on his face and nodded. "You're missing Nikolas even you've 'sworn off all men'."
Gia nodded guiltily. "Just remembering our one and Valentine's together. He was really sweet. He got me this portfolio for my modeling pictures. God, I'm starting to irritate myself!"
"Why?"
"Because I told myself I wasn't going to think about him and all day long he's been popping into my head." Gia grumbled.
"Well maybe you need something else to focus on?" Lucky suggested. "You want to see the contact sheets?"
He reached back and grabbed them off the coffee table. He passed them to Gia while he picked up the remote and clicked off the television.
"I was watching that." She protested halfheartedly.
"You were rotting your brain more like it." He said. "Look at the pictures, you came out beautifully."
"You always say that." Gia scoffed. She tenderly touched her extended stomach. "And at a time like this my ego thanks you."
"No, I'm serious. Look." He urged her on.
Gia studied the pictures closely. When Lucky had explained that he was going to make sure that he wouldn't get her pregnancy in any of the shots she'd been doubtful. But it looked like Lucky had been successful after all. They'd gone out a field behind the house, Lucky felt the various rocks and boulders would be good covering for her belly and would just plain old look good in the pictures. Toss in a few clever angles and no one could tell that she was pregnant at all.
"That one's my favorite." Lucky pointed it out. "You're practically glowing."
It was one they'd taken during a goof off period. Gia was clad in a pair of black shorts and a white men's dress shirt with only a few buttons in the middle buttoned. A wild wind had kicked up and her braids were flying behind her and the shirt revealed her pregnant belly. She was laughing at the camera over some silly comment Lucky had made.
"Yeah, that's my favorite." He breathed. She turned her head towards his and wrinkled her nose. "Really? You don't think I look too…"
"Too what?" Lucky took the contact sheet from her to study the picture.
"Very very pregnant." Gia said. "Is it just me or did I just blow up one day without me noticing it?"
Lucky furrowed his brow and pretended to think it over. "You may be right. I swear you went to bed one night thin as a rail and woke up looking like that. Or maybe it's all the ice cream you keep scarfing down?"
Gia swatted at him. "Quiet you. It's not me who wants all the ice cream, it's the baby. And the Joanne's husband says it's okay to give into my cravings every now and then."
"Every now and then." Lucky repeated. "Not go hog wild."
"Thank you, Dr. Lucky." Gia rolled her eyes. Her eyes suddenly widened. "Hello!"
"What is it?" Lucky asked, immediately concerned.
"Baby did a little high kick just now." Gia said rubbing the spot where the baby'd kicked her. Lucky moved her hand aside and took over the rubbing duties.
He grinned. "High kick? Told you it was a girl."
"It could be a boy and he's one of the field kickers or whatever it is you call them." Gia grumbled. "Whatever sex, Baby's got a wicked foot."
"You know we need to start calling her something other than Baby." Lucky said. "Have you looked at any of those baby name books I got you?"
Gia shook her head. "I told you, if I put the baby up for adoption I'd rather the new parents name him."
"And if you don't you should have a name in mind." Lucky insisted.
"I'm not getting in this with you again." Gia said. "And I am calling some adoption agencies tomorrow."
"You should wait until after the baby's born. You could end up changing your mind." Lucky cautioned.
"And if I don't?" Gia said around a yawn. "Sorry about that. It'll be too late then."
"And would that be so bad?" Lucky quirked his eyebrow.
"Lucky, I thought you weren't going to push me into a decision?"
"I'm not, it's totally up to you but I just want you to consider all your options." He said. He took the other contact sheets from her and placed them back on the coffee table. "You look tired."
"I am, I could actually use a nap." Gia said. She'd gotten use to taken naps more and more.
Lucky grabbed a caftan that'd been thrown over the back of the couch and spread it over her. He crouched back down until he was eye level with her. "Do you want a pillow for your back?"
"No, I'm good."
He pushed a braid back and touched her cheek. "I'll wake you for Lamaze class. Wouldn't want to be late."
Gia closed her eyes and murmured softly. "Like we would get in trouble. Joanne's got a crush on you."
"Well, I do have that affect on women." Lucky grinned.
Gia opened her eyes. "Not on me, you don't"
"Are you sure? It sometimes sneaks up on you."
Gia laughed and closed her eyes again. "Go away so I can sleep."
Lucky brushed his lips across her forehead before grabbing the contact sheets and taking his seat in the armchair. The sheets lay forgotten in his lap for a long time as he watched Gia sleep.
~*~*~
"Lucky! Where have you been?" Emily eased off the couch, picked up her cane and made her way to Lucky. He met her halfway so she wouldn't have to walk all the way across the room to him.
When he'd dropped off some pictures at his mother's house she'd told him that Emily was back in Port Charles. So his first stop after spending time with Lulu was the Quartermaine mansion.
"I've been around." Lucky said as he hugged her. He nodded at Zander who sat on the couch watching them closely.
"No, you haven't. I heard you haven't been in town for months. You pop in for a week or two and then you disappear again." Emily said, swatting his shoulder. "I got back home two weeks ago and the first person I wanted to see, after Zander of course, wasn't even here. What are you up to?"
Lucky smiled at her pouting. "I'm on a top secret mission."
Emily raised an eyebrow and said. "Word is, you ran off with Gia. Is that true?"
"'Word is'?" Lucky repeated. "What, you're listening to the PC grapevine now? Who told you that?"
"So, it's not true?" Emily asked.
"Who told you that?" Lucky repeated.
"Nikolas." Emily told him. "He said a lot of other things too but I won't repeat them."
Lucky closed his eyes and shook his head. Of course, Nikolas. His mother had warned him that Nikolas was behaving irrational concerning him and Gia. So far in all his trips home he managed to avoid seeing Nikolas so he hadn't seen for himself how irrational he was acting.
"Nikolas is blowing things out of proportion, that's all. He's just upset because Gia doesn't want anything to do with him right now."
"It's true?" Emily said, her eyes going wide. "Lucky, what are you thinking? What about Elizabeth? Why would you let Gia of all people come between you and your brother."
"There are a lot of things going on here, Em, that you don't know about." Lucky said.
"So why don't you tell me what's going on."
"It's classified information." Lucky touched his finger to the tip of her nose and smiled. Emily frowned back. "Forget all that, look at you! You're walking again."
"Barely." Emily scowled at her cane.
"You're still up and walking on your own two feet." Zander said from the couch. "And I'm proud of you for that."
"So am I." Lucky smiled gently. "Here, let's get you back to the couch."
"Yeah, you've been on your feet for too long." Zander hopped up to help Lucky escort her back to the couch.
"Guys," Emily laughed helplessly, "I'm not an invalid. Well, not anymore. And Lucky, it's not going to work. I want to know the deal with you and Gia. Did you really run off with her and have her hidden away so that Nikolas can't see her? And why?"
Lucky looked at her. She had her determined face on. He knew she would be like a dog with a bone until he told her something that satisfied her curiosity. "Listen, I would tell you everything if I could but it's not my secret to tell. Gia had to leave town; I went with her, end of story. She needed some time away from Nikolas because of the whole lying to her thing."
"A few weeks I can understand but Nikolas said she's been gone for months!" Emily exclaimed.
"She needed a lot of time?" Lucky suggested weakly.
Emily tilted her head to one side and looked at him dubiously. She asked, "Are you mad at Nikolas or something? Is that why you won't let him see Gia?"
"No, I'm not mad at Nikolas. And I'm not keeping Gia away from anyone. She just doesn't want to see him and I'm respecting her wishes." Lucky said. "Emily, really, don't push this. You'll find out everything…later. When Gia's ready."
"When Gia's ready?" Emily repeated. "What in the world is going on between you two? I feel like I've missed a lot."
"Gia's my friend and I'm helping her out and that's all you need to know." Lucky told her. "Is there anything else you would like to ask me…that doesn't involve Gia or Nikolas?"
"You still didn't answer me about Elizabeth." Emily reminded him.
Lucky smiled ruefully. "There's not much to say about Elizabeth. She's uh, met someone. A doctor in Bosnia."
Emily's jaw dropped open slightly. "What? Elizabeth and a doctor?"
"He's young, if you're worried about that." Lucky said evenly.
Emily gaped at him. "How can you be so calm about this? I knew you guys were taking some time apart but this ridiculous. Her with some guy in Bosnia, you with Gia, god only knows where…"
"Let me remind you, Gia and I are only friends." Lucky pointed out. He then shrugged. "I'm calm because Elizabeth and I were over long ago. Getting her letter today just sealed it."
Zander coughed to cover his laughter. "She sent you a 'Dear Lucky' letter?"
Emily jabbed him in the ribs with her elbow. This time he coughed for real. She muttered. "It's not funny."
Lucky shot Zander a cool look but didn't reply to him. He checked his watch. "I should get going. I've got a ton of things to do before I leave." He stood up.
Emily's face fell. "But you just got here. When are you leaving Port Charles again?"
"Maybe tomorrow." Lucky answered. He didn't want to stay away from Gia for too long. It was too close to her time for her to be alone.
"So soon? I want to catch up with you."
"I'll be back again." Lucky promised. "We'll have all the time to catch up then." He nodded at Zander. "Watch out for her."
"Always do." Zander said.
~*~*~
Lucky was just about to take a sip of his coffee. He paused long enough to glance at Nikolas. He took a long drink then said, "Nikolas."
"Where is she?" Nikolas gritted out.
Lucky glanced around him curiously, "Who?"
Nikolas glared at him. "It's time to end these games, Lucky. I've been 'punished' long enough. It's time for Gia to come home and if she won't then I'll go to her. Where's Gia?"
"You're not being punished, Nikolas. Sorry but not everything's about you."
"Then why don't you tell me what's going on?" Nikolas growled. "You're supposed to be my brother but look at this, you're keeping the woman that I love away from me."
"You don't get it." Lucky said. "This isn't me doing it. This is Gia's decision. She doesn't want to see you until she decides it's right for her. Not you."
Nikolas shook his head. He knew there was some validity to what Lucky was saying but after several months of building Lucky up to be the villain he wasn't about to let go of his conviction. "No, I don't believe it. She wants to be with me. That night we ran into you she wanted me to come to her the next day. Only I shouldn't have let her go with you because you talked her into running from me."
Lucky stared at him with wide eyes. "Listen to yourself. Now I'm the bad guy in all this? You need to get yourself together, man. You're losing it."
"I'm fine." Nikolas stared back, his gaze intense. "Just remember that you can't keep Gia away from me forever. I will find her."
Lucky watched with a worried gaze as Nikolas turned and stalked away. He muttered bluntly, "Shit."
~*~*~
Stefan removed his glasses and simply raised one eyebrow. Nikolas took a breath. He expelled it slowly before saying. "I think it's time to do things your way."
Stefan didn't answer. Nikolas moved further into the study. He stopped behind the chair facing Stefan's desk. He gripped the back of it tightly. "I'm tired of waiting for her to come back."
Stefan nodded. Nikolas continued. "And I'm tired of waiting for Lucky and Laura to finally let me in on the big secret. I want to know where she is and I want to know now."
"I want you to have someone follow Lucky the next time he leaves Port Charles." Nikolas finally said.
"He is a Spencer." Stefan finally spoke. "He'll cover his tracks well."
"Not good enough to hide from me." Nikolas said with grim determination. "Why am I not even surprised that you've already had him followed."
"I want Miss Campbell found as much as you do, Nikolas, maybe more." Stefan said simply. "Since her leaving Port Charles, no even before that, after the…Stavros incident your emotions about her have been out of control to say the least. This obsession with her is unhealthy. Perhaps her return will help you overcome it."
Nikolas narrowed his eyes. "What are you talking about? I'm not obsessed with Gia. I love her, Uncle. Understand that for one moment. I want Gia back so that we can fix things, so that I can marry her. Not because I'm looking for a way to get over her."
Nikolas released his hold on the chair angrily and it rocked back and forth. He took a few steps back. "I am not obsessed. I miss her. There has never been anyone like her in my life and there never will be. This isn't some obsession or some fickle puppy love that'll go away as soon as she comes back. This is for life. I need her here with me. And I'm not going to let anyone keep her from me, not even you. When Lucky leaves this time have someone follow him and make sure they actually find out where he has Gia stashed."
~*~*~
"Oh God, Gia, I'm so sorry." Lucky said from the doorway of the hospital room.
Gia looked up from the nursing baby and smiled at him, "What are you sorry for?"
"I wasn't here for you, for this. I was going to be here two days ago but I got delayed." Lucky said as he moved further into the room and over to her side. He'd waited until Gia had finished nursing and covered herself up. "I was supposed to be your coach. Instead you had to go through this alone."
"It was pretty scary," Gia admitted, "And I would have liked to have someone here to hold my hand but as you can see, I got through it. How did you know I was here?"
"The fact that no one was home and there was a note saying, 'Gone to the hospital. Baby's coming', kind of clued me in." Lucky smirked.
Gia shook her head. "That was Joanne. I didn't even think about leaving a note."
"Yeah, well, you had other things on your mind." Lucky trailed a finger down her cheek. "So…"
"It's a girl." Gia said softly. She pushed back the baby's blanket so that he could see her.
Lucky gazed down at the dozing baby, with her coffee with cream colored skin and dark chestnut curls. He murmured, "She's beautiful."
"Yeah, I think so." Gia said, her voice bursting with obvious pride.
"And…" Lucky lifted his eyebrows and silently asked the question she known was coming.
"I," Gia took a breath, "I'm keeping her."
"I knew it." Lucky said arrogantly.
"Oh please, you knew nothing." Gia scoffed.
"I knew it was a girl and I knew as soon as you saw her, you'd never let her go. Why'd you think I wouldn't let you talk to any adoption agencies?" Lucky said, clearly satisfied with his cleverness. "Now we're going to have to think of some names."
"I already decided on one." Gia admitted guiltily. "Caterina, Caterina Campbell. It means pure. Because she is."
Lucky looked at her questioningly. "You didn't just think of that did you?"
"Ok, ok, all those times I wouldn't talk to you about names? I was thinking of some. I brought books. I just hide them from you." Gia rolled her eyes.
"Obviously." Lucky murmured. "Can I?"
Gia looked down at the baby for a moment before looking back at Lucky. At her hesitation, Lucky raised his hands. "Hey, it's okay if…"
"No, no, it's not that." Gia said. "I just got this strange rush of over protectiveness. She is my baby, you know. Here, just…just be careful."
She started to pass the baby to Lucky, cautioning him as she did. "And don't forget to support her head. The baby books said they need to have their head supported."
"I know, I remember." Lucky told her as he cradled the baby in his arms. "Scoot over that way."
Gia moved over in her bed to give him enough room to sit down next to her. He smiled, "Is that better? You can watch my every move."
"It's silly of me to be so worried, isn't it?" Gia wondered.
"No, it's good. It's expected." Lucky murmured. He stared transfixed as Caterina yawned widely and blinked her big chocolate brown eyes. He whispered. "God, she's beautiful."
"You said that already." Gia pointed out with a grin.
"I know. I shouldn't be so surprised. Look at her mother." Lucky grinned back.
Gia laughed softly. She leaned her head against his shoulder and slid an arm around his waist. Lucky pressed a soft kiss to the top of her head and she sighed.
"What's wrong?" Lucky asked softly.
"Now that the baby's here, I guess I should return to Port Charles." Gia murmured.
"We don't have to go back so soon." Lucky told her. "We can wait a few months if you'd like."
"I would love that." Gia said. "Rushing back there means I have to face them all. My family, the Cassadines, Nikolas. I just want to stay here and enjoy her quietly for a little while."
"Then we'll stay." Lucky promised. "And we won't go until you think it's time."
"Good." Gia said relieved.
Lucky was quiet for a moment. He then began to carefully say, "Gia…before we go back to Port Charles, would you like to go to Ireland? My parents used to have a pub there."
"Ireland?" Gia laughed. She raised her head slightly to look at him. "Where'd you get that from?"
"It was just a suggestion." Lucky quickly said.
"Well, I want to stay in Texas for a little while longer. I kind of like it here." Gia smiled before resting her head back on his shoulder.
Lucky nodded and tightened his hold on Caterina. It looked like he was going to have to wait a few weeks before telling Gia why he was two days late getting back to her. Now wasn't the time to tell her that he'd had to change his travel plans and come a different route because he was sure someone was following him. And after his run in with Nikolas, he wasn't so positive that the best thing for Gia would be to see Nikolas again until Lucky could get him under control. That wild look in Nikolas's eye had scared Lucky. Just how far gone was Nikolas?