"I admit I was surprised when you called me yesterday." Jax said as he let Courtney into his suite the next day.

She marched in, neatly avoided the hand he'd stretched out to place on her back and guide her in. Jax grinned, not minding the slight at all. She wore her old interviewing suit back from the days when she needed to get a job to help lighten the load while living with her mother. Basic black, below the knee-length skirt, low heeled pumps. She hated it.

"Yeah well, I figured what the hell." Courtney shrugged. Instead of taking a seat on the couch, she stood. "But I want to get a few things clear before I decide to take you up on your offer."

Jax took a seat, letting her maintain her position over him. If she wanted to think she was intimidating him, it was fine with him. "Fire away."

Courtney clasped her hands behind her back. "First, this job is about me, correct?"

"That's what I said the other day." He nodded.

"Because if this is about sticking it Sonny, using me for information in anyway…" Courtney trailed off warningly. "Deal's off. I love my brother, I'm not going to turn against him."

"I wasn't asking you to do anything like that, Courtney." Jax said.

"And if this is about 'rescuing' me then I think you should find some other damsel and save her." Courtney stared down at him.

Jax leaned forward, bracing his forearms on his thighs. He clasped his hands together and looked up at Courtney. "I'll be honest with you. Part of the reason why I wanted you to work for me is because I think you're bright and clever. But another reason is because I want to show you that there is a world outside of Sonny Corinthos."

Courtney made a noise in disgust in the back of her throat and sat down on the opposite side of the couch. "Of course."

"Wait, hear me out first." Jax said. "Look, I've seen what that kind of life does to women. I've seen what's happened to Brenda and Carly. Sonny's first wife was even blown up in front of him."

"So you want to keep me from being blown up?" Courtney arched an eyebrow.

"I want to show you that there is more. For a time there I was coming close to being friends with Carly. She…" He shook his head. "She had a chance and then she went back to Sonny. It took a bullet to her brain to get her to wake up."

"Don't." Courtney held up a finger in warning. "Don't talk about a situation you know nothing about."

"Fine. All I'm saying is I know how his world works. You only trust whom he says to trust, you only play by his rules, and everyone becomes your enemy because they are his. No matter who they are. You become closed off to anything and anyone he doesn't approve of."

"You," Courtney leaned towards him, uncomfortable with the direction this was taking, "are talking out of your ass."

"I'm calling it like I see it." He shrugged. "And I want to give you the option. To see something different. To make your own choices that benefit you and not Sonny."

Courtney studied him. He seemed so sure of himself. He really believed in what he was saying and what he was doing. This white knight thing might actually be more than a game for him. It was who he was. Plus she really could use the job. She came to him because she wanted to do something else for once.

She took a breath and decided to go for it. "What kind of job is it?"

Jax grinned broadly. "You're going to be my assistant."

"Your assistant?" She laughed. This was the big job. Beats being a waitress she supposed.

"Yes." He said, ignoring her laughter. "It'll be good for you. I'll train you myself. It'll be the perfect opportunity for you to learn from me." He smiled again when Courtney tried to hide a smirk and failed. "In a few months or so we'll see what you've learned and place you in a better position from there. Well?"

Courtney shrugged. "When would I start?"

"When do you want?" Jax smiled. "How soon can you let Bobbie know you're leaving?"

"I uh," she ducked her head and blushed, "I already quit this morning."

Jax raised an eyebrow. So she was going to take the job regardless.

Courtney sat up. "Hey, don't give me that look. If this didn't work out I was prepared to look for another job. No matter what I wasn't going back to Kelly's. So when do I start?"

"Monday soon enough for you?" He asked.

"Perfect." She nodded.

"You will not-"

"You can't forbid me from taking a job." Courtney paused in her packing to shoot Sonny a disbelieving look. For goodness sake, she wasn't 13. She was a grown woman. And he was not her father.

"You already have a job. You want more money? I'll give it to you but working for Jax, that little candyboy, is out of the question."

"I like working." Courtney went back to neatly folding her clothes and placing them into her suitcases. "And I'll work for Jax if I want. See this is why I'm moving back to the loft. So we don't have to have these conversations. So you can keep telling me what I can't do if you want but I already made my mind up."

She flashed him a brilliant smile and hoped he would give up, get the hell out of her room, and leave her peace. Which, thank god, he did.

Sonny gave her one final disapproving look then left the room. She could hear him angrily walking away. Courtney let out a breath of relief. For now, it was over. Sonny had been alternating between raging at her giving her the silent treatment all afternoon.

She sank down on her bed and stared at her half-packed suitcases. When she decided to take up Jax's job offer she knew that Sonny would have a hard time dealing with it considering all the history between the two men. But she never expected that his reaction would be so horrible and over the top. He accused her of turning against him. She tried to tell him that the job had nothing to do with him, that she was doing it for herself but he wouldn't listen. Finally she got sick of his attitude and told him she was going to move back to the loft. She'd stomped upstairs and began packing. Sonny followed her, continuing his tirade.

Courtney pushed herself up off the bed and went back to her packing. It was no use dwelling on this. She had her mind made up and so did Sonny. That was that.

"Aunt Courtney?"

Courtney glanced over her shoulder. Michael was leaning against her door with a solemn look on his face. It was a look she was used to seeing on his face for the past couple of weeks. The poor kid didn't understand what was going on around him. He was always asking why wasn't Mommy living with them anymore, why was Daddy mad at Mommy all the time and why was Uncle Jason gone. Courtney tried to answer his questions as best she could but there was really nothing she could say to make him feel better.

"Hey sweetie. Something wrong?" Courtney walked over to him and held out her hand but he shook his head and continued to lean against the door.

"Are you leaving?" He asked.

She nodded. "Yes, that's why I'm packing."

"Are you going to Uncle Jason?"

"I'm just going back to my loft with Rosie. I'm not going to leave town." Courtney reassured him. She ruffled his hair and hoped this would calm his fears.

"Then…" He scrunched up his nose in confusion. "Then why are you leaving? Did you and Daddy have a fight like he did with Mommy? Is he making you leave?"

"No!" Courtney crouched down to his level to look him in the eye. "I got a new job and it's better that I go back home. You guys don't need me here. And frankly, it's getting pretty crowded here, don't you think?"

"But I don't want you to go! Why can't Sam leave? Me and Morgan don't like her and we don't want her here!" Michael pouted.

"Michael, you don't mean that." At the look he gave her, Courtney shrugged. "Okay, you don't like her. But you have to be nice to her. And give her a chance for your daddy's sake, all right? You may end up liking her. Or tolerating her." Courtney added under her breath.

"But why do you have to leave?"

There was just no easy way to do this. "Because I want to." Courtney sighed.

"But everyone keeps leaving." He said sadly.

Courtney rushed to hug him. "Oh sweetie. That's not true. I'm just moving back home, that's all. I'll still visit you guys every chance I get. We'll go to the park, play with Rosie."

"Are you still going to take us to see Mommy?"

"I promised you didn't, I? Next weekend, just like always. Now give me another hug."

Monday morning Courtney arrived early at the local offices of J&J Jacks to be greeted by a sweaty Jax, who'd just finished an early morning run. He directed her to his secretary, Beth, who promised to show her around and help get her settled that day. He left to shower and change and Courtney didn't see him again for the rest of the day. Courtney figured it was not that big of deal and shrugged it off.

Tuesday came and Courtney showed up early again and was again greeted by sweaty jogger Jax. He passed her on to his secretary again, telling her that he had a couple of boring meetings to go to that he didn't need her for and that she should take the time to get to know some of the other employees. Courtney finished up the day wondering what she was even doing there.

On Wednesday Courtney was prepared to do more sitting around, twiddling her thumbs, and getting Jax's secretary coffee. Wow, what a step up from Kelly's, she thought. This was turning to not be the great opportunity she'd hope it would be. Jax kept passing her off to his secretary. And from the attitude coming off Beth for the past couple of days, Courtney had a strong feeling that Beth resented her. She didn't blame the other woman. Who wants to play baby-sitter?

She met Jax in his office. She took a seat in front of his desk, ready for him to give another day of uselessness. Yes, she was learning so much from him. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

"Courtney, morning." He was chugging down a disgusting looking protein drink that made Courtney sick just looking at it.

"Do you jog every morning?" Courtney asked, suddenly curious.

He nodded, slightly surprised at her interest. He wiped down with a towel. "Every morning. Rain, snow, whatever."

"Like a mailman." This time she couldn't stop herself from rolling her eyes.

"You jog?" He ignored her remark.

"No, I prefer other ways to stay in shape."

Jax hesitated and gave her a look, a strange glint in his eyes. Courtney eyed him back waiting for him to say something. He shook his head and laughed under his breath as if he'd just thought of something funny. Then he said, "You should join me some time."

"I'll pass." Courtney crossed her legs. She wondered what he'd been thinking about. "So what am I doing for your secretary today?"

"You'll be with me today." He grinned at the look of shock on her face. "I apologize for neglecting you for the past couple of days."

"So you're ready for me now?" Courtney found herself saying.

He winked. "Oh, I'm more than ready. Just let me grab a shower and we'll begin. We're going to Manhattan today."

"Manhattan?" Courtney repeated.

"Yeah, lots of fun meetings and all that. Beth told you about this yesterday right? Filled you in on the itinerary? Went over everything that's going to happen?" He didn't pause for her to answer. She wanted to say no, Beth hadn't told her anything because Beth pretended she didn't exist unless it was to get her coffee but Jax wasn't waiting for her. He shot off a couple of quick directions. "Have Beth call ahead to the airport and have my jet readied and have a car downstairs in a half-hour waiting for us. Thanks." He disappeared into his private bathroom.

Courtney frowned as she pushed herself up. Thanks to Beth she was even more far behind than she should have been. This was perfect. She was about to storm out to find Beth and demand to know why she was messing with her job.

Before she could Beth stuck her head in. "Mr. Jacks…"

"He's in the shower." Courtney folded her arms and squared her jaw. She studied the older woman, taking in her appearance. Brown hair pulled back to show off her neck. Her skirt was a little on the short side and her shirt clung in the right places.

She was also clearly disappointed to find only Courtney in the office. "Oh. I was just going to remind him about the-"

"Manhattan trip? He knows. He wants you to call ahead about the plane and to have a car ready in a half-hour."

Beth pulled her shoulders back and nodded curtly. "Of course. I suppose you'll be working by my side again today?"

Courtney noticed Beth didn't wait for her answer. She just turned and was almost out the door before Courtney's voice stopped. "No, you're wrong. I'm going with Jax today."

Beth looked over her shoulder, clearly taken aback by the announcement. "Are you?"

"Also I would a copy of the itinerary and anything else I was supposed to have learned this past couple of days you neglected to tell me about." Courtney continued in a icy cold voice. "By the way, I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't try to sabotage my job again."

Beth smoothly arched an eyebrow. "I simply have no idea what you're talking about."

"Look, I don't know what your problem is but let's not do this. You don't like baby-sitting me? Fine. I don't want to be baby-sat either. But Jax hired me to do a job and that's all I want to do. Not play games with you." Courtney stared at her intensely.

Obviously not one to back down easily, Beth folded her arms and stared back at Courtney. "My problem with you is I've done this before. His last girlfriend? He made her a vice president and I had to spend all my valuable time holding her hand and taking care of her. I see this time he decided to start small and just make you an assistant. It doesn't matter to me what your 'job title' is. All I see is another one of his empty-headed girlfriends keeping me from doing my job. Why should I bother to help you settle in here when he'll dump you and fire you in a week?"

There were so many things Courtney wanted to say following those horrible accusations. Mostly she just wanted to smack the smug arrogant look off the secretary's face. She curled her hands into fists and clenched them tight, holding back.

"I could tell you how wrong you are. I could give you a list of all the ways you've made yourself look ridiculous but we don't have time for that. Just know this, I'm not going anywhere. And you still haven't done what our boss wanted. And don't forget the information I need."

Beth smirked at her. "I'm sure you think you'll be here for awhile. Sure."

Courtney couldn't resist calling out for Beth before the woman could escape. Putting her own nasty smirk on Courtney said, "It might be best if we keep this between us? I wouldn't want your job to be in danger."

"Your brother's been by to visit me, did you know that?"

Courtney glanced up at Jax, startled. They were back on the jet after a long day in New York. Courtney got to see Jax work his magic first hand. He used his natural charm on everyone it seemed. She shouldn't have been surprised by it though. However all the running around and charming people in the city had taken it out of them a little so they were both relaxing on the plane ride home. Courtney had curled her legs up under her and was snuggled into the soft chair. Even though it was a short flight she was going to take some time to rest. Her eyes were halfway closed when Jax dropped his bomb.

She frowned. "Why? Oh, not because of me?" At Jax's nod she groaned. "I'm sorry, Jax, he wasn't exactly…happy about the job."

Jax pulled a face. "He made that clear several times."

She narrowed her eyes and sat up straighter, planting her feet back on the floor. "He didn't…he didn't threaten you or anything like that?"

Leaning back in his seat, Jax shrugged. "It's what he always does. Throws off threats, tries to scare and intimidate people. I'm used to it. After all these years I take it for what it is. Just words."

"Don't do that. Don't act like it's nothing. He shouldn't be throwing his weight around over my job of all things."

"He thinks I'm trying to get at him through you. I assured him that I don't use women."

Courtney rolled her eyes.

"Keep doing that and they'll fall out." He admonished with a smile.

"Haven't yet." She retorted lightly. "But seriously, I'll tell him to leave you alone."

"You'd do that?" Jax sat forward, leaning towards her. "For me?"

She frowned, not sure what he meant. "Of course."

"Are you trying to protect me, Courtney? Are you saying you kind of like me?" He teased.

She blushed lightly. "Dream on. All I care about is my job remember? If Sonny kills you then I might have to go back to work at Kelly's."

"Mmm-hmmm." He murmured while giving a long look. Suddenly switching tracks he asked, "Would you care to join me for dinner at the Grille?"

Courtney hesitated and didn't know why. His offer was perfectly innocent. They'd already spent the whole day together, shared a quick lunch and were just now getting along nicely. But still she hesitated.

Jax noticed her hesitation and he shrugging, pushing away the sudden and unexplainable sense of disappointment he felt. "Actually, I think I might have to skip dinner. I think I'll have something sent up from room service."

Courtney nodded, relieved that she didn't have to turn him down. "Yeah, I'm pretty tired too."

They shared a quick smile and Courtney closed her eyes and tried to relax again.