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The Ripple Effect
Chapter 2
~Docks~
"Hello to you too Jason." Sonny said with a smile.
Jason shook his head and smiled. "Sorry. Hi Sonny, Johnny." He stuck out his hand.
Sonny took it in relief, he hadn't seen Jason since January. They had spoken several times in the last several months, but that was all business. The last real personal thing they had discussed was the information on the arsonist that Jason had found. Information that he'd used to get Michael and Carly away from the Quartermaines.
He watched Jason shake hands with Johnny but blocked their conversation. It was true that Jason had said he had forgiven him for betraying him with Carly, before he'd left town, but Sonny was still worried. He knew he had damaged the trust in their relationship severely not to mention hurt Jason in the process. He still felt tremendously guilty over the whole situation, even with Jason's forgiveness.
Sonny sighed heavily, he knew that the guilt would only grow, because he had done an even more unforgivable thing. He had fallen in love with someone else. He had risked his friendship with Jason for Carly, and in the end he couldn't even love her. He wondered if Jason could understand and forgive him for that. He also wondered if Jason would stay around, he hoped so, he had missed his best friend. Finding Jason with Elizabeth, before Jason had even found him, gave him some hope that Jason would stick around.
"So what's the deal with Lucky?" Jason asked again, when Johnny took a few steps back to give them privacy. "Sonny?"
Sonny was jolted back to the present, there was enough time to deal with that later. "What did he do?"
"Basically he ordered Emily not to talk to me." Jason shook his head. "He practically drug her and Elizabeth away from me."
"Well I see Elizabeth still doesn't respond to orders." Sonny smirked. "She sent him away to talk to you some more."
"Yeah." Jason nodded, that had surprised him. It thrilled him but it also surprised him. "I know he's been through a lot, but why does he have a problem with me? He can't blame me for the fire, he was kidnapped."
Sonny moved towards the water. "I think it has to do with Elizabeth."
"Why?" Jason followed him to the edge of the dock.
"Her and Carly don't get along." Sonny said simply.
"That's an understatement." He'd had to step between them on more than one occasion. What surprised him was how much Elizabeth seemed to enjoy her little fights with Carly. "But what does she have to do with this?"
"Carly saw me with Elizabeth a few weeks ago." Sonny rubbed his forehead. "It was totally innocent."
"But Carly lost it." Jason finished for him. When would she grow up?
"Yes, between that and her own insecurities when it comes to Elizabeth, she retaliated." Sonny sighed heavily, he was sick to death of her pettiness. "She wanted to hurt Elizabeth so she told Lucky her version of you two living together."
Jason groaned.
"Even though she knew you were there because you were shot, she neglected to mention that part to Lucky, and instead laid it on pretty thick that the two of you were lovers."
"Why? Elizabeth has never done anything to her." He couldn't help but ask why, even though he knew, that was just the way Carly was.
"Well." Sonny crossed to sit on the bench, resting his elbows on his knees. "When you were shot you wouldn't let me or Carly help you. You went straight to Elizabeth."
Jason kept his back to Sonny, even now, there were a lot of things he didn't like to remember about that time. He had forgiven both of them before he ever left, but that bitter taste of betrayal still stung sometimes. "I didn't go to Elizabeth she found me."
"I know." Sonny studied Jason, noticing the tense look in his shoulders, the hurt was still there, at least partially, he sighed in regret before going on. "But later on, when I came to help you, you were adamant that Elizabeth would help you. You kept telling me to go, that Elizabeth was coming with a first aid kit. Even when I told you I sent her away, you were convinced she was coming back, in the end you were right she showed up with her own help."
"Elizabeth can be very stubborn and loyal when she helps a friend." Jason said simply.
"I found that out." Sonny said with a wry smile. "She was the only one you would let near you. You let her help and no one else. Carly can't get past that. She hates that she failed you and Elizabeth didn't."
Jason walked over to the bench and sat down next to Sonny. "You must be getting used to Carly, you have her nailed."
"Carly's not that hard to read." Sonny said with a laugh.
"No she's not. In her own way she's loyal too, you just have to realize that she thinks backwards, so what she thinks is help really isn't."
"That's why I'm facing prison time for drug trafficking." Sonny said disgustedly.
Jason sighed, he hadn't seen Carly yet, but he was sure he knew her reasons already, she was just trying to help. Carly trying to help always led to trouble. He remembered something he'd heard, and pushed Carly's antics to the back of his mind. "I'm sorry about the baby." He said quietly, keeping his eyes on the water, knowing not to make a big deal out of things, or Sonny would just shut down.
Sonny looked down at his hands, the wound was still raw. "How long have you known?"
"Since tonight, Emily let it slip." He paused for a minute before going on. "Are you okay?"
"It's hard." Sonny said finally. "Each day it gets a little easier." He hadn't talked about the miscarriage with anyone. He rubbed a hand over his chin. That wasn't true, that night in the hospital he had spoken with Elizabeth. He shook the thought away he didn't like thinking about that dark night. He realized now that he had been waiting to talk, because the only one he could talk to would be his brother, his best friend, Jason.
"I was wrong about Carly in one respect." Sonny broke the silence, feeling Jason's eyes on him, but he didn't interrupt. "All those times I called her a bad mother, I was wrong. She wanted that baby, she fought so hard for the baby, that losing him almost sent her over the edge."
"Is she okay physically?"
"Now yes. The doctors gave me a choice, only it wasn't a choice. Carly's life or the baby's." He realized his hands were clenched, so he carefully opened them, smoothing them out. "That isn't a choice. The baby was too young to live without his mother, but he was still alive. I had to give them permission to kill my son, because if we waited for him to die naturally, Carly would have died too."
Jason closed his eyes, knowing how hard that had to have been for Sonny. His friends had gone through hell and he hadn't been around. "That was probably the hardest decision you ever had to make."
"Yes." Sonny shrugged. "But I didn't have a choice."
"It was a hard decision but one that is easy to live with though." Jason commented keeping his eyes on the water. "Because if you had waited and Carly had died, I wouldn't be here talking to you now. You wouldn't have been able to live with yourself. So as hard as it must have been for you, you made the right choice, the only choice."
The words were simple, in his usual style Jason didn't offer any platitudes, but he managed to say the one thing that made Sonny release the burden he had been carrying around since that night.
After a few minutes Jason broke the silence. "How did it happen?"
Sonny took a breath to center himself. He had to be calm because he had a feeling Jason wouldn't be. "We took Michael to the Quartermaines to see Lila. Carly got into an argument with A.J." He noticed that Jason had already clenched his fists. "They were on the stairs, and she fell."
~Kelly's~
"Are you sure about this Em?" Elizabeth asked, stepping behind the counter to get more soda for them.
Emily glanced back at the table and lowered her voice. "For right now yes. The cops, especially Taggert would love to nail Jason. If there is the slightest chance he could get in trouble." Her voice trailed off. "I can't do that to him."
"I know Em." Elizabeth sighed. "I agree, but this whole plan worries me."
"Lucky thinks it'll work and you know his plans, they normally do." Emily said trying to convince herself.
"Lucky." Elizabeth glanced at the table and lowered her voice. "You know Em Lucky hasn't been himself since he's come back. So there is no guarantee that his plan will work, in fact, it worries me."
Emily averted her eyes she hated lying to Elizabeth but Lucky was adamant that she not know, that he was having problems remembering things, and was losing time. She had been trying to help him, but she didn't agree with his decision not to tell Elizabeth. She could see that Elizabeth was distancing herself from Lucky more and more everyday. She was afraid that once Lucky and her did figure out and fix his problem, it would be too late for him and Elizabeth. She shook her head too late? That could never happen. Lucky and Elizabeth were perfect together, they had a love she aspired to have. She frowned at least they did before the fire.
"Emily?"
"Huh?" Emily blinked at Elizabeth in confusion.
"Are you okay?" Elizabeth asked with a grin. "You zoned out on me there."
"Yes." Emily sipped her drink, she just had to keep giving Elizabeth hope so she didn't give up on Lucky. "You're right Elizabeth, Lucky has changed. But one thing hasn't changed is…"
Elizabeth stifled a groan she knew what was coming.
"His love for you." Emily finished.
Elizabeth snorted. "Funny he seems to forget that every time he tells me to be with Nikolas." She leaned over the counter. "I guess it just must slip his mind then."
"You know he doesn't mean that." Emily argued.
"You could've fooled me." Elizabeth muttered. "Look Emily I know you mean well."
"I'm just telling you the truth."
Elizabeth stifled a scream, maybe if she were calm, Emily would hear her. "Like I said I know you mean well, that you love us both and you are only trying to help. But you're not." She sighed heavily, maybe if she spoke the words out loud, it would be good for her too. "I'm coming to realize that it might be time to give up on Lucky."
"No." Emily's eyes filled with distress.
"Of course it is." Lucky said at the same time. "Because there is no us anymore. We're just friends." Lucky smiled. "The only us around here is…"
"Don't say it." Elizabeth warned him."
"You and Nikolas." He finished mechanically.
Elizabeth screamed loudly in frustration, stilling all the conversation in the room. "If you tell me that one more time I am going to break something, maybe you."
Lucky and Emily stared at her in shock.
~Table~
"Looks like the perfect princess is having a meltdown." Gia told Nikolas, who ignored her getting up from the table to go to the counter.
"Hey Blondie." Gia said loudly getting the attention of a guy at another table.
"What?" He asked turning to look at her.
"Nothing, I'm just checking to see if when I think I speak, something actually comes out. No one over here seems to hear me." Gia said, ignoring the way the guy moved his chair farther away from her.
~Counter~
"Are you okay?" Nikolas asked her in concern.
Elizabeth threw the rag down. "Let's settle this once and for all," she snapped moving around the counter to stand in front of Nikolas. She glared at Lucky. "Please listen for a change," she turned to Nikolas. "Do you want to be with me?"
"What?" Nikolas asked in confusion.
"Just answer. Do you have any romantic feelings for me?" Elizabeth demanded, biting back a winch when she remembered there was a time not so long ago that he did want more from her. She swallowed a groan hopefully he was past that now.
Yes, I'm in love with you, the words ran through his mind, and he opened his mouth. "No, we're only friends."
Elizabeth sighed in relief before turning to Lucky. "Did you hear that?"
"Yes you're friends now." Lucky argued taking hold of her hand. He felt the jolt of awareness, he always did when he touched her but he went on. "But now that you know we're over, you can move on to being more than friends, just like your supposed to."
Over? How could they be over? How could she turn her back on a miracle even when the miracle told her too? "Alright if were over. What makes you think I would ever look at Nikolas as more than a friend?"
"Because you two are meant to be together." Lucky swallowed the distaste that came from saying those words. "Besides who else would you turn too?"
Jason his name and face popped in her head immediately causing her to gasp in surprise. That wasn't right Jason and her were just friends. He was older than her, and he would never think of her that way.
"There is no word for what I feel for you."
She shook the memory away. "Nikolas is not the only man in town Lucky. When I want to date again, it will be the person I choose." She poked Lucky hard in the chest. "Me. Not you." She turned away. "Sorry Nikolas," she murmured before heading for the table and picking up her purse.
"Where are you going?" Nikolas asked.
"Anywhere but here." She muttered causing Gia to laugh. "Home," she turned back. "Or is that not allowed?"
"Wait Nikolas can drive you." Lucky said immediately causing Emily to groan. "It's too late for you to walk alone."
She closed her eyes feeling the sting of tears. "You're right Lucky it is too late." She said walking out the door.
~Docks~
Cold anger worked its way through Jason. His voice, when he spoke was cold. "He pushed her?"
"I don't know, probably not." Sonny admitted braced for the icy look Jason leveled at him, he continued on. "You know Carly, she never walks away. She doesn't know how to quit, she just keeps pushing and goading trying to get a response. She does that to everyone, but especially with A.J. Apparently he had her arm, she jerked away, and lost her balance."
Jason's jaw was clenched tight, he tried to reign in his temper. A.J. had a knack for making him lose his control. He forced himself to listen to Sonny, when all he wanted to do was find A.J. and kill him. He could see the truth in what Sonny was saying, but still. "Is that what you think happened?"
Sonny rubbed his jaw. "I'll never be positive, but it could be. Either way I can't touch him. One day Michael might need something from A.J., you know if he gets sick or something." Sonny sighed. "I can't kill him. Although a big part of me wanted too, when it happened."
"Had he been drinking?" Jason asked.
"No." Sonny admitted. "That's another reason, he was sober when it happened."
Jason got up and paced to the edge of the dock. Even in the weak moonlight he could see the outline of that god-awful crane A.J. had to buy, even though it was too big and useless in the harbor. He took a deep breath trying to control his anger. If Sonny was okay with it he had no choice but to be okay with it too. He clenched his fists, then why did he want to hit something?
"Jason?"
He turned to see Elizabeth walking towards him a smile on her face.
"I didn't know you'd still be here." She stopped in front of him. "I have got to tell you again how good…"
"What the hell are you doing Elizabeth?" Jason cut her off.
Her smile died at his tone. He had never spoken to her like that. "Are you okay?"
"Why are you on the docks alone at this time of night?" His temper was already raging and when he realized she was alone it doubled.
Elizabeth backed up a step, away from the anger in his eyes, anger that was directed at her. "I-I was going home." She started by him. "I'm sorry I bothered you." She smiled weakly at Sonny and hurried towards the stairs. She hadn't been prepared for his unexpected attack. Prepared? She had never even considered it.
Her actions and the hurt in her eyes got through his temper. "Elizabeth wait." Jason followed her. "I'm sorry I didn't mean to go off on you."
She paused on the stairs but didn't turn around. "It's okay. Goodnight Jason." She started moving again.
"Please." He said softly pinching his nose in frustration.
The word stilled her movements and she turned to face him. She saw the anger and frustration on his face. How many times had he found her in a bad moment? How many times had he listened while she cursed the fates or cried? Was it so wrong for him to have a bad moment? "It really is okay Jason." She smiled at him. "I don't want to interrupt, I do need to get home."
The smile was real, just like that he was forgiven, he sighed in relief.
Sonny got up from the bench where he had been watching them with interest. He knew she would calm him down. "Please don't leave on my account, Elizabeth, I have to be going." Jason turned to look at him. "I'll call you in the morning Jason." He smiled at Elizabeth. "Goodnight."
"Night Sonny."
Jason watched him go.
"Do you want me to stay or go?" Elizabeth asked from behind him.
Without turning around he held out a hand to her.
She walked down the steps, slipped her hand in his, and walked with him to sit on the edge of the dock. She smiled to herself, when he let go of her hand to brush the dirt off the dock, before he let her sit. He always did that for her, it was just another part of Jason, his gallantry. She knew it wasn't a word associated with Jason Morgan, but he was at least with her.
Shaking her head she settled down beside him, leaning back on her hands to study the stars. "It's a nice night. For once there's no humidity. I don't know where you've been, but it's been real nasty around here." She leaned farther back to rest on her elbows. "The studio has been roasting, no A.C. I hope it will ease up soon, it is almost September." She was babbling but she was trying to take his mind off whatever was bothering him. "God school will be starting soon. I'm going to be a sophomore in college. I bet many a person in my family has lost money over that little fact."
"Sonny told me how they lost the baby." Jason said quietly. The anger had lessened, making it easier for him to speak to her. "I didn't know about it until tonight, when Emily mentioned it."
"God what an awful way to find out." She sat up touching his hand to try to offer some comfort.
Jason turned his hand under hers, and laced their fingers, he wasn't even aware of doing it. "He had just told me A.J.'s role in it when you showed up." He turned to look at her. "I am sorry, I snapped at you. I didn't mean it, I guess I needed an outlet and you crossed my path. Sorry."
"Don't be." With her free hand she reached over and lightly touched his face. "You are my friend and you were in pain. It was okay for you to snap at me, because you knew it wouldn't change anything between us. That once I knew the why, the words would be forgotten."
He leaned into her hand smiling slightly. "I knew all that did I? I guess I'm pretty smart then."
Her eyes met his, and the hand that she had brought to his face to offer comfort started to tremble slightly. She dropped it quickly, her nervous stomach was back, she had just wanted to comfort him, and all of a sudden she felt tongue-tied around him. What was going on with her tonight? Suddenly nervous she tried to lighten the mood. "What you are is human. Thank God, there were times you worried me."
"What do you mean?" She had just withdrawn from him, and he wondered why.
"Well here I was this emotional basket case that you continually had to pick up or at the very least listen to all the time. Sometimes you were so calm and in control, even when you were in pain that you worried me." She smiled at him. "But when I saw you bleed, my fears were alleviated."
"It's good to know my being shot was such a relief for you." Jason teased with a grin.
She punched his arm. "Oww." She said shaking her hand, relieved that it was back to normal between them. The awkwardness she had felt a minute ago was gone, and he was just Jason again. "I was wrong you are made of iron." She said with a laugh, that he joined.
After a minute, Elizabeth turned serious. "So are you okay?"
"I guess." He sighed, scrubbing his hand over his face. "It didn't happen to me, it wasn't my baby, but still, the thought of what A.J. did."
"So you think he did it deliberately?"
Jason was quiet for a long time while he thought about her question. He remembered a time after his accident, when he and A.J. had managed to form a tentative relationship. The only reason they had was because, the guilt A.J. had felt over his role in the accident had faded enough that he was willing to see Jason Morgan instead of Jason Quartermaine. Of course that was before Carly and Michael. "I don't know. I'm not always rational when it comes to A.J." He said finally.
"I don't know what happened that day on the stairs, I only know what Emily thinks." Elizabeth said quietly. "She thinks it was an accident, because of the way A.J. reacted to it."
Jason looked at her. "What do you mean?"
"If A.J. had done it deliberately, he wouldn't have been able to handle the guilt." She explained. "But Emily says even though he still drinks a lot of the time, she thinks he's pretending to be worse than he really is. She picked up his glass one time by mistake and it was water not vodka, but he was acting drunk anyway." She turned to face him. "What I'm trying to say if he had pushed Carly, there would have been vodka in that glass, not water."
He turned back to look over the water again, and thought about what she had said. He could see the truth in her words, and the rest of the anger dissipated.
Lightning lit the sky, followed by the distant sound of thunder. "Come on you better get home, before you get drenched."
"Jason you see that ugly building over there?" She pointed over his right shoulder. "That's where I live, I think I have plenty of time to get there before the rain starts."
"You moved back in the studio?" Jason asked in surprise. He thought she might have looked for someplace else, after the bomb threat.
"Yes." She nodded a proud smile on her face. "I knocked the wall down that led to the storage area next to my studio, so it's bigger and I have a bathroom." She leaned closer to him. "Plus a sink with warm water, in case someone wants to come by and fall in again."
Jason laughed. "That was a one shot deal."
"Pity." She said with a laugh.
Lightning lit the sky again. "Okay I'll go home, you probably just want to leave so you won't get your bike wet."
Jason looked at his watch.
"Do you have to be somewhere?" She hoped not, she wasn't ready to stop talking to him.
"No. I was just seeing how long it took you before you mentioned my bike." He got to his feet. "After all that is the only reason we're friends."
"That's not true." She forced a glare in his direction and let him pull her to her feet. "I also keep you around so you can kill the spiders in my studio."
"They still a problem?" He couldn't help but laugh, remembering how she had all but climbed in his lap, when she saw a spider last winter. It had spooked her enough that she had forgotten he was hurt.
"Not too much." She said walking towards her studio, the fact she kept hold of his hand, while she walked, went unnoticed by her. "I do think I have every bug killer known to man in my studio though."
"You know." Jason commented opening the door that led inside the building. "It's this time of year that they come inside."
Elizabeth shifted closer to him while they walked up the dimly lit stairs, her eyes scanning the ceiling for spiders. "It is?"
"Yes, they hunt for a new place to live before it gets cold." Her grip on his hand had tightened when he continued to tease her. There was something about her that brought out a sense of humor in him like no one else did. He bit the inside of his cheek to keep from smiling. "But you did say you have every bug killer imaginable."
She paused at her door. "Why don't you come in?"
Spooking her wasn't a very nice way to get an invitation inside, but he wasn't going to turn it down. "Sure I have a few minutes."
She unlocked the door, flipped on the light and led the way inside the studio. Jason followed slowly, he already saw something he didn't like. She still had the same old single bolt lock. With that large window, and the single bolt, it was far too easy to break in. He made a mental note to change some things while he was here.
He looked around the widened studio. The right side of the studio hadn't changed that much, it was still overflowing with painting materials, the couch he had slept on for weeks was still where it always was. She had put up some decorative screens to curtain off the sleeping area to the left. He could see the outline of a double bed and a few dressers. Space was at a premium on the left, but the right side was still mostly open. He knew immediately that the studio side was where she spent most of her time.
"Be it ever so humble." She said putting her purse down by the answering machine, with a flashing red light. She already knew who had called, Emily, Nikolas, and maybe even Lucky. She was tired of dealing with them for one night so she ignored it, and instead crossed to the sofa, collapsing on it with a groan.
Jason followed sitting beside her. "Rough day?"
"Yes." She kept her eyes closed. "But the night was better."
"Really?" He asked following her example and resting his head on the back of the couch.
"Yep." She opened her eyes and looked at him. "You see an old friend of mine, finally decided to come back to town."
Jason looked around the studio, he always felt comfortable here, and he knew it was because of her. Her warmth seemed to be everywhere in the place. He tilted his head, to the side catching the edge of something familiar on the far wall. He got up crossing to the living area of the studio, and coming to a stop at the foot of her bed, to look at the wall over her headboard.
"You didn't take it with you." Elizabeth said from behind him, moving closer. "So I hung it to make sure nothing happened to it."
He stared at his painting, she had named it The Wind, he was glad she had hung it. He looked around again, and realized that it was the only painting she had hung. He looked at her in question.
"It's still the best thing I've ever done." She shrugged. "I haven't done anything else that deserves to hang beside it." She touched his arm. "It's still yours though, so when you have the place to hang it, I'll give it to you." She half hoped he would say he wanted it now, because that would mean, he was staying around.
He nodded, suddenly aware of how close they were. The hairs on the back of his neck had risen when she touched his arm. His attraction to her was growing and he had just got back in town.
"I still love him as much as ever."
Her words from earlier tonight, reminded him why any romantic feelings he might be having for Elizabeth would not be returned. In fact they might even wreck their friendship and he didn't want that. He moved casually, breaking the contact and heading towards the couch. "Do you like living here?"
"Yeah. This place is fully mine now, it's my name on the lease, and I pay the rent. It's nice not having someone tell me what to do all the time." She grimaced, although that was what Lucky was trying to do to her. She sat on the arm of the couch and banished Lucky from her mind. It seemed wrong to think about Lucky when she was here with Jason. That surprised her, she used to think of Lucky a lot when she had been with Jason. That was different, came a small voice in her head that she had dubbed Lizzie, that was when he was dead.
"You haven't had any problems then?" Jason asked.
"Nope." She said immediately before heading for the mini-fridge. "You want something to drink?" She asked trying to change the subject. She didn't know if Sonny had told Jason about the couple of times Sorel had tried to get near her again. Or the fact she'd had Francis assigned to her for about 6 weeks. She was afraid that if he knew he might try to end their friendship again, or even worse leave town.
"No I'm fine." He shifted on the couch, it was still as uncomfortable as ever.
"So are you going to be in town for a while?" She asked pulling out a bottle of water. "Or do I need to try to see you all I can in the next few days?"
"I'll be here for a while."
"Good." She let out a breath she hadn't been aware she was holding and smiled at him.
He smiled back and caused her stomach to drop again. Flustered she crossed back towards him, tilting the bottle up to take a drink while she did. She had almost reached the sofa when her foot caught on a forgotten bag tripping her, she lost her balance and fell towards the couch on top of Jason.
"Oof." The air went out of him in a rush at her surprise landing, His arms went around her to steady her, holding her in place so she was partially in his lap, with one foot still on the floor.
"Sorry." She said with a giggle.
"Clumsy as ever I see." Jason teased. "Or did you see a spider?"
"Enough with the spiders." She ordered between laughs. "I never claimed to be graceful."
"Good thing." He told her with a laugh.
She pulled back to respond and the laughter died. His face was a few inches from hers, their eyes were close to eye level. She lost herself in the mesmerizing quality of his blue eyes, she bit her lip, suddenly unsure of what was going on here.
Jason was a little unsure himself, she made no effort to move away, and her eyes seemed to grow even darker while she looked at him. He reached up and lightly ran his thumb over her cheek, before bringing it down to her chin, and pressing down on it, so she released her bottom lip. She still made no effort to move away and he shifted his hand to the back of her head, applying a little bit of pressure to bring her mouth down to his. She kept her eyes open and on his, leaning towards him.
Ring
Jason froze in his movements, her mouth hovering over his.
Ring
Coming out of the sensual fog that his touch had created inside of her, Elizabeth pushed at his chest to get to her feet. What the hell was that?
Ring
"Are you going to get that?" He asked trying not to look at her face afraid of what he would or wouldn't see there.
Ring
"Right." She turned away trying to even her breathing. She couldn't help feeling both disappointed and relieved at the interruption. For a wild minute there she had thought he was going to kiss her. Her nerves were still tingling in anticipation of a kiss that never happened and probably never would.
Ring
She reached for the phone only to stop when Lucky's voice came over the answering machine. She had completely forgotten about Lucky. She stared at the phone in shock, how could she have forgotten about Lucky, the man she loved? The man she was supposed to be with forever, had been forgotten because of a potential kiss from Jason. A near kiss that was probably only a figment of her imagination anyway. She shook her head. What was the matter with her? She knew her and Lucky were having problems, but she was still in love with him right?
"So Elizabeth what I'm saying is that you shouldn't have run out of Kelly's like that. I know you were upset, but it's dangerous to be on the docks alone, especially at night. Look we all agreed to keep Jason out of this, so don't go back on your word. This is our problem, it doesn't concern him, we agreed to keep him out of it. I can, I mean we can take care of this ourselves, he'll only mess it up."
Lucky's words penetrated and she stifled a groan knowing Jason had heard every word, but she still didn't pick up the phone.
"You should be there by now, so if you are painting please pick up. I know Nikolas tried to reach you earlier, you should have let him take you home. You shouldn't worry him so much, especially because the two of you…"
"I'm here." Elizabeth snatched up the phone, turning off the machine. The last thing she wanted Jason to know was not only was Lucky not in love with her, he wanted her to be with Nikolas of all people. She didn't know why she didn't want him to know, but her feelings concerning Jason had been all over the place tonight.
"Are you okay? I was getting worried." Lucky asked.
"Yeah." She could hear the relief in his voice and closed her eyes, he still cared, and that should be enough to make her hang on right?
"So you were listening the whole time?"
"Yes, I don't want to fight anymore tonight, so I'll talk to you tomorrow Lucky."
"Wait." Lucky twisted the phone cord in his fingers, and looked down at the paper on which he had written his real feelings for her. 'I love you, I'm sorry' were on the paper. He opened his mouth to tell her that. "You need to call Nikolas he was worried when you took off like that."
"Lucky I told you it's late. I don't want to do this now." She snapped. "Goodnight." She hung up the phone on his sputtering reply and took a deep breath trying to control her emotions and facial expressions before turning around to face Jason. "Sorry." She said with a tight smile when she turned finally.
He moved over to her, the fake Elizabeth was back, and he didn't like it. "Elizabeth, I just want to help."
She knew that, and she also knew she wouldn't be able to stop herself from talking to him eventually. But was it so wrong to want one night with him, before she dumped all of her problems on his broad shoulders? "It's late Jason."
Jason sighed heavily before nodding. He wouldn't push, at least, not tonight. He knew Elizabeth, she wouldn't be able to keep what was bothering her from him for long. "I'll see you soon."
Relief coursed through her and she opened the door for him. "Goodnight."
"You know how to reach me, when you need to." Jason said pausing in the doorway to look at her.
When, not if, he knew her so well. "And you know where I am."
"Goodnight." He said softly before stepping out in the hall.
"Jason." She called stopping him a few steps from her door. "I really am glad you came home. I don't think I can tell you how much I missed you."
His grin was quick, lethal and it sent a shiver through her. "I missed you too Elizabeth. Now go inside and lock your door."
"Don't you tell me what to do too." She flared at him, deliberately leaning against the doorjamb, making no move to go inside.
"No way, I know better." He said immediately waiting for her to do what he told her too.
"Good." She said stepping back inside. "Because I am so sick of that I could scream. Night." She told him one more time before closing the door and locking it.
Jason stood in the hallway, staring at her closed door, tonight hadn't been what he'd expected. In some ways it had been better, and in other ways worse. He shrugged, heading down the stairs. There were a few things that he knew. Lucky Spencer was back in town, but he wasn't back with Elizabeth.
He opened the door, stepping out into the late summer rain, he also knew that Emily and Elizabeth were in some kind of trouble and although they wanted to tell him, Lucky and probably Nikolas had convinced them not to. He glanced up at her window, now he knew another thing for sure too, something he had barely let himself think about while he was gone. He was in fact crazy about Elizabeth.
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More characters are being brought in, a large part of the cast is going to get involved in a lot of different ways.