Thanks to all who do reply.
Love, Lies and Chances
Part 5
Hardy House
"Brenna food is for eating not wearing." Elizabeth was rapidly losing her patience. It had been a trying morning thus far, Brenna was in one of her rare cranky moods and since Elizabeth had barely slept the night before she didn't have enough energy to try to charm her out of it. The little girl chose to ignore the words she didn't understand and the tone of voice she did and batted at the hand that held the baby food sending the contents all over Elizabeth and the floor.
"Brenna." Her tone was uncharacteristically sharp and immediately Brenna's light blue eyes filled and her lip began to quiver, seeing that Elizabeth couldn't help but feel guilty. She was still a new mother and as such the sight of her child's tears still broke her heart especially when she had caused them.
"I'm sorry baby." Elizabeth tried to ward off the tears and extricated Brenna from the high chair. "Mama's having a bad day." Her words of comfort apparently came to late for her daughter because the baby began to cry the same time the doorbell rang. "If that's an adoption broker Brenna you're out of here." As if understanding the baseless threat Brenna began to cry harder. It was mornings like this that Elizabeth longed for help with her daughter. She had friends, and up until last night, Daniel, but it wasn't the same thing as having a partner to take the brunt of Brenna's tears on occasion.
Elizabeth opened the door the same time Brenna's cries turned into a wail. "Jason either you're early or we're running later than I thought."
Jason took one look at his crying daughter and Elizabeth's frazzled appearance and knew what was going on. There had been times with Michael that it had seemed like he could do nothing right. Apparently Brenna was in the same sort of mood. "I'm early."
"Well, come on in to the disaster area," she stepped back and shifted her grip on the squirming baby. "If you can't tell we're having a bad morning around here."
"Can I?" Jason held out his arms for Brenna.
"She's not to friendly at the moment," she warned him even as she placed Brenna in his arms. Normally when Brenna was this fussy she only wanted her mother to hold her, and she did reach out for Elizabeth when she stepped back. Elizabeth waited to see what would happen next.
"I can see you're having a bad morning Brenna." Jason pitched his voice low and rubbed a hand soothingly over her back. "Bad mornings happen to everyone especially when they're older. It's okay to cry though, it's always okay to cry, even when you're older. Some people try to bottle everything inside of them and that's never smart, so when you want to cry go ahead."
Both mother and daughter were caught off guard by Jason's actions. Brenna's tears were slowing and she stopped reaching for her mother as her attention shifted to study the man who was still talking to her. Elizabeth was surprised at the way he was dealing with Brenna. He was talking to her in a way she had never heard him use before.
"I was trying to feed her breakfast." Elizabeth offered a needless explanation to explain the mess. "She wasn't interested."
"Why don't I try while you clean up?"
Elizabeth ran a hand through her hair and when it came back with food particles on it she agreed. "I guess I could use a shower."
"Go on, we'll be fine, won't we Brenna?" He encouraged her.
"Okay." Jason had barely waited for her to agree before turning away to pick up the towel she had been using to wipe Brenna's face. Brenna had already stopped crying and before she reached the top of the stairs she thought she heard her daughter laugh. It appeared at least for this morning she had help with Brenna in the form of her father, and she wasn't sure how she felt about it.
By the time Elizabeth returned downstairs the high chair had been put away, the food Brenna had thrown picked up, her daughter's dirty clothes had been changed and Brenna was sitting happily on the floor with Jason. Brenna began to gurgle cheerily when she saw her mother.
"Don't start playing nice now young lady." Elizabeth's stern reply was belied by her smile. "You are a miracle worker."
"Not really." Jason watched her take a seat on the other end of the blanket he'd spread on the floor. "I remember how rough Michael could get at times, especially when he was teething."
"Did he get pretty bad?"
"He could run Leticia and I ragged when he wanted to. Nights were always the hardest, all he wanted to do was be held so if you tried to put him down he would cry." Jason remembered that time in his life fondly.
"Brenna's the same," she admitted. "What did you do to get him to sleep?"
"I just talked to him. Sometimes it would take hours but eventually he would fall asleep."
"It's hard for me to picture you talking with anyone for hours, much less a baby."
"A lot of the times I read him travel books. People said I should read him fairy tales but they just gave me a headache." Jason paused to move a toy to where Brenna could reach it. "It never made sense to me anyway. Why read about a place that doesn't exist? It makes more sense to read about a place you might visit one day."
"That's true." Elizabeth shifted closer to join in Brenna's play. "It probably didn't matter to Michael what you read. I'm sure it was the sound of your voice that comforted him."
"Probably," he shrugged. "What do you do when Brenna gets like that?" His curiosity about his daughter remained.
"Well I don't read her travel books," she smiled at him. "I do talk to her, or hum, or sing, she likes music."
Jason let out a groan. "I thought you were trying to get her to sleep."
"I am."
"Then why are you singing? That won't help her fall asleep." This time the tease came naturally.
"You never appreciated my style," came her regal reply.
"No loud and off-key was never my style," he agreed, and easily caught the stuffed animal she threw at him. Seeing that move Brenna discovered a new game she could play and immediately began throwing everything she could get her hands on.
"Now see what you started?" Elizabeth laughed.
"You're the one who started throwing things," he reminded her with a laugh of his own.
They began moving the toys back in Brenna's reach. Elizabeth reached for a stuffed purple cat the same time Jason did and they both froze when their hands met. They were always so careful not to touch each other, especially not after the kiss of the other night, but now that they had neither one seemed willing to break the contact. When her eyes met his, for the first time Elizabeth forgot about her daughter.
Jason shifted his hold on her hand until he held it away from the toy. His eyes left hers to look at her hand. "You're not wearing your ring."
"No." She whispered an answer. Somehow the conversation seemed to call for hushed tones, even Brenna seemed to realize that, because she had fallen quiet. Elizabeth turned to look and saw the way her daughter's eyes were drooping and the fact she had leaned back against Jason for support and she continued quietly. "I gave the ring back to Daniel last night. In fact that's one of the reasons were running late today, Daniel came by to say goodbye to Brenna."
"Goodbye?" Jason was unwilling to assume anything about what her words meant.
"He went back to California." She looked at him to gauge his reaction to her next words. "I'm not going to marry him."
"Oh." Jason wasn't sure what he was feeling and when she tried to pull her hand free he automatically let it drop.
Elizabeth wished he'd say something, anything to give her a clue about how he felt about the news, but he remained stubbornly silent and that silence propelled her to speak.
"I do love Daniel." Jason's eyes jerked to her face. "I just don't love him the way he deserves to be loved. If I married him I would be making him settle for a love he didn't deserve. I would have tried to make him happy, to make the marriage work, but eventually it would have failed. Because the bottom line is I don't love him in the way that's necessary to make a marriage work. All I would do was end up hurting him and I love him too much to do that."
Her reasoning for not marrying resonated loudly in his ears. Was there a truth in her words that could be applied to him and Courtney and their failed marriage? He did love Courtney in a way but it hadn't been strong enough to make their marriage work.
Brenna let out a little noise as she settled deeper into sleep and Elizabeth began to gather up the toys. It seemed Jason didn't care one way or the other about her news and the hurt she wasn't entitled to feel made her movements jerky. "Can I meet you at 4:00? Gram has some tests today but should be done by then."
"I'll meet you at the hospital." Jason shifted Brenna until she was cradled in his arms and got to his feet. He knew Elizabeth was hurt and as usual he couldn't help responding to her pain. "I'm sorry it didn't work out for you." He couldn't bring himself to say Daniel's name.
"It would have been worse if we had tried and failed. He could have ended up hating me and that would mean I'd lose a very good friend, and I don't want to do that." She peered up at him. "Good friends are difficult to find so you never want to lose one."
"I know." Breaking their eye contact Jason turned and placed Brenna into the stroller.
"I never really thought about it, but I just realized something, you're not on your bike are you?"
"She's a little young for a bike ride." Jason pointed out. "But if she's anything like her mother she'll love one later on."
"That's true," her smile was soft, her eyes sparkling. "I haven't been on a bike since…" she trailed off the last time she had been on a bike she'd been with him and they both knew it. "I guess it doesn't matter how long it's been."
"Francis is driving us around in a car." Jason's voice was rough as he remembered all the hours they had ridden together on his bike.
"Tell him hello from me." Awkwardness had replaced the ease that had been in the room since he'd arrived. "Before you go there's one thing I want to say to you."
Hearing the seriousness in her voice he stepped away from Brenna back towards her. "What?"
"I wanted to say I'm sorry." She met his gaze squarely the words were easier to say than she'd thought. "It occurred to me that I might not have said that to you yet. I made a mistake, I was wrong to keep you in the dark about being pregnant and I was really wrong to keep Brenna away from you for as long as I did."
"Elizabeth…"
"Don't Jason," she cut him off. "I know you'll say an apology doesn't make a difference, that what's done is done, but in this case an apology is necessary and long overdue. I have a dozen reasons to give you for why I did what I did, but the bottom line is none of them excuse it. I know forgiveness is out of the question but I had to tell you how sorry I am."
"Actually I was going to say thank you." Jason stopped her before she could really get going. "I needed to hear you say you were wrong, that you made a mistake by keeping her from me. This time I needed to hear the words."
"And I needed to say them." Swallowing hard she stepped closer and tentatively took his hands in hers. "The reasons I gave you the other night, my fears over what I thought could happen are still there, and I believe they're still valid. But there was more to my decision than that. I hate thinking I was just being petty, but I'm sure the hurt I was feeling factored more in my decision than I originally I thought it did. I also let my experiences growing up color my decision as well. Again it's not an excuse but it's all I have to offer. I really am sorry."
"I know." Her words, her painful admission touched him. The words reached deep inside of him and on some level he began to heal.
"I guess you need to go." Dropping his hands she stepped back and brushed away a tear that was about to fall.
"Actually I do," he checked his watch. "I made arrangements to see Grandmother so she could meet Brenna."
"Mrs. Quartermaine will love her."
"Yeah. Reginald will run interference to keep the rest of them away. Has Edward tried to contact you?" When Elizabeth looked away he had his answer. "He won't bother you again."
"It's okay Jason, he's easy to ignore." As long as the answering machine worked she could ignore him indefinitely. "It's only right that he's curious about Brenna."
"No it's not," Jason countered. "If he makes a move on you or threatens you about Brenna I need you to tell me."
"He wouldn't threaten me."
"Not outright he wouldn't, he's too crafty to do anything that directly. But Edward will offer you money, power, family, anything and everything to get you to go along with what he wants and if you try to resist, he'll hint about what could happen." Jason's observations were made with a great deal of bitterness. He's watched the old man pull the same things on Carly all those years ago and wasn't about to let him start with Elizabeth. "Promise me you'll call me if he comes around."
"I promise if he gets to be too much I'll let you know." She gave him a variation of the promise he so desperately seemed to need. "You better go."
"I'll see you later." Though far from mollified Jason knew that was all the concession he would get from her and decided he'd have to talk to the old man himself.
Kelly's
"Thanks Penny." Nikolas smiled absently at the brunette when she refilled his cup. His mind may be focused on other things but his manners were too ingrained to ever be forgotten.
Emily's unreasonable anger had faded into a coldness that had prompted her to return to the Quartermaine mansion for a few days. She said it was because Lila had a bad cold and she was worried but the truth was she was running away from him. He had expected Emily to be hurt that he had kept Elizabeth's news from her but this was far more than he'd expected.
Maybe the news wouldn't have been so painful for her to hear if things hadn't already been rocky between them before Elizabeth had ever returned. Things had been difficult between them ever since Zander had left town a few months earlier. He knew she felt guilty for hurting Zander and sending him into a tailspin that nearly cost Zander his life, but there seemed to be more to it than that. And whatever else was upsetting her was something she didn't want to share with him, yet seemed to have no problem confiding in Lucky, and that thought made him grimace.
Lucky was really beginning to bother him. Things had been strained between them for months, no actually for years, ever since his aborted wedding to Elizabeth. They had been further strained over what happened with Summer. Nikolas was coming to believe that the closeness they'd once shared before the fire that claimed Lucky's "life" would never return. And he was getting tired of trying to get it back. There was no rule that said he had to be close to his brother.
"Sorry I'm late." Elizabeth kissed his cheek and waved him back down when he automatically began to rise. "I've been behind all morning," she explained as she shrugged out of her coat and took the seat across from him.
"That's okay," he looked around then looked at her in disappointment. "No Brenna?"
"She's with Jason." She explained and sipped appreciatively at the orange juice Penny automatically set before her.
Nikolas nodded and took a critical survey of his friend, the sleepless night was easy to spot. "You didn't want to talk last night when you got back from dinner with Daniel. Are you okay with everything that happened?"
"You mean not getting married?" When he nodded she went on. "I hated hurting him but if we continued on and gotten married all I would have done was hurt him even worse."
"I believe you're hurt as well," he observed.
"I'll bounce back. It's hard to be depressed around Brenna." She decided it was time to change the subject. "Speaking of bouncing back has Emily calmed down yet?"
"No." His reply was to the point.
"Enough with the reserved finality Nikolas this is me, tell me what's really going on."
Nikolas hadn't quite grown accustomed to the way she always cut through his reserve, but he enjoyed it immensely. She was the first friend who had refused to humor him or let him get away with his polite reserve. "She moved back to the Quartermaine's."
"Nikolas I'm sorry." The ever-present guilt flared up.
"Don't be. We were having problems before you came back. All you were was another revelation that is driving us apart."
"You still love her don't you?"
"Yes I love her and she loves me."
"But?" Elizabeth prompted.
"We hurt people when we got together, the way we got together and she's having a hard time dealing with that," he explained.
"You mean Zander?"
"Yes. He didn't take the news that she loved me very well. In fact he lost it for a while. There was even a time people thought he shot a cop."
"He wouldn't do that," Elizabeth defended her one-time friend.
"He didn't, he was eventually cleared, but by the time he left town after the Port Charles Hotel burned there was a lot of damage done between Emily and I." As unaccustomed as he was to explaining himself he found it easy to open up to Elizabeth.
"And you're keeping my secret from her didn't help did it?"
"No."
"Maybe you both need some time or a fresh start." Elizabeth caught him off-guard when she began to laugh.
"What's so funny?" He queried in puzzlement.
"Look around you. We're sitting here eating the same breakfast at the same table we did 5 years ago. There's got to be something wrong with that, were in our 20's now, and here we are back where we spent our teen years."
"Are you suggesting I move? Just leave Emily?"
"Of course not. I'm just saying it might be time to move on a little. We've both grown up its time for new challenges. Maybe you and Emily need a fresh start somewhere else, away from all the memories both the good and the bad. It certainly worked for me."
"Did it?" Nikolas asked. "You're not wearing Daniel's ring any longer and in spite of your statements to the contrary I'm sure Jason was a factor in your decision. You want to tell me again how a fresh start helped you?"
Elizabeth flinched but made no effort to evade her friend's question. "You're right. I haven't moved on as far as I hoped. If seeing Jason again was a test of some sort I failed miserably. I haven't moved on at all, I still love him."
"Where does that leave things between you?"
"Nowhere. I still love him and I know he still cares for me. But the bottom line is I can't stay here and I can't ask him to leave everything and come with us," she answered sadly.
"Why not give him a chance if its what you want?"
"Because he has to decide things on his own." She tried to explain what was driving her. "If Jason decides he wants to come west that has to he his idea, it can't be because I asked him to. He needs to make a choice on his own."
"So you're still testing him to see if he'll put you and Brenna ahead of Sonny?" Nikolas pressed for the truth.
"Not me," she shook her head. "Brenna. She has to be his priority, and if he can't make her that it's better for her if he merely visits."
"It looks like both of us are in a conundrum," Nikolas summed up.
She couldn't help but laugh at his choice of words. "Yes I guess if I have to be in a mess I'm glad it's the same time my best friend is in misery as well. It's only fitting because misery loves company."
"Very funny."
"I thought so," Elizabeth grinned. "Now lets eat and while we do you can tell me about the dark-haired woman you were seen carrying into the hospital yesterday."
When he felt himself begin to blush Nikolas was horrified, Prince's didn't blush. "She passed out I was merely helping her."
"Ha," Elizabeth scoffed. "That's not the way I heard it from gossip central, otherwise known as Amy Vining. The way she tells it the girl took one look at you and swooned at your feet."
"You shouldn't listen to gossip," he replied stiffly.
"You know the more you evade the more curious I'm going to get," she warned him before digging into her omelet.
Nikolas wasn't ready to discuss his unusual reaction to the sad-eyed Mary but knew Elizabeth wouldn't be put off. Perhaps she could help him understand why he had been thinking about Mary far more often than he should have. "Her name is Mary, and she lost her husband Connor in the war, apparently I remind her of him."
"It sounds like you two had quite a conversation when she woke up," Elizabeth observed.
"We talked for awhile," he admitted. Long enough for her to get under his skin. "I'll probably never see her again."
"And you don't like that do you?"
"Why don't we get back to discussing you and Jason?" Nikolas asked.
"Coward."
General Hospital
"Did you get in and out of the Quartermaine's unscathed?" Sonny asked his friend even though his attention remained on the beautiful little girl in his arms. Brenna was the first little girl he'd held since Lesley Lu Spencer, and he couldn't help noting her smell was different from Morgan's, it was a difference he liked.
"Reginald ran interference. I could hear the old man firing him when I left," Jason admitted sourly. "He's already bothering Elizabeth."
"That's not surprising," Sonny replied. "But I think Elizabeth can handle him. As I remember she didn't intimidate very easily."
"That's true. But she shouldn't have to deal with the Quartermaine's," he grumbled.
"If she needs help she's smart enough to ask for it."
"But will she ask me?" The words were out before Jason could stop them.
"You think she won't?" Sonny asked curiously. "Do you think she'll ask this guy that's hanging around instead of you?"
"He left, she's not marrying him."
"What do you think about that?" Sonny delivered the question with his eyes on Brenna knowing that if he kept the question light he had a better chance of getting Jason to answer.
"I don't have a right to feel anything." Jason began his answer with his usual response then stopped. "Relieved."
Sonny nodded but kept his eye on the little girl. "Did you tell Elizabeth? Or tell her how you feel?"
"I'm not sure how I feel," he whispered, "and even if I did know I'm not sure it would change anything."
Carly came around the corner and her heart shattered when she saw Sonny making faces at the dark-haired little girl in his arms. She couldn't help but think of his own daughter Kristina, whom Alexis was keeping from him, who she was keeping from him. She was keeping a little girl from her father didn't that make her exactly like Elizabeth? The distaste that thought brought compelled her to move closer. "There you are."
Sonny had an impulse and impulses were something he rarely denied. Before Carly had a clue what was going on he held Brenna out to her and she automatically took the baby. "Jason and I need a minute so watch her will you?" Sonny walked off hoping Jason would follow.
"What are you doing?" Jason followed but kept turning back to check on Brenna and a stunned Carly.
"Brenna's your daughter Carly needs to get used to you having a daughter, and Brenna better get used to her," Sonny explained. "Unless you don't want Carly near Brenna."
"Of course not," Jason snapped but stopped once they turned the corner.
"They'll be fine." Sonny smirked at the realization that he was the one reassuring Jason this time.
"So are we going to get along or are you a carbon copy of your mother?" Carly addressed the baby in her arms.
Brenna studied the new person holding her carefully and Carly had the uneasy feeling she was being judged. She would be damned if she was going to be found lacking. This was Jason's little girl that was all that mattered, the mother didn't matter, only the father.
"I'll make you a deal. I won't say anything about your mother and you don't cry for at least five minutes." Carly offered and when the baby smiled as if she understood her terms Carly felt her heart melt. The baby's smile was a carbon copy of Elizabeth's but in that minute it didn't matter. "You are pretty cute."
"Jason I was looking for you." Emily nodded once at Sonny then addressed her brother. "Can we talk?"
"Okay." Realizing she was upset Jason moved to the other end of the wall where some chairs were. "What's wrong?"
"What's wrong?" Emily repeated in shock. "How can you ask me that? You know what's wrong. Elizabeth kept your child away from you. She lied to everyone and Nikolas helped her do it."
"Elizabeth had her reasons."
"So what? Whatever they were they weren't good enough." Emily's words were as spiteful as her expression.
"No they weren't," he agreed, "and she admitted to me that she was wrong."
Jason's admission took the wind out of her sails. "An apology isn't enough."
"That's for me to decide." Jason informed her and because she was his sister he pressed for the real reason for her anger. "This isn't about Elizabeth is it?"
"Of course it is."
"No it's not it's about Nikolas," Jason guessed and when she flinched he knew he was right. "He was helping a friend just like I once helped Carly."
"That was different." Emily was surprised he'd even mention that time.
"It is and it isn't," Jason sighed. "I'm not a hypocrite Emily. I once kept a child from his father. And even though I still believe I did the right thing keeping Michael from the Quartermaine's, I did keep a baby from his father. Because of that I can't punish Elizabeth forever."
"I don't want to talk about Michael and AJ or even Elizabeth," Emily admitted. "What I want to understand is why Nikolas would keep the truth from me? We're getting married and now all I can think about is what other secrets is he keeping from me?"
"I think Nikolas kept this from you because Elizabeth asked him too, and because he knew you would tell me the truth if you knew." Jason pointed out. "As for other secrets that's for you to know. I don't really know the guy."
"And what you do know you don't like do you?"
"No." Jason's reply was honest and he was especially upset with Nikolas at the moment because of his role in keeping Brenna from him.
"I don't understand why I'm feeling so upset. I shouldn't be this angry or hurt but I am." The words came slowly. "We've been having problems for awhile now even though none of us will admit it. That's why I went to London when I did to see my friends, I did it to get a breather."
"Did it help?"
"Not really. What happened Jason? I've had a crush on Nikolas since I was 14 years old. I've been in love with him on and off ever since then. I can't even tell you how many different dreams I spun around our life together. And now that it's finally happening, it isn't enough, it isn't what I dreamed."
"That's because this is reality not a dream."
"I know that. But after the way we destroyed Zander in order to get together how can I suddenly give up because we're having a rough patch?" She wondered aloud. "Sometimes you wish for something for so long and so hard that when you finally get it all you feel is let down because it wasn't what you'd thought it would be."
"Then maybe you should take a step back and figure out what it is you really want." Jason advised and wondered if he should do the same.
Hardy House
Elizabeth was about to change into her sweats when the doorbell rang. Surprised she checked the clock on the wall. It was nearly 8:00 and she wasn't expecting anyone. Jason had said nothing about coming by, so it couldn't be him. "Who is it?" She called through the locked door.
"It's Jason."
"This is a surprise." Her smile of welcome faltered slightly when she opened the door and saw Emily at his side. "Hi."
"Hello." Emily felt as awkward as she had years earlier when she'd tried to make amends after a scene at the nurse's ball.
"I was wondering if you wanted to go for a ride." Jason asked and saw the way her eyes widened in shock. "You said you hadn't ridden in forever."
"I haven't," she answered automatically. "Are you sure?"
"Have I ever asked you to do something when I didn't mean it?" Jason asked with a half smile.
"No." She cautioned herself not to read too much into his unexpected invitation. "What about Brenna?"
"I thought Emily could watch her, get to know her niece."
"I'd like to," Emily chimed in. "And later when you get back maybe we can talk and this time I promise it will be a conversation."
Recognizing an olive branch when she saw one Elizabeth quickly stepped back to get her coat. "I just gave Brenna a bath, and I normally give her a bottle around 9:30, that usually knocks her out. There's a bottle already made in the fridge, and there's a teething ring in the freezer if she gets cranky."
"I'll handle it." Emily quickly shooed her to the door, knowing they needed to leave soon or Elizabeth might change her mind entirely.
"Okay I guess we'll be back before long." Elizabeth ended up addressing the door when Emily shut it in her face. "Well that was nice."
"Come on." Jason led the way down the path to his bike.
Elizabeth automatically took the helmet Jason handed her but hesitated before putting it on. "Are you sure about this?"
Jason climbed on the bike. "It's a ride between good friends, what's to be sure about?"
Though still unsure that she wasn't making a mistake she put the helmet on and climbed on the back of the bike and wrapped her arms around his waist.
When she pressed against his back Jason wondered if he had just made a tactical error. The idea of going riding had been spur of the moment, and he hadn't really thought it through before tracking Emily down to see if she would baby-sit. Now he was going to have to deal with the consequences of his rash move, consequences like her holding tightly onto him. The smart thing for him to do would be to get off the bike and tell her he'd changed his mind. Instead he started the bike and sent them off into the wind.
Hardy House
Saturday morning dawned bright and clear and Elizabeth was awake to greet it. This time she couldn't blame her early morning wakefulness on Brenna. The fact was she hadn't slept very well the night before. Somewhere around 1:00 am she'd woken up and realized that today was the day they were leaving. It was the day that would change everything and after that realization there had been no more sleep for her.
The night before had been an unexpected pleasure. Jason and her hadn't spoken much during the ride, both were content with the silence and the wind. It was the most content around Jason she'd felt since arriving back in town. They were still in sync when it came to riding it was other places they had trouble.
When he'd dropped her off an awkward silence had fallen. Neither one wanted to break it and destroy the fragile peace their ride had produced. But their problems had remained there just lurking under the surface. Elizabeth knew that today was going to be a hard day for them all. Some tough decisions were going to have to be made and no one, not even Brenna would emerge unscathed.
Brenna had grown very attached to Jason in a short amount of time. Taking her away from him would be difficult on her. Elizabeth wasn't blind she knew how much Jason already loved Brenna, leaving would hurt him terribly as well. They both knew that this day was coming yet had ignored it. Jason hadn't asked them to stay in town and she hadn't asked him to come to California with them.
The unspoken stalemate was one they hadn't tried to broach and now it was almost too late. Brenna and her would be flying home tonight. Noises filtered through the baby monitor and Elizabeth knew that Brenna was awake. She stared sightlessly out the window at the morning sun for a moment longer before reluctantly getting to her feet to get her daughter ready to say goodbye to her father.
Docks
Jason waited impatiently on the docks and uncharacteristically checked his watch for the third time, wishing it would move quicker. He knew Elizabeth had taken Brenna to the hospital to say goodbye to Audrey and had done it now so he could have an uninterrupted block of time with his daughter before they left, but he was still impatient.
His impatience had begun the night before. The ride with Elizabeth had soothed his soul and created a whole new tension at the same time. That tension only grew when the long night had finally turned into light. His daughter was leaving today and he wasn't sure when he would see her again. The woman he loved, the woman he was furious with, the woman he didn't know if he could ever trust again was leaving today and he wasn't sure how he felt about that. He wasn't sure how he felt about anything. All he knew was that they hadn't even left town yet and he already felt a void in his life.
The sound of a boat nearing the dock drew his focus to the water and tension of another sort grew when he spied the man who got off the launch.
"Jason." Nikolas addressed the man who was staring at him coldly with some coldness of his own. "I think it's past time for us to have a chat."
General Hospital
"Courtney I told you I don't want to get into this right now with you," Carly snapped impatiently. "So back off."
"Please, you have to answer my question." Courtney begged her friend. "Don't you see I have to know the truth and Jason doesn't seem willing to give it to me."
"Maybe he has and you not willing to hear it," Carly retorted sharply her defense of Jason automatic.
Stung Courtney drew back.
"Courtney leave it alone. Jason will talk to you when he's ready, if you keep pushing him all you're going to do is drive him away." Carly was an expert on that particular trick.
"Just answer my question and I'll leave," Courtney pressed. "Did Jason ever love Elizabeth?"
Fed up Carly finally gave the answer she knew Courtney didn't want to hear. "Yes."
Devastated Courtney wanted to run away but held her ground. She had to know all the truth. "Does he still love her?"
Carly turned away to look through the window at her son. She had her suspicions about Jason's feelings for Elizabeth but suspicions were all they were and she didn't want to make them real by saying them aloud.
"Is he still in love with her?"
"You'll have to ask him." Carly answered finally. "I know he still cares for her, and probably always will."
Park
"Not much longer Brenna." Elizabeth tried to placate her daughter who wanted out of the stroller now, not later. "We'll see your daddy soon."
She had a feeling that this meeting with Jason was going to be nothing like last nights. She knew that before the meeting was through she would be dealing with both his anger and his hurt. Because of that and the fact it was an unseasonably warm spring day she had decided to walk to the docks hoping it would give her more time to prepare for his pain.
Brenna let out a cry and Elizabeth searched for the cause of her daughter's delight and her feet stumbled to a halt when she found it. "Sonny."
Sonny's smile faded once it left Brenna's face. "Elizabeth."
"We're on our way to meet Jason." Elizabeth tried to move past him.
"I won't keep you long," he stepped in her path. "I'd like to talk to you about Jason if you'll listen."
She could see he was angry yet he had still formed his words as a request not a demand, maybe that was why she agreed to speak with him. "Fine I've been wanting to talk to you about Jason for a long time now."