"So, Emma what was Morgan telling us about this boy...?" Courtney asked her.
"I- I uh, well Alex is in a lot of my classes, and well, I think he kinda has this crush on me..." Emma said slowly.
"Oh man," Jason sighed. There was no way in hell any offspring of Ric's was getting near his daughter.
"Daddy..." Emma said.
"Emma isnt going to tell you the whole thing Uncle Jason," Morgan said, trying to protect her cousin. Morgan had seen the way Alex looked at her.
"What are you talking about Morgan?" Jason asked, looking from his child to his niece.
"Alex follows her around, he calls her all the time, he texts her and asks her over and he, he uhh..." Morgan wasnt sure she wanted to tell them about the kiss.
"He what Morgan?" Sonny asked her.
"Nothing, I'm just..." Emma interrupted her. Her family had to know the truth and it wasnt Morgan's job to tell them, it was her's...
"He kissed me yesterday," Emma said quickly, she knew her Dad was going to blow up.
"He WHAT??" Sonny yelled, causing Emma to look at him funny. She then looked at her father, who had his head in his hands.
"Daddy?" Emma called her father's name from her room back in PH2.
"What's wrong?" Jason asked as he came running.
"Nothing. Nothing at all. I just wanted to tell you not to worry. I'm gonna make sure Alex Lansing never talks to me again. I promise I'll make him understand that since his father put my family through so much pain, I can't be around him," Emma told her father, he hadn't really said anything since they got home. It had been mostly Uncle Sonny and Michael who were talking about Alex, and what they would do to him if they had ever seen him near her again.
"I don't want you to talk to him about it," Jason said as he sat down in the rocking chair that was still in Emma's room since she was a baby. He smiled as he remembered the first time he rocked her in that chair. They hadn't sat in that chair together for at least 7 years. He missed his little girl.
"Why Dad? I have to make him understand, maybe he doesnt know about what happened. I could tell him, then he could understand where this family is coming from and everything will be okay..." Emma said.
"Come here," Jason said as he held his arms out for Emma to sit on his lap.
"Dad, you have to be kidding, I'll break you." Emma laughed.
"No you won't. Come on. Come sit with me," Jason motioned for her again.
She sighed and walked over and sat down on his lap. He put his arms around her arms and held her tight. He didnt want her to grow up. Ever. All he wanted was to sit in this chair, just like they were at that very moment. He wanted time to freeze. But he knew that was impossible. Jason knew his baby girl had some tough times ahead of her. He had a bad feeling at Sonny's when Morgan brought it up. He had to keep his daughter safe. That was all that mattered.
"Emma you gotta understand something..." Jason told her as he continued to rock them back and forth on the rocking chair.
"What do I need to understand Dad?" Emma asked, looking her father dead in the eye. It was blue against blue.
"That I love you more than anything else in this whole entire world. And that everything that I do is to keep you safe," Jason said seriously.
"I know you love me Dad, and you know that I love you, and I'm glad you keep me safe. I wouldn't want to be stuck in a mine like Mom was, or chained to a wall like Aunt Carly..." Emma was interrupted by her father's serious tone.
"I never wanted you to know about that, you and Morgan weren't supposed to find out."
"Did you guys think we weren't gonna find out Dad? Someone obviously would have told us. I mean, what if we had heard it from someone else, how do you think that would have made us feel?"
"I didnt want you to be hurt by it, that's all," Jason said simply.
"You knew something was wrong when I came home yesterday. How do you do that Dad? Mom can't, not even Morgan can. But you always know what's bothering me or if there's something on my mind," Emma knew that saying this would make her dad feel good.
"You're my only girl. It's my job to know what's going on, so I can protect you from it," Jason said while giving his daughter a kiss on the cheek.
"So, Daddy... how about that wedding?" Emma asked, laughing.
"It was in France. I asked your mom to go away with me. She agreed and I kind of proposed to her again while we were there, and uh... we got married. That was it."
"I'll ask Mom to show me pictures," Emma laughed again.
"You do that," Jason replied.
"I will."
"I'm proud of you Emma. You know that right?" Jason asked her in a loving tone.
"I'm proud of you too Dad. You're the bravest person I know. How many times did you save Mom?" Emma asked. She was so interested in the past, what had happened before her.
"Well, if I'm not mistaken, I believe I saved Mr. Morgan quite a few times as well," Courtney said as she entered the room and smiled at the sight of her daughter sitting on her husband's lap.
"Yeah, okay Court," Jason kidded.
"Emma, Morgan told me to tell you that she wants you to go and see her in the morning before school. Michael said he wants to talk to you," Courtney said, looking at her husband, who was playing with their daughter's hair.
"Great. I bet he's gonna make me eat lunch with him like EveryDAY!" Emma said, dissapointed.
"Maybe I can get him to walk you to all of your classes too," Jason said, completley serious.
"Real funny Dad," Emma said, knowing that he wasn't kidding.
"Well, good night Emma," Courtney said.
"Mom,"
"Yeah?"
"Thanks, you know, for telling me. You were so brave. I wish I was half as brave as you and Dad are," Emma said quietly.
Courtney smiled. "Night baby, I love you,"
"Night, I love you more," Emma replied as her mother left the room.
"Dad, I'm really tired," Emma said as she tried to wiggle out of her father's strong embrace. But he wouldnt budge.
"You have to promise me that you won't go looking for trouble Emma," Jason said sternly.
"And why would I do that?" Emma asked trying to sound innocent.
"Because you are your mother's daughter," Jason said giving her a kiss on the head and getting up.
"Yeah, well I'm your daughter too! What do I get from you huh?" Emma asked as she slipped into her bed.
"I love you," Jason said as he bent down to kiss his baby girl.
"I love you more Dad," Emma said as she watched him smile before giving her a kiss.
"See you in the morning?" Emma asked.
"I'm bringing you to school," Jason informed her.
"Come Onn Dad! Mikey can bring me and Morgan..." Emma pleaded.
"I'm bringing you Emma," Jason said.
"How about we go there in the normal car, not the limo..."
"Uh... what car do you wanna take?"
"Mine!" Emma replied eagerly.
"Just because I bought you that car, doesnt mean that I'm going to drive it," Jason told her.
"Fine, then let me drive!" Emma said, knowing what she had just said would drive her dad insane.
"No. No. No. No way! Absolutley not. Nope. You're too young," Jason knew that Emma had done that on purpose, to drive him crazy.
"I'll see you in the morning Dad," Emma told her father as she shut her eyes and instantly fell asleep.
"Yeah, see you in the morning," Jason said with as sigh as he sat on the edge of his daughter's bed and watched her sleep. He knew that Ric had to be up to something. Alex Lansing was the perfect way to get to his daughter. Lansing knew that family was Jason's only weakness. Jason knew that he would go crazy if something ever happened to Emma, or Courtney. He just hoped that for once his instincts were wrong. Then a quiet voice yanked him back to reality.
"Jase," his wife said his name softly, as not to wake Emma.
"Yeah, I'm coming," He said as he tucked in the blankets more securley around her so she wouldnt get cold and kissed her on the forehead.
"You know what this means dont you Courtney?" Jason asked his wife as he slid into bed next to her, absentmindedly taking her into his arms and stroking her hair.
"Maybe that since Ric isnt really the kid's father, maybe he's okay? We should invite him over, you know, get to know him before jumping to conclusions..." Courtney suggested as she twisted his wedding ring around his finger.
"No. No way. Any kid brought up by Ric Lansing is not going anywhere near Emma. It just isnt going to happen Courtney," Jason said, clearly worried about this.
"Okay," was all she said.
"What no arguement? You're not gonna say I'm being unfair, or too over-protective?" Jason asked.
"I just know that you want the best for her, so I'm not arguing," Courtney stated simply.
"You know, you did really good tonight," Jason told his wife as he massaged her shoulders, getting rid of all the tension.
"They needed to know, I did what I had too," Courtney said, wiping a tear from her eye.
"Are you crying?" Jason asked.
"No, why would I be crying?" Courtney replied, trying to cover it up.
"You're crying. I know you are. But it's okay Court, no one can hurt us anymore..."
"That's not it Jason," Courtney said.
"Then what is it?" He said softly.
"She thinks I'm brave," Courtney said, tears now flowing down her cheeks.
"You are brave, you are the bravest woman I know," Jason said as he turned his wife around to face him and he wiped away her tears.
"I put up a brave front Jase, you know that. You know how scared I was when we were in the mineshaft, when I was on that floating prison. Jason, I am so the opposite of brave," Courtney sobbed into her husband's chest.
"Look, Courtney everyone gets scared. I get scared. When you and Emma were in that car accident, the mineshaft, when I saw you in that hospital bed in South America. I was scared. For you, I couldnt lose you Courtney, because I wouldnt know how to live, and that makes me so not brave, but in Emma's eyes I am brave, and so are you, and that's all that matters," Jason said.
"You're right, you're absolutley right. God, I love you so much," Courtney said as she turned back around and put her head on her husband's chest so she could feel his heart beat.
"I love you," Jason Morgan said to his wife.
"I love you more," Courtney Morgan said right back.
And once again, Jason couldnt see how Courtney could love him more than he loved her.
"I- I uh, well Alex is in a lot of my classes, and well, I think he kinda has this crush on me..." Emma said slowly.
"Oh man," Jason sighed. There was no way in hell any offspring of Ric's was getting near his daughter.
"Daddy..." Emma said.
"Emma isnt going to tell you the whole thing Uncle Jason," Morgan said, trying to protect her cousin. Morgan had seen the way Alex looked at her.
"What are you talking about Morgan?" Jason asked, looking from his child to his niece.
"Alex follows her around, he calls her all the time, he texts her and asks her over and he, he uhh..." Morgan wasnt sure she wanted to tell them about the kiss.
"He what Morgan?" Sonny asked her.
"Nothing, I'm just..." Emma interrupted her. Her family had to know the truth and it wasnt Morgan's job to tell them, it was her's...
"He kissed me yesterday," Emma said quickly, she knew her Dad was going to blow up.
"He WHAT??" Sonny yelled, causing Emma to look at him funny. She then looked at her father, who had his head in his hands.
"Daddy?" Emma called her father's name from her room back in PH2.
"What's wrong?" Jason asked as he came running.
"Nothing. Nothing at all. I just wanted to tell you not to worry. I'm gonna make sure Alex Lansing never talks to me again. I promise I'll make him understand that since his father put my family through so much pain, I can't be around him," Emma told her father, he hadn't really said anything since they got home. It had been mostly Uncle Sonny and Michael who were talking about Alex, and what they would do to him if they had ever seen him near her again.
"I don't want you to talk to him about it," Jason said as he sat down in the rocking chair that was still in Emma's room since she was a baby. He smiled as he remembered the first time he rocked her in that chair. They hadn't sat in that chair together for at least 7 years. He missed his little girl.
"Why Dad? I have to make him understand, maybe he doesnt know about what happened. I could tell him, then he could understand where this family is coming from and everything will be okay..." Emma said.
"Come here," Jason said as he held his arms out for Emma to sit on his lap.
"Dad, you have to be kidding, I'll break you." Emma laughed.
"No you won't. Come on. Come sit with me," Jason motioned for her again.
She sighed and walked over and sat down on his lap. He put his arms around her arms and held her tight. He didnt want her to grow up. Ever. All he wanted was to sit in this chair, just like they were at that very moment. He wanted time to freeze. But he knew that was impossible. Jason knew his baby girl had some tough times ahead of her. He had a bad feeling at Sonny's when Morgan brought it up. He had to keep his daughter safe. That was all that mattered.
"Emma you gotta understand something..." Jason told her as he continued to rock them back and forth on the rocking chair.
"What do I need to understand Dad?" Emma asked, looking her father dead in the eye. It was blue against blue.
"That I love you more than anything else in this whole entire world. And that everything that I do is to keep you safe," Jason said seriously.
"I know you love me Dad, and you know that I love you, and I'm glad you keep me safe. I wouldn't want to be stuck in a mine like Mom was, or chained to a wall like Aunt Carly..." Emma was interrupted by her father's serious tone.
"I never wanted you to know about that, you and Morgan weren't supposed to find out."
"Did you guys think we weren't gonna find out Dad? Someone obviously would have told us. I mean, what if we had heard it from someone else, how do you think that would have made us feel?"
"I didnt want you to be hurt by it, that's all," Jason said simply.
"You knew something was wrong when I came home yesterday. How do you do that Dad? Mom can't, not even Morgan can. But you always know what's bothering me or if there's something on my mind," Emma knew that saying this would make her dad feel good.
"You're my only girl. It's my job to know what's going on, so I can protect you from it," Jason said while giving his daughter a kiss on the cheek.
"So, Daddy... how about that wedding?" Emma asked, laughing.
"It was in France. I asked your mom to go away with me. She agreed and I kind of proposed to her again while we were there, and uh... we got married. That was it."
"I'll ask Mom to show me pictures," Emma laughed again.
"You do that," Jason replied.
"I will."
"I'm proud of you Emma. You know that right?" Jason asked her in a loving tone.
"I'm proud of you too Dad. You're the bravest person I know. How many times did you save Mom?" Emma asked. She was so interested in the past, what had happened before her.
"Well, if I'm not mistaken, I believe I saved Mr. Morgan quite a few times as well," Courtney said as she entered the room and smiled at the sight of her daughter sitting on her husband's lap.
"Yeah, okay Court," Jason kidded.
"Emma, Morgan told me to tell you that she wants you to go and see her in the morning before school. Michael said he wants to talk to you," Courtney said, looking at her husband, who was playing with their daughter's hair.
"Great. I bet he's gonna make me eat lunch with him like EveryDAY!" Emma said, dissapointed.
"Maybe I can get him to walk you to all of your classes too," Jason said, completley serious.
"Real funny Dad," Emma said, knowing that he wasn't kidding.
"Well, good night Emma," Courtney said.
"Mom,"
"Yeah?"
"Thanks, you know, for telling me. You were so brave. I wish I was half as brave as you and Dad are," Emma said quietly.
Courtney smiled. "Night baby, I love you,"
"Night, I love you more," Emma replied as her mother left the room.
"Dad, I'm really tired," Emma said as she tried to wiggle out of her father's strong embrace. But he wouldnt budge.
"You have to promise me that you won't go looking for trouble Emma," Jason said sternly.
"And why would I do that?" Emma asked trying to sound innocent.
"Because you are your mother's daughter," Jason said giving her a kiss on the head and getting up.
"Yeah, well I'm your daughter too! What do I get from you huh?" Emma asked as she slipped into her bed.
"I love you," Jason said as he bent down to kiss his baby girl.
"I love you more Dad," Emma said as she watched him smile before giving her a kiss.
"See you in the morning?" Emma asked.
"I'm bringing you to school," Jason informed her.
"Come Onn Dad! Mikey can bring me and Morgan..." Emma pleaded.
"I'm bringing you Emma," Jason said.
"How about we go there in the normal car, not the limo..."
"Uh... what car do you wanna take?"
"Mine!" Emma replied eagerly.
"Just because I bought you that car, doesnt mean that I'm going to drive it," Jason told her.
"Fine, then let me drive!" Emma said, knowing what she had just said would drive her dad insane.
"No. No. No. No way! Absolutley not. Nope. You're too young," Jason knew that Emma had done that on purpose, to drive him crazy.
"I'll see you in the morning Dad," Emma told her father as she shut her eyes and instantly fell asleep.
"Yeah, see you in the morning," Jason said with as sigh as he sat on the edge of his daughter's bed and watched her sleep. He knew that Ric had to be up to something. Alex Lansing was the perfect way to get to his daughter. Lansing knew that family was Jason's only weakness. Jason knew that he would go crazy if something ever happened to Emma, or Courtney. He just hoped that for once his instincts were wrong. Then a quiet voice yanked him back to reality.
"Jase," his wife said his name softly, as not to wake Emma.
"Yeah, I'm coming," He said as he tucked in the blankets more securley around her so she wouldnt get cold and kissed her on the forehead.
"You know what this means dont you Courtney?" Jason asked his wife as he slid into bed next to her, absentmindedly taking her into his arms and stroking her hair.
"Maybe that since Ric isnt really the kid's father, maybe he's okay? We should invite him over, you know, get to know him before jumping to conclusions..." Courtney suggested as she twisted his wedding ring around his finger.
"No. No way. Any kid brought up by Ric Lansing is not going anywhere near Emma. It just isnt going to happen Courtney," Jason said, clearly worried about this.
"Okay," was all she said.
"What no arguement? You're not gonna say I'm being unfair, or too over-protective?" Jason asked.
"I just know that you want the best for her, so I'm not arguing," Courtney stated simply.
"You know, you did really good tonight," Jason told his wife as he massaged her shoulders, getting rid of all the tension.
"They needed to know, I did what I had too," Courtney said, wiping a tear from her eye.
"Are you crying?" Jason asked.
"No, why would I be crying?" Courtney replied, trying to cover it up.
"You're crying. I know you are. But it's okay Court, no one can hurt us anymore..."
"That's not it Jason," Courtney said.
"Then what is it?" He said softly.
"She thinks I'm brave," Courtney said, tears now flowing down her cheeks.
"You are brave, you are the bravest woman I know," Jason said as he turned his wife around to face him and he wiped away her tears.
"I put up a brave front Jase, you know that. You know how scared I was when we were in the mineshaft, when I was on that floating prison. Jason, I am so the opposite of brave," Courtney sobbed into her husband's chest.
"Look, Courtney everyone gets scared. I get scared. When you and Emma were in that car accident, the mineshaft, when I saw you in that hospital bed in South America. I was scared. For you, I couldnt lose you Courtney, because I wouldnt know how to live, and that makes me so not brave, but in Emma's eyes I am brave, and so are you, and that's all that matters," Jason said.
"You're right, you're absolutley right. God, I love you so much," Courtney said as she turned back around and put her head on her husband's chest so she could feel his heart beat.
"I love you," Jason Morgan said to his wife.
"I love you more," Courtney Morgan said right back.
And once again, Jason couldnt see how Courtney could love him more than he loved her.