Disclaimer: I don't own these characters. The powers that be at General Hospital do. They just don't use them very well. There are some original characters in here as well.

Feedback: Is greatly appreciated. If you like it tell me why, if you don't, please tell me what you don't like. It's how I learn.

Author's notes: A lot of the characters on GH will be in this fic, if you don't see them right away give me time. I like fic's with a lot of characters in them, so that is how I write them.

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What If…

Chapter 3

~Jakes~

Rory rolled over and encountered an empty space, frowning she struggled to open her eyes. When she managed that accomplishment, she looked around for Jason. She found him by the bathroom getting dressed.

Half asleep she watched him drop the towel from his waist and pull on his boxers. Wide eyed now, she watched him step into his tight-fitting blue jeans. She watched the jeans take shape when he fastened them in the front. There was that ass she loved, she thought rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

Jason felt her eyes on him and smiled to himself pulling on his shirt, "Enjoying the show?" he asked.

She jumped, but refused to feel guilty, "Well its worth the price of admission but you could sell it a bit more."

He turned to look at her, snuggled in the bed, her hair in wild disarray. He saw her eyes still cloudy with sleep, and her full mouth, begging to be kissed. Playing along "And what do you have in mind?" He asked crossing to her to sit beside her on the bed.

She sat up, draping her arm over his shoulder to rest it on the front of his chest, "You could include a little hip action." She answered kissing him softly on the cheek, "You've always been good with that hip action." She kissed the other cheek. "That always works for me." She finished pressing her lips to his.

It was a sweet and playful kiss and it still sent shockwaves through her system. "Then again, I think you should only do private shows."

He smirked "Private shows, you mean one on one?"

"Yes, you've always been good in one on one situations." She kissed him again. This time there was no playfulness the desire that had been banked roared between them as their mouths touched.

He felt his body respond to her touch, and he cursed Sonny, and he reluctantly pulled away from her. He looked into her sleepy eyes and saw the need in them; the need he knew was being reflected in his own eyes. "I have to go."

Confusion crossed Rory's face, "Now?"

"Yes, I have a meeting." He pulled free of her and reached for his boots.

She collapsed face down beside him on the bed, "Bastard." he heard her murmur into the mattress.

He started to answer, his eyes focused on her wrist, he could see the livid marks on her fair skin. The outline of a man's fingers on her skin. In an instant his anger was back.

"We need to talk."

Rory lifted her head, the teasing atmosphere of the last few minutes had left, she felt the tension in the room. It was emanating from the man beside her and she knew it wasn't sexual tension. "Jason are you okay?" she asked sitting cross-legged on the bed.

She watched him get up and prowl around the room like a caged panther. This was not the Jason she was used to seeing, she kept quiet and watched him waiting for him to talk to her.

Jason paced to control his anger. He hadn't felt this angry in a very long time, and his famous control was being very elusive this morning. He felt almost out of control, over some bruises on Rory's skin. This was not good. He sighed heavily and scrubbed his hand over his face, trying to edge the temper back.

Finally he went to her and sat on the bed facing her. "About what happened last night."

"Jason, you know that fight was not your fault, it was that drunk's fault. Oh wait, is it your sister is she okay?" She asked reaching out for his hand.

"No Emily's fine. She was just shaken, I guess you gave her a fright. It's just…" He broke off uncharacteristically unsure.

"Just what Jason?"

"Even after I explained who you were, she still seemed." He paused, "I don't know she was convinced that you were her friend Elizabeth Webber."

Rory frowned at that, she had been managing to push that part of last night out of her brain. It was so odd, three people she had never met were so convinced she was someone else, and not just any someone, a dead girl to boot. It was unsettling, and even more disturbing because she knew one of those people was Jason's sister. She knew how much Emily met to him.

"Do you want me to go?" She asked holding her breath.

Jason seemed genuinely startled at that suggestion, and she let out a breath. "No! I never even considered you leaving."

"Okay then what can I do to help her, do you want me to stay away from her for awhile?"

"No, you're in my life, and she's in my life I want you to get to know her." Jason began, "It's just…I don't know, she seemed so fragile last night. I think something else is bothering her." He stood crossing too the dresser to put on his watch and grab his wallet.

"I won't seek her out, and If I do see her I'll tread carefully." Rory offered.

Jason turned and smiled his thanks. "There is also the question of Lucky." He said frowning.

~Cottage~

"Nikolas are you sure your okay, your moving like an old granny goat?' Gia teased, watching Nikolas walk slowly around the room getting dressed.

Nikolas grimaced forcing his arm through his shirtsleeve, his arm felt like it had almost been ripped off. "I'm fine, I just slept wrong."

Gia bit her lip, to keep from smiling at him when he turned to face her, "Don't you dare laugh."

"I would never, Nikolas, I would never laugh at you." She smiled at him innocently, twisting her hands behind her back so she wouldn't laugh.

With a groan, he sat heavily on the bed, to pull on his shoes. "Go ahead, laugh. That man is a menace."

Instantly serious she crossed to him, "Did he attack you? You wouldn't tell me anything last night."

"No, I charged him, after I saw him flatten Lucky." He looked at her sheepishly, "I sort of forgot all the martial arts stuff I knew, when I saw my brother lying on the ground."

"So he attacked Lucky, why? I thought they were friends." Gia asked perplexed.

His mind flashed back to the woman, to Elizabeth, no Rory, he couldn't afford to think of her as Elizabeth. "This time, I think that Lucky attacked Jason," he said finally with a sigh.

"Why? Does this have anything to do with that woman you were talking about, the one Lucky thought was Elizabeth?"

"Yes, apparently she is with Jason and I don't know the details but Lucky was convinced it was Elizabeth. I'm pretty sure he threw the first punch. It's so strange Gia, that woman looked exactly like Elizabeth. She even acted like the Elizabeth I knew when she first moved to town, before.." he broke off getting to his feet, "Anyway I thought it was her too and I hadn't had anything to drink. I can only imagine what Lucky thought."

"Was he bad again?" She asked quietly getting up and wrapping her arms around him. She knew how much Lucky's increased drinking in the last few months had hurt him.

"Getting there. I'm afraid this look alike will push him over the edge if Jason doesn't do it first. Oh my god Emily." He said pulling out of her arms, practically racing to the phone. She couldn't help but notice that there was no stiffness in his movements then.

"What about Emily?" She asked sourly walking too the dresser to put on her perfume.

"She was there last night, and she saw everything, she passed out. Jason was supposed to take her home." He explained listening to the ringing of Emily's private line, "No answer."

"Nikolas, I'm sure she's fine, Jason would have made sure of it." Gia told him, "Hey you might not like him but he'd do anything for his sister, last summer proved that."

"Okay." He hung up the phone, "I better check on Lucky." He said leaving the room.

"Of course, check on Lucky, check on Emily, but does he check on me? Hell no!" Gia grumbled zipping up her boots, she whirled around when Nikolas rushed back into the room.

"He's gone."

~Jakes~

"Can we please not talk about him?" Rory said with a groan collapsing against the pillows.

Jason went back to the bed and sat down. He gently took her bruised wrist in his hands, "We have to talk about him," he said softly.

She opened her eyes and looked into his worried eyes, "I'm fine Jason, bruises fade."

He quirked his mouth and looked back down at her hand this time studying the bruised knuckles. "Jason one of the hazards of having fair skin is that I show marks easy. I may bruise easily on the outside, but I don't get hurt. Besides I've had worse bruises, I'm tough, I have to be I live with you." She said with a smile trying to lighten his mood.

He looked up at her his electric blue eyes piercing hers "Not with me you haven't. Never with me." He said quietly, dangerously.

She felt her stomach pitch, when his eyes continued to bore into hers. He was mad at himself, she realized. Mad because she had gotten hurt in front of him. Oh boy, testosterone alert, better tread gently. She turned her hand so she was clasping his, "Jason it wasn't your fault. I'm not hurt. You were in an impossible situation, Lucky was a friend of yours. I know that you told me so yourself. You didn't know that seeing me would set him off, there was no way you could have known. You did nothing wrong. You handled the situation quickly and with as little violence as possible." She said quietly never taking her eyes from his, so she knew he heard her.

"Well now I know, and it won't happen again. Another thing that won't happen again is you getting in between me and someone else in the middle of a fight." Rory flushed at that and tried to pull her hand away, Jason kept it easily. "What the hell were you thinking?"

"Oh I don't know maybe I thought I would help save your ass from being sucker punched," Rory said nastily.

Jason snorted, "Did it look like I needed your help?"

"Well we won't know will we, because I took care of Lucky. It was ridiculously easy, one punch and down for the count. He must have a glass jaw."

"Oh really?" He studied her bruised knuckles, "And the fact his head cracked the pool table didn't mean anything."

"I refuse to talk about him any longer." She said with finality. Damn'it did he have to notice everything?

"Rory, I want you to stay away from Lucky Spencer. Something's not right with him, I don't want you anywhere near him." Jason pressed.

"Jason I've been taking care of myself for a very long time. You're my lover not my babysitter." She retorted. She saw the hard look on his face, and then looked past it to the worry in his eyes, and she caved "I will, however, not seek him out, and stay only in very public places with him if our paths do cross," she finished sighing dramatically, "Anything else, oh lord and master?"

"Just this." Jason said slipping his arms around her, pulling her to him and kissed her. The desire slammed in to him when her body went lax in his arms, her mouth opened beneath his. His tongue entered her mouth and found hers. Rory moaned, when he pressed her back to the bed, lying on top of her. Her hands raced up his back, to his head pulling him closer. He nibbled kisses on the side of her mouth, teasing her until she pulled his mouth back to hers so she could feast on him.

Dimly she became aware of a ringing, at the same time Jason tensed and broke the kiss. He groaned, and pulled himself off of her. He crossed to the desk and answered the phone, "What?"

Rory lay on the bed watching him, trying to make her brain start functioning again. Every time he kissed her like that, she couldn't think clearly for minutes.

"Yeah, I'll be right there." She registered his words and groaned burying her head under the pillows.

Jason took a deep breath and hung up the phone, trying to calm his hormones, before turning back to look at her. "Sorry." Rory ignored him, "Rory, I have to go, I'm late already." She still didn't answer him, he pulled on his jacket and paused in the open door way, "Rory," he said with a sigh.

"Go Jason, I'll be fine in fact, I think, I'll just stay in bed for awhile," she began pulling herself up and leaning back against the headboard. His shirt, the one she always slept in slipped off one shoulder, exposing her creamy white skin, her hair was tousled now by his hands, her lips were still bruised because of his kisses. She shot him a look that singed him from across the room. "Then I think I'll take a nice long, hot shower, before I go exploring," she finished shifting on the bed, moving the covers as she did so, to expose her bare leg. "I'll talk to you later," she finished with a sly smile.

His mind had braked to a halt back at the shower remark, his eyes locked on her bare leg, "Witch." He said with a glare turning away from her and slamming out the door.

She held the pose for a moment longer, before collapsing to the bed in frustration. Groaning she slid out of bed, "Oh I'll take a long shower all right." She muttered heading to the bathroom, "A long cold shower."

Jason shoved the back door of Jakes open so hard it whipped back and caught his arm before he cleared it. "Damn." He took a breath and started counting in his head. It never worked, but he always tried it anyway, trying to calm down.

Feeling a little more in control he crossed to the bike grimacing slightly when he got on the bike, Damn jeans were to tight at the moment. He shook his head and cursed Rory again. He'd handle her tonight he thought, pulling on the helmet and roaring out of Jakes.

The man waited until the bike turned the corner before he got out of his car. He stared at the second floor of Jakes and then pulled out his cell phone, dialing a number from memory.

"Morgan just left, she's alone now, what do you want me to do?" He asked when his call was answered.

He nodded slowly, "I'll take care of it." He closed his phone and studied Jakes.

An hour later Rory walked down the stairs, her mind was on one thing food. Preferably artery hardening, greasy, fried food. She chuckled wondering how Jason was enjoying his morning. She moved through the deserted bar to the door.

She stopped abruptly when she heard a noise coming from behind the bar. Frowning, she glanced over to the bar, "Hello, anyone there?"

No one answered her, Rory shrugged, but had only taken a step before she heard the noise again.

Her eyes flicked from the bar, to the door, and then back to the bar. Okay how brave are you Nichols, she wondered taking a step towards the bar.

She peered intently at the bar but it was in the darkest corner of the entire room. She moved quietly, slowing only to pick up an empty beer bottle from a deserted table. She held it by the neck and continued to the bar, and the noises coming from it.

Rory raised the bottle over her head, took a breath, and turned into the empty space between the bar and the bottles. Her eyes widened and she screamed, the bottle she held hit the ground.