Show: General Hospital
Title: Change is Good 2
Disclaimer: I own them all... really I do! Hmm... I guess it's also time to admit I'm a pathological liar.
Summary: Sequel to "Change is Good". Elizabeth and Zander's daughter, Joanna, is four years old. Liz and Jason have been married for three years but can this 12-year-old man deal with family and being two very different people? Jason and Monica have closed the gap that existed between them after his accident; how does Alan feel about being excluded from their reunion? Emily returns with a secret to tell Zander. Can Nikolas and Gia's fledgling relationship survive Gia's suspicions about her return? Carly is deathly ill and Sonny is forced to take care of the children he hasn't seen in five years. Where do Alexis and Justus fit in this equation?
A/N: It's been a while coming but I've got it now, so I hope you enjoy this as much as you did the first installment. The story will be focused on a variety of persons/pairings and will be going back and forth between years, so I hope it won't get too confusing.
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CHAPTER 1
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Port Charles, July 2008, PH2
Hearing Joanna's words gave Zander pause outside his daughter's bedroom. He looked to Emily; the tentative smile she gave filled him with hope and he couldn't help returning it, but he looked away quickly and stepped around the corner.
Joey's sleepy brown eyes lit up as she caught sight of her father. Elizabeth lifted a brow, wondering just how much of their conversation he'd heard. After all, there was no mistaking this 'someone' that Joanna had meant.
"Hey, pumpkin. All ready for dreamland?"
"Uh-huh. I want a hug, Daddy," she said sleepily, reaching up for him.
Zander hugged her fiercely to him, inhaling that little girl scent - birthday cake, candy and strawberry shampoo. "I love you, Joey," he whispered softly.
"I love you too, Daddy," she managed just before her eyes closed and she fell asleep. Zander tucked her blanket more securely under her chin and the four adults tip-toed from the room, Jason pausing to quietly close the door behind them.
"I ought to be going," Emily was saying as they made their way down the stairs.
"I can give you a lift," Zander offered.
Emily hesitated for the barest of seconds before she smiled. "Thanks."
"It's no problem."
"Are you staying with the Q's?" Elizabeth asked as they reached the bottom and she handed them their light jackets.
"Nope. Grandmother tried to convince me but I'm staying at the hotel. Thanks, I had a great time," she continued, pressing a kiss to her brother's cheek. "G'night, Jas, Liz."
"Night, Em," Jason replied. Elizabeth gave her a hug and Zander held the door open for her.
"See you later, guys," Zander said before quietly closing the door behind him.
Jason turned to head back upstairs but Elizabeth still stood there looking at the door - well, if she had X-ray vision, she would be looking beyond the door to the couple making their way to the elevator. "What?" he asked curiously.
She turned to him. "This should be very interesting," was all she could say.
Outside, the night was warm and balmy but a cool breeze blew in from the River. As Zander drove, Emily took a deep breath, happy to be home.
"I can't believe how big Joanna's gotten," she said suddenly, thinking of her goddaughter.
At the mention of his daughter's name a smile quirked Zander's lips upwards. He took his eyes from the road and momentarily looked at her. "Sometimes, neither can I."
There was no mistaking the paternal pride in his voice. He loved Joanna; he'd loved her from the moment he'd learned of her existence; he'd lost his heart to her the first moment she looked at him with those big brown eyes of hers and lost another piece of himself every time she did it now.
Emily smiled softly, but something else lurked in her eyes. "You two have done a great job of raising her," Emily continued saying.
"Us three," Zander corrected. "Jason helps out, too."
"She's a lucky little girl."
"No, I'm the lucky one." Zander turned off the main road and pulled up to the Port Charles Hotel.
"Thank you, Zander," she said, giving him that smile that melted his insides like chocolate candy.
"No problem."
Emily bit her lip and seemed to debate with herself for a while. "Want to come up for a bit, Z?" she asked softly.
Her utterance of his pet name gave him pause and, thinking back to their conversation that evening, he so wanted to take her up on the offer. But he couldn't; he'd made so much progress in the past four years, he couldn't make himself even more vulnerable to her than he already was. "Not tonight, Em," he replied, equally as softly. The smile fell from her face and, damning himself for caring so much he rushed on, "Rain check?"
"Sure." She smiled tentatively again and exited the car.
He watched Emily's retreating figure until it stood under the lights at the lobby entrance. Where was the anger? he wondered.
When she caught sight of him still there she sent him a questioning smile. He simply waved in reply and drove off.
Joanna was fast asleep, the kitchen and living-room were cleaned up, the security alarm was set and the penthouse was dark and quiet. Jason padded down the hallway and quietly shut his bedroom door.
Elizabeth was perched at the vanity, brushing out her unruly hair.
Jason's warm hands settled on her shoulders and she smothered a moan when he bent and pressed a soft kiss to the side of her neck. "Joey's asleep," he said softly, trailing his fingertips over the creamy skin of her collar.
"And?" asked Liz devilishly, although she had a pretty good idea where this was all leading.
"I want you," he announced huskily. Two pairs of blue eyes collided in the mirror. Elizabeth's widened and then darkened with desire as Jason's fingers nimbly unbuttoned her pajama top and delved inside to cup her bare breasts. Her head fell back onto his stomach as arousal ignited low in her belly. Jason's mouth covered hers and he squeezed the aching mounds gently.
As usual, the passion rose hot and fast between them; control was a foreign concept.
Some things really never changed.
Port Charles, March 2004, Liz and Zander's apartment building
At the entrance outside her apartment building, Jason and Elizabeth paused. She turned and looked up at him. They'd spent the rest of the day together; it was almost eight and the temperature was below freezing point but the way his silver-blue eyes held hers was enough to warm any girl's heart and most definitely their body.
"I should be heading up," she said reluctantly, her words frosting in the cold night air.
"Of course," Jason replied in a tone that indicated that was the last thing he wanted her to do. He took in their surroundings. It wasn't as bad as her studio, but this neighbourhood still wasn't the safest. Zander wasn't home and he worried. He'd put a guard on her tomorrow but, for now, he'd walk her to her door.
"Walk you up?" he asked, although he knew the question was more of a formality than an actual request.
"You don't have to do that, Jas."
"I want to."
Elizabeth smiled softly and turned to unlock the door. They stepped inside the welcome warmth of the tiny foyer and headed for the stairs. Liz and Zander's apartment was on the second floor so it wasn't that long or tiring of a journey.
Outside her door, they paused again and turned to face each other. Without pause, Jason tugged the pompom hat from her head and, crowding her until her back lay flush against the door, buried his fingers in the mass of curls and covered her mouth with his.
He got that feeling that said even if he did this every day for the rest of his life, he'd never get enough of it, he'd never grow tired of it. It was scary and exciting all at the same time. He would always be starved for the honeyed taste of her tongue, for the vanilla scent of her skin, for that little whimper she made in the back of her throat when he nipped her bottom lip gently and then soothed it with his tongue.
By this time, Liz had molded herself against him until he could feel her every curve and the little mound of her stomach. He knew that if he didn't put a halt to this he would be tempted to say or do something highly inappropriate - like make love to her against her door, her neighbours be damned. Jason dragged his lips away and, drawing on every scrap of discipline and control he had, stepped away from her.
"See you tomorrow?" he asked huskily.
Elizabeth looked dazed and she barely managed to smile shakily as she turned and fumbled to get her keys into the lock. Taking pity on her, Jason took the keys from her and quickly unlocked the door. "Tomorrow," she echoed.
After she'd closed the door Jason smiled. Tomorrow was going to be a good day.
Port Charles, July 2008, PH2
The half moon slanted through the window, bathing their naked bodies in an ethereal glow.
Elizabeth was sitting up, propped up on her pillows. Jason lay half atop her, his head on her stomach with his spiky blonde hair tickling her each time he took a breath, his hands gently cradling her hips.
Her fingers were constantly threading through his hair and she was immensely content, a dreamy smile on her face. Jason stirred and, pressing a kiss below her navel looked up, his blue eyes finding hers in the dark.
Elizabeth's fingers stilled and she licked her lips. She opened her mouth and closed it. She did it again and in the moonlight she could see Jason's confused look. He moved to speak but Elizabeth cut him off. "I'm pregnant," she blurted.
Those two words hung in the air and her ever-prepared husband's mouth fell open.
Well... she certainly hadn't expected it to come out quite like that.
TBC...
A/N: Well, what do you think? Drop me a line to let me know.
