Author's note: Okay, I'm pretty sure this is the longest chapter so far. And NEm fans, you might not like a few bits in this.

Dazed, Monica walked away from Carly without saying a word. That girl, a complete stranger, was pregnant with Jason's child. Another grandchild, another Quartermaine.

Dear God.

Monica didn't know what to think. Was this going to be like Carly and Michael all over again? Would this be yet another disappointment, another heartbreak? Still...it was something to look forward to, especially after Lila's death. The arrival of another grandchild.

At any rate, the family needed to know.

She found her husband, chatting politely with Mac Scorpio. "Alan," she said quietly, "we have to talk."

"So...how are you?" Jason asked quietly.

Courtney shrugged. "I'm okay. You know, Jason...I'm happy for you. Honestly."

"Really?" Jason asked in surprise.

"Yeah," she said. "I mean, you were meant to be a dad. And now you're finally getting that chance."

"Yeah," Jason said. "Listen, Courtney...just for the record, Sam and I...we aren't in love. This...is just about the baby, and giving it the best life possible."

She shook her head. "You don't need to explain anything to me--"

"No, I want to," he insisted. "I don't know what you thought when you heard that Sam was pregnant, so soon after the divorce, but...it just happened." He shook his head. "God, that sounded lame."

"No, Jason--it's okay. Really. You've moved on, so have I."

Jason nodded in agreement. "I--hope you're happy with Jax. But really, Courtney, couldn't you pick another guy? One who's not so...smug?"

Courtney laughed. "There is nothing going on between me and Jax." At Jason's disbelieving look, she insisted, "There isn't! There's this bet--"

Jason smiled as she explained the details of her bet with Jax. It sounded insane, but Courtney seemed like she was having fun turning down Jax at every opportunity. "You're crazy," he told her. "You know that right? And if Mike finds out the specifics...he'll kill Jax, and then lock you up in a convent."

"It's ten million dollars, Jason!" she said. "Besides...my dad's not going to find out. And you cannot tell him."

"I won't, I won't," Jason promised. It was the least he could do for her. "I can't say anything for Sonny though...you know how much he despises Jax."

"Yeah, well, I'll just deal with it when the time comes," Courtney said, smiling.

Jason paused. "Are you sure you're okay?"

Courtney's smile flickered for a second. And under the relaxed attitude and jokes...Jason could see the pain in her blue eyes. Then the bravado returned. "Yeah, I'm fine. Seriously, I'm okay."

Jason was about to insist that she talk to him, really talk to him, but then he caught a glimpse of Sam at the bar...with Monica and Carly.

Holy shit.

"What is it?" Courtney asked, seeing that there was something wrong from his face. She turned around. "Oh. That--wow. What is Carly saying?"

"It's Carly, it could be anything," Jason muttered, watching them. He couldn't see much, they were across the room, but still...it didn't look good.

"Jason, when I invited you guys over, this was not what I had in mind, I swear--"

"I know," he groaned. "I--Jesus, I have to get over there." Just then, he saw Sam run off. Not a second later, Monica walked away as well in the opposite direction.

Jason manuvered through the crowd until he finally got over to Carly. "What the hell did you do?" he demanded.

"Nothing," she replied. Carly turned to the bartender. "Can I get another one of these?"

"Carly! What did you say?"

She didn't look at him. "I just told Monica the good news, that's all."

Jesus Christ. "You did what?" he yells. Unbelievable. Carly had always been a meddler, but he'd never thought..."Carly, look, I know you're upset that Courtney and I split up and that Sam's pregnant. But get the hell over it already, because Sam's not going anywhere. So do me a favor, and stop messing around with my life, okay?" He stomped off without looking back.

"So, Lucky, why are you hiding out here?" Sam asked.

He shrugged. "Don't know. There's no one to really talk to. My brother's in there, snuggling with his fiance, and I can only take those two together in small doses." God, did it feel good to say that out loud. "I mean, I love them, but they're so..."

"Sweet and sappy it makes you want to choke?" Sam finished for him, smiling.

Wow, she was pretty. Lucky realized it all of a sudden. Great smile, pretty face, soft-looking skin...."Yeah," he agreed, trying to get ahold of himself. "What about you?"

Sam put her face in her hands. "Ugh. It's a long story."

"I have time," he said, smiling. "Not like there's anyone else here to talk to." And there wasn't. Elizabeth was at home with her baby, and Emily and Nikolas were glued to each other...plus, all they wanted to talk about was their upcoming wedding. Lucky loved them, and he was thrilled to be their best man, but that did not mean he wanted to talk about engraved wedding invitations for the entire evening.

"Oh, so what, I'm a last resort for you?"

Lucky pretended to consider it. "Well, you know, I like to think of it as the only possibility for conversation left available..."

"Oh, nice!" Sam protested, but she was laughing anyway. "Basically, I'm hiding away from Carly Corinthos before she can humiliate me anymore."

Lucky winced in sympathy. "Ooh. I can understand that." He didn't know why Carly had it out for Sam, but that was one point in Sam's favor. Anybody who Carly disliked couldn't be all that bad.

"What, you know her?" Sam asked, strands of dark hair framing her face. Very soft--looking hair...he really had to stop thinking like this.

"Yeah, you could say that," Lucky said. "She's my cousin."

"Wow. Boy, do I feel sorry for you," Sam said. "No offense."

"None taken," Lucky said. "Carly...doesn't really have all that much to do with the rest of the Spencers, anyway. She's pretty wrapped up in her marriage to Sonny. And since I'm a cop..."

"Wait, you're a cop?" Sam asked.

He watched her carefully. "Yeah. Is that a problem?"

"No," she said. "I've got to warn you though, I haven't always been on the right side of the law..."

"You and most of the people in this town," Lucky said, smiling. "Including my own dad. He's...well, let's just say the man is complex. He's charming, witty, eccentric, and he has a truckload of issues."

"Oh, can I relate to that," Sam said. "My dad was a con artist who dragged me all around the country while he scammed people. Your dad still around?"

"Depends what you mean by around?" Lucky said, sighing. "He's alive...I think. He's kind of missing. Took off. It was really complicated...but then, so is everything with my dad. I mean, I love him...but I do not understand him at all."

"But he loves you, right?"

"Yeah," Lucky said.

Her smile was bittersweet. "More than I ever had with my dad. To him, I was a partner-in-crime, a fellow hustler. But never a daughter."

The sadness in her voice made him want to...do something, like pat her on the shoulder. But he didn't. "What about your mom?"

Sam let out a bitter laugh. "My mom? She left when I was a baby, and--when I tracked her down years later, she didn't want anything to do with me. She didn't want me ruining the perfect life she had." She blinked. "Wow. I--usually don't blurt all that out to someone I don't know--"

Lucky shrugged. "Well, I've never admitted to anyone before that I can't handle being around Nikolas and Emily for too long, so we're even."

"Jason?"

Jason inwardly groaned. Alan. Shit. He turned around. "What is it?"

Alan's jaw was clenched. "We need to talk. Now." And with that, he grabbed Jason by the sleeve and started to drag him off to another room. Jason's first instinct was to shrug him off, but the older man's grip was like iron.

They came into the room, where Monica, Tracy, Edward, Ned, Dillon, Justus, and Emily were all waiting. Jason's shoulders slumped in depression. He had to face down the entire clan?

There was silence for a very long moment. None of the Quartermaines seemed to know where to start, and he wasn't about to say anything.

Finally, Edward spoke. "This is an outrage."

Jason bristled. "Watch it," he growled.

Edward ignored him. "Why on earth didn't you tell us? We had a right to know!"

Despite himself, Jason responded. "Things have been kinda hectic."

"Hectic," Alan echoed sarcastically. "And I suppose you couldn't take five minutes away from doing...whatever it is you do for Sonny Corinthos to tell us, your family, that there would be another addition to the Quartermaines?"

Jason rubbed his face in frustration. He had known coming to this benefit would be a bad idea.

"Oh, you are such a liar," Sam declared. "You've been presumed dead and brainwashed by your half-brother's murderous family? No way."

"Yes, way," Lucky said, grinning. "And that's not even the half of it."

Sam studied him. "You...you really aren't lying?"

"Nope."

"Oh, dear God," Sam said blankly. "And this kind of stuff is normal for this town?"

Lucky thought it over. "Yeah, pretty much," he said brightly.

"I am so screwed," she muttered.

Just then, Justus Ward walked into the gardens. "Man, am I glad to get out of there," he muttered to himself.

"What's going on, Justus?" Lucky asked him.

Justus saw them. "Oh, hey. Nothing, just another Quartermaine battle."

Out of the corner of his eye, Lucky thought he saw Sam stiffen. "Really?" she asked. "What--what about?"

Justus just looked at her. "I think you know," he said gently.

Sam's shoulders slumped. "Oh God."

Confused, Lucky stared at her. "What's wrong?"

Sam gave him a sheepish smile. "In all the time that we were talking...did I mention that I was pregnant with Jason Morgan's child...or that Carly just told the Quartermaines, who had no idea about any of it up until now?"

Lucky's eyes grew ridiculously wide. Whoa. "No, you didn't," he said slowly.

"Sure about that?"

"I think I'd remember," he said flatly. Holy crap. The first nice, smart, attractive woman he'd met in ages...and she was involved with Jason Morgan. It just figured.

"Oh, well, I am." Sam put her face in her hands. "God...they're freaking out, aren't they?"

"Yeah, pretty much," Justus said.

Sam stood up. "Okay, let's go."

"What...you--you want to get involved?" Lucky asked. "Sam, I don't know about that. The Quartermaine battles are not something you want to get involved in."

"I am involved," she pointed out. "I'm right in the middle of this already. So, come on, let's go."

"Oh my God," Sam moaned.

Justus, standing next to her, shook his head. "Welcome to the Quartermaines, Sam." It was a miracle she could even hear him over all the yelling.

"Jason, you should have told us--"

"Who is this girl, anyway?"

"Well, you certainly didn't waste any time, did you?"

"Tracy, stay out of it!"

"Well, really, he just got divorced--"

Sam'd had enough. Quickly, she grabbed a chair and dragged it into the middle of the crowd. Standing up on it, she put two fingers in her mouth and whistled loudly. "Excuse me!"

They all fell silent. "Thank you," Sam said loudly, glancing around. The Quatermaines were all looking at her with a mixture of surprise and curiosity. Lucky gave her a discreet thumbs-up. Jason just looked stunned.

"Clearly," Sam said, smiling tightly, "you're all aware that I'm pregnant. And yes, Jason is the father. Now, all of you can disapprove, but that's the way it is. And if you want to argue and rage over it, then fine. But leave me out of it."

The room was eerily silent. Not a word out of any of them. Sam stepped off the chair and turned to Jason. "And as for you, you unbelievable jackass--"

Jason's eyes grew huge. "Me! What the hell did I do?"

Sam poked him in the chest. "What the hell were you thinking?" she demanded. "How could you not tell them?"

"Sam--"

She held up a hand. "Jason, I get that you don't get along with your family. But for God's sake, you should have told them! But nooo, you couldn't be bothered!" Sam watched several members of Jason's family nod in agreement. "And, not only did you not tell them, you didn't even have the simple courtesy to warn me beforehand that they had no idea!"

"Listen, Sam--" Jason started, but she was in no mood to hear it.

"Please, Jason, clue me in on your thought process here. Just what were you thinking? You bring me here, knowing the Quartermaines are going to attend, and you don't even give me a heads-up?" Sam was really getting worked up by this point. "God, Jason, even a--a warning in the limo, like 'hey, Sam, my family doesn't know I knocked you up, so just avoid them' would have been better than your mother staring at me as if I'd suddenly sprouted a third eye!"

"Are you finished?" Jason asked while she caught her breath.

Sam took a deep breath. "Yeah."

"Okay then. Can we please get out of here and talk about this somewhere else?"

"Oh, no," Sam said briskly. "I'm done." She brushed past him and he grabbed her arm.

"Wait, Sam--"

Sam whirled around. In a falsely calm voice, she said, "I am going to go into the bathroom and be sick, because the morning sickness is acting up again. Then I'm going home. And if you have even an ounce of self-preservation in your body--you will not follow me to the bathroom, and you won't come home for another three hours. Got that?"

Jason simply nodded, clearly at a loss for words.

"Good," she snapped and walked towards the door, where Courtney and Jax were watching. "Where's the bathroom?" she asked Courtney.

Looking a bit stunned, Courtney said, "Down the hall and to your right."

"Thank you," Sam said as politely as possible, and quickly ran off.

"Well, I like her," Tracy said once Sam had left. "For a girl with horrible taste in men, she does seem to have a talent for ripping a strip off your back. I think she'll fit right in."

"Shut up, Tracy," Jason said shortly

"Hey, hey," Ned protested. "Don't tell my mother to shut up."

"Uh, Ned," Justus interjected, "you don't even like Tracy. Hell, you tell her to shut up all the time."

"Well, yeah, but that doesn't mean he can tell her to shut up," Ned explained, glaring at Jason. Jason glared right back.

"Why, thanks," Tracy said. "I think."

Jason shook his head, irritated beyod belief. "I'm going after her," he muttered. Justus grabbed his arm.

"Didn't you just hear what she said?" he asked. "Jason, leave her alone so that she can--"

"What, take off for Costa Rica again?" Jason asked. "No way am I letting that happen."

"Costa Rica?" Edward echoed. "She left for Costa Rica?"

Jason tightened his jaw. There was absolutely no way he was filling them in on any of this. He didn't owe them an explanation, he didn't owe them anything.

Emily explained. "Sam--left for Costa Rica once Jason found out the baby was his."

"I can't say I blame her," Jax commented.

Jason bristled. "That's it, I'm gone." He strode out of the room, not looking at any of them.

Of course, Jason came after her. He always did. He even came into the ladies' bathroom and knocked on the stall. "Sam? You all right?"

Sam wiped her mouth. After a very long pause, she finally said, her voice hoarse, "I told you not to follow me."

"Did you really think I wasn't going to?"

Sam lurched up to her feet, and opened the stall. Without looking at Jason, she walked to the sink and rinsed out her mouth. When she was finished, she stared at herself in the mirror. "I feel like hell."

"Come on," Jason said. "Let's just go home."

She turned to him, leaning against the sink. "Jason, this situation isn't going to work at all unless we communicate. This whole fiasco could have been avoided if you'd just talked to me or your family."

Jason looked down. "I know." He met her eyes. "What happened tonight was my fault."

"Yeah, no kidding," she muttered. "And what is Carly's problem anyway? If it was Courtney, I would understand. I wouldn't like it, but I'd understand it. But I haven't done a thing to Carly--"

"She's compensating," Jason said quietly.

"What?"

He sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. has been really understanding about all this. I mean, she's hurt, but she's been nothing but civil about it all. And--Carly doesn't get that, because it's the exact opposite of what she would do. When Carly gets hurt, she lashes out, and she doesn't get why Courtney isn't doing the same thing."

"Maybe it's because Courtney actually has class, unlike a certain someone I could mention," Sam muttered, kicking at the floor with her foot.

Jason ignored the comment and continued. "So...all this...maybe it's her way of sticking up for Courtney."

Sam considered it. "That actually makes some sense...in a really twisted sort of way."

"Listen, Corinthos, Courtney pulled me into this because she needed my help--"

"Oh, yeah, and this has nothing to do with me," Sonny said disbelievingly. "Like I believe that."

Jax looked throughly irritated. "Look, whatever my problems are with you, Courtney doesn't have anything to do with any of it."

Sam raised an eyebrow. "Guess those two don't get along," she murmered.

"Yeah. I--I should probably break it up--"

Sam nodded. "Okay, um, I'll just call a taxi, and you get home whenever you can, okay?"

Jason looked at her warily. "This isn't another attempt to run away, right?"

She rolled her eyes. "Come on, Jason. I'm in no shape to run off. I'm tired, cranky, and I just puked my guts up."

"Good point," Jason conceded. "All right, if you're sure--"

Sam waved her hand. "Go."

And he went. Wearily, Sam pulled out her cell phone. "Come on, come on, where's the number for the taxis..." she murmered.

"Hey, are you all right?" Lucky asked as he stepped up to her.

Sam smiled at him, closing her phone and grateful she'd downed three breathmints. "Yeah, I'm fine," she said. "Just about to call a taxi for a ride home."

"Where's Jason?" he asked. "I thought he was coming after you..."

"He did," Sam said. "Don't worry, I didn't kill him."

Lucky grinned. "Good, because I'd hate to have to arrest you." He paused. "Hey, you know what? Why don't you let me give you a ride home? I was planning to go back to my apartment anyway."

"Are you sure?" she asked.

He grinned. "Yeah, I don't think anything else can top you standing on that chair, telling everyone off."

Sam groaned. "God, I'm so embarrassed..."

"Are you kidding?" Lucky asked. "That was the highlight of the evening!"

"You really don't mind?"

"Hey, I'm an officer," Lucky said. "It's my duty to protect and serve. Besides, I was bored out of my mind."

"What are you thinking about?" Lucky asked.

Sam leaned her head back against the seat. "About how I've just stumbled into this town and I have no idea what I'm doing," she said wearily. "It's like every time I finally find my footing, something happens to knock me right back on my ass again."

"I know the feeling," Lucky murmered. His mom and dad diasappearing...Skye locked up in prison for a crime he knew she didn't committ...and there was nothing to be done.

He glanced at her and realized again, not for the first time, how pretty she was. And how her demeanor had changed from the dynamo that had told off Jason Morgan, into this scared and confused girl.

"What was I thinking?" she whispered. "I move in with a guy I barely know, just because he knocked me up, and I'm actually naïve enough to believe he's going to make everything okay?"

"Hey, come on, now," Lucky said reassuringly. "You don't know that everything won't work out."

Sam stared at him. "I'm carrying the child of a brain-damaged mob enforcer, his entire family, along with the town, probably thinks I'm a slut, my next-door neighbor is absolutely determined to make my life a living hell, and the only person I can really trust right now is a sleazy bartender who's always looking out for a quick buck. How exactly is everything supposed to work out?"

Lucky knew he had to say something. "Well, Carly could always fall off a cliff," he offered.

She let out a choked laugh. "With my luck, I'd end up getting blamed for it."

"Seriously, though," he continued, "you're just trying to figure out the best way to take care of your child. I respect that."

Sam looked at him, her eyes sorrowful. "Lucky, do you want to know the real reason why I agreed to come live with Jason?"

Lucky did want to know, with a sudden curiosity that surprised him. He wanted to know what she had seen in Jason Morgan to make her trust him. But something held him back from responding.

It didn't matter, because she continued anyway. "I couldn't go through with the abortion. And--and I was too weak and selfish to think about giving this child up for adoption. And then Jason showed up, and gave me an easy way out. And I took it."

Lucky shook his head. "There's nothing selfish about wanting your child."

"There is when it's not in your child's best interests," Sam countered. "And I--God, Lucky, I'm not going to be a fit mother, I don't know anything about kids, and Jason...Christ, do you realize how many issues that guy has?"

"All right, that's it," Lucky muttered, deciding to run off the road, driving into the parking lot of a video rental store. The neon lights from the sign shone into their car, dying their skin pink and blue.

"Wait--what are you doing?" Sam asked.

He ignored her and turned off the engine, shifting in his seat so he could face her. "Sam, listen to me. Things aren't as bad as you think."

She folded her arms. "Clearly, you are one of those "glass half-full" types, and normally I can't stand people like that--but I would love to see anyone even try to put a positive spin on this. Go right ahead."

"Gee, thanks," Lucky said dryly. "First off, let's make something clear. I don't like Jason Morgan. I don't understand him, I don't understand why he makes the choices he does, and my sworn duty as a cop is to take criminals like him down. But with all that...even I have to admit that he's good with kids. And--I don't know if he can be a good father, given what he does. But I do believe that he's going to try."

Her eyes were wide, but her voice was steady as she said, "Go on."

Lucky did. "And as for the Quartermaines...they're one of the most dysfunctional families in town, no question about it. But after years of being Emily's friend and being inside that mansion, I do know that underneath all the backstabbing and the yelling and the politics...they love each other. And they are going to love your child." Lucky leaned back. "How's that for a positive spin?"

After a moment, she smiled slightly. "It's not bad."

"Feel any better?"

Her smile grew. "I'll feel better once I get out of these shoes," she said, groaning. "Ugh."

Lucky laughed and turned the engine back on.

"You all right?" Sonny asked.

Jason sighed. "Yeah, I'm fine." He rubbed his face wearily. "Remind me never to come to another one of these things again. What a night."

Sonny smiled. "Yeah, yeah, I heard about the ruckus with the Quartermaines. You all right?"

"Ask me later, when my ears aren't ringing," Jason said dryly.

"That bad?" Sonny asked.

"Yeah, that bad," Jason groaned.

Sonny shook his head. "Damn, I didn't think your family was going to take the news that badly..."

"Oh, no, not them," Jason said. "I mean, they were terrible too, but Sam was the worst. She was pretty mad at me. Can't say I didn't deserve it, I should have prepared her more, but..." he broke off, shaking his head.

"Hey, where is she, anyway?" Sonny asked.

"She went home," Jason said wearily. "Which is what I'm about to do."

"So, um, thanks for the ride," Sam said. "And for listening to me whine."

"You weren't whining," Lucky said. "If I was in your position, I'd be having a complete meltdown." He smiled at her. "You're going to be fine."

She grinned. "Thanks for the vote of confidence." Sam turned to get out of the car, but Lucky couldn't leave it like this.

"Hey, do you want to get coffee sometime?" he asked, feeling like a complete dork but unable to stop. "With me?"

Sam stopped and looked at him. "Really?"

"Yeah," he said, nervous for the first time this evening. "I mean, I realize I'm a cop...and that it might cause a few problems, but...I liked being with you tonight."

Sam smiled at him. "Yeah, okay. Although I can't really drink anything with caffiene...hanging out with you sounds fun."

His eyes grew wide. "Seriously?"

She laughed. "Yeah, absolutely. Lucky...I choose my friends. Not Jason, not Sonny."

"Okay, then," Lucky said, grinning at her.

"Goodnight," she said, stepping out of the car.

" 'Night," he responded.

Sam smiled at him as she shut the door. He waited until she was inside the building, then started his car and went home.

"Jason, wait."

Jason stopped in his tracks, and turned around to face Alan. "What do you want?" he asked, his voice cool.

It was obvious that Alan was upset. "We're not finished with our discussion."

"Actually, I think we are," Jason said. "I have nothing more to say."

"Acting like you're mute won't solve this," Alan told him, folding his arms.

Jason wanted to yell. He needed to get back to Sam, so he could fix this...the last thing he needed was to hear how much of a disappointment he was to the Quartermaines. God, hadn't they figured it out by now? He would never be what they wanted him to be. "Look, this--Sam and the baby--they have nothing to do with the Quartermaines, all right? So just leave it alone."

Alan stiffened, and his arms fell to his sides. In a hoarse voice, he said, "You know, every time I think there's no way you can hurt this family any more than you already have...you always find a way to surprise me." He turned around and walked away.

Goddammit.

When Jason finally got home, Sam was waiting for him on the couch. She'd changed out of her eveningwear into a overlarge gray t-shirt and a pair of sweats. Her hair was pulled back into a messy bun at the top of her head. She looked tired, but calmer. "Hey," she said softly.

"Hey," Jason said, closing the door behind him. "Listen...for what it's worth, I really am sorry about what happened tonight. That wasn't supposed to happen."

She nodded. "Yeah, I kind of figured. Are all your encounters with your family like that?"

Jason thought. "Yeah, pretty much. You, uh, you stopped them before they really got going. They didn't even get to bring up Sonny or the accident or my "lost potential"."

"You were going to be a doctor," Sam said softly.

"Yeah, I was," Jason said, sitting down. "I don't, you know, remember making the decision...but, uh, I still remember the training."

"Really?" Sam asked. "That must come in what you do."

"Sometimes," Jason agreed. "There was this one time...a friend of mine, Emily's fiance in fact--"

"Nikolas Cassadine?"

Jason gave her an odd look. "Yeah, how'd you know?"

"Lucky mentioned him," she explained breezily.

Thrown by the fact that she was talking with Lucky Spencer, Jason decided not to pursue it. "Well, he wasn't Emily's fiance at the time...but uh, he got shot in front of a club, and I was there. He was shot in the throat, and there was no time...so...I performed a trachetomy, right there."

"You're kidding," Sam gasped. "That's...like, when you cut the guy's throat open so air can get in, right?"

"Yup," Jason said. "Did it with a switchblade...good thing was, I saved his life, bad news, he couldn't talk for months. Man, was his uncle pissed." Jason grinned for a moment, remembering the look on Stefan Cassadine's face. Then he grew serious. "Anyway, my family can't deal with what I do, and I'm not willing to live by their rules."

"So, that's it then?" she asked. "You just...cut them out of your lives, pretend like they don't exist?"

"Better than the alternative," Jason said wearily. "Trying to mold myself into what they want, and failing anyway." He leaned back against the couch.

Sam looked down at her feet. "See, I couldn't do that. When my dad was alive, no matter what, I couldn't walk away. Even though...he had no use for me other than help with his latest con...he was my father, and I loved him."

"What about your mom?" Jason asked gently.

She sighed, looking up at the ceiling. "Well, you already know about her, don't you?"

"I know the basics," he admitted.

Sam swallowed and met his eyes. "Let's see. She took off when I was a baby, and when I found her, she wanted absolutely nothing to do with me. She had made this perfect new life...and having her trashy, worthless daughter around messed that up."

"I'm sorry," Jason said quietly. They were quiet for a moment, brooding over their messed-up families. Jason broke the silence. "Hey, uh, what are you doing next week?"

"Nothing," Sam responded. "Why?"

"Because we're getting married."

Sam's head was this close to exploding. Really, how much upheaval could one person be expected to take in such a short amount of time? During the past three months, she'd gotten knocked up, had a miscarriage scare, ran off to South America, fell down a flight of stairs and had another miscarraige scare, agreed to move in with a mob enforcer, yelled at said mob enforcer in front of mob enforcer's entire family, which also happened to be one of the richest families in town. Oh, yeah, and she'd lost out on millions of dollars' worth of gold coins.

And as if all that wasn't enough, now she was getting a proposal of marriage. Unbelievable.

"Sam?" Jason prompted. "You know, an answer would be kind of nice."

Sam stared at Jason. "The answer," she said firmly, "is no. Hell no."