Chapter 44

Jason broke every speed limit to reach Elizabeth stopping only when he came to the boundary to the estate. Elizabeth was sitting at the base of the girl statue on a picnic blanket holding a sketchbook. She looked so beautiful his chest ached. He thought of the danger she put herself in to prove his innocence. Did he really deserve to have this woman love him? He was a killer and that wasn't going to change. Did he really have the right to have something as good as Elizabeth in his life? the right thing for him to do would be to turn around and never see her again. But he couldn't do that. He promised to never hurt her and leaving, he knew, would do just that.

At that moment, Elizabeth raised her head and looked in his direction. She rose slowly to her feet trying not to blink in case he disappeared when she wasn't looking.

"Jason?" she called out. "Are you really here? Alexis did it? You're free?"

"No, you did it," Jason said as he held out his arms to her.

She said something incoherent and rushed forward.

He received her hungrily, and his mouth came down on hers. There was no gentleness in his kiss. No restraint, either. The lips that parted hers were deeply and passionately sensual, and they demanded an equal response.

His hands parted her thin woollen shirt to find her breasts, stroking her nipples to exquisite arousal through the satin bra she was wearing. She moaned her pleasure into his mouth, her entire body melting with her need.

When at last he raised his head, they were both breathless. Without saying a word, Jason lifted Elizabeth into his arms and carried her to the picnic blanket.

He laid her gently onto the blanket and began removing her clothes. When she was naked, he began kissing her body, his mouth hot and urgent. His tongue lapped at her breasts, turning the engorged peaks to flame.

At the same time, his hand was caressing her belly, moving down over her quivering thighs and parting them. Her body arched under the exquisite intimacy of his touch demanding more.

As his fingers continued their intense erotic play, she could feel the last vestige of her control slipping away. Then suddenly, her body imploded, consuming her totally with wave after wave of pleasure.

Jason said her name huskily. She felt him strip off his clothes, then lifted himself over her, and entered her. She enfolded him rapturously, her whole body alight with the warmth and strength of him inside her, her hands clinging to his shoulders, her legs locked round his waist in total surrender.

It was a lovemaking born from a stark and compelling need, and Elizabeth answered every powerful thrust with passionate completeness, her body as wild and driven as his own. Deep within her, she sensed the inexplicable build of delight beginning once more, and felt her body quiver and shatter into a renewal of pleasure.

And at the height of her pleasure, as she was overcome by sensation, she heard him cry out in his own release.

Vincent knocked tentatively on his boss' door. The news wasn't good and he wished he wasn't the one who had to tell it. He didn't know his boss well enough to know how he would react to finding out Jason Morgan was free. Madigan had been found out – the rat bastard.

Hearing the command to enter, Vincent opened the door to find the room cloaked in darkness. He hesitated unsure of what he should do until he saw the silhouette of his boss by the window. He advanced into the room stopping by the desk.

"Sir, Jason Morgan was released today. His charges were dropped," he told the man's back.

"I am aware of that," replied the man as he stared out over the city's landscape. "I was there. What I would like to know is what has been done to handle the situation?"

"Madigan has disappeared. I have the men working on it, but he seems to have left the city without us knowing. Even Corinthos doesn't know where he is," Vincent said.

"I want him found and taken care of," the shadowy figure commanded. "I want nothing leading back to me, is that understood?"

"Yes, sir."

"Where is Roscoe?"

"On ice in the warehouse on 53rd street," Vincent informed his boss.

"Good. First thing tomorrow, I want his body on Corinthos' doorstep," the man turned to face his employee. "I want Corinthos to know that he is no longer in control of this town and soon his whole organization."

"Yes, sir," Vincent replied before exiting the room.

AJ Quartermaine faced the window once more his hands clenched into tight fists. Jason was free. His plan had failed. Once again, his younger brother had beaten him.

For the last two months AJ suffered through the constant bickering in his family over Jason's arrest. It gave him a silent thrill seeing his family members torn at the thought of Jason facing the death penalty. Every day, he secretly rejoiced as he sat with his father and grandfather in the courtroom as they watched their golden son fight for his life. Grandfather would curse Sonny Corinthos and Lucky Spencer. He even blamed Elizabeth Webber for the travesty that had befallen his precious grandson, as he called it. Little did he know that AJ was the cause of all of their heartache.

It was fate really. Fate has brought AJ and Roscoe together well over a year ago. AJ was trying to find some way to destroy Sonny Corinthos after he forced AJ to relinquish his rights to his son, Michael. Roscoe was looking to take over Sorel's operation and join the big boys of organized crime. It was a partnership made in revenge heaven.

Fate also brought him and Lucky Spencer together. What else would you call a chance meeting on the docks one day where they got to talking and AJ realized Lucky's hatred for his brother? It was so easy to feed on Lucky's paranoia. Jason wants your girl. Jason's going to take your girl from you. You need to get rid of Jason before that can happen. Only the snivelling idiot couldn't do the job right. He shot Elizabeth instead. It didn't matter though. After AJ took care of the Spencer kid, the idea of prison was even better. Why kill Jason, when he could suffer for the rest of his life behind bars?

But that, too, didn't happen. His brother was free and probably enjoying the comforts of the freedom right now in the arms of the lovely Miss Webber. The very idea made his blood boil.

AJ was so deep in thought, he didn't here the woman enter the room until she gripped his shoulders.

"My, my, my, aren't we tense," came a sultry voice from behind him. AJ looked to the window to see the woman massaging his back.

"My brother's charges were dropped," he told her.

"Yes, I heard. I'm sorry," she purred into his ear. "On the brighter side, my husband is dead."

AJ turned around and grabbed the woman's wrists. "Dammit, Faith, Jason is free."

"Yes, I know," she replied yanking her wrists out of his grasp. "This is only a temporary set back. Our plan is still working. Sorel and my husband are dead, Corinthos has absolutely know idea that we are responsible for the trouble he's been having and soon ELQ will belong to you.

"Trust me, baby. We are about to get everything we've ever wanted," she said before pulling him down into a savage kiss.

Elizabeth slowly opened her eyes loving the feel of Jason's arms wrapped tightly around her and knowing that it wasn't a dream. Jason was free. She wasn't going to lose him.

"I seem to have developed a habit of attacking you when you come near me," she said with a little smile.

"I'm not complaining," he replied kissing the base of her neck.

"Are you mad I didn't let Sonny handle it?" she asked quietly.

"No," he replied lifting himself up on one elbow to look into her eyes, "just worried. Anything could have happened to you, and I wouldn't have been able to help you. You almost died before. I don't want you to ever get hurt again."

Elizabeth reached up to caress his face. "I don't want to get hurt again, either. But I can't guarantee I won't and neither can you. All I can say is that I promise not to take anymore unnecessary risks.

"Besides, it's not like I'll be working for Sonny now and asking to carry a gun. You were in trouble and I could do something to help you. How often do you think that's going to happen?" She asked with a smile on her face.

"Elizabeth," he said taking her hand in his linking their fingers.

"I'm serious," she insisted. "I needed to take control of my life and finding the evidence to free you was my way of doing that. But I have no intention of taking those risks again. I want to go back to school and paint. I want to go shopping with Emily and dish about our boyfriends. I want to have Sunday dinners at my grandmother's house. I'll leave all the danger stuff to you."

"You know it's not that simple," he said thinking of the obstacles they still had to face - Carly, the Spencers, Nikolas Cassadine, the Quartermaines and his job all came to mind.

"I know it won't be, but at this moment I don't care about all that," she said. "You are free and we are together. Everything else is secondary to that."

Jason looked at her face and saw the happiness radiating from her every pore. He didn't want that happiness to ever diminish. There would be time to deal with all the hurdles they would have to face but not now. They didn't need to solve everything right that second.

"I love you," he told her.

"I love you," she answered back just before Jason claimed her mouth again with a sweet gentle kiss that promised her what she already knew in her heart. Nothing was going to separate them again.