Beyond the windows, the steady hiss of the rain played its soft song in soft counterpoint to the storm clouds and thunder. Inside the penthouse, the only sound was that of their breathing.


Can he hear the sound of my heart?
Alexis wondered. She wondered how he couldn't. She felt as though it might burst out of her chest at any moment. Worse, she didn't know how to control it. Alexis hated losing control in any circumstance. She simply couldn't take this, being so close to him and he having no idea of how much he meant to her, how much this was affecting her. She knew that she should, but Alexis couldn't bear to tear her eyes from his. Just another moment, and she would move. Just a moment more…

Lightning crackled across the sky, illuminating their faces as they stared at one another.

 The crack of thunder that boomed overhead a moment later broke the strange stillness that had sprung up between them as Alexis jumped. Instinctively, Sonny's arms closed themselves around her, a protection against the storm and the dark and any and all things that might threaten her.

 The dancing flames from the fireplace created a warm gentle crackling sound, a backdrop to the sounds of their breathing. For a moment, they were the only sounds existing in their world. The storm had cut off everything and everyone else.

His arms felt natural, she fit in his arms so naturally. But this feeling inside him; the wave of protectiveness that swept through Sonny surprised him. He'd always felt something for Alexis. As they'd grown closer, he'd liked her at first, and had slowly come to cherish her...but this…what he was feeling was something totally new to him. Alexis was in his arms, and he didn't want to let her go.
"Are you afraid of the thunder?" he asked softly.


Alexis shook her head. "No, I actually liked thunderstorms even since I was young." She answered, her tone suddenly just as hushed as his had become. Something about the hiss of the storm outside and the flickering glow of the fireplace held them suspended in a cocoon of intimate quiet.  "Back on…the island…there were caves up in the hillsides. When I could sneak away, there were few things I liked better than be in them. For me, the storms represented safety and security, not danger, because no one would bother looking for me then. Stavros…wouldn't bother himself to come out in the wet, and it was easy for everyone to just forget that I didn't exist." A shadow passed over her eyes, but Sonny said nothing, letting her continue to talk. Like himself, Alexis was not one to reminisce often, or to share it with many others. He knew it for the gift it was and was suddenly, oddly, content to lay here with her, content to listen to the sound of her voice and accept another secret part of herself that she was sharing with only him.

 "I loved to watch the lighting dancing across the sky." She continued. "There's something primeval, something untamed and untamable that I love about them. I could see my future in them. Because one day, I would be like they were…free."

For a moment. Sonny was envious of that freedom; he wished that he'd had a place to hide, to get away. But all during his days of growing up, it had seemed like there would be no escape. For him, the boundaries were set by the four walls of the place that he, his mother and Deke shared. It was called his house, but had never really become his home.
But just as quickly as those dark thoughts had come, the memories they evoked were forced away, banished by the sound of her voice and he was glad for her. Alexis had had a whole island to escape into. What she was telling him now, had been part of what made Alexis the woman she was, and for that, he could be nothing but grateful.

Her eyes gazed serious into his. "The only thing I feared, besides Stavros and Helena, was the dark. Not the storms themselves, just the endless, lightless dark."

Sonny knew that fear all too well. When Deke used to lock him in the closet as a child, the total absence of light was one of the things that used to terrify him. He'd managed to lose that fear over the years, but sometimes, it came back to haunt him too. "It's dark now." he said aloud.

 "But I'm with you." Alexis said without thinking. "Nothing bad can happen to me when I'm with you."

Her rational mind screamed for her to move, demanded to know what it was she thought she was doing. She didn't know.  Don't make a fool of yourself and this situation, logic told her. Her irrational heart didn't care what logic said. All it knew was that it was her and Sonny and firelight and they were the only things that existed in this moment in time.

Happiness was such a fleeting thing, Alexis thought. She'd promised Stefan that she would start to live her life more fully. Well, if that meant taking life and living it just for the moment sometimes, that was fine with her. She'd take the memory of this moment, of Sonny's beautiful, sable-lashed dark eyes gazing deep into hers, of the strength and feel of his arms holding her close and the beating of their hearts together as one and not ask for more but just store it away in her heart.

 "Yeah, you're with me." And not with Jax. He dismissed his wannabe rival from his mind, without a second thought. This was in no way about Jax. Instead, Sonny allowed himself to become all too aware of her. His hands on her body craved nothing more than to explore the smooth lean curves of her slender form stretched out above him and against him, all that was usually hidden by the suits she insisted on all too evident as they pressed close against his body. Unconsciously, he still had one hand in her hair, holding it back so he could see her clearly. Her face hovered above his and even in the golden orange flickering glow of the flames, he could see the depth of trust in her eyes. "You know I'll take care of you, no matter what. You're the only person I can trust. And there's no one else that means anything like you mean to me."

"Right back at you." Alexis fought to keep the tremble from her voice. If only he meant it the way that she did. She pushed that misery away, not wanting him to see it. He need never know….

Instead, she smiled down at him, a slow sweet smile that set her dimples to deepening and his heart to pounding. That and the look in her eyes. He wanted to stare up into them forever. Sonny saw the tiniest quiver of her lips and the sudden knowledge of all that Alexis had kept from him, her own emotions that she had selflessly kept bottled inside, was like a blinding explosion in his mind, a sudden sharp blow in his gut, and his response was a dam breaking free in him that sent a flood of emotions poured through him, inundating his heart. As much as he'd doubted Kristina before, he knew she'd told the truth for a fact now. And damned himself for being such a blind fool for so long. And now that he knew, he wouldn't waste another moment questioning it. All the answers he needed were there in Alexis' eyes.

"Alexis…" How could he tell her everything he was feeling this moment? His feelings, this realization, all of it had been building so long and now, tonight came pouring out from seemingly nowhere, blindsiding him, paralyzing him with the sheer earth shattering strength of it, leaving him speechless. His lips parted, blindly seeking for the words that would express what he felt, but nothing came out.

There was one way to say everything he wanted, without speaking a single word. Sonny lifted his head, at the same time, his hand tangled itself in her hair and slowly urged her downward to meet him.

"Sonny…?" Alexis whispered. That single word held a million questions in it, and not a single one was she brave enough to ask aloud. Alexis was stunned and disbelieving of the dawning awareness she saw blooming in his eyes. It was as though a wall had come down, a barrier had been broken, destroyed, laid to waste without her knowing it. And in spite of all the alarms going off inside her, her heart thrilled, and beat faster in astonished anticipation.

"Shhh….Alexis…" Sonny breathed. His brought both of his hands up in a hesitant caress, gentle fingers tracing the fragile outline of her cheekbones, while his thumbs brushed over the contours of her lips. His heart leapt in pleasure as Alexis' eyes warmed and darkened in response. And then, gently cupping her face, Sonny touched his lips to hers, "Don't…"  his words were whisper-soft, mingled with feathery kisses to her lips, her cheeks and then the smooth sweet curve of her jaw line, and finally her eyelids as he kissed them shut, his voice gentle as his touch as he spoke to her between his kisses  "….don't… say… a …word…Alexis…please…" 

Hearing the heartfelt plea in his voice broke down the last of her resolve. Alexis let herself melt into his kisses, a tiny moan of surrender escaping her as his lips pressed themselves firmly against his own, slowly parting hers and then his tongue sweetly sought hers. Sonny groaned as he deepened the possession of her mouth, knowing that she was granting him access to so much more than her physical self at the same time. How could he have not known all this time…Sonny stopped thinking, let pure sensation overtake him as Alexis responded to his kiss, her lips warming under his own, allowing his mouth to plunder hers. One soft hand came up to caress the hard contours of his face with softly trembling fingertips. Her touch sent a fresh wave of feeling sweeping through his body. It had been so long since he had allowed himself to lose himself inside a woman's sweetness. And it was this woman's sweetness that called to him, her and her alone.

Her mind struggled for control…telling her all the reasons why she shouldn't be kissing Sonny, all the while her arms were coming up to hold him close. He was still in love with his wife, her mind said…no, his ex wife…her heart replied….she'd seen the final papers herself. All while his arms tightened around her, pulling her body close against his. The proof of his desire was all too evident. Her heart won out, sending her senses spiraling downwards to lose themselves in his embrace. She surrendered as time stopped for the two of them then and there.

Sonny's hands tangled themselves in her hair and then his lips were scorching a pathway down her throat. "Alexis…" His murmuring of her name against the soft curve of her collarbone sent a shiver of desire deep inside her. Unbidden, her fingers slid into the silken midnight of his hair, stroked the strong column of  his throat and caressed the hardened muscles of his body as his hands threaded through the warm dark chestnut of hers. Their lips came together again in an explosion of joy and surprise and passion.

Reluctantly, the kiss ended in a mutual need to breathe. Sonny and Alexis drew apart slightly, expressions of wonder and yes, awe, in each of their faces, both of them reluctant to speak, afraid of breaking the spell that had been cast.

Sonny's heart sank as he saw a veil fall over Alexis' beautiful eyes, dimming the passion he knew he'd seen just moments before. He knew her all too well and guessed, correctly, at what would come next.

Alexis struggled to free herself from Sonny's arms, her heart already aching. "No, Sonny…no…" She was already shaking her head. They couldn't… they shouldn't… "Your…your wife."


"Ex wife, Alexis." Reluctantly, Sonny let her go.

 Alexis got to her feet, struggling to hide the weakness in her knees. "Legalities."  Standing, she moved away, turning her back to him as she struggled to compose herself. "You still love her." It wasn't a question. Not in her mind. She stiffened her resolve. Not that he would purposefully set out to hurt her, but Alexis was not going to allow Sonny to use her to prove to himself that he no longer loved his wife.

   The touch of gentle fingers against the curve of her neck startled her. She'd never heard Sonny move. She caught her breath as the fingers traced their way gently downward. Then they were curving around her shoulder and turning her, unwillingly, around.

 "Whatever I say, you're afraid to believe it." Sonny said, looking directly at her. "Don't you think I know you well enough by now?"

 For a moment, all of Alexis' arguments were lost, mist on the wind, underneath the intenseness of his dark gaze. But she gathered her resolve. "And I know you, Sonny." she said as she moved purposefully towards the door. She didn't see Sonny as his hand came up to stop her, or the regret in his eyes as he let it fall and watched her walk away from him.

Alexis went to the door and opened it. Unwisely, her head argued, she turned around and looked at Sonny one final time and a sharp pain knifed through her heart as her eyes met his. She wrenched her gaze away. "Let's just chalk this up to a moment where we let things get away from us. No harm, no foul." Not trusting herself to say anything more, Alexis jerked the door open and headed for her own apartment. Behind her, she heard Sonny's voice, but still somewhat dazed from everything that had just happened, she didn't catch the words.

In the hallway, Johnny was on post, as usual. He looked at her strangely as she brushed by him. Usually Ms. Davis had a smile or a joke or both for him, but not tonight. She swept by without a word, long legs moving her swiftly past him, hair mussed, her eyes strangely lambent. Johnny's own gaze swiveled around just in time to see his boss come barreling out of the door directly behind her, an oddly intense expression on his face that his bodyguard hadn't seen in a very, very long time. He didn't so much as glance at Johnny either. But before Alexis could shut it, Sonny was there, catching a hold of the door. He stepped inside and closed it behind him. 

The bodyguard turned his eyes resolutely away from the door, while a reluctant smile tugged at his lips.

It was about damned time.