el Pasión Fuego

The band played on; the guitars, flutes and the soft patter of drums all beat in time to her heart. Alexis' eyes traveled around the compound once again and came to rest on Sonny. She couldn't get over how at ease he seemed. He'd gone so easily from Armani suited, silk-shirted elegance to almost-casual beachwear without seeming to miss a beat. In a simple pale ivory shirt and pants, he looked almost as though he was one of the group of smiling and laughing men around him. His hair had come undone from it's usual control and he looked so at ease, so relaxed, so much more himself than the mob boss of Port Charles that her heart went out for him for that alone. When was the last time he'd actually been that person?

Was it simply because they were away from Port Charles? Could it be that simple?  It could - maybe… maybe they could be just a man and a woman here…if that was what she wanted. No Sonny Corinthos, Mob Boss, no ex-husband with a screaming harpy of an ex-wife lurking and scheming to stay in his life, and no Natasha Alexis Davidovitch nee Alexis Davis Attorney at Law of the House of Cassidine. Just Sonny…no – Michael - and Alexis.
        
         While those thoughts floated through her mind, the music changed, a vibrant rush of chords from two guitars sang out into the night, catching her attention… and suddenly Marisol was standing before her, a group of other women crowding in close behind. They took her by the hands and pulled her to her feet. "Come with us," Marisol explained. "This dance is el Pasión Fuego." The other women clapped in approval as she brushed Alexis' hair back on one side and tucked a flower behind one ear. Another woman draped a necklace of fragrant blossoms around her neck.

"This dance is for the woman who is not afraid of being a woman." Another woman close to her said.

Was that a challenge? Alexis thought. But even as she wondered about that, the group of women were moving, and she was being carried along with them, whether she would or no.

"Si," A third chimed in, as she moved in to drape a second garland around Alexis' neck. "It is tradition. Our men, they are always so muy macho, no? Always to have the last word, they need this, yes? You know this well, si? Well, we control the dance… how fast, how slow… say what they will. And tonight...we shall show them."

She raised her voice. "Isn't that right, my sisters?" A chorus of agreement echoed her words. "Let us see what kind of men these are!"


         The women moved to the dance floor, some joining them there, others clearing their way. As they spread out, the other instruments joined in now, the beat of the small drums and trill of flutes skillfully intermingling with the guitars.

"But, I don't know the steps…" Alexis stammered…she felt like she'd been caught up in a flood that moved her with them, whether she would or not. But at the same time, a sense of daring sent her pulses racing. The music was calling her and she could already feel its beat in her blood.

Marisol did a slow circle around her, ending up face to face with Alexis, fingers snapping to the beat while her hips wove a sinuous dance of their own. "Let the music show you the dance. Let the feelings in your heart show you the steps."

 Her eyes flashed a dare even as she grinned at Alexis. "Some of the men, they will join us in the dance… if we permit it…those that you do permit, you may give them a flower from one garland, if you like.. if the man is the one that pleases you above all others, then you take your second garland and place it around his neck to claim him. The man that you desire, share with him your passion…"
 
         Giving in to a suddenly impulse, Alexis grinned back, taking the unspoken dare. Marisol grinned back at her and the others close enough shouted their approval…At  a signal from the women, the band's melody shifted, the patter of the congas intensified, dominating the night. The women spread out across the open space and began to move.  The dance started out simple enough, allowing Alexis to easily pick up the steps. Beside her, Marisol raised her hand, clapping them to the beat, at first, only shoulders and feet moving lightly to the beat.  Then as the guitars joined in, their bodies began to move, hips swaying and dipping to its seductive melodies...

Hesitantly at first, Alexis began to move with the other women. Watching their supple forms move with the music, she followed their steps. Alexis felt a little self-conscious at first, but that slipped away soon enough as the bystanders began to clap to the beat and call out shouts of encouragement that urged them all on. Soon she was laughing and moving with them easily in the pattern of the dance.

         The music seared itself into her blood, maybe it called an ancient memory from the unorthodox mix of her wild Russian and Greek blood, maybe it was the dare to share her passion with the man the had come to matter so much to her, but either way, it didn't matter...the sensuous beat called forth a like feeling in her heart, its beating echoing the rhythms swirling up from deep within her. Raising her hands above her head, Alexis closed her eyes and let the music take her. Her body found its rhythm on its own, and then she was dancing and dancing and dancing; at one with the rhythms of the night. She no longer felt alone, or an outsider, she was a woman among women, secure in the power of her femininity as never before, of her power to entice, to weave enchantment from the magic that was in her, in all women.

         And then the men were among them, moving through the throng of women to find themselves a dance partner. The first one to stop before her was young, vibrant and very handsome as only Latin men can be with dark hair and darker eyes; not that it mattered. He held out a hand to her and Alexis took it; he swung her into a twirling, intricate series of steps that left her breathless and laughing. But when he would have boldly pulled her closer, she spun around him, plucking a blossom from her garland as she turned. Coming around to face him again, she reached out to him and tucked it behind one ear. Her partner shrugged good-naturedly and grinned regretfully, even as Alexis moved away from him. The same happened with her next two partners. They whirled past her in a whirl of color and sound.

Then it was Esteban dancing with her. His grin was pearl white against the dark tan of his skin. "Ahh, senorita,"  he said with a hearty laugh. "I knew you were mucha mujer... yes, much woman from the first time  saw you at el patron's  side. Come, let us dance!" Taking her by the hand, he danced her into the heart of crowd. Throughout his turn with her, he flirted with her unashamedly, paying her outrageous compliments that would have at one time, turned Alexis beet-red. But tonight, she laughed and gave back as good as she got. He turned out to be a very energetic dancer, and a strong one as well. Alexis gasped at first then laughed gaily as he suddenly grabbed her by the waist and swooped her up into the air, spinning her around.

When her feet were back on the ground again, He hugged her to him. "Yes, mucha mujer… just the woman for a certain man." He sighed dramatically while he took her hand and pressed it to his heart. "If I were only ten years younger…"
 
         Alexis took a blossom from her garland and tucked it behind Esteban's ear. "You would still be as handsome as you are tonight...and as charming and gallant…"

"And he would still be an old fool." Marisol said from somewhere behind Alexis, her affectionate tone denying the sting of her words. She laughed and draped her garland over him. She waved good-naturedly at Alexis as she began to lead her husband away.. "We'll see just how much energy you have tonight when I get you home, eh, you old bull?" Alexis heard her say as they disappeared into the crowd.

Alexis turned to find Sonny standing before her. He didn't speak, but instead just started dancing, his hips moving seductively to the beat. Alexis followed his action, her body moving slowly into sync with his…she turned, facing away from him, still swiveling her body to the seductive music. Alexis smiled as she felt Sonny come up close behind her. She leaned her head back slightly and half turned it towards him to whisper.. "What took you so long?" deliberately letting her lips brush against the firm skin of his jaw line.

         Sonny's unspoken answer to her provocative touch was to let his hands come to settle on her hips, then to let them glide slowly up her sides. As his hands reached her arms, he drew them upwards into the air until they were over her head and then he intertwined his strong fingers with her own. Sonny turned her to face him. With their hands still joined and overhead, he moved deliberately so that their bodies were barely touching. Sonny still not speaking, smiled at her slowly and licked his lips lightly.

Was he daring her or teasing her, Alexis wondered. Did it matter?

Icy-cold bottles of sweet wine were being passed from hand to hand in the crowd; One came around to them and Alexis freed one hand from his to reach for it before Sonny could. He watched, surprised, as Alexis lifted the bottle to her lips and drank deeply and recklessly. She wasn't worried about the alcohol's effect on her, she was intoxicated enough on the magic of the night and the music, and nothing could touch that. Her lips moist from the wine, she curved them into a secret smile of her own. She offered the bottle to Sonny, and he took it. Their fingers touched and lingered, a secret fire jumping from one to the other, as sharp and as sudden as a lighting bolt, as hot and bright as the flames of the torchlight dancing all around them.

Sonny drank after her, as deeply as she had. He half-turned away to pass the bottle to the next person. When he turned back, Alexis had moved herself closer. Before he could react, she leaned in even closer still and brushed her lips against his wine-damp mouth, savoring the last taste of the fruit-fragrant wine.

When Sonny would have moved to capture her lips with his own, Alexis whirled out of his grasp. He stood there, half-shocked as she moved slowly around him in a tight circle, allowing her body to brush slowly but provocatively against his every so often, but letting her hands maintain contact with his body at all times. They seemed to take on a mind of their own, as they stroked their way across his smoothly muscled shoulders and moved down to caress his waist. All the while she moved around him, her movements smooth and slow and deliberate. And erotic, enticing and entrancing. Sonny stood there, barely daring to breathe, not knowing what was she was going to do next.
 
         When she had completed her circle around him, Alexis paused, then deliberately drew her garland over her head.

         The man that you desire, share with him your passion…

         Gazing into his eyes, she slowly brought it down and placed it around sonny's neck. He caught her hands before she could move them away, pressing them to his chest and holding them there. And still the music played on, weaving its magic all about them, binding them together in its seductive web.

Alexis could feel the pounding of Sonny's heart beneath her palms, a feeling that poured through her and made her lightheaded as the wine had not. She slid one hand upwards, suddenly needing to touch his bare skin. On their own, her fingers played lightly along the open throat of his shirt, where they had longed to touch and caress since she'd first seen him this night.  They trailed along the base of his throat, feeling the pulse that beat there. 

"Alexis…" Sonny said, his voice a throaty half-whisper. Sonny captured her hand in his own, bringing it to his lips. He trailed her fingers across his mouth, the movement bringing her body close to his. When he released her hand, she let them trace a path along his jaw. "Alexis…?" he said again in an even softer voice, as her fingers brushed across his lips.

"Yes." She answered to his unspoken question.

In the midst of all the dancers, they were isolated in their own world, one built of firelight and magic and the wonderful enchantment possibilities of the night. Their eyes were locked on one another, their bodies moving as one, caught up and bound in the heavy sensuous beat of the music. Sonny brought one hand up to curve around her waist, drawing Alexis hard against him. Alexis let her body melt into his, while the melody pulsed through the air  - her body – his body. It was everywhere around them and in them, tangible but elusive, and real, all too achingly, exhilaratingly, evanescently real… Every inch of her being quivered with the closeness of his body to hers, every inch of bared skin tingled as it touched his.

         The dance was building to a crescendo, she could feel it beckoning in her. The air was taut with the impending release. The crowd could feel it, the last of their inhibitions were shed as bodies whirled faster and the rhythms quickened. Sonny loosed her, now he circled her, stalking her, claiming her, his eyes intent on her face, Alexis not looking away but matching him as he came to face her again, step for step and turn for turn. Their bodies were in perfect sync, saying everything they had never dared to say aloud; holding out the promise of the fire that had sprung alive between them, kindled from the trust and friendship that had been born between them a lifetime ago… never before had she been this achingly aware of his body and been so all too aware of how little there as separating them.

The heavy sinuous pulse of the music ensorcelled them, a willing magic. Their hearts, their bodies, beat as one with it, this she knew as surely as the tides of the ocean pulsing in the night somewhere beyond the lights and noise. A final strum of the guitars, a final triumphant pattering of drums and then the song was done. All around them, the dancers fell into each others arms, exhausted but laughing and excited.

Sonny and Alexis stood in the middle of the jubilant throng, the cheering and laughing touching them not at all.

After a few moments, the guitars began playing again, a soft and sweet melody. As one, Alexis and Sonny moved into each other's arms easily. They moved together for the first few measures of the dance, feeling their hearts slow and beat strongly against one another, and the warmth of their bodies pressing together, knowing it was not only from the exertions of the dance but something more deep inside the two of them.  Their eyes reflected that sudden knowledge. It was Sonny who stopped the dance. He held out his hand to her. "Let's go."

            They walked back to their table, pausing only long enough for them to pick up a bottle and two glasses. Together Alexis and Sonny walked away the circle of firelight and into the night.