Part 42, PG-13

Zander and Brenda went to the brownstone, after he had finally been released.

"I'm staying," she said. "I promised. Nobody wants you alone just now."

"Oh, you're staying all right," he grinned. "You didn't need to promise anyone else."

She smiled, and went over and hugged him.

He tilted her chin up, and kissed her. Then he kissed her again, harder.

"Mmmm, be careful of your heart," she said. "One thing at a time."

"I've felt fine for days," he said, kissing her neck. "I've only been in that hospital up until now because of my - parents - overkill."

"It was Dr. Quartermaine that decided when you got out," she giggled.

"I'm like a starving man," he said, with a wicked grin.

"Well, I'm a starving woman," she said. "But you got to take it easy, one thing at a time, just to humor me. It's not just parents that worry, you know."

"One thing at a time. OK. You first," he grinned again. He kissed her again. "It's way less dangerous than before, when I didn't know. Now I'm on these drugs so that same risk is way lower."

"That's true," she giggled. "Very persuasive."

He picked her up and took her into the bedroom. He dropped her on the bed, laughing, then jumped on top of her. She sighed, and held him tight as he kissed her again.

He felt like there was some sort of extra dimension going on; some aspect that existed that had not been when he had made love with her before. She paid less attention to what she was actually doing and to hold onto him more. He started to understand how she might feel; that it might be easier to be the one in the hospital than to be the one waiting out in the waiting room for a prognosis.

"See," he said, tenderly, "it's OK, I don't fall apart."

"No," she said, leaning up over him. She stroked his hair. "No, you're as good as ever."

"You wouldn't ever leave me for my own good?" he asked.

"No! I'm only worrying about you a little! What brought that on?"

"Emily came and told me she dumped me for my own good. So I wouldn't have a paralyzed girlfriend."

"She did? That witch! Didn't anybody tell her not to stress you out?"

He laughed. "I guess not. Anyway, she can't stress me out that much. I told her I was letting her go for her own good, too, since I have this heart condition."

"Oh, I'll bet she liked that!"

"She should have. Anyway, I don't love you enough to let you go. I hope that doesn't bother you."

"I don't love you that much either," she giggled. "No, you're stuck with me."

"No matter what happens to you?"

"I'm even ten years older already! Someday you'll be with a woman who really looks older than you."

"Oh, bull. Please tell me you plan to let me suffer the consequences of that!"

"As long as I can get away with."

"I told her I was sick of people who do that, and I prefer to be needed."

"OK. I need you. I want to burden you a great deal."

"Thank you."

"I even want to have your children. But I guess you're going to argue about that now."

"No."

"No? When they could inherit Long Q-T syndrome?"

"I was reading about it. If the women have children, then I shouldn't be fussy about it, I guess."

"Women?"

"Women who have the syndrome. Who have it themselves. If they have children, then I'll be a wimp for saying I won't. I mean, women physically have the baby. You do know that, don't you? There's no exception for models."

"Yes, I know that." She hit him playfully.

"But do you really want to? I mean, you."

"Yes. I don't want to have anyone else's children."

"Even with the risk of QRSTUV syndrome?"

"Even with that alphabetical risk," she laughed again and leaned down to kiss him.

Donna was nervous, but she knocked determinedly at the door of another room at the Port Charles Hotel.

Cameron let her in, but turned away and went back to unpacking a suitcase.

Donna wondered why he was there and how long he intended to stay. Before she could say anything, he said, in his usual tone, "Where's Hayward?"

"He went to Pine Valley to do heart surgery. Maybe you know that."

"Why would I?"

"Never mind. Alexander may need to talk to you. And I want to arrange when and where, not have you sneak up on him again."

"I suppose you blame me for his attack. You should know without that attack, he would be a walking time bomb."

"No, I just blame you for the way you talk to him and the way he doesn't like you, and that you're the stress that caused the attack rather than something else."

"How do you know it was me? I had done that to him many times. Maybe it was your big news?"

"I know about the Long Q-T syndrome now, Cam. The attack can come from any stress, a loud noise, even. But it's something immediate, that happened right before."

"You risked it by telling him his father wasn't his father!"

"I didn't know there was such a risk, but it wasn't sudden and I spoke gently. Which you wouldn't have done."

"You and Hayward should have known of the risk and acted according to it, not according to your own desires. But that's out of your reach, and his, I realize."

"Why did you go out to Pine Valley?" Donna demanded, angry that he was distracting her from her point. She hated the way he could do that.

"I went to have a talk with the police chief. Which you should do, too."

Donna looked disgusted. "We don't know why you think any criminal record is going to scare Alexander off. You remind him of his own every chance you get."

"I'm sure you and Hayward have lots of thoughts and that there are lots of things you and he don't understand."

"Do you love Alexander?" Donna shouted, knowing he would put her down for raising her voice but not caring, since she had gone back to her point without letting him get the better of her. "If so, do you ever tell him? Do you even love Peter, and do you ever tell him? Does Peter ever tell you he loves you?"

"It's hard with that accident!"

"You should take more of the heat for that accident! And what about all the years before that accident?"

"Where were you during all those years?"

"We're not talking about me, we're talking about you!"

"I don't want to talk about me! Not with you!"

"Well, Alexander does. And he wants to know about your father and how your father treated you."

"What for?" Smart aleck remarks about amateur psychiatry occurred to him, but he couldn't get to them before she said: "To learn how to be a better father."

This silenced him. He wanted to leave even though it was his room.

"You don't go near him, Cam," Donna said. "Until you arrange it with me, so that he knows ahead of time and wants to talk to you."

"All right," he said. Anything to get rid of her.

Luckily, she left, right after she told him, "And I'm going to be there. Maybe in the next room, if he doesn't want to talk to you in front of me. But I'm going to be there to back him up, so he's not alone."

"It's about time you did something for him," Cam could not resist saying.

She didn't answer, but she slammed his door.