A/N – Thanks for the comments! There are some jucy storylines developing.

Chapter 32

When they arrived, Jason felt helpless as Sam disappeared into the bay.

Epiphany touched his arm. "They'll do all they can."

"She wanted me to save the baby and said she didn't matter."

"It's because she's a mom. Come sit." He looks very stressed.

He followed her and sat. All he could think of is Elizabeth and if this had happened to her. Shaking off the feelings, he heard a scream and ran for the room.

"Jason!" Piph yelled.

When Sam spotted him, she sobbed harder. "Jason, it's too early."

Epiphany pulled him into the hallway and made him put on a mask and gown. "I don't know your connection, but she needs you. There is no heartbeat, and they are going to induce labor. Can you be there?"

He swallowed hard as he nodded and then went inside.

When he held out his hand, she gripped it.

"Sonny…"

"He's on the way."

Another doctor rushed inside.

"The birthing room is ready," the nurse said.

"No…no…" Sam moaned. The conversation is jumbled in her head. Someone had told her that it would be better to deliver if I want to become pregnant again, but this seemed so wrong.

The nurse motioned for Jason, and he somberly followed them to another room and watched as they got her situated, and then the nurse told him to stand near her head.

Nothing could have prepared him for the torture of the next hour. Sam was in pain and wailed through most of it as she gripped his hand. When the little girl was finally born lifeless, Sam lost her fight and passed out.

Jason was pulled from the room, and he somehow made his way to the waiting room where Sonny was yelling at the nurse when he looked up and saw how devastated Jason looks, he sucked in his breath.

One tear ran down Jason's face as he shook his head, and the nurse had to help Sonny to a chair.

Piph had called Emily who had contacted Elizabeth, who had just finished her appointment, and her eyes are fixed on Jason as she touched her belly, knowing just from their reactions what must have happened. Her eyes welled with tears when she thought about how devastated Sam must be.

As if he knew she was there, his tortured gaze snapped to her, and she held her breath as he moved toward her.

"Is Sam okay physically?"

"I don't know. It was brutal. The baby—"

She tugged him against her, and he relished her energy.

"Jason, I need to know," Sonny said as he moved toward them.

Reluctantly, he let Liz go and wiped his face.

"I found her at the bottom of some stairs at the dock. She was in so much pain. Garrett called 911. I tried to calm her, but she knew she was losing the baby and begged me to save it."

"She fell down the stairs?"

"Sonny, she and Carly fought. Sam said that Carly smacked her and when she went to hit her back, Carly dodged her punch making Sam lose her balance."

Sonny is stunned. "Carly made me lose my baby?"

"I don't know what they were arguing about. She wasn't there when I arrived."

"She fucking left her lying on the ground? What the fuck?"

Piph cleared her throat.

"I know. I'm sorry," Jason said.

She nodded, understanding the awful situation. "There's a family room you can go to. I'll come and get you when they are finished. She needed some surgery."

"For what?" Sonny asked.

"I can't tell you that. I'm sorry."

He nodded. Once they were in the room, Sonny hit the wall with his hand. "Where is she?"

"No one knows. She had ditched her guard to go there."

It's a Carly thing to do. "Are the cops involved?"

"Not yet, but Sam won't let this slide and I can't blame her."

"You're not going to defend Carly?"

Jason shook his head. "After having to deal with what happened, no. Accident or not, she left her there, and what Sam went through…"

Liz can't believe it. No matter how much she can't stand Carly, she would have never done that to her.

Sonny sat and put his head in his hands. "It was a girl, right?"

"Yes."

His eyes welled with tears. "I messed up so much, Jason. I'm sorry." His head rose. "I need to say that I'm sorry to you too, Elizabeth. I've been all over the place and you deserved better."

She jumped when the baby kicked.

"Can I?"

Her gaze went to Jason who nodded. Sonny is not in a good way, and she is not sure what is going through his head.

She reached her hand out and he grasped it before she placed it over her stomach. "She's rowdy today."

A twinge of pain ran through him that It's a girl, but he pushed it aside as the tears began to flow, and then slightly smiled when the baby moved.

"Protect them, Jason."

"I will."

Liz gave up all pretense and hugged Sonny. He is killing her. She held him as he cried for his loss. Jason moved forward and placed a hand on her back and Sonny's arm. When he finally calmed down, he made her sit next to him.

The door opened and Piph tearfully said, "She's out of surgery. She'll be a room soon."

"What aren't you telling me?" Sonny asked

She sighed. "I checked her records, and you are the emergency contact, so I can tell you. There was a lot of damage from the fall. One of her tubes was damaged and they had to remove it. She has a couple of broken ribs, bruises all over, and a hairline fracture on her left arm. There's a big lump on the back of her head and she has a concussion. Her left hip is also deeply bruised. She's stable and sedated. They cleaned her up inside and had to give her some blood. She'll need pain management for a while, but eventually, she'll be okay."

Liz's hand flew over her mouth.

"She'll make it though, right?" Sonny loves her no matter how boneheaded he has been.

"Yes. She just needs to heal."

"I'll make sure that she rests."

"I'll come to get you when she's settled."

"Thank you." When she turned to go, he yelled, "Wait!"

She froze.

"Where is the baby?"

"They are taking care of her. You'll be able to have a funeral. I'll give you all paperwork."

"Thanks."

She left and Sonny let out a long breath.

"I can call Father Coates and arrange something," Jason said.

"Okay. Nothing but the best for Adela."

Jason doesn't even know what to say to him.

Several minutes later, Sonny went to Sam's room and Jason reached out and pulled Liz into a hug.

"This is just awful."

"I know." He can't unsee everything that happened.

When she retreated, she is shocked when his lips hovered precariously close to hers. Their breathing shifted as they anticipated their joining. When his lips finally brushed against hers, Liz almost melted. It was different than in the past, so much had happened, but all of that was gone and it was just them. As the kiss deepened, Elizabeth's body trembled as he expertly mated their tongues making her nipples harden as her body reeled from being so close to him. His hand moved up her side, leaving tingles in its wake until it snaked around her back drawing her closer.

Emotion rose in them as the kiss grew more passionate. Neither could believe it was happening after all this time and what had happened earlier. Suddenly, Jason slowed it down and then kissed her twice before pulling back.

She can still feel him on her lips as her body trembles.

"I'm not sorry that I kissed you, but I guess my timing probably sucks as usual."

She made a face that almost made him smile.

"I know we aren't there yet, I just—the whole time I was thinking what if it were you and I was having a hard time holding it together. After what happened with Faith, I guess it just hit me."

"Are you going to let me out of the house now?"

He shook his head.

"Jason!"

"I do need you to be careful. Carly is dangerous and right now, she has nothing to lose." He already has men looking for her.

"You think she'll come after me?"

"I don't know. She's probably desperate at this point. I had their nanny take the boys to the mansion. At least I know it will keep Edward busy for a while." They had been begging to see Michael for a long time.

"They'll be safe there."

Jason nodded.

Liz grabbed his hand, and they made their way to the nurse's station.

"Epiphany, can we see her tonight?"

"Honestly, I think it would be better if you got off your feet and came back tomorrow. She's going to sleep through the night."

"I can do that. Should I bring anything?"

"She'll be stuck in a gown for a while. Her phone was broken, so maybe Sonny can get it replaced."

"I'll have it taken care of," Jason said.

"She probably won't be up to doing anything right away."

"Will a therapist visit?"

"We can arrange it."

Liz nodded. "I want to be there for her, but at the same time, I'm very pregnant and I don't want that to upset her."

Piph's face softened. "It will take her time to deal with this emotionally—a long time, but at some point, being able to talk to a female friend will probably be good for her."

"Okay, I'll check with Sonny." She turned to Jason. "He won't want to eat, but he should."

"I'll have his guard handle it."

They were just about to turn when she heard her name.

"Elizabeth?"

"Shit," she muttered as Piph looked up to see why Elizabeth reacted.

Jason shot him a look. "Stay away from her."

Ric's eyes narrowed. "You are not the boss of her, Jason."

Growling, Jason pulled Liz behind him and lowered his voice, but the women could still hear him.

"Stay the fuck away from my wife. You've been warned."

Liz gasped at the same time as Ric.

Epiphany grinned. "Damn, Elizabeth. You've been busy."

"You're what?"

Piph shook her head. "Are you deaf? You heard him. They are married and having a baby. Sucks to be you."

Liz bit her lip so she wouldn't laugh.

Elizabeth took off the necklace she is wearing and pulled the ring off.

"Allow me," Jason said before pushing it onto her finger.

"Why the secrecy?"

"It's none of your business and I was protecting her. Maybe knowing you have no chance whatsoever to get her back will finally make you stop stalking her." He hadn't meant to spill the beans, but Ric had pissed him off and he decided he didn't want to hide anything.

Another nurse had called 911 because she could see it was escalating and cops were already on the floor below, so Taggert was on his way.

Ric's breathing quickened as two guards closed in. "Did you force her?"

Liz rolled her eyes as she clasped Jason's hand. "Does it look like I'm under duress?"

"Did you drug her?"

Jason almost groaned at the absurdity, and then to his astonishment, Liz pulled his head down and laid one on him. He is in shock but can't resist her supple lips and begins to kiss her back.

"Damn, I need to get me one of him," Piph said as Taggert neared.

"Get off of her," Ric said, yanking Jason, making Liz stumble backward, but Piph was right there to steady her.

Taggert broke into a run just as Ric punched Jason in the jaw. Jason grinned. "Is that all you got?"

When Ric started to move forward again, Taggert grabbed him.

"I want him arrested." This is just perfect.

Taggert nodded, and then he and another officer moved to cuff a struggling Ric. Jason's restraint had impressed him.

"Keep fighting me and I'll tack on resisting arrest."

Ric realizes he made a big mistake when he spots a reporter taking a picture. "He's just going to get you killed."

"You tried that, but thankfully, Jason is not you. He'd rather die than have any harm come to me. Enjoy the mug shot. I'll make sure I get a copy," Elizabeth said sassily.

Ric yelled until he reached the elevator.

"Well, I'm glad he was here to take out the trash," Piph quipped.

"Definitely…"

Before the door closed, she yelled, "I heard that girl from Courtland street wasn't legal."

Elizabeth made a mental note to ask Jason what that was about since he had grinned.

Piph touched Jason's face, making him slightly flinch. "I should go down there and kick his ass for hurting this pretty face." He may have a slight bruise in the morning.

She is met with a glare. "Pretty?"

She grinned. "That glare is pretty hot. Elizabeth, you need to take him home and play nurse. He might need a little ice and some kisses."

To her surprise, he slightly reddened.

"Oh yeah, get out of here before I lose my professionalism. A girl can only take so much."

One of the nurses giggled.

Piph tore her eyes from Jason. "Don't you ladies have work to do?" She walked away muttering about people always being in her business as Jason and Liz smiled.

"She had a good idea. Let's go home." Ric could have hurt her, and he swears it will be the last time the man ever gets near her.

"I'd like that."

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A frazzled Monica dramatically falls onto her bed as Alan follows.

"I forgot what it was like to have young boys," she said.

"The bathroom is a disaster."

"We'll pay Alice extra."

"I don't think I can move."

There was a moment of silence and then they both laughed.

"Morgan is so sweet."

"Yes, he is. He's so young. Despite Carly's issues, he'll miss her."

"Sonny has a lot to deal with, so when I go to the hospital tomorrow, I'll suggest that the boys stay here for a while. The nanny can watch them here during the day and then we can watch them in the evening."

Alan pulled her closer. "I wish I had more energy right now."

She grinned. "There is always the morning. I think Michael wiped Edward out. He's going to be useful in keeping your father in line."

Alan chuckled. "I'm sure I can pay him to do his best. He already tried to blackmail Tracy."

"That was epic."

"He needs some discipline."

"Well, he came to the right place."

She sighed. "I should get changed, but I can't."

"Sleep," he said as he closed his eyes. He hadn't been this happy to be so exhausted in a long time.