Author's Note: In the next chapter we will revisit the Dixie situation.
Chapter 4
You have been cordially invited to attend the Incredible Dreams black tie yacht party supporting The Pine Valley Hospital Teenage Pregnancy Program hosted by Ryan Lavery of on Saturday, November 18th in Pine Valley, Pennsylvania at 8 o'clock in the evening.
The invitation read.
David was mindlessly flipping through it when Erica knocked on his door.
She seemed a little more frantic and meek than usual.
"Erica!" He greeted her with a smile but she didn't smile back.
"How are you feeling today?" He asked.
She took a deep breath. "That's actually why I came here. I slept until noon and have had a blinding headache. I was wondering if you could fill in some missing pieces for me?"
David nodded and invited her to sit down.
"A nurse stopped me in the hallway to tell me that she enjoyed my performance at the Valley Inn last night. I woke up this morning thinking that singing on the piano in the Inn was a bad dream. I need to know - for certain - what happened afterwards last night?"
"You sincerely don't remember? You were insatiable."
She held up her hands indicating for him to cease his recollection of those details.
"I remember that, David. I don't remember how we got there... What came over me? It must not EVER happen again!" She told him firmly.
David frowned. He'd anticipated this reaction from her and he knew that they weren't in a particularly good place when they'd made love but hearing it was still painful. There was so much between himself and Erica – both spoken and unspoken. He never wanted it to end and hearing her put a definite end on their relationship, insisting that all doors have been closed hurt. He didn't want to believe it completely.
"You told me last night that you were addicted to me." He reminded her.
She stood up and wavered slightly.
"Erica, please sit back down."
"I am shaking." She held up her hands to show the trembling.
"I feel like I'm going through withdraws again. Maybe I am addicted to you, David. No person should feel this deeply about another person. It's unhealthy."
"You can't deny me, Erica, I am in your system. This is proof that we are good together."
She swept a hair out of her face and shook her head vehemently.
"No. I felt like I had no control. I was a slave to my impulses and I couldn't keep my hands off of you. That is not normal. That is not GOOD."
"Listen, go home and rest. Get get ready for Ryan's yacht party."
"No. I don't want your instructions. I want you to keep your distance, David. Stay far away from me. There will be no repeat performance and I don't want to see you again. Do I make myself clear?"
She waited for an answer and when he opened his mouth to protest she stood up.
"I am serious. I don't want to see you."
He followed Erica out into the doorway but allowed her to walk away. He knew that chasing after Erica wasn't going to help the situation. When Erica felt trapped she ran and she pushed people away.
He saw a familiar face walking down the hallway.
"Leslie," David exclaimed, catching her by her arm and pulling her into his office. "Would you like to go out on a yacht with me next weekend?"
"Mmm, that sounds wonderful. What will this date cost me?" She questioned and he smirked.
"All I need you to do is execute the Valley Inn plan. Unfortunately, it was unsuccessful because of Erica's interference. If you can help me again I'd be eternally grateful."
"Remind me why I'm doing this again? What do you have against, Tad?"
"You're doing this because you care about me. As for Tad, well, I'll explain that another time."
Leslie took some coaxing but finally agreed.
~oOo~
One day, she innocently walked into their shared office and over to his desk to retrieve a file from a case they were collaborating on when she found the evidence. She saw him from across the yacht with a silver flask and she had an idea that it was more than alcohol.
"Dammit," Alex Devane, fellow doctor and enemy of David Hayward's, mumbled to herself. She knew he hadn't given up researching Libidizone but she thought that she could trust him to keep the research to himself.
"What the hell are you doing? Spiking the punch?" She inquired, attempting to remove the flask from his hand but he pulled away.
He looked at her perplexed. "I was freshening up my drink, Alex."
"I know what's in that vial, David. It's not alcohol and you would think nothing, nothing at all, of dumping that vial into someone's drink, David."
"Are you having flashbacks again, Alex? Preparing to push someone down the stairs? Perhaps you're the one planning to poison the yacht? Your mental instability is showing again."
Alex blinked twice at his ability to twist things around on her. She didn't appreciate his gas-lighting.
"You're caught."
"You caught me slipping Scotch into my own drink, Alex.
"Fine. Let's go to the board, together. I'd like to speak to them myself. Tell me, Alex. Who is your psychiatrist? What medications are you on?"
"I'm watching you." She told him, turning on her heel and walking away.
David breathed a sigh of relief knowing that Alex was off of his case for at least long enough for his plan to come to fruition.
He poured a glass of punch, intent on putting the perfect amount of Libidizone when a waitress bumped into him and knocked the entire vial into the punch.
"Fuck." He blew out in a panic, desperately trying to catch the remaining liquid before it all emptied into the bowl. When he did so, the liquid came out faster and he was unable to save any of it.
He cleaned off the vial and stuck it back into his pocket. He watched as Ryan handed out glasses of punch to everyone and began his speech. He kept an eye on Tad and Dixie, noticing how Tad was enjoying the punch. He glanced over to find Matteo and Hayley essentially ripping each other's clothing off in the middle of the party. He cringed when he saw Vanessa and Palmer who were unable to keep their hands off of each other.
"Thank you all for supporting The Pine Valley Hospital Teen Pregnancy Program." Ryan ended his toast by holding up a glass of punch. Everyone followed suit, consuming the punch collectively.
"Bottoms up, Pine Valley..." He chuckled to himself both out of nervousness and realizing how brilliant this kind of revenge could be.
"Now is your cue." He commanded Leslie.
~oOo~
Erica turned around to find herself practically face to face with Jackson.
"What?"
"What?" He asked back.
"You're staring at me."
"Yes, I am." He replied plainly.
Erica's face twisted in confusion. "Jack, are you alright?"
He smiled. "I am fine. I am having all of these... feelings suddenly."
"Care to elaborate?"
"I was thinking... about you and me making love."
"I really think that you've overdone the champagne, Jack."
David observed the room. The residents of Pine Valley were drinking, dancing, kissing, and potentially doing more than that in various hidden rooms.
Leslie pulled Tad into a room, pushing him up against the door and capturing his lips as David headed off in Dixie's direction.
Meanwhile, Erica felt someone wrap their arms around her, placing a kiss on her neck. She smiled politely and pushed him away. He began to rub a pink flower on her skin, traveling across her chest. She snatched the flower from his hand. "You're making me incredibly nervous, Jack..."
"Good."
"I've never seen you like this. What is going on?" He grabbed her hand and led her outside on the deck.
"I've never stopped loving you, Erica."
"Well, I love you too Jack. You're a very dear friend."
"A friend? Erica, I want to be more than your friend."
Jackson pushed her against the wall of the boat and slid her pale pink strap over her shoulder a little too roughly. The strap snapped.
"What are you doing? Stop it!"
Jack backed away, suddenly feeling very sober. "Erica, I am SO sorry. I didn't mean to... I thought you wanted this. Did I hurt you?"
She shook her head. "No."
"Are you okay?"
She nodded.
"You're sure?"
"I'm fine, Jack, really. I'm going to go find, Bianca."
Erica looked down at her tattered dress straps, left to wonder what the hell was happening. She'd never seen Jackson act in such an uncontrolled manner. It was almost like he was experiencing what she felt with, David, the during their night at the Inn. She looked around at everyone – something seemed very strange about everyone's behavior.