Chapter Twelve
Dr. Thompson pulled Jason aside as he came down the stairs, handing him a new prescription and saying, "Elizabeth is very Lucky you found her. I think she is in a better mind frame, but I think you need to understand, this is not going to be an easy time for her. Right now, I think it is a good that she is looking positively towards the future, but you must be prepared the days when she isn't okay, she is going to need you, now more than ever. Don't let her push you away."
"I understand doctor, I will do everything in my power to make this as easy on her as possible, but I am no fool, I know things aren't always going to go smoothly. I have no intentions of rushing her, we will take things slow." Jason said, wanting to reassure the doctor that he was ready for anything. Especially after the last twenty-four hours or so.
"Okay then, if you need anything, please don't hesitate to call, and call anytime. Elizabeth is a wonderful woman, I hope for both your sakes, she can recover from this malevolence and you two can find happiness." Dr. Thompson said as he left the penthouse.
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Jason turned to his guest, "Pardon me for a moment, I'll be right back."
"Not a problem, take your time." Marco said, a little unnerved by the older man's scrutiny, for it seemed unfounded, but he wasn't about to make anything out of it.
"Jason, Johnny went over to her place today and got some of her clothes. He figured she would want some of her things here." Sonny said as Jason disappeared from sight.
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Elizabeth stayed where she was for several moments, relishing in the silence, enjoying being by herself.
But she knew what she was doing, she was hiding out, suddenly scared to face the people downstairs, which was silly, considering they saved her life, but after the day she had had, she figured they would understand.
Deciding she couldn't slip into that dark abyss again, Elizabeth went once again to Jason's closet, found nothing that she wanted, then went to his dresser. Pulling out another blue t-shirt, she slipped it over her head, wincing briefly as the material touched the bandages and slightly pulled at them.
She searched the next drawer and found the last thing she needed. Grabbing a pair of his boxers, Elizabeth stepped into them, relishing the feel of the silk against her skin, she caught herself as she absently wished the shirt was silk as well.
No sooner had she finished dressing, than a knock sounded at the door. Clearing her voice so as to be heard, Elizabeth said, "Come in."
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Jason had stood outside of his door for a few long moments, working up the nerve to walk in. He wanted nothing more than to see her, but he was worried that his presence, would cause her to think he was pushing her.
This was so far out of his league, he wasn't sure how to deal with it. All he knew, he had to be patient, and that there could be the biggest problem for him. He was use to action, acting and reacting, sitting and doing and saying nothing, was not really what he was good at, but for her, he would try.
Jason stepped slowly in the room, always cautious, worried he might scare her, if he moved too quickly.
He couldn't help the smile that surfaced, whether she knew she had clothes of her own or not, wasn't the question, he found it, endearing, that she was willing to wear his clothes, not to mention how cute she looked.
"Elizabeth, Max brought some of your things over from the loft, he figured you would want some of your things here, to help you feel more at home." Jason said.
"Oh, that's good. Remind me to thank him." Elizabeth said, feeling badly that she had snooped once again and had taken it upon herself, that Jason wouldn't mind her wearing his clothes.
Jason realized he had said the wrong thing, the fleeting smile that kept trying to surface, now vanished completely, mentally smacking himself, he hurriedly said, "Elizabeth, you are more than welcome to wear what you are, in fact, you look so cute. I just didn't want you to think you had to wear my clothes, but if you are comfortable, what do you say we go downstairs and save your rescuers from Sonny."
The smile was back, along with a small laugh, gone almost before it had left her, but there just the same. "Sounds good, are you sure I look okay." Suddenly her self-doubt taking control.
"You look amazing, if I had known you were going to look this good in my clothes, I might have asked you to wear them more often." Jason said, before winking at her.
Elizabeth's laughter floated on the air, enveloping him in its sweet sound, reminding him, just how much he cared for her. Before he even had a chance to say anything, Elizabeth came towards him, wrapping her arms around him. His arms of there own accord, wrapped around her, he heard her speak, but it took a few moments to understand what it was she was saying. "Jason, thank you, what would I ever do without you, you don't know how much I love you!"
Nothing was clouding his mind now, fear was still a dominant emotion and so was anger, but both had been tempered, he words drilled straight into his heart, almost causing his brain to malfunction. "I love you too, perhaps more that you will ever know. Just promise me, you won't shut me out again, I couldn't handle it, let me be your rock, okay."
Time seemed to stand still, nether said or did anything. Finally after his mind screamed at him to do something, he gently tilted her head up, causing her eyes to lock with his. Tears shimmered in her beautiful blue orbs, her teeth gently worrying her bottom lip, but through the tears, Jason could see the small smile playing upon her lips.
Elizabeth tried to clear her throat, lost the battle twice, then finally said what she needed to say, "Yo-you love me?" As soon as the words had slipped from her perfect lips, her eyes widen, almost as if it took her hearing the words spilling from her own mouth, to make her believe them.
Not trusting his own voice, Jason merely nodded, fighting back his own tears. But the moment ended quicker than perhaps either had been prepared for.
Elizabeth suddenly feeling overly exposed, hurriedly backed away, her eyes downcast, her quavering voice of before a mere whisper, "I'm sorry Jason, we-we should get downstairs, it's getting late."
"Sure, let's get going." Jason said, extending his hand to her. He knew something had changed, and while he wasn't positive he knew why, he didn't push it, demanding an answer would be for his benefit. So he stilled his tongue and any questions he had, at least for the moment.
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Marco, Francis and Emanuel all stood up as she entered the room, looking, for lack of a better word, gentlemanly.
Sonny noticed and filed that little tidbit of knowledge away. He didn't know if it was an act or not, but all three men had really good manners, which in this day and age was scarce, if not extinct.
He understood he should trust Jason, his instincts had never been wrong. He just couldn't fathom why the younger man was wagering so high on those three men, the wager of course being Elizabeth.
Sonny was often an arrogant man, who was almost always self-absorbed, but he wasn't purposefully obtuse, at least he didn't think so. But perhaps, his own feelings for Elizabeth were clouding his judgment, for he did care about her, like a sister. Shaking his head, Sonny focused on the couple now sitting beside him.
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Everyone present turned abruptly, when the front door opened. Jason and Sonny both tensed, obviously expecting some kind of violence, the other three, merely raised an eyebrow at the new arrival.
The new arrival shocked everyone, when he rushed Elizabeth and crushed her in a emotionally charged hug. He pulled back quickly when he felt her small frame go rigid, immediately he began to apologize, "Elizabeth, I am so sorry. It's just… Well, you had me scared, terrified."
Elizabeth's face lit up, her smile genuine, "Johnny, relax. I'm okay, I am sorry I made all of you worry, it was stupid of me, I know. I just.."
Jason slipped an arm around her shoulders, glowering at Johnny, "Since when did you go all touchy-feely?"
Johnny spared his boss a cross look, but quickly diverted his eyes, he knew better than to challenge Jason, the younger man had already kicked his butt, seven ways from Sunday, and that had only been for fun, "Sorry Jason, I guess I was just overcome." Johnny raised his shoulders, offering a self-effacing shrug.
When Johnny arrived, Max resumed his position, outside of the penthouse. Not really wanting to miss out, but knowing his work was important.
Marco was the first to break the silence, "So, what exactly do you two do for work, you seem very well to do."
Sonny's suspicion flared anew, his reply was short and direct, "We work in coffee."
"I think, what my boneheaded friend was meaning, and please don't take this the wrong way, but do you know of anyone looking for three ready-bodied and able men for work. We finished school last week, and seeing as how none of us had ever traveled, the group of us came up this way, wanting to see the big apple and all the other sites this state has to offer." Francis said, glaring openly at his friend.
Jason fielded that question, "Actually, Sonny and I are looking for some men, who would be interested in a job as a bodyguard. As out business flourishes, we need more men, and you do happen to fit the bill, so to speak."
"Really, are you serious man?" Francis questioned, disbelief evident in his voice.
"Yes, really. But there are a few things you need to understand, before we would even consider bring you into our business, we would be doing extensive background checks. Sonny demands loyalty, there are no second chances, if you do your job and do it well, then you can find yourself in line for a promotion, so to speak. However, if you have any questionable conduct from your past, your best bet is to be upfront with it, especially if you want to become a part of our team, honesty is just as important as loyalty." Jason said, eyeing each man separately.
All three men nodded their head, but it was Emanuel who spoke, "That's understandable. You have a right to want to protect that which is yours. And I'll be the first to admit, I was no angel as a kid and even less of one as a teenager, but I got my life figured out, to an extent. You can look into my past, you won't find much though."
Jason nodded his head, as though, that was exactly what he expected to hear, Elizabeth was watching him though, a curious look in her eyes, but for the moment he held his tongue.
Marco and Francis both agreed that Sonny was free to check into their pasts, "I hope you know, you will find a little more from my past, than that which you find in theirs. I fought a lot in high school. It got out of hand one night, the guy lived, although even now I wish he hadn't. He was beating on my sister, she figured she was all big and tough and could handle herself, that wasn't the case. I got probation and community service, he got a year. But the little snake thought he would pay me back, he did. Laura, that's my sister, she paid with her life and the chump found a short walk off a long pier, but I had nothing to do with it. He made the mistake of walking into a mob war." Francis said.
Sonny had been nodding his head the entire time, he had heard about that shootout, some kid named Donald Fahey had taken a bullet, point blank in the head. The cops said it was rival gangs, but the lame cover-up story was riddled with as many holes as those of the three corpses they took to the morgue.
"I think you have potential, all of you, but understand, even as forthcoming as you are, I still have to do a background check on you. Especially if Jason plans on letting you guard our most precious cargo." Sonny said, eyeing each man again, hoping to see a hole in their calm demeanor.
"Precious cargo, what exactly does that mean?" Marco asked, clearly intrigued.
Elizabeth looked from one man to the next, then decided to speak, "I think he means, you are going to be stuck guarding me and perhaps even Carly and Michael."
Sonny couldn't help but laugh, she was so observant, she caught everything, even when it looked like she wasn't paying attention.
"Don't worry John Boy, you'll always be my favorite guard, just don't tell Max." Elizabeth said, laughing with everyone else.
"Now isn't the time to discuss this anyway, perhaps tomorrow we can speak at length. But it is now that time that I must say so long, if I don't get home, Carly is liable to come running over here again, and no one needs that." Sonny said, rolling his eyes.
The three men looked askance at Elizabeth but she only shrugged her shoulders and laughed, as an after thought, she said, "Don't worry, if you work for Jason and Sonny, you will know all about Carly soon enough, trust me! You'll want to make sure you ate a healthy helping of your wheaties to deal with her."
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So this chapter is tame as well, but I figured you guys weathered ten dark chapters, two or three tame ones, only seemed fair. Thank you again for all your kind words, as always they inspire me to be a better writer. (Big Hugs)