All too soon the loaded hour was up and Kevin felt almost reluctant to end their very productive session, but the heaviness of the short period deserved a break, and the couple had committed to picking it up again. Kevin walked them to the outer office feeling confident in their progress. "Sam, Jason, I'm looking forward to seeing you next week." Sam walked out ahead of them and was the first to notice the congregation by the reception desk. Kevin did next and inquired, "Dawn, what's this?"
The Receptionist broke from the small group of two nurses and an Orderly and approached them. "It's Elizabeth Webber, she was found at the bottom of the stairs and has been admitted in serious condition."
Upon hearing the woman's name Sam continued walking out the doors and towards the elevator. She wasn't the least bit interested in the nurse's plight. She was sure Jason would be on his way to check up on the nurse so when he appeared at the elevator next to her instead, Sam was more than a tiny bit surprised. He eyed her softly, "Would you like to grab some lunch?" He was almost shy with the question and Sam couldn't help asking, "Don't you want to go check on her?"
For a split second Jason wondered who she was referring to before he realized the full connotation of her question. "What I'd really like to do is have lunch with my wife and son. Yes? Can we pickup Danny and get something to eat? Please?"
What universe was this? Jason Morgan was unaffected by news that the great Elizabeth Webber was in need of rescue and care? Sam studied his features to determine if he was acting for her benefit but couldn't detect a single care outside of his concern for her answer.
Suddenly Monica was clearing her throat next to them. "Earth to Jason and Sam, anybody home?" They both looked to her at the same time - when had she come up?
Monica smiled as she hugged her son, gingerly avoiding his bad arm, "you two were a million miles away. How was the session?" She couldn't stop the hope from creeping into her question. Sam and Jason belonged together…she knew it, their friends and families knew it, the forces that continually worked in earnest to keep them apart knew it…but until the two most stubborn people in the world also remembered it too, they would have a long road ahead of them. She was staring at Sam inquiringly.
Sam knew the question was directed at her but her jumbled and confused feelings about their current situation made her reluctant to answer queries about them. She had thought they were over, had steeled her heart and her mind from dwelling on what they'd been to each other and anything they could be again, but recent events had invaded her walls and had fractured her resolve. The lines between the stranger Jason who'd shut down against their life together and run from their relationship, and the renewed man who kept hammering at her restrictions and invading her guarded walls, were quickly becoming a blur. "It was…interesting," was all she'd commit to in that moment. Monica seemed to sense her reluctance and changed the subject.
"Good, I'm glad you're open to trying, for both your sakes and for my darling grand baby." She looked to Jason almost apologetically, "I hate to bother you with this but I think you'd better head it off before it becomes problematic."
His eyes asked the question that his lips did not, so she continued, "Elizabeth Webber took a nasty fall down the stairs and she's undergoing surgery right now to stop the internal bleeding." At the steely look of indifference that came over his face she laid a hand on Sam's arm and looked from one to the other as she hurriedly finished, "I know, I know she's the last person you both want to think about right now, but when they found her she told the attending staff that she was pushed." She looked intently at her daughter-in-law, "Sam, she insinuated that you were the one who pushed her down the stairs."
Jason closed his eyes and inhaled a jagged breath. Every fucking time! It's like the trifling woman had a radar to sense when he'd made the least bit of headway with Sam, there she always was, running straight through it! Why couldn't she have broken her mangy neck when she fell - it would have saved them all so much damn trouble! He took another deep breath, no - she's Jake's mother - he shouldn't wish ill will on her, but so help him if she didn't leave his wife alone he would fucking strangle her to death one of these days. "Sam didn't push that woman! What kind of game is she playing this time?"
Monica reassured her son, "Of course I know it's not true, Jason. I just think you should talk to her before she involves the police and repeat the lies."
Sam shook her head in angry disbelief. "First of all, if I'd pushed her she'd be very dead because I'd have made sure of it! Second of all, where does she get off? Does she really want to do this? She thinks she really wants to come for me?"
Monica was understanding but had to be the voice of reason, "Sam, please don't say things like that, especially not now. I'll let you know when she's out of surgery and can have visitors - you have to get this under control before she takes it any further." She hugged them both and left a fuming Sam and Jason not wanting anything but to confront and eliminate the spiteful woman from their lives.
"I'm sorry, Sam - I did this, I brought her into our relationship and not for hell will she leave - no matter what I do. I'm sorry!"
At first Sam wanted to tell him that he should be sorry and blame him for it all but the grown up side of her knew better. She sighed dispiritedly, "It's not all your fault Jason. Yes, you really should've chosen better, but she's a grown woman - she's responsible for her own damn actions. I'll tell you though, I really don't know how much farther I'll let her push me before I fucking kill her!"
Slow as snow Jason moved over to stand up against her, purposely and effectively brushing his arm along hers, their eyes locking and holding as the electricity that existed so naturally between them coursed through their veins. Her husband was all man, that virile, strong, muscled, toned specimen of a man who'd brought her to the pinnacle so many times with the most minimal effort. He knew her through and through and had always had the power to make her scream as easily as he'd made her purr. She knew this body, had caressed every contour of every muscle and kissed her way along every line. That delicious body that brushed hers sinfully, sending wave upon wave of electric heat through her, rendering her speechless and breathless with its intensity. She wanted him.
Jason could feel the raw animalistic magnetism running rampant between them and it was something he'd only felt with her. With just one look, one touch, one sweet curl of her delicious lips, she had always had the power to render him helpless and spellbound. He felt the heat from her body as it permeated his skin as it brushed hers, and when the warmth spread through his chest and loins he knew he had to have her again. She was it, had always been, and he was done letting outside forces and unwelcome threats keep her love from him. He wanted her.
Head lowered, he leaned into her, smoky eyes holding focus as his lips searched out the sweet breath that escaped hers, gliding across the softest succulence as he landed on the surface of her lips. Sam sank into him moving to drink as much as she fed, reigniting a union that was long ago written in the scrolls of the sages. This was her home…his arms, his lips, the softest moan as he pulled her to him and lost himself in her essence. His lips traced her lips…hard but soft planes that licked her boneless and weak kneed, driving her heart to flutter. She grabbed a hold and clung to him, solid, sinuous muscles burning where she touched, and Jason knew he was home. She tasted like strawberry wine as he drank his fill of her sweet juice, heart beating through his chest as memories ran rampant and their tongues danced the mating dance of their love. His blood boiled where she touched, enticing his lips to crush hers again and again as he mercilessly latched on to her tongue, pulling it into his mouth where he sucked and toyed, his sharp intake of oxygen signaling her effect upon his breathing.
Finally they came apart as their lungs screamed for air, forcing them to pull up and breathed deeply. Sam still clung to him for fear her jellied knees would not hold, as he in turn held tight to keep her close. After an eternity she found her voice again, "D-Danny. Lunch."
The sound of his baby's name upon her lips was always so very right. Jason smiled and brushed the ever straying loch of hair from her gorgeous face. "Yes. Danny. Lunch."
They picked their son up from his playdate and as they settled at a table in Kelly's, Jason couldn't help smiling to himself at the turn his day had taken. Just a few hours before, the dismally disdain he'd been feeling was almost overwhelming, but it blanched now in the face of the joy that filled his heart as he drunk in the sight before him - the woman he loved, cuddling the fruit of that love shared between them, was all he'd ever need to get him through. She wasn't ready to dive back into them and he would respect her space and take everything at her guided pace, but his heart was so much lighter after their candid talk and heated kiss…he knew they were headed in the right direction and he was more than ready to put in the work to get it back. He wanted it all back.
A thrilling and fulfilling afternoon was spent with their perfect little boy, watching him smile and dying when he laughed. He was such a happy, joyous kid and as Jason watched the interaction of mother and son he marveled once again at the beautiful bond between the two. She loved their son wholeheartedly and had spent the first years of his life as his sole parental influence, something Jason wanted to spend the rest of his sharing with her from there on in, but as he admired the beauty before him, Jason knew she deserved so much more than he would ever have to give. She was worthy of everything, and though she was still wary with him, she had willingly consented to lunch. Things were looking up and he knew it was time for him to woo her, now that she appeared ready to let him. Lunch with their favorite person in the world was the tiniest start, but he'd take it. Sam never asked for anything and he knew she never would, but he'd always wanted to give her the world. He was about to give her something else too.
Later that night, Elizabeth had woken up from a deep sleep, groggy and alone. Her body ached and her head felt like bricks but she was alive. She laid there as she came awake, realizing slowly that she hadn't woken just by chance - she'd heard something. She was not alone. As her newly opened eyes grew accustomed to the darkened room, they formed a seated shadow by the dresser, and the cold shiver running up her backbone signified immediate and unknown danger, sending the panic blaring through her. She reached for the call button but it was not where she'd left it earlier by her hand - it was nowhere that she could feel. There was no movement coming from the form but she could hear the distinct and soft breathing as his chest rose and fell. Finding her voice she stammered, "Who-who's there?"
No answer, and still no movement. Was her mind playing tricks? Was that just an odd shadow climbing out of her drug induced and cloudy mind? She shut her eyes tight and opened them again quickly, squinting as she concentrated on the form more closely. There was definitely someone there, and the unnerving silence was lending greatly to her rising fear. "What do you want - who are you?"
That's when he rose and approached, his movements ever so deliberate and seemingly calculatingly slow. He stopped just by her bed and Elizabeth opened her mouth to scream but a voice ventured to shush her. His "Shhh-shhhh!" was quietly drawn out, then he reached a hand out and flipped the switch on the lamp, his familiar image giving her tremendous relief.
"Oh, My God, Jason! You scared me!" As the panic left, her heart rejoiced and her mind started making plans - Jason's here! She got hurt and Jason came - of course Jason would always come when she needed him the most. She started to scold herself for doubting him when the chips were down.
"I'm happy it's you, Jason." Her smile was wide and as it begun spreading even farther, she noticed the lack of one in response. The coldness of his normally warm blue eyes were her next clue, with the tight set of his jaws and lips a very clear indication. This was not a friendly visit.
Again he fell silent and simply watched her, no trace of the kind man she'd held just months prior. This was a predator standing before her, this man had an agenda and a purpose and she was his prey. Her fear sprang to life once more.
He took another step closer, his voice dripping with the same icy cold that lived in his eyes. "Who pushed you?"
Her panic quadrupled. She knew he'd come, at the end of the day Jason would always come when she needed him…but she had no clue he wouldn't come for her. As his question replayed in her head and broke through her fogged mind she watched him snake a hand in his pocket and kept it there, his cold, cold eyes never leaving her. She knew he was waiting for an answer and she had one well rehearsed and prepared but how could she give it now when he looked ready to kill? Best to fall on Plan B - hurt, innocent, lost Elizabeth got him every single time.
"Jason, I…" Her voice trailed off as he removed the hand from his jacket at a snail's pace to produce a pair of black gloves, donning the left one gingerly, his eyes trained on her the whole time. What happened to the sling that was supposed to be keeping his arm immobile as it healed?
"Who…pushed…you?" His tone implied he would not ask again, and as her already pale, dead complexion turned even whiter, he added, "Did you say it was my wife?"
Elizabeth's eyes bulged as she saw Jason's intention - no, he can't mean to do her harm - can he? Her voice almost failed her as she hurried to explain herself. "No, no it was a misunderstanding. I never said Sam pushed me - all I said was I saw her and she hates me so much she wants me dead - I never said she pushed me."
His pace did not change with the gloving of the right hand and neither did his stare as she watched the angle his eyes took ever so leisurely moving from her face to rest on her neck. Elizabeth's hand flew to her neck almost on instinct, as she tried to make him understand. "She hates me, Jason. She hates me and she would've gladly pushed me down those steps - that's all I was trying to say. They misunderstood what I said, I never said she did it, you have to believe me." Her voice squeaked with the last part, causing his eyes to travel back from her neck to rest frigidly on hers.
Jason finished putting the gloves in place and stood there looking at the woman, fingers twitching as he cricked his neck. He thought about how he had loved her once, nowhere near the mind blowing, all consuming, can't get enough way that he's always loved Sam, but he would've done almost anything to take care of her and make her happy, to make his son happy. He used to admire the good he thought he saw in her, the way she appeared to live her life was clean, gentle and kind, or so he'd thought. He would've never guessed, not in a million years, that she was capable of the mean-spirited, selfish, underhanded things that she had done, all in the name of loving him. What had happened to her to turn her soul this black? The most dangerous part about her was she hid her charred soul underneath a mountain of innocence and calculated actions that were designed to blind and mislead, and her victims would never see her coming until it was too late and they were already on the floor bleeding from the viciousness of her love-proclaimed inflicted wounds. Snake was too good a name for her.
Jason placed his hands back in his pocket, wincing inwardly from the pain he was inflicting on his injured shoulder, but as he continued to glare at the frightened creature his own pain barely registered within his underlying anger. "Will I need to visit you tomorrow night?" The stone cold iciness was deliberate and he knew it'd found its mark.
"No, I'll clear it up, Jason. First thing in the morning I'll make sure everybody knows it was just a misunderstanding, I swear I'll clear it all up!" Elizabeth saw her life flash before her and for once the giant tears streaming down her face were not manufactured for his benefit. She didn't want to die and please God, not at the hands of her love. He was so cold, so formal, so utterly unaffected by all they'd shared. Would he really kill the mother of his child? Was that evil woman's hold on him so strong that he could really stand here and threaten her in her weakened and battered state? The icy block standing before her told her yes, this was the killer that they all whispered about. "Please, Jason."
"This is the last time I will ever ask you again to leave my family alone." The deadly silence that followed those words was broken only by Jason turning his back to walk from the room, leaving Elizabeth staring after him, unable to stop the tears she cried or the vengeance wreaking through her heart. She was his family too dammit. Why couldn't he see her love?
Sam stood in the open doorway and looked at her sweet baby boy fast asleep in his bed, safely tucked in from the world around them and surrounded by a blanket of protective love from so many. She listened to his soft, even breathing and content filled her heart and soul. For so long she thought she'd never have this, never know the joy of a mother's love for her perfect creation, her innocent charge, and looking at her baby she couldn't stop her thoughts from going to the man who created him with her. They had wanted him for so long, had lived with knowing he wasn't a possibility almost as long, to now share the joy of raising him together was everything. Then the sigh escaped her as she remembered that they weren't really raising him together though, fate had found it fitting to cruelly rip them apart again. Sam closed her son's door and made her way to her own bedroom, climbing onto the bed and once again thinking about the partner who'd shared it with her before. The countless passion-filled nights and days they'd spent locked together in its width, exploring each other, blocking out the world and all its traps and trials, and she couldn't help the lonely that crept underneath the covers with her. Sighing again, Sam beat her pillow into submission and settled into its comfort, knowing that she had some hard decisions to make and some long thinking to do. Could she trust him with her heart again? Could she ever give him the part of her soul that had his stamp on its core in indelible ink for all time, the same piece of her soul that he had damaged so carelessly? Her thoughts as sleep grabbed hold and drew her into restful darkness was of a succulent kiss between destined souls that had found the familiarity known only to the two, and as her body succumbed in sleep to the drains of the day, her dreams surrendered to the kisses of a fair, blue eyed Greek God.