A/N: Special thanks to cjcapple for her help! Don't let her fool you. She's a big gun herself!
4.
They had an hour until their meeting with Sonny and subsequent meeting with Julian when all hell would break loose, but, for now, it was just the three of them. Mother, father and son were safely ensconced in their home and as far as Jason was concerned the Morgan family reunion was long overdue.
Jason cleared Sam's dark brown hair from her shoulder with the hand he had wrapped around her and began caressing her at the back of her neck as she sat snug against him. It was as if both knew this was their moment of peace before the storm and were savoring it. They hadn't moved from their spot since Alexis and Spinelli left minutes ago, except to get closer.
Even when Jason had Sam call Sonny to request his presence at the penthouse, Sam had only moved to rest her head against her husband's chest as she spoke. Jason had simply occupied himself with trailing his fingers through her hair as she managed to explain the urgency for Sonny to drop everything to come by without actually explaining anything. Years out of the trade and she was still the best con-artist he'd ever known. He smiled faintly to himself, amused and totally enamored by every facet of the woman in his arms.
Jason continued to play with her hair, he realized, as a self-soothing gesture. He was filled with an overwhelming desire to bolt up the stairs and hug his son, but Danny had just fallen asleep and needed his rest. It was all Jason could do to distract himself from doing it anyway, but Sam in his arms always made for the best distraction and so it hadn't taken long to lose himself in the feeling of her next to him and beneath his fingertips.
Her hair was longer, he'd noticed. She had to have cut it while he was away, but it was still longer than when he'd last seen her. It was still just as soft, though, and smelled just as nice. He leaned in and breathed her and their moment of togetherness in and felt slightly guilty for wishing like hell a fire truck or ambulance would pass by with sirens blazing so their son would wake up and join them.
His fingers stilled as Sam breathed a deep sigh he wasn't altogether sure was contented. "You okay?"
She sighed again and smoothed her hand over the familiar black cotton covering his chest. His clothes and shoes were new, but obviously of his choosing and that reminded her of how Jason had said he'd been treated more like a guest than a prisoner. Did that make a difference? Certainly some, but enough? She pushed those thoughts away. She refused to think about their troubles until she could face them, literally.
"Would it be bad of me as a mother, do you think, to wake Danny up early?" She'd been sitting there since ending her call with Sonny, debating whether or not to wake their son. "I know he just got out of the hospital and he's still recovering, but..."
Jason put his thumb to her lips to silence her worries. She turned her head to look at him and he smiled that crooked little half-smile she loved so much, the one their son inherited. "If that makes you a bad parent, then I'm no better. I've been sitting here wishing an ambulance would drive by or a helicopter would do a fly by outside Danny's window."
Sam laughed and quickly kissed his thumb before he pulled it away. "I'm so glad you said that. Come on."
Sam rose from the sofa and pulled at his hand with both of hers as he rose too. This was a special occasion and they'd put their moment off long enough. She turned toward the stairs, reveling in the feel of his solid arm wrapping around her on their way up.
"Let's go check on our son." Jason murmured against her as they walked arm in arm toward the nursery and Sam's heart swelled with love for him at hearing him call Daniel their son again, especially when he had no idea just how true that was.
Jason thought he knew what love for a child was with the children in his life before and he did, but this was different. His love for the little boy lying asleep in the crib before him had grown so impossibly large he wasn't sure how he could contain it within himself. It was too much and not enough all at the same time. He'd never felt love for a child that strong, though baby Lila and Michael came close. His ex, Courtney, had lost their child before his love for that baby ever had a chance to grow to what it would have been and the same was true for Sam's baby girl, Lila, though he'd had more time with her and his love was much stronger.
He hadn't allowed himself to embrace fatherhood with Jake, though, and the same could be said for Hope, the baby girl he and Sam wanted to adopt, and even Michael to a degree. He'd always forced himself to hold back just a little, especially after he'd given them up for others to raise. But this baby, this little boy was his son. Sam had allowed him to be his father and no one would take him away and he would never walk away, not this time, not with this child, not ever. The children in his life before had taught him better and he'd finally learned.
His biological son, Jake, had been killed before he ever got to know his love and if he was honest with himself he could admit his nephew, Michael, had suffered a great deal because he'd walked away from the chance at being his father. He'd watched earlier that morning how his now grown godson, Morgan, carried himself with so much anger and resentment for his parent's neglect and wondered if that's how Jake may have felt toward him one day if he'd lived. He would never know for sure, but he knew one thing. He would make certain he never made that mistake with Daniel. This child would never doubt his father's love.
Jason had lost so many chances at fatherhood and even given some away and nearly lost it with Daniel as well, but he'd found it again thanks to Sam and he'd embraced it with everything in him since he'd been away and that love had only grown stronger over time.
"He's still perfect... and big." Jason gazed down at the sleeping sixteen month old he'd last held as an infant and, looking at him now, it was hard to imagine his son so sick only weeks ago. He looked so strong and healthy.
"And awake," Sam noted with a little laugh as one of Danny's eyes peeked open on the sly.
"Are you playing possum again, Danny, huh?" Sam reached into the crib and tugged on his toes. "I swear, Jason. He's just like you. He'll do anything to avoid talking, even pretend to sleep!"
The sound of Danny's belly laughs filled the nursery as his mother's fingers trailed up his leg to his tummy and tickled him. He then turned abruptly onto his belly and rose to stand in his crib staring out at his mother and the new person in the room.
Sam watched, mesmerized by the sight, as father and son stared at one another for a long moment and then blinked. She couldn't help grin at their identical exchange. She continued to watch them, wanting to see how the moment played out a bit longer before re-introducing father and son.
For Danny's part, he didn't shy away from Jason. He was definitely curious and hadn't looked away since he first noticed him, but Danny didn't seem to feel threatened by him. It was like their son knew somehow or maybe even already felt safe with his father just like Sam had with him all those years ago before she could ever understand why.
Jason's heart pounded in his chest. He wanted to reach out and pull his little boy into a tight squeeze, but he remained still and calm by all outward appearance. He didn't want to scare him. Jason gave his son a half-smile and to his surprise Danny returned it. It felt oddly satisfying to recognize something of himself in the child Sam gave birth to.
He still had the same blue eyes Jason inherited from his grandmother, Lila, too. They hadn't changed which seemed odd to him since both his biological parents had brown eyes. It was nice to look into his grandmother's eyes again, though he wouldn't have minded looking into a smaller version of Sam's warm brown eyes either. Her eyes were only one of the many things he loved about her, but they were one of his favorite things. Maybe one day their daughter might have her mother's eyes. Sam dreamed of them having a son and daughter together and now that Jason was home again he intended to make every one of her dreams come true, because that was his dream – to make her happy.
Jason continued to take in every little feature of his son as he stood there with Sam and then Danny finally decided he'd had enough of their blink-staring contest. He reached down into his crib, popped his pacifier in his mouth and held his two little arms outstretched toward his mother. Jason watched as Sam lifted and shuffled him to her hip with a practiced ease even though he could tell that, soon, Danny would be too big for her small frame to carry that way.
"He's talking now? He must be walking too." Jason wondered what his first words had been. He'd missed those and his first steps.
Sam heard the sadness in his voice when Jason asked about his son. He'd missed so much, but Sam was determined to fill him in with stories and all the pictures and videos she'd taken and notes she'd scribbled in Danny's baby journal. It wouldn't be the same as having been there, but maybe it would help fill that void and having Danny now, in his arms, would help too.
"He doesn't talk much. He must only talk when he has something to say." Sam gave Jason a pointed look and he smiled faintly remembering the time he'd told Sam the same thing about himself. "His first word was mom, not mama like most babies, which Alexis insists is a sign of his strong sense of individuality. Something, according to her, every great leader possesses. He took his first steps downstairs in front of the fireplace a couple weeks before his first birthday. I have pictures and video of almost everything."
Sam gave a sheepish grin as she pointed to the stack of DVDs and photo albums on one of his shelves. "I think I kind of went a little overboard after missing out with him the first four months."
"I'd like to see those, all of them." Jason told her as his eyes found hers briefly then rested on Daniel again.
"Danny, this is your daddy. See?" Sam nudged him toward Jason then pointed to one of several framed pictures in Danny's room that were filled with different photos of his father. There was one of the three of them the night they welcomed Daniel home and some were of Jason with Sam and other friends and family members past and present. He never realized so many pictures of him existed, but Sam had found them and used them to keep his memory alive for her and their son. "Our Christmas wish finally came true, Danny. Your daddy came home to us. Can you say Welcome Home Daddy?"
Sam looked down at Danny to see if he would speak. He didn't, but he did give Jason another little half-smile behind his pacifier. Sam smiled too as she looked back up to find Jason with tears in his eyes and a trembling smile on his face.
"You want to hold him?" Sam said. She could tell he did.
Of course he did, he couldn't wait. "I don't, I don't want to scare him."
"You won't." Sam reassured him and Jason nodded and held out his hands feeling more vulnerable in that moment than he had in a long time.
"Go to daddy, Danny." Sam encouraged as she leaned him toward Jason's extended hands.
Danny reached out and went to him without hesitation and Jason breathed a sigh of relief at not being rejected and did his best not to frighten his son with the strength of emotion that shot through him as he held him in his arms again for the first time in a year.
"I've missed you, Danny. I've missed you so much, son." Jason sighed and let the emotion wash over him as he placed a tender kiss to his head.
Sam couldn't take her eyes off of her husband holding their son; their son, a baby created from their love. The thought still awed her every time she considered it. "He's yours Jason."
Sam held his hopeful gaze as he searched hers for the truth and she nodded with a tearful smile. "Heather falsified the paternity test to make us think Danny isn't your biological son, but she lied. Steve found proof. You are Danny's father in every single way."
Jason looked down at the little guy in his arms and knew what he'd told Sam the night she and Danny came home to him was still true. Loving a child wasn't about DNA. His love for Danny was absolute and unwavering regardless, but he would be lying if he said it didn't humble him to know the child in his arms was a child they'd created together from their love.
Sam watched Jason's expression change from one of adoration to amazement and awe just like she'd felt the first time she'd learned the news and every time she'd shared it since and she knew. She knew he felt the same as her. The news didn't make them love Danny more. It just made them feel more blessed, because it meant their son would never have to face an ugly truth about how he came to be and, dead or alive, it meant Franco was now out of their lives for good.
"I guess those blue eyes make even more sense now, huh." Jason jostled Danny playfully in his arms and smiled a genuine smile at his son and for Sam as he held out his arm and she stepped into his side for a family hug.
xxxxx
"I still can't believe you're alive." Sonny had repeated that for about the fifth time now since he'd arrived. They'd discuss something for a minute or two and then he'd shake his head with a look of astonishment and say it again.
Jason gave a chortled laugh as his head kicked back in amusement over it while Sam sat beaming at his side. The last hour of his life with Sam and Danny had been the best he ever remembered. He and Sam had sat together on the floor of Danny's African safari themed nursery playing with their son and before they knew it his friend and business partner, Sonny, was at their door as requested. Jason looked over at Danny now to find him in the process of climbing a stack of toys he'd made in attempt to make a break from his pack n play.
"Do you see this?" Sam said as she stood from the sofa and walked over to Danny before he could fall.
"Guess you're all done with the pack n play from now on, huh? We can't have you falling out on your head." She told her son as she lifted him from his precarious footing only to have the stack of toys give way and crash to the mat as she lifted him.
"Ah come on, give Danny a little more credit than that Sam. He's half Morgan half McCall. That kid is as tough as they come and genetically engineered to always land on his feet." Sonny teased.
"He's a little escape artist is what he is, aren't you, Danny?" Sam accused and Danny remained silent.
"Alexis taught him well. I see he's refusing to speak without an attorney present." Sonny joked and Jason half-chuckled.
Sam just rolled her eyes at him and smiled despite herself. She knew Sonny had been in a really dark place after losing the woman he loved and it was good to see him like the man she'd once thought she'd fallen in love with. Their friendship may not be as close as it once was, but he was her little sister's father and she wanted good things for him.
"First pick-pocketing and now jailbreaks? What are your daddy and I gonna do with you, huh?" Sam hefted him just above eye level in front of her and lowered him, eyes smiling, until their noses touched as she stared into her son's beautiful blue eyes.
"Mac," Danny exclaimed and Jason and Sonny shared a look with raised brows as Sam brought Danny back around to her hip.
"Did he just ask for Mac? Uh, Danny, I know Scorpio may not be the police commissioner any longer, but he's still probably not the one you want to call on in this type of situation. I think who you want right now is grandma." Sonny advised.
Jason just looked on full of wonder at hearing his son's voice for the first time. Sam hadn't been kidding when she said Danny didn't talk much. He hadn't heard a peep out of him since he'd come home.
"The food, Sonny, not the man although there's nothing wrong with the man either. Mac Scorpio is a good guy." Sam may have questioned Mac's judgment on the job a time or two, but she'd always known him to be a fair man and her opinion of him only grew in favor after seeing the care and respect he'd shown when he'd dated her mother.
"Even better now that he's no longer commissioner." Jason mumbled and Sonny pulled a frown and nodded in agreement.
Sam cut her eyes at her husband, but smiled just the same. "Come on, Danny. Let's go make lunch and let these two comedians finish their set without us."
"Mac," Danny repeated with more enthusiasm and Jason and Sonny still weren't so sure whether that was an endorsement for the food or the man.
Sam gave Jason a wink as she walked by him on her way out of the living room and he grasped her free hand as she passed. She stopped and turned to look at him. He didn't say anything, but his look said it all. He was blissfully happy and totally in love with her and their son. Sam leaned down with Danny in her arms and planted a kiss on her husband's lips. He gave her his almost smile as she pulled away then gave his son a little shake of his hand as Sam stood tall again and headed off toward the kitchen.
"You're not gonna cook for him are you?" Sonny hollered as she made her exit and both men laughed outright as she held her hand up, high above Danny's head, and flipped Sonny off without ever saying a word or turning back to look at him.
The room grew quiet for a moment before Sonny spoke again. "Seriously though, Jason, she's not cooking is she? You've seen her around a stove and I'm sorry to say, if there's any truth to the stories Molly shared the last time we talked, that much hasn't changed."
Jason shook his head with a half-smirk. Sam would probably never be a great cook, but she had learned a few things over the years. "She can handle mac and cheese, Sonny, just don't ask her for a BLT."
"I heard that!" Sam yelled from the kitchen and both men laughed again.
Jason breathed deep and exhaled slowly as his thoughts grew more serious. He and Sonny hadn't really discussed any details yet. They'd just enjoyed being in good company again, but there wasn't much time left. Jason was set to meet Julian in less than an hour and Sonny needed to know a few things first.
"I know you probably don't want to talk about it all right now, but you said someone was holding you all this time. Give me a name, Jason, and I swear I'll make them pay for what they've done." The look in Sonny's eyes told Jason he meant every word and any other time he would have felt relieved to know Sonny had his back, but things were different this time. Sonny's decisions couldn't be based on saving face for the business or personal pride or even payback for his friend. This was about Sam and Danny's family now too.
"I need you to hear me out before you make any decisions." Sonny gave Jason a pensive look at his request, but nodded.
"The man that found me and held me is the same man that's been making moves against you." Jason admitted.
"Julian Jerome," Sonny guessed and waited for confirmation of his hunch.
"So you know he's alive." Jason wondered just what else Sonny may have learned.
"I've heard a few things. I took Shawn on to help me out after we lost you. He's been working a few leads and they all seem to point back to the Jeromes. Son of a bitch, Jason! That bastard's alive and he's had you all this time? Where? We need to find this guy and hit him hard!" Sonny moved to the edge of his seat as anger pulsed through him.
"He bought Zacharra's estate. He had a wing there, locked off." Jason didn't have to spell it out any further.
"He had you locked up right here in Port Charles? Right in my territory all this time." Sonny shook his head, shame flooding him. "I should have known. I'm so sorry man. I let you down."
"You had a lot going on. I heard about AJ's return right after I disappeared and then Franco's, and Sam told me about Connie. I'm sorry, Sonny. I know how much she meant to you." Julian had told him about his brother's return months ago as well as Franco's which is when Jason had insisted Sam and Danny be put under Julian's protection, but Connie's murder as well as AJ's arrest for it had come as a surprise.
"It took everything in me not to put a bullet in him for what he did to Connie, but I couldn't do that to Michael." Sonny confessed.
"You did the right thing for the sake of your family." Jason assured him. "Now I have to ask you to do the right thing again, for the sake of mine."
"Of course, Jason. Name it, whatever you need." Jason let him off the hook, but Sonny still felt guilty as hell for allowing their enemies to get a hold of him and he intended to make it up to his friend any way he could.
"I know you, Sonny. This is going to be as hard for you as holding back on AJ, but it's what my family needs." Jason said and sighed before continuing. "Julian Jerome is Sam's father and I need you to let me deal with him."
"Father? How... are you sure?" Sonny asked the question, but in his mind the pieces of the puzzle began to click together. His son's girlfriend had told him her mother, Ava Jerome, had a secret brother she'd never told anyone about; a brother with money and connections that had bank-rolled her art gallery. Sonny had suspected that brother was Julian and had a feeling Ava would lead them straight to him. Coincidentally, which he'd never been a big believer in coincidences in his line of work, Ava Jerome was thick as thieves with a town newcomer by the name of Derek Wells, a man Sonny had never met who seemed to be waging a war against him in his newspaper and that same supposed stranger had just coincidentally turned up as a genetic match to donate bone marrow to Sam and Jason's son. Derek Wells waging a war... genetic match... Sam's father... Julian Jerome!
"Positive," Jason answered, watching as the wheels turned in Sonny's head. "Alexis and Sam had a DNA test run to prove it. It turns out Lucas Jones is Julian's biological son and Sam's half-brother."
Sonny raked his teeth over his bottom lip. "Did you ever get a look at Julian, see him face to face?"
Jason nodded, not sure why he'd asked.
Sonny pulled his phone from the interior pocket of his suit jacket and flipped through a few screens. "Is this him?"
Sonny handed Jason his phone and Jason sighed. He'd told Julian that Sonny was good enough to figure it out and he had. Jason could lie, should lie considering he could go to prison for what he was about to say, but he would never betray Sonny that way. Sonny was more than a business partner. He was his family and Jason was counting on that connection to get one of his oldest friends to do the right thing by the rest of his family. "That's him."
"I knew it! I knew it in my gut! This is it, Jason. We've got him now!" Sonny may not be able to kill him if Jason asked that of him, but he would still damn well make Julian Jerome pay one way or another.
"Sonny," Jason whispered harshly with a look toward the kitchen. He shook his head and Sonny got quiet.
"Sam doesn't know Derek is Julian?" Sonny spoke low so Sam wouldn't overhear.
"I haven't told her yet. We're supposed to meet with him today. He wants to be the one to tell her." Jason had already decided he couldn't do that to Sam though. He couldn't let her walk in there blindsided like that.
"Who gives a rat's ass what that man wants after what he's done? You don't owe him a thing, but you do owe Sam. She deserves to know the truth and she should hear it from you." Sonny didn't understand where Jason's head was at, but he needed to help him get it back on straight before he blew his marriage all to hell, again.
"I know." Jason agreed. "I plan to tell her before we leave."
Sonny was glad to hear his friend wasn't as far gone as he'd started to think.
"You said you want to handle Jerome. What's your plan?" Sonny breathed deep. Handing over control had never been easy for him, even to someone he trusted as much as Jason.
"I'm going to broker a truce between our organizations, get him to agree to a sit down with you so we can work this out." Jason gauged Sonny for his reaction. He wasn't immediately shut down so he took that as a sign Sonny might actually consider it.
"What makes you think he'll agree to it? You said he wants to tell Sam, so that must mean he knows he's Sam's father. That didn't stop him from coming after one of my shipments. This could be a set up." Jason's jaw tightened. Sonny wasn't saying anything he wouldn't say or think if he didn't know better and it had taken a long time for Jason to believe different. They didn't have that kind of time for Sonny to come around. "I'm asking you to trust me, Sonny. I can make this work."
"I do trust you, but what makes you trust him?" If Sonny didn't know better, he might think Julian Jerome had turned his best friend against him. He did know better, though. He just didn't know all the facts and that always left him feeling uneasy when swimming in dangerous waters.
"He's not the man I thought he was and he's not the man you think he is now. He let me go, for Sam, and I believe he'll agree to a truce for Sam too."
Sonny sighed and thought it over for a minute. "I don't like it, but I'm not trying to go to war either. If you can get Julian to agree to a sit down, I'm willing to do my part to keep the peace." After losing Connie, he wasn't ready to risk losing any more loved ones by pushing for a mob war and that included Jason. He'd defend himself if pulled into one, but he wouldn't push for one.
They sat, heads together, for the next several minutes discussing other important points. Sonny promised not to make any offensive moves against the Jeromes until Jason had a chance to work it out. Jason also informed him about the guards Julian had on Sam and Danny. He could tell it stuck in Sonny's craw, but Jason insisted Sam and Danny needed all the protection they could get right now with Franco, Heather Webber and Cesar Faison on the loose and Julian's guards had been keeping them safe for months now.
Sonny relented and said he'd inform his men not to give Julian's men any trouble if they came across them, at least until he knew if Julian intended to negotiate. He also agreed to keep Jason's return under wraps from Carly and everyone else until Jason gave word. Sonny didn't even have to ask why. He knew Jason planned on going after Faison and this would give him the tactical advantage. Sonny wasn't used to feeling so powerless in a situation, but he owed Jason big time for the sacrifices he'd made for him and his family over the years and it was his turn to suck it up and do right by the friend he loved like a brother.
"Are you sure about going into this meeting with no backup?" It was a bigger risk than Sonny was comfortable with after just getting Jason back.
"I'm sure. You know I'd never risk Sam and her mother's safety like that." Jason told him and Sonny nodded reluctantly. He did know that, but he still felt uneasy about it.
"We're meeting at Zacharra's estate, the Jerome estate now I guess. If you don't hear from me in three hours, you can come in and get us." Jason knew that wouldn't be necessary, but he could see it had the intended effect. Sonny relaxed a little hearing it.
"It's good to have you back, man. I'd just like to make sure we keep it that way. Stay sharp out there." Sonny pat Jason over the shoulder as they made their way over to the door.
"Tell Sam I'd like you guys to come by for dinner sometime once you finally come up for air." Sonny teased.
"We'll give you a call sometime next month." Jason replied with a straight face and Sonny's dimples flashed on high. "Yeah, that's what I thought."
Traces of humor broke out over Jason's face and Sonny turned to leave, shaking his head, as Jason closed the door behind him.
"Sonny left?" He turned to see Sam walking back in from the kitchen with Danny toddling behind her, fresh sippy cup in hand.
"Yeah, he invited us to dinner over at his place once we..." Jason's eyes lit up seeing Danny walking around so good and Sam smiled as she watched her husband fall a little deeper in love with their son.
"Once we, what?" Sam wondered.
Jason looked back at his wife with a sexy smirk. "Once we come up for air."
Sam bit her bottom lip as his heated gaze warmed her to her core. "So, next month then." She murmured as Jason took her into his arms and pulled her close.
"My thoughts exactly, Mrs. Morgan." He lowered his lips to hers and they shared a soft and simmering kiss that left them breathless.
"Up," A little voice rang out from below and they looked down to find their son staring up at them.
Jason took a deep breath to regain his composure and Sam smiled at him, seeing the promise of later in his eyes before they turned their attention to their son.
Sam reached down to pick Daniel up and Jason got an idea.
"Danny, you want to make a fort?" He waited for Danny's response. Jason had made progress earning his son's trust while playing with him and Sam in the nursery earlier and he wanted to keep it going.
Sam didn't think Danny even knew what a fort was, but she didn't want to burst Jason's bubble. Danny seemed to contemplate the question as well as the man who asked it and finally nodded. Jason went over to the previously abandoned pack n play and turned it on its side so its opening was level to the floor. He then pulled a baby blanket from inside and draped it over half of the opening so Danny could crawl inside the little hideaway and play with the toys as he pleased.
Sam went over to the sofa and sat down with Danny as Jason began stacking a few of the foam blocks inside the structure. Danny looked up at his mother and back at his father and seemed sold on the idea. He left her side on the sofa and crawled inside to play with Jason. Sam called their names and father and son turned to find Sam snapping a picture of them with her phone. "Danny's first fort." She smiled. "I know you missed a lot of his firsts, but you were here for this one, Jason, and you'll be here for all the rest."
Jason nodded and smoothed his hand over Danny's hair before standing. He moved back over to the sofa and took his wife into his arms as she showed him the picture of father and son and one of the many firsts he intended to share with his little boy.
They sat together in contented silence for a moment as they watched Danny play in the overturned pack n play.
"So how did you and Danny fair with lunch?" Jason teased as his eyes lit up with humor.
Sam swatted him playfully on the arm. "Just fine, thank you. Danny loves my broccoli mac and cheese. How did you fair with Sonny?" She pulled her legs up under her and cuddled into his side as Jason adjusted his hold around her.
"He's agreed to a sit down to discuss terms for a truce."
"That's good. That's what you were hoping for." Sam still wasn't sure if she wanted anything to do with her father, but she didn't want him dead. She'd been under the impression her father was lost to her and maybe he still was, but as long as he was alive there was still a chance she could find a real father within him somewhere. It was a very conflicting emotion not to want him dead considering she'd dreamed of putting a bullet in the man who had taken Jason away from her when she thought that man was Faison and now it turned out that her father was responsible too.
Jason could sense the tension in Sam as he held her. "This is all going to work out, Sam. You'll see." Jason was sure of it. It may take time, but it would all work out.
Sam knew she should probably have more faith in all things being possible considering her husband had just been returned to her from the dead, but she still couldn't bring herself to be so sure. Life had taught her the price she paid for something good was the loss of something equally good and Jason's return and the reveal of her father as his captor seemed further proof to her. It helped to hear Jason had faith, though. She smoothed her hand around to his back and held on to him and his faith to get her through.
"Your mom and Spinelli should be here soon." It was almost time for their meeting. Sam thought her mother had a right to be there when she confronted her father and Jason agreed. Spinelli would stay behind to care for Danny since Molly and Rafe were out of town and Sam still didn't trust her little boy with many.
"I can't wait to meet Julian Jerome for the first time and make him answer for what he's done to you and our family." The anger in her voice was evident, but Jason detected hurt there too.
He knew this news would come as another blow, but he wouldn't lie to her. He'd learned from those mistakes too. "Sam, you've already met Julian Jerome."
Sam sat up to look at him. "What?"
"Your father is the one who saved Danny's life." Jason held her gaze as his words sank in.
"Derek Wells is the one who saved Danny. Derek... Derek Wells is Julian Jerome?" Sam was stunned.
"He used me just like Silas." Only somehow his betrayal hurt more than Silas' ever could and now she knew why. He was her father.
"No, Sam. Your father lied to you, but he never used you."
"Why are you defending him, Jason?" Sam was angry. It wasn't directed at Jason, he knew, but he definitely felt the heat of it as her gaze burned into him.
"I'm not. I just don't want you under the impression your father ever tried to use you to gain the upper-hand." It was just the opposite, in fact. "Julian Jerome may be a lot of things, Sam, but I promise you he is not Cody McCall."
Sam's eyes shifted away from him at the mention of the man who raised her. She hadn't thought of Cody in a long time until recently when all this talk of her biological father came up. She'd never voiced her fear to anyone, but Jason could see it just the same. That's how well he knew her. He knew she was scared her real father would be no better than the man who raised her. Cody had taught her the con and used her to make a living then stole from her and left her with nothing when she'd served his purpose.
"We'll see." It was all Sam had to say on the subject. She had a lot of anger building up inside, but she wouldn't put that on Jason. She would save it for the man that earned it.
Jason pulled Sam to him and she went willingly. He kissed her on the top of her head and whispered into her ear. "I love you, Sam, and I'm here. We'll get through this together."
Sam held onto Jason and sighed as she watched their son continue to play. He'd pulled the blanket of his fort down and was using it to play peek-a-boo with himself. His eyes met hers from across the room and he gave her a toothy grin that brought a smile to her face and to her heart.
"I love you." She said to the man holding her and to their son across the room and the love she felt made her stronger, not only their love for her, but the love she felt for them as well.
Page 17 of 17 Created: 2013-11-22 Updated: 2015-01-21 Words: 6642 Characters: 34867