Without Hate - Chapter 6

Without Hate - Chapter 6

For Jason, falling for Carly had been very much a conscious choice; he'd consciously fought it every step of the way. Then A.J. changed his life. Six months before, A.J. arrived at Bobbie's brownstone under the guise of wanting to give Michael a better life than Carly had when she was a baby. He offered to marry her. A.J. even went as far as kissing her as a sign of good faith. What A.J. hadn't known Jason was there watching the whole scene. It was that night he'd ask her to go on the run.

And it was one night on the run when he raced back to their tiny home with the white picket fence that he realized his life was better with her in it than without. And soon, he dove in head first with his eyes wide open and allowed himself to love her.

One thing Jason knew when he decided to be with Carly was that she came up with the most ridiculous plans. Sometimes these plans got her into trouble; most times they harmed everyone else. So, when Carly let him in on her latest plan, to fix up Sonny and Alexis, he nearly blew a gasket. "Carly, are you crazy?"

"I'm telling you, they've got a thing for each other." Not that Carly expected him to believe her. It had taken him far too long to realize he was in love with her.

"Absolutely not. You want to hook up the most powerful man on the Eastern seaboard with his criminal lawyer."

Carly giggled; she was quite pleased with herself. "I know. It's almost too perfect isn't it?"

The last thing he wanted was Carly to cause friction between Sonny and Alexis that might hurt his case. "She's not his type."

"Right, dark-haired, pretty, not afraid of an argument, what was I thinking?"

"He's not her type either."

"Yeah, I'm sure she hates dimpled, Alpha-males." She stretched her legs across his and admired how toned they were in the process. "You know, opposites attract."

He knew what she was doing: using her sexuality to manipulate him. The funny thing was she did it even though he typically didn't give in, not to the plan anyway. "If you're so sure they want to be together then why would they need a push from you."

"Because, Alexis might be a brilliant attorney," Carly ran a finger along Jason's jawline until it landed on his chin. "But she doesn't have my skills with men." She pulled him into kiss. Their tongues danced to their own rhythm.

When they broke from the kiss, Jason smiled. Yes, life was better with Carly than without; more complicated, but better. "That was nice, but you can still forget about it. No plans."

Carly fell into a mock pout which disappeared the moment he kissed her. She'd never expected life to bring her this much happiness, so if her man wanted her to back off, she would.

Jason had almost forgotten about Carly's crazy idea about Sonny and Alexis until he walked in on what felt like a private moment between them in the kitchen.

A few moments before, Alexis watched in amazement as Sonny moved about the kitchen. He practically glided from the refrigerator to the stove and back again. Earlier, while they were working, Alexis had simply mentioned she was a bit hungry. She'd only expected they would order in. However, Sonny decided to make lunch: omelets.

Now in the kitchen, his movements amazed her: he cracked eggs with one hand; diced veggies like a professional chef; and whisked with the same ease with which he smiled. Watching him flip the omelet was like watching Michelangelo sculpt. The scarlet silk shirt he wore outlined his muscular torso as he leaned back to flip the first omelet.

Without any awareness on her part, Alexis's mouth dropped open as her mind took her on a journey that led her to watch herself trailing imaginary kisses around the six-pack she knew existed.

"What?" Sonny chuckled.

"I, I, I've just never seen anything like it." She knew he thought she meant his cooking skills; her thoughts were admittedly less innocent.

"I could show you how to flip an omelet if you want."

A nauseous feeling came over Alexis. The last things she needed to be around were Sonny and fire. Sometimes it seemed she couldn't tell the difference between the two. "The kitchen and I aren't exactly friends. I burn things...most of the time."

"It's okay, I'll be right here with you." He pulled her from the stool where she sat. "I'll make sure you don't burn anything," he chuckled before adding, "hot stuff."

Alexis pushed a gust of air across her lips as she stood before her natural predator: the stove. Sonny handed her the skillet that nearly slipped from her sweaty palm. After pouring the egg mixture in the skillet, Sonny moved behind her. His fingers encircled her wrist; his arm brushed against hers. To steady herself, she took another deep breath.

Alexis wasn't the only one who was distracted. Standing behind her, Sonny took in the scent of her hair: vanilla and lavender. His mouth moved toward her ear: its purpose to speak; its desire to kiss. His voice scratched out deeper than he intended, "You gotta hold it right here close to the heat until just the right moment. Then gently and quickly...you flip it."

As he finished his sentence, he guided her wrist in a firm lifting motion that caused the omelet to flip. For a moment, Alexis was afraid she was panting.

"See," he brought his mouth closer to her ear, "easy."

Alexis released her fingers from the skillet's handle. She turned her body slightly toward his in a manner that brought her too close for either of their comfort. His eyes were unexpected: intense and vulnerable. Desire was etched in hers.

"Sonny." Her voice was whisper-soft.

In some sort of trance, he was unable to hear her. His hand moved to stroke her hair.

"Sonny!"

He thought he heard his name, but his eyes were focused clearly on Alexis's mouth and she wasn't speaking.

"Sonny! The stove!" Jason ran past the two, grabbed a nearby extinguisher and doused the fire neither had seen ignite.

When the smoke cleared, Alexis buried her face in her hands in an attempt to hide her reddened cheeks. "See, I told you I cause things to burn."

Sonny chuckled. "You can say that again, Ms. Davis. You certainly do."

Later that evening, after Alexis had gone, Sonny stood gazing out of the Penthouse window. Through his mind ran a cavalcade of images: her mouth, her hair, her skin; everything soft and everything beautiful.

Once again he failed to notice his protégé's presence in the room. "Thinking about Alexis?"

A bit caught of guard, Sonny smiled. "Yeah, she's a disaster in the kitchen."

"Carly thinks you have a thing for each other."

"Nah," Sonny shook his head. "She's my lawyer and a good friend. Plus, she's with Ashton, not to mention, she's not completely out of her sham marriage with Candyboy."

Jason shrugged. After the day's earlier scene, he knew Carly was right. His best friend was falling for his attorney. Against his earlier vow to Carly to stay out of it, he decided to through him a bone. "I don't know about Jax, but Carly says Alexis and Ned broke up. So, I guess she's a free woman."

Sonny nodded, deep in thought. "You sure about Ashton?"

Jason smiled. "Yeah."

"I'm going to head up now." Sonny motioned in the direction of the stairs. He felt so light he could float. As he ascended the stairs a thousand thoughts flooded his mind. Alexis Davis was the kind of woman he'd wanted since he was a boy. And he knew one thing for sure: He always got what he wanted.