Chapter Thirty

Jason saw Elizabeth in the green outfit taking pictures of him placing the presents under the tree. "Elizabeth, you do know that eventually these photos won't fool Cameron. Are you sure this is necessary?"

With a smile at her clearly worried husband, she said "I know it is a little too much, but Jason, this is a tradition, something to pass on from grandpa Hardy to our own children. They might not know the Hardy side of the family thanks to grandmother, but..."

"I understand."he said with a grin as he continued to unload the gifts "I am just glad you were imaginative enough to have this made."

Looking him over dressed in the red outfit, if minus the wig and beard, she said"Jason, trust me, I have had fantasies about this."

With a smirk, he said "Has anyone told you that you have some very strange fantasies, Mrs. Morgan."

When Elizabeth had taken a few more pictures of the tree and Jason placing the last of the presents under it, Jason pointed out. "Elizabeth, I just realized... a lot of these, they are from more than just us."

"I know, our son already has a list of female admirers longer than his daddy." she said with a smirk while taking more pictures.

"Are you finished?" he asked with a casual tone to his voice. As Elizabeth nodded absentmindedly, he said "Good."

As his gaze traveled down from her eyes to her lips, his hand slipped up her back to frame her face as he leaned down to hiss her. Elizabeth's eyes closed as his lips claimed hers under the mistletoe.

The thrill Jason's kiss sent a shock through her as he shifted them around until they were now resting on the sofa. Elizabeth's hands dropped the camera and slid between the buttons of his velvet red coat.

She started to unbutton it with her busy fingers as their lips shifted then locked again as Jason's lips were ravaging hers, claiming her once again. With her hands resting against his muscles, tracing the ridges on the slight barrier of his dark t-shirt she was enjoying how in spite of being with one another regularly, their passion was no stop.

Jason felt her hands on his chest, underneath the jacket, then realized she had eased it back, relaxing his arms until the coat slipped off. Watching her breasts swell as he pulled her on top of him, her knees on the outside of his he was thinking how he would fulfill their desires that evening.

She could feel his hard thighs beneath hers, his arms wrapped tightly around hers so that she felt like she was cocooned in the safety of his arms. Leaning forward, her body resting against shifting muscles and soft skin.

Pulling back a few minutes later, she rested her hands against his chest, feeling his fast beating heart as she felt him slide his arms around her back, as he edged her closer, brushing her breasts against him.

With a sudden change of angle to the kiss, Elizabeth found herself laying back with her head on the sofa arm. Immediately the kiss changed, grew deeper and hotter, as an intimate game of thrust and retreat drew more heat between them.

When she felt Jason's hand close over her breast, his fingers finding her nipple, gently encircling the tightly pointed tip before closing over it in a firm caress, Elizabeth felt her back arching, asking him without words to not stop.

Instead she felt his hand ease away, starting to protest in spite of the drugging kisses that were keeping her lips warm, she sighed with delight as she realized that he had undone her top half of her costume and her silk bra. An instant later, she felt his hand back on her breast, but this time touching bare skin as he cupped her breast, feeling as they grew heavy with desire.

Jason broke off their kiss, then shifted his attention to her other breast. Elizabeth was gasping, trying to catch her breath as he first stroked, then cupped her soft weight in his calloused hands.

Pulling back, he saw the desire, the pleasure in her eyes as he said "I want you here, under the lights. To see you like I always dreamed of. Naked, spread beneath me as we come together. Now, here in this moment."

Unable to speak, to answer at first, she could only say yes. With that, Jason eased her legs to the side, then stood, lifting her under her knees and shoulders as he carried her up the stairs, the top halves of both costumes remaining on the sofa.

Laying her down on their bed, he forgot everything except the need to claim her right then. Easing down next to her, he captured her lips in a searing kiss. Their lips clung, their bodies arched, both desperately trying to get close to one another.

"Jason, where is all of this coming from?" she asked when their lips parted.

Lifting his head, he looked down and said "I meant what I said, I have dreamed of this, of that small studio, of you and I like this since the nights where I stayed with you while shot."

"Me too." she confessed as they gave into their dreams.

Jason leaned back, his eyes on the bounty splayed before him. As she watched his head lowering, she felt her nipples crinkled tight, aching for what she could see was coming. Her eye lids growing heavy as she felt the touch of his lips against her heated skin.

Elizabeth felt her back stiffen as Jason dropped kisses on her tip, then around it before he drew the soft flesh into his moist mouth. Feeling him suckling, she felt her toes curl as her body tightened and arched while her hands reached for the headboard to keep some sense of control.

Jason tortured her breast, then just as she began to believe that she would fall apart in his arms, he moved over to pay the same attention to her other breast. When her body felt like there was no bones left inside, Jason eased his hand down her body possessively caressing her hip then her thigh as he then caught the hem of her green skirt and eased it up to her waist.

Blue eyes meet blues eyes as the hand on her now bare hip slid lower in a hot caress stroked down, his palm and fingers resting tantalizingly at her apex. Resting backwards onto his knees, Jason eased her legs onto either side of his thighs. The soft white thighs beckoned him closer, but he resisted, needing to slow this down, just a bit.

Leaning forward just a bit, he slid his hand down, under her rear while his other hand pressed down onto her curls. Hearing her pant with need, he turned his hand around, then let his fingers get tangled into the curls covering her lower lips. "Show me?" he found himself demanding.

When he felt her thighs easing apart further as he demanded, he made sure to capture her eyes with his as he cupped her then caressed the soft skin. The intimacy, the openness as he teased her, the complete togetherness made her almost cry as she felt him part her swollen passion filled lips and encircle her

now aching bud.

As she moaned out loud, Jason kept teasing, tormenting her, wanting, needing to see her fall apart in his arms as he found her wet slit and gently explored without actually entering her.

Elizabeth knew nothing, felt nothing but Jason's hands, his breath against her bare skin as he kept teasing then slid one finger deeper, eased back, encircled at the edge, then plunged in deeper still. Amazed as Elizabeth's body lifted, seeking the next step only for Jason to ease down beside her, then claim her lips his tongue seeking the same heat he was finding lower as he clasped her hand above her head, their fingers locked tightly together.

When he heard her helpless moaning, broke the kiss, and lowered his head to capture one of her aching nipples as his fingers thrust deeper and deeper still, sending her over the edge again and again, until he heard her shrieking his name and shouting I love you.

Easing off just enough to let her come down some, he let go of her hand and gasping himself as she immediately reached for him and pulled him back up for a kiss. "Jason, I think you are killing me with love."

Before responding, he eased her hips up, deftly removing the few remains of her costume, still shocked to realize that this beautiful sweet woman was his. When her arms came back to him, he felt her silky skin pressing against him as he started to answer her.

"What a way to go." he moaned as her exploring hands cupped him gently then undid the button and zipper of the pants of his Santa costume. Getting his erection free, she lifted her hips in invitation which he quickly took and sunk himself deep inside of her.

Balls deep, Jason moaned as he felt her slickness, her overwhelming heat as he used his hands to lift her thighs and wrap them around his hips. As they thrust and parried back and forth, Jason pinned her hands to the bed, then leaned down to kiss her.

Easing back, trying to slow down their coupling yet again, Jason's eyes saw her widen as she felt him withdraw until only his weeping tip was still inside of her. Moaning she said "Jassson, please."

Resting back again on his knees, the low ache in his back telling him that they couldn't keep playing too much longer, he flexed his thigh muscles as he entered her again, this time slowly, feeding her inch by inch with his hardness.

Elizabeth felt her body dissolving, unable to tell where Jason ended and she began as he sheathed himself deep inside of her. When he rested as far as he would go, she felt him withdraw again, then thrust slowly again and again until she was moaning his name with each thrust.

Her arms which had been trapped were suddenly freed as his hands went to her rear and curved around to hold her tightly, not letting her move with him.

Deciding two can play that game, she rested her hands on his arms and eased up to cup his sweat covered face and pull him down into a kiss. "Jason, now, please. Give me everything."

Jason came down onto his elbows, bring his body onto of hers as his hands brushed her hair out until it lay fanned onto the pillows. "You have everything, you will always have everything."

With that no more words were said as they came together, Elizabeth holding him tightly then reluctantly releasing him as thrust after thrust pushed them higher and higher until all they could do is feel what felt like electricity shocking their bodies as her muscles clenched tightly around him, milking

him of his passion, sending them to the apex as they came together one last time.

As the stroke of midnight rang below, the happy couple drifted back to earth and the comfort of being held tightly in one another's arms as sleep claimed them.

As the sun rose in the sky, Mac felt his nose twitch. Looking down, he was amused to see that the toughness of Diane Miller had faded during the night as she laid against him with the comforter they had opened covering them.

Reaching up with his left hand, he rubbed the sleepy bugs out of his eyes and stretched as carefully as he could without waking up the attorney. Unfortunately he wasn't successful as she woke up and yawned loudly."I guess this isn't really a nightmare. What a way to spend Christmas Eve."

"Your client should be very glad that I like his son." he said groaning. "I don't suppose you know where the bathrooms are in here?"

"Yes, on the first floor, in the men's department. Down the hall past the pay..." Groaning, Diane looked at Mac and said "You are not going to believe this, there is a pay phone down there."

With a rueful laugh, Mac stood and followed her quietly down to the first floor, down past the holiday's displays and towards the white washed walls. Once on the tiles flooring, she could hear the sound of her foot steps as she walked to the phone.

Mac picked up the receiver and dug into his pockets only to find he had no change. Cursing, then regretting it, he just dialed 911.

"911, what is your emergency." said the man on the other end.

"This is Mac Scorpio, badge number 548594. Would please connect me through to the police department." he said and heard a clicking sound then Taggert saying hello.

"Marcus, I need you to come to the Outland Mall, I am locked inside Macy's Department store with Diane Miller." he said to the amusement of his lead detective.

"Not a word unless you want to be working the high school." he warned then heard the bald man telling someone at the station he would be right back. Twenty minutes later, Taggert entered and said "I don't have the gate key, only the door one."

"I have it."said Mac handing the key through the gate. "Anything happen last night?"

"A few reports of burglary, smart alecks called to say that Santa Claus broke in to their neighbors houses, and that reindeer were reported on the streets. Craziness, nothing more." he reported.

"Don't be so sure they are crazy." muttered Mac as they walked out of the store his mind on what he had seen the day before in the mall. "Diane, did you leave the note where I suggested?"

"Yes, gentlemen, I would like to say that it has been fun, but I have missed my flight and now am stuck here in town for the holidays and that doesn't make Diane a very happy girl." she said walking to her car which was parked in a real parking spot instead of right in front of the building like both of the squad cars.

"She looks pissed, Mac." Observed Taggert as the woman drove off.

Some homes were beginning to rise as Mac drove across town to head to his house and a hot shower then sleep. Entering as quietly as he could, he felt his eyes widen when he saw that John Zachara was fast asleep, his head hanging off the sofa on one end and his feet off the other.

Shaking the younger man awake, he said "What are you doing here?"

Yawning and standing to stretch, Johnny automatically looked at his watch then said "Looking for you, my father's jet took off at four am this morning. He left a cryptic message for me, then told me to come here. I uh, heard about the mall, I am sorry, sir."

With a sigh, Mac said "The girls won't wake up to until at least ten. Its a tradition to sleep in late here, for some reason they aren't eager to open presents until then. I think it is their way of keeping me home. Any chance you know who else is here?"

"Your niece and her husband went back to the hotel, his brother arrived in town. Your ex-wife is asleep in the guest room and your daughters are asleep in their rooms. Also Maxie broke up with her boyfriend last night. I don't know what happened, but she was pretty pissed when she came back last night."

"Fine, go back to sleep." said Mac then sighing looked back and said "Look, if you will keep your hands to yourself, Georgie's room has a queen sized bed, but this isn't giving you permission to misbehave do you understand me."

Across town, Monica was returning to the house when she heard the house phone ringing. Answering it, she heard sobbing then the sound of a drunk voice saying. "AJ. I need to speak to AJ."

"Courtney?"she asked in disbelief then heard Courtney sobbing louder as she said she was at her loft. "And we care because?"

"I need AJ, I need his help. I can't believe this. I have had the worst time on the island, even worse than when I was hiding out after hitting that bitch with my car. Now, I get a ride home and arrive at my loft and there is nothing here, nothing. I need AJ."

"AJ doesn't live here anymore." she said then with a lilt in her voice said "Why don't you try your best friend in the whole world, why don't you try to reach Carly. I am sure she will help you."

With a sniffle, Courtney said "I doubt it, she stole everything, I mean everything from me. I guess, I guess I am going to have to track down Jason, after all he owes me."

"Not if I get to him first and tell him you called his wife a bitch. Courtney, you are out in the cold, just like you deserve. You were a whore who married my first son to stick it to your brother, then tricked my second son into a relationship and got what you deserve. Jason is back with the woman he loves and it isn't you. Grow up and go back to the no tell motel where you grew up and get out of our lives."

With that, Monica hung up, felt guilty and with a sigh called the police station where she was connected to Marcus Taggert. "I am not sure what is going on, but it sounds like Carly screwed over Courtney. She is at her loft, from the sounds of it drunk. You might want to send over a squad car."

Taggert did just that, then went back to Mac's office to try and catch forty winks. He couldn't be bothered with Courtney Matthews, at one point she might have held value but with Sonny gone and Morgan out of the mob business he couldn't be bothered with the annoying blond.

Monica climbed into bed with Alan, then looked at the photo on her nightstand, AJ had taken it of Michael and Morgan for her, there was one next to it of Cameron that Elizabeth had given her a few weeks before.

Reaching over to hug his wife, Alan said "What was going on?"

"Heart attack patient, he was shoveling snow." she said then told him "I was just thinking how lucky we have been this year, how things have taken such a turn for the good."

"We have had a great year, haven't we." he said as they rested together in bed. They were about to fall asleep when they heard t he loud shout from downstairs. "Well the more things change, the more they stay the same. I wonder what is going on with father."

Arriving downstairs, the Quartermaine family was grumbling to one another as they joined Edward in front of the tree. "What is going on, Edward?"

"Is, is this some kind of joke?" growled the old man as he held up the box he had opened. Inside was coal, more importantly charcoal.

"I warned you if you weren't good that you would received coal." said Lila with a soft chuckle as she looked at her irate husband. "Well, you must have really upset him this year."

"My dear, this is not funny. Where is my real present." he said while Alan and Monica passed out the various other presents under the tree. Most were what was expected, except that all the boxes labeled with Edward's name contained more and more charcoal.

"hmph." he said while shouting for Alice and asking where the hot coffee was.

"Edward, she off today." chided Monica. "She is with her family."

The old man started to grumble when Tracy saw that there were stockings hanging off the fireplace with three presents holding them up. But that there wasn't one with her name on it. "I can't believe you forgot me."

Dillon looked at the three stockings with fancy wrapped boxes on top of it then said"Mom, there is no stocking for me either, grandfather doesn't have one hanging either."

"What is this nonsense?" huffed Edward while glaring at the embroidered stockings hanging on the mantle. "Lila, what is going on?"

"I don't know."she said while Monica took the offered stocking. Sitting down, she found a letter and opened it. "Dear, Dr. Monica. I have been watching you for the last year. Your dedication, your loyalty is why you are receiving this gift."

"What gift and why would they give you anything?" snapped Edward who saw Dillon still prowling around the fireplace. "Will you sit down, you are annoying me."

"There is a letter, with my name on it, one for mother and you too." he said taking them down from where they were resting on the back of the brick while across the room Monica was opening the beautiful wrapped package. Gasping she said "Oh my. What an incredible gift... I wonder how... I guess, I guess does Santa knows all, after all."

"Monica, dear, what is it?" asked Lila who saw the blond doctor put her letter aside and show them two tickets to Paris, plus a gift certificate for a Paris weekend stay in spring.

"Why would someone send you to Paris." asked Tracy scowling.

"There is more."she said excitedly. "I have an appointment to fill this with a perfume made just to my specifications."

Lifting her hand to show the family what was in the box, "Its a Cartier perfume pendant, from the looks of things from the art deco period. I wonder if these are real diamonds."

Gulping as she lifted piece of paper underneath, "Oh my goodness."

Her hands shaking, she said stuttering. "This is an insurance estimate for almost four hundred thousand dollars. Who on earth would send me something so lovely and worth so much."

"Alan, what is in your package." asked Lila curious as to what her son would have received.

Alan read the note attached to his and was surprised to find a letter similar to the one that Monica received. Inside his box was a cane head. "What on earth, how did they know?"

"Know what?"asked Monica who then said "Is this about the surgery for your leg. You think that the person who gave you this knew."

"What surgery?"was the question asked by multiple people in the room.

"I need to have surgery next month." he said turning the astounding cane over and over in his hands. Reaching down for the paperwork, he gently put down the gold and quartz frogs' head and read the insurance value enclosed and said "Faberge, this is from... on my this was made for Prince Nikolas of Russia in 1900. Why on earth, I have done nothing to deserve this."

"Mother, what did you get?" asked Tracy now green with envy in spite of wondering what was in her letter, there had to be something good in it, after all she had done good things for the last year.

Edward handed Lila the box, and the small stocking attached. Lila lifted the letter, then read what was inside. "Dear Lila, you have lived such a full life, and in thanks for the joy and wonder you have given the world, please accept this token of appreciation and take the time left of your life to live and enjoy the great wonderful world."

Lila pulled on the bow, then opened the box. Inside was a boat, with a note attached."The real version is waiting for you at the harbor. Its name is the Lady Lila. It is wheelchair compatible and built for a trip around the world. Take that trouble maker husband of yours with you, when you return, things will have worked themselves out regarding what he finds he can't let go of. With blessings, dear Lila."

"Bullshit."said Tracy scoffing. "Does this Santa Claus really expect us to believe he gave you a boat."

Edward's fingers were trembling as he lifted the paperwork and said "Tracy when it is 240 feet long, it is a yacht. Not a boat. Lila, my dear, who is your mysterious benefactor?"

Lila had her suspicions, after all she was old not blind. She had had some very long talks with Georgie Jones about what she wanted to do before she died, then Georgie had a mysterious job during the preseason. She was quite certain that this was from that man who had spoken to her about Georgie and his son.

"I don't know what your plans are for the next year, but Edward, Santa Claus has given me a way to travel the world. We leave on January second. I expect you to be with me. Do we understand one another, my dear?" she said with a sweet smile, the steel underneath it barely viable but there.

Dillon quickly opened his letter, expecting a wonderful gift. Instead he got a letter telling him why he wasn't getting a gift, how his need to be tied to his mother's apron strings, how his habit of going with the flow was never going to allow him to grow up.

Looking around, seeing his pile of presents, Dillon then looked at his family and realized that his mother was happy but that that was only because he wasn't seeing anyone. Then seeing her read her own letter, then crumple it up, he realized what he had given up to achieve peace at home.

"I am going to see Georgie." he muttered standing as he went to find his coat."Hopefully its not too late to fix my mistakes."

Shaking her head, Monica saw he was gone before she said "It is already too late."

Courtney was not happy, she had been arrested but let go after that beast Detective Taggert had told her that she was out of luck with getting her stuff back unless she pressed charges against Carly.

Taking the appearance ticket for creating a disturbance, she hurried to her loft, certain she would have presents there. After all, she was sure that her brother had at least gotten her something.

Arriving at her loft, she was soon searching around the small space. Nothing, there was no presents, no gaily wrapped packages. In fact the only thing resembling a gift was the letter from the mysterious man who had given her a lift home in his jet. The older man had told her to call him Santa Claus when he had shown up the night before where she had been staying. He had smiled and said he could get her home for Christmas and all it would cost her was a promise.

One that she had no intention of fulfilling. As if... did she look like the sort of woman who would even consider marrying someone like that, not when there were richer, younger and hotter men who were waiting for her.

Tossing down the letter, she thought about it, really hard then smiled brightly. "I know where AJ is."

With that, she grabbed her coat and rushed out the door.

TBC