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Chapter 6

Whether his last name was Morgan or Quartermaine Jason hated to shop. Especially around this time of year. People were just insane about getting their hands on whatever the hottest gift of the season was. Last year it had been the Chuggin Charlie ride on toy. It was the only thing on Cameron's list and Jason had managed to find it. This year the only thing on his son's list was a dog. For once Jason wished his son was more materialistic. Michael had a dozen things on his list, Morgan had eight. If Cameron was more like them then the fact he wasn't getting a dog wouldn't be so bad.

So he and Elizabeth had sat down and tried to figure out what else would make their eldest son happy. The answer had come pretty quickly, trains. He still loved them and was moving from the pretend trains of Chuggin Charlie into real model trains thanks to Edward. However at such a young age the scale model N trains he liked would be inappropriate, but they found a good compromise. Which was why Jason found himself in the toy store. He did use his brain. He had ordered and paid for the toys in advance. All he was here to do today was pick the items up.

"Why am I here again?" Cody asked his boss. The looks some of the other shoppers were giving them was scary. He had a sneaking suspicion that if they picked up the wrong toy he and Jason would get their asses kicked.

"To keep me safe." Jason grinned at his enforcer.

"You don't pay me enough to protect you from the angry horde. I watch the news, I've seen grown men get trampled by soccer moms. I'm going to be a dad soon, you should be giving me less dangerous jobs." Cody told his boss.

"You have your gun." Jason smiled wider.

"I liked you better when you didn't have a sense of humor." Cody muttered. "I'm fairly certain they can dodge bullets."

"They?" Jason asked leaning against the counter. His order was being put together.

"Crazed parents in search of the 'it' toy." Cody put it in air quotes.

"Someday that will be you." The mob boss predicted. "What did you get Kelly?" Jason asked his friend.

"Diamond earrings. That way she can wear them at work. I also got her new car. Something safer for her and the baby." Cody said scanning the crowd.

"Minivan?" Jason couldn't see Kelly in a minivan.

"No. Range Rover. Kelly hates minivans. I'd like to eventually get laid again." Cody said laughing. "I also have a tennis bracelet as a push present." He had everything ready.

"The one she told Liz to point out to you?" Jason chuckled.

"You don't argue with a pregnant woman. Ever." Cody told his boss. "Ever." He repeated. "What did you get Liz for Christmas?" He knew his boss had gotten Elizabeth Imperial topaz and diamond earrings as a push present for Jake. He had a guy find them in pink which was rare. His boss had also presented Elizabeth with a diamond and emerald tennis bracelet when Cameron's adoption became final.

"A Vitamix." Jason answered as the sales clerk came out from the back.

"An appliance. Do you want to die?" Cody asked thinking his friend had lost his mind.

"She asked for it." Jason said playing dumb. He knew that no man in his right mind gave his girl an appliance for Christmas. Even when she asked for it.

"I know you're messing with me." Cody said shaking his head. "On the off chance that you are not, I will say nice things about you at your funeral." The enforcer joked.

"Mr. Morgan, sir." The clerk had been forced by his boss to come out of the back. He really didn't want to tell this news to this particular customer. "There's a small problem with your order."

"What is the problem?" Jason made sure to keep his tone neutral. He was very much aware that people were afraid of him. A slight frown could terrify people.

"One of the sets is not in stock, and won't come in until the twenty-third." The clerk told him.

"Which one?" Jason asked hoping it was not the downtown set. That was the one that all the other sets connected too. By the time he was done Cameron would have an entire city to run his age appropriate train around.

"The docks." The clerk told him.

Cody just snorted. That was pretty ironic considering who Cameron's dad was. The docks was the heart of Jason's business.

Jason shot Cody a dirty look. "Everything else is in?" He questioned.

"Yes sir." The clerk was thinking maybe he wasn't going to die today.

"That's fine. I'll come back when it arrives." Jason just wanted to get his stuff and go.

"I'll bring it right out." The sales associate said returning to the back.

"What is Jake getting?" Cody knew that the gifts were more for the parents at this point.

"Everyone got him lots of really loud toys." Jason told his friend. Carly was the worst offender. "I swear everything requires batteries and either plays music or lights up. I told Elizabeth to buy me a large bottle of aspirin for Christmas." They had more shopping to do tomorrow, including the tree. Since they were still at the gatehouse last year they just had Christmas at the mansion. Elizabeth told him that he could just get her tree out of storage and that was when he learned she had an artificial tree. Because it was more economical. He had gone down to the basement and chucked that sucker. His boys were getting a real tree.

Before Cody could answer the clerk brought out the two stacks of boxes. Jason grabbed one and Cody grabbed the other. They put them in the back of the SUV and both men breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm not coming back with you next week." That was too close to Christmas. "Just shoot someone as soon as you walk in and everyone else might leave you alone." He advised.

"I'm not coming back either. I have staff. I'll send one of them and increase their year-end bonus." Jason wasn't a dummy.

"Where to now?" Cody asked his boss.

"My house. While everyone is out we can take the gifts in." Jason said closing the hatch.

"I'm not wrapping gifts." Cody said to be difficult.

"Diva much?" Jason laughed and pushed his friend. "I'm not allowed to wrap presents unsupervised. Elizabeth said I don't wrap them nicely enough."

"Gift bags are a great thing." Cody got the same complaint from his girl. "Let's go. I'm getting hungry. All that standing around waiting for a soccer mom to attack us worked up an appetite."

"Chinese?" Jason could eat.

"Sounds good." Cody said getting in the car.

Yesterday Emily had asked to take the boys, and today Monica made the request. Elizabeth was happy to grant it not only because the older woman was heading out of town in a few days, but because she needed to do some shopping and it was just easier without two small children.

The first stop was to get more items to hang on the tree. Last year they started a tradition of buying one special ornament to mark the year. Tomorrow when they went to get the tree they would pick that out. Tonight Liz was getting filler. More shiny balls to fill up the empty spaces on the no doubt twelve foot tree her husband would insist on. She grabbed more lights as well.

Liz snagged four Santa hats because tonight they were taking family pictures for the Christmas card. Yes it was last minute but with the advent of technology she could take the picture, clean it up, and email it to friends and family before the night was over. It was cheating by not mailing anything, but Liz justified it by saying no trees had to die.

Jake needed a stocking, but she would let Jason pick that out. He'd probably get a new one for Cameron too. She wasn't going to argue about it.

"Okay, we need to go to the supermarket." Elizabeth looked at her watch, it was almost four-thirty. "We need to hustle or we will end up stuck in the after work rush."

Milo nodded and got in his car to follow her.

She went right to the baking goods aisle and started filling up the cart. "Milo can you grab me six bags of flour please."

"If you give me half the list I get that stuff, and we can move faster." He offered. Milo knew that Mrs. M. didn't like asking the guys to help her shop. She felt it was taking advantage of the fact that they were around.

"Okay. But only because I don't want us trapped here." She would make him an extra dozen cookies. In time at all they had the items needed, including more butter than it was probably legal to buy at once. They were loading up the minivan as the parking lot started filling up.

"We just made it." Milo said grinning. Shopping was not something Mrs. M. enjoyed so she tended to be quick about it. That was one of his favorite things about her. "I'll follow you to the house and help you unload everything." He said holding her door open.

"Thank you." Elizabeth got behind the wheel and waited for Milo to indicate he was ready.

At the house they unloaded the groceries, Liz said to leave everything else for Jason to grab later. "Mrs. M. can I ask you a question?" Milo started.

"Sure, what's up?" Elizabeth pushed a plate of blondies his way.

"Do you think Sabrina is ready to start dating again?" He was hoping to get some inside information.

Elizabeth gave him a smile. Milo would be perfect for her friend. "I honestly don't know." She said putting the eggs away. "She will be at the brunch on Christmas day." Elizabeth passed along.

"Really?" Milo hadn't known that.

"I'm sure that you can find something to talk to her about." Elizabeth would be happy to help if she could. "Wear the brown sweater I gave you last year for your birthday."

"It's clean." Since Milo worked most days he didn't really have time to wear the garment. It was really nice.

"It will make you seem more approachable than a suit." Elizabeth supplied.

"I'm guessing the Drakes aren't coming." Milo just wanted to be sure.

"No." Elizabeth shook her head to emphasize her point. She wasn't risking Jason punching out Patrick again. If her friend would stop making snipe remarks he'd be able to stay conscious. Since Milo was interested in Sabrina he probably wanted to punch Patrick too.

"Okay, that's everything." Elizabeth said taking a step and reaching out for the counter.

"What's wrong?" Milo came right over and steered her towards a chair.

"I got a bit lightheaded for a moment." Elizabeth told her guard.

"You skipped lunch." Milo pointed out. The hospital was short staffed at the moment. "I'll get you some juice." He knew where everything in the room was. While she drank it he sent a text to Jason.

"How long until he arrives?" Elizabeth didn't even bother to try to talk Milo out of telling her husband. It would only get him in trouble.

"Thirty minutes. I can start dinner if you need me too." He offered.

"No, but thank you." Elizabeth finished her juice as the house phone rang. She got up to answer it under Milo's watchful gaze. "Hello. Um, okay." She hung up. "Johnny is here." She couldn't figure out why.

"I'll go let him in sit back down." Milo would hang out in the living room while the friends talked. "Elizabeth was just dizzy a minute ago so make sure she stays seated." Milo told the Irish mob boss.

"Okay." Johnny hung up his coat and headed to the kitchen. "You sick?" He started there.

"No, skipping meals. Save the lecture for Jason." She didn't want to hear it twice. "He's not home."

"I know. I wanted to talk to you." Johnny said taking a seat. "Why don't you like Gia?"

"Face of Deception." Elizabeth answered.

"You didn't even want the job." Johnny pointed out.

"No, I didn't." She admitted. "But I didn't want her to have it either." She said with a smile. "Petty, but true. Then there's Emily."

He was watching her closely. Elizabeth wasn't lying, but her body language said she wasn't being honest either. Which meant she was hiding something. Grilling her wouldn't work. She'd just dig in and refuse to talk. "So you're okay with me dating Gia?" He would try that approach.

"I want you happy Johnny. "Elizabeth told him. "We are having a brunch." She didn't want him to hear about it and wonder why he wasn't invited.

"I know Jason said I couldn't come." Johnny said grinning.

"He did no such thing. Johnathan Finley O'Brien you will get a time out for lying in my house." Elizabeth said in her mommy voice.

"Okay." Johnny laughed. "I never should have told you my middle name. He said Gia couldn't be around Emily."

"I can't have them together around the boys. Too much potential for Cameron learning words he shouldn't know yet." Elizabeth gave a one shouldered shrug. "I'm not banning Gia from my house."

"Because you can be civil." Johnny repeated what he'd been told.

"Yes." Elizabeth answered. "Want some coffee?"

"Nope, I gotta head out. I'll see you at Mass." Johnny said standing up. Yeah she was hiding something. He'd go talk to Gia and see if he couldn't learn anything from her.

"You certainly will." Elizabeth stood up and gave her friend a hug. No sooner did he walk out than her husband walked in. "I'm fine. I had a glass of juice. We'll go get the boys and have dinner at the mansion. I'll come home and we'll wrap some gifts. You did get the gifts right?" Elizabeth asked him.

"One thing wasn't in, but it will be here in a few days." Jason said looking his wife over.

"Okay. After we wrap the gift we have a date to keep." She said tilting her head up for a kiss. "I'm fine." She said after he granted her unspoken request. "Let me get my coat."

The nightmare last night and now this. Jason would keep an eye on Elizabeth. During the holidays she often got caught up in decorating, baking, and other festivities. He would just make sure she didn't over do.

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