Hope you all enjoy! Let me know what you think, your comments, thoughts, ideas are all appreciated. Thank you so very much for your kind words and prayers and thoughts for my family and me, you guys really are the best! I also thank you for not being angry about the wait between chapters, it takes a lot of stress off my shoulders! *HUGS* to you all.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Not knowing what she should do, torn between returning to the bedroom, she'd rather spar with/ogle Jason than face what her future could consist of but as she cleared his room and saw the room Epiphany was using with the door still closed, Elizabeth made a snap judgement.

Rushing down the stairs and through the door, she almost collided with Johnny before she was able to slow her speed.

"In a hurry Calamity?" Johnny asked with wry twist of his lips.

"Really, you are nicknaming me Calamity Jane, really?" Elizabeth asked as she boldly stared at the guard.

"It was the best I could do on short notice, I promise to think longer on it and come up with something that truly fits you." Johnny said in all seriousness.

"Because…my name isn't good enough?" She asked with a little lip.

"Oh Mata…you'll learn soon enough, we don't swing that way." Johnny offered, trying a different nickname out.

"Mata…as in Mata Hari? Really, you need help. I have never done anything to be classified as her. She was…well, everything I am not. Try again Spudster." Elizabeth said cheekily.

Johnny couldn't help but laugh, "Did you just call me studster?" He asked while puffing up his chest, the desire to run and tell Jason that she thought he was a stud…His thoughts trailed off as he heard her laugh. "What?"

"I said Spudster, you know, because you are beginning to look a little soft in the middle." Elizabeth said confidently, before diverting her eyes.

The shocked intake of air caused Elizabeth to laugh, "If you had done that any harder, you'd have caved the building in on itself. Listen, can we pull each other's pigtails later, I was actually out here for a reason." Elizabeth said, suddenly looking anything but confident.

Johnny could see that what had started as playful banter was suddenly missing, so he immediately sobered, "Sure, I'll think of more nicknames and you can do the same. What did you need?"

"Can I…do you think it would be an imposition…" Elizabeth stalled, unable to spit the words out. She knew she was doing better with the whole talking thing…well, sort of, but her innate shyness and the uncomfortable feeling that almost always took her over, was reaching an all-time high. Before she could work herself into a panic attack, she heard Johnny speak.

"Elizabeth, who would you like to speak with?" Johnny asked softly. Seeing she was a nanosecond away from flight. He went over who she might want to see in his head, ruling out one person or another until he came to one name. "Did you need to see Sonny?"

He was lucky he was watching her so closely; otherwise he might have missed her almost imperceptible nod. Without waiting another moment, he gently squeezed her shoulder before striding across the hall to the other penthouse.

Normally he would just announce the person but he slipped through the door, shutting it softly behind him. "Sonny, Elizabeth is asking to speak to you but she is second away from fleeing. I wouldn't normally suggest this, but Lily, could you leave the room if Sonny's willing to see her, she looks really stressed."

Sonny heard the edge in his voice and gently took his wife's hands in his. "Please baby, I know you want to coddle and cuddle her, but right now isn't the time, okay?"

Lily offered a small smile and nod before leaving the room. In her current state, she couldn't remain objective. Not just the pregnancy hormones but also her natural empathetic nature would smother the girl, plus, her nausea was returning with a vengeance.

Sonny watched his wife leave with nary a complaint, scratching his head in bewilderment, Sonny wasn't sure if he'd pay for this later or not. Understand that he probably didn't have time to contemplate…well, anything, he nodded his head to Johnny.

When Johnny stepped back into the hall, he could see that even the shortness of her wait was causing her distress. Not wanting to make the poor girl wait any longer, he simply re-opened the door and brandished his arm, "Sonny will see you now."

Elizabeth looked between the guard and the open door, contemplating running right back to Jason's room but before she could make up her mind, her feet began to take her towards the open door. Just before she crossed the threshold, she turned to Johnny with large, sad eyes. "Thanks…"

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Sonny had never been so nervous. The few moments, seconds it took for Johnny to leave and Elizabeth to enter, seemed much longer that they were. A year in a second perhaps…

He was used to be held to impossible standards, to be the bad guy with a heart of gold, the mobster who always did the right thing, at least it felt like the people he surrounded himself with wanted him to be a saint, or saintly but looking into the eyes of the broken girl before him, he had never felt so lowly.

Clearing his throat a couple times didn't seem to dislodge the lump but he tried one last time before addressing her. "Elizabeth, please come in. Would you like to talk in my office?" Realizing that being alone with him, that might not be his best offer.

"No…umm…I am sorry to disturb you but I had…I have questions. I know Mac…err…my dad was going to come talk to you today and well you see…I was sleeping with Jason and then he went for a shower so I thought I'd talk to Piph and then walked in on her and Francis naked and my God…that man has a snake in his pants…and not a garter snake…that thing was like a python…and then when I fled them because you know, no one wants to see their mother figure in the afterglow…but it wasn't any better because I ran to Jason's bathroom and he was naked…and you really have high standards for you men…" Elizabeth said pausing briefly in almost wide-eyed innocence. But before Sonny could say anything she was talking again.

"Like life wasn't complicated enough before seeing almost everyone naked but you know it is weird how that sort of thing can mess with your mind and what you think you know. Like, well, you have this way of looking at things and seeing things and then suddenly, BAM and it's all tossed on its ear and you have this new way of looking at things. You know? But then I knew I couldn't just stand there and ogle Jason although, he really, really, really deserves to be ogled…my goodness…but then I came out and Piph's door was still closed so who knows what those two are doing again…you'd think my interruption would have at least tamed their ardor or something but I don't think it did and then I was thinking that maybe I should leave the penthouse for a few before I go walking in on other naked people or go back to Jason because he was looking decidedly flushed and ready for another shower…but then Johnny called me Calamity and Mata and I called his Spudster and well…now, here I am and…"

Sonny watched Elizabeth, wondering if she was going to take a breath. If he wasn't mistaken, she might have taken a single breath since entering his home. And while he really didn't need to know that much about his people, the garter snake/python thing was worth a laugh, something he was going to have to tell Lily about because it was too precious not to share. Sonny wasn't sure he caught everything or understood it all but realized that she was just staring at him; he supposed she was waiting for a comment or something. "Umm…" He cleared his throat, trying his damndest to not laugh. "It would seem that you have had a…eventful morning. Umm, you slept with Jason?" He asked, his mind stuck on that little tidbit. He wondered briefly if this was going to send her on another tangent or not.

"Well, you know…like sleep…he was going to sleep on the couch or the floor or something but then I mentioned we were both adults and it was his bed so he shouldn't have to leave his bed, because I could sleep on the floor or the couch or a chair…and it's nice to sleep next to someone who doesn't scream in my ear or demand to be fed before I'm awake but no, well yes we slept together…not in a biblical, carnal way, just sleep, you know…" Elizabeth said while twisting her fingers and blushing a scarlet red.

Sonny could honestly say that he had never seen or heard another human being cram that many words into a sentence before. No matter what he did, he couldn't wipe the small smile off his face. He was happy for the two of them, even if nothing happened; this young woman was showing his best friend that there are such things as a good woman. But he secretly hoped they'd figure things out and get together. Jason needed someone like her and she needed someone like Jason. They were complete opposites but had so much in common. His rough edges could be dulled by her innate goodness and her shyness could be lessened by his more adventurous nature.

"Elizabeth, you don't have to explain anything to me. I understand. You are both adults, what happens behind closed doors is no one's business. As for your Dad, yes, he was here earlier. He slept as long as he could but he has had a lot on his mind and his mind wasn't able to stay shut off for long. Was there something specific you wanted to talk to me about or were you just hoping that someone a little more…mature wasn't going to be naked?" He asked with a laugh.

"Honestly, with the way my day has been going, I am lucky you and your wife weren't mid coitus and the guards were clothed…" Elizabeth said while widening her eyes. "Ummm…sorry." She blurted once she realized what she said.

This time, Sonny didn't have a hope of containing his mirth. His laugh was full and came from the belly. "Fret not; I am sure you are suffering a fair bit of culture shock. Going from being with a single person to having numerous people around you, it would be enough to teeter anyone. It will take time to adjust to having more than one person care for you and your wellbeing. Actually, going back to your dad for a second, I have a favor to ask." Sonny said, pausing. Not wanting to meddle but feeling like they were all going to have to band together to figure out the cause of her strife.

Elizabeth looked at him cautiously before slowly nodding her head. "Is this favor something I can refuse?" She asked softly.

The crackle of his laughter shocked them both, "It is your choice, and nothing will come of it if you can't grant me this favor. It is simple one soon to be father, trying to help out another." Sonny said solemnly.

Nodding her head again, Elizabeth waited for him to articulate his request.

"Mac is a good man, better than a lot. I never knew my father but my step-father was a real horse's ass. Deke was everything that is wrong with this world…but I digress…Mac has lived a colorful life, he hasn't always done the right thing but he has always tried to do the right thing, if that makes sense. I'll let him explain his life to you but my favor…while I know you are grown and don't really need a father figure, he does need you and I think you need him just as much. If you could find it in your heart to not push him away when you start to feel overwhelmed. I can't speak for him, just that there isn't a single thing I wouldn't do for my child and I get the feeling, he is of the same mind. None of us are angels; we all have a past and sometimes are youthfulness can lead to bad decisions. Please, for me, for Jason…for Mac, don't push him away, listen and learn but be open to what he has to offer because you can only grow from what he has to offer."

Elizabeth was slightly confused but she was kind of nodding her head along as he spoke. "I guess I can understand…You're asking me to not make a snap judgment, to not let something he has possibly done bother me?" Elizabeth sort of queried.

Wondering how he was going to say this without giving anything away, Sonny opened and closed his mouth a few times. "When I spoke to him earlier, he realized that something from his past could have caused all of this." Sonny said, using his arm in an arc to encompass Elizabeth's life, her past. "In trying to help your mother, things happened and while doing something else, other things happened…it is all very confusing I am sure, and while I would like to set you straight, I think you two need to be honest with each other."

"So…he isn't a bad man, just sometimes misguided?" Elizabeth asked, her confusion shining in her eyes.

"Exactly." Sonny said but did not continue, he could see the crease between her brows and knew at the moment, she was on overload.

Deciding that she had too much information and not really the information she came for, Elizabeth just shrugged, "Okay…umm…I'm going to go home and change…do I need to take Johnny down to the apartment or will I be okay?"

"Please take him with you, your safety is paramount."

"Okay, ummm…" Elizabeth said as she walked towards the door, just as she opened it, she turned around, "I told Jason about my nightmares and that I'd try to draw the man who haunts me in them…I'll make sure he shows you and Ma…Dad. Thank you for your time." Not waiting for a reply, she quickly slipped from the room and closed the door.

Johnny heard the last part and while he wasn't sure what it all meant, he noticed she was walking towards the stairs in a sort of daze, so he slipped through the door before it closed to follow her closely. They were going to have to teach her how to be spatially aware when she was out, because at the moment, she could be grabbed and never know why or how it happened.

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