"This is," Will shook his head. He couldn't stop smiling. "Paul, this is so generous. I don't know what to say."

"Just say thank you," Paul smiled. "Although, I can think of something you can do."

"What?" Will asked innocently.

Paul's lips slid into a smirk.

"I think when you figure it out, you'll know," Paul stood up. "I need to get going. Make a call to my lawyer, rest my shoulder."

"You should put some ice on it," Will suggested in a low murmur.

Will refused to acknowledge Paul's hint.

"I'll call you and let you know when we can meet again," Paul said. He placed his hand on Will's shoulder. "Thanks for today."

"I should be thanking you," Will pointed out.

"I'm not stopping you," Paul lifted his eyebrows.

Will wrapped both arms around Paul in a hug, being mindful of Paul's shoulder. Will intended for the hug to be friendly, business-like even. Paul had other plans.

Paul used his good arm and pulled Will against him.

Will could smell Paul's cologne, his aftershave. It smelled spicy and foreign, expensive.

Paul closed his eyes, pressing his cheek against Will's head.

Knock Knock Knock

Will jumped, startling away from Paul.

"I need to get going," Paul said out loud, playing it cool.

Will nodded, refusing eye contact.

"Right, I'll talk with you later," Will promised.

"See you, Horton," Paul called over his shoulder.

Paul opened the door. He nodded to a woman walking up to the office. She had a toddler in her arms.

"Hey," Will greeted in a soft voice. "There's my girl."

"Someone is sleepy," the babysitter informed Will. "She almost fell asleep on the way over. I don't think she's feeling well."

Will took Ari from the woman's arms.

"Oh, no," Will cradled Ari against his chest. "Is my little princess sick?"

Ari blinked up at Will, tiny frown on her pink lips.

"I better get you home," Will commented. "Oh, here."

Will dug in his pocket for the check he made out that morning.

"This is for the week," Will handed the check over. "I'll call you about next week?"

"Sure thing," the babysitter waved at Ari. "Feel better, sweetie."

"Come on, baby," Will gathered all his things and various papers. "Let's get you to bed."

Paul and their tense moment fell from mind.

Sonny looked over the new proposed menu. Everything sounded so good.

"What do you think?" the woman asked.

"I'm impressed," Sonny admitted with a laugh. "It's just the cost I'm not too sure about."

"I know it's a bit more," the chef maintained. "But we'll have fewer options, better options. Not just crappy bar food. Plus, I'm certain we can get everything at the local food market. The organic, locally sourced options are going to appeal to a lot of people."

"I know," Sonny sighed. "Well, the worst thing that could happen is it doesn't work, right?"

"So?" the woman smiled nervously.

"I'll see what I can do," Sonny confirmed.

"You won't regret this," the chef guaranteed.

"I hope not," Sonny mumbled as she went back to work.

'We need to print new menus, get all the ingredients,' Sonny realized. 'How the hell are we going to pay for this? And the new advertising and the new suppliers? And pay the employees?'

"Hey, Sonny," T yelled. "Phone!"

"Hello?" Sonny picked up a phone nearby.

"Hello, yes. I got a call earlier from a Mr. Chad DiMera," the voice responded.

"Okay," Sonny replied. "Can I help you?"

"We're a local brewery and we're prepared to offer you a deal," the voice confidently stated.

Sonny leaned forward, listening.

Will rubbed against Ari's back while he sang.

"Twinkle, twinkle little star," Will soothed. "How I wonder what you are. Up above the word so high, like a diamond in the sky. Twinkle, twinkle little star. How I wonder what you are."

Ari adjusted against her pillows, breathing evening out.

Will felt Ari's forehead, concerned her temperature was too high.

"Hopefully it's just your teeth," Will whispered. Ari had never been seriously sick before.

Will walked out of Ari's room, keeping the door open so he could hear her. He glanced around the apartment.

'Sonny's right,' Will noticed. 'This place looks like a dump.'

Ari's toys were all over the place. There were charging cords everywhere. Blankets hanging off the couch. Cereal and sprinkles on the floor. Cups in various locations.

Will wanted to clean everything up but he also didn't want to wake Ari. The vacuum, dishwasher, and the washer and dryer all startle her. Will learned that the hard way when she was a baby.

Figuring it could wait a little, Will sat down. He pulled open his bag and read over the papers from the pub again.

Will didn't really understand all the numbers or what money needed to be invested where. But he couldn't help himself from picturing what Paul's help could bring.

'We could paint and redecorate,' Will planned. 'Get new tables and refinish the floors. Hire some new people to help me out. Revamp everything; get it back to how it used to be.'

A smile spread across Will's face.

'And it's all going to happen because of Paul,' Will thought.

"Da-da," Ari whimpered loudly, before starting to cry.

"Daddy's coming," Will jumped to his feet.

Will reached into the crib and lifted Ari out.

"Daddy's got you," Will promised.

"Hello?" Sonny answered the phone.

"Mr. Kiriakis, hello," A nervous voice replied. "This is Edith at the Salem Jewelers."

"Oh," Sonny sat up straighter. "Hi. Are my rings ready?"

"About that, sir," Edith sighed. "I'm afraid there was a mistake with the rings."

"What?" Sonny's smile dropped from his face.

"Well, it was a rather long request," Edith nervously rambled. "And I'll admit that perhaps my husband's eyes aren't as good as they used to be. I'm afraid it's going to take a while to repair the mistake."

"How long?" Sonny spat angrily.

'I cannot deal with this too,' Sonny closed his eyes.

"I'm not sure, sir," Edith answered. "Of course, there will be no charge."

"I should hope not," Sonny hissed, hanging up.

'Fuck.'

Paul got off the phone with his lawyer. He honestly had no idea what he was doing anymore.

'Throwing a bunch of money at a pub?' Paul shook his head. 'All because I have a crush.'

His financial adviser almost had a heart attack when he told him his plan. There was little to no profit to be found. The only one who seemed excited about the prospect was his publicist. She was already writing up the announcement. She couldn't wait for the world to know Paul Narita saved a small family pub from financial ruin.

'But not yet,' Paul realized. 'No one can know about it until I'm out of this place and my arm is healed.'

Paul moved his shoulder in a circle. First thing when he was back to the hotel, Paul taped a bag of ice to his shoulder and elbow.

The massage Will gave him left him relaxed but the pain was still there. Paul didn't want to know what that meant for his future.

'Don't think about that,' Paul ordered.

Instead, Paul recalled the grateful smile on Will's face when Paul offered the money. Each meeting with Will brought them closer and closer.

Paul was beginning to wonder if he could trust Will, really trust him, with everything.

Ari rested her head on Will's chest while watching The Little Mermaid. They were both snuggled up in Will and Sonny's bed.

Will held his phone against his ear while he rubbed Ari's back.

"I'm telling you Aunt Kayla," Will bragged. "I have someone that wants to help."

"You found someone that just randomly decided to help us?" Kayla skeptically replied. "But I don't get to know who it is."

"Right," Will confirmed. "But trust me. He just wants to help us out."

"Why?" Kayla pressed.

"Well," Will licked his lips. "I don't know. I guess because he's a nice guy."

"You guess?" Kayla repeated. "This sounds fishy to me, Will."

"It's not," Will promised. "He's even getting his lawyer to draw up papers. It's all going to be completely legit."

"There has to be a catch, Will," Kayla insisted. "No good deeds go unpunished, that sort of thing."

"I don't think there is," Will said. "We didn't talk about it in detail though."

"I would feel better if you let me meet him," Kayla argued.

"I'll see if he's up to it," Will offered.

"Just don't sign anything until I look it over," Kayla stressed.

"I'm not an idiot," Will huffed. "I'll ask Aunt Hope if we can borrow Aiden."

"Good thinking," Kayla agreed. "Maybe you could see if Sonny would take a look at it."

"Right," Will pressed his lips together. "I'll see if he'd help us out."

"Alright," Kayla retorted. "I need to get back to work. Keep me informed."

"Will do," Will responded before saying goodbye.

Will tossed his phone aside.

"You want your teether?" Will asked Ari. "Or a popsicle?"

Ari shook her head, hands clutching Will's shirt.

"Okay," Will nodded. "Daddy is going to get up and start to clean. But I'll be right back."

"No," Ari whined. She plastered herself against Will like a dead weight.

"Guess I'll stay here instead," Will said. "Good thing this is Daddy's favorite part."

Will and Ari both sang along together.

Sonny tapped his fingers against his desk. He didn't want to do this, he didn't. He just wasn't sure he had a choice.

'Chad isn't answering his phone. This deal isn't going to stay around long. It's either now or never.'

'Will is going to hate this,' Sonny realized. 'It's worth it in the long run though. I'll pay the credit card off as soon as I can. Will is never going to notice the balance. It's not like it's that much anyway.'

Taking a deep breath, Sonny picked up the office phone.

"Yes," Sonny said into the phone. "It's Sonny Kiriakis. We talked earlier. I'd like to go ahead with the deal."

Sonny unlocked the door to the apartment. After he took a step inside, he groaned. Will hadn't done anything. The toys were still all over the place. The dishes were piled high in the sink. Sonny was willing to bet Will didn't touch the laundry either.

"Hey," Will walked out of their bedroom.

Ari had finally gotten back to sleep. Will knew it was going to ruin her sleep schedule but he'd rather that than her feeling bad.

"Hi," Sonny tossed his keys and phone aside. "What happened here?"

"Well, nothing," Will admitted. "But that's because-,"

"Yeah, I can see nothing," Sonny grumbled. "I thought you said you were going to clean up around here."

Will crossed his arms.

"Technically, you said I was going to clean," Will pointed out.

"Then why didn't you?" Sonny demanded.

"I was trying to tell you," Will began. "I was at the pub when-,"

"Oh my god," Sonny ran his fingers through his hair. "I don't care about the stupid pub. I get it. It's important to you. But I'm supposed to be too."

"Excuse me?" Will questioned, voice low.

"If you can't handle being there," Sonny threatened. "Then you don't need to be there at all."

Will lifted one eyebrow. He didn't say anything. Just stared at Sonny blankly, waiting for it to sink in. Waiting for Sonny to realize what he was saying.

"It shouldn't be so hard to keep up with things here," Sonny ranted. "It's not like you're actually doing anything at the pub anyway. You're a writer. That's all your good at anyway."

Will inhaled sharply.

Everything caught up to Sonny. What he was saying, what he was doing.

'I'm taking everything out on Will again,' Sonny realized. 'First because I cheated and now because of the money. What is wrong with me?'

"Will," Sonny took a step towards him. "I'm sorry. I-I didn't mean that. I promise."

Will averted his eyes and stepped away from Sonny's out stretched hands.

"I don't think that," Sonny assured. "I-I'm just stressed out. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"Da-da!" Ari wailed loudly.

Will shook his head at Sonny before hurrying to Ari.

"Hey, baby," Will sat on his and Sonny's bed. "What's wrong?"

"H'rts," Ari put her hand on her cheek. Big, fat tears trailed down her cheeks.

"I know, baby," Will lifted Ari and swung her into his arms. "Daddy'll make it better."

Will carried Ari passed a remorseful looking Sonny into the kitchen. Opening the freezer, Will found the box of popsicles.

"Here you go," Will gave Ari a strawberry-flavored one.

Ari sniffled and sucked on the treat.

"That's better, huh," Will kissed the top of her head. "Do you want to watch another movie? Should we do some more singing?"

Ari nodded and wiped at her cheeks.

"We'll have to sit on the couch," Will said to himself. "Can't have you getting the bed all sticky."

Will set Ari on the couch and turned on Netflix. Because she was distracted with the popsicle Ari didn't need Will holding her.

Will glared at Sonny before walking into the kitchen. He flipped on the faucet, starting on the dishes.

"Will," Sonny followed. "I-,"

"That's why I didn't clean anything," Will blinked several times. "Because Ari's growing a molar. You try cleaning the house when you have a teething toddler either crying or sleeping. One that wants me to hold her all day."

"I'm so sorry," Sonny walked behind Will. He wrapped his arms around Will's waist and pressed his forehead to the back of Will's head.

Will continued doing the dishes.

"I do work," Will whispered. "I do."

"I know you do," Sonny squeezed against Will. "I promise I know. I'm sorry."

Sonny pressed several kisses to Will's hair.

"You work so hard," Sonny held onto Will's hips and spoke into his ear. "You take care of Ari. You're helping your family. I know how much you put into your writing."

"Why did you say that?" Will asked. He slumped against Sonny. "I-I'm not useless."

'Aren't you?' an unwanted voice sounded in Will's head.

"It's not you," Sonny guaranteed. "I promise it's not. I had a bad day."

"You can't do that to me," Will argued. "You can't just, just use me as a verbal punching bag."

"I'm not," Sonny defended. "I won't. I'll do better."

Will, head bowed, looked at Sonny's hands around his waist. The sight of the missing wedding ring bothered Will.

"When do I get my ring back?" Will asked in a low voice.

"Not yet," Sonny kissed the back of Will's head again. "Soon, I promise. I'm so sorry, love. I promise it's not you. It's just work."

"What happened at work that made you so upset?" Will questioned. He needed to understand.

Sonny couldn't tell Will about the money.

'How can I tell him I'm using our money for business?' Sonny thought. 'And that it might be a while before I can get it back.'

'I can't tell him about this. I can't tell him about Paul. I can't tell him anything,' Sonny closed his eyes.

"Chad and I had to fire two employees," Sonny confessed.

"Oh," Will responded. "Are things that bad?"

"No," Sonny quickly replied. "It was just preventative. Everything's fine."

Will nodded.

"How about on your end?" Sonny asked. "Any changes?"

Will thought back to his aunt's request. That she wanted Will to ask Sonny for help. He thought about telling Sonny about Paul. About the money Paul pledged to the pub.

"No," Will answered. "No changes."

Author's note:

Sonny's not handling things well and now Will's lying too. Not good.

Please let me know what you thought.

Thanks for reading!