Hi all, this is a little bit of a filler chapter. Just some JasLexis bliss before the stuff hits the fan. Hope you enjoy. Please forgive any editing issues. It was pretty late when I wrote this one.

Stronger Than Pride – Chapter 9

Alexis stared at the Italian countryside which was visible from the bed; thanks to the large bay window. She loved Italy and their hotel, Le Sirenuse, located in Positano was perfect. Jason had handled all of the arrangements. The hotel had a spa, a boutique and even its own signature perfume that was made on site.

Alexis sighed. She couldn't believe they only had one full day left. Viola, godsend that she was, had taken the kids on a local tour this morning. And so, it came as no surprise to her that Jason wanted to spend the morning in bed. She felt him stir beside her.

"Did someone forget to tell you it was still morning?" Jason teased.

"Very funny." She turned to face him. "This trip has been absolutely perfect. I don't want to sleep a minute longer than necessary."

"So you're happy?" He touched his finger to the tip of her nose.

"Very." She chuckled. "Did you ever think that we would be married and this happy?"

"Nope." He gave her a sweet kiss that suggested he wanted more.

She nuzzled her head into his neck. "And did you ever dream that we would go at it like teenagers?"

"Yep. Twice."

"Jason!" Alexis felt her cheeks redden. After a moment, she thought about what he'd said. "Seriously?"

"Yeah."

Curiosity got the best of her. "When?"

"The first time was when I saw that picture of you in underwear at the Biker Bar."

"Sorry I asked." She sighed.

"That dream was relatively tame. Then I had a dream after one of our typical knock-down, drag out fights at the PCPD. We were still knock-down drag out in the dream, but we weren't fighting."

"Jason!" She giggled. "Hey, I just realized we used to argue like cats and dogs before we got married; now, we hardly ever disagree."

"We just found other ways to expend our energy." He moved into kiss her. Soon his mouth moved from her mouth to her jawline and then on to her neck.

"Someone woke-up feeling horny."

"Hey, how often do we get a morning to ourselves?"

"That's right. I'm furious with you!" She feigned anger. "Viola is one of the best things to ever happen to me and now because you wanted to come to Italy, I may lose her."

A young man named, Paulo, had taken to Viola early on the trip and the two were now practically inseparable. Alexis was certain Viola would announce at any minute that she was staying in Italy. She couldn't blame her. Paulo was absolutely gorgeous with his dark hair and green eyes. And he was so charming. Paulo said the sweetest things. Viola had been smitten from the start.

Jason stared at her and for a second, she began to think he was angry. "You're mad at me? I should be mad at you."

"What did I do?" She poked her lip in a pout, just in case he was serious.

"You forgot to mention that you spoke Italian fluently. Do you know how sexy that is? I've never been the jealous type, but now I may have to reconsider."

She'd learned Italian as a girl. Stefan taught her to prepare her for the trips he took her on during winter breaks. She hadn't mentioned it to Jason because she never made mention of the fact that she could speak other languages, one of which was Spanish. In the past, her discretion had allowed her to be privy to many secrets.

"My brother taught me. We used to go to Sardinia on my winter breaks."

"Your brother was an interesting guy. He really loved you and Nicholas. He hated me from the first time we met. Somewhere he's rolling his eyes about you and I being together."

"Actually, I think he's smiling because he knows this is the happiest I've ever been."

Jason smiled before he began to move to kiss her once more. She blocked his kiss with a finger. "Not so fast. I'm still losing Viola."

"No you're not. Paulo has been offered a job as a coffee buyer for the Corinthos-Morgan coffee. We started working on a Visa for him three days ago." Jason appeared to be quite proud of himself.

"Is there anything else I should know?" She noticed the shimmer in Jason's eyes fade just a bit.

"Actually…"

She placed a finger to his lips. "Whatever it is, I don't want to know. I want our time here to stay perfect. Did you know: I've been married three times and this is my first honeymoon ever?"

"I guess I owe you two more."

"I'm going to hold you to it."

A few days later, as they packed their bags to go home, Alexis nearly cried. For two weeks, life had been nearly perfect. And now, it was time to return to Port Charles. She folded the beautiful surprise she'd found for Sam and prayed it would somehow ease the tension that was sure to come between them. She ran her hands along the silk ties and the cufflinks she'd helped the children pick out for Sonny and she prayed they could work together as friends. Her mind flashed images of Claudia and Ric and the threats each of them posed. Finally, her hands moved to her belly. In her mind, she spoke to their baby, "Somehow, some way, we'll make this okay for you."

Jason wrapped his arms around her shoulders. "Are you ready to go home?"

"No, but I guess it's time."