Disclaimer…I do not own GH or any of the characters…..No copy write infringement intended…..Entertainment purposes only….

Author's Note: Thank you so much for all the wonderful comments! I love the feedback and hearing all the different opinions! They are greatly appreciated.

I also wanted to say thanks for all the support and best wishes. You guys make me smile! Hope you enjoy the update. I'm now on bed rest (GRRRR) so I'll be bored and writing more often since my husband's being way overprotective. I think the idea of twins scares him. LOL. Anyway, enjoy and have a great Sunday!

Chapter Forty-One

Years of living with Maxie when they were younger had finally come in handy. Even though she hated herself for doing so, Georgie used tears and guilt to get Johnny to keep his word to Baylor. She knew he would want an explanation for what had happened earlier once Bay fell asleep for the night, but she needed the time they were out seeing the sights to collect herself.

"I'm impressed," Logan drawled, joining her on the balcony.

She shot him a dark look but didn't respond.

"You never really struck me as the type to use manipulations, and then to pull it off so easily." When she frowned, he crossed his arms over his chest and grinned. "Maxie would be so proud by the performance you just gave."

"Logan…."

"But you do realize he's not gonna let you pull these evasive tactics forever, don'tcha?"

"Boundaries, Logan. Do you remember what those are?"

"Defensive much, doll? I remember how you used to be so set on honesty. You sure screamed that pretty little head of yours off at me over it enough in the past. Did you lose that trait as well as the concern you used to have about hurtin others, Georgie girl?"

"Did you volunteer to stay behind just to annoy me?" she demanded sarcastically. "Because if so you should be proud. You're doing a tremendous job of it."

Becoming serious Logan sat in the chair beside hers, ignoring the way she huffed in annoyance. "No. I stayed because you need someone to point out the mistakes your making, Georgie."

"Seriously?" She gave him a disbelieving look. "And you are the model example of great decision making, Logan? Give me a break! Can't you just leave me alone?"

"Sorry, I can't do that. But have you ever thought it's because I screw everything up so badly all the time that I recognize exactly what you're doing. I just haven't figured out if it's intentional or not, doll."

"Go to hell, Logan!"

"Trust me, I'll be back there soon enough when I have to face Maxie's wrath face to face," he answered humorlessly. Catching her wince, Logan shifted so he faced her. "You can't keep going back and forth like you seem bent on doing, Georgie. Either you trust Zacchara or you don't. But this letting him close and then shoving him away, it isn't doing either of you any favors. Does it make you feel good to hurt him like you did today?"

"I'm not doing that!" she furiously denied. At least she didn't mean to. Dropping her head to avoid his piercing eyes, she wondered if he was correct. She wanted so badly to be able to share everything with Johnny but each time she tried to open completely up she froze.

"Yes, you are, Georgie," he responded with conviction. "Johnny and I aren't friends, but I gotta admit that he really care for you. And at times I think it's mutual. You two clicked right off the bat even with you fighting it like hell. But you know as well as I do, girl, no relationship survives secrets. Not like the ones you're keepin anyways." Logan paused and watched as she lowered her head in shame. "Johnny wants to help you, Georgie. That man would walk through fire to keep from causing you pain. What you did, not giving him any clue you didn't want to come here, it was selfish, doll. He feels like shit for dredging up memories that are bad enough to cause you to pass out."

"I didn't ask for any of this!" Georgie cried.

"And you think he did? Georgie, the pain in his face at hearing why you've been so distant since we left Milan was clear as day when the other guard finally spoke up about what happened here to trigger you passing out."

Fresh tears welled in her eyes as she shivered in spite of the humid heat currently blanketing the city. "Logan, I can't discuss what happened here or in Prague," she confessed, her voice cracking.

"Jesus, Georgie! You didn't have to give a detailed report. Maybe just a slight warning or hint of not wanting to come here. You can't tell me that he wouldn't have changed plans and made it up to Bay some other way because I know better."

She shook her head. "Damn it, Logan! It's not that simple! Letting the past control me is just as bad admitting defeat."

Her thought process amazed him at times, and made him want to shake some sense into her at moments like this one. Stubbornness had to be a genetic characteristic of both Jones sisters. "That doesn't have a damn thing to do with what I'm trying to tell you, Georgie. You either trust him or you don't. You could have mentioned not wanting to come to Venice."

"Johnny would've asked questions I can't answer, Logan!" she snapped, feeling cornered. "Just leave me alone! I feel horrible enough without you adding to it!"

Logan focused on the man who'd been listening to their conversation for the last several minutes without her knowledge and lifted an eyebrow before shifting his attention swiftly back to Georgie. "And you are a coward. You refuse to let anyone get too close and immediately start shutting down when someone breaks through your defenses. You won't face the past so you can move on completely. Instead you're using it as an excuse, Georgie, to protect yourself. No one expects you to just open up overnight, but it'll never get better unless you at least make an effort. As long as you let whatever happened those years you were gone control you, guess what, they win. And the worst part is your letting them, Georgie." Standing when she unsuccessfully muffled a sob, Logan nodded to Johnny. "Did you need me to go meet with the others?"

Georgie froze when Johnny spoke from behind her. Keeping his entire focus on her now that she knew he was present, Johnny nodded. "Yes. Milo, Wilson, Xavier, and Randall have Baylor waiting in the lobby. I promised her you guys would take her out to eat then on another gondola ride before coming back to the room. You can give her insulin if she needs it, right?"

"Not a problem. I'll call when we're on our way back." Logan quickly escaped from the mounting tension and grabbed his phone and her medication bag before tucking his gun in the back of his waistband before leaving the suite.

He waited until the door loudly shut before stepping around her chair and leaning against the railing of the balcony. Even with her eyes closed and her face buried in her hands, Johnny felt the whirlwind of emotions rolling off her.

"Why?" It was the only question he needed answered at the moment. Everything else could wait.

"Why what?" she hesitantly asked before swallowing and meeting his gaze.

Nearly black eyes locked onto watery brown ones. The pain and turmoil shimmering in the depths almost had him backing down but the desire for the one single answer he sought overrode his reluctance to further upset her. "Why can't you just trust me enough to say when you need help, Georgie?"

"I do trust you!" she immediately protested.

"No. Evidently you don't. If you did, Georgie, you would have said you didn't want to come to Venice. Or at the very least gave me a heads up that it held bad memories for you. You never once mentioned Venice in relation to Prague. If you had, there is no way in hell I would have brought you here."

Jumping to her feet, she threw her hands out to her sides. "It's not that simple, Johnny! I trust you more than anyone else! But you want full disclosure and I'm not ready for that!"

Following her as she swept passed him into the main room of the suite, he grabbed her forearm and jerked her back around to face him. His own temper starting to flare at her blatant dismissal. "NO, Georgie! That is not what I'm asking for and you damn well know it! I haven't pushed you at all about anything that you specifically say you don't want to discuss! I respect you enough to tell me when you're ready. But instead of knowing that, you purposely shove me away when something bothers you. We take one step forward and the next thing I know you're a fucking mile away again!"

"I don't mean to keep shoving you away, Johnny." His look of disbelief made her tightly clasp his hands, begging him to understand. "Don't you get it? It's not you. It's me! For so long I handled everything on my own. Every single person I depended on either turned on me or let me down, Johnny. I don't know if I'm capable of ever fully trusting anyone. A part of me is broken, the part that can have complete faith in another person. Yes, I trust you more than anyone else. I love you, Johnny! You got to know that I do. You and Bay are the two most important things in my life!" She released his hands and backed away. Her voice dropped so low he had to strain to hear her next words. "I tried to warn you this would be a mistake but you didn't listen. I knew you'd regret this, us, when you finally realized how screwed up I am."

"We are NOT a mistake, Georgie! I love you and that's not something I'm ever going to regret." Her pain tore at him but it was that last statement that terrified him. He worried she was getting ready to fall back into the habit of running when things got rough. Johnny took a step toward her and narrowed his eyes when she unconsciously backed away. "Georgie," he whispered, "I'm not letting you do this. The part that you assume is broken, it's not. You're afraid, baby, afraid of giving another person the power to hurt you." Reaching out suddenly, he encircled her waist with an arm, moving closer until she had to lift her head. "Nothing you say or do will cause me to give up on you, Georgie. I don't expect you to be perfect. I fell in love with you, not some idea of what you should be, but the woman in my arms right now, the woman that enjoyed a carefree evening with me the other night. The same woman that I hold every night after a nightmare." He thumbed a tear from her cheek. "I know you aren't ready to talk about everything you went through, and I do accept that. I'll be here waiting when you are. All I want is enough faith from you to let me help you. I can't read your mind, baby. You have to tell me if something hurts you. Please, Georgie, just let me help you."

Trembling, she closed her eyes. "I was in front of the apartment building when they grabbed me, just about where I was standing when everything went black. I didn't realize Logan and I were walking in that direction. I meant to avoid that place all together."

Burying his face in her hair, his eyes lost all traces of warmth at her muffled confession. He wished he could go back and make Anna and Robert suffer more. Sean wasn't supposed to have died how he did, but an unknown source started his demise and Johnny just gave the order to finish him off if it looked like he'd recover. Those three had gotten off way too easy in his opinion. Frisco, now he was one Johnny looked forward to personally handling. Keeping his arms securely around her small frame, he suggested the only thing he knew would help her relax again. "We'll leave as soon as Bay and the guys get back."

"We can't. Bay will be disappointed."

"No she won't. She wanted to see the water and take a ride. I made sure she got her wish. Baylor knows something isn't right, Georgie. She asked about you several times since we left earlier." Pulling away enough so that she looked up at him again, he caressed her cheek. "It's not running if we go. I won't let you make yourself miserable just because you want to give your daughter everything she asks for. Bay's thrilled with just the small visit she did get."

"But…"

"Georgie, proving you can stay here isn't accomplishing anything except for hurting yourself. That's the very last thing I want to be responsible for. Let me take you home. For both of us."

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

Fisting his fingers in the strands of her hair and forcing her to look back up when she tried to move away, he pressed his forehead to hers. "Stop beating yourself up for being human. Next time I suggest anything that's gonna be hard for you, just tell me or give me a warning of some sort. Hearing what this place was, what happened here, it makes me sick that I brought you here. I wanna protect you, not be the source of more hurt, Georgie."

"You didn't hurt me, Johnny."

"Maybe not intentionally, but bringing you here did."

Ashamed of how she'd acted after how he'd been nothing but supportive, Georgie laid her hand over his heart. "I couldn't blame you if you're starting too get impatience with me. I didn't mean to hurt you by staying quiet, Johnny." Breathing shallowly as memories invaded, she clutched his arm. "It's just…I…"

"Shh." He placed a finger to her lips.

"I don't want to lose you, Johnny," she whispered. "I couldn't survive you giving up on me. If I have to, I'll tell…"

"No." Johnny cut off her. "First off, I'm not going anywhere. You couldn't get rid of me you tried. I was hurt and angry because I caused you pain by coming to Venice, Georgie, not because you won't talk about what happened when you were grabbed. You aren't ready for that. I can see it in your eyes. But when you are, I'm still gonna be right here, supporting you. I'll repeat it as much as I need to until you finally believe it. I love you, Georgie, and I'm not going anywhere."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Snuggled into the warmth of his strong arms, Elizabeth's lips curved against his shoulder. Waking with their bodies tangled together never failed to put a smile on her face. Even without looking up or opening her eyes, she automatically knew Jason was already awake.

"Morning," he murmured, his chest rumbling slightly.

Letting her head fall back onto the pillow, she lazily returned the greeting as her eyes adjusted to the light filtering through the curtains. "Morning. You're up earlier than usual."

"Johnny texted earlier to let me know they're in the air."

"Really? I thought they were coming home tomorrow evening."

Rubbing her hip, he then slid his hand around to gently trail his fingers over the slight baby bump starting to gradually protrude from her normally flat abdomen. "Johnny changed his mind about staying overnight in Venice I guess. You're starting to show," he pointed out in a deep growl.

"Just barely, but I'm beginning the second trimester so the baby will start growing faster now."

He hummed while continuing to rub the swell. "Do you think the baby's a boy or girl?"

Elizabeth scrunched her nose, thinking over the question. "I kinda suspect a girl. I really can't explain why or how, but this pregnancy just feels different from when I carried Cam or Jake."

"She'd be beautiful like her mommy."

Heart melting at the observation she leaned up and kissed him. "Such a charmer. You think the boys would survive a sister?"

Jason chuckled. "Until she got older and they had to kill all their classmates, yeah. They're both so good with Bay and Emma. But all that really matters are you and the baby stay healthy." Holding her and listening to the birds outside the window, Jason knew he needed to mention last night in a roundabout way. Lucky's disappearance could take weeks before others noticed but he knew she worried about him creating more problems. "I need to tell you something," he started softly.

The seriousness in his tone caught her attention. "Okay."

Thinking over how to tell her without saying too much, he unconsciously rubbed his palm over her back.

Getting concerned at his hesitation she bit her lip. "Is something wrong, Jason?"

"No, not at all," he hurriedly assured. "Um, I'm just not sure how to say this. I can't go into details but I just wanted to let you know some of the problems we've been dealing with lately won't be an issue anymore." Times like these Jason really wished he was better with words.

Automatically understanding the unease she sensed from him, Elizabeth cursed her past actions. Repeatedly choosing Lucky in the past had hurt Jason more than he'd ever said. There was no doubt in her mind that he was hinting about her ex. Reading the uncertainty in his unforgettable eyes, she laid a hand over the one of his still resting on her baby bump. "Thank you for telling me," she whispered.

Relieved by the calm acceptance in her sapphire eyes, he relaxed. He was secure in their love but had feared she'd be upset over Lucky's death because of their turbulent past. "I didn't want you to stress. Kelly might hurt me if you end up back in the hospital."

She giggled. "You afraid of my doctor?"

Pinching her arm playfully, he smirked. "Not hardly. But she is rather forceful and outspoken about you." Jason shifted until they were both on their sides instead of her resting halfway on top of him. "I do worry about you ending up back in the hospital with all the stress of everything going on. And I can't stand the thought of anything happening to either of you, Elizabeth. I love you."

"Jason, this baby and I are going to fine. All I need to be happy is you and the boys. Everything else is secondary. I love you more than I can express." Meeting him halfway when he leaned forward, the kiss started slow and gradually became heated as their tongues tangled and explored, caressing and moving erotically.

Feeling her breathing become faster in shallow gasps, Jason slid her nightshirt up and ran his rough hands up her smooth thighs, grasping her hips and pulling her forward. Without breaking the connection of their mouths he lifted her leg over his and smoothly pushed his hardened cock fully inside her. Groaning at the pleasure of her slick warmth enveloping him, Jason kept his strokes slow and smooth.

Elizabeth's head fell forward, resting under his chin as she curled her fingers into his short spikes. The slow steady rhythm of his lovemaking bringing tears to her eyes and eliciting soft moans of pleasure as they clung to one another.

Jason felt her walls start to ripple as he wrapped an arm around her slender waist. "Look at me," he commanded softly, wanting to see her go over.

Her nails scored along his back before digging into his shoulders as she threw her head back and released a long moan as he filled her over and over again.

"Elizabeth," he gruffly rasped as he increased the pace of his thrusts, "open your eyes. Let me see you go over."

Forcing her eyes open as her body moved with his, she couldn't deny him. Blue locked on blue as they both tumbled over the edge, completely baring their souls to the other.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

His fingers slowly traced over the etched letters in the stone. Despair flowed through him as he dropped to his knees. This wasn't supposed to have happened. A parent should never outlive their child. Eyes closed tightly, he murmured a prayer for his lost son, one he'd never had the opportunity to even see.

Meeting him at the prearranged spot, Alex handed him the thick envelope. "All the information you requested that I could find is inside. Are you sure you want to this, Diego?"

"I am. Are you returning to Italy tonight?"

"Yes. My wife will worry if not." Unable to get a good read on his friend's frame of mind, Alex held out his hand. "Good luck and be safe. You'll land in Jersey. I've made arrangement for a vehicle to be waiting. If you need me, just call. I can be on a flight immediately."

"I appreciate all you've done, Alex."

"I'm sorry I couldn't do more."

Diego waited until he was alone on the jet before opening the envelope. Reading the detailed reports he felt conflicted the more processed what he was learning. So much had occurred and none of it made sense. Crumpling the last sheet of paper before he'd even finished looking it over, he had to fight the urge to demolish something. No way in hell would he accept what had been done to his family.

Removing the picture he carried with him on the trip, Diego looked at the two family members he had left. Their daughter was everything he could've hoped for. Meeting her just that one time had been incredible. Baylor was perfect. Georgie really had given him the greatest gift, a one of a kind treasure that he ached to know better. Switching his focus to Baylor's mother, Diego traced the outline of her smiling image. She'd only grown more beautiful over the years. And from what little time he'd spent with Baylor, he knew Georgie was an amazing mother, especially considering she'd been raising her alone. But Diego had always known she would be from the minute they learned she was pregnant.

Now that he'd escaped from the psychopaths he just needed to get his family back. Georgie and Zacchara's marriage to keep Baylor safe was no longer needed. Diego was alive and more than ready to step into his rightful place as Georgie and Baylor's protector.