Ch. 4

A few days after Valerie's talk with Carly, she decided to approach life in Port Charles with a different attitude. She wanted to lighten up. Her beloved mother was gone and nothing she did would bring her back. Only time would heal that particular wound. Dante decided after their one night together that it was a mistake, and he wanted to work things out with his wife. Who just happened to be her cousin. Fine, then. Only time would help her let that go, too. For now, though, it was also time to branch out, meet people, and have some fun. Randy Hill, one of the younger officers in the department, walked through in the middle of her musings, trying valiantly not to drop a box and several other items he was carrying. She flashed him a thousand-watt smile as she jumped up to assist. "Here," she said, "let me help you with some of that. Where are you going with all this stuff?" Randy gave her a thankful smile in return as he replied, "The evidence room. Thanks for the save. And you should smile more often. Suits you." "It does, doesn't it? I just came to a decision that made me smile. Tell me where people go for fun around here." He thought for a moment. "It depends on what you want. There are a couple of good nightclubs, there are always movie theaters. A few of us usually end up at Jake's a lot after work. What're you interested in?" "I want to dance. I want to cut loose, let go for a night, and get away from all the drama in my life. Jake's, huh? Next time you go, give me a 'holla'." "How about tonight?"

"After work? Really? Why not? Sounds perfect." Valerie winced as a new thought crossed her mind. "I totally invited myself out with you, didn't I? I didn't mean to seem pushy. Maybe we should rethink-"

Randy stopped her before she could complete the thought, saying, "Don't sweat it. I wanted to invite you out; I've thought about asking you out a couple of times, but I didn't think you'd be up for it. It'll be fun."

Dante walked into the station in time to catch the tail end of their conversation as they exited the evidence room. He heard, "Thanks, Randy. I think you're right—it'll be fun. I'm looking forward to it." She beamed Randy with her captivating smile before sashaying away. Dante approached Randy, asking him, "What's she talking about, Hill?" "Oh, hey, Falconeri. We're meeting up at Jake's tonight. She said she wanted to go to a place where she could just cut loose. How loose remains to be seen, if you know what I mean," he finished jokingly. "You think talking about her like that is funny? Sounds disrespectful to me. You'd better watch your mouth." Randy was momentarily shocked at the vehemence with which Dante spoke as he responded, "I didn't mean anything by it—I was messing around. No offense meant. I like Valerie. What's not to like? She's pretty hot, and down to earth on top of it. I'm looking forward to getting to know her better, that's all I meant." Dante watched Randy walk away with a puzzled look on his face, and he sighed aloud. He didn't have the right to feel jealous. Valerie was free to see whomever she chose. Wasn't she? What the hell was she doing, though, agreeing to go out with Hill?

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TGIF! It was finally Friday night, and the working class in Port Charles was looking forward to finding various ways to let off some steam and put the memories of the grueling week behind them. Nathan and Maxie wanted to get Dante and Lulu out of the house for some fun. They realized the twosome was under some strain, and they thought maybe a night on the town might help them to relax, to remember what it was like to have some fun as a couple. Sonny and Carly were allowing Josslyn to watch Rocco with their supervision as her first babysitting job, so there was no reason to refuse going out. When Nathan asked them where they wanted to go, Dante found himself asking, "Why not Jake's?" before he could stop himself or change his mind. They were fortunate enough to spy an empty table, and Maxie shook her hips as they made their way over to it through the crowded bar. Dante placed an order at the bar for beers to be sent to the table before joining them. Coleman had hired a live band for the night, and they were in full swing as they played a mixture of genres for the gyrating couples on the makeshift dance floor. Nathan looked around the room, observing, "It looks like half the PCPD is here tonight." Lulu glanced around as well, her smile turning to a frown as she recognized a familiar face in the crowd. "Yeah," she said with a disgusted sigh, "It looks like." They all followed her gaze and saw Valerie on the dance floor with Randy Hill. "Oh, geez, let's hope she doesn't see us…" Maxie's words were abruptly cut off by the kick she received from Lulu. They all continued staring at Valerie as she raised her hands over her head and clapped them while she moved in time to the music. She turned her back to Randy and he watched in appreciative fascination as her hips swayed from side to side. Valerie turned back to him and hooked her hands together behind Randy's neck. They were brought closer to one another and their bodies made brief contact before Valerie spun away again. Once more she turned back to Randy, making a "Come here" motion with her fingers. He quickly complied, grabbing her waist as she raised her hands over her head and started clapping along with the rhythm.

The song changed to a slow one. Nathan was just about to remark that Valerie seemed to be a good dancer when he spied the look on Dante's face. "Whoa," he thought, and he nudged his partner's leg under the table. Dante turned his glaring face to Nathan, who shook his head in response as if to say, "Knock it off!" His eyes quickly cut to Maxie and Lulu, and Dante finally got the message he was trying to send. Dante took a swallow of his beer, which went down the wrong pipe, prompting him to begin coughing. "You ok, Babe?" Lulu asked with concern in her voice. "Yeah, I'm fine. I'm going to go outside and get some air," he answered as he tried to clear his throat. He got up and made his way through the crowd to the outside of the bar. Nathan told the ladies, "I'm going after him, make sure he's ok."

Nathan caught up with Dante in the parking lot. "Dude," he queried, "what's wrong with you?" Dante tossed him a glance, responding, "The beer went down the wrong pipe—that's it." "That's not what I'm talking about at all. The way you were watching Valerie and Hill-"

"What about it?"

"You looked like you wanted to take someone out, that's what. You'd better hope Maxie and Lulu didn't notice the way I did, or you'll never hear the end of it. You looked like a man whose girl was dancing too close to some other guy, and like you wanted to do something about it. I know you guys kissed, but what else is going on?"

"What else could there be? Nothing is going on."

"That look didn't say 'nothing'. All I know is you'd better get it together. Your face is too expressive for you not to, and your wife is too smart. She's bound to pick up on 'whatever this isn't' if you're not careful."

They turned back to reenter the bar, and Lulu hurried to return to the table before they got there. What had she just heard? And what did it mean? Was there something more than a kiss between Dante and Valerie? And other than asking him outright, how could she find out what that "something" was?

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Dante had vacillated all night between self-hatred and anger as he recalled Valerie and Randy dancing, and his response to it. He didn't have the right to be this angry. He didn't even know with whom he was angry. Valerie was a free agent, and he was the one who told her he wanted to work on his marriage. He thought that was what he wanted. It was what he should want. He still loved Lulu, didn't he? Rocco shouldn't have to deal with a busted home over his parents' melo, right? He gave his son a fond look as he watched him playing happily in his playpen. He walked over to the playpen and bent down to chat with his son, who offered the truck with which he was playing in return. "Yeah," he told Rocco, "it's not your fault your old man's a mess, is it? Or that he can't seem to do the right thing anymore. Or that he doesn't even know what that means anymore." Dante took the truck from Rocco's hand before lifting him out of the pen to cuddle him. He made eye contact with his son, telling him, "Ah, little man, the last thing I want to do is scar you for life. I have a feeling, though, that no matter what I do, you're gonna end up taking the hits. I'm sorry, baby. You don't even understand why, but I'm sorry anyway."

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Deciding that he desperately needed some fresh air, Dante gathered up Rocco's baby bag and placed his son in his stroller. Together, they made their way to the park. Dante spread out the blanket he'd brought with him, realizing in just that moment that it was dark blue. He couldn't help but flash back to his dream in the field of flowers as he lifted Rocco out of the stroller onto the blanket. Even out here in this peaceful park, his mind wouldn't give him a break. As if he had conjured her up, a few minutes later he heard a smiling voice say, "Hey, Rocco! How are you?" He looked up and sure enough, it was Valerie standing there above them. He glared at her before he could catch himself. "Whoa, what did I do to deserve that look?" she asked him. She went on, "If I'm disturbing you, I can easily move on. I only stopped to say 'hi,' anyway."

Valerie proceeded to walk on when he halted her with, "Did you have a good time with Hill last night?" She thought it was a genuine inquiry so she answered, "Yeah, I did! He's a good dancer, and a pretty fun guy. As a matter of fact-" she paused for a moment as a new thought struck her. "How did you know I was with Randy last night?"

"We were at Jake's last night, too. We all saw you there."

"Who is 'we all'?

"Lulu, Nathan and Maxie. You put on quite a show with your dancing. Was that where the show ended, or was there an encore presentation somewhere else?"

"You'd better not be asking me what it sounds like you're asking me. Because first of all, if that's what you're asking, I'm not a slag, regardless of what happened between us! Second of all, whatever I do, with whomever I do it, is not your business. By your own choice! So if I did screw him, why would you care? Yeah, we did it! Against the wall, in his shower, on his bed! Is that what you want to hear? Does that make you feel better about what WE did?"

Dante quickly jumped up from the blanket, his finger angrily pointing in her direction, speaking to her with a raised rasping voice. "Hey! Don't say stuff like that, or even think it! I mean it! You better not have-"

"What if I did? You still haven't answered me! How is it any of your business what I do? Why do you care?" she shouted back.

"I shouldn't care, ok!" he shouted back huskily, unconcerned by this point that they were in a busy park. "I shouldn't care, but I do! I swear, Valerie-" he bit off his last comment before going on softly, "Just tell me you didn't sleep with him, ok?"

"I shouldn't tell you anything, but, no, I didn't sleep with him, all right? We danced, had a couple of beers, he walked me to the dock, and I left on the launch."

"I'm glad. I'm glad—I've been going crazy all night, imagining all kinds of things…"

"Well I'm glad you're glad. I didn't even think about sleeping with him! I guess that privilege is reserved for you alone." Before he could respond to that statement, he heard a gasp behind him. He and Valerie turned to find Lulu standing there, her hand covering her mouth, her eyes tearing slowly. "No way," she whispered. "No possible way."

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The moment felt etched in amber. Still, and captured that way forever. Even the wind seemed to have stopped blowing. Dante felt electrified, as if every hair on his body was raised.

Valerie winced and shook her head. Of all the things to happen—God! Why here, why now? Why did Lulu have to show up now and hear that?

No one spoke at first. Dante finally stepped toward Lulu, a gesture that was quickly cut short by her upraised finger. She patted the air in front of her with her hand. "Wait a minute, Dante," she said, "don't. What did I just hear? What did I just hear? You and Valerie had sex? Is that what she meant? You and my cousin had sex! Together! You accused me of sleeping with Dillon and gave me all this crap—when did it happen? Where did it happen, you bastard?"

"Lulu-"

"No! No! Don't even try to soft soap this or lie your way out of it! Tell me the truth, Dante Falconeri! Did you or did you not have sex with my cousin?"

It seemed as if the whole earth was quietly waiting for his answer. "Yeah," he finally whispered. "It's true. We did." Lulu felt galvanized by a strong force propelling her as she launched herself toward her husband with an almost inhuman growl. All she could think about was ripping his face in half. She wanted to see a bloody mess on the ground where she left him after she was finished annihilating him. She felt another force grabbing her and holding her back.

"Lulu! Don't! Don't do this in front of Rocco!" Valerie exclaimed as she vainly tried to keep her cousin from exacting maximum damage on her husband. Lulu rounded on her and slapped her hard enough to make her stumble backward. "Don't you even speak my son's name! You don't have the right to say his name! As if you care about Rocco! Where was your concern when you were screwing his father, huh? Where was it, Valerie? My cousin! My so-called family! You bi-"

Dante quickly cut her off with, "Don't do this in front of Rocco! Valerie's right; not here, not right now!"

Lulu's face was a mask of fury as she snarled, "You've lost the right to tell me not to do anything, Dante! I can't believe you! All along! All along you were holding this 'secret' in. No wonder you were so miserable! You called me out for lying to you! And you made everything seem like it was my fault when it was you all along! You and my cousin screwing each other!" Her face went blank as she came to a realization, and then she whispered, "And you still want her. That's what this has all been about. That's why we couldn't get back on track, that's why you haven't touched me since I got back from Canada. You still want her, don't you? You agreed to go to counseling? What a joke! You just weren't man enough to tell me that you sexed up Valerie, and you didn't quite know how to tell me you suddenly preferred my cousin to me, did you? It all makes a strange kind of sense, now. Wow, Dante. Only a scumbag would keep me feeling guilty after knowing you had done something much worse. Who are you, anyway? Who are you, and what have you done with my husband?"

Dante grabbed his hair in agitated frustration, and then said, "Lulu, I have no defense. None. I didn't want you to find out like this. I knew I'd have to tell you what happened eventually, but I didn't know how to. Honestly, I thought maybe during the counseling-"

Lulu laughed derisively at Dante. "Honestly? Honestly? Can you even use that word as if you know what it means? You're so basic, Dante. So disappointingly, typically, utterly basic."

"Can we talk about this at home? Please? Maybe ask Maxie to take Rocco -"

"Home? What home? You mean that place you live? The place where my son and I no longer live? That home? No, we can't 'go home'. I love how now it's ok to involve Maxie, too. You can go do whatever, but my son and me? We'll be at my brother's. Which reminds me, Skank," she addressed Valerie, "don't bother trying to go back to Spoon Island, except to get your crap out of my brother's house. Trust me, when Nikolas finds out what you did, you'll no longer be welcome there." Through her tears, she reached out to put a bewildered Rocco into his stroller. She grabbed his baby bag, and then, without so much as a backward glance, she marched away.

Dante made a last minute motion to go after them when Valerie stopped him. "Don't, Dante. Let them go."

"I can't just let her take my son!"

"He'll help calm her down. They'll be fine. Don't make things worse by trying to take him from her right now. When she's calmer, you two can talk things out."

"What a mess! Talk things out? Yeah, you heard her. I don't see that happening at all. I am supposed to want that, though, aren't I? How in the world did I let everything get so twisted?"

"Don't you still want to work things out with her? Wasn't that the plan once you learned the truth about what happened in Canada?"

Dante bypassed her questions as he reached out to stroke her cheek where a bruise was slowly forming. He shook his head regretfully, murmuring, "I hate that she did this to you. You didn't deserve it—you were only trying to help."

Valerie laughed softly at him before replying, "Didn't deserve it? You're sweet. Deluded, but sweet. Of course I deserved it! That one shot, she earned it, and I had it coming. That's all she's gonna get, though." She sighed. "The big question is what happens now?"

"That is the million dollar question, isn't it?

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