Ned Ashton first noticed the dull, but persistent, ache at the base of his skull as he led Carly into the Versailles Room of the Port Charles Hotel. He contemplated whether being stricken by another of his migraines in the midst of the party to celebrate his marriage to Carly was ironic or fitting. Perhaps it was a bit of both he decided with a grimace as he ushered Carly in the direction of his grandparents, the hosts of the evening.

Lila Quartermaine beamed at them from her position in her wheelchair. "Welcome back to Port Charles, my dear ones."

"Thank you, Grandmother," Ned said quickly. He tried not to remember the way his grandmother had once beamed at Lois. He tried to remind himself that Carly wasn't Lois and expecting her to be would just make their marriage even more frustratingly unfulfilling. He wrapped an arm around Carly gently and wondered if she was also reminding herself that he would never be Jason. Perhaps she was doing better with her acceptance than he was. After all, the marriage had been her idea.

Edward Quartermaine merely nodded in Ned and Carly's direction.

Ned suspected his grandfather knew his wife would chastise him for bringing up ELQ business and figured silence was his best approach. He knew his grandfather was dying to ask for more details about the patent on the new leeching process that Celia was working on. Edward's hope was that it would allow them to get back into the mine in White Pine, Nevada they had closed about five years earlier. The technological processes and the environmental impact statements weren't really Ned's strength, but Celia had told him she still thought the technology was a few years off. The patent application they had worked on was more of an intermediate step. That wouldn't be the news his grandfather was hoping for, so Ned had no problem delaying the discussion and the resultant frustration that would somehow turn into his problem.

"I really like your dress, Mrs. Quartermaine," Carly said.

"Now, dear, I've told you before, you must call me Lila. This dress was a gift from my great-niece Chloe, she designed it especially for this event," his grandmother said.

"Yes, it isn't every day that one's oldest grandson gets married. Well, unless that oldest grandson happens to be Ned Ashton," a familiar, but annoying, voice said from behind them.

Ned turned to see that ELQ stockholder Jasper Jacks had arrived. He ignored Jax and made eye contact with the woman on his arm, Ned's ex-wife's best friend, his younger cousins' nanny, former Deceptions model, and the newest face of Jax Cosmetics, Brenda Barrett. He had to admit that he wasn't thrilled about the last descriptor or that somehow that also made her Jax's fling of the moment.

Actually, he kind of hated the idea of Brenda and Jax as a couple for more reasons than he could, or perhaps would, really explain. The truth was that he wasn't sure Jax was really any better than Brenda's fiancé Sonny Corinthos had been. Somehow, two nights before their intended wedding, the local crime lord had developed a conscience. He had found Brenda before their wedding rehearsal and admitted that his life wasn't safe for her. In her vulnerable period, after the broken engagement, Brenda had signed a contract with Jax Cosmetics and become their new spokes model.

In Ned's opinion, Jax had taken advantage of her. He had even suggested that, but Brenda had reminded him she was twenty years old. She was an adult and she didn't need his input into her decisions any more than she needed her sister's. So, he had let things go, or he had tried to. The truth was he still hated the idea of Brenda being involved with Jax in any capacity. So, when he met Brenda's eyes he conveyed that, and, in turn, she conveyed that she wasn't amused by Jax's jab and that she understood his pain even if she had no clue why he had married Carly.

He hadn't been able to explain that. The truth was he didn't want to blatantly lie to her, he didn't think he ever had and that mattered to him. Actually, the temptation had been to spill everything to her, but he had known that wasn't really fair as she was still his ex-wife's best friend. So, he had just stuck to the bare facts. He was marrying Carly. He was committed to raising his child with Carly. Those were both true statements. It was his child, although not exactly for the reasons most people would presume.

Ned noticed Jax's glare and wondered if he was able to understand the silent conversation he was having with Brenda. He doubted that, but he supposed Jax might be aware of their connection and he was sure Jax had to hate that. Sharing wasn't something Jax did well. Or perhaps Jax was just annoyed that his entry barb had been ignored. Jax hated to be ignored it was the most severe blow to his ego. Ned smiled a little at that thought.

Brenda returned his smile which only seemed to increase her date's frown.

Jax broke his countenance into a falsely jovial grin. "So, is this the fourth or the fifth wife, Ned? It's so hard to keep track," he said. He took a step forward and leaned in close to Carly. "I hear the record to beat is thirty-three months, good luck!" he whispered in a tone that was still quite loud enough for everyone to hear.

XXXXXXXX

Carly rolled her eyes at Jax's comment. She was starting to understand why Jason hated the guy. She choked a little at the thought of Jason and then she really looked up at her husband's face. He looked in pain and she almost laughed, not at Ned's discomfort but, at the absurdity that once again she was playing second fiddle to an anointed ghost. Perhaps it was a Quartermaine thing, or maybe a Morgan or Ashton thing as those were the common bloodlines between the two cousins. Either way it was painful.

When she had first heard that Jason had decided he loved St. Robin enough to let her go, so she would be safe, she had been more than willing to go for sloppy seconds because Jason would never truly be that even if he did remain annoyingly devoted to Robin. Anyway, in some sense, she would always be Jason's first. She was the first woman he remembered sleeping with. Honestly, she might have been the first woman he had slept with. His girlfriend Keesha certainly seemed like the prudish type that wouldn't give it up before someone put a ring on her finger. Carly liked to think that Jason had wised up before he did that except he had moved on to St. Robin.

Edward's growl interrupted Carly's thoughts. She forced herself to at least half listen to the conversations swirling around her. She glanced up at Ned. He no longer looked so stricken. She was mildly curious if he had gotten past the pain or just figured out how to hide it better. A better wife would have cared but Carly wasn't sure she did. Perhaps she should. Ned hadn't needed to marry her, but he had, and perhaps she owed him something for that.

"That is quite enough! Edward, if you don't want me to send you home before the meal you will find a way to peacefully co-exist with Mr. Jacks. Mr. Jacks is entitled to express his opinion, even in a tactless and crass manner, if he chooses," Lila said.

"But, Lila!" Edward started to protest.

Lila cut him off in short order. "Not another word, Edward. Oh, it looks like Mayor McClintock and his wife just arrived. We should go extend our greetings," she said. Then, with a whir of her electric wheelchair Lila was off in the direction of the mayor leaving her husband to follow or face the consequences.

Carly found herself smiling at the way her new grandmother could take charge of the situation. She would readily admit that marrying Ned had been another of her wacky plans. Yet, she had a feeling that being Lila Quartermaine's granddaughter, even if only by marriage, would be one of the unexpected bonuses.

Ned caught her eye. "Yes, grandmother has a real presence, doesn't she?" he asked as he wrapped his arm around her a little more securely.

"I think I could learn a lot from her," Carly said honestly.

"I'm sure you will," Ned said.

His words sounded genuine, but not condescending, and for a brief moment Carly wondered if maybe there could be more unexpected bonuses in her marriage. She was still mulling all of that over in her mind when the monster in law decided to grace them with her presence.

"Darling!" Tracy Quartermaine-Grabler said as she wrapped her arms around her son.

Carly noted the way Ned seemed to stiffen at first. Eventually though, he did manage to wrap his arms around his mother, at least loosely.

Ned's little brother and sister trailed behind their mother. Dylan joined another Quartermaine grouping which included his cousin Kirk, Monica and Alan's younger son, but six-year-old Shannon, continued to dance her way across the lobby towards them.

Carly watched as Shannon stopped halfway and did a full pirouette which allowed her cotton candy pink dress to flare out and up slightly and then launched into a few chasse steps and a tour jete. Or Carly thought that was what it was, she hadn't lasted more than a few months in ballet. Refined and graceful had never really been her things.

Shannon stopped immediately in front of Carly, grasped the hem of her dress and then dropped into a crossed leg curtsey pose.

Normally the performance would have annoyed Carly but she figured it would be nice to have someone in the Quartermaine family on her side, so she just smiled a little more and clapped. Somehow allowing Shannon to toss a few flower petals around before she and Ned entered into a marriage of convenience, or perhaps inconvenience depending on perspective, had won the little girl over. Apparently, St. Lois hadn't been even that kind, and, for that reason, Shannon felt that her brother's newest wife was a big improvement. Carly was well aware that Shannon was probably the only member of the Quartermaine family who felt that way but everyone else was too polite to voice their opinions.

Tracy stepped back from the embrace with her son and turned to her daughter. "If you're done showing off for Carly, Shannon, it would be very appropriate for you to thank Mrs. Barrington for the new playground equipment at your school. Her husband's charitable endowment funded a significant portion of it," she said.

Carly watched as Shannon dutifully scampered off towards where Amanda Barrington stood with some woman she didn't know. Amanda was the widow of Markham Barrington who had opened the original Barrington Jewelers store in Port Charles, NY in 1935. Six decades later one store had grown into a small empire and Barrington Jewelers had practically become a household name. Virginia had been amazed when Ned had explained that Carly's ring had been made by Barrington Vice President Derek Barrington, who Ned happened to serve on the Charles Street Foundation board with, personally. She glanced down at the ring on her finger and then uncomfortably met her mother in law's eyes.

Tracy Quartermaine-Grabler smiled. "It is a beautiful ring. Derek did do an outstanding job didn't he?" she asked.

Carly took a step closer to Ned. Perhaps he sensed her discomfort because he wrapped his arm around her shoulders loosely. She took a little comfort from the gesture. "Well, my husband likes to spoil me," she said.

Carly smiled internally when she saw the way that her mother in law's facial expression changed. She was well aware that her mother in law felt that women like her were setting womankind back decades if not centuries. Yet, Carly doubted that Tracy Quartermaine had ever known what it was like to go to school all decked out in blue light specials from K-Mart. That had been Carly's childhood, so, if she wanted to take a moment and enjoy the ostentatious ring that Ned had put on her finger then her mother in law could kindly screw herself. She hadn't married Ned for his money. She had married him to build a home for her son, but she wasn't going to apologize for enjoying the money that came along with the package deal.

As Dr. Ryan Grabler joined them Carly had another thought. It wasn't like the monster in law had exactly married into poverty either. Her first husband was apparently some low level British Monarch who collected rare, and expensive, art. Her second husband was a devoted husband and father but he was also a psychiatrist, so he was anything but destitute.

"Is everything alright?" Tracy asked her husband.

"Yes, Dr. Winters paged me by mistake. She meant to page Dr. Locke who actually is on call tonight," Ryan said.

"Well, if you will excuse us, it looks like the Cranes just arrived. I'd like Carly to meet them," Ned said. Then, perhaps before his mother could object, he guided her in the direction of a distinguished, white haired, couple in at least their late sixties.

XXXXXXXX

Liz Webber glanced around the Versailles Room in the Port Charles Hotel. Spending Friday night at a stuffy, formal party with her grandmother's friends was not exactly her idea of a good time. There was irony too because she was well aware that when her grandmother had returned her RSVP to the event, she had not been the granddaughter Audrey Hardy had intended to bring, her sister Sarah had been. Unfortunately, Sarah had claimed she had to work on a major history project with Alison Barrington. Liz was pretty sure that Sarah wasn't actually planning on studying on Friday night, but their Grams was bit more gullible, so she had just praised Sarah's study habits and informed her that she could attend the party after all. Somehow, she had neglected to realize that her phrasing made it more than a bit obvious that Liz was, and probably always would be, her second choice. Liz hadn't pointed that out because she had accepted it was pointless to do so.

"Elizabeth, stand up straight, when you slouch that dress doesn't hang right," her grandmother admonished.

Liz silently adjusted her posture and gritted her teeth. She could balance a book on her head and the stupid dress she was wearing still wouldn't hang right. Whatever!

Liz exhaled to release some more frustration. She saw her friends Emily and Allison Quartermaine come back into the ballroom each holding one hand of their three-year-old little sister, Katelyn. "I'm going to go say hi to Alli and Em," she tossed out quickly and started across the room, towards where they had joined their parents, without waiting for an answer.

When she and Sarah had arrived in Port Charles her grandmother had promptly introduced them to Allison and Emily presuming of course that they would all be friends. After all, she had pointed out their parents had all been very close friends when they had been residents at PCGH years ago. At first Liz had been sure that befriending Alli and Emily would be as exciting as watching paint dry but she had tagged along on their tour of Port Charles, swum in the Quartermaine pool, and even gone on a back to school shopping excursion to Port Charles Crossing.

Although the Quartermaine sisters were definitely a lot more straight laced, and genuinely kind, than Liz thought she could ever be she realized they were honest and they did actually like her because she was Liz not because she was Dr. Jeff Webber's daughter or because their parents had once attended the same country club. By the time she had started her sophomore year at Port Charles High a month ago she had actually been thankful that Allison had skipped a grade somewhere along the way and was also a sophomore.

"Liz, hi!" Emily and Allison Quartermaine greeted her warmly in almost perfect unison.

Liz noted that they both seemed a lot more thrilled than she was. Of course, the party was to celebrate their cousin's marriage so perhaps they were happy about that. She had met their cousin Ned a few times. He seemed cool, he played guitar, and drove a Miata. "Great party," Liz said. She wondered if either of them would catch her sarcasm.

Emily seemed to because she flashed her an empathetic look. "I agree these things can take a little getting used to," she said.

Liz supposed that the party probably wasn't much more formal than a lot of the country club events her parents went to back in Denver but she was never included in those parties. She raised an eyebrow somewhat conspiratorially. "A little?" she asked.

Emily laughed. "You just have to consider it entertainment, or at least that is what AJ says."

"Perhaps I have been misquoted," AJ Quartermaine said as he joined them with his girlfriend, Keesha Ward.

Emily rolled her eyes at her brother. "Gee, AJ, your trust is overwhelming," she said.

"I said perhaps," AJ defended.

"Emily was just explaining to Liz how good you are at finding the humor in every situation," Allison chimed in.

"It's like I always say sometimes you have to be willing to laugh at yourself. Then people are laughing with you, not at you," AJ said.

"I'll try to keep that in mind," Liz said. Somehow, she had a feeling that no matter how much she was willing to laugh at herself her mother would still be laughing at her, not with her. She didn't really expect AJ, Emily, or Allison to understand that because Dr. Monica Quartermaine didn't seem like the kind of mom who used humiliation as a discipline strategy the way her mother had.

There was more. Emily and Allison were very close in age, just like she and Sarah were. Yet, somehow even though Emily was fourteen months younger she didn't seem to have grown up in Allison's shadow. Perhaps that was because Emily hadn't even known the Quartermaines existed until she was ten and she had been eleven by the time they had adopted her. Perhaps that had allowed her to believe she had some worth beyond being Allison's younger sister. Or perhaps it helped that Kirk and Katelyn existed so even Emily had younger siblings who seemed to look up to her. Maybe that made all the difference. Liz could only wonder.

XXXXXXXX

As she stood amongst the crowd Chloe Morgan found herself paying more attention to the fashion surrounding her than the conversation. She supposed that was an occupational hazard. There was a time when her younger sister would have understood that completely. They would have shared conspiratorial smiles at that which was just so clearly not haute couture. Of course, sometimes it seemed that the greatest fashion faux pas could inspire an idea that eventually evolved into something beautiful. There was a time when Amy had shared that same enchantment and wonder as they sketched on the back of anything they had been able to dig out of their mother's purse and whispered in the dark about a time when they would unleash their designs and the fashion world wouldn't know what hit them. They had just been little girls, albeit little girls with big dreams, then. Yet, their childhood dreams had become reality and they had their grandfather to thank for that.

Joshua Morgan, the younger son of the late, manufacturing mogul, Harold James Morgan, was an accomplished artist. Some of his paintings were being featured in an exhibit at the Met later in the month. That was a testament to his talent, talent which she and Amy had been fortunate to inherit. Beyond that it was a testament to the power of finding your passion and believing in a dream you chose for yourself rather than one defined by family expectations or connections, society, or even gender or cultural norms. Those were the values that he had passed on to his granddaughters. Only one of his granddaughters seemed to have lost sight of those values and Chloe wanted to know why.

Amy had explained that she had tired of designing. When Chloe hadn't bought that she had claimed she had realized she just didn't have the talent to truly be successful. Chloe really hadn't bought that. She had seen her sister's senior portfolio, it was even better than the fledgling designer she had hired. She would have preferred to have hired Amy, but she had respected that her sister wanted to make her way in the fashion world on her own merit. So, she had celebrated Amy's offer at Forrester Creations in LA and looked forward to the day when she Amy could merge their design houses together and really take over the fashion world.

Now it looked like that dream might not be realized. Amy had become the Chief Operating Officer of Deception Cosmetics. Somehow it had been ok for Amy to use her cousin connections to get the job at Deception, but she couldn't come work for her. None of that made sense. Plus, Ned was vague and evasive whenever she asked about Amy. That was a sure clue that there was something more to her sister's abrupt career change than a loss of passion for designing. Amy had clearly picked the right person to confide in. Ned could stonewall with the best of them, even better than Chloe had remembered. That hurt because there had been a time when Amy had shared all of her secrets with Chloe. They were sisters that was how it was supposed to be. But it wasn't anymore and as she stood in the Versailles room Chloe was sure of that. She could acknowledge that, but she wasn't about to accept it.

As she solidified her vow Chloe shifted her gaze enough to realize that someone had been watching her reflective moment. She looked away quickly but not before her eyes connected with international playboy, Jasper Jacks. Her friend, Simon Prentiss, had introduced them a few years earlier when all their paths had crossed at a resort in Southern France. Jasper had informed her that all of his friends called him Jax. Out of respect for his friendship with Simon, Chloe had resisted the strong temptation to continue calling him Jasper. She didn't know him, but she knew his type -handsome, charming, easily bored, narcissistic, self involved, and, most importantly, incapable of sustained affection. He was exactly the kind of man she didn't need in her life and nothing had changed there.

When Chloe looked back across the room she realized Jax was coming towards her, without the model he had been parading around earlier. She merely shook her head as she turned herself and started in the direction of her Great Aunt Lila.