The Inheritance Contract
AN: Hello all! This is my first foray into the General Hospital world. I have been a huge Liason fan since the beginning. What Steve and Becky bring to the screen is absolute magic. My heart is really hoping for a Liason reunion in the very near future (Fingers and toes crossed). I am not new to writing fan fiction by any means. So, I hope if you like this one, you will check out my other fics. I currently have 2 other WIPs going along with this one. Kinda ran out of steam on them, but I will be finishing them. Anyways, hope you like this first chapter. Not sure of the length as I don't typically plan that out. Like and review to show me the love!
Summary: According to his Grandfather Edward's will, Jason Morgan has 1 year from his death to marry and produce an heir or risk losing his inheritance forever. Enter his little sister's best friend, Elizabeth Webber. Having been burned by her boyfriend, Liz agrees to enter into a contract of convenience with Jason. But, as the two get to know each other better, they realize they just might be what the other needs. AU. No mob. Aged up characters.
Prologue
2 years prior
Edward Quartermaine stared down his son, Dr. Alan Quartermaine. "Damn it, Alan! It is high time that Jason grows up and takes his proper place in the company. ELQ will not fall because he can't be bothered to learn the business. He needs to stop all this nonsense of running that bike shop of his! A bike shop of all things! He is a Quartermaine, not some thug on the street like that reprobate Sonny Corinthos! It is time he took the Quartermaine name seriously and appreciates what it stands for!"
Alan sighed before pinching the bridge of his nose. This was a long standing argument with his father and there was never a good answer to it. Jason was a product of an affair that Alan had years ago with a woman named Susan Moore. After her death, Alan had brought Jason home and raised him beside his other son, AJ. His wife, Monica had at first resented Jason and had made her feelings plainly known. Over time, she had learned to love the boy, and now considers him her son.
Jason and AJ were like oil and water. AJ hated the fact that Jason was blatantly favored over himself. Jason was studying to become a doctor like his parents and AJ was drinking himself into an early death. Then, 2 years ago, fate stepped in and changed everything.
Just before Christmas, AJ and Jason had been in a car accident. AJ was drunk behind the wheel, and Jason had tried to stop him. AJ crashed the car into a tree. Jason, not having a seatbelt on, was thrown from the car. His head struck a tree stump, and as he lay in the snow, barely conscious, he could hear his cousin Ned calling his name, but he was too disoriented to answer.
Ned finally found them and immediately called 911. Jason was taken to General Hospital where they determined he had suffered some brain damage but they wouldn't know the extent until he woke up. AJ was taken to jail for drunk driving and willful endangerment. Alan and Monica sent AJ to rehab immediately after his release from jail.
For several weeks, Jason was in a coma. Finally, he opened his eyes and saw his family standing there. Jason remembered who they were, but couldn't remember the events leading up to the accident. When pressed further, it was discovered that he also now had trouble with 2 dimensional objects such as pictures or maps. His brain could no longer process certain information. He also had problems with his impulse control and as a result, would lash out unexpectedly. He blamed Alan and Monica for not getting AJ the help that he needed before everything fell apart.
As a result of all of these things, Jason realized his dream of becoming a doctor would never happen, and he began to push his family away. He felt like a disappointment and a failure and didn't know how to handle it or how to fix it. He also felt that he was now a blemish on the Quartermaine name and changed his name to Jason Morgan, using his middle name as his new last name. He moved out of the mansion and took a job on the docks. He worked there for several months before he earned enough money to open a small shop for repairing motorcycles. He had found that he enjoyed the work and strove to make it a bigger business.
Edward fought vehemently to get Jason back into the Quartermaine fold, but the only ones he still willingly sought out were his Grandmother Lila, his younger sister Emily and his cousin Ned. They were the only ones who had completely accepted the differences in him and the difficulties he now faced because of it.
"Father, I understand you want Jason to come back to the family, but he has made it clear he doesn't want anything to do with ELQ or most all of us. He is a grown man. We can't force him to do what he clearly doesn't want to."
A sly smile crossed Edwards lips. "Don't be so sure of that, Alan. I may have just the answer."
Alan eyed his father. Wearily he asked, "What do you have in mind?"
A gleam entered Edwards' eye. "You shall see, my boy. You shall see…"