A/N: Thanks to all who left reviews and/or read Chapter 1. I don't want to give away any spoilers, but remember this is a Liason story.

I can't stand Sam, I can't stand Ric even more, but I absolutely despise Lucky, so if you are looking for them to be heroes and/or friends, this isn't going to be your story.

This will jump ahead to the wedding day.

I don't have an exact posting schedule, but I will try to update a couple of times a week. I haven't fleshed out exactly how many chapters.

The rating will be M and definitely have some NC-17 elements to it!

Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters and I am not affiliated with GH, ABC, Disney, or anything else.

Chapter 2

Spencer Family Home

March 22, 2007

Soft morning light filters through the lace curtains of the room. The room is bustling – dresses, makeup, laughter, a soft hum of nerves and anticipation. Elizabeth Webber stands in front of a mirror in her wedding gown, beautiful and radiant, but her smile doesn't quite reach her eyes. It is the smile she puts on for people, but it isn't really a smile.

Emily Quartermaine, Robin Scorpio, Kelly Lee, and Lainey Winters surround her – all close friends, helping, chatting, fussing. The vibe is celebratory, but there's an undercurrent – something unspoken in Elizabeth's stillness.

Turning her gently, Emily says, "you look perfect, Liz."

Robin adds, "like a dream. Lucky's going to lose it when he sees you."

The petite brunette nods, but her fingers fidget slightly at her side.

"And if he doesn't, we'll handle it. Medically." Kelly chimes in, causing the group to laugh.

Lainey says to her, "how are you feeling? Cold feet or just normal wedding butterflies?"

"I'm okay. Just… a lot of memories coming at me today." They all go quiet at the response, exchanging knowing glances.

Emily responds first, "it's okay to feel everything, Liz. It's a big day. A full day. Not just about now, but about everything that led you here." Elizabeth meets Emily's eyes in the mirror. Their bond is deeper than words, deeper than maid of honor duties – sisterly, understanding, rooted in so many shared memories over the years.

Robin picks it up from there, "you are allowed to feel all of it. The joy, the doubt, the past…"

"Especially the past," adds Kelly.

Elizabeth softly tells them, "I sent an invitation to Jason."

After a pause, Emily says, "I figured you would." The women are silent for a minute.

Lainey asks, "do you think he will come?"

The prospective bride looks at herself in the mirror, then down – her voice quiet, honest. "I don't know. But… part of me hopes he does."

The others leave Elizabeth alone in the room before the ceremony. It is very quiet, allowing Elizabeth to contemplate. The laughter and bustle fade behind the door. Elizabeth turns to the window and gazes out. Her eyes wander – not to the view outside, but inward to her own memories as she closes her eyes holding back unshed tears.

Flashback

Jake's

August 27, 1999

The bar is smoky, dim, and tense. An unsure energy lingers in the air as the 17-year-old enters the bar. She has been in her before, because her best friend's older brother had vouched for them. However, now, she is here alone, for the first time trying to forget the death of her boyfriend in a fire months before. Elizabeth is approached by a man who asks her if he can sit. Eventually, he asks her to dance, but as they do, he becomes more aggressive. Elizabeth resists his advances, and retreats, but she is also ready to fight. Then –

Jason Morgan shows up and grabs the guy by the arm taking him down to a knee and grabbing him by the throat. "Don't ever touch her again. Don't come within 10 feet of her"

The man responds, "I didn't know she was yours." He leaves quickly.

Elizabeth looks at Emily's older brother in anger. "Who asked you for help?"

"Hey, if you want to find trouble, and looking at the way you are, you are looking for trouble, that's none of my business. But the only reason you are in here is because I told Jake it was okay. As long, as long, as you didn't cause any trouble."

The small woman with the blue eyes and chestnut hair caught his attention. "Well, then I will go somewhere else. Do you know what nothing feels like?"

Jason simply responds, "yeah… it's where I live." He invites her to sit down, and the young woman opens up to the handsome man sitting across from her.

After talking for a long time, Jason looks at her and asks if she wants to go for a ride. Hesitantly, she goes outside with him. When they approach his bike, she realizes that this is the mode of transportation. She has never been on a bike before. Jason hands her helmet, but before she reaches for it, she asks, "where are we going?"

The blond responds simply, "nowhere."

Elizabeth takes the helmet and climbs on the back of the motorcycle putting both arms around his waist. Jason informs her to hold tight and lean into the turns. As soon as they were out of the parking lot, Elizabeth Webber knew she was safe on the back, and she was falling in love with Jason Morgan.

Flashback Ends

She looks down at her bouquet, then at her reflection in the mirror. There's a soft ache behind her smile, that only the man she gave heart to at Jake's can fix. Not regret exactly – just the imprint of a love that never fully went away, and one that she has been trying to deny to herself above all.

There is a knock at the door, which makes Elizabeth jump slightly. Emily enters the room.

"Elizabeth, it's time."

Elizabeth takes a steadying breath. Softly muttering to herself, "you always did show up when it mattered." She turns away from the mirror.

Emily doesn't quite hear her, "what was that?"

Elizabeth tries to change the subject by deflecting, "is everything okay?"

"That's my question for you."

Elizabeth turns back to the mirror with a shrug. "Just nerves. Wedding stuff."

"Liz…I know you."

Elizabeth exhales, her gaze lowering. A beat passes before she speaks. "It's not that I don't love Lucky, I do. He's steady. Familiar. We've come so far, but…"

"But he's not Jason."

Elizabeth's silence is the answer that Emily needed.

"You invited him."

Elizabeth finally looks at her, surprised – not that Emily knows, but that she understands. "I didn't expect him to come. I just… needed him to know."

The young resident walks over, takes her hand. "He knows. And I think you're hoping, even if you don't say it out loud, that he'll show up today. That maybe – just maybe – it's not too late."

Elizabeth blinks back sudden tears, swallowing hard. "Is that awful?'

"No. It's honest." She pauses for a second. "You and Jason… it was never simple. But it was real. That kind of connection doesn't just disappear because life got messy. Elizabeth, those of us who know you, we see it. The stolen glances at each other, the way you both light up when the other is in the room."

Elizabeth nods, quietly. "But it didn't work. It never worked."

"Maybe it didn't have the chance to. But you owe it to yourself – to Lucky – to know your heart's really here."

Liz wipes the corner of her eye, breathing through the weight of it all.

Emily continues, "if you walk down that aisle today, do it because, you're sure. Not because you're afraid to look back."

Elizabeth quietly and hesitantly, "what if I am?"

"Then maybe it's not time to walk down it."

They sit for a moment with neither friend saying another word in the stillness of their friendship and silence. Then, a soft knock on the door. A quiet voice:

Kelly peeks in, "They're ready for you downstairs."

Elizabeth doesn't move. She looks to Emily. "Do you think he's here?"

Emily meets her gaze, firm and kind. "I think he is; you will feel it before you see him."

Before Elizabeth can leave, her grandmother, Audrey Hardy, asks to see her alone. The older woman is elegant and composed in a soft blue dress. Her presence fills the room with calm. Even though Elizabeth and her Gram have had disagreements in the past, especially about Jason Morgan and his place in her life, they have always had a love for each other. Audrey has pretty much raised Elizabeth since she was 15. More mother figure than grandmother. "Sweetheart."

Elizabeth had softened at the sight of her grandmother. "Gram."

They embrace – gentle, long. Familiar.

Audrey steps back, holding her granddaughter's hands, looking at her like only someone who has watched her grow from a broken teenager to a mother, to a woman, can. "You look beautiful."

Elizabeth offers a small, grateful smile. But Audrey sees the flicker of hesitation in her eyes. And she doesn't let it pass. "But…I didn't come in here to tell you that." Elizabeth stiffens just slightly. Audrey's tone is kind, but honest. "I came to ask you something. Something no one else may have the courage to ask." Elizabeth nods slowly, already knowing. "Are you sure?" A pause before she continues, "are you sure this is the life you want? That your heart is walking down that aisle with you?"

Elizabeth's eyes fill – not with sadness, but with truth. The tears start to fall down her cheeks. "I want to be sure. I want to believe this is right."

Audrey gives her hand a soft squeeze. "But you are not."

Elizabeth lowers her eyes. Her voice is quiet. "There's a part of me that still wonders… about the life I didn't choose. The one I couldn't have. The man I can't be with. "

"Jason." Audrey knows her granddaughter better than Elizabeth thinks she does.

Elizabeth nods once, tears still streaming down her face. "It's not about going back. It's about… whether I ever really left."

Audrey brushes tears from her face with her thumb. "You are brave, Elizabeth. You always have been. But bravery isn't just standing at the altar – it's knowing when not to."

The brunette with the blue eyes breathes deep, her voice barely a whisper. "What if I don't know what I want?"

"Then wait until you do."

A knock at the door, Emily has come back to check on Liz. She thought she was coming down already. "Liz? It's time."

Elizabeth turns toward the door – but she doesn't move. She looks at Gram. "Would it be selfish… to stop?"

Her grandmother shakes her head, "no, darling, it would be honest."