I know, I know it’s been forever since I’ve updated this story but there I was washing dishes (something I detest so I was looking for a happy place while I did it.) and I started thinking about this story and suddenly I was inspired.
This story is moving almost one year into the future eventually, but it does jump around in time. Don't get too caught up in dates yet. When we last left our couple they had just moved in together and Elizabeth never went to sleep in her room since the last time we left them. We are going to move into the next phase of this story and that is getting these two hitched! So this next arc is pretty much leading up to all of that. But me being me you know there are going to be bumps and bruises along the way. Let the games begin!
Chapter 71
Elizabeth adjusted the bag on her shoulder as she walked to her front door while trying to hold her cellphone between her shoulder and her ear. It had been a long day with first going to work, then driving to Crimson Point for class and then finally driving home. She was halfway there when her phone rang with her friend Sheila on the other end going a mile a minute. She was going on and on about how fabulous her induction ceremony into the prestigious Fine Arts Society of NYU. Elizabeth had been interested in joining the society ever since last year when she returned back to school after her hiatus. She learned that it was by invitation only and you had to put yourself out there to be recognized in order for them to even consider you.
So that was what she did. She attended every art show at NYU, in New York City and even Port Charles with poor Jason being dragged to every event, hoping that her name would get out there and people would start to recognize her talent. Her boyfriend had been very supportive of her newest endeavor. He drove her when she had events in Manhattan without complaining. Sure there was eye rolling and she even caught him yawning a few times but she still appreciated his efforts and always tried to reward him for a job well done when they returned from whatever function she had dragged him out too. Which was why she had to get Sheila off the phone before she entered the house. She had to give Jason his reward for driving her out to Crimson Point on short notice last night after she heard of an event that had all the major people of the society in attendance. Elizabeth hated having to put herself out there and try to make small talk with people she’s never met but when she had Jason there by her side she somehow got the confidence she needed to walk up to virtual strangers and start talking to them about art as if she had been studying it since birth. She was learning a lot about art in her classes but some of these people were world renowned scholars who’ve not only studied the art they’ve traveled all over the world and seen it up close and personal and not just in a book like she had done.
But the event in Crimson Point had been a success and that was partially due to Jason who somehow had a mixed group of professors and students enthralled in conversation. Which shouldn’t have been a surprised. Jason always had a way of charming everyone he encountered.
It started with a simple conversation in front of a painting and next thing she knew everyone was interested in Jason’s take on several pieces. He had even impressed Elizabeth with his viewpoint. But being the man he was he had managed to have everyone convinced that the only reason he could understand anything was because of the way Elizabeth explained them to him. Everyone including Elizabeth sighed and she vowed she was going to give a major reward when they got home but after a long day she had passed out the minute they got into the car and didn’t wake up until 6am. She apologized profusely to Jason and promised him she would make it up to him after class tonight.
So here she was listening to Sheila go on and on about society. She was happy for her friend but wondered why she wasn’t chosen for the last summer’s class. They only had inductions once a year but she had heard rumblings from people she had gotten to know in the society that there might be another one this year since they had so many “fine candidates” she was told. She wasn’t going to hold her breath. Besides she had other things to keep her mind occupied in the mean time. Besides work and school, Jason’s cousin Justus was getting married. Apparently he had found a woman and proposed in a matter of months and now they were getting married in November, which was 2 months away; on Jason’s birthday.
After helping plan her brother and Carly’s wedding, Elizabeth had sworn off any wedding planning unless it was for her own wedding. So she pretty much stayed out of any wedding conversation except where it pertained to Jason who was the best man. Luckily for her men just weren’t too much into wedding talk which right now suit her just fine. Although she often did have pangs of thoughts of if and when Jason would propose. She didn’t think about it often but it seemed like everyone around her was getting engaged or married. Her last roommate Michelle’s wedding was fast approaching in the spring, right around her and Jason’s two-year anniversary. She wasn’t expecting him to propose, it was still too soon for them but the fact that marriage almost never came up did alarm her a little but she didn’t dwell on it.
But after her friend Sheila had announced that she and her boyfriend of four years were now engaged, Elizabeth just knew there was a conspiracy out there. And it didn’t help that her parents, grandmother and Carly all asked her on a weekly basis when she and Jason were going to get engaged. Like she had any control on whether the man intended to propose or not. She knew she was never going to be one of those females that gave their men ultimatums when it came to commitments. It was either he wanted too or not. She knew one day they had to talk about their future together but she just wasn’t ready to do it tonight.
“Sheila, Sheila my phone is breaking up I can’t hear you anymore.” She said shifting the book bag again. Why did she have to have so many books? “Yeah I’m home.” She said after a moment. Her phone always had bad reception near her home and was dropping calls the minute she walked into their townhouse. On most days it was annoying but today it was a godsend. She loved Sheila but give her a chance and she’ll talk a hold into your head.
“Oh well then I’ll let you go and be with your baby tonight,” Sheila told her. Elizabeth blushed as if Sheila knew what exactly she had planned for her baby tonight.
“Okay I will. Talk to you tomorrow.” She said before hanging up and entering the house.
“Honey,” She called out.
“In here,” Jason answered from the kitchen. It was then when Elizabeth smelled the food cooking and her stomach started rumbling.
“Oh that smells so good. What are you making?” She asked as she walked up to him and kissed him on the cheek as he stirred his pot.
“Orange and carrot soup,” He answered with a bright smile on his face. Elizabeth tried not to frown but she was too hungry for his experiments tonight. He had taken up The Food Channel in the last few months and had gone out and bought a slew of cookbooks and every so often would try out some new stuff. Sometimes they were fabulous and other times they were just downright awful. And looking at the bright orange concoction he was stirring she had a feeling it was going to be the latter tonight.
“Oh,” She said suddenly wishing she had stopped at the Chicken Shack for some wings.
“Oh come on, don’t say it like that, it’s going to be good. You just wait and see.” He said kissing the top of her head and going back to his soup. “How was class tonight?”
“It was fine. Same old, same old,” she said kicking off her shoes and throwing the bag on the floor. ”I just can’t wait for it all to be over. Just one more semester after this one and I will be graduating with my master’s degree. No clue what I’ll be doing after that but at least that part of the journey will be over.” She said as slid onto a stool on the other side of the island. She slouched over and put both her hands under her chin and stared at Jason’s back. He was so hot. She thought as she looked him up and down.
“Are you staring at my butt?” He asked without turning around. She laughed and wondered how he always knew when she was admiring his back side.
“Yes I am. It’s the highlight of my day,” she said.
“Well whatever I can do to help,” he said shaking his hips back and forth making her laugh some more. This was exactly what she needed after a long day. She hoped dinner was almost done so she could take him upstairs and have her way with him. Sex between them had gone leaps and bounds from when they first started. Elizabeth remembered when she was afraid for him to even attempt to enter her now she had to order him to enter when she got tired of the foreplay. They had graduated from missionary position and her on top to doing it with him sitting in chair while she rode him, they’ve done it side to side, he behind her, on the floor, on the kitchen table, they’ve even attempted to do it while the machine was on the spin cycle but it was just too uncomfortable.
Tonight she wanted to try something different. She had always wanted to do it outdoors and they had a balcony off the room that Jason used as his office. It faced the parking lot but there were no lights around there and if they were really quiet no one would even know they were up there, she thought with a smirk.
“What are you thinking about over there,” she heard Jason ask through her thoughts.
“Dessert,” she said looking at him as she licked her lips.
~*~*~*~*~*~*
Elizabeth collapsed on the bed exhausted from their last round of lovemaking. Tonight they had decided to try a couple different positions and she was spent. She couldn’t believe the things Jason had her doing when they made love. But she was glad she did. Not only did it bring them both pleasure but it made her more confident in her abilities and that made her more willing to let go and let loose on Jason. Which he thoroughly enjoyed also. She looked over at her boyfriend who seemed to be snoring softly from his spot. He looked so peaceful when he was sleeping. She thought about how perfect the last few months had been. Things seemed to be going well for her in her relationship, at school and with her family. Patrick had moved back to Port Charles after graduating from medical school. They had traveled to Maryland back in December to attend is graduation. Jason was so glad that Patrick’s father had sobered up enough to attend his son’s graduation. It was a big accomplishment for him and was glad for his friend that everyone he loved and cared about was there, even Robin Scorpio.
Elizabeth was a little shocked to see her old friend and roommate at the graduation. She had no idea that she and Patrick were back on again. Last she heard the girl had moved back to Florida and to finish her schooling and attend medical school. Jason failed to mention that she had transferred. And even more shocking was that the girl planned on following Patrick to New York in a year, as soon as she was done with medical school. When Elizabeth questioned her boyfriend all he would say was “don’t ask.” That let her know that her boyfriend was just perplexed as she when it came to Patrick and Robin. So Elizabeth dropped it and was glad that Patrick never brought her up when she was in their company.
Her brother and Jason had been getting a long a lot better the last few months also. Elizabeth couldn’t begin to tell how relieved she was that her brother found something else to occupy his time. She had no clue what it was but as long as it wasn’t harassing Jason she didn’t care. They did see Carly and Steven a few weeks ago at Carly’s birthday party. Steven had the party hosted at an old family friend’s Cruz Rodriquez and his wife Kate Howard, a magazine editor home. She and her husband graciously hosted the party for Carly and Steven.
Everyone seemed to be having a great time but the fact that Steven was hardly ever at Carly’s side the whole night was not lost on Elizabeth. She just chalked it up to the fact that Carly was being her usual social butterfly self and just floated around the party while Steven sat outside with the rest of men playing dominoes and drinking beer. She chuckled as she remembered Jason and Steven teaming up to take down Kate’s husband Cruz Rodriquez and his teammate. Watching them play one would have never known that the two men had a strong disliking for each other.
“What’s so funny over there?” She heard Jason ask as she felt the mattress dip from Jason turning to face her.
“I thought you were asleep.”
“I was until I heard your angelic voice.”
She looked him and smiled brightly. She loved him so much. “I was just thinking about Carly’s birthday party and how you and my brother were so into your game. It was nice seeing you two work on the same side for a common goal. Even if it was to annihilate the competition.” She said laughing at her boyfriend’s competitive streak.
“Oh I know you aren’t talking. Nothing matches the Webber competitive streak. I thought you were going to fight Carly when she caused the girl’s team to lose to the men in Taboo .
He was right. Webber’s hated to lose. “Oh come on Jason how hard is it to get people to guess Oprah Winfrey. All she had to say is she’s got a big head, richer than 95% of people on the planet and is on God’s consultant team. Ugh!” She said finding herself get worked up again as she was on that night. She did feel bad afterward for berating Carly and apologized to her for her behavior.
“I said I was sorry.” She said pouting.
“Yes you did. I was very proud of you for owning up to your behavior.”
“But you still punished me that evening.”
“Yes I did,” he said rolling on top her.
“Um Jason you know that kind of punishment is only going to make me behave badly even more, right?”
“That’s what I’m counting on.”
~*~*~**~*~*~*~*~*~*
Elizabeth couldn’t believe what her sister in law was telling her as she walked around the lake at the park near her job. She had got a frantic call from Carly who sounded upset and Elizabeth needed some privacy to talk to her. So she took a break and walked over to the park to hear her out. But what her sister-in-law was saying just wasn’t making any sense.
“Oh, my God Carly…. are you sure?”
Elizabeth couldn’t hear an answer over the woman’s tears.
“Are you sure?” She asks again.
“Yeah,” Elizabeth could hear through the sobs. She eyes a bench near the pond and began to make her way towards it while cradling the phone closer to her ear as if that would make what she was hearing make more sense.
“I found some emails and I confronted him.”
“I can’t believe that Steven is cheating on you.” Elizabeth said suddenly feeling the need to sit down.
“He tried to deny it at first. Saying they were just flirty emails. But I’m not stupid Elizabeth.” She said through her sobs. “I’m sorry I know he’s your brother but I don’t know who else to talk to.”
“No it’s alright. I’m just in shock. Oh Carly….I didn’t think my brother had it in him.” Elizabeth said trying to wrap her head around the fact that her brother was having an affair. He and Carly seemed so in love. What is there to say about love when your partner would cheat on you before his second wedding anniversary? “I’m so sorry,” she whispers into the phone over and over as she listens to her brother’s wife cry her eyes out.
“Do you know who it was with?” She asked Carly. Maybe the person he was having an affair with could make things more clear. “I mean if you want to talk, if not that’s fine also if you’re not ready.”
She could tell Carly was struggling to get the words out and felt bad for pressuring her to talk.
“It’s Kate Howard, Elizabeth. My husband was having an affair with that stuck up bitch.”
“Kate?” Elizabeth echoed. The woman who just hosted Carly’s birthday party a few weeks ago. Her brother couldn’t be that crass could he? “Kate? Are you sure Carly?” She asked again. She didn’t seem her brother’s type at all.
“Yes, of course he didn’t call it an affair. He said it was just one time.”
“Do you believe him?” Elizabeth asked. She couldn’t imagine being cheated on. She didn’t have much experience in relationships but she knew something like this had to tear at your very core.
“I don’t care,” she said as she blew her nose. “It might as well have been a hundred times. But he says it was only once….that he only had sex with her only once.”
Elizabeth could tell the words were slicing through Carly. Her heart really did go out to the woman. No matter how unbearable she could be at times she did not deserve this. Elizabeth had always looked up to her brother growing up. She followed him all the way to Port Charles just to be near him. But after the Jason fiasco and now this she was seeing her brother in a whole new light, and she didn’t like what she saw.
“He said he ended things with her and wants to be with me.”
“Okay, Okay.” Elizabeth said thinking that not all was lost.
“Okay?” She heard Carly ask.
“Well if he ended it that means he wants to be with you, not her. He’s not leaving you.” She said trying to stay optimistic.
“Oh no he left. I kicked his sorry ass out. He’s gone.” Carly informed her.
Just like that her optimism was just as gone as her brother. She wondered where did he go and why she hadn’t heard from him. “But I don’t understand Carly, he obviously doesn’t want to be with her.”
“Oh he wanted to be with her, badly.” She said in a way that let Elizabeth know exactly what she meant.
“Okay, but only once. He realized it was a mistake and now realizes he wants you. I’m not trying to make it seem that this isn’t a big deal Carly but you guys can get past this.” Elizabeth said not quite believing it herself. She never thought about what would happen if she was ever in that predicament so she was finding it hard to talk her friend through this.
I don’t think so Elizabeth. My husband was with another woman, he screwed another woman,” Carly said starting to become hysterical on the phone once again.
“I know, I know,” Elizabeth said trying to calm her down. This was all new territory for her and she obviously wasn’t saying the right things to Carly to comfort her. “I’m not diminishing it at all. What my brother did was wrong. But at least he ended it. Doesn’t that count for anything?”
“So he says. Who’s to say she didn’t end things with him or worse they could be still sneaking behind my back. Hell he could have left our house and crawled back into bed with her skanky ass and screwing her this very second.”
“No way Carly,” Elizabeth says even though she has no idea when he came to her brother and the truth is he could actually be with her. She didn’t know where he was but when she did track him down she was going to kick his ass.
“How do you know he’s not with her?” Carly asked sounding like she desperately needed to know her husband wasn’t in bed with his mistress.
“Because he loves you Carly, I know it may not seem like it right now but I’ve seen my brother with you. There’s no way he was just faking it or going through the motions. That I know. You have to hold on to that, you have to remember that he loves you.” Elizabeth said hoping she was helping Carly.
“That’s bull Elizabeth. He loves his job, he loves that hospital, he loves himself. He sure enough doesn’t not love me or else he wouldn’t have done this.”
“Are you going to leave him?” Elizabeth practically whispered into the phone as if the answer was going to alter the rest of her life. In some ways it could. It could alter everything she thought about love and marriage. You were supposed to find your soul mate, fall in love get married and live happily ever after. It wasn’t supposed to crash and burn after a year and half.
“I don’t know.” After a beat she continued. “The only saving grace in all of this is that we don’t have kids. Can you imagine explaining to children why daddy isn’t going to live with us anymore?”
No she couldn’t imagine. Thankfully for her, her parents were still married to each other. Although Steven had a rocky upbringing with his mom splitting from their father to be with her mother. It could be that had affected him more than anyone of them had ever voiced out loud.
“I’m so sorry Carly,” was all she could contribute to the conversation. After listening to her brother’s wife cry over the phone for another half hour Elizabeth vowed she was going to find her brother and get to the bottom of this whole affair.
She also couldn’t help think back to when she first met Jason, as she listened to her sister in law cry about how her husband had developed feelings for someone while they were supposed to be together. For a moment she pictured it was Candace who found out that Jason was seeing Elizabeth behind her back. Although she and Jason never slept together while he was with her they had done enough to constitute him a cheater and she the other woman. She shuddered at that thought. She could rationalize it and say she didn’t know that Jason had a girlfriend when they first met, but then it didn’t stop her afterwards either.
She may have never liked Candace but Elizabeth and Jason’s friendship hadn’t been fair to her. Not that Elizabeth would ever tell her that if she ever spoke to the woman. Candace was still a bitch after all.
But listening to Carly go on and on about this woman and how she had sat in her house laughing and eating in her husband’s mistresses’ house she couldn’t help feel a little pang of guilt about the whole situation. But she had bigger fish to fry. She pushed her own feelings and thoughts out of her mind and concentrated on finding her brother. He had a lot of explaining to do.
~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*
“So you’re seriously going to ask Robin to marry you?” Johnny asked shocked when Patrick announced it at the bar.
“Yeah, she wouldn’t move all the way to New York without some kind of commitment.” He answered as he moved around the pool table to line up his next shot.
“That’s no reason to marry her. Jeez Patrick, a little extreme don’t you think?” Johnny said as he watched his friend strike the cue ball and miss his target. He was always terrible at billards.
Patrick stood up straight and shrugged at his friend. “Hey, all she said was that she wasn’t coming without a ring, so I got her one.” He said grabbing his beer and taking a swig of it.
“That’s messed up Patrick,” Johnny said laughing at his friend’s ridiculous idea.
Jason stayed silent while he listened to his friends go back and forth. He found Johnny’s objection to Patrick marrying Robin for the wrong reason a little ironic considering his predicament. He wondered if Patrick was aware of Johnny’s situation.
“Jason will you say something,” Johnny started as Jason was chalking up his cue stick.”Tell him that he’s making a mistake.” He placed it back down and just eyed his target and hit the ball before joining the conversation.
“Well,” he started as his solid purple ball made its way into its slot. “I guess it could be worse…. he could be contemplating marrying virtual stranger because she was pregnant.” He said carefully eyeing Johnny who simply rolled his eyes.
Patrick eyed the two men and realized that he was missing some very important information going on with Johnny. “What?”
“Nothing don’t listen to Jason,” Johnny said taking his turn to sink a ball.
“No,” he said pulling Johnny’s stick out of his hands and holding it behind him. “Talk Johnny, a stranger? Pregnant? You have a lot of explaining to do.”
Johnny took a sigh and gave Jason a dirty look before turning back to his other best friend.
“You remember that girl I met on the internet?” Johnny said taking a seat on the side of the pool table.
“The one from Iowa?” He asked with a raised brow.
“Yeah Sam, turns out after my last visit I left her with a parting gift,” Johnny mumbled.
Patrick looked to Jason for what he didn’t know. He wasn’t there.
“What? When?” Patrick asked.
“It happened during Valentine’s Day weekend. We were drunk, forgot to put on a condom next thing I know I’m getting a phone call telling me she’s late.”
“Shit.” Patrick said suddenly not feeling like playing pool anymore. “How come you know about this and I didn’t,” Patrick said turning to Jason as they all took a seat back at their table.
“I think my name comes before yours on his phone list. Otherwise I’m sure you would have been first to know Patty boy.” Jason said slapping his friend on the back. Jason was a little surprised that Johnny hadn’t informed Patrick since they were roommates now. Over the years Johnny was always closer to Patrick to than to him. Jason was close to Patrick but that was because they were inseparable growing up by the time Johnny joined their group Jason had already decided that one friend was enough to confide in, he didn’t need anyone else to pour his feelings out too. That was never his style. If he needed advice he’d ask Patrick and move along. It was usually Patrick who informed Johnny of whatever Jason was going through and then he would approach Jason to give his advice. But lately he hadn’t confided in either of them about much lately, not since Elizabeth had walked into his life. He was finding himself turning to her before he’d even think about sharing with Patrick or Johnny.
“What are you going to do Johnny?”
Jason listened as Johnny explained to Patrick that he was going to do right by the woman and marry her. He laughed when Patrick thought it was a bad idea considering he was just telling them how he was going to propose to Robin just so she would move back to New York. Jason really didn’t have an opinion or at least one he was going to share, but he did think that both men were jumping into this marriage thing head first without thinking it all the way through. Marrying someone for the wrong reason never worked out for anyone. He had seen his mother struggle after his father decided that being married to his mother was a mistake. Watching his father take off was something he would remember for the rest of his life. He had wanted to ask Johnny if he was sure about his decision but he realized that it wasn’t his place to question his choices.
He just wondered how they were all going to live together in the townhouse that Johnny and Patrick had purchased together when Patrick moved back to New York.
As he watched his friends each talk about their situations he began to wonder when did he and Elizabeth’s relationship become the normal one out of them all. He was so relieved that she hadn’t caught the wedding fever and questioning him about it. He liked where they were in their relationship and wanted to keep it that way for as long as he could.
Speaking of Elizabeth, after listening to Patrick and Johnny’s love stories of woe all he wanted to do was get home to his girlfriend and be with her. Their sex life had jump leaps and bounds in the last year. She was coming out of her shell beautifully and he couldn’t be more pleased. He was hoping they could go couple rounds tonight.
He pulled out his cellphone to check the time and realized that he had missed two calls from Elizabeth. He knew she hated it when he didn’t answer his phone when she called. Something about her mind going to dark places and seeing him wrapped around a tree. He thought she was being silly but he always tried to stay mindful to make sure he answered when she called or at least call her back as soon as possible.
He dialed her number and she answered on the second ring.
“Jason,” she said sounding as if she was racing to get to the phone.
“Hey what’s up?” He said motioning to his friends he was going to take the call outside. Something in Elizabeth’s voice told him that something was wrong.
“Are you having fun?” she asked.
“Yeah, but I miss you.”
“I miss you too.”
“Elizabeth what’s wrong?” He asked sure that something was bothering her.
“I don’t mean to cut your guy’s night out short or anything but I was wondering if you could come home.” There was a pause. “I need you.”
“Are you alright?” He asked when he heard the vulnerability in her voice. She was hurting. He frowned at that. He hated to see her upset about anything but he was glad to be the one she turned to when she needed to talk. Seemed like they had become confidants for each other. That thought made him feel good. He liked that she leaned on him.
“Yeah, I’m fine. It’s just I learned some devastating news today and really need to talk to you.” He heard her say solemnly.
“But you’re okay right?” He asked becoming increasingly concerned.
“Yeah, yeah I’m fine. I found out today that my brother is having an affair.”
Jason sighed. So much for coming out of shells tonight. “Alright I’m on my way,” he said going back inside to let his friends know that he had to go. He looked at his two buddies commiserating about their love lives and thought about what Elizabeth just told him about her brother and wondered if every man on the planet had gone mad and if they had he hoped he didn’t catch it.
~*~*~*~*
A/N
Oh I know I had promised, (well promised myself in my head) that Sam McCall would not appear in this story but she just fit. Now remember this story is AU so let's try not to hate on her too much. LOL
No worries she will never be interested, hit on, or even look too longingly at Jason in this story and neither will he. That is a guarantee.
This story is moving almost one year into the future eventually, but it does jump around in time. Don't get too caught up in dates yet. When we last left our couple they had just moved in together and Elizabeth never went to sleep in her room since the last time we left them. We are going to move into the next phase of this story and that is getting these two hitched! So this next arc is pretty much leading up to all of that. But me being me you know there are going to be bumps and bruises along the way. Let the games begin!
Chapter 71
Elizabeth adjusted the bag on her shoulder as she walked to her front door while trying to hold her cellphone between her shoulder and her ear. It had been a long day with first going to work, then driving to Crimson Point for class and then finally driving home. She was halfway there when her phone rang with her friend Sheila on the other end going a mile a minute. She was going on and on about how fabulous her induction ceremony into the prestigious Fine Arts Society of NYU. Elizabeth had been interested in joining the society ever since last year when she returned back to school after her hiatus. She learned that it was by invitation only and you had to put yourself out there to be recognized in order for them to even consider you.
So that was what she did. She attended every art show at NYU, in New York City and even Port Charles with poor Jason being dragged to every event, hoping that her name would get out there and people would start to recognize her talent. Her boyfriend had been very supportive of her newest endeavor. He drove her when she had events in Manhattan without complaining. Sure there was eye rolling and she even caught him yawning a few times but she still appreciated his efforts and always tried to reward him for a job well done when they returned from whatever function she had dragged him out too. Which was why she had to get Sheila off the phone before she entered the house. She had to give Jason his reward for driving her out to Crimson Point on short notice last night after she heard of an event that had all the major people of the society in attendance. Elizabeth hated having to put herself out there and try to make small talk with people she’s never met but when she had Jason there by her side she somehow got the confidence she needed to walk up to virtual strangers and start talking to them about art as if she had been studying it since birth. She was learning a lot about art in her classes but some of these people were world renowned scholars who’ve not only studied the art they’ve traveled all over the world and seen it up close and personal and not just in a book like she had done.
But the event in Crimson Point had been a success and that was partially due to Jason who somehow had a mixed group of professors and students enthralled in conversation. Which shouldn’t have been a surprised. Jason always had a way of charming everyone he encountered.
It started with a simple conversation in front of a painting and next thing she knew everyone was interested in Jason’s take on several pieces. He had even impressed Elizabeth with his viewpoint. But being the man he was he had managed to have everyone convinced that the only reason he could understand anything was because of the way Elizabeth explained them to him. Everyone including Elizabeth sighed and she vowed she was going to give a major reward when they got home but after a long day she had passed out the minute they got into the car and didn’t wake up until 6am. She apologized profusely to Jason and promised him she would make it up to him after class tonight.
So here she was listening to Sheila go on and on about society. She was happy for her friend but wondered why she wasn’t chosen for the last summer’s class. They only had inductions once a year but she had heard rumblings from people she had gotten to know in the society that there might be another one this year since they had so many “fine candidates” she was told. She wasn’t going to hold her breath. Besides she had other things to keep her mind occupied in the mean time. Besides work and school, Jason’s cousin Justus was getting married. Apparently he had found a woman and proposed in a matter of months and now they were getting married in November, which was 2 months away; on Jason’s birthday.
After helping plan her brother and Carly’s wedding, Elizabeth had sworn off any wedding planning unless it was for her own wedding. So she pretty much stayed out of any wedding conversation except where it pertained to Jason who was the best man. Luckily for her men just weren’t too much into wedding talk which right now suit her just fine. Although she often did have pangs of thoughts of if and when Jason would propose. She didn’t think about it often but it seemed like everyone around her was getting engaged or married. Her last roommate Michelle’s wedding was fast approaching in the spring, right around her and Jason’s two-year anniversary. She wasn’t expecting him to propose, it was still too soon for them but the fact that marriage almost never came up did alarm her a little but she didn’t dwell on it.
But after her friend Sheila had announced that she and her boyfriend of four years were now engaged, Elizabeth just knew there was a conspiracy out there. And it didn’t help that her parents, grandmother and Carly all asked her on a weekly basis when she and Jason were going to get engaged. Like she had any control on whether the man intended to propose or not. She knew she was never going to be one of those females that gave their men ultimatums when it came to commitments. It was either he wanted too or not. She knew one day they had to talk about their future together but she just wasn’t ready to do it tonight.
“Sheila, Sheila my phone is breaking up I can’t hear you anymore.” She said shifting the book bag again. Why did she have to have so many books? “Yeah I’m home.” She said after a moment. Her phone always had bad reception near her home and was dropping calls the minute she walked into their townhouse. On most days it was annoying but today it was a godsend. She loved Sheila but give her a chance and she’ll talk a hold into your head.
“Oh well then I’ll let you go and be with your baby tonight,” Sheila told her. Elizabeth blushed as if Sheila knew what exactly she had planned for her baby tonight.
“Okay I will. Talk to you tomorrow.” She said before hanging up and entering the house.
“Honey,” She called out.
“In here,” Jason answered from the kitchen. It was then when Elizabeth smelled the food cooking and her stomach started rumbling.
“Oh that smells so good. What are you making?” She asked as she walked up to him and kissed him on the cheek as he stirred his pot.
“Orange and carrot soup,” He answered with a bright smile on his face. Elizabeth tried not to frown but she was too hungry for his experiments tonight. He had taken up The Food Channel in the last few months and had gone out and bought a slew of cookbooks and every so often would try out some new stuff. Sometimes they were fabulous and other times they were just downright awful. And looking at the bright orange concoction he was stirring she had a feeling it was going to be the latter tonight.
“Oh,” She said suddenly wishing she had stopped at the Chicken Shack for some wings.
“Oh come on, don’t say it like that, it’s going to be good. You just wait and see.” He said kissing the top of her head and going back to his soup. “How was class tonight?”
“It was fine. Same old, same old,” she said kicking off her shoes and throwing the bag on the floor. ”I just can’t wait for it all to be over. Just one more semester after this one and I will be graduating with my master’s degree. No clue what I’ll be doing after that but at least that part of the journey will be over.” She said as slid onto a stool on the other side of the island. She slouched over and put both her hands under her chin and stared at Jason’s back. He was so hot. She thought as she looked him up and down.
“Are you staring at my butt?” He asked without turning around. She laughed and wondered how he always knew when she was admiring his back side.
“Yes I am. It’s the highlight of my day,” she said.
“Well whatever I can do to help,” he said shaking his hips back and forth making her laugh some more. This was exactly what she needed after a long day. She hoped dinner was almost done so she could take him upstairs and have her way with him. Sex between them had gone leaps and bounds from when they first started. Elizabeth remembered when she was afraid for him to even attempt to enter her now she had to order him to enter when she got tired of the foreplay. They had graduated from missionary position and her on top to doing it with him sitting in chair while she rode him, they’ve done it side to side, he behind her, on the floor, on the kitchen table, they’ve even attempted to do it while the machine was on the spin cycle but it was just too uncomfortable.
Tonight she wanted to try something different. She had always wanted to do it outdoors and they had a balcony off the room that Jason used as his office. It faced the parking lot but there were no lights around there and if they were really quiet no one would even know they were up there, she thought with a smirk.
“What are you thinking about over there,” she heard Jason ask through her thoughts.
“Dessert,” she said looking at him as she licked her lips.
~*~*~*~*~*~*
Elizabeth collapsed on the bed exhausted from their last round of lovemaking. Tonight they had decided to try a couple different positions and she was spent. She couldn’t believe the things Jason had her doing when they made love. But she was glad she did. Not only did it bring them both pleasure but it made her more confident in her abilities and that made her more willing to let go and let loose on Jason. Which he thoroughly enjoyed also. She looked over at her boyfriend who seemed to be snoring softly from his spot. He looked so peaceful when he was sleeping. She thought about how perfect the last few months had been. Things seemed to be going well for her in her relationship, at school and with her family. Patrick had moved back to Port Charles after graduating from medical school. They had traveled to Maryland back in December to attend is graduation. Jason was so glad that Patrick’s father had sobered up enough to attend his son’s graduation. It was a big accomplishment for him and was glad for his friend that everyone he loved and cared about was there, even Robin Scorpio.
Elizabeth was a little shocked to see her old friend and roommate at the graduation. She had no idea that she and Patrick were back on again. Last she heard the girl had moved back to Florida and to finish her schooling and attend medical school. Jason failed to mention that she had transferred. And even more shocking was that the girl planned on following Patrick to New York in a year, as soon as she was done with medical school. When Elizabeth questioned her boyfriend all he would say was “don’t ask.” That let her know that her boyfriend was just perplexed as she when it came to Patrick and Robin. So Elizabeth dropped it and was glad that Patrick never brought her up when she was in their company.
Her brother and Jason had been getting a long a lot better the last few months also. Elizabeth couldn’t begin to tell how relieved she was that her brother found something else to occupy his time. She had no clue what it was but as long as it wasn’t harassing Jason she didn’t care. They did see Carly and Steven a few weeks ago at Carly’s birthday party. Steven had the party hosted at an old family friend’s Cruz Rodriquez and his wife Kate Howard, a magazine editor home. She and her husband graciously hosted the party for Carly and Steven.
Everyone seemed to be having a great time but the fact that Steven was hardly ever at Carly’s side the whole night was not lost on Elizabeth. She just chalked it up to the fact that Carly was being her usual social butterfly self and just floated around the party while Steven sat outside with the rest of men playing dominoes and drinking beer. She chuckled as she remembered Jason and Steven teaming up to take down Kate’s husband Cruz Rodriquez and his teammate. Watching them play one would have never known that the two men had a strong disliking for each other.
“What’s so funny over there?” She heard Jason ask as she felt the mattress dip from Jason turning to face her.
“I thought you were asleep.”
“I was until I heard your angelic voice.”
She looked him and smiled brightly. She loved him so much. “I was just thinking about Carly’s birthday party and how you and my brother were so into your game. It was nice seeing you two work on the same side for a common goal. Even if it was to annihilate the competition.” She said laughing at her boyfriend’s competitive streak.
“Oh I know you aren’t talking. Nothing matches the Webber competitive streak. I thought you were going to fight Carly when she caused the girl’s team to lose to the men in Taboo .
He was right. Webber’s hated to lose. “Oh come on Jason how hard is it to get people to guess Oprah Winfrey. All she had to say is she’s got a big head, richer than 95% of people on the planet and is on God’s consultant team. Ugh!” She said finding herself get worked up again as she was on that night. She did feel bad afterward for berating Carly and apologized to her for her behavior.
“I said I was sorry.” She said pouting.
“Yes you did. I was very proud of you for owning up to your behavior.”
“But you still punished me that evening.”
“Yes I did,” he said rolling on top her.
“Um Jason you know that kind of punishment is only going to make me behave badly even more, right?”
“That’s what I’m counting on.”
~*~*~**~*~*~*~*~*~*
Elizabeth couldn’t believe what her sister in law was telling her as she walked around the lake at the park near her job. She had got a frantic call from Carly who sounded upset and Elizabeth needed some privacy to talk to her. So she took a break and walked over to the park to hear her out. But what her sister-in-law was saying just wasn’t making any sense.
“Oh, my God Carly…. are you sure?”
Elizabeth couldn’t hear an answer over the woman’s tears.
“Are you sure?” She asks again.
“Yeah,” Elizabeth could hear through the sobs. She eyes a bench near the pond and began to make her way towards it while cradling the phone closer to her ear as if that would make what she was hearing make more sense.
“I found some emails and I confronted him.”
“I can’t believe that Steven is cheating on you.” Elizabeth said suddenly feeling the need to sit down.
“He tried to deny it at first. Saying they were just flirty emails. But I’m not stupid Elizabeth.” She said through her sobs. “I’m sorry I know he’s your brother but I don’t know who else to talk to.”
“No it’s alright. I’m just in shock. Oh Carly….I didn’t think my brother had it in him.” Elizabeth said trying to wrap her head around the fact that her brother was having an affair. He and Carly seemed so in love. What is there to say about love when your partner would cheat on you before his second wedding anniversary? “I’m so sorry,” she whispers into the phone over and over as she listens to her brother’s wife cry her eyes out.
“Do you know who it was with?” She asked Carly. Maybe the person he was having an affair with could make things more clear. “I mean if you want to talk, if not that’s fine also if you’re not ready.”
She could tell Carly was struggling to get the words out and felt bad for pressuring her to talk.
“It’s Kate Howard, Elizabeth. My husband was having an affair with that stuck up bitch.”
“Kate?” Elizabeth echoed. The woman who just hosted Carly’s birthday party a few weeks ago. Her brother couldn’t be that crass could he? “Kate? Are you sure Carly?” She asked again. She didn’t seem her brother’s type at all.
“Yes, of course he didn’t call it an affair. He said it was just one time.”
“Do you believe him?” Elizabeth asked. She couldn’t imagine being cheated on. She didn’t have much experience in relationships but she knew something like this had to tear at your very core.
“I don’t care,” she said as she blew her nose. “It might as well have been a hundred times. But he says it was only once….that he only had sex with her only once.”
Elizabeth could tell the words were slicing through Carly. Her heart really did go out to the woman. No matter how unbearable she could be at times she did not deserve this. Elizabeth had always looked up to her brother growing up. She followed him all the way to Port Charles just to be near him. But after the Jason fiasco and now this she was seeing her brother in a whole new light, and she didn’t like what she saw.
“He said he ended things with her and wants to be with me.”
“Okay, Okay.” Elizabeth said thinking that not all was lost.
“Okay?” She heard Carly ask.
“Well if he ended it that means he wants to be with you, not her. He’s not leaving you.” She said trying to stay optimistic.
“Oh no he left. I kicked his sorry ass out. He’s gone.” Carly informed her.
Just like that her optimism was just as gone as her brother. She wondered where did he go and why she hadn’t heard from him. “But I don’t understand Carly, he obviously doesn’t want to be with her.”
“Oh he wanted to be with her, badly.” She said in a way that let Elizabeth know exactly what she meant.
“Okay, but only once. He realized it was a mistake and now realizes he wants you. I’m not trying to make it seem that this isn’t a big deal Carly but you guys can get past this.” Elizabeth said not quite believing it herself. She never thought about what would happen if she was ever in that predicament so she was finding it hard to talk her friend through this.
I don’t think so Elizabeth. My husband was with another woman, he screwed another woman,” Carly said starting to become hysterical on the phone once again.
“I know, I know,” Elizabeth said trying to calm her down. This was all new territory for her and she obviously wasn’t saying the right things to Carly to comfort her. “I’m not diminishing it at all. What my brother did was wrong. But at least he ended it. Doesn’t that count for anything?”
“So he says. Who’s to say she didn’t end things with him or worse they could be still sneaking behind my back. Hell he could have left our house and crawled back into bed with her skanky ass and screwing her this very second.”
“No way Carly,” Elizabeth says even though she has no idea when he came to her brother and the truth is he could actually be with her. She didn’t know where he was but when she did track him down she was going to kick his ass.
“How do you know he’s not with her?” Carly asked sounding like she desperately needed to know her husband wasn’t in bed with his mistress.
“Because he loves you Carly, I know it may not seem like it right now but I’ve seen my brother with you. There’s no way he was just faking it or going through the motions. That I know. You have to hold on to that, you have to remember that he loves you.” Elizabeth said hoping she was helping Carly.
“That’s bull Elizabeth. He loves his job, he loves that hospital, he loves himself. He sure enough doesn’t not love me or else he wouldn’t have done this.”
“Are you going to leave him?” Elizabeth practically whispered into the phone as if the answer was going to alter the rest of her life. In some ways it could. It could alter everything she thought about love and marriage. You were supposed to find your soul mate, fall in love get married and live happily ever after. It wasn’t supposed to crash and burn after a year and half.
“I don’t know.” After a beat she continued. “The only saving grace in all of this is that we don’t have kids. Can you imagine explaining to children why daddy isn’t going to live with us anymore?”
No she couldn’t imagine. Thankfully for her, her parents were still married to each other. Although Steven had a rocky upbringing with his mom splitting from their father to be with her mother. It could be that had affected him more than anyone of them had ever voiced out loud.
“I’m so sorry Carly,” was all she could contribute to the conversation. After listening to her brother’s wife cry over the phone for another half hour Elizabeth vowed she was going to find her brother and get to the bottom of this whole affair.
She also couldn’t help think back to when she first met Jason, as she listened to her sister in law cry about how her husband had developed feelings for someone while they were supposed to be together. For a moment she pictured it was Candace who found out that Jason was seeing Elizabeth behind her back. Although she and Jason never slept together while he was with her they had done enough to constitute him a cheater and she the other woman. She shuddered at that thought. She could rationalize it and say she didn’t know that Jason had a girlfriend when they first met, but then it didn’t stop her afterwards either.
She may have never liked Candace but Elizabeth and Jason’s friendship hadn’t been fair to her. Not that Elizabeth would ever tell her that if she ever spoke to the woman. Candace was still a bitch after all.
But listening to Carly go on and on about this woman and how she had sat in her house laughing and eating in her husband’s mistresses’ house she couldn’t help feel a little pang of guilt about the whole situation. But she had bigger fish to fry. She pushed her own feelings and thoughts out of her mind and concentrated on finding her brother. He had a lot of explaining to do.
~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~*
“So you’re seriously going to ask Robin to marry you?” Johnny asked shocked when Patrick announced it at the bar.
“Yeah, she wouldn’t move all the way to New York without some kind of commitment.” He answered as he moved around the pool table to line up his next shot.
“That’s no reason to marry her. Jeez Patrick, a little extreme don’t you think?” Johnny said as he watched his friend strike the cue ball and miss his target. He was always terrible at billards.
Patrick stood up straight and shrugged at his friend. “Hey, all she said was that she wasn’t coming without a ring, so I got her one.” He said grabbing his beer and taking a swig of it.
“That’s messed up Patrick,” Johnny said laughing at his friend’s ridiculous idea.
Jason stayed silent while he listened to his friends go back and forth. He found Johnny’s objection to Patrick marrying Robin for the wrong reason a little ironic considering his predicament. He wondered if Patrick was aware of Johnny’s situation.
“Jason will you say something,” Johnny started as Jason was chalking up his cue stick.”Tell him that he’s making a mistake.” He placed it back down and just eyed his target and hit the ball before joining the conversation.
“Well,” he started as his solid purple ball made its way into its slot. “I guess it could be worse…. he could be contemplating marrying virtual stranger because she was pregnant.” He said carefully eyeing Johnny who simply rolled his eyes.
Patrick eyed the two men and realized that he was missing some very important information going on with Johnny. “What?”
“Nothing don’t listen to Jason,” Johnny said taking his turn to sink a ball.
“No,” he said pulling Johnny’s stick out of his hands and holding it behind him. “Talk Johnny, a stranger? Pregnant? You have a lot of explaining to do.”
Johnny took a sigh and gave Jason a dirty look before turning back to his other best friend.
“You remember that girl I met on the internet?” Johnny said taking a seat on the side of the pool table.
“The one from Iowa?” He asked with a raised brow.
“Yeah Sam, turns out after my last visit I left her with a parting gift,” Johnny mumbled.
Patrick looked to Jason for what he didn’t know. He wasn’t there.
“What? When?” Patrick asked.
“It happened during Valentine’s Day weekend. We were drunk, forgot to put on a condom next thing I know I’m getting a phone call telling me she’s late.”
“Shit.” Patrick said suddenly not feeling like playing pool anymore. “How come you know about this and I didn’t,” Patrick said turning to Jason as they all took a seat back at their table.
“I think my name comes before yours on his phone list. Otherwise I’m sure you would have been first to know Patty boy.” Jason said slapping his friend on the back. Jason was a little surprised that Johnny hadn’t informed Patrick since they were roommates now. Over the years Johnny was always closer to Patrick to than to him. Jason was close to Patrick but that was because they were inseparable growing up by the time Johnny joined their group Jason had already decided that one friend was enough to confide in, he didn’t need anyone else to pour his feelings out too. That was never his style. If he needed advice he’d ask Patrick and move along. It was usually Patrick who informed Johnny of whatever Jason was going through and then he would approach Jason to give his advice. But lately he hadn’t confided in either of them about much lately, not since Elizabeth had walked into his life. He was finding himself turning to her before he’d even think about sharing with Patrick or Johnny.
“What are you going to do Johnny?”
Jason listened as Johnny explained to Patrick that he was going to do right by the woman and marry her. He laughed when Patrick thought it was a bad idea considering he was just telling them how he was going to propose to Robin just so she would move back to New York. Jason really didn’t have an opinion or at least one he was going to share, but he did think that both men were jumping into this marriage thing head first without thinking it all the way through. Marrying someone for the wrong reason never worked out for anyone. He had seen his mother struggle after his father decided that being married to his mother was a mistake. Watching his father take off was something he would remember for the rest of his life. He had wanted to ask Johnny if he was sure about his decision but he realized that it wasn’t his place to question his choices.
He just wondered how they were all going to live together in the townhouse that Johnny and Patrick had purchased together when Patrick moved back to New York.
As he watched his friends each talk about their situations he began to wonder when did he and Elizabeth’s relationship become the normal one out of them all. He was so relieved that she hadn’t caught the wedding fever and questioning him about it. He liked where they were in their relationship and wanted to keep it that way for as long as he could.
Speaking of Elizabeth, after listening to Patrick and Johnny’s love stories of woe all he wanted to do was get home to his girlfriend and be with her. Their sex life had jump leaps and bounds in the last year. She was coming out of her shell beautifully and he couldn’t be more pleased. He was hoping they could go couple rounds tonight.
He pulled out his cellphone to check the time and realized that he had missed two calls from Elizabeth. He knew she hated it when he didn’t answer his phone when she called. Something about her mind going to dark places and seeing him wrapped around a tree. He thought she was being silly but he always tried to stay mindful to make sure he answered when she called or at least call her back as soon as possible.
He dialed her number and she answered on the second ring.
“Jason,” she said sounding as if she was racing to get to the phone.
“Hey what’s up?” He said motioning to his friends he was going to take the call outside. Something in Elizabeth’s voice told him that something was wrong.
“Are you having fun?” she asked.
“Yeah, but I miss you.”
“I miss you too.”
“Elizabeth what’s wrong?” He asked sure that something was bothering her.
“I don’t mean to cut your guy’s night out short or anything but I was wondering if you could come home.” There was a pause. “I need you.”
“Are you alright?” He asked when he heard the vulnerability in her voice. She was hurting. He frowned at that. He hated to see her upset about anything but he was glad to be the one she turned to when she needed to talk. Seemed like they had become confidants for each other. That thought made him feel good. He liked that she leaned on him.
“Yeah, I’m fine. It’s just I learned some devastating news today and really need to talk to you.” He heard her say solemnly.
“But you’re okay right?” He asked becoming increasingly concerned.
“Yeah, yeah I’m fine. I found out today that my brother is having an affair.”
Jason sighed. So much for coming out of shells tonight. “Alright I’m on my way,” he said going back inside to let his friends know that he had to go. He looked at his two buddies commiserating about their love lives and thought about what Elizabeth just told him about her brother and wondered if every man on the planet had gone mad and if they had he hoped he didn’t catch it.
~*~*~*~*
A/N
Oh I know I had promised, (well promised myself in my head) that Sam McCall would not appear in this story but she just fit. Now remember this story is AU so let's try not to hate on her too much. LOL
No worries she will never be interested, hit on, or even look too longingly at Jason in this story and neither will he. That is a guarantee.


