Chapters 61 & 62
Chapter 61: Count On Me
Early the following morning, Gina and Nikolas cuddle in her bed at Kelly's. It's obvious he's spent the night. Nikolas kisses her neck lovingly. "Good morning, gorgeous. Hungry yet?"
"Mmmmm," is Gina's reply as she rolls over to kiss him on the lips. "For you." Their lovemaking is interrupted when Nikolas' stomach growls loudly. She giggles. "Why didn't you say you were hungry, silly?"
Nikolas runs his fingers through her hair as he memorizes her features. "For obvious reasons."
Gina breaks away and quickly dons her bathrobe. "I'll be back in a minute. I'm going to raid Kelly's fridge." A few minutes later she returns with orange juice, bagels, and cream cheese, plopping the food and herself on the bed. "I hope you like these. It's the only ready-made food I could find."
Nikolas spreads out the loot on the bed and quickly begins devouring it. "It's perfect. Fit for a king." Gina's smile disappears and he notices immediately. "What? What did I say?"
Gina gets some paper cups for the orange juice and rejoins him on the bed. "You didn't say anything wrong. It's just.... well, I was just remembering my conversation with Alexis and your mom at lunch yesterday..."
Nikolas frowns. "You never did tell me what they said."
"I know, I didn't want to ruin the mood last night... you were so loving, so passionate..." Gina blushes at the memory. "I didn't think you could make me any happier than you already have. You seem to know exactly what I need when I need it."
He reaches up and tucks a lock of her hair behind her ear. "That's my job as your husband; to know what you need. Now it seems that you need to talk about it, and you have questions. Did they try to convince you to wait... to hold off on the marriage?"
Gina shakes her head. "No, they just told me a little about your grandmother, about Cassadine family history... and what to expect as your wife. It kind of scared me, that's all."
Nikolas struggles to remain casual and calm. "Scared.. how? Of me? Of my family?"
Gina shakes her head fervently as she looks down at the bed. "No! Of course not. Just that I'll embarrass you, that's all. You've been raised as royalty... What if I disappoint you?"
He lifts her chin with his finger and forces her to look at him. "You could never disappoint me, don't you know that? I know all there is to know about you, and I love what I know. I am proud to have you as my wife. If I wanted to marry royalty, I would have." Nikolas sees there is still some doubt in her eyes. "There's more. Tell me."
"Alexis said the Cassadine are targets for terrorism, even kidnapping. She said I'll have to get used to having bodyguards. Is that true?"
Nikolas nods gravely. "Yes, unfortunately it's true. Alexis was wise to tell you about it. But the bodyguards have learned to be invisible. After a while, you'll forget they are even there. It's a small price to pay for safety. You've known people with bodyguards before... Sonny had them if you remember. And now that Jason has taken over his business, he has them as well."
Gina nods, mollified by his explanation. "That's true. I forgot about Sonny and Jason."
"Do you need more time?" He offers, knowing she won't take it now that he has allayed her fears. "I want you to be sure when you marry me..." He begins to kiss her seductively and pulls her close, molding her body to his.
"It's so hard to think when you kiss me like that," Gina replies, finding it difficult to remember to breath. "I don't need more time, I know what I want... YOU."
Later that evening, Gina and Nikolas' loved ones gather for the engagement party at the Port Charles Grille. Stefan and Laura arrive at the same time. He offers his arm to her which she accepts. "Good evening, Lasha. You look lovely. Where are LesleyLu and Lucky?"
When they arrive at the table, Stefan pulls out her chair for her. "Lulu's too young for this kind of party so she's staying with Felicia. I'm sure she's having a ball playing twister with Georgie and Maxie. Lucky's coming from the club, he should be here any minute with Mike."
Meanwhile Mike and Cassidy arrive with Jason, Robin and Lucky in tow. Lucky waves Mike and Cassidy on. "I'll meet you guys in there in a minute, I have some business to discuss with Jase here." Cassidy and Mike leave.
Jason kisses Robin, "I'll be inside in a minute. I need to talk to Lucky."
Robin smiles indulgently as she kisses him back. "Okay, as long as the two of you behave."
The two men stand outside the Grille; Lucky smokes a cigar while Jason paces, practically scowling. "Man, I hate these things, the idea of sitting across the table at a fancy restaurant and playing nice with Stefan isn't appealing."
"Me too." Lucky rolls his eyes. "The things we do for the people we care about. Anyway, did you get any dirt on Cassidy's connection to the Cassadine? I just found out from Lucy that she's related to Kevin Collins of all people. Turns out her old lady is that witch, Melanie Chamberlain. You know about her, right?"
"I know about her." Jason looks around to make sure noone's listening."I don't have any information for you on Cassidy. Honestly, I'm too busy keeping the lid on a gang war in Port Charles to do any digging. Benny can probably help you though. Do you know how to reach him?"
Lucky throw his cigar on the ground and stamps it out. "Yeah, I'll call him in the morning. I think I can handle the investigation on my own."
Alexis joins them. "Are you two avoiding this party by any chance?"
"Now why would we do that, Alexis?" Lucky grins mischievously. "You know how fond we are of Steffin."
Alexis herds them into the restaurant. "I see you inherited your father's annoying habit of mispronouncing Stefan's name. How charming. Now behave, Nikolas and Gina will be so hurt if you don't."
They all are seated at the table and greetings are exchanged. Stefan looks at his watch. "Where are Nikolas and Gina?"
Alexis smiles knowingly. "I'm sure they were just delayed a few minutes. Love will do that to you." A few moments later, Gina and Nikolas arrive. Alexis motions them to sit in the two open seats between her and Stefan. Gina sits beside Alexis and they exchange a quick hug.
Nikolas stands before Cassidy, who rises to greet him. "You must be Nikolas. It's great to finally meet you. Your uncle has said so much about you."
Nikolas takes her hands in his. "Yes, Cassandra, it's a pleasure to finally meet you. I'm sure we will get to know each other quite well."
Jason and Lucky watch them with curiosity as Nikolas kisses both her cheeks. Mike shifts uncomfortably in his chair; Stefan looks on, unaffected by the exchange. Gina looks confused.
Cassidy whispers in Nikolas' ear before he lets go. "Don't ever call me Cassandra again if you value your life. I'm Cassidy. Now cool it, or you'll arouse their suspicions if you haven't already."
A small smile plays upon Nikolas' face as he releases her hands to take his seat between Gina and Stefan. "Shall the festivities begin?"
Keesha is washing up some dishes in the Ward house kitchen when she hears someone knocking on the front door. She grabs a dish towel to dry her hands on the way to answer it. A look of wariness crosses her face when she opens it to find AJ on her doorstep. "AJ, if you had called first, I could have saved you the time and effort of coming over here. We really have nothing to say to one another, except through our lawyers."
She tries to close the door but AJ blocks it with his hand. "Please, Keesha. We need to talk. I said some awful things to you at the police station, I've come to apologize. Please? I just want to talk."
Keesha shrugs as she motions him in. "Fine. But the things you said to me can't ever be taken back. Apologies just don't cut it." She joins him on the living room couch.
AJ looks sheepish. "I know. I said some terrible things to you. I was cruel. It wasn't fair to ask you to help me when I wasn't willing to help myself. But I've turned over a new leaf. I'm going into inpatient treatment tomorrow morning."
Keesha looks surprised. "That's good, AJ. I hope you get the help you need there. Lord knows I wasn't able to."
"That wasn't your fault, it was mine." AJ takes her hand. "I'm so sorry for all the pain I've caused. I couldn't go to treatment without trying to make things right with you. I hope you'll give us a chance to work out our problems. I really love you Keesha." He looks at her pleadingly. "I can't imagine my life without you."
She shakes her head, withdrawing her hand from his grasp. "I'm sorry, AJ. I meant it when I said it was over. I just don't love you anymore. Not the way a wife should love her husband. And I can't put Bradley through any more chaos."
AJ's jaws clench as he looks at the floor. "This is it, then? You're really giving up on our marriage."
Keesha's voice quivers with sadness. "Our marriage was over months ago, I just wasn't willing to accept it. I will always care for you, AJ, you're Bradley's father. But I have to do this."
AJ gets up from the sofa. "I want to see Bradley before I go into treatment, to say goodbye."
"No AJ." She replies. "You can't see him. Not now. Not until you've gone through inpatient. I'm sorry, but I have to look out for his best interests."
AJ's eyes glitter angrily. "And you think it's best for him to be kept from me? You little..." When Keesha gives him a warning look he bites his tongue and starts over. "Fine. I won't start a scene. But don't you dare try to keep him from me when I get out of treatment. I'll fight you if I have to."
Their conversation is interrupted by another knock at the door. "I better get that," Keesha says, " and I think you should go. We really don't have anything more to say to each other."
AJ follows her to the door. "Oh, we do. But it will wait until I'm done with treatment."
Keesha opens the door to find Alex Garcia standing there. "Hi, Keesha. I just came by..." He stops midsentence when he sees AJ. They shoot daggers at each other in a silent power struggle. Alex breaks eye contact to address Keesha again. "Is he bothering you? Just say the word and..."
"NO," Keesha answers emphatically before she turns to AJ. "Good luck, AJ. We'll continue this discussion when you get back."
"You can bet we will." AJ stalks out. Keesha gestures Alex in after AJ leaves.
"You okay?" He asks. "He wasn't drunk, was he?"
"No, he wasn't." Keesha, her voice brittle with anger. "Have a seat. We have to get a few things straight."
"You're angry."
"Yes. I don't appreciate the stunt you just pulled," Keesha continues. "You came in here, saw AJ and just assumed I needed rescuing. Do I seem weak and defenseless to you?"
"No, but..." Alex tries to explain but Keesha cuts him off.
"Then I'd appreciate it if you didn't jump into situations you know nothing about. You almost made things worse. I'll let you know if I need your help, thank you."
"I'm sorry, Keesha. I should known better."
"Yes, you should have." Keesha answers. "So, what can I do for you?"
Garcia looks at the floor for a long time before looking back at her. "This was a bad idea....I was going to ask you to have dinner with me on Friday night. Luke's place has booked Eddie Maine. Boy, I'm an idiot." Alex shakes his head. "On top of coming here and sticking my nose where it doesn't belong, I have the audacity to invite you to go to a concert of a man you dislike. I completely forgot until just now."
Keesha laughs. "Yup, you're 0 for 2. At least you admit when you're wrong, and you do it with humility. Tell you what, I'll go to dinner with you Friday night if we can go anywhere but Luke's and you promise never to try that white knight stuff on me again."
Alex smiles at her warmly. "Deal."
The engagement party for Gina and Nikolas is well under way. Small conversation groups have formed. Gina and Alexis banter about the wedding. Mike, Jason and Lucky discuss Eddie Maine's upcoming concert. And Cassidy and Robin, who happen to be sitting next to each other, strike up a conversation, which naturally centers around Jason and Sonny. "Robin, I have something I want to admit to you," Cassidy says after some small talk.
"What's that?" Robin asks, picking up her water glass to take a sip.
"I'm jealous of you." Cassidy puts down her napkin after she finishes her meal. "You got to have a close relationship with my brother, Sonny. A relationship I dreamed of having my whole life. I kept thinking I'd have more time..."
Robin looks at her sympathetically. "He would have loved the idea of having a sister. And he was a wonderful man. Loyal, loving, generous... and devilishly funny. But you must know that. Alexis and Mike have told you all about him, haven't they?"
"Yes, but it's not the same as actually knowing him." Cassidy wipes a stray tear. "Look at me! I didn't even know him and I'm getting all choked up."
Robin puts her hand on Cassidy's to comfort her. "Just because you didn't know him in person, doesn't mean you didn't love him just the same. Has Mike told you about Stone? He was the reason I became so close to Sonny."
Cassidy nods. "Not much, but I know they were real close. You were lovers, weren't you?"
Meanwhile, Laura excuses herself from the table to go to the ladies' room. Nikolas notices and follows her out to the lobby, calling her name as soon as they are out of earshot of the table. "Laura, wait."
Laura turns to face him. "Nikolas..it must be pretty important for you to leave Gina and follow me out here. What's up?"
"I want to know what you said to Gina at lunch yesterday," Nikolas answers, coming to stand close to her. "She was quite upset last night."
Laura looks around nervously, hoping what she has to say won't upset Nikolas too much. Their relationship is so fragile. "She started asking about Helena..."
"What did you tell her?" Nikolas demands, interrupting her.
She gulps for air. "Just that Helena kept you from me when Stavros died... and how important it was to Helena that you be raised by her."
"Did you tell her about Stavros, your mother... LesleyLu's kidnapping? I need to know so I can repair the damage."
"Of course I didn't!," Laura replies. "All that's in the past, and it doesn't have anything to do with you or your marriage. Alexis did say something in passing about Mikkos and his brothers, but..."
Nikolas explodes. "What?! You told her about Mikkos? If you did anything to jeopardize my marriage to Gina, so help me you will live to regret it....."
"Enough, Nikolas." Stefan says in a deadly whisper, having come up behind them silently. Laura and Nikolas both jump at the sound of his voice. "This is not the time or the place for such a discussion. Gina is asking where you are. I suggest you join her."
Nikolas takes one look at Stefan's stern visage and realizes arguing is futile. "Fine. We'll continue this discussion later, Mother." He returns to the table.
Laura watches him leave, overwhelmed with sadness. Stefan touches her shoulder. "Are you all right?"
"He will never trust me. And it's my own fault." Unable to contain her feelings any longer, she covers her face with her hands.
"No, Lasha," Stefan whispers as he wraps his arms around her, resting her face against his chest. "It isn't just your fault. I am also responsible for his mistrust. Irregardless, he is wrong this time. You wouldn't say anything to Gina that would jeopardize his relationship with her."
"Thank you. It means a lot coming from you." Laura wraps her arms around his waist briefly to return his embrace. "You always seems to be here when I need you most."
Stefan smiles into her hair, planting a small kiss there. "It is intentional, I assure you."
Chapter 62 Thank God it's Friday
Friday morning. Laura is at the Brownstone dropping off Lulu with Bobbie. Carly's little boy, AR, is toddling around the living room with Lulu in close pursuit.
"She really is quite fond of AR," Laura comments to Bobbie as she watches them play. At that moment AR almost falls over but Lulu catches him.
Bobbie laughs as Lulu topples over from the weight of AR. "Well, he adores her too. Look at him.. he's giving her a big hug."
"If only I brought a camera." Laura replies as she chuckles. "They are so cute together, I should bring her over more often to play with him."
"Well I have AR three mornings a week. You're more than welcome to drop her off."
"Thanks for taking care of her today, Bobbie." Laura says gratefully. "She really loves to be at the Brownstone. What, with Georgie right on the premises, it's perfect." She looks at her watch and quickly gives Bobbie a hug. "I better get going, I'm meeting them at the airport in an hour. Anytime I can return the favor, just say the word."
Bobbie returns the hug before walking her to the door. "I'm sure I'll be taking you up on it soon. Have fun in New York. Lord knows you deserve it."
Lulu spies her mother leaving and runs to the door to kiss her good bye. "Bye, Mommy!"
Lucky sits in the back office of the club, sipping coffee from a mug with his feet propped up on the desk. "Man, this is the life," he says out loud.
The quiet of the room is disturbed by the ringing of the phone. Lucky sits up, putting his feet on the floor as he answers the phone. "Lucky Spencer, speak to me.... "
A man in his early thirties sits in front of a desktop computer in a seedy apartment. He eyes his monitor intently and taps out commands on the keyboard while he talks. "Hey, Spencer. You paged me?"
"Benny! Thanks for calling me back so fast, man. Jason Morgan said I should call you, that you're the man who can find out anything. You were friends with my dad, right?" Lucky fumbles through the tall piles of paper on his desk. Several topple onto the floor.
"Then your problem must be money or information. Sorry about your dad by the way, he was the best." His tone is distracted as he continues to focus most of his attention to the computer screen. "Since you're Morgan's friend and Luke's son, I think I can help you out."
Lucky locates the piece of paper. "Great. I'm looking for some information on a Cassidy or Cassandra Corbin. She came to town a couple of months ago after Sonny, her half brother, died. Now she's working for Cassadine Inc., and I want to know why. My hunch is Stefan Cassadine is holding something over her head."
Benny stops his relentless computer hacking to lean back in his chair and rub his eyes. "Ah, I see you've taken over the Cassadine cause from your dad. Tell me what you know about this Cassidy chick. She's Mike Corbin's little girl, right?"
Lucky shares what he knows, summing up with, "the latest info I got was that she's Melanie Chamberlain's youngest daughter. You remember Ryan Chamberlain from the papers? Well, Melanie was his mommy dearest."
Benny jots down a few notes next to his computer. "Hmmm, I think I'm going to enjoy researching this baby. Fascinating little history. You have any problems with my researching Papa Corbin? She might be working for Cassadine to protect her daddy."
"Damn, I hadn't thought of that. Yeah, go ahead." Lucky starts in his chair when Mike strolls into the office. "Hey, I gotta go, my partner just showed up and he looks like he needs coffee more than I do. Thanks, buddy."
Laura, Stefan, Nikolas and Gina stroll through a plush furniture showroom. The salesman has left them alone under Stefan's instructions. Nikolas and Gina wander off to examine bedroom furnishings while Laura and Stefan stroll through living room/family room furniture. Stefan allows Laura to make all the decisions, only offering his opinion when she requests it. Laura jots down her selections. "I have to tell you, Stefan, this is so much fun! I've never shopped with an unlimited budget before. I could get used to this."
Stefan grins. "It is easy to get used to... " He points to the far corner where a pool table stands. "We are in the market for a pool table, are we not?"
Laura's eyes light up."Yes, we sure are. Oh, Nikolas will love this, don't you think?" Stefan places his hand in the small of her back as he guides her to it, secretly enjoying the small intimacy, almost expecting her to shrug away from him. But she doesn't. Seemingly oblivious, she runs her hand across the fine grain cherry wood that frames the table, only moving away from him to circle the table. "This is beautiful, Stefan. Have you ever played?"
"No, my game is chess, if you remember."
Laura gives him a dry smile. "Yes, I remember you beating me way back when." At that moment, one of the salesmen behind Stefan gives Laura a signal. She puts her hand on Stefan's arm. "Why don't you go check on Nikolas and Gina? They could probably use your help. While you do that, I'll pick out some doodads."
"As you wish, " Stefan quips, bowing slightly.
The salesman approaches Laura once Stefan is out of the room. "I have that item you called about, Mrs Spencer." He takes her arm. "If you'll come with me." He leads her through a door marked 'Employees Only.' The room appears to be the manager's office. In the middle, an elegant cherry table with two chairs stands out like a sore thumb in the otherwise utilitarian office. "I removed it from the showroom as you requested."
Laura walks forward to examine it, noting the simple yet elegant lines. The top is a checkerboard design made of cherry, stained in contrasting colors. "It's gorgeous," she whispers. "It's meant to match the pool table, isn't it?"
The salesman nods. "Yes, Ma'am. You'll notice the pieces are stored in the small compartment..." He points to the drawer in the side of the table. As Laura explores it, he describes them to her. "They are made of the finest ivory. The artist, Jean Picante, carved each piece individually. It's a collector's item."
"I'll take it," Laura answers definitively. "But I want you to bill it to a different account...."
Lucky dials Emily's number by heart. Emily, who is sits at her dresser brushing her long mane of hair, answers it on the first ring. "This is Emily."
"Hi, Em. What's up?"
"Nothing much," Emily says. "Oh I have some good news. Dylan is finally coming out of his shell. Lois turned on her famous Cerullo charm and he wasn't able to resist her. And Ned arranged for him to be enrolled at a boarding school near Bensonhurst. Looks like everything is going to turn out fine."
"That's great, I know how worried you've been. That must be a load off." Lucky plays with the phone cord. "I sure wish you could come see Eddie Maine's concert. It seems like ages since I last saw you. I hardly get to see you between school and the club."
Emily sighs. "I wish I could come too. Being under age really sucks sometimes. Hey, if you really want to see me, why don't you come by after the concert? Just throw pebbles at my window like you usually do. You can give me all the highlights of the concert."
"It's a date.. " Lucky blurts. Realizing what he's just said, he tries to backtrack. "Well not a real date, but you know what I mean."
Emily laughs. "Relax, Spencer. I'm not getting any funny ideas."
Nikolas watches Laura and Stefan from a distance. Once again, he is struck by Stefan's adoration for her. Gina comes up from behind, squeezing Nikolas around the waist. "Sweetheart, what do you see when you look at my uncle and my mother?" He asks.
They watch the older couple in silence for several minutes.. the way Stefan listens intently to every word Laura says, how Laura smiles at him; and the way Stefan finds excuses to touch her, even if it's just to remove a piece of lint. Finally Gina says. "He's in love with her. Heck, I noticed that at Sunday dinner. As for Laura, she's been warming up to him in her own way. The more time she spends with him, the less skittish she is."
Nikolas turns around to pull her into his arms. "Then you are much more observant than I am."
Gina kisses him on the chin affectionately. "Being in love makes me very in tune to other people in love. Just call me a sap."
"Ah, but you're my little sap." He lifts her chin so he can kiss her fully on the mouth, rubbing his nose against hers playfully. "I guess I've been too enamored with you to notice much of anything."
Luke's Place is jammed packed with all the Port Charles regulars when Eddie Maine aka Ned Ashton takes the stage clad in his trademark black leather pants. "Hey, Port Charles!" The crowd whoops it up; Lois stands on the sidelines, yelling loudest of all, her eyes dancing with delight. Once the crowd quiets he continues. "Boy, it's great to be back, folks. It's like coming home. The first song I'm dedicating to my lovely wife, Lois, who's shown me how to love, and helped me through the roughest times of my life." Eddie looks at Lois with his twinkly smile. "For you, baby."
"Road Less Traveled"
There's a place in my heart
And a river runs through it
Somehow I got to find a way
A way to get to it
Cassidy drags Jerry to the floor and they begin dancing to the quick beat. Lucky follows suit by grabbing Lois and twirling her around on the floor. Lucy pulls a reluctant Kevin onto the floor.
Everybody needs somethin' to believe in
'Fore it gets to late
And lately I've been gettin' this feelin' that
Somethin's gotta give
Or somethin's gonna break
CHORUS
Ridin' down the road less traveled
Far away from this lunatic highway
Hey baby
Ride along with me
I'll do the drivin' and you can ride shotgun
You and me, underneath the big sky
Sweet freedom far as the eye can see
Lucky lifts Lois onto one of the tables and quickly joins her. Pretty soon the whole club is dancing to the music.
The song continues as the scene FADES TO BLACK
