Baby Book
by SexisFan

Chapter 6

Each time Alexis passed the bowl of gardenias, her mind repeated the meaning. I love you deeply, but in secret.

And each time the words surfaced in her brain, she pushed them away. She would not think such thoughts. She had more important things to think about, things that she could control (unlike Sonny's heart, or even her own).

Realizing that her life would not belong only to herself any longer was an eye-opener for Alexis. She wasn't sure what it felt like to think like a mother, but she knew something was changing in her head when she started pondering the importance of learning how to cook. A child can't be raised on popcorn and take-out. Well, maybe it could. But it didn't seem right.

Alexis' first thought was to take a class. Big mistake. Most of the classes being offered aimed to create gourmet chefs. Alexis wanted to know how to make Jell-O. There was one basic cooking class that she found being offered in the evenings, but when she arrived she found herself surrounded by high school girls. She didn't go back.

Finally, she had a brainstorm. Alexis decided that what she needed was individual attention. In her own kitchen, away from judging eyes. So she placed a call to The Grille and hired one of their chefs to come out to her home to give her private lessons.

Alexis explained to him that she didn't want to get fancy. She didn't want to be overwhelmed with complicated recipes and intricate timings of dishes. She just wanted to know how to make simple comfort foods like normal Americans feed their children.

"Can you just show me how to make things like meat loaf?"

While meat loaf wasn't a dish featured on the Grille's upscale menu, Alexis reasoned that anyone who could cook gourmet should know the basics. She wasn't sure exactly how her tutor felt about teaching her such basic dishes, but she had offered him a generous fee and he had agreed.

And her first lesson was, in fact, meat loaf.

Alexis recalled that the knock on her door that evening had caused her to think that her tutor had forgotten something when he left. Or maybe he thinks I won't remember to take my dinner out of the oven when the timer goes off.

She didn't expect to the door to Sonny's face.

Yet, there he stood on her porch. His hands were jammed into his pockets and if Alexis hadn't known better he'd have thought he was feeling somewhat shy about being on her doorstep.

"Hey," he greeted her simply.

"Hey."

"You got the flowers?"

"Yes. Yes I did. Last week."

"And the note?"

"Yes. I got the note." She wasn't quite sure what to say. "Thank you for the apology." Smooth, Alexis.

"I didn't hear anything so I thought, you know. . .if you're still mad I can leave if you want." His hands came out of his pockets as he gestured toward the driveway where his limo sat.

"No, I'm not mad. Did you need something?"

"You might ask me in." Sonny grinned a bit, flashing just a hint of dimple.

Alexis felt her pulse step up a beat. She didn't know why, whether it was anxiety or excitement. But it was there, a physical response to his presence, as there always was.

Alexis took a step back and held the door. "Come in."

"Thanks." His grin widened as he entered the house. "What's that?"

"What's what?" Alexis asked, confused.

"What I smell. If I didn't know better I'd think you were. . ."

"Cooking. I'm learning to cook...trying to learn to cook, anyway. This is my first lesson," Alexis answered nervously.

"Smells good. I didn't know Jason could cook." The grin was gone from Sonny's face and the tone in his voice changed when he spoke Jason's name.

Alexis knew they were entering dangerous waters, though she still didn't understand what was going on between Sonny and his long-time friend and partner.

"I don't have any idea whether Jason can cook or not," Alexis answered.

"Not something you've discussed during his visits?" It was apparent that Sonny was trying to cover the resentment in his question as he tossed it out while casually taking in the surroundings of Alexis' now "lived in" home. Still, the edge in his tone made his irritation clear.

Alexis wasn't having any part of it. "If you're here to argue about something, Sonny, then I suggest you leave now and save yourself another florist's bill."

Alexis turned and left the room, heading for the kitchen. Sonny followed on her heels.

"Sorry, Alexis. I'm not here to fight."

"Then why are you here, Sonny?" She asked as she checked the remaining time left on the kitchen timer.

"I. . .I wanted to talk. To apologize in person, I guess. I miss you Alexis. . .our friendship I mean."

Alexis sighed silently. "I do to," she replied softly, not turning to look at him. It was stupid to feel shy, but for some reason she did.

Alexis' response seemed to energize Sonny, though, as launched into full out friend mode.

"So. . .What's in the oven?" he asked with a smile.

"My first lesson. Meat loaf," Alexis answered, keeping her tone light.

"You do that all on your own?"

"No, no, no! I hired one of the chefs from The Grille to give me lessons. I did this under his supervision," she laughed in reply.

Sonny nodded. "What are you serving with it?"

"With it?"

"Yeah, you aren't eating just meat loaf for dinner, are you?"

"Listen," Alexis pointed at him in mock menace, "if I get one thing to turn out edible, I'm way ahead of the game. I am not pushing my luck!"

Sonny laughed and Alexis felt some of the tension that had been between them slip away.

"You have some potatoes?"

"I don't know. What do they look like in their natural state?" She was being silly, but her response elicited the reaction she wanted when his smile broadened and those dimples popped. It had been a long while since they'd been this comfortable together.

"Seriously, Alexis," he grinned, "do you have any potatoes?"

Alexis pointed to the brand new set of wooden bins that Kristina had brought over as yet another housewarming gift when she learned that Alexis planned on taking cooking lessons. One bin held onions, and three other bins held three different kinds of potatoes. Alexis had told her sister that those vegetables would be rotten before Alexis ever knew what to do with them. But it looked like Sonny was about to save at least one type of potato from that fate.

Alexis watched as he selected five small reddish skinned potatoes and carried them to her sink. So now he was going to cook for her?

Sonny deposited the potatoes in the sink and smiled at her. "Lesson Two. Mashed potatoes. Where's your vegetable peeler? Or do you use a knife?"

"What's a knife?" Alexis teased.

Sonny grinned and shook his head as he started opening drawers at random until he'd discovered which held most of Alexis' cooking utensils. It was an impoverished assortment of a few odds and ends, most of which Kristina had brought into the penthouse during the months she and Alexis were living there.

Alexis watched as Sonny drew out what looked like some miniature device of torture. Holding it up high, he asked, "What happened to your vegetable peeler?"

"Is that what that is?"

"That's what it was. What did you do to it, Alexis?"

Alexis shrugged. "I might have used it to pry open a stuck window."

Sonny chuckled and shook his head in bemusement. "I'll use a knife."

Alexis watched as Sonny dug out a small, thin bladed knife and went to work peeling the potatoes. "If you're going to cook, Alexis, you need to get the right equipment. And then you need to get your kitchen arranged in an efficient manner."

"Is that so?"

Sonny looked up and grinned. "Yes. That's so."

Step by step, Sonny walked Alexis through the making of mashed potatoes. He noted that many people make the mistake of adding butter to the cooked potatoes before adding the milk, and explained to her how this created an inferior consistency in the finished product. Alexis watched attentively, marveling at the fact that the potatoes were finished just as the timer went off for the meat loaf.

"Why don't you set the table, Alexis. I'll make a quick salad and then we'll eat."

"I don't recall inviting you to dinner," Alexis replied teasingly.

"That's because you didn't," he teased, "but you get the pleasure anyway."

Alexis was a bit hesitant to allow herself to get this comfortable with Sonny. At the same time, she was hoping that overcoming the recent tension in their friendship would make it easier to share her news about the baby. So she did as Sonny directed and set the table for dinner…for two.

As Sonny held her chair while she was seated to eat, Alexis couldn't help voicing the question running around in her mind. "Won't Carly be waiting for you?"

Sonny tensed at the mention of his ex-wife's name. "No," he replied simply.

Warned by Sonny's reaction to her question, Alexis didn't pursue the matter any further. Instead, she pushed thoughts of Carly out of her mind and focused on the fact that her meat loaf was actually edible. In fact, it was quite good.

Throughout the meal, Sonny and Alexis chatted like old times. They joked, the laughed. And they stayed away from mentioning either Jason or Carly. When the meal was done, Sonny helped Alexis clear the table and load the dishwasher.

"You did good with your first lesson, Alexis. Real good."

"Thank you," Alexis replied, truly touched by his compliment.

"When is your next lesson?"

"Next week."

"And what will you eat until then?" Sonny teased.

Alexis smiled and shrugged. "A lot of meatloaf, I guess?"

Sonny left soon after that, with them having never discussed anything more serious than the merits of romaine versus iceberg lettuce for a salad. But the easy camaraderie was more profound than any deep talk they might have had. Something changed that night.

And Alexis was only mildly surprised when Sonny showed up at her door the next night with a bag of groceries and a small gift-wrapped package.

"I hope you're ready for another cooking lesson, because the thought of you eating meat loaf for a week kept me up all night."

Alexis laughed softly. "I'm sure it did. Liar."

She knew that she should probably be annoyed with him, but she'd enjoyed the ease of the previous evening so much she didn't have the heart to turn him away. So they spent another night in the kitchen, a night just as enjoyable as the first, with Sonny taking Alexis step by step through the preparation of one of his favorite pasta dishes.

And the brightly wrapped package? A new potato peeler. A big fancy model with a cushioned handle and non-rust blade, he explained. "You can throw that other piece of junk away," he remarked of her mangled, old window de-sticking implement. But Alexis knew that she wouldn't. She'd tuck it away along with the memory of the night that brought her friend back to her.

***** For the next few weeks, Sonny developed a regular routine of stopping by Alexis' home most week-nights with another bag of groceries and a simple recipe to teach her. They'd work each evening side by side, never talking much about their lives outside of Alexis' little lake house.

She did draw from Sonny the information that Carly was at her club until closing most nights, which explained to Alexis how he found the opportunity to spend those evenings with Alexis.

Alexis felt a bit uncomfortable after the third night, and had talked to Kristina about these frequent "cooking lessons." Alexis was feeling…well, a little like the mistress of a man in an unhappy marriage. Though as Jason would point out, Sonny wasn't married to Carly.

When Kristina heard about Sonny's evening visits, she was offended for her sister, believing Sonny to be using Alexis to amuse himself when Carly was too busy for him. But Alexis didn't get that sense from him at all, and she would have been sensitive to even a hint of being Sonny's consolation prize. No, there was something sad about Sonny when he left Alexis' house to return to his life each night. Something about Sonny's reunion with Carly had gone very wrong. And it wasn't long before Alexis found out just how wrong.

Remembering the night that she learned the truth, Alexis reached into the box before her and drew out a small, stiff square of thick paper. Who could have known that wallpaper could change the course of two lives?

chapter 07