The
cool night air blew casually across the terrace, as Sonny stood
outside, peering out at the endless black of the ocean. He leaned
against the stone railing, drink in hand. One of the things he loved
about the Porto DeSantos was being able to do this. The beach was
always quiet this time of night, the temperature always seemed perfect,
void of the humidity present during the day. The stars shone brightly,
tiny specks illuminating the sky. It wasn’t until he bought
his first property in the Caribbean that Sonny could fully appreciate
the stars. Growing up in Brooklyn, he’d often wondered what
it was like to live without the noise and electric lights of the
city present at night. Now, he knew.
I'm finding my way back to sanity again
Though I don't really know what I'm gonna do when I get there
The quiet of the Caribbean had been his solace many times over the
years. A retreat where he could get away from the complications
of life for long enough to search for their answers. This time,
however, it was a problem that had called him here instead of the
need for peace. A labor dispute was threatening to stop production
at one of his businesses. So he had to fly down immediately to remedy
the situation.
And Alexis had to come with him.
Take a breath and hold on tight
Spin around one more time
And gracefully fall back to the arms of grace
A smile crept across his face. Alexis had already gone to bed hours
ago, worn out after a day filled with contracts and bargaining agreements.
She had done a masterful job, as always, overwhelming the opposition
with her extensive preparation and aggressive negotiating tactics.
But her legal acumen was only part of what made Alexis such an incredible
attorney. It baffled Sonny sometimes how different a person Alexis
was in a courtroom or business meeting than she was outside of one.
The Alexis Davis who hyperventilated, forgot to breathe and doubted
her self-worth never, never, set foot inside any legal setting.
Instead, Alexis Davis, confident, articulate and self-assured, the
best attorney in the state emerged, and proceeded to crush the competition.
Alexis was Sonny’s most valuable business asset, that was for
sure. During every negotiation, Sonny would simply sit back and
watch, in awe, as Alexis worked her magic. He noticed the way other
attorneys envied her skill, and the way others envied him for having
such brilliant representation. He watched as so many times, male
attorneys underestimated her prowess, thinking she was no more than
a pretty face in a tall pair of Stiletto’s. And every time,
he watched as she proved them wrong.
'Cause I am hanging on every word you say and
Even if you don't want to speak tonight, that's alright, alright
with me
But lately, she had been so much more to him than just a business
associate. Actually, there was nothing recent about the personal
turn in their relationship. But it was, however, only recently that
Sonny had begun to realize just the impact Alexis had on him. She
was on his mind almost constantly. Her smile, her laugh, the way
her glasses slid ever so slowly down the bridge of her nose throughout
the course of a meeting, the way she bit her lip and stuttered when
his flirting caught her off guard; every vision had, for the last
couple of weeks, been driving him mad. He had yet to fully admit
the attraction, but something was changing. Something that both
scared and excited him at the same time
'Cause I want nothing more, than to sit outside Heaven's door
And listen to you breathing
Is where I want to be...
These new feelings were both dangerous and complicated. There was
so much upheaval in his personal life already. His divorce from
Carly was now in the works, papers signed and delivered to the courts.
Despite his past reluctance to hand over the papers and make it
official, in his heart Sonny knew that his marriage had been over
for quite a while. Some days, he wasn’t even sure it was ever
much of a marriage to begin with. But even as the divorce proceeded,
Sonny knew that, because of Michael, Carly would always be a part
of his life. Carly’s hatred of Alexis was widely known, and
Sonny’s developing feelings toward his attorney certainly wouldn’t
ease the tension.
There would be other complications as well. The Cassadine’s
were none too fond of him either, and Jax and Ned, two of Alexis’
closest friends, detested him. And beyond that, there were of course,
the problems Sonny and Alexis posed to each other. Neither had a
decent relationship record, and neither was the type to let another
into their heart easily. Sonny knew that Alexis liked him, and that,
at least on some level, he already held a place in her heart. That
was, in his mind, a place to start.
I'm looking past the shadows of my mind into the truth and I’m
Trying to identify the voices in my head, God, which one's you
But even knowing the possibility for disaster was high, Sonny couldn’t
help but hope that maybe, somehow, they could overcome the odds
and actually make a relationship work. They were in so many ways
perfect for each other. Alexis made him feel alive, and he made
her take chances. She was his voice of reason, and he was her sounding
board. She was everything he could ever want in a woman, and at
the same time, more than he had ever imagined he could have. She
kept him on his toes in the best way.
Let me feel one more time, what it feels like to feel and
Break these calluses off of me one more time
They were perfect compliments to each other; Sonny was sure of it.
This relationship, these feelings, had snuck up on him. He wasn’t
looking for love or romance, and yet somehow the trust and respect
he had for Alexis had developed into a desire for both.
It was crazy. Us. We. Alexis and I. It was craziness to even think
such things. There was no way it could happen, no way Alexis was
discovering feelings which mirrored his own.
Or was she? Sonny’d begun to notice slight changes in her behavior.
It was becoming easier and easier to make her laugh or blush. She
had been looking at him differently lately. Not looking at him as
a client or even a trusted friend. She had been looking at him as
a man. She desired him. She wanted him. It was the same way he found
himself now feeling about her.
At first he told himself it was just his imagination. It couldn’t
be true, she couldn’t be interested in him. Not in that way.
Once, twice, even three times he’d pushed the thought aside.
But more than a few times since, he’d caught her watching him.
She’d played it off, and so had he. But now he was sure. Sonny
knew.
But he still had no idea how to broach the subject with her. He
was scared she would recoil if he made an advance. And the last
thing he wanted was to ruin years of friendship with one slip of
the tongue.
Bet you're tired of me, waiting for the scraps to fall
Off of your table to the ground
At the same time, he couldn’t just sit back and do nothing.
He knew Alexis, and he knew she would not be the one to make the
first move, for fear of overstepping and compromising their attorney/client
relationship. That, and she still believed he was in love with his
ex.
But Sonny knew that Carly was his past. His actions until now may
not have made that clear, in fact, he was sure he had been sending
totally mixed signals to both women. But now Sonny was certain,
he would make sure Carly knew they were over, and he would convince
Alexis that she was the one he wanted to share his future with.
'Cause I just want to be here now
The surf crashed loudly against the beach, white foam outlining
the shore. Sonny looked to the now empty glass in his hand, turned,
and headed back inside the suite. He shut the patio doors behind
him, closing out the soothing sounds of the surf, leaving him in
silence. It was late; if he stayed up another couple of hours, he
would be able to watch the stars fade and the sun rise. But he couldn’t.
He and Alexis had a few more meetings during the day to put the
final touches on the labor contracts. And after that he had promised
her a night on the town. The last thing he wanted was for his tiredness
to give Alexis an excuse to stand him up. He had been thinking about
what they would do off and on all day. It would be special. A great
night between two friends. Friends with the potential to be so much
more.
Yes, he would make it special. Alexis deserved it. And so did he.
This was the perfect opportunity, the chance he had been waiting
for. A chance to see exactly what he and Alexis could be.
Setting his glass on the bar, Sonny decided it was time to call
it a night. He turned off the light and headed down the hallway
toward his room. And toward Alexis’. When they had arrived,
Sonny hadn’t even considered renting another suite. His private
suite, where he always stayed when at the casino, had three bedrooms,
each with its own full bath. But now walking down the hall, it struck
him how close she was.
Her door was only a few steps past his own. He told himself to just
go to bed, but his feet carried him past his own door to hers. The
door was open just a sliver, allowing a thin beam of light to stream
into the dimly lit bedroom from the brighter hallway. He opened
the door a little more, trying not to make any noise, not wanting
to disturb her sleep. The door squeaked, and Sonny held his breath.
When he heard no movement on the other side of the door, he peered
in. He barely stepped foot inside before a smile came across his
face.
Sonny shook his head, nearly laughing at himself. It was still such
a new, wonderful feeling for him, to be happy over such a simple
thing. Now, it was watching her sleep; at other times it was her
laugh, her smile, the way she talked, just being in her presence.
Alexis was curled on her side, face hidden from his view, sheets
pulled up just under her chin. Even in the pale light, he felt a
flutter in his stomach watching her. She was sleeping peacefully,
the stresses of the day not disturbing her at all. He imagined that
his sleep would be equally as peaceful, filled with dreams of her.
'Cause I am hanging on every word you say and
Even if you don't want to speak tonight, that's alright, alright
with me
Sonny stood there several more seconds.
Cause I want nothing more, than to sit outside Heaven's door
“Goodnight, Alexis.”
And listen to you breathing
Is where I want to be, yeah...
He took one more look at her before softly shutting the door and
heading to his own room. When he reached his door, he paused briefly.
He wasn’t quite sure why, but tonight, as usual, everything
seemed to come to him easier in Puerto Rico. Even his feelings.
Is where I want to be, yeah...
And after the door shut, in the darkness of her room, Alexis smiled
before drifting back to sleep.
