A Drunken Man's Words
by SexisFan

chapter 12

"You go ahead and get your boat. I'll wish you a nice trip home," Alexis said. "But I'm not leaving this island."

Sonny was stunned. Before she left Port Charles she'd been thinking of moving. And she loved Hatteras. But surely she wasn't planning on staying here, she'd just told Beau this morning that she wasn't staying here forever.

"What do you mean you're not leaving?" Sonny asked her.

"I mean that I am staying here. I am not packing up and heading back to Port Charles just because you want me there. I will go back when I'm good and ready. And I am NOT going back until I can drive my new car up there." Alexis finished saying her piece and turned back to drying the last of the dishes, leaving Sonny to ponder her words.

"Okay," he answered after a long pause.

"Okay what?"

"Okay, we'll stay."

Alexis threw down the dish towel and turned back to face him. "Let's get a few things straight, here. First, I don't need your permission or approval to stay, to leave or to dye my hair purple if I chose to do so. Second, me staying does not mean that YOU have to stay, too. We are not a 'we'. And even if we WERE a 'we', we wouldn't be the kind of 'we' that kept me from being a 'me'."

Sonny's head was spinning. He wasn't sure he understood a thing of what Alexis had said, but he could tell that he'd gotten her angry again.

"Alexis," he tried to soothe her, "I just want. . ."

"This isn't about what you want, Sonny. This trip is about what I want for a change. And I want to stay here until I don't want to stay here any longer. And then I'll leave. What I do has nothing to do with you," she asserted.

"So I'm supposed to leave you here alone?" he asked.

"I'm not yours to leave, Sonny, alone or otherwise. This isn't your decision, it's mine. I am staying here."

"And you want me to go?"

"Sonny, I don't know WHAT I want when it comes to you. I only know that I am not leaving Hatteras until I'm ready. And I may not want you to stay."

"Alexis, I worry about you. . ."

"I'll be fine, Sonny. I have Quincy and I have. . ."

"Beau?" Sonny snapped jealously.

"You called?" Beau entered the cottage as if on cue, a worn backpack slung over his shoulder.

Alexis shot Sonny a disapproving look. "We were just wondering when you'd get back," Alexis covered, not wanting to drag her new friend into her argument with Sonny.

"Well, here I am," Beau smiled, announcing the obvious. "And I come bearing gifts. If you can call borrowed clothes and a pair of ratty Nikes gifts," he joked.

"Hey, any port in a storm," Sonny replied.

Beau looked at him appreciatively and smiled broadly. "That's a good one," he said, pointing at Sonny to emphasize his compliment. "I hadn't pegged you for a joker."

"Oh, he's a riot," Alexis replied sarcastically. In obvious ill humor, she started out of the room. Pausing as she passed by Sonny, she hissed, "I have ME, you jackass."

*******

Work was the focus for the rest of the day. After storming out on the men, Alexis had gone into her room to make the bed and straighten up. She had to fight images of herself in Sonny's arms while she was smoothing the twisted sheets, and it only made her more irritated with him. He seemed to just take over her life, and she wasn't one bit pleased with it at the moment.

By the time she'd finished putting her room together, the men were outside taking plywood sheets from the windows. Sonny had changed into a pair of the jeans Beau had brought. And they were one nice pair of jeans, Alexis noted. They were worn in all the right places, gently faded, and she was certain they'd be deliciously soft if she only reached out a hand and ran it over his. . .Stop, Alexis, she scolded herself. Get a grip. It was a little difficult, though, with Sonny in her sights bare-chested, flushed from the sun, and wearing a sexy sheen of perspiration. Stranded without his hair gel, he'd had to leave his locks a wild mass of ebony waves and curls. She giggled inwardly, thinking that his natural hair kind of reminded her of Quincy's gorgeous coat, though she doubted Sonny would appreciate the comparison.

While the men worked companionably opening up the cottage, Alexis made herself useful clearing the grounds of a variety of debris. With a pair of work gloves and a rake, she filled a couple of large, wheeled garbage cans with sticks, vegetation, trash, pieces of roofing or siding, and any number of odds and ends blown by the wind or deposited by the flood waters. By the time she was done, the men had moved on to helping nearby neighbors unboard their windows as well. Alexis pulled out the garden hose and went about washing down the deck and front porch, rinsing away the sand and sea-salt plastered there. Next, she sprayed down the carport and driveway, washing away the thick layer of sand deposited by the storm's waters. Quincy had been 'helping' her clean up the yard - usually by grabbing a stick and running with it, expecting Alexis to chase after him. When she went to work with the hose, he was in heaven. Yapping happily, he raced back and forth through the stream of clear, cool water issuing from the nozzle. Alexis laughed at his game, encouraging him by arcing the spray away from him so that he had to chase it and 'catch' it in order to enjoy the shower.

Alexis and Quincy were hard at play when Beau's sister Kate wandered up the cottage drive carrying what appeared to be a picnic basket. Kate laughed, thoroughly enjoying Alexis' fun with her pup. "Now that looks like MY idea of yard work," Kate called as she approached.

Alexis shut off the water and smiled at the other woman. "Hey, Kate. Beau's not here right now," she offered.

"That's okay. I figured he'd be wandering all over the island helping out," she shrugged. "It's just the way he is."

Alexis nodded. She hadn't known him long, but it was clear that Beau was a genuinely caring and giving human being.

"What do you have there?" Alexis asked, pointing toward the basket that had drawn Quincy's attention now that his water-game was done.

"Lunch. Just some sandwiches and fruit. You hungry?"

Alexis hadn't thought about it, but she actually was pretty hungry. Nodding, she asked, "But what about the guys? I don't know where they are. . ."

Kate dismissed Alexis' concern with a wave and a huff. "Forget them! Someone will feed them. Beau never goes hungry, that's for sure," she laughed. "Come on, let's eat."

Soon they were settled on the deck with Kate's delicious sandwiches and semi-chilled cans of soda from Beau's powerless fridge. They chatted casually, sharing their experiences of the previous night's storm. Then the conversation took a slight detour.

"You know," announced Kate, "the guys stopped by our house a little bit ago while making their 'white knight' rounds." She smiled knowingly and continued. "That's one sexy boyfriend you've got there."

"Boyfriend?" Alexis nearly swallowed her tongue along with the bite of sandwich in her mouth.

"Yeah, that Sonny. He's one gorgeous piece of man. And way too charming to be legal," Kate winked.

"You don't know the half of it," Alexis remarked dryly, wondering what Kate would think if she knew just how illegal Sonny really was. "But he's not my boyfriend," she clarified.

"Really?" Kate didn't seem convinced.

"Really. I'm his attorney, and his friend. We are not romantically involved," Alexis asserted.

Kate laughed heartily. "Well, then, sweetie, you need to get your head examined." At Alexis' shocked expression, Kate continued. "No offense, Alexis, but that man was made for sex and you should take advantage of it. Life's short. Live a little," she added, reaching for a can of cola.

"Has anyone ever told you that you are a lot like your brother?" Alexis asked.

"Watch it!" came Beau's voice from the path to the deck. "Those are fighting words, there, missy," he teased.

Katie laughed at her brother's teasing, but her humor didn't stop her from tossing a slice of apple his way.

"Hey, if you're going to throw food my way, make it something with meat," he joked, digging a sandwich out of the basket on the table and settling down next to his sister. "I'm a hard-working man, you know."

"A man hardly working," Kate teased back.

Alexis and Sonny were both smiling as they watched the siblings lovingly joke with each other, though neither knew that behind the other's smile was a wish for a similar easy camaraderie with their own siblings. Kate and Beau had a relationship that reflected a shared history neither Sonny nor Alexis could claim with their own sisters, and the knowledge left each feeling a little wistful.

Sonny took his place next to Alexis, settling down with his own sandwich. Alexis noted the way Kate's eyes twinkled as she surreptitiously gave him a quick look-over before turning to Alexis and winking wickedly.

"So, what are you two gals talking about?" Beau asked lightly.

"Men," Kate answered bluntly.

"Naturally," Beau smiled. "And what about men?"

"I was just telling Alexis that. . ." Kate stifled a giggle at Alexis' panicked expression. ". . .that hard working men such as yourselves need a hot meal. And she was just about to agree with me, I'm sure." Kate smiled at Alexis, making her meaning clear as Alexis ducked her eyes and blushed slightly.

"This mean you're cooking for us tonight?" Beau teased.

Kate shrugged. "It's the least I can do for you. . .after the two of you get done over at mom's place," she smiled. Beau laughed in response.

"Anyone ever tell you that subtlety is not your gift, sister?" he grinned at her. "Don't worry. We're on our way over to mom's. And I predict we'll be finished with the clean-up over there just in time for dinner," Beau joked.

"I am so not surprised," Kate laughed back at him. "As if that wasn't the plan all along."

Following their cheerful lunch, the whole crew made their way over to Mrs. Richards' home, ready to get to work once again. Beau and Sonny were joined by Kate's husband as the three of them set about removing the plywood protection from the windows. And with a house much larger than Beau's little cottage, there were a lot more windows to uncover, some requiring a bit of precarious balancing on a ladder far to high for Alexis' taste. For her part, Alexis joined Kate and repeated the same chores in this yard that she had in Beau's. Only this time, in addition to Quincy's assistance, she and Kate had the help of Kate's two little ones, who were only slightly less helpful than the dog. The afternoon was a pleasant one, though, as the adults worked together and the children provided entertainment with their antics.

The evening was just as enjoyable. Beau's mother put together a delicious spread, thanks to the benefit of having a generator to provide electricity in emergencies. Thankfully, sandbags around the generator shed had kept the worst of the flooding at bay so that the engine wasn't damaged. With a store of fuel set aside in the days before the hurricane made landfall, the Richards family home would have power in the evenings for cooking, and to heat water for dishes and bathing.

The meal was not only delicious, but boisterous as family members and guests joined in conversation and laughter. Sonny, Alexis noted without surprise, was the hit of the party. He was charming to Beau's mother and sister, entertaining for the nieces and nephews, and "just one of the guys" with Beau and with Kate's husband. Sonny enthralled his audience, offering them everything from a tutorial on coffee beans and proper grinding methods for the women, to debating the state and fate of Major League baseball with the men. Alexis watched him with interest, seeing for the first time this day the man he might have been had his path not led into organized crime. This was Sonny as he would have been without power, without money. This was Sonny without the weight of the heavy losses in his life. This charming, intelligent, affable man was the Sonny who could have been a successful salesman, an entrepreneur, and no telling what else. It saddened her a bit to think of the life to which he'd return when he left the island. But at the same time, she was strangely comforted to know that she found this Sonny - the manual laboring, sports talking, child amusing charmer - as engaging and attractive as the powerful, wealthy man of danger.

The meal ended all too soon. Alexis wanted to assist in the clean-up, but Kate and her mother wouldn't hear of it. Both insisted that Alexis and Sonny get back to the cottage and get some rest after a day already spent pitching in to help.

With the emergency crews having cleared the roadway of the fallen electrical cables, it would be possible for Alexis to drive them back in her car, which had been left in the Richards garage for safety. Retrieving the keys from a set of pegs by the back door, Beau handed them to Alexis.

"Guess I'll see y'all sometime tomorrow," he announced.

"Tomorrow?" Alexis asked, surprised.

"Yeah. This is where I live all summer, remember?" Beau smiled.

Alexis drew him aside and whispered frantically, "You can't do this to me! I can't be alone with Sonny yet."

"You got to be alone with him sometime, Alexis," Beau whispered back. "Now is as good a time as any."

With that proclamation, Beau crossed into the living room, where Sonny was thanking Mrs. Richards again for their meal, and bid the darker man goodnight with a handshake. "You take good care of her," Beau instructed Sonny, receiving for his effort an icy glare from an unamused Alexis.

"I always do my best," Sonny replied cheerfully, seemingly unaware of Alexis' hesitancy. "You want me to drive?" Sonny asked, turning to Alexis.

"Why not," Alexis replied curtly, handing him the keys. "Aren't you always in the driver's seat, anyway?"

Refusing to rise to the bait, Sonny accepted the keys and escorted Alexis from the house to the car. The short distance to the cottage was covered in silence, except for the excited yips that Quincy offered to the children bidding him farewell. Once at the cottage, Alexis announced that she needed to take Quincy for a walk, and that she'd be back in a while, leaving it clear that Sonny was not invited to tag along. Taking his cue from her, he made his way into the darkened cottage armed with a battery-powered lantern borrowed from the Richards home.

Alexis made her way down the path toward the beach, Quincy at her feet. The little dog had been in and out all evening and after all the play with Kate's children certainly didn't need a walk. But Alexis needed some time alone, time without the influence of Sonny's presence. Cresting the dunes, Alexis could see by the moonlight that the beach was littered with remnants from the hurricane. She couldn't make out all the forms covering the stretch of sand, but she could tell that it wasn't safe for a nighttime stroll.

Alexis opted instead for a seat on higher, and cleaner, ground. Resting among the stands of sea oats, she kicked off her shoes and buried her toes in the cool sand. With her elbows resting on her knees, Alexis cradled her head in her hands. Staring out into the darkness, she let the rhythmic sound of the breaking waves wash over her. The ocean failed, though, to bring her the sense of peace she sought. Thoughts and feelings created a confusing jumble within her. Memories of making love with Sonny flashed in her mind, intercut with mental images of him as she'd seen him all that day. Alexis felt a stab of guilt at her treatment of him since morning. She was guarding her heart from hurt, she knew. But that didn't justify the surliness she'd tossed Sonny's way every time the sight of him threatened to melt her and lower her guard. It wasn't his fault that her emotion was warring with her reason. It wasn't like he'd set out to create this schism within her. Yet every time he'd smiled at her, every time she looked at him and saw his vulnerability, every time he'd been close enough to her physically to make her yearn for the warmth of his arms, she'd felt angry with him. It wasn't rational. She knew it. But neither were her feelings of desire for him.

Alexis had no idea how long she'd remained on the beach wrestling with her own thoughts and feelings. In the end it proved a futile fight as she had come to no resolution by the time she rose to call Quincy back from his eager investigation of the debris washed up by the storm. Making her way up the path to the cottage Alexis wondered how she would handle this evening with Sonny. The safest thing for both of them would be for her to retire to her room right away. That would spare her from her desires, and him from the ire she felt every time that desire had risen today. Alexis sighed. She'd just lock herself into her room and prepare for bed. She wasn't looking forward to a tepid sponge bath, but that would all she'd be able to manage when it came to washing up without hot water, she thought as she reached the door of the cottage and turned the handle.

Stepping inside, Alexis held her breath. Where was Sonny, she wondered, not seeing him in the dim light of the living room. The sound of movement from her room caught her attention and Alexis felt herself stiffen. He better not have assumed. . .

"Hi," Sonny greeted her simply with a shy smile as he stepped from her room.

Alexis fought to contain the mixture of emotion rising within her. "Sonny," she began, her voice harsher than she wished.

"I have a surprise for you," he interrupted. "In the bathroom." Sonny tilted his head toward her room and turned, obviously expecting her to follow.

Padding softly into the room behind him, Alexis noted for the first time the large metal pot he held in his hand. What in the world? Reaching the bathroom door, Sonny stepped aside to allow Alexis access. Stepping through the doorway, Alexis was taken aback by the sight of a tub full of bubbles glistening in warm candlelight. Alexis turned to Sonny with questioning eyes.

"I thought you might enjoy a hot bath after all the physical work you did today," he explained simply.

"But how. . ."

"The grill," he explained, lifting the empty pot for her inspection. "I heated the water up on the grill while you were gone."

Alexis felt her heart melt at his genuine thoughtfulness, especially after she'd been so ugly to him all day. The weight of her shame was such that she felt no irritation with him in response to the feelings of warmth and appreciation washing over her.

"Sonny. . ." she said again, this time with gentleness.

Sonny ducked his head, avoiding her gaze. "Enjoy yourself," he said simply, stepping quickly from the room and closing the door softly behind him.

Alexis turned back to the tableau before her. The room was bathed in the warm glow of light from half a dozen candles, and filled with the sweet scent of gardenias rising from the mound of sparkling bubbles. Crossing over to the tub, Alexis bent and dipped her fingers in the water. Mmmmm, perfect, she thought in wonder. Slowly, still stunned, she began to undress, dropping her t-shirt, then her jeans, and finally her underclothes into a pile on the floor. Gingerly she stepped into the steamy water, slowly lowering herself into the welcoming warmth. Leaning back, Alexis sighed in contentment and gratitude. Sonny was. . .amazing. There was no other word to describe him at the moment.

In her bath, Alexis was finally able to find a bit of the peace she'd hoped to find on the beach. Submerged in the warm bubbles and caressed by calming candlelight, she was able to let herself relax, her mind free from both memories of the recent past and worries about the future consequences. So relaxed was she, that Alexis was near sleep when she heard a soft tapping on the bathroom door.

"Yes?" she called softly.

The door opened just a crack and Sonny's voice filtered in. "I have another surprise for you," he answered.

Alexis tensed, wondering if he was about to step through the door nude and full of assumptions. If he thought he could buy her with a bath, he'd find out very quickly how wrong he was.

"Come in," Alexis replied cautiously, ready to rage if her suspicions were confirmed.

Sonny entered the bathroom slowly and Alexis breathed a sigh of relief to see that he was still fully clothed. As he stepped closer to the tub, Alexis heard a distinctive tinkling sound from behind his back.

"What. . ." she began.

Sonny's hand emerged from behind his back, offering Alexis a large glass filled to the brim with cola and - she couldn't believe it - ice cubes.

"One of the neighbors has a generator, and he's keeping it running continuously. So they've been able to make ice. He brought some over as a thank you for helping him take the plywood from his windows today," Sonny explained, setting the sweating glass on the ledge of the tub.

"Thank you," Alexis breathed softly, feeling ashamed for her doubt of Sonny's appearance at her bathroom door.

"Alexis?" Sonny looked down at her expectantly, causing her breath to catch in her throat. "Can I talk to you for a minute?"

Alexis could only nod in response.

Sonny smiled and slid to the floor beside the tub. Propping his arm on the side of the tub, he looked down at his lap and took a deep breath, preparing himself to say his piece. After an interminable pause, he exhaled and spoke.

"I'd like to stay for the rest of the week. At least until the ferry is running," he started, looking deeply into her eyes. And before Alexis could respond, he continued, "Let me tell you why. It's. . .well, it's not about you. Not JUST about you. It's about. . .me," he stumbled over his explanation. Alexis saw his mouth twitch as it does when he's feeling particularly emotional. She was trying to form some response when he began to speak again. "Today was a very good day for me, Alexis. I. . .I didn't have to be Sonny Corinthos today."

Alexis looked at him questioningly.

"No one knows me here," he continued. "No one is scared of me here. They don't look at me with suspicion or. . .or disgust. I'm just some guy to these people. And it's been a long, long time since I've just been. . .me, and not my reputation."

Alexis watched as deep emotions flickered across his face. A lump rose in her throat as her heart ached for him. Again, she was about to speak. . .

"If it's okay with you," he said, "I'd like to stay. For me. Even if you say 'no' to the next request," he grinned sheepishly.

"Next request?"

Sonny nodded and dropped his gaze. Stalling for time, he dipped his hand into her bath and scooped up a bit of the warm water into his cupped palm. Then opening his hand, he let the water dribble out onto Alexis' bent knee poking up through the mound of soft bubbles. Distractedly, he repeated the sequence several times as he finally began to speak. "I was wondering if we could, you know, spend this week together and not think, you know, about the future."

Alexis was momentarily stunned into silence. Was he asking her if they could. . ."I'm not sure what you're asking Sonny." Good Alexis. That sounded nice and cool.

"I'm asking if we can try being together for the week with no expectations and no worrying about the future."

"We've been together all day, Sonny," she replied, being purposefully obtuse. He was going to have to spit out what he wanted to say.

Sonny lifted his dark eyes and peered deeply into hers. "Not like we were last night," he answered softly.

chapter 13