The Convenient Wife
by Kelly

chapter 27

It took four attempts to get the key in the lock of his front door,
but he managed it at last. Stumbling through it into the darkness, he
began to regret the overindulgence in the booze tonight. After all,
he had to be ready to assist Grayson in the morning getting the next
hearing together and then the trial. There was much to do to keep the
ball rolling.

Slamming the door behind him, he switched on the lamp standing in the
corner of the room. He slid off his jacket, tossed it onto the couch,
and slumped on the cushions beside it. That's when he saw it. A white
envelope, kind of thick, with his name typed across it in nice, bold,
black letters.

Clearly, someone had slid it under his door. Ric stood and trundled
over to pick it up. His hands shook a little as he ripped it open; he
had to blink several times to clear his vision. But once he read the
contents of the envelope, he was almost instantly as sober as a judge.

They were copies of legal documents. Two of them. A birth certificate
and a DNA test. Both belonging to little Miss Kristina Davis.

Ric grinned a tight little grin, feeling a lead weight lift from his
belly.

It seemed he was an uncle.

***

She stared at him from the doorway of her kitchen, a bowl of freshly
popped corn in her hands. Sonny sat on the couch in her living room,
barefoot, and clad in cotton pajama pants, a tee shirt, and a
government-issue ankle bracelet. Looking every inch the sexiest mob
boss who ever drew breath. And she was supposed to walk and talk and
otherwise behave as a normal, intelligent, woman when all she wanted
to do was throw him down and ravage him?

Even Alice had been affected. Granted, the nanny had been more than a
little surprised that Alexis had gotten married, but the woman's
appreciation for the beautiful male specimen currently reclining in
the living room was readily apparent. One or two dimpled smiles into
the evening and Alice's hard won respect had been a fait accomplit
for Mr. Corinthos.

Now they were alone, and she had so many butterflies in her stomach
she thought she could levitate at any moment. It wasn't like before.
When she had kissed and held him on the island, that had been a
magical night, otherworldly, a fantasy. And kissing him senseless in
that jail cell? He had needed her strength; they only had a short
time together; it was a crisis situation. She'd always had some kind
of extraordinary excuse…

But now they were just two normal married people. (Well, normal was
questionable.) But they were two newlyweds quietly spending the
evening at home…with no intrusions, no others present, and hours on
end to kill. It was a totally calm and un-extraordinary situation.
Yet she was more nervous than she'd ever been with him.

She took a deep breath, and forced her legs to walk into the living
room. Wrapping the black satin robe tighter around her, she perched
on the opposite end of the sofa, as far away from him as she could.
He gave her a sardonic look as if he knew just what she was doing.

But as soon as he opened his mouth, it was like they had stepped back
in time. Like they were in her penthouse, flirting, bobbing, and
weaving over cappuccino.

"Alexis, you had my fettuccini not an hour ago and here you go with
the popcorn," he teased.

"It's an after-dinner snack. Haven't you ever heard of that?"

"Yeah sure. I coulda made you a better one, though."

"Oh?"

"Strawberries. I remember how much you like them."

She choked on the handful of popcorn she'd shoveled into her mouth,
while he laughed and leaned across to clap her gently on the
back. "You alright there? Swallow a kernel?"

She gave him the Cassadine look of death and he responded by hunching
his shoulders innocently. "What? I just thought some strawberries
might be nice tonight."

Completely flustered and not knowing where to look or what to do, she
grabbed the remote and switched on her television. Flicking through
channels, she found a news program based in Manhattan and recognized
a glossy head of hair the color of raven's wing.

"Look, Sonny, it's you," she said, pointing with the remote.

Sonny followed her eyes and then grinned. "No, Lex, it's us."

She squinted as the camera angle widened and rebroadcast their steamy
kiss at the airport. It was accompanied by an entertainment
reporter's salacious voice-over, "Usually the height of decorum,
Alexis Davis shocked all onlookers by kissing her new husband,
reputed mob kingpin Sonny Corinthos, for an obscenely long time in
front of a waiting crowd of federal agents and journalists. The
lengthy kiss shocked her friends and colleagues. But remember the
rumors that surfaced years ago claiming the lawyer had a more
intimate relationship with her infamous client? Guess we finally have
our answer, folks."

"Oh. My. God!"

Sonny chuckled. "Mmm, Lex, look at you go!"

Apparently, she had grabbed him to her and ravaged his mouth like a
wanton on live television. Doing it "spur of the moment" had been one
thing. Her righteous anger at the Feds and the reporters on Sonny's
behalf had fueled her. But to see it now in a stone cold, sober
moment with Sonny right beside her…

"I look like I'm attacking you!" she groaned.

"But I was such a willing victim," Sonny cooed, tilting his head to
the side to get another angle. "It's actually…quite…hot to look at."

His words mortified her. Alexis covered her eyes with her hand and
turned an enchanting shade of pink, but she couldn't resist peeking
through her fingers. She and Sonny were molded together so closely in
that embrace there seemed no space between them.

"I was SO not trying to look—hot."

"You don't have to try. You just are!"

"What the hell was I thinking—"

"Lex, you got nothing to be ashamed of. You look fabulous, sexy, and…
passionate. I—damn, I can't take my eyes off of you."

"Will you just stop it?"

He reached for the telephone. "What is this, channel 7? I may need a
videotape of that kiss for my private collection."

Alexis slapped the phone out of his hand, nearly
hyperventilating. "Don't you dare!"

Sonny erupted in a fit of laughter. "Breathe, Lex. I'm kidding."

"Well, it's not funny!"

The video onscreen switched to a still photo of Jax and then an image
of said ex-husband holding her in a kindly embrace. She sighed
noisily. "Ah, now, see? That's better."

She saw Sonny's face cloud over. "Nah, actually that picture there…
that just ruined the whole mood," he muttered. "Did you have to like—
lounge-- in the Candy Boy's arms for so long?"

Alexis read the look of unease on her husband's face and it helped
her to recover from hers. Her eyebrow arched prettily. "You didn't
complain when I was in your arms. What's wrong with allowing my good
friend to hold and comfort me?"

"Nothin'," he snapped, grabbing the remote from her and switching
channels. "But does your holder and comforter have to be the most
annoying man on the planet? And one who used to be married to you?"

Alexis smiled and tilted her head in an exact parody of his earlier
move. "If I didn't know how conceited and self-important you are, I'd
think you were a bit jealous…"

"Jealous?" he burst. "Of the Candy Boy? That's actually hilarious,
Lex."

"Mmm, if you say so," she retorted.

"I say so," he said coldly.

"Well, okay then," she said cheerily.

"Fine!" he replied.

They subsided into a silence that pulsed with annoyance on his part
and with amusement on hers. It was Sonny who broke it.

"If you don't mind looking like some kind of fickle female, then go
ahead," he muttered. "Hug Jax."

"Excuse me?"

"Well, hey, you were all over me one second then you're wrapped
around the Australian ex."

"So?"

"So the public will be wondering what the hell kind of woman I
married."

"The kind who can and will kick your chauvinistic hide into her
hallway if she has to!" Alexis declared, standing in front of him.

"You don't have that option," he taunted, standing as well. "Ankle
bracelet. Deal with that."

Alexis's eyes grew wild. "I'll deal with it by taking myself to bed.
You'll find a guest bedroom opposite Kristina's. Good night!"

"Alexis, we're married."

"As if I needed reminding."

"So married people sleep TOGETHER."

"Oh, Sonny, what's the damn difference? No one will know."

"Alice will know. She comes fairly early."

Alexis frowned. "So you can wake up earlier, clean up the guest
bedroom, and sneak into bed with me before she arrives."

"Too risky and too much work."

Her head tilted. "Why do you keep throwing excuses at me?"

He put his head down for a moment, and then raised his eyes to
hers. "You're right," he said huskily. "We're both dancing around the
truth right now. Like old times. We been doing it all night. The fact
is I WANT to sleep with you. I WANT to make love with you. No more
pretense. No more excuses. No more trying to get you mad enough to
kiss me. Just the truth. And there it is."

If there was ever a time to stop breathing, Alexis thought, this was
it!

chapter 28