What Happened to Forever?
Chapters 63-64
~*~Chapter 63~*~
Luke goes to the phone as soon as they’re out the door.
“Sonny, what’s the deal with this Nelson Bartolli guy?”
“How did you hear about that, Luke?” Sonny answered, confused.
“My kids overheard you and Jason today, and I’m concerned. Whenever your territory is being threatened, someone that I care about could get hurt.”
Sonny sighs. He knows that Luke isn’t going to give up until he tells him everything. “Fine, Luke. Bartolli is an old partner of Moreno’s, and Benny thinks he may be looking to take over. Nothing’s for certain yet, it’s just speculation, so I wouldn’t get too worried yet.”
“Well, nothing personal, but I think I’m going keep myself and my family away from you and Jason for a while, until this blows over.” Luke says apologetically.
“Do what you have to, Luke, I understand. To be honest, I’d take myself away from us as well, if I could!“
“I don’t blame you, partner. Listen, my boy’s got a bad feeling about this guy, so maybe it wouldn’t be a bad idea to beef up your security,” Luke says, worried about his friend.
“You may be right, I’ll look into it. Thanks, Luke.”
Luke hangs up the phone and sighs. If what Lucky told him is true, and one of them was in danger, he had to figure out how to make sure that they were kept safe.
~*~
“I’m sure Dad is going to talk to Sonny, but we still have to make sure we’re safe,” Lucky says, pacing around the cottage’s living room
“How about here? The cottage isn’t associated with Sonny or Jason,” Emily says.
Lucky shakes his head. “Staying here isn’t enough. I mean, we’d have to leave sooner or later to get food or something, and that kind of defeats the purpose of getting out of the way, you know?”
“How about the Cassidine country house?” Nikolas suggests. “Alexis told me that I could use it anytime I wanted.”
“You mean Alexis, as in Natasha Bergman?” Lucky asks, stressing her real name.
“I thought we had agreed that she wasn’t the N.B. that it was warning against. There’s no reason for her to hurt any of the Spencers. I think the country house is the safest place for us” Nikolas says, trying to convince him.
“I don’t know....” Lucky says, still unsure.
“Look, we’ll go for a week. If nothing has happened by then, we’ll come back. If something does happen, then we’ll have been out of the way. Either way, we’ll get a nice vacation out of it!” He looks at the others, waiting for a response. The girls look excited at the prospect of a week in the house, but Lucky still seems reluctant.
“Come on, Lucky, it’ll be fun. A whole week, no parents, no job, just you and me?” Liz pleads, knowing that if anyone can change his mind, it’s her.
He smiles at her. “No fair, you know I can’t say no to you.”
She grins. “I know. So can we go? I’d feel so much better knowing you’re out of their way. I’ve already lost you once, I don’t want to have to go through that again just because you were too stubborn to go!”
Lucky sighs, “All right, Nikolas, we’re in. Call Alexis and set it up. But we can’t stay longer than a week. Lucy roped Elizabeth and I into performing at the Nurses’ Ball, and rehearsals start soon.”
Emily gasps. “That’s right! I have a number with Ned again, so I guess I’ll have to be back too. Do you think staying away for a week is long enough?”
Lucky shrugs. “I don’t know. We’ll see what happens. If, at the end of the week, things are still dangerous here, then we’ll have to decide whether the Nurses’ Ball is important enough to come back. I wouldn’t worry about it until then.”
After a few more minutes of planning, the girls both go home to pack. Nikolas calls Alexis and tells her that they’ll be using the house for the next week.
“Do you really think that Luke is going to take this seriously and keep Mom and LuLu safe?” Nikolas asks nervously.
“He may not put much stock in that Ouija board stuff, but he’s been around long enough to know that when someone’s looking to take over Sonny’s territory, innocent people can end up getting hurt, so I’m sure he’s taking this seriously. He’ll probably send them to North Carolina or something. It’s him that I’m more worried about. Knowing him, he’ll make sure we’re all out of the way, but he won’t do the same for himself. I just hope he stays away from the club for a while...” Lucky starts pacing again.
“Don’t worry, Luke can take care of himself. So, how did Lucy con you guys into doing a number this year?” Nikolas asks, trying to change the subject.
Lucky smiles, “Oh, you know Lucy. She gets so excited about the whole thing that’s it’s just hard to say no.”
“So, what are you doing? Some big romantic number or something?”
“Nah, that’s what she wanted us to do, but we figured with everything that’s gone on lately, we’d rather do something more fun. But that’s all I can tell you, because the rest is a secret!” Lucky grins, thinking about the song they were going to perform.
Nikolas shakes his head. “Someone needs to tell Lucy that she takes this whole thing way too seriously! It’s not a matter of national security whether or not we know what songs someone is performing!”
Lucky laughs, “I know, but I sort of like that it’s a surprise to everyone. Keeps the night interesting. Kind of like trying to figure out how she’s going to end up in her underwear at the end!”
They both laugh and head upstairs to pack.
~*~Chapter 64~*~
“Here we are!” Nikolas announces, opening the door to the country house and leading his friends inside.
“Wow.” Elizabeth says, looking around. “This place is beautiful!”
“Yeah, it’s so peaceful out here,” Emily adds.
“There’s a pool out back, some gardens, a fully-stocked kitchen, and stables, so we can go riding later if you’d like.” Nikolas looks at Emily when he says this last part, and they both blush.
Lucky looks at Elizabeth. “What’s that all about?”
She smiles and leans in to whisper in his ear. “Their first kiss was while horseback riding.”
“Oh. I don’t blush like that when someone mentions a boxcar, do I?”
She giggles. “I don’t know, I don’t think anyone’s ever mentioned one before. I guess there’s only one way to find out.” She walks up to him, throws her arms around him, leans up so that their lips are almost touching, and whispers, “Boxcar.”
His pulse is racing from having her so close, and he can’t help blushing. She giggles and starts to back away. “Yep, you do.”
“Oh no you don’t! Get back here!” He lunges for her, but she manages to escape his grasp, and he chases her around the room for a minute before finally catching her. “No fair teasing me like that!” he says before bringing his mouth down on hers for a searing kiss.
“A-hem. In case you guys didn’t notice, we’re still here,” Nikolas says, laughing.
Instead of breaking their kiss, Lucky just waves him away.
Emily laughs and pulls on Nikolas’s shirt. “Come on, let’s go find those horses.”
That’s enough to get his attention, and he follows her out the back, leaving Lucky and Elizabeth alone. Lucky leans back and looks into her eyes. “I thought they’d never leave.”
Elizabeth giggles. “I can’t believe you just waved them away like that. You’re so rude!”
“Oh, like they’re upset at having to be alone together somewhere. Nikolas will thank me later!” He says, pulling her into another kiss.
“Mmm, I could get used to this,” she says, looking into his eyes. “Thank you.”
“For what?” he asks, before kissing her again.
“For agreeing to come here. I was really worried that something might happen to you, and I don’t think I could handle that now. I’m kind of used to having you around again, you know,” she says teasingly.
He smiles at her. “Well, that’s good, because I don’t plan on going anywhere for a while. At least, not without you.” He kisses her again. “What do you say we go find our rooms?”
She looks at him, pretending to be shocked. “Lucky Spencer, I’m not that kind of girl!”
He grins. “I meant so that we could put our luggage away, but I like the way your mind works!”
“Pervert!” She exclaims, punching him in the arm, and immediately runs away before he can retaliate. He sprints after her, into one of the guest rooms.
“Now I’ve got you!” he says, cornering her in the room. She backs up, laughing, against the bed, and falls onto it. He lowers himself on top of her and starts tickling.
“Oh, no! I’m sorry! Stop! I won’t do it again, I promise!” she squeals in between giggles, until he finally stops. They lay there, staring into each other’s eyes.
“So which one of us gets this room?” Lucky asks.
Elizabeth smiles. “How about both of us?”
He sits up in surprise. “What do you mean?”
She sits up as well. “I’m still not too good at sleeping in strange places, so I was hoping you’d stay in here with me.”
“On the floor?” he asks, not too thrilled with the prospect, but knowing that he won’t be able to say no if it’s what she really wants.
She shakes her head. “No, I know how uncomfortable that is. Would you mind sharing the bed with me? That is, if you think you can behave yourself.” She grins at him, hoping he will agree.
He looks at her skeptically. “Are you sure about this?”
“Yes, I am. For a year I thought that I would never have the chance to fall asleep in your arms or wake up next to you again. I just want to be close to you again. Will you stay here with me?” She looks so vulnerable and sad when she asks this, he can’t help pulling her into his arms.
“Of course I will. I felt the same way, you know. I was so afraid I’d never be able to see you again. I would sleep as often as I could, just so I could dream about you, but dreams were never enough.” He gazes down at her. “I guess you could say it would be a dream come true to be able to fall asleep with you in my arms again.”
She smiles at him. “I love you, you know that?”
He grins. “Really? What a coincidence, cause I love you too!” She laughs as he pulls her in for another kiss.
