Stefan studied Laura’s face, hoping for a sign of something other than the anger he’d seen lately. Dara had just told them there wasn’t enough evidence to support Helena’s claims they had poisoned her, so no charges could be filed. She had also assured them that Mac thought he had enough evidence to convict Helena for Katherine’s murder. Finally, they were free of pointing fingers and he, for one, was hoping to move on.

As Dara left, he turned toward Laura and gave her just a hint of a smile. His only response was a flash of anger, then sadness, in her eyes.

“Laura, now that you can’t be harmed by any of this — if you’re willing to allow me a few moments of your time — I’ll tell you everything.”

Although her expression remained unchanged, Laura nodded and walked with him out of the PCPD. Rather than stand out in the bitter cold, he started the car with his remote as they approached and Laura agreed to share it with him.

“I need to get back to GH for my next appointment,” she said as he climbed in next to her.

“Very well, I’ll make this brief.” Stefan started to reach for her hand, but thought better of it and rested his hand on the console between them. His voice was calm and gentle when he told her he wanted to start at the beginning. “Last spring, when Mother’s taunting caused your collapse, I knew I had to keep her away from you. You were already losing yourself in your grief, Laura, and I couldn’t allow her to destroy you. While you were a patient here, protecting you was easy. I made certain you were watched over day and night, either by staying with you in your room, or through staff vigilance. Taking you to the country house was a way of further isolating you from Mother and giving you an opportunity to recover.”

“Being there helped a great deal,” Laura said. Her eyes met Stefan’s only briefly before she looked at her hands where they were folded on her lap.

“I know. As I watched you heal and begin to regain your emotional strength, I was determined to prevent Mother from causing you to have a setback. Laura, you and I both know, if she’d had the opportunity, she would have goaded you all the way to Ferncliff.”

“I’m sure she would have tried.”

“I told John to take whatever non-lethal means necessary to remove Mother as a threat to you.” When Laura looked doubtful, he nodded. “That’s right. Non-lethal. John procured a drug that is currently in pre-trial stage. It’s being developed for victims of acute trauma. The purpose of the drug is to interrupt a patient’s motor functions when movement could cause permanent paralysis or other serious harm, yet still allow the person to retain full cognitive functions so physicians and family can communicate with him.”

“Obviously, it works,” Laura said with a touch of disdain remaining in her voice. “How long were you planning to keep Helena like that?”

“Honestly, I don’t know.”

“Until it wore off?”

“Apparently, it doesn’t. Their research to date indicates that a counteragent must be administered to restore the patient. I have no idea who helped Mother, and that troubles me greatly, but I will find out.”

“She said you taunted her. Did you?”

Stefan exhaled slowly and nodded. “I told her I wanted her to think about the horrific things she had done in her life. I even went so far as to pour a vile of the counteragent onto the floor.”

“Good.” Laura almost smiled at him. “I’m glad of that, at least.”

Seeing an opening, Stefan placed his hand over Laura’s. When she didn’t pull hers away, he continued. “I wanted to tell you what I had done, but how could I? Had I told you before John acted, you could have been charged with everything Mother accused you of. After the act was accomplished, telling you would have placed you at risk for other charges, such as aiding and abetting or being an accomplice after the fact. Even after Mother had been restored, and you asked me to be honest with you, I knew that if I told you, and you chose not to tell the police, I would be making you guilty of no less than obstruction of justice.”

“So, instead, you looked me in the eye and lied to me.” Laura withdrew her hand, but turned to face him.

“Yes. I’ve lost a great deal of sleep over that.”

“And I nearly went to jail anyway.”

“I never intended for you to be harmed by any of this. If you recall, I discouraged your return to work so soon. And John was to administer the drug at night so Helena would be on her yacht when it took effect. She certainly wasn’t supposed to be in your office when she collapsed.”

“Helena thinks you poisoned her to regain control of the estate.”

“First, it was a type of medication, not a poison. And second, I didn’t contact the attorneys; they asked me to resume the role of trustee.”

“You didn’t exactly turn it down.”

“In whom could I have placed my trust, Laura? In my entire life I’ve trusted a handful of people, and every one of them, except for Nikolas, has either betrayed me or walked out of my life.”

Laura glared at him for a moment, but her gaze softened when she looked into his eyes. “Trust works both ways, Stefan. Do you know how foolish I feel? You heard me the day Helena was arrested, telling her how wonderful you had been to her. I told everyone what an incredible person you were to provide such loving care for her. When all the while —”

“I realize I let you down. But if I saved you then only to lose you now, I still have no regrets. You mean far too much to me.” Stefan rested his open hand against her cheek, relieved when she didn’t reach up to remove it. “That’s all there is to tell, unless you have other questions,” he said as he slowly lowered his hand.

She shook her head, but remained in the car. “I know you lie to protect the people you love, and even to hold onto them. I’ve done the same and we’ve discussed how much it’s cost me. You’ve seen how it upsets Nikolas. I wanted you to be different with me, Stefan. Was that too much to ask?”

“No, it wasn’t.” He smiled sadly. “I’ve been through hell lately, Laura. First I find out that Nikolas — my heart and my soul — is indeed my brother’s son and that my life has been a lie perpetrated by a mother who has always hated me. Then there you were. Saving me. Loving me. Wanting me. As much as it troubled me to keep that truth from you, for just a moment everything I’ve dreamed of having with you was within my grasp and I reached for it. A few hours of happiness with you, now only to be lost to me once again. If I haven’t been as apologetic as I should have been…” his voice faded into a sigh.

“You know, I thought my life was finally right again. I had finally summoned the courage to ask Luke for a divorce so I could be free to be with you. But you lied to me and now I have all these mixed feelings about you when all I wanted to do is love you. I’m hurt, too, Stefan.”

“That was never my intention.”

“I know that. Your love for me is the one thing I’m sure of. It’s just that . . .” Laura stopped. Hurting him served no purpose, and that wasn't her intent. “Maybe I expect too much from you now. I imagine you expected more from me, too. Didn’t you?”

“I’ve learned not to expect very much from others. But yes, I had hoped you meant it when you said nothing could change your love for me.”

“I wouldn’t have said it if I didn’t mean it. I haven’t stopped loving you or wanting to be with you.” Laura slid her hand over his. “I think, it’s been so long since I was exposed to your darker side, that I’d forgotten it existed. Maybe I wanted to forget because you’ve been so good to me and to Lulu. But being told by Helena that you poisoned her was a hard slap by reality. That side of you frightens me, Stefan. I won’t pretend it doesn’t.” She squeezed his hand tightly and let go. “I’m not sure I can live with someone capable of acts of . . . cruelty. Even if I agree that Helena probably had it coming.”

“I told you, I’m not proud of my actions. I wish there had been another way. Somehow, I doubt that simply asking her to leave you alone would have worked. I couldn’t bring myself to kill her. I’d like to ban her to the island, but she’d still find a way to torture us both.” He realized he had raised his voice for the first time during their conversation and he saw the instant fear in Laura’s eyes. “My God . . . Surely you know I would never hurt you.”

“Do I? What if you decide I’ve betrayed you over something?”

“No, I’d do anything for you. I’d make any sacrifice for you, Laura. If I ever thought the pressures of being a Cassadine would cause me to harm you, or anyone I loved, I’d remove myself from your lives immediately.”

“The pressures of being a Cassadine,” Laura said, the disgust in her voice evident. “It’s no wonder Nikolas lives in fear that he’ll turn out to be like Stavros. He’s always looked up to you. Is drugging his grandmother a life’s lesson you want him to learn?”

“Of course not. Nikolas has always made it clear that he doesn’t condone what he refers to as ‘the Cassadine way.’”

“But you do?”

“No! I hated everything my father and brother stood for. Not becoming like them is a challenge I face everyday because it’s the way I was taught to be. Mother thought me weak when I refused to play her pathetic little games with people’s lives. She still does.” Stefan shook his head, turned in the seat and started the car. “This was a mistake. I hoped I could make you understand, but obviously that isn’t going to happen. Where are you parked? I’ll drive you to your car.”

“I need to know that you won’t lie to me again. No matter what you do, or to whom you do it. Makes no difference if it’s done to protect me, to shield me, to keep me in the dark — whatever — I won’t be lied to, Stefan. I won’t be played for a fool again. Can you change your nature that much? Can you learn to trust me?”

“Laura, before I met you, I didn’t even know how to love. You and Nikolas gave me a reason to open my heart. I still trust you with my heart, though you’ve broken it a time or two.”

“Or three, or four.” Laura laughed at the unexpected warmth in his eyes. “If I promise to help you, will you try? For me and Nikolas?”

Stefan hesitated for a moment before saying, “I am who I am. I got here after years of being on my own, with — I thought — a son to protect from one vile creature and dozens of other throat-slitting family members. I don’t condone the Cassadine way, but I have seen the necessity of it at times.” He studied her face, seeing the longing she was trying to mask with a frown. Finally, he reached for her. “Very well. How can I say no to you? I’m willing to try anything with you, Laura, if you’ll give me a chance.”

She leaned across the console and into his arms. “How about, I give you half a chance and you earn the rest?”

Stefan bent to kiss her, stopping when her heard a tap on the car window behind her. Glaring over the top of Laura’s head, he reached back and hit the down button for the window on the passenger side. “Yes?”

Dara met his gaze with an equally scathing frown. “This is public property, you two. None of those shenanigans here.”

Laughing only when Laura did, Stefan nodded an apology and raised the window. “I’d better drive you to your car.” Laura waved at a still annoyed Dara who was saying something about seatbelts as they drove away. “I’m not making any promises,” he warned, “beyond a willingness to try.”

“That’s all I’m asking. For now.” Laura patted his knee as she directed him to where she was parked. Before getting out of the car, she kissed him on the cheek and said, “Later, however, I’ll expect a lot more.”

“Laura —”

She stood by the open door and gave him a playful smile. “Tonight, Stefan. And tell Mrs. Lansbury to get rid of those God awful orange sheets.” With that, she closed the door, gave him a backward wave, and headed for her car.

Stefan waited until she was ready to go and motioned for her to pull out in front of him. This was as it should be for now, he reasoned. She would lead and he would follow, always surrounding her with his love — and keeping a wary eye on her safety. Perhaps someday he would become less of a Cassadine and she would become just a bit more of one. And, in their compromise, they would find the cherished life together he had always believed awaited them.

The End

Okay, the crack about the orange sheets was for me.

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