ABC/DISNEY owns GH. No copyright infringement is intended.

Epilogue

"Deck the halls with boughs of holly, fa la la la la. La la la la." Liz sang along with the radio as she decorated the Christmas tree. It was their second wedding anniversary and she was looking forward to exchanging gifts with the tree in the background. Last night they had gone out to get the massive Douglas fir that was in the living room, and the sorry little specimen that was in their bedroom. She just couldn't leave it on the lot. Jason only smirked a little as he put it in the back of the SUV. He said strapping it to the top of the car would be a death sentence.

She wanted the tree up to get into the holiday spirit. Last week they had gotten word that Sonny had been killed by the head of another family. She had felt that decorating then would be disrespectful so they postponed everything. She had found forgiveness, enough that she went to church and lit a candle that he would be at peace.

Jason wasn't surprised this happened, Sonny had started causing problems almost immediately after Maximus moved him from Calabria to Umbria. The downsize to a smaller territory was a punishment for what happened during his visit to Port Charles. Once it was clear that the Cuban mob boss was still taking his medication the Don opted to stay out of the dust up. As long as a full on war didn't break out he was content to give the families time to work out things themselves. What ended up happening was Sonny learning that he messed with the wrong person. His final lesson was a bullet to the brain.

"The tree looks good." Jason was standing in the doorway waiting for her to come down from the stepladder. "I would have helped decorate." His job was the top of the tree because it was hard for her to reach.

"I wanted it to be done when you got home." Liz wanted to surprise him. Last year they had decorated together, and they could do so again next year.

"You just didn't want to argue over where to place the ornaments." He replied before giving her a kiss. He had enjoyed the playful bantering. His girl took her tree decorating very seriously.

"That's half the fun when it comes to decorating." Liz leaned up and gave him another kiss.

"Where are the paperchains?" Jason wanted to know. They had made some last year. He wasn't an arts and crafts kind of person, but it had been fun.

"They were going on next. The Father Christmas topper still needs to go on the tree as well." Liz had still gotten a lot done. If her guy didn't come home early she probably would have completed the job. She would take having him home before expected over a finished tree any day of the week.

"We can do that together." Jason said putting an arm around her waist and urging her closer.

"We can. We also have more mistletoe to hang. I went out today and picked up more." She said with a grin. "There was too much space between the sprigs we got last night."

"That's funny because I have more mistletoe in the car. I was going to put it up when you were sleeping." Jason admitted enjoying having his wife in his arms. The past two years had been the best of his life. He was looking forward to many more years together.

"You can still do that. I would love to be surprised with a kiss." Liz let him know. "I'll start dinner."

"No." Jason just tightened his arms. "I want my gift first. We eat breakfast before opening our Christmas presents, I don't mind that. However anniversaries don't need to follow that rule." He said with a boyish grin. "Last year we had dinner out, and I had to wait until the end of the night to get my gift. This year I'm impatient." He wanted his gift now because he was pretty sure he already knew what it was, and he was tired of waiting.

"Okay." Liz only wanted to eat first because she was positive that she was going to be a blubbering mess after he opened his present. She was also pretty sure neither one of them was going to be interested in food for a while after the gifts were exchanged.

"I'm going first. Wait here." Jason let his wife go so that he could go to his office and get the box. He passed by her gift from last year. A painting of Grandmother's roses. It made Jason feel relaxed whenever he looked at it. Edward had tried to bribe Elizabeth into letting him have it while she was sitting in the garden painting it. This Christmas he was getting one of his own. "Happy anniversary." Jason said handing the gift bag over.

"Thank you." Liz didn't need much, but she loved getting gifts from her guy. He always put a lot of thought into them. Since their anniversary was so close to Christmas they had a one gift limit, which she had stuck to even though she had two boxes for him.

Jason grinned waiting for Elizabeth to open the gift. He loved shopping for his wife. She was the only person in his life he could say that for. He found himself looking forward to any occasion where he could buy something for her.

"Oh." Liz didn't even have to take the lid off the box to know what was inside. The ornate gold lettering told her what the heavy for its size package contained. She opened it anyway and ran a gentle finger over the pen that was part of the top of the line calligraphy set. It was a new interest of hers and Jason was giving her his support to pursue it. As always. "Thank you. I had my eye on this for after the holidays." It was pricey and just because they had money in the bank didn't mean she spent money without thinking about it. After the holiday the set in her hands would be on sale.

"I know." Jason said with a boyish grin. "I thought you might like to do the thank you cards with this." Every year she sent them out to show appreciation for the gifts she got. This was a practice she'd exercised since he knew her. The only other person he knew who did that had been Lila.

"We'll see how good I am when the time comes. I might just stick to addressing the envelopes." Liz would indeed be practicing tomorrow. "Okay now you." Her gifts were stashed behind the tree and she got them. "Happy anniversary."

"Two gifts?" Jason asked surprised.

"Only one is just for you." Liz said as the butterflies in her tummy took flight. "The other one is a joint gift." She explained with a smile.

"Which one is just mine?" He would open that first because of the fact that he was ninety eight percent positive that he knew what the joint gift was.

"The top box." Liz said telling herself to relax.

Jason untied the blue string and took the lid off the box. He grinned when he saw what was inside. His wife spoiled him. He knew that. She made sure he got to enjoy the things he liked. He was a big sports fan with college football being his favorite. "Thank you baby." She had gotten him a private box so he could watch the upcoming College Football National Championship game live. He, and the rest of the crew, could fly in and have a great time.

"I told the rest of the guys so they could clear their calendars." Liz knew who he was going to take with him. "Also so that security could be arranged." With it being such a public space that had to be taken into consideration.

Jason leaned forward and gave her a kiss. "You spoil me." He gave voice to what he had just been thinking.

"I try." Liz wanted him to have everything he wanted. "Open the second gift." She bit her lower lip and then made herself stop.

Jason picked up the box that was long and slim. His eyes looked into hers before pulling the ribbon. As he removed the lid a wide, bright smile came across his face. He was man who paid attention, no one got more of his focus than the woman in the room with him. The changes that gave away the secret had been subtle but he picked on them. The fact that he guessed before the official announcement didn't lessen his joy at all. "We're pregnant."

"Yes." Liz said trying to blink back tears and then giving up. They had been trying for a few months now. She had been thrilled when the test came back positive. "You guessed." That he did wasn't very surprising. It was hard to get things past him.

"I did. You're two weeks late." Jason put the test down and closed the space between them as he told her what gave it away. "You're never late. So I started to suspect you might be pregnant. I also noticed that your breasts are really sensitive now." He said feeling his eyes burn. He needed her in his arms. "How far along are we?"

"Four weeks." Liz said leaning into him. "Kelly confirmed the pregnancy and did an exam for me at her clinic after we had a follow up meeting on a couple of patients. I also made an appointment for our first official visit in eight weeks. I'll send you the date." The two medical centers worked hand in hand quite a bit. The women's clinic wasn't a free clinic like where Liz worked, it was in fact a state of the art health care and birthing center. Still Kelly never turned anyone away. If you needed treatment she made sure you got it. "She said we are both doing well."

"So next summer we're going to be parents." Jason placed a hand over her stomach were their child was growing.

"Yeah." Liz said quietly. Their lives were going to chance again, but they were ready. They were taking it one child at a time, but in her heart she wanted three children. This was the beginning of that dream coming true. "I know the goal is a healthy baby, but do you want a girl or a boy?" He was going to love their child no matter what but dreaming a little didn't hurt anything.

"I have no idea." He admitted urging her closer still. Not being able to imagine was hindering things a bit. "I can admit that having a daughter terrifies me some." He said laughing. "I'm up to that challenge, mainly because I employ a lot of really big guys."

That just made Liz laugh. "You can't lock her in the house."

"I know, but I can scare the crap of anyone who acts stupid." Jason was dead serious about that. "If we have a little girl I want her to look like you."

"With one exception. I want our children to have your eye color." Liz settled against him again.

"When can we tell everyone?" He was excited to share this news.

"After the first appointment." Liz wondered how hard it was going to be to keep this secret. "I'll have to miss the trip to Palermo." Jason would go to have a meeting with Maximus. The date wasn't set yet but it generally happened in either late August or early September. That was right around the time she was due.

"I'll send Johnny or Francis this year. Probably Francis because Margareta likes shopping with Diane." Jason told Elizabeth. He wouldn't want to be away from his wife at that point. "Trust me Maximus will understand." They sat in silence for a few moment. "We're going to be parents." Awareness was coming in waves.

"We are." Liz let the joy fill her up. "Merry Christmas Jason."

"Merry Christmas baby." Jason held her close and said a prayer of gratitude for his wonderful life.

"You didn't have to get up." Liz told her husband as she lifted their daughter out of the crib. "She's going to go back to sleep after eating."

"I don't mind getting up." Jason said taking the little girl and walking over to the changing table. "You two are my favorite people to hang out with." His two girls were the center of his entire world. Being a husband and dad was everything.

Liz just smiled watching her guy with their daughter. Jason was a very hands on dad. Since Emilia arrived three months prior he had been everything Elizabeth needed in a partner. That wasn't at all surprising because he had been the same throughout the pregnancy which had been textbook. "How about if we go back into the bedroom?" Most nighttime feedings took place in the nursery.

"Can we set up the co-sleeper?" Jason asked with a boyish grin. Their daughter spent most nights sleeping in her room. When they first came home from the hospital she spent the first month in her crib in the master suite because that made them both more comfortable. That first night she was away from them he spent most of the night checking the monitor.

"Sure." Liz said trying not to laugh at the grin on his face. "Come on." They headed up the hall and she got settled on the bed. Once her shirt was open Jason handed their daughter over. Liz got the baby latched on then watched while her husband set up the co-sleeper. When that was done he sat behind her allowing her to lean on him for support.

The entire pregnancy had left Jason in awe. Elizabeth had handled the changes to her body, and the exhaustion, with grace. He knew there were times that she was uncomfortable but she didn't complain telling him that she wanted this as much as he did. Labor had been downright terrifying though. The amount of pain his wife endured to bring their daughter into the world was not something Jason would ever forget.

Now sitting here and watching Elizabeth feed Emilia he was struck with another wave of awe. "She's a good eater."

"She is." Liz said rubbing her daughter's back. "It took some work but we figured it out." They also used bottles so that Jason could bond with his daughter during feedings. "Are you looking forward to showing her Italy?" They were leaving in the morning for a month in the country. It was a mix of work and vacation.

"I am. I'm a little nervous about traveling with Emilia but I don't want to be away from her either." Jason hadn't been out of town since the birth. The meeting would be at the end of the trip and would signify the end of his family leave. Elizabeth had decided to stay home with their daughter, and future children. She was going to keep up her certification. A return to the clinic was planned for when their family was complete and the kids were all in school. He would never have asked that of her, but Elizabeth said she wanted to.

"Dr. Lambert said it should be fine." Liz had indeed checked with their pediatrician before booking the trip. "I'm looking forward to showing her as much of the world as we can. Her and her siblings." It was going to take a couple of years before he was ready for another baby, labor had almost done him in.

"Me too. Watching you explore makes me happy and I know it will be the same with her." Jason took the baby and burped her before giving her back to mom. Emilia was named for Emily and Lila. He also liked that her name started with the same letter as her mom's. When the baby was finished he got her settled into the co-sleeper, and they spooned up facing their child. "I love you, both of you." He told them both that every day.

"We love you too." Liz said snuggling close. Her life was amazing and she was grateful every day for it.

I'm so glad you guys came along on this short Liason trip. I had a lot of fun writing this one, and I got to work on my short stories. I am currently writing more stories, which I'm hoping to be able to post soon. I also have more of CAWM planned for this spring and summer.

Until then, be well!

Thanks for the reviews, follows, favorites, and continued support!