"What the hell is wrong with you Jason?" Carly came barging into Jason’s penthouse not long after he arrived from Justus’.

"Carly…"

"You know I don’t like her."

"Well that’s not really my problem now is it?"

"Ok, I might not have been crazy about Elizabeth, and Courtney just between me and you was a little weak for you but come on Keesha? You don’t even remember her."

"I don’t remember being with her but I remember how I treated her."

"Ok, so you said sorry, keep moving. She’s nothing but trouble."

"Opposed to you?"

"We’re not talking about me."

"And we’re not talking about who I’m seeing either."

"So you’re seeing her?"

"Carly, this a part of my life that doesn’t involve you."

"Like hell it does." Jason turned to face an obviously upset Carly.

"NO IT DOESN’T!!!" Carly stopped in her tracks and looked at her upset friend. His whole face was red and the veins in his neck were popping out. "Look I know you mean well but trust my judgment."

"Fine I will."

"In the meanwhile don’t be purposely mean to her just to get kicks."

"Fine I won’t."

"Be the Carly that we all know that you’ve grown to be."

"I will be the Carly you all know and love to the one who told the truth on me to A.J."

"She wasn’t meaning any bad in that and you know it."

"Alright, jeez, I’ll be nice to Queen Keesha." Jason gave Carly a look that even made her shut her mouth.

"I’m inviting her over for dinner and I want you and Sonny to be there."

"Jason you’re asking for much."

"It won’t be tomorrow but it’ll be soon just so you’ll know."

"Ok." Carly got turned around and headed out of Jason’s. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Jason was getting close to Keesha and there was nothing she could do about it, unless….

"Keesha?"

"Danny! How are you?"

"I’m good how are you?"

"I’m fine."

"And your cousin?"

"He’s doing much better, he woke up from his coma and he’s healing. It’ll take time nut he’ll get there."

"Well that’s great news."

"So what did you call me for? Everything ok at Ward House?"

"That’s exactly why I’m calling and you’re not going to like the news."

"Uh oh." Keesha made her way to the couch and sat down, bracing herself for whatever news Danny had for her.

"We’ve been bought out."

"Huh? Come again?"

"The mayor found a clause in our contract for the land we have it on and found in the small print that whatever is built on there isn’t ours but the city’s."

"So in plain English?"

"Ward House will soon close." Keesha put her head in her hands. All her hard work gone. It took her years to get another Ward House up and running and now it was being closed from some stupid clause that just so happened to be found while she was gone.

"Keesha are you there?"

"Yeah I’m here Danny" she said flatly.

"Now don’t fret, I’ve managed to find some good places for some, not all. The rest of the cases will be handed over to the state."

"Well I guess that’s better than nothing."

"Precisely."

"Why didn’t you call me any sooner?"

"Well I didn’t want to bother you with everything going down with your cousin, plus I thought we could fight it. I’ve talked to everyone, no can do, I’m sorry Keesha I tried."

"I know, I know, well thank you for calling me."

"Yeah, tell you cousin get well soon."

Keesha hung the phone up and began to cry. Ward House of Springfield was her baby. After signing over the papers to Gail and Lee to take of Ward House there in Port Charles for her, she started up a new one where she could make a difference and now for some stupid small print it was all gone. 2 and a half years of hard work gone. These past few days had been heart wrenching. Not only had she had to face her cousin almost dying, she had to face a man from her past, now this. Keesha grabbed her jacket and headed for the door. When she opened it he was there standing in front of her.

"What’s wrong?"

"Take me away from here."

"Where?"

"Anywhere, I just need to get away for awhile."

"You want me to get like a room or something."

"Nothing like that" she bit.

"No I mean if you need to stay over."

"Oh no, just somewhere to be alone for maybe an hour, I’m in no shape to drive. Do you think you can do that?"

"Yeah sure, come on." Jason and Keesha walked out of Justus and to his bike.

"Is this safe? There’s only so many Wards walking this earth."

"Safer than you know, here put this one." Jason handed Keesha a helmet and made sure she put it on right. "Hold onto me tight alright?"

"Alright."

Keesha wrapped her arms as tightly as she could without constricting air around his waist. Jason couldn’t help but shiver from her touch. With his hand on the accelerator the two were off. He made sure not to go to fast so he wouldn’t scare her. They finally made their stop at a park.

"Follow me."

Keesha walked behind Jason to a secluded part of the park. When they reached their destination Keesha gasped at the naturalistic beauty of her surrounds. Flowers of every kind bloomed all over the place, the grass was the greenest grass she had ever seen, a small pond flowed before them with the cutest little duck family swimming along.

"How’d you find this place?"

"I come here to think sometimes."

"About what?"

"About anything that comes to mind." Jason made a place on the grass and Keesha followed, sitting next to him.

"Tell me what happened."

Keesha looked into his blue eyes. She had been done years ago hoping for Jason Quartermaine to return but it was something about his inquiry or just following her request to take her away that shed a new light on him. Maybe he wasn’t all bad, but he still had some ways to go.

"Ward House of Springfield is getting closed down."

"Why?"

"The city owns the land when we thought we did. They want to take it back and make like a strip mall or something. They don’t care about the kids, they just want to make money."

"Have you went through all your channels, I mean is it official?"

"As official as night follows day."

"I have connections, maybe, there’s something I can do."

"No Danny has tried everything."

"Danny? Danny Santos?"

"Yeah, you know him?"

"Yeah he was in the business at one time."

"Oh."

Keesha looked out to the water and watched the mother duck feed her ducklings. It was like she put all her thought and focus on those ducks. Jason just sat back and watched her. Her skin was so flawless and smooth. Her deep dark brown eyes could almost pass for black but they were just as lovely. Her skin looked so soft to the touch that he ached to touch. "You know I bet this was my step-son who did that."

"Your stepson?"

"Alan-Michael." Jason sat for a minute and let the name simmer in.

"Alan-Michael Spaulding?"

"He never like me being married to his father because of my age. Yeah I was young, actually younger than him but no matter how nice I was to him he was always so rude."

"So you were married to Alan Spaulding?"

"Yes I was."

"Wow. Was Alan-Michael the reason you two broke up?"

"No, we broke up because he wanted to me be something that I didn’t want to be."

"And that was?"

"Barefoot and pregnant. He didn’t want me to work, he just wanted me to stay around the house and have a ton of Spaulding children."

"Did you?"

"I uh, I was going to but um it didn’t happen." Keesha looked away from Jason. Time had progressed on she dealt with Alanna’s death with the help of Dr. Boudreau, but it still didn’t make the pain any less. "Plus staying in that mansion was a trip. Not only did I have to deal with his son not liking me, I had to deal with his crazy granddaughter that liked to burn things and hurt pregnant women, his crazy sister that wanted to take over the company and his son that couldn’t cope with the woman he got pregnant leaving him."

"That sounds like my family."

"They reminded me of them sometimes" she laughed. Silence built up between them. She hadn’t really talked about her life with the Spaulding’s to anyone and never would she imagine that she’d talk to him of all people but someway even though her day started off horrible just getting a few things off her chest and talking to someone about her problems other than Justus or Michelle back home felt good. "So what about you? You said you were married before, what happened?"

Jason shifted a little upon the mention of his marriage. Though it wasn’t that long ago that they separated just talking about it irked him. But if Keesha could go as far to talk to him about her marriage and her miscarriage then how could he not?

"Uh, we didn’t work out."

"Why?"

"She didn’t understand me. I think we married each other without realizing that it wouldn’t really work between us. Plus Carly kind of talked me into it."

"Carly" she said with the roll of her eyes.

"She’s different Keesha, really. All those antics she pulled back in the day, she’s not like that anymore. I think her marriage to Sonny and the children changed all that."

"I guess it could happen."

"I did, Sonny, Michael and Morgan changed her for the better."

"Morgan?"

"Her youngest, she had him a few months ago."

"Wow, I know this is crazy sounding but I’m happy for her. Even someone like Carly deserves a little happiness in their life and if its changed her for the better then good."

"I’m glad you see it like that."

Keesha smiled at Jason and boy did his heart flutter. He was doing this all on a whim, so why did it feel so good? So right? Though everything was feeling great, Keesha knew it could never be. She couldn’t have these feelings for Jason Morgan, she just couldn’t and she wouldn’t. She eased herself from the ground and swept the sheds of grass of her jeans.

"Where are you going?"

"I’m gonna jet, just show me how to get back to the street and I can take it from here."

"I’ll drive you."

"I kind of just want to be alone right now, to think about things." Jason stood up and faced the petite woman in front of him.

"Look you haven’t been here in years, crime has increased.

"Thanks to you and Sonny." Jason looked away, that was one shell that was going to be hard to crack.

"Thieves and rapist just prey on people just walking around at this time of the day."

"I‘m sorry, you didn‘t deserve that. You‘re only trying to look out for me." "That I am."

"Ok, well can you give me a ride to Kelly’s?"

"Only if you let me get you a bowl of chili and some hot chocolate."

"That’s the only way I can get a ride?" she said in a huff, placing her hands on her hips.

"Yup."

"Fine, fine."