IRREVOCABLE
(adj.) not able to be revoked, changed, or undone; unalterable

With Jason being taken for one last round of testing, Elizabeth gets his clothes ready for him to change into once he takes a shower. Knowing him, he's going to want to be in his own clothes once the doctor is done running his tests. Though she knows that he's better off in the hospital, she's kept him there for as long as he could handle and a promise is a promise. As long as he's able to wash up and get dressed on his own, she'll agree to his decision to be discharged today.

"Hey," she says when he's wheeled back into the room, turning to the orderly with a soft smile. "Thank you."

"No problem," the orderly replies before walking out of the room, closing the door behind him.

"Any changes?" Elizabeth questions as he grabs the towel from the chair.

"Slowly getting better," Jason replies, slinging the towel over his shoulder before walking over to pull her into his arms. "I'm okay."

"I know," Elizabeth whispers, closing her eyes as he kisses her softly. "I'll ease up soon, I promise...just bear with me, okay?"

"Hey, I love you," Jason says, bringing her gaze to meet his. "Every part of you. I accept it all and I love it all. Okay?"

"Okay," Elizabeth replies with a heartfelt smile. "You gonna be okay to shower?"

"I'll manage," he assures her. "Thank you for getting my clothes."

"Of course," Elizabeth says simply. "I even took the liberty of washing your jacket. The smoke smell was hard to get out but I managed."

"Thank you," he whispers, claiming her lips once more, just because he could. "Wanna join me?"

"Nice try, you know the deal," she laughs softly, gently nudging him to the shower. "Better get to it. Sonny and Carly should be here soon."

"Right," Jason smiles slightly. "I won't be long."

"You'll take whatever time it takes to do it safely," Elizabeth counters before smiling softly. "Love you."

"I love you, too," Jason says, stealing one last kiss before heading into the shower, thankful to have her so close even if he felt it was risky to have her there.

Settling into the chair by the bed, Elizabeth takes a moment to relax, knowing that the day has only just begun. Pulling out her sketchbook, she pours his focus her artwork, inspired to create a whole new collection. After speaking to her former boss, she was thankful to find that she's willing to forgive Elizabeth taking off without word. Given the current situation, she was inclined to give her the space as long as Elizabeth makes it a point to be back in time for the gallery.

"Look at that," Jason voices a while later. "Made it through without injury."

"You're not quite done," Elizabeth gestures to the bed where his clothes remain. "Still gotta get dressed without hurting yourself."

"And here I thought you liked me better without my clothes," Jason counters after glancing at his clothes, already feeling the ache in his back.

"Funny," Elizabeth says as she walks over to him. "Seeing as I've never seen you without your clothes on...I wouldn't know."

"Easily fixable," Jason replies before pulling her into his arms, one hand bracing her neck as he takes claim to her lips. "Right here. Right now."

"As tempting as that is," she breathes, their lips mere inches apart. "You're not that slick. Get dressed."

Letting a throaty laugh, Jason kisses her once more before allowing her to walk out of the room, allowing him the chance to get dressed without any distractions. While he's doing that, Elizabeth makes her way over to the guys to see if they have an estimated arrival for Sonny and Carly, not at all surprised to find that they were already on their way. Thanking them, she makes her way over to the vending machine to grab a couple drinks before heading back to Jason, finding him struggling with his shirt.

"Here," Elizabeth says, setting the drinks down on the table before walking over to him. "Let me help."

"I thought you weren't going to help me," Jason counters as she carefully helps him into his t-shirt.

"Yeah, well, I changed my mind," Elizabeth says simply, picking his jacket up from the bed to help him into it. "It's a wife's prerogative after all."

"Admit it, you just can't help yourself," Jason counters with a slight smirk, pulling her into his arms. "You just love me too much."

"No such thing," Elizabeth says before melting into his embrace, allowing him to lower her down onto the bed before towering over her. "My love for you is immeasurable. There's never too much of it."

"I don't understand it," he whispers, brushing the hair from her face to get a clear view of her beautiful blue eyes. "But for whatever reason, you've chosen to love me and I swear I'll never let you regret it."

"I love you because of who you are," Elizabeth says wholeheartedly. "For what's in your heart. Your soul. That's why I love you."

Overwhelmed with love, Jason loses himself in her essence, claiming her lips and showing her the kind of love that he could never put into words. It was just as they came up for air that a knock sounded on the door, Johnny simply opening it a crack rather than stepping in, having seen more than enough through the small window and not wanting to see anymore in full view, keeping his back to the door.

"Boss is on his way up," Johnny informs them. "Should be here in a few minutes."

"To be continued," Elizabeth whispers, kissing him once more before allowing him to help her to her feet. "I'm gonna go see your doctor about getting you discharged."

"I didn't get ready on my own," he reminds her. "Doesn't that change things?"

"You got close enough," Elizabeth says simply. "I'll be back with your discharge papers. Try to take it easy, please."

Making her way out of the room, Elizabeth turns the corner to the doctor's office with Johnny following behind just as Sonny and Carly make their way off the elevator. Jason wasn't sure what he was going to say to Carly after the stunt she pulled with Elizabeth, but seeing her face when she walked through the door silenced anything he was about to say. Elizabeth had done a number on Carly's face that made that phrase 'you should see the other guy' ring true.

"You find this amusing?" Carly snaps when she sees the look on his face that he's not even trying to hide. "Your wife did this to me, you know that?"

"I know," Jason states simply. "I also know what you did to her. You really want to go there?"

"Are you serious?" Carly practically growls. "I'm worse off, if you haven't noticed! How can you even compare the two?"

"She's my wife or haven't you noticed?" Jason snaps. "There's no comparison."

"So much for keeping this peaceful," Sonny sighs, shaking his head before turning his attention from his wife to his friend when Carly just throws her hands up. "Elizabeth says you're getting better. I was relieved to hear that, man."

"Yeah, she's getting me discharged," Jason informs. "Which is why I needed to see you."

"Okay," Sonny pulls up a chair. "What's up?"

"I need some time off," Jason explains, ignoring Carly's pacing. "Just until I finish healing."

"Take it," Sonny says without hesitation. "Whatever it takes to get you back to normal, man, take it."

"I appreciate that," Jason replies gratefully. "Anything serious comes up, however, call me. I'll do what I can to get back."

"Just focus on getting better," Sonny says with a wave of his hand. "I'll handle things till then."

"You done now?" Carly blurts out when it seems they've stopped talking. "Because if you think for one second..."

"Stop," Jason says plainly. "Just stop."

"What?" Carly looks at him in disbelief.

"I'm not doing this with you," Jason states. "You went after my wife and she showed you what happens when you do. Deal with it."

"As if she didn't come running to you..." Carly starts to say but is quickly cut off again.

"She didn't," Jason points out. "She's of the mindset that it's between the two of you."

"You can't be serious."

"I am," Jason states. "Trust me, if she hadn't told me to stay out of it, you and I would be having an entirely different conversation."

"Is that so?" Carly dares to challenge him. "And what kind of conversation is that exactly?"

"The kind that ends us," Jason voices honestly though he's certain she didn't expect that, moving to stand in front of her so she fully grasps his following words. "You may be one of my best friends, Carly, but Elizabeth is my wife. She is my family. And, you know better than anyone, I protect what's mine. Even if it means from you."

"Guess it's a good thing you didn't have that conversation," Sonny chimes in, hoping to diffuse the situation, moving over to separate the two by guiding Carly to the door. "Keep in touch while you're away. So we know you're okay."

"Yeah," Jason says, turning to watch them leave. "I'll do that."

Even with Sonny practically shoving her out the door, Carly's eyes remained on Jason the whole time, unable to believe what he had just done right there. She pushed him and pushed him, wanting Elizabeth gone from their lives for good, but she only got an angry Jason instead. For him to threaten her, to threaten her place in his life, Carly was dumbfounded. Could he really mean that? Could he really push her out of his life for that muffin face? Why? She doesn't see the appeal. She doesn't get it. More importantly, is she willing to lose him to rid Elizabeth from his life or will she have to suck it up and deal with it to keep him?

"All set," Elizabeth voices when she walks into the room holding up his discharge papers, stopping at the look on his face. "Everything okay?"

"Yeah," he assures her, his features softening as she walks into his arms. "I'm just ready to get out of here."

"Well, you're in luck," Elizabeth smiles just before his lips claim hers, melting into his touch. "We're all set. The guys are out front with the SUV, the plane's fueled and ready for take off. I even took the liberty of sending for your travel bag."

"Good," Jason says, slinging his arm across her shoulders as they walk out of the room. "The sooner we're out of here, the better."

"Was Sonny okay when you told him?"

"Yeah," Jason assures her. "Ritchie can handle things for him till I'm better."

"And you're really okay with staying in Venice till you are?"

"Will you be there?"

"Yes."

"Then it's perfect," Jason says before kissing her softly. "Anywhere you are, I want to be."

Climbing into the backseat of the SUV, the two hold each other close as they head to the airport, boarding the plane along with Francis, Johnny, Kyle and Marco. While they settle at the back of the plane for the long flight ahead, the guys keep their distance towards the front of the plane, giving the couple whatever privacy they could. Elizabeth just couldn't wait to show Jason the place she has been calling home, hoping he'll come to appreciate it as much as she has. Swearing she'll enjoy this time for however long it lasts.

By the time they land in Venice it's going on midnight, leaving them not much choice but to call it a night, especially since Jason is still recovering. Though he didn't want to, he accepts that the more rest he gets the better off he'll be, so, he takes his medication and calls it a night. Elizabeth takes a moment, while the night is still and she's alone, to appreciate the fact that her husband wasn't lost to her. She practically ran herself into the ground with worrying over Jason that she just wants to appreciate this moment knowing he'll be okay.

Making herself a cup of cocoa, she settles down at the window with her sketchbook, wanting to finish at least one sketch before she heads off to bed. She must have been so immersed in her artwork because hours must have passed by when her husband comes walking down the stairs in search of her. Glancing at the clock on the wall, she notices that she was sitting there for three hours straight. Closing her sketchbook, she rises to her feet to meet him halfway.

"I thought you were sleeping," Elizabeth voices as she fits herself into his arms.

"I was," he admits, his eyes meeting hers. "I missed you."

"Come on," she says with a soft smile. "Lets get you back to bed."

"Only if you stay."

"That's the plan."

Kissing her softly, the two walk together back to their bedroom, that sense of comfort falling over them as they walk quietly through the house. The moment the door shut behind them, a different feeling settled over them, Jason pulling her into his arms as a look of surprise flashes across her face, a bright smile touching her lips. Holding her close, Jason claims her lips, deepening it as he lifts her up from the ground, carrying her toward the bed.

"Jason," she whispers as he settles her down onto the sheets, staring up into his eyes. "You're still healing..."

"I'm healed enough," Jason promises her, moving her into a laying position before towering over her and kissing her soundly. "Trust me?"

"Without question."

Giving into the desire, Elizabeth melts into him, allowing their marriage to enter into a whole new level and deepening their connection as husband and wife. Jason takes it slow, wanting her to be comfortable with him before he picks up the pace, wanting her to see that this was something more to him, as well. That this was making love in the most truest sense of the word. As they descend from ecstasy, Jason and Elizabeth lay tangled upon the sheets, allowing the fatigue to pull them under soon after. Jason's last thought is Elizabeth's beauty and how blessed he must be to have her love him so completely.