"What a shame," she said, shaking her head and coming inside the door. "How the mighty have fallen – answering your own front door now, are you?" Jax smiled at her, his blonde curls falling down across his forehead. He had on his tuxedo pants and shirt, but was coatless and in the process of attempting to tie his formal tie.

"And good evening to you, too, Angie," Jax replied. He looked a little puzzled when she dragged in a very large cardboard box and had a small plastic box in her hands, but ever since Angie had made such a hit caring for Jo and Jaz, he had stopped questioning her methods. He closed the door behind her. "Right on time, as usual. Must be the result of your excellent time management skills."

"Flattery will get you nowhere, Jax. I still charge 5 bucks an hour to stay with your adorable monsters while you and your wife are out having a blast at your anniversary party," Angie answered smartly.

"Well, since you are such an expert at managing things, can you manage to help me tie this blasted tie. I’ve been giving Brenda a hard time about being late, but then I got tied up in a phone call at the last minute and can’t seem to do it." As Jax walked over to where Angie stood, she motioned for him to sit in a chair in the entryway.

She pushed him down by the shoulders to sit. "How did Brenda like her present?"

He grinned from ear to ear. "You can see when she comes down – I believe she’s wearing it tonight. Thanks for picking it up for me."

Angie finished the formal bow tie and patted his shoulders again. "There you go. All done." Jax stood and checked his appearance in the mirror, running his fingers through his hair one more time. "You know, Mac Scorpio should be right behind me to arrest you," she teased. "I think it should be illegal for someone to look as good as you do in a tux."

Jax turned, smiled, and blushed slightly. "Now, Angie, flattery will get you anywhere, you should know that by now." He leered at her suggestively, and Angie began to laugh.

But then, a voice was heard from the stairs. "Angie, are you trying to steal my husband away from me on our anniversary?" Brenda descended the stairs slowly, and Angie was standing close enough to Jax to hear him take a long deep breath when he saw her.

Brenda was dressed in a full-length gown of soft gray slipper satin. It had princess lines and hugged her midriff and waistline, flaring out once it got past her hips into a rippled hemline at her ankles. But the most striking feature of the dress was its neckline. It was sleeveless and almost appeared to be strapless. The right side of the bodice only consisted of a long sash that was thrown over Brenda’s shoulder, giving the effect of a dress that a Greek goddess might have worn. Her left shoulder was bare, and when Brenda spun, you could see that the sash ended behind her just past her hips in the back, and was trimmed with maribou feathers of pale gray mixed with silver to match the dress. A diamond brooch sparkled at her right shoulder, and as she came down to meet Jax and Angie, she only had eyes for her husband.

"So, what’s this about you and my husband?" Brenda said on reaching them, smiling ever so slightly.

Angie sighed in pretend despair. "It’s true, Brenda. It’s all over between you. He told me yesterday he’s leaving you and running away with me." She held the pose for about 5 more seconds. "AS IF!" She took Brenda’s arm and twirled her once more. "Brenda, you look positively gorgeous tonight!" Then she turned back to Jax and shooed him with her hands. "Now go away, boss. We have some quick girl talk to do."

Jax looked hurt. "OK, I can take a hint. I’ll go get my coat."

As soon as he was out of earshot, Angie leaned in close to Brenda. "OK, so spill. What’s holding up the dress on the right side?"

Brenda giggled and got a panicked look. "Gravity, my dear, only gravity and the weight of the sash down my back. If the wind comes up behind me and blows it to the front, all of Port Charles will see my…." She looked down at her front, "….treasure chest!"

Angie laughed and whispered in return. "I don’t think you have to worry about the wind. You should worry more about that lusty husband of yours or his crazy brother." She sighed and looked more closely at Brenda’s pin. "Your gift is SO beautiful. Were you surprised?"

Brenda smiled and fingered the pin lovingly. "Well, of course! I mean, Jax kept telling me that the traditional gift for the 5^th anniversary is wood, so I was expecting some Dutch shoes! He didn’t tell me that silver is also acceptable now." She gazed down at the pin, which was a white gold brooch in the shape of an angel. The angel was in a triumphant pose, with wings outspread to each side, and the entire piece must have measured 3 inches across. The most stunning part, though, was that each outspread wing was encrusted with brilliant cut diamonds. There was also a row of diamonds around the hemline of the angel’s robe and at her sleeves. "I understand that you helped Jax by picking it up at the jeweler’s."

Angie nodded and sighed. "Yep. But it was a pleasure, believe me. That’s about as close as I’ll ever come to a man with as good of taste as your husband has."

Their girl talk was interrupted by Jo’s arrival at the top of the stairs. "MISS ANGIE!" She started to dash down the stairs, but when she caught sight of her mother’s stern look, she took the last half-dozen at a slower speed. But when she got to the bottom, she threw herself into Angie’s arms. "Miss Angie! Me and Jaz thought you would NEVER get here! What did you bring us to play with tonight?"

Brenda took a sharp breath. "Jo Ellen Jacks? Is that any way to greet your guest?" Where are your manners?"

Jo looked properly chastised, but her lower lip came out in a familiar pout. "I’m sorry, mommy, but it’s just that Angie always brings such neat stuff for us to play when she watches us."

Angie crouched down to Jo’s level. "That’s OK, Joey. I understand. And yes, I did bring something for us to play with tonight. Want to see?" At Jo’s excited nod, Angie took her by the hand and led her over to the cardboard box. Brenda watched them for a moment, but then was distracted when Jax rejoined the group.

"Ready to go, Mrs. Jacks?" He looked magnificent in his European cut tuxedo. He had on a silver bow tie to match Brenda’s dress and it contrasted with the rich gold of his hair. He was holding Brenda’s wrap, a shawl made out of the same gray slipper satin as her dress and trimmed in the same maribou feathers. He leaned down to kiss her, promising more anniversary surprises to come when they were alone. "Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?"

Brenda smiled and ran her hands over her husband’s chest. "Awww, thanks, honey. But you look just as handsome as you looked on our wedding day." She kept her hands on his chest and played with one of his buttons. "You know, I was so crazy about you then, it was hard for me not to shout out to the whole world with happiness when we came out of that wedding chapel."

Jax fingered the wisps of hair that she had allowed to trail to her shoulders from her upswept chignon. "Me, too, sweetie." He looked deeply into her eyes. "Let’s make a promise to always tell each other exactly how we feel. I don’t think I ever want to go through what we did when we were first married and I wasn’t really sure how you felt about me."

Brenda smiled slyly. "Well, Mr. Jacks," she drawled slowly, "if I tell you exactly how I feel right now, we would end up completely MISSING our own anniversary party!" She looked up at him with passion sparkling in her eyes, and he couldn’t resist. Jax leaned down to meet her lips, first tracing them with his tongue, and then slipping his arms around her petite, soft body to pull it to his for a scintillating kiss.

The lovers were shocked apart by Jo’s squeals of delight. "Mommy! Daddy! Look out! I’m coming in for a landing!"

Brenda and Jax reluctantly pulled apart from the kiss, but he still kept her in his embrace as both heads turned to look at their daughter. The box that Angie had dragged into the house had once been the container for a new washer – it said so on the side that Jax could now see clearly. Angie had cut away one side so that she and Jo could sit Indian style inside the box next to each other. Jo was still shouting happily for them to come look, so Jax reached down to take Brenda’s hand and they went over to see their daughter’s newest playtoy.

"Look, daddy, now I’ve got a whirlybird just like yours!" Jax had to chuckle as he peered inside the confines of the box. The plastic box that Angie brought had contained an assortment of markers and paints. While Jax and Brenda were exchanging their anniversary greetings, Angie had taken one of the markers and hastily drawn a rectangle on the inside of the box that they were facing. Then she drew a multitude of small circles and squares below it, and some shapes that would appear to Jo’s enthusiastic eyes to be gauges, just like the ones in Jax’s helicopter cockpit. Her face was shining in excitement. "Angie’s teaching me how to fly just like you, daddy! Want to see me take off?"

Jax put his arm around Brenda’s waist, loving the feel of the soft satin against his hand. "Sure, munchkin. But first you have to contact the tower for clearance," he said with a sly smile, winking at Angie.

She gave him back the same cocky smile. "And you think I didn’t come prepared!" She reached into the plastic box again, and pulled out a set of earmuffs, to which she had attached a pipe cleaner with the cap from a large soda bottle attached to the end. Placing the earmuffs onto Jo’s head, she adjusted the pipe cleaner so that the bottle cap was near her lips like a microphone. "Go ahead, Joey. Contact the tower for clearance just like daddy does."

Jax had to smile as Jo repeated the words she heard him say so often when he took her flying. Then, she reached out for an imaginary control stick and began her own imaginary flight across Port Charles, talking to Angie nonstop. "Good grief," Jax whispered to Brenda, "I think I’ve created a monster! She knows all the terms by heart already!"

Brenda leaned close to him. "Well then, we’re in trouble, because she’s certainly going to have to be a lot older than 4 before I let her go up with you in that eggbeater contraption for a real flying lesson! For now, this suits me just fine!"

After a few more minutes of her simulated flight, Angie leaned over to Jo. "Ummm, co-pilot, I think we’d better land for a while. Your mom and dad really need to get going to their party, and I think they want to say good-bye to you before they do." After Jo pretended to "land" her flying machine, she jumped out of the box and ran to Brenda, who leaned down to hug her tightly.

"Now, you be a good girl for Angie tonight," she whispered softly. "And you help her take care of Jaz for me, OK?"

Angie crawled out of the box with as much dignity as she could muster. "I was beginning to wonder where the Jazmanian devil was – did you finally sell him to the gypsies like I keep recommended?"

Jax laughed. "No, I’m afraid you’re not that lucky. Louise fed him his dinner and I think they’re both getting hosed off in the shower upstairs. But we’re keeping the offer from the gypsies open just in case Jerry screws something up again."

He leaned down as Jo moved to give him a goodnight hug and kiss. "Sweet dreams, munchkin. Mommy and I will be home soon and then tomorrow she can tell you all about the beautiful party tonight."

"That’s OK, daddy," Jo said in a smooth voice. "I won’t be missing a thing. I’ve got my new whirlybird and I can just fly over and see it myself! And tomorrow, I can take you for a ride with me!" Jax gave the thumbs-up to Angie, but Angie leaned down with a serious look on her face.

"Oh, Joey, you can’t keep this whirlybird. This one is MINE, and I can only bring it over here when I come to watch you and Jaz. See, I got this one because I was SUCH a good girl and did everything my mom and dad told me to do. But you can fly it anytime you come to see me or if I come to watch you again."

Jo’s face started to crumble, but then she turned to Jax with new determination. "Daddy, if I promise to be REAL good for you and mommy, do you think Santa will bring me a whirlybird of my very own? One just like this one?"

This time, it was Brenda’s turn for falling faces. "But honey," she stammered, "I thought you wanted some of those Talking Teletubbies from Santa, and that ugly little stuffed thing that talked – a Furby!"

"Oh, yeah, mommy, but I REALLY want my own whirlybird now!" she cried. She looked back at Angie, and then her face lit up. "I know! I’m gonna go get my Beanie Babies from my room and take them for a flight right now! And all my dollies, too!" She scampered up the stairs, and Brenda sagged against Jax’s body.

"I’m sorry, Bren," Angie said with a giggle. "I didn’t know it was going to be that much of a hit."

Jax shook his head. "I’ll wager that Mrs. Jacks here just about cleared out FAO Schwartz of every Teletubbie and Furby they had, and now what does the child decide she wants? An empty cardboard box for Christmas!"

Brenda shook her head in agreement, but Angie began to really chuckle. "Well, Jax, if that’s what she wants, I’m sure it can be arranged."

He looked at Angie as though she were crazy. "Angie, do you know what Brenda would say if I bought her a new washer just to get the empty box for our daughter to play in?" Brenda was beginning to dissolve in giggles herself, although Jax wasn’t finding the situation the least bit humorous.

"Oh, Jax, you don’t have to do that," Angie offered, stifling a grin. "I hear they have a lot of old boxes from appliances behind Slyman Brothers if you go late at night."

Brenda was about to split in two laughing. "Oh, yeah, Ang, I can just see our favorite captain of industry slumming it in alleyways, trying to find empty cardboard boxes for his daughter to play in."

Angie bumped against Brenda’s hip. "But you know, even if he finds one, he’ll never be able to get it home in the Jag. And the helicopter will certainly draw attention if he lands it in their parking lot." She tapped her chin with her finger while thinking. "I know! You can ask V to borrow her Rambler station wagon! I’m sure she’d let you use it for a day or two and she can just drive your Jag!"

Jax shook his head at both women, who were trying to keep the tears from flowing in laughter. "You two are both certifiable, do you know that?" Jo came prancing down the stairs, her arms filled with stuffed animals and dolls, and he walked toward the front door, shaking his head. "Come on, Mrs. Jacks. Let’s get out of here before ALL of you females drive me insane!"

*~*~*~*

Several hours later, Brenda stopped to take a breather. Holding a small buffet plate in her hand, she turned to admire her 5^th anniversary party.

Jax and Jerry were off in one corner, debating business with Edward Quartermaine and Ned. Lois, Josie and Lila Quartermaine sat at another table, and Josie and Lila were entertaining Lois with stories of the early Quartmaine family history.

Jane and John Jacks, along with many of the other powerful people from Port Charles, were dancing to the soft strains of "Satin Doll" that echoed through the ballroom. Brenda saw Bobbie Jacks go over to her husband and drag him from the business discussions, pulling him in the direction of her brother, Luke. Brenda grimaced as she saw her father, Harlan Barrett, begin to pull out the pictures of his grandchildren to show to one of the waiters, and she had to laugh when she saw Katherine Bell leaning down and trying to get him to put them away. Brenda’s sister Julia and her husband Bill were making their way toward the dance floor. Brenda was glad Julia had been able to make it after all – their flight had been delayed and just had arrived hours before the party.

Brenda looked down at her plate briefly. She had been so busy greeting guests and accepting congratulations that she hadn’t even had time to touch the appetizers yet. As she was about to spear a marinated shrimp and place it in her mouth, she stopped cold as she saw Governor Lea Moyer and her husband Steve enter the room. She looked over toward Jax, and his face lit up immediately as he went to greet them.

She and Jax hadn’t really discussed Lea’s offer much since the original night he brought the subject up. However, the following day after Carly’s stunt stealing the party room and chef from under them, Brenda had made her displeasure with Carly clearly known to Jax. She had also voiced her strong opposition to Carly ever being elected to office, but Jax merely smiled at her words and never furthered the discussion.

Taking a deep breath, Brenda forced herself to walk across the room to where they were all standing. "Peaches! Steve! I’m so glad you could come join us tonight!"

Lea embraced Brenda warmly. "Brenda, honey, you look stunning this evening, as always. I must admit, being married to old Shorty here surely seems to agree with you!" As Jax and Steve got into a heated discussion about Penn State football, Lea pulled Brenda aside. "I have to tell you – Steve and I had a scary experience coming here tonight. We almost got pulled into that hell-hole down the hallway where Snarly is having her fund-raising dinner."

Brenda nodded and pouted in that direction. "I know. Mrs. Morgan and I already had a not-too-pleasant run-in about the room and chef for tonight." Brenda looked at Lea seriously. "Jax told me about your discussion with him about running for office. I have to admit, I was pretty much against it when he brought it up."

Lea took a long, deep breath. "So, is that my official answer for tonight?"

Brenda shook her head. "No. You asked Jax the question – it’s his place to give you the answer. But let’s just say that my dealings with Mrs. Morgan certainly make me wish I had somebody else to vote for on that day!"

Lea smiled slyly and squeezed Brenda’s arm. At that moment, the band leader came down and whispered in Lea’s ear. She smiled, nodded to him, and to Brenda’s surprise, followed him back up to the bandstand, grabbing a glass of champagne from a waiter’s tray on the way.

"Ladies and Gentlemen," she intoned into the microphone, "can I have your attention please?" The room fell into a hush. "Good evening. Although I’m sure ALL of you good people voted for me in the last election, let me introduce myself just in case. I’m Lea Moyer, and I’m proud to be the governor of this wonderful state of New York. I’m also proud to be a friend of Jax and Brenda, and for the happy occasion of their anniversary tonight, I get to introduce their special song for their anniversary dance. Jax and Brenda, please take the floor and show us all how it’s done!" She dropped her voice to a stage whisper. "And keep it clean, Shorty! I meant that you should show us how to dance!"

As everyone laughed at the potential truth of her statement, the lights in the room darkened. Jax stood and walked to the center of the dance floor. He extended his hand to Brenda, who took it and folded into his embrace as the band began to play a slow, sexy ballad. The female singer stepped to the microphone and began ---

Jax looked deeply into Brenda’s eyes as his hand roved under the sash down the back of her dress. His eyes widened and he whispered to her, "Mrs. Jacks, what’s under this dress?"

She batted her eyes coyly. "Mr. Jacks, if you don’t know after five years of being married to it, we’re in a LOT of trouble!" He pulled her closer, and she laughed softly in his ear. "We’d better hope this song goes on a LOT longer since I don’t think you want the spotlight shining on certain parts of your body right now!" Thankfully, the soloist went into the verse of the song.

The orchestra went back into an instrumental version of the chorus as other couples joined Jax and Brenda. "It’s true, you know," he whispered in her ear. "All that matters to me is all of my life with you." He pulled away from her a little to look into her eyes. "Were you telling me the other day that you’re willing to share me with the good citizens of the state of New York?"

Brenda smiled at him. "I’m willing to follow you wherever you go and whatever you decide to do, my darling. All that matters to me is all of my life with you, too." As the music swirled to a climax, Jax leaned down and kissed Brenda so sweetly that she moaned softly into his mouth.

They were interrupted by the polite applause and snickers from the crowd. "Now Jax, I told you, none of that out on the dance floor or I’ll need to turn the hose on you two!" Lea smirked into the microphone. He strode up to the bandstand and kissed her on the cheek, taking the microphone from her.

"Thanks, Governor." He watched as she made her way from the bandstand. "Do I really need to call you "Governor", even here where it’s just family and friends?"

Lea turned around, put her hands on her hips, and did her best Mae West imitation. "Honey, I really don’t care WHAT you call me, as long as you remember to call me!" The crowd roared its approval, and Jax joined them in applauding her.

Then he turned to face the their guests. "Brenda and I want to thank you all for joining us to celebrate our anniversary tonight. We had planned to do kind of a special number to thank you all, and we want to thank my Grandma for helping us put it together."

The lights came up slightly to show Grandma Josie, sitting at a table with John and Jane Jacks. "Damn straight, Jasper! Remember how we rehearsed it, now!"

Jax smiled. Brenda was still standing with some of the other couples on the dance floor. "We’ll give it a try, Grandma." His eyes searched for Brenda across the room. "But first, I need to ask my beautiful wife a question. Oh, Brenda – do you love me?"

Brenda looked around at all the other guests, paused, and then looked back at him as though he had lost his mind. "Do I what?" she answered aloud.

The orchestra softly intoned behind him. "Do you love me?" he repeated.

She began walking up to the bandstand to join him. "Do I love him?" As she joined him on the platform, she turned to face the crowd and put her hands on her hips to sing her response.

Brenda: "With our children growing older, and the governor’s in town,

Jax: "Brenda, I’m asking you a question…….Do you love me?"

Brenda (in exasperation): "You’re a fool!"

Jax (persistent): "I know…..but do you love me?"

Brenda (to the guests again): "Do I love him?

Given him children, stayed faithful somehow,

Jax (sighing): "Brenda, I wasn’t sure you loved me on our wedding day,"

Brenda: "I was scared"

Jax: "I was shy"

Brenda: "I was nervous"

Jax: "So was I,

Brenda (it’s so obvious): "I’M YOUR WIFE!"

Jax (boy, is that the truth!): "I KNOW, but do you love me?"

Brenda (smiling): "Do I love him?"

Jax (triumphantly): "THEN YOU LOVE ME!!"

Brenda (of course, you idiot!): "I suppose I do,"

Jax (putting his arms around her): "And I suppose I love you, too."

Jax and Brenda together: "It isn’t often said, but even so,

It’s nice to know!" (ending with a long kiss)

The crowd exploded into an uproar as Jax and Brenda finished their song, kissing in the spotlight which gradually dimmed to darkness. The lights in the ballroom came up to show them still kissing, which caused an even louder roar of applause from their friends and family.

Lea came to the stage again and took the microphone. "All right, you two crazy kids, that’s enough. I think we get the picture." As they broke apart, she gave each of them a long hug.

The orchestra began playing dance music again as most of the family and friends took to the dance floor. Jax turned to Lea. "Governor, will you let me have the pleasure of dancing with you?"

Lea winked at Brenda. "Shorty, just about anything I do with you would be a pleasure for me!" Jax took her by the hand and led her onto the dance floor as Brenda left the stage. Josie came up to her immediately.

"Honey buns, that was terrific! You two really outdid yourselves!" She looked at Jax with narrowed eyes. "But I don’t understand why Jasper is dancing with the Governor. He looks like he’s discussing something awfully serious with her."

"He is, Grandma," Brenda said in a low voice. They watched as Jax nodded his head, and Lea broke into a huge smile. Brenda put her arm around Josie. "Let’s just say that I think one of the wishes you made the other day when we were here to check on the ballroom is about to come true." Josie looked confused, but Lea stopped dancing with Jax and took his hand to lead him back to the bandstand. Jax immediately looked for Brenda and extended his other hand to her to follow them.

As the music ended, Lea came back to the mike. "Did you folks miss me?" As the giggles in the crowd faded, she looked around seriously. "I came here tonight to celebrate Jax and Brenda’s anniversary with them, but I also came to find out the answer to a question I posed to Jax a few days ago. He just gave me his answer, and I think it’s time we share some very good news with all of you."

She gathered Jax and Brenda to her, putting one on each side of her. "Ladies and gentlemen, this may be Brenda and Jax’s anniversary, but I think the people of New York got the best present tonight." She looked around at the confused faces in the crowd. "We are truly privileged tonight to be present for the kickoff of what I believe will be a brilliant campaign." She took Jax’s hand in hers and brought him into the spotlight. "Good voters of New York, may I present the new candidate for the seat of State Representative – Mr. Jasper Jacks!"

There were gasps from the assembled crowd, and then wild applause as the orchestra immediately began playing "Happy Days are Here Again." Jax smiled broadly and waved to the crowd, and then turned to pull Brenda into his arms and the spotlight. As the crowd continued to applaud wildly and some flashbulbs from the press began to go off, Jax leaned down to whisper into her ear. "Here we go again, Mrs. Jacks. Thanks for agreeing to stick with me for another adventure."

Brenda smiled and waved to the crowd. But she secretly glanced up at Jax, who was again beaming at the crowd, and prayed that she hadn’t made the biggest mistake of her life, agreeing to share her husband with the entire state of New York. {Well, Brenda, you told him you wouldn’t mind. Welcome to life in the fast lane.}

To be continued….

Music credits: "What Are You Doing the Rest of your Life?" Music by Michel LeGrand, Lyrics by Alan and Marilyn Bergman

"Do You Love Me?" From the musical "Fiddler on the Roof," With Sincere Apologies to Sheldon Harnick for changing his beautiful original lyrics, Music by Jerry Bock