image courtesy of Maurice Benard Connection

a Sonny & Brenda Story
by scullysboy

Brenda Barrett is fresh from prep school in Europe, determined to make it as a model in America.
She lands a small job with Deception Cosmetics, but it's only a part-time gig.
Her friend Robin Scorpio refers her to Il Paradiso...a new restaurant where her boyfriend Jason Morgan works.
Sonny Corinthos is a restaurateur with some very shady connections, and enough personal charm to get whatever he wants out of life.
When he meets Brenda Barrett, he knows he wants her. 
And, there's no doubt that Brenda wants the mysterious, handsome stranger as well; the heat between them is undeniable.
But, is she ready for everything that being with Sonny Corinthos entails?

Chapter 1

Robin Scorpio waited patiently at the counter in Kelly's Diner for her new friend Brenda Barrett. Brenda had arrived in Port Charles a month earlier, fresh from Europe, where she'd graduated from a Swiss prep school. The death of her father left her on her own; her mother had died years earlier. Brenda was determined to become a model, but had little luck in the European fashion scene. She was constantly being told she was too petite for runway work, and that her only hope was to be hired as a print model. Finally, she got a break, only it required her to relocate to Port Charles, NY where Deception Cosmetics was located. Lucy Coe thought Brenda would be the perfect signature model for her fragrance line, and Brenda jumped at the chance. But, Deception was a small company, and the modeling work was only part time. Brenda needed to find another job to supplement her income. 

Robin glanced at the stairs, wondering why Brenda was taking so long to come down. Granted, Robin was taking her to meet a potential employer, but Robin thought Brenda always looked great and didn't understand why it took her hours to get ready for everything. Robin glanced at her watch; it was almost 2:00. Jason had told them to come by at 2:00 for Brenda to meet Sonny. Robin had been dating Jason Morgan for almost a year. After the death of her first love, Stone Cates, from AIDS, she never expected to find love again. But she had, with Jason Morgan. Jason and Robin had been friends for a long time, but that was when he was Jason Quartermaine. A tragic car crash, caused by his drunken brother AJ, almost cost Jason his life. He survived, but emerged a totally different person. He took his grandmother's maiden name, Morgan, and left the Quartermaine household to make it on his own. But that proved to be much harder than he thought. The accident had left him with a temper and a propensity for fighting. He also sought out dangerous situations, and loved to ride his motorcycle...fast. Through separate chance encounters, he first met Robin, and then Sonny Corinthos. Jason and Robin became fast friends, and romance wasn't far behind. Sonny immediately saw that the qualities that others feared in Jason would be very useful to him. On the surface, Sonny was a successful restaurateur. His new place, Il Paradiso, was the hottest eating spot in town. Sonny always loved food, and fancied himself a gourmet chef. He was a good chef, and certainly no one would ever tell him otherwise. For Sonny was more than just a regular businessman; he had connections with organized crime stretching back for years. In fact, he was raised by the organization. After being forced to leave home at age 16 due to his abusive policeman stepfather, Sonny was on his own, and on the streets. He was taken in by Joe Scully; a Manhattan wise guy. Joe became his surrogate father, and taught him everything he needed to know about the mob. When Sonny finally branched out on his own, he moved to Port Charles and set up his own operation. He'd been running numbers, smuggling and illegal gambling action for years, before he decided to open a legitimate business as well. The restaurant was proving to not only be an excellent money maker, but also an excellent cover. Sonny was careful, and had never been caught at what he was doing. When he met Jason Morgan, he knew he'd found the perfect partner. Jason could handle the street action, and Sonny could run the restaurant and keep his hands relatively clean. But there was no doubt that Sonny was the boss, and Jason idolized him.

"Finally!" Robin exclaimed, scooting off her stool. "Sorry," Brenda replied; "I just wanted to make sure I looked good. I'm really nervous about this." Robin looked her over, "like you could ever not look good? Brenda, you're gorgeous; you're a model after all." Brenda smiled. She was really grateful to have made such a good friend so quickly. Robin was helping her get used to her new city; found her a room at Kelly's; introduced her lots of people; and was now helping her find a job. "We're supposed to meet Sonny at 2:00," Robin reminded her; "we're already late, so let's go!" As they rode in a cab to the restaurant, Brenda asked Robin about Sonny. "So, what's this guy like? Is he nice?" Robin smiled, "he's the most generous person I've ever known; and I don't just mean financially. I told you about what he did for Stone." Brenda nodded her head, "yeah you did. That was so great of him to take care of Stone like that. But what would he be like to work for?" "Well, Stone liked working for him, most of the time; and Jason loves it." "What do you mean 'most of the time'?" Brenda asked, concerned. Robin took a breath before responding, "well, it was different with Stone, because Sonny was his guardian too. Sometimes Sonny got upset with him." "Does he get upset a lot?" Robin looked her in the eyes, "I'm not going to lie to you...Sonny's complicated. But he's also the most charming man I've ever met." "OK," Brenda said, not sure how she felt about possibly working for a "complicated" man. Robin felt strange; she didn't want to say too much to Brenda about Sonny. She didn't want to be disloyal to him, and she really didn't know Brenda well enough to know how she'd react if she knew the full story. But Robin figured if Brenda got the hostess job at Il Paradiso, she'd find out all about Sonny soon enough.

"Are they coming or not Jason?" Sonny snapped. "They'll be here," Jason calmly replied. He never got upset when Sonny did; he was used to Sonny's short fuse, and he never took it personally. The fact was, Jason felt he owed Sonny his life. He didn't know what he would have done if Sonny hadn't given him a job. And now, he was Sonny's most trusted soldier, confidant and friend; and Jason wouldn't have it any other way. "I hope she's worth the wait," Sonny commented, thinking about this woman that Robin was bringing to meet him. "She's nice," Jason answered. He'd spent limited time with Brenda, but thought she was pretty and seemed like a nice person. He was actually hoping that Sonny would be interested in her as more than a hostess. Jason really wanted Sonny to find love in his life; Robin did too. Sonny had never bothered with relationships. He had no trouble finding female companionship; he had to fight the women off. But he wasn't prepared to commit to anything more than casual dating and sex. The truth was, Sonny didn't trust most women. He wasn't conscious of this, and certainly didn't understand why. But if he ever examined it, he would know that his attitude towards women was shaped by his mother. Sonny adored his mother; she was beautiful and loving. But she was also weak, and after Sonny's father abandoned the family, Adella Corinthos married a monster. She put her own need to be financially secure before her child's need to be safe, and eventually she asked Sonny to leave his home for fear that he would kill his stepfather. Sonny had met a few women in his life that he loved and respected, and Robin was one of them. But she was more like his little sister than anything else. Whether Sonny could ever open himself up and trust a woman as a romantic partner, remained to be seen. Sonny looked at his watch, "I'm giving them five more minutes Jason. And I have to say, I'm not too impressed with this chick's ability to be on time." "Sonny! I'm really sorry we're late," Robin said, approaching the two men at the bar. "It's totally my fault," she added, not wanting Brenda to miss out on the job. Sonny smiled at her and gave her a kiss on the cheek. But his eyes were focused behind Robin, on the woman who had walked in with her. He didn't think he'd ever seen a more beautiful creature. Brenda stared at him; her heart racing a mile a minute. He was absolutely gorgeous. "Sonny Corinthos, this is Brenda Barrett," Robin introduced them. Sonny took a step closer to Brenda and offered his hand. "Very nice to meet you, Ms. Barrett." He punctuated his statement with a deep dimpled smiled, and Brenda felt light headed. She managed to find her voice, "nice to meet you Mr. Corinthos." She put her hand out, and Sonny captured it with his. "First rule of working here...call me Sonny," he told her with a wink. Brenda couldn't help but smile, and say, "OK, Sonny." "So, does that mean she's hired?" Robin asked. "If she wants the job," Sonny replied, his eyes never leaving Brenda's. "Oh, I want it," Brenda told him in a quiet voice. Sonny smiled again and thought, "oh baby, so do I."

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