A Reunion for Courtney and Jason?

Preview: Courtney's good intentions put her in the line of fore this month on General Hospital, but might also help heal the rift in her marriage.  Will she and Jason come together in the face of adversity or be pushed even further apart?

Newl independent thanks to her post-fire windfall, Courtney finds herself in a power position for the first time in her life.  "Courtney, as a new baby tycoon, so to speak, is going to use the money a little differently than the Quartermaines of the world," previews headwriter Charles Pratt Jr.  "She is a woman that does good for others without questioning it."

Of course, not everyone is thrilled that Courtney has come into cash… not to mention her new role in how the docks are being controlled!  In fact, to prevent Courtney from interfering with her drug trafficking, Faith sends a bloody message to her rival, hoping to convince Courtney that she should focus her energies elsewhere!  Fully aware of how dangerous Faith can be, Justus tries convincing Courtney that she should do whatever the Mob moll says.  And during a subsequent meeting with Faith, it appears Courtney is ready to do just that.  But nothing is as it seems, and Faith, more upset than ever, warns that the latest drug shipment will go through… or else!

Jason, believing Faith has put a hit on someone close to him, thinks the best plan of action is to do away with the lady mobster, which only brings to the fore all of Courtney's issues about his line of work.  "She doesn’t disregard everything Jason says," explains her portrayer, Alicia Leigh Willis.  "She definitely trusts him and believes him.  But that's not how she wants to be.  She doesn't want to break the law."

Meanwhile, there's trouble brewing for Jason on other fronts, as well.  Intent upon gaining sole custody of her children, Carly warns Jason that if he doesn’t agree to testify on her behalf, she'll have no choice but to make Sonny's mental instability an issue.  When Jason finally takes the stand, his testimony doesn’t make anyone happy, as Carly winds up ticked at her pal and Sonny feels betrayed!  Wondering exactly how it is that Alexis wound up working for a woman she can't stand, Jason goes to the legal eagle with a few questions.  Will he uncover the secret both women would just as soon he not learn?

As the weeks go by Jason and Courtney find themselves brought together by two basic desires: pushing Faith out of their lives, and convincing Sonny and Carly that their children deserve to be raised by both parents.  "She's siding with the children, 100 percent," says Willis.

But that doesn’t mean Courtney and Jason see eye to eye on everything.  "They're apart philosophically and emotionally on the issue of what he does for a living," explains Pratt.  "That isn't going to go away."

As Jason shows no signs of taking an early retirement from his gun-toting  ways, does this mean the couple can never again be together?  "Courtney is trying to focus on starting a new life for herself instead of having it revolve around a man, whether it be Jason or her brother," says Willis.  "Jason' is in her heart.  She wants to be with him.  But she also has to look out for herself."

"They're like magnets," adds Pratt.  "No matter where they are, they're drawn to each other!"

Soap Opera Previews, April 5, 2004