CHAPTER ONE

Callie-

"This is a bad idea. Why do I have to go? You can take someone else, I won't be jealous, I promise." She's pouting and tugging at her dress in the mirror, an apprehensive look clouding her eyes.

"Arizona, why would I invite anyone else? You're the only one I would want to go to this silly thing with." Two weeks ago my father had called and informed me that he and my mother would be coming into town for a charity benefit for a cancer fund they support. With my last name, I've been to plenty of these things, so it really was an afterthought when I got the invitation in the mail. This time he had insisted that Arizona come too, and even though I had tried to get us out of going, my father is a stubborn man and wouldn't hear of it. I knew Arizona wouldn't be overly excited about going to an event where she wouldn't know anyone, but this level of anxiety from her startles me.

Her gaze remains focused on her reflection and I can tell she's thinking closely about something. "Callie, I've never met your mom." She states, as if she can hear my thoughts. "This will be the first time we meet and," She pauses and looks at me in the mirror. "I haven't had the best track record with meeting your family so far." I cringe at the memory of my father's icy reception to the news of my newest relationship. She continues, drawing me out of the stormy past, "I mean, I know your dad is better with us now, but I'm not sure how your mom is going to react." Her voice is quiet and apprehensive. Almost like she's apologetic for thinking poorly about my mother's potential reaction.

I round my bed and come up behind her, resting my hands on her hips and brushing my lips along the exposed skin of her neck. Her fingers toy nervously with the bracelet she's wearing. "You look amazing," I glance up into the mirror and meet her eyes, but her hands are still obsessively smoothing up and down her skirt. "So stop fidgeting." She smiles at me through the looking glass and links her hands with mine at her waist. "My mom is going to love you, I'm sure of it." A tentative smile curls her lips. "I've gushed enough about you on the phone so she's well aware of how I feel about you and," I wrap my arms further around her and lean into her more firmly. "She's in the know about you being a woman and all, so we won't have to jump back over that hurdle."

She takes a deep breath; my head rises and falls as it rests on her shoulder. Her hands pull mine up to her lips and she kisses the back of my palm before holding them against her chest. "If you say so." I nod against her and give her a reassuring smile. "Alright then, let's get this over with."

I smile and lean forward and turn my head, she meets me half way for a chaste but sweet kiss. She steps out of my embrace and stoops to pick up her clutch on the floor. We pull on our coats and head out into the brisk Seattle air.

The benefit was being held at the Olympic Sculpture Park, over-looking Elliot Bay; the setting sun igniting the dark waters ahead of us into a sea of diamonds and flames. Alexander Calder's "Eagle" points forward in a tangle of worn, red steel, directing your eye to the Olympic Mountains towering in the west. The main banquet hall's glass walls have been opened, exposing the brilliant room to the evening breeze, the salty air wafting gently through the space. Other sculptures are lit from below, casting ghostly shadows across the darkening landscape. A few people can be seen wandering the grounds, but most of the guests are in the elegant banquet hall dancing, eating, laughing, and conversing in the most elegant of attire. White linen clothed tables are spread out around the room, with a bar and hor d'oeuvre table along the back wall.

For as lovely of a night as it is, I have barely glanced at the view. Instead, my eyes have been glued to the gorgeous woman striding in my direction. An amiable smirk purposefully placed on her lips, her golden halo of hair bouncing with each step. She's wearing a black cocktail dress with a neckline that's been teasing me all night. It slinks down her torso like a second skin and stays that tight all the way down to where it stops at her mid-thigh. Her sleek black heels add several inches to her height and do things to her legs that should be outlawed. My eyes are glued to her but in my peripherals I watch as every guy, and several ladies, turn to stare after her as she passes them.
She reaches me and instinctively grasps my hand, leaning in to gently kiss my cheek. She lingers there, "You are the most beautiful woman here." She whispers to me, her tone slightly deeper and more suggestive than she should have used considering we're in a very public place right now.

"From all the eyes still attached to your back, I'd have to disagree with you." I inform her. She seems surprised by this news and as she turns around, several people make not-so-subtle attempts to hide the fact that they had been staring. She giggles before turning back to face me.

"I'm going to get a drink, would you like anything?" She asks.

I shake my head and raise the hand not holding hers to display my half full glass of champagne. "I'm good, thanks." She leans in to place a delicate kiss against my lips and turns, walking off toward the bar.

Arizona-

This thing isn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. Sure, some of the guests are stuffy and, coming from a humble upbringing, we don't have much in common; but, this place is beautiful, the bar is free, and my date is hot. I was more nervous than I would like to admit about coming here, but like always, Callie convinced me to come. Plus, it's for a good cause, a good medicalcause, there is no way I couldn't not come.

Callie is across the room making polite, yet clearly boring small talk with a very well dressed older couple. My eyes roam up and down her body. She's also wearing a black cocktail dress; in fact we had laughed at each other when we realized that we matched so closely. Hers is a strapless silk number, and on her, anything strapless is A okay in my book. Her boobs are practically spilling out over the top, but not in a skanky way, in a purely sexy way. I notice the man she's talking to fighting to keep his eyes connected with hers, resisting the carnal urge to take a peek.

A gentle hand resting on my back startles me out of my observations. I gasp and jump, causing my drink to slosh around in my glass. This creates a quiet chuckle from the man next me. I turn and can't help but smile when I look into the deep, compassionate eyes of Carlos Torres. "Hello Arizona, you look ravishing tonight." He compliments, nothing but honesty in his tone.

I clear my throat and reach back to gracefully rest my hand on his shoulder. "Thank you Mr. Torres, you clean up pretty nice yourself." I turn a little and wrap my arm further around him in a surprisingly comfortable side hug. I breathe in the deep, masculine scent that is distinctly him and am silently grateful that he had learned to adjust to his eldest daughter's new life. When I pull back, my eyes instinctively seek out Callie.

The couple says their goodbyes and walk off, leaving Callie looking a little out of place on her own. She's looking off to the side and suddenly her face lights up with excitement. A blur of red silk and black hair flies into Callie's open arms as they embrace in an excited bear hug. When they finally pry themselves away from each other, they immediately fall into an excited conversation in rapid Spanish.

Carlos is laughing and nudges me with his shoulder. "Those Torres women, always trouble."

I giggle at his all too true statement. "You're telling me."

We continue watching our respective loves for a couple more minutes, comfortable in the silence that has engulfed us. Eventually he breaks the silence, "She looks happy," his voice quiet and humble.

I sigh, "I hope so," I pause, taking a sip from my drink. "I only try to make her as happy as she makes me." It may have been a bit cheesy, but it's the honest truth.

He turns his gaze on mine and his natural authority has me meeting his penetrating stare. "Thank you," He starts. "For making her happier than I've seen her in a horribly long time." He pauses and glances back at his two favorite girls. "And thank you for forgiving my actions in the beginning. I know I've apologized to the both of you several times now, but I've never actually thanked you for forgiving me." His gratitude is deep and honest in a way that only he could make it. It's clear that he's not usually a man who has to ask for forgiveness or show gratitude, so this means something.

I nod my head slightly and pat his shoulder. "I understand, it was new and unknown for you. We both know Callie deserved more from you than what you gave her, but we've all moved past that and are happy. So you have nothing to worry about now." I reassure him.

He nods once, effectively closing that conversation. We both turn back to the two women still talking animatedly across the hall. "Shall we?" He asks while leading me forward with his arm behind my back, apparently it was a rhetorical question.

I feel my palms begin to sweat as we close in on them. I've never met Mrs. Torres and I desperately want her approval. I gulp back the rest of my drink and place my glass on an empty table as we pass. We stop next to them and their shared laughter fades away. "Sweetheart, this is Arizona Robbins. Arizona, this is my wife, Carmen." He waves his hand back and forth between us, as if we didn't know to whom we were being introduced to.

"It's wonderful to finally meet you Mrs. Torres," I say while extending my hand.

She looks at my waiting hand like a rotting piece of meat and my heart immediately sinks. She can't even stand to shake my hand. Callie was clearly mistaken about her being understanding.

Her hand slaps mine away and I look up to see her face lit with amusement. "Por favor, carina, we're practically family now and where we come from, we don't shake hands with family," Without warning she's closed the gap between us and wrapped me in a strong, emotional embrace. "We hug." I can't help but join her laughter and reciprocate her hug. She pulls back and fixes my hair that had been flattened by her
affection. "And it's Carmen, dear." She informs me simply.

I smile and nod as she retreats back into her husband's waiting arm, where it rests gently on her hip. Callie links our hands and leans in to my ear, "Told ya." She jokes before pressing a whisper of a kiss below my ear and leaning away.

Carlos-

I'm usually a charming conversationalist, attentive and engaging. However, I've lost interest in what the three women in front of me are speaking about as I continue to watch my oldest daughter. Everything about her is different now since Arizona. I'll admit that the way I acted was uncalled for and unfair, especially now seeing how in tune they are to one another. Their hands are loosely hooked together, while Callie's thumb traced the lines of Arizona's palm.

This brings me back to Callie as a young child. She had a special blanket that she couldn't sleep without. In fact, once when we had gone on a weekend trip, we had forgotten the blanket and she didn't fall asleep until three in the morning after finally crying and screaming her way to unconsciousness. She would rub the silky border between your thumb and forefinger until she dozed off. By the time she was five, there were holes all around the blanket. The action has always been a calming, soothing habit for her. Carmen must be telling an embarrassing story about Calliope, she's blushing and glaring at her while Arizona is shaking with laughter. I marvel at the shared laughter between the two most important women in my life. I don't doubt that sooner than I expect, Arizona will make it three.

Callie-

My father had drug Arizona out on to the terrace to introduce her to a of couple of his colleagues. I was surprised, yet immensely proud of how close they seemed to be growing. My mother's ignored babble comes to a stop and is replaced by amused laughter. I turn and raise a questioning brow at her.

"You weren't kidding. She is very beautiful." She chuckles at my confused expression. "Will you do me a favor, mija?"

My brow arches impossibly higher, "Of course, anything." Why I am suddenly nervous of her request?

"Be happy." She says simply, meeting my eyes in an intimidating yet compassionate gaze. "Don't run, don't panic. Just let her make you happy, por favor?"

A smile appears on my lips and it's mirrored with my mother's. All I do is to nod in response and we both return our attention to our respective partners. They are three levels below us on the staggered terraces. Arizona is joined into small polite chatter with my father and two other guests. She turns and locks eyes with me across the courtyard, smirking coyly over her shoulder. Her hand hangs at her hip, she turns it and waves secretively at me, sending shivers up my spine.

The only other person who saw the small gesture was my mother and she is smiling proudly next to me. "You two are lovely. Go, help her escape your father and those two penguins. We can catch up more later." She gives me a brisk kiss on the cheek and pushes me forward towards the steps.

I come up from behind her and place my hand in the curve of her lower back. "Excuse me gentlemen, I just need to steal her away now." I inform them, already ushering her away. They all politely smile and nod, my dad winking discreetly to me as we leave. I point us toward the bar but she tugs me back, leading us toward the dance floor.

"Dance with me, Calliope." She asks sweetly, now how can I say no to that? I let her pull me after her to the cleared space near the four-piece band. Her hands loop up behind my neck and she takes the lead, gracefully swaying our bodies to the beat. She pulls in closer and her lips approach my ear. "You're really hot." Her voice is deep and quiet stirring up feelings in the pit of my stomach. "I can't keep my eyes off of you." Her hands run up into my hair, nails scratching lightly on my scalp. "When I was talking to those men, all I could think about was ripping that dress off your body." Her hips swing in, rolling against mine. She's driving me crazy in a place where an obscene amount of attention is on us right now.

"Arizona," I warn her shortly. Her response is to laugh throatily and press a hidden kiss behind my ear. My knees weaken for a split second and I have to focus to stay upright. "You can't do this to me here." I explain, practically begging her to stop so I won't do something that could lead to possible jail time. She doesn't listen and instead runs her hands up and down my back, my temperature rising with each caress. Her face is buried in my thick wavy locks and she nibbles lightly behind my ear, soothing the sting with feather light kisses.

"God damnit!" I exclaim maybe a little too loudly. I retreat from her arms and link our hands and rush off the floor. The eyes that were glued to us a few seconds ago continue staring as I tug her along behind me out into the park.

The sun hangs low in the west, bathing the horizon in bleeding lines of orange and purple. Skyscrapers send the reflective light bouncing through the city, spreading the orange haze down the streets. I glance back at Arizona who I'm still pulling behind me. She follows me without argument, wearing a cocky, knowing grin.