Second part of the first chapter

Alcohol had lightened the mood remarkably, and by the time entrees had arrived, Zoe, Lena and Stef had successfully finished an entire bottle of red wine. "So who was Taylor's first celebrity crush?" Zoe questioned. She was already feeling the buzz from her two glasses of the liquid and everything automatically felt less pressurized and funnier.

"Definitely Janet Jackson," Lena answered finishing her gnocchi. "She had this poster…"

"Hey …hey … hey," Taylor stopped her sister as she felt her entire body blush. "I listened to Janet Jackson because I was learning how to play her music," she defeated herself.

Stef laughed, "What do you play, Taylor?"

"The piano, the guitar, but my specialty is the bass."

"She was actually accepted into Juilliard, sweetheart," Lena informed Stef proudly. "She's an amazing musician."

"Yet, you choose Harvard?" Stef questioned.

"Choose…was dragged there kicking and screaming," Taylor replied with not much humor. "But I mean, it ended well," she squeezed Zoe's knee gently. "Now, who was your first celebrity crush, Stef?"

"I don't even remember," Stef admitted honestly. Another bottle of wine was delivered and their entrees, but before Stef could settle in, her cell phone buzzed at her side. Mike's number flashed on the screen. "It's Mike…I have to take this, excuse me." Stef stood and took her phone outside.

"So what do you think?" Lena asked a bit embarrassed that she wanted her sister's opinion so badly.

"She's hot," Taylor shrugged. She turned and looked at Zoe, who nodded her head in agreement. "And does she wear a uniform ever day…my goodness," Taylor smiled.

"I mean personality wise, Taylor…" Lena refocused her sister.

"Oh yeah, she's great," Taylor rushed to get out before Stef returned. When Stef made her way back to the table, she was noticeably frustrated.

"Hey, I have to go; Brandon had a spill and Mike took him to the doctor."

"Is he okay?" the worry in Lena's voice was evident. "Do you want me to go with you?"

"No, sweetheart, stay with Taylor and Zoe. He just has a little cut from what Mike is telling me. But of course, he wants his mommy, so I'm going to pop by. I'll call you later," Stef kissed Lena's cheek. She was still uncomfortable with kissing her in public. "It was so nice meeting you two," she smiled at Zoe and Taylor.

"Yeah, we'll see you at the party tomorrow," Zoe beamed. She was feeling heady and a bit lightheaded from the alcohol. So much so, she couldn't realize the disappointment in Lena's eyes or the annoyance in Taylor's.

"Does that happen often?" Taylor questioned when Stef had left.

"Sometimes," Lena admitted brushing a stray curl out of her face. She tried to be poised, but Mike's interruptions hurt her feelings. It was likely that Brandon barely had a mark on him, but Mike was blowing it out of proportion to get Stef's attention. It was no secret that Mike wanted his wife back, and using Brandon was a sure fire way to get her back. "Brandon is a beautiful, wonderful little boy."

"And how is Mike?" Taylor asked taking a sip of her water.

"I don't know him well…just interrupting calls," Lena admitted. She had lost her appetite and hated to admit she was a little heartbroken by Stef leaving. She wanted Stef to get to know her family, but Mike had found a way to ruin even that.

"Well why does Stef even answer his calls?" Taylor asked with a hint of annoyance.

Shaking her head mildly, Lena realized that her little sister didn't have children. If she had, she would have understood how children were always the first priority. "It's not that easy, Taylor. Brandon is her baby, she has to go for his sake," Lena explained tenderly. It sounded good, but in a way it put her at odds with herself. How could she have a relationship with Stef if Stef's first priority was Brandon and Mike understood that and could manipulate that?

"Well it seems to suck for you," Taylor sighed taking another sip of her water. "I like Stef…what I know of her so far…but it looks like you get the raw end of this deal…" Taylor's monologue was interrupted by Zoe clearing her throat. The basis of this lecture was not going to be loss on her; the woman had been positioned as nothing more than a girlfriend even though she and Taylor had been married nearly six months. It wasn't loss on Taylor either, who leaned back in the booth and became quiet.

"It's not like it seems, Taylor," Lena assured her. "Stef and I care a lot about each other. We just have to work some stuff out." She took a deep breath and thought of a subject change. Something to get her mind off of the fact that her girlfriend was back home alone with her HUSBAND! Lena couldn't shake the terrible feeling in the pit of her stomach. "Umm…I think I've lost my appetite," she mumbled honestly. "Do you think you two can catch a cab back to my place?"

"I have something important…" Taylor began before Zoe stopped her.

"Of course, don't worry about it," Zoe said feeling the sadness that Lena was throwing off. It was important that Taylor's family knew that she was married, but there was no way it would be well received by Lena if she was already upset.

"We could just go back with you," Taylor suggested. Just like when she was a kid, when Lena's feelings were hurt, her feelings were hurt alike.

"No, I want you to enjoy your meal," Lena tried to shrug off her feelings. Still, truly, she didn't want to be alone right now.

"Why don't we get this to go and do something fun?" Taylor smiled. "Come on…you know you want to."


Lena watched as Taylor shut her eyes to the slow lapping of the waves against the gondola. She had forgotten how much Taylor hated boats until after she suggested the gondola ride. Lena and her father loved the water and boats and sailing, but Taylor and their mother didn't feel the same.

"Taylor…"

"No! Don't talk to me," Taylor responded with her eyes clamped shut. "I will lose my dinner if I have to talk much more."

"Sweetheart," Zoe soothed. She was torn between feeling bad for her wife and laughing at her.

Taylor opened her eyes, her brown eyes glistening with water. "Does this make you happy, Lena?" she asked.

Lena winkled her nose, "Actually it does," Lena laughed. "I love the water and the sun is setting and it's beautiful out here." She didn't add that she would rather be with Stef. Still, Taylor and Zoe were pretty good company. They had been on the gondola ride for nearly forty minutes and she had gotten to know Zoe pretty well. Zoe had graduated from Harvard last year and was doing an internship in Boston for a product design firm. Her parents were actually resort builders and were living in Mexico for the time being since they were opening a few resorts there in the coming years. And she was the youngest of two brothers and three sisters. It was easy to see why Taylor was smitten with Zoe. She was kind, beautiful and had a great sense of humor. Talking to her had relaxed Lena and somewhat taken her mind off of the fact that Stef was somewhere with Mike.

Lena shook the thought from her mind. "So how did you two meet?" she questioned Zoe more than Taylor, who was turning a bit pale.

"I spilled coffee on her lap so I took her out to dinner to apologize. I guess the rest is history…"

The gondola was docked and for a moment they stayed on until Taylor could open her eyes and exit the boat. "Well, that was fun," Taylor said sarcastically. She leaned against a stone wall and looked back towards the water.

"It was fun," Lena nodded. "I love the water and gondola rides. I wish Stef had the time to come out here sometimes."

"She doesn't bring you here?" Zoe questioned.

"We're pretty busy most of the time. Especially during the school year when I work all day and she has work and Brandon."

"That's understandable," Zoe said knowingly. "It feels like Taylor and I barely see each other during the days and when we get home…"

"You two live together? I thought you still lived on campus."

Taylor was quickly realizing that there was no perfect time to tell her sister that she had secretly gotten married, so this opportunity was as good as any. "You can't live on campus once you are married."

Lena took a second to process the information. "Okay, what does that have to do with you?"

"Zoe and I are married, Lena," Taylor said softly. And then a smile spread across her face. For the first time in months, she felt a little lighter. "We got married before Christmas."

"Before Christmas? In December and you are just telling me! Does mom know, does dad know? Of course not! You're still alive. Taylor why wouldn't you have at least called?" Lena shouted.

"What was I supposed to say; Merry Christmas and oh by the way, I'm married now? It's not something you call people over the phone with!"

"What about with Mom and Dad? You've seen them since then; how have you been lying to them?" Lena questioned.

"I've seen mom like once or twice and she only asks about insignificant stuff like grades, class rank, internships and future jobs. She's been planning my career since I was six. She doesn't even notice me as a person, I'm just a concept to her. I tried to introduce her to Zoe, but she had more important things to do."

"No excuse not to tell anyone," Lena stammered. She looked at Zoe, who had retreated a bit from the conversation. Lena rubbed her temples and looked out to the water. "I'm sorry," she mumbled. "This one has just really caught me off guard. Congratulations," she pulled her little sister into a hug and then Zoe. "You may as well be happy today," she smiled, "because our parents are going to kill you tomorrow."


Lena figured nothing could improve her mood more than knowing that the hot, white spotlight was going to be taken off of her and Stef this weekend. She had fretted for weeks about how her mother and father would react to the fact that Stef was married with a child, and Taylor, being the wonderfully reckless little sister that she was, dropped a prime get-out-of-jail-free card in her lap. She was happy for her sister and Zoe, and happy for herself when she pulled into the parking lot of her apartment complex. To her surprise, Stef's SUV was parked in one of her designated spots.

Lena got out of the car and tossed her keys to Taylor, who along with Zoe, still looked a bit worn out. The time difference takes time to get used to and they had yet to adjust. She watched as they headed into the building as Stef got out of her car.

"Is Brandon okay?" Lena questioned. She was genuinely concerned about the little boy, but most of all she was trying to hide her disappointment about the evening from Stef.

"Yeah, he's fine," Stef tried to smile as she chunked her hands into the pockets of her jeans. She looked unsure and wobbly, which was unlike the Stef Foster Lena was used to. Of course, Lena had never been angry with Stef either and for some reason, it electrified the air in a distasteful way. "I think Mike was being a bit overprotective taking him to the doctor."

"Well, we can't blame him for being cautious," Lena said casually.

"Lena, you know I would have rather stayed, but I had to be sure."

"I don't fault you for that, Stef," Lena promised shivering a bit from the increasing breeze.

"Then what do you fault me for?" Stef questioned as she removed her leather jacket and wrapped it around Lena's shoulders.

"I'm fine," Lena squirmed even though she could feel the chill on her shoulders. "You'll be cold without your jacket."

"I'd rather be cold than have you cold."

Lena's icy force field melted a little. "Stef it's late. You didn't have to come back tonight."

"Lena, are you angry with me?" Stef asked a bit shocked. Lena was never angry so this was a new side of her. "I had to check on Brandon."

"I know that, Stef," her voice rose without her meaning it to. "I just wanted you for one night and Mike had to interrupt that. I know that you have to put Brandon first, but does that include Mike coming first too?"

"Lena, Mike is not first in my life. He is Brandon's father but that is it. He knows we are seeing each other Lena."

"Yeah and he is making it as difficult as possible, Stef. He still loves you and wants you back."

"I'm divorcing him, Lena. I don't want to be with him, I only want to be with you," Stef took a step closer and pulled Lena a bit closer. "Please don't be mad with me, love." The word was uttered barely above a whispered, but it made Lena's breath catch in her throat. She and Stef had never discussed love as a thing that they shared, but Lena knew she felt it for Stef.

"Don't say that," she whispered humbly. "Don't use that word and not mean it, Stefanie Foster." It wouldn't be fair to be the only one in love. To love Stef and for her to end up leaving after a few month or a year of experimentation with her sexuality. Lena couldn't go out on that limb; not even with Stef.

"Lena, I've never felt like this about anyone else. I do love you," Stef kissed her softly as the wind brushed around them again.

"Mike wants you back," was all Lena could offer weakly.

"Who cares about Mike?" Stef frowned. "I tell you I love you and I have to hear about Mike?"

Lena nearly jumped into her arms, wrapping her arms around Stef. "You know I love you!" she managed before kissing Stef tenderly. "I love you so much; I didn't even think it was possible for you to love me back."

Stef covered Lena's mouth again and suppress the need to squeal. For the first time ever, everything seemed possible. Lena Adams loved her and loved her son! What else could she really need? "Lena, I don't want you ever to worry about me wanting to be with you… you have to know that I do. This is just all so new…"

"Being with a woman?" Lena questioned nervously.

Stef smiled, "No, being in love. I just want everything to be perfect and I know it can't be, but I want to be perfect for you."

"You are perfect for me," Lena kissed her again. "But we have to go inside; I'm freezing." Once inside the apartment, Lena pulled Stef close again. "Spend the night…"

"What about Taylor and Zoe?" Stef asked liking the idea of spending the night, but still becoming nervous.

"Trust me, Taylor and Zoe are likely asleep, and if not, they have problems of their own to worry about. They are secretly married," she whispered. She took Stef's hand and led her into the bedroom.

"How are you parents going to feel about that?" Stef questioned. It felt a bit awkward to be in Lena's bedroom. She sat on the edge of the bed beside Lena and stiffened.

"I don't think it's going to go well," Lena admitted. She wasn't completely focused on this conversation; instead marveling at the fact that not only did she have Stef in her bedroom, but she had heard those three words she had yearned to hear the most. "Do you really love me, Stef?"

"Yes," Stef laughed. "What do I have to do to prove it to you?" Stef had jumped ahead of herself with that question. She wasn't particularly ready to take her relationship with Lena to the next level. Not that she didn't want to, she was just inexperience and that bred insecurity.

"I can think of a few things," Lena kissed from Stef's mouth to her neck. She began unbuttoning Stef's shirt but was stopped.

"I don't think I'm ready for this," Stef stated sadly. "I'm sorry Lena, I don't want to disappoint you…"

"You aren't disappointing me, Stef," Lena grinned. "We'll take our time, but I do want you to stay tonight; if only to hold me."

Stef let out a relief sighed and kissed Lena soundly. "I'd love to do that."