"Alessandra, are you going to share your news with us now, or are you going to make us wait another day?" Maura gave her daughter an annoyed look as the four women settled at the dining table for their evening meal.

"Yeah, okay, I promised I'd tell everyone at dinner, so here it goes," Alessa was practically bouncing in her seat. "I'm seeing someone."

"Oh?" Maura's tone remained neutral.

"Who is he? What is he majoring in? How old is he? Where is he from? And when do I meet him?" Jane's eyes narrowed.

"That's lovely for you, Ally." Janie's response was quiet but sincere.

"Yeah," Alessa responded to each person in turn. "His name is Dan Stabler. He's majoring in psychology. He's my age. He's from Dallas. I'm not sure when you'll get to meet him, but we hope it's soon. He's at home right now." She glanced to her best friend. "Thank you, Janie. I can't wait to tell you all about him!"

"I look forward to hearing you tell me," the young blonde gave a gentle smile. "He seems to make you very happy."

"Indeed," Maura agreed before sipping her wine and giving Jane a quick side glance.

"Maybe we should eat?" Jane cleared her throat. "Stuff's going to get cold.


"Maura, do you hear that?" Jane sat up in their bed, glancing at the clock. It was 11:34 at night.

"You mean Alessandra and Janie fighting?" Following her wife's lead, Maura slowly sat up.

"Is that what that is? Are they yelling? I can't believe Janie would ever yell. What do you think is going on? Maybe I should go check on them?" The detective made a move to leave the bed.

Maura's hand on her arm stopped her. "No, I don't think so, Jane. Things have been tense between them since Alessa started dating Dan. The fact that the two girls go to different colleges and only see each other in person during breaks has not alleviated any of the tension as I thought it might."

"It's been a year. You'd think Janie could settle down about it by now," Jane slumped back against the headboard.

"Do you really?" The honey blonde turned to look at her wife.

"No, not really. But, if Dan really makes Ally happy, then… I mean, sometimes things just don't turn out like you'd hope, you know?" Wincing, Jane pinched the bridge of her nose. "I don't like Dan. I don't mind she's dating a guy… or someone that's not Janie, but Dan feels sleazy to me."

"I know what you mean. Janie does, too. We've discussed it. I suspect Dan sees our daughter as an 'easy meal ticket'." Maura frowned. "Is that the right phrase? Am I using that correctly?"

"Yes and yes." Jane let out a sigh. "If this is how they're going to be all summer, it's going to be a long one."

"I think they may need this time. Sometimes, you must, as you say, duke it out."

"It will either make them stronger or tear up their friendship." Jane tilted her head to the side. "Is it getting louder?"

"I believe they are now in the hallway. Perhaps we should turn on the rad…"

"No, I think we should listen."


"You can't marry him! Janie, will you just listen to reason?" Alessa's voice was loud and angry as it filtered through the master bedroom's closed door.

"How dare you tell me what I can and cannot do, Alessandra. This is my life, and I'll do with it as I please."

'Married?' Jane mouthed to her wife who could only shrug in answer.

"But, he's not good enough for you. You can do better than Jackson. You two have only been together for a couple of months. How can you possible know you want to marry that man?" The anger was changing to pleading. "How, Janie?"

"First of all, he is good enough for me in all things that matter." Janie's voice was flat and very matter-of-fact. "He socializes in the same social circles as I do. He lives within the same financial means as I. He and I are going into the same field, though different branches. We have the same 10 year goal sets. He's physical attractive. He's intelligent. My parents approve of him."

"But, do you love him?" It was difficult to hear the question, but Jane nodded at her daughter's response.

"Not all pairings are like that of your parents, Alessa. But," the other young woman's voice was quieting down, "I do have very strong feelings for him. I think they're as strong as they can be for any man."

At the response from Janie, Maura frowned deeply and shook her head as her hand snaked over to intertwine her fingers with her wife's. The look on her face was pained and full of an understanding that only someone who has experienced a situation can have.

"That wasn't a yes, Janie."

"It was not a no, either." A pause. "Do you love Dan?"

"I like him a lot. I don't know that I'm madly in love with him, but we have a good time when we're together."

"Do you think you'll marry him?"

"I… I mean," Alessa's voice was upset and confused. "No," it was also resolute. "No, he's not the one I'm going to marry. We're just dating, Janie. That's all. I don't think it'll ever be more than that. He's just a fun guy."

"I see." Footsteps sounded in the hall as Janie's voice became more distant. "Perhaps we should talk more about your relationship with Dan."

"Does this mean you're not leaving me… um us? Leaving us, the house, I mean?" Alessa's voice and footsteps followed.

The married couple waited a moment before either one of them spoke.

"Ally's whipped." Jane chuckled.

"It would seem so. I'm concerned about Janie. Do you really think she'll marry this boy?" Maura breathed in deeply, eyes looking at nothing.

"Did you?"

"No, thankfully." The doctor turned to place a kiss on her wife's cheek.

"Okay, then. They'll figure it out. It sounds like they're already working on it."