Polly had given Piper a lot to think about the night before so Piper decided to set the ball rolling. She needed to talk to Zoe but she didn't want it to be when they were at work. So when Piper got to work in the morning, she remembered to go get her morning coffee so that Zoe wouldn't take it upon herself to come see her in her office.

When Piper entered the mini kitchen, she saw Zoe stood in the corner humming to herself. Piper found the sight rather adorable and was tempted to record it to show at the next staff meeting. She eventually decided against it and greeted the other woman professionally. "Good morning, Zoe!"

Zoe span round from where she was standing to see who was stood there and she automatically grinned at seeing Piper. "Morning, boss!"

Piper decided then to put her plan in action while there was only the two of them. "Do you wanna go out for a drink after work tonight?" Piper asked. "So we can de-stress."

"Sure that'd be great," Zoe answered without even pausing to think about it, "I know a great place near here."

"Meet me outside my office when you're done for the day," Piper replied. Piper then changed the subject asking how one of Zoe's apprentices was dealing with the new rules they'd set in the meeting yesterday while she made her coffee before going to her office.

With that out of the way, Piper headed to her office and started to fill out the last of the paper work that she hadn't finished the day before. It was tedious work and she was sure she could get someone to do it for her but it gave something to do to pass the time and she was able to learn about the business more this way.

During the morning, she kept her thoughts on her work and not on her colleagues, including one in particular. She even decided to take an early lunch and eat it in her own office so that she didn't have to see anyone that day. However, that soon changed when there was a knock on her door part way though the afternoon.

"Come in," Piper called and Trevor walked in. "Hello Trevor, how can I help?"

Trevor walked further into the office and motioned for someone to follow him in. Piper had no idea who the other gentleman was. He was older than Trevor and balding desperately.

"Piper, this is Edgar Cummings," Trevor said indicating the man stood next to him. "He says he is the lawyer of one of your friends, a Miss Lorna Morello, and he'd like to discuss some things with you regarding her."

Piper gathered that Alex had received her letter saying that she would let Lorna stay at her apartment once she was out of prison as she didn't need to go to a halfway house like Piper had.

"Hello," Piper said and stood up to shake Edgar's hand. "I'd be happy to discuss Lorna with you."

"I'll leave you to it," Trevor said and quietly backed out of the office.

Piper didn't know what this meeting was going to entail, she also wished he'd rang and spoken to her on the phone to set this up instead of just dropping in like this. She hadn't had time to fully research the pros and cons of having Lorna to live with her.

"Let's just get this done quickly," Edgar started. "I know you're a very busy woman Miss Chapman." He laid the files he had on the table and picked up the top one. "Miss Morello will be released in just under two months now and she originally registered to go back to living with her family. However, she has recently rang me to change it so that she is living with you. That's perfectly fine as you're not on probation or living in a halfway house. The only problem is what job is she going to once she is out. Clearly she can't go back to what she was doing before prison."

"She can work here," Piper said quickly. "She'd be perfect in the PR department. She's confident and she can never shut up. She'll be perfect."

"Are you sure, you don't want to fill your work place up with criminals?" Edgar asked.

"Ex-criminals," Piper corrected him. "As one myself, I do not mind. My girlfriend will be working here when she is out and if our friend, Nicky, wants to work here then she can. I will help my friends out here because they helped me so much when I was arrested. I'll even pick Lorna up from the prison." Heaven knows Lorna did her fair share of driving Piper around while she was in prison. Piper then made a mental note to buy herself a car at some point soon so she'd be able to do that.

"Then I guess everything is in order," Edgar said as it was clear that Piper wasn't going to change her mind about it. "Here's the paperwork." He gave Piper a few different pieces of Paper and told her where she needed to sign. He took half of them and left Piper with the other half. "Thank you, Miss Chapman and have a good day."

Edgar saw himself out of the office and Piper sighed with relief once he was gone. She had barely started writing again when there was another knock on her door. "Come in!" Piper almost shouted but managed to calm her voice just enough. Heaven forbid if it was one of the apprentices who were simply doing a small job for their boss; it would scare them to death. Fortunately it was only Zoe. She was wearing her coat and had he bag in her hand.

"You ready to go?" She asked.

Piper looked at her watch and saw that it was five. She hadn't realised how long she'd been working before Edgar came, or how long the meeting with Edgar had actually gone on for.

"I'm not actually," Piper replied. "I've got at least two more documents to read through before I can go. I got interrupted."

"Come on, do them tomorrow," Zoe said. "I'll buy the first two rounds!"

That was an offer that Piper couldn't refuse. She quickly saved what she was working on and left a note on her desk where she was up to. She stood and grabbed all of her things together before following Zoe out of the door and out of the building.

When they were out of the building, Piper followed Zoe for a couple of blocks before she was led to a modern bar. The place wasn't tacky at all and when they stepped it, it certainly wasn't empty.

"Hey Zoe!" The barmaid called when the two stepped in. "What can I get you?"

"I'll have a margarita," She replied and looked at Piper.

"I'll have the same actually," Piper said and slightly cringed as the two blondes had yet another thing in common.

The barmaid made their drinks quickly and Zoe paid before the two of them found a small booth to sit in where it was a little quieter so they could talk.

"I wouldn't have pegged you as a margarita drinker," Zoe murmured after they sat down.

Piper took a drink before she replied. She coughed slightly as it was much stronger than she remembered and knew that her next drink would have to be a soft one so she didn't end up on the floor. Alex had always teased her about being a lightweight and when you added the fact that Piper hadn't had a lot of alcohol in a while, it seemed that there could be trouble.

"It's my drink," Piper replied.

"Really?" Zoe asked and Piper realised that she must have registered why Piper coughed.

"You really need to stop forgetting I was in prison for over a year." Piper laughed at Zoe's guilty face. "I've had less than a bottle of wine and a little bit of hooch in just over a year. Lemme get used to it again."

"I'm sorry; you just really don't seem like the girl who's come out of prison. You seem too pure somehow."

Piper couldn't help but laugh at that because she knew she was anything but. She was also starting to feel a little light headed already and she'd only drank half of her glass so far.

The two decided to talk about work but it was how Zoe had started working there and had climbed up the ladder to become the chief editor.

"I started as an apprentice years ago and was a natural. I love what I do and it showed in my work. I was able to help the writers and give them advice and reason with them. I could always back up why I'd taken out a part or adapted parts. I've never been the one for the limelight, I've just want to help."

Piper then excused herself to go to the bathroom. Throughout the conversation she'd slowly made her way through her glass and was starting to feel her head go a little cloudy but she was okay. She reasoned with herself that she would just get Zoe to buy her lemonade or something. However, when Piper returned, she saw that Zoe had ordered two more margaritas so it was rude to ask for something else, right? Piper didn't care and started to drink her drink. It also didn't help that she was drinking on an empty stomach.

"So what's the real reason you wanted to go for a drink with me tonight?" Zoe asked. She wasn't affected by the alcohol at all but she knew that Piper was and she was going to use it to get the answers that she wanted from her boss.

"Because we needed to talk where nosey ears can't hear," Piper replied. "I don't know what this is," she motioned between them, "and I don't like where it's going. I'm in a relationship and you're engaged. We shouldn't be doing this."

"But we are," Zoe said simply. "You can feel the attraction as well. Why don't we just give into it?" As Zoe said it, she slipped closer to where Piper was sitting and placed her hand on Piper's thigh.

Piper tried to take control of the situation but the alcohol wasn't allowing that. Piper felt like she needed a drink and, forgetting that her margarita wasn't lemonade as she momentarily thought it was, she took a huge drink. She immediately regretted it as soon as it hit the back of the throat.

"I can't!" Piper cried and attempted to pull away.

"Pipes," that was a new one for Zoe, she hadn't called her it before but she liked how it rolled off her tongue. "Just let go."

Zoe moved her hand slightly further up Piper's leg and placed her other on Piper's neck. Subconsciously Piper leant in and finally gave in to her letting Zoe finally kiss her. As soon as Zoe's lips were on hers, Piper felt herself kissing back even though she wasn't meant to and she definitely wasn't supposed to enjoy it! However, it all came to a crashing end when Piper's phone started to buzz in her pocket.

Suddenly Piper was brought back to reality and she quickly pulled back from Zoe. She took her phone out of pocket and felt even worse.

"Ignore it," Zoe requested.

"I can't, I'm sorry, I have to take this. I'll be right back," Piper said before rushing out of the bar so she could hear the person on the phone.

She quickly accepted the called and put it to her ear. "Hello!"

"Hey, baby! Welcome back to the world of phones," Alex said on the other end of the line.

"Thanks," Piper replied. "Did Lorna tell you that I saw her lawyer today? It's official that we're going to be living together. Only for a little though. She should be gone before you're out because that'd be super awkward if she was still living with me when you're out because we'll be fucking all the time." Piper knew that she was rambling on and she also knew that Alex knew that it was a sign that she'd had alcohol.

"Pipes, are you drunk?" Alex asked. She didn't care about Lorna right now just because she knew how Piper got when she was drunk. She became incredibly flirty. The amount of times she'd had to drag Piper away from strangers in bars when they were together was unreal.

"I've only had two margaritas, I'm perfectly okay!"

"Isn't it a little cold for a margarita?" Alex laughed quietly as she could almost hear Piper's eye roll. "I'm kidding. I don't like you being drunk when I'm not there. I know what you're like."

Piper felt even guiltier now but tired not to let it show in her voice. "I'm just out with a work friend. It's fine but I'm gonna go because it's fucking freezing. Call me tomorrow and I'll be seeing you on Saturday. I can't fucking wait!"

"I can't either. Thanks for helping Lorna, she really appreciates it. I love you, Piper."

"I love you too, babe. Bye!" Piper then hung up and put her phone into her pocket before returning inside.

When she got to the table, she saw that there was another round and another person sitting at the table. Just to make Piper feel even worse, Grace was sitting where she was minutes ago.

"Hey, did the phone call go okay?" Zoe asked. She was sitting in the same place and Grace had her hand on her leg as if to show that Zoe was with her.

"Um no, I've gotta go," Piper lied. "It was my brother. His power is out and wants to know if he can come over so I need to get home."

"Have a safe journey," Grace said. "I'm sorry you can't stay."

"It's fine, I'll see you tomorrow, Zoe and it was nice to see you again, Grace."

Piper then ran out of the club and walked to the closest substation and going home. It was late and she wasn't in the mood to cook so she ordered a Chinese and sat in front of her TV eating her feelings and trying not to remember the kiss.

oOoOo

The next morning, Piper decided to go for a run before work to clear her head as she was slightly hung over. With that she mistimed timed her run and ended up being an hour late for work; she'd forgotten to allow the time to shower after it. It wasn't like her boss was going to yell at her for being late.

Once she was at work and had put everything in her office, she remembered that she needed to go speak to the head of the PR office and tell her about Lorna. It also gave her a reason to not be in her office for Zoe to go find her. She headed out her office and got into the elevator to go down to the publicity offices to go speak with Gretchen.

Piper got to her office and knocked before being told to go in.

"Hey, Piper! How can I help?" Gretchen asked.

"My friend is coming out of prison in two months and her lawyer came to see me yesterday asking if I could give her a job," Piper replied. "She's not the brightest bulb but I believe she can learn. She's ridiculously friendly and kind and she can talk for America."

"So you said she'll be working in my department," Gretchen said nodding. "That's fine. When she's out, let her come in and I'll interview her. However, if she isn't up to par, she'll have to go."

"That's understandable," Piper said. "Thanks so much. I'll email you all the details when they come through."

Gretchen nodded and went back to her work. Piper took this as a dismissal and left the office. She walked back to the elevator slowly and pressed the button to call it. It soon arrived and she stepped in. She pressed her floor number and the doors began to shut but an arm caught it at last minute. Automatically Piper began to ask what floor when she saw that it was Zoe. Zoe's office was on her floor so it wasn't necessary.

Tension was obvious between them. It was a mixture of awkward and sexual. Piper was just thankful that there was no one else in there with them to notice it.

Neither of them said anything for the short ride. It was only as the doors opened and Piper quickly left it that Zoe broke the silence. "Piper, can we talk?"

"I don't think that's wise," Piper said and turned to walk to her office but Zoe wasn't taking that as an answer and grabbed onto Piper's hand.

"Please?"

Sighing, Piper nodded and led the two of them to her office. Piper perched on the end of her desk and waited for Zoe to say something but she suddenly seemed to lose her nerve so Piper started. "It wasn't my brother on the phone, it was my girlfriend."

"I thought so," Zoe replied. She was stood near the door in case she needed a quick getaway. "Listen, Piper, I am so sorry about last night. I know I shouldn't have got you drunk but I needed to know if you did return my messed up feelings and that I wasn't just imagining it."

"You weren't." When Piper said that, Zoe decided that it was okay to move further into the room. She perched next to Piper but looked at the floor. Piper then decided to try and lighten up the situation. "You know, my friend Nicky would love all of this. 'Dyke drama' as she calls it is her favourite thing."

Zoe laughed at that. "I'm so pathetic. I'm 40! I shouldn't be getting into this sort of thing," Zoe said with a sigh.

"I guess I'm just too cute to resist," Piper joked with a wink. "I want to be friends, Zoe, we have so much in common but at the end of the day, I'm in love with Alex and I always will be. She's my person you know? I don't know if Grace is yours, I hope she is, but I definitely know that Alex is mine."

Zoe was quiet for a few minutes before speaking again. "Grace is my person, I think. I do really want to marry her, she's just been a little distant at the moment and it was nice getting someone new to look at."

"Well now I'm old news and we're friends so it's all good," Piper said and she stood to go behind her desk.

"Okay, friend," Zoe said laughing. "Can I ask for one more favour and we can forget this ever happened?" Piper looked up and slowly nodded. "Can I kiss you one more time?"

"I don't think that is the most sensible thing to do," Piper decided taking a seat behind her desk. "So I'm going to say no to it. Right, time to go back to work; I'm not paying you to flirt with the boss."

"Aye, aye, captain," Zoe replied with a mock salute.

Zoe then left the office with a smile that Piper returned. She would have to tell Alex about it soon but she couldn't do it this Saturday. She regretted what she felt for Zoe but she knew that it was all over now. Finally, Piper sat down at her desk and finished the paperwork that she'd been working on since Monday.

Hi guys! I hope you don't hate me! As always thanks for the reviews and remember to keep them coming. Thanks also for wishing me luck with results. It must have worked as I succeeded in passing all of my exams and I'll be starting university at the end of September! With that being said, I hope that I get this story finished before then so that I can keep with the somewhat regular updates. Thanks again everyone and don't forget to tell me what you think might happen in a review. Love you all, Emss :) x