A/N: Sorry for the uncharacteristically long delay in updating. Needed to recharge the batteries a little!


"Wake up, birthday girl."

Chloe heard it, but it was far more fun to pretend to be asleep and let Beca keep trying to wake her. Fingers walked up her back and she had to fight not to shiver from the touch.

"Chloeeeeee," was whispered in her ear and she almost flinched from the stream of air. She felt Beca climb over her to settle on top of her and she chanced a small smile. It reminded her of her attempts at waking Beca the morning after their wedding.

Four loud knocks on the door woke both of them this time, sending Beca rolling back under the covers with a curse and setting Chloe into giggles.

"Who is it?" she called. Unlike their wake up visit from Beca's father, Chloe wasn't afraid of getting caught in bed, this time, with her wife. She also knew her parents wouldn't walk in uninvited.

"Breakfast's ready!" came the answer from her mother through the door, which remained firmly closed. "Take your time. It'll keep. But I made your favorite!"

"Chocolate chip pancakes?" Beca asked her with a glance

"Probably, unless she forgot," she answered with a giggle.

Beca hummed and stretched and curled into Chloe, pressing kisses to her shoulder. "How's my birthday girl this morning?"

"Cozy," she said, pulling Beca in closer with her foot.

Beca's hand was wandering, up her side, down her back, over her hip. "Do you want your present now or later?"

"Depends."

"On what?"

"Is it something you can give me in front of my parents?"

She felt Beca shake with quiet laughter. "Technically, I can. Whether or not I want to…"

"Beca Beale, you are dirty."

Beca leaned back, eyes glinting. "Who said it''s dirty? Maybe it's just private. Sounds like you're the dirty one."

"Okay, just give it to me," Chloe said, turning onto her back to offer herself up with a smile.

Only Beca rolled away and out of bed to rifle through her suitcase, which was a total mess after digging through it in the middle of the night in the dark for her toothbrush, and climbed back into bed to plop down next to Chloe again and dropped a pink envelope onto Chloe's bare stomach.

She jumped at the cold contact and grabbed it, her name written across it in what was probably Beca's best attempt at cursive. "What's this?" she asked excitedly.

"What's it look like?" Beca said with an eyeroll and a smile.

"A birthday card!" Chloe slipped her finger under the flap to pop the seal and wiggle out the card. She grinned at the teddy bears hugging on the front, For my wife on her birthday framing them, text flowing in the shape of a heart.

"You know how hard it is to find a card for your wife that doesn't have what are obviously a guy and girl on it?" Beca said as she retrieved her phone.

"Hush," she admonished. "Let me read." She flipped it open, initially ignoring the message that came with the card in favor of reading what Beca had written on the left flap.

Chlo-

Happy Birthday! I'd pretend like I don't know what to write in here, but you know that's bullshit and you'd call me out on it in a heartbeat. So instead, let me say how happy I am that you were born, and how lucky I am to have you in my life and be able to call you mine. I know we are celebrating with your family this weekend, but I promise, we'll definitely celebrate properly when we get home. I love you, and hope you have the best day today. You deserve it.

All my love,

Beca

She read Hallmark's generic text on the other flap and noticed one more note written under the printed message.

Why am I on my phone right now?

Chloe glanced over to see Beca's focus on her phone, the corner of her mouth upturned just enough that Chloe knew she was paying attention. "Why are you on your phone right now?"

"Come here," Beca said, holding out her arm so Chloe could move over and be held. She handed her phone to Chloe. "Open it and press play."

"What's this?" Chloe asked excitedly as she tapped in Beca's code to reveal a freeze frame video on the screen. It was blurry, but she could make out Stacie, Aubrey, and Amy's faces easily, and there were more behind them that she knew had to be her Bellas. "What is this!" she said with a giggle and tapped the screen to play it.

A chorus of Happy Birthdays rang out and Chloe turned the volume down a click, which made Beca laugh. She'd been right - they were all there: Aubrey, Stacie, Amy, Jessica, Ashley, Flo, Emily, Lilly, and Cynthia-Rose, all nine of them crammed around Stacie who had apparently been deemed the best one to capture the video, being the tallest.

"Where you at, bitch?" Amy said, holding up a blue Solo cup.

"How are they all together?" Chloe asked excitedly.

"Shh."

"Amy," Aubrey said sharply and then turned back to the camera. "Happy Birthday, Chloe!" Everyone screamed it again, making Aubrey wince through a smile. "We just wanted to tell you how much we miss you and wish you were here!"

"Yeah, stop boning each other and come home," Stacie added with a smile.

Chloe felt herself blush a little and finished the video, only to notice…

"Baby?"

"Hmm?"

She dragged the slider backwards on the video to watch it again. "Are they...baby are they in our house?!"

Beca tilted her head to regard the screen. "Huh. Would you look at that."

Chloe dropped the phone to the bed between them and pounced on Beca. She was smiling so wide her face hurt, which was saying something for Chloe. "Are they in our house right now?!"

"I don't know how those bitches got in there. I should call the police. Report them for breaking and entering. Trespassing."

"Beca! Stop teasing!" she said, giving Beca's shoulders a shake, which was basically shoving her down into the mattress. "Tell me what's going on!"

"Well you were talking about wanting to see everyone or having like, a wedding reception do-over -"

"So you invited everyone to LA for my birthday?!" she finished.

"Technically I booked all their flights without asking them, and then told them I'd put a hit out on them if they didn't come."

"Wait, you flew all our friends out for my birthday?"

Beca nodded, smiling, her tongue peeking through her teeth in the way that always made Chloe think she was the cutest thing ever, and Chloe dropped down to kiss her.

"But we're here! And we aren't home 'til tomorrow."

"We land at 1:00 with the time difference, and most of the girls are in town through Thursday. I had to give in and move Lilly's flight up a day because she had to be back in Chicago for what she described in the email as a 'special recognizance mission.' And since we're seeing your family this weekend, I figured the Bellas could just come for a summer vacation instead of dealing with friends and family together. Probably more fun, less stress?"

Chloe squealed and kissed her again, then fished for Beca's phone where it'd ended up wedged under Beca's thigh. "Are they actually there right now? I'm going to Facetime Bree."

"She's staying with her boyfriend. And if you think there's room for us to house nine extra people at our place, I'm going to question your judgment of what acceptable living conditions are."

Chloe pouted and lifted up to drop herself not gently back onto Beca's lap. "Be nice, it's my birthday."

"Oof! Chloe I have to pee, don't do that!"

"Then don't be mean," she said with a flip of her hair over her shoulder as she accessed Beca's phone again. "I'm calling Bree."

"Need I remind you, you're naked right now."

"Who's naked? Happy birthday, Chloe!" Aubrey's face appeared on the screen, smiling. Chloe couldn't figure out where she was, but she wasn't at their place.

"Bree! You're in LA!" she said excitedly, being conscientious of the angle of the phone's camera so she only was in frame from the neck up.

"I am! I guess Beca told you?"

"Yeah, I just saw the video you guys made! How'd you get into our place? Where is everyone staying?"

"But she didn't tell you those details?"

"Didn't have a chance," Beca said, loudly enough to be heard from her spot on the bed, under Chloe.

"Ah ha. Well she put everyone up at the Hilton. And she mailed me a key ahead of time. Already gave the girls the grand tour of your place. Hope you don't mind!"

"Of course not!" Chloe said, still excited. So excited, in fact, she forgot she was naked, and that Beca was naked, and flopped down into bed to hold the phone above both of them to keep talking.

"Chloe! Oh my God."

"Shit, Chloe, I'm naked here!"

Chloe noticed what the camera angle was showing and quickly fixed it as Beca scrambled to pull the sheet up to her neck and throw it over Chloe as well. "Sorry, baby."

"'Sorry, baby'? I'm the one whose eyes were just assaulted. I can accept seeing yours, but I really thought that if I made it through Senior Year without seeing them, I'd make it the rest of my life without seeing Beca's."

"You and me both," Beca said, scowling up at the phone once she was covered.

Chloe laughed at her huffy wife and rolled to kiss her, laughing more at Aubrey's equal huffing. "Sorry, Bree," she said once she was on her back again, head to head with Beca. "So, Beca said you're staying with Eric, hmm?" she said with a knowing wink. "I guess she really had to twist your arm to get you out here. Or, there, I mean."

"You know I would have come regardless! I'm almost offended, but I know you know that."

"I think she just wanted to get boned on my dime."

"Beca!" Chloe said, swatting her with her hand, laughing. Aubrey was quiet, obviously playing along to get a reaction out of Beca.

"She's not denying it!" Beca said, gesturing at Aubrey's smug smile.

"You're right; I'm not."

"See?"

"Whatever. She's here. There. Waiting for us to get home. What are you girls doing 'til we get back?"

"Everyone voted for Universal Studios. I'm meeting them there at 9:30."

"9:30?" Chloe glanced at the time on her phone, forgetting about the time difference. "Oh my gosh, it's already 12:30 here! Bree, we need to get moving or my mom is going to guilt trip me all day for wasting our time together. Tell everyone I can't wait to see them tomorrow!"

"Yeah, me, too," Beca added, offering a quick wave before rolling out of bedroom start pulling clothes out of her suitcase.

"Will do. See you ladies tomorrow!"

"Bye!" Chloe disconnected the call and handed Beca her phone whereupon she promptly plugged it back in to charge.

"You showering first or am I?" Beca asked, pulling on the pair of pajamas she never got around to wearing the previous night.

"Same time," she answered, hopping out of bed to retrieve her toiletries and get similarly dressed to venture out of the privacy of their room.

"Babe...really?" Beca said, looking at her with half a smile. "I mean, I'm kinda down but like...I don't want to be disrespectful to your parents."

"No, I know that, silly," Chloe said with a grin. "You shower down here in the guest bath. I'll go upstairs."

"Oh. Damn," Beca said with a laugh. "Yeah, that's probably better."

"Come find me when you're done if we don't cross paths here getting ready."

The moment Chloe opened the door, her sonic-hearing mother heard it. "Girls, come eat before you shower!"

"Or I guess let's go eat first?" Chloe said, dropping her stuff back onto the bed.

"Ugh, now I have to put on a bra," Beca said with a huff as she dropped her own stuff and lifted her shirt to hang around her neck as she hooked the bra that she retrieved from the floor.

"What a shame," Chloe smirked, shaking her head as she watched her.

"What, you're not? Not that I'm complaining, but like...isn't that weird?"

"Nope." Instead, Chloe dug through Beca's suitcase to find the hoodie she knew would be packed; Beca never traveled without one. "And yes, it'd be weird. Better?" she asked, giving her shoulders a shimmy to make Beca laugh.

"All good."


Breakfast with Chloe's mother was about as awkwardly funny as she expected, their first real one-on-two time together post-marriage. Her mother had always been pretty boundary-less when it came to people, and Chloe knew she'd inherited her own similar trait from her. She preferred to call it an 'ease of engaging others' rather than a lack of boundaries, however.

"So Beca, tell me," she started, and Chloe bit back her smile. "What made you decide to pop the question? I want all the details."

"I asked her, Mom."

"I know you did, sweetheart, but she's the one who planned ahead and bought you that rock," Marie countered, pointing at Chloe's ring. "She clearly had every intention of doing so."

Beca cleared her throat, trying to find her way into the conversation and Chloe smiled in apology. "Well...first of all, she's my best friend. You know, this sounds an awful like me getting set up to rain compliments down on her because it's her birthday," Beca said with a look toward Chloe.

Chloe shook her head and winked. "It's not, but by all means…"

"Uh huh," Beca laughed. "Anyway. Yeah she's my best friend. And I'm kind of crazy in love with her, and the thought of either of us being with someone else…" She exaggerated a shiver and then smiled. "Yeah, no. I couldn't picture it. I knew I needed to have this nerd in my life forever. And she might have beaten me to the punch - only because I was trying to set up the perfect proposal for her - but that doesn't really matter. All that matters is that we're married now." She finished with a grin and a particularly exuberant crunching bite into a strip of bacon.

Chloe felt her heart swell and she leaned around the corner of the table to kiss her. "There weren't nearly enough compliments on there, but I guess it'll do. Mom?"

Beca rolled her eyes and gave Chloe a shove to put her back in her seat.

"I expected a good deal more, too. Maybe a poem about the color of her eyes or the brightness of her smile."

Chloe grinned at Beca, enjoying teaming up on her with her mother. "Yeah, where's my poem, honey?"

"I'll show you where your poem is," Beca said with a look that told her exactly where she could find it.

Chloe stuck her tongue out at her and stole her plate away to finish Beca's last strip of bacon. "That's what you get for being a smartass on my birthday," Chloe tutted when Beca protested.

"Okay enough teasing," Marie said as she took up both girls' plates. "The mall will be closed by the time we get there if you girls don't hurry up and get ready."

"We're going, we're going," Chloe said with a slight eye roll, ushering Beca out of the kitchen with a hand on her waist.


"This is the mall?" Beca asked from the back seat of Chloe's mother's white BMW.

"Totes!" Chloe almost clapped at the sign installed between the entrance and exit lanes of the parking lot. She'd spent much of her time as a teenager here, though she infrequently left with much more than a new bangle or, if she'd pulled a few double shifts at the pizza joint that month, maybe a new tank or pair of shorts. Her family might have been affluent, and her parents rarely let her want for much, but she didn't consider herself spoiled; at least, not in the materialistic way. They did put her through seven years of college and set her up with a trust fund so she would have a stable start to her independent life - but she was never the girl with the new designer purse every season and she 'only' had one pair of True Religion jeans compared to her best friend's closet full of them.

So while Chloe walked pathways of the outdoor shopping center that housed designer boutiques almost exclusively every day after school with her friends fawning over Chanel blouses and Louis Vuitton bags, she was more of a window shopper than actual shopper.

She also thought it was cute how Beca was thrown by the fact that her mother was taking them shopping at such an upscale place. Chloe knew what was in Beca's closet, and that over the last several months it was slowly but surely shifting from shirts that cost $20 to shirts that cost $200. She purported herself to be an anti-shopper, but Chloe knew Beca loved fashion as much, or maybe more, than she did herself. Fashion was how Beca expressed herself; it always had been. Chloe knew from the moment Beca walked into a room what her mood for the day was, based solely on what outfit she'd put together, and her new-found success was affording her endless new ways of expressing herself.

"So what do you girls need, hmm?" her mother asked as they left the car with the valet and walked through the stone-tiled passageway between buildings to the main shopping thoroughfare.

"We really don't need anything," Beca answered quickly.

Chloe caught her hand and squeezed it as she leaned over to whisper, "Just let her buy us some stuff. It'll make her feel better about eloping and maybe stop guilting me." She finished her comment with a kiss to Beca's cheek. "Maybe kitchen things?" she answered. "What we have now is kind of a mix-and-match of Beca's and my stuff."

"Then to Williams-Sonoma we go," her mother said with a nod, taking the next left turn.


An hour and a half and a total price Chloe didn't even want to hear later and she and Beca had effectively acquired a new kitchen - everything from new dinnerware and flatware to wine glasses to cookware to cooking utensils to countertop appliances. Chloe and Beca had been choosy, despite her mother pressuring every considered purchase with, "If you like it, just zap it!" They were essentially creating a wedding registry, which Chloe's parents would purchase the entirety of and have it shipped directly to their home in L.A.

While they hadn't yet disclosed the next stage of their relationship to her mother, specific to this moment the fact that they would be moving in the semi-near future, they were as subtle as they could be about choosing things that were generic enough to work in any kitchen. Marie's suggestions of getting all red gadgets to "bring a pop of color into the room," Chloe skillfully redirected her with, "What if we need something else later but it's not the same shade of red because it's a different brand? It will drive me crazy!"

It was fun, Chloe realized, to be out shopping for household things like this with Beca. Their living arrangements had been arranged so last-minute that Chloe hadn't participated in setting up their current home - not beyond the actual setting up of it; she definitely remembered the frustration that came with assembling the IKEA furniture, but Beca had picked out everything. It was their home, but almost solely Beca's style.

She took Beca's hand and pulled her around the corner of a display of copper cookware. "I like doing domestic things with you."

Beca looked at her funny but smiled. "I should hope so."

"No, I mean it's just...nice to pick things out together. I'm excited for when we do it for real with our new place."

"Ah," Beca said with a nod. "Okay, yeah I get that. I like being domestic with you, too."

Chloe nodded happily. "Good."

"Okay girls, where to next?"

Chloe felt her mother hovering behind her. "I think you've done enough, Mom."

"More than enough," Beca added. "Really."

"Nonsense. The least you can do is let me do this today."

She saw Beca struggle not to roll her eyes, instead biting a smile at Chloe. "How about we just wander?"

"Sure, sweetheart," Marie said with a pat to Beca's back.


'Just wandering' eventually had them browsing at Rebecca Taylor with dressing rooms started for both of them. Beca insisted she wasn't going to let Marie buy her any clothes, that it wasn't necessary, but she went through the motions to make her happy, which Chloe appreciated.

"Hey, Chlo?"

Chloe looked up from the dressing room mirror where she was evaluating a pair of indigo comfy cotton pants, hearing Beca next door through the wall. "What's up, baby?"

"Can I get your opinion?"

"I thought you weren't going to let Mom buy you anything?"

"I'm not. But I can buy it instead. Just come over here."

"Then you can give me your opinion on mine, too." She slipped the off-the-shoulder white blouse over her head and stepped out of her dressing room to tap on the door next to hers. It popped open and she stepped in, almost tripping when Beca pulled her further into the space and right into a kiss. She squeaked in surprise for a second and then relaxed to return it. But when she tried to pull back, Beca tugged her right back in again to kiss her harder.

"What's happening?" she finally managed, opting to just speak through the kiss.

"I want you," Beca whispered against her lips and kissed her again, tongue sliding over Chloe's like it owned it (it did).

Chloe felt her body flush with heat at the words, and then again at their situation. She forced herself to take a step back. "What, here?"

Beca smiled and nodded and reached to bring her close again. "It's your birthday."

"And?" She glanced around the dressing room - the four walls were floor to ceiling and it was spacious, furnished with more than your typical corner stool - it had a cushioned bench and an armchair. Beca's hands were wandering, slipping under the blouse Chloe didn't even own yet.

"And I want to make you come. I haven't done that yet today."

Chloe's breath caught in her throat and her hips rolled into Beca's. "What if we get caught?"

"You'll just have to be quiet." Hands ran down Chloe's backside and squeezed, pulling Chloe against her.

"These aren't mine," Chloe said quickly, realizing she really shouldn't be engaging in foreplay wearing pants she might not actually purchase.

"Then I guess you should take them off," Beca said with a smirk as her hands moved to slip under the waistband to push them over Chloe's hips; they easily fell to her ankles and Chloe shook her feet out of them and pushed them aside.

"What is it with you and public places?" Chloe remembered their conversation from New Year's Day when, after pretty successfully fulfilling one of her own, she asked Beca for fantasies she could make come true. "This is one of your fantasies," she said, answering her own question.

Beca's mouth curved into a half-smile. "Technically this is a little too private for what I had in mind." Her lips reconnected with Chloe's neck.

Chloe flipped up the collar of the light blue leather jacket Beca was wearing - definitely not something she owned. Yet. If Chloe had anything to say about it, it would be coming home with them. She looked hot in it. "My mother could literally be waiting on the other side of that door and this is too private?"

"Well, when you put it that way…" Beca said thoughtfully as her hands trailed up Chloe's bare thighs. "Maybe this is acceptable."

"If you're doing this for my birthday," she had to stop to bite her lip or something much louder than her hushed conversation would have escaped when a hand dipped between her legs. "If this is for my birthday," she tried again, "then whether or not it's acceptable shouldn't matter."

"Why are we having this conversation right now?" Beca asked with a quiet laugh as her other hand slipped up under Chloe's shirt to push a cup of her bra up and away to cover her breast with her hand.

Chloe shook her head. "I don't know." She leaned in and kissed Beca to let her muffle the moan threatening to make itself known as fingers slipped beneath thin lace. She couldn't believe they were doing this in a dressing room, but it was thrilling and it was her birthday and God Beca's fingers could work magic. She took a step to the left. "Sit," she whispered.

Beca nodded and they moved in tandem until Beca took a seat on the bench to let Chloe straddle her lap. Beca's hands were busy and Chloe knew she was trying to be swift about it; they couldn't be in there forever, especially with her own door being left open. Staff, or a hundred times worse, her mother, could come to check on them any minute. She wrapped her arms around Beca's neck and kissed her hard, letting her hips fall into a rhythm.

"Take this off," Beca mumbled against her kiss as she pushed unsuccessfully with one hand at the shirt Chloe didn't even own.

She whipped it over her head to let it fall somewhere behind her and then her bra was pushed up on the other side and Beca's lips were on her breast immediately. "Shit, Beca…" she breathed, tangling her fingers in brunette tresses to pull her closer, only half-conscientious of not making Beca look totally bedraggled. She shivered when the cold metal of the zippers adorning Beca's jacket grazed her bare abdomen.

Beca hummed in response and the rotation of her fingers grew more focused, the pull of her lips on Chloe's nipple less gentle. Chloe felt it building quickly, the risk of getting caught doing wonders to amp up her arousal. She didn't even notice the sounds she was making until -

"Shh…"

Chloe covered her own mouth with the back of her hand and pressed the other into the wall behind Beca for more leverage as she rocked in Beca's lap. It was in her shifting that she opened her eyes long enough and caught sight of their reflection in the full-length mirror to the right and it almost sent her over the edge immediately. "Baby," she said, chancing taking her hand from her mouth for a second and fighting every moan that threatened.

"Hmm?" Beca looked up from where she was busy with Chloe's chest.

"Look." She nodded toward the mirror and moved her arm down so it wouldn't block Beca's view.

"Oh, fuck," Beca said, a little too loudly.

"How are things, Beca?" filtered through the door and they both froze. It was Beca's salesperson.

"Please don't stop," Chloe whispered, resuming her rocking and picking up the pace.

"Good!" Beca called, and Chloe smiled at the way her voice wavered a little. "Just finishing up."

"Let me know if you need a different size or color for anything. I'm happy to bring it to you."

"Okay, thanks!" Beca bit out, a little sharply.

Chloe kept her focus on them in the mirror and Beca met her eyes through it. It was as intimate as it was raunchy and Beca made a show of reaching back to grab onto Chloe's backside to pull her closer.

"Fuck, this is hot," Beca breathed, leaning forward to catch Chloe's breast in her mouth again, still watching out the corner of her eye.

Chloe's vision faltered, eyes trying to be closed, but she wanted to watch it, how she looked riding Beca like that, how Beca looked working so hard to please her. It was a different angle to witness it through, and while they'd played with it at the Malibu beach house over Labor Day, that was a window and didn't offer the clarity that the mirror did. "Uh huh…" she finally responded in agreement to Beca's statement. Beca turned her wrist just right and suddenly Chloe was on the edge and she had to look away, shoving the side of her fist against her mouth as she dropped her head next to Beca's and thrust her hips with abandon, trying to swallow the sounds that were accompanying her increasing pleasure.

"You're going to come for me?" Beca whispered in her ear.

She nodded fast, the words spiking it even higher until it snapped and heat rushed through her. Fingers slipped up and in, palm pressed flat against her throbbing nerves to grind into it and she gasped at the sensation, biting into her hand as she felt Beca inside her while her body pulsed around her. Lips moved along her neck, licking and nipping until she sagged in Beca's lap.

"Mmm, wow," Chloe murmured, finally lifting her head to kiss Beca with as much passion as she could muster to convey her gratitude. When she sat back she surveyed the state of Beca's hair and winced a little, immediately working on getting it to look less like it's just had hands tangled in it.

"Happy birthday," Beca said with a smile and another kiss.

A knock on the door made them both jump. "Sorry, Beca. Chloe, dear, are you in there?"

She flushed, hearing her mother's voice with Beca's hand still very much lodged between her legs. "Yeah, Mom! Just helping Beca decide on something!" She bit a grin at Beca, feeling supremely awkward, and wiggled on Beca. "Get out of me; it's weird now," she added with an extra quiet whisper.

"Oh, okay. I was wondering where you went. Your room was empty and I couldn't find you in the store."

Beca pointedly thrust her hand up, grinning wickedly, and Chloe gasped at the untimely but not unwelcome sensation. She let the momentum help her up and off Beca's lap, forcing her hand away once and for all.

"Yeah I'm here. We're almost finished." Chloe shook her head at Beca and she knew she was blushing between the exertion and the orgasm and the adrenaline of almost getting caught twice and one of them being her mother. She tried to breathe slowly as she pulled her bra back into place and redressed in the clothes she felt obligated to purchase after all that. At least she liked them.

"Okay, honey. I'll just wait for you out here."

"Great," Chloe muttered, knowing she wasn't going to get herself looking non-frazzled in an acceptable amount of time.

Beca was up and moving, too, digging through her purse to return with a moist towelette from a barbecue joint they went to and work it over her hands; Beca had jokingly stolen a handful of them, implying it would be for this exact purpose but Chloe didn't expect to ever see them resurface and it made her flush all over again. And then Beca held up a [dry] finger, telling Chloe to wait. "Hey, Marie?"

"Yes?"

"I saw an Apple Store a few doors down. My phone's cable is starting to crack. If you'd rather not sit here waiting for us, you could pick one up for me? I'll pay you back ASAP."

"Oh, of course! I'll be back in a jiffy. And don't you dare think about reimbursing me."

Beca smiled at Chloe and tossed the crumpled cloth into her purse. "You're welcome."

"Thanks," Chloe exhaled in relief. Beca bought her at least ten minutes to cool off, if not more depending on how packed the Apple Store was.

Beca winked. "I gotchu, girl."

Chloe rolled her eyes at Beca's cockiness but turned to her and laid her jacket collar back down. "Don't let that leather jacket go to your head." She tugged on the lapels a little. "You didn't just magically become Johnny Castle."

"Dirty Dancing, right?" Beca asked after rocking her head back and forth a few seconds in thought.

She nodded with a smile, happy Beca remembered that much of it from their group viewing of it in Copenhagen a lifetime ago.

"Then if I'm remembering it right, if I want to make you swoon…" Beca paused and tilted her head to crack her neck and then popped her shoulders back to square her serious gaze on Chloe. "Nobody puts Chloe in a corner."

Chloe laughed at it but it did give her butterflies and she bit her lip, running her hands down the front of the jacket. "You're buying this, right?"

"You like it?"

She nodded and leaned to kiss Beca, holding back from letting it slip from warm and romantic to hot and horny. "I'm going to do the walk of shame back to my dressing room and hope we haven't had an audience out there the whole time."

"There's not going to be anyone out there," Beca said with a shake of her head as she gave Chloe a playful swat on the rear when she turned to leave.

Chloe cracked the door open, half-expecting to see a dozen people staring at her disapprovingly. But there was no one, and she slipped out and back into her own room, closing the door behind her with a sigh of relief to lean back against it. She stared at herself in the opposite mirror - her hair was okay, and she was still flushed but it was fading, and would be less noticeable when she wasn't wearing a blouse that showed so much skin. She slipped the shirt over her head and leaned against the door again, letting the cool wood absorb the heat from her skin. She heard Beca's salesperson return and the conversation that followed sounded like Beca was leaving, voices disappearing after a few seconds.

On cue, a knock rapped on her door. "How are we doing, Chloe?"

"Oh, just fine! I'm so picky," she answered her own salesgirl. She realized she'd only tried on two of the nine things she'd chosen. "Give me five and I'll be finished."

"Of course. Let me know if you need anything."

She moved quickly through trying on the rest of her clothes, settling on the pants and shirt she'd just spent a fair amount of time in (and out of), and a navy silk sleeveless dress that fell mid-thigh and would be nice for a date night or one of Beca's industry events. After redressing in her own clothes and giving herself a once-over in the mirror, she still felt like she had I JUST HAD SEX IN THE DRESSING ROOM written across her forehead, but she knew it was just her hyper scrutiny - no one else would know.

She walked out with her three selections and was greeted with her peppy sales girl who immediately freed her of the burden of carrying them.

"Your mother asked us to take care of this for the two of you. Congratulations, by the way," she added. "If you're all set, follow me up front?"

Chloe laughed; of course her mother had told the staff she was shopping to celebrate her daughter's recent marriage. "Thanks. Yeah, I'm ready."


"I don't know how many more times I can tell you that you don't need to be doing this," Beca said tiredly as her mother-in-law handed the ring Chloe had suggested she try to the clerk.

"Nonsense. And this is the last I want to hear of it," Marie countered, her finger pointedly in Beca's face. "Besides, how can I not get you something here. The store is named Chloe!"

"It's Chloé, Mom," Chloe corrected, pronouncing the designer's name as it should be. She smiled at Beca who just shook her head and she moved to stand by her side and handed the sunglasses she chose for herself to her mother to add to the purchase. "Relax, honey," she said quietly in Beca's ear before ghosting her lips across her cheek. "I'll make up for this hardship later." She gave Beca's chin a bump with her knuckle to turn her so Chloe could peck her lips.

"Is that a promise?"

Chloe winked. "Promise."


Chris made it to the house in time for Chloe's birthday dinner, and she felt warm and fuzzy as she looked around the dining room table, seeing her whole family - Mom, Dad, Chris, and Beca. She couldn't help but think ahead a few years, that they could be right back where they were, but there would be a high chair or booster seat between Beca and her and they'd be battling with a little boy or girl to eat instead of making a mess or throwing a fit.

"A toast," Roger said, interrupting Chloe's thoughts. He was holding up his wine glass and the other three lifted theirs, Chloe following last. "To my favorite daughter on her twenty-sixth birthday. Chloe, may you continue to find happiness in everything you do, and may this next year of your life bring you endless blessings. Happy birthday, sweetheart."

Everyone echoed the toast and glasses clinked, Chloe touching hers to Beca's last to hold her gaze a little longer than normal as they sipped and then dug into her father's famous lasagna. She hoped Beca read what she was trying to convey through her look so she wouldn't be completely caught off-guard, but they both knew this conversation had to happen tonight.

"Thanks, you guys," Chloe said after swallowing. "Speaking of this next year of my life and endless blessings…" She looked up from her plate, seeing everyone's eyes heavy on her. She felt Beca's hand on her knee under the table. "Beca and I...well, and Chris, too, actually…" She glanced at her brother who smiled at her and took another drink of his wine. "We have some news."

Her mother laughed, a clear, happy peal of laughter. "Oh honey - if I didn't know better, you're about to tell me you're pregnant. But I know that's not it! If only it was."

Chloe laughed, too, feeling only a touch awkward. "Actually, Mom. We're uh - we're going to start working on family, Beca and me."

Marie dropped her fork with a clatter to clasp her hands over her mouth with a gasp. "You are?"

Chloe glanced at Beca who seemed, thankfully, at ease - much less tense than she had been the night before when they were approaching Chris about being their donor. That had been the more stressful conversation after all. "Yeah. We've been talking about it, and we decided we're going to try to get pregnant - get me pregnant."

"Oh - oh my, honey, that's so wonderful!" Marie was up out of her seat with her arms around Chloe in a heartbeat, both of them laughing.

"Really? That's great, sweetheart!" her father said, smiling at her.

"What does this have to do with Chris? You mentioned him?"

Chris cleared his throat. "Yeah, Chlo - what does this have to do with me?" He was teasing and she knew it.

Chloe hugged her mother back best she could in their awkward positioning. "Okay. Okay, sit back down and I'll tell you." She waited until her mother was back in her seat, positively jumping in excitement, and she heard Beca whisper something that sounded a lot like, "Like mother, like daughter."

"So, what we've decided to try, because we'd really like our child -" Chloe's voice caught for a second. "We'd like it if our child could be as much ours biologically as possible. So...we're going to try IVF with Beca and...and Chris. And I'm going to carry it. Them. The baby."

Her mother had her hands clasped over her mouth, struggling not to cry. "My baby's going to have a baby?"

"Eventually, yeah. That's the plan if it all works." Chloe smiled at everyone.

Beca slipped her arm around Chloe's shoulders to hug her sideways. "And Chris is really doing us a solid. Thanks bro," she said, reaching out to tap fists with him.

"No prob, sis."

"And my baby's baby is going to be my booboo's baby, too?" Marie looked between Chloe and her brother, eyes big and watery.

"Chris is going to be the uncle, just like any other situation, Mom," she stressed. "We really need you to understand that. Chris isn't going to be a dad. We," she gestured between Beca and herself, "are going to be the parents."

Beca's hand squeezed her shoulder and gave her a little shake and her voice caught up in her throat. "Yeah we are," Beca said, more to Chloe than the rest of the table.


The rest of the dinner conversation centered largely around cute stories about Chloe and Chris as babies, horror stories about Marie's pregnancies - which Chloe repeatedly asked her to keep to herself - and endless do's and don'ts when it came to raising children. Chloe finally cut her mother off when she started talking about various ways to hold a baby while breastfeeding, insisting they had plenty of time to have those kinds of discussions.

After the birthday brownies (she actually preferred brownies to cake) and saying goodbye to her brother, she and Beca were curled up together on the couch, her dad in his recliner and her mom at the other end of the couch. They were watching "CSI" at the insistence of her father, despite her own insistence that as the Birthday Girl she should get to control the entertainment. But, he claimed domestic domain and birth right and won.

"Hey, Chlo?"

She shifted her head a little on Beca's shoulder. "Hmm?"

"I still haven't seen your old bedroom." Fingernails grazed the sensitive underside of Chloe's forearm. "I'm kinda dying to see what teenage Chloe was obsessed with. Assuming your parents haven't turned your room into a gym or sewing room or something?"

She felt her heart thump in her chest at the possible activities in her near future. "It better be how I left it. Mom?"

"Oh it's almost the same. We store a few things in there now but all your stuff is where you left it. For now."

Beca bounced her leg a couple times to get Chloe to sit up. "Come on. Show me."

"Yeah! Let's go."

Chloe pulled Beca off the couch and kept a hand on hers, leading her into the hall and up the stairs. "It's the last room on the right," she said, pointing as they passed what used to be her bathroom and now appeared to be her mother's, followed by the linen closet, and then they were in the doorway to her old bedroom. She reached in on autopilot to turn on the light, and smiled. It was almost like she'd left just yesterday. "Ta da!" She said, throwing her arm out to present it to Beca.

"Not what I expected," Beca said as she dropped Chloe's hand to start wandering the room.

Chloe closed the door and leaned on it. "What did you expect?"

"Honestly? A teenage Chloe? I was kind of envisioning pink walls and unicorns."

Chloe smiled, letting her eyes drift over the walls that held innumerable memories. They weren't pink, they were white; her color scheme was white and green because it always felt bright and fresh. "They were pink until I was thirteen," she confessed, earning a satisfied smile from Beca.

She watched her move, slow steps as she trailed her fingers along a shelf as she read the engravings on the trophies and plaques garnered through academics, athletics, music, and dance competitions, pausing in front of the collage of photos of Chloe and her high school friends, pictures tucked this way and that under a grid of ribbons mounted on a piece of fabric-covered plywood she'd made with friends at a sleepover (they'd all made one). Chloe could see some of the ribbons had loosened over the years. The photos that would have fallen were propped up along the edge and Beca plucked one of them, looking at it closely and then turning to wave it at Chloe.

"What are these? These are not my wife's boobs."

Chloe laughed, crossing the room to snatch the photo away to see which one she was looking at. She and her friends were in her pool, everyone in bikinis and sunglasses holding wine coolers that her mom never commented on when she saw the photo a few weeks later. "No, they're not. They're the boobs of a sixteen-year-old after puberty and before she lost her childhood...fluffiness."

Beca laughed and grabbed the photo back, raking her eyes over it one more time before placing it back into its spot. "I won't complain if you get those back when you start getting...fluffy." She glanced over her shoulder at Chloe and smirked, continuing her examination of Chloe's youth. "Not that I'm complaining about the current state of affairs," she amended when Chloe poked her between the shoulder blades.

Chloe explained photos or knick knacks when Beca would point or ask about them. "Twelve. Disney World...Eighteen. My Biology class went to the Everglades….I got the pink Magic 8 Ball for my birthday...Oh my gosh, give me that," she said, snapping a framed photo out of Beca's hands in a panic when she realized what it was.

Beca turned, wearing another smirk. "Who's the guy, babe?"

"It's uh - Ryan."

"Ryan Ryan? Like first real boyfriend, first time Ryan?" Beca grinned and reached. "Give it!"

"No!" Chloe held it over her head and out of reach. "Why do you want to see him?"

"Because! It's like, fascinating or whatever to see who used to be in your life. I want to get a good look at this dude that had the honor of deflowering my wife." She grimaced. "That sounded a lot worse than it did in my head."

Chloe laughed and handed the picture back to her. "I'm flattered? I think?"

Beca looked it over with scrutiny, making a show of holding it unnecessarily close to her face. "Well, at least he's hot," she finally said as she set it back on the shelf.

"Do you really think I'd ever be with someone who isn't hot?" She smiled, waiting for the blush to hit Beca.

It did a moment later, showing up in her cheeks and ears. "Shut up," Beca mumbled with a glance over her shoulder.

Chloe chuckled and stepped up to wrap her arms around Beca's waist from behind and rest her chin on her shoulder. "What? I think you're super hot."

"Oh?" Beca's voice sounded a little off and Chloe smiled.

She moved her head to press her lips to the sensitive side of Beca's neck. "Super duper hot." She flicked her tongue and felt Beca inhale. "You didn't bring me up here to see my room."

"Sure I did." Beca rested her arms over Chloe's. "I wanted to see your stuff."

She licked again, this time letting her tongue work Beca's neck for a few seconds. "Maybe you remembered my little fantasy and want to make it come true for my birthday?"

Beca leaned back into her embrace. "Now why would you think I'd do something thoughtful like that?" She moaned a little at the lips that were starting to suckle at her skin. "It sounds awfully sentimental."

Chloe chuckled and let go of her neck with a pop. "I guess in that case, I won't return today's favor." She moved to drop her arms but Beca stopped her.

"Not so fast."

"Oh, did someone have a change of heart?" She took a step backwards toward her bed, taking Beca with her.

"I'm considering it."

Chloe brought her hands up to cup Beca's chest over her shirt and heard her breath catch. "Tough decision?" She took another step back, and another.

"Yeah," Beca said thickly as her now-empty arms hung limp. "Real tough call."

"Maybe I can make it easier for you?" She bumped into the foot of her small double bed and stopped. She kissed Beca's neck again and moved to rid her of her shirt.

"Ask again later," Beca said with a sigh as she tilted her head to give Chloe better access.

Chloe brought her hands back to Beca's waist and unbuttoned her jeans. "Maybe now?"

"Reply hazy. Try again."

Chloe laughed and spun them, giving Beca a shove to send her onto the bed on her stomach. She followed, forcing Beca to crawl higher with an encouraging, "Up, up!" as she walked on her knees with Beca, straddling the backs of her thighs.

"Why am I upside down? Or whatever," Beca asked, voice a little muffled as she fought with the pillow.

"Just cuz," Chloe said simply. She dragged her nails down Beca's back and watched her shiver and arch into the touch. "How about now?" She tucked her fingers under the waistband of Beca's jeans and gave a playful tug.

"Concentrate and ask again."

"I am concentrating," she laughed and yanked. Beca's hips lifted with her that time and the jeans came down. She worked them down Beca's legs until she could shove them off her feet to the floor and immediately went back for her underwear. "How 'bout now?"

"Outlook good," Beca said, lifting her head to look over her shoulder at Chloe.

"Sounding more positive." Chloe reached up and unhooked Beca's bra to let her get rid of it herself. "I like it."

"You have me pinned down and you're stripping me. Both of my clothes and my resolve."

"Yeah, your resolve." Chloe let herself fall forward to hold herself up on her hands and knees, framing Beca. She pulled Beca's hair to the side and dropped her lips to her neck, working that spot until Beca was squirming under her. "How 'bout now?"

"Signs point to yes," Beca said breathlessly as she smiled at Chloe with one eye open.

"That's what I like to hear," she whispered hotly before returning to her task, working her tongue, teeth, and lips over Beca's neck. She whimpered and Chloe shushed her. "My door doesn't have a lock."

Beca stiffened a little at that and then blew out a long breath. "Why not?"

"Parents didn't trust me when I had boys in my room."

"What about girls?"

Chloe moved to the back of Beca's neck, hair held up in a sloppy ponytail as she kissed along her hairline and started down her spine. "You know I didn't start my experimentation until college."

"Late bloomer."

Chloe smiled against Beca's back and dropped her hair to push her hands under Beca just below her arms to find and cover her breasts, squeezing as she inched her way lower, kissing between her shoulders.

Beca gasped a little and arched out and then in, like she was confused which sensation to move toward. The movement let Chloe get a better hold on her and she worked backwards, lower and lower until she was trailing kisses down and back up the dip in Beca's back. Beca was already panting beneath her, but Chloe's arms were only so long and she couldn't go any further so she begrudgingly let go of the hold she had on Beca to drag her nails down her ribs as she moved to sit angled on her side next to Beca and propped herself up on an elbow. Chloe let her other hand wander - over her back and lower to trace Beca's curves and tickle the back of her thigh, making her laugh and kick her foot into the bed.

Chloe reversed her path and slowed, letting her fingers slip down to tease along the soft skin of Beca's inner thighs and she smiled as Beca shifted her legs further apart and turned to press her face into the pillow.

Chloe reveled in seeing Beca like this, so disarmed and vulnerable and trusting. She hoped - knew - she'd never tire of it. She reached farther, but not far enough, and squeezed Beca's thigh, pulling at it a little to accept and encourage Beca opening herself to her.

And then she reached again, this time grazing her fingertips along wet heat and Beca groaned into the pillow before flipping her head to press her cheek into the pillow, eyes still closed, face flushed pink as she pulled her lower lip between her teeth. There was something so natural, so casual about it - Chloe lying comfortably in bed, just petting Beca. She indulged in it, moving up and down with reverent slowness, easing within to make her take a particularly deep breath, and then withdrawing to do it all over again.

Beca pressed her hips down and whined. Chloe knew she wasn't giving her enough, that she was essentially torturing her, and she leaned down to press a kiss to Beca's shoulder as she slid her hand a little further down and Beca immediately ground her hips into it with a moan of relief. Chloe let her. Chloe watched her - the way she moved, seeking friction and rhythm. She let Beca control it until she was breathing hard, broken moans starting to slip out.

Chloe was struck with inspiration. She lifted with her hand, pulling Beca's hips up off the bed and higher until it really got Beca's attention and she opened her eyes in confusion as she worked herself up onto her knees.

"Stay," Chloe said with a pat to Beca's backside after withdrawing her hand. She rolled onto her back and scooted down and over until she had to lift Beca's knee to slip under it to position herself between her legs, having to bend her own knees to get her feet onto the edge of the bed so they didn't dangle off it uncomfortably.

"Okay, this is happening…" Beca said through a heavy exhale as she lowered herself.

Chloe guided her down eagerly to taste how worked up she'd made Beca and the muffled moan that followed told her Beca's face was in the pillow again. Trusting her to keep herself quiet, Chloe quit her slow torture, licking through her quickly before closing her lips over swollen nerves and suckling. She kept her hands on Beca's hips to support her and she felt her whole body tremble and heard another muffled groan, so she pulled harder and worked her tongue over it in her mouth.

If not for the pillow, the high-pitch sound Beca let out would have definitely been audible to those on the lower level, and Chloe was grateful for it. She felt Beca trying to rock and she let her, encouraged her even, with a nudging of her hands.

"Fuck…"

It was strangled but quiet and told Chloe she'd probably had to forego the pillow in favor of oxygen. She slid her hands around and up to squeeze her rear; she kept a hold on her, ready to pinch a reminder if she got too vocal.

But Beca kept herself in check, muttered curses and muffled groans telling Chloe she was close. Painfully close, by the sound of it, and Chloe changed the pattern of her tongue just slightly and Beca jolted against her and Chloe knew she had her. She held steady, best she could with Beca's writhing starting to lack coordination.

Suddenly Beca froze, and a long, loud but muffled moan reached Chloe's ears and she held onto her as the freeze disappeared and her hips jerked as crystal clear whimpers filled the air and for a brief second Chloe hoped a surprise bolt of pleasure wouldn't make Beca forget to stay quiet, but she didn't despite the ecstasy that was rocking her body at the moment.

When she finally stilled, Chloe slid herself down and out from under Beca to climb back up onto the bed and lie down next to Beca, who was still working on getting her limbs back into working order until she flopped onto her side to face Chloe.

"Two for two on fantasies today," Chloe said with a smile, still rubbing at spots of wetness on her face she felt lingering.

Beca laughed airily and gave her a thumbs up, and then reached over to wipe her hand over Chloe's cheek, and then gave her another thumbs up. "All clean," she said through a sigh.

Chloe laughed, too and leaned in to Beca to kiss her, taking pride in how weak the return kiss was. "Thanks for letting me have you in here."

Beca laughed again, voice sounding more normal, and she cleared her throat. "Yeah. Was a real hardship. Owe me big time."

Chloe smiled and kissed her again, and suddenly realized she had no idea how long they'd been upstairs or whether or not her parents had come up and gone to bed at some point during their activities. She ran her hand down Beca's arm caught her fingers. "Come on. Let's get you dressed and...then undressed and go to bed."

Beca nodded and worked on crawling out of bed, lazily accepting the articles of clothing Chloe handed back to her.

"I'm going to use the bathroom real quick, and we can go say goodnight if they're still up. I'm sure they are, since we won't have much time in the morning; we have to be at the airport by 9:00."

Beca nodded and yawned as she struggled to pull her jeans on without standing. Chloe waited until she had succeeded, watching with a soft smile on her face, and then opened the door, the lock on the doorknob audibly clicking when she turned it. Her parents' bedroom door was still open, room dark, and she could hear the TV downstairs airing the late night news.

"I thought you said you didn't have a lock?" Beca asked as she buttoned her jeans.

"I did say that." Chloe smiled. "I also know how much you like thinking we might get caught."

Beca grinned and shook her head. "God, I love you."

Chloe winked. "I know. Be right back."

She freshened up in the bathroom and by the time she returned to her room, Beca was more or less back to her normal self, fully dressed, up and moving about, messy hair now tied up, and she was back to examining the contents of Chloe's room.

"Ready?"

"Hmm? Oh, yeah," Beca said with a smile as she turned to follow Chloe downstairs to say goodnight.