Franky awoke the next day feeling much better. The hangover from New Year's Eve was gone, but she was nervous about her meeting with Jillian that afternoon. This was the last day of hers and Bridget's vacations, and it was back to business as usual tomorrow. She was glad that their first day back to work would be ending with her teaching the blonde and Emily's class.
She felt Bridget stir, and placed a soft kiss on the blonde's lips. She had told Franky that was one of her favorite ways to wake up, and now, more often than not, she woke up to the brunette's soft kisses either on her lips, neck, or shoulders.
Bridget quickly ran her hands down the length of Franky's body, and pulled the younger woman's hips against her own.
"Mmm, for someone who says they prefer sex at night, you seem pretty turned on in the mornings too." Franky mumbled against the blonde's lips in between kisses.
Bridget let out a small laugh. "I think prefer is the key word there."
The brunette gave her a long, slow kiss.
"You know, I enjoy just making out with you, too," the blonde said as their lips parted.
"Do you?" Franky had that grin on her face again.
"Yes," Bridget whispered softly.
They heard Emily's bedroom door open, and waited to see if she was on her way to find them. They heard her footsteps pass their door, and continue into the living room, where a few seconds later, they heard the TV playing.
"I think this is the first morning she hasn't woken us if she's up first." The brunette shifted so she was laying half on top of the older woman. She lowered her head to place a kiss on Bridget's neck.
"That's good. It means she's becoming a bit more independant." The blonde took in a sharp breath as Franky found a sensitive spot with her lips.
"It also means she's less likely to walk in on us." The brunette gave a small laugh.
"Baby, it's going to happen at some point."
Franky pulled back a bit. "What?"
Bridget couldn't help but give a small smile when she saw the look on the brunette's face. "Unless you want to stop having sex when she's in the house, then it's pretty likely that at some point, she will walk in on us."
"Oh. So..." Franky trailed off, not knowing what to say.
"We'll deal with it. It'll be fine." The blonde pulled her back down for another kiss. "We should get up now though."
The brunette didn't move but just studied Bridget's face for a moment. "I love you."
"I love you too, baby." It was something the blonde would never get tired of hearing or saying.
Franky gave Bridget a quick kiss goodbye as she was headed out the door to her meeting with Jillian. They had decided to meet at the Centre. The brunette didn't want the producer anywhere near her house or her family. At least not yet. She was protective of Bridget and Emily in general, and she was especially wary of having anyone with anything to do with the show around them.
"Baby." The blonde held on to Franky's arm when she turned to leave. "If you need anything, call me."
"I will." The brunette gave her another quick kiss. "I'll be home right after."
Bridget gave her a small nod and watched as she walked to her car. She had offered to go with Franky, but the younger woman insisted she would be fine, and that this was something she needed to do on her own.
Franky paced back and forth in her office. It was only a few minutes before Jillian was due to arrive. She went through the points in her mind that she wanted to talk about, and what she and Bridget had decided she should ask for. The brunette took a deep breath and rubbed her fingers over the kite pendant around her neck. It had become a source of comfort for her; a way to feel like Bridget was near, even when she wasn't.
She turned quickly when a small knock at the door startled her. She opened it to see Jillian standing there.
"Hey." The producer gave her a smile. "I brought us coffee."
Franky glanced down to the tray in the other woman's hand. "Thanks. Come in."
Jillian sat on the couch while the brunette opted for her desk chair.
"I won't take too much of your time, I know you're still on holidays." The producer took some papers out of her bag. "I trust you've had some time to look over the contract I sent?"
"I did." Franky cleared her throat. "There are a few things I'd like to talk about."
"Well, I can't guarantee anything, but we'll work with you as much as we can."
"There's one thing in particular that I'm not okay with." Franky thought to herself that that was putting it mildly.
Jillian fixed her gaze on Franky. "What is it?"
"The part about living on set. I really don't want to do that." The brunette shrugged. "It wasn't like that on the last show and I wasn't expecting it to be like that on this one." She didn't want to explain more than she had to, so she waited to see if the producer accepted her statement, or if she was going to question her further.
"Franky. That's a huge part of the show. Letting the audience see how the contestants interact in a more candid environment is key to getting them to choose their favorites, someone to get behind and cheer for." She let her shoulders slump. "This format especially relies on having everyone together as much as possible. The last show you were on was kind of everyone for themselves, but this is a team format. You compete, and win or lose, as a team. If you're not there half the time, how are your teammates going to feel about you? Do you think they'll feel like you're pulling your weight?"
"I didn't think it was a team-based format." The brunette intentionally avoided Jillian's questions. She didn't know if it being like that made things better or worse.
"Well, to be honest, that's because the contestants aren't supposed to know that ahead of time. All that the others will know is that they're going to be on a competitive cooking show." Jillian ran a hand back through her hair. "So why don't you want to stay on set?"
"I have a family." Franky caught the almost-hidden look of surprise on the producer's face. She clearly hadn't expected the brunette to say that, given the mess she had been on the previous show, and the way she had talked about her upbringing.
Jillian sighed, and her body language softened a bit. "No offense, but pretty much all the contestants do."
"But…" Franky wanted to explain, but she didn't know how without giving out too much information. "The stuff we're talking about right now is off the record? I don't want any of it used in the show unless I give permission later on."
The producer gave a nod. "Sure."
"My fiancée and I have a little girl. She's been through a lot. I won't go into details, but I really don't want to live apart from them. They mean more to me than anything." The brunette held Jillian's stare.
The producer gave a small nod, and leaned back on the couch, scanning over the papers on her lap. Franky could tell that she was thinking.
"I understand what you're saying, I really do." She hoped the brunette believed her. "But I really can't give you what you want here."
"Then I don't know if I can give you what you want either." Franky looked down at the floor. She hadn't realized until now that maybe a part of her really did want to do this, but now it was coming to an end before it had even gotten started.
"What would it take to get you to stay on set?" Jillian knew that if she gave the brunette anything at all, it would be a huge exception considering none of the other contestants would be getting any such favours, but she really didn't want to lose her. When Franky stayed quiet, she tried to prompt her. "Communication? What?"
"I don't know." The brunette couldn't think of any substitute for actually being at home.
"Phone calls? Visits?" Jillian could feel Franky slipping away from her.
The brunette needed, at the very least, to be able to talk to them each day. She thought back to her time in Wentworth, and the phone calls each night with Bridget. They were nice, but they weren't enough. They were still willing to risk a lot to spend a few moments together in the blonde's office. The more she thought about it, the more she realized she needed the physical side of it as well. She needed to be able to hug Emily, to kiss Bridget, and to hold her at night.
"Both." Franky tried to gauge the producer's reaction. "I want to keep my phone, and I want to spend time with them in person."
Jillian held the bridge of her nose as she looked down at the papers in her lap.
"You can't keep your phone, but I can have a crew member bring it to the interview room, and we'll give you time at the end when you can call them from there." The producer waited, but Franky simply looked at her. She knew the brunette was waiting for her response to the second part of her request. "So what are you thinking? Have them come visit for an hour or so on set once a week?"
Franky shook her head. "I want to spend time with them at home."
"I can't…" She watched as the brunette shrugged and crossed her arms.
"A day each week, and I need a night too." Franky wanted time with the three of them together, but she also wanted time with just Bridget. She knew how hard her being away had been on the older woman the last time, especially at night.
"Look, I can't guarantee a certain amount of time with them, or promise it'll always include a night." The producer couldn't believe she was about to suggest; it was unheard of. "Some of the rewards for winning the challenges will involve the winning contestant spending time away from the set. Maybe we could work something out with that."
"So it might not happen at all? Like if I didn't win the challenges." Franky definitely didn't like the loose wording that Jillian had used.
"That's the best option I can think of. I just don't want to make any promises I might end up having to break later on. It can't look like you're getting special treatment." The producer knew it would be worse if she had to go back on her word. She needed the brunette to trust her.
"I can respect that." It wasn't what she wanted, but Franky knew she had been lucky to get anything.
"Okay, good, we're making some progress." The producer gave her a small smile. "What else did you want to talk about?"
"The part where it says I'll have to do interviews and answer questions about my personal life." The brunette waited.
Jillian let out a long breath. "Let me guess. You don't want to do that either?"
Franky shook her head. "I'll do an interview, but I'm not answering personal questions."
The producer tossed the papers from her lap onto the couch, and ran a hand over her face. "If you're not willing to open up, then what reason do people have to get behind you, to relate to you?
"My cooking. Which is why I'm there. That's why you want me, yeah?" The brunette gave her a challenging look, trying to figure out if there was an ulterior motive at play.
"Yeah, of course. Look." She leaned forward and reached out to place a hand on Franky's knee, but the brunette pulled her leg away. Jillian held up her hands in a silent apology. "I'm on your side here. I want to work with you, but there are three main parts to a show like this: the competition, the behind-the-scenes contestant interactions, and the contestant's background stories. We already know that the behind-the-scenes stuff will be affected by you being allowed to go home, and now you want to take away sharing your background story too? It's too much, Franky."
"I want to see the questions before the interview, and I want the right to veto the ones I don't want to answer."
"You can preview the questions, and we'll discuss them. I can't promise you'll get to remove every question that you don't like, but we can negotiate on them." The producer felt that if she didn't give in to something, then Franky would walk before they even got started. "Anything else?"
"I want a say in the final edit of the episode. I don't want you making me into something I'm not. I've worked hard to build a career and a life since what happened, and I don't want it ruined for ratings." In all honesty, the brunette didn't expect to get this.
"No, I'm sorry, but I can't let a contestant dictate the final product like that. It's unheard of, and could cost hours of extra work and money if you decide you don't like something." Jillian had a counterproposal though. "How about I give you my word that we won't ruin your reputation, and I'll make sure you get a copy of the episode before it airs? That way you won't be blindsided by anything, and you'll know I've kept my word before it's too late to do anything about it if I haven't."
"That's a big gamble for me to take." Franky sat back and crossed her arms. "And I'll need time to talk it all over with Bridget."
"It's the best I can offer." When the brunette was quiet, Jillian continued. "I'll give you forty eight hours for a final decision. I really can't wait any longer, Filming starts in four weeks, and if you don't want the spot then I need to find someone who does."
Franky nodded, and the producer held out her hand. She hesitated a second before returning the handshake, and when she went to pull away, Jillian held on.
"I'm not going to fuck you over," she said, looking the brunette in the eye.
Franky gave a quick nod, and Jillian released her hand. The producer gathered her things quickly, and made her way to the door.
"Forty eight hours. If I don't hear from you, I'll assume your answer is 'no'." She opened the door, and disappeared out into the classroom.
The brunette arrived home shortly after the interview had concluded. She had stopped by Liz's office to tell her it had gone okay, and that she was going home to talk with Bridget. They'd have more time to talk tomorrow when classes had started back up, but for now she just wanted to get back to the house.
"Baby." Bridget greeted her just seconds after she walked through the door. "How did it go?" She wrapped her arms around the younger woman and gave her a quick kiss.
"Not as well as I'd hoped. I need some time to process, I think, and we definitely need to talk later." Franky reached out and cupped the older woman's cheek, brushing a thumb across her cheekbone.
The blonde felt like this would be one of their bedtime conversations. Even now, that was still the time and place where Franky seemed to open up the most.
"Okay." Bridget gave her a small smile and another small kiss. "Em's been impatiently waiting for you to get back. She wants to work on your Lego project."
The brunette gave a small laugh. "Alright, give me a minute to get changed into something comfortable then I'll be back."
Bridget nodded, and Franky made her way to the bedroom. The blonde could sense a weight around the younger woman, and she didn't like it. She knew something was bothering the brunette, but there was no point in forcing her to talk; she'd do it when she was ready.
The three of them had passed most of the day together, including an impromptu trip to the reserve for a picnic lunch. Now, Franky was crawling into bed next to Bridget, preparing herself for the coming conversation.
The brunette wrapped her arms around the older woman, and pulled her in close. She gave her a few soft kisses, before pulling back and taking a deep breath.
"I'm here, baby," Bridget whispered softly.
Franky nodded. "I brought up the things that we'd talked about. Some of them she agreed to, and some she didn't. I told her I couldn't live there, and she pushed for a reason. I didn't even want to bring up you and Em, but she pushed for a reason why. I said I couldn't live away from you guys."
"What did she say?" This was the point the blonde had been most worried about. She would support her fiancée no matter what, but the thought of not having her around for a while, made her feel almost physically ill.
"She didn't go for it." The brunette could see the sadness in Bridget's eyes. The blonde had a good poker face, but this time her eyes gave her away. "She did agree to let me call you guys at night, and she said maybe if I won some of the challenges where the reward was going off-set, I could spend that time with you instead. I don't think I can do it, Gidge. What if I never win any of them? I wouldn't get to see you two at all. She gave me forty-eight hours to decide, but I don't need that long. I don't want to leave you guys."
"You're going to do it." It took everything inside her to say it without letting her voice shake, but the blonde managed to do it.
"Gidge," Franky could feel the tears starting to build in her eyes.
"You can. I know you can; you're strong." Bridget gave the brunette a soft kiss, and felt the arms around her tighten a bit. "Think of this as motivation. You're good at what you do, baby. We'll make the most of any time we do get to have together. When it's over, I'll be here."
"What about Em? She won't be so understanding." The brunette knew it would break the young girl's heart.
"Probably not." The blonde didn't want to make Franky feel worse, but she also didn't want to lie to her. "But we'll talk to her, and she'll have me here. Be prepared for her to be stuck to you like glue when or if we do get to see you."
The brunette felt the corner of her lip twitch into a smile. "I'd be okay with that."
"I know you would, baby. Just try to be strong for her if she's upset about it though. It'll help calm her down." Bridget placed her hand on Franky's cheek and brushed her thumb back and forth.
Franky gave a small nod. "I'll try."
The blonde gave her a small kiss. "What else did she say?"
"She said I could preview the interview questions, and we could negotiate on them, but that I couldn't get rid of all the ones I might not like. It was a flat out no to any control in the final edit, too. She's giving me an advance copy of each episode though to prove that she's kept her word of not making me look like the person I was before."
"It's better than nothing. At least you'll have time to prepare for the interviews, and we can talk through things beforehand if you want." Bridget was thankful that they also had some time to prepare Emily for what would be happening. "So what did you tell her?"
"I told her I wanted to talk to you first and she gave me two days to give her a final answer. If you're sure you're okay with everything, then I'll do it." The brunette studied Bridget's face. She needed to know that the other woman was fully on board.
"I'm okay with it," the blonde said, giving her a small kiss.
"Okay." Franky felt Bridget nuzzle into the crook of her neck. "I'll call her in the morning."
The blonde placed a soft kiss on the younger woman's neck. "I love you."
"I love you too, Gidge."
Franky's first day back had gone by quickly. She had talked to Jillian first thing that morning after she'd gotten to work, and had agreed to doing the show with the conditions that they'd discussed. Before she knew it, it was time for Bridget to meet up with her and Emily to have supper. She was finishing cleaning up her workstation when the blonde arrived.
"How was your day, babe?" the brunette asked, giving Bridget a quick kiss.
"It was alright," she said leaning against the counter. "Something smells good."
"That's our supper in the oven." Franky gave her a small grin.
"Thanks for cooking for us. I could have stopped and picked something up though."
"You sounded tired on the phone, and I had stuff leftover from a class today anyway." She put her arm around the blonde. "Em's in the office, if you want to go in there and relax for a few, or you can stay out here with me if you like. Supper will be another twenty minutes before it's ready."
"I glanced in on the way by and it looked like she was watching something on your iPad, so I'll stay out here with you. I think I'll make a coffee though." Bridget made her way over to the other counter, and selected the flavour she wanted.
"Yeah, there's this guy who makes videos and raps Dr. Seuss books over Dr. Dre beats." She caught the blonde's skeptical look. "They're pretty good, actually."
"I'll take your word for it." Bridget turned on the coffee machine, and waited. "I called Brad's office today. She has an appointment with him next week. We talked a bit about what was going on and he thinks she'll only need two or three sessions this time. I think after this though, if things keep coming up, maybe she should see him on a regular basis. Even just once every couple of weeks. It'll give her someone to talk to who's not us, and she'll get some unbiased advice."
"Don't we give her good advice?" Franky had stopped what she was doing.
"We do, but it goes back to what I said when this all started. Even before that actually. When you were in Wentworth, I said I couldn't be your counsellor, and when Tim passed away, I said I couldn't be Em's either. Our judgements and opinions are always coloured by emotions when they involve the people we're closest to. We're good with the day-to-day stuff with her, but once in a while, it might help for her to have someone outside the situation to talk with." The blonde took a small sip of her coffee. "I'm not saying that'll happen for sure. We'll see how these sessions go, then we can work from there. It's normal for kids to push back sometimes, and that may be all this is with her."
"Okay." The brunette nodded just as the timer went off signalling that their supper was ready.
"I'll go get Em." Bridget set her mug down on the counter.
"Hey, Gidge." Franky reached out and touched the blonde's arm, causing her to stop and turn back around. She gave the older woman a small kiss.
Bridget smiled. "What was that for?"
The brunette just shook her head, and returned the other woman's smile.
"Okay, baby." The blonde quickly brushed her thumb across Franky's cheek a couple times, and continued to the office.
"I'm going to put my ring in your office" Bridget had finished clearing the table after their meal. She had gotten in the habit of removing her engagement ring before she did any cooking to keep it from getting dirty.
"Here." Franky tossed her a small set of keys. "You can lock it in the top desk drawer if you want."
"Ooo, a locked drawer. What else do you keep in there?" Bridget wiggled her eyebrows.
The brunette was glad to see that her mood seemed to be lightening. "All the secrets I keep from you." She said with a laugh. The blonde just shook her head.
Bridget unlocked the drawer and pulled it open to find that it was empty. She smiled to herself as she set the ring inside then closed and locked it again.
"Very funny," she said, placing the keys back into Franky's pocket.
The brunette winked at her, and continued to get ready for the class.
It wasn't long before the first people started showing up. Bridget spotted Richard and Mia right away and gave them a wave.
"Hey, guys. How were your holidays?" the blonde asked with a grin, as they all took their places at their workstations.
"It was good, yeah. Wasn't it Mia?" The young girl gave a quick nod of her head then quickly started talking excitedly with Emily about what they'd done over the holidays.
"That's good to hear." Bridget lowered her voice a bit so the girls wouldn't overhear the second part. "I was a bit worried when you didn't call. I thought something may have happened."
"Oh, no. No, time just seemed to get away from us is all. Before I knew it, the holidays were over and it was back to the normal grind." He gave her a small smile.
"Ah, no worries." The blonde sensed that maybe he wasn't saying everything, but it wasn't her place to pry, nor did she want to. He was a casual friend at best, and she was fine with that.
"Alright everyone, let's get started!" Franky stood at the front of the room, ready to begin the class. "This week, we're making Anzac biscuits. It's a little bit more of a complicated recipe, so be sure you follow directions carefully and pay attention to my demo."
"We might need to work together to get this one right, hey?" Bridget whispered to Richard with a small laugh while the brunette continued to talk.
"Sounds like it." He glanced down and studied the blonde's face for a second before he turned his attention back to Franky.
To Bridget's surprise they managed to get through the recipe without much trouble and the biscuits smelled delicious as they cooked in the oven. When they were ready, and everyone was sampling their batches, the blonde noticed that Franky was careful to stay back and not try any of them for fear she might end up having to eat too many like the last time.
Most of the students had left. Bridget and Emily were finishing putting away their clean dishes, and Franky was in her office, turning off her computer, and gathering her things into her bag. The brunette heard a small knock on her door, and turned to see the young girl from Emily's class, and her mother, standing in the doorway.
"Hey, Charlotte." Franky smiled at the young girl.
"Go on." Charlotte's mother whispered quietly, and gently nudged her daughter's shoulder.
She hesitated for a second before walking to the brunette's desk. "I wanted to bring you this." She set one of her biscuits, wrapped in a napkin, on the desk.
"Aw thank you." Franky was touched by the gesture.
The girl looked back at her mother, who gave her a small nod. "When you came to my school, you brought us treats."
The brunette nodded. "The lemon tarts."
"I want to make them with my mom."
It took Franky a second to realize what the girl was saying. "Ah, you want the recipe." Charlotte nodded enthusiastically. "Well, a biscuit for a recipe seems like a fair trade." The brunette gave her a wink and the girl giggled. "I should have it right here." Franky reached down and opened the bottom drawer of her desk. She flipped though the files until she found what she was looking for. "Here you go." She pulled out a sheet and handed it to the girl. "Let me know how they turn out."
"Thanks!" The girl quickly walked back to where her mother was still standing.
"Thanks so much." The woman gave Franky a smile.
"Yeah, no problem. These are good by the way, Charlotte." The brunette held up the biscuit she had taken a bite from.
"She wanted to bring you one earlier, but I saw what happened last time. You ended up having to eat so many, so this time I made her wait."
"Ah, yeah, I was pretty uncomfortable after that." Franky gave a small laugh.
"I bet. Anyway, we won't keep you any longer. See you next week." She and Charlotte both waved goodbye to Franky and headed out of the classroom.
"You can go get your things now, love." Bridget had made Emily wait until the brunette was done talking to the other student and her mother before she let the young girl go into the office to get her things. Franky may be family to Emily, but the blonde wanted her to understand that she was a teacher to the other students, and needed space to do her job sometimes.
Bridget was putting away the last baking pan at their station when, out of the corner of her eye, she caught someone come into the classroom. She looked up to see Richard.
"Hey, I thought you'd already left. Did you forget something?"
"No. I mean, yes. Well, not really." He took a deep breath and let it out slowly.
"Are you alright?" The blonde placed a comforting hand on his arm.
"Yeah. I just wanted to ask if you'd like to have coffee sometime. We could talk, get to know each other a bit," Richard said it all in one breath, as if he was afraid he wouldn't get it out if he stopped. "I wanted to ask you earlier, but I was too nervous. I'm just glad you were still here."
Bridget didn't know what to say. Obviously she had to decline his invitation, but she didn't want to hurt his feelings.
"You ready to go, babe? I got your bag here, and here's your ring." Franky emerged from her office, oblivious to the conversation happening outside, or even the fact that Richard had returned.
Emily had already gone out the door, expecting them to follow. Bridget absentmindedly held out her hand, and the brunette dropped the ring into it.
Franky looked from Bridget to Richard, and realized she had interrupted them. She sensed the awkward situation.
"I'll meet you outside when you're ready." The brunette rubbed Bridget's back quickly, then excused herself. She knew people were drawn to the blonde because she was easy to feel comfortable around, so Franky left her to finish the conversation.
Richard gave her a weak smile. "You're, uh, with Franky?"
Bridget sighed. "Yeah, we're engaged. I'm sorry, Richard. You seem like a great guy, but obviously I have to say 'no'."
"Yeah, of course, I understand. I wouldn't have asked if I'd known, I'm not that type of guy." He looked down at his hands.
"I know you're not." The blonde thought for a moment. "Listen, if you want to, we can still have coffee, but all of us as friends. The girls get along so well, I'm sure they'd love a little outing."
"That would be nice I think. Em's a good kid. You raised her well." Richard caught the look that flickered across Bridget's face. "Oh no."
The blonde smiled sympathetically. "She's my niece. Her parents are both gone, and we've had custody of her for a few months now."
"Okay, well, I'd say I'm going to quit while I'm ahead, but clearly it's too late for that." He gave a small, self-conscious laugh.
"Hey, it's alright. There's no way you could have known anything. Don't be so hard on yourself. I'll see you next week, okay?" Richard gave a small nod. "Come on, walk out with me." Bridget took a couple steps then waited for him to follow.
When they got outside, Franky and Emily were sitting at one of the picnic tables, waiting for Bridget. She said a final goodbye to Richard, and he gave Franky a small nod as he passed, which the brunette returned.
"Everything alright?" Franky asked when Bridget had gotten to the table.
"Yeah." The blonde gave her a smile. She knew the younger woman wasn't convinced. "We'll talk about it later, okay?"
"I can read you like a book, Gidge." The brunette gave her a small kiss.
Emily rode in Bridget's car, leaving Franky to drive home alone. The brunette was curious as to what had happened in the classroom between Bridget and Richard. She had an idea, and if she was right, she felt bad for the guy.
Emily had gotten showered, into her pyjamas, and in bed without any problems that night. Franky and Bridget were grateful since they'd both had long days, and were looking forward to a quiet evening and an early bedtime themselves.
The brunette was reading when Bridget crawled into bed. She'd just started the second book in the series she'd gotten for Christmas.
"You look hot when you read," the blonde said, giving Franky a kiss on the cheek.
"Nope, it's the perfect temperature in here." The brunette tried to remain serious, not even glancing towards Bridget, but the older woman saw the corners of her mouth twitch.
"Mmm, you know what I meant," the blonde whispered next to Franky's ear, close enough that her lips brushed against it. She accentuated her point with a gentle bite on the brunette's earlobe. She felt a shiver go through the younger woman's body.
Franky reached over and placed the book on her bedside table. She rolled back over so that she was now facing Bridget. She pulled the blonde close to her. "Yeah, I knew what you meant."
Bridget placed her hand on the brunette's cheek, and studied her eyes. "I can't wait to be your wife."
"Same." Franky gave her a deep kiss. "Have you thought about what you want for the wedding?"
The blonde shook her head. "I'd be happy even if we eloped tomorrow."
"Me too, but I think Liz would kill us." The brunette laughed. "We should have at least her, Em, and Vera there."
"Yeah, we'll figure it out." Bridget gave her a soft kiss. They laid in silence for a few seconds before she spoke again. "Richard asked me to have coffee with him."
"Shit. Like a date?"
"Yeah." The blonde sighed.
"Is that what you guys were talking about before I came out of the office?" Franky's intuition had been right.
"Mhm. He'd just asked me. I hadn't even had time to say anything before you dropped the ring in my hand." Bridget saw the look on the younger woman's face, and knew she felt badly about it. The blonde rubbed her back to comfort her.
"Fuck. I feel like such an ass." Franky cringed.
"You didn't know, baby. And he didn't know we were together. It was just a comedy of errors all around." Bridget gave her a small kiss.
"So what did you tell him?"
"That we were engaged, but that if he wanted, we could all do something fun together with the girls, as friends." The blonde pushed some hair off Franky's cheek and placed it back behind her ear. "Then he assumed that Em was my daughter, so I told him she was my niece and that we have custody of her." She saw a small smile flickered on the brunette's lips. "And then we left, and I met you outside."
"Poor guy. He was okay though?" Franky asked.
"Yeah, he was. Just a bit embarrassed."
"Okay, good." The brunette realized what she had said had come out wrong. "I mean, not good that he was embarrassed, but good that he was okay."
"I know. Shhh." Bridget quieted the younger woman, and pressed their lips together.
Franky took that as a sign that they were done talking for the night.
