Chapter 55

"Why are we here so early?" Bridget asked as she sipped her second cup of coffee of the day.

"Blame Channing. He's really pushing to get this review started. I was here until midnight on Friday and most of the day on Saturday because he needed everything ready for today." Vera sat her cup down on the table. "What do I owe you for the coffee?"

The blonde simply shook her head. "I was stopping to get one for myself anyway."

"What, Franky didn't have one ready for you when you woke up?" Vera gave a small laugh. She gave her friend a hard time about how well the brunette treated her, but in reality she was very happy for them both.

"I know, right? She's getting slack," the blonde said with a smile.

"Pfft. She probably woke you up in some completely adorable way, then made you breakfast and packed your lunch while you got dressed." The governor took another mouthful of her coffee.

"And your lunch too. Three cheese ravioli and caesar salad today." Bridget glanced at her watch. "Why can't he ever be at a meeting on time?"

The blonde had felt much better after her talk with Franky the night before, but she still couldn't entirely shake the feeling she had after their interaction with her ex. She was just glad that Julia had said she was only here on business, and that it wasn't something more permanent.

"Speaking of time, what time is Em's birthday party on Saturday?" Vera asked as she opened up the calendar app on her phone.

"Franky was thinking maybe an early supper between four and five, then cake, then the fire, and sleepover. So I guess anytime after two. Are you staying for the sleepover?" Bridget laughed quietly after she'd realized what she'd said. Asking her friend if she was staying for a 'sleepover' made it sound like they were kids. They hadn't specifically asked Vera or Liz if they were staying or not. They just assumed they'd want to go home to their own, more comfortable, beds.

"Who do I have to share a sleeping bag with?" The governor glanced at her friend.

"No one. BYOB." When the blonde saw the confused look on her friend's face she clarified. "Bring your own bag."

"Ah. I think I'll skip the sleepover part anyway." Vera put her phone back in her pocket. "I'll be there shortly after lunch though, and help you guys get things ready."

"Sorry I'm late everyone. I was just giving our guest a quick tour of the compound." Channing entered the officer's lounge, closely followed by someone who was obscured by the regional director's height.

Bridget quickly set her coffee on the table, and picked up her folder of papers, ready to take notes. It wasn't that she expected what he had to say to be overly interesting, but it was her way of trying to stay awake, and at least appear to be listening.

"First of all, I'd like to introduce Julia Thomas. She'll be the lead consultant on the budget review." Channing paused and let everyone say their hellos.

The blonde simply managed a nod of acknowledgement. She quickly lowered her eyes, pretending to read what was on the piece of paper in front of her, which so far, was nothing. If Vera spoke to her, she didn't hear. She was lost in her own thoughts, listening to her heartbeat, until she felt something touch her elbow. She turned her head to look at her friend.

"You okay?" Vera mouthed silently.

Bridget simply nodded again, took a deep breath, and sat up straighter in her chair. The governor was the only one who knew about her history with Julia, and she intended to keep it that way.

As soon as the meeting ended, the blonde gathered her things and headed back to her office. She had no more than closed the door, and sat down at her desk, when there was a knock on the door.

She hesitated for a second. "Come in."

"Bridget, I'm sorry, I didn't know, or I would have given you a heads up." The governor rushed in and quickly closed the door behind her.

"It's fine," the blonde said as she shook her head. "I knew she was in town, but not that she was going to be here."

"How did yo-...did she contact you?" Vera sat down on the armrest of one of the big green chairs.

Bridget was looking at a spot on her desk. "She showed up at the house last night." She leaned back in her chair. "With a bottle of wine. She thought we could spend the evening together and see what happened."

"You've got to be kidding me." The governor just sat there shaking her head as she looked out the window. "I assume Franky wasn't there." Vera knew how protective Franky was of the blonde, and that she knew what Bridget's ex had done to her. After their talks and what had happened in Wentworth, she knew that the brunette would never hurt Bridget or Emily, and that she'd worked hard to overcome her anger problems. In the back of her mind though, she was worried that when it came to protecting one of them, Franky might not think before she acted.

"Not at first. She was gone picking up our supper, but Julia and I were still standing on the front porch when she got home. I wouldn't let her in the house." The blonde crossed her arms over her chest. "She thought Franky was the delivery driver. She tried to pay her for the food so we could go inside and eat."

"Wow." The governor really couldn't think of anything else to say to that.

"Yeah." Bridget took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I tried to correct her, but then Franky figured out who she was after she reached out and pushed me aside. You know, that dismissive 'stand back and shut up' thing she used to do."

"Yeah I remember it." Vera had seen it long before the blonde herself had opened her eyes to what was going on. "What did Franky say?"

"She was mad. She was so mad. I could tell. Em came around the corner from the backyard and gave her a hug. I was grateful and worried at the same time, but it was okay. Franky sent her inside with the food and told Julia to leave." The blonde ran her hand over her face. "She handed me the bottle of wine and left. I threw it against the fence after she'd gone." Bridget looked at her friend sheepishly.

"I probably would have done the same thing." The governor reassured her. "Did Em recognize her?"

The blonde shook her head. "No, thank god. She was kind of too young to remember her, and Julia never said anything about her."

"I'll, uh, speak to Channing. Maybe I can make sure he doesn't pair you with her for anything." Vera shifted uncomfortably and cleared her throat.

"No." Bridget sat up straighter. "We're adults. We're professionals. I'll get through this. Then she can go back and I won't have to see her again."

"Okay." The governor held up her hands. "But if you change your mind, just let me know."

"I will. Thanks." The blonde gave her friend a smile and got a quick nod in return as Vera stood and headed for the door.

"Oh!" The governor stopped and turned with her hand already on the door handle. "Do you know what Em wants for presents?"

Bridget shrugged. "Anything she can make or build, or games. She's got a curious mind that likes to stay busy."

"Sounds good." Vera gave her a final nod and was out the door.

The blonde had made it through the rest of the day without running into Julia again, but she knew that sooner or later it would happen. The prison was big, but the administration area that housed her office wasn't, and she knew that was probably where her ex would be spending most of her time. Bridget was in charge of a lot of the anti-recidivism programs within the prison, so at some point Channing would probably have them meet, and she'd have to defend the portion of the budget she was using to keep them going.

Before she knew it, she was parked in her driveway, just sitting in her car. It scared her that she didn't really remember the drive home; she'd been so lost in her thoughts. Franky's car was there, which meant that she and Emily would be home. The blonde took a look at herself in the small mirror in the visor. She looked like hell, and she knew the brunette would notice as soon as she walked through the door. She swiped her hand across her face and took a deep breath.

"Hey, babe." Franky greeted Bridget as soon as she heard the door open. She and Emily were in the kitchen getting supper ready. The brunette glanced up and caught the look on the older woman's face. "Bad day?"

Bridget just nodded. "I'm going to go change out of these clothes." She dropped her bag onto the end of the couch, and turned to go to their bedroom.

Franky waited a few moments, and when the blonde hadn't returned, she decided to check on her. "Hey, bub, go take a break for a few minutes until I get back." She nodded towards the living room, and Emily hopped down off the step stool, and went to sit on the couch.

The brunette opened the door slowly, not wanting to startle the other woman. She saw her sitting on their bed with the bottle of tequila that was hidden in their closet. Franky's stomach did a somersault. The last time they'd drank from that, she'd ended up hungover for most of the next day.

"Gidge?" She closed the door quietly behind her, and sat down on the bed beside the blonde.

Bridget didn't say anything, but simply put the cap back on the bottle, and handed it to the brunette. Franky sat it on the floor beside her feet.

"I'm not here to police your tequila intake." Franky knew it wasn't the time to try to be funny, but she was glad when she saw a small flicker of a smile on the corner of the blonde's mouth. She also felt there was something about the way Bridget had handed it over that made it seem to her like the older woman felt that she had been caught doing something she shouldn't. She trusted the blonde's judgement, and knew she wasn't going to get drunk with Emily around. "What happened?" She reached over and took one of Bridget's hands in hers.

"Julia is the lead consultant on Channing's budget review project, and she's working out of Wentworth while she's here." She turned her head to face Franky. "That's why she's here in Melbourne."

"Fuck." The brunette shook her head. "Seriously, what the fuck? That's messed up. Did she know you still work there? Did Vera know she was coming?"

"I don't know if she knew I was still there or not. I haven't had contact with her since we broke up, and it never came up last evening. She didn't seem surprised to see me in the meeting, but that doesn't mean anything. She probably saw my name on the paperwork." Bridget took a deep breath. "Vera didn't know either. She found out when I did this morning. She only knew the name of the firm, not who was actually coming here."

"Fuck." It was all that Franky could think of to say.

"I avoided her for most of the day, but I can't do that forever. I'll have to have a meeting with her at some point. Vera offered to keep us separated, but I don't want to draw attention to anything. I'm just going to be professional, and get through it, then she can leave and it's over." The blonde got up, and started to undress.

"How long is she here for?" The brunette hoped it wasn't for long. Bridget was clearly upset, and she wouldn't be around once filming started. She hated the thought of not being able to be there to comfort the blonde if she needed it when she got home.

"Channing said at least a month, maybe more. It depends on how quickly they get through everything." Bridget pulled on a pair of yoga pants and one of Franky's t-shirts.

The brunette stood, and wrapped her arms around the older woman. "You're strong, babe. It'll be okay. We'll get through it, and then she'll be gone." She felt the blonde sigh as she rubbed her back.

Bridget gave her a small smile, and pulled her in for a kiss. Franky pulled her close. She tasted like tequila, and again the brunette's stomach flipped.

"I should go brush my teeth." The blonde saw the look on the younger woman's face, and knew right away what had caused it.

"Sorry, Gidge, but you taste like hangover." The brunette gave an apologetic smile.

"I know, baby. Don't be sorry." Bridget gave her a kiss on the cheek, then headed to the bathroom while Franky went to rejoin Emily in the kitchen to finish making supper.

The brunette leaned against the kitchen island while she waited for the last few minutes to pass on the timer until their meal was ready. In an attempt to unwind a bit from the day, Bridget had taken her yoga mat outside on the patio and was going through some poses. Franky was making no attempt to seem like she wasn't watching and enjoying it. Her t-shirt was a bit loose on the blonde, but she could see the silhouette of her body through the fabric thanks to the evening sun behind her.

"Franky?" Getting no response, Emily tried again, this time tugging on the brunette's shirt. "Franky?"

"Hmm? Yeah?" Franky glanced towards the young girl.

"How much longer until supper? I'm hungry." Emily followed the brunette's gaze and saw that she was watching Bridget.

"Just a couple more minutes. The timer is set." Franky took a quick look behind her to make sure that she had indeed set it.

"Why are you watching Auntie Bridge?" the young girl asked with a confused look on her face.

"I, uh…" The brunette tried to think of a plausible lie. "I"m thinking of taking up yoga, so I was just seeing what it was all about."

"It looks hard." Emily climbed up on one of the stools.

"I don't think it's too bad as long as you're flexible." Franky realized what she'd just said, and cleared her throat. The timer rang, and she silently said a thanks that she was literally saved by the bell. "Supper's ready, Gidge," she called through the open door.

Bridget rolled up her mat and came back inside the house. She gave Franky a knowing smirk as she passed by.

"Feel better, babe?" the brunette asked as she plated dinner. Bridget had returned from putting away her mat, and was waiting to carry the food to the table.

"Yeah, a bit." She gave Franky a kiss on the cheek as she picked up their plates.

There was less conversation than normal around the table that night. Emily did most of the talking, telling them all about what she had done in her art class with Bea that day.

They both knew that the young girl could sense that something was bothering her aunt. Emily stuck close to Bridget for most of the night, and asked that she be the one who read her a bedtime story.

They decided to skip having a fire that night, and opted to go to bed not long after Emily had fallen asleep. Franky knew the blonde had had a long day, and she just wanted to hold her.

When Bridget entered the bedroom, she saw that the brunette hadn't changed into her pyjamas yet. "Everything okay, baby?"

"Yeah." Franky took the blonde in her arms and gave her a soft kiss.

Bridget felt the younger woman reach down and take hold of the hem on each side of her shirt. She pulled back a bit to allow Franky to remove it over her head. They spent the next few minutes slowly undressing each other.

"Lay on the bed on your stomach, babe." The brunette gave her a final kiss, then reached behind her to lock the door.

The blonde did as she was asked, and it was only a few seconds before she felt Franky straddle her thighs. The younger woman bent forward so that her lips were beside Bridget's ear.

"Just relax and enjoy, okay?" Franky whispered softly.

"Mmm, okay." The blonde smiled as she felt a gentle bite on the back of her shoulder, then a soothing kiss.

The brunette started at her shoulders, and worked her thumbs against Bridget's tense muscles. The blonde let out a groan.

"Too hard?" Franky thought that maybe she was leaning into it with too much of her weight.

"No, it feels good." Bridget mumbled.

The brunette continued her way across her shoulders, using a bit more pressure when she felt a knot in the muscles. The blonde let out another moan.

"If anyone was listening they'd think we were having some really good sex in here right now." Franky felt the older woman chuckle.

"I'm not loud during sex," Bridget said matter-of-factly.

"You are sometimes." The brunette leaned down and placed a kiss on the back of her neck. "Especially if Em isn't right across the hall."

"Liar." The blonde couldn't even say it with a straight face. "You're pretty quiet."

"Am I? I never really thought about it before, and no one's mentioned it." Franky began making her way down Bridget's back.

"I like it. It's really hot." The blonde opened one eye, trying to see the younger woman's reaction.

"And why's that?" Franky asked as she leaned into a particularly tense knot she'd found.

"Mmm. Because you're usually quiet. So if I can make you make a sound then I know I've done something that felt really good and you couldn't help it." Bridget reached towards the headboard, stretching out her back.

"I always like the things you do. They always feel good." Franky didn't want her to think that just because she was quiet that she wasn't enjoying it.

"I know, baby. You react in other ways. Your breathing changes, or you kiss me harder, or bite me, or squeeze my hand." The blonde stopped herself there before her mind made her want to turn the massage into something else.

The brunette smiled to herself. She knew why Bridget had gone quiet. She continued to work her way along the blonde's back until she thought she had completely relaxed. Franky placed a final kiss on the back of her shoulder, and moved to lay down beside her.

"That felt really good," Bridget said as she moved into the brunette's arms.

"I'm glad." Franky placed a small kiss on her lips. "I thought yoga was supposed to help stretch you out. You were still pretty tense."

"Maybe my technique is off. You were watching me, what do you think?" A smirk played on the blonde's lips. "Don't deny it. I saw you."

"I couldn't help it, you looked really hot. You know how I feel about those pants." She watched as Bridget nodded. "And I love it when you wear my clothes. I could see the outline of your body..." Franky trailed off as her eyes moved from Bridget's down to her lips.

The blonde pulled her in for a deep kiss, which she ended with a small bite on the younger woman's bottom lip. "I love you, baby."

"I love you, too," Franky said as she brushed the tip of her nose against Bridget's cheek.

They must have drifted off because the next thing Bridget knew, she was being woken by the sound of small fists beating on the bedroom door.

"Auntie Bridge! Franky!" It was clear from Emily's voice that she was crying.

"Just a second, love!" Bridget was up out of bed and searching for the nearest articles of clothing.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Franky doing the same on the other side of the room. The blonde found Franky's t-shirt she'd been wearing earlier, and a pair of shorts. She quickly pulled them on. On her way to the door she looked back to see that the brunette had found her pyjama pants and a singlet.

"What's wrong, love?" Bridget asked as she opened the door.

"The monster...and he ran...and...he...almost...is he in here?" She looked around with wide eyes.

"Nightmare," Franky said quietly, more to herself than anyone else.

Bridget knelt in front of Emily, and the young girl wrapped her arms around her aunt's neck.

"There's no one in here besides me and Franky," Bridget said softly as she rubbed her niece's back.

"Are you sure? I saw him come in here." She looked over the blonde's shoulder.

"Yeah, bub, we're sure. It's just us." Franky brushed her hand over Emily's hair. "You had a bad dream."

The young girl shook her head, and buried her face against Bridget.

"Come on, you can stay with us for the rest of the night." The blonde took the girl's hand and led her to their bed.

Emily crawled in under the covers and Bridget followed her. The young girl snuggled in close to her aunt, and buried her face in the pillow. The blonde put her arms around her, and could feel her still shaking.

"It's okay, love." Bridget tried to make her voice sound as soothing as she could as she rubbed her back.

After a minute Emily looked behind her to make sure Franky was there as well. She reached out and pulled on the brunette's shirt, indicating that she wanted her to move closer. Franky moved closer and laid her arm across both Bridget and the young girl.

It reminded the brunette of the nights just after Tim had passed away, and Emily had refused to sleep on her own. Franky watched the clock on the table behind Bridget. It took almost a half hour before the young girl was calm again. The blonde fell asleep not long after that, but sleep didn't come as easily for the younger woman.

Bridget had successfully managed to mostly avoid Julia for the rest of the week. They of course had to attend the same daily briefings each morning, but other than that she barely saw her. She had spent most of her breaks either in her office or Vera's, which had the added benefit of her getting a head start on some of her work. She hoped this would free her up later on when Franky was filming and she was on her own more with Emily.

Today, however, was the start of the weekend, and the day of Emily's birthday party. She and Franky had already put up the tent in the backyard, with only a minor disagreement over where to place it.

It was just after one when they heard the front door open, and Vera announced her arrival.

"Hey, guys. I came early in case you needed help getting things ready." Vera set her gift for Emily on the end of the kitchen table with the ones from Bridget and Franky. "What's the theme?" The governor looked around, and while the decorations looked pretty, she couldn't figure out what the theme was.

"Lots of food coloring and edible glitter," Franky said as she put the finishing touches on the cake.

It was two tiers, with purple, blue, and pink swirled through the frosting, and it was indeed covered in silver glitter. There were also cookies decorated to match. Bridget was in the process of adding some kind of powder to the punch she'd made that swirled through the liquid and made it shimmer.

"So..." The governor could see that the brunette was indeed telling the truth that there was a lot of food coloring and glitter, but obviously that wasn't the theme.

"Magical unicorn," the blonde said with a giggle.

"Ah, well, yeah I can see that now." Vera gave her a small smile, and sat down on one of the stools at the island. "Are you guys sleeping outside with them tonight?"

"Yeah, we are. Franky's never been camping." Bridget gave the younger woman a kiss on the cheek.

"I've only been the one time with you." The governor nodded her head towards her friend.

"Why only once? You didn't like it?" Franky asked as she moved the cake to the counter.

"I'm not the outdoors-y type apparently." Vera glanced towards Bridget, who had a smirk on her face. She sighed. "Go on, tell the story."

"She was pretty much miserable the whole time. It rained one day, and that night was a bit on the cold side," the blonde explained.

"A bit on the cold side?!" Vera's mouth had dropped open. "I couldn't feel my fingers, toes, or nose!"

"I told you to pack warmer clothes." Bridget let out a small laugh. "You ended up in my sleeping bag to warm up."

"It was really cold." The governor scratched her ear, and looked away uncomfortably.

"Ah, I don't blame you. Gidge is a good cuddler." The brunette attempted to break Vera's awkwardness with a bit of humor.

The governor simply cleared her throat. "What are you doing?" she asked, nodding towards what Franky was working on.

"If you cut the hot dogs in a spiral, then when you put the topping on them in the buns, they get caught in the grooves instead of falling out everywhere when you take a bite." It wasn't one of her fancy culinary techniques, but just a trick the brunette had seen on tv. "I also have hickory peppercorn bacon cheese burgers ready to grill, and some regular burgers in case the kids aren't feeling adventurous."

"I feel like every mealtime here is a big event." Vera gave a small laugh.

"Not really. We don't eat like this every day. Right, baby?" Bridget placed a kiss on Franky's cheek as the younger woman shook her head.

It was right around two o'clock when there was a knock on the door. Bridget went to answer it expecting either Charlotte or Mia, as Liz had shown up not long after Vera.

"Hey, guys," the blonde said with a smile on her face. Charlotte and her mother, Nancy, were standing there. "Come on in."

"Go on, love." Charlotte's mother nudged her gently in the shoulder.

"Would you like your mom to come in for a minute, and you can meet everyone and see who's here before she leaves?" Bridget saw Charlotte give a small nod, and she recognized the same shyness in the girl as she did with her niece. "Okay, sure, come in."

The blonde led them to the end of the hallway.

"So down that way is the bathroom and the bedrooms. The bathroom is the first door on the right." The blonde pointed down the hallway then turned to the main living area. "And this is the living room, kitchen, and dining area. Straight through and out the door is the backyard where we've set up the tent for tonight."

Charlotte followed Bridget further into the house slowly, checking to make sure that her mother was still behind her.

"This is my friend, Vera. She's known Em since she was a baby, and she looks after her for us sometimes." The blonde thought that it probably wouldn't mean much to Charlotte that Vera was her friend, but if she explained that Emily liked her, it might make the girl feel more at ease. "And this is Liz. She's like Franky's mom. And of course, you know Franky already."

The shy girl gave a small smile and wave when Bridget mentioned the brunette.

"Em is just putting her sleeping bag in the tent. She'll help you get yours set up if you'd like. I'll put your bag in her room for you." The blonde reached out and took Charlotte's overnight bag.

"Are we sleeping out there alone?" the shy girl asked.

"No, Franky and I are sleeping out there too. Here, I'll show you." Bridget walked with her over to the patio door so they could see into the tent. "There's two rooms. So you, Em, and Mia are on one side, and we'll be on the other."

Charlotte looked at her mother, who gave her a reassuring smile.

"Go on out with Em and get your sleeping bag ready." Nancy watched as her daughter slowly walked across the patio stones towards her friend. She turned to the blonde. "Call me if you need anything, even if it's late. There's been a couple times I've had to come pick her up early because she's been homesick."

"Sure." Bridget gave her a smile. "We've got some fun stuff planned, so hopefully she'll be distracted by that."

"Hopefully." Nancy turned to lead back to the front door. On her way past Franky, she looked her slowly up and down.

"She checked you out," Vera said to the brunette after she'd heard the door close.

"Hmm?" Franky had been looking for the barbeque lighter.

"She checked you out on her way out." The governor tilted her head towards the direction that Nancy had left.

"She probably was just looking at my tattoos." The brunette always wore her jacket during the classes, so only the couple on her lower arms would be visible.

"No." Vera gave a small chuckle, as Franky simply shrugged and went back to what she'd been doing.

Supper had been a success, as had the cake, and the fire, and now they were all getting ready to settle into the tent for the night.

"Is it going to be really dark?" Charlotte asked Franky. They were the only two outside, the other girls and Bridget were still inside getting changed.

"I'll leave the light by the door on, how's that?" The brunette smiled as the girl nodded. "Alright, I see the other two on their way. Why don't you go get in your sleeping bag?"

Franky settled into the double-sized bag she'd be sharing with Bridget, and heard the girls, one by one, enter the other side of the tent. Finally, the blonde made her way out of the house. It was a warm night, so they had both opted for shorts and singlets.

The brunette was laying on her back, looking out through one of the windows at the night sky. She felt Bridget lay down beside her, and cuddle into her side.

"That's one of the best feelings," Franky whispered softly. She could hear the girls laughing and talking in the other part of the tent, so she figured she and the blonde could talk without them overhearing, if they were quiet.

"What is, baby?" Bridget turned her head, and placed a kiss on the other woman's shoulder.

"When you lay down next to me. It's like you melt into my side." The brunette had an arm wrapped around the older woman, and she let her fingers trail up and down her side.

"Maybe I melt because you're so hot." Bridget emphasized the 't' in hot, and they both laughed at the cheesiness of it.

"You think I'm hot, do ya?" Franky raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah." The blonde moved up so she was more face to face with the younger woman. She pressed their lips together gently.

"Don't start something you can't finish tonight, babe." The younger woman let her hand slide down Bridget's back, and onto her butt. She gave a small squeeze, which made the blonde giggle.

"I'm not." Bridget gave her another small kiss, and they heard the girls next door giggle loudly. "That sound could be in our house all the time some day."

"Yeah." Franky's face lit up. "Do you think we'll have a boy or a girl?"

"I don't know. Either is fine with me." The blonde thought for a moment. "I hate to say it, but I think I'd worry less about a boy out in the world. That doesn't influence my preference though."

"If it's a girl, we'll have to raise them like they did Wonder Woman. All warrior tough and shit." The brunette watched as Bridget smiled and nodded her head.

They laid there for a minute in silence, each lost in their thoughts.

"I was pregnant once before." The blonde had said it so quietly that Franky wasn't sure she'd said it at all.

"What?" The brunette turned on her side so she could see Bridget's face better. "I thought you said you'd never thought about having kids with anyone."

"I haven't." The older woman closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She already regretted her timing, but it seemed to come out of her mouth on its own. "It was an accident; when I was in uni." She felt Franky's arms around her. "I got pregnant and I never told my boyfriend at the time. I didn't know what I wanted to do. I was only just far enough along that the test picked it up. I'd been a bit off, and I just had this feeling in the back of my mind, so I took it, and it was positive."

"So what happened?" The brunette knew that Bridget didn't have any kids now, so that left only a couple options, but she didn't want to assume anything.

"I had a miscarriage maybe a week after I'd found out. I hadn't decided what I was going to do, then fate decided for me." She opened her eyes to see Franky's green ones staring back at her, no judgement showing.

"He or she would have been beautiful just like you." The brunette gave her a small kiss. "Maybe ours will have your eyes, or your nose." Franky brushed the tip of the blonde's nose with her own.

"My nose?" Bridget wrinkled up her face.

"Yeah. I love your nose, Gidge." The brunette brushed hers against the older woman's again. "The Westfall genes are strong. Em looks just like you. I'd swear you were her mother if I didn't know the difference."

"Maybe they'll look like you." Bridget pictured a little version of Franky running around with Emily.

"Either way, they'll be ours, just like Em, and she'll have a little sibling." The brunette was getting emotional. She shook her head to clear it.

"We're getting ahead of ourselves." The blonde gave Franky a kiss. "We'll get there, but there's a lot to get through before that."

"Yeah, you're right." Franky nodded. "It's easy to make plans with you." She gave Bridget a soft kiss, and noticed that the girls next door had gone quiet. She figured the sugar crash had finally kicked in. "We should sleep while we can."

"Yeah." The blonde snuggled in closer, and felt Franky hold her a bit tighter. The younger woman always seemed to know what she needed.