Title: A Little Respect
Author: Misty Flores

Teaser: Pursuing a relationship with Aiden after discovering Bianca in bed with Babe, Maggie begins to question even her own self worth when she finds herself delving deeper into a baby kidnapping mystery, and an intense love triangle.

Part Thirty-Six

This perfect romance that I've created in my mind
I'd live a thousand lives
Each one with you right by my side
But yet we find ourselves in a less than perfect circumstance
And so it seems like we'll never have the chance

Ain't it funny how some feelings you just can't deny
And you can't move on even though you try
Ain't it strange when your feeling things you shouldn't feel
Oh, I wish this could be real
Ain't it funny how a moment could just change your life
And you don't want to face what's wrong or right
Ain't it strange how fate can play a part
In the story of your heart

-- Ain't It Funny, Jennifer Lopez

--

Never, had she heard Bianca ache so blatantly. Standing in her apartment, Bianca wore a look that she hadn't seen since a dark night, many months ago, when Bianca had confessed to her the hell she had endured. Then, she couldn't look in Maggie's face. Now, her best friend's striking features lingered on her, the intense stare causing a sudden catch her throat, a painful inhalation.

"Maggie, I'm sorry." Bianca nearly whispered the words, as if nothing else existed but the connection between them both. "I'm not going to bother you, anymore. I'm done with theatrics and proclamations. I love you. I love you so much. I'll never stop, and it's okay that you don't believe me. It won't stop me from loving you." Unable to breathe, Maggie could only watch, as a tearful, trembling smile slid onto Bianca's features. "It's my turn to wait for you. I get that. I'll wait forever for you, and I'll accept anything you're willing me to give me. Friendship. Civility. A nod on the street when you walk my way. It doesn't matter what you do, or if you never love me back like you once did - I'll love you forever." And Bianca was crying, struggling through her words, as she reached forward with her words and her tears, and squeezed Maggie's heart so tightly she lost her ability to breathe. Nodding resolutely, Bianca didn't bother to wipe her tears. She simply nodded at them both, careful and tender, and then walked past Anna and closed the door behind her.

If pressed, Maggie would never be able to tell what she was feeling at that moment, nor could she really linger on it. Every thought and emotion was hinged upon that door, gaze locked on it, as if it were a living thing, pulsing with the answers that had eluded her for so long.

The room was quiet, Aiden's family and Aiden himself unable to speak, as Maggie grew dizzy, lightheaded and then, eyes shutting tightly, she realized she had forgotten to breathe.

Sucking in a lungful of air, she was released from her invisible prison, to turn that painful gaze onto the man of her dreams.

In just that look, he knew.

"You're leaving me, aren't you?"

She had never set out to break his heart. She had never wanted to hurt him.

"I'm sorry."

Tears stung in her eyes, as she glanced down at her sling, her plastered foot, and slowly, rose to stand. He wore a dark look of hurt, and Maggie, tired and sad, wanted so badly to revert to form, to sink into his arms and hold him tight and let him teach her how to forget all about the feelings that would haunt her forever.

"Why do you even still want me?" she whispered. "I love you, Aiden – but I can't hurt you like this. Not anymore. I'll be back for my things." She didn't wait for his response, instead turned away, lingered on Anna's sympathetic expression.

"I'll walk you out."

—

She woke up with a small gasp of pain that shot through her shoulder and down her side.

Holding still, disoriented, Maggie licked at dry lips, swallowed to regain some moisture. Awareness came to her slowly, as if a fog were lifting, as Maggie gradually began to understand the source of her uncomfortable state.

Wrapped firmly in a strong embrace, Maggie was sweaty, recovering dislocated shoulder crushed against the mattress, hot breath evenly spreading over her neck, a signal of sleep.

There were feminine arms holding her, lighter, smoother legs that tangled over and under hers, and the fingers that clasped in hers were achingly familiar.

Biting her lip against another ache of protest from her sore shoulder, Maggie arched her head against Bianca's pillow, inhaling the soft scent of Bianca, feeling her best friend tighten her embrace, an automatic reaction.

The entire thing felt almost surreal, and stubbornly, Maggie ignored the pain her shoulder that was pinging to her brain, to carefully smooth her hands over the ones wrapped around her, feel past fabric back to discover the soft, silky hair spilling over her shoulder, Bianca's head buried in the nape of her neck, like a grown bear cub trying burrow into her mother's lap.

Something about that reassurance, that it was indeed Bianca who held her so intimately, created a sudden tremble, as Maggie sucked in her breath and closed her eyes.

Stillness filled her, as she heard Bianca's promise all over again, whispered in her ear during the night, fevered heat in the phrase.

Everything will be okay.

Still, her shoulder and ribs refused to give her sympathy or patience for her relief, and when the pain once again flared in heat, Maggie was forced to open her eyes and check the alarm.

A child like giggle averted her gaze, as a small pair of brown eyes so similar to their mother's peeked over wooden bars, obviously befuddled at staring at not her mother's face, but a practical stranger's.

Miranda pressed her mouth against the bars, standing unsteadily on her chubby legs, babbling muffled.

Watching her, Maggie carefully began to extricate herself from Bianca's hold. When Bianca murmured in protest, Maggie stilled, careful as she took the smooth hand that flailed against her, and pressed a careful, gentle kiss against the skin.

The ease of the gesture was almost frightening.

Reassured, sleepy Bianca allowed her escape, as Maggie sat up, wincing as she rubbed at her sore shoulder, taking the moment to turn her head and rediscover her friend, curled into the bed, face pressed against the pillow marked with the ribbed lines of her sweater.

She allowed herself to linger, until Miranda squawked, and Maggie tore her attention away from mother to daughter, allowing a careful, harmless smile to form on her face. "Heyyy..." she whispered, as Miranda's eyes grew even wider, obviously not quite sure what to do with her. Jerking at her sling, Maggie ignored the spike of pain, wincing against it with a hiss, and setting the contraption to the side. "Hey, sweetie..."

Miranda was a trusting baby, and despite her initial reluctance, apparently her need to get out of the crib out weighed her uneasiness at her inability to recognize the caregiver. Little, chubby arms obediently raised, and biting her lip, Maggie carefully scooped up the child, settling her against her good side.

"Oh my..." Maggie whispered, tone playful even as a rather ugly smell greeted her. "Let's fix that, okay?"

Fist shoved into her mouth, Miranda blew a spit bubble.

So pure. So perfect.

Emotion caught in her throat, and Maggie closed her eyes raggedly, taking a moment to calm herself.

Maggie's smile widened, and after another glance at Bianca, she blew out her breath. "Come on," she whispered. "Let's let Sleeping Beauty over there get her rest, huh?"

With an affectionate kiss across her brow, she carried the baby to the changing tray.

--

It was ten in the morning when Anita Santos pushed open the doors to BJ's for a late breakfast on the end of an abysmal early shift. Her feet ached, and her back felt worse, and all she wanted was a stack of unhealthy pancakes and orange juice to soak them down, before committing her day to her bed.

Instead, a betraying jolt to her heart alerted her to the presence of her unrequited love, the handsome man hunched in a corner booth, one of the few customers eating alone.

Faltering, Anita was a woman of observation, and she lingered on the tired, haggard face, the listless expression, the slow, almost drugged movements.

Her Aiden had suffered a broken heart. Anita pressed her mouth together, unsure what to do, as her hands twisted together, and she stepped hesitantly in his direction.

Two false starts, and she finally managed to get to his booth. "Hi."

The husky greeting got his attention, as intense brown eyes glanced up to meet her own, before sliding down again to the table. "Hi."

"Mind if I sit?"

He cast a palm carelessly to the other side of the booth. Her anxiety almost getting the better of her, Anita was shaky as she slid into it, watching silently as he crumpled up a wrapper of a straw, poking at the soaked paper with his index finger.

The out of place gesture was disconcerting.

"Maggie taught me how to make these. On our first date." His eyes never lifted to hers, but Anita gave a hard swallow anyway. "It wasn't much of a date to her, but I always thought of it as the first time. When she made this perfect little worm, brought it to life, and smiled at me, I fell in love."

Anita found it wasn't hard to picture the scene, this booth, sitting across from a beautiful young girl who captured Aiden's heart without even trying.

"I'm sorry."

He smiled bitterly. "Anna warned me. She told me before it happened, that it wouldn't last. That Maggie wouldn't love me. But I couldn't listen. I was so sure it was meant to be. The two of us, giving our hearts to each other after they had been rejected elsewhere." Anita sighed raggedly, a betraying thump of her heart reminding her all too well who had rejected him first. "I gave her my heart. Bianca wouldn't let hers go."

Carefully running a napkin over the excess moisture, Anita tried to still her desperation, kept the words about regret and wanting to give her heart to him buried deep down in her chest. Instead, she whispered roughly, "Maggie did love you, Aiden."

He glanced up, bore into her eyes with an almost patronizing look. "I know," he said crisply. British accent thick and rough. "I could have made her love me, Anita, if she had been free." Anita reached forward, carefully grasping his hand.

They stayed like that, quiet and together, and despite her genuine concern for her friend, Anita could only feel her hope sinking within her.

Aiden wasn't ready for anyone else. Aiden was in love with Maggie Stone, and despite the temptation, Anita wasn't sure her heart could handle being a rebound.

They were both free, and yet, once again, they weren't.

Smiling sadly at the irony. Anita did what she did best.

She was a friend.

--

A soft, melodic children's tune swept into her dreams, carrying her with it to reality.

When her eyes fluttered open, Bianca's gravity began to assert itself, as she found herself plastered against the sheets, like she had molded herself to them.

Unable to move for the moment, Bianca lay there, hugging the mattress, until the singing continued, in a fuzzy radio voice. Turning her head, Bianca stared at the baby monitor, listening to the Itsy Bitsy Spider.

Maggie.

Swinging her legs heavily over the bed, Bianca kept listening, noting the empty crib with a smile that was hopeful and careful at the same time, pressing her hand against her cheek to discover herself flushed, just from listening to the sound of Maggie's voice.

Maggie had a wonderful voice, and few people knew it. Her friend's talent hadn't been nurtured, like Bianca's, but came from a need to escape, and Bianca knew Maggie had never sung in public, but reserved her performances for a much smaller audience.

Eyes flittering closed, Bianca blew out an unsteady breath, surprising herself, oddly, with just how in love with Maggie she was.

Had she always felt this way? Was being aware of her feelings what was making it so hard to contain them? No longer buried behind a brick wall in her mind, but open and unapologetic, running away from her, with hopes and dreams of a future. It was comforting and frightening all at the same time, to know where her future lay, where she wanted it to be.

Maggie's singing came from the baby monitor, and, if it was possible, just cemented her hold on Bianca's heart that much more.

Suddenly desperate to see both her daughter and her best friend, Bianca pushed off the bed, kicking aside the shoes that had been so carelessly slipped off the night before, and padded barefoot out of her room, to the sight that waited for her in the living room.

On the couch, Maggie lay back, her baby straddling her, singing richly to Miranda, with hand gestures and affection and a smile that Bianca hadn't seen in such a long time.

It overwhelmed her, the sight of Maggie's motherly affection, and the desire she dared not voice displayed itself so prominently she could only hold her hands together and smile, big and almost idiotic, eyes shifting between both of her loves.

The loves of her life.

Her daughter caught her entering, like she was on radar, and when she looked, so did Maggie, catching her smile with one of her own, and it sunk into her, went warm and gentle within her.

"Morning."

"Morning," she whispered, feeling absurd as she tried to blink back the stinging tears of emotion, settling down in the still warm spot that Maggie vacated, her friend settling Miranda in her lap. Reaching over to tweak her daughter's foot, she couldn't stop staring at her friend and her friend's smile.

Maggie was beautiful.

"So pure," Maggie whispered, "So perfect. Makes all the bad stuff go away." Her eyes lifted, connected with Bianca, running a palm over the baby's head. "At least for a while."

Overwhelmed, Bianca didn't respond, instead drinking in the site of Maggie and her daughter, a perfect morning in the wake of some terribly dark months.

In that blissful moment of paradise, reality chose to seep inside, as her eyes shifted to the telephone, and she remembered the decision that had seemed so self sacrificing and wise the day before.

And the truth came like a spike to her heart, as she breathed in unsteadily, and wondered now, in the wake of the most hopeful morning she had ever had, how she would ever find the courage to even think about getting on that plane.

Glancing up, Maggie's smile stilled at her own frozen expression. "What is it?"

Licking her lips in contemplation, Bianca managed a trembling sigh, squeaking Miranda's little covered foot, a distracted movement. "Just... um... how'd you sleep?"

"Good," came the answer, a beat later, as Maggie's eyes broke from hers and were again on Miranda, smoothing over the little bald crown. "Better than I have in weeks."

The words had such an connotation that Bianca didn't want to hear, and when she swallowed against them, she couldn't help but drink in Maggie and her daughter, starved for the sight and a dream that just flittered away from her fingertips.

"What's wrong?" Maggie said again, in a scared tone, almost as if she didn't want to hear the answer.

Bianca was quiet for a moment, staring deeply into the brilliant eyes, cementing the picture inside of her, to carry in her heart.

"I have something I have to tell you." The insecurity that immediately flooded back into Maggie's eyes broke her heart, and Bianca reached forward instinctively, covering her palm with her own, squeezing as carefully and lovingly as she could. "I had to think - about what was best for Miranda, and this... decision came to me, and I thought..."

"Bianca..."

"I'm going to Paris. I'm ... moving to Paris."

Biting her bottom lip, Bianca felt frozen in ice, searching desperately for any sign from Maggie's expression that this wouldn't be the horrible thing that she knew it could be. That Maggie was sincere in wanting only her friendship and a deep, terrifying hope that maybe Maggie would be relieved.

But Maggie only stared at her, mouth falling open in surprise, and Bianca shook her head blindly, swallowing, and trying again to come closer. "I couldn't say no, Maggie."

Broken of her startled devastation, Maggie closed her eyes; turned away slightly, discovering Miranda when the little girl climbed to her feet, spread tiny arms around Maggie's shoulders, demanding to be cradled.

"It doesn't change... the way I feel."

Maggie's eyes were clear, but her voice was tired, a mimic of the night before. "I don't know what to say. Why are you leaving..." Her head tilted, her lip suddenly trembled. "Were you trying to get away from me?"

"No." The word was torn from her throat, Bianca shuddering at even the thought. "No, Maggie, that wasn't it at all. Please believe me. There were so many reasons and now..." She stared hungrily at the love of her life, at her friend's obvious distress. "Looking at you... I can't think of a single one."

Maggie sucked in her breath, cheek falling against Miranda's crown, holding her close.

It was too soon to think about, but Bianca couldn't help but venture her last, tiny hope. "Maggie, I know, I promised not to push. And it doesn't mean... that we'd have to... but if you wanted to come with me..."

"Oh..." Maggie's eyes jerked up, met hers, and a jolt of hope struck inside her. Until Maggie sucked in a lungful of air and clutched Miranda tighter, as if determined not to let her go. "Bianca... I... I can't keep running away. I have to put my life back together."

"You can't do that in Paris?" Bianca ached.

Maggie shuddered, licking her lips and circling palms around Miranda's waist. "It's too soon, Bianca. If it's just you and me..."

And Bianca suddenly understood. Maggie wasn't ready.

The emotion tugging them together would explode and with no barriers or baggage it would only be a matter of time before...

Maggie wasn't ready.

"God..." she breathed raggedly, sucked into the tension, afraid to look up at see Maggie, afraid to lose control."Okay..." she smiled through her pain. "Okay. Let's not think about it. Let's... concentrate on now."

Maggie seemed to almost move in slow motion, lift her doe eyes and stare at her with such lost sincerity Bianca almost cried from the frustration.

"Now?"

"And the important thing," she said, breathing through the pain. "That we can talk. We're friends again, Maggie. I'm so grateful to have my best friend back. I missed you, Maggie."

Maggie's eyes suddenly seemed to shine, eyes intensely glued to hers, until a smile trembled and Maggie breathed in unsteadily. "I missed you, too, Bianca."

It was an unspoken agreement, to put aside the future.

Bianca had made her a promise. She would keep it.

Even if it was from thousands of miles away.

She'd find a way to make it happen.

--

Silken skin smoothed under her fingertips, and Maggie never tired of her exploration. No matter how well she knew this flesh, she could never tire of touching it, feeling it flex and shift underneath her touch.

Hips fit together, as she twisted, slipping a thigh between Bianca's, calves rubbing against calves, as her palm settled on Bianca's waist, and Maggie dropped a kiss on Bianca's collar bone, before burrowing into Bianca's neck and inhaling the sweet scent of her friend that was so entirely familiar.

Bianca giggled beneath her, slender fingers scratching lightly at her scalp, keeping her there. Maggie grinned into her skin, scraped her teeth lightly along the pulsing vein, a testament to Bianca's heartbeat, Bianca's arousal, shifting deeper into Bianca's arms until the top of her thigh pushed lightly against Bianca's heat.

Bianca moaned, arching up to rub against her, and Maggie shuddered, clutching Bianca into a desperate hug.

"You didn't leave," she murmured into the soft sweetness of Bianca's shoulder - her safe place.

A moment, and then Bianca stilled beneath her, fingertips closing in her hair, pulling back with a small force, until Maggie was looking into soft, beautifully full brown eyes, a perfect face.

"I'd never leave you," Bianca said frankly. "I love you, Maggie. I'm so sorry-"

"It's okay," Maggie whispered. "It's okay." She shifted up, holding Bianca's face still with fingers on her cheek, pressing a light kiss against Bianca's lips, before she felt the smile tilt into her mouth, and it deepened.

"I love you."

Maggie's eyes opened with a breathless sigh.

She was curled into her pillow, hands tangled together beneath her cheek, thighs clamped shut.

Vivid dreams gave way to stark reality, and Maggie closed her eyes, squeezed them shut tightly.

Ten feet away, on a cot, a dark figure snored, lumbering like a large hibernating bear.

Maggie didn't move, ignoring the uncomfortable plaster of her leg, watching Jamie sleeping.

She felt for her cellphone, flipped it open, and clicked down the little menu, until she discovered Bianca's number lighting up, the most recently dialed.

Biting her lip, Maggie stared at it, the area code, the name, her thumb pressing on the send call button.

I love you.

Shutting the phone off before she lost her strength to make the call, Maggie closed her eyes and hugged her pillow to her, her phantom lover plaguing her in the recurring dream that felt real, desperately real, each and every time.

She turned away, pushing away the raw fear that pulsed inside of her.

end chapter