Disclaimer: They belong to Dick.

To everyone who has reviewed: Thank you so much! I love you all. I got so many reviews from my last chapter and every single one of them made me smile.

goes off into the corner and does a little happy dance

Okay, sorry, I'm back. On with the story…

Oh, and by the way, it's a longish chapter. Sorry…

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Two weeks after Jess met Alex, she decided it was time to finally introduce her, as well as Olivia, to Allen. She and Alex had met for lunch during Alex's break. It had actually been Alex's idea.

"So," Alex said, her mouth full of the tuna fish sandwich she'd made earlier that day. She hated that she had to eat quickly because her lunch break was so short. Jess being there was going to make it even shorter, but she didn't mind. Jess' company was always better than a lunch break alone. Olivia would occasionally stop by, but she'd been slammed with this Jennings case, and Alex knew to leave her to that. It was her case, too, after all. She was just glad Jess was so willing to meet her during lunch. She hated being alone in the office if she didn't have to be. "You're always talking about Allen and how he's the greatest guy in the world, but I have yet to actually meet him. I'm beginning to think he doesn't exist."

Jess laughed. "Yeah, I guess it's about time you and Olivia met him. He really does exist, I swear." She smiled mischievously. "We should go out on a double date, maybe do dinner, then a movie."

Alex hesitated. She still hadn't convinced herself that, while she was finally starting to feel comfortable going out with Olivia, other people would be fine seeing them together. "Are you sure he'd be okay with Liv and I…I mean, you know…."

"Of course he will. He's been asking to meet you for days now. Come on, it'll be fun."

She nodded, deciding to take a chance. Olivia was her girlfriend, and she loved her. Liv deserved to be able to go out with their friends just as much as anybody else. "Okay, let's do it." She thought for a minute. "Do you guys like Mexican food?"

"Oh yeah. It's one of our favorites."

"Great. I know a place Liv and I used to go to a lot. I can't remember what it's called but I can get you there easily. How about Friday night? We'll eat around six, then go catch a movie or something."

"Sounds like a plan." She looked at her watch and frowned. "I need to get going. I have to finish a set of birthday invitations. Can you believe someone is actually paying me two hundred dollars to make invitations to their daughter's sixth birthday? It's absurd."

Alex raised her eyebrows and laughed. "Actually, I can. I'm pretty sure that's exactly what my parents would do." She shook her head. "People are crazy. That money could be spent on so many other things. Why waste it on a piece of paper that's going to be thrown away?"

"Exactly," she said as she gathered her things. "So anyway, Allen and I will pick you two up on Friday at around five – thirty?"

"Okay, see you then."

She smiled at the pile of paperwork Alex still had sitting on her desk. "When's that all due?"

Alex closed her eyes, as if doing so would magically make the pile smaller. "Tomorrow morning at eight. I'm a terrible procrastinator."

"Yeah, you are. Enjoy your paperwork."

Alex stood, playfully threatening Jess. "I'm gonna kick –"

"I'm kicking myself out! Bye!" she left Alex alone with her paperwork and made her way back to her car. She really didn't want to work on those stupid invitations. The truth was she hadn't even started, and the parents wanted them by the following morning. That wasn't what was bothering her. She was pretty good at working under pressure. What was bothering her was how much those parents were willing to spend on stupid invitations. She hated money wasters. They really bugged her. "I swear I'm donating as much as I can to charity," she said as she drove home. "There are a hell of a lot of people who need it more than I do."

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Friday night came much quicker than Jess thought it would. An hour before she and Allen were due to pick up Olivia and Alex, she found herself digging through her closet for something to wear. Why was it that her closet was always full of clothes, but when she went to find something for a special occasion, it seemed there was nothing?

"You will throw everything back into the closet once you've decided, right?" Allen asked as he walked into the room. He was wearing a nice dark blue turtleneck and light khakis. Guys always had it so easy.

"Of course I will. I just need something that's not too dressy but not crappy and I don't want to look like a hooker or anything and I –"

He pulled out her silver sleeveless turtleneck and black pants, then handed them to her. "Wear this. It's quick, it's easy, and best of all, you look gorgeous in it. It looks great against your hair. Did I ever tell you how much I love light brown hair?"

She laughed as she grabbed the clothes from him. "Well then you're in luck. It's my natural hair color. That makes my life so much easier." She quickly stripped out of her sweats and easily slid into her dinner clothes. She made her way into the bathroom and pulled her hair up into a ponytail, with several strands in the front left hanging. She always liked that look on her. The loose strands softened her face. She applied a little foundation, some blush, and a light pink lip-gloss, then decided she was ready. "Let's go."

"You look amazing. I love you."

She kissed him lightly on the lips before pulling away and leading him out to the car. "I love you, too."

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"Olivia, where the hell is my new skirt?" Alex asked anxiously as she dug through her closet. "Please tell me you didn't wear it again without telling me! It's what I want to wear tonight!"

Olivia walked in from the bathroom and smiled. Alex was walking around in a t-shirt and nothing else. God she's sexy, she thought. It was only the second time since Alex had revealed her secret that she had been willing to leave some of her body exposed for Olivia to see. While the t-shirt was a large one, a few scars on her legs were visible. She still hadn't fully revealed herself, but Olivia had repeatedly told her to take her time, so that's exactly what she planned to do. If Olivia could see a few scars on her legs and still smile lovingly at her, maybe soon she could reveal a little more. For the time being, however, this was enough.

"I didn't wear your skirt. You wore it last week to get that warrant signed, remember? I don't know what you did with it after that."

Alex stood up and thought for a moment, then ran to the hall closet. She rummaged through the clothes that were piled on the floor before finally pulling it out. It was long and gray with lining on the bottom. She noticed Olivia's surprised look, but just laughed. "What? I wore it for two hours! I don't know why I even bothered to put it in with the dirty laundry. It's still clean enough to wear tonight." She slipped it on, then went back to the bedroom. She opened the second drawer of her dresser and pulled out her black sleeveless turtleneck. Still facing the dresser, she pulled off her t-shirt and threw on the turtleneck. "What are you wearing tonight, detective?" She asked Olivia once the shirt was securely in place.

"Nothing that'll make me look nearly as gorgeous as you, but I was thinking I'd wear my black pants and red sweater." She shrugged. "I figured that's not too dressy but dressy enough for a date."

Alex made her way towards the bathroom to get ready. "Well then you'd better get sexy while I try to do something with this face of mine. They'll be here in less than half an hour, so hurry up and get dressed." She smiled. "I can't wait to meet Allen. The way Jess describes him, he sounds amazing."

Olivia smiled as she pulled off her sweatshirt and slipped into her red sweater. "Yeah, she seems to really like the guy. She does realize we're going to be checking into him, doesn't she? I swear if we find anything –"

"Get dressed, Liv!" Alex said as she closed the bathroom door and started applying her makeup. She hoped Allen was as good as Jess described, but she didn't want to take any chances either. She didn't mind at all that Olivia was going to do a background check on him. It was worth it. If they found nothing, they didn't have anything to worry about. If they found something, they could warn Jess before it was too late.

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Jess and Allen rang Alex's bell, and were buzzed up immediately. They rode the elevator up in silence. They were more excited than nervous, but there was definitely a nervous feeling in the air. Jess prayed that Allen liked Olivia and Alex, and Allen prayed that Olivia and Alex liked him. They smiled at each other as the elevator reached the floor and the doors opened. Jess looked at her watch, noticing they were nearly fifteen minutes late. She blamed her inability to find anything to wear, but Allen assured her the night wasn't ruined. As they made their way to the apartment door, they were sure it was going to be a fun-filled evening.

Alex opened the door and smiled as she ushered them inside. "I'm so glad you two are late. We couldn't decide what we were going to wear and then I couldn't find my skirt and it took forever for me to get my hair to look decent and…well, thanks for being late."

Allen laughed as he extended his hand to her. "You must be Alex."

She shook his hand and smiled. "How can you tell?"

"Well for one, the two of you look a lot alike. For others, you've got that same nervous, bumbling speech. Plus, well, I can just tell you're related. It's a pleasure to finally meet you."

"Pleasure's all mine."

Olivia walked out from the bathroom and smiled. Jess did well, she thought to herself when she saw Allen. Kid's cute. She shook his hand and wined approvingly at Jess. "Nice to finally meet you. Jess is always speaking so highly of you. Good to see she wasn't just inventing you to make herself sound better."

Everyone laughed as they exited the apartment and made their way to Allen's car. As they all climbed in, Allen looked in his rearview mirror and grinned. "Jess mentioned that you two weren't sure how I'd feel about us all going out toge –" he felt Jess nudge him in the ribs, hoping to shut him up, but he just kept going. "About how I would feel about the two of you, but I assure you it's not a big deal. I was adopted by a gay couple when I was six. I had the two best mothers in the world. Trust me when I say that as far as I'm concerned, there is nothing wrong with the two of you being together."

Olivia grabbed Alex's hand and smiled. "Good, because we are together, and it's going to stay that way. I'm crazy about this woman and I don't care who thinks it's wrong. It's not going to change anything."

"I hope not, because you two look absolutely smitten with each other."

"Smitten?" Jess asked. "Did you really just say smitten?"

"Yeah, what's wrong with smitten?"

She laughed and shook her head. "Nothing. It's just not a word I've heard anyone use lately."

"Well do you have a better one?"

"Nope. Smitten works."

"Good."

Dinner that night was a blast for all four of them. They were all amazed at how comfortable they were with one another and how easily they made conversation. They joked the whole time, sometimes laughing so hard they couldn't eat. It was the most fun any of them had had in a long time. For Alex, it was a night where she was finally becoming more comfortable with herself and being out in public with Olivia. For Olivia, it was a night where she could spend time in public with the woman of her dreams, and finally hold her hand without being rejected. For Jess, it was a night where she realized she really had a family that loved her. For Allen, it was the night he decided he was going to marry Jess. When both Jess and Olivia excused themselves to the bathroom, he decided to talk to Alex about it.

"You're a good guy, Allen," Alex told him once they were alone. "Jess is really happy with you. You should hear how much she talks about you. She's absolutely…smitten…with you," She joked.

He laughed. "Well, I'm glad to hear it. Look, I need to ask you a favor, and you can totally say no if you don't want to. I know we just met. I just…well the two of you probably wear about the same ring size."

Her eyes widened as she smiled. "Oh my GOD!" she exclaimed as she threw her hands to her face. "You're going to ask her to marry you?"

"Yeah, I am."

"What can I do?" She was eager to help him out. She realized they hadn't done a background check on him, but she was pretty sure they weren't going to find anything. Jess was crazy about this guy, and after seeing him tonight, she was sure he was crazy about her, too.

"I was just wondering if you could maybe help me pick out a ring. You look about the same size, maybe, I guess…I don't know. I just have no idea how to go about doing this and I figured you're the best person to ask, seeing as how you're so close to her. So, can ya help me out?"

"Absolutely. Just tell me when and where and I'll be there."

"Does Wednesday at noon work for you? We can look around at a couple of different stores. I don't want to rush in and buy the first ring I see. I want to make sure it's beautiful."

"I have to be in court at ten on Wednesday, but I don't think it's going to be too long. Let's make it one just to be safe. Does that still work for you?"

He nodded. "That works. Thanks."

"No problem," she smiled and winked as she saw Olivia and Jess returning to the table. She couldn't keep the grin off her face, but she hoped Jess didn't pry. She couldn't think of an excuse as to why she couldn't stop smiling. Luckily, Jess was having so much fun that she didn't even notice.

They decided to see X-Men and were surprised at how empty the theater was. Sure there were a fair amount of people, but not nearly as many as they had expected. "Isn't this a new movie?" Olivia asked as they took their seats. "Plus it's a Friday night. What the hell are people doing these days? I though Fridays were movie nights."

Alex laughed. "People have cable connections that give them hundreds of channels. They don't need to go out to the movies. They can watch them from their bedroom. Plus, the bedroom's private, so they can do things during the movie that they can't necessarily do in the theater…"

Everybody chuckled as the movie began. Allen and Jess held hands, and Olivia and Alex held hands. It was the most amazing night that any of them could ever remember having. Nothing had gone wrong. They had all gotten along very well and the conversations had all flowed so easily. None of them could believe how perfect the evening had been, and they were sad when it ended. Allen and Jess dropped off Alex and Olivia before returning home. It was the first evening in what was bound to many great get-togethers between friends.

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Allen met Alex at her office at one on Wednesday. He was glad to see that she was there. "Court let out early," she told him as she followed him out to his car. "Damn idiot lied on the stand and then got caught contradicting himself. Judge let us all out until she can figure out what the hell to do with him. He's going to be charged with purgery, but he implicated himself on the stand. That's a touchy issue, and I really hope she lets his implication stand. Oh well. I love dumb criminals. They make my life a lot easier."

Allen laughed as he pulled out onto the road. "Thank you so much for doing this, Alex. I swear I'm an idiot when it comes to jewelry, especially something this important. I want to make sure I get the perfect ring for her."

"I'm glad to help." She grinned excitedly. "This is so exciting!"

After three jewelry stores, Allen finally found the ring he wanted. It was simple, which is exactly what he knew Jess would want. It was a one carat diamond mounted on a silver band. That was it, but that was what made it so perfect. He smiled at Alex as he asked her to try it on, silently praying the two women had the same ring size.

It fit her perfectly. As she stared at it on her finger, she suddenly wished she and Olivia could get married. It was so stupid that they weren't allowed to do so. How the hell would the two of them getting married destroy the sanctity of marriage any more than a forty-eight hour Vegas marriage? She shook her head and forced a smile, telling Allen that it was a beautiful ring and that Jess was sure to love it.

"You know," he said, reading her thoughts. "I think it's stupid that the two of you can't get married. There's no law against the two of you getting rings for each other and having a little ceremony."

She nodded, but didn't trust herself to say anything. She was too afraid she was going to cry. Not being allowed to marry the one person she loved more than anybody else in the world enraged her, but she pushed aside her feelings. The ring Allen had bought was gorgeous, and she was glad she was there to help him out. "When are you going to ask her?"

"I was thinking about that," he answered. "Thanksgiving's coming up in less than a month. I think that's the perfect time to ask her. How would you and Olivia like to come over to our place? Of course, if you already have plans, I'd understand."

"Oh, we're free. I don't even think we made plans to do a traditional Thanksgiving meal. We would probably just end up eating frozen TV dinners and watching CSI reruns all night."

He laughed. He was so happy Jess had found this woman. She was even more amazing than Jess had been able to describe. She was going to make Olivia one very happy woman. "Well we can't have that. You two are officially invited. Just let us know so we can know how much to cook."

"We'll be there. I'm sure Olivia will be okay with it. She's not big on holidays, but I'll convince her. Thanksgiving is a time for families. As far as I'm concerned, Jess is a huge part of mine, which makes you a part as well. We'll even bring cookies."

"It's done then." He dropped her back off at her office. As he put his car back in drive, he held up the box containing the ring. "Thanks again. I couldn't have done this without you."

"Glad to help."

He drove off, happy that she'd agreed to come to Thanksgiving dinner. Jess had mentioned that she wanted to invite them, but hadn't gotten around to inviting them. she was too damned occupied with their business. He'd declined the offer in Chicago, knowing he was missing out on a huge chunk of change, but realizing if he agreed to work with this company, he and Jess would have no free time. Lately, however, she'd been accepting every request that came in. He knew it was just because she was trying to prove that she was good at what she did, but he was trying to convince her to refuse some clients. She couldn't do everything. Eventually, she had agreed and dropped two projects, though she hadn't been too happy about it. Still, it gave them a lot more time to spend together, which made them both happier. As he pulled into his parking spot, he couldn't wait to tell her that Olivia and Alex were coming to Thanksgiving dinner.

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One month after her truce with Jess, Casey found herself being invited to the girl's apartment for Thanksgiving dinner. The phone call she had received asking her to come had thrown her slightly off guard. While it was true that she'd forgiven Jess and agreed to form some type of friendly relationship with her, she still hadn't expected to be invited to Thanksgiving dinner. Sure they'd had lunch twice and things were getting less awkward between them, but the invitation had still been a surprise. When she found out that Olivia and Alex were also invited, however, she decided it was a good idea to go. Her biggest problem was Steve. He was still fuming at the idea of her having a relationship with the girl.

"You know," he said as they were getting ready. "You don't have to do this. You don't have to forgive her and just pretend like the past never happened."

He was angry. She could see it in his eyes. She hated that look. She'd seen it too many times after she'd come home late. For the last week, however, she hadn't seen it. She'd dropped all of her cases except the Jennings one. She'd even agreed to plea out Cynthia Zeller. While she hated that the woman wasn't going to get a needle in the arm, she loved that she was now going to be able to spend more time with Steve. Zeller's attorney knew how much Casey wanted the case to be over, so he offered her a deal: Give her life without the possibility of parole, or spend the next several months in court. She caved and made the deal. Alex hadn't been too keen on the idea, but that was mainly because she knew Casey was going to get a lot of crap for it, and she didn't want that to happen. None of that mattered to Casey, though. What mattered now was spending Thanksgiving with Steve and her friends, even if it meant spending it at Jess' apartment.

She sighed and took his hand. "I know I don't have to do this, but I want to. She's Alex's niece, Steve. I can't just pretend that she doesn't exist anymore. Alex is more important."

"But –" he started, but she put a finger to his lips to silence him.

"No buts Steve, please."

He wanted nothing more than to argue with her, but he knew her mind was made up. "Casey, I remember the pain in your eyes when you told me what she did to you. How can you just forgive her so easily?"

Casey smiled. He was so cute when he was angry. "Steve, I forgave her a long time ago," she said as she ushered him out of the bathroom. They made their way down the hall and outside. "She was just a kid then, and she was carrying around a hell of a lot of baggage. I know I'm not usually one to forgive and forget, but I think I need to make an exception here."

"Casey, you –"

"She's Alex's niece, Steve! Alex loves that girl almost as much as she loves Olivia. You know how much Alex means to me. We may not be related by blood, but in my heart, she's my sister. I will do anything to keep her happy." She noticed Steve's body tense and smiled again. She patted his back as she pulled onto the highway. "I want to do this, Steve. Alex isn't the kind of person to trust easily. If she loves and trusts Jess, it's for a good reason. Please Steve, for everyone's sake, give her a chance."

He sighed. She was right. He hated to admit it, but it was true. After all, if Jess hadn't been in Alex's apartment that night and made sure that Casey stayed awake after she'd gotten hit in the head with an ashtray, there was no telling what may have happened. "You're right. I'm sorry."

She smiled and squeezed his hand as she kept her eyes focused on the heavy Thanksgiving traffic. It made her happy to see him so concerned and nervous about getting to know Jess. It proved how much her pain meant to him. "Don't apologize. Just promise to give her a chance."

"I promise."

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"Allen, they're going to be here in fifteen minutes!" Jess said anxiously as she darted back into the dining room and checked the settings for about the twentieth time. "What if they don't like dinner? What if I screwed something up?"

He laughed. You're so cute when you're nervous, he thought. He put his hand in his pocket and smiled. The ring was still exactly where it was supposed to be. His mind wandered to all the great times they'd had together, and he couldn't help but smile. She was the perfect person for him. He couldn't wait to spend the rest of his life with her.

"Are you even listening to me?" she asked, the anxiety in her voice clearly escalating. She straightened and restraightened the napkins again. "Twelve minutes, Allen! We have twelve minutes! I'm so worried I've forgotten something!"

"Honey, relax." He pulled her away from the table so she could admire the settings. "Alex and Olivia would still love you if you handed them a Burger King kids' meal. It's okay."

She shook her head and smacked his chest. He could be so dense sometimes. "Allen, they're not the ones I'm worried about. I'm worried about Casey and Steve. I mean, I know Casey and I are talking now – which is great – but it's still a little awkward. Steve still hasn't said a word to me since that day Alex put Casey in the hospital. I'm scared, Allen."

He couldn't help but laugh. "Sweetie, relax. It's going to be okay. We're all adults and we're all going to have a nice Thanksgiving dinner together."

She stopped arguing and gave a sigh of defeat. "I hope so. I would hate to ruin Alex's Thanksgiving."

"You won't. It's going to be okay."

He was pretty close to being right. Alex and Olivia arrived first, followed shortly by Casey and Steve. They all gathered in the living room, and nobody knew what to say. Nobody even knew how to start the conversation. Alex thought about mentioning the weirdly cold weather they'd been having lately, but then thought better of it. Weather was too obvious. It would be too obvious that she was trying to strike up something to talk about.

Finally, after he couldn't stand the silence any longer, Allen stood up. "I, uh, I've been thinking about this for a while now, and I figure now's a good a time as any." He saw Alex smile widely at this break in the silence she gave him a confident wink, hoping to tell him that he could do it. He took a deep breath and he took Jess' hand in his. He put his other hand in his pocket. "Jessica Matthews, I fell in love with you the first day you walked into that classroom. I knew right then that you were the one for me, and you have proven me right time and time again. I love you more than you could ever imagine, and more than I could ever express in words. You make me the happiest man in the world. I want to spend the rest of my life with you." He pulled out the small box and showed her the ring. "Jessica, will you marry me?"

She couldn't breathe. She put her hand to her mouth and gasped. "I…uh…wow, Allen. I…"

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Yea, I'm evil. Just admit it. I figured a cliffhanger was a good way to end this chapter.

insert evil laughter

I'm going on vacation. My plane leaves at seven tomorrow morning, which means I have to leave no later than 4:30. Living this far from the airport sucks. Anyways, I'll be gone for eight days, so it'll probably be at least nine before I'll be able to update. Sorry. Enjoy the cliffhanger!