A/N: As always, thanks for the reviews! Please keep them coming! This chapter picks up where I left off with the last one. Hope you enjoy this update!

/

"So, do you have some information for me?"

"I might, but it doesn't come free, Mr. Taylor. It's going to cost you."

"I really don't see you having much room to negotiate here, Ms. Tasker. We've got your client in custody, and she hasn't been inclined to help the police track down the others. Plus, we have her on tape. It was a pretty clear image of her too from what I'm told, the only one that was. The way I see it, you really don't have a leg to stand on. So, I'm going to say no deal." The assistant D.A. struck an arrogant tone. They were playing on his turf and not her's, and he was going to be calling the shots.

Jesse shook his head, trying to hide his smirk. I think I'm going to enjoy this. Don't say I didn't warn you.

"Oh, I think you're wrong there." Marissa smiled.

"Really? I am, huh? How so, exactly?" Pete chuckled.

"You haven't read her file, have you?"

"No, I haven't, but it wouldn't change anything if I had. The way I see it, it has no bearing on this at all. It's pretty clear cut."

"I beg to differ. The way I see it, my client will make an awfully sympathetic defendant. If you had taken the time to read her file, you would know that she lost both of her parents last year, was abused by the foster family in whose care she was placed not once but twice and social services didn't follow up on her complaint of the abuse. All of that makes her pretty sympathetic."

"I'm still not seeing it or buying it. You're going to have to do better." He stated with less bravado than before.

"Did I forget to tell you about the Miranda Center?"

"What about them?"

"Oh, I did forget to tell you. You see, besides her being sympathetic to the jury because of her history that you seem to want to disregard, there's also the fact that I'm pretty sure that you won't have the complete cooperation of the folks at the Miranda Center."

"Why wouldn't I have their cooperation? They are the victims in this case."

"True, they are, but they may not see it that way. Bianca Montgomery, the woman who runs the Center …"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know who she is."

Marissa smiled. "I'm glad to hear that. You see, Bianca is the one who asked me to represent Sam."

"Who in the hell is Sam?"

"Samantha Robinson, the defendant. She prefers Sam, by the way."

"Whatever. You're saying Ms. Montgomery did what?" He couldn't hide the surprise in his voice.

"She asked me to represent Sam. When you think about it, it makes me wonder."

"Wonder what?"

"How do you think it's going to play with the jury if the founder and head of the Miranda Center is reaching out to help the girl on trial for breaking into it?"

"I don't believe you. You're either bluffing or making this up."

"I'm afraid that it's neither. We could call her and clear all this up right now if you want. I've got her home and cellphone numbers right here." Marissa held up her cellphone.

Jesse did his best to hide the smirk forming on his face. He had warned the other lawyer, but he wouldn't listen. Instead, he was, as always, cocky and condescending so he kind of deserved this reality check the redhead was handing him. Jesse also had to admit to himself that he really did like seeing Marissa in action. He didn't think he'd want to play poker with her however. She had way too good of a poker face right now and wasn't giving anything away. That surprised him a little. The chief knew she was absolutely head over heels about Bianca, but you couldn't tell that right now. She was all business and checked her personal feelings at the door. Now, she was all about helping her client. He really respected her for being able to do that.

"Chief Hubbard, is she telling the truth? Did Bianca Montgomery ask her to represent one of the people responsible for breaking into the Miranda Center?"

"Afraid so, Mr. Taylor. Ms. Tasker is telling the truth. Ms. Montgomery came down here earlier today for an update. When she heard about Sam's history of losing her parents, she called Ms. Tasker. Once she was here, Ms. Montgomery asked for her to help Sam."

"Why in the hell would she do something like that? That doesn't make any sense at all. No one in their right mind would do that."

Marissa smiled. "You may know of Bianca, but it's obvious that you don't know her. It's who she is and what she does. I can assure you that she is most definitely in her right mind." You condescending son of a bitch. You arrogant sack of shit. "I think she'll make quite an impression on the jury as a witness for the defense."

"You're, you're planning on calling her?"

"Of course, I am. Why wouldn't I? I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't."

"If you have such a great case, why do you need to make a deal?" Gotcha!

"Well, there's the matter of where my client will live once she's free and the charges are dismissed. I don't want her blindly turned back over to the foster care system. I figure if we make a deal where we can be sure my client is safe and well cared for, it will help all concerned."

"What do you mean? How is the D.A.'s office helped by that?"

"It saves you all a black eye. It wouldn't look good for your office to have a trial where the victims side with the defense, now would it? Plus, I'm sure the press will eat up my client's story."

"I, I need a minute. I have to make a call."

"Take your time." Marissa nodded and watched as the other lawyer pulled out his cellphone and walked away.

"You think he's calling his boss?" Jesse asked.

"Yeah, I know he is, and that is just fine with me. I'd rather deal with Mike any day of the week over him."

Jesse nodded. "I agree with you on that. D.A. Jensen has always struck me as a pretty reasonable guy. Don't you know him?"

"Uh huh, he handled JR's trial."

"That's right! He did, didn't he?"

"His sister-in-law Lori serves as a consultant for the Center as well."

"So, it's safe to say that Mike knows about you and Bianca, your relationship. A fact that I noticed you didn't share with Mr. Taylor."

"He didn't ask so I didn't feel the need to share the information with him. I noticed that you didn't say anything either." Marissa smirked.

"It must have slipped my mind just like Bianca's visit with Sam slipped your's." Jesse chuckled.

"What he doesn't know won't hurt us." Marissa grinned.

"I appreciate that."

"Sam's all set to stay over tonight?"

"Yeah, I had someone make up a place for her again. It's away from everyone else. She'll be safe. We'll move her as soon as you want."

"Thanks, Jesse."

"You're welcome. Ah, here he comes."

The assistant D.A. cleared his throat and held out his cellphone to Marissa. "The district attorney would like to speak with you."

The redhead nodded, took the phone and moved away from the men. "Good evening, Mike. How are you tonight?"

"I'm good, Marissa, and yourself?"

"I'll be honest. It's been a long day."

"It sounds like it's been a busy one for you too. It appears that you have Pete flustered a bit. He was thinking this was going to be a cake walk since you're playing outside your area of expertise, like that would matter one damn bit. It seems he didn't see it coming that he wouldn't have the complete support of the Miranda Center. He just assumed that he would. I suppose that would be understandable if he lived under a rock. Let's face it. It's common knowledge that you're involved with Bianca, and there's no way in hell you'd be representing someone who damaged the place that means so much to her. He also doesn't have the first clue of who she is." Mike chuckled.

"I thought everyone knew, but he didn't ask. He didn't seem to care either. Besides, does Bianca being my girlfriend really have any bearing on this?"

"I suppose not other than the fact that I know you're know telling the truth about the extent of her cooperation, and you'll fight like hell for her. Besides, Pete's an ass."

Marissa laughed. "Not that I'm going to argue that point with you, but should you be telling me that about one of your prosecutors?"

"Oh please, he's working in this office because of who his dad is, and daddy has connections with the governor's office. That's the only reason. He's more trouble than he's worth. He expects every defense attorney to shake in their boots because he works for the D.A., and he doesn't even try. Let me guess. Some of the first words out of his mouth were 'no deal'."

"Yeah, you guessed it. He just expected me to turn over information without negotiating. You know me well enough to know that I won't do that. I have to look out for my client's best interests."

"Yeah, you do. Can I ask you something? Did Bianca really ask you to represent this girl, this Sam Robinson?"

"She really did, but she did it with the caveat that the request was only if I thought it was the right thing to do."

"I'm guessing that you think it is?"

"Yeah, Mike, I do. I can tell you've read her file, but there's a lot that's not in there. You don't know everything this girl's gone through. It doesn't excuse what she's done, but it does give some insight and an explanation."

"Which is something that a jury will be able to hang on to when giving a verdict. I take it you have something specific in mind, Marissa."

"You know me pretty well."

"I think I do. Alright, you want to give me an idea of what you've got and what you want. We'll let Pete cool his heels while we see if we can find a compromise we both can live with."

/

Marissa pulled into the driveway and turned off the ignition. While she was happy to finally be home, she remained in her car and looked at the house. Even though it was extremely late, there was still a light on downstairs in the family room and another upstairs in her and Bianca's bedroom. She wasn't surprised by that. She knew Bianca would be inside waiting up for her, and she hadn't needed a text to let her know that would be the case. Marissa remembered the text she had received earlier. "Get home safe. I'll be waiting no matter how late. I love you." The redhead had meant what she had said in the voicemail she had left Bianca earlier about wanting her girlfriend to get some rest and not wait up, but Marissa had to admit to herself that she was glad she hadn't listened to her. Those few words and knowing that Bianca would be there for her when she got home helped get her through what had been a tough evening.

She continued to sit in the car torn about going inside. It wasn't that she still angry with Bianca. That had faded hours ago. She hadn't doubted for one minute that it would. No, what bothered Marissa now was seeing Bianca's reaction when she told her everything Sam had gone through. No one felt the pain of others more acutely than Bianca, and Marissa knew how upset her girlfriend would be when she heard what Sam had been through. Seeing that hurt and pain in the eyes of her girlfriend was the last thing Marissa ever wanted to see, but she would have to see it because Bianca needed to know, would want to know, in order for them to help Sam. The girl had given her permission to tell Bianca everything. Marissa had convinced her that it was necessary because Bianca was a key part of the deal that she had struck with the district attorney.

Besides discussing Sam's situation, the couple also needed to talk about what had happened between them. She understood the reasons behind Bianca's actions now. What still bothered Marissa was how Bianca went about it, and she knew that was what she needed to talk with her girlfriend about. They needed to clear the air and sort everything out. It's what they had done before when they had fought, not that Marissa considered what they were going through now as a fight really. No, this was different, and whatever it was, they would get through because neither let their ego nor pride get in the way of their love and trust for the other. They started out as and remained best friends, something neither lost sight of. There was also the undeniable fact that they had found their other half, their soul mate, the one they had been destined for.

Marissa sighed as she got out of the car and slowly made her way to the door. The events of the day were finally catching up with her, and she was emotionally and physically exhausted. She took a deep breath, unlocked the front door and went inside.

/

Bianca had heard Marissa pull into the driveway. She had been waiting for her girlfriend to arrive home for several hours. She had managed to keep herself from dwelling on her earlier actions too much when the kids were awake, but after putting them to bed, she struggled with that. The brunette had sorted and organized things around the house. After that, she started to clean before finally taking a break not long ago. She heard Marissa's key in the lock and held her breath. Her eyes met the redhead's when she entered their home.

"Hi."

"Hi. I thought I asked you not to wait up."

Bianca smiled softly. "You did, but you really didn't expect me to not wait up, did you?"

Marissa returned the smile as she walked into the family room and set her things down. "No, I didn't. I knew you'd be up, even before I got your text."

"Are you okay? You look exhausted."

"I'm both, and I'm also really glad to be home. What about you? You look like you're as exhausted as I feel."

"I'm okay. I'm just really glad you're home."

"Are the kids okay? They didn't give you any problems?"

"Yeah, they are, and no, they didn't give me any problems." Bianca paused. "Rissa, I'm so sorry. I was wrong, and I should've been up front with you earlier about everything."

"I know you're sorry, and I'm honestly not angry about that anymore. I know we have to talk about a lot of things, and I know you want to know about Sam."

"Yeah, I do want to know about her, but right now, I'm more concerned about us. Are we okay?"

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure we are. Would it be okay with you if we talk about everything tomorrow though, or actually later today I guess now? I'm wiped out, and I don't want to say something that I don't mean. That could happen because I'm not really thinking very clear right now."

"I understand."

"Thanks. Right now, I just want to see our kids, give them a kiss and tell them I love them. It doesn't matter that they're asleep and won't hear me. It's something I need to do."

Bianca heard the emotion in Marissa's voice and simply nodded. The brunette knew they would talk, but now, Marissa needed some rest and a little time. Bianca would give her whatever she needed. "Okay. Why don't you go on upstairs and do that. I'll lock up, get the lights and be up after that."

Marissa took a shaky breath and headed upstairs. She checked on AJ first, sitting on his bed and brushing his hair back from his face. She kissed the top of his head and whispered. "I love you, buddy, so much. You changed my life that day I found you." She sat watching him sleep peacefully for a few more minutes before pulling the blanket he had kicked off back over him. She kissed him once more before heading to the girls' room.

Miranda was lying on her side with her blankets kicked off as well. What is it with you kids and your blankets? Marissa sat down next to her. She stoked her hair and smiled. Miranda was so much like her mother. She'd been through so much in her young life, but she was strong and a survivor. How anyone could hurt her or Gabby was beyond her comprehension. Marissa whispered, "I love you, Mimo. I'll always be here for you and your sister." She kissed her and covered her back up.

Gabby was lying diagonally across her bed, hugging Minx the monkey tightly. Marissa couldn't hold back a smile. How does someone so little take up so much space? She gently repositioned her youngest daughter and sat down. Like her mother, Gabby had such a big heart and was so loving. Again, Marissa questioned how someone could ever walk away from these girls or their mother. "I love you, monkey, with all of my heart." She covered her up and kissed her as well. She crossed to the door and gave them one last look before closing it behind her.

Marissa turned and found the brunette waiting for her, concern for her evident in warm chocolate eyes. They walked into their bedroom in silence. The redhead grabbed her pajamas and went into the bathroom to wash up while Bianca turned down the covers and got into bed. Marissa came back into their bedroom and turned off the lights before climbing into bed next to Bianca.

"Don't worry. I'll be okay. It's just been one hell of a day." Marissa said softly.

Bianca caressed the redhead's cheek. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I promise. Hey, I love you. I just …" Marissa yawned.

"I know. I love you too. Get some rest. Do you need to be up at certain time? I could wake you up after I drop the kids off."

"You need some rest too."

"I'll drop the kids off and then come back home. We'll talk then?"

Marissa nodded. "Yeah, we'll talk then."

/

Bianca turned off the alarm the instant it started to blare. Marissa had slept fitfully. Sometime during the early morning hours, Bianca found Marissa pressed next to her side. The brunette shifted slightly and wrapped her arms around her girlfriend. After that, the redhead seemed to have relaxed, and both women drifted back off to sleep. Bianca carefully got out of bed and ducked into bathroom hoping that a shower would help her wake up more.

/

Marissa felt someone watching her. It wasn't Bianca. There was a difference when she watched her, and the redhead sensed her absence. Marissa slowly opened one eye and saw Gabby standing next to her. "Hey, monkey. How are you?"

Gabby yawned and gave her a sleepy grin. "Morning, mommy. I missed you last night."

"I missed you too, monkey. You want to snuggle?"

Gabby nodded and climbed into bed after Marissa lifted the covers. The little girl snuggled in, and both drifted back to sleep. When Bianca came back into the bedroom, her heart leapt at the sight. She hated to break up that peaceful scene, but she needed to get Gabby ready for daycare.

Bianca knelt next to the bed and whispered. "Hey, Gabby. It's time to wake up and get ready, baby. I need you to be quiet though. We don't want to wake up Marissa."

"'K, mommy." Gabby whispered as she climbed out of bed with her mother's help and followed the older brunette out of the room.

Bianca helped the three kids get ready for school. After breakfast and before heading out for the day, Miranda and AJ poked their heads in their mothers' bedroom. Both smiled when they saw Marissa sleeping, glad that she was home. Her presence confirmed what they knew. There may be a strain between the couple at the moment, but things would be worked out between them.

/

The sound of the front door closing roused Marissa awake. She had been drifting in and out of sleep for a while now. She had heard the kids trying and failing to be quiet. It seemed the more they tried to be quiet, the louder they actually got. She wasn't sure how that worked exactly, but it was always the case. The bedroom door had opened several times, and each time she heard Bianca quietly shooing the kids away before closing it again. The last time it closed was when Bianca came in to give her a soft kiss goodbye. Moments later, she heard her family exit their home. Marissa felt somewhat drugged. The few hours of sleep that she had managed to get almost made her feel worse than if she hadn't slept at all. It had been a fitful night for her. She had actually gotten up several times during the night because she didn't want to wake up Bianca with her restlessness. She had so much on her mind that she just couldn't seem to shut it off. She was only able to finally settle when she felt Bianca take her in her arms and envelop her in a loving embrace.

She laid in bed for several more minutes before finally giving up on the idea of more sleep. Marissa sat up and thought about what she needed to do in the day ahead. She padded downstairs, grabbed her laptop and headed back upstairs. Marissa typed up her notes from last night's plea discussion with the district attorney. After her notes were transposed, she called the office and spoke with the paralegal she'd been assigned. Marissa emailed the details to the young woman and then proceeded to go over everything with her, explaining what she wanted and needed from her. The paralegal would type everything up and then, after the redhead had reviewed everything, she would deliver the finalized version to Marissa's home for the lawyer to review with Bianca. She knew her girlfriend would go along with what she had come up with but wanted to go over all of the details with her before getting the district attorney's signature.

Once she got off the phone with the office, she made her way to the bathroom and hoped that a shower would help scrub away the last remnants of sleep and give her a better outlook than what remained from last night.

/

Bianca pulled back into the driveway after dropping off the kids at school and daycare. As she was grabbing a bag from the front passenger's seat, she heard a car pull up behind her. She shook her head when she saw her sister get out of the car and walk towards her.

"Kendall, good morning. Are you following me by any chance?"

The older woman chuckled. "Nope, I called your office and was told you were coming in late today, if you came in at all. I decided to take a chance and hopefully catch up with you here."

"What's up? Why the sudden visit?"

"What? I'm not allowed to stop by and see my little sister for no reason?"

The two made their way into the house. "No, you know you're welcome to stop by anytime. You don't need a reason."

Kendall smiled. "Thank you! What's in the bag?"

"I stopped by Krystal's to pick up some breakfast for Marissa and myself. And back to the original subject of your visit. While you don't need a reason, I have the distinct impression that you have one this time."

Kendall feigned shock. "I'm hurt that you would think that, Binx."

Bianca simply raised an eyebrow and looked at her sister.

"Fine! I wanted to check on you, and I'm glad I did. You look tired. Is everything alright?"

Bianca glanced upstairs. She didn't want to disturb Marissa by having a drawn out conversation with her sister in the family room. She wanted the redhead to grab a little more sleep if she could so she directed her sister out of the room. "Let's talk in the kitchen."

Kendall followed her sister and sat down at the table while her sister grabbed them both some coffee before joining her.

"Okay, Binx, spill it. What's going on?"

Bianca sighed. "I screwed up, Kendall, big time."

"Come on, Binx. I'm sure whatever you did isn't nearly as bad as you think it is."

/

Marissa threw on a pair sweats and a t-shirt before heading downstairs. Autumn had finally arrived, and it was a cool day. She didn't feel like dressing for work quite yet. She padded downstairs having heard Bianca pull up. She heard voices coming from the kitchen and headed in that direction, stopping when she heard Bianca and her sister.