A/N: Thanks for continuing to read, review, and follow! I appreciate it. I apologize for not posting last week, but I ran into a bit of a writer's block. Honestly, they suck. I had a pretty good idea of what I wanted to do but had a problem writing it. The last thing I wanted to do was put something up that I felt didn't make sense. Luckily, I was able to push through it.

In case you didn't catch it, I posted a revision of the chapter before this one. You may want to check it out for a better understanding of Sarah's character if you're not familiar with it. It's also more in line with the show's version. This chapter picks up where the last one left off. Hope you enjoy this update!

/

The receptionist glanced up at the blonde woman who had just walked into the Miranda Center. "Good afternoon. Welcome to the Miranda Center. My name is Hillary. May I help you?"

"Yes, I'm looking for Bianca Montgomery. I was told she was here today."

"She is. Do you have an appointment?"

"No, I don't, but I'm hoping she'll want to see me."

"Ms. Montgomery has a very busy schedule today. So, I can't promise anything, but I can check and see if she has a few minutes. May I ask your name?"

"It's Sarah Livingston."

"Please have a seat, Ms. Livingston, and I'll be right back."

"Thank you." Sarah nodded and found an empty seat.

Hillary disappeared down the hallway that led to Bianca's office. Normally, she would have just called her boss about having a visitor. Something told her not to in this instance, that this was something that needed to be handled in person. On the way to Bianca's office, Hillary spotted one of the security guards returning from his rounds. She asked him to keep a discreet eye on their latest visitor which he readily agreed to do. Experience had taught Hillary that it was better to be safe than sorry when it came to visitors at the Center, and that was especially true when Bianca was there. Plus, Hillary knew that a certain redheaded lawyer would have her head if something happened to Bianca because of a lapse in judgement on her part.

/

Bianca finished the last bite of her sandwich as she wadded up the paper it had been wrapped in and tossed it into the garbage can underneath her desk. She had briefly thought about skipping lunch so she could finish reading a report before her next meeting, but then, she remembered her promise to Marissa. Bianca also knew it wasn't something healthy for her to do, especially given her past struggle with anorexia. Therapy helped save her life and taught her healthy eating habits. Bianca, in turn, passed those healthy habits on to her children and did her best to both encourage and exhibit a positive body image.

With her desk cleaned up, Bianca put her reading glasses on and pulled up the report she had been reading prior to her mini break. After a few minutes of reading, the brunette glanced up when she heard a knock on the door.

"Come in."

"Hi, Bianca."

"Hi, Hillary. What's up?"

"You have a visitor."

"I do? I'm not expecting anyone, and not many people know that I'm here."

"Well, she asked for you specifically. I have someone from Security keeping an eye on her."

"She? What's her name?"

"Sarah Livingston."

"Sarah?"

"Do you know her?"

Bianca removed her glasses and sat back in her chair. That was a name from the past. She hadn't thought of her ex-girlfriend in what felt like a lifetime. How in the world did Sarah know she was here? What was she doing at the Center? There was only one way to get the answers to those questions.

"Yes, I do. It's been a few years since I've seen her, but yes, I know her."

"Do you want me to send her back or tell her you're busy?"

"Give me a couple of minutes and then send her back." Bianca instructed.

"Okay. What about your next meeting?"

"How much time do I have?"

"Fifteen minutes."

"Alright. Scratch the couple of minutes and send her back now. Come get me in ten minutes for the meeting."

Hillary nodded. "Will do."

"Thank you."

/

Less than a minute later, there was a knock on the office door.

Bianca smiled when she saw the blonde. "Sarah. It's good to see you. Please come in."

The blonde entered and returned the smile. "Hello, Bianca. It's good to see you too. I hope you don't mind me dropping by like this."

"Not at all. How did you find me?"

"Oh, I happened to see you yesterday when you were having lunch with a man."

Bianca nodded. "That would be Greg. I was helping him shop for an engagement ring. Why didn't you stop over?"

"I didn't want to interrupt you."

"So, how did you find me here?"

Sarah smiled sheepishly. "I googled you."

"Well, that had to be pretty boring." Bianca scoffed.

"It was actually pretty interesting. I read about the Miranda Center and saw you had a branch in the city. I decided to take a chance that you would be here and dropped in."

"I stop in every so often to meet with the staff. Which reminds me, I only have a few minutes before my next meeting."

"Oh, I understand. I'll let you get back to work. I just wanted to say 'hi'." Sarah's disappointment was evident. She had really hoped to talk to Bianca for longer than just a couple of minutes.

Bianca was torn. Should she just end this now and leave it with just saying 'hi', or should she suggest they meet up later and talk some more? A part of her really wanted to catch up with Sarah. While they hadn't ended things on the greatest of terms, Bianca had forgiven her ex-girlfriend a long time ago and had only wanted the best for her. She quickly made up her mind. "I really would like to catch up. Are you free for dinner? It would have to be early since I'm catching the red-eye back to Pine Valley tomorrow."

Sarah perked up at the idea. "Dinner sounds perfect. I don't have anything pressing tonight."

"Great. I'm staying at the Hilton on the Avenue of the Americas. There's an Italian place across the street that I had planned on going to tonight. We could meet there at say 5:30?"

"Again, that sounds perfect. Okay, I really should go now. I'll see you in a few hours."

"I'll see you then." Bianca saw Hillary appear at her office door and waved her in. "Perfect timing, Hillary."

Sarah smiled before leaving Bianca to her work.

/

Marissa sat outside the courtroom reviewing her notes as she waited for the bailiff to come get her and let her know that the judge was ready for her. The case scheduled on the court docket before hers was running over which had her and her client waiting. While her client made a quick trip to the men's room, Marissa used this time to her advantage.

"You!"

Marissa glanced up and saw an all too familiar person in front of her. "Tammy."

"This is all your fault!"

The redhead sighed. It had been an okay day up until then, as okay as it could be with Bianca out of town that is. Tammy's mere presence however always managed to put a damper on the brightest of the days. She really hadn't expected to see her here of all places today. Marissa may need to talk to Sofia to at least get a heads up as to when the Baldwins would be scheduled for court appearances. "What are you talking about? What did I allegedly do now?"

"You know damn well what you did!"

"No, I don't. I wouldn't have asked if I did. Why don't you enlighten me?" Marissa had a fairly good idea of what she was being accused of, but there was no way in hell she was going to give Tammy any kind of satisfaction by saying she knew what she was talking about, especially when she wasn't responsible.

"You talked Doug into filing for divorce, and you're representing him! You're doing all of that just so you can stick it to me! I haven't done anything to you!" Tammy's screaming had others glance their way.

"First of all, lower your voice. In case you forgot, this is a courthouse, and that officer over there looks like he's becoming very interested in what's going on over here. If he becomes anymore interested, he'll come over, and with you being the aggressor, you'll probably get hauled away. Is that something you really want?"

"Fine." Tammy hissed.

"Second of all, I didn't talk Doug into filing for divorce. I have nothing whatsoever to do with your marriage or any problems there may be with it. I also don't represent Doug. Someone else at my firm does, but I have no knowledge of the proceedings. Given our history, I'm staying completely out of it. Lastly, we both know you're full of it. You haven't done anything to me? Give me a break. You've done nothing but try and cause problems for Bianca and me. Even with all of that, I'm still staying out of your business. You want someone to blame for the problems in your life, look in the mirror. You have no one to blame other than yourself. Now, I would appreciate it if you would leave me the hell alone so I can get back to work." With that said, Marissa turned her attention back to her notes. This had been a long day, and she was in no mood for one of Tammy's tantrums. Marissa really wished the judge would push her case back until tomorrow because at this point she didn't know how long she would be there. She was glad she had called Susan to pick up Danny from daycare. By doing that, she could at least go straight home once she was done here.

Tammy seethed at Marissa's dismissal and was about to unload on the redhead again when she was interrupted by her soon to be ex-husband.

"What the hell are you doing, Tammy?" Doug asked as he exited the courtroom. He spotted Tammy cornering Marissa, and he knew she was most likely blaming the redhead for their marriage falling apart instead of, per usual, taking any responsibility. Doug knew he wasn't innocent by any stretch of the imagination just as much as he knew that Tammy wasn't either. They were both equally guilty, but the difference between them was that he accepted responsibility while Tammy adamantly refused to do the same.

The Baldwins' respective lawyers were hot on their tails. As Sofia pulled Doug back, Tammy's lawyer sighed and tried her best to pull her client back. Jordan Romero represented Tammy, and Marissa knew her fairly well. While she was good, Sofia was better. Sofia also had the easier client to handle. Jordan definitely had her hands full, and you could see it was starting to wear on her. Marissa nodded to the other lawyer as she mouthed 'sorry' to the redhead.

"Let's go, Tammy. We have a lot to talk about." Jordan had only managed to pull Tammy a few feet away before her client started on another rant.

Sofia glanced at her boss and shook her head. "Are you okay?"

Marissa shrugged. "Yeah. At this point, I'm used to her blaming me for everything. Do I want to know why your case ran over?"

"I don't even know how to explain what happened in there. That woman is just …" Sofia was still in shock from witnessing Tammy's outburst at the judge. It was only Jordan's quick thinking that had prevented the woman from being held in contempt of court.

"I'm sorry, Marissa."

"It's not your fault, Doug. You have nothing to apologize for."

"Ms. Tasker?"

Marissa glanced up and saw a bailiff exit the courtroom. "Yes."

"Judge Tanner wanted me to express her apologies to you and your client. The case before yours ran over. Rather than start your hearing now at this late hour, the judge would like to reschedule."

"That's fine."

"One of the clerks will contact your office first thing in the morning. Then along with opposing counsel, we'll come up with a new date and time that works for all of you."

"Sounds like a good and fair plan to me. Thank you. I believe opposing counsel is just down there."

The bailiff looked down the hallway where Marissa had indicated and located the other parties involved that he needed to inform of the change in plans. "Thank you. Have a good evening."

"You too." Marissa smiled when her client reappeared. "Hi, Rich. Due to it being so late, the judge wants to reschedule."

"Alright. I was wondering if that was going to happen. Do we know when yet?"

"No. A clerk is going to contact me tomorrow morning so we can figure that out with the other side. I'll let you know what we come up with."

"Okay. Thanks. I've got a couple of calls I need to return. I'll talk to you tomorrow." Rich pulled out his cellphone and walked over to a quiet corner.

Marissa glanced around. The halls were still busy but had thinned out somewhat which was due to the time. She quickly shoved her notes into her briefcase and then pulled out her cellphone to make some calls herself. Her first call would be home to let Jessica know she would be leaving shortly. After that, she was going to give Bianca a quick call. She needed a little pick-me-up from her wife.

/

Bianca arrived at the restaurant first and was just about to give Marissa a quick call when she saw Sarah being led to the table by the restaurant's host. This had Bianca place her cellphone down on the table because she didn't want to be rude.

"Hi, Sarah." Bianca smiled as she greeted the other woman.

The blonde returned the smile. "Hi, Bianca. I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long."

"No, I've only been here a few minutes."

A server appeared to take Sarah's drink order and then left to retrieve it.

There was a moment of awkward silence, and both women tried to break it at the time. The result of which had them laughing.

"You start." Bianca offered.

Sarah nodded. "So, you are still in Pine Valley?"

"I am. I lived in Paris for a while but then made my way back home to Pine Valley when my marriage ended."

"Oh, I thought you were married. The Center's website said …"

Bianca interrupted to set the other woman straight. "That was my first marriage. It … well, it just didn't work out. In the end, we wanted different things." Bianca really didn't feel comfortable going into the particulars of her marriage to Reese with Sarah.

"So, you married again?"

A bright smile crossed her face the instant Bianca thought of her wife. There was no doubt in her mind that this marriage was for keeps. "I did. Marissa and I have been married for over a year."

"That's … that's great. Tell me about her and your kids. The website said you have four children."

"Wow. Where do I start? Marissa is a lawyer, actually a partner in the most successful firm in Pine Valley. We do have four children, two girls and two boys. Miranda and Gabby are our daughters, and AJ and Danny are our sons."

"Your daughters are beautiful and look just like you. There's a bit of a gap between the oldest and youngest."

"Marissa and I have a blended family. Miranda and Gabby are my biological daughters. AJ is Marissa's son from her first marriage. She adopted him and has full custody. Her ex-husband has some issues and lost his parental rights as a result. This allowed me to adopt him, and Marissa adopted the girls at the same time. Miranda and AJ were born within minutes of each other, and they call themselves birthday twins."

"Ex-husband?"

Bianca raised an eyebrow. "Do you really want to go there?"

Sarah shook her head. She realized her mistake the second the words left her mouth and knew she, of all people, didn't have any right to question the fact that Marissa had previously been married to a man. You're right. I'm sorry. That's really cute about Miranda and AJ. Were you close with his parents? Is his biological mother not in the picture?"

"I knew his biological parents. His biological mother was killed in a tornado before Marissa came to Pine Valley. AJ doesn't remember a lot about her because he was so young. To him, Marissa is the only mother he's ever really had." Bianca wasn't going to go into any of the sordid details surrounding Miranda's and AJ's births or the complicated family connections. "As for Danny, Marissa had him this past April thanks to a clinic here in New York."

"You adopted him then?"

"There was no need. With my wife being a lawyer, she keeps on top of legal changes surrounding family law which is her specialty. There was a change earlier this year that allowed me to be listed as 'mother' along with Marissa on his birth certificate. She made sure the hospital knew of that change and did it." Bianca said proudly.

"Oh, that's great. You … you seem happy."

"That's because I am. I'm very happy. It took some time, but we both finally found the right person."

"How did you meet?"

"She represented me in my divorce. We became friends during that time. Then by the time my divorce was final, we were best friends. We helped each other deal with everything our former spouses were throwing our way, which was a lot. Marissa and I had the other's back. Somewhere along the line, we became more than friends and fell in love."

Sarah offered a polite smile. She found herself envious of the life Bianca had now, one that was shared with Marissa. Sarah couldn't help but be a little jealous of a certain redheaded woman whom she had never met. "What about the Miranda Center? How did that come about?"

"The idea came to me after I had Miranda." Again, Bianca didn't feel comfortable going into all of the details behind her creating the Center. While she had once been close with Sarah, that was a long time ago, and Bianca just wasn't ready or willing to open up about that period in her life with someone who was now basically a stranger. The brunette talked about the Center and the various services it offered. "Unfortunately, there is a need for places like the Miranda Center, and while it is hard work sometimes, it is very fulfilling."

As she listened to Bianca, Sarah couldn't help but wonder if there was more to the story, but Bianca was keeping that to herself for whatever reason. "It's admirable. I have to say that I'm floored by what you've done. You know, I really shouldn't be surprised, but I have to admit that I am a little. You have to be proud of what you've accomplished."

"I am, but I definitely can't take all of the credit. I have a lot of people working for me that are just as dedicated." Bianca paused to take a drink. "Okay, we've done nothing but talk about me. It's your turn. What's been going on with you and your life for the past several years?"

Before Sarah could answer, the server, who had asked a few times if they were ready to order, returned. Not wanting to send him away yet again, both women quickly scanned the menu and placed their orders.

Once the server disappeared, Bianca needed to excuse herself. "If you'll excuse me a minute, I'm going to run to the ladies room. When I get back, we're talking about you. I'm not letting you off the hook. I want details." Bianca smiled as she grabbed her purse and headed off in search of the ladies room.

/

Sarah nodded and wondered more about Bianca's life. Her musing was interrupted by a cellphone ringing. She realized it was Bianca's and that the brunette had left it at the table. A quick glance revealed a picture of a smiling redhead. Sarah knew she should just let it ring and go to voicemail, but she found herself answering it.

"Hello."

Marissa was surprised to hear another woman's voice answering Bianca's cellphone, so surprised in fact that she quickly glanced at her own cellphone to make sure that she hadn't hit an incorrect entry in her contact log. She quickly verified that she hadn't done anything wrong and was, in fact, calling her wife's cellphone.

"Hello. I'm looking for Bianca Tasker-Montgomery."

"Oh, Bianca isn't available at the moment. May I ask who is calling?"

"Her wife. May I ask who this is?"

"This is Sarah. I'm an old friend."

Marissa wasn't an idiot. As soon as she heard the other woman's name, the redhead had a pretty good idea of exactly who Sarah was. Marissa was also positive that Sarah knew exactly who she was. "I see. I have two questions for you, and I'm pretty sure you can guess what they are. Why isn't she available, and why are you answering her cell …"

Marissa's last question was cut off by an alarm going off in the courthouse. She knew exactly what the alarm meant, and it wasn't good. "Dammit. I need to go. Tell Bianca to call me."

Before Sarah could reply, the call was disconnected. She quickly placed the cellphone back on Bianca's side of the table. There was no doubt in her mind that there was an irritated redhead in Pine Valley.

Bianca returned a minute later. "So, let's talk about you."

Sarah knew she should relay Marissa's message right away, but something stopped her. She just wanted a few minutes more with Bianca. Sarah reasoned that a small delay in delivering the message wouldn't hurt anything. "What would you like to know?"

/

"What is that alarm?! What's it mean?!" Tammy had already started to panic.

"There seems to be a security issue of some sort. That alarm means that we need to shelter in place." Marissa answered calmly.

/

A/N: It seems my evil side woke up when I got through my writer's block. Go figure! See you soon!