Chapter 23

As Callie is led to the door by Arizona, she stops and pulls Arizona's arm back.

"What's wrong?"

"I… I've only ever met George's mom and she didn't like me. I mean, I guess the feeling was mutual, but she hated me. What if your mom hates me too?"

"She won't hate you Calliope. You are a wonderful woman. She is going to love you. Just. relax and be yourself, and everything will be fine."

"But she is going to know what we were probably doing in here."

"Probably," Arizona says, somewhat amused by the panic that has now set in for Callie, but sympathy overtakes her. She doesn't want meeting her mom to be a bad memory for her. "Look, she will assume I was taking advantage of you. And believe me, I know I'm not doing myself any favors in saying that, but… you will be the innocent one. She will assume I am the one corrupting you. You will be fine, I promise."

Callie looks at her and says, "Hm. You must not hide much from your mom."

"Well, even if I try, she can see right through it. So, it doesn't do any good," Arizona says, shrugging. "Now, it will be fine, so let's meet my mom, ok?" Callie takes a deep breath and nods. Opening the door, Arizona is faced with an older version of herself. "Mom… hey, what are you doing here?"

"Well, hello to you too," Barbara says, noticing the woman right behind Arizona. "I'm interrupting something…" Barbara says, smirking. It isn't a question, rather a knowing statement.

"What? Oh… no. Not at all. We were just…"

"I know exactly what you were doing. Don't you have a bedroom at home for that?"

"Mom. We weren't doing anything. We were just, um, talking. Mom, this is Callie Torres," she says, pulling Callie up next to her, trying to change the subject. "Callie, this is my mom, Barbara."

"Hello… It's nice to meet you," Callie says, holding her hand out.

"Well, it's nice to meet you too," Barbara says, looking at Callie. Then she turns to Arizona, "This is who you were telling me about last week?"

Blushing, Arizona says, "Yeah. This is her."

Looking at Callie again, Barbara smiles. "I see why my daughter is taken with you. You are beautiful."

"Um, thank you," Callie says, surprised to hear that Arizona's mom already knew about her.

"Not just beautiful, she is brilliant too. So mom, what are you doing here?" Arizona asks, trying to get the attention off of Callie.

"Well, I haven't really heard from my daughter all week. I was kind of worried. Then I ran into Teddy at the gas station and she said you were here. She said, and I quote, "She would love to see you. You should stop by."

"Teddy would tell you that..." Arizona says, causing Callie to chuckle.

"Well, she knew I was worried about you. So, what's kept you from at least texting me this week?"

Looking at Callie, Arizona asks, "Do you mind if I tell her?"

"Not at all…" Callie says, offering an assuring nod.

"Well, do you remember last week, I um, I told you I was consulting on a case for Mayo?"

"Oh, yeah, I do remember that. You were really wanting to figure something out for that little girl."

"Yeah, well, I did figure something out. And, what I didn't know at the time, was that it was um, Callie's daughter," Arizona says, wondering how she will react to her interest in a woman with a child. Barbara's eyes widen. "Wait... You didn't know it was her daughter?"

"Well, um, Callie's married name was in the file. I didn't make the connection."

"Married name?" Barbara asks, giving her daughter a look.

"Divorced...," Callie adds, trying to hurry and save Arizona from her mother's apparent unhappiness with the thought she might be married. "Actually, divorced several months ago. But we were not together for about a year and a half before that."

Nodding, apparently happy with that answer, Barbara says, "And your daughter, is she here now or still at Mayo?"

Not really sure what Barbara is thinking yet, Callie nervously answers, "Um, she is here."

"Well, why don't you two take me to see this little one?"

"Oh, mom… you don't have to do that..."

"Arizona…" Barbara says, giving her a look.

"Callie?" Arizona asks, making sure the brunette is up for this.

"Arizona, don't keep your mom waiting…," Callie smirks. She can see now that Barbara is a take charge kind of woman and she finds it rather endearing.

"Come on…" Arizona leads the two women down the hall, but not before she reaches back and takes ahold of Callie's hand and giving Callie a look as if to apologize. Callie just squeezes her hand and smiles, letting her know everything is fine.

They get to Katie's room and Arizona lets Callie take the lead and walk in first. Barbara follows and takes in the little brunette who is still hooked up to the vent.

"So, Arizona, you figured something out that will help her?"

"She more than did," Callie answers before Arizona has a chance to answer. "She is giving me my daughter back," Callie says, leaning over to give Arizona a kiss on the cheek, causing Barbara to smile.

"Yeah. We diagnosed her with juvenile myasthenia gravis. It is where the nerves and the muscles can't communicate. So, we have started her on several treatments and as of last night, they have started to work. She has moved fingers and toes, several times. We also know now that she can more than likely hear us, so, we have been reading and telling her stories. Callie sings to her. We just sit and talk so that she knows we are here."

Barbara nods and looks back to Callie. "She is beautiful. Just like you."

"Thank you," Callie says, "You're too kind."

"Where is her father?" Barbara asks.

"Mom," Arizona moans.

"It's ok," Callie says, "He isn't in the picture. He signed over legal and physical custody during the divorce. He hasn't seen her in months. Even before the divorce, he only stopped to see her every few weeks. He only did that because his family pressured him to do it."

"Oh. Well, what about your parents? Are they close?"

"No. They live in Miami. My dad is actually flying in tomorrow for a visit though."

Barbara listens then turns back to watch Katie for a few more minutes. "So," Barbara says, turning back to see the two women looking at each other. "You two have been at the hospital all week?"

"Yeah, we started out at Mayo and then we made it back here Thursday," Arizona says.

"So, I have a feeling you two have not left the hospital much at all in the past week, am I right?"

"We haven't wanted to leave," Arizona says, giving her mom a look to leave it alone.

Watching the duo in front of her, Barbara seems to make a decision. "Why don't you two let me stay with her. I raised two kids so I make an excellent baby-sitter. You two run home, take a nice hot shower, then get eat a decent meal for once. What do you say."

"Oh, Mrs. Robbins... That's... You don't have to do that," Callie says.

"First of all, it's Barb. Or mom... whichever floats your boat. It's the least I can do. You two can't live on hospital food. Go get a healthy meal. I'm sure she has fed you nothing but grease this week if I know her."

This causes Callie to chuckle. "Well, I can't argue with that part, and I really appreciate the offer, but you don't have to do that."

"I know. I want to. You need to take care of yourselves. Go have a healthy dinner and take a hot shower that is actually hot. I'll be here when you get back."

"Mom..."

"Actually," Callie says, pulling Arizona around to face her. "I could stand to run home and grab some things. And I would love some real food. I have a feeling she is in good hands for an hour or two."

"Really?" Arizona asks, surprised.

"Yeah, really," Callie says, smiling as she looks at Barb. "You will call if anything changes?"

"Absolutely," Barbara nods.

"Well, Mom, if you don't care then, I'll take her to get what she needs. And... feed her some healthy food. We'll be back soon."

"Take your time..." Barbara smiles as the two make their way out of the room.

As they are walking down the hall, Arizona stops to let the nurses know they are stepping out for a bit but that her mom is there with them. Once they make it to the car and go to head of out the parking lot, Arizona stops at the light and chuckles.

"What's so funny?"

"I don't know where you live," Arizona says, causing Callie to chuckle as well.

"Turn right," Callie says, smiling. As Callie gives Arizona directions, they finally make it back to Callie's and head inside.

"Wow. This is... nice," Arizona says, looking around. She had a feeling Callie would have a nice house, but this is more than what she expected.

"Yeah, it's ok. Kind of glad my dad isn't coming here tomorrow. He would probably have a different opinion."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, this isn't his cup of tea. He likes something a little more... elaborate, I guess you could say. And it's pretty small for his taste... So, he would ramble on and on about how I could do better."

Trying to understand everything Callie is saying, Arizona says, "I think it's a beautiful house. Looks like it fits you."

"Yeah. It does. Um, I obviously haven't been here so there isn't much in the fridge, but there is some pop in there. So, help yourself. I um, I am going to go grab a quick shower and get some different clothes on. There is a remote on the coffee table in there."

"Ok," Arizona says. "Take your time."

"I won't be too long..." Callie says, as she places a small kiss on Arizona's cheek and heads upstairs.

Arizona watches her disappear, then makes her way to the living room. Before she sits on the couch, she looks around, taking in the brunette's space. It's definitely Callie. Everything is modern but has a sort of charm about it.

Over the mantle, there are a few pictures of Callie and Katie. One looks like it was taken moments after she was born. Callie has the most beautiful smile on her face. The others look like Katie was maybe a year old. She notices that Katie looks so much like Callie, even at that age.

Deciding to not snoop too much, she has a seat and turns the tv on, pulling a blanket down from the back of the couch and covering up. The next thing she knows, she is woken up by a warm hand on her face. She wakes up to see Callie sitting beside her, with a stack of papers, sorting them out.

"Hey… I'm sorry. I didn't mean to fall asleep."

"Oh, you're fine. I had some stuff to go through here anyway, so I didn't feel too guilty doing it while you were sleeping."

Nodding, Arizona sits up and folds the blanket, putting it on the back of the couch where she pulled it from. "So, you feel better after a nice, hot shower?"

"Oh, yeah. To be honest, the showers at the hospital haven't been terrible, but there is nothing like a shower at home. Standing up and taking the papers into the kitchen, she comes back in and says, "I'm ready to go if you are. I would imagine you are ready for one of those hot showers too."

"Well, it doesn't sound bad, I'll give you that."

About fifteen minutes later, the women arrive at Arizona's. When they walk in, Callie was surprised to see that is was a lot homier than what she would have expected from Arizona. Lots of pictures are hanging on the walls. Mostly Arizona and a blonde man that looks very much like her, giving away they have to be related.

Walking right into the living room, Arizona walks over to Callie and puts her arms around her. "I am going to go take a shower. You are welcome to stay down here or you can come up and keep me company." Callie's eyes grow big and Arizona says, "Relax... I just meant that you can come and sit on the bed, and I can keep the door to the bathroom cracked. We can talk while I'm in the shower."

"Oh. Well, um, yeah. That sounds good," Callie says, not really wanting to sit in the living room by herself.

"Good. Come on..." Arizona says, popping her dimples and leading Callie back to her bedroom. Turning her light on, Callie smiles when she walks in. Arizona has a large bed with a canopy, layered with large pillows and a fluffy throw blanket at the foot of the bed, with a book flipped over as if Arizona was coming back to it soon.

"Wow. This is beautiful, Arizona," Callie says, walking past Arizona over to the large bed and sitting down, picking the book up. She looks at the page Arizona is on and skims through it, looking back up at the woman and giving her a mischievous grin. "You like the steamy ones, huh?"

"Well, it makes for interesting reading, and... you never know when you might learn something," Arizona says, winking at Callie as she makes her way into the bathroom. "You might appreciate it later," Arizona says, causing Callie to laugh.

"I didn't think it was that funny, Arizona puts, as she starts taking her clothes off behind the cracked door.

Callie kicks her shoes off and makes herself comfortable, looking back at the book and chuckling to herself as she reads a little more.

"You are out there reading it now, aren't you?" Arizona yells out of the bathroom, over the sound of the water that is now running.

"Maybe," Callie says back, nonchalantly, as she continues to read. "You know, for a peds doctor, you have some rather slutty taste in reading. It's a little surprising."

"Well, you have to have some guilty pleasures Calliope. You don't have any?"

"I didn't say that. I mean, I love to read too. Usually I'm in public though, at the hospital and stuff, so I try to keep it more just... R rated as opposed to... this," she chuckles. "Not that I don't have any of these at home though, because I do." Leaning back, she sighs, getting comfortable as Arizona showers. A few minutes later, she says, "I love this bed. It's amazing."

"Thanks," Arizona says, as she shuts the water off. "I picked it out last year. I always wanted one when I was a kid, but we moved around so much, my parents wouldn't buy nice stuff. The military had a knack of scratching things up during moves, so they always said they weren't going to spend money on something just to have it ruined. Which, I could understand, but I always wanted one. Of course, when I picked this one out, I didn't run to the kids' section, although I was tempted. But, there is nothing keeping me from draping a few blankets over this and making a cool fort if I wanted."

"Ah, see, the peds surgeon makes an appearance," Callie says, as she giggles at the idea of Arizona making a fort out of this gorgeous bed.

About that time, Arizona comes out of the bathroom in nothing but a towel wrapped around her. "Well, I left the peds surgeon in the bathroom, now... I'm all woman," Arizona says, walking over towards Callie.

As she gets closer, Callie can smell the scent of Arizona's body wash, and falls in love with it. She watches as Arizona leans down and whispers, I can assure you, I'm all woman when I'm in bed." She can't help but giggle as Callie gasps.

"Um, I have no doubt about that," Callie squeaks as Arizona makes her way over to grab some clothes out of her drawer.

"You have a bad habit of not taking clothes in with you, don't you?"

"Well, usually I don't need a lot of clothes when I'm home. So, I guess I'm not in the habit of taking any in with me at all," Arizona says, watching Callie put the book down and sit up.

Callie watches as Arizona moves from one drawer to the other, pulling some things out, then heading right back to the bathroom. Callie has to admit, she is almost a little disappointed that Arizona didn't come back over to the bed. Watching Arizona, she wonders if they would have stopped themselves before Barbara knocked on the door earlier.

Arizona gets dressed and leaves her hair up in the towel for a little bit longer as she makes her way out of the bathroom and then, has a seat by Callie.

"You doing ok?" Arizona asks, as she takes the towel down and starts drying her hair.

"Yeah."

"You sure? You look like something is bothering you," Arizona says, as she sits the towel down and runs her fingers through her hair, trying to tame it.

"Um, it's just, earlier, before your mom came in…"

"Calliope, I'm sorry. I need to stop and give you space. I'm pushing you and putting pressure on you... I'll start staying somewhere else. I don't want you to feel pressure to do something you aren't ready for."

"Arizona… I know I'm new to the… lady stuff. But I'm a big girl. I am still a little nervous, but please don't mistake that for me being unsure of what I want. And, to be honest, it doesn't mean I'm not ready either, because I really am. The only thing I really don't want, is our first time to be in an on-call room. So, as much as I really," Callie says, leaning over to kiss below Arizona's ear, "…really enjoyed what was happening earlier," she says as she places more kisses up along Arizona's jaw line, "I'm kind of glad we had to stop. Not that I wanted to stop, but because I want our first time to be special."

Leaning down to where Arizona can see right into Callie's eyes, she says, "I feel the same way. So, I will promise you right now, our first time, will be here… or your house, and there will be candles and maybe some bubble bath," Arizona whispers as she leans in to kiss Callie's full lips, then runs her hands down Callie's neck to then reach around to tangle her hands in Callie's hair, pulling her closer. "I will make sure it's a night that you will never forget."

"Arizona…" Callie whispers, as she lunges forward to take the blonde's lips with her own, causing Arizona to moan. Things start to get a little heated when Arizona pulls back, slowing things down.

"Calliope, I think we need to go, otherwise, the bubble bath and candles are going to be skipped, and you deserve something more romantic."

"Well, I don't know about the last part, but I think you are right. We definitely need to go before those clothes of yours come off."

"Well, Miss Torres, I can't believe you think I would just take them off."

"Actually Miss Robbins, I think you are misunderstanding me. We need to go before I take those clothes off of you. You came out in that towel, dripping wet… then disappeared on me. Let's just say, at this point, I'm a little… wet now too."

"Oh, god," Arizona says as she leans in to kiss Callie, only for Callie to pull back, with a smug expression on her face and stand up.

"You ready?"

"Are you serious?" Arizona asks, with her mouth left gaping open after Callie's last comment.

"Yes. Because as true as my statement was... and believe me, it's very true," Callie says, dropping her voice and leaning in towards Arizona. "I think maybe, if everything goes ok this week, maybe next weekend, maybe we can ask your mom to sit with her again?"

"Really?"

Callie nods giving Arizona a big smile. "You can take me out on a real date. And maybe.. you can throw in some bubbles and candles..."

A grin taking over Arizona's face, she says, "I'd love that. A lot."

"Me too," Callie says, leaning in to give Arizona a kiss.

An hour later, the women walk back into Katie's room to see Barbara holding Katie's hand, and talking up a storm.

"I'm telling you sweetie, that girl took off running and jumped on that pig's back, trying to ride it. She slipped right off the other side of that thing and fell in the mud. She just thought she had to keep up with her brother. He stayed on for a whole three seconds before that pig dumped him."

"Telling stories on me, mom?"

"Of course. I have plenty dear. You look like you are a little refreshed. Have a good time?"

"Yeah, we grabbed a quick shower and stopped at both houses. Then I took her to that deli that has that rotisserie chicken that I like."

"Oh, that is delicious. I had some the other day."

"So, any more movements?"

"She moved a few fingers for me a few times. She really is beautiful Callie."

"Thank you. And thank you for sitting with her for a little while. I know I need to get out more. It's just hard to leave her. I don't want to have her need me and not be here. I'm all she has."

"Not anymore," Arizona says, reaching over and grabbing Arizona's hand. "You aren't alone."

The women stand there for a few moments before Barbara stands up. "Ok, that's enough of that mushiness for me. When can I come back and stay with her again?"

Arizona looks at Callie and gives her a small grin, making sure Callie is still ok with what they talked about earlier. After getting a nod in response, Arizona says, "Actually, how about one night next weekend? Maybe Friday or Saturday night?"

"Really? I'd love to! Either one works for me. You pick and let me know."

"Thanks, Barbara. I really appreciate it," Callie says.

"Anytime," Barbara says. Looking at Arizona she says, "Well, I'm going to go. I hope that you hold on to this one. Whatever this is, it looks good on you." With that, Barbara turns around and leans down to give Katie a kiss on the cheek, then walks over to give both the women a quick hug. "Let me know about next weekend."

"We will. Thanks again, Mom."

Barbara winks at them both, then turns around to leave before stopping. "Oh, should I bring a bag for a slumber party next weekend?"

Blushing, Callie looks to Arizona to take that question.

"Mom..."

"Ok, I'll take that as a yes. Bye girls."

Once Barbara is gone, Callie looks at Arizona. "You really talk to your mom about your s.e.x. life?" Callie whispers.

"What? No! But, I have a feeling she sees what Teddy and Addie see with us. I think we are that obvious, which makes tomorrow a problem."

"I know..." Callie says, sitting down, letting out a deep breath.

"What time is your dad coming? Do you know?"

"He texted earlier and said his flight should land around ten. He is flying into the local airport, so he should be here by ten-thirty."

"I need to leave for a while. If not, he will figure it out if I'm here."

Callie looks at Arizona and gives her a sad smile. "I'm sorry."

Arizona looks at her for a minute and then smiles. "Actually, I'm not. If it's that obvious that we care about each other, then... I think that's a good thing. I know when it's time, you will tell him."

"I promise, I will. Thank you. And for the record, I love the way you look at me."

"I love the way you look at me too," Arizona says.

Needing to get her mind off the stunning brunette next to her, Arizona stands and gives her a small kiss, then makes her way over to grab Katie's chart. "I think that I'm going to make a few changes. Since we are seeing an improvement, I think I'm going to increase one of her meds just a little bit. I know she moved a lot more today and I think we need to build on that."

"If it means it will help her move a little quicker, then I'm all for it."

"I know. I think we can safely increase this one," she says, pointing to something so Callie can see. However, I think this will be the last increase we can make without causing some adverse effects."

"Ok. I would agree with that. It's weird you know, being a doctor and knowing so much but when it's your family... my daughter, it's so different. Even when I know we can't rush things, the mom in me wants to. Then the doctor in me has to step in and remind me that we can't do that."

"I can imagine." Turning to face Callie, Arizona pulls her close, and wraps her arms around her waste. "You know, I meant what I said earlier. You aren't alone now."

Searching Arizona's eyes, Callie sees nothing but sincerity. "I know. But I also know this is new right now. I wouldn't blame you if this got to be too much."

"Calliope, I'm crazy about you. And I know when Katie wakes up, I'm going to be just as crazy about her too. I have no intentions of going anywhere."

Callie reaches up and cups Arizona's cheek and gives her a kiss.

When she leans back, Arizona says, "Now, I need to read this little girl a bedtime story. And I know just the one…"

Callie sits and watches as Arizona does just that. As she watches the blonde with her daughter, she wonders… Could this really be what her future could look like? As she ponders it for a few moments as Arizona continues to read, she smiles. She realizes she is falling head over heals in love with this woman, and there is absolutely nothing she can do to stop it.