A/N: So... I was watching the film The Proposal the other day and this idea was catapulted into my head. A few slightly odd twists and a LOT of artistic licence later, this fic was born.
I hope you enjoy it!
"Sofia!" Arizona called, searching in the sofa cushions for her apartment key and her cell phone. "We need to go! I'm gonna be late."
Her daughter appeared in the doorway, her hand on her hip and a pout on her face. "I can't."
"What? Why?"
"I can't find my purple sparkly shoes!"
Arizona counted to three in her head and smiled at her five-year-old brightly. "That's OK, sweetie… your pink ones are over there."
"But I need my purple ones."
"No you don't. The pink ones go even better with that outfit."
Sofia narrowed her eyes for a moment. Then she relaxed and a bright smile crossed her face. "OK."
Exhaling as she realised that the crisis had been averted, Arizona watched as her daughter sat on the floor and began pulling her shoes on. Watching the little girl persevering with the buckles, the tip of her tongue poking out as she concentrated, was worth the inevitable comments that would be thrown her way when she walked into the office late.
"I think Meredith will be picking you up later, OK?" Arizona asked, swinging Sofia's hand in hers as they walked the block to her school. "You can hang out with Zola until I get home."
"Do you have to work again?"
"I do, baby, I'm sorry." She apologised with a wince. It was easier now that Sofia was in Pre-K, but she did still feel guilty about the hours that she worked. "But I'm taking you out of school tomorrow and we're going to Grandma and Gramps' for the weekend, remember. That'll be fun, right?"
Sofia's face lit up. "Yeah! Will Uncle Tim be there?"
"He sure will." Arizona agreed easily. "He can't wait to see you."
She managed to drop her daughter off with very little fuss and then headed towards Torres Tower – headquarters of Carlos Torres' hotel empire. Stopping off to grab coffee on the way, knowing her boss could barely function without caffeine, Arizona tugged on the hem of her shirt to straighten it before smiling warmly at the security guy and waiting for him to buzz her into the building.
Not really paying attention to what was going on, Arizona let out a small scream of surprise when she bumped into someone and felt sudden wet heat spreading across her abdomen. Looking down, she let out a low groan as she realised that the contents of her boss' coffee cup was now soaking into her shirt.
"Shit." She muttered, before looking around in a panic. "April!"
"No." The redhead shook her head vehemently. "No chance."
"Please… Torres will eat me alive me if she sees me like this."
"So I'm supposed to sit in a coffee stained shirt all day instead?"
"April, I'm begging you." Arizona pleaded. "I'll owe you big time if you just swap shirts with me."
Sighing, April acquiesced to her request and followed her to the restrooms so that they could switch. Pressing a grateful kiss to her friend's cheek and thanking her profusely, Arizona rushed out of the restroom with the remaining cup of coffee. Her luck was in as her boss was standing at the window with her back to the door, talking into her cell phone in rapid Spanish. Arizona placed the cup on the desk and turned away quickly, hoping that the other woman wouldn't comment that she was late.
"Who's Eliza?"
"Huh?"
Callie Torres raised one perfect eyebrow and tapped an equally perfectly manicured nail on the scrawled message on the side of the cup. "Eliza? 'Call me' and a number? Do I know an Eliza?"
"Oh…" Arizona blushed. "That's… that's actually my cup. Yours got spilled, so…"
"So you're late because you were flirting with some barista and then spilled my coffee?"
"What? No! I wasn't flirting with anyone. I'm not even sure which one Eliza was. I just… I bumped into someone on my way up here and had to change my shirt."
"Yeah… whatever." Callie rolled her eyes as though she didn't actually believe what she was saying.
Arizona bit her tongue and turned away to flick through the mail on the table in the corner, before reaching over and answering the phone as it rang shrilly, making her jump. She listened to what was being said before turning to look at her boss curiously.
"Ms Hahn? I'm not sure, I'll…" Glancing towards Callie, the blonde frowned as her boss motioned that they were heading to see the woman on the other end of the call. "Oh… Ms Torres is actually on her way down to your office now. OK. OK."
Callie stood immediately, brushing invisible lint off her skirt. "Come on. I need you in there, but you don't say anything, understand?"
"I know the drill."
"Excuse me?" The brunette arched an eyebrow.
"I won't say a word."
Rolling her eyes as the Latina nodded and stalked towards the door, Arizona followed. She pulled faces at the men and women sitting at their desks in the office space that filled the rest of the floor, smirking as April grimaced in sympathy. The coffee stain on her shirt was entirely obvious and Arizona felt a twinge of guilt at the sight. Her friend was less likely to be in the firing line over it, though, so she tried not to let it get to her.
"Can I say something?" Arizona asked, almost nervously.
"No."
"I was just wondering whether–"
"Don't bother to wonder. Whatever it is, the answer's no."
"Great…" Arizona rolled her eyes. "Good talk."
Holding open the door for her boss, she stepped into Erica Hahn's office and closed the door quickly behind them. The blonde CMO looked up at them from her computer, her usual self-satisfied smirk on her face as she leant back in her chair and very obviously checked Callie out. Arizona couldn't help the grimace that passed over her face, turning quickly before either woman noticed it.
She had no idea what her boss had seen in Hahn and had been very relieved when things between them had finally ended. The blonde had been no good for Callie at all. Arizona had questioned herself many times about why it mattered in the slightest to her. In the end she decided that it was simply that her boss was often in a terrible mood during their relationship because of all the arguments and so had made her life a living hell. She refused to dig any deeper than that, telling herself that she was simply happy that things had gone back to normal after their split. Now Callie was only in a terrible mood once or twice a week, rather than almost every day.
"To what do I owe this pleasure, Callie?"
"I'm letting you go." The Latina informed her without any preamble.
"I'm sorry, what?" Erica laughed in disbelief. "What are you talking about?"
"I've asked you so many times to get us someone A-List to be the face of our advertising campaign and you've failed at every turn." Callie reminded her impassively. "I put in two calls and we've got Scarlett Johansson on board. You're CMO… Chief Marketing Officer. I've literally just had to do your job for you. So… I'm letting you go."
Turning on her heels, Callie strode out of the office, leaving Arizona to hurry along behind her. They turned, heading back the way they'd come and both on edge waiting for the woman's reaction.
She did not disappoint.
"You bitch!" Erica screamed, exiting her office seconds later and storming towards them. Every eye was immediately on them, watching the scene play out with something nearing delight. "You poisonous bitch! You can't fire me! You think I can't see what you're doing, here? You're getting rid of me because you can't handle seeing me every day after what you did."
"Erica, stop…" Callie warned, the hint of a smirk tugging at her lips.
"Just because you have no semblance of a life outside of this office, you think you can treat all of us like your own personal punching bags. You know what? I feel sorry for you, because you know what you're going to have on your deathbed? Nothing and no one."
Arizona inhaled sharply. She could feel the tension radiating off her boss from where she was perching on the nearest desk. Callie took several steps forwards, her coffee cup still clutched in one hand and the other resting lightly on the partition between the corridor and the desk her assistant was leaning on.
When she spoke, it was with the well-practiced Torres calm that masked the anger she was feeling under the surface. "Listen, Erica, I didn't fire you because of something that you imagine I did. I fired you because you're lazy, entitled, incompetent and you spend more time flirting with interns and junior assistants than you do in your office. "Now, if you say another word, I'll have you thrown out on your ass." When Erica opened her mouth, clearly not intending to go down without a fight, Callie arched an eyebrow threateningly. "Another word and you're going out of here with an escort. Arizona will film it on her phone and put it all over social media. It will be everywhere. Is that what you want?" When Erica simply scowled at her, she smirked. "Didn't think so."
Turning on her heels, Callie continued back in the direction of her office. She barely glanced sideways to check that her assistant was with her before she started talking, just assuming that Arizona was at her side as always.
"I'm going to need you to come in this weekend and help me redistribute all of Erica's–"
"This weekend?"
"Problem?"
"I… I was… It's my mom's birthday and my brother will be there so I was gonna go home and…" She sighed softly. "It's fine. I can cancel and rearrange…"
Callie looked at her for a moment before nodding sharply and walking into her office without responding. Arizona let out a long sigh and headed for her own desk on the opposite side of the corridor from Callie's office. She reached for her phone, checking to make sure her boss' door was firmly closed before dialling a familiar number and holding the handset to her ear.
"Hey, Mom." She said, trying to force as much sunshine into her tone as possible. "How are you?"
"I'm fine as long as you're not calling to cancel this weekend?"
"Oh… I just…"
"Arizona!" Barbara chided her through the call. "What's that woman got you doing now?"
"It's not–"
"It clearly is work, Arizona Robbins. What other reason would you have to cancel coming to visit for my birthday? Timothy will be here! He hasn't been home in so long and he was really looking forward to seeing you and Sofia. She was so little the last time he saw her… I doubt she even remembers."
"Sof remembers Timothy, Mom." The blonde sighed, resting her forehead on her palm tiredly. "Look, I wish we could come but I need to work this weekend. Something's come up and I have to–"
"You should just quit." Barbara said firmly. "What are you even getting out of that job apart from a pay check?"
"Exactly, Mom, I'm getting a pay check. Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a job in Seattle that pays as well as this one?"
"So move back home! We miss you!"
"I can't just up sticks and leave. Sofia's whole life is here and… I'm sure that we can do something about that. Yes, Ms Torres has an incredibly full schedule but I'll definitely look into it. Thank you so much for calling. Have a great day."
She hung up the call hurriedly, turning to glance up at Callie who was standing beside her desk with a quizzical expression on her face. "Was that your family?"
Briefly Arizona considered denying it. "Yes."
"Did they tell you to quit?"
"Every single day."
The Latina opened her mouth to say something else, but the phone rang and Arizona was spared. She snatched up the receiver and held it to her ear, listening to what was being said on the other end of the call. She frowned and then nodded in agreement, before replacing the handset and looking up at her boss.
"Your father wants to speak to you in his office."
"What does he want now?"
"I'm not sure, Bailey said it was urgent, though."
Letting out a long huff of annoyance, Callie stood up and strode towards the elevators. She motioned for Arizona to follow, so the blonde grabbed her tablet and hurried in her wake. The Latina was truly intimidating when she was in a mood like the one she was currently in. Her employees scattered as she approached, each and every one keen to be seen doing something worthwhile as the heir to the Torres Empire stalked through the building and headed up to her father's office.
"OK… you sit there and come and get me if I'm in there more than five minutes. I need you to make up some emergency that needs my immediate attention." Callie demanded as they stepped out of the elevator on her father's floor.
"Like what?"
"You're not a complete moron… I'm sure you can figure something out."
As Callie disappeared into Carlos' office and the door was slammed on her, Arizona rolled her eyes and pulled a face. She was half tempted to ignore her boss' order to come up with an excuse in five minutes, but knew that it would be more than her job was worth to let Callie flounder in a meeting she wasn't remotely prepared for.
Inside the office, the Latina painted a bright smile on her face as she walked towards her father, kissing him on the cheek in greeting and smiling at the man leaning against the far wall. Carlos moved around to sit at his desk when Richard Webber, his right hand man, moved closer and folded his arms across his chest.
"Daddy, Richard. Good morning."
"Calliope. Prompt as always."
"Of course." She smiled warmly at him. "Bailey told Arizona it was important."
"It is." He agreed with a nod. "I…"
At his hesitant tone, Callie glanced towards Richard, noting at once how he was complete avoiding her eyes. "What's going on?"
"Your mother and I have been talking…"
"Daddy?"
"We feel that your work life is getting in the way of your private life."
"Ummm?"
"We'd like to see you happy and settled like Aria." He continued, looking a little uncomfortable now. "She's married with three wonderful children. We want that for you."
"I'm not–"
"Calliope, mija, you spend all your time here at the office. You never go out and meet anyone. You have no friends." Carlos pointed out bluntly. "We want you to experience all that life has to offer and your job is preventing you from doing that."
"Daddy… I love my job." Callie reminded him. "I'm outstanding at it. It's not preventing me from anything. I choose to work as hard as I do. It's a choice."
"We feel that it's the wrong choice."
"That's not your decision."
Carlos cleared his throat. "Actually, Calliope, it is."
"What do you mean?"
"Your mother and I have an ultimatum for you. Either you concentrate on other things – find someone to spend your life with, someone you can grow old with… someone who will take care of you – or we'll be forced to find someone else to do your job."
"Excuse me?"
"To put it simply, Calliope, get a life outside this building or I'm replacing you."
"You can't do that!"
"I can. Erica Hahn–"
"No!" Callie was furious. "Erica can barely do her own job, let alone mine!"
"I'm sorry, sweetheart, but we're just looking out for you."
"Is there a time limit on this thing?" She snapped furiously. "Do I have to get married in a certain time frame to keep my job? Six months? A year?"
"Don't be ridiculous." Carlos rolled his eyes at her dramatics. "Stop acting like we're forcing you into something horrible."
"But you are! That's exactly what you're doing!"
"Calliope. Your mother has a list of very nice, eligible young–"
"No!"
There was a light tap on the door and it opened. Arizona peeked inside, clearly a little nervous at the atmosphere that she had just stepped into. She glanced between the Torres' for a moment, smiling weakly at Richard as he leant against the wall looking as though he'd rather be anywhere else.
"I'm so sorry to interrupt, Mr Torres… but there's a call for you, Ms Torres. It's from Ms Johansson's office. I've told them that you're otherwise engaged, but they need to speak to you urgently about the contract for her–"
"Ahh, Arizona, come here." Callie demanded, an idea sparking in her mind as her gaze fell on the blonde.
Arizona's eyes went wide. "Uhh… I can tell them you're in a meeting and say you'll be in contact as soon as you can?"
"No, I…" The brunette narrowed her eyes, signalling that she wanted the other woman to do as she requested and not ask questions. "It's not about that. I think it's time to come clean."
"I… uhh… what?"
Stepping uncertainly towards her boss, Arizona was caught off guard as Callie wrapped a hand around her forearm and yanked her closer. Pulling her assistant to stand beside her, the woman looked at her quickly for a moment, before inhaling sharply and fixing her gaze on her father once more.
"Daddy, there's something I need to… we… we're getting married." Callie blurted out before her mouth had really caught up with her brain.
"Who?" Arizona glanced sideways in confusion.
"We are." The smile that Callie sent her was completely forced and laced with warning. "You and I are getting married."
Reading her correctly immediately, the blonde blinked several times in complete confusion and turned back towards the desk. "That's… we're getting married?"
"Isn't she your secretary?" Webber asked, furrowing his eyebrows and pointing at Arizona.
"Assistant."
"Executive assistant… secretary… it doesn't matter." Callie waved a hand dismissively. Beside her, Arizona could feel the discomfort radiating off her boss. "Besides, it wouldn't be the first time one of us fell for our secretaries, would it, Richard? Ellis… wasn't it?"
He looked a little uncomfortable, glancing towards Carlos who arched an eyebrow with an almost amused expression on his face. The CEO clasped his hands in front of him on his desk and turned his attention back to his daughter and the pretty blonde standing, somewhat awkwardly, beside her.
"So… that's the thing. We just… we're just… we weren't meant to fall in love but we did, so… you know how it is. Business trips and late nights in the office… it just… happened."
"Uhhh?" Arizona blinked again. "What…?"
"We tried to fight it, but you just… you can't fight a love like ours." Callie continued, the words clearly just tumbling from her lips in her panic.
"You never mentioned anything about this before, mija?" Carlos pointed out, his eyebrows raised and an expression of utter bewilderment twisting his features.
"Well, no, Daddy…" She agreed. Arizona could almost hear the cogs turning in her brain as she tried to think up an explanation. "It was just… Arizona's my assistant and it's all a bit cliché. I knew Mamá wouldn't be at all happy about it and I wanted to wait until I knew it was definitely serious before I said anything."
"An engagement seems pretty serious, Calliope?"
"Well yes… and we were going to tell you. But then you started talking about giving my job to Erica Hahn unless I found someone and settled down and so…" She huffed irritably. "Obviously this isn't how I'd planned on telling you. You've kinda ruined the surprise…"
"It's all very sudden."
Callie rubbed the back of her neck with one hand and awkwardly wrapped the other around Arizona's shoulders. She frowned as the blonde very visibly flinched at the unexpected contact, tightening her grip in response. After a moment, she felt the other woman relax and let out an almost imperceptible sigh of relief.
"I know." She nodded. "But… we're happy. So… are you OK with this?"
Carlos smiled and stood up, rounding the desk. He grasped his daughter by the shoulders and pressed kisses to each of her cheeks. Without warning, he bestowed the same affection on the blonde standing beside her. Arizona blinked a couple of times, still not entirely sure exactly what was going on. Then Carlos stood back and smiled between them warmly.
"If you're happy, then I'm happy, mija. I'm just glad that you have someone. That was all I was concerned about. We'll have to get to know each other properly. Perhaps dinner with the family?"
"Uhh… great." Callie smiled at him and nodded. "We'd love that, right, babe?"
"Right…?" Arizona glanced at her quickly, jerking her shoulders in the approximation of a shrug. "Sounds… super."