It took a while for either of them to be in any fit state to move. When they did, finally, make their way back to the island and then up the wooden walkway towards the house, they both spotted the figure heading across the lawns towards them. Daniel stopped, his arms folded and waited for the two women to get close enough to hear him. The expression on his face filled both of them with dread.

"I want to talk to both of you." He announced, sending them a hard stare, before turning and striding back towards the house.

Arizona shot Callie a small, reassuring smile that did nothing to help her relax, before they followed his path. Daniel led them into the house and through a door that Callie hadn't noticed before, finding themselves standing in the man's private study.

"Bailey?"

"Miranda?"

"What are you doing here? Are my parents…?"

"No, Torres, your parents aren't here." Bailey informed her with a small shrug. If Callie wasn't very much mistaken she looked a little apologetic. "But when he heard that you were planning on getting married tomorrow, your father sent me down to see what's going on."

"Are you serious?" Callie's eyes narrowed and she took a step forward. "He can't even be bothered to interfere in my life in person now? He's sending his minions to do it instead?"

"Excuse me?"

Arizona winced at the expression on Bailey's face and even Callie looked a little contrite. "Sorry, Bailey, I just… he clearly doesn't care that much or he'd be here himself, wouldn't he?"

"Listen, Callie, I work for your father and he sent me up here to this backwards little hole – no offence, Sir – to find out if you'd completely lost your damn mind." The shorter woman informed her bluntly. "He thinks the pressure of work has finally broken you and he wants you to come home and work all this out."

"Miranda–" Arizona attempted to step in, able to feel Callie shaking behind her.

"I'm sorry, Arizona, I like you and all, but Mr Torres feels that there's something going on here that's not right." Bailey continued. "He… he thinks you're taking advantage of his daughter… thinks you've got something on her."

"He thinks I'm blackmailing Calliope into marrying me?" Arizona's mouth dropped open.

Bailey sighed. "He said if you don't forget about this nonsense with Torres, you're fired and he'll be hiring someone to look into all this."

Callie's eyes blazed with fury. "Don't you dare threaten Arizona. She's done nothing wrong. Besides, he can't do anything about it. My father has absolutely no say in the hiring or firing of my personal assistants."

"I'm sorry, but that's not entirely true, especially if you don't actually work for Torres Hotels anymore. I don't like saying this any more than you like hearing it, but Mr Torres really isn't happy about any of this."

"Arizona… don't be an idiot." Daniel advised his daughter seriously, shaking his head. "Ms Bailey here told me everything. Even if you don't want to come home, don't do something stupid that you'll regret. This could make things very difficult for you."

"No, you know what," Arizona glared between Bailey and her father, "this is bullshit. Callie and I started dating, we fell in love and I asked her to marry me. She's amazing and beautiful and strong and kind and we're getting married. End of conversation. If you don't like it, don't bother coming to the wedding."

Grabbing Callie by the hand, the blonde dragged her out of the office and up the stairs. It was only when they reached her bedroom and the door had been closed behind them that she released the brunette from her grip. Callie sank onto the bed, looking a little shell-shocked.

"Arizona, you can still get out of this."

"No, Callie. I agreed to marry you and I'm going to." The blonde replied firmly. "I was raised to be a good man in a storm and that's what I'm going to be. We made a deal and you need my help. I'm not going to let you down now."

"But…"

"No, Calliope." She grinned cheekily. "Besides, I kind of want to piss our fathers off, too, now. We can't have them dictating to us like that, can we?"

Unable to help herself, Callie laughed and shook her head at the other woman's words. She was about to reply when Barbara bustled into the room and announced that Arizona needed to leave. Rolling her eyes, the blonde complained that it was just a stupid tradition and didn't mean anything, but her mother refused to be moved.

"Goodnight, Calliope." Arizona smiled at her as she passed, reaching out and laying her hand on the other woman's arm for a moment. She paused and then pressed her lips to Callie's cheek, lingering for a few seconds before pulling away.

"Night, Arizona."

Left alone, Callie got ready for bed and climbed under the covers. The room was oddly quiet without the sound of the blonde's breathing and Callie realised that she missed it. She exhaled deeply, mentally chastising herself for being so stupid.

She couldn't get the image of Arizona's face out of her mind, however hard she tried. She hated herself for the way she was feeling, knowing that it was unfair on the blonde. She was essentially trapping her because she was too selfish to let her go. True, she had offered Arizona an out, but Callie knew that the other woman was too principled and too determined to hold up her end of the deal to take it.

The night passed and she barely slept. By the time the morning arrived Callie was still trying to decide what to do for the best. She wanted to marry Arizona, but she knew that it was a lie. Callie didn't want it to be out of duty or obligation. When she married Arizona – if she got the chance to marry Arizona – she wanted it to mean something real.

"Callie, dear? Are you awake?"

"Mmm… morning, Barbara." She greeted her, rubbing her eyes and forcing herself to smile as the woman appeared in the room with a tray. "You really didn't need to do this. I'm not sure I can eat anything…"

"Nervous?"

"I really am." Callie agreed, chewing her lip.

"Don't be. It'll be wonderful. Do you need anything?"

"No…" Callie shook her head. "I…"

"Arizona was singing in the shower." Barbara laughed. "It's so good to hear her doing that again."

Exhaling sharply as the older woman left the room, Callie put her head in her hands for a moment. She considered packing her things and leaving, but she couldn't bear the thought of Arizona standing at the altar in front of everyone on her own. Also, Callie had no idea how she'd manage to make her escape off the island.

After a couple of minutes, the tempest inside her seemed to settle. She could do this. Arizona was right – no one needed to find out that it was a sham. They could just get married and live their own, separate lives and then get a divorce when the time was right. It wouldn't be pleasant and she was sure that it would hurt like hell, but Callie could survive the thought that the Robbins' would grow to hate her when she inevitably became the villain of the story.

"You look beautiful." Timothy leant in the doorway, watching her put the final touches to her makeup. "Arizona's one very lucky woman."

Callie laughed awkwardly. "I'm sure she looks breathtaking."

"She's my sister, so I'm legally not allowed to compliment her." He grinned. "But yeah, she looks alright."

"Shouldn't you be in the barn?"

"I've come to walk you down the aisle."

"You… what?"

"Arizona sent me." He explained with a genuine smile. "She was concerned that you'd be all alone and sent me to keep you company."

"She…"

Tim reached out and squeezed her arm. "My little sister might be a complete and utter pig-headed pain in the ass, but when she loves someone she's in their corner 'til the death. There was no way she'd let you walk down that aisle on your own." He grinned and shrugged. "But it's fine. If you don't want me, Teddy offered to walk you, too. I think Arizona would have blackmailed Sloan into offering next. Not that he'd really be able to do it, I suppose…"

Callie laughed, unable to help herself. "No, thanks. Honestly, Tim, I'm…"

"It's my pleasure." He assured her. "Anyone who makes Arizona this happy is alright with me."

Once again Callie felt the familiar guilt swirling in her chest. She forced herself to smile and nodded as Tim motioned that they should probably get going. Allowing herself to be led from the room and down, out of the house, Callie concentrated on her breathing. Every step she took towards the barn where the ceremony was taking place made her feel worse and worse.

"OK, it's us." Tim whispered as the music changed subtly. "You ready?"

Callie gulped and stepped forward. She spotted Arizona at the far end of the barn immediately, as though her eyes were instinctively drawn to the blonde, and felt the breath leave her lungs in a single whoosh. The woman waiting for her was infinitely more beautiful than Callie could ever have dreamt of in her wildest dreams. She looked as close to an angel as the brunette thought it was possible to get.

The expression on Arizona's face gave Callie hope that, just maybe, the blonde felt a little of what she was feeling. Her jaw had dropped slightly and her eyes had widened a little – if Callie wasn't very much mistaken they were a darker blue than she was used to. Could Arizona possibly share her feelings? It seemed almost too unbelievable to even consider, but the way Arizona was staring at her allowed Callie the tiniest spark of optimism to take root in her chest.

"Everyone please be seated."

Tearing her eyes away from the vision standing beside her, Callie suddenly realised why Tim had said that Mark wouldn't be able to walk her down the aisle; the man was currently standing in front of them, grinning like the cat who'd got the cream. She arched her eyebrow for a moment, before realising that of course Mark Sloan would be the minister in this strange little town. He seemed to do every other job going. It wouldn't remotely surprise her to hear that he was the town doctor on the side, as well.

"Looking absolutely gorgeous, ladies." He whispered to them, winking for good measure, before turning his attention back to the congregation and raising his voice once more. "We are gathered here today to give thanks and to celebrate one of life's greatest moments, to give recognition to the beauty and honesty and unselfish ways of Arizona and Callie's true love in front of family and friends."

His words sent the guilt coursing through Callie once more and she glanced sideways at Arizona. Catching the blonde's eyes, she saw uncertainty and doubt written all over her face and Callie's heart clenched in her chest. She felt sick, realising that she had caused the expressions twisting the beautiful face of the woman standing beside her.

"It's their family and friends who taught Arizona and Callie to love, so it is only right that family and friends are all–" Mark stopped abruptly as Callie raised her hand, a pained expression on her face. "Do you have a question?"

She shook her head nervously, finally realising that she needed to come clean and save Arizona from being shackled to her in a sham marriage. "No…"

"Your hand's up." Mark pointed out, motioning towards it.

Callie smiled weakly at him. "Oh, no, I… It… it's not a question, but I actually do have something that I need to say."

"Calliope." Arizona turned to look at her, concern all over her face.

She reached out and touched the brunette lightly on the wrist, making Callie flinch away from her. The electricity between them was undeniable and Callie knew she needed to be thinking clearly to get the words out. Alarmed, Arizona drew her hand back, the concern even more deeply etched over her features as she watched Callie carefully.

Mark leant forward, furrowing his eyebrows. "Can it wait 'til after?"

"No." The Latina shook her head slowly. "No, it can't."

Glancing at Arizona, who had a horrible feeling she knew what was about to happen, Mark shrugged and stepped backwards. He motioned for Callie to say what she wanted, tilting his head curiously as he waited to see what was going to happen.

"Hi…" Callie addressed the congregation nervously, looking around and feeling entirely exposed as everyone stared at her. She did her best to avoid looking at Sofia and the rest of Arizona's family, the stabbing guilt almost too much for her to bear. "Thank you all so much for coming here today. I… umm, I have a bit of an announcement to make about the wedding. Well, it's… uhh… it's a confession, actually."

Arizona leant forward and whispered in her ear. "Calliope, what are you doing?"

"I am… I'm Callie Torres and for those of you who weren't aware, I'm the daughter of Carlos Torres who owns the Torres Hotel Empire." She looked a little uncomfortable as a ripple of recognition ran around the room.

"Callie, don't do this." The blonde hissed beside her. "You don't have to do this."

"So… I love my job. Like, I really love it. And I'm fantastic at it, too. But my parents gave me an ultimatum; either I could find someone to settle down with or they'd give my job to someone else. You see, they don't understand that not everyone's happy ending involves the whole white wedding, picket fence, kids and a dog scenario." She laughed awkwardly, before chewing her lip. "And because I didn't want to lose my job, I forced Arizona here to marry me."

"Callie!" Arizona shook her head, eyes wide. "Please, stop it!"

"See, Arizona has always had this extraordinary work ethic; something I think she learned from you." Callie told Daniel, smiling weakly. "But she also seemed to genuinely enjoy her job and her life. And for three years I watched her come into work and put up with whatever shit was thrown at her without too much complaining." At the snort of amusement from beside her, Callie couldn't help turning to look at the blonde. She saw Arizona shaking her head, a soft look in her eyes. "And I knew that if I threatened that she would lose the job she loves she would agree to help me."

Arizona sighed, shaking her head again. "Calliope…"

"So I basically blackmailed her to come up here and to lie to you… all of you…" She paused. "But it turns out that it's not as easy as you'd imagine to ruin someone's life once you find out how amazing they are." Callie cleared her throat and squeezed her eyes closed for a moment, before finally finding the courage to look at the Robbins family. "You have a truly wonderful family. Please don't let what I did come between you. This was all my fault."

"Don't…"

"No, Arizona, this was a business deal and you held up your end, but now the deal is off." Callie could barely bring herself to look at the blonde, her heart ripping itself into pieces as she imagined the expression that she would be met with if she did. Instead she looked quickly at Barbara once more. "I really am incredibly sorry."

A confused murmur ran around the congregation as the brunette stepped down from the platform and headed towards the doors, leaving Arizona gazing after her with an expression that looked oddly like heartbreak on her face. Callie paused only for a moment to glare at Bailey and demand that she give her a ride to the airport, before she was off to gather her things and make her escape.

"What were you thinking?" Barbara demanded, ambushing her daughter before the blonde could avoid her.

Arizona shrugged weakly, unable to really comprehend what was happening at that moment. "Mom, I don't… I really don't know…"

"Arizona, you lied to us."

"Zona… what's going on?" Timothy's confusion was evident. "I thought… you and her were solid? What's…?"

"Let me just… I need to figure this out, OK?" She almost pleaded with them to leave her alone. "I promise I'll explain everything later. I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry."

Leaving them staring after her, Arizona headed quickly out of the barn. She only paused long enough to press a kiss to the top of her daughter's head and assure her that everything was going to be alright.

"Are you and Callie not getting married anymore?" Sofia asked sadly.

"I… no, baby." Arizona admitted with a sigh, cupping her daughter's cheek.

"I really like Callie. She played with me and sang songs. She's really good at singing and playing. Doesn't she like us anymore? Will we see her again? She hasn't taken me for ice cream yet and she promised."

"Yeah… I… I don't really know, Sof." Her mother told her, feeling entirely useless. This was exactly what she had been terrified would happen. "I… I want to find Callie and talk to her, OK? Maybe I can figure everything out."

Sofia nodded confidently. "OK, Mommy. Tell her I say hi and she looked really, really pretty in her dress."

"I will do." Arizona promised, biting her lip and forcing down a sob, before leaving Sofia with Teddy and running away from the barn.

Heading straight for her bedroom, assuming that Callie would have gone there to pack up her things, Arizona kicked off her shoes and hitched up the skirt of her wedding dress as she sprinted in the direction of the house. Taking the stairs two at a time, she threw open the door to find an empty room.

"Crap!" She exclaimed, realising that she was too late.

Something caught her eye and she snatched up a folded piece of paper left on the bed beside Callie's wedding dress. Tears trailed down her cheeks as her eyes danced over the words written in the other woman's very familiar handwriting.

Arizona,

I'm so sorry for everything. You were right… I shouldn't make promises I can't keep.

I meant what I said; you have a wonderful family. And they are so very lucky to have you because you are the very best person I have ever met. You're truly special, Arizona, and don't you ever forget it.

I'll make sure that Hahn can't fire you or, if you can't stand working for her, I'll make sure they find you a job that's truly worthy of you.

Make sure that you and Sofia have an amazing life. You both deserve it. You deserve better than this… better than me.

Calliope.

Arizona stared down at the words until her tears smudged the ink so badly that it was illegible. She jumped as someone spoke behind her, having been so caught up in her thoughts that she hadn't realised anyone had entered the room. Whirling round, she recognised Carina and relaxed a little.

"Well, that was crazy." The Italian announced, clearly attempting to lighten the mood. "You know, people are going to be talking about this forever."

"Yeah." Arizona shrugged disinterestedly.

"Are you OK?"

"Yeah." She nodded. Then her shoulders slumped. "Actually, no, I'm not. I just… I feel… You know what the problem is? You see the problem is that this woman is a gigantic pain in my ass." Arizona announced, brandishing the letter in her hand at the other woman. "First, there's the whole just upping and leaving and walking out on me in front of all my friends and family thing. But that I can understand; I mean, it was a sham wedding and it's all kind of stressful." Arizona huffed loudly, her anger growing again. "But then she leaves this note because she doesn't have the decency – or maybe she's just too much of a coward – to say any of this to my face." Throwing up her arms dramatically, the blonde stamped around the room. "Three years I've been working for this asshole and not once has she ever had a nice thing to say, but then she goes ahead and she writes this crap!"

"Arizona…"

"But none of that matters because we had a deal!"

"Arizona!"

"Sorry. I'm sorry. I just…" She huffed, shaking her head. "She just drives me crazy."

Carina chuckled and raised her eyebrows. "Yeah, I can see that." Then she fixed the blonde with a challenging look, folding her arms and watching her expectantly. "So you're just going to let her go?"

A/N: Penultimate chapter!

Hope you enjoyed :D