Widow Robbins
Chapter 20
Arizona sat on the bench in front of the hospital. Unable to drive, she'd swallowed her pride and asked her mother for a ride, which included a stop at a florist shop. Barbara's knowing smirk had irritated her at first, but when the smirk turned to a pleased smile, her irritation had quickly faded.
She'd had to fight her feelings of guilt at leaving the girls with her parents yet again, but her mother's reassurance that it was okay to do something for herself helped ease those feelings. After some digging to find out when Callie's shift was over, Arizona made a plan to go to the hospital to surprise Callie, apologize and ask her out on a date. All she could do for now was wait and keep an eye on the door for Callie. She couldn't even pace to get rid of the nervous energy she felt. Stupid crutches, she grumbled to herself.
Callie exited the building a few minutes after her shift ended. Arizona felt a small pang of remorse as she saw Callie focused on her phone. She wondered if Callie was looking for a text from her. She clumsily rose to her feet and the clanging of the crutches caught Callie's attention.
"Arizona! What are you doing here?" she asked as she walked quickly over to her. "You need to get off your foot."
"Just a sec." She wobbled as she turned to pick up the flowers. She thrust them at Callie. "I brought you some flowers."
Callie smiled at the bouquet of tulips in various colors. "Thank you."
"It occurred to me that I didn't know what your favorite flower is or even what your favorite color is," she rambled. "And that's something I should know, if I were a good friend. But because I didn't, I got you a variety of colors." She paused a moment before continuing. "And I got tulips because, well, the name. The name reminded me that I should never have forgotten kissing your two lips." She smiled nervously.
Callie found Arizona's rambling speech to be both charming and adorable. She took a small whiff from the flowers, letting the scent waft over her. "They're beautiful," she said softly. She couldn't recall anyone giving her flowers, except maybe her father or her abuelo on a special occasion. "Thank you."
"And I owe you an apology." Arizona said.
"No, you don't. Arizona, I -"
"Let me finish, Calliope." She waited for Callie to nod for her to continue. She took a deep breath before speaking again. "Sometimes, I get it wrong. And I did yesterday. And Friday. I didn't realize that you were serious about asking me out on a date. I'm out of practice with the whole dating game," she said, taking a hand off a crutch and waving it, nearly losing her balance in the process.
"Arizona, please sit down before you fall and break something else," Callie half-suggested, half-ordered. She gently took Arizona by the elbow and guided her back down onto the bench.
Once seated, Arizona grasped Callie's hand. "Are you free Saturday, Calliope?"
"Maybe."
"Maybe?" Arizona's jaw dropped. She knew Callie wasn't working as she'd checked her schedule.
"Well, I have to check my social calendar."
Arizona's brow furrowed as she struggled to figure out what was happening. "Seriously?"
"No," Callie laughed. "I'm not working and I have no plans."
Arizona breathed a sigh of relief before barrelling forward with her plan. "How would you like to spend the day with me and the girls?"
Callie's face fell. She thought Arizona was going to ask her on a real date. Yes, she wanted to see the twins, but even more, she wanted alone time with Arizona.
"And I thought after soccer, and lunch and dance with the girls, you and I could go out. Just the two of us."
"Like a date?" Callie asked cautiously.
Arizona nodded fervently. "Yes, a real date. Just the two of us," she repeated.
Callie's smile was her answer. "I think that sounds perfect."
Arizona's dimples popped with her wide grin. "Good."
Callie was mesmerized by the depth of the dimples and wanted nothing more than to see them forever. Forever? We haven't even dated yet. You're getting ahead of yourself. She shook her head quickly to clear her mind. "So…uh… what are the plans, again?"
"Be at my house at nine-thirty for Can's soccer game. We'll go back to the house for lunch and Cam to get cleaned up, and then dance class."
"And after that?"
"After that, you'll go home, and we'll have our date in the evening. If you stay, the girls won't let you leave, and if I know you, you won't be able to say no." Arizona bumped their shoulders teasingly.
"Very true," Callie laughed again. They sat holding hands for a few minutes before Callie asked, "Do you need a ride home?"
"No."
Callie immediately slipped into doctor mode. "You didn't drive yourself here, did you? You're not supposed to be putting ANY pressure on your foot right now, especially if you want to be in the OR tomorrow."
"No, I didn't drive." Arizona bristled, removing her hand from Callie's grasp.
"If you won't let me give you a ride, how are you getting home? Are you taking a cab?"
"My busybody mom hasn't left since she dropped me off." Arizona pointed out her mother as she passed by once more. "I think she's circled the block at least a dozen times."
Callie threw her head back and laughed. "Should I wave at her the next time she drives by?"
Arizona playfully swatted Callie's arm. "Don't you dare!"
"Do you want me to wait with you until she comes around again?"
She shook her head. "Please don't. It's humiliating enough that I had to have my mother drive me here so I could ask you out on a date."
"She's not going to drive us Saturday night on our date, is she? Or maybe your dad?" Callie teased.
"Absolutely not" Arizona was aghast at the thought. "I will pick you up, we will have our date, I will bring you home and I will walk you to your door. And then I will give you a proper kiss goodnight that neither of us will forget."
"Do I get to kiss you back this time?"
"You'd better." They smiled at one another, each thinking about the future kiss they'd be sharing "You should get going. My mother will be here soon."
Callie rose to her feet and picked up her flowers. "I'll talk to you soon. And if I don't see you before your surgery with Derek, good luck." She bent down and gave Arizona a kiss on her cheek.
# # # # # # # # # #
There was nothing better that Callie liked than having a day off on a Saturday. They were far too infrequent for her taste. It seemed that she was always working or on call on Saturdays. The few times she was supposed to be off, she'd been forced to switch shifts. An ideal Saturday would be sleeping until noon, order out for some pizza or Chinese and do laundry while she either watched a trashy movie or read a trashy book.
Now here she was, getting up at the ass crack of dawn (for a Saturday, anyway). If someone had told her six months ago that she'd be giving up a Saturday morning of sleeping in, she would've laughed in their face. But for the Robbins family, she would give up all her Saturdays without hesitation.
She parked her car in the driveway and ambled up to the front door. She saw two little heads peeking out the window, and as she started to knock she could hear their excited shouts.
"Dr. Callie's here! Dr. Callie's here!"
"Come on in!" Arizona called out.
As soon as Callie opened the door, she was met with two fierce hugs from two delighted little girls. Both girls were wearing teal shirts with "Thundercats" emblazoned across the front. Cam was also wearing black shorts, shin guards and cleats. Callie thought it was sweet that Vivvy was wearing a matching shirt, even though she wasn't playing.
"You're here, Dr. Callie!"
"We missed you!"
"We haven't seen you in forever."
"We have so many things to tell you."
"Save it for after the game, Vivvy," Arizona said. "We need to get going or we will be late." She turned to Callie and smiled. "Hey. Thanks for joining us."
"Can I help with anything?"
"I think we're all set. The drinks and snacks, along with chairs are already in the car."
Callie frowned. "That doesn't sound like staying off your foot very much."
"That's why we have chairs," Arizona said with a grin. "Stop worrying. My dad loaded the car for us."
"Will they be joining us?" Callie asked as the four of them cut through the house to get to the garage.
"Not today. They have plans with some of their friends."
"Do I need to move my car?" Callie asked.
"Which side of the driveway are you on?"
"The left."
"You're good," Arizona said as she pressed the button to open the garage door.
The Robbins family, Callie noted, was like a well-oiled machine as they hopped into the car, girls in their booster seats, and buckled in.
There wasn't much opportunity for the two women to talk as the twins dominated the conversation, peppering Callie with questions and sharing their adventures since they'd last seen her. Starting kindergarten was the biggest one, and Callie was sure to ask them plenty of questions right back. Arizona continued to be pleased with the ease the girls and Callie had with one another.
Once they reached the fields, Cam immediately ran towards her team while Arizona unloaded the chairs, handing a small one to Vivvy and two to Callie. As she started to remove the cooler, a tan hand covered hers.
"I've got this. You don't need to be carrying anything heavy."
Arizona placed her hands on her hips, her blue eyes blazing with tempered frustration. "I've done multiple surgeries this week with no problems. I can handle a cooler of juice pouches and fruit."
"I'm not saying you can't. I'm saying let me do this for you," Callie replied gently.
"Then at least give me the chairs." The two ladies switched objects and found a spot on the sidelines near but not too close to the team bench. One of Vivvy's friends from school approached and asked her to play nearby, which Arizona allowed, telling her to stay within sight.
About halfway through the game, Callie remarked, "Maybe I'm biased but I think Cam is the best one out there."
"So do I. She's really taken to soccer. Vivvy likes it, but not like Cam does. She'll kick the ball around in the backyard with Cam, but she doesn't care about playing with a team." Arizona shouted some encouragement to Cam, then turned back to Callie. "My dad's thinking of putting up a kick wall for Cam in the backyard."
"Kick wall? What's that?"
"It's a wall the size of an actual soccer goal so she can practice. I told him to wait a few years to see if she still has the interest. I don't want to be one of those parents who are forcing their children to specialize in specific sports at a young age." She allowed her gaze to settle on a group of parents who seemed to be instructing the coach about their kids.
Callie took note of the parents mentioned. "Your parents are really hands-on as grandparents," Callie commented.
"They are. They love being grandparents, and I don't know what I'd do without them."
A few minutes later, Arizona noticed Callie was sort of fidgeting in her chair. She didn't look uncomfortable but like she wanted to say something. "Is there something wrong, Calliope? Are you bored?"
"No! No, I"m not bored." She suddenly turned shy and looked at the ground. "I was wondering about tonight."
"Are you cancelling our date?" Arizona asked, a hint of panic in her voice.
"Of course not! I'm really looking forward to it." She smiled at Arizona to reassure her. "I was curious about what you had planned."
"It's a surprise." Arizona gave a secretive smile.
Callie fake pouted. "But Arizona, I need to know at least what to wear."
"Good point," Arizona agreed. "Wear something casual, something comfortable. A little dressier than that." She indicated Callie's sweatshirt and leggings. "But not fancy restaurant wear either."
"That's it?" Callie persisted. "No other hints?"
"That would be a 'nope'," Arizona grinned. "Just have some patience, Calliope." She laughed at the look on Callie's face. "And no, your little pout won't work on me."
"I'm not pouting," Callie protested.
"Sure you aren't," Arizona teased.
Callie opened her mouth to respond but was cut off by the shrill sound of the whistle ending the game. Once the players left the sidelines and Vivvy came back from playing with her friend, the Robbins family sprung into action, efficient as always, picking up any litter that had fallen to the ground, and packing up the remaining snacks and drinks. Before she knew it, Callie found herself in the car and on the way back to their home.
"So where does Vivvy's swim class fit into all of this?" Callie asked as Arizona steered through the Saturday morning traffic.
"Oh, I pulled her from swim class because she missed so many because of her arm," Arizona explained. "After New Year's they'll both be going into a learn to swim class together. I found one at the local Y that will be on Saturday mornings. I want them both to learn how to swim."
"That's a really good idea, but doesn't that interfere with Cam's soccer?"
"Soccer will be over in a few more weeks. There's no soccer again until late spring for her age group."
Callie marveled at how Arizona was able to juggle being a mom to twins with all of their activities and work full-time as a fellow in an extremely difficult specialty. It was so different from how she'd been raised.
Her look of admiration unnerved Arizona. "What?" Arizona asked as she pulled into the driveway.
"Nothing. Just, you're awesome."
"What?" She parked the car in the garage.
"I don't know how you do it. Twins, soccer, dance, work. It's amazing."
Arizona blushed at the compliment. "I have a lot of help." She shut the car off and turned around in her seat. "Okay, girls. Let's get a move on," she said as she opened the car door.
The girls unbuckled their seatbelts, scrambled out of their booster seats, then ran for the door.
"Cam! Cleats off!" Arizona called out.
The young girl immediately plopped down on the floor by the door leading to the house and untied her cleats, tossing them aside when she had them off. She hopped up and followed her sister inside.
"Do they ever really slow down?" Callie asked as she and Arizona entered the house.
"Eventually," Arizona laughed. She spotted Cam heading for the kitchen. "Not so fast, Cam. Bath first."
Cam pouted, just a little, then began pulling off her dirty uniform as she stood by the washer. She dropped the clothes into a basket and then headed upstairs, stomping her feet as she did.
"Sorry about that," Arizona apologized, not seeing the look of amusement on Callie's face. "Just give me a few minutes so I can get her into the tub."
"No problem. Vivvy can keep me company," she said, smiling down at the girl. Vivvy beamed back at her, happy to have Dr. Callie all to herself. She took Callie's hand and led her into the living room while Arizona disappeared up the stairs after Cam.
Callie stopped to look at the framed photographs on the fireplace mantle. She didn't want to be nosy but she was curious to get another look at them.
"That's Grandpop and Grandmom when they was married." Vivvy said, pointing at a picture of Barbara and Daniel's wedding picture. Daniel was very handsome in his dress uniform and Barbara was a beautiful bride. They made a handsome couple and Callie could see where Arizona got her looks.
There were many pictures of the girls and Arizona but Callie was drawn to the one of a young man in uniform, Arizona beside him wearing her white coat from the medical school ceremony.
"That's Uncle Tim," Vivvy said. "He's gone, too."
Callie's gaze drifted over to the shadow box holding the folded flag. A smaller shadowbox was beside it containing many medals. "Uncle Tim?"
"Mommy's brother. He was nice. He used to give me and Cam piggyback rides and made mommy laugh. I miss him," she said in a small voice
Callie wasn't sure what to say, so she hugged the girl close. She wondered how much Vivvy truly remembered and how much was from seeing photographs. "Vivvy, why don't we help your mommy and start lunch?"
Vivvy nodded. "Can I help?"
"Sure," she said, taking her hand as they went into the kitchen. "What do you usually have for lunch?"
"Sandwiches, and fruit and carrots and chips and cookies," she listed.
Callie doubted chips and cookies were standard but she didn't question Vivvy. "Well, what kind of sandwiches? And can you show me where the bread is?"
Callie followed Vivvy to the pantry where she took out the loaf of bread. "And peanut butter," Vivvy said.
"What about jelly?" Callie asked, placing the jar of peanut butter on the kitchen island.
"In the fridge. I like strawberry jam. Cam likes grape jelly."
While taking out the two jars of preserves from the refrigerator, Callie found a container of freshly cut carrot sticks so she added that to the counter.
"So, bananas or apples?" Callie asked, spotting the bowl of fruit on the counter.
"Um, let me think," Vivvy said, one finger on her chin in a pose that Callie thought adorable. "Apples," she finally decided.
Callie began searching the drawers and cupboards for plates and silverware. Arizona's kitchen was not organized how she would have done it but she put that minor annoyance aside. It was during this search that Arizona and Cam appeared.
"Callie, what are you doing?"
Callie turned abruptly, feeling like she'd been caught snooping. "Oh, um, Vivvy and I decided to start fixing lunch. I was just trying to find a knife to cut the apples. Vivvy told me what they usually had for lunch,"
"Vivvy, go change your clothes for dance, I left your clothes out on your bed."
"Okay, Mommy."
Arizona waited for the child to move past her then walked over to where Callie stood pressed against the cabinet. She stepped into Callie's personal space, reached past her and withdrew a knife from the block of knives on the counter by the wall under the cabinets. "Knives go in the block above the silverware drawer," she whispered huskily as she moved away from her.
Callie took a deep steadying breath. "R-right. Makes sense."
"Silverware drawer next to the fridge and plates above. Cups next to the sink," Cam informed from her place at the table.
"Pots and pans in the lower cabinets to the left of the stove and bakingware to the right," Arizona continued as she took over preparing the lunch. She started to slice the apples.
"But why?" Callie couldn't find any logic to the placement.
Arizona shrugged. "That's the way my mom always had it set up. No matter where we lived, that's how the kitchen was arranged." She placed the apple slices into one of the square segments of the two plates for the girls and added the carrots.
Callie made a mental note of the allusion towards Arizona's nomadic childhood so she could ask her about it later in the evening. "We had a cook. I'm not sure I could tell you how the kitchen was arranged."
"You had your own cook?" Arizona questioned. There was no judgement in her tone; maybe some envy. She could really use her own cook for the really busy days.
"Is that weird? Cuz mommy's MY cook," Cam interjected.
Callie laughed at the young girl's innocence as she sat at the end of the table. "Not many people have a personal chef like my family does. You're very lucky to have a mom who does the cooking for you, but I'm sure once you're old enough, you'll be taught how to cook."
Vivvy rejoined the group and sat across from her sister. Arizona slid a plate in front of each of the girls. "Eat up, girls." She turned her gaze to Callie. "What would you like for lunch? I'm probably going to make a salad for myself or maybe heat up some leftover pizza."
"And Grandmom cooks for us, too! And even Grandpop, but just the grill. Sometimes Grandmom lets us help. We stir stuff," Cam continued talking around her mouthful of carrots. "We have lots of cooks."
"Don't talk with your mouth full." Arizona and Callie admonished at the same time.
They shared a smile. Maybe whatever was happening between them really did have a chance.
"You know, I can't remember the last time I had a PB&J," Callie replied. "I'll have what the girls are having."
"Do you like strawberry jam?" Vivvy asked.
"I bet she likes grape jelly better," Cam said with a mouthful of apple.
Realizing the girls were trying to garner favoritism, Callie leaned forward conspiratorially. "Actually, I put strawberry jam on one side, grape jelly on the other and peanut butter in between."
Arizona snorted as she stifled her laugh. "You do not."
"Cross my heart." Callie made the motion of a cross over her left breast with a straight face.
Arizona shook her head and tried not to stare at Callie's hand crossing what Arizona thought was a perfectly shaped breast. She quickly made the sandwich to Callie's specifications, added some carrots and apple slices to the plate and placed it in front of the other woman. "Eat up," she said with a wink. She busied herself with reheating a large slice of pizza then sat at the remaining seat at the table.
Callie stared at the sandwich in front of her. Once again, her ability to speak without thought had landed her in trouble. Was she really going to eat this atrocity? She looked across the table into Arizona's twinkling blue eyes. She ate the carrots and the apple slices to buy herself some time. Maybe if she stalled long enough, she wouldn't have to eat it. The thought of strawberry jam paired with grape jelly turned her stomach. The flavors and textures were fine individually but together seemed like an abomination.
Callie picked up the sandwich and opened her mouth to take a bite.
"Oh goodness, is that the time?" Arizona asked in astonishment. "Give me your plates and go put on your shoes. We're running late."
The kids slid their nearly empty plates over to her and hurried out of the room. Once Arizona was sure the girls were out of earshot, she addressed the other woman. "Don't you dare eat that."
"Arizona!" Callie protested. "The girls…"
"The girls will never know you didn't eat your sandwich." Arizona took the sandwich from Callie's hands, threw it in the trash and placed her plate with the rest of the dirty dishes.
"But…"
Arizona grabbed Callie's face between her palms and planted a quick chaste kiss to her lips. "I love that you don't want to pick sides, but it's okay. They'll find a different thing to one up the other about with you." She moved past her. "Are you coming?" she called from the other room.
Callie shook her head to clear it of the fog of arousal. Did that really just happen? "Yeah. Be right there." She shook her head again and hastened to rejoin the family.
# # # # # # # # # #
It took almost all of Callie's willpower not to squirm in her seat. She and Arizona were sitting in what had to be the most uncomfortable folding chairs ever designed. They were seated along the back wall with the other parents while they watched the children learn new dance steps - or maybe it was practice old steps? Callie couldn't be sure. All she knew is that she really, really wanted to stand up or find another chair.
"Vivvy's really graceful," Callie whispered to Arizona.
"She is," Arizona agreed. "She's really taken to it. Cam, not so much."
Almost on cue, Cam disrupted the class as she began to hop around and wave her hands. She'd been a reluctant participant up until then, but apparently she'd reached her limit. Callie bit back her laugh and covered her mouth. She immediately recognized it for what it was. Cam was doing her best imitation of Cristina Yang's dancing it out.
"You're doin' it ALL wrong, Cam!" Vivvy admonished. "We're DANCING not dancing it OUT!"
Arizona started to rise from her chair but stopped when one of the assistants, a young college student majoring in dance, approached Cam. She took the young girl aside and talked to her. Before long, Cam had a small smile on her face. When she resumed dancing, Callie could tell her heart wasn't into it.
Callie could sympathize with Cam. Growing up, her parents had made her take all kinds of classes and activities that she'd hated. She still carried some resentment to this day over it. "You know, Arizona, if Cam hates dance so much, maybe you should just let her drop it."
"I have her take dance to help her with her clumsiness and take her time with things. You know, sharpen her focus."
"Maybe some other activity would work." Callie briefly looked down at her shoes and thought some more about those classes from her childhood. "Speaking from experience, she might just grow to hate dance or resent it."
"I suppose."
"If you're set on dance, I could always talk to Cam about football players who take dance because it helps with their flexibility and balance. And if that doesn't work, Taekwondo might work as well."
Arizona shuddered at the thought of Cam karate chopping or kicking every thing she saw. "I don't know about that, Callie. I don't want her learning something that promotes violence."
"But it doesn't," Callie rebutted. "The martial arts are about self-protection through self-control."
"I'll think about it." Her reply was non-committal.
Thankfully, Cam behaved for the rest of the class. She unhappily trudged behind her sister as they made their way back to the car.
"Dance is dumb," Cam said, climbing into her booster seat.
"Uh uh. Dance is fun. I like it," Vivvy said.
"That's cuz you're dumb."
"Am not! You are!" Vivvy replied. She turned in her booster seat and took a swing at her sister.
"Hey!" Arizona said sternly, catching Vivvy's arm mid-swuing. "We don't call each other names and we don't hit one another!" Both girls instantly recognized the tone in their mother's voice and fell silent. "I want you two to apologize to one another and then I don't want to hear another word until we get home."
After two quick "sorrys" to one another, the girls remained silent the whole ride back to the house. Arizona was embarrassed and Callie was amused.
"Time out for both of you," Arizona said as they entered the house.
The girls obediently went to separate chairs in the livingroom, both trying hard not to pout knowing that it would only add minutes to their time out. With one last glance at the girls, Callie followed Arizona into the kitchen.
"Coffee?" Arizona asked as she took out a bag of coffee.
"That would be great, thanks." She sat down at the kitchen island. "So how long for the timeout?"
"Five minutes unless they act out before the time is up."
"I hated timeouts when I was a kid."
"Me, too. I try not to put them into timeout too often but sometimes I just have to." She sighed. "It's such a fine line between enough discipline and too much. I have to keep reminding myself sometimes that they're only five."
"They do seem older than that. Very smart little girls."
Arizona laughed. "Yeah, not sure where they got that from."
"I'd say the apple doesn't fall far from the tree."
Callie's words caused Arizona to blush a faint pink. "Thank you," she said softly as she set two mugs of coffee on the counter. "Cream? Sugar?" She set both out,
"Just a little cream," she replied as she watched Arizona put an alarming amount of sugar in her own mug.
Arizona took a sip from her mug and glanced at the clock. "Time to release the girls from timeout." She set her coffee back down. "I'll be right back."
Vivvy and Cam were still sitting quietly (though beginning to fidget) when their mother came into the room. Both looked up expectantly, hopefully.
"Are you ready to behave?" Arizona asked.
"Yes, Mommy," they chorused.
"Okay, then timeout is over.'
Both girls leapt from the chairs and ran to their mother and hugged her. "We're sorry, Mommy."
"I know you are, but take a deep breath before saying something hurtful or hitting, okay?" They nodded. "Good. Are you ready for a snack?"
"Yes," they said and ran into the kitchen. They climbed up onto chairs on either side of Callie. Arizona peeled a banana and cut it in half, then poured them both a glass of milk.
"We're sorry we were bad, Dr. Callie," Vivvy said as she picked up her half.
"Yeah, we were bad. We don't mean to," Cam added.
Callie's gaze diverted from the twins to Arizona who was reaching up to take something out of the cupboards. She couldn't help but admire the fit of Arizona's jeans. She'd never really thought about another woman's body but Arizona was certainly opening her eyes, at least to appreciating the blonde's.
"Peanut butter or chocolate chip?" Arizona asked, setting a container on the counter. She opened it to reveal homemade cookies.
"One of each," Vivvy quickly said.
"Yeah, one of each," Cam agreed.
"Please," Arizona reminded them.
"Please," they repeated.
"And you, Callie? Would you like one of my cookies?"
Arizona's voice was borderline flirtatious and Callie's mouth went dry. "I, um, one of each?" She looked at the girls and added her own,"Please."
Arizona winked at Callie as if she could read her thoughts and Callie blushed. She distributed the cookies, taking two for herself.
"Oh, my God, these are really good," Callie moaned after taking a bite,
"Well, I may not be a great cook, but I can bake, Calliope," Arizona said, trying to ignore the feelings that shot through her after hearing Callie's moan.
"Mommy makes the best cookies."
"She's a good baker."
"I have to agree," Callie said, taking another bite.
"The girls helped with these batches. We like to bake together when we have time."
"Grandmom is a good baker, too."
"We help her sometimes."
"Do you bake, Dr. Callie?"
"I'm not very good at it. Maybe your mommy could teach me," Callie answered with a pointed look at Arizona.
"Maybe I could," she murmured back.
"Next time Dr. Callie has to come over and help."
"Sounds good. I'd love to learn how to bake cookies," Callie grinned.
"Okay, then, next time we both have the day off we'll bake some cookies."
"Yay!"
"Yes, Yay!" Callie said, a broad smile.
"You have to see my new backpack. We got new backpacks for school," Vivvy explained, hopping down from her chair, Cam at her heels.
"Baking cookies, huh?" Callie teased once the girls were out of the room.
Arizona shrugged her shoulders. Before she could respond, the girls were back in the kitchen, backpacks in hand.
"Look, Dr. Callie. I have Dora the Explorer!" Vivvy said. She held up a purple backpack. "Dora is my favorite."
"Me gusta tu mochila, Vivvy. Es muy bonito," Callie said. Seeing the confusion on the girls' faces, she said it in English. "I like your backpack, Vivvy, It's very pretty."
"You speak Spanish," Arizona said huskily and Callie couldn't help but notice the smoldering look on her face.
"I do."
Cam's excited smile fell when she heard the strange language from her sister's favorite show. Why was everyone making such a big deal about it? "Mine's better," she bragged. "It's the Seahawks."
"Can you teach us?" Vivvy asked, speaking over her sister.
"Not right now. Dr. Callie can't stay. She has plans tonight." Arizona stated.
"So does Mommy. Kara is gonna watch us tonight." Vivvy told Callie.
"She's the teenage girl who lives down the street that usually watches them when my parents can't."
Cam tugged on Callie's hand. "Did you see mine? Huh? Didja? It's the Seahawks."
Before Callie could respond, Arizona, who had heard Cam's earlier display, admonished her daughter. "Cam, you're being rude."
"But…"
Arizona tilted her head slightly to the side wordlessly stopping her daughter's retort at once. With a frustrated grunt, Cam threw her backpack at Callie's feet and ran upstairs.
"What did I miss?" Callie wondered. "I didn't get a chance to tell her I know a few of the players personally."
Vivvy's eyes widened. "Really?"
"She'll love that. Right now, she needs to get control of her sibling jealousy and you have…plans." Arizona's voice dropped slightly on the last word.
"Right." Callie set her coffee mug in the sink after rinsing it out. "I'd best get going. I'll need some time to get ready for my… plans… tonight."
"Do you hafta go?" Vivvy half-whined.
Callie nodded. "I really do." She bent down to give the young girl a quick hug. "We can hang out again another time."
Arizona called for the other girl. "Cam, Dr. Callie's leaving!" Her eyes narrowed when she heard a door slam. She pasted a tight smile on her face. "Let me walk you out. Vivvy, go bring your sister downstairs."
Callie looked towards the staircase that led upstairs to the bedrooms. "Are you sure there's nothing I can do?"
Arizona shook her head. "Cam needs to learn to manage her sibling jealousy. Vivvy does, too, but she's not quite as bad as her sister. It's one of the pitfalls of raising twins." She shrugged. "So, I'll pick you up at seven. Wear something casual, comfortable," she reminded with a wink.
Two can play this game. "Espero con ansias nuestra cita, especialmente el beso de buenas noches." Callie responded with a lowered voice
Arizona's mouth went dry. "What does that mean?"
Callie stepped off the porch. "Maybe I'll tell you tonight." She blew a kiss and waved as she walked to her car. If Arizona could tease with innuendo, then she could return the favor by speaking her second language.