I.

After breakfast, which ends up going on until nearly midday, so neither woman is sure that it really counts as breakfast anymore, Holly drives Gail by her apartment to pick up some clothes. Their afternoon is spent lounging on Holly's couch watching television. Or more accurately, arguing about what television to watch. They settle where their interests collide; on a documentary about mammals violently killing each other. Not that you would suspect that would be the topic of their choice, based on their seating arrangement; Gail on her side with her head in the lap of the pathologist, who is playing absentmindedly with her hair.

"Do you prefer me with long or short hair?" Gail asks, during a commercial break.

"Honestly, I don't think I care much. I liked your old hair a lot, but this haircut suits you, it frames your face well. And I like it in the morning when it's sticking up in twenty different directions."

"I can't imagine you with different hair. It just looks right on you."

"In high school I went through a Spice Girls phase, I cut it short and straightened it every day to emulate Posh Spice." Holly recalls. "Remind me to never show you those photos."

"That's really bad for it, Holly." Gail says sternly.

"Coming from little miss bleach-a-lot over here."

"This is my natural colour." Gail deadpans.

"Yeah, right. I've met your brother. And your mother once too, actually; I bet you're a redhead."

"My mother's hair colour is quite obviously not natural. But keep making preposterous suggestions about my natural colour like that and you'll never find out."

"What do you mean…?" Gail looks up at her, eyebrow raised. "Oh right, collars and… right, yeah." Holly's voice fades quickly to nothing.

"Get your mind out of the gutter, Stewart. I meant I'll never tell you."

Holly shoves Gail's shoulder lightly and the blonde grins in response. "Don't play innocent with me, Peck."

"I'm always innocent. When did you meet my mother?"

"Police chief's gala last year, my boss introduced us; he'd only just hired me."

"I was at that gala." Gail recalls.

"You were?" Holly tilts her head inquiringly.

"Chief of Police is my Godfather remember? I'm sure I'd be forced to go even if he wasn't, though."

"Right. Sometimes I forget I'm dating police royalty."

Gail pretends to wretch. "Ugh, I wish I could forget. Do you think we saw each other there?"

"I don't know. Probably not. I think I would have remembered if I saw you."

"I don't remember much of anything. I think I spent all night at the bar with Steve."

"Not Nick?"

"It was while he was undercover. Which actually helped me there. I think the only really good thing about him being away was that Mom had absolutely no way to interfere in my love life. Her favourite thing about those Galas is the number of eligible bachelors she can introduce me to. But when you have a boyfriend who's deep undercover she can't do that, and she can't go around interrogating him either."

A worried look passes over Holly's face. "Do you think she'll interrogate me, too?"

"Almost certainly. Unless she takes the whole gay thing badly, then she'll just pretend you don't exist. I honestly don't know which would be better."

"She'd do that?"

Gail rolls over and looks up at the pathologist. "Maybe. She has certain expectations of us and getting married and having the 2.4 respectable kids is part of that."

"Gay people can get married and have 2.4 kids too." Holly points out.

"You know what I mean. But I think she'll probably see the plus side of having a gay daughter she can parade around a bit; give her PR a boost."

"That's… good, I guess?"

Gail shrugs. "That's Elaine. But you're so much more successful than any of the men I've ever brought home; she'll probably just overlook the whole uterus thing."

"You think?"

"Probably. Maybe. I don't know, Mom and me aren't really on the same page most of the time, her priorities don't exactly align with most other people's."

"Mom and I." Holly corrects.

"Shush. So where are you taking me tonight?"

Holly's brow furrows in thought. "I don't know, do you want a general gay bar or a lesbian bar? And do you want to go to a bar, or a club? And if it's a club, what sort of music?"

"Ugh, too many questions." Gail groans burying her face in the hem of Holly's t-shirt. "Why are there so many choices?"

"You know that the LGBT community isn't one homogenous group, right? Wedon't all like to do the same thing on a Saturday night." Holly grins.

"I know that." Gail whines. "I just don't like making choices, I don't exactly have a lot of experience to base my decision on. You choose."

"You're the one who wanted to go out."

"But you have the experience to make an informed choice."

"I don't really go out that much. I'm not sure I'm as well informed as you think I am." Holly points out.

"Don't you have a circle of lesbian friends you can ask about these things?"

"Most of my friends are doctors, they don't really have the time to go out much. And even if they did, only some of them are gay."

Gail smirks. "But then who do you go hiking with? Who goes plaid shirt shopping with you? Who…?"

"Okay, you can stop with the ever-so-witty questions." Holly says, raising her eyebrows warningly, but receiving only a grin from the blonde in her lap in return. "I guess we could just go up to the village and see where we fancy going when we get there."

"That sounds like an acceptable course of action. Now shush, I want to find out which one of these lions gets battered." Gail says sternly, turning back to watch the television now the advert break is over.

The side of Holly's mouth curls up into a lopsided smile, and she pinches the blonde's shoulder lightly. "I'm so lucky to have you, utilising me for my science channel subscriptions."

"Don't kid yourself Holly," Gail retorts, eyes not leaving the bloody battle occurring on screen. "If I wasn't here you'd still be watching these documentaries, you just wouldn't have a hot blonde's head in your lap."

"I could have another hot blonde's head in my lap." Holly suggests.

"Yeah right. In the time I've known you, you've only been on a date with one other person, and you left her for me, so…"

"I didn't leave her for you. We didn't click and then it just happened to be that you kissed me the next day."

"Because you were babbling on about how much she didn't mean anything and looking cute and sending me signals left, right and centre."

"Looking cute, huh?" Even after all the touches and kisses and confessions of desire the pair have exchanged in the past few days, Holly's heart skips a little at the compliment.

"Shut up, I'm learning." Gail gestures towards the television and her voice remains steady, but Holly can see the tips of her ears turning pink, and feels a satisfied smirk sweep over her features.

II.

They have barely moved from the couch all day, save for a short excursion to go and get lunch from the French bakery two blocks from Holly's house. It hasn't all been watching violent documentaries on the animal kingdom, though. For example, right now Gail is pinned underneath the brunette as her lips and neck are alternately lavished with attention from Holly's lips, teeth and tongue, and tan hands roam over the pale skin of her torso and chest underneath her t-shirt.

"Mmm, I should go and make dinner." Holly says, eventually breaking her mouth from its perpetual contact with the blonde's skin.

"This is good, let's carry on with this." Gail protests, lifting her head to plant a row of kisses along Holly's jaw.

"I don't think…"

Gail attempts to flip them so she's on top, in theory pinning Holly underneath her so she can't leave for the kitchen. In practice, however, there is nowhere near enough room on the couch for the manoeuvre, and they land in a heap on the floor, both thankful for the plush rug cushioning their fall. Gail has at least landed with her legs pinning one of Holly's thighs underneath her. She could count that as a sort of success. Once the horror at her own indignity has passed.

Holly bursts into laughter as Gail's mortified face turns bright red.

"What was that?" Holly gets out through her uncontrollable howls of amusement.

Gail buries her face into the rug beside Holly's head, shaking slightly with the overwhelming combination of humiliation and hilarity.

Holly lies there grinning until Gail works up the motivation to speak.

"Was trying to trap you under me." Gail eventually mutters into Holly's neck.

"Honey." Holly giggles. "I don't think the couch is really the place to be pulling out those moves. Maybe save them for when we're on a bed and actually have the space?"

Gail lifts her head and meets Holly's eyes, eyebrows raised suggestively.

"I still need to cook. And no offence, but that did kind of kill the mood. I think you bruised my hip." Holly continues laughing softly at the situation.

"Sorry." Gail murmurs, but buries herself back into Holly's collar in clear defiance of Holly's intention to get up and move to the kitchen.

Rather than attempt to remove the woman nestling on top of her, Holly takes the moment to wrap her arms tightly around the blonde.

"Is your hip okay?" Gail whispers after a few minutes.

Holly kisses the top of her head softly. "I think I'll survive."

"Screw going out, let's just stay here."

"Just lie here on the floor all night?"

"Yep."

Unfortunately for Gail's plans to remain planted on top of Holly's outstretched body all night, her stomach chooses that moment to rumble. Loudly.

Holly giggles. "I don't think your stomach agrees with you. Come on Spiderman, I'll get started on that dinner."

"Ugh." Gail rolls off the pathologist, but remains lying immobile on the floor as the other woman gets to her feet and brushes the fluff of the carpet from her clothes.

"When did you undo these?" Holly asks, noticing that the bottom few buttons of her button down are hanging open.

Gail shrugs as best she can without lifting her back from the carpet. "While you were busy copping a feel of these." She waves her arms vaguely around her chest.

Holly gives an impressed hum. "Very deft."

"All in vain, didn't exactly didn't get to utilise the extra access." Gail grumbles.

"Well, my agile little super cop." Holly starts, as she recloses the buttons. "Maybe if you're lucky, you'll get a second attempt tonight."

Gail props herself up onto her elbows and raises an eyebrow. "Don't make any promises you can't keep, Dr Stewart."

"I'm not promising anything." Holly flashes a grin before heading into the kitchen.

Gail groans and forces herself to her feet, following the other woman who is staring intently into her fridge.

"What are you cooking?" She asks.

"Not sure… chicken casserole?"

Gail shrugs. "How long will it take?"

"Three quarters of an hour, maybe?" Holly turns to look at her. "Why?"

"I think I'm going to head back to the apartment."

A look of confusion and slight panic sweeps across Holly's face. "Why?"

Gail grabs Holly's face gently between her hands. "Just to get some clothes, nerd. I'm not bolting."

"Right. Of course."

Gail plants a soft kiss on the full lips in front of her. "I'll just call Chris and ask him to pick me up."

"Hm, no. Take my car."

"Are you sure?"

"Well I wouldn't usually lend it, but you're a cop, I figure you're a pretty good driver. Although now I'm thinking about it I've never actually seen you drive…"

"Don't worry Holly. I'm an excellent driver. I'll bring her back in one piece."

Holly smiles. "You'd better." She leans in to kiss the blonde again. "Keys are in the bowl on the coffee table."

As Gail disappears to collect the keys and get dressed for the cold outdoors, Holly starts gathering the ingredients for dinner, but has barely managed to open the cupboards before she finds herself spun around pushed up against the counter, firm hands on her hips and strong tongue parting her lips.

But it is barely over before it has begun, Holly's hands recovering from their initial shock to just start running through Gail's hair before the police officer pulls back, dark eyed.

"I just didn't want you to forget your promise about tonight." She says in a husky voice, before turning on her heel and marching out of the house.

Holly takes a few moments to gather herself. "I didn't actually promise anything." She shouts just before she hears the front door shutting.

III.

Gail returns just under an hour later, letting herself in with the spare house keys on Holly's car keys. Much to her surprise, the lights in the entrance hall of the house are turned off, and she gently sets her bag down on the floor and removes her coat.

"Sorry I'm late Hol, I got waylaid by Dov."

She peers into the empty kitchen. Everything is turned off, but there is a definite smell of cooking food lingering in the air.

"Holly?" She calls. "Babe? Sorry I should have texted. Are you still in?"

"I'm through here." The familiar voice calls from through the living room and she follows it eagerly.

"Oh thank God, I thought… well I don't know what I thought." She walks over to Holly, who is stood at the far end of the living room, an end Gail has never ventured to before, largely due to its lack of television and cushioned seating.

"What, that I'd stormed out in anger at you being ten minutes late?" Holly grins.

"I don't know, maybe?" Gail looks sheepish as she reaches Holly and stands just in front of her.

"I wouldn't leave here when there's food waiting to be eaten." Holly smirks.

"A woman after my own heart." Gail tries to lean past Holly and grab some of the bread that is sitting next to the casserole dish on the table, but Holly slaps her arms lightly.

"Manners." The brunette warns.

"Well are you going to pull me up a seat or something then?" Gail suggests.

Holly scowls sceptically. "Why do I have to pull you up a seat?"

"I don't know. It's your house?" She offers. "This is just another question I should have asked you about the logistics of being a lesbian."

"Do you let guys hold your seats for you?" Holly asks, already suspecting she knows the answer.

"Well, no." Gail admits.

"Exactly, you're a twenty-first century woman. Pull your own seat out." Holly's lips turn up into a lopsided satisfied smile.

"But what about manners." Gail teases.

"Shut it Peck, sit down and serve yourself. Do you want red or white wine?" She asks as she walks towards the kitchen

"Red." Gail answers as she takes her seat. "Or… whatever you're having." She corrects, realising that may be the more courteous answer.

"Red is good with me." Holly smiles. "Babe."

Gail frowns slightly as she serves herself. "You've never called me babe before." She states, although it is posed as more of a question.

"True, but you just called me it." Holly calls back from the kitchen as she locates an appropriate bottle of wine.

"I did?" Gail questions, serving food onto Holly's plate. "Oh yeah."

"I kind of liked it."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." Holly ducks down to plant a chaste kiss on the lips of the pale woman as she returns and opens the bottle, filling Gail's glass before taking a seat and filling her own. "Did you get everything you wanted from your apartment?"

"Yep." Gail takes a sip from her glass. "I would have been in and out in five minutes but Dov wanted to ask me all these questions about what he should do about the Chloe having a husband situation. Lord knows why he thought I would have the answer, relationships aren't exactly my forte."

Holly raises an eyebrow. "You're doing pretty well so far."

"It's been less than a week, Holly. Throw in a curveball like you having a husband and I'm not sure I'd deal with that very well at all."

"I'm not sure that anyone would deal with that very well." Holly points out.

"You know that's when you're supposed to assure me that you don't have a husband."

"I don't have a husband." Holly states, but Gail's enquiring gaze doesn't abate. "Or a wife." She adds.

"Good. And no secret love-children? No long standing affair with your boss? No straight best friend you secretly lust over?"

"None of the above. Well, maybe the last one."

Holly laughs at Gail's slightly panicked expression. "It's you, dummy."

Gail turns slightly pink, but smiles gently.

"Anyway, there won't be any curveballs of that proportion because I can assure you my life before you was no way interesting enough for my past to have any major influence on this relationship." Holly explains.

"You know I can't say the same thing, right? I mean, I'm a certified mess."

"You're not a mess. And I trust that if things get difficult, you'll do the right thing. But right now, it's easy and amazing, so let's focus on that, rather than dwelling on hypothetical future encounters with the skeletons in our closets."

Gail narrows her eyes. "You just said there were no skeletons in your closet?"

"Well in my case it's a literal model skeleton from when I was at medical school, but you know. Same difference."

"You're such a dork." Gail says through a mouthful of food.

"And you are super sexy when you talk with your mouth stuffed with chicken." Holly observes.

"Really?"

Holly laughs softly. "No, honey. Sorry. Cute, maybe; sexy, definitely not."

"Yet you do lust over me?" Gail recalls the admission from a couple of minutes ago, grinning.

"Eat up your food, Gail."

"Come on, Holly." Gail whines. "What do you lust over? I need to know so I know which assets to focus on when I get dressed later."

Holly just gives a warning smirk and carries on eating.

"Holly…!"

IV.

Honestly, Holly doesn't know which of Gail's 'assets' she usually lusts over most, but when she comes downstairs later that evening in a dark blue skirt which so tightly hugs her ass and thighs, with an accompanying loose white blouse, just sheer enough that you can see the shadow of a dark bra underneath, she know that on this night, it's going to be her legs. Long, pale, shaped by the most perfectly curved and defined hips Holly has ever seen. Granted they are made longer by the dark heels she has strapped her feet into, and the blemishes and scars and occasional moles that dot the easily-marked pale skin of her legs are hidden underneath some thin pantyhose, but Holly has seen those legs bare and flat-footed, and knows without a shadow of a doubt that that dress would make them irresistible even without the shoes and thin material covering them.

Holly pops open another button on her blouse when she knows Gail is looking around for her purse in an attempt to even the score, but knows she hasn't even come close.

"Is this okay, to go out in?" Gail asks nervously.

Holly clears her throat. "Yes. It's perfect." She can't draw her eyes up from those toned thighs. Her imagination is in overdrive, her centre pulsing at the thoughts of the things they could do. Or she could do on them.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. Definitely. You're going to have your pick of Toronto's lesbians."

"Well I only want one of Toronto's lesbians, so does she like it?"

"She… absolutely likes it. She kind of can't believe that she gets to take you out tonight." Holly confesses.

"Well this 'maybe-lesbian-maybe-something-else-who-cares' kind of can't believe she gets to be taken out by you. And those boobs. Which I'm fairly sure were not that on display when I first walked into the room." Gail observes, eyes narrowed.

Holly turns a guilty shade of light pink.

"I mean, I'm not complaining." Gail adds, a sparkle in her eye.

"The cab should be here in two minutes." Holly states, but as she says it, a car's horn sounds from outside. "Or right now. Are you sure you don't mind going in a taxi?"

"As long as I'm not alone, it's fine." Gail smiles gently.

Holly returns the smile and pulls on her coat, opening the front door for Gail to head out to the waiting vehicle.

V.

Leaving Gail at a table at one of her favourite bars whilst she heads to get drinks, Holly is annoyed, but admittedly unsurprised when she returns to find her date is has company.

"Look lady, I am here with someone. And even if I wasn't, my clear disinterest in you should have been enough of a reason for you to leave me alone." Holly can't help but smile as she hears Gail's words, but the blonde hasn't noticed her return yet.

"Where is this mysterious woman, then?" Her admirer asks.

"She's at the bar. So if you wouldn't mind pissing off, because I'm a cop, and I will find a way to get you on harassment charges."

The admirer raises her arms in defeat. "Fine, but you don't know what you're missing out on." She steps away, leaving Holly with a clear view of her scowling cop.

"I had hoped that being in a bar with very few straight dudes would have reduced that."

"Nope, there are creeps of every gender." Holly sighs, pouring them both a glass of newly purchased wine.

"And that is why I hate all people." Gail takes a sip from her glass.

Holly pouts slightly.

"Almost all people." Gail corrects herself, before looking around the bar intently, observing the variety of people; all sat at tables drinking or stood, milling around near the stage on the opposite side of the room. "So how many of the girls in here have you slept with?"

Holly chokes slightly on her drink. "Excuse me?

"I won't be jealous, I promise."

"I… I haven't slept with anyone in here."

Gail narrows her eyes suspiciously. "You didn't even look around, you can't possibly know that."

"I haven't slept with anywhere near enough people that it's at all statistically likely any of them are here." Holly argues, but looks around the room nonetheless. "Having said that, I did once make out with the red head over there."

Holly watches for Gail's reaction, and is satisfied when a scowl passes over her features. "The one with the big ears? You could do way better than her, Holly."

"I thought you said you wouldn't get jealous." Holly teases.

"I'm not jealous!" The blonde retorts defensively.

"Of course you're not…"

"I'm not. I'm just saying she's well below you." Gail's expression betrays her though as her eyes scrutinise Holly's features. "You're lying!"

"Hm?" Holly asks innocently.

"You've never even spoken to her, have you?"

Holly's lips curl into a smile. "Never seen her before in my life. I just wanted to see your reaction."

Gail's scowl deepens. "I wasn't jealous."

"I believe you." Holly smiles sweetly, and leans over. "But you don't need to be jealous, you know that, right?" She closes the final distance between them, meeting Gail's lips tenderly with her own.

"I know, who could anyone possibly want more than me?" Gail murmurs when they part, resting their foreheads together.

"Exactly, maybe in less egotistical language, but it's true."

Gail strokes her cheek, and even though her fingers are heavily adorned with rings, Holly doesn't mind the cold of the metal against her skin for the tingling that the sensation of the officer's touch sends through her body. "Thank you… for this week."

"Me? Thank you. I never even let myself dream that you…we… this…"

"I'm sorry it took me a while to, you know, realise. Or let myself realise." Gail says softly.

"You don't have to apologise for anything." Holly reassures her.

"Not even for chopping off all my hair in your bathroom?"

Holly kisses her again. "Not even for that."

"Thank you. This should have been a really, truly crappy week. But you, somehow… I don't know. Somehow it wasn't as crap as it should have been, and I'm fairly sure that's thanks to you."

Holly is fairly sure she is beaming with joy at this point. "You've made this week so wonderful for me, too."

"Really?"

"Absolutely."

Their deep kiss is broken by the sudden dimming of the lights and the loud booming of a low voice over the sound system. Gail jumps back in shock.

"What's happening?" She asks, eyes darting around the room.

"I think the show's about to start."

"Show?"

"Didn't I mention this bar has drag shows on Saturday nights?" Holly asks innocently.

"…you didn't mention that, no." Gail says slowly.

"Oops." Holly shrugs, grinning. "Come here, you're going to want to be able to see this. Trust me, they're really good." Holly pats the empty space beside her on her bench, from where she has a clear view of the stage.

Gail shuffles off her seat and squeezes in next to the brunette, who drapes an arm around her shoulders.

"Is it weird that I'm actually kind of excited to see this?" Gail asks, tentatively.

"Nope, not weird at all. It's fun, that's why I brought you here."

"But we're still going dancing after, right?"

"Of course." Holly whispers into her ear, smiling and inhaling the heavenly scent of her hair as she does so. "I can't wait."