Stef finished brushing her hair, then put in the earrings Lena gave her for Christmas. She turned to find her wife leaning against the bathroom doorway, an inscrutable expression on her face.

"You look nice," Lena commented.

"Thanks," Stef replied. She really didn't want to be going out to a lesbian bar to be Jenna's wingman, but the thought of Lena going instead wasn't appealing. What if Lena saw all of the benefits of the single life and got tempted to join Jenna in the world of starting over?

"I'd better go," Stef said, brushing past Lena. "I'm already going to be late."

"Have fun."

Stef couldn't help rolling her eyes. "I doubt it."

Lena finally smiled, though it didn't reach her eyes. She knew why Stef had volunteered to be the one to go out with Jenna, when their friend had called and begged them to help her get back into dating. She also knew there were a million things Stef would rather be doing. She wasn't sure if she should be touched that Stef was willing to do something she considered unpleasant to support a friend, especially when they were going through their own relationship issues, or if she should be offended that Stef didn't trust her to go out on the prowl with their oft-inappropriate, recently-divorced friend.

Stef sent a text letting Jenna know she was running late, then checked her phone as soon as she parked at the restaurant.

Met a hot lady at the bar. The night is looking up. ;)

Stef contemplated starting the car again and driving home. If Jenna had already met someone on her own, Stef didn't need to get in the way of that. Stef wasn't exactly great company anyway. But she had promised her friend, and she wasn't sure she wanted to go home and try to avoid her wife for the rest of the evening, while they sat in the same house. She'd had enough of that the past few weeks. It was Friday night, why not try to have some fun?

She walked in and immediately spotted Jenna. Her friend was turned towards someone, and she could see Jenna talking animatedly with her hands. Stef approached, then froze.

Jenna turned and, with a big smile on her face said, "Stef! I want you to meet Monte."

Stef, ever the cop, watched Monte's face as her expression changed from surprise to guilt. Knowing her own face wasn't hiding anything from Monte, she realized in that sickening moment that Monte hadn't known Lena told Stef about their kiss.

"You've got to be kidding me." Overwhelmed and off balance, Stef turned and walked towards the door.

"I've got this," Stef overheard Monte tell Jenna.

Stef made it to the parking lot before Monte caught up with her.

"Stef, wait!" she called.

Taking a deep breath, Stef turned to face Monte. She unclenched her hands, but her shoulders remained tense. She refused to speak first, perversely happy that Monte looked horribly uncomfortable.

"I'm sorry," Monte began. "I should never have -" Here, she stopped, and averted her eyes.

"Kissed another woman's wife? Not to mention someone who works for you. Yeah, you never should have."

"I know. We haven't even talked about it since, so I've tried to pretend it never happened. But it was inappropriate. It hasn't happened again. It won't." Monte looked up again, her eyes pleading with Stef for absolution.

"Damn right it won't," Stef growled.

Monte took a step back. Stef rubbed her hand over her face, and her shoulders slumped. Maybe Lena was right - their issues were their own, and Monte was only a symptom. Terrifying Monte wouldn't change anything.

"I'm going to go back inside and hang out with my friend. I don't care what you do next, just don't do it near me."

Just as Stef started towards the door, she heard Monte say, almost to herself, "This was a bad idea. I don't know what I'm doing."

For just a moment, Stef was sympathetic. Here was a recently-divorced woman who was trying to figure out her sexuality. Stef had once been a seemingly-straight woman who fell in love with Lena. It wasn't hard to understand how that could happen to someone else.

Stef gave Monte a hard look. "Here's a tip. Find someone who's single. Preferably one who's not Lena's friend." Having made her point, she softened and continued, "Dating is dating, and it sucks and it's scary no matter who you are. I hope you find someone who makes you feel safe in the midst of all of that."

Monte looked close to tears. "Thank you," was all she said.

Stef nodded, then turned and went back inside.

"What. The. Hell?" Jenna asked as soon as Stef sat down. "I couldn't hear anything, obviously, but even with my limited view out the window that looked intense. I take it my hot new friend isn't coming back."

"Sorry, but no," Stef replied. Knowing Jenna wouldn't stop until she had all of the details, she explained tersely, "She's Lena's boss. They kissed a couple of months ago. Lena never told her she told me."

"Whoa. I don't even know where to start with that. I think I'm going to need another drink." Jenna signaled to the bartender. "You want anything?"

Stef sighed. "Just a water. I'm driving."

"Well I took a cab, so I can drink enough for the both of us. Now, tell me what's going on with you and Lena."

Stef told Jenna the basics of the issues she and Lena were going through, including their Saturday evening book sessions. Not feeling like processing her own problems too much, she redirected the conversation.

"Is this like what happened with you and Kelly? Why did you guys really split up?"

Jenna looked thoughtful. "There's no deep secret. No one cheated. We just drifted apart. We didn't make each other happy anymore. The things we put up with about each other began to make us nuts, and they started to outweigh the things we liked."

"And you couldn't fix it?"

"We tried. We did the whole counseling thing. In our case, neither of us was happy, and our efforts to try to stay together were halfhearted. It sounds like you and Lena are really trying to get back on track."

Stef nodded. "Do you miss Kelly?"

"Am I a bad person if I say no? I feel free in a way that I didn't when we were together. I hate that Garrett had to suffer, and sometimes I feel selfish for having chosen my own happiness. But now that it's been a little while, Kelly and I can talk without fighting, and we can be friendly."

Stef couldn't imagine ever having only platonic feelings for Lena. How could passion turn into something so neutral? She might get angry with some of the things Lena had done, as she knew Lena did with her, but the thought of either of them feeling little more than nothing was incomprehensible.

"Do you think I should read something into it that Lena didn't tell Monte she told me about their kiss? Does it mean Lena's still holding the door open for Monte in case things don't work out with me?"

Jenna laughed, startling Stef. "Honey, do I look like a mind reader? My days of trying to guess what somebody thinks about somebody else based on somebody's secondhand interpretation of somebody's behavior ended when I was in high school. Go home and ask your wife."

Stef had to laugh too. It wasn't her style to get caught up in speculation. She either needed to let it go or talk to Lena.

"I'll ask her later. I promised you I'd be the best wingman you've ever had, and the night is still young."

"I know things are bad when you choose to suffer through watching me hit on ladies than go home to your gorgeous wife." Jenna's smile softened her assessment, but Stef couldn't disagree.

When Stef got home, she found Lena on the couch, reading. She had thought, due to the lateness of the hour, that Lena would be in bed, if not asleep.

Lena looked up. "Did you and Jenna have fun?"

Stef had spent the entire drive home trying to think of what to say to Lena. As much as she promised Jenna she wouldn't make assumptions about Lena's motives, she couldn't help the uncomfortable feeling in the pit of her stomach.

"Eventually," she said cryptically.

Lena gave Stef a questioning look. Everything about Stef's body language indicated something was up. Lena had watched Stef get the kids to confess something before they ever even knew where the conversation was heading enough times to know Stef's faux-casual posture and even tone were signals she should be wary.

"Jenna had already met someone by the time I got there," Stef continued.

"Oh?" Lena had sympathy for the kids - she had a feeling of guilt but still didn't have a clue what this had to do with her.

"Monte." Stef just dropped the bomb and left it there.

Lena knew Stef's tactics well enough to know she would have to be the one to speak next. Stef wielded silence like a knife.

Lena understood Stef encountering Monte would be awkward for her wife, but it took her a moment to get why Stef would be mad at her.

She was a grown adult and wasn't going to be scolded. "I may not have mentioned to her that I told you she kissed me. You didn't punch her or anything, did you?" Lena kept her tone light, lest Stef think she was overly concerned about Monte's welfare.

Stef wasn't amused. "If you haven't addressed the kiss with Monte, what do you guys talk about? Do you just pretend it never happened? Do you still tell her all your secrets?"

Lena was taken aback as venom crept into Stef's previously neutral tone. She had been impressed with Stef's restraint as they had worked on their relationship. Not once had Stef even mentioned Monte. Now she realized there may have been plenty going on below the surface that just hadn't bubbled up.

Stef continued, "You were so proud of your honesty in telling me about what happened, and I haven't pushed on that front - no snarky comments, no jealousy, no lack of trust. You said this wasn't really about her, and I believed you. So why can't you take a stand and tell Monte there's nothing between you and there never will be?"

Lena's eyes widened as she realized how this looked to Stef. "I was a coward. She didn't say anything, so I didn't say anything, and we mostly just avoid each other. Since it's the summer it's not that hard."

Stef shook her head and walked out of the room.

Lena was stunned. Normally, Stef would have more to say. The unfinished nature of the conversation made Lena uncomfortable. Did Stef believe her? Should she follow and reiterate her innocence? Should she accept the reprieve and give Stef her space?

Ultimately, she chose avoidance. Tomorrow was Saturday. There would be an opportunity to work on their issues then, in the safety of their usual process. She picked up her book, deciding to wait until Stef had time to go to sleep to follow her into the bedroom.

Stef took a deep breath once she closed her bedroom door. She wasn't impressed with Lena's excuses, but she believed them to be true. At least, she believed Lena believed them. It was better to let it go than pick a fight. The whole evening had exhausted her emotionally, and she just wanted to go to sleep.

She quickly brushed her teeth and changed into her pajamas, then got into bed. But sleep didn't come. Her mind was plagued with insecurities. She had been so focused on moving forward, with ensuring Lena wanted to stay with her, that she hadn't allowed herself to dwell on what it meant that her wife had kissed someone else. Or that someone else kissed her wife. How available had Lena seemed, for Monte to think kissing her was okay? How much had Lena complained about Stef? Had Stef too easily bought Lena's assertion that Monte wasn't their problem?

Stef pretended to be asleep when Lena finally came to bed. She was still stewing about the evening's events and had no desire to speak to her wife.

Lena wasn't fooled, but she didn't press the issue. If Stef didn't want to talk, that was fine. There would be an opportunity the next day. As she looked at the tense form of her wife under the covers, she thought about her actions. She wanted to retain the moral high ground - Monte kissed her, and she - relatively quickly - told Stef about it. Sure, she didn't address it with Monte, but she knew it would never happen again, so why embarrass the woman she still had to see just about every day?

It was easier not to think about it, but now that she had, she forced herself to consider another interpretation of her behavior. Was she unconsciously keeping her options open? If so, what did that mean?