Disclaimer - Bianca, Maggie, Miranda, et al are the property of ABC and All My Children. This story is intended solely for the pleasure of the readers, no harm is intended. Any actual persons living or dead are used purely for entertainment purposes. Again, no harm is intended. In other words, please don't sue me...

Brittney, again, thank you. And I don't mind the e-mails, I'm enjoying them. Thanks for the reviews everyone, I'm pleased this story has found readers who enjoy it away from the board I originally posted it on.

Paris, France
Summer 2005

Chapter 8

"Well?"

"No, they're clothed."

"Oh, man. They didn't even-"

"Well, they did get home late."

"Or early, depending on your point of view."

"You were awake, too?"

"Oh, yeah, heard 'em giggling all the way from the other side of the place." Reggie tried to look around Kendall. "Are you sure you see clothes?"

Suddenly, Bianca rolled onto her back and looked at the open door, at her sister and cousin standing in the doorway. "I am awake, you know," she told them.

Kendall shrieked and yanked the door shut. Feet stumbled down the staircase. Bianca laughed softly.

Maggie rolled over, still half asleep, and snuggled up against Bianca's side. "What was that?" she mumbled, burrowing her face deep into Bianca's neck.

Bianca wrapped the blonde in her arms and kissed her on the top of her head. "I think Kendall and Reggie were trying to find out if our date ended in… well…"

"Fireworks?"

"Yeah."

"Perverts." Maggie pressed a kiss to Bianca's neck. "What time is it?"

Bianca checked the bedside clock. "Almost nine-thirty."

"Crap!" Maggie exclaimed, sitting bolt upright. "I missed my morning run." Suddenly, she wilted like a limp noodle and collapsed back on the bed. "Aw, what the hell," she muttered, curling up next to Bianca again and wrapping her arm around the brunette's waist. "I'm too tired to care. This is better, anyway…"

Bianca smiled into Maggie's hair. "Way better," she agreed.

In a matter of minutes, they had both drifted back to sleep.

Several hours later, showered and dressed, they joined the others in the dining room for the mid-day meal. For most Europeans, especially the French, this was the main meal of the day. Children came home from school, adults came home from work and the entire family convened for a big dinner at the table. They ate, talked and spent the meal enjoying being together. This was the time when the most heated discussions took place, gentle arguing and prodding, followed by laughing and joking. No subject was off limits and many a political argument was hashed out in the middle of the day. Through it all, no one ever left the table mad, let alone still hungry.

Erica had gotten the meal catered from a nearby brasserie and they gathered around the table to enjoy the day being together. Reggie told jokes that under normal circumstances would be considered a little too racy, but no one seemed to mind. Miranda laughed with everyone else, enjoying it when someone would turn to her and give her the attention she was searching for. Kendall sat across from Maggie, chatting with her and Jackson while Bianca talked with Erica about business at Cambias. The house was filled with chatter and laughter and Pine Valley, with its trouble and turmoil, seemed a million miles away.

"So, Maggie, I want to ask you something," Jack said, leaning an elbow on the arm of his chair. It wasn't voiced as a question at all, but a rather intimidating statement.

Uh, oh, Maggie thought, no friendly conversation starts that way. "Okay…" she replied warily.

"What are your plans?" he asked, his eyes boring into Maggie's. "Concerning my niece."

"Are you asking me what my intentions are?" Maggie asked back, a little perplexed at the line of questioning. She glanced across the table at Kendall to see Bianca's sister watching with unabashed curiosity, a small smile lighting her features.

Jack nodded. "Yes, I guess I am. I want to know what your intentions are toward Bianca."

"Well," Maggie said, choosing her words carefully. "I intend to spend the rest of my life with her. I intend to make her happy for the rest of our lives. I intend to always be here for her, to make sure she knows she comes first in my life. She and Miranda will always come first."

There was silence as Jackson considered Maggie's response. He looked at her so intently that she started to get that 'bug under the microscope' feeling again. Don't squirm, she instructed herself, starting to feel quite uncomfortable under Jack's intensely piercing scrutiny, don't squirm, you weenie!

After several long minutes, Jack nodded again and sat back, reaching for his wine glass. "Good," was all he said.

Maggie's eyebrows shot upward in surprise. "What, that's it?!" she squeaked. "All that glaring at me and all you have to say is 'good'? Where's the warning? Huh? The threats! Aren't you going to threaten me with certain death if I ever hurt Bianca?"

At those words, Jack actually had the audacity to laugh. "Oh, no, Maggie, no threats," he assured her. "I'd be willing to bet that both Erica and Kendall have already taken care of that."

"Huh, in spades," Maggie muttered.

"She knows," Kendall added with a grin.

"Besides," he added with a wink. "I think I've come to know you pretty well. There's nothing any of us could do to you that you wouldn't do to yourself first if you ever did hurt Bianca."

Maggie gave a little shrug. "Well, that's true."

Jack smiled. "Maggie, I'm not like Erica-."

"There's the understatement of the year-."

"But I've always thought that you two were good for each other. It doesn't matter in what capacity, but I'm very happy for Bianca that it appears to be the way she's always dreamt it would be." He sipped his wine, contemplative for a moment. "She's not the only one who hoped you'd come around."

Maggie's lips twisted in an amused grimace. "I just have to wonder how much of Pine Valley will be relieved and not the least bit surprised at this news…"

Jack and Kendall laughed, because they pretty much new the answer to that.

"Hurry up, you guys," Reggie said later, trying to hustle everyone along. "I don't want to miss any of this."

"Reggie, they haven't even reached the outskirts of Paris yet," Jack reminded his impatient son. "It'll be awhile before we even see the first rider on the street."

"I know, but I want to see Lance come in. The whole team surrounding him as he rides up the road, wearing the yellow jersey. Man, that's cool."

Maggie had come down the stairs to hear Reggie's last words and patted him on the cheek as she went by. "Sounds like someone's got a bit of hero worship going on," she teased.

"What? No," Reggie denied, suddenly trying to act cool and unconcerned. "Come on, no way. It's just- I mean, it's just cool, you know?" He gave Maggie a dirty look. "Thanks a lot, Mags."

Maggie laughed and finished packing up Miranda's diaper bag. Once Bianca had settled the baby in her stroller, they set off for the Champs Elysee to witness the final stage of the Tour de France.

What Jack had said to Reggie was true, the pelleton had yet to reach the outskirts of Paris and the traditional 10 trips up and down the Champs Elysee before finally crowning the victor. In reality, Lance Armstrong had wrapped up his incredibly historic 7th Tour in a row two stages prior in the 164 kilometer hilly stage of Issoire to Le-Puy-en-Velay. After leaving the Pyrenees behind the weekend following Bastille Day, Lance increased his lead over the field, creating an insurmountable advantage.

Despite this fact, the crowd assembled on the Champs Elysee was massive. Bianca thought it might have been larger than the one that gathered for the Parade on July 14th. Flags from at least a dozen different countries were proudly being waved by fans awaiting the rider's arrival. People were already partying, enjoying the atmosphere of revelry. The American contingent was huge and growing larger by the moment. The number of celebrities that had gathered was impressive, as well. Sheryl Crow, Robin Williams, Will Smith and his wife Jada Pinkett-Smith were all there, and when the great Erica Kane arrived, things hit hyper-drive.

Maggie leaned close to Bianca as they watched La Kane seize the moment. "Um, B, your mom's stealing the spotlight from Sheryl Crow," she murmured in the brunette's ear.

"I noticed that," Bianca replied in amusement, watching as men and women tripped over themselves to worship at her mother's feet. "Wow…"

"Are we going to see a Kane-Crow smackdown?" Maggie asked in awe.

"Ha!" Reggie cracked. "If so, my money's on Erica.."

"Mine, too," Maggie agreed.

Bianca noticed that Kendall had been very quiet all day and she moved to her sister's side. "Hey," she said softly. "You okay?"

Kendall put on her game-face and smiled at Bianca. "I'm fine, why do you ask?"

"You seem a little out of sorts. Is everything okay with you?"

There was a long moment before Kendall met Bianca's eyes. "How do you do that?" she asked.

"Do what?"

"Read people so well?"

Instead of answering the question, Bianca hugged her sister. "You want to talk about it?"

Kendall gave her a sad smile. "Not right now."

"Tonight, then. Just you and me." Bianca held Kendall's hands in hers, giving her a gentle reassuring squeeze.

"Okay." Before Bianca could pull away, Kendall gripped her hands tighter. "I want you to know," she said softly, "I'm very happy for you and Maggie. No one deserves this more than you do."

"Thank you, Kendall. That means a lot." She gave her sister a warm hug.

Maggie had disappeared for a while with Reggie, but they soon returned with souvenirs from the race. Le Tour t-shirts for everyone, a large Credit Lyonnaise teddy bear and a little Maillot Jaune for Miranda. Bianca laughed as Maggie changed the baby into her own yellow jersey, settling her on her hip so she could see the festivities around her. Jack slipped off and came back with bottled water, cold Orangina and a bag of pastries to munch on until the pelleton came into view.

At some point, Jack took Miranda from Maggie and set her in his shoulders. She grabbed his hair in both fists and held on tight, chortling with laughter and enjoying the view. Jack grimaced as he laughed when the little girl unwittingly tugged on his hair to keep her balance. Reggie was edging closer to the curb hoping to get a better view of the street for when the riders appeared, Kendall grabbing his shirt from behind to keep him from just heading out onto the cobblestone Avenue. Bianca stepped behind Maggie and wrapped her arms around the blonde's shoulders, enjoying her family's antics. Maggie put her hands on Bianca's arms, leaning back into the embrace. When Reggie almost stumbled off the curb, they both cracked up laughing.

Suddenly, a roar went up down the street. The lead vehicles had arrived, their flashing blue lights signaling the arrival of the riders. The cheer swept up Avenue as the pelleton came into view. Bicycles filled the wide street, their riders in jerseys of all colors creating a splash of vibrancy as they pedaled along. As the groups of riders neared, teams could be determined. Saeco, T-Mobile and Lotto-Domo led the way. CSC, Credit Agricole, Rabobank and Brioches La Boulangère came next. The loudest roar yet greeted the Discovery Channel team and Lance Armstrong in the yellow jersey. The team had him surrounded, protecting the winner and giving him an escort for the final laps of the race. As they pedaled by, Reggie and Kendall joined in the cheering, finding themselves standing between Robin Williams and Will Smith. Not that Kendall minded, seeing as Will Smith had his hands on her shoulders as he yelled at Lance and his team.

"I think I can take Jada," Kendall said to Bianca after Will had moved back to his wife's side.

Bianca laughed. "I have no doubt."

They watched all 10 laps of the finale, then enjoyed the final ceremony where Lance was given the very last Yellow Jersey, proclaiming him the winner of the 2005 Tour de France. A chant of "USA, USA, USA" filled the air as Americans cheered Armstrong's incredible feat. Those same Americans were hugging each other in celebration, including Reggie, Kendall, Maggie and Bianca in their joy.

"One more person grabs my ass..." Maggie warned as she found her way to Bianca's side once more.

"Tell me about it," Bianca agreed.

Maggie's head whipped around. "Who grabbed your ass?!" she demanded to know.

Bianca gave Maggie a look. "Actually, I think it was you."

"Oh, ha-ha, yeah... that..." Maggie blushed then quickly grabbed Reggie in a hug, leading him away in a victory celebration.

Bianca laughed then noticed that Jackson and Kendall were standing nearby, laughing right along with her. She smiled and shrugged and they laughed again.

Later that evening, after a light meal on the balcony, Bianca found Kendall in her room. The others were turning in for the night and Maggie was in putting Miranda to bed in the nursery.

Bianca knocked lightly on the door. "Kendall? Are you still up?" She peeked her head inside the room.

Kendall was sitting in bed, wide awake with the bedside lamp still on. "Hey, Binks, come on in." She patted the mattress beside her. "Have a seat."

Bianca moved to the bed, tucking a leg under her as she sat facing her sister. She touched the older woman on the leg. "You want to tell me what's going on with you?" she asked softly. "Is there a problem with you and Ethan?"

Kendall laughed sadly. "Other than the fact that there is no me and Ethan? No, no problem at all."

"What do you mean? What happened?" When Kendall wouldn't meet her eyes, Bianca reached out and grabbed hold of her sister's hands, holding them tightly. "Come on, Kendall, you know you can tell me anything."

Kendall's sadness hung in the air for a long moment, breaking Bianca's heart. Ethan may be her daughter's cousin, but if he had hurt Kendall, he would discover the wrath of a Montgomery woman was just as bad as that of a Kane.

"He lied to me, Binks," Kendall said softly, pain dripping from her words. "He looked me right in the eye and… he lied."

"Tell me."

Painfully, haltingly, Kendall related to her sister how Ethan had tried to railroad Zach Slater into prison, lying to her, the police, the court, even Maria. How he had destroyed physical evidence of Edmund walking in order to keep Zach behind bars. How he had looked at her time and time again and swore to her he was telling the truth when he claimed he had seen Zach kill Edmund.

Suddenly, the words were pouring out of her. She told Bianca of how he had halted construction of the Miranda Center and claimed it was only for a few days, but ended up being months. She related how it wasn't until Erica, Jack and Greenlee had joined with her to force him to return crews to the Center that construction had resumed.

Bianca felt her anger rising at the man's actions. Not just because of the Miranda Center, but because Ethan had so cavalierly broken Kendall's heart, with no thought or care of what he was doing. Kendall deserved so much more, so much better. She made a mental note to have a little chat with Ethan about his actions. She even thought she might contact Zach about this as well. He was a powerful ally and a very good friend to her.

"Why didn't you tell me this sooner?" she asked softly after Kendall had run out of words.

Kendall gave her a little grin, a look that gave Bianca hope that her sister was recovering from this betrayal. "You and Maggie were just too cute," the older girl replied. "The poor kid's a basket case when it comes to you, I had to have a little fun first."

Bianca cocked her head and grinned at her sister. "You knew right away, didn't you?"

"Well, good grief, Binks, it wasn't too hard to tell."

"What do you mean?"

Now Kendall laughed, a genuine, loving laugh. "If you could have seen the looks on your faces when we got here, honey, you would understand. Of course, looking like you'd just spent a couple hours necking made it easier to see."

"No!" Bianca blushed violently, hoping her mother hadn't noticed the same thing. She covered her face with her hands, feeling how her face was flaming. "Oh, Lord…"

"We really interrupted paradise, didn't we?" Kendall asked sincerely.

"Well…" Bianca lowered her hands and managed a grin.

"I think it's safe to assume that you two finally admitted it was time to give this relationship a go, huh?"

"Oh, Kendall, it's been incredible."

"Tell me."

So Bianca told Kendall how things had changed between her and Maggie. How they had, in Kendall's accurate words, finally admitted it was time for them to give their relationship a chance.

They spent most of the night talking about the things Bianca, Maggie and Miranda had been doing since Kendall was in Paris last. They giggled like schoolgirls, talked and laughed, and strengthened their friendship.

"So what happens now?" Bianca asked finally, after their laughter had died away. "Where do you go from here?"

Kendall sighed a bit. "I guess I feel this way until I don't feel this way anymore. Honestly, Binks, I don't know how long it will take, but I'll deal with it."

"If you need anything, you know you can call me, don't you?"

"I know, sweetie, I know." Kendall hugged her sister. "I have you and Mother and even Greenlee to help me out."

Bianca sat back. "Greenlee? Really?"

"She's actually been a very good friend to me, even when I didn't want one." Kendall smiled at the thought. "We worked together to bring down Jonathan, with Simone's help. Actually, it was kind of fun."

"Why do I have visions of Lucy and Ethel racing through my head?" Bianca laughed.

"Well…" She grinned to herself over the truth serum fiasco. Finally she looked at her sister. "I love you, Binks. Thanks."

"Oh, Kendall, I love you, too." Bianca reached out and brushed Kendall's hair back off her face, then pulled her into another hug. "Good night, sis."

Kendall kissed her younger sister on the cheek. "Good night, Binks."

After the others left for the Riviera on Monday, things returned a bit to their normal state. Morning jogs, breakfast on the balcony, trips out to the Periphery of the city to see more amazing sights became the norm again.

The closer they all became, the more Bianca thought about their lives together. She was committed to Maggie and Maggie had told her on more than one occasion that she was just as committed to Bianca. They were a couple, with Miranda they were a family. Everything was changing, growing, and Bianca was more than pleased with the direction things were heading.

Despite all that, it was time to make a few changes. With classes set to resume shortly, there would be times when Maggie would be in school while Bianca was at the Cambias offices and they decided they should hire a part-time nanny for those days when they were both gone, not wanting to put Miranda in a pre-school just yet. Whoever they hired would also have to be available for occasional evenings, so that Bianca and Maggie could be alone when they wanted.

Not that anything was happening in the bedroom department, much to Bianca's chagrin. Oh, Maggie hadn't moved back into her old room when the others left for the beach, they still slept wrapped in each others comforting arms. Most all of her clothes had found their way into the master suite as well. But other than some serious necking, it never really advanced beyond that stage. Bianca was more than willing to let Maggie set the timetable for the physical aspect of their relationship as she wanted her to be completely comfortable with herself before making that big step. And while Bianca was forced to take the occasional (huh, try frequent) cold shower because of this decision, she felt pretty confident that the reward would be well worth it.

She also wanted Maggie to know just how serious she was about them being a family, because in her mind, they were. A family in the truest sense of the word.

They were interviewing possible nanny candidates, having set down criteria for the person they chose. They would have to be fluent in English, capable and patient with Miranda, and have very good references. Already they had seen 5 women, 3 of whom scared the crap out of Maggie, the 4th terrifying Bianca.

"Prison matron," Maggie whispered as one woman closed the front door behind her.

"I didn't realize they had Hells Angels in France," Bianca muttered, her eyes going wide as another saw herself out.

"What the hell was that!" Maggie exclaimed, pointing after the mohawked, tattooed and pierced young girl in army boots and fatigues who had just left.

"Where the hell is Mary Poppins when you need her," mumbled Bianca, scratching another name off the list.

Miranda was down for an afternoon nap when the fifth young lady left. She had been a qualified candidate and Bianca thought she might be appropriate. She had come with references from 3 prominent families in Paris. She and Bianca had spoken for several minutes about her interactions with the children of those families and Maggie found her eyes narrowing as each successive minute passed. The girl, probably around Maggie's age, was tall and slender, with long raven black hair, eyes the color of sapphires and a porcelain complexion. She smiled as she talked with Bianca, laughing as she spoke of the antics of her charges.

After what amounted to the longest interview they'd had concluded, Bianca thanked the girl and told her they would be in touch about the position. The girl had smiled and shaken Maggie's hand, then Bianca's, holding on just a little too long to suit Maggie's taste. Then she made her way down the entry hall.

Maggie looked at Bianca skeptically as the front door closed. "She's awfully young to be a nanny," she muttered from her seat on the sofa.

Bianca tried to hide a small smile. "Is it because she's young or because she's beautiful?" she asked, just a little bit pleased that Maggie was obviously feeling some jealousy.

"No, it's not because she's… pretty." Maggie rolled her eyes. "I just think we can do better. Someone more grandmotherly, you know, a Mrs. Doubtfire-type."

"You want a man in drag as our daughter's nanny?"

At least he'd know he didn't stand a chance with you, Maggie thought. Suddenly, Bianca's words registered and her head snapped up. "What did you say?"

Bianca smiled. "I think you heard me."

There was a heartbeat of silence, then Maggie launched herself at Bianca from across the sofa, grabbing her in her arms and knocking them both onto the floor. She pinned the brunette to the thick rug with her body and grabbed her hands, lacing their fingers together.

"Do you mean that?" Maggie asked, looking deep into Bianca's eyes.

Bianca returned the look with all the seriousness she could muster, considering their position on the floor. "Yes, Maggie, I do," she assured the blonde softly. "Honey, you've been with me since the beginning. You've loved Miranda since the moment you found out about her. You were with me all through my pregnancy, willing to give up your life in Pine Valley to help me raise her miles away from everyone you knew and loved. You were the first person to ever see her besides me and David. You grieved when we thought she was dead. You bonded with her like I did when she was returned to me. You've been her teacher, her protector, her mentor. She loves you just like she loves me, just like she loves her mother. I can see it when she laughs with you, when she reaches out to touch you, when she puts her head on your should to sleep. It's trust. She trusts you like she would trust her mother."

"I love her like she was my own, Bianca. I always have."

"I know, Maggie. If anything were to ever happen to me, I know Miranda would be safe with you."

Those words had Maggie shaking her head. "Don't talk like that, B. We're not far enough removed from crazy Pine Valley for me to feel comfortable with those kinds of comments."

"You know what I mean," Bianca whispered. "You would raise Miranda the way that I would want her to be raised. The way I would raise her."

Maggie nodded. "I know. I know that, Bianca, I just don't want to think about anything like that. Ever."

"Relax, Stone, you're never going to be able to get rid of me." She smiled up at Maggie, waiting for the return of that famous Stone grin. Yep, there it was… "I waited too long to be in this position with you to go anywhere."

Maggie chuckled. "What, you mean this position?" she asked, leaning closer.

"Yeah." Bianca felt Maggie's warm breath on her cheek. "Both literally and figuratively."

"Hey, Binks?"

"Yeah?"

"Shut up." And then she covered Bianca's mouth with her own.

Bianca moaned slightly and freed her hands from Maggie's to reach up and tangle them in Maggie's hair. Maggie worked her arms around Bianca's body to pull her even closer as their lips met in a rapidly escalating kiss. Bianca's lips parted, and Maggie quickly deepened the kiss, feeling Bianca respond in kind.

Eventually, a lack of oxygen was the only thing that could separate them. Maggie kept pressing warm, wet kisses to Bianca's throat until Bianca tightened her hands in silky blonde hair and pulled Maggie's head back to look in her eyes.

"Dear God, Maggie, where in the hell did you learn to kiss like that?" she asked the blonde in awe.

Maggie just laughed. "Glad to see all those years of wasting my time kissing boys has finally paid off," she answered instead.

"Trust me, Mags, it wasn't wasted. Considering the skills you emerged with, I'd say it was time well spent." Then she gave Maggie a probing look. "What boys, by the way?"

"Oh, no," Maggie said, raising herself up onto her elbows. She brushed back a lock of Bianca's hair. "We are not going there."

"What? Why not?"

"Because I'm not telling you and I sure as hell don't want to hear how you got to be such a great kisser." She kissed Bianca once more, then sat up. She leaned back against the sofa. "There are some things I just don't want to know."

"Maggie, are you jealous?"

"Me? Jealous?" Maggie scoffed, trying to act innocent. She could see that Bianca wasn't buying it. "Please," she muttered weakly and unconvincingly.

No dice, Bianca thought as she sat up and moved next to Maggie, pressed their shoulders together. "Maggie," she admonished. "Come on, talk to me."

Maggie sighed. "Of course I'm jealous," she finally answered. "Jeez, Bianca, I've been jealous of everyone you've ever looked at, let alone anyone you actually dated." She held up a hand. "And before you say anything, we're not even going to discuss how I felt about Lena."

Bianca smiled. "Okay." She reached up and tucked a stray lock of blonde-streaked hair behind Maggie's ear. "There's no reason for you to be jealous of anyone, you know."

"Oh, come on, B" Maggie said, rolling her eyes. "You can remind me of that from now till doomsday but jealousy isn't exactly a rational emotion."

"Oh, trust me, I know." She turned so she was facing Maggie, scooting close and reaching for her hand. "How do you think I felt about Tim? Henry? Jamie?"

Maggie looked at Bianca in shock. "Really?" she asked. "But you and Lena…" She ducked her head, unable to maintain eye contact.

"Jeez, Maggie, and you call me dense." Bianca bent low to look into Maggie's eyes. "It's always been you, don't you know that by now?" When Maggie didn't respond, Bianca gently placed a finger beneath Maggie's chin, tipping her head back so their eyes would meet. "Do you remember when Lena came into my life?"

Maggie rolled her eyes. "It's kind of hard to forget," she replied, a little more waspishly than she intended.

"No," Bianca said, giving Maggie a silly grin. Then she got serious. "I mean, at what point did I meet Lena? Where was I? Where were you?"

"I was dating Henry."

Bianca nodded. "Yeah, you were dating Henry. We weren't very far removed from the talk we had at Willow Lake. You remember that?"

"Oh, God," Maggie moaned, hiding her face in her hands. "Don't remind me."

"I distinctly remember 2 things about that talk."

"Bianca…" Maggie groaned, dropping her head back onto the sofa cushions. Man, she had been so stupid that day. Scared, but stupid. What she wouldn't give to take it all back. "Don't…" She looked at the brunette, saw the smile on her face that said she could laugh at the whole situation now, with the passage of time. "Aw, jeez…"

Bianca kept smiling, an angelic smile that made Maggie's heart skip a beat. "You said something along the lines of not being interested in me-," she joked.

"No! Oh, no!" Maggie argued, holding up a finger. She met the brunettes smile with one of her own, moving onto her knees to kneel in front of Bianca. "I never said I wasn't interested in you!" Now, she laughed. "I said 'I'm into guys', which - okay - was incredibly stupid of me, but I never said I wasn't interested in you. Because I was, I really was."

"The other thing I remember was I said I always fall for the straight girl. And I did, it never failed. And you were the ultimate straight girl, you convinced me. Then Lena came along and she wasn't straight and she was worldly and beautiful… And she helped to take my mind off of you."

"Hmmph, well, I'm not sure I wanted to hear that."

Bianca took Maggie's hands in hers. "Well, she took my mind off you, but she certainly couldn't replace you." Bianca squeezed Maggie's hands, urging her to look up, meet her eyes. "Lena and I were never going to work because she wasn't you. No matter how hard she tried to love me, no matter how hard I tried to forget you, it wasn't going to happen." Bianca shrugged. "She just wasn't you," she said simply.

"God, Bianca…" Maggie whispered. "You really scared the shit out of me, you know that?"

They both laughed at that. "What do you mean?" Bianca asked.

Maggie waved a hand. "We've been through this so many times. I was so confused, so flat-out scared. You made me feel things I'd never felt before. For a man or a woman. And I didn't know how to handle that, I didn't know what to do with the way you made me feel. And I certainly didn't want to have to answer any questions I had about myself. So I ran as far and as fast as I could." She shook her head and shrugged. "I guess I just got tired of running. Because, really, I was just running from you."

"Were you able to answer any of those questions?" Bianca asked softly, her heart beating a little harder.

"I'm starting to. I mean, in case you can't tell, I don't seem to have any problems with pinning you down and kissing you till I see stars."

"Oh, no, I can tell," Bianca whispered, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear shyly. "I see stars, too."

Maggie grinned at those words. "So, I guess as far as that goes, I've kinda come out of the closet…"

"Maggie, as far as that goes, you didn't just come out of the closet, you kicked the freakin' door down."

Even while laughing at Bianca's words, Maggie blushed bright red. "Yeah, well…" She sighed and scooted a little closer to the woman she loved more than she ever thought possible. "So some things I've learned in my life have come in handy."

"Extremely handy," Bianca agreed softly.

"Stop it, B," Maggie warned in a gentle tone, "I'm trying to be serious here."

"Sorry." Bianca tried to look serious, failing miserably.

Maggie grinned at her, then took a breath and let it go slowly. "I told you this before but being with you, holding you, kissing you, it feels right. It feels natural and very normal. Does that mean I'm gay? Hell, I don't know, I really don't. But I do know that I don't care. And that it doesn't matter. Honestly, Bianca, it's simply because it's you and only you, no other reason. My heart doesn't know if you're a man or a woman. But my heart does know that it belongs to you. There's no one else I ever want to be with and spend my life with, male or female, gay or straight. Only you." Maggie shrugged her shoulders. "I love you, Bianca. I love you and… I'm totally and completely head over heels in love with you. You mean everything to me. You're the better part of me. You're everything I want to be. You-."

"I swear to God," Bianca interrupted, leaning back in mock-fear, "if you say 'you complete me' or any other cheesy line from Jerry Maguire, I'm gonna smack you."

Maggie laughed and held up her hands. "Okay, okay." She smiled and grabbed Bianca's hands again, resting them on her jeans-clad thighs. "It's true, though."

Bianca nodded. "I know. I feel the same way, you know that, don't you?" There was silence. "Jeez, Maggie, come on. I've been in love with you for as long as I can remember. Was it at my prom, was it before, when I tried to kiss you- and I was trying to kiss you, not Frankie. I don't know exactly, but I fell in love with you so hard and so fast…" Suddenly, Bianca grinned sheepishly. "I can't even say you had me at hello because, technically, I don't think we even said hello to each other when we first met."

"No, you hit the floor like a sack of potatoes," Maggie reminded her.

"I was graceful, wasn't I?" They both started to giggle. "You know, I should have killed Kendall for setting that whole thing up. She set me up, she set you up with that stunt." Bianca shook her head. "But how can I hurt her for basically introducing me to the love of my life? God, I'm so in love with you, Maggie Stone, sometimes it takes my breath away."

"Mine, too."

Bianca looked down at their clasped hands, then up at Maggie's shirt. "Have I told you," she said softly, freeing one hand to grab a hold of the mesh material, "how much this damn jersey drives me crazy?"

Maggie cocked an eyebrow at Bianca. "Really? Hmm, tell me more."

This time, Bianca pushed Maggie onto her back, settling herself over the smaller woman. "Who knew the New York Rangers could turn me on so much…" she murmured, just before she took Maggie's mouth with her own, feeling Maggie respond almost instantly.

Before things got too heated, though, there was a knock at the door. The 3:00 nanny prospect had arrived.

Maggie hoped she looked like Robin Williams in a dress…

TBC-