Title: Four Christmases: Let All Your Memories Hold You Close

Author: HandsThatHeal

Pairing: Callie/Arizona

Rating: M/NC-17

Summary: In this AU Christmas story, Callie Torres fondly thinks back on the four Christmases she has spent with the love of her life, Arizona Robbins. Written as a Secret Santa Fic for lovestryam on LiveJournal.

Disclaimer: All television shows, books, movies, songs, and other copyrighted material referred to in this work and the characters, events, and settings thereof are the properties of their respective owners. As this work is an interpretation of the original material and not for profit, it constitutes fair use. Reference to real persons, places, or events are made in a fictional context and are not intended to be libelous, defamatory, or in any way factual.

AN: In this story, italics denote past Christmas Seasons.

Chapter Three

Third Christmas

"Callie?" Arizona called into the oceanfront suite she and her girlfriend would be sharing for the next week. Greeted with nothing more than silence and the sound of the Caribbean through the open doors leading onto the private lanai, her face scrunched as she pondered where the other woman could be. "Calliope?"

Still receiving no response, Arizona placed her hands on her hips before making her way further into the suite. Stepping into the bedroom, she inhaled a deep breath before exhaling in exasperation, clearing her throat in an attempt to get her girlfriend's attention. "We said no work this week, Callie," she practically whined, her stance astringent. "We're on Christmas vacation."

Continuing to type on the tablet that was positioned atop her thighs as she sat against the headboard of their bed, Callie guiltily worried her bottom lip between her teeth, a sexy smile then covering her face. "Just a couple. More. Words," she emphasized with loud pecks against the keys. "Just. A. Few. More. And. . .I'm finished," she stated with a megawatt smile, tossing her tablet to the side with a flourish.

Arizona tipped her head to the side, her eyes narrowing with lust and need as she watched Callie stalk toward her, the brunette crawling down the length of the mattress before straightening up to meet her girlfriend face to face.

"No more work," Callie husked into Arizona's ear, causing a shiver of electricity to course down the length of the blonde's spine. "I promise," she honestly stated before pulling Arizona into a hard kiss.

Allowing her hands to fall to her sides from where they sternly rested on her hips, Arizona moaned and then sighed into Callie's mouth, her arms then moving to loosely wrap around her girlfriend's neck.

With their passion quickly escalating, Callie's hands ran down the sides of Arizona's taut abdomen, questing fingers playing at the hem of her tank top. Grasping the material into two tight fists, Callie quickly moved to divest her girlfriend of the garment but, before she could pull the shirt up over a blonde head, she felt two smaller hands adamantly wrapping themselves around her wrists.

"Wait," Arizona whispered, through the darkening hue of her eyes completely betrayed her words. "Please. Not yet."

Concerned by Arizona's highly unusual request, Callie slowly removed her hands from the other woman's body, nearly obsidian eyes dark with lust as they raked over Arizona's face. "What's the matter, sweetie?" Callie asked, her tone sincere.

Arizona nibbled at her bottom lip, a sure sign she was nervous or anxious about something. But, the word that came out of her mouth didn't match her demeanor in any way, shape, or form. "Nothing," she answered before backing away from the intoxicating woman kneeling on the mattress before her. "Nothing's the matter, Calliope. I just. . .I have plans for us. In just a little while," she explained, glancing down at the watch Callie had given her for Christmas two years prior. "And, if I let you keep kissing me like that, you and I both know we'll be naked within minutes, and then we'll never make it in time for. . .the thing I have planned."

Smirking at the adorableness that was Arizona Robbins, Callie suspiciously narrowed her eyes. "What exactly do you have planned?" she asked, very aware that Arizona was a terrible liar and an even worse secret keeper.

Backing even further away, as if the distance alone could keep her from spilling the beans, Arizona jumped slightly when her back collided with the door. "I'm not telling you, Calliope. It's a secret," she offered with a dimpled grin as she stepped to the side, once again backing further and further away from her girlfriend. "I'll see you in a little while, okay? Meet me at the bar at six."

And with that, Arizona swiftly moved the rest of the way out of their suite, leaving a confused and highly curious Calliope Torres alone in her wake.

At exactly 5:59pm, Callie emerged from the hotel room, her head tilted to the side as she fiddled with the back of her earring.

She hadn't seen Arizona since two hours before when she had hastily made her exit from the room and, while she was curious as to what this secret of Arizona's might entail, she was also more than a little concerned.

Arizona had been acting strangely for the past two weeks and, while Callie knew she was busy at work, trying to get things in order so they could enjoy their Christmas Holiday in Aruba, she couldn't help but wonder if there was something more. She had barely seen Arizona at all in those two weeks, and she couldn't help her feelings of dread and worry that the blonde was somehow - for some reason - pulling away.

Callie shook her head, mentally scolding herself for her own discordant thoughts. Of course Arizona wasn't pulling away from her. There was no way she would have made all the arrangements for them to spend Christmas together in Aruba if that were the case.

"God, Callie. You're so dumb," she muttered to herself as she meandered down the path leading to a very familiar destination and, breathing in the scent of the air around her, her lungs filled with the refreshing aroma of the Tropical Azalea and Jungle Geraniums that lined the path.

With the cabana bar she used to work at now in her line of vision, she paused when she noticed that there was not one person seated at any of the high stools surrounding the bar top. That certainly was an odd site to see, especially at 6:00 in the evening and, with her face scrunching in question, she slowly continued forward to find out what exactly was going on.

As she made her way closer to her destination, she soon noticed that the entire circumference of the circular bar top was lined with candles, each and every flame flickering with the turbulence of the warm ocean breeze. It was a gorgeous site to behold with the marvelous panoramic view of the Caribbean behind it, the opalescent sky beginning to streak with flecks of pink, orange, and purple as the sun began to set.

Callie couldn't help the smile that tugged at her lips at the perfectly romantic atmosphere, but she stopped dead in her tracks when Arizona appeared from behind the bar, her shoulder length blonde hair lying in gentle curls and swept up on one side with a perfect pink and yellow Plumeria tucked behind her ear.

Allowing herself a few more moments to take in the form of her girlfriend, Callie's eyes raked down the other woman's body to admire the printed halter dress she was wearing.

"Calliope?" Arizona called, slightly amused by her girlfriend's unabashed stare.

Shaking herself from her own musings at the sound of Arizona's voice, Callie slowly forced herself forward, finally coming to stand directing in front of her girlfriend. "What's all this?" she softly asked, reaching out to reverently run her index finger over the beads at the neck of Arizona's dress.

Arizona swallowed hard at the sight of her girlfriend; she swore she'd never seen Callie look quite as stunning as she did at that very moment. Taking her own moment to stare, Arizona's first thought was to completely abandon ship - to take Callie back to their room where she could tear the purple, slit front maxi dress from her body in order to do terribly naughty things to her - but, taking a step closer, she placed her hands on Callie's hips, brown eyes meeting bright blue.

"I'm glad you found the place," Arizona nervously teased, losing herself in the intoxicating scent of Callie's perfume.

Callie gave a slight chuckle as she gently pushed a stray lock of blonde hair behind Arizona's shoulder. "I think I've been here a time or two," she coyly replied.

With a nearly imperceptible nod, Arizona removed her hands from Callie's hips, taking her girlfriend's hand into her own as she led the taller woman to sit on the exact stool Arizona had claimed on the day they'd met each other exactly two years before.

Once she had Callie exactly where she wanted, her Arizona picked up a clustered bouquet of Plumeria that perfectly matched the one in her hair, and handing them to her girlfriend, she smiled as she spoke. "This is for you."

Callie's lips tugged into a crooked grin that quickly turned into her signature megawatt smile as she accepted the proffered flowers, their pedals more stunningly perfect than that of any other flowers she'd ever seen.

Dipping her nose into the top of the bouquet for a quick sniff, she quickly pulled back from it when the sensation of cool medal rubbed against the tip of her nose. Glancing down into the largest flower in the bunch, shocked brown eyes quickly flicked back up to a clearly nervous Arizona, the blonde's bottom lip now anxiously held between her teeth.

Clearing her throat in an attempt to compose her raging nerves, Arizona then took the bouquet from now trembling caramel hands, deft alabaster fingers dipping into the Plumeria to produce the most stunning diamond engagement ring Callie had ever seen.

"Arizona. . ." Callie gasped, tears instantly brimming in magical brown eyes.

Holding up her palm to halt her girlfriend's speech, Arizona continued to hold the ring for Callie's inspection as she gathered her thoughts in order to make coherent words. "Calliope. . .I love you with my whole heart," she honestly began, cerulean eyes now welling with tears of their own as she set the bouquet of flowers to the side. "You've done so much - given up so much - for me, Callie, and I. . ."

"I haven't given up anything, Arizona."

Shaking her head, Arizona narrowed her eyes in warning. "I'm trying to do a thing here, Calliope, and if you love me at all, you'll shut the hell up," she commented, her eyes growing wide when she realized the stringency of her own words. "Please," she then sheepishly added as a complete afterthought.

Callie found herself shocked by Arizona's blatantly candid words but, biting her bottom lip, she forced herself to remain quiet.

Satisfied that Callie wasn't going to once again interrupt, Arizona cleared her throat in order to continue. "Two years ago, I met you in this very spot and, ever since then, you have been the very first thing I think of in the morning and the very last thing I think about at night. You are the most beautiful and caring person I've ever met, Calliope. You are strong and honorable and, in the two short years we've been together, you've already been there for me more times than I can even count."

"You keep me grounded, Calliope, but, at the same time, you make me feel free. I love and respect your fire, your devotion and faithfulness to the things you hold most dear, and you make me want to be better. You make me want to try harder to be that way myself," Arizona honestly admitted, a smirk lighting her face when she once again witnessed Callie begin to interrupt.

Deciding to take pity on the other woman whom she could tell had something she desperately needed to say, Arizona hurriedly continued. "A love like ours has never happened to me before, Calliope. I've never been in the presence of someone who just. . .gets me. Someone who understands and even nourishes my workaholic ways, someone who shares my dreams but, most importantly, someone who has made my dreams her own. And, those are just a few of the reasons I'm hoping you will agree to spend the rest of your life with me. I want to love you forever, Calliope. Will you grant me the honor of doing that? Will you marry me?"

A choked cry fell from Callie's lips, once again interrupting Arizona's heartfelt speech, but she absolutely could not hold it in for a moment more. Sniffing and wiping at her nose with the back of a shaking hand, a smile brighter than all the lights on all the Christmas trees in all the world soon lit Callie's face. "Yes, Arizona. Nothing would make me happier than to be your wife."

With a loud shriek of excitement and relief, Arizona quickly slid the engagement ring onto Callie's left hand before engulfing the taller woman into a tight embrace, plump lips quickly being consumed by ecstatic pink ones.

And with the sun setting behind them, the two lovers finally pulled away from the romantic meeting of their lips, brown eyes shining only for the blue ones staring back into them.

"Best. Christmas. Ever."