It had been several days since Bianca had seen Marissa. The girls were still in Paris for Reese's scheduled visit, and Bianca had been working late nights, preparing for a presentation she had coming up. Kendall had done Bianca a huge favor by keeping Erica distracted and out of Bianca's hair for a while. She and Marissa had enjoyed a lovely picnic and an equally lovely chat. They decided to go ahead and meet with Scott for drinks at ConFusion that night and share their news with him.

It would be an understatement to say that Scott was overjoyed at the news. He was happy that Marissa was in love and he was practically doing back flips that it wasn't JR. They had a really good time, but it was cut short by a call from AJ. He was not feeling well and wanted Marissa by his side. She hated leaving Bianca, but Bianca understood her son came first, and insisted. Marissa had picked AJ up from JR and had spent the last several nights at the Martins. During the day, her schedule had her mostly playing phone tag opposite Bianca. Their only real contact had been a few late night phone calls, that only seemed to make the longing worse.

Now Bianca was stuck in traffic, driving home from the busiest day in months. It was Wednesday, three days later, and all she could think of was Marissa. She had loads of other things to worry about, like deadlines, budget proposals, investors and fundraising events…but the charming red-headed attorney with the amazing smile seemed to occupy all the space in her, otherwise, overcrowded brain. She turned her radio on to try and take her mind off of Marissa, at least long enough to safely maneuver the crowded roadway home.

A soft rock tune came across the air waves, the DJ had said it was the new Sara Bareilles song. Sounds nice. She thought to herself, That's it…just relax and enjoy the drive…take in the scenery.

"Love…I get so lost, sometimes

Days pass and this emptiness fills my heart

When I want to run away I drive off in my car

But, whichever way I go I come back to the place you are"

"Oh, no thank you!" Bianca mumbled, changing the station as she realized this was just cover of 'In Your Eyes'. She turned on another local pop channel and waited for the commercials to end. As the music started, it was a slow, soft guitar and she waited apprehensively with her hand on the dial.

"So this is how the story went

I met someone by accident

That blew me away

That blew me away"

"Uggh…Brandi Carlile!' She grumbled, and turned the dial. She stopped on a far more upbeat song that she didn't quite recognize. She settled back in the seat and waited for the instrumental part to finish and the lyrics were finally there…loud and clear.

"Stop me on the corner

I swear you hit me like a vision

I, I, I wasn't expecting

But who am I to tell fate where it's supposed to go with it?

Don't you blink you might miss it

See we got a right to just love it or leave it

You find it and keep it

Cause it ain't every day you get the chance to say

Oh, this is how it starts, lightning strikes the heart

It goes off like a gun, brighter than the sun

Oh, we could be the stars, falling from the sky

Shining how we want, brighter than the sun"

At this, Bianca just bit her bottom lip and jabbed the button with her finger. She almost cringed as she awaited recognition of the next, no doubt, love-laced tune

"I tried my best to never let you in to see the truth

And I've never opened up

I've never truly loved 'til you put your arms around me

And I believe that it's easier for you to let me go

I hope that you see right through my walls

I hope that you catch me, 'cause I'm already falling

I'll never let a love get so close

You put your arms around me and I'm home"

Bianca turned her radio off and sat in silence for the remainder of the drive. Going over figures and data that had been burned into her brain throughout the day. Then, ocassionally, replaced by a set of toned legs, a gleaming smile, cascades of fiery red hair and the recalled sensation of delicate ivory fingers tracing her jawline as she slept. This woman is going to be the death of me! She thought. Before much longer, she had arrived home. She unloaded her briefcase and the stacks of papers, files and pamphlets she had lugged home, and walked toward the main entry of Wildwind.

As she neared the door, she fumbled with her keys and heard a noise and looked up. "Hey, beautiful!" Marissa said with a low dip in her voice. Bianca froze and dropped pretty much everything that she had carried from the car. Marissa stood up and the two women crashed together in a heated embrace. Bianca pressed Marissa against the door as Marissa ran her fingers through Bianca's luxurious hair. Marissa was the first to break the hold and gasped for air. "Oh, Bianca…I have missed you so much. I hope I didn't ruin your plans for the night." She looked down at the files and documents scattered about. Bianca followed her gaze and then laughed. She bent down to collect her things.

"Oh, M…you didn't ruin anything. You don't know what it has been like not seeing you. I really don't know how I managed all the months I was hiding my feelings."

"Well, that is easy. " Marissa replied, while moving in a flirtatious manner, as she picked up Bianca's keys and opened the door. "You had no idea, before, about just how amazing I really am." She giggled, playfully, as she walked to the sofa and sat down. Bianca stood dumbstruck in the doorway, just watching the spectacle before her. The absolute death of me. She thought again, closing the door behind her.