Disclaimer: I do not own Lie to Me or any of the characters in this story.

Thanks again for the feedback! I've had a request for longer chapters or more frequent updates. I can't promise either, but I'll try :)

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Gillian awoke with a start, the sound of her cell phone ringing disturbing the fitful sleep she'd been in. She never slept well without Cal next to her anymore, and a quick feel around with her arm confirmed he had not come to bed. She glanced at the glowing red numbers on the clock beside the bed. 2:43AM. Who could it be? Cal would know better unless he was in serious trouble. She hoped he wasn't, but if she was honest with herself it wouldn't surprise her if he was.

"Foster," she said, answering the phone and attempting to sound less groggy (and, admittedly, irritated) than she felt.

"Gill?" came the concerned voice from the other end.

"Emily?" Gill replied, instantly more alert. Emily wasn't due to fly in for the wedding for a few days, which meant it was now 6:43... No, 6:44AM local time. "What's wrong, sweetie?" she asked, instantly concerned. "What are you doing up so early on a Sunday?" She didn't remind her that it was the middle of the night on the other side of the country. It didn't matter to her what time of day Emily called, she loved Cal's daughter and would always be there for her no matter what.

"Dad's not with you?" Emily replied. It was half question, half statement.

"No," Gillian said, frowning and sitting up in bed. How was she going to explain this to Emily? She didn't want to lie to her if she could avoid it. The relationship they'd had in the past had been built on trust and honesty. Gillian had only lied to her once, to prevent Cal from having to do it, and the rest of the time she'd always tried to be straight forward with her and treat her like the young woman she was becoming. It was part of what made Emily turn to her when she needed something- she knew she would get an honest answer, and that Gill would never, ever judge her. She had the type of unconditional love for Emily that most people really only had for their children. "He decided to go out for the night and I stayed in... Need my beauty sleep for the wedding," she added by way of explanation. She felt a slight pang of guilt at the half-truth.

"Did he have to go to a bar?" Emily asked. "What happened?" The teenager sounded upset and confused.

"What are you talking about, Em?" Gill asked, trying to piece it all together. She didn't function to well when she'd had her sleep disturbed. Few people did.

"I just got off the phone with him,'" Emily explained. "He's been drinking. I spent half an hour trying to convince him he wasn't a failure as a father and he hadn't screwed me up," she said. "I've never heard him like that. He never drinks that much when he's going to call or see me. I don't get it. Why the sudden concern in the middle of the night?" she asked. Of course, she'd asked Cal the same question, and he'd evaded. What was he going to say? 'Well, Gill doesn't want to have kids with me, but she wanted them with her ex. Seemed pretty logical to think the problem is with me...'

Gill closed her eyes as she listened, her heart sinking. "Em, I'm sorry he woke you. You know how over-protective he can be at times. I don't know what's got him convinced he's a bad father." 'I could probably guess, though,' she added in her head. "Don't worry about it. Turn your phone off and go back to sleep. Your Dad'll be just fine. I'll look after him."

"You sound more like his mother than his fiancé," Emily commented, and Gill had to bite her lip to stop herself from agreeing. Cal could be a real mess when he'd gone on a bender. Thankfully they were rare, and usually he left Gill and Emily out of it, save the occasional call to Gill to ask her to pick him up. 'Usually he just finds someone to sleep with,' Gill thought, and as soon as she did she wished her mind hadn't gone there. He wouldn't. Not Cal. Not right before the wedding, and after everything she'd been through with Alec. He loved her, he was just upset. He wouldn't cheat on her.

"Emily, I think he's just coming in now," Gill lied. The slight sense of panic at the prospect that maybe- just maybe- Cal had turned to another woman for comfort outweighed her guilt. Now she'd lied to her twice. "I have to go. Get some sleep and I'll call you later," she promised before hanging up. The moment the call ended she hit 1 on her speed dial and waited for Cal to answer. A few rings later, Cal picked up.

"'Allo, darling," Cal greeted her as he answered his phone. A brief look at the caller ID had told him it was Gillian.

'Great,' she thought. His words were slurred.