Here we are, another update! Thank you for your patience. I do my best to not keep you waiting too long, but as always I appreciate you all and thanks to Lost Girl teaser and ana_goncalves for a few great ideas for future chapters! Hopefully there are not too many errors here as it is late, but enjoy!

Chapter 15

Half way to her mother's house, Lauren is glancing between the road and her girlfriend. She can feel the tension coming off of Bo in waves as the brunette is fiddling her fingers and staring straight ahead in silence. It seems to be getting worse the closer they get to their destination and the blonde is a little worried.

"Are you nervous? You seem nervous," Lauren asks Bo as she drives the pair of them to her childhood home for the weekend.

Bo is about to meet her girlfriend's mother, something she has never done before and somehow it almost feels formal, like she should be asking the woman for permission to marry her daughter or something. A million thoughts running through her head, "I am so not ready for that. Yes, I can definitely see spending the rest of my life with this woman, but the whole relationship thing is new to us both. Besides, who knows what the situation will be when Lauren's residency starts." Bo closes her eyes and takes a deep calming breath. She should be used to pressure. After all, she is the one who closes multi million dollar deals. This should be a walk in the park.

Maybe it's the idea in her head of what a mother is. The only one she knows left her high and dry when she was young. Thank goodness for Tamsin, the closest thing to a mother she has ever had. Surely Lauren's mom will be different. She has raised a kind, loving young woman so there must be love there. Lauren brings the brunette from her thoughts with a gentle squeeze of her thigh and Bo opens her eyes to see concern on the face of the blonde.

Lauren has never seen her girlfriend like this before. Keeping her eyes alternating between the road and Bo, she asks again in a doctor-like tone as she falls into analysis mode, "Bo, are you okay?"

The brunette nods her head, "Umm, yeah...I'll be fine." She forces a smile and places her hand atop Lauren's. "I'm sure your mom will be awesome...I mean, look at you," she tries to lighten the mood.

"Babe, you have nothing to worry about. You just be your usual charming self and I promise, she will love you, because I do," the blonde offers a gentle smile.

"I love you too," she sighs hard, "it's just...I've never done this and in movies all you ever see is the parents torturing the significant other and telling them they are not good enough for their daughter. You saw Meet the Parents, right?"

The blonde laughed heartily at her girlfriend who is not very appreciative of it, "Bo, I promise you, my mother will be quite the opposite of Robert DeNiro. She is overjoyed that I am even dating at all."

"Great, so you're saying she'll like me by default," she pouts and folds her arms across her chest.

"I can't win," Lauren chuckles and shakes her head, feeling relieved now that Bo is speaking again.

Nearly an hour and a half later they pull up to a cute little two story brick house with a manicured lawn and beautiful flower beds in Schenectady, NY. The blonde leans over and pulls Bo in for a deep kiss, locking their eyes when she pulls away. "Thank you for coming home with me. Just relax and be you, because you are amazing, Bo." She pecks Bo on the lips again, "And just so you know, mom is okay with some handholding or a quick peck. She has seen it before."

Bo's brows shoot up in surprise. "I was planning to keep my hands to myself when mom's around," she says before thinking harder about the "seen it before" comment. "Wait, how many girlfriends have you brought home to meet mom?"

Lauren smirks and moves to get out of the car, but Bo grabs her by the arm panicked, "Seriously babe? Is there something I should know?"

"Yes Bo, I am a serial monogamist. I just go from relationship to relationship, bringing girls home to meet mom," she tries to joke, but her girlfriend is having none of it. She sighs deeply and takes a more serious approach, hoping to calm the brunette's nerves. "Relax Bo," the blonde says softly, "I've been out since my senior year of highschool. She's met all the girl's I dated until I moved away. I haven't really dated, nor have I brought anyone home since. Besides, I plan on you being the last girlfriend she ever has to meet, so...I hope you are ready, because mom's looking out the window."

Bo blushes with embarrassment thinking that the woman may have seen them kissing. She is also finds herself a bit nervous about Lauren claiming that she will be the last girlfriend she ever takes home.

The blonde is finding the play of emotions across Bo's face completely adorable. The usually confident woman is a total bundle of nerves right now. She knows that Bo never had a mother around as a child, but she is so naturally charming and at ease around new people, that this is like a whole other person and Lauren can tell it is only because of how strongly they feel for one another that Bo is putting so much pressure on herself.

Taking Bo's hand in hers, Lauren gives it a squeeze leading them up to the door. No sooner do they hit the steps does her mother swing the door open with a huge toothy smile and her arms outstretched for her daughter.

"Lauren, honey its about time!" She wraps the blonde into a warm embrace. When they finally unravel, Lauren's face lights up as she turns toward her girlfriend and introduces the two of them, "Mom, this is my girlfriend Bo Dennis. Bo this is my mother, Mary Lewis."

Bo smiles warmly and holds her hand out in greeting, "Mrs. Lewis, its so nice to meet y-"

The older woman moves in quickly, catching Bo off guard. "Sorry, I've become a hugger in my old age," she smiles and pulls back, keeping her hands on Bo's arms to get a good look at the brunette who is now quite visibly nervous. "Bo, it is so very nice to meet you. You are lovely."

"Thanks," Bo replies awkwardly causing Lauren to laugh at her perplexed expression.

The blonde steps in and takes her mother's hand to move inside the house, "Stop mom, you're making her uncomfortable."

"Nonsense," Mary says, dismissing Bo's tension, instead looking at her with adoring eyes, "Bo, do you have no idea how happy it makes me to have you here this weekend?"

The brunette laughs, beginning to feel more at ease around the woman, "Oh I have a pretty good idea, Mrs. Lewis."

"Kenzi?" Mom winks at them as her daughter laughs and nods affirmatively. "Bo, please call me Mary." The woman leads the pair into the house giving Bo the tour and setting them up in their room.

When they finally settle in on the couch, mom has set out some snacks to enjoy and Bo takes a good look at the older woman. It's obvious where Lauren gets her mannerisms, as well as her good looks from. For a fifty something year old, the woman looks fantastic. She is tall and thin, has a somewhat regal air about her, with blonde hair and soft brown eyes just like Lauren. They even seem to have the same subtle sense of humor as they converse and chuckle about little things. Watching the mother and daughter together brings Bo a sense of sadness and she has to wonder what her mom would look like now, if she was even still around.

After an hour or so of getting caught up, mom asks what they want to eat for dinner. "I have pasta, steak, chicken, shrimp and plenty of fresh vegetables."

"No cooking for you tonight, Mary. I don't want you to spend the first night back with your daughter slaving over a hot stove. I want to take you both out, anywhere you want," Bo says with determination. She had planned to do this the whole time. She wants Lauren and her mother to relax and enjoy some of the things they haven't done in a while.

"That's not necessary, really. I like to cook," Mary protests, but Bo is insistent.

"Really, it will be my pleasure. If you are the one that taught Lauren how to cook, then I am sure you are an amazing cook, but I would much rather you had the chance to relax and enjoy dinner with us so you two can spend more quality time together. So, where do you guys like to go?"

Lauren and her mom smile at one another, both thinking of the mom and pop Italian restaurant that has long been the family favorite. "That is very nice of you Bo. There is a place we enjoy very much. Do you like Italian?"

She nods, it's her favorite, actually and smiles as Lauren excuses herself upstairs, "Bo, I'm going to grab our stuff and I'll be right back and we can give you a little tour of the area before dinner."

When Lauren exits the room, it leaves Bo and Mary alone. The older woman so far is very impressed with her daughter's choice in a girlfriend. Not that Lauren ever really picked bad one's, just that she seems the most comfortable and happy that Mary has seen her with any one. Everything between the pair in the few hours they have been here has been good energy.

"Bo, does Lauren ever talk about her father," Mary asks out of the blue, taking the brunette by surprise.

She realizes that she never noticed it before, but Lauren doesn't talk about him at all. Bo is sure her girlfriend loved him, but maybe it's the heartbreak that keeps her from sharing. "No," she answers sadly, "she doesn't."

Mary frowns and turns to the picture on the mantle of a sixteen year old Lauren with her parents at the Liberty Bell. They all look so happy. Bo walks over to the woman and looks at the photo with her, smiling at the young blonde girl in the picture before turning her attention to the tall, handsome man beside her.

"Is that him," she asks softly.

Mary just nods, sadness overcoming her for a moment before she regains her composure. "Yes, that's Robert. Lauren was truly her father's daughter. Always following him to his private lab and wanting to be a doctor just like him. He would be so proud of her, she's going to help so many people," Mary looks up into Bo's eyes, "I am just glad she finally found someone to make her happy, to bring her back to life."

The brunette feels her heart melt at the woman's words. She knows how much Lauren's love means to her and how the blonde has changed her life for the better, but she never understood the impact she had on Lauren's life. Sure, the blonde is a workaholic, but since she never shared this part of her life, only now does Bo realize the true extent of what their relationship means to both of them. They need one another, bring out the best in one another, always able to get the other one to do things they never though they would.

Keeping her eyes fixed on Mary's, Bo gives her a warm embrace, "It's all I want to do everyday of her life...make her happy."

Lauren comes back into the room and stops dead in her tracks. She didn't expect to see the two of them hugging, but from where they are standing, she knows what they had been talking about. Her mother always wants to talk about dad with her, but she just avoids the conversation entirely. The blonde clears her throat causing the pair to jump apart. Her mom stammers, "We were just, uh..."

"I know what your were doing," the blonde says dryly, clearly not happy about it, "Are you both ready to go," she asks. When they nod, she grabs her keys and heads out the door, leaving them both behind. Bo is shocked to see her girlfriend act this way. Lauren has never been so cold around her, and to do it to her mother, well she was going to get to blonde to open up one way or another. It may be a painful subject, but it's one she clearly needs to get out in the open. Bo learned from experience that swallowing down painful memories only leads to more pain.

Despite the tension when they leave the house, Lauren calms down quickly as she drives Bo around town and mom fills in some of the details about what they pass. Dinner is wonderful, the food truly amazing and the conversation delightful. The three of them get along famously and the brunette is pleasantly surprised at how comfortable she feels, like a part of the family already. Bo even got to meet the owner, a very old, very Italian man who happens to be quite the flirt, but ever the charmer herself, Bo navigates her way smoothly.

Arriving back at the house following a long evening out, Mary plans to retire to her room. "Thank you so much for dinner, Bo. You didn't have to do that, but I had a wonderful evening getting to know you and I am so happy to have Lauren home this weekend. You know where everything is, so make yourself at home," she says looking at her daughter as she starts to turn away before looking back at them one last time, "just keep the extracurricular noises to a minimum dear," she smirks knowingly.

"Mom," Lauren whines just like a teenager and the two of them blush knowing just how bad they can be.

Bo smiles inwardly, an idea forming of finding out how much she can tease the blonde tonight without waking up Mary. "Should be fun," she thinks and grins devilishly. Lauren's not sure what Bo has on her mind exactly, but she has a pretty good idea what it involves and already knows she will hear about it from mom in the morning.

Once inside their room, Bo wants to fool around, immediately running her hands seductively up Lauren's thighs.

Lauren steps away, "Bo, do you really think it's possible for us to do that and not wake the neighborhood," she smirks.

Laying on her best pouty face, Bo saunters up closer, "Come one Lauren, you know you want to make out in your bedroom while your mom is home. I mean, how many other girl's have you done that with in here?"

"Oh, so that's what this is really about," she chuckles, "there's been a few girls..." she muses as Bo frowns, not liking what she's hearing, "but no women and Bo, you are most definitely a woman," the blonde growls.

Bo smiles seductively, knowing she has got her just where she wants her. She loves flirty Lauren. "Well, we could try to stay at second base, you know... keep it innocent."

"Yes, but it only takes an error to get an inside the park homerun," Lauren winks as Bo smiles at the baseball reference.

"Well, it's too bad I've won the Golden Glove," she rasps back as she starts to remove Laurens shirt.

The blonde arches into her as Bo's mouth wastes no time in finding her breasts.

"Well, maybe you'd like to bench the All Star in favor of the third stringer...just for tonight," Lauren breathes heavily as her arousal rises. Bo is quickly rounding second on her way to third already.

"I'll throw him off the damn team," she laughs as she pushes the blonde onto the bed and yanks off her pants.

XXX

Bo is relieved that mom doesn't make any comments about their activities last night during breakfast. They were more quiet than usual, doing their best to be good guests, but sometimes it is so hard to hold back with the blonde.

"Thanks for breakfast mom," Lauren says as she grabs her keys and pecks her on the cheek, "I'm going to take Bo out to a few places and when we get back, I want to tell you all about my new work study research job."

"Okay dear, you gals have fun. Try not to cause a ruckus like last night," Mary calls out from the kitchen.

Se can't hold back her laugh when she hears a mortified Bo cry out in the other room, "Oh my God!" Dinner was definitely enjoyable and she realizes now just how much she misses having a family around. She is so happy to have her daughter home for the weekend, and it is even better to finally see her little girl in a good place in her relationship with Bo. When Lauren said she was bringing someone home, her mother's heart leapt with joy. She didn't have any preconceived ideas of what the woman would look or act like, but she can honestly say that she couldn't be happier with the gorgeous, intelligent, girl-next-door that Lauren showed up with. Bo really seems to set her daughter's over worked mind at ease and allow her to be the outgoing fun girl she remembers.

Having toured all of Lauren's old hangouts and touristy areas, the blonde takes her girlfriend out to a lake that she used to go to when she wanted to be alone. She pulls the Jetta down an unmarked path and parks at the edge of the water. Bo hops up on the trunk of the car and Lauren leans her back between the brunette's legs so that Bo can wrap her arms around the blonde. They are staring quietly at the lake. It's beautiful, clear and quiet at this end of the lake, but you can see people stiring at the other end in a typical summer scene.

Bo decides it is a good time to open up about her childhood and maybe that will get Lauren talking, too.

"I know what your doing, Bo," Lauren says in an agitated tone. She pulls away and turns to look at her girlfriend sitting on the trunk with an innocent, but confused expression.

"What?" Bo does her best sales job to pretend she has no idea what the blonde is talking about.

Lauren won't look at her, but she is clearly not pleased, "Trying to get me to talk about my dad."

"I'm sorry, Lauren, but I though I was talking about MY parents. I know I never told you about why Tamsin is so important to me and seeing you with your mom just reinforces to me all the things I missed." Bo tries hard not to come off rudely, but even though her goal is to get her girlfriend to open up, she does want to talk about her past as well, and for some reason the blonde's abrupt coldness once again irritates her.

Dropping her head to hide her embarrassment, Lauren softens and apologizes sincerely, "I'm sorry. I'm being an ass. Please go on. I want to hear know your story, Bo."

She steps back into the brunette's embrace and Bo gives her a forgiving smile. "It's alright. I get it. Okay, so...I actually never met my dad. I don't know where he is, or even his name. My mom was not a good mother, always running around with guys, drinking too much and getting involved in fights. She was arrested a few times and I would get sent to a home. Then she would somehow get released and they would send me back to her. The system is so screwed up." She pauses to reflect a moment on her past and Lauren gently squeezes her thigh in support to let her know it's alright to continue.

"So finally, they took me away when I was like fifteen. I had pretty much dropped out of school, which sucked because I kinda liked it, I was smart, but I would get teased a lot because of my mom. I am sure you could imagine the jokes and stories about an alcoholic whore of a mother. Anyway, I got mixed up in the wrong crowd, doing some con jobs. They too me in and seemed to care about me... that is until a detective caught me scamming in an alley one night and they left me high and dry. Fortunately for me, Tamsin was off duty and she saw something in me that I couldn't even see. The woman has an amazing talent for reading people. She took me in, enrolled me in a different school, applied to become legal guardian of me and gave me a second chance. I didn't make it easy on her at first...I have a short fuse and tend to jump without thinking about the consequences, but bless her heart, she stayed with me and now look...I have a life I never would have imagined...and I have you," she tries to smile through the pain.

Bo's eyes are glassy and wrought with emotion and Lauren feels her heart drop at the sight. She runs her hands up and down the brunette's legs as she processes what she just heard. She has had her emotional trauma, but her life has been a cake walk compared to Bo's and yet this strong, passionate woman is standing here with her today. "Bo, I had no idea. You have come so far. You really are amazing. I am so glad Tamsin found you and yes, you definitely have me," she says with a loving smile, doing her best to lighten the mood. She wasn't expecting such an emotional afternoon, and having her girlfriend open up this way stirs something inside her to bend a little.

After a few moments of silence, Lauren pulls away and faces the lake. "You know, my dad would always know when I was upset. Somehow he would find just the right thing to say to make it all better. It didn't matter what the problem was, he could make it disappear. I feel that way with you, Bo." The blonde turns back around to face her girlfriend, her own eyes now becoming teary. "That's the first time I have mentioned my dad since the day he died. I just shelled up, cut that part right out of my life, ignoring it...ignoring him, as if none of it ever existed. I shut down a lot of my emotions and dove into schoolwork. It's so wrong, I know it, but the pain is just so bad that...well, it feels easier to never confront it. Mom says that he lives with us when we can talk about him and enjoy his memories, yet for me, it's always a kick in the stomach and I only see the last moments. I know I am letting him down, he would never want me to be like that."

Bo hops off of the trunk and takes Lauren by the arms, angling her head to catch her eyes, "Hey, hey, you are not letting anyone down. How could he not be proud of the wonderful, brilliant woman you have become?"

Lauren is crying now, choking back sobs from the shame she feels, "He was always so full of life, living every minute, experiencing everything he could and opening himself up to the world of possibilities. That was how we lived then. He would hate what I have become."

"No, Lauren, I disagree. I don't know how you were before, but you were only hurting yourself. I see you now, as long as I have known you...I've never met anyone as alive and passionate as you. He would not have wanted you to hide your whole life, but babe, grief takes time and everyone has their own way of dealing. Sometimes we just need the right push to break free of the rut."

The blonde slowly begins to smile through her tears as she struggles to calm her breathing. "I guess I found my rut buster," she jokes, causing Bo to smile and hug her tightly.

Wanting to get it all out right now if she can, Bo asks for just a little bit more from the blonde. "Not to pry, but would you be willing to tell me what happened? I understand if you don't..."

"Umm...I guess. I want you to know everything, Bo," she says and pulls back, turning her back to Bo, but letting her keep her in the embrace. "When I was a freshman in highschool, my mom had a stroke. No one really knows why and looking at her now you'd never know, but dad caught it quick and luckily it wasn't in a crucial area of the brain. Anyway, it did take her about a year to recover, but she would still have little bouts of stuttering or delay in thinking. She was a pediatrician and she ended up selling her practice and focusing on her health. About the time she really recovered fully, dad began to have weird symptoms with intermittent vision loss, dizziness, all kinds of things that didn't add up. Well he was a cardiologist and had access to great care. Imaging found a brain tumor, an inoperable one. We were devastated of course, but determined to use every channel with his research connections to cure it. Several moths later, it seemed to be stable. We took a little trip, the picture my mom showed you was during that time. When we got back, we were having dinner and suddenly he grabbed his head, screaming from the pain. I tried to comfort him while my mom called 911. I watched him die, right in my arms while we waited. Apparently he had an aneurysm. It killed him quickly. No one knows for sure if it was a side effect of the tumor or the experimental treatments, but I never got over it. I promised that I would do whatever I could in the medical field to keep as many people as possible from having to experience that pain and suffering. Needless to say, the medical bills and lost work strapped my mother. She did keep the house but we lost a lot. She went back to work at the local clinic for a while, but her passion for medicine was gone. That's why I work so much to help pay for school. I don't want to ask her for anything and I try to help her out as much as I can."

Bo kisses her on the neck and squeezes her tight as they look at the rays of sunshine dancing across the water. "Thank you for sharing that with me."

Lauren begins to sob again, letting herself be enveloped in the strong, comforting arms of the brunette as she lets go of years of pain. Bo doesn't say anything, she just holds her, kissing her head now and again to let her know she is there for her. When the blonde finally calms down, she turns back around in her girlfriend's comforting embrace, looking into loving brown eyes. She never thought she could ever feel this way about someone or allow herself to be so vulnerable. The brunette has officially taken down every wall she has and staked her claim on her heart. She has no words at this moment, instead she just nuzzles into the crook of Bo's neck and finds comfort as she breathes in her scent.

XXX

Arriving back at the house, Bo knows that Lauren is planning to chat with her mom, so she feels it's best to give them some alone time, besides, she is pretty tired from last night and today's emotional outpouring. "I'm going to take a little nap. I never get to do that, plus someone kept me up all night," she pouts in jest.

"Oh, so were blaming me for your lack of sleep," the blonde laughs in disbelief and places a gentle but loving kiss on her girlfriend's lips.

"Definitely, it's always hard to sleep around you. I can't keep my hands off of you. Maybe you should wear a onesie to make it harder for me," she chuckles. "Go and enjoy some time with your mom."

"Thanks babe. We'll be right down here when you get up."

Bo pulls her in for a tight embrace, "I love you and your mom is awesome, " she says before delivering a long, lingering kiss that makes the blonde melt inside.

"I love you ,too. You are amazing, Bo. Thank you...for everything." Lauren knows now more than ever before that she hit the jackpot with Bo. She has a big heart and is so supportive. Her mom is already gushing over the brunette and the effect she has on the blonde. Sometimes she can't even believe that Bo exists, but one thing is for sure, she will make the best of everyday with her just incase she one day wakes up and realizes it was all just a dream.

Lauren opens the door to the back patio and sees her mom sitting out there with two glasses of tea. She pauses and looks out across the yard allowing the memories to come flooding back for the first time in a long time. "I remember when dad tried to build me that tree house and it was all crooked. I wouldn't get in it and it collapsed that night when it rained. He laughed about being able to close a hole in heart valve, but not being able to hammer a nail."

Mary turns around with tears in her eyes and smiles as Lauren kisses her on the cheek and sits beside her.

"That was funny. I remember..."

And that went on for hours. Bo did wake up and stuck her head out the door, but when she heard their conversation, she snuck back upstairs. It was a big, healing step for both of them and she laid back down content that she had done her job well.