A/N: Alright guys, here it is. This chapter is a little different and it's told with flashbacks as Gail tells Traci about dinner on Tuesday morning after shift. The flashbacks to Sunday night are in italics and Traci and Gail's convo is in plain font. I hope you guys enjoy it!

"Come on Gail, spill it!" Traci was beaming. She needed deets, and she needed them now.

"Don't you have a small child to get home to?" Gail had just gotten of the night shift and she wanted to sleep, like hours ago.

"Come on, breakfast. Ya gotta eat," Traci reasoned. Maybe some pancakes soaked in maple syrup and bacon could get Gail to spill the beans. This elicited a contemplative look from Gail who then turned and headed for the door of the locker room, "you're buying, Nash."

"Nervous?" Dov looked over from the passenger seat of their squad car.

"Meh, couple of hungover and drunk frat boys stumbling over each other? Shouldn't be that bad," Gail reasoned.

"No, I mean to meet Holly's parents. And brother I guess. We all met her sister," Dov laughed until his last comment earned him a smack to the chest. "Okay I'm sorry, I'm trying to be helpful here, we all know who you were raised by..."

"Ugh, Traci, he seriously would not shut up. All. Shift. Long. I should be getting letters of commendation for not shooting him in the foot. He started coaching me about what we were gonna have for dinner? Seriously. Totally gonna prank him like there's no tomorrow."

"Yeah, I can imagine. But he cares, it's kinda of adorable in a way. He's having such a rough time with Chloe."

"Anways, back to feeling bad for me..."

"Oh well what do you know? We're here," Gail turned her head to Dov, plastered a huge smile on her face and then stepped out of the car. The bar wasn't crowded, it was a Sunday afternoon after all, which made locating the subjects of the 9-1-1 call incredibly easy. Apparently the two men had been arguing about a bet when one of them punched the other, leading to an all out brawl and damages to the bar. The bar tender was adamant that he wanted to press charges. After a minimal physical confrontation Gail and Dov put the two men under arrest and took the owner's statement, after calling another car to transport one of the drunks to the station, so as to keep them separate. They were waiting outside of their squad car with the second guy when Dov brought it up again, "so you know what you guys are having?" before Gail could answer their new friend piped up, "no way! How far along are you?"

Dov pushed the guy so his back was to the wall again, "she's not pregnant you idiot." But the look Gail was giving him was worse than what Dov had just dished out. "Dinner, do you know what you're having for dinner?"

"Wait?! The guy thought you were pregnant? Is he still alive?" Traci burst into laughter.

"Traci, I was in shock. Back to my story..."

"No, why would I know that? I'm not cooking."

"Well, for one you're an extremely picky eater, second of all, you know, certain kinds of foods just might not sit well. You know, if it's really heavy, like real mac and cheese."

"Woah, man. Take it easy with the cheese talk," their prisoner protested.

But Dov didn't hear him, "or you know, like Chinese, Thai, can sometimes just not go well, ya know, doesn't sit right?" Dov made a face, motioning to his stomach, right as his talk of ethnic food caused their prisoner to unload the contents of his stomach at their feat. Unfortunately for Dov and Gail, they were both in the splash zone.

"Gail, that's disgusting!"

"You're tellin' me..."

Gail, speechless, looked down at her feet, "shit. I hope they know I'm allergic to tomatoes."

"Just in time," Dov proclaimed, as he saw the squad car they had called for transport pull up behind their car. "Call some medics for this guy. He just puked all over over our shoes," Dov forced a sarcastic smile.

"Enjoy," Gail smiled broadly at Andy and Nick as she got into her squad car, leaving them to clean up the mess while she and Dov drove away.

"Oof, Nick and Andy had to take him?"

"That they did," Gail said with a smirk, "but ya know? I feel kinda sorry for them, like talk about most awkward work environment ever..."

"I'm just saying, when in doubt, smile and laugh. Just be nice, Gail, you can fake it right?" Dov tried to give Gail some last minute pointers as she finished up her paperwork for the day, Holly was picking her up for dinner after shift.

"That's horrible advice. People who just smile and laugh are usually insane."

"And hey, Holly's driving right? Doesn't mean you can get drunk, alternate with water."

"Has anyone ever told you that you should teach High School health/sex ed classes?" Gail said, rising from her chair.

"Gail, don't listen to him. Just be yourself, it'll be great," Chris said encouragingly from the other side of the desk.

"This is for you," Gail said with a smile as she placed the uneaten half of her chocolate chip cookie in front of Chris. "And this is for you," Gail said, looking at Dov, before lightly smacking him on the back of the head. Okay, maybe not as lightly as she normally would.

"Seriously though, you didn't take any of Dov's advice did you? Except maybe the water."

"Do I look like a total moron?"

"Are you two ready to order?" Their waitress asked.

"Yes, I'll have a buckwheat short stack, side of bacon. And, uh, a grapefruit I guess," Gail said eagerly.

"I'll have a cup of oatmeal, and the veggie omlette please," Traci said, smiling at the waitress.

"Ew. Gross," Gail shuddered, "back to my story..."

"How was work?" Holly asked as Gail slid into the passenger seat of her car.

"Gross. Some drunk got puke all over my shoes," Gail groaned.

"You got puked on?! Narly," Summer exclaimed from the backseat.

"Holy shit!" Gail screamed. "I think I just died for a second. Sorry, didn't know you were, er, back there," Gail shot Summer a closed lip smile while Holly just chuckled.

"You showered right?" Holly asked between laughs.

"Duh. Don't think Dov has yet though. He's so slow at paperwork," Gail gloated.

"Another vomit casualty?"

"You bet. And Andy and Nick had to take him to the hospital. And I hit Dov. So kinda, actually, could have been a worse day for sure."

"Hol, you're totally going the wrong way to Evan's," Summer reported.

"He's already home. He and Dad were gonna change the oil in his car? Or something?"

"L-O-L. Five bucks says they spent at least forty minutes failing until Mom threatened not to feed them unless they took it to a mechanic," Summer said confidently.

"I'll take that action," Holly said, making eye contact with Summer in the rearview mirror.

"Summer sounds like a real character," Traci mused.

"You met her," Gail said between bites of her pancakes.

"That I did, that I did," Traci laughed.

"Anywho.."

"Hol, I really love you and all, but gram drives faster than this," Summer said, peering around Holly's seat at the speedometer.

"She's right," Gail confirmed with an 'hate to break it to you' expression on her face, "you drive kinda slow."

"I'm going the speed limit," Holly protested.

"Kinda the point, Hol," Summer explained.

"What she said," Gail agreed.

"You're a police officer, Gail," Holly said, scandalized.

"You can do five or ten over, no one cares," Summer didn't get it, was Holly really this much of a goody goody? She added in an eye roll for good measure.

"Pretty much, yeah," Gail confirmed, "you drive a Mazda. Zoom Zoom," Gail teased.

"Funny," Holly smirked, "Oh, if Dad starts asking about what I'm going after my fellowship, just change the subject."

"I thought you said you were probably going to get promoted at the Coroner's?" Gail asked.

"Yeah, I am, but he's gonna go all nuts about the different hospitals I could apply to, and how he's best buds with his Head of Pathology, just I don't want him being annoying about it."

"Sure, fine, but if Mom asks about Monday, just like, run screaming from the room or something. She's probably gonna to put cyanide in my food tonight."

"That probably wouldn't go too well for her, seeing as she's a judge," Gail mused as they pulled up to a gated driveway. Holly rolled down the window and typed in a code and waited for the gate to open.

"Woah, a gate?" Traci asked, surprised.

"Yeah, serious shit," Gail confirmed, "maybe it's 'cause her mom's a judge? Crazies can be crazy."

"Ain't that the truth."

"Anyways, their house was like crazy balls large. But it was weird because it was homey? Ya know? Whatever homey means."

"Are telling me the Peck Estate isn't homey?" Traci joked.

"Oh yeah, it's straight out of 'Sweet Home Alabama'," Gail quipped. She took another sip of her orange juice, "it was basically like '7th Heaven' except richer, like 'The Parent Trap' without the divorce..."

"Come in, come in," Holly's Mom ushered the three of them into the house, "Gail, it's so nice to finally meet you," Holly's mom mused, sending a Holly a slight stink eye. Gail's reflexes were preparing her to shake Holly's mother's hand but before she knew it she was engulfed in a bone crushing hug. Holly's mom was a little shorter than Holly was, closer to Gail's height. Her chestnut hair was starting to go a little gray in places. Her eyes were closer to Summer's hazel than Holly's deep brown. She seemed, strong, jovial, motherly.

"It's nice to meet you too, Mrs. Stewart," Gail squeaked. This hug was starting to hurt a little, but then she was released.

"Oh, enough of that, call me 'Anne'. I have to apologize, Geoff is still cleaning up. He and Evan had a little...mishap trying to change the oil earlier. Finally took it to the mechanic like I told them to. Evan should be back any minute," she said with a broad smile, leading the way to the kitchen, "can I get you girls anything to drink?"

"Thanks mom, I'd love a glass of red," Holly answered.

"Yeah, that sounds great," Gail said agreeably.

"Pay up," Summer whispered to Holly.

"Crap," Holly whispered.

"Another five bucks says Dad says 'I'm a surgeon for goodness sakes, I can change the stupid oil,'" Summer wagered again.

"Ten bucks says she takes all your cash by the end of the night," Gail baited Holly.

"I don't like those odds," Holly groaned.

"Ha! You hate wine!" Traci laughed.

"Yeah, well I don't know. Dov kinda got in my head," Gail admitted, defeatedly.

"There's my girls!" Holly's dad exclaimed as he entered the kitchen, enveloping Holly and Summer each in a big hug, lifting them slightly off the ground. Gail couldn't help but think about how Holly had a tall family. Sure, Gail was above average height for a woman, but Holly, her Mom, and Summer each had a couple inches on her, and Holly's dad, wow. He was at least a head taller than her. He still had a head of thick dark hair, and eyes darker brown than Holly's. Like Holly, he wore glasses, but his were rimless with silver frames.

"And you must be Gail," he smiled. Holly definitely got her smile from her dad.

"Guilty," Gail smiled, "nice to meet you, Sir."

"Oh," he playfully swatted the air, "call me Geoff, I insist."

"Would you take these out to the sitting room?" Holly's mom handed him two platters of appetizers, "Gail, Holly said you're allergic to tomatoes?"

"Oh, uh, yeah, I am," Gail said thankfully, sending Holly a smile. Phew.

The sound of a door shutting echoed through the large house, "oh that must be Evan," Holly's mom said joyfully.

"You know, I am a surgeon for goodness sakes. I can change the stupid oil," Holly's Dad grumbled as he headed out to the living room. Summer gave Holly a pat on the back.

"Geoffrey, you never told me you were a surgeon!" Holly's mom joked.

"Keep it up, kid, my money's on you" Gail whispered into Summer's ear.

"Hey big sis!" Evan called through the kitchen, as he gave Holly an affectionate, light smack on the shoulder. If Gail thought the rest of Holly's family was tall, boy was Evan tall. He must have been at least three inches taller than Holly's dad.

"You must be 'The Cop'," Evan said, beaming at Gail.

"Evan, this is Gail, Gail, this is Evan," Holly said, giving Evan a light smack to the abdomen.

"Great to meet you," Evan said, offering up his hand. The family resemblance was uncanny. All three of the Stewart children vaguely resembled each of their parents, but they looking strikingly like each other. Sure, Summer had lighter brown hair like her mom, but the shape of their faces, their noses, ears, and lips were like mirrors to each other. Summer also had lighter brown eyes, but Even's were the same as Holly's deep brown. His hair was tidy, and neatly kept, cropped shorter around the sides. He was pretty sharp overall. Gail kind of agreed with Summer, her older siblings were pretty much perfect.

"Right back atcha," Gail said genuinely. Finally someone who shook hands.

"Awww, they sound really nice," Traci smiled.

"Yeah, I mean they were, but it was kinda like the twilight zone."

"Count your blessings. Jerry's family was huge. Like so many cousins, and aunts and uncles. I couldn't keep them all straight. I think that's why he wanted kids so bad..." Traci gazed off.

"Sorry," Gail apologized, at a loss for words.

"Gail, don't be, it's okay," Traci assured her. "Tell me more!"

"How's the beat, Gail?" Evan asked, pleased with himself.

"Oh, shut up Ev, no one actually says that," Summer rolled her eyes and reached for another scollop wrapped in bacon.

"Oh, your time in the slammer, make you an expert?" Evan joked.

"Kids," Holly's dad warned.

"Don't make me come in there," Holly's mom warned from the kitchen.

"Please, I wasn't in 'the slammer', Evan," Summer rolled her eyes, "and no one says that either."

"So Gail, how do you like being a police officer?" Holly's father asked, changing the subject.

"I love it, I mean everyday is different. Some days I don't love it at all. But I enjoy it. I work with really great people," Gail answered, more truthfully than she had planned on. "Don't tell anyone I said that," Gail whispered to Holly.

"Have you ever shot anyone?" Summer asked, curiously.

"Summer," Holly hissed. She didn't want to make Gail uncomfortable, and honestly, she didn't really want to know either. "You don't have to answer that."

"You know, I'd love to go for a ride-along sometime, I'm thinking about going into criminal law," Evan offered, eagerly.

"Yeah sure, I'd just avoid the weekend if I were you," Gail warned.

"Noted," Evan laughed, understanding what Gail was getting at.

"Wow, Gail Peck: Public Relations Expert," Traci laughed.

"Yeah well, I'm fabulous," Gail protested.

"So, it went well?" Traci half asked, half told.

"Yeah, I mean it was fine. I'm pretty sure Holly was more embarrassed at the end of the night than I was. Plus, I made ten bucks," Gail gloated.

"Summer bled Holly dry?"

"You bet."

"They sound really nice. I hope Dov didn't freak you out too much."

"Yeah well, they are nice. Like, I didn't think families were supposed to be nice."

"'Nice' isn't really the 'Peck-style' is it?" Traci joked.

"Definitely, not," Gail agreed.

A/N: I hope you guys liked it! If not, well, it's over. There'll also be some more dinner talk next chapter, which will actually take place Monday evening, while Gail's on shift, so before Gail and Traci's breakfast. Hit me up with a review and let me know what you like, what you don't, and what you'd like to see in future chapters. These few chapters will be setup for the rest of the story. Thanks for reading guys!