Hi everyone! Thanks as always for all your reviews on Chapter 13. I really enjoyed reading them. Just a warning, this chapter begins an arc that will deal with a sensitive issue. I will post warnings as the issue develops, but I do plan to deal with the sensitive issue as well as I can. Anyway, this chapter includes the arcs I have planned for the next few chapters for both Finn and Rachel that will involve other gleeks as well. Thanks so much for your support and review if you want me to continue.

Chapter 14: Suspicions

Rachel knocked on the door at Shelby's townhouse. She was still a bit overcome by her encounter with Kylie. She knew something though - this wasn't the type of thing she should tell Shelby over the phone. She wanted to tell Shelby face to face. She'd called Shelby a few hours ago and asked if she could come over. This was definitely a first, going to Shelby's townhouse. In the past when Rachel and Shelby had gotten together, it had been in public places. Rachel had never even met Beth before, and she had a feeling this would be a challenge, seeing her birth mother with the daughter she was raising instead of having raised her. Still, it was better for her to meet Beth now rather than deal with it for the first time when and if she brought Kylie to meet Shelby.

Shelby came to the door. "Hi Rachel."

"Hi Shelby," Rachel said. "Can I come in?"

"Of course," Shelby said, leading Rachel inside. Shelby led Rachel into the living room, where a little blond curly haired girl was playing with some toys on the floor.

"Is that her?" Rachel said softly.

"Yes," Shelby said, smiling. "This is Beth."

Beth looked up. "Beth, this is Rachel," Shelby said. "She's - "

"A friend of your mommy's," Rachel said, not knowing what else to say.

Beth gave Rachel a smile. "Hi. You're pretty."

"Thank you," Rachel said. "So are you." Rachel couldn't believe how much Beth looked like both Puck and Quinn. She understood now why they missed her so much.

"I'm glad you could come over, Rachel," Shelby said. "I kept wanting to have you over, but we are both pretty busy people."

"Yeah," Rachel said. She knew she had to tell Shelby eventually. She didn't know if Shelby would want to, but she did know that Kylie wanted to meet Shelby. "Your house is nice."

"Thank you," Shelby said.

Now Rachel had to say something. She took out her phone and showed Shelby a photo of her and Kylie at Nationals (she'd wanted a photo with the girl she'd mentored). "Shelby, this is her."

Shelby looked at Rachel with a surprised look. "Her?"

"Your other daughter," Rachel said. "Her name is Kylie and she's going to be a sophomore at McKinley this fall."

Shelby stared at the photo. "Oh my God... Rachel... how did..."

"Well, I've actually known Kylie for a few months now," Rachel said. "I actually recruited her for New Directions when I went back to help out at one point, and I also mentored her for Nationals. She's here in New York for two weeks doing a photography camp at NYU, and she came to my apartment yesterday and told me that she found your name on adoption papers she found at her adoptive parents' house and then searched for you on Facebook. She saw that I'm linked as your daughter."

Shelby was still staring at the photo. "Wow, she's beautiful."

"She is beautiful," Rachel said.

"All three of my girls are beautiful," Shelby said. "So, you told me that she's in New Directions?"

"Yeah," Rachel said. "She enjoys it, but she's not into solos like I was."

Shelby gave Rachel a small smile. "You said she's here in New York for photography camp?"

"Yeah," Rachel said. "She's a really good photographer. I was looking at the photos she's taken on her Facebook. She's amazing."

"Wow," Shelby said. "I can't believe you two met each other."

"Ever since you told me that you had another daughter, I really wanted to meet her," Rachel said. "We're both shocked, and it's taking some getting used to, but we definitely want to build a sister relationship. She wants to meet you, too."

"I don't know if that's a good idea, Rachel," Shelby said.

Rachel had hoped this wouldn't happen, but she feared it would, which was why she wanted to talk to Shelby before bringing Kylie to meet her. "Why not?"

"It's a very different situation from what happened with you and me," Shelby explained. "I knew from the beginning that I was going to give you up. I didn't like it, but I'd signed that contract, and once I became pregnant with you, there was no turning back. Kylie is the product of a drunken one-night stand. After your dads paid me enough to live in New York for two years and I still failed as an actress, I felt completely worthless. I'd lost my daughter and my dreams. I became completely lost and turned to alcohol. I became pregnant with Kylie after a drunken party, and I'm not even sure who her birth father is. I wanted to keep her, but I couldn't. I wasn't in the right state of mind to raise a baby by myself."

"Shelby, I doubt Kylie will judge you for that," Rachel said. "She wants to meet you."

"It's not just that," Shelby said. "You were raised by your two dads, so even though we didn't know each other, you still saw me as your mom. Kylie has a mother who raised her. She sees that woman as her mother."

"I don't think that stops her from wanting to meet you," Rachel said. She didn't know how she was going to break it to Kylie if Shelby didn't want to meet her.

"I'll think about it," Shelby said. "You said she's here for another two weeks?"

"Yeah," Rachel said. "I didn't know if you'd be ready right away, so I told her that you were out of town just in case."

"Thanks, Rachel," Shelby said.

"I also saw Puck and Quinn the other day," Rachel said. "Quinn was asking about you."

"Rachel, do you know what happened with Quinn?" Shelby asked. "Quinn put some books that I didn't think could even get published about baby sacrifice, some botulism, and a bottle of hot sauce with Beth's name on it around the house and then she called child protective services. She was trying to get Beth taken away."

"I know about that, and that was wrong," Rachel said. "It's been a while though. Quinn's grown up. I really hope you give her another chance. I know she and Puck would love to see Beth again."

"I'll think about that, Rachel," Shelby said. "And I'll think about meeting Kylie, too. I'll give you a call, okay?"

"Okay," Rachel said. She hoped things would work out. She sent a text to Kylie, telling her that she and Shelby were trying to work something out.

x

"You look sexy," Rachel said to Finn.

"Oh, you think?" Finn asked. It was his first day on the job, and the law firm required him to wear a suit and tie. He rather would have been working at the diner with Rachel, or at the box office at Rachel's theatre, but the law firm had offered him a job and he needed one.

"You do," Rachel said. "I work at the diner today, but maybe we could meet up for lunch?"

"I'd love that," Finn said.

"How are you doing?" Rachel asked.

Finn knew Rachel could tell that he wasn't feeling quite right. "I am a little nervous." This was the first time he'd had a real job without connections. Burt had gotten him the job at the tire shop and Mr. Schue had gotten him the job as assisting New Directions. This job, he'd gotten all on his own.

"Your shifts are only five hours," Rachel reminded Finn. "After your shift, we can get lunch together."

"Yeah, I'd like that," Finn said.

"You have your ID, right?" Rachel asked.

"Of course," Finn said.

Rachel gave Finn a kiss. "You'll be great today."

"Maybe could you walk with me to the building?" Finn asked.

"Of course," Rachel said. She took Finn's hand as they walked to the train station, then arrived at the building where Finn would be working. "You're going to be great," Rachel said.

Finn gave Rachel a hug. "Thanks. See you after my shift." He went into the building and scanned his ID before going to the law firm's offices on the 34th floor. When he arrived, he saw the human resources director of the law firm. "Hi, Finn."

"Hi," Finn said.

"I wanted to say welcome to your first official day at our firm," the human resources director said. "You know how your job works, right?"

"Yeah, we went over that at my interview," Finn said. "I'll answer the phones and when clients come in, I'll page the person they're here to see. When the mail comes, I'll sort it and deliver it to the respective offices." That was easy enough, wasn't it?

"That's right," the human resources manager said. "Once you start school, you can do your homework here during slow periods. I put a printout of everyone's office number on your desk so you can figure things out when the mail comes."

"Thanks," Finn said as he took his seat at the desk. There were over 20 lawyers who worked here, all their offices in one hall. Before long, he should know where everyone's office was. Maybe this job wouldn't be too hard after all. And he did get to sit all day.

A few minutes later, a young woman, maybe in her late 20s or early 30s came in. She was wearing high heels and a very short skirt, something Finn thought wasn't the best thing to wear at a law firm. She looked at Finn for a little too long.

"Hi," Finn said.

"Hi," the woman said. "What happened to the girl who used to work the front desk?"

"She quit, I guess," Finn said. "I'm Finn, I'll be working the front desk Monday through Friday morning from now on."

The woman continued eyeing Finn. "I see. I'm Lucy. I'm the only lawyer here who's under 25."

"Nice to meet you," Finn said, trying to give this woman a hint that he was ready for her to go. He'd just met her, but she was already giving him a weird vibe. The way she was looking at Finn was not a way he'd been looked at before, and he didn't like it.

"Well, I guess I should get to my office," Lucy said after a few moments. "It was nice meeting you too, Finn."

Finn already knew he didn't trust this woman. As she began heading back to her office, she slightly tripped and bumped into Finn, using his leg to catch herself.

"What was that for?" Finn asked.

"I just tripped, you don't need to get upset." She headed back to her office, and Finn now knew for sure that he didn't like her.

x

"How's Finn?" Kurt asked Rachel at the diner.

"Oh, he was nervous about going to work and starting his new job today, but I'm sure he'll be great," Rachel said.

"Oh, I know he will," Kurt said. "By the way, during my break I got a text from Blaine. He got a job as a barista at Starbucks!"

"That's amazing!" Rachel said.

Santana and Dani came over to Rachel and Kurt, hand in hand. "So, how's Frankenteen doing at his new job?" Santana asked Rachel.

"I was telling Kurt, he was nervous this morning, but I'm sure he'll be fine," Rachel said. She noticed that Dani and Santana were hand in hand. "So, are you two together now?"

"Yes," Dani said.

"I'm happy for you guys, but does Brittany know, Santana?" Kurt asked.

"Lady Hummel, does she HAVE to know?" Santana asked. "I just want to have fun. And Dani's awesome."

"Well, I'm happy for you, Santana," Rachel said. She had liked Dani during their time at the diner.

Then Finn came to the diner. Rachel was happy to see him, but at the same time, she noticed that something didn't look right. "Hey!" Rachel said, giving Finn a hug. "How was your first day at work?"

Finn gave Rachel a small smile. "Rude clients, but other than that, it was good."

"That's good," Rachel said. "How about a snack?"

Finn sat down. "Okay."

"I'm sorry that some of the clients were rude to you today, Finn," Rachel said. "What did they do?"

"One of them made a comment about my body when the person they were supposed to meet with," Finn said.

Rachel wished people would stop trying to make Finn feel bad about himself. "Finn, if that happens again, call me and I'll come put them in their place," Rachel said.

"I value my job, Rach," Finn said.

"Well, I value your self esteem," Rachel said.

"Rachel, get back to work!" their boss called.

Rachel gave Finn a quick kiss. "I'll get your food for you. See you soon."

x

Maybe Finn was looking too much into things. He hadn't seen Lucy since she first arrived that morning. If she really was going to bother him, she probably would have gone out of her way to see him, right?

"Is this seat taken?" Finn turned and saw Puck standing next to Finn's seat at the bar.

Finn shook his head. "Sit down. Where's Quinn?"

Puck sat down. "She's just doing some sightseeing today. I'm sorry about what happened the other day..."

Finn knew that Rachel had been hurt by what Quinn had said. "Well, Rachel's mother issues are kind of her soft spot. She and Shelby aren't quite there yet, but she wants a mother. And now that she's found out that there's a sister in the picture, that complicates the family situation even more."

"Yeah," Puck said. "Well, Beth's for Quinn what Shelby is for Rachel. Quinn told me she wanted to keep Beth, but she didn't think that she could give Beth what she needed. I always wanted to keep her, but I knew that we couldn't give her what we needed to give her. We were both still in school and my pool cleaning business was only really bringing in money during the summer. I could tell when Quinn was pregnant that she was trying to distance herself from Beth, but when I saw her with Beth the day she was born, I could tell how much she loved Beth. Then of course, there was everything that happened senior year of high school. I'm still in contact with Shelby and she sends me photos now and then, but Shelby hasn't contacted Quinn since everything that happened senior year. I think Quinn wants Shelby to be the one to contact her because she feels bad about everything that happened."

"It's okay," Finn said. "I don't know what type of situation you two were in." He did know that he was feeling very conflicted when he thought that Beth was his. He definitely loved her, but he knew that he wasn't ready to be a father, and he knew that he loved Rachel and that Quinn loved Puck.

"So, how was your first day at work?" Puck asked.

"It was good," Finn said. It had been easy enough. He got to sit, which was definitely an improvement over being on his feet at the tire shop all day. He'd met a few of the other people who worked at the firm and other than the one girl who made him uncomfortable, they seemed nice enough.

"That's good," Puck said. "Maybe you, me and Blaine could go to a Yankees game or something like that before I go to Connecticut?"

"Yeah, I'd like that," Finn said.

x

Rachel was making dinner for herself and Finn when her phone vibrated. She looked at the phone and it was Shelby. She read Shelby's text. "I've been thinking and it would be nice to meet Kylie. Maybe give her a call and see when would work. The three of us could have lunch or something."

Rachel sent Shelby back a text. "Okay, I'll give Kylie a call and see what works." She did want to wait a few days. She hadn't gotten a good feeling when she'd first told Shelby about Kylie. She sent Kylie a text, telling her that sometime next week, Shelby would like to have lunch with them. Kylie didn't text back right away, and Rachel had a feeling that meant she was in a class.

Finn came into the kitchen. "So, how'd it go with Shelby?"

"She wants to meet Kylie," Rachel said. "I'm going to try to work something out. I am going to wait a few days though, because I want to give Shelby some time to adjust to the idea." Speaking of Shelby, she'd seen Puck at the diner with Finn. "I saw Puck at the diner with you."

"Yeah," Finn said. "He feels bad about what Quinn said to you. I think he thinks it's Quinn's way of covering her pain."

"I could try to talk to her," Rachel said. She picked up her phone and dialed Quinn's number, but Quinn didn't answer. When Quinn didn't answer, she sent Quinn a text. "Quinn, I talked to Shelby today. Would you like me to ask her if we can arrange a time for you to see Beth?"

Rachel got a text back. "Are you shoving it in my face that you might get to see Beth and I can't?"

Rachel sighed. "Don't you understand? I want you to get to know Beth!"

"Well, Shelby's not going to let me," Quinn texted back. "Don't bother, Rachel. I know she still e-mails Puck but not me. I ruined everything."

"I'll try to work something out," Rachel texted Quinn back before her phone went off with a text from Kylie. Kylie wanted to meet up with Shelby sometime next week. Rachel sent Shelby a text, asking what day would work for her. She just hoped that the tangled family ties wouldn't get more tangled.

Chapter 15: Rachel, Kylie and Shelby have lunch, and Finn continues to get suspicious that things aren't right at his job.

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