Lauren placed soft kisses on Bo's face. At the same time, Bo checked her phone. "It's late I should go."
Lauren stopped and rested her head on her shoulder. "Why don't you stay?" She asked keeping her voice soft.
An icy silence filled the room, and Bo scooted away from her.
After keeping her back to Lauren, she finally got up and searched for her clothes, shaking her head. "No, I should sleep at Kenzi and Hale's tonight."
Lauren rested her head on her hand and watched Bo dress. "I would like you to stay."
Bo scoffed, feeling her anger rise. "You're the one that wants space."
Lauren frowned and bit back a harsh response. "I simply thought because it's so late, it would be better for you to stay."
Bo reached the door. "I don't live here, remember?" She pulled it open hard. "I'm not staying over until I live here again." She shot back, her tone hard and sharp.
Before Bo stepped out of the room, Lauren leapt from the bed and searched for her own clothes, pulling on a small t-shirt and shorts. "Why'd you come here at all?" She snapped back.
Bo glanced back with a wounded expression and left the room without another word. Lauren followed her hurriedly.
Tamsin, sitting on the living room couch, stared at them with wide eyes, her spoon almost in her mouth, but she froze, startled by their abrupt entrance into the room.
Bo and Lauren were too preoccupied with each other to notice Tamsin sitting in front of them.
Shaking her head and walking away from Lauren, Bo said. "You want space. You want me to stay. Go, stay, go, stay, I forgive you-I don't forgive you. It's exhausting, and I'm done with the back and forth." She gestured her hands high into the air as she spoke.
Tamsin slowly put her spoon into her cereal bowl, afraid to move from the couch. She averted her eyes to her food away from the arguing pair in front of her.
Lauren stared determinedly at Bo. "I do forgive you."
"Yeah, right." Bo snapped, turning her back on Lauren, suppressing the tears filling her eyes.
Lauren crossed her arms over her chest, now standing directly in front of a frozen, shocked Tamsin. "What's hard to get over is who you slept with, your boss. It's not about the sex it's about the who."
Tamsin prayed for something, anything to get her out of there, she was beyond uncomfortable. Then, she remembered Dyson's statement about the Bo and Lauren bubble and knew they probably had no idea she was there.
Lauren continued, "Someone you see every day, a random person at a bar would be a lot easier to understand and get over." Lauren stepped closer to Bo. "And don't act like this is the first time this has come up in our relationship. Or did you forget about that girl you slept with when we first started dating?"
Tamsin closed her eyes tight and wished the couch would just shallow her body into it, she really didn't want to be hearing all this. She opened her mouth to get their attention, but Bo spoke before she could and she lost her nerve.
Bo flipped back around to look at Lauren. "Lauren, that was five years ago. I was 21 years old and never been in a real relationship before, cut me some slack." When she finished she let out a deep sigh.
"I did and I was completely over it until it happened again." Lauren retorted.
Tamsin shifted her body and slowly slid herself off the couch.
"We were on a break! A break you blindside me with." She said her tone hard, pointing at Lauren. "I was devastated by your break. If you want to break up, break up, I don't understand the in between thing."
"It was only a shock because you weren't paying attention to our relationship. The fact that you didn't see it coming says a lot about where we were."
Bo threw her hands into the air. "So, it's all my fault. Don't rewrite history." She stepped closer to Lauren. "We barely saw each other for a month leading up to your break." She stepped back, shaking her head. "But boy did you have time to hang out with Dyson and Tara."
"I can't help being busy, same as you. It's difficult to balance everything." Lauren matched Bo step back with a step forward.
"And I can't help wanting to be with you, spend time with you. More time apart is the answer, not making time for us?"
Bo and Lauren were standing so close their fronts were almost touching, and Tamsin took that opportunity to inch herself out of the living room and into her bedroom.
Bo took a large step back from Lauren. "You know what, why don't you just go have sex with someone else, so that we're even."
"That's a mature solution."
"What the hell is the solution?" Bo's voice was getting loud and angry.
Lauren stepped back close to Bo. "First of all, don't yell at me. Second, I don't know how to solve this."
"Perfect. So, we'll continue the back and forth." She sighed and rubbed her fingers into her temples. "I'm going to go before we both say something we'll regret."
They were now standing a breath apart, chests moving together, the front of their bodies pressed together.
"Then why are you still here?" Lauren asked as her eyes drifted down to Bo's lips.
They stared at each other, love and sadness in both their eyes and their shared anger disappeared. Bo gripped her hips tight and kissed her hard, when she pulled away she bit down on Lauren's bottom lip, firm but not hard. Lauren whispered a moan into her mouth.
For several long moments, they stood pressed together, breathing heavy but not speaking or moving. Lauren drew Bo's face into her and kissed her. They kissed as if the room disappeared around them. There was nothing else but the two of them and their embrace. Bo wrapped her arms around her body and Lauren arched further into her.
Lips never parting, they stumbled back into the bedroom, slamming the door behind them.
Tamsin slipping on her clothes for bed heard Lauren's door slam. Round twenty she thought while climbing into bed.
Her last thought before sleep was that she was right to resist romantic connections, looking at Bo and Lauren's relationship, all but confirmed, what she always knew: love was too messy to be worth it.
XXXX
Lauren stifled a yawn listening to Dr. Jones talk. He was a bore, she'd been up for twenty-six hours and this man was getting on her nerves. She desperately wanted to go to the on-call room and sleep. She tapped her foot as he drawled on and on. She gazed at him with a glossy, dazed expression waiting for him to finish.
After twenty more minutes, he finished, and she was free. In the on-call room, she rested on top of the sheets and waited for sleep. On the verge of slipping into unconsciousness, her pager went off. With a sigh, she got up and went to the central workstation to find out what they needed.
She blinked quickly at the nurses talking to her trying to wake herself up and listen. It was difficult to focus through the drowsiness.
After another hour, she slumped into a chair in the waiting room. She rested her head on her hand, and sleep came quickly. She was unable to stop it.
Jules strolled by and watched her sleep, for a moment. She nudged her awake, and Lauren woke up hazing and confused. Jules pulled her up and led her to the on-call room.
"Thanks," Lauren whispered when her head hit the pillow, she was already half asleep. Jules brushed the hair from her face and caressed the side of her cheek, and Lauren sighed contently. Jules stiffened when Lauren leaned up and pressed their lips together. Lauren opened her mouth, and Jules' tongue entered passed her lips. "Oh, Bo," Lauren whispered into her mouth. Jules sprang back, her heart drumming quickly in her chest. Lauren was in a deep sleep now and not moving. Jules eased off the bed ashamed of what happened and quickly left the room.
Several hours later, Lauren woke up with a headache and still fatigued. She was slightly confused thinking Bo had been there, but that was foolish. Why would Bo be in the hospital? She tied her hair back and checked the time. Her next shift was starting in an hour. She decided to get a quick breakfast in the cafeteria first. She checked her messages but had nothing from Bo. She slipped it into her pocket and exited the room.
Lauren hunched over the table and yawned, Connor flicked her ponytail before taking a seat next to her. "You look like hell."
"Thanks, I'm not really sure how many hours I've been in this hospital but I think it's been like two days or something." She forced out through many yawns.
He downed his energy drink. "They're testing our will. Keeping us here until we crack."
Lauren rested her head in her arms on the table. "And my parents are coming over for dinner tonight, after this long shift." She peeked up at him with bloodshot eyes. "I wish they would just go home and leave me alone."
Connor went rigid and got up quickly. "I gotta go Dr. Marquise just walked in."
Lauren sighed and buried her head trying to hide, hoping Evony wouldn't notice her.
"The cafeteria isn't for naps, Dr. Lewis."
Lauren kept her head down and mumbled. "I'm having breakfast."
"Is all this work, too much for your delicate sensualities? Perhaps, you should become a dentist or veterinarian."
Lauren was too tired for the banter, so she closed her eyes and said nothing, hoping Evony would just walk away.
Evony leaned down and whispered into her ear. "We have our dinner scheduled for next week; I'll give you some friendly tips on how to deal with all the pressure."
Evony walked away, and Lauren decided not to try and figure out what that meant. She was too exhausted from work, her parents, Bo, everything. Honestly, the only thing she wanted to do was climb into Bo's arms and sleep for hours, but things being the way they were between them, she knew that wouldn't happen. And that caused a lump to settle in her throat.
XXXX
Bo typed the text to Lauren into her phone for the third time and deleted it immediately. She tossed the phone down and sighed.
Kenzi walked gingerly into the room and witnessed Bo throw her phone. "Bo, do you think you should start looking for an apartment? How long are you going to live in limbo?"
"I have an apartment," Bo replied sharply.
Kenzi shook her head. "Yes, an apartment you're not allowed to live in. Meanwhile, you float from place to place."
"That's temporary." She muttered through a tight jaw.
"Are you sure? I love Lauren, I do, but maybe it's time to move on."
Bo got up quickly and paced around the kitchen. "I can't give up on what we have, I can't. This isn't just some girlfriend. This is the woman I'm going to marry. I won't let her go. Not while I know there's still a chance."
"Maybe you don't want the same things anymore," Kenzi added uneasily.
"I refuse to believe that." Bo paused and stared at her phone. "But she can't seem to forgive me."
"Don't take this the wrong way, but do you think you use sex as a coping mechanism? I mean that's why you slept with Ryan, right? You were upset. And I bet you and Lauren are having lots of sex, even though things are going so well."
Bo scowled and didn't respond.
"Maybe you two need to stop having sex and take the time to remember why you still love each other."
Bo's phone rang before she could reply, "Speak of the devil." She answered it and walked away from the table.
"Hey," She answered simply, an uneasy tension building in her.
"Are you still coming to dinner tonight with my parents?"
Lauren's tone pissed her off. "Do you want me to?" She shot back, matching Lauren's tone.
Lauren sighed on the other end. "Yes, of course."
"Oh," Bo's voice softened. "I would love to. Should I bring anything?"
"Just your patience, I guess."
Bo smiled into the phone, "Ok, see you tonight." She paused and thought for a moment. "I love you." She added quietly.
There was a quick moment of hesitation. "I love you, too."
Bo moved into an empty room. "Lauren…" She paused, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. "Whatever's happening between us, I'm not going anywhere. Ok? I want to fix it."
"Let's talk in person, after dinner. Figure this thing out."
"If I survive dinner, that is." Bo joked to lighten the mood.
Lauren chuckled, and her tone turned playful. "If we both survive."
They ended their call, and Bo grinned at her phone, finally feeling better with the promise of a talk, the tension in her body lessened. Things could start moving forward with them.
XXXX
Dyson and Lauren were in the kitchen talking while Bo was in Lauren's room getting ready for the dinner.
Dyson sat with a frown watching Lauren cook. "Doc, what am I doing here again?"
Lauren sighed and turned back to glare at him. "I need you here as a buffer between my father and Bo."
"That sounds really awkward." He wrinkled his nose and shook his head. "I don't want to be in the middle of that."
Lauren turned her attention back to her recipe. "Dyson, please. You owe me."
"For what?"
"I have a list somewhere. Every homework assignment I've helped you with since first grade. That time I distracted one of the Johnson twins so you could be alone with the other. Four years of going to every one of your hockey games. Freshman year of college, pretending to be your girlfriend, so Macy-" She reminded him, in quick succession.
Dyson put his hand up to stop her. "Are you going to list 20 years worth of stories, just to get me to come to dinner?"
"I'm merely reminding you that I'm your best friend, and you owe me." She retorted matter-of-factly.
"I need a new best friend." He said, and his face cracked into a playful smile.
Lauren wrapped her arm around his shoulder. "Please, Dyson. I need this."
A second later, Tamsin strolled into the kitchen. The sound of voices had brought her into the room. She nervously nodded at Lauren. She was feeling a little embarrassed about what she had witnessed in the living room, but she wasn't going to bring it up.
Walking up to Tamsin, Dyson flung a friendly arm over her shoulder. "I'll stay if Tamsin here agrees to be my date."
Tamsin looked at him wide-eyed and anxious. "What?" She eased herself away from him. "Date for what?"
"Lauren's parents are coming over for dinner. She needs my help, and I need your help." Dyson said suddenly turning his tone more upbeat.
Tamsin regarded him curiously; then the food snagged her attention and she shrugged and nodded. She figured she could sit through a weird family dinner for a free Lauren cooked meal.
Dyson's face brightened, and they both left the kitchen to talk in the other room.
XXXXX
Putting some food into the stove Lauren heard a knock on the door and groaned before walking towards it.
She held in a breath as she stared at the door, summoning all the patience she could. She gripped the doorknob and pulled the door open for her parents.
"That smells wonderful," Lauren's mother said entering the apartment. Lauren walked them into the living room.
Her father regarded her coldly. "You should have just ordered something. Why waste your time cooking a meal?" He asked gruffly.
Leaving her parents in the living room, and rolling her eyes, she walked back to the kitchen. She read the recipe again and pulled out more ingredients.
A couple minutes later, Bo entered the kitchen, "Need some help?" She asked warily.
Lauren lifted her eyes to Bo from the stove and suppressed her desire to bury her head in Bo's neck and let her closeness calm her. Realizing she hadn't answered, she shook her head.
"What are you making?" Bo asked, wanting to keep the conversation going, so she didn't have to join Lauren's parents in the other room.
After Lauren explained about meeting the chef and getting the recipe from him, Bo spoke. "You should go for those cooking lessons."
"You think so?" Lauren gazed at Bo with a hint of sadness in her eyes. "I don't think I have time, with-"
"It's ok to do something for yourself once and awhile." Bo gently touched Lauren's face, and Lauren closed her eyes absorbing the warmth of Bo's touch. Lauren couldn't resist any longer she pulled Bo into a hug and held on to her tight.
"Thank you for coming," Lauren whispered into Bo's shoulder, and Bo gently rubbed her back, to soothe her. They pulled apart when they heard someone enter the room.
"Lauren, you have guests." Her father said and studied them with a critical eye.
"It's my apartment," Lauren mumbled under her breath and busied herself with the food. Bo focused on Lauren and gave her a weak smile before leaving the kitchen.
Thirty minutes later, they all sat around the table and Lauren held back a grimace listening to her father speak and handed Dyson a drink. She fought back the anger that coursed through her at her father's remarks.
"I always wondered why you and Lauren never dated. You spent all your time together growing up." He said to Dyson and chuckled before taking a long drink. "Many family members had bets going on when you two would get married."
"You're being rude saying this in front Bo and Dyson's date, maybe just stop," Lauren said, speaking before she was able to stop herself.
He waved his hand dismissively at her. "It's only conversation Lauren. You and Dyson work so well as friends. Why not try for more?"
Bo bit the inside of her cheek to prevent herself from saying anything, getting into an argument with Lauren's father was the last thing they needed.
Lauren laughed into her hands. "Why don't you and your best friend, Mike, get married? I mean if your-"
He snorted in disgust and cut her off. "Don't be ridiculous, Lauren."
Bo took Lauren's hand and squeezed. Bo had a bad feeling about what was coming, and she wanted to calm Lauren before something happened.
Lauren met Bo's eyes and decided to hold back her response. There was no use in pointing out to her father that what he was saying was out of line since he wouldn't listen, he never did.
Tamsin and Lauren's mother had been silent most of the dinner. They sat watching the interactions without offering any input. For Tamsin, she had no idea what to say, and Lauren's mother never got too involved in these situations.
"Lauren and I are just friends," Dyson said in a calm even manner, trying to help Lauren out. "How is your new practice?" He asked hoping to shift the conversation.
Tamsin gave Dyson an inquiring look, and he winked in response, which made her smirk and she concentrated on her food. The awkwardness of the conversations, aside, the food was very good, and Tamsin was happy about that.
Bo breathed a sigh of relief as Lauren's father started talking about his work, leaving the other conversation behind. He began to talk lively about his practice, sounding pleased about the chance to talk about it, again.
He chatted on, and Lauren leaned into Bo, "I'm sorry about him." She whispered, with her eyes on her plate. She was humiliated by her father's disrespectful behavior.
Bo rubbed her hand up and down Lauren's leg, in a comforting gesture. "This food is delicious. You did a great job."
"Thanks," Lauren answered shooting daggers at her father with her eyes.
XXXX
Lauren walked over to the mirror on her dresser and stared at herself, she was mentality drained after the dinner with her parents. Bo came to stand behind her and wrapped her arms around her waist. "Should we talk now?" Bo asked in a low voice.
Lauren smoothed out her clothes and shook her head. And just like that the warmth within Bo was replaced by coldness and she let go of Lauren and walked to the bed.
Lauren noticed the change in Bo and turned around, her expression questioning.
After a moment of tense silence, Lauren moved over to where Bo sat and cupped her face. "We will talk, but I can't after tonight. It's too much to deal with."
Bo fixed her with an uncomfortably hard look. "I just want to fix this…whatever's going on between us. How can we do that if we don't talk?"
Lauren climbed onto her lap and wrapped her arms around her neck. "We will talk, just not tonight." With one hand, she slipped her shirt off over her head and threw to the side.
Bo hesitated, only briefly, then pressed into a kiss, removing her own shirt.
Afterward, sweaty and exhausted, Lauren slept on her stomach, and Bo brushed her fingers up and down her back. Bo placed one long kiss on her back before slipping off the bed, pulling on her clothes and leaving the apartment.
XXXX
Ryan summoned Bo and Hale into his office. Hale sat across from him and Bo, wanting to keep as much distance as possible between herself and her boss, leaned against the back wall.
Ryan cleared his throat and started. "You are both very capable candidates for this promotion. And it wasn't an easy decision." He paused and shot Bo a wicked look. "But after careful consideration I have decided to promote." He paused again and offered his hand to Hale. "You Hale."
Hale smiled. "Thanks. This is great." He eagerly shook Ryan's hand.
Bo didn't react, she couldn't be upset that Hale got the promotion; he was her brother in law, after all.
Hale stood and turned to Bo and held out his hand, which she took and nodded. "Congratulations. You'll do a great job."
Hale smiled ear to ear and pulled out his phone. "Can I call my wife?"
"Of course," Ryan answered and Hale rushed out of the office, already dialing Kenzi. Bo started to go. "Dennis, hang back, a second."
Bo groaned and closed the door behind Hale, already regretting her decision to not dart out of the office quickly.
Ryan rose from his desk and stepped closer to her. "Better luck next time."
Bo rolled her eyes. "Hale is an excellent choice."
"I agree." He leaned in to whisper to her. "And he doesn't spread his legs for his superiors."
Unable to control herself Bo pushed him back, and he collided with his desk hard. He looked at her wide-eyed. "Dennis, is it that time of the month? Control yourself."
She took a threatening step towards him. "I'm sick of your shit. Lay off or else."
He laughed. "Are you threatening me?" He smoothed out his shirt. "Nothing will happen to me. You know as well as I do, it's always the woman that pays the price in these types of circumstances. This is a man's world, especially this precinct."
"If I go down, I'll take you with me." She pressed a single finger hard into his chest.
He laughed, again. "You have a lot to learn about how all this works." He took a seat behind his desk. "You're dismissed, Dennis. Go try and solve a case or something."
She pushed a chair out of her way and left the office in one quick step.
XXXX
Because Bo's day couldn't get any worse, she decided to go see Lauren.
Lauren opened the door after Bo knocked twice, still dressed in her scrubs from work, she looked at Bo with tired eyes.
"Were you sleeping?" Bo asked, feeling guilty if she'd woken her up.
"Just got home." Lauren stepped aside to let Bo enter. "What are you doing here?"
Bo entered the living room and noticed textbooks and a laptop scattered haphazardly on the couch. "Studying?" She asked gesturing to the mess.
"Yes." Lauren sat down and moved some of the books off the couch so that Bo could sit down. Lauren watched as Bo strolled up to her and leaned back against the doorway. Bo's eyes weighed Lauren for a half second.
Lauren turned away from Bo's eyes. A mix of emotions stirred in her.
Bo's expression was stern, but she kept her voice soft and gentle. "Lauren, we need to talk."
Lauren crossed her arms and leaned back into the couch cushions but stayed quiet.
Bo clutched her hands together. "I don't think we should have sex again until we fix our relationship."
Lauren's eyes widened and turned into a frown. She remained silent and studied Bo's face.
"We'll go back to like when we were first dating. We'll go on dates but no sex and no sleeping over."
Lauren gave Bo a small smile and a skeptical look. "Bo, we slept together on our third date. And our second date all we did was make out in my dorm room, eating delivery pizza."
Bo couldn't help but smirk. "Ok, yes. But still. Will you try it?"
"I don't understand what this is about. How can not having sex help anything?" Lauren kept a confused expression.
Bo finally took a seat next to her. "We're both guilty of using sex to hide from our problems. I think it will do us some good to focus on other things."
Lauren's confusion vanished. "Ok." She said simply and studied Bo, for a moment. "If that's what you need, we can try it."
Bo took her hand and kissed it. "Perfect. We'll start tomorrow. It'll be like our first date." Bo rose from the couch, and Lauren followed her with her eyes. "I'll call you later."
Lauren smiled and laid one of her books on her lap. "Be safe."
Bo grinned at the door and turned back around. "As always." And with that she left the apartment feeling better than when she arrived.
AN
Next chapter, we'll find out if the mystery chef is friend or foe.
Thanks a millions times over for reading!
For those that read my other stories, there should be more updates this week than last week. I'm hoping to update each at least once :)