July
Washington DC
"Rena! Where are the steaks?" Abbie had meat firing on all cylinders. She had ribs in one smoker, chicken in her other smoker, and now she wanted to get her steaks on the grill.
Serena was too frazzled to deal with it at the moment. "HOLD ON!"
She was trying to get the house clean, which was a feat in itself. With all of the food Abbie was making, she had managed to get oil and spices all over everything.
"How did she get coriander on the couch?"
Serena hoped Alex and co didn't arrive early. That girl was always early, why Serena had no idea. Who the hell starts a barbeque on time?
After getting no steaks, Abbie came in to see Serena cleaning the counters.
"What are you doing?"
"Try to make it look like we don't live in a pigsty!"
"We don't. Who has a clean kitchen while their cooking?"
"Normal people who wipe stuff down when they're done using it!"
Abbie shrugged. "You got those steaks."
Why do I even … Serena opened the fridge and tossed the meat at Abbie, possibly aiming for her head.
Abbie was sure the blonde would come down once she ate. She was always cranky when she was hungry.
"We're going to be late," Alex called. Casey had overslept, and Olivia was moving like molasses today.
Casey was scrambling to get ready. She had just gotten out of the shower. "Alex, I need like five minute."
The blonde didn't hear from Olivia at all. "Are you okay?"
The woman was tired and a little woozy. "I need …" I don't know what I need.
Alex carefully opened the bedroom door. Olivia looked a little pale.
"Are you feeling okay?"
"I just …" she felt nauseous but she didn't have to vomit.
"How about I get you some seltzer?" Alex didn't want to leave until Olivia felt better.
"Casey! Take however much time you need."
There is a god.
Thirty minutes later, they were on the road.
Olivia slept in the back while Casey and Alex drove.
"Do you think it was the noodles?" Casey asked Alex. Olivia ate those noodles in the back of the fridge on a dare. Alex told her not to, but Olivia never backed down.
"Probably." Alex figured she'd be cured by the time they got to DC. The brunette was pretty much an ox.
Four hours later, they pulled into the parking lot where Abbie and Serena had a condo.
"Who all is coming?" Casey asked, as they got ready to get out of the car.
Serena said it would be, "her work friends, friends from some club they hang out at, us, and Abbie's cousins from Boston."
"She has cousins in Boston?"
A little known secret in Abbie's family. "Abbie's mother is Italian. Her sister married an Italian guy in Boston and settled down there. Abbie's mom followed her dad to Texas." Alex liked to tease her and say she's only ½ southern.
They could smell the meat as they got to the door.
"Oh it smells good!" Olivia was feeling better already.
Casey rang the bell.
"IT'S OPEN!" Serena was still working on the pies she was assembling
Alex opened the door and they went inside. The place was cute. It was a two bedroom, two story condo in Adams Morgan. Serena had lots of little figurines and paintings on the wall. They could tell she did most of the décor.
When they saw the Texas flag they knew, "that's Abbie."
"Do you need a hand with anything?"
Serena still hadn't set up outside. They had to get the plates and silverware out.
"If you could take everything on that counter and bring it outside. I would greet you properly, but I'm covered in flour." She was in the middle of making blueberry pie.
"You got it."
They took the plates and cups, along with the lemonade, outside where Abbie was just pulling some steaks off the grill.
"Y'all get first dibs." The others would get whatever was here when they arrived, but there was plenty of meat for everyone.
"It smells amazing."
"We got some good old fashioned Texas barbeque!"
"Made by our resident half Texan," Alex teased.
"Don't make me pop you!" The two stubborn attorneys hugged.
Casey realized they were missing one thing, beer! She went inside to get some
"How was the drive?" Serena asked as Casey reached the fridge.
"It was pretty smooth. A little traffic but for a holiday it was pretty smooth sailing."
Casey put a beer in front of Serena. "You need it."
Yeah she did. "Thanks."
"I can't imagine making barbeque with a Texan."
"Imagine one of Alex's French food bonanzas, except she expects you to cook."
Casey gasped in horror.
The skirt steaks were phenomenal, a perfect medium rare, well seasoned, and spicy. Abbie also had grilled onions, peppers, and flour tortillas so people could make fajitas.
Olivia was in heaven.
Casey was starting to turn red. "This has some heat."
"It's how we do in Texas baby!"
Serena kissed Abbie on the cheek. "I love how excited you get about food."
Abbie couldn't help it. She loved her food.
The next set of people to arrive were Serena's friends from the ACLU.
"I don't get why people don't understand specialization," one of the women said as she approached the backyard. "Who in their right mind tries to get pizza from a place that sells fried chicken, Chinese food, and pizza and then is surprised when the pizza is bad."
"Well, Erica tried to get pizza from subway. They had to read the dough to see if it had expired."
"Well … God can't help hopeless."
They turned to see a trio watching them curiously.
"Ashley, we've only been at this party two minutes and I think we've already scared half the guests."
"They're not scared of ya," Abbie said. "They're just judging you."
"Not if I judge them first. Hi, I'm Amy."
"And I'm Cory."
"Alex."
"Olivia."
"Casey."
"We're engaged," Amy told them.
"He's not gay?" Casey questioned. He looked gay with his stylish clothes and his well-manicured nails.
The duo started cracking up. "I am. This girl from work thought we were dating because we hang out together, so we decided we should just tell our coworkers we're engaged and let them spoil us."
"They even through us a party." About half of the staff knew it was a joke, but the others seemed to think it was serious.
No way are these people prosecutors. They have to work with Serena. "Do you work for Thrive DC as well?" Alex asked them.
They shook their heads.
"I'm at the public defenders office," Amy told them.
"And I work for the ACLU. We met Abbie and Serena at a drag show."
"How did y'all meet?"
They all met Abbie and Serena in different ways.
"Abbie and I used to work together in New York," Olivia told them. "I'm a detective."
Casey had met Abbie and Serena through Olivia, and Alex and Serena were law school buddies.
"So you two work together now," Amy pointed to Casey and Olivia, "and you two used to work together," she pointed to Alex and Olivia. The story was kind of complicated.
"Yes," Olivia told her.
Amy and Cory looked at each other having a conversation.
They're clearly lesbians, but I can't tell who's dating whom?
I think the redhead is with the blonde.
I thought the blonde was with the brunette.
Amy bit the bullet. "Which two of you are a couple?"
Abbie started cracking up. "Rena you owe me $20!"
Alex, Casey, and Olivia all looked at each other.
"Well the three of us are …"
"Seriously!" Amy exclaimed. "Did y'all start dating at once or was it like a twosome and then an acquisition?"
The trio started to tell their story.
By the end of it, Amy and Cory were stunned.
"So you two were dating, and you got shot by a hitman. Then you two started dating after she had to leave and then she came back and then you two became friends and then the three … holy crap!"
Amy's recounting of the story was hilarious. She was pointing back and forth, trying to get it all straight, but it just seemed crazy to her. The women couldn't help but laugh.
"In the end it all worked out."
"I bet this could be an HBO movie."
The next group to arrive was the Rizzolis. Jane brought her bff Maura Isles.
"We got pork and chicken, come get it while it's hot!"
"Where's the beef?" Tommy questioned.
"You snooze you lose!" his cousin told him.
"Really?"
"Nah, but you gotta wait for me to get more on the grill."
Jane went for the pork.
Maura went for the chicken, and started explaining the health benefits of poultry over red meat.
"I'm sure that chicken is healthier, but the point of barbeque is to stuff your face, not to be healthy."
Along with the ribs and chicken, they had potato salad, grilled corn and grilled mixed vegetables.
Vince wanted to try it all.
Tommy was flirting with the ladies.
"I don't believe we've met," he said as he looked at Casey.
Alex and Olivia looked at each other, trying not to laugh.
Olivia was enjoying the blueberry pie, but when Casey came near her with the pork, she suddenly turned green. "I'll be right back."
After she had gone inside, Maura asked how far along she was.
"Far along with what?" Jane questioned.
"Her pregnancy."
Everyone looked at Maura, what?
"She's sensitive to the smell of pork. She said she was lightheaded earlier and she was glowing which is because of …" Maura started talking about hormones and went way over everyone's head.
Alex couldn't believe it. Olivia's test had come back negative, but all of the symptoms were there. Her June treatment must have worked after all.
Abbie didn't think it was possible. "She's a lesbian, well they all are."
Casey's sly grin said it all.
"Y'all have been working on a baby and you didn't tell me!"
Olivia felt fine once she got away from the pork. She reached into the fridge for some ginger ale and decided to enjoy the cool indoors for a moment.
When she came back outside, Casey told her "we think the June treatment might of worked after all."
They hadn't done a blood test. Maura started telling them all about false positives and false negatives associated with urine tests.
"They fudge their accuracy results by …"
"Is she always so verbose?" Amy questioned.
Cory hushed her.
"Yes," Jane told her honestly.
On the way home, Olivia fell asleep in the car again.
"I can't believe it's happening," Casey said as Alex got on I-95. In nine month's time, they'd be parents.
Alex didn't want to get her hopes up, but she already had. "I hope she's a girl. A miniature Olivia would be so adorable."
Casey laughed. "She'd get away with murder because of you. I bet you'll have her wearing Prada by age 2."
"I wonder if they make Prada onesies," Alex questioned, only half-joking.
Casey covered her face with her hands. This was going to be one tricked out baby.