They lay quietly for a few minutes, each lost in her own thoughts and simply enjoying the closeness. Bette broke the reverie by lifting her head again and whispering, "I love you, T. I want this to work."

"I know. Me, too," Tina answered. Then she closed the distance between them and softly kissed Bette on the lips. The kiss was one of love and tenderness, a promise of a future together, a vow to never give up. "I love you, too."

Bette sighed into the kiss, transported by the feel of Tina’s soft lips on her own. When the kiss ended, Bette did not move; she wanted the moment to last forever.

The spell was finally broken by a cry from Angelica’s room. Tina gave Bette a final squeeze and said, "I think our little angel is finally hungry." She rolled off the bed and hurried to pick up the crying child. Bette did not follow right away, too drained to quickly shift back to reality and motherhood. But transition she did and she soon joined Tina in the kitchen.

Taking Angelica from Tina, who was preparing the toddler’s dinner, Bette cooed, "How is my little angel? Did you have a good nap, Angelica? Mama B took a nap, too. So now we’re all awake and ready to eat," she finished, directing her last comment toward Tina in a playful tone. "I wonder what Mommy has fixed for us?"

Tina slapped Bette on the rear and pretended to scold, "Us? Mommy has fixed Angelica a wonderful meal of yummy rice cereal and peaches. We adults are out of luck, since I used the last eggs this morning and the only other thing in the pantry is a jar of cocktail cherries."

Bette laughed and reached for the cordless phone sitting on the counter. "I’ll take care of dinner, T," she assured the hungry blonde as she dialed. Tina smiled as she heard Bette order from their favorite Chinese restaurant. Thank goodness for take-out; without it, Bette would probably starve to death.

A few hours later, everybody fed and the last remnants of dinner cleaned up, Tina declared it was bed time for Angelica. And, to tell the truth, for her. She had not slept much the night before, and the day had been emotionally draining. Bette followed Tina into Angelica’s room and together, they put their daughter to bed. Angelica obviously enjoyed having both mothers’ attention and settled down in contentment.

Bette shut the door and turned to Tina, who was waiting in the hall. She did not say anything, just looked into Tina’s eyes, took her by the hand, and led her into the bedroom. Making a quick visual check that the baby monitor was on, she shut the bedroom door behind them. Tina simply followed Bette, wondering what she was up to. She had some ideas, but wanted to see what Bette was planning.

Bette stopped in the middle of the room and pulled Tina around to face her. Taking her other hand and clasping them both, Bette spoke just one word: "Stay." It was half command, half plea, and Tina sensed that she did not have much choice in the matter–her heart had already made the decision. Gazing into Bette’s eyes, she whispered, "Always."

Their lips met with more intensity than either had experienced in years. They poured all of their sorrow, their longing, their hope, their love, and their passion into that kiss. They became lost in the sensation and the emotions, aware only of each other and the connection between them.

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They lay entwined, slick with perspiration and arousal, their more sensitive points still pulsing with satisfied desire. Each rested content in the knowledge that, at last, she was home.

THE END